Hall of the Mountain King

Review: Widow, "Life's Blood"

2012-02-12T21:37:00.000-08:00

My relationship with Widow has been up and down. I really liked my introduction to them, On Fire, when they were a female-fronted, horror-themed outfit. Their last outing, Nightlife, just didn’t do anything for me. So I went into Life’s Blood not really knowing what to expect, and that’s probably why it took me so long to delve into this one. I was won over from the first track.

The album opens with an old school hard rocker “Lady Twilight,” which heads back into that original early 1980s metal territory that I liked so well on On Fire. The song flat out rocks, with a wailing guitar riff and a great chorus hook that gets stuck in your head. It reminds me of recent efforts from acts like White Wizzard and Holy Grail.

Though, I’ll admit that I don’t remember much about Nightlife, based solely on my review of it, it would seem that vocalist/bassist John E. Wooten’s chops have improved a bit over the years. I really like his approach here, and the songwriting also seems to have gotten better. He’s dropped the occasional screams in favor of a full-on traditional metal approach and it absolutely works.

Though “Lady Twilight” is probably my favorite track, there are plenty of good ones here. “In Dreams” opens with a classic clean guitar lick that puts me in mind of some of Judas Priest’s earliest work. It’s nice and tasty. There are some great vocal harmonies on the track and another catchy chorus. “Take Hold of the Night” picks up the pace of the record again, delivering an epic chorus with an infectious galloping heavy guitar riff underneath. It runs a close second as my favorite of the record.

“The Burning Ones” takes the band more into power metal territory, but the opening riff is great, and there are some very nice leads in the song by guitarist Chris Bennett. Those lead licks carry over into “Live Beyond,” which also features a big power riff. “I Scream for Ice Queen,” perhaps the heaviest number on Life’s Blood, bashes with thrash-like intensity in the early going, and I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t the cheesy sex song that I expected from the title. It’s actually a pretty tough, hard-driving and dark number.

There are certainly highlights on the record, notably the first three songs, but there really isn’t a bad tune from start to finish. Life’s Blood has everything you want from a traditional metal album – big guitar riffs, cool vocal harmonies and memorable melodies and hooks. Among the recent spurt of neo-traditional metal albums, it’s one of the few standouts that pays tribute to the roots of the music, but doesn’t try to mimic the classic artists. It’s good stuff, and I’m back on the Widow bandwagon.

Review: Van Halen, "A Different Kind of Truth"

2012-02-09T18:58:00.000-08:00

Note: This review originally appeared at Something Else Reviews. When you're finished here, head over there for a couple of other takes on this one.

I stand corrected – and pleasantly surprised, too.

When I went into my first listen of Van Halen’s A Different Kind of Truth, I was expecting a steaming pile of mediocrity. After a few spins, I think the team in charge of promoting the record has done a big disservice to it in the clips that they’ve allowed to dribble out to the public. Those clips, with the exception of “The Trouble with Never,” which I’ll get to in a minute, have largely been forgettable and often not even the best parts of the songs.

Take “Stay Frosty,” for example. The clip out there makes it sound like a weak attempt to recreate “Ice Cream Man.” It is, of course, an attempt to recreate that song, but by the time you get to the turbo-charged hard rock section later in the tune, you don’t really care. It’s great stuff, and it’s what Van Halen should sound like.

Then there’s the lead single “Tattoo.” Granted, the song is a bit of an earworm after a few listens, but it hardly represents what this record is about. It’s not the kind of track that makes you want to run right out and get the record when it hits shelves on Tuesday. Which brings me back to “The Trouble with Never.” It seems like the obvious track to launch this record. It shows in its opening moments what just about every fan of early Van Halen wants to know – that the band is back and rejuvenated. It opens with this funky, rocking guitar riff that leads into David Lee Roth’s inimitable, over-the-top delivery. It has swagger. It has attitude. It’s an announcement that this is more than a cash-in on Roth being back in the band. There’s real energy here that I haven’t heard in Van Halen in a while.

That spirit carries throughout most of the record. It’s loaded with big, crazy riffing from Eddie Van Halen. My personal favorite is the slightly middle-eastern flavored bit on “Honeybabysweetiedoll,” which leads into a crunchy, heavy, metallic verse lick. It’s not the best song on the record, but it’s my favorite guitar piece. That heaviness returns again on the opening of “As Is,” another favorite, before it busts out into a classic swinging Van Halen run. “China Town” opens, as many classic Van Halen songs do, with a tapped lead lick from Eddie, then kicks into hyperdrive with that classic driving Alex Van Halen drum beat. It’s one of a number of high-energy, low BS songs that includes “Outta Space,” which rocks hard on the lines of “Atomic Punk.”

Eddie Van Halen’s licks on this record have more personality than they’ve had since probably Fair Warning. Look no farther than the opening of “Beats Working” to hear it. There’s some soulfulness in “Big River,” and “She’s the Woman” feels like something that would have been at home on their first record. There is, of course, a good reason for that. Much has been made of the fact that the band dug back into its archives to resurrect some old tunes and redo them for A Different Kind of Truth. So what? When “As Is” or “The Trouble With Never” comes blasting out of my speakers, I couldn’t care less if they were written yesterday or in 1976. I’m just glad to be hearing them, glad to have a Van Halen record that I can crank up to start the party again.

As I listen to the record, I keep coming back to one word – swagger. That could be a complete review of this album in itself. It’s something that the best work from Van Halen has always had, and something that, for me, was often missing in the post-DLR version of the band. Regardless of what the actual dynamic in the band is these days – and I have little hope that EVH and DLR can coexist on a permanent basis – A Different Kind of Truth sounds like a band that is reenergized and having a blast.

Eddie is shredding away at his best, Alex is laying down some classic Van Halen beats and David Lee Roth is, well, David Lee Roth. He’s zany, over-the-top and sometimes a bit cheesy, but all of those things are what we loved about him in the first place. He’s not and has never been a better singer than Sammy Hagar, but this is rock ’n’ roll. The best singer isn’t always the best guy for the job. As for the new addition to the band, Wolfgang, I think he’s a better player than original bassist Michael Anthony, who wasn’t really known for his chops (see “Runnin’ with the Devil”). But I do agree that this record really misses Anthony’s vocal harmonies, and it just would have been nice to have all four guys back together. That, however, is about the only thing I can find to complain about, and given how good the music is, I’m not likely to complain about it long or often.

In the coming weeks, a lot of people will have a lot of things to say about this record, and I’m sure not all of them will be good. I probably won’t hear them, though, because I’ll have A Different Kind of Truth on and my stereo will be cranked up to 11.

15 Years, 15 Records: 2001, Jon Oliva takes the helm for Savatage again

2012-02-07T19:48:00.000-08:00

The field of candidates for 2001 wasn’t the strongest, but the year did see original singer Jon Oliva return to the helm of Savatage on Poets and Madmen. The album is probably the band’s least publicized and, possibly, least known, which is a shame because it’s a great record.

The record has a loose concept based around the work of journalist Kevin Carter, whose Pulitzer Prize-winning photo from the Sudan was featured on the tray card of the CD, but covered by a black-backed jewel case because of record company financial ills. It wasn’t until I interviewed producer Paul O’Neill just a few years ago and he told me the story that I even discovered the photo was there. Like all Savatage records, this one has great variety from big metal mashers like “I Seek Power” to tender piano-driven ballads like “Back to a Reason” to the more symphonic sounds of “Commissar.”

This record is bittersweet for me. Oliva returns to the vocals, and it’s a great record, but it was also the last Savatage record. Though I love most of the projects the guys are involved in now, and I love TSO, there’s just something about getting them all together that I like more. Hopefully we’ll hear it again at least one more time.

The rest:
2. Alice Cooper, Dragontown. The third in a trilogy of heavier records before Alice Cooper returned to his garage rock roots, Dragontown is the weakest of those in my mind, but still better than most of the stuff that came out in 2001. There are some great tunes like the dark title track and the rocking “Fantasy Man” and the industrial-tinged “Sex, Death and Money.” Alice rarely disappoints.

3. Opeth, Blackwater Park. This is Opeth’s finest moment, in my opinion. Everything comes together on Blackwater Park – the ghostly melodies, the death metal heaviness, the eclectic influences from middle-eastern to blues. Blackwater Park is majestic, brutal and beautiful.

4. Into Eternity, Dead or Dreaming. The second record from the Canadian prog-deathers was my introduction to the band, and I was blown away by it. “Absolution of the Soul” alone would put this record in my top five for the year, but there are plenty of other great tunes to choose from, too.

5. Disturbed, The Sickness. It’s been an up-and-down career for screaming nu-metallers Disturbed, but the band’s debut is one of the great albums of the movement. I remember first seeing them opening for Pantera on a short-lived HBO concert show (not the one the video below is from, but an earlier one), and I was immediately taken by David Draiman’s unique vocal style and the crazy melodies. I still am.

6. Ozzy Osbourne, Down to Earth. Down to Earth doesn’t get the credit it deserves. With the mess that Ozzy’s career has become in recent years, it’s easy to overlook, but there were some really good songs on this record. It’s not Blizzard or Diary or No More Tears, but it’s still a really good album and deserves to be heard.

7. The Cult, Beyond Good and Evil. I hadn’t thought about The Cult in a lot of years when this record came out, but the crunchy first single “Rise” caught my attention and drew me into the record. It remains one of my favorite works by the band.

8. Soil, Scars. “Halo.” Need I say more? The record is full of great, catchy hard rock songs, and I love singer Ryan McCombs’ delivery. I’m glad he’s back in the Soil fold after a few dismal years in Drowning Pool. Here’s hoping the band can come close to this one again.

9. Iced Earth, Horror Show. This is not one of my favorite Iced Earth records. I thought it was far too driven by the horror movie theme, and some of the songs seem a little forced and not up to par. There are some great ones here still, though.

10. Slayer, God Hates Us All. It’s Slayer. That’s pretty much all you need to know.

11. Black Label Society, Alcohol Fueled Brewtality. I like the live portion of this record, but the strength of it is in the second disc, which includes incredible covers of Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold” and Sabbath’s “Snow Blind,” a complete and effective reimagination of the song.

12. Arch Enemy, Wages of Sin. The first record with frontwoman Angela Gossow played pretty close the vest. I prefer some of the more melodic later records, but this one is still good.

13. Amorphis, Am Universum. Though I prefer older albums with more death influences, like Elegy, and the newer stuff with singer Tomi Joutsen, Am Universum is not a bad record.

14. Annihilator, Carnival Diablos. The short-lived reunion of most of the Alice in Hell lineup ended, and former Overkill guitarist Joe Comeau came on as the singer. The result was a record that’s OK, but not on par with Jeff Waters’ best work.

15. Rob Zombie, The Sinister Urge. There are some really good songs on this album, but it’s too short and there’s too much extraneous noise and filler on it.

15 Years, 15 Records: 2000, Alice Cooper gets 'Brutal'

2012-02-02T19:17:00.000-08:00

The thrashing opening riff of Alice Cooper’s Brutal Planet announces immediately that this record is going to be a little different. The record, which is essentially a morality play, is darker and bleaker with less of Cooper’s trademark black humor, though it does creep in on songs like “It’s the Little Things.”

It’s a heavier record musically, easily Alice’s most metallic, and the themes that he tackles in the songs are heavier as well. It was part of a trio of heavier records, ending with 2001’s Dragontown, after which he returned to his garage rock roots.

Brutal Planet won’t likely eclipse classics like Welcome to My Nightmare or Billion Dollar Babies on most fans’ lists of favorite Alice albums, but it belongs in the conversation. It’s a fascinating album both musically and thematically, and it’s just a damned good record on top of that.

2. Black Label Society, Stronger than Death. On Stronger Than Death, Zakk Wylde got a little heavier and fixed the audio problems of BLS’ first record. This is possibly the band’s strongest outing and features my favorite sound of any of their records. Favorites include “Phony Smiles and Fake Hellos,” “Superterrorizer” and “13 Years of Grief.”

3. Dio, Magica. Here’s a very underrated album from Dio. It’s a concept album based around a story that’s also narrated by Dio on the record. A lot of people overlook it, but it’s very good. Probably his best effort outside of his classic 1980s work.

4. Demons & Wizards, Demons & Wizards. A power metal dream team. Iced Earth bandleader Jon Schaffer teams up with Blind Guardian singer Hansi Kursch for a record that sounds like both bands and neither at the same time.

5. Halford, Resurrection. After his departure from Judas Priest, the end of his thrash outfit Fight and the weird experimental record from 2wo, fans were probably wondering where exactly Rob Halford’s head was in 2000. He showed quickly that it was right back under the spiked leather motorcycle hat he wore for years as Priest’s frontman. Songs like the title track and “Made in Hell” were vintage Halford, and who can deny a duet between the Metal God and Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson on “The One You Love to Hate?”

6. Pantera, Reinventing the Steel. Pantera was beginning to fray at the edges when this album as made, and though I really liked it at the time, in retrospect, you can hear the tension. There are still some very good songs here, but in hindsight, it’s probably the band’s weakest record.

7. Armored Saint, Revelation. Coming off a six-year hiatus after John Bush joined Anthrax, Armored Saint proved they still had it, deliving an album every bit as good as the classic Symbol of Salvation.

8. Iron Maiden, Brave New World. With Bruce Dickinson back in the fold, Iron Maiden got about the business of putting the Blaze Bayley years behind them. With songs like “Ghost of the Navigator” and personal favorite “Dream of Mirrors,” Brave New World remains the band’s best effort since the reunion.

9. Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Beethoven’s Last Night. TSO’s first non-Christmas record turned some of Beethoven’s most well-known melodies into rock opera. There are also some great originals here, and we got to hear Jon Oliva for the first time on a TSO record.

10. Iommi, Iommi. Black Sabbath riffmaster Tony Iommi teamed up with vocalists from all corners of the metal world for this solo record. While a bit inconsistent, there are some fantastic performances here.

11. In Flames, Clayman. This was my introduction to In Flames. I was, and still am, only a dabbler in the more extreme metal genres, so I wasn’t aware of them until I heard “Pinball Map,” which inspired me to explore more of their work. Clayman remains a favorite of mine in their catalog.

12. Union Underground, An Education in Rebellion. A short-lived industrial-tinged nu-metal project, Union Underground doesn’t get a lot of recognition, but this was one of the better albums of the genre.

13. Johnny Cash, American III: Solitary Man. To me, this is one of the weakest entries of Cash’s American Recordings series, but still great.

14. Sentenced, Crimson. This was also my introduction to Sentenced, and I was immediately enthralled by the morbid, yet at times inspiring, doom and gloom.

15. Cypress Hill, Skull and Bones. I’m not crazy about the rap disc, but the rock disc alone makes it worth this list.

Other notable records from this year: Soulfly, Primitive; Godsmack, Awake; Poison, Crack a Smile (no, I’m not kidding)

Freebies: New music from The Cult

2012-01-31T15:26:00.000-08:00

The Cult is currently offering a download of the song "Lucifer" from the band's upcoming album Choice of Weapon. Click below to get it.

Review: Nightwish, Imaginaerum

2012-01-29T12:36:00.000-08:00

When Nightwish’s Imaginaerum came out in Europe back in November, I didn’t pay much attention.

I had a fling with Nightwish quite a few years back, but it didn’t last long. I know it will be sacrilege to a certain segment of the band’s fans, but it was really Tarja Turunen’s vocals that did me in. Her soprano, while impressive, was almost too pretty, too perfect. It didn’t have the expressiveness that I thought the music needed, and after a while, her vocal lines sort of blended together for me, no matter what the music sounded like. This isn’t a knock on Turunen, just a matter of personal taste. I’ve got the same problem with just about every female vocalist that sings operatic soprano lines most of the time. I just need a little more variety and maybe, occasionally, a little grit.

I was aware that she had left the band, and I think I checked out a few songs from the first record with Anette Olzon, but by that point, they were well off my radar.

Until a few nights ago, that is, when a few random clicks on Youtube landed me on the video for “Storytime,” the lead single from Imaginaerum. I’m not even sure what made me click on the video when it popped up on the side rail, but about six repeated listens later, it sent me digging around in my e-mail to see if I could locate the promo link for the record.

Instant connections with songs are rare for me, but “Storytime” made one on several levels. First, it’s just a great song. There’s a bit of darkness, a bit of playfulness, a bit of childlike wonder and a bit of the mystical. It’s like reading an old-school fairy tale where the story is, on the surface, bright and happy, but you know that there’s something really bad lurking just in the shadows out of sight. Besides that, there are just a ton of great hooks in the melody lines.

But I was also drawn to the song from a lyrical standpoint. As a wannabe writer myself, I like the ideas here of worlds within worlds in the imagination. I’ve always wanted to capture in one of my own works that perfect vibe of fanciful with just an edge of creepiness and unease that you get with something like Alice in Wonderland or Peter Pan. Sadly, I’ve never been able to do it, but “Storytime” does it well.

But, as good as that one song is, there are 12 more on the album, right? How do they stack up? Quite well, actually.

It opens with the folk intro “Taikatalvi,” sung in Finnish by male vocalist Marco Hietala. I’ve got no idea what it’s about – maybe some of the Finns out there can help me out if I haven’t offended them too bad with the Tarja comments – but it’s dark and melancholy and I love it.

“Ghost River” starts off as a pretty straight-forward Goth-style rocker, but moves into more operatic and over-the-top symphonics for a strong chorus that gives Hietala a chance to show his more manic side. As an aside, the guitar riff in the very opening reminds me, for some reason, of early Van Halen, though certainly nothing else about the song does. There are, of course, some nice fairly straight pieces here, like “Rest Calm” and “I Want My Tears Back,” which nevertheless has an interesting, almost Celtic folk feel in the louder portions. The Celtic influence comes back strongly on the ballad “Turn Loose the Mermaids,” which also finds Olzon taking on Gaelic lilt in her vocals. Another ballad, “The Crow, the Owl and the Dove” offers the best interplay between the two vocalists. A melancholy, traditional number in the early going, it gives Olzon and Hietala chances to harmonize and mingle their voices, and you almost wish they’d do that more often.

“Scaretale” is the nightmare segment of the record with some heavy, dark symphonic sounds and a spooky children’s chorus building into a thrashing guitar riff and some very theatric vocals from Olzon. Then Hietala gets his turn on a thumping, fun Vaudevillian segment with no metallic elements whatsoever. From there it’s back to more familiar, but still well-done, symphonic metal territory and then a dip back into that opening sequence to round out the song. Next to “Storytime,” it’s easily my favorite piece on Imaginaerum.

“Song of Myself” gives you the “epic” song, checking in at nearly 14 minutes and bringing most of the sounds on the record together. There are some very heavy segments, some over-the-top symphonic bits and some ethereal gothic parts. The last half of the song is a recitation of a poem inspired by Walt Whitman’s transcendentalist poem of the same name as the song. I rolled my eyes a little on first listen, but I kind of like it after a few takes.

I’ve always been a fan of oddities on metal records, and I love the ones that we get here. The smooth lounge jazz of “Slow, Love, Slow” is really cool, and gives Olzon a chance to show off some huskier, sultry tones. The instrumental “Arabesque” has, obviously, a lot of middle-eastern flavor, but also a dream-like quality to it. During the three minutes of the song, you can imagine, at times, harem dancers moving to the music or Aladdin-style adventures, magic and sword fights.

The whole record has a great variety and a nice flow. It’s all about imagination and dreams within dreams, and the concept is carried out nearly flawlessly. I’m a bit surprised to say that I really, really like Imaginaerum. It’s a record that takes you on a journey, and it’s one well worth taking. It’s a shame that I didn’t give it a listen back in November because it probably would have landed pretty high on my year-end list. On the bright side, the U.S. release date was just last week, so it can still make this year’s, and there’s also a movie in the works based on Tuomas Holopainen’s story, which could be interesting.

15 Years, 15 Records: 1999, Jeff Waters annihilates the competition

2012-01-27T17:13:00.000-08:00

Annihilator’s debut record Alice in Hell blew me away in 1989. The blend of technical thrash, cool melodies and extreme metal style aggression was a kick in the pants. I also enjoyed the follow up, Never, Neverland with Omen vocalist Coburn Pharr on the mic. Then came the third record, Set the World on Fire, with yet another vocalist. It had a lighter sound, and I just was not at all impressed with the voice of Aaron Randall. I wandered away from the band and missed a few records.

Then, in 1999, I heard that founder Jeff Waters was putting the Alice in Hell lineup back together, and I was intrigued. The result was Criteria for a Black Widow, featuring three-fourths of the band responsible for their classic debut (bassist Wayne Darley didn’t return). Though my reaction to this record wasn’t quite as profound as the one to Alice in Hell, I was still impressed. This album brought the power back to the band and gave us some great new Annihilator tunes in the style of their first two records.

The dark, tough “Punctured” is the centerpiece of the record delivering a gut-punch bridge and chorus. “Back to the Palace,” a nod to the first two records, brings back the circus-y hook melodies, and “Loving the Sinner” is just a straight-up hard driving thrasher.

Sadly, the reunion was short-lived, but it did give us one hell of a record.

Overall, 1999 was kind of a weak year, I think. Here’s the rest of the field:

2. Zakk Wylde, Book of Shadows. It took me a long time to come around to this record. The cover had a very Black Sabbath vibe, and I picked it up expecting some heavy, gnarly metal. Instead, I got a country/Southern-rock flavored collection of mostly acoustic songs. I initially hated the record, and it was many years later before I finally came around to it. “Sold My Soul” is now one of my favorite Wylde songs from any of his projects.

3. Overkill, Necroshine. I was not a big Overkill fan growing up. They were one of those bands that kind of existed on the fringes of my taste. I didn’t dislike them when I heard them, but there was rarely a song that made me want to go out and pick up a record. The hard rock-style melodies of the title track and “Stone Cold Jesus” won me over to this record.

4. Testament, The Gathering. Testament’s output during the late 1990s remains highly underrated. While 1997’s Demonic was perhaps a little strange for fans, The Gathering saw a pretty much all-star lineup joining vocalist Chuck Billy and guitarist Eric Petersen, including legendary Death guitarist James Murphy, Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo and Death/Iced Earth bassist Steve Digiorgio. The result is a dark, fast, energetic thrash piece.

5. Hank III, Risin’ Outlaw. Hank III’s debut record was a far cry from what he would become, featuring many songs penned by other people, most notably fellow neotraditionalist Wayne Hancock. With the possible exception of a rendition of Johnny Cash’s “Cocaine Blues,” it’s III’s tamest outing by far. Still, some of what’s to come creeps in here and there.

6. Nevermore, Dreaming Neon Black. This concept record is a bit darker and slower than other Nevermore albums, but it’s one of my favorites from their impressive catalog.

7. Danzig, Satan’s Child. After heavy experimentation with electronic sounds on blackacidevil, Danzig starts to drift back toward his metal roots here. There’s still a lot of electronic stuff, but his version of “Thirteen,” which he wrote for Johnny Cash makes it worth owning this record.

8. Iced Earth, Alive in Athens. Iced Earth live and at their best. What more is there to say.

9. WASP, Helldorado. This is the last WASP album to really catch my attention. After the industrial experimentation of KFD and some heavy-handed concept work, Blackie Lawless returns to his hard rock roots for a simple, rocking record.

10. Angel Dust, Bleed. This record was a little darker and thrashier than previous release Border of Reality. It’s, in my opinion, the best release from an underrated band.

11. Metallica, S&M. There’s some crap here, but I admit to enjoying hearing the symphonic take on some of the older tunes.

12. Lacuna Coil, In a Reverie. The record that introduced us to Lacuna Coil and Cristina Scabbia, still the best female voice in metal.

13. Buckcherry, Buckcherry. I have a love/hate relationship with Buckcherry. This album of old school hard rock was just what I needed at the time, but the inane hit “Crazy Bitch” that I heard incessantly a few years ago kind of ruined them for me.

14. Sevendust, Home. Sevendust’s second record was good, though not nearly as good as their debut, but it was the last album they released that caught my attention.

15. Quiet Riot, Alive and Well. This pick is more out of nostalgia than a good record for me. It’s the reunion of the Metal Health lineup, which was one of my favorites as a kid.

Other 1999 records to check out: Amon Amarth, The Avenger; In Flames, Colony; Lillian Axe, Fields of Yesterday; Opeth, Still Life; Seven Witches, Second War in Heaven; Soilwork, The Chainheart Machine.

15 Years, 15 Records: 1998, Iced Earth burns it up

2012-01-25T20:48:00.000-08:00

In the second year of the series, I have another three-way dilemma. Iced Earth’s iconic Something Wicked This Way Comes, my favorite Blind Guardian record, Nightfall in Middle-Earth, and the very solid Wake of Magellan by one of my favorite bands, Savatage, were all released in 1998. Because it’s their strongest work, I chose Something Wicked.

Though he was the third singer in Iced Earth, Matt Barlow had already made his mark with two new studio records – Burnt Offerings and the Dark Saga – and a collection of re-recorded songs from the band’s earlier records – Days of Purgatory. But it was on Something Wicked that it appeared the ever-revolving lineup of Iced Earth might be close to becoming a unified band. That’s not to say the earlier albums were sloppy, but this seemed to be a tighter, more well-rounded record.

There’s a nice variety on Something Wicked, including, for my money, one of the band’s absolute best songs in “Burning Times.” The thrash vibe is very apparent on a number of the tracks, most notably the album’s most aggressive tune, “Disciples of the Lie.” But the softer side of the band shines as well on one of my favorite Iced Earth ballads, “Watching Over Me,” a melancholy yet uplifting ode to a fallen friend. The album, of course, also introduced Iced Earth’s mascot Set Abominae with the final three songs, which laid the groundwork for the much less impressively executed Something Wicked concept records – Framing Armageddon and The Crucible of Man – which arrived years later.

This record offered a lot of promise for stabilization of the band, but as we know, the door continued to revolve with Tim Owens coming in for a couple of albums, Barlow returning, and now, Stu Block taking over vocal duties for the latest album. And we won’t even get into the other positions in the band.

Still, for the brand of American power/thrash that Iced Earth plays, it doesn’t get much better than Something Wicked This Way Comes.

2. Blind Guardian, Nightfall in Middle-Earth. Blind Guardian had been known for their odes to Tolkien long before this concept record based on “The Silmarillion” came out, but this album took it to a different level. It’s also, for me, the band’s best work musically. Check out the epic “Nightfall” or the blazing “Mirror, Mirror.”

3. Savatage, The Wake of Magellan. The band’s final album with vocalist Zachary Stevens was as reliable as ever. Founder Jon Oliva, after making his reappearance on vocals on Dead Winter Dead, put in even more work here, and for me, it’s one of the best of the post-Criss Oliva records. Wake of Magellan produced some great Savatage tunes including “Blackjack Guillotine,” “Paragons of Innocence” and, of course, Oliva’s fantastic piano version of “Somewhere in Time/Alone You Breathe.”

4. Bruce Dickinson, The Chemical Wedding. The second collaboration between Dickinson and Adrian Smith didn’t impress me quite as much as 1997’s Accident of Birth, but it’s still an outstanding record. Many fans consider it better than Accident.

5. Rob Zombie, Hellbilly Deluxe. Rob Zombie’s first solo effort after the dissolution of White Zombie was different, yet familiar. It’s a record full of great hooks. He’s yet to match it, and likely never will since it seems that music is secondary now.

6. Black Label Society, Sonic Brew. The debut album from Zakk Wylde’s BLS would have been much higher on my list, except for the horrible sound quality. There are great songs here, but it often sounds like it was recorded through a busted speaker

7. Marilyn Manson, Mechanical Animals. After 1996’s Antichrist Superstar, which might be the last record ever to scare parents, Manson took a different direction. This spacey record is mellower, but very interesting. It owes much to Bowie.

8. Anthrax, Vol. 8: The Threat is Real. I’m on record as a fanboy of the John Bush era of Anthrax, and I believe this is one of the underrated records of that era.

9. Judas Priest, ’98 Live Meltdown. Despite the absence of Rob Halford, this remains one of my favorite live Priest records. It sounds great, and Tim Owens sings the hell out of songs old and new.

10. Godsmack, Godsmack. This was a promising debut from a band that’s had its ups and downs, a mixture of Alice in Chains and Black Album-era Metallica.

11. Monster Magnet, Powertrip. The stoner rockers’ breakthrough record is also the band’s strongest, in my opinion. It deserves a spot on this list for “Space Lord” alone.

12. Slayer, Diabolous in Musica. A lot of people didn’t like this record because Slayer took a few chances here and there with sounds that weren’t typically Slayer. That’s why I did like it.

13. Kid Rock, Devil Without a Cause. Stop rolling your eyes. This was a fun record all-around, and though he’s become boring over the years, I still like it.

14. Metallica, Garage Inc. This one’s a bit of a cheat. I chose it not for most of the songs that were newly recorded for it, but for collecting all of the early covers in one place.

15. Black Sabbath, Reunion. I put this last simply because the new songs on it weren’t that great, but I thought it deserved a spot just for historical value.

Other albums from 1998 that just missed the list: Union, Union; Amon Amarth, Once Sent from the Golden Hall; Dio, Live Inferno; Opeth, My Arms, Your Hearse; Amorphis, Tuonela.

Freebies: Soulfly offering download of new track

2012-01-25T14:52:00.000-08:00

For the next 48 hours, Soulfly is offering a free download of the track "World Scum" from their upcoming album Enslaved. To get it, visit the band's Facebook page.

15 Years, 15 Records: 1997, Bruce Dickinson returns

2012-01-24T19:16:00.000-08:00

It’s the first year in the series, and already there’s a three-way battle for my favorite record between Bruce Dickinson’s comeback album Accident of Birth, Aerosmith’s underrated Nine Lives and Judas Priest’s debut with Tim “Ripper” Owens, Jugulator. In the end, though, Dickinson’s reunion with Adrian Smith and return to a more familiar brand of metal won out.

I quite enjoyed Dickinson’s solo debut, Tattooed Millionaire, even though it was more of a brand of 1970s hard rock than what I was familiar with from his days in Iron Maiden. His second outing, Balls To Picasso, left me a little cold. I loved “Tears of the Dragon” and a few other songs, but didn’t care for most of the record. By the time the strange Skunkworks arrived, I had pretty much written him off.

Then came the news that he was reuniting with former Maiden bandmate Smith and putting together a harder-hitting metal record. The result was Accident of Birth, the beginning of a strong run of solo albums from Dickinson that, I would argue, are better than the Maiden offerings from the same time period.

There’s not a bad song on Accident of Birth from start to finish, but my favorites include the medieval flavored “Taking the Queen,” the melancholy “Man of Sorrows” and the driving “The Magician.”

The rest of the list:
2. Aerosmith, Nine Lives. Since the reunion of the original members in the 1980s, Aerosmith has never, and probably will never, produce anything as powerful as their early 1970s records, but Nine Lives is one of the best efforts of the latter years. There are plenty of great songs here from the exotic sounds of my personal favorite “Taste of India,” to the smoky lounge feel of “Ain’t that a Bitch.” It stands with Pump as the best the Boston bad boys have to offer post-1970s.

3. Judas Priest, Jugulator. I know a lot of people would like to pretend that Rob Halford never left and the albums with Tim Owens don’t exist. That’s a shame, because Jugulator is a really good record. It’s got a harder edge for Priest, and Owens sings his ass off, as always. Highlights include “Blood Stained,” “Burn in Hell’ and “Cathedral Spires.”

4. Iced Earth, Days of Purgatory. Under normal circumstances, I’m not a big fan of bands re-recording earlier songs. This record, however, was my introduction to Iced Earth and I didn’t go back and pick up their earlier stuff until later, so it’s always been near and dear to me.

5. Sevendust, Sevendust. One of the first entries of nu-metal, this record gave a good start to a subgenre that fizzled quickly.

6. Entombed, To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth. Many fans didn’t like the direction of this record, but I liked the hard rock sensibility that the band brought to it.

7. Megadeth, Cryptic Writings. One of Megadeth’s most underrated records in my opinion. There are some great songs here.

8. Alice Cooper, Fistful of Alice. A great live record with plenty of high-profile guest shots that covers most of Alice’s career.

9. Eternity X, The Edge. I’m not sure why this band never made it. They were a great prog metal outfit.

10. Pantera, Official Live 101 Proof. Though I prefer the rawness of the Black Tooth bootleg, this is a solid live album in its own right.

11. WASP, KFD. Blackie Lawless’ experimentation with electronic and industrial sounds wasn’t popular with a lot of fans, but I still like it.

12. In Flames, Whoracle. For many fans, this is the definitive In Flames record, and with good reason.

13. Body Count, Violent Demise. Though Body Count's final record didn’t draw the attention of the first one, it was probably the most well-rounded album for Ice-T’s hard rock experiment.

14. Kiss, Carnival of Souls. The long-delayed album from the final unmasked lineup couldn’t equal Revenge, but was still a good album.

15. Testament, Demonic. Perhaps the strangest of the Testament records, my opinion has changed several times on this one. I think it’s worth checking out, though.

15 Years, 15 Records: Intro

2012-01-23T12:49:00.000-08:00

In finally getting around to setting up a Facebook page for this site, it dawned on me that, in some shape or form, Hall of the Mountain King has been up and running for 15 years. Since not a lot of sites can boast 15 years, even one as small as this, I thought it was cause for a little celebration.

Back in 1997, I was a fresh-faced kid who had just discovered the Internet, and I had a big plan. I launched Hall of the Mountain King on the old members.aol.com server, and I envisioned it as eventually being a destination site for all things hard rock and heavy metal as well as all things speculative fiction.

The first incarnations of the site were truly special. Wild colors, things flashing, things moving, scrolling text at the top of the pages, midi music on every page. I'm actually pretty glad those days of the site have been lost to time. If you're curious, though, here's a tamer version of the site from 1998, courtesy of the Web Archive, after I had calmed things down a bit.

I'm also glad some of those early reviews have been lost to time. Some of them were pretty awful -- yes, even worse than some of the ones I write today.

The site has been through a lot of different phases since then, and I've tried to do a lot of different things with it. It's had its ups and downs in viewership, and a few really good years. Through a combination of my own lack of time to devote to it and the explosion of sites like it on the Internet, it's never, obviously, become the site that I envisioned. By the time it reached 15 years, it was supposed to be the go-to destination, and I was supposed to be making a living from it while I wrote my novels. To date, if you count Amazon gift certificates as profit, I think I've made about $2 a year on it. Tough to live on that.

Now, it's pretty much a labor of love for me. I have no delusions that it will ever be more than it is right now, but I still enjoy doing it, so it continues.

To celebrate 15 years, over the next several weeks I'll take a look back at each of those years, beginning with 1997. I'll talk a little about my favorite record of the year from those years, and I'll also give a list of 15 records from each year that I don't believe should be missed. If I can dig up some of those old reviews out of the Web Archive, I may even post a few of them ... or maybe not.

Freebies: New Lillian Axe track streaming

2012-01-22T22:01:00.001-08:00

Enjoy a stream of the opening track "Babylon" from Lillian Axe's upcoming album. The record is fantastic. Look for a review here in the coming weeks.

LILLIAN AXE - Babylon (2012) by AFM Records

Best of 2011: Top 10

2011-12-31T14:07:00.000-08:00

As I look back over 2011′s releases, I realize that maybe it wasn’t quite as good a year in the metal world as I thought. For the past few years, I’ve had as many as a couple dozen candidates for this list, and it’s been difficult to winnow them down to 10. This year, the records that were good were really good, but after that things start to drop off pretty quickly.

10. Three Thirteen, Full Tilt: I love surprises from independent artists, and Three Thirteen delivered a great little retro hard rock package this year. I was drawn in by the physical product, which had a little more thought put into it than the average CD these days, and the fun, hell-raising rock songs on the record held me. The record is a tip of the hat to the classic acts the band grew up on, with a heavy late-1970s, early-1980s rock feel. There are no sappy ballads or thinking-man’s songs here. It’s a party from start to finish. It’s the perfect record for popping the t-tops out of your Trans-Am and heading out on the highway.

9. Amon Amarth, Surtur Rising: There’s probably no band that more symbolizes the metal ethos than Amon Amarth. Bludgeoning riffs, pounding drums and rage-filled growls about Viking heroes and villains somehow always manage to come together into a catchy, melodic tune that recalls the classic days of traditional metal while wielding the fury of the more extreme end of the genre. Though not quite on par with their last two outings, 2006’s With Oden on Our Side and 2008’s Twilight of the Thunder God, it’s still a solid addition to the catalog. Don’t expect innovation or experimentation. It’s an Amon Amarth record, and that should be enough.

8. Bob Wayne, Outlaw Carnie: This is the only non-hard rock/metal-related album to make my list this year, though I admit that there are some promising underground country records — Hellbound Glory’s Damaged Goods, for example — that I haven’t gotten around to picking up yet. I wasn’t sure whether to include this or not, since country outsider Wayne’s debut on Century Media (primarily a metal label) consists mostly of tunes culled from his independent releases, but it’s worthy of note. The record focuses mostly on Wayne ’s rowdier side with high-energy numbers like “Road Bound” and “Driven by Demons,” and the black humor of “Work of the Devil” and “Love Songs Suck.” But there’s also a hint at his other side as he pays tribute to Johnny Cash in sound on “Reptile” and lyrics on “Ghost Town,” and shows a heartfelt side on “Estacata.” The must-hear of the record, though, is “Blood to Dust,” Wayne’s dark answer to David Allan Coe’s “If That Ain’t Country.” Though Outlaw Carnie features enough braggadocio to shame the most brazen rapper, Wayne also shows he’s capable of baring his soul and sharing his own shortcomings.

7. Headcat, Walk the Walk ... Talk the Talk: The unholy alliance between Motorhead’s Lemmy Kilmister and the Stray Cats’ Slim Jim Phantom produces some surprisingly good rockabilly/old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll sounds. The band delivers a collection of covers from the likes of Chuck Berry, The Beatles, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Webb Pierce and Mel Tillis, among others. Standout tracks are Lewis’ “It’ll Be Me,” Johnny Kidd and the Pirates’ “Shakin’ All Over,” and, of course, Eddie Cochran’s “Something Else.” There are also a couple of originals in the late 1950s-flavored “American Beat” and the slow blues number “The Eagle Flies on Friday” that, perhaps, hint at more new music to come.

6. Sebastian Bach, Kicking and Screaming: For those of us who remember Skid Row for more than those two unfortunate hits – “18 and Life” and “I Remember You” – this is likely as close as we’ll get to another Slave to the Grind or Subhuman Race. It’s not perfect. Bach overindulges from time to time, weakening some of the tougher songs, and he could still stand some help creating hooks, but young guitarist Nick Sterling is incredible, and the verse of a song like “One Good Reason” would feel right at home on those records. It’s the dark, grungy “Tunnelvision,” though, that is Kicking and Screaming’s top track, with Bach’s best performance.

5. Alestorm, Back Through Time: These Scottish pirates certainly won’t be everyone’s jug of rum, but three full-length albums into the schtick, it’s still just as much fun. The addition of drummer Peter Alcorn gives some serious metal backbone to the insidiously catchy pirate movie melodies. There’s some heavier, thrashy work like “Shipwrecked,” to go along with the lighter, sillier fare, one of the best of which is a cover of a song called “You Are a Pirate” that comes from an Icelandic kids’ show called “Lazy Town.” Sure, it’s goofy stuff, but I dare you to listen to it and not be in a good mood at the end.

4. Symphony X, Iconoclast: American power metal often takes a back seat to its European cousin, but occasionally us Yanks win one. That’s the case with New Jersey power/prog act Symphony X’s eighth studio album, their first since 2007 and possibly one of their best. It shows the band continuing a trend toward darker, more aggressive songs, like the bashing “Heretic,” but there’s still plenty of the melodic and intricate passages fans expect. My personal favorites are the thrash-meets-Dio “Bastards of the Machine” and the grooving “Children of a Faceless God.”

3. Amorphis, The Beginning of Times: It’s been a long trip from their death metal roots to the soaring symphonics of Amorphis’ current incarnation. After a lull in the middle of their career, the Finns have returned with a vengeance, producing possibly their best effort with 2009’s Skyforger. The Beginning of Times isn’t quite as impressive as that effort, but is still quite pleasing. It offers poppy hooks in “You I Need,” mystic melodies in “Mermaid” and a nod to their roots on the aggressive “My Enemy,” among other highlights. It lacks the instant gratification of Skyforger, but delivers a work that’s haunting, mystical and beautiful in its variety.

2. Anthrax, Worship Music: As a fan of the more grown-up John Bush version of the band, I wanted to hate this record. I wanted to be able to say that reuniting with 1980s singer Joey Belladonna was the worst move the band ever made. So, I’m both disappointed and extremely pleased to say that this album holds its own with their best work. It maintains the maturity of the Bush records, Belladonna’s voice is more seasoned, and it shows a little bit of musical growth and maturation. I miss Bush still on songs like “The Devil You Know,” but Belladonna’s Chris Cornell-like wailing on standout track “Crawl” gives me a new respect for him.

1. Alice Cooper, Welcome 2 My Nightmare: I was very skeptical of this record. Sequels tend to be desperate attempts to recall bygone glory days of a musician’s faltering career. It was a surprising move considering that his last few outings have, for the most part, been solid records. This album proves to be a rare exception to the sequel rule. It sounds like the godfather of shock rock is having more fun here than he’s had in a long time, bouncing frenetically around genres from the expected hard rock and garage rock to country, dance, surf rock and even a rap/disco tune. He also gets help from some surprise guests, including Vince Gill, who shreds away on “Runaway Train,” and pop singer Ke$ha who provides the voice of Cooper’s female devil on “What Baby Wants.” It’s one sequel that lives up to its name.

Best of 2011: Honorable mentions

2011-12-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

I continue my glance back at 2011 today with some records that I enjoyed, but weren't quite good enough to make my top 10 list, a few records that I didn't quite get enough time with because of a hectic work schedule late in the year, and my favorite EP.

STILL GROWING
I'll start with the records that I haven't had enough time with to form an opinion on. As you might have noticed, I didn't do a lot of writing in November and December because I had a little too much going. I got all of these records during that time, and they've been a little shortchanged in the listening. Any of them, with time, could elevate into the Top 10.
Iced Earth, Dystopia: At first, I thought Into Eternity's Stu Block was the perfect singer, blending elements of both Matt Barlow and Tim Owens, but with more listens, the effects used on the vocals too often make his vocals sound a bit unnatural. At least guitarist and primary songwriter Jon Schaffer remembered the hooks and melodies on this one, though.
Charred Walls of the Damned, Cold Winds on Timeless Days: Essentially the Tim Owens lineup of Iced Earth with producer Jason Suecof sitting in for Jon Schaffer, the band’s self-titled debut was one of my favorite records of last year, blending progressive and aggressive elements. I like this one, but it hasn’t connected with me as immediately.
Evile, Five Serpents Teeth: I was a latecomer to this one, but so far, I’m liking it. It’s great, old school 1980s Metallica-influenced thrash. I haven’t heard it enough to make a definitive call on it.
Machine Head, Unto the Locust: After blasting back on to the scene with 2007’s outstanding The Blackening, Machine Head continues to show growth on their latest. I really like what I’ve heard, but sadly need to make a little more time to spend with this one.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
These albums were definitely Top 10 candidates, but were barely pushed out.
Helstar, Glory of Chaos: A fine, thrashing new release from some old favorites.
Nekromantheon, Divinity of Death: A surprising raw thrash outing from what, based on the name and album cover, I expected to be a black metal outfit.
The Shadow Theory, Behind the Black Veil: One of my early contenders, this record offers up a nice blend of atmospherics, heaviness and a little of the weird.

BEST EP
Pharaoh, Ten Years: Pharaoh can seemingly do no wrong, and they continue that trend with this EP, designed to whet fans' appetites for a new full-length coming next year.

Best of 2011: The year's disappointments

2011-12-29T13:36:00.000-08:00

A few of my most highly anticipated releases of this year turned out to be duds, so I'll start my look back at this year with the records that didn't pan out.

White Wizzard, Flying Tigers: This retro-metal act’s 2010 album Over the Top topped my best of list for that year. It was a fun, energetic and campy throwback to the days of my youth. After some turmoil in the band, White Wizzard comes out with a follow-up which shows a lot of musical growth. That’s admirable. Unfortunately, most of the big hooks and unadulterated fun of Over the Top are missing on Flying Tigers. It’s not bad, but it’s also not memorable.

Hank III, "Guttertown/Ghost to a Ghost/3 Bar Ranch Cattle Callin': Like most fans, I figured that III had been sandbagging his best material for that first record once he got out from under his dispute-filled contract with Curb Records. I expected something along the lines of his 2006 masterwork Straight to Hell. Instead, we got four separate releases, and only one of the four – his doom metal outfit Attention Deficit Domination – even came close to meeting expectations. With the double album Guttertown/Ghost to a Ghost, we got another mediocre country record and an album of Cajun music that, while drawing critical acclaim, didn’t connect with me. Like most double records, there was probably enough material there for one decent record. The 3 Bar Ranch Cattle Callin’, which set actual auctioneer calls to a thrash soundtrack was certainly an original idea, but, for me, falls into the same territory as Metallica and Lou Reed’s Lulu – something that sounds interesting in concept, but arrives as a big mess.

Lazarus A.D., Black Rivers Flow: This modern thrash act's 2009 Metal Blade debut, The Onslaught, was a favorite for that year, and I expected big things. What I got was actually pretty boring.

Review: Anthrax, "Worship Music"

2011-10-26T19:24:00.000-07:00

I didn’t have high hopes for this record. First, there was all the drama surrounding it. They bring in new singer Dan Nelson. The album’s recorded and ready to go when Nelson is canned, so it’s shelved. Then, much to my pleasure, John Bush is performing with the band again. But, wait a minute, he doesn’t want to re-record Worship Music because he feels like he doesn’t have any stake in the songs. Then, Anthrax shows up to play the first Big Four show, and who’s on stage with them but 1980s singer Joey Belladonna. He’s happy to re-record the album, and so Anthrax and Belladonna are reunited … again.

That was my second problem with it. I’m firmly in the John Bush camp of Anthrax fans. I grew up with the Belladonna version of the band, and I still love many of those records, but I usually explain it like this: The Belladonna version of Anthrax was a great band for my youth. It was fast, brash and just a little bit goofy. The Bush version was Anthrax for my adulthood. A little slower, a little darker, a little more serious and a little heavier. And I just think Bush is a far better singer. For me, We’ve Come For You All rivals Among the Living, and I was afraid that the return of Belladonna would mark a return to the more cartoonish Anthrax of the past.

Happily, I was wrong, and I’m man enough to admit it. Worship Music is a fantastic record, easily ranking among their best work.

The first clue I had was when the band relased “Fight ‘Em ‘Til You Can’t.” It was a bashing, fast, heavy song that’s about the closest thing you’ll find here to their 1980s work. As much as I didn’t want to like the song, I couldn’t help myself. I ended up listening to it over and over and banging my head along every time.

Fans expecting a return to the sound of the 1980s, though, shouldn’t. Worship Music is not an attempt to recreate Among the Living, though in quality they may have come close. The music here, for the most part, sounds like the modern era of Anthrax – or as modern as you can get from a band that hasn’t released a new record in eight years. There are a lot of similarities between this record and We’ve Come for You All beyond just the cover.

After a fade-in called “Worship,” the record blasts into “Earth on Hell,” a slamming thrasher that features Charlie Benante bashing his drums with a vengeance. Then there’s one of those great groove-laden choruses that mark the Bush era of the band. It’s the first of several times, I admit, that I do indeed still miss Bush no matter how good this record is. “The Devil You Know” opens with a riff that reminds me of a 1970s AC/DC song, only somewhat heavier. It’s actually more of a hard rocker than a thrash tune, but it’s got plenty of memorable hooks and is one of the better songs on the record. The same can be said of “The Constant,” which has a great riff and is another song that’s crying for Bush vocals.

In all fairness, though, I have to give Joey Belladonna props when his voice makes things work, and that’s the case on “In the End,” another personal favorite of mine. It opens with church bells and a great slinky guitar riff. Some dramatic flourishes are laid over it that makes you think they’re about to go a little over the top, but they don’t. It drops back out to that monster guitar riff, and the chorus vocals are a strange mix of arena rock, prog and modern metal. Without Belladonna’s delivery, I don’t think it would work.

The same could be said of “Crawl,” one of the most interesting tracks on the record. It starts out in a slow, alternative mode that reminds me a little of maybe a lighter Soundgarden number. If his name wasn’t on the record, I wouldn’t be able to tell you the singer was Belladonna. It sounds nothing like him, a deeper, more serious voice. From there, the song moves into a more commercial hard rock sound, and it has a great chorus. It shouldn’t work, but I really like it

Not everything is great. “I’m Alive” opens with some clean sweep chords and builds nice and slowly with a good marching riff, but it’s spoiled by kind of a boring verse and a poppy chorus. Outside of the guitar work, it’s one of the weaker songs on the record. Likewise, “Judas Priest,” one of the songs I was looking forward to just because of the name, is an up-and-down affair. There are some really good moments, but it seems to kind of get a little lost.

There are a few blasts of the band’s 1980s sound. “The Giant” is one of those few thrashers with a throwback to their old sound, but it features another one of those arena rock influenced choruses. “Revolution Screams” ends the album with a blast to the head. It’s probably the heaviest song on Worship Music, and one of the best. There’s thrash, there’s groove, there’s shred, there’s straight-up hard rock. The only negative is the hidden track at the end of it after several minutes of silence, which is kind of lame in this day and age.

There’s an interesting dynamic to Worship Music in that it’s a very angry record, but at the same time there are some very accessible melodies that border on commercial appeal interspersed throughout. This, it seems, is truly the third incarnation of Anthrax. There are elements of Belladonna’s first tenure, there are even more elements of the Bush years, and there are some new touches that draw on more recent musical influences. When it all comes together, though, it works. Worship Music manages what I thought might no longer be possible. It once again makes Anthrax and vibrant and viable metal act.

Review: Seven Witches, "Call Upon the Wicked"

2011-10-20T18:42:00.000-07:00

It’s been four years since we’ve heard anything from Seven Witches, but Jack Frost is back with a new lineup and a familiar voice. James Rivera of Helstar, who sang on two of the band’s earlier albums, returns to record Call Upon the Wicked.

There’s a very heavy Judas Priest flavor early in the record, as you hear quickly on “Fields of Fire,” which finds Rivera nailing those Rob Halford shrieks on the chorus. That direction continues on second track “Lillith,” with Rivera delivering some nice vocal melodies and interludes. The Priest pops up again late in the record on “Eyes of Flame,” which features a nice riff early and Rivera in Halford mode for most of the song.

The next few songs take things back to a simpler heavy rock time. The title track opens with a 1970s hard rock flavor that shifts into early 1980s metal with a great chorus hook. “Ragnarock” opens with another grooving ‘70s-inspired lick. Rivera delivers some wicked vocals on the verse, and the band brings it home with another big chorus. Is there some cheese on these two tracks? You bet, but it’s still a lot of fun.

“End of Days” is the album’s “epic” track, checking in at just over nine minutes long. It opens with some nice clean guitar work from Frost, which leads into a classic traditional metal riff. The verse lopes along with Rivera trading vocals with an unnamed (at least in the information that I have with the promo) female vocalist. There’s a nice interplay between the two that I really like. The song does get into an almost painfully weird section about five minutes in where Rivera’s vocal melody and delivery are a little goofy, but putting that 30 or 40 seconds aside, it’s one of the better tracks on the record.

The star song of Call Upon the Wicked, though, is “Mind Games.” It opens with a ripping riff from Frost, quite possibly the best of the album. The song veers more toward thrash territory, with just a bit of Annihilator flavor. Rivera’s vocals steer more toward King Diamond here than the Halford he’s used through the rest of the album, and it’s a great song. “Harlot of Troy” follows up with more thrash flavor, and it’s good, but not quite as good as “Mind Games.”

The final new song on the record is a cover of Cream’s “White Room.” It’s more or less a faithful cover of the song, just crunched up, and I find Rivera’s over-the-top vocals a little distracting. As far as metal covers of “White Room” go, I much prefer Jon Schaffer and Hansi Kursch’s version with Demons & Wizards.

The album ends on a strange note, with live versions of “Metal Tyrant,” “Metal Asylum” and “Jacob” that sound more like a bootleg than a professional recording. They really don’t add anything to the record.

Frost is, as usual, on top of his game. He delivers some solid riffs and shreds all over the place. Rivera’s performance here is uneven, sometimes pushing things a little too much instead of just singing the song. It’s not nearly up to par with what he did on Helstar’s Glory of Chaos earlier this year. Bassists largely go unnoticed, but Michael Lepond gets a shot in every now and then, and drummer Taz Marazz lays a solid base. Of course, the lineup of the band has already changed since the release of this album, with Rivera leaving and Alan Tecchio returning, and Paul Marciano replacing Marazz on the skins. Such is the way of the one-man-show acts like Frost’s, and it’s probably the reason that their catalogs are so inconsistent.

In the Seven Witches discography, Call Upon the Wicked ends up right in the middle of the pack. It’s a solid, enjoyable record for fans of traditional heavy metal, but there’s not much of a wow factor.

Review: White Wizzard, "Flying Tigers"

2011-10-13T19:20:00.000-07:00

White Wizzard’s last outing, Over the Top, was my favorite record of last year. It was a great fun throwback record that hit me immediately, and some of the songs from that record are still on my everyday playlist. I gushed about it every time I got the chance. So Flying Tigers was one of my most, if not the most, anticipated record of the year for me. Admittedly, I already had it penciled in for a spot atop my best of list for this year, so perhaps my hopes were a little too high, but after spending a few weeks with it, my reaction is a resounding “meh.”

It’s been a turbulent year and a half since the release of Over the Top. Singer Wyatt Anderson left the band, then returned to record this album, then left the band again. Guitarist Erik Kluiber is also out. The lineup for this record included founder/bassist Jon Leon, Anderson, drummer Giovanni Durst and producer Ralph Patlan.

In some ways, Flying Tigers shows maturation and growth. The compositions here are a little deeper in places than the ones on Over the Top. The influences still draw primarily from bands like Iron Maiden and Cloven Hoof. Leon is still working out his Steve Harris fetish, and his bass is even more up front and key to the sound on this record. But in the songwriting process, he forgot a few things, and they were key elements in the success of Over the Top – big hooks and fun.

You can hear the effort put into the compositions on this record, and that’s not a good thing. The old familiar flow of songs like “40 Deuces,” “High Roller” and “Iron Goddess of Vengeance,” which immediately hit me on Over the Top, is missing here. Most of the songs feel forced to me. I don’t know if it was because of the up and down year or tensions within the band or what, but there’s something that seems just a little bit uncomfortable in the songs on this record – and not in a good way.

There’s some good material sprinkled throughout. “Starchild,” which I believe is the band’s first ballad, is really good. The dark, clean opening puts me in mind of a slow Dio song, and the heavier bits reinforce that. Another slower track, “Starman’s Son,” comes closest to matching the strength of Over the Top. The ballady verse is probably the tastiest bit of music on the record, and the soaring chorus, while not fantastic, at least doesn’t detract from the song. And there’s an uptempo section near the middle that’s really good, and some excellent acoustic guitar work. It’s easily the best offering on the record. Opening song “Fight to Death” is also a winner and about the only song that sounds like it might have come from the Over the Top writing sessions.

“War of the Worlds” has a strong verse, but it’s still missing that thing that makes you want to come back. “Blood on the Pyramid” has one of the best riffs, but when it goes for an exotic feel, it sounds kind of stiff and sputtering, not as smooth as that mood needs to be. The 9-plus minute “Demons and Diamonds” has its moments, as well. The intro, another slow and dark piece, is great. But when the pace picks up, the sound is almost a little cartoonish. It’s a problem that a lot of the songs on the album have. They mimic Maiden and Cloven Hoof almost to the point of caricature. They don’t flow, and there’s very little natural energy.

White Wizzard never quite puts it together on this one. They offer flashes. “Night Train to Tokyo” has one of the most memorable melodies on the record, but it doesn’t have a lot of sticking power. “Fall of Atlantis” has a nice chorus, a bit reminiscent of modern Lillian Axe, but pales in comparison with pretty much anything from their last record. Too many of the songs here seem to be built as showpieces for Leon’s bass, and, as impressive as his work is, it gets a little tiring as the record goes on.

After one listen to Over the Top, there were several songs that I couldn’t get out of my head. After a few weeks with Flying Tigers, I’m hard-pressed to remember any of the songs, and that’s the major difference. There’s nothing on Flying Tigers that reaches out and grabs the listener, and at the end of the day, it’s a decent collection of throwback traditional metal that, unlike its predecessor, I won’t remember a thing about a year from now. It’s a disappointing effort from a band with tons of promise. Here’s hoping they get things stabilized and back on track for the next one.

Review: Alice Cooper, "Welcome 2 My Nightmare"

2011-10-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

Alice Cooper promised a sequel, and he delivered in a surprising way. The shock rock pioneer went into the studio with the intention to record a follow-up to 2008’s creepy serial killer concept album Along Came a Spider. Once he got in the studio with long-time producer and collaborator Bob Ezrin, they decided to delve farther back into his catalog to the record that is, arguably, his finest moment, Welcome to My Nightmare.

I admit the move left me puzzled. It’s a tried and true recipe for failure. Usually a failing band slaps the title of its most popular work on its latest album and puts a “2″ behind it to draw some interest from fans who have wandered away. It’s never a good idea because it creates a certain expectation that the new record can never match. In fact, most of them suck.

Of course, there are a few differences between most bands and Alice Cooper.
First and foremost, Alice Cooper has never really faltered. Sure, he’s had a few off records, but for the most part, he’s never completely disappointed. That doesn’t change here. Secondly, he’s Alice fucking Cooper. He can do whatever the hell he wants … and make it work. Or, in the case of Welcome 2 My Nightmare, turn it into a moment of mad genius.

You often hear bands describe their latest effort as “(insert most popular record here) updated for the 21st century,” or something to that effect. In the case of Welcome 2 My Nightmare, that statement is actually pretty accurate. It’s been more than 35 years since the original Welcome to My Nightmare hit the scene, and this record is truly like a modern version of that one. The music here is all over the map. There are dark, classical-tinged Halloween-style numbers, there are all-out garage rockers, there are poppy ballads, there’s a Vaudeville piece, a surf-rock song, there are even a couple of country songs and a rap song – all, of course, with Alice’s signature sense of black humor stamped across them. It’s what every good Alice Cooper record should be – a three-ring circus with Alice as the evil, yet likeable ringmaster.

For an album promised to be a worse nightmare than the original, things start strangely. After a horror movie-worthy piano piece, opener “I Am Made of You” is actually kind of a heartfelt ballad with some poppy vocal effects here and there. It’s like the sweet part of the dream before things go horribly wrong. Things start to go a little darker with the high-energy rocker “Caffeine,” one of the more memorable tracks, as our main character fights sleep, and it overcomes him on track 3, “The Nightmare Returns.” A wicked nursery rhyme melody gives way to a darker classical piano and some Savatage or Trans-Siberian Orchestra-like flourishes. It’s brief but powerful.

Like most of his works since the 1980s, there’s also a large list of guest stars. Some you’d expect – Alice’s disciple Rob Zombie, Zombie’s guitarist John 5, and former Cooper bass player Kip Winger. Others are a little surprising, particularly pop singer Ke$ha and country singer Vince Gill.

Gill makes his first appearance on the fourth track, “A Runaway Train,” another of the album’s best moments. It’s a driving country-tinged trip on the rails to hell, and the country star gives a chicken-pickin’ shred lesson on the guitar solos. He appears again toward the end of the record on “I Gotta Get Outta Here,” a great track that blends country with some Tom Petty-like sounds. It makes call backs to all of the previous songs on the record and gives Gill a chance for a more soulful, sincere solo – well, as sincere as anything on this manic masterpiece gets.

Some of the brightest moments come on the offbeat numbers. The Vaudevillian thumper “Last Man on Earth” is absolutely one of the best songs on the record despite having no real rock elements at all. You can almost visualize Alice in his top hat and ragged tails addressing a crowd of rubes from the back of a wagon as he delivers the tune.

Other forays into stranger musical stylings have mixed results. “Disco Bloodbath Boogie Fever” shouldn’t work at all. It is, as the title suggest, a disco tune that features Alice rapping. It ends up being a lot of fun though, in a Weird Al‘s evil twin sort of way. The surf rocker “Ghouls Gone Wild” is the album’s weak spot, getting kind of annoying after a few listens, though I admit it could just be my dislike of surf rock. Somewhere in between is the synth-pop “What Baby Wants,” featuring Ke$ha. I disliked it the first few times through, but it’s grown on me. If not for the slasher movie imagery in the lyrics, it wouldn’t be out of place on some cheesy 1980s soundtrack. It’s not even close to being one of the better tracks, but I like it more every time I hear it.

Of course, there is more typical Alice Cooper fare to be found here. The lead single “I’ll Bite Your Face Off” is an old-school rock ‘n’ roll number with a big, memorable hook that’s a lot of fun. “Something to Remember Me By” is the record’s answer to “Only Women Bleed.” It’s not bad, but not likely to become the classic the song from the first record is. Then there’s the flashy showman number, “The Congregation,” where we’re introduced to the hierarchy of hell. It’s a great song with a mix of darkness and humor.

The only truly disturbing moment on the record is the story of a real-life monster, “When Hell Comes Home.” It’s an alternately heavy and creepy piece that focuses on an abusive father from the viewpoint of his child. It’s particularly chilling when you realize it’s something that happens everyday in the real world.

There is, appropriately, a little history on Welcome 2 My Nightmare. Three of the 13 tracks on the album – “A Runaway Train,” “I’ll Bite Your Face Off” and “When Hell Comes Home” – feature guitarist Michael Bruce, bassist Dennis Dunaway and drummer Neal Smith, members of the original Alice Cooper band. Their appearance is somewhat ironic since Welcome to My Nightmare was considered Alice’s first “solo” record without those former members of his band. Themes from the original album also run through this one, most notably the intro to “Welcome to My Nightmare” echoed in the intro to “The Congregation,” and the instrumental album closer “The Underture,” which blends themes from both records together.

More than anything, what makes Welcome 2 My Nightmare so great, though, is that it’s obvious to the listener that Alice is having a blast on the record – and his long-time fans are all in on the joke. If you’re looking for a full-on heavy rock album along the lines of Brutal Planet or Along Came a Spider, you’ll be disappointed. But fans of Cooper’s classic 1970s work should be thrilled and excited by the return of the twisted ringmaster who commands the ability to take such disparate elements and blend them into a cohesive, rocking unit. Welcome 2 My Nightmare is an amazing record and the rare sequel that’s absolutely worthy of the name on the cover, which just goes to show that no matter how bad most sequels are, every now and then, you get an “Empire Strikes Back.”

Enter to win a signed copy of the CD at Teeth of the Divine.

Review: Pharaoh, "Ten Years"

2011-09-28T19:22:00.000-07:00

As fans await the follow-up to 2008’s Be Gone, Pharaoh offers them a little teaser with this six-song EP featuring two new tracks, two rare tracks and a couple of covers. It’s not the four-course meal we may have wanted, but it’s a nice little appetizer.

The new tracks are the title track, “Ten Years,” and “When We Fly.” Of the two, I prefer the title track, which is more of a straightforward traditional metal song with a chugging power riff from Matt Johnsen and some great, aggressive vocals from Tim Aymar. “When We Fly” is a great track in its own right, though, leaning more toward the power metal side of the band’s spectrum. It’s a bit more complex than “Ten Years,” with Aymar soaring a little more and an occasional heavier break showcasing Johnsen and drummer Chris Black. Hell, on second thought, I’m not sure I prefer either of the new tracks over the other. They’re both awesome.

Next up is the first of two covers, New Model Army’s “White Light.” This one, obviously, is a little different from the usual Pharaoh fare. It’s a little more subtle, using some synths and allowing Aymar to show a really different side of his voice. Johnsen lays down some smooth leads, and bassist Chris Kerns gets to show off here and there. It’s a bit of a surprise, but a good one.

Next up are the two previously released tunes, both of which are from a single that came with the vinyl release of Be Gone. “Reflection and the Inevitable Future” is the stronger of the two, a heavier number with some sharp riffing from Johnsen. “Nothing I Can Say” gives Kerns another chance to shine early on, but it’s Aymar’s song as he moans, wails and screams his way through the progressive-tinged tune.

Finally, the EP is closed out in ass-kicking fashion with a pretty straight cover of Slayer’s “Tormenter.” Some of Johnsen’s guitar sounds perhaps give the more noodly riffs a bit more of an Iron Maiden feel than the original, and Aymar obviously has a wider range than Tom Araya, which he puts to use, though not too much.

All in all, Ten Years is a tasty little treat that will surely whet fans’ appetites for the band’s next full-length effort.

Review: Sebastian Bach, "Kicking and Screaming"

2011-09-24T19:22:00.000-07:00

If there’s one act from that morass of hairy hard-rock bands from the late 1980s that I’d love to hear some new music from, it’s Skid Row.

Often you hear people try to separate bands from the “hair band” stigma by saying they got a bad rap. With Skid Row, that might be at least partially true. After being discovered by Jon Bon Jovi, the band released its self-titled debut in 1989. Though it was a great commercial success, producing their two biggest hits in the ballads “I Remember You” and “18 and Life,” it wasn’t entirely what the band was about. We found that out in 1991, when they released the follow-up Slave to the Grind, a much heavier and nastier record than their debut. The songs ranged from the down-and-dirty hard rock of the lead single “Monkey Business” to the near-thrash of the title track to darker and much more interesting ballads “Quicksand Jesus” and “In a Darkened Room.”

By the time the band’s third album, the underrated Subhuman Race, landed in 1995, the band had more in common with Pantera than Bon Jovi.

After that album, things fell apart. Singer Sebastian Bach was fired, and his departure was followed shortly by drummer Rob Affuso. Bach went on to do two solo records — one mostly live versions of Skid Row songs and the other a collection of covers. He dabbled with several side projects that never went anywhere and became a staple on reality TV, even forming a “Supergroup” for a VH1 show with Ted Nugent, Anthrax’s Scott Ian, Biohazard’s Evan Seinfeld, and Jason Bonham. That went about as well as you’d expect. Skid Row hired a new singer from Dallas, Johnny Solinger, who looked and sounded quite a bit like Bach. They released one decent record, 2003’s Thickskin, and one horrible, jokey novelty record, 2006’s Revolutions Per Minute.

Neither camp had done anything even remotely in the ballpark of those first three albums until 2007, when Bach released what I consider his first true solo record, Angel Down. It was a heavier record, more in the vein of Skid Row. It was uneven, but features a ripping version of Aerosmith’s “Back in the Saddle,” with Bach trading vocals with Axl Rose, and signaled a possible turn-around and new focus on music by Bach. He takes that one step farther with his latest album, Kicking and Screaming, issued September 23rd in Europe and then on September 27th in the USA by Frontiers Records. For the most part, Kicking and Screaming falls, in sound, somewhere between Slave to the Grind and Subhuman Race, and that’s a very good thing.

The songs on this record are much better than Angel Down, which offered a lot of promise yet few memorable hooks. The most notable difference is the guitar work of 21-year-old Nick Sterling. This kid is an absolute monster, dishing out riff after crushing riff through the course of the record, and his guitar gives the record a very heavy feel that Bach’s vocals don’t always bear out.

If there’s one issue that you know a Sebastian Bach record is going to have, it’s going to be self-indulgence, and that’s what makes Kicking and Screaming just a great record instead of an incredible one. In Skid Row, bassist Rachel Bolan and guitarist Dave “Snake” Sabo were able to rein him in a little and point him in the direction of some slightly better hooks. On his solo work, obviously, he’s calling the shots.

The best example is the track “One Good Reason.” The verse of the song may be the best thing produced by either camp since the Skid Row split. It’s heavy, gritty and tough-as-nails with a bridge that features some of Bas’ best screams this side of Subhuman Race. Then we get to the chorus, and it’s a squeaky-clean pop-rock affair that just kind of takes you right out of the mood that the verse and bridge create. It’s still awesome, but if not for that chorus … oh man. It’s a problem that crops up again and again on the record. The other is that he too often goes for that nasally high voice. Bas has amazing range, but his wheelhouse is in the lower registers and the screaming snarls that only he can deliver. The highs are kind of, well, wimpy in comparison.

Kicking and Screaming kicks off with a title track that has this fantastic grooving riff from Sterling, and it’s a great song if you don’t watch the video that goes along with it, which puts the focus — where else — directly on Bas’ face and ego. “My Own Worst Enemy” is backed with some energetic drumming from Bobby Jarzombek, but it’s one of those higher register songs, and the chorus comes off as a little soft.

The record recovers with the dark, grungy “Tunnelvision” featuring guitarist John 5, which might be one of its strongest moments. It’s one of the most controlled and in-the-pocket performances from Bach. It delivers everything you hope for from a Sebastian Bach/Skid Row tune — a tough verse, a memorable chorus, at least one good scream from Bas — with the addition of an incredible solo by John 5. Bach returns to that grungy theme later in the record on “Live the Life” and “Lost in the Light,” both standout tracks. “Live the Life” is a darkly grooving mid-tempo number that gives Sterling yet another showcase for his amazing riffs. “Lost in the Light” has the feel of 1990s-era Ozzy Osbourne track with a slab-like riff that will certainly make listeners think of Zakk Wylde.

Sterling, who also plays bass on the record gets to show off the lower end of his skills on “Dance on Your Grave” and “Caught in a Dream.” The first is a solid Skid Row-flavored number, but the latter suffers from another poppy vocal delivery, particularly on the chorus. “Dirty Power” has plenty of 1980s cock rock swagger and a great funky riff from Sterling. It should be one of the album’s pleasers for fans of his early work.

Naturally, the ballad quota is met on Kicking and Screaming with “I’m Alive,” “Dream Forever” and “Wishin.’” “Dream Forever” with its lilting alternative bent, is probably the best of the bunch, and “Wishin’” has kind of a ’70s pop feel, but none of the three are particularly special. There’s definitely not an “In a Darkened Room” here.

Despite whatever ego-feeding you might find on Sebastian Bach’s records, you can’t deny that he’s an amazing vocalist. He also seems to have finally found a pretty good foil for his vocal antics in the guitar work of Sterling, which holds the songs together well. Overall, Kicking and Screaming is a much better record than fans had any right to expect, and it’s the closest thing we’ve gotten to a real Skid Row record in 16 years. Still, I have to wonder what they could do if they put the old team back together.

Still Spinning: Anthrax, "We've Come for You All"

2011-09-07T18:50:00.000-07:00

As I await the release of Anthrax’s Worship Music, the band’s reunion with 1980s singer Joey Belladonna, I’ll try to drown out the soap-opera drama with changing lineups and re-records surrounding it by cranking up their last record — and one of their best — 2003’s We’ve Come for You All.

Don’t get me wrong. I grew up on the 1980s version of Anthrax with Belladonna, and I still love it. But when he exited, and they tapped Armored Saint singer John Bush, the band became something different, and while I know a lot of fans will disagree with me, something better, in my opinion. The Belladonna era of the band was perfect for my teenage years. It was fast, brash and a little cartoonish and goofy. The band with Bush, though, was Anthrax for my adulthood. It was a little slower, a little heavier and a lot more thoughtful. Plus, Bush is just an all-around better singer to my ears. There’s more soul and a greater range of emotion in his voice, and if I’m being honest, I actually preferred Bush’s version of a lot of the Belladonna songs.

We’ve Come for You All was recorded coming out of Sept. 11, which wasn’t a particularly good time for Anthrax for a couple of reasons. First, they’re New Yorkers, and second, in the wake of the attacks, the world was reintroduced to anthrax the disease, which had been pretty much forgotten when Scott Ian named his band in the early ’80s. Things got so grim for a time that the band actually considered changing its name. Ian joked about calling it Basket Full of Puppies. Shortly thereafter, Anthrax appeared on stage wearing matching white jumpsuits that spelled out “We are not changing our name.” There seemed to be a new unity and solidarity in the band and on the record. This album was a response to the dark days after Sept. 11 — a fierce response, an exciting response. I thought at the time that it was surely the beginning of a new era for Anthrax. I had no idea that it was actually the end of one.

There’s really no other place to start looking at We’ve Come for You All than with the single “Safe Home,” essentially a love song written to New York. It’s a little different from most Anthrax fare. A little more radio friendly than usual, perhaps a little more heartfelt. It’s commercial tenor — and the video that starred Keanu Reeves — aside, it’s a tune that worms its way into your head and won’t let go. It’s a great hard rock song.

Of course, we’re talking one of the big four of thrash here, so there’s plenty of heavier fare. The other single from the record “What Doesn’t Die,” definitely offset the commercialness of “Safe Home.” It’s a pounding, full-speed thrasher complete with a zombie video (though, I guess the same argument could be made for that “Safe Home” video now that I think about it.) The slamming thrash drops down into a very memorable chorus and a nice melodic interlude about halfway through — a hallmark of the Bush days.

There are a couple of other really fast numbers here — “Nobody Knows Anything” is a great catchy song, “Black Dahlia” gets a little too caught up in being heavy and forgets to be memorable — but where the Bush lineup of the band shined was on mid-tempo tunes. That’s also where this record shines.

I’ll start with probably my favorite track, “Cadillac Rock Box.” It had a guest shot from Pantera guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott (who also guested on the band’s 1998 record Vol. 8: The Threat is Real along with singer Phil Anselmo). The song opens with an answering machine recording of Dime doing his trademark “whoosh” sound at the end — something that’s endeared the song to me further since he was murdered on stage in 2004. After that it blasts into a grooving slab of hard rock where Dime’s guitar does the talking. It’s a good time waiting to happen. It’s one of those songs that just makes me a little happier when I crank it up loud.

Dime’s not the only guest here, though, and not the biggest name, either. The Who’s Roger Daltrey shows up on “Taking the Music Back,” but is sadly underutilized on one of the albums’ weakest tracks.

But the misses are few, far-between and soon forgotten about when you’re rocking along with another favorite of mine, the good-time, old school hard rocker “Strap It On.” There’s “Superhero” that gives Bush a dark, almost alternative moment on the verse, then blows up into a metallic screamer on the chorus. There’s the plodding strength and cool of “Refuse to be Denied.” Almost every song on the record is killer, and at the time it came out, that was a rare thing in the metal world.

Which brings us to the sad part of the review: the could have been. We’ve Come for You All, in my estimation, is easily the equal, if not the better, of anything from the Belladonna era — even fan favorite Among the Living. It excited me like no Anthrax record had in a long time. But after the release of the album, Ian and Co. invited Belladonna back into the fold to cash in on the reunion rage of the time. Bush went home to be with his family, do voiceovers for Burger King commercials and, eventually, record a new album with Armored Saint, 2010’s La Raza. Anthrax hired a new singer, Dan Nelson, and recorded the first version of Worship Music, which was shelved when the new Nelson left or was fired — depending on whose story you believe. Bush was invited back and did a few festival shows with the band, but left again when they had creative differences over re-recording Worship Music. Belladonna stepped back into the gap, re-recorded the album, and it will finally see the light later this month.

Anthrax has tried to draw an obvious parallel between Worship Music and We’ve Come for You All. The album covers are incredibly similar, and from the two songs and brief sound clips I’ve heard, so is the music. It sounds good, but is it too late to give fans the follow-up they deserved years ago, and will either faction of fans be pleased by Belladonna singing over the Bush-era sound? I hope I love the record, and I hope it does well for them, but I just have to believe that every time I listen to it, I’ll wonder how much better it could have been.

Freebies: Download Iced Earth's re-recorded "Dante's Inferno"

2011-09-07T15:40:00.000-07:00

In anticipation of Iced Earth's upcoming album "Dystopia," the first with Into Eternity vocalist Stu Block, the band is giving away downloads of a re-recorded version of the epic "Dante's Inferno," from their "Burnt Offerings" album. The new recording, which will feature Block's vocals, allows the band to replace the click track, which was erased from the original, enabling them to play the song live again.

To get the new version, go to Iced Earth's official site.

Review: Sepultura, "Kairos"

2011-09-04T16:25:00.000-07:00

I’ve had the same problem with the last few Sepultura records. They all struck me as pretty good albums straight out of the box, but after a few weeks I put them away, and most of them haven’t gotten any play since that initial listening period.

This is the second record with guitarist Andreas Kisser now, more or less, fully in control of the band’s sound, but if you’re expecting the future direction of the band to be established here, you shouldn’t. Instead, Kairos leads us on a trip back through time to various eras of the band from the chugging thrash of the Arise/Chaos A.D. era to the hardcore influence of the first couple of Derrick Green outings, to the more concepty stuff they’ve done with their last albums. Perhaps it’s an intentional move, given that the theme of this record is something about the passage of time, but you’ll find a song or two that represents almost all of the band’s various incarnations.

That’s not to say that there isn’t some good material to be found here. “Spectrum” starts the record off with a cool, if somewhat repetitive guitar riff, some tribal-influenced work from drummer Jean Dolabella and a spoken growl from Green. It then quickly settles into a plodding number that will certainly remind listeners of the Max Cavalera era of the band. Second track, “Kairos,” continues in that vein, with a very Chaos A.D. feel.

The pace picks up a little with “Relentless,” but the opening will surely conjure thoughts of “Refuse/Resist” in fans’ mind. It has a little more energy and personality than the first two tracks, though, with Green stretching out of the Cavalera bark a little more. “Dialog” gives us another one of those plodding repetitive guitar riffs to start, but becomes every so slightly more adventurous with some slower interludes and spoken word from Green. I’m not sure I like the song overall, but I do think it’s one of Green’s better performances.

“Mask” and “Seethe” dive right back into the early thrash sound, sounding like something straight off Arise. They are among the more entertaining tracks on the record. “Born Strong,” a combination of the earlier and more recent sounds, is a thoroughly enjoyable number, though, probably my favorite on the record. “Embrace the Storm” has a catchy guitar riff – and almost a Machine Head feel on the chorus, but Green’s verse vocals send it into a bit of a lull.

Toward the end, we get a little taste of something different with “Structure Violence (Azzes).” It features the Roots-style tribal percussion blended with some industrial noises and sound bytes. The vocal on the chorus is very reminiscent of Ministry. I won’t say it’s the best song here, but it’s certainly the most interesting, and the only flash of something a little out of the ordinary that we get.

There’s also a strange cover here in Ministry’s “Just One Fix.” It’s essentially a note-for-note remake of the original without much of the band’s own personality injected. Of course, the argument could be made from listening to Kairos that this is a band that doesn’t know exactly what its personality is. Instead of forging ahead with something different, Sepultura, at least on this record, seems to be content with repeating sounds from its past. Kairos is, at times, entertaining, but the overall feel is a little flat, and there’s not an energy here that excites me. Like those last few records, I doubt it will have much staying power. More likely, it will soon have me reaching for Arise or Chaos A.D.

Review: "Southern Independents Vol. 1 and 2"

2011-08-30T19:02:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months, Shooter Jennings has released two free compilations for his unfortunately named XXX movement, which are both still available for free download at http://www.givememyxxx.com/.

For those not familiar, Jennings hopes to create a genre called XXX to help promote some original artists, a commodity that doesn’t get much recognition in the mainstream these days. It’s an amalgam of musical styles, ranging from hardcore classic country, to Southern rock, to even some harder rock sounds. The qualifications to be part of the genre are a bit hard to describe, but it’s one of those things where you kind of know it when you hear it. The main points are that the musicians are doing their own thing on their own terms and no matter where the acts take the music, it’s all rooted in Southern and country tradition. The XXX moniker comes from the three x’s that appear on moonshine jugs in old cartoons and drawings. Obviously, that’s not what most people these days think of when they see XXX, which is a strike against the movement from the beginning.

The ill-considered name of the genre aside, Southern Independent Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, despite being a bit uneven, are a pretty good representation of what’s out there in country and related genres that you’re not hearing on the radio or anywhere else, except maybe a local dive bar. There are a few slightly better-known artists — such as Jennings, Drive-By Truckers, North Mississippi All-Stars and Black Oak Arkansas — but the albums are mostly made up of relative unknowns outside the underground country community.

There’s also a blend of sincere, heartfelt country music with classic themes, and loud, rowdy, hell-raising upstarts. Some of both are fantastic, and some of both fall flat. Lone Wolf OMB, for example, a one-man band that opens the second volume with “Honky Tonk Carnie,” is just a little too over-the-top and circusy for me — though the music certainly fits the title of the song. Bob Wayne, whose “Road Bound” is found on the first volume, runs along the same lines, but doesn’t come off quite as corny. On the more serious side, John Carter Cash’s melancholy “Santa Monica” isn’t quite as dark and effective as it could be if he had more of his dad’s voice, but Robert Earl Reed’s “Road to Hattiesburg” is stark and haunting, even if he’s not the best singer in the collection.

The first volume goes to the softer, more serious artists, starting with Reed’s piece, where you can almost feel the ghosts closing in around you. Dallas Moore’s “Carolina Sunshine” will likely remind listeners of contemporary country just a little of Jamey Johnson, though Moore’s vocals have a tendency to go a little too over the top here and there. J.B. Beverley and Ronnie Hymes’ “I’m Bitter” is about as old school as it gets, with some gospel overtones.

The most striking of the bunch, though, came as a bit of a surprise to me. I’m not normally a fan of female country singers, but Rachel Brooke’s voice is enchanting on “City of Shame.” There’s definitely a heavy Patsy Cline influence, but hidden inside the country accent is a sexy jazz tone that just comes out every now and then to tease you. There’s plenty of the twanginess that turns me off about most female country singers, but that little croon in there balances it out nicely, and there’s just something I really dig about the combination.

There are some good rocking tunes, too, with Wayne’s “Road Bound” leading the way. Hellbound Glory’s “Rusted Up Old Pickup Trucks” is one of the catchiest numbers to be found on either collection.

Jennings’ own contribution confuses me a little, though. “Southern Family Anthem” is a driving Southern rocker of a song that straddles his country stuff and the rock of his last record Black Ribbons. It’s catchy as hell musically, but lyrically, it kind of promotes inbred Southern stereotypes. Yes, it’s a little tongue-in-cheek, but it seems to go counter to what he’s trying to do with this movement. Perhaps his latest single, “Outlaw You,” might have been more appropriate to the effort, even if it’s not as good a song as this one.

There are a few songs on Vol. 1 that don’t quite fit. On the good side is the Drive-By Truckers’ “Used to Be a Cop.” It’s a great song, but feels out of place in this collection. Then there are some off-the-wall pieces, like Slackeye Slim’s “Introducing Drake Savage,” which blends country, Spanish influences and a punk rock attitude, or Last False Hope’s “Guilty Until Proven Innocent” which takes the punk and rock influences found in the music of Wayne and Hank III to a new level, throwing in a few jarring moments and staccato metallic licks on the fiddle here and there. I can’t say that I really like those last two, but they’re certainly interesting.

The hell-raisers win the day on the second volume, beginning with Powder Mill’s “Devil in New Orleans.” It’s a Southern rock-tinged number with shades of Hank Jr., Charlie Daniels and Waylon, and the singer’s voice has just a little touch of George Jones to go along with those other classic influences. That’s followed up by Joecephus and the George Jonestown Massacre (one of my favorite band names in underground country) playing “Quitting Time,” a catchy, somewhat profane little ditty that really hits home. It’s become an anthem for me in recent months.

Whitey Morgan and the 78s released one of the best overlooked records in the genre last year, a collection of early 1980s flavored country. It’s represented here by a familiar-sounding drinking song, “I Ain’t Drunk.” While not a cover of the Albert Collins classic of the same name, the chorus will certainly call it to mind.

Joey Allcorn’s “Whatever Kills Me First” is an interesting tune, opening with a fairly hard-rocking guitar riff which gives way to a very traditional country piece in the Hank Sr. mode, then there’s a dirty, funky little breakdown with some Hendrix-style lead licks thrown in for good measure. Lyrically, it follows a tried and true country tale of too much whiskey, smoke and women. It may be my favorite song on either collection.

Not all of the hell-raisers are winners, though. Jonny Corndawg’s “Chevy Beretta,” a blend of classic country, surf music and 1970s folk-pop, is just a little too corny for me. And Honky Tonk Hustlas’ “Down and Out” sounds like a mashup of Bob Wayne and Hank III, and just doesn’t bring any originality to the table.

Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit’s “Codeine” gives the collection an alt-country number, sounding, not surprisingly, a lot like Isbell’s former band the Drive-By Truckers. Roger Alan Wade’s “Canteen Full of Dreams” is soft and heartfelt with some interesting peaks both in his voice and guitar. It’s almost entrancing. The surprise of the album for me is Black Oak Arkansas’ “Sweet Delta Water.” I’ve never been a great fan of Jim Dandy’s voice, but I like it on this song, which is an easygoing piece with an interesting melody.

After a trip through the present, the final track takes listeners back a ways to the roots of the XXX thing. Jerry McGill’s “Hootchie Kootchie Man” features an all-star backing band with Waylon on guitar, Jim Dickinson on piano, Ritchie Albright on drums and the Memphis Horns. It’s a funky, bluesy number, but still has plenty of Southern soul.

Ultimately, Southern Independent goes to show that there’s more than sugar-coated pop and rehashed 1970s rock going on in the country world these days, even though you might not hear it if you don’t know where to look. While you probably won’t like everything in these two collections, I can just about guarantee that there’s something for any music fan among these 26 tracks. And, hey, the price is right.