The German prog metallers of Vanden Plas already have two live albums in their portfolio and now a new record is added with 'Live & Immortal'. This album was recorded on December 30, 2016 at Kammgarn in Kaiserslautern. So it was a home game for the band and a good opportunity to record a live... Continue Reading →
Review BORIS ‘Heavy Rocks (2022)’
Boris started in 1992 in Tokyo Japan as a quartet and continued as a trio after Nagata left the outfit in 1996. Named after the Melvins song ‘Boris, the band started a wild journey through the spheres of heavy metal. If you are looking for bands that doesn’t fit any predictable standardized boxes, Boris should... Continue Reading →
Review OCEANS ‘Hell Is Where The Heart Is Vol. II: Longing’ – EP
Oceans, that is practiced German/Austrian friendship. Berlin, Coburg and Vienna, these are the home bases of the band which is active since 2017. With only one full-length album so far, Oceans don't really have many longplayers at the start. Rather, the quartet focuses on EPs. With 'Hell Is Where The Heart Is Part II -... Continue Reading →
QUEENSRŸCHE and the emotional ‘Forest’
Queensrÿche has shared a new song from the upcoming album 'Digital Noise Alliance' with its fans. 'Forest' is the name of the track, which is a softer song, a ballad that shows again why Todd La Torre's voice is such an important part of the band's sound. You can enjoy the song here: https://youtu.be/P36SqlrR6cU “The... Continue Reading →
Review DEREK SHERINIAN ‘Vortex’
Derek Sherinian, known as a keyboard wizard who refined the sound of Dream Theater Black Country Communion, among others, comes these days with a new solo album around the corner. Vortex' is the name of the new record which contains eight instrumental tracks. The king of the keys has brought in with Tony Franklin and... Continue Reading →
Review SEVENTH WONDER ‘The Testament’
Seventh Wonder started in 2000 when bassist Andreas Blomqvist, guitarist Johan Liefvendahl and drummer Johnny Sandin joined forces to form Seventh Wonder after their previous bands broke up. The five Swedes released their first album 'Become' in 2005 and three more records followed before drummer Johnny Sandin left the band after the launch of 'The... Continue Reading →
Review CHARLIE GRIFFITHS ‘Tiktaalika’
Charlie Griffiths musical mothership is Haken, the British progressive metal band. Next to that, Griffiths worked on his solo debut that will be released in June this year. ‘Tiktaalika’ is the title of an album that comes with surprises more than a strange album title only. What one could expect is a solo album that... Continue Reading →
Review PURE REASON REVOLUTION ‘Above Cirrus’
Pure Reason Revolution is a British prog rock band that started in 2003. After having released three longplayers the band disbanded in 2011. As so often it was a live appearance a few years later that sparked the flame of reunion. Pure Reason Revolution played at Midsummer Prog Festival in The Netherlands with the result... Continue Reading →
Review MICHAEL ROMEO ‘War of the Worlds, Pt. 2’
Michael Romeo, guitarist from New Jersey, is known as the founder of the progressive metal band Symphony X and releases some solo albums as well. With ‘The Dark Chapter’, the axe wizard released a first solo effort in 1994 and while having a focus on Symphony X, it took a few years until the sophomore... Continue Reading →
Review TýR ‘A Night at the Nordic House’
‘Hel’, that was the title of the latest studio release by Týr and with limited possibilities to play live, the band pit the album into spotlight at a show they played at Nordens Hu. The imprssive concert hall in Tórshavn has been the scenery for a special home game show of the quartet from the... Continue Reading →
‘Opeth: Every Album, Every Song’ available in April
‘Opeth: Every Album, Every Song’ is the title of a bock that will be released end of April. Author Jorden Blum did a deep-dive into the discography of one of the most influential rock/metal bands these days. With passion and love for details, Blum goes through each album and each song in detail. I think... Continue Reading →
Review ARJEN ANTHONY LUCASSEN’S STAR ONE ‘Revel in Time’
Arjen Lucassen is a very well-sounding name in the world of rock and metal. The Dutch musician and producer is a constant deliverer of excellent music that is beyond writing songs only. What Lucassen offers are compositions based in a sheer endless creative flow it seems. Lucassen cleverly steers his creative output into two directions... Continue Reading →
Review ZEAL & ARDOR ‘Zeal & Ardor’
Zeal & Ardor is the brainchild of American-Swiss musician Manuel Gagneux. He started Zeal & Ardor in 2013 in Basel, Switzerland and it is the combination of two totally different genres that made the project to an exciting newcomer in 2016, the year, when Zeal &Ardor unleashed the debut album ‘Devil is Fine’. Gagneux blends... Continue Reading →
Review VOIVOD ‘Synchro Anarchy’
Outer space metallers Voivod can look back on decades in metal. The Canadian band started in the early ‘80s and set some standards when it comes metal. Right from the beginning the band have never chosen to take the easy way and hereby managed to create a unique sound that can be immediately identified as... Continue Reading →
SOEN announce ‘Live From Atlantis Grammofon Studios’ worldwide stream
Further to the unavoidable and unfortunate postponement of their 2021 European IMPERIAL TOUR, the provocative and engaging Swedish-based metal group SOEN announce 'Live From Atlantis Grammofon Studios', a worldwide and exclusive on-demand stream recorded live event which will take place on February 18th 2022 at 8:00 pm CET/EST/AEDT. “This is something we have had in our minds for a very... Continue Reading →