Another huge week of new albums for us to check out, from metal to rock to country! Let’s not waste and time and dive right in!
Spiritbox: Tsunami Sea
It’s no secret that I don’t quite get the Spiritbox hype. I gave their debut a slightly generous 7/10, but have not revisited it once since. It wasn’t bad but outside of a couple of bangers… meh. So, I was cautious about sitting down with their highly anticipated sophomore release. However, this may have won me over! I didn’t check out any of the singles so went in completely blind, and liked a lot of it. I feel like it’s a touch more riff-oriented this time, some of them easily being highlights of the album as a whole. Honestly, I feel like the more pop-based tracks surprisingly did a lot less for me compared to when the band went hard. It was a bit of a shame that we have these heavy-ass riffs to open tracks and then it’d drop down to synth-based clean stuff for the most part. Still, ‘Fata Morgana’ is the perfect opener, and tracks like ‘Soft Spine’ and ‘No Loss, No Love’ are awesome additions to the band’s quickly growing discography. Clearly I just want them to be a hardcore band!
However, the more I listen to this, the more the average outweighs the good. There’s a lot of good elements in the tracks I’m not too into, but there’s a LOT of synthy, clean pop stuff, which I don’t enjoy as much as the metal. Even when the heavy, distorted riffs come in, more often than not it’s steady pop still around those guitars. I completely get why they have such a huge and growing fanbase, as the appeal is very much there. But it still isn’t really my sort of thing. The opening track did its job of getting me hyped, but the rest of the album didn’t keep me at that level. There are some good moments and songs and breakdowns, but overall I don’t think I’d listen to it much again. This is completely my own opinion and I know most will rank it higher, but this is a 6.5/10 from me.
Neil Young: Oceanside Countryside
The country rock legend and future Glastonbury headliner is back with yet another studio album. We checked out a couple of his last releases and didn’t mind them. This is another one one of his ‘lost albums’, recorded back in 1977 and never released. It’s very country, a style it feels like he and his band haven’t done in a long while at this point. It’s good, but very typical of the country scene at the time. It’s pretty Don McLean/ Hank Williams in its pacing and sound and chilled-out-ness. That’s certainly not a bad thing, but it does make for a slightly trying listen by the second half when it’s all the same slow stuff. He’s a legend for this stuff just as much a the rock or other genres he’s explored, but I don’t favour it as much as some of his other styles. Still, tracks like ‘Goin’ Back’, ‘Field of Opportunity’ and ‘It Might Have Been’ are all worth checking out if you’re into his particular brand of country-Americana. So yeah, not a bad album at all, and I’m glad Neil finally got the chance to release it. But it’s not something I’ll be rushing back to outside of a song or two. 5.5/10
Whitechapel: Hymns in Dissonance
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read the full review here.
The Wildhearts: Satanic Rites of the Wildhearts
Despite having a turbulent few years as a band and musician as a whole, Ginger has powered on and produced a damn good return album after nearly four years away. The man’s modern, unique brand of heavy punk, almost bordering on metal at times, is on full display through this, sounding as good as ever! The opener sets the tone perfectly, feeling like the perfect mix of their early stuff and Renaissance Men. Then you have tracks like ‘Scared of Glass’, the ‘cleverly’ titled ‘Kunce’ and ‘Blue Moon Over Brinkburn’ that are all certified bangers in their own right. However, if you’re a fan of their sound like I am, you’ll love all of it as there really isn’t a bad track on the album. I
t’s a lot of fun to listen to, and may actually be my favourite release from Ginger since maybe even The Wildhearts Must be Destroyed. Yep, that’s how truly good I believe this album actually is. It’s quirky, heavy and catchy all at the right levels and like really only Ginger can do. And while he had a questionable fallout with his previous members, it’s nice to see the guy coming back strong after years of struggling with his mental health. And to hear some of that emotion bleed into his songwriting is even better, and makes for a fascinating listen. This is a solid 8.5/10 from me, and I’ll definitely be listening to it again in the coming weeks and months!
Destruction: Birth of Malice
The German thrash legends are back with their first album since 2022’s Diabolical (which we also enjoyed!). This one is no different, as it’s another awesome release from a band that really don’t get the credit they deserve as they have a discography full of them! Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been a massive thrash fan so of course I was going to love this, but I honestly can’t recommend it enough to any fans of the genre or metal in general!
Right from the quiet intro track into the band’s namesake, it sets the tone perfectly and doesn’t let up for another 45-minutes of awesomeness. Between ‘No Kings – No Masters’, ‘God of Gore’ and ‘Greed’ there are plenty of tracks that I’d put up there among some of the band’s best. Yet, every song on this release feels pretty unique to each other and are all great in their own right. It didn’t feel like it went on for nearly an hour at all, my listens going by in a flash. Their sound really feels like the perfect blend of modern and old-school thrash, as well as having just a sprinkling of NWOBHM for good measure. It’s just a good metal album, there isn’t much more to say! The band are extremely talented players and songwriters, and all get their own times to shine throughout. I’ve gotten into the band a lot in the three years since their last release, and I’d honestly put this one up there with some of their better releases. It gets a solid 8/10 from me!
Caylee Hammack: Bed of Roses
The modern country star is back with her sophomore album after a rather surprising five year break. She’s been plenty busy in that time, with four awesome singles on top of the other four released to hype this album. As a fan of her work, though, it’s definitely nice to have a longer collection from her again! It also helps that it’s an awesome release, too!
Her voice is as incredible as it always has been, flipping from powerful, effortlessly and delicately soaring and brimming with emotion and attitude with ease. And her writing, be it the lyrics or instrumentation, is great throughout, and surprisingly varied through a few different country-adjacent styles. The album is packed full of highlights too, it being a very easy 46+ minute listen that goes by in a flash. From the opening track to the beautiful ballad ‘Mammas’, to the more Americana ‘The Hill’, to the likes of ‘Bread & Butter’ and ‘Cleopatra’, there is so much amazingness on the album! Heck, I’d put them up alongside any of her top songs, for sure!
My only slight complaint is about the arrangement; there’s a lot of slower stuff at the start and maybe putting in another of the more upbeat tracks in the mix earlier may have kept the energy more consistent. However, it’s a minor gripe when everything is this high quality! I’m gonna be listening to this a fair bit moving forward and I just hope she tours over here again soon as I’d love to hear a lot of this live! 9/10
Jethro Tull: Curious Ruminant
When I started this site back in 2021, I had no idea that I’d end up reviewing THREE Jethro Tull albums. Heck, the fact that they’ve been going this long (nearly 60 years!) and are still regularly releasing music is honestly commendable and fantastic, even if I have now accidentally signed myself on to reviewing each of Ian Anderson and co’s quirky prog-folk rock until either he or I die. While I wasn’t a fan of the bands last release, I still jam out with some stuff off The Zealot Gene every so often. So, I’m morbidly curious to see what they have to offer here…
It’s certainly Jethro Tull, that’s for sure. It’s weird, proggy, folky and rocky all in rather equal measure, and has more flute than I’ve ever heard in any other bands music. However, as a legitimate fan of the band, I did find myself enjoying this the more I listened. There’s some really great Tull tracks on here, like the title track, ‘The Tipu House’ and the honest to god prog masterpiece, journey that is ‘Drinking from the Same Well’. And Ian doesn’t sound anywhere near as tired as he did on RökFlöte, both as a vocalist and as a songwriter. Who knew that taking nearly two years off to recharge, especially in your seventies, would be helpful, ey? The highs, I would say, are better than Zealot, but overall I didn’t enjoy the album as a whole quite as much. To (surely not just) my shock, the band have once again knocked it out of the park with their whopping 23rd studio album. I wasn’t expecting this at all, but it’s another solid 7.5/10 for them!
P.S extra points for the sick album artwork!
Alex Runions: Above the Clouds and on the Ground
A fantastic, popular mainstay of Canada’s country music scene, Alex released his highly anticipated third studio album, a full decade after his last one! Right off the bat, it reminds me a lot of his contemporaries like Julian Taylor and ?, in the best possible way of course. Heck, it gives slight vibes of a local easy-listening/soft rock guy to us, Jodie Blunt. I love his stuff so of course I love this! Tracks like the opener, ‘Watching the World Go By’ and ‘A Song for My Dog’ are all awesome and personal highlights, nit honestly it’s a very easy 35-minute listen packed full of awesome, chilled-out tracks. If you’re into the slower side of country music, I can’t recommend this enough. I’ll certainly be listening to this again, and it’s the best release of this style I’ve heard in a while. It’s a solid 8/10 from us!
Deathless Legacy: Damnatio Aeterna
The sixth album from the symphonic/industrial metal has been pretty highly anticipated by us here at Overtone as I personally loved their last release. This album doesn’t disappoint either, certainly living up to my hype for it! Honestly, two and a half years has been two long between releases because I LOVE this band, and this is another excellent addition to their discography. I’d put it up there with Master Larvarum for sure, too. There really isn’t a bad song on the album, so it’s nearly impossible to pick highlight tracks. However, the slower, almost jazz-bar-like ‘Get On Your Knees’ is utterly fantastic, and maybe my favourite song the band have done. However as I say, every song is awesome, and this certainly doesn’t feel like nearly an hour at all, it goes by in a flash.
It all has such an epic feel to it, bordering on power/folk metal as much as symphonic and industrial stuff. The closest band I can think of to them is Lacuna Coil, and I’d honestly put this up there with their awesome new album, which is saying a lot! Then again, Steva has just a hint of P!nk to her vocals too, which surprisingly fits perfectly with this sound! And the whole thing feels so cohesive, the dark culty style and themes being only emphasised by the chanting and organs. So, if you’re a fan of any of the styles or bands I’ve mentioned already, or are just into metal in general, I can’t recommend checking this out enough. It’s an easy 9/10!
Jason Isabell: Foxes in the Snow
The folk/Americana singer-songwriter returned last Friday with his first album in a couple of years, and his first solo venture (sans The 400 Unit) in a decade. While I do generally prefer his work with a bit more of a backing band and instrumentation to it, this is still a good listen. Much like Alex earlier on, it made for a relaxing, easy time, even if it did feel like ever so slightly more of a slog than the aforementioned album, given in large part to this just being one man with his vocals and guitar. Still, tracks like ‘Ride to Robert’s’ and ‘Open and Close’ are fantastic and big highlights for me. It’s not an album I’ll be rushing back to listen to often, but it’s certainly not a bad listen and I wouldn’t turn it off if it came back on. It’s a solid 7/10 from me, and it’s another I’d happily recommend to any Americana fans out there!
Sierra Hull: A Tip Toe High Wire
We don’t cover nearly enough bluegrass on this channel, so whenever I get the chance to I love it. This is no different. Don’t get me wrong, I do prefer the genre when it has a bit more to it and has a bit more energy and almost a rock edge, but this is still a damn good, fun album that I enjoyed listening to a lot. It’s an easy listen again too, only being 10-tracks and 35-minutes. In that time it still has plenty of time for highlights, from ‘Come Out of My Blues’ to the awesome instrumental jam ‘Lord, That’s a Long Way’ and ‘E Tune’ to ‘Truth Be Told’. Honestly, the best parts of this album are when they cut loose instrumentally and jam out some amazing, quicker stuff. But I do like the contrast between them and the more ballad-like, folkier tracks featuring vocals. If nothing else, you can’t possibly be bored listening to this! It’s a lot of fun and the Sierra and her band are clearly incredibly talented players and songwriters. I’ll certainly be listening to this again, and I’d recommend anyone reading this, the whole album is definitely worth a try! It’s a solid 8.5/10 from me!