Posted in Cd Reviews

Mausoleum/Border

Newcomes RAVEN LORD boosts one of the more interesting lineups of 2013. Front man Csaba Zvekan of KILLING MACHINE has joined forces with guitar hero Joe Stump, ex. TONY MARTIN bass player Jamie Mallender, drummer Lawrence “Larry” Paterson (ex. BLAZE BAILEY), guitarist George Karafotis and keyboard player Alessandro Duo. The combo sets out to find diehard devotees and fresh young disciples with their DIO/YNGWIE/PRIEST/SABBATH-tinged classic metal.

Opener “The Rebel” leaves little more to be wished for if you´re into the classics. Joe has an YNGWIE-like presence and tone and the US melodic heavy metal with European refrains sits nicely. Their “Atilla the Hun” will work most audiences on a drunken night, without quite reaching the opener´s magic...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Napalm Records/Sound Pollution

VAN CANTO mastermind Stefan Schmidt is behind this one, enlisting the aid of classic drummer Jörg Michael and a bunch of classical composers. Modern, undoubtedly German, power metal meets classical music in various doses. The BLIND GUARDIAN choir is here in part, the same goes for Stefan´s friends in VAN CANTO. Everything for true lovers of metal is said to be here, can this project be that complete?

First up, to avoid taking up page after page I steer clear of enlisting every classical movement that is used on this disc. When I first heard “Replica” Everything felt familiar at once, even the refrain. It was so well-packed together and so aimed at what may have become the heart of power metal...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Napalm/Sound Pollution

The info sheet tells of universal praise, all hell breaking loose and the next league of thrash. Canadians MOTRILLERY has created a buzz, but they may not be filling those shoes today.

It is a matter of taste, as they have a female vocalist on the verge of cracking her voice, some punk thrown in and all the trademarks of old school thrash that many ask for. I personally was around when the old school reigned, and I think they are well up to par with many an underground act. The sheer frenzy of songs like “No Way Out”, “Feed the Fire” and “F.O.A.D.” (yes, acronyms ruled back then) are sure enough to have people speaking about a new wave. But there is no need for the album to sound as it was made back then, and I think there are a few fillers in here...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Massacre/Sound Pollution

UK newcomers DAMNATION ANGELS show more than the term “newcomer” hints at. The lineup of main man, guitarist, orchestrator and backing vocalist William Graney (CRADLE OF FILTH orchestrator), vocalist Per Fredrik Asly (PELLE K for short as an artist), drummer John Graney, bassist Steven Averill and pianist Dawn Trigg have been around since 2006, and debuted with their first EP “Shadow Symphony” in 2009. The critics were nice and a lot of touring followed. The band then felt ready for their debut. This album was released in Japan in 2012 and the video for “Pride (The Warrior´s Way) has been viewed a lot on YouTube. What could stop them now?

Maybe not a lot...

Posted in Gig/Festival Reviews

The air was different at the Hi-Fi tonight, the usual demographic of hipsters, heavy metal heads and fluro kids have all been replaced with older males waiting for their beloved The Mark Of Cain to return to them. T-shirts of Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins and Faith No More littered the floor; this crowd was once a faithful youth to the music scene and they yearned for reincarnation.

Opening the night were prog rock bands, ‘The Sea Shall Not Have Them” and “Black Level Embassy”. Being a fan of prog I can appreciate the level of skill required to play this genre and sure, they were good at what they do, but to warm this sort of crowd in a venue like this? No. I’m dumbfounded as to how these acts gained their support roles here. Moving on.

The onstage arrival of The Mark Of Cai...

Posted in Press Releases

Folkligt bandsläpp till Bråvalla Festival!

Ångerockarna Takida och jazzpoparna Bo Kaspers Orkester besöker Norrköping och Bråvalla festival i sommar!

Posted in Press Releases

Since releasing their debut full-length Con Law in 2009, Generationals have consistently delivered pop hooks shone through a melancholic prism. 2013’s Heza brings the band to Polyvinyl and along with the label change, comes a subtle but significant sonic shift.

Recorded in phases at Jim Eno’s Public Hifi in Austin, producer Daniel Black’s Bent Black studio in D.C., and the band’s hometown of New Orleans, Heza finds Generationals more satisfied in writing songs that breathe and grow over time. These songs show restraint, with hooks developing in the spaces between sounds. The attention to rhythms and textures reveals a more patient band — one willing to dig for deeper gems than in their previous work...

Posted in Press Releases

Cathedral have released a music video for the song ’Tower Of Silence’.

Inspired by classic cult British Film Institutions such as Amicus and Hammer House of Horror, ’Tower of Silence’ was shot on location during the British Winter of 2012 at Gunnersbury Park Tower, London. It features a guest appearance from Purson’s Rosalie Cunningham, who places a symbolic black orchid on the tombstone of each member in the clips closing scenes.

Directed by UK based Paraffin City Productions, Tower of Silence will be the last full production promo video ever made by this British Doom Metal institution and is taken from their final album, The Last Spire, out April 29th on RISE ABOVE Records.

Posted in Press Releases

Swedish melodic metal outfit, Dead By April, have revealed that they will play a 4-date headline UK tour this May with support from fellow Swedes, Beyond All Recognition.

The tour sees the band return to the UK for the first time since their headline run back in November 2011.

DBA guitarist Pontus Hjelm says:-

”We’re stoked to get back to the UK to tour and to visit our favourite audience. A lot of the fans in the UK have followed us from day one, so we can’t wait to come over and perform some new tunes!”

UK headline dates:
15.5.13 – Bogiez, Cardiff
16.5.13 – NQ Live, Manchester
18.5.13 – The Underworld, London
19.5.13 – Joiner’s Arms, Southampton

A follow-up to second studio album, ‘Incomparable’, is due to be released this September via Spinefarm Records.

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Posted in Cd Reviews

Producer Joe Boyd has brought together a group of artists to create a tribute album for Nick Drake. Nick Drake died at the age of just 26, still relatively unknown, but his songs have grown in popularity since his death. What is unusual about this album is that although each song is recorded with different singers or musicians, these weren’t recorded separately – instead Joe Boyd got everyone together in one place to record together. The artists chosen had to have one quality – they had to sound unlike Nick Drake.

So what we have here is a collection of 15 of Nick Drake’s songs, recorded with quite different styles with very different sounding vocalists. There’s a mix of male and female vocals, with all being at a high level of quality...