A day after our trip to Download (not reviewing it, it feels weird to review one day of a three day festival) we headed up to Birmingham for a night of folky, dark metal goodness. Three awesome bands packing out a small, hot venue that’s been recently refurbished and reopened; it was set to be a good night! Let’s dive into all three and let y’all know just how awesome they were!
Kicking off the night were the gothic metallers Reliquia. They were the only band I hadn’t checked out beforehand, but they came away with a big new fan in me! They’re a sort of style I love; the epic, dark, gothy-doom sound, and reminded me a lot of bands like My Dying Bride. It had all the best elements of doom and black metal, but also sounded pretty unique. And for a venue as small as it was to get a sound as massive as the band produced was amazing, so big props to the sound guy as well as the band for producing a great show. The band are all hugely talented, playing perfectly along with their organ-and-bass backing track as well as writing some awesome songs. And they really grew into their performance, too. They seemed a touch nervous at first, but as the packed room got more into it so did the band, with Gregg in particular being a great frontman by the end. He also had some of the best live vocals I’ve heard in a while; from low singing to awesome screams they were all great. As I said, they won me round pretty quickly into a new fan, and I’d recommend checking them out if you haven’t already!
Next up were the reason we were there, the incredible LN. After seeing them at Winters End back in February and falling in love, we knew we had to see them again ASAP. To the shock of I’m sure no one, we once again were blow away by the band! They’re one of the most interesting bands in the UK underground scene today, as well as being one of the best live bands around. Their studio work is phenomenal and translates perfectly live, especially in such an intimate setting. There was no denying the crowd were there for them, and they played off it perfectly. Heck, they even got a pit going, which I was not expecting at all! LN is such an engaging and magnetic frontwoman, having the crowd in the palm of her hand throughout. Everyone else also put on a great show though, as well! From their popular older stuff to new preview songs and latest single ‘Hellfire’, it was a fantastic set, too. They band are clearly going to go far fast, and it’s so cool seeing them in these small venues before they blow up!
Headlining the night were Scotlands own Trowsholm. Right off the bat it was an interesting collection of people; a viking, a wizard, someone in a matching short, shirt and bucket-hat combo and a thrasher… seems like the start of a bad joke! However, it made for one hell of a party mood right from the offset, and the band kept said mood high through the whole set. They were potentially the heaviest band of the night, and at very least the highest energy and paced, and it made for an awesome headline set! It felt almost like a heavier Alestorm, so impossible not to love! They travelled far to be at the gig and made sure it was worth it as they put on a show from beginning to end. They were the least ‘my thing’ of the night but I still had a blast, as did the still-packed-out crowd around me! They were polished and professional while still feeling fun and more light-hearted, and I can’t recommend them enough!
Overall, it’s was an absolutely amazing night of live music! All three bands knocked it out of the park and fit so well on the same bill together. I cannot recommend seeing all three of them enough if they come close to where you are, and I already want to see all of them live again already! And plus, shoutout to the venue, which was awesome, and is helping keep rock and metal alive in one of the most important cities for it!
Another big week for releases, with some absolutely massive and awesome albums put out across country, rock and metal! Let’s dive in!
Architects: The Sky, the Earth & All Between
This was one of our most anticipated albums of the year, and spoiler alert, it lives up to that anticipation. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve put out plenty of singles ahead of its release, which got the hype up and reinforced that it was going to be great, bit everything about this is utterly brilliant. Firstly, Architects are HEAVY again, for anyone who didn’t hear ‘Seeing Red’ until now. This album goes as hard at times than anything they’ve done in their careers. Like, 2025 Architects has no right going this hard. Sam is PISSED, and an angry Sam is the best Sam. Some of the breakdowns are absolute filth, and every time a low scream hits I’m pretty sure I… get very happy. However, it also keeps a good few elements of their last couple of elements, blending them in perfectly with the harsher overall sound. The massive, ethereal, melodic choruses are fantastic and there’s plenty of catchiness to them. And even when they do full tracks in that style like ‘Everything Ends’, it sounds awesome and is genuinely a fun listen when the whole album doesn’t sound the same. While I did enjoy parts of their 2021 and 2022 releases, this certainly feels like a step back up and a return to form!
In terms of highlights, where do I even start? The album is full of them! I already have half of this on my personal playlist from the singles released, and found myself adding more on there from album tracks. It honestly feels like an important, seminal record, almost like Sempiternal was. If this is where metalcore is headed in the next few years, count me all of the way in. This should be the album to push Architects to the level of major festival headliners, and there truly isn’t a bad song on it. I cannot recommend this album enough. It’s set the standard for the year, at least in terms of metal, and is going to be a tough one to beat. 10/10, easy.
P.S. huge shoutout to House of Protection and Amira Elfeky who kill it on their features!
Kip Moore: Solitary Tracks
We’ve already checked this awesome album out! Read the full review here.
Avantasia: Here Be Dragons
The German metal opera returned with another studio release this last Friday, and it may be their most ambitious yet. Three discs spanning the 10 new tracks, instrumental versions of all of them, some extended/reworked versions, and some live stuff. It’s an incredible ambitious project over 140 minutes. However, it’s a good release, and all are definitely worth a listen so were worth releasing.
In terms of the new stuff, it’s another great installment into Tobias’ discography. From the surprisingly glammy opener and ‘Bring on the Night’ to more Queensryche/Maiden stuff to all out power/folk metal, there is plenty to sink your teeth into. Said opener and ‘Phantasmagoria’ are personal favourites, but everything track is damn good and if you’re a fan of the styles or band, you’ll love it too! I do, however, have to say that I didn’t enjoy it as much as their last release. Still though, it’s a good album and certainly lives up to the epic metal opera standards and moniker. Plus, sneaking ‘Retun to the Opera’ onto the second disc was a great decision; giving a shoutout and bonus to fans of their early work. However, it does show Tobias still has this sort of stuff in him, so it may work to piss off fans as much as please them!
The rest of the two other discs do feel a little like fluff/padding, but I’m sure hardcore fans of the band will get a lot out of them, still!
So yeah, certainly not a bad release at all! If you like the band or power/folk metal in general, I’d recommend it heartily as you’ll definitely get a lot out of it. However, for me it’s not quite as good as their two-part debut, or their last two, as all four albums simply felt more connected and interesting. It’s a solid 9/10
Ironically, both Avantasia and Architects put out their last albums on the same day. Weird how they’ve changed in that short amount of time. I was not expecting them to switch!
Abandon Alien: Disturbing the Neighbours
I know absolutely nothing about this album other than that our friends over at Grand Sound PR let us know a release date, that it’s somehow the second album release of the year from the band, and the brief words on their Spotify bio. By the sound of things, both of their current albums up on streaming have been released before, and are just now hitting streaming. However, regardless, this sounds awesome and I want to highlight it here!
It very much is in that grungy alt-rock area that the band describe themselves as. However, it definitely feels on the heavier end of that spectrum. It definitely gives like the harder side of Bush or Creed vibes. Heck, all I hear in the vocals is Scott Stapp or Eddie Vedder, there’s definitely that style and cadence going on. But it sounds awesome, and fits over the fuzzy riffing and solid drums perfectly! Tracks like the opener, ‘Not Done’ and ‘Control’ are all personal highlights. The whole album is packed full of pretty great songs though, especially if you like grunge. My only slight issue with the album is its production. If it had a bigger sound, and the vocals (and particularly the harmonies/multi-tracked) were a little more fitting, it would make it all the more incredible. Still, it isn’t a bad release at all, and I’d love to hear it live as I think it would hit even harder! It gets a solid 7/10 from us, and I’mma have to head back and check out their debut!
Heaven’s Reign: Northern Lights
This is an awesome slice of 80s hard rock/sleaze from the UK veteran’s debut album. It’s all fun guitaring and riffs, soaring vocals, catchy melodies and huge harmonies. Tracks like ‘Here we go again’, the title track and ‘Bad boys’ are all great, and personal highlights of the album. However, if you’re into this sort of music, you’re bound to enjoy the whole thing! Don’t get me wrong, it hardly brings anything new to the table and certainly doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it’s a fun listen and a damn solid debut release for a band that have got a lot of hype around them thanks to plugging away at the scene for so long. Check this out if you’re a fan of the AOR/80s hard rock style. It gets a solid 7.5/10 from me!
Light Dweller: The Subjugate
The black/death metal solo project of Cameron Boesch is back with its fifth full length release, and first since 2022. It’s about exactly what you’d expect from the description, to be honest. If you’re into that sort of thing, I’m sure you love this. Sadly, as much as I am getting more into/accepting of this sort of style, it’s still not particularly my sort of thing. Don’t get me wrong, some of the talent on display across every instrument and the screams is insanely high, and it’s all clearly well put together, written and produced. But I’m still a radio boy at heart and not having really much along the way of catchy melody does knock it down a few points in my book. I completely see the appeal of this sort of thing, especially when it’s just one person doing all of it, but it sadly isn’t for me. 4/10
JD Clayton: Blue Sky Sundays
Some more country up next, the sophomore release from the neo-traditional, chilled out singer-songwriter. There’s a bit of a blues tinge to it right from the offset too, which I LOVED. The opener, ‘Let You Down’, sets the tone for the album perfectly and is a massive highlight of the release. However, every track on this thing is amazing, and it’s pretty difficult to pick outright highlights to put above the others. Every track is awesome, and it flows so well through a fantastic, relaxed 35-minutes. It definitely has a southern rock aura to it as much as it does a country one, and it honestly feels pretty unique, at least these days. The closest thing I can compare it to is something like Duane Betts or even a little Flatland Cavalry. There’s even a bit of Chris Stapleton on ‘Arkansas Kid’, which is a phenomenal rockier song! Heck he even does a fantastic cover of Tracy Chapman’s iconic ‘Give Me One Reasom’. If you’re a fan of country, blues, southern rock or just good, chilled music in general, I cannot recommend this album enough. He has a huge new fan in me and if there is any justice in the music industry, he’d be a massive name off the back of this. 9/10
JIZZY PEARL’S LOVE/HATE: Punk Rock Fiesta!
The Blackout in the Red Room legend is back with his first solo studio effort, and it’s exactly what you’d expect and want from the man! As much 80s LA sleaze as it is punk rock, it continues Jizzy’s legacy perfectly and starts a great new chapter in his career. It’s short and sweet too; in and out in eight awesome tracks. It drips with swagger and attitude, and is packed full of awesome riffs, even more awesome solos, and Jizzy’s signature raspy vocals fit perfectly over the top!
I was hooked from the opener, but honestly I feel like the album surprisingly only gets better as it goes on. He’s known for his foot-stomping rock, but I found the slower ‘Can’t Be Wrong’ to be one of my favourite tracks on the album because of the dynamics of the track. And the one-two punch of it being followed by the equally excellent ‘I’ll Be Your Shadow’ was awesome. However, none of the songs on this are bad by any stretch, and if you like Love/Hate’s particular brand of noise, this is very much the album for you! It’s just a damn good-time listen, and I can’t give it any less than 8/10. Great stuff!
Risen Crow: Requiem for a Damned Love
The debut release of the Italian melodic power metal band is a damn good first album. The band are insanely talented players and songwriters, and that is on display perfectly throughout. Tracks like ‘Black Widow’, ‘Revelation’ and the epic piano closer are all personal highlights. However, there isn’t a bad track throughout, and it’s really well put together, flowing well and not feeling like nearly 40-minutes by any stretch! They have entered into an incredibly saturated market with the sub-genre currently and may have to fight hard to stand out. However, that shouldn’t take away from this being an awesome release, and a fantastic way to kick off the bands career. It’s a solid 7.5/10 from me!
The Five Hundred: GHOSTWRITER
The local (to us) modern metalcore legends put out their highly anticipated third album this last Friday. The release show sold out the iconic Nottingham Rescue Rooms, and it’s easy to see why, as this band are awesome and this album is incredible! It’s a very modern sound, pretty close to the likes of Bad Omens and Bring Me the Horizon or even Architects’ last couple of albums until this one! Still, we do get a few heavy parts too, and. I honestly feel like that is when the album shines the brightest. Tracks like ‘NEW WORLD’, ‘EMPTY HOPE’ and ‘ECHOES’ combine the usual sound throughout this with a heavier style that feels like the band I knew them as back in the day, and were easy highlight tracks. However, the evolution of the band has been fascinating, and has produced something with this release that truly stands out in their discography. Would I have preferred it a little heavier overall? Sure. But clearly the band are doing something right with this release, and it’s a damn good album to listen through in full if you are into this sort of style. It sounds massive, the production is awesome, and there are plenty of catchy and memorable moments throughout. It’s a solid 8/10 from us!
P.S. shoutout to Eddie & The Wolves/Audiomage’s Ben Gains on co-writing a couple of tracks on it, ‘RAINMAKER’ and ‘BODIES’; both are also great songs!
Another stacked week of new albums for us to check out, from metal to country. Let’s dive in!
Lacuna Coil: Sleepless Empire
The Italian gothic alt metal masters have gone back to their heavy roots for album 10, and I LOVE it. It’s their first release in six years and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. Whether it’s elements of metalcore, industrial, symphonic, or nu metal, there is plenty going on throughout, yet Lacuna blend every style together masterfully like only they can, creating something fully unique. I nearly didn’t right that line as there is currently a lot out there, especially in the UK underground scene, that is doing this sort of thing, but the fact that they are all heavily influenced by this band shows just how good they are.
I’m struggling to pick out highlight tracks, too. I realised when going back for a second listen that I’d added a good two-thirds of this to my own playlist, so I guess I’d recommend just going away and listening to it all in full! The riffing is ch0nky, the drumming and synth all give it a huge, epic feel and Cristina and Andrea’s clean and harsh vocals (respectively) work perfectly together and sound just as incredible as they always do. Plus, shout out to both Randy Blythe and Ash Costello, who both kill it on their guest slots and are other big high points of the album. I have to say I don’t think I’ve listened to one of Lacuna’s albums in full in a while, but after a couple of listens this may be up there with one of my favourites! It’s an easy 9/10
The War and Treaty: Plus One
The fifth album from the Amiercana/Southern soul husband and wife duo is incredible. You need more than that? Hhhh, fine…
Yeah, I LOVED it. I knew I would, as not only did I love their last album, and this release featured on our most anticipated albums of the year list thanks to its singles. However, I think it even surpassed my lofty expectations for it! It’s hard to compare to Lover’s Game, as much as I want to try, as it is so different. It feels darker and more soul-focused, leaning less into their previous country sound. However, the soul/jazz mix of the early album is truly amazing, and feels pretty unique in modern times. We do get more country/Americana and even bluegrass the later the album goes; a surprisingly interesting and amazing transition that paid off big. Both styles work so damn well too, and the album is absolutely packed full of highlights. Whether it’s ‘Skyscraper’ or ‘Stealing a Kiss’ or the likes of ‘Save Me’ and ‘Love is On Fire’ it’s all brilliantly written, performed and arranged. Mike and Tanya are both two of the best vocalists in any genre currently, and their voices click perfectly together throughout yet again. Some of the notes and power they hit is utterly phenomenal. And somehow, this 18-track, hour-plus long release didn’t feel long at all to me, a rarity for a country/Americana release.
As I said, it’s completely different to their last release, yet is definitely up there in terms of quality. I gave that one a revised 9.5/10 in my albums of the year list, but I think giving this anything less than a full 10/10 is criminal! I’d recommend this album to anyone, immediately!
Dynazty: Game of Faces
Despite the owning track not hooking me, this album is fucking awesome! The ninth album from the Swedish melodic power metal band follows up from their incredibly strong 2022 release perfectly, building on everything we loved on that album and arguably even surpassing it! Everything about it feels massive and epic, from the soaring vocals to the huge instrumentation to the fantastic production. It is also packed full of awesome songs, from the title track to ‘Die to Survive’, ‘Fortune Favours the Brave’ and the epic ‘Dream of Spring’. However, there really isn’t a bad track on the entire album! Nils is such an underrated vocalist, and this may be his best outing to date in that regard. That shouldn’t take away from the rest of the band though, who work their asses off and play phenomenally throughout. I can’t recommend this enough to anyone into power or melodic metal. It gets a solid 8.5/10 from us!
Ron Pope: American Man, American Music
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Find the full review here.
Rioghan: Kept
The sophomore album of the Finnish rising prog metal stars dropped on Friday, and it’s a bit of a banger! Adding in elements of alt and symphonic and even black/extreme metal to the technical structures and style works excellently, and it certainly builds on the bands 2022 release. And that’s saying something too, as I remember checking out that album when it came out and loved it! It very much takes all the elements they had to begin with and builds on them perfectly, refining their sound even more into something truly unique. From the almost Zeal & Ardor-like avant guarde ‘Hands’, to the dark-synth ‘Skin’, to more acoustic/folk focused, beautiful ‘Hopes’, there is so much variety throughout, and it’s all done so well! Heck, there’s even some modern metalcore tooked throughout which was surprising but great!
It’s so hard to pick highlights too as it’s all incredible and it all has such a great flow to it throughout. Any of the tracks mentioned above could easily count, but also stuff like the epic ‘Motion’ or ‘Read’ are really incredible. The band have somehow topped their impressive debut, and I can’t recommend this enough to any metalhead reading this. Put some headphones on, sit in a dark room and listen to this through in one; you won’t be disappointed! It very much feels like a work of art. I’m desperate to see this all live, too! It’s a very easy 9.5/10 from me!
Manic Street Preachers: Critical Thinking
The Welsh alt rockers are back with their 15th studio album. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to one of their albums in full, but I do like a few of their tracks from over the years. I have to admit, it was a bit of a hard album to get through in full. That opening track is pretty terrible, but it does get better after that. ‘Brushstrokes of Reunion’ is pretty good, as is ‘My Brave Friend’. However, it’s not really my sort of thing, and was a bit of a slog to get through for me personally; it was all a bit slow and similar. However, it isn’t a bad album, and if you are into this sort of style I’d definitely recommend checking it out! 5/10
Midland Railway: Self-Titled
The Manchester-based alt rockers have been building a lot of hype over the last few years, and have finally released their much-anticipated debut album! It’s a lighthearted album that has a real early 2000’s indie vibe, which is a lot of fun. It’s really interestingly written, with the lyrics in particularly being fantastic. Stuff like ‘A Song for Hannah Beth’ and ‘One Day’ are personal highlights, but the whole album is pretty great! It’s indie/punk infused British rock at its very best, and it’s just a good-time listen. The talent in the band is undeniable, and they all work so well together. As a bassist myself, the bass throughout was a huge high point, alongside the lyrics! And while it’s not quite my sort of thing, I still enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anyone who’s a fan of the above genres. It’s also a real good debut album! A solid 7.5/10!
Mantar: Post Apocalyptic Depression
Blackened doom punk metal. It sounds fucking awesome, and it very much is! It’s heavy, quirky and simply a whole lot of fun to listen to! It wasn’t a sound I was expecting to hear or even actually exist, but I’m so glad I managed to check out the album, the band have a big new fan in me. It combines so many sounds and genres together, and does so awesomely. Whether it’s the opening track, ‘Principal of Command’ or ‘Church of Suck’, there’s plenty of great stuff throughout. However, none of it is bad. For a duo, they have created such a massive, interesting sound, and something that feels truly unique. It’s not going to be for everyone, but if you’re into hardcore or heavier punk, I’d certainly recommend checking it out, you might love it as much as I do! I’ll certainly be playing it more moving forward, and it gets an easy 8/10 from me!
James O’Hurley: A Certain Stranger
The bluesy soft rock singer/songwriter spent much of last year building hype up around him and this album through multiple excellent singles, so to say that it’s a highly anticipated debut is almost an understatement. Honestly, I’d say it lives up to said hype too, as this is awesome! Tracks like ‘Maria’, ‘Red’, ‘Four Long Days’ and ‘Bloom’ are all highlights on an album filled with them! Some of his lyric writing is incredible and all the instrumentation is great too. Plus, it all flows effortlessly together, not feeling like 34-minutes at all. It’s a chilled out album that also kinda makes you think and feel, which is never a bad thing! He has a new fan in me, and I can’t give this any less than 7.5/10. Check this out if you like the lighter side of rock!
Serpentyne: Tales from the Dark
Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I went into this with kinda low expectations. I hadn’t heard of the band until a few weeks ago when I saw them at Winters End, and they sadly had a bit of a bad time with their sound there, not doing much to win me over. And I’d listened to them on track a little beforehand, with them doing little for me.
Honestly, there were times on this album where they nearly won me over. The heavy riffing throughout is excellent, and I think that overall when they go harder, they are better. I’m not especially a fan of Maggiebeth’s vocals, but when they’re multi-tracked over some heavy instrumentation, they sound pretty awesome! It’s when that guitar cuts out or cleans up that I start to have issues. Her vocals simply aren’t strong enough to be a focal point, but when the rest of what’s going on is simple drums, keys or bass to compliment the vocals, it doesn’t work. And sadly, that’s a fair chunk of the album, a fair chunk of each song. Instrumentally it’s a lot of fun, but those vocals are sometimes hard to work past! Still, songs like ‘Ghost of Time’s Past’ and ‘Run for your Life’ are fun and enjoyable!
If you’re heavily into the epic, dark symphonic metal stuff you may wanna check this out, but it wasn’t much for me. 4/10
Mastord: Lemmon Lintu
The sophomore album from the Finnish prog band certainly makes for an interesting listen! The band are insanely talented players and songwriters, and have crafted something here that feels different, blending together and almost atmospheric, folky sound to the usual prog style. They clearly take big inspiration from their country and area they live in, and it’s made this a fantastic album. It’s like Tool, ASP and Týr all rolled into one. It’s rather hard to pick out highlights too, as it’s definitely an album that demands to be listened to in full! Having said that, ‘Villi’ is epic and definitely my favourite track of the album! It’s not going to be an album for everyone, but the band have a new fan in me and I’ll certainly be keeping it in my rotation over the next few weeks, that’s for sure! It’s a solid 7.5/10!
Todd Barridge: All the Right Scars
The cover song extraordinaire has put out his much anticipated foray into original music this last week. I’d somehow not heard of him before now, which is weird given that I’m a fan of other artists like this, and even then only heard of him because of a podcast clip I saw of him and BMTH having similar covers of ‘Wonderwall’. However, I’m glad I did hear of him, as this is a great post-hardcore album! It’s like Linkin Park meets punk, but with way more emo to it. I hate to say it, but it’s almost an old-school style nowadays, and I don’t hear too much new in it these days, so having some new emo-skate like I grew up with is awesome! Some of the lyrics are a touch edgy and cringy, but they fit the music rather perfectly.
Songs like the opener, ‘Green-Haired Canadian Girls’, the heavy ‘Joey Sturgis Asked me…’ and ‘Tactless, Tasteless, Obvious’ are all massive highlights. However, the album as a whole is pretty great, and there isn’t a bad track on it! There’s a surprising amount of great riffing throughout. It’s also surprisingly varied in its style and tempos, which is always appreciated! I went into this album with no expectations and was very pleasantly surprised, it’s awesome! A must-listen if you were a part of the 2000s emo scene. He certainly has a new fan in me, and this is an easy 9/10
I’m gonna start this off by saying that I LOVE this band. Between reviewing their last album, seeing them live and even chatting to the man himself, we’ve done a lot of coverage of them over the last year, and there was no way I wasn’t reviewing this album too. I’ll try to keep it reigned in, but if the singles are anything to go by, this is going to be another incredible power metal album!
Opening on their most recent single, ‘We Are Forelorn’ kicks things off with a bang! The epic, sinister vibe builds up throughout the intro and verse, definitely demonstrating the grittier tone Dr Dead mentioned in the interview. It all builds to a typically massive, catchy chorus, too. The gang vocals add so much and make it so easy to sing along to. Also, some of Dead’s high notes, not just here but on the whole album, are insanely impressive! We also get an awesome guitar solo tucked in the middle of the track, making me feel like the band as a whole are criminally underrated players. Again, what an amazing way to open the album!
Next up is a one-two-punch of the other two singles ‘One of Us’ and the Feurschwanz-featuring title track. Both are absolutely amazing songs and classic-feeling Dominum tracks. I’ve covered both already over on our YouTube channel, I’ll drop the video below. However, I can’t pass up the chance to gush over them even more. The choruses for both are up there with some of their best and the instrumetation overall is incredible. It’s songs like this why I fell in love with not just the band, but the genre in general, and I cannot recommend either enough!
A folkier vibe runs through ‘Killed by Life’, which tracks given that it was penned by guitarist Tommy Kemp, also of Winterstorm fame. Spoiler; it’s another awesome song! It also feels a little more polished than the previous few tracks, more radio-written, not that that is a bad thing! The chorus is huge and massively catchy and the structure is pretty simple. However, the riffing is still amazing, and the overall production is incredible on it! While not my favourite track on the album, it is still awesome and definitely enjoyable!
Honestly, I got the same sort of feelings from ‘Die for the Devil’, outside of the folk element. It reminded me the most of their debut album the most of any song so far. From the steady, low verses building into the HUGE radio-choruses, it’s standard Dominum in the best of ways! It’s simple but awesome and another fantastic power metal offering!
‘Don’t get Bitten by the Wrong Ones’ is a bit steadier, feeling almost ballad-like. It also gives off vibes of Motionless in White’s ‘Werewolf’, which I also love. The synth-led verse is incredible, fitting behind Dead’s vocals perfectly, and the chorus is going to be stuck in my head for days to come at this point! It’s another huge highlight on an album packed full of them, and is another track that easily makes it onto our playlist! It’s another track that I’d definitely recommend!
Pretty much everything I said above also applies to ‘Happy Deadly Ending’. What an absolutely BANGING chorus, goddamn. And don’t get me wrong, the rest of the song is also amazing, but that chorus is truly on another level. I’m going to assume this is the newly single to be released with the album, as it could be an absolutely massive song given the chance. The basic Dominum formula is there again but done to absolute perfection, and is another HUGE album highlight. This is modern power metal at its best!
The other three original tracks on the album are more standard Dominum affairs in the best ways possible. ‘Can’t Kill a Dead Man’, ‘This is not a Game’ and ‘The Gardians of the Night’ are a trio of great power metal tracks that fit so perfectly with thus album and the Dominum sound in general. Dr Dead’s impressive vocals and huge choruses are of course highlights, but all the instrumentation is top notch, too. The only reason they are clumped together here is so I don’t keep repeating myself and coming across as even more of a fangirl! All are fantastic tracks that I’ll certainly be listening to again!
Closing out the main album is the band’s cover of the Scorpions classic ‘Rock you Like a Hurricane’. I love their rendition, heavying up the track and managing to make it sound almost like one of their own. Additionally, for those getting/listening to the special edition, you also get a second disc, this one featuring a recording of their set at Graspop earlier this year. While I haven’t heard the actual recordings yet, having been there to see it in person I can assure you it’ll be awesome!
Overall: I absolutely loved this! I knew I would, but I think it even defied my lofty expectations. Every track is fantastic, while there are some that are easily going to be among their greatest hits in however many years’ time. I can’t recommend this enough, not just to fans of the band or genre, but to any music fan in general; it really is that good. It has mass appeal as well as the heaviness and it is certainly a development on their previous release. Check this out immediately!
We had the pleasure of chatting to Dr Dead himself of the amazing Dominum about their upcoming album, touring plans and plenty of zombie talk! Check it out below!
How did you come up with the whole zombie concept of the band?
So I was doing a production with Visions of Atlantis, and I had the glasses of a pirate on and having the mindset of a pirate. I drove home as a pirate and sat at home like a pirate. I was watching The Walking Dead and thought, ‘there’s pirate bands and Viking bands, why the hell is there no zombie bands!’ Or at least zombie power metal bands. So that was where the idea was born to do that kind of thing!
What’s the kind of writing process like for you? Is it mainly you bringing stuff to the band or are they involved a lot too?
Mainly the songwriting is done in my studio, and ideas from all sides are warmly welcome! For example on this record the song ‘Killed by Life’ is a song by Tommy, our guitar player. We’ve done a lot of collaborations with other songwriters too, like Ben from Feuerschwanz, he was involved in two songs. Whenever something matches, whenever you feel like a collaboration could be a cool thing to do, it mostly is a cool thing. When two people come together and have a vibe, it’s worth so much, and it always gets better if you have someone who you have a good relation with!
How would you compare this upcoming album with your first?
The first record was mainly written in COVID so we couldn’t try out too much because we were trapped inside. Now we’ve played over 60 shows, which is insane to say out loud. But a show is not one direction. When you play a show for people it’s in both directions, we get stuff back from the fans. It’s like being in therapy. You go to therapy and he or she asks one question and then you talk for 50/60 minutes, like playing a show, and in the end you know better who you are.
So after playing 60 shows, I think the new album is more mature, maybe a bit less polished. You could say Hey Living People is like Dominum in primary school, and now we’re going to college!
For the pre-order of the album, you’ve got a recording of the Graspop set. What made you pick that one?
Graspop is a very special festival, it’s so huge and there were over 60,000 people. We couldn’t see the horizon, there were people everywhere. This was one of the shows where everything was right; the interaction with the audience was perfect, we played kinda well, the mood was good. After the show we found out someone recorded it and sent us the tracks. We were able to remix them so everything fell into place, which was a very cool thing! We asked for permission of course and the Graspop people were so cool with it so we thought it might be a nice thing for the fans to have an extra portion of live Dominum in their CD player!
We’ve got the Scorpions cover on this new album, are you wanting to continue with a couple of covers moving forward?
Covers are always a nice way to get to better know yourself. The song is already composed. ‘Rock You Like a Hurricane’ is 40 years old now, it was kind of a birthday song that we wanted to give to the Scorpions. A birthday present that they probably never heard. But the song was written already and we didn’t put too much thought on the composition because it was there so we could just think how can we do it that’s Dominum-style. This is also something that you just have to think of, because what makes Dominum Dominum? When you have a song like this that you can fool around with you can try a lot of things and get to know yourself better in the process.
You seem to be touring almost constantly recently, right?
It seems it, yes! I’m having this feeling as well!
Will this upcoming tour be your first time in the UK?
No, we played one show in February this year with Petyon Parrish, we played O2 Shepherds Bush in London. That was a really cool show! We played ‘Dead or Alive’ there and all you British people just went nuts for the song. That was the first tour date of that tour, so that was special. But yes, our second time in the UK!
Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be part of?
A dream lineup that came to mind straight away would be maybe Ghost, Slipknot and Dominum.
That’s be cool, a very theatrical show!
Absolutely! Theatric, crazy and wild.
And you’ve just finished shooting a music video, is it out in time for the album?
Yes, the very new one is gonna be out on the 27th.
Does it continue the theme of zombifying more people?
You’d think that, but this time to be honest it’s special. You’ve got the formula already; Dr Dead comes in with his people and someone gets zombified and then everyone’s happy in the end. This video’s a bit different. In this video we also had a very nice guest and Dr Dead obviously wanted her to join but she wasn’t too into being a zombie so she got away. Maybe there was also more emotions involved. Dr Dead maybe… you will see, but this is another dimension of emotional involvement from Dr Dead that’s maybe never been seen before. It’s going to be a big different! We thought now we’ve zombiefied a few people, now we’ve got Jesus, we need something else!
Are you building more of a semi-continuous story with it all, then?
Yeah, of course! But it’s maybe not as a concept band. So if you want to dive into the story you can, but you don’t have to to get the music and get the songs. It’s just another layer that you can get!
And given that you’ve now converted Jesus, what instrument do you imagine he’s bring to the band?
That’s a very good question! For sure it would be a guitar in the shape of a cross!
I feel like we’ve somehow not seen that before, that would be cool!
It would be cool! I think maybe people are scared of going to hell, but we’re from there anyway so we can do it!
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Ced Legger, guitarist of the amazing KingCrown, the other day to chat about their latest album, the European metal scene and their plans for the future. Check it out below!
Firstly, how would you describe your sound? I kept going between heavy metal and power metal, personally!
To answer your question, I would say that you are absolutely right! The style is a clever mix between Heavy, all that is most conventional and Power with in a Helloween / GammaRay / Hammerfall sauce to name a few.
How does it feel to have the album out? It seems to have been received well!
It was really a surprise for us because we did something different compared to our previous album ‘Wake Up Call’, although it was just a continuation of it… The difference is that at the time, we had only had a few weeks to release ‘Wake Up Call’, we – Bob, Seb and I – had just joined the band, while with ‘Nova Atlantis’ we took the time to polish it properly, think about it and have a fairly objective perspective on its direction and composition. The album was clearly a success where most of the reviews all around the world, if not the majority, were more than complimentary and the feedback from our fans is just as much, very excited to discover the album live, so yes, we are very happy about it!
Is there a particular story or theme the album is based around? The tracks all certainly feel linked!
The songs are certainly linked but this is not a concept album. The themes addressed come together in the sense that they touch a sensitivity and a very special attraction for the mysteries that have marked and continue to mark humanity, such as the theme of the New Atlantis or the Bermuda Triangle. Mysticism and its singularity is a flagship theme at KingCrown and we agree on it, especially in the fact of making the listener enter a universe that is our own, filled with mysteries and questions of all kinds.
It’s your third album now, how would you say your sound and band have changed in that time?
I wouldn’t say that it has changed but that it has evolved, logically of course with the new current line-up which dates from June 2021… From there and at the dawn of ‘Wake Up Call’, the die was cast and we knew very quickly where to go. I think it’s due to the fact that today we have a very rare and envied cohesion between all of us, it helps to come together to build something together and communicate it in concerts. We get along as much personally, in private as on stage, for example, my alter-ego Bob became my daughter’s godfather (laughs). It is obvious that with this kind of bond, the sauce can only take and has, I am sure, other surprises in store for us!
What is the songwriting process like for you?
The process is very simple, everyone brings their ideas, their compositions. We are lucky to each have a home studio thanks to which we have the possibility of recording the different ideas or songs that we have. We send them to each other and then we discuss them, refine them, perfect them etc…. Then we get together for a weekend where we listen to them and discuss them.
That’s where everything comes to life where all the ideas generally flow! But it’s a trap because we don’t know how to stop!
Have you got a busy 2025 planned in support of the album? See you guys are typically quite busy with shows!
We do have a few dates booked and confirmed for 2025 including a huge surprise that we will reveal in due time! I’m not going to lie, most of the dates will be German and/or European, although a few are in France. It is a sad reality that French festivals, even the most famous and publicized ones, are not interested in us…. I think it is due to the fact that Heavy Metal is not very successful, except for the biggest names, in our country… but these festivals do not give their chances, or on very rare occasions, to bands like us to hit their stages, and it’s a shame.
However, we would love to play more often at home, unfortunately for reasons I don’t know, Heavy Metal in France is not as valued as in Germany, Belgium or Scandinavia…. Or even in Spain and Italy !!!
What would you say the scene in Europe is like currently? From what I’ve seen it seems to be thriving!
This question goes straight to what I was saying lol flourishing? Yes, certainly in Germany or even other Slavic or Germanic countries but not in France unfortunately…. It is sad to see that small modest French festivals are shunned by metalheads in France because they do not welcome, for budgetary reasons obviously, the cream of Metal like giants like Hellfest or Motocultor…
These more modest festivals nevertheless welcome equally excellent bands, with whom we have shared the stage and who have absolutely nothing to envy the giants of the genre, just because no one goes there to know them, support them, except for the fact of resting on their laurels and spending large sums of money to attend huge events that welcome groups that no longer need advertising.
These small festivals have in their ranks passionate people, who give a chance to bands that are just as deserving, we sometimes played in venues where we had barely twenty people in front of us… It’s sad and discouraging… While in countries like Germany, full houses, every night of the week, known band or not!
This is the big difference in mentality between French and European Metal.
It’s sad but it’s real.
Any plans/hopes to come over to the UK?
For the moment, unfortunately no, but know that we would be extremely happy and flattered to be invited to the United Kingdom, if the opportunity were given to us! So if any promoters of any UK festivals like Bloodstock, or Hard Rock Hell are reading this interview, please get in touch!!
Any dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Any big band you want to support or friends you want to bring on the road with you?
I would dream of being able to open for a Iron Maiden tour, or, more modestly Helloween, Symphony X, Blind Guardian, GammaRay…. lol it would really be a great accomplishment and I would of course bring my wife and daughters lol! It’s nice to dream! But…. you never know!
The French heavy/power metal rising stars return with their third studio album this coming Friday. I’m familiar with a couple of tracks off their previous albums, and that coupled with the singles I’ve heard from this so far I have to say I’m pretty excited. So, without further ado, let’s dive right into this world of heaviness and mysticism!
The album starts off in perfect fashion with the high-energy ‘The Magic Stone’. The riff is traditional heavy metal awesomeness, while there is also just a touch of sleaziness to the sound too, which surprised me but definitely isn’t an issue! The soaring, Rob Halford-style vocals firmly ground the track in an epic, NWOBHM/power metal blend, though. The chorus is huge and massively catchy, while the instrumentation throughout is amazing. And that guitar solo, especially the harmonies in the middle… DAMN. It’s an amazing track, a damn good opener and one that easily makes it onto our playlist!
The epicness continues into the album’s epic title track and recent single. The opening riff is massive with the choir in the back, and only gets even bigger when the rest of the band join in! The steady verse builds up perfectly through the pre into another huge, arena-filling chorus. We also get another technical masterclass of a guitar solo, them being a big highlight of the album in general. It’s an amazing classic power metal track, and the second incredible track on the album in a row!
Some groove metal opens ‘Real or Fantasy’, and I love it. It has more of a Firewind style over the more Hammerfall-esque like last track, and I can’t help but love it! The riffing is somehow taken up yet another notch in this track, as is the soloing; it’s a guitarists dream! Meanwhile the vocals are just as solid as ever; powerful and effortlessly soaring. The band somehow go three for three on incredible tracks so far, and this is another easy highlight and playlisted track!
‘Guardian Angels’ picks the pace back up into thrash-infused power metal, again drawing comparisons to Hammerfall. The same could be said for ‘Letter to Myself’ and the Judas Priest-like ‘Souls of Travelers’, though I do love the heavy synth-focus on the former! All are amazing, traditional power metal/NWOBHM tracks that I love, but all are fairly similar and I don’t want to keep repeating the same gushing over and over again. It doesn’t make for a fun read, trust me!
Between the aforementioned tracks, the album pauses to slow down and breathe a little. ‘Judgement Day’ is another NMWBHM-inspired slower intro and, while it does get heavier, it does still stay at a rather steady pace and has plenty of epic feelings in the chorus. The backing vocals in it are incredible, making it so damn catchy. Meanwhile ‘A Long Way to Valhalla’ is a beautiful, folky power metal ballad, and fits the theme of the album perfectly. It’s also in the best spot on the release, breaking up the heavier stuff and keeping things even more interesting. The band shockingly do this style just as well as the metal stuff, and it’s another huge highlight of the album! It has an epic feel throughout and the distortion, when it comes in, is hugely earned.
The final two tracks are more awesome heaviness again. The band do their brand of power metal perfectly at this point, and it’s hard to fault either of the closing tracks! The final one, ‘When Stars Are Alligned’ in particular is excellent, and the perfect way to close out the album! Again, it’s so hard to write interesting while still saying over and over how good the instrumentation and vocals are, so just trust me, they’re excellent.
Overall: This was amazing! Three albums in the band are going just as hard as ever, and may have delivered their best release to date. Everything about the album was amazing, from the vocals to the instrumentation to the songwriting. If you are in any way a fan of either of the genre’s I’ve brought up in this, check them out, you won’t be disappointed! The band have a bright future ahead of them if they keep putting out stellar releases like this!
It’s been a hot minute since we’ve done one of these, but we have three AWESOME EPs for us to check out today! Let’s dive right in!
Drenched: Grey
I immediately fell in love with this EP and this band; that’s how good this is. The early Tool meets early Nirvana/Alice in Chains sound is amazing, yet somehow brings the 90s sound into a modern day environment perfectly. There’s even a bit of Deftones throughout that I generally can’t get into, but this band somehow do it better than Deftones do. Everything from the incredible riffing to the amazing drumming to the excellently fitting vocals had me captivated throughout, and the band are insanely talented.
Every song is amazing, but it’s hard not to point to the opener and ‘(in)sane’ as being standouts, and both are present on our playlist! However, if anyone is into anything I’ve stated above, or post-grunge/nu metal on top of that, this is the perfect 20-odd minutes for you. The Brits have truly exploded out of the gate with their debut EP here, and I can see absolutely massive things for them in the very near future! I can’t give it any less than 10/10
Seige Perilous: Creation’s Call
This is traditional/power metal awesomeness. It gives off big Iron Maiden meets Hammerfall vibes, and I am all for it! Much like the previous EP, it had me hooked from the excellent opener, through the awesome ‘Creations Call’ and to the epic closer. Shockingly, as I don’t say this very often with EPs, it works perfectly as a shorter release. The band hit us with all-killer, no-filler for the full thing, and go balls-to-the-wall throughout. If this was longer, I’d have felt the need for a change of pace at some point, (which I’m sure the band could also pull off amazingly too) but this was short, sweet, to the point and gave us exactly what the band are all about. They’re talented as anything and show it off to perfection here. As a sophomore release too, it carries on the band’s sound and legacy perfectly! 8.5/10
Prisoner: House of Cards
The Canadian band set out to return to their heavy rock roots, and by the sound of things they have very much done just that. This thing is like Prong but with punk vocals over the top, like the really early days of thrash or crossover. The production fits perfectly with the old-school feel too, feeling like it’s ripped right out of the 80s. The vocals really grew on me throughout, him being able to hit some damn impressive high notes!
This thing honestly felt like it was too short, I’d love to have had more from them. Especially with the variety shown between the three tracks. Heck, the slower track, ‘On a Sunday’, is my favourite track on the EP, though the other two are close second and third. I somehow missed the band’s album back in January, but I’mma have to go back and check it out now, as I loved this! 8/10
The German power metal titans are back with their tenth studio album (if we include last year’s compilation album). We’ve covered the band’s last two albums now and are clearly pretty big fans of the band, having given both of them 7.5/10! Will this be the album to finally buck that trend? Let’s take a dive and find out!
Opening the album with the sort of bang that only Powerwolf could, ‘Bless ‘em with the Blade’ is a straight-to-the-point, catchy, quick anthem. From the relentless drums, awesome riffing and powerful vocals, it will be an immediate fan favourite, both live and on track. It’s a damn fun track and the perfect way to start off the album!
‘Sinners of the Seven Seas’ continues on the same energy, adding a touch more of a folk feel to the existing power metal. A fun riff leads to the same infectiously catchy melody being used for the chorus vocals, and it’s honestly one of the best choruses I think the band have ever done. It was the perfect choice for a single track, and is a massive highlight of the album. We even get a great, cheeky little guitar solo tucked away in the middle, and the bridge after it is pretty great too. This album is off to an awesome start!
Tracks like ‘Kyrie Kiltorem’ and the massive single ‘1589’ are more epic, standard Powerwolf tracks, while ‘Heretic Hunters’ once again blends in more of the folk sound and inspiration. All of them have everything you’d expect from the band, from the catchy choruses to the heavy instrumentation.
Honestly, the same could be said for the vast majority of the album. I do love this band, but I still feel like I struggle to get through an album fully in one listen, and this one is much of the same. Every track is amazing, and Attila Dorn has one of the best voices in the genre, as well as an incredible ear for writing catchy hooks and melodies. But fuck man, throw me something different across the last three 40+ minute long albums, please. Even a ballad; I feel like this band would KILL an epic ballad! The closest we get is the closing track, ‘Vargamor’, and even that builds into similar stuff after the first verse.
Overall: There are plenty individual highlight tracks, from both singles to ‘Heretic Hunters’, but as an album as a whole it’s a slog. I completely get that the band are hugely popular and are still growing more by each passing release, but even a slight risk here and there wouldn’t go amiss, especially now that we’re into double digits of similar albums across the last two decades. If you like the band or the genre, you’ll surely love this, as do I, but I just kinda feel like Powerwolf are capable of more at this point, and they are starting to get just a touch stale with their studio work.
A pretty stacked week of new music this week, featuring everything from massive country stars to smaller, heavy bands. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Willie Nelson: The Border
The country legend himself put out yet another album this last Friday, marking his first of the year and whopping seventh in this decade already. Somehow, this is the first we have managed to cover here at Overtone. I’ve always been a fan, it’s WILLIE FUCKING NELSON for Christ stakes, and honestly, this album is another pretty great entry into his extensive discography. It’s traditional country at its very best, and it’s insane that a man in his 90s still has this consistently good an output. Tracks like ‘What if I’m Out of my Mind’, ‘Many a Long and Lonesome Highway’ and ‘How Much does it Cost’ are all big highlights. However, there isn’t a bad song on the album. It’s just a fun, relaxing listen from a true idol in the industry. It doesn’t do anything daring or reinvent the wheel, but it’s a safe album from someone who could have easily hung up their boots over two decades ago. I enjoyed the hell out of it, and it gets an easy 7.5/10 from me!
Shaboozey: Where I’ve Been, Isn’t WhereI’m Going
Bad grammar in the album title aside, this is a pretty highly anticipated album with a lot of hype around it. His rendition of ‘Tipsy’ has been everywhere, and for good reason! It’s the only song I’ve heard off the album though, so I’m excited to hear if the rest is just as good!
It’s certainly a good blend of hip-hop and country, blending the styles together pretty perfectly and sounding pretty fresh and modern. It almost feels like the continuation of ‘Old Town Road’ that we sadly never got from Naz. Tracks like ‘Last of my Kind’ and ‘Highway’ have real epic sound to them, incorporating more Americana to the sound than anything else. The production also does the tracks wonders, sounding as massive (and pretty similar to) some of Imagine Dragons’ hits.
Don’t get me wrong, some of it is a bit too pop for me. It’s a good album overall and to listen through, but there are definitely some songs I wouldn’t listen to on their own. He was the perfect fit for Beyoncé’s ‘country’ album, for sure, and he and Cam were certainly the highlights of that otherwise dire release. This is better than that for sure, but I am slightly worried this is going to be what popular country is going forward. Because it’s certainly pretty loosely associated with the genre in terms of sound. Hopefully it can exist alongside the neo-traditional and more rock influenced stuff and we get it all at the top.
But yeah, overall, it’s a damn good album. It will do extremely well with mainstream audiences, and I think in that regard it lives up to the hype. He’s going to be a massive name sooner rather than later, and this third album of his will be a big factor in it! 7/10
The Hope Conspiracy: Tools of Oppression/Rule by Deception
The hardcore punk band are back with their first full-length release in 14 years. The band filled the gap with a couple of EPs in the middle, but even still, that’s one hell of a stretch between new music. The band still have it too, which makes it even crazier. The hardcore sound isn’t particularly my sort of thing, but the band do it excellently here and it’s hard not to get into some of it. Tracks like ‘The Profits and Doom’ and ‘Of a Dying Nation’ are major highlights for me. However, it’s a well put together album that flows pretty perfectly between the tracks. If you’re into the style, or just generally feel in an angry, break-stuff mood, I’d definitely recommend giving it a spin! 6.5/10
Crowded House: Gravity Stairs
This is a great blend of Bowie and Dire Straits; and the perfect album to throw on to relax to or have on in the background. The Australian pop/alt rock band have been back together since 2019, this being their second release in this stint. It’s an old-school sound that feels pretty nostalgic to the time in the 80s when they were formed. It’s hard to hate it as it’s an album that feels like it’s just written to make you smile and feel better, despite half of the lyrical content. Songs like ‘Teenage Summer’ and ‘Some Greater Plan’ showcase exactly what I’m on about. As seems to be the case this week, it’s not fully my sort of thing, but it’s a great 40-minute collection of soft-rock that doesn’t overstay its welcome and both has highlights as well as working well as a whole. The band have knocked it out of the park with this release, and it makes me just wanna get stoned to it. 7/10
Rhapsody of Fire: Challenge the Wind
The Italian melodic, symphonic metal band returned with their 14th studio album this last Friday. The follow-up to 2021’s epic Glory for Salvation, the four singles released beforehand are already excellent. Therefore, I cannot wait to check out the full release!
It’s another fantastic release from the insanely talented band. Right from the epic opener/title track, through other highlights ‘The Bloody Pariah’, ‘Vanquished by Shadows’ and ‘Black Wizard’, to the closing notes of the amazing ‘Mastered by the Dark’, this is a fantastic journey through and through. Every member of the band is so insanely talented, and have produced such a well rounded, enjoyable collection of epic tracks that there really isn’t a bad one on it. It really feels like the apex of the power/heavy metal crossover sound, and a real career highlight release for sure. Everything about this is awesome, and if you’re into metal at all I cannot recommend it enough! I’mma be jamming this a lot moving forward, and I can’t pick a single fault. I’m already had it on three times over the weekend and it just keeps getting better and better. I can’t not, it has to get a 10/10 from me. Wow!
Swamp Dogg: Bluegrass: from West Virginia to 125th St
This was just big, dumb Bluegrass/country-soul fun, and I loved it. It’s rare I get the chance to check any of the genre out here, and though I tend to prefer it a lot more live, this was a great listen. Don’t get me wrong, there is some good more serious/emotional stuff too, like ‘Have a Good Time’ or ‘Song to Sing’. But then you have stuff like the awesome, Margo Price-featuring ‘To The Other Woman’ or ‘Ugly Man’s Wife’ or ‘Your Best Friend’ are light-hearted fun, and huge highlights.
It’s easy to discount his skill and talent with it being an old-fashioned style, but Swamp Dogg is an amazing player, vocalist and writer. His lyrics are captivating, no matter the topic, his playing is amazing and his vocals still hold up five plus decades into his career. I love the 50s-doowop-style call-and-response vocals throughout too, making it even more fun. This went by in a flash and didn’t at all feel like over 40-minutes of music. I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to, and will definitely be listening again in the coming weeks and months. He has such incredible talent, and for all of that, it’s an easy 7.5/10 from me!
Saving Vice: Good Days, Dead Eyes
This is very much a tale of two halves, for me. And, while it’s not a complete half-and-half split, I did find the second half of the album far superior. The band draw a lot of different sounds together, building on their baseline of metalcore with both Ice Nine Kills’ death leanings and Bad Omens’ baddiecore, with a healthy dose of Skillet and Linkin Park mixed in too. I much prefer the former. The heavier tracks like ‘Haec Est Ars Moriendi’, ‘Blood or Wine?’, ‘The Cabel’ and ‘Trauma Sousa’ are all amazing. The screams, heavy riffs and breakdowns are incredible, and they still add some catchy clean vocal hooks in too. And it’s not even just the heavy tracks I like, as the closer and title track are also great.
However, the other half of the album didn’t quite grip me as much as this. It’s not bad, don’t get me wrong, but songs like the opener and ‘Cry, Wolf’ felt decidedly meh, and like a completely different band to the other aforementioned tracks. I don’t think they ruin the other songs all that much, but damn, if they were all like ‘Trauma’ or ‘Haec’, it may have ended up with top marks. It’s a solid metalcore album that I’m sure will have massive wide-scale appeal, and deserves to push the band to massive heights. But for me personally, there are a handful of tracks that I can take or leave. Still it’s an easy 8/10
Wormwood: The Star
The Swedish black metal-ish band are back with their first album in three years. It’s got some great production on it, which is always a nice surprise with black metal. The melodic side of the band shines through heavily in the album too, making it all sound and feel even more epic. The dynamics of tracks like the opener and ‘Thousand Doorless Rooms’ are awesome too, being proggy awesomeness of both heavy and dropped-down, more atmospheric parts. They also go back to their black’n’roll roots on tracks like ‘Liminal’, which was pretty awesome. However, y’all know my feelings on black metal by now. For black metal it’s pretty great, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to it. However, if it came on again I certainly wouldn’t turn it off. If you’re into black metal, I would certainly recommend it. It gets an easy 6.5/10 from me!
East of Reno: Self-Titled
This seemed to start out its life as an EP, but the band have since changed their minds, bumped it up to eight tracks and made it a full debut album. However, regardless, the UK based Americana band have knocked it out of the park with their debut full-length release. It’s a chilled out, well written, and surprisingly heavily emotional eight tracks. And it’s also so interesting hearing a British take on the genre, it feeling like a combination of Americana with Dire Straits. Tracks like ‘Break the Pattern’ also have a certain great Bowie edge to them. Said track is a big highlight of the EP, as are ‘Brothers’ and the beautiful ‘Night of Nothing’.
The band’s PR team really put it perfectly. “It’s a record that gives a voice to the loneliness of any of us sat solo at the bar, or walking through the wilderness, not sure of what we’ll find when we get to wherever the hell it is we’re going to”. It’s a really good listen from front to back, regardless of whether it’s 100% your sort of thing or not. I really enjoyed it, and will certainly be listening to at least a couple of the tracks again a fair bit in the near future. It’s an easy 7.5/10 from us!
Kameron Marlowe: Keepin’ The Lights On
The sophomore album of the country-rock superstar picks up right where his debut left off a couple of years ago. ‘911’ is the perfect opener; a high energy, foot stomping track that’s a big highlight. Other rocking tracks include ‘Lock Me Up’. Then you have slightly slower, darker, epic songs like ‘Nothin’ Slowin’ us Down’ and ‘Tennessee Don’t Mind’ that are all also major highlights. And damn, the duet track with the amazing Ella Langley, ‘Strangers’, is phenomenal. And there’s the odd ballad track to break up all of those too. It’s a really well put together album that keeps things interesting and almost doesn’t feel nearly an hour long. In terms of country albums, it deals with its bloating a lot better than most.
Kameron has such a fantastic voice, it’s fits every style he plays and it’s easy to see why he’s gotten so big so quick. I hadn’t heard of him until I checked out the song he did with Megan Moroney on her album last year. Since then, I fell in love with his debut album, and this one is easily up there with that one, too. Sure, it gets a touch slow by the last few tracks and does drag just a little, but if you’re a country fan I’d highly recommend it! It’s an easy 8.5/10 from me!
