(8/10) It took a while until fans of Timo Tolkki's Avalon can welcome the newest album. 'The Land of new Hope' was unveiled in 2013 and already one year later it was 'Angels of the Apocalypse' that marked a second step. Part three of the Metal Opera took a bit longer though. Unfortunately things didn't... Continue Reading →
CD review AXEL RUDI PELL ‘XXX Anniversary Live’
(*/10) Although Axel Rudi Pell's debut 'Wild Obsession' belongs to the highlights in German metal, it wasn't a given at the time that 30 years later we still can enjoy the powerful riffs of the the blonde guitarist from the Ruhrgebiet. Axel Rudi Pell became a very constant factor in a fast changing world. His... Continue Reading →
Live photo report HEIR APPARENT & SAD IRON, Musicon, Den Haag – 10.06.2019
It was Saturday, June 8th at Rock Hard Festival when I had the first chance to witness a show of legendary Heir Apparent and today is the second time within two days. Sometimes the road of life is strange. Opening act today is a local band. Sad Iron hails from Hoorn in the Northern parts... Continue Reading →
CD review ALL HELL ‘The Witch’s Grail’
(8/10) 'The Witch's Grail' is already longplayer number four of North Carolina's All Hell and it's a good one. The trio started in 2013 and looks back on some productive years. The guys debuted in 2014 with 'The Devils' Work' nd since then released albums on a regular base. 'The Witch's Grail' is the newest... Continue Reading →
CD review DEWOLFF ‘Live & Outta Sight II’
(9/10) 'Thrust' was the critically and fan acclaimed album that marked the starting point of a collaboration between the band and the Mascot Label Group. A start couldn't be much better and to keep the fire burning a live album of DeWolff is what fans get offered mid June this year. DeWolff released with 'Live... Continue Reading →
CD review CRIMSON RIVER ‘Crimson River’ – EP
(6/10) Eindhoven - Rock City ... and here is another prove for the statement. Crimson River is hailing from the South-East of The Netherlands and it's another young band that wants to present to the world what their musical passion sounds like. The quartet started in 2011, driven by a dedication for music. No release... Continue Reading →
CD review FIRESPAWN ‘Abominate’
(9/10) Swedish Death Metal powerhouse Firespawn premiered in 2015 with ‘Lucifer Has Spoken’. You can speak of an all-star band looking on the rich musical background of the five involved musicians. Although I don’t like the term a lot it fits in this context and there’s no doubt that LG Petrov, A. Impaler, Victor Brandt,... Continue Reading →
CD review ROYAL REPUBLIC ‘Club Majesty’
(7/10) Musicians of Swedish Royal Republic met in 2007 at Malmö Academy of Music and started a band that combines various influences. Rock meets Disco meets some Soul, this is Royal Republic. The quartet scored already some successes in their home-country and overtime they also became more popular outside Europe with their third album 'Weekend... Continue Reading →
CD review NIGHTQUEEN ‘Seduction’
(7/10) Nightqueen from Genk, Belgium is a new member on El Puerto Records' roster. 'Seduction' is decisive third longplayer of the sextet from the Benelux and features twelve songs that are rooted on Power Metal. Nightqueen is the brainchild of guitarist Rex Zeco who founded the band in the early 2000s. What started as a... Continue Reading →
CD review VULTURE ‘Ghastly Waves & Battered Graves’
(8/10) What is it that German highways and Vulture have in common? Indeed, no speed limits. Vulture is still a rather new powerhouse in Metal. The band was founded in 2015 and released a first demo in 2016. A full-length debut followed one year later and after having inked a deal with Metal Blade it's... Continue Reading →
CD review THE RODS ‘Brotherhood of Metal’
(8/10) 'Brotherhood of Metal' is the pathetic title of The Rods newest delivery. The band of Ronnie James Dio cousin David Feinstein debuted in 1980 with 'Rock Hard' and released some more longplayers during the first half of the '80s. Radio silence took over in 1986 and it took more than 20 years until some... Continue Reading →
CD review LUNAR SHADOW ‘The Smokeless Fires’
(8/10) Two years after having uncovered the first full-length album ‘Far From Light’ it’s ‘The Smokeless Fires’ being the direction-giving second longplayer of the German quintet. The album is again done in cooperation with Cruz Del Sur and features seven new songs. The three years between the two records brought some roughness for Lunar Shadow.... Continue Reading →
CD review BONFIRE ‘Live on Holy Ground – Wacken 2018’
(*/10) German melodic metallers Bonfire have a next live album right in the starting blocks. It’s certainly not the first live album the guys from Bavaria releases and it might not be the last one either. However, it’s the first one that captures a show the band played at the legendary Wacken festival. Bonfire performed... Continue Reading →
CD review VADER ‘Thy Messenger’ – EP
(9/10) Vader is for sure an important pillar in Polish Heavy Metal and a strong player to Metal in general. 14 albums are the offer from the quartet with ‘Dark Age’ being the so far latest longplayer. ‘Dark Age’ started to spread its deadly Metal in 2017 and since work on the next longplayer still... Continue Reading →









