Hamburg is not exactly known as a carnival hotspot and yet, today's concert event fits very well for Ash Wednesday. With Katatonia, Sólstafir and SOM there are three bands in town, which do not exactly stand for the colorful fifth season. Rather, the bands are dedicated to the rather dark sounds, which are musically sophisticated... Continue Reading →
Review STONED JESUS ‘Father Light’
Stoned Jesus started in 2009 when Igor, Sergii and Dmytro from Kiev, Ukraine, formed the band and debuted with 'First Communion'. Three more albums followed before the Russian attack on Ukraine also completely changed the trio's life.Only in mid-July 2022 Stoned Jesus could start rehearsing again, which, due to the given circumstances, still seemed surreal... Continue Reading →
Review ROXANNE ‘Stereo Typical’
'Stereo Typical' is already the third album in Roxanne's career, which is truly special. One or the other may not have heard of the band yet and at the same time the four-piece is not exactly a newcomer. The debut album of Roxanne was already released in 1986 before it became more than calm about... Continue Reading →
Review INSOMNIUM ‘Anno 1696’
The Finns of Insomnium are well-known, since they have been around since 1997. With an impressive discography of eight longplayers, the Finns have delivered excellent results over the past years. However, the latest studio album 'Heart Like a Grave' was released almost four years ago and it was the 'Argent Moon' EP that helped to... Continue Reading →
Review HOST ‘IX’
An album that certainly not only I have been eagerly awaiting is 'IX' by Host. The elder of you will remember. Paradise Lost released an album called 'Host' in 1999. The disc was controversially discussed at the time, and certainly still is today. The English death metal heroes moved already with 'Draconian Times' and 'One... Continue Reading →
Review GODSMACK ‘Lighting Up the Sky’
When Godsmack was founded in 1995 in Lawrence, Massachusetts, it was not foreseeable that such a success story would unfold. But already with the release of the self-titled debut album it became quite clear that Godsmack hit the nerve of the time. The album jumped up the U.S. charts to #22 and has since gone... Continue Reading →
Review STEEL PANTHER ‘On the Prowl’
From the beginning, Steel Panther was only partly about music. Entertainment was what stood in focus since the first days of the comedy glam rock band and this has not changed in 2023. With 'On the Prowl' the band of four make-up fanatics release their sixth album and don't change the trademarks. Sleaze rock and... Continue Reading →
Review SIEGE OF POWER ‘This is Tomorrow’
Siege Of Power emerged from a project called First Class Elite. More than a few songs on a split album did not come out of this project and yet it laid the foundation for a band that presented a debut album in 2018. Siege Of Power, these are well-known names from the death metal sphere.... Continue Reading →
Review MÄRVEL ‘Double Decade’
Swedish Märvel started 2002 which means that the band is a bit more than 20 years in business. Starting with the very first EP ‘Marvellous’ the trio started a exciting journey through the world of rock, adding in total of nine studio records to the books. Märvel, that is John Steen (The King), Ulrik Bostedt... Continue Reading →
Review IRON VOID ‘IV’
Already a few days in the record stores and very relevant for fans of well-made doom metal, this is the new album from Iron Void. Some of you will surely already have the band on the metal radar screens, because after all the guys have been on their mission to bring good metal to the... Continue Reading →
Review SIENA ROOT ‘Revelation’
Siena is a brown-reddish hue, a very earthy and warm color. Accordingly, it is no coincidence that the four Swedes of Siena Root have incorporated this hue into their band name, as it reflects the sound of the quartet in a very good fashion. It is this warm and organic sound that makes 'Revelation' an... Continue Reading →
Review AIR RAID ‘Fatal Encounter’
One of the Gothenburg metal representatives are Air Raid. The band started 2009 and follow their passion for traditional metal. The debut was unleashed in 2012 and is entitled ‘Night of the Axe’, followed by two additional longplayers. Six years after having released ‘Cross the Line’, Air Raid are back with a new record called... Continue Reading →
Review TRANSATLANTIC ‘The Final Flight: Live at L’Olympia ‘
One should be careful with the use of the term 'supergroup'. It is often used as a marketing slogan and is applied in an inflationary manner. But when it comes to Transatlantic, one can definitely speak of a supergroup. All band members are all masters of their craft who joined forces many years ago to... Continue Reading →
Live report HEAVEN SHALL BURN, TRIVIUM, OBITUARY & MALEVOLENCE, Sporthalle, Hamburg – February 11th, 2023
It is a wet, cold and gray February day, when fans of extreme metal gather at the Alsterdorfer Sporthalle and four bands are on the agenda tonight - Heaven Shall Burn, Trivium, Obituary and Malevolence. Patiently and with a beer or two, fans wait until the doors to the Sporthalle open and at 5:30pm the... Continue Reading →
Review ENDLEVEL ‘Weekend War’
That Southern Germany has generated some famous metal bands, is not a new fact. If you think of Destruction, Primal Fear,… etc. then it shows that Swabia also has a lot to offer musically. A band that is not completely new, but also not really established yet are Endlevel from Albstadt. Jonas Frey (drums), Ken... Continue Reading →









