Posted in Gig/Festival Reviews

Overkill, Purified in blood, 3 inches of blood – Islington academy, London – 7th October 2012

Purified In Blood put in a very energetic set. Their music felt powerful, angry and aggressive, and Hallgeir Enoksen certainly looked the part. He did everything possible to get the crowd going including climbing over the barrier and singing from the crowd as he tried to stir up some energy from the crowd. If you like your music loud, powerful, aggressive and good then these guys are well worth a listen.

Next up came 3 inches of Blood. If ever there’s a prize for the most misleading band name these guys must be in with a chance...

Posted in Cd Reviews

World Fire brigade is a band whose members have sold over 10 million records between them. You have Brett Scallions (Fuel), Sean Danielsen (Sile empty soul), and Eddie Wohl (producer for Anthrax, Ill nino, 36 crazy fists amongst others). So these guys clearly have experence in the music industry. They teamed up and started writing songs with the intention of licensing them out for other artists to record/perform but soon decided that the material they were writing was too good for them to want to give it to other artists, so they decided to record and release the songs themselves, and thus World Fire Brigade was born.

Brief comments on a few tracks

”The end of silence” isn’t a song as such – it’s just a short intro to the album...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Soldierfield formed in late 2011 and now just a year later are releasing their debut EP – ”Bury the ones we love”. The various band members have spent time in other bands including Rise to addiction, Blaze, Paradise Lost, and China Beach.

This EP certainly makes me look forward to them releasing a full length album. You’ve got a good solid metal core to the music with rock and prog thrown into the mix, which gives it a nice well rounded but heavy feel.

Brief comments on a couple of the tracks..

The EP starts off with the title track – ”Bury the Ones We Love”. Heavy guitar riffs and powerful vocals make this a definite metal track, but at the same time those rock influences creep in with the big chorus that makes it a song that will appeal to a wide range of people.

”Feel alive” is a mor...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Orden Ogan are back with their third album – ”To the end”. The German band released their first self produced demo/EP in 2004, then in 2008 released their debut album – ”Vale”. They signed with AFM records in 2009 then soon after had one of their songs ”We are pirates” used by German TV channel RTL in their coverage for the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Monza, gaining the band a huge amount of exposure and new fans. In 2010 they released their second album, ”Easton hope”. Now two years later it’s time for their third album to be released.

singer/guitarist Seeb says of the new album..”To The End” is a lot more heavy and fast, compared our first two albums. But at the same time there are a lot more hymns this time and the tracks are even more melodic...

Posted in Cd Reviews

German band Mob Rules are about to release the seventh album of their eighteen year career. ”Cannibal Nation” seems an odd title for a melodic metal band – it seems more suited to bands playing Death metal or one of the other heavier genres, but after eighteen years the bands fans aren’t going to be put off by the album title. There is a reason for the album title – the song of the same name is about African despot Jean-Bédel Bokassa – leader of the Central African Republic who was charged with crimes including Cannibalism.

Musically Mob Rules are Melodic metal – along the lines of Orden Ogan, Blind Guardian and Dragonforce. There are prog elements and power metal too, and there is plenty of power here along with the melodies...

Posted in Press Releases

Following the release on 22nd October of legendary guitarist Steve Hackett’s newest album, Genesis Revisited II which comes in a limited edition 2CD Media-book, as well as a 4LP & 2CD version, Steve is proud to announce details of his forthcoming 2013 world tour. The tour will be a special production and something of a departure from his recent live shows.

This will mark the first time any original former member of Genesis has toured the band’s repertoire solely from the 1971 – 1977 period and will comprise songs co-written by Steve from that period, including such classics as Supper’s Ready, Dancing with the Moonlit Knight and The Musical Box. The line-up will feature the addition of Nad Sylvan as principal vocalist on several songs...

Posted in Gig/Festival Reviews

It’s never easy choosing singles from an album, especially an album where the songs are both well-crafted and packed with lyrics that instantly throw up all kinds of visual ideas, some more bizarre than others. So, following on from ‘No Place Like Home’ and ‘No Friendly Neighbour’, singles one & two from the debut Primal Rock Rebellion album, ‘Awoken Broken’, it was decided that followers of the project – new to the public, but several years in the making – should be given the chance to register their vote, and the band’s online sites duly glowed red hot with suggestion and counter-suggestion as to just what single three should be…

An interesting exercise for sure, and by and large, what the Primal Rock People wanted was ‘Tortured Tone’… not one of the album’s more de...

Posted in Press Releases

Nuclear Blast is proud to announce the signing of US hardcore metal kings, HATEBREED, who have just inked a record deal including all European territories. North America and Canada will be handled by Razor & Tie.
The forthcoming album was co-produced by Hatebreed, Zeuss (SUICIDE SILENCE, ALL THAT REMAINS, SHADOWS FALL) and Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD). Wilbur also handled mixing duties on the new record. The new studio album will be supported by extensive global touring that will stretch well into 2014.
Commented singer Jamey Jasta, ”We’re really excited to be working with such great people at both Razor & Tie & Nuclear Blast. We’ve made an awesome album and we’re chomping at the bit to get it out and hit the road. Global domination begins now.”
Nuclear Blast A&R Jaap Wagem...

Posted in Press Releases

New York death metal veterans SUFFOCATION are currently in the finishing stages of their upcoming new album entitled ’Pinnacle of Bedlam’.

The record was produced by the band and tracked at Full Force Studios in New York by longtime collaborator Joe Cincotta. The mixing and mastering of the album is set to be handled this time around by world renowned producer/engineer Zeuss (HATEBREED, ARSIS, SUICIDE SILENCE). Pinnacle of Bedlam will feature 10 genre-defining-bone-crushing tracks and also marks the return of drummer Dave Culross, who played with the band previously on their Despise The Sun EP.

Bassist Derek Boyer offered the following update:
“The recording process of our new album, Pinnacle of Bedlam, began Monday, August 13th...

Posted in Cd Reviews

This is the latest release from Universal Music’s ”Re-presents” series. As usual they’ve dug through the archives and chosen a great album to re-release. This time it’s the live album ”Live at the Marquee” from British Blues band 9 below zero. The band formed in 1977 and continued till 1983 when they split, reforming later in 1990 and continuing to the present day. The band supported The Kinks and The Who on tour as well as peforming their own shows, and also appeared on television including The Chris Tarrant Show, South Bank Show, The Old Grey Whistle Test, and comedy series The Young Ones .

”Live at the Marquee” was recorded in 1980 at the Marquee club in London, and was released the same year as a single album. This meant that it was limited to 14 tracks...