Monday, August 31, 2015

856. Death Angel / The Bay Calls For Blood - Live in San Francisco. 2015. 3.5/5

I saw Death Angel for the first time (and quite possibly for the only time) last year on their tour of Australia in promotion of their album The Dream Calls for Blood. It was a brilliant concert, allowing me to see them perform songs that I had been waiting most of my adult life to see. Every part of it was sensational, and you could barely have asked for a better setlist. So when I discovered that the band was releasing a new live album I was excited for what it would produce.

So lets face it. No matter what was placed on this album, you know it would sound good. And it does. The band is in brilliant form here, and they have been honestly captured on this album. Sensational songs such as "Left For Dead" which opens the album in style, "The Dream Callas For Blood", and "Detonate". Every track here is superb and at its peak performance.
There is a downside, that has nothing to do with the quality of the recording or the performance of the band. While I support the decision of the band or record company or whoever is in charge of the decision to choose the songs that go on such an album, surely it could have been prudent to have added a few songs that weren't from just the previous two albums? I mean, if I only wanted to listen to The Dream Calls for Blood then I would have put that album on! Seven of the ten songs here are from that album, and like I've said they sound great, but what about some of those greats? Is it just me? Or has a trick been missed here? No "Seemingly Endless Time"? No "Thrown to the Wolves"? No "A Room With a View"? No "Road Mutants"? And that's just a starter. The album is great, but it feels like short shrift to have a Death Angel live album without those songs being a part of it.

The fans will love this album for the material that is here. It is a terrific performance. However, as ranted above, to make a top notch live album you have to have the best of your recent material, mixed with the best of your other material. The job here is half done.

Rating:  You buried the hope but you can't kill the man.  4/5

Friday, August 28, 2015

855. Deep Purple / Locked in a Paper Cage [Bootleg]. 1987. 5/5

Way back in 1988, while wandering through record stores in the local area, I was perusing the massed basket of cheap cassettes at the front of one of these stores, and came across the live Deep Purple album Nobody's Perfect which had been recorded on The House of Blue Light tour the previous year. Brilliant! I didn't often buy cassettes, but I hadn't seen this anywhere on vinyl so I bought it. And it was brilliant, covering lots of great stuff from that album and Perfect Strangers that I hadn't heard live, as well as all the greats from the past.

After thousands of revolutions this copy died as all cassettes were wont to do, and I went searching for the album on CD. Unfortunately, the only version available at that time was one that had several songs removed in order to fit it on the one CD. While I still bought it, I had been disappointed and unfulfilled every time I listened to it, mourning the editing and lost tracks. Thankfully, in the early 00's, I came across this bootleg album. In all respects this is NOT a bootleg album. It is just a restoration of the original recordings as I remembered them, as well as adding other songs that were not a part of that original cassette I had bought, adding further great songs from that reformation era of the Mark II line up. So, in essence, it was an even better discovery than that original one back in the day!
Recorded live at Irvine Meadows in California on May 23, 1987, this album showcases everything that is great about Deep Purple in their live environment. You get the banter between songs between Ian Gillan and the audience, and Ian Gillan and his bandmates. You have Ritchie Blackmore play-acting throughout, throwing in his own flicks and flails whenever he feels in the mood. You have the places where he is allowed to express himself away from the basis of the song. You have Jon Lord doing a similar thing during his solo break. You have a great variety of songs from the two albums of the new era of Deep Purple, which all sound brilliant here. Songs such as "Perfect Strangers", "Nobody's Home", "Under the Gun" and "Knocking At Your Back Door" from the Perfect Strangers album are marvellous, and the selection from the touring album The House of Blue Light are just as terrific, with great versions of "The Unwritten Law", "Dead or Alive", "Hard Lovin' Woman" and "Bad Attitude". These are all mixed in with the living legends such as "Highway Star", "Strange Kind of Woman", "Child in Time", "Lazy", "Black Night", "Woman From Tokyo" and "Smoke on the Water". There's also the bonus that came on the original Nobody's Perfect album of the re-recorded version of "Hush" with Gillan on vocals, which I have always loved since its release.

As groundbreaking and timeless as Made in Japan is as a live album, I love this album just as much. It covers an era that is somewhat forgotten and bypassed in regards to Deep Purple. It was the reformation, and the band is on fire during this performance, covering both the first half and the second half of the great Mark II era. This records a significant moment in the history of the band. It was for all intents and purposes the end of this era, despite one final fling with The Battle Rages On... after Joe Lynn Turner's cameo for Slaves and Masters, and it is great to have this as a keepsake and memento of the greatness of this line up.

Rating:  Are you dead... or alive...  5/5

Thursday, August 27, 2015

854. Serious Black / As Daylight Breaks. 2015. 3.5/5

The tendency to look for new music for me often comes down to either mates insisting that I must check out this band because they are awesome, or by following artists when they change bands or do a solo project, or, in this case, a side project away from their  major band of occupation. Most tend to be a one-off proposition, which of course hampers the chase for new music to the odd album. Whether or not that becomes the case for Serious Black is yet to be seen, but this debut effort does offer the possibility that it could lead to further releases.

I found Serious Black through guitarist/vocalist Roland Grapow. Roland had first joined Helloween to replace Kai Hansen, which was where I first encountered him. After several good album, of which he contributed to along the way, he moved on to co-found Masterplan, the band he is still the leader of to this day, and whose initial albums are still legendary. So when I read an article that he had become a piece of this so-called 'supergroup' I went out of my way to track it down.
The one thing I can say with certainty is that you won't find anything new here. That doesn't make it poor, it just means that all of those elements that make a typical power metal album are all here. In effect, if you enjoy power metal, you are more than likely going to enjoy this album. If you do not enjoy power metal, then nothing here will likely change your view on it.
As always, the faster paced, drum and guitar packed songs are the ones I enjoy most here. The opening tracks "I Seek No Other Life" and "High and Low" express the best of this kind of music. They are fast, significant drumming from veteran Thomen Stauch, the keyboards from Jan Vacik prominent but not overbearing, while the guitaring of Roland is just superb. "Sealing My Fate" doesn't quite live up to the opening expectations, before the instrumental "Temple of the Sun" returns to a better innovation within the album. "Akhenaton" features the best of Urban Breed's vocals (yep, that's his name...), they really soar here and showcase his great range and power. "My Mystic Mind" draws its roots from Roland's writing, as it sounds like it could be a Masterplan song. Once again, it's fast and powerful with amazing vocals. "Trail of Murder" follows a familiar path with the keyboards taking centre stage on this shift.
You can take it to the bank that the title track for me is a complete album killer. Power ballads, they are just the bane of my existence, and "As Daylight Breaks" fits right in that category of the massive mood killers. Everything has been going so well, fast paced power metal in the best sense, and then we throw this track into the mix. Well, there's no power here, just quietly spoken lyrics over keyboards, before progressing to the powderpuff heart of the song. Ugh ugh ugh.
"Setting Fire to the Earth" returns us back to middle ground, the pace reels itself back up a notch, though it is the synth and harmony vocals that dominate this song rather than the guitars of Dominik Sebastian and Roland and the drums of Thomen. "Listen to the Storm" sails a bit too close to going down that ballad track for me to be completely at ease with it, while the closing track "Older and Wiser" regains any lost ground, ending the album on a high note.

Overall, apart from any misgivings about the ballad styled tracks deposited here, this is an impressive debut for this gathering of musicians. As mentioned earlier, whether or not this becomes a group that produces multiple releases will be for the future to decide, but the debut effort gives every confidence that if they did, they could only improve on the base they have created here.

Rating:  When all the seasons come undone, I shall rise again.  3.5/5

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

853. Warrant / Cherry Pie. 1990. 3/5

Despite my following of hair metal bands such as L.A. Guns, Ratt and Motley Crue to mention a few, as well as fleeting interest through my late teens with Poison and Cinderella, I never really cottoned on to Warrant in their prime. My main musical interest was in a heavier direction, so that unless I had friends who were pushing bands onto me I didn't immediately chase down every new band that came our way. So it wasn't until I read an article a few years later, proclaiming that Warrant had a bad rap in the metal community and that people should dig deeper than the surface of their singles, that I decided to follow up on them. The obvious first step was Cherry Pie.

"Cherry Pie" was the famously 'written to be a hit song in fifteen minutes' by Jani Lane, after the album was completed but the record company wanted an 'anthem' added to the mix. I'm not sure how you would feel about this song - happy that you were able to write a hit song in fifteen minutes, or pissed off because of the time you spent on the other tracks of the album that then became far less well known than the one you did in a coffee shop on a break. The music video, and subsequent massive rotation on video programs, certainly helped to raise its profile and popularity and no doubt raised album sales. For me though it turned me off buying the album until many years later, given I guessed that the single would reflect the album. The song that was supposed to carry the title of the album was "Uncle Tom's Cabin" which follows on from this as a rocking number to complement the opening salvo. This is a hard rock song that could have led Warrant into harder section of the rock community had it been the focus point of the album. To complete that circle however is "I Saw Red", which is an atypical sugar coated piano/synth based ballad, complemented by the soaring vocals and standard soft rock guitar solo to top it off. Like many albums of this genre, this is where the kicker is, the place where you divide fans loyalties immediately. For me as usual, the opening to the album is shot down in flames by the change of parity in the songs, destroys the momentum and makes a meal of the good feelings the opening tracks had produced. but this is just me, and I've been down this track before.
"Bed of Roses" is a standard hair-pop metal rock song. In fact, vocally it even begins to sound like Jon Bon Jovi singing, which is a bit scary because this really could be a Bon Jovi song... no, not the one of the same name. Better is to come in "Sure Feels Good to Me" which has a more enjoyable, up-tempo style that shows off the faster heavier side of the band nicely, which guitar riffs and licks to match. "Love in Stereo" is of a similar vein, utilising a bit of boogie-woogie keyboard in an old rock-n-roll fashion with memories of Jerry Lee Lewis.
The segue trilogy comes up next, interpreting itself as almost the same song in three parts, in three different moods. "Blind Faith" reverts back to the stock standard acoustic guitar based ballad that plagued the airwaves around this time. There must be plenty of fans out there who love this style of formula driven ballad drivel, and on the few occasions in history when it has been done with an original bent then I guess you can enjoy it, but when it just comes across the same as every other song like that then you can only shake your head. "Song and Dance Man" segues straight out of this, and finds itself moving out of this bland ballad state to a place in soft metal purgatory, neither ballad nor rock. Finally the third piece of the trilogy is "You're the Only Hell Your Mother Ever Raised", which is a standard soft metal rock piece, moving a bit harder and faster, along with that rock soloing to help drag the song into a harder territory.
"Mr Rainmaker" is one of my favourite songs on the album, introduced with a great riff and harmony throughout, and Jani's vocals being the driving force while the imported outside help guitar solo section proves its worth here. "Train Train" dials it back to the average, while the "Ode to Tipper Gore" which is just a bunch of swearing pieced together from a live gig is an amusing ditty, but overall perhaps not the ending to the album I would have been looking for.

Cherry Pie is an album I can put on and listen to in most casual situations. My lack of interest in ballads does mean that almost half of this album is an annoyance rather than a joy, but there a couple of diamonds within the framework, such as "Uncle Tom's Cabin", "Love in Stereo" and "Mr Rainmaker". No doubt those with more of a fetish for the soft metal ballad will have a field day with this album. For me it will always be a comfortable reminder of the early 1990's, with just enough harder stuff to make it at least somewhat enjoyable.

Rating:  Where they say it got no bottom say it take you down to Hell.  3/5

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

852. The Michael Schenker Group / One Night at Budokan. 1982. 3/5

I love a live album. A good live album. One that emits energy and shines like a beacon amongst the music being played elsewhere. The kind that brings out the best in those songs that have been written and recorded in a studio, where they have been polished to a sheen and not allowed any rough edges to show. Where perhaps the performance is not perfect, but the enthusiasm of the band outweighs any imperfections. That's a good live album. Unfortunately for One Night at Budokan, most of that doesn't apply here.

I don't want to sound unfair here, because the little things have been done right. The song list contains a great selection from both albums to this time, The Michael Schenker Group and MSG. The band plays well, the songs are given reasonable justice. There's even the requisite UFO number thrown in, Schenker's almost-signature tune in "Doctor Doctor". So what is it that hurts this album? Well, the production isn't terrific. Levels of instruments just don't seem to work, and at different times the bass and keyboards and even drums get lost in the mix. I mean, how on earth could Cozy Powell's drums ever get lost in a mix? But it happens here. This results in the songs sounding tinny, without that real solid loud rhythm section which would provide a base for the live sound. Schenker's guitar is always there, but because the rhythm at times seems non-existent it can't make that full sound that is needed in a live concert. His guitaring is still great, but because he either has to take on the rhythm himself or play lead with nothing underneath it really does destroy the impact of some of the songs. And the limitations of Gary Barden's vocals has been discussed for 35 years. While he doesn't crack under the pressure of a live performance here, and does for the most part hit all the right notes, his vocals still come across reedy and wispy at times, without the power needed to make the performance his own. Again, the mix didn't help this.
There are some great songs here, but the versions just don't do justice to them. "Armed and Ready", "Attack of the Mad Axeman", "Into the Arena", "On and On" and "Are You Ready To Rock" are great songs that should smoke live, but they just don't hold it together on this album.

More than anything else, these limitation end up making the album overdrawn to the point of boring, and it really shouldn't be that way at all. Live albums down the track with better production brought many of these songs to life, but here, One Night at Budokan simply becomes an album with a great concept that sits gathering dust on a shelf due to a lack of foresight.

Rating:  On and on and on and on and on.  3/5

Monday, August 24, 2015

851. The Michael Schenker Group / The Michael Schenker Group. 1980. 3.5/5

He initially started out in a little band called the Scorpions with his brother, before moving on to big things as a part of the English group UFO, with whom he spent a large part of the decade of the 1970's. After 'guesting' on Scorpions Lovedrive album in 1979, Michael Schenker then decided to form his own project and release his own material. Teaming up with vocalist Gary Barden, The Michael Schenker Group was born, and this was their eponymously titled first album.

It was hardly a group when this was put together. Session musicians filled out the recording of this album, with Schenker and Barden writing all of the material between themselves.
There is a lot to like about this first album from M.S.G. The ready-made classic "Armed and Ready" opens up the album, setting off on the right foot. With the right mix of sing-along lyrics, guitar, drums and keyboard, this has the perfect beat to draw you into the album, while still allowing Schenker to show off his skills through the middle of the songs. Still as terrific today as it was on its release. "Cry for the Nations" utilises the same visions, allowing Schenker's guitar to explore its way through the song while Barden warbles on over the top. "Victim of Illusion" doesn't quite come up to this degree of excellence, in fact it is a fairly drab song that changes little throughout the length of the track. Almost filler, one would suspect. "Feels Like a Good Thing" sounds like it is played with more purpose, certainly Barden sound more invested in the song from a vocalists point of view.
The two instrumentals on the album come from different creatures. "Bijou Pleasurette" is played in a more classical guitar form, combining a middle ages keyboard and guitar sound much like a harpsichord and a sitar, in a refined and quiet atmosphere. "Into the Arena" on the other hand is much more hard rock, with Schenker taking control of the track and letting his guitar do the talking, while allowing the keyboards to duel along the way. Great stuff, and one that has stood the test of time.
"Looking Out From Nowhere" and "Tales of Mystery" again come from opposite sides of the saddle, both giving Schenker the opportunity to prove his all round ability on his instrument. The final song "Lost Horizons" for the most part channels the 1970's method of songs that lengthen themselves beyond the norm with a freeform guitar extravaganza while the rest of the band plays on until it comes to a natural conclusion. While sometimes this can be overdone, here it allows Schenker again to do what he does best, which is play the guitar and make fascinating and brilliant tunes from it. It may well be a pointer to the past, but it also promises to continue in a stronger direction in the future.

This album is a great starting point for a band that Schenker has moved around in different shapes and forms over the past 35 years. An argument could be made that these songs would sound even better with a stronger vocalist, and indeed in a live setting that has probably proven to be the case. There is also a case that can be made that this has dated somewhat since its release. Again you can only take that on face value. In the main this is a good album, one that takes a step away from Schenker's work in UFO and allows him to begin to put his own stamp on the metal scene in his own capacity.

Rating:  Are you high tonight, are you feeling right, cos I need you now, like I never did before  3.5/5

Friday, August 21, 2015

850. Megadeth / Endgame. 2009. 4.5/5

Megadeth had been a bit wonky for awhile, with mixed reviews and feelings from their fans over their albums in the years from the late 1990's to the early 2000's. It was not all bad, but they were certainly uneven. In many ways, United Abominations started to set that right, and made the fans feel more comfortable about the direction the band was heading in once again. That job could almost be said to have been complete with the release of Endgame.

In the main, previous albums had spent an amount of time in experimentation, changing things up a bit and moving away from the formula that had been the band's hallmark for its first decade. It was far from awful, not like another band of its generation that could be mentioned, but it had alienated some of the fan base, and it was suggested that perhaps they had strayed too far from the template. Whatever may have been the misgivings, there can be little bad said about this album if you wanted something like a return to the band's glory days. of course, this is NOT a return to that, but it has its basis in that, and brings it forward to add a modern, polished sound to the music.
The album opening is a pointer to how the renewed direction of the band has come. "Dialectic Chaos" is a great instrumental, acting as the prelude into "This Day We Fight!", where the music comes at a speed that has been severely lacking in Megadeth's music for some time. It obviously has been a determined effort to infuse this through the majority of the album, because there is barely time to catch your breath at any point during the course of the 45 minutes it takes from start to finish. "44 Minutes" dials it back just a touch without losing the heavy attitude, before zeroing in to "1,320", where the double time and energy of the song is focused on the lyrical content of pace and energy, embellished by the brilliant soloing which is speed personified. "Bite the Hand" and "Bodies" both continue the flow of excellence, concentrating on the heavier aspect of the guitar riffs than the speed metal aspect of the earlier tracks. The title track "Endgame" is a ripper.
The only real compromise to the sound of the album comes on "The Hardest Part of Letting Go... Sealed With A Kiss", which necessitates the remorseful parts at the beginning and the conclusion of the song, punctuated in the middle by a much more atypical blazing guitar sound. This is obliterated by the unadulterated smashing of drums and guitars from the outset of "Headcrusher", the most refined speed/thrash metal song on the album. If not for the clarity in the sound it could be believed it had come from 1985 rather than 2009. "How the Story Ends" takes up from here with a more traditional metal feel, while the final track "The Right to Go Insane" chugs along in comfort.
Everything here is big, fast and loud. Shawn Drover has got his drum kit into gear on this album, as not only does it have a great booming precise sound to it, he has to move between the standard timing and speed to the overpaced radical technique required when the songs reach the peak of their speed. It may not be the most technical he has ever had to play, but he has to be precise which is what he does extremely well. James LoMenzo's bass work is as solid as ever, providing the perfect undertone to the songs which are dominated by the other instruments. Dave Mustaine and Chris Broderick on guitars put in an awesome performance. For a guy who was going to retire because he wasn't going to be able to play guitar anymore, Mustaine does some fabulous stuff on this album. He is matched by Broderick all the way through. Not only do their duelling guitars come across in perfect harmony, Broderick's solo's are blistering in places, fully justifying his elevation to the band on the previous tour.

As a fan you would have to say that Megadeth has earned redemption for any past wrongs with this album. While the first half of the album probably outweighs the majority of the second half, this really does get back to the band's roots by incorporating both heavy riffs and speed solos, all with the typical Mustaine lyrics commenting on a varied amounts of topics close to his heart. Anyone who has steered clear of the band following past inaccuracies will certainly find better material here should they wish to return to the fold, whereas those that have continued to stick by the band will be rewarded for their patience here.

Rating:  It doesn't get any better than this, it just feeds my need for speed  4.5/5

Thursday, August 20, 2015

849. Psycho Motel / Welcome to the World. 1997. 2.5/5

Having dived in feet first when I first discovered Psycho Motel's first album State of Mind, I was slightly more cautious when it came to finding this second album, Welcome to the World. For a start I couldn't be sure which way the music direction would go after the varied account the first album gave of itself. There was also a change of lead vocalist, which could have led to problems in itself. So it was a much more solidified response I gave to this album on my introduction to it.

Andy Makin came aboard as the new lead vocalist, and his voice helps to shape this album into more of an easy listening rock album, not dissimilar to Riverdogs debut album or Shadow King's only release as well. One advantage is that his voice and Adrian Smith's suited each other nicely, so the back up and harmonies work well on this album. The grunge era aspect of the last album have been modified to the point where it now sounds more like Pearl Jam in places, while suitably low-key music make up the majority of the verses, allowing Makin to impose his vocal style over the songs. While this style most definitely tones down any heaviness becoming a part of this music, its mid-range progressive rock style will appeal to a greater variety of music listeners as a result. Whether or not they are satisfied by the result is another question entirely.
Some of the songs here rise to a ranking of... okay. "The Last Chain" opens up the album well enough, showing a bit of enthusiasm in the mix. "A Quarter to Heaven " can be placed in a similar bracket, but the final two minutes is filled with the same line being repeated over and over again, and unnecessarily. There is promise in the title track "Welcome to the World", but it then just drags out far longer than it should, and after the start it does peter out into an overblown artist trap. I always had hope for the song "With You Again", if only for the fact that it featured guitar by Dave Murray, but it doesn't lift it beyond the mediocre.
While I consider this to be a likeable album, I think it is tied down fast to the era it comes from. In the places where the band - and Adrian himself - are allowed to break out and make something more of what has been written it comes across with that bit of energy and inspiration that is needed to make it rise above the average. Unfortunately this is far too random an event to make this much more than it is. There is a real mellowness about this release that mocks at the kind of material we know Adrian is capable of playing. A song like "Innocence" is far too Pearl Jam for anyone's liking, there is no energy and it's melodramatic crawl through the landscape is almost cringe-worthy. Feel free to add "Hypocrisy" to that as well.

Taking the two Psycho Motel album's along with the A.S.a.P. album, it is interesting to see and hear the other side of the man who has written or co-written so many of the great songs from that other international metal band he is a part of. There is none of that here, in fact the guitar is such a small part of the writing process here you sometimes wonder if he was involved at all. I tried to like this album, but came away feeling uninspired and more than anything else, downright bored. The only bright side here really is that it was the end of the 1990's exploration for Adrian, who moved into Bruce Dickinson's band after this, and hasn't looked back since.

Rating:  And now my highs just bring me down, I try to scream but I can't make a sound.  2.5/5

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

848. Psycho Motel / State of Mind. 1996. 3/5

The disappearance of Adrian Smith from the music scene troubled me a lot during the first half of the 1990's. His abrupt (or so it seemed to me from this distance) relocation from Iron Maiden during 1989, along with the release of what proved to be a whole different concept in A.S.a.P's Silver and Gold album, was followed by almost total silence, which seemed like a complete waste of his talent. So it was with some relief, and not a little trepidation, that I did discover that Adrian was returning to the recording world in the form of a band he formed called Psycho Motel, and this debut effort entitled State of Mind.

One thing I had enjoyed of Adrian's previous project was that he sang lead vocals on the album. That was not to be the case in Psycho Motel, but on this album it certainly appears to be the right decision. Hans-Olav Solli puts in an excellent performance throughout this album, in a role that is varied throughout. Different songs require him to modify his performance along the way, something he does admirably.
So what about the album itself. Well, it is a mixture of interesting stuff and some dull, overblown stuff. The violin and cello in "Psycho Motel" and "Western Shore" can be said to be superfluous and perhaps a little cheesy. There is some good material in "State of Mind", "World's on Fire" and "Rage". The rhythm section of Gary Leideman on bass and Mike Sturgis on drums do a serviceable job with the material they have. "Time is a Hunter" is very progressive in nature, with those long winded, almost-whining vocals cast over Adrian's slowly serving guitar solo riff, in a style that many people would enjoy in that environment, but for me just ends up boring me to the point of skipping the song. "Money to Burn" has the slow chugging guitar riff over a solid drum beat that is fine for the circumstances, but doesn't come across as an exciting piece of music designed to draw in fans. "City of Light" is an improvement, and makes for a better comparison than some of the tracks presented here.
It's almost very designer hard rock, trying to utilise some characteristics of grunge without acknowledging that it is, and basing the rest around a non-threatening rock sound with some scope for hearing a little bit of that old Adrian Smith scripted guitar soloing, albeit without the energy and drive that highlighted his other band. The mixed feelings I get here about this album probably stem from the fact that there is such a mixture of styles. There's no doubt that some of these songs step out and make you notice them, and make you think, "Yes, there's something here in this". yet there are others that drag their feet, and make you feel that something has been left behind in the writing and recording.

The amount that you like or dislike this album is likely to be tied almost directly to how much you like Adrian Smith and his music. Adrian's fingers are all over the composing of this album, so it's not as if he is just a hired gun here. the music is most definitely of the hard rock variety, and while some of it is certainly credible there are places where it feels and sounds uninspired and tired. But this was the marketplace of the mid-1990's. It was a mishmash of styles, all trying to cope with the upsurge and then downturn in the grunge movement, and wondering what was going to be the direction from that point. While it may sound as if I'm denigrating this album, it is closer to the truth that I do enjoy most of what is produced here - it's just that I expect so much more from Adrian that what he has given here fails to completely satisfy me.

Rating:  I'm in a rage, I can't contain, someone free from the endless pain.  3/5.

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

847. Chickenfoot / Chickenfoot III. 2011. 2/5

Following on from the success of the first album, Chickenfoot came back together to record the follow up, titled for whatever reason you may like to come up with as Chickenfoot III. The initial album and subsequent tour had gone well, and that success and enjoyment of the four members together enticed them to see if the lightning could be captured in the bottle twice.

In the long run, this album is more of the same that was produced on the first album without a lot of change in the vibe or the style or the songs, but occasionally just enough to make you wonder just what was going on. I honestly thought the opening track "Last Temptation" was a Soundgarden song. Not only the music, but Sammy even sing the first few bars in a very Chris Cornell register. Not a bad song but just not what was expected. "Alright Alright" gets a little repetitive, while "Different Devil" settles comfortably in that soft rock genre, where you can almost be lulled into believing you are listening to a Van Halen song from Sammy and Michael's final days in the band.
The songs follow a simplified path, with a tendency to throw in a more bluesy feel in some places than was necessarily the case on the debut album. "Big Foot" and "Dubai Blues" show the biggest influence in that regards. "Something Going Wrong" is the token soft rock ballad of the album, tapping into that almost country rock feeling with harmony vocals over the top of the guitar. Heading very close to Bob Segar country, which is a little disturbing. If this was the closing number on the album it would be somewhat of a travesty. Fortunately, the 'Hidden Bonus Track' entitled "No Change" is the closer in most aspects, and its up tempo high energy collateral helps to wipe the bad taste from the mouth and end the album on a much better and deserved note.

While I enjoyed Chickenfoot for what it was without ever really developing a great love for it, I have found with Chickenfoot III that I am unable to find the same level of harmony. While the band obviously has the talent and the people to make some really top shelf albums, their style just hasn't grabbed me. It's funny that the final track on the album is the one I find the most love for, and it was supposed to be a hidden track. Those that enjoy this style of hard rock will find plenty here to like. Others like me who were looking for more would probably do best to give this a miss.

Rating: They lied, on high about YOU and ME, baby!  2/5

Monday, August 17, 2015

846. Chickenfoot / Chickenfoot. 2009. 3/5

Every so often a so-called "super group" will come along that sparks excitement and curiosity in the music world and everyday pundits alike. The relative interest in such groups will generally intensify up until that initial album release, and once it is out in the open they tend to fall back to the level of interest shown in just how good their material is. In recent times none was shown more interest than Chickenfoot, and this is the debut album from the star studded quartet.

Anyone who came in looking for similarities to the Hagar-era Van Halen or Satriani solo material or Chili Peppers funkiness can leave the room now, because that's not what this is about at all. Sure, the initial buzz you get from anticipating what a foursome that includes Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Chad Smith is that this should be a sure thing, an album that ticks every box and produces a masterpiece in a fusion of all of their styles of music. Well, as you will have guessed, that is exactly what we didn't get. Instead, we have a solid hard rock album that combines a little from a lot of music styles, but I guess mostly centring around Hagar's more recent Cabo Wabo style. In essence we have an interesting album that doesn't produce anything groundbreaking or outstanding like you have hoped they would. Instead they have stayed within the parameters of comfort, not breaking new ground but not disturbing the old ground either. Certainly the more outlandish of the musicians here, Satriani and Smith, stay remarkably cool and don't break the constraints of the song structure. That's not to say they aren't given their moment in the sun throughout the course of the album, but they are much more restrained in their output compared to their other day jobs, which is probably where this sometimes feels a little too structured. Sure, Joe gets to break out on a solo around the place, and Chad even breaks out of that 2/4 rhythm every now and then to lay on a roll or two, but then they are reigned back in to follow the basic hard rock song formula. And that's merging of the two real styles of the two halves of the band. While Sammy and Michael have played together for a long time in Van Halen, they have made these kind of songs their own, and the style just rolls off their instruments with ease.
The more you listen to the album, the more natural it feels, and you can't help but be impressed by what they have achieved. It will appeal to hard rock fans more than the heavy metal brigade, if only because of songs such as "Learning to Fall" which draw from the soft rock ballads heart, a follow-the-numbers track that covers every required aspect of that type of song. Those that enjoy ballads will be satisfied. Those that do not will question their reasons for buying this album. There are plenty of good hard rock tracks here though where the real roots of the quartet come to the fore, such as "Sexy Little Thing" and "Runnin' Out" and "Get It Up". The musicianship is superb, and Sammy and Michael's vocals are as good as ever. Satch's trademark guitaring still breaks out enough in places to steal the show, such as in "Turnin' Left", while Chad's wonderful drum sound is still up there with the best in the business.

Chickenfoot might be a dreadful name for a band, and it mightn't be the first thing I reach for when I'm looking for a album to put on in most circumstances, but I can say with certainty that having listen to it again over the past few days in order to write this review, it's one that I won't put to the back of my mind in the future. It is an album that is better than it first appears once you get past the old "super group" analogy.

Rating:  Stand up or be degraded, some things are simply overrated.  3/5

Friday, August 14, 2015

845. Saxon / Saxon. 1979. 2.5/5

Another band that is seen as one of the early trailblazers of metal, but that I did not find until much later on, is Saxon. Though I was much later on this than I should have been, I have found the best of the band to be mighty impressive. This album, Saxon, is their debut, and like many debuts is a bit uneven in content and drive.

The opening tracks can immediately be placed in the era they were written and recorded, the sound and music being a dead giveaway. Much like Praying Mantis and Tygers of Pan Tang and Def Leppard of this era, this album sits somewhat unevenly in the realm between a hard rock or glam rock sound, and a true heavy metal sound. Over the course of their next couple of albums Saxon found their place and their sound, and as such their own place in the growing movement of the time. While this may cause some awkwardness, there is still enough to take away from this first album for the casual fan.
Looking back from this far in the future I can see how this appears to be the case. The opening of "Rainbow Theme" and "Frozen Rainbow" is an interesting start to the album, but perhaps just a bit too similar to what other bands were producing at the same time. A song like "Big Teaser" has more to do with the glam rock side of music than the emerging heavy metal side of the industry. In many ways it sounds like an early AC/DC song, and even Biff's vocals sound a bit like the Bon Scott of that era.
"Judgement Day" even moves off in an experimental way more in line with a Led Zeppelin song, not really gaining any momentum until not long before the conclusion of the song. There's a nice showcasing of the guitar virtuoso skills of Graham Oliver and Paul Quinn, but as to anything else there doesn't seem to have been much going on.
Perhaps the first semblance of Saxon as a harder proposition comes with the Side 2 opening track "Stallions of the Highway", and the band's first genuflecting towards motorcycles and those who ride them. As such, the track moves along at a faster pace emulating riding on one of the beasts, and provides an opportunity t see the real Saxon in action for the first time. This energy continues through with "Backs to the Wall", where the tempo is kept high, the rhythm section of Pete Gill on drums and Steve Dawson on bass keep tight and fast, while Biff Byford takes on the lead role with distinction, crying forth with his vocals in a way that now sounds like he means it, unlike what transpired on the first half of the album. "Still Fit to Boogie" reverts back to that early AC/DC sound in both music and vocals, which works fine enough but is slightly disappointing after the progress made in the previous two songs. The album finishes with "Militia Guard", which again comes closer to a more unified Saxon sound.
It would be unfair to disparage this album from such a different era, given what grew from the seed planted here. To have been able to cotton on to the band at the time this was released would no doubt have made this an album I feel much more strongly about. As it is, it is an average album which shows the signs of what was to come further down the line.

Rating:  Switchblade's gleamin', engine screamin', I'm laughin' at fate, I'm living to hate.  2.5/5

Thursday, August 13, 2015

844. Symphony X / Underworld. 2015. 5/5

The past two Symphony X albums have somewhat divided the band's loyal fanbase, with many of the long term fans believing that they had moved away from their core sound of progressive metal, and had transgressed into a much heavier sound that did not suit their music. Others on the other hand believed that this transfer to a heavier sound in fact enhanced their music, and was a real step forward. Well, the fans from the first category can rejoice, as the new album Underworld makes a concerted effort to reincorporate the progressive side of Symphony X.

There is no doubt that the musical progression in Paradise Lost and Iconoclast was to a heavier sound than the band had done previous to this, and while that is still prevalent here on the new album, it does sound as though the band was conscious of allowing a bit more of their progressive nature to seep back into the songs here. And that's terrific. You can't argue with the music this band has made over the years, and by ensuring they are keeping their roots as a part of their music in the current day is a terrific thing. Everything you expect from the band is still here, if slightly modified from those two previous albums.
The band has once again composed another fantastic opening instrumental piece, starting the album off with rising anticipation. This immediately crashes into "Nevermore", which races along at an impressive speed from all involved. The chorus reminds me eerily of a Fear Factory chorus, though with significant differences in vocal technique, but the similarity is there all the same. From "Nevermore" the album moves into the title track "Underworld", which mixes moments of heaviness with moments such as Russell Allen singing a bridge across Michael Pinnella's keyboards that brings goosebumps, closely followed by Michael Romeo's scintillating guitar solo. Here is where the true coming together of the two halves occurs, progressive and pure metal in the same song, co-habitating in idyllic conditions. This is offset by the almost serene start to "Without You", one of the two power ballads which find their way into the mix of the album. The keyboards in the middle remind me of the start of UFO's "Love to Love", before it falls back into the chorus, ringing through in melody. Then, just to show there can be no real rhyme or reason to track listing sometimes, the heavy guitar, bass and drums thump back into gear with "Kiss of Fire", a song at the complete other end of the spectrum from "Without You". terrific song, but somewhat out of character with the previous song.
"Charon" kicks off with that awesome Michael Romeo guitar riffing followed by Russell's brilliant vocal work rising through the atmosphere... but then does it just lose its focus a little? Probably not, and certainly once you reach the solo break it switches back into gear, but for a moment it seems to sail along with gathering any momentum at all. "To Hell and Back" is the longest song on the album and one that doesn't scrimp on the solo work, and doesn't overly compromise on the song structure. Russell's vocals shine here in a situation where he can utilise his magnificent vocal range through the different phases of the song. Truly magnificent.
"In My Darkest Hour" is perhaps the most obvious heaviest song on the song, mixing hard nosed vocals with the speed and hard-hitting drums of Jason Rullo and the rumbling undercurrent of Michael Lepond's bass guitar.
"Run With the Devil" really has elements of Foreigner or Journey thrown into the mix - not as obviously as allowing the whole song to be dictated by them, but certainly through the chorus those similarities because much more obvious. Then of course it crashes back into the verse or the solo break and those similarities sink into the mire.
"Swansong" is the Symphony X version of a power ballad, and if you have to have a power ballad in your arsenal (and let's face it, you either love them or hate them) then it may as well be one like this. Michael Pinnella's keyboards come noticeably to the forefront in this song, the pace slows down, and the vocals begin to soar in harmony rather than with power and authority. It sounds great, but my stance on the power ballad hasn't changed. This then molds its way into the album closer "Legend", which completes the album in fine style.

Underworld is yet another fantastic album from a band that has a proven track record in regards to its album releases. This should be able to satisfy both halves of the Symphony X fan base, with the mix between pure heavy and progressive metal done so well that it fits together seamlessly. Now all that needs to happen is to have the damn band tour Australia!

Rating:  I was my own worst enemy, still hellish memories remain.  5/5

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

843. The Cross / Shove It. 1988. 3.5/5

I regret not knowing about nor being able to buy and hear this album when it was initially released. There's no guarantee that I would have liked it then I guess, despite my deep deference to Queen, but it would have been nice to have had the opportunity. Of course in that different age, not all information or releases about bands and musicians filtered down to my neck of the world in Australia, and so it wasn't until very recently that I was even aware of The Cross as a band, or the albums they released.

The leader and architect of The Cross is Queen drummer Roger Taylor, who was looking for a band with which to record and tour with. Following the tour promoting the A Kind of Magic album, Taylor recorded the majority of this on his own before other musicians had been recruited for the project, much as he had done for his previous solo albums. Several versions of the album exist, with two completely different track list orders for the UK release and the US release. The version I have is the US version, where "Love Lies Bleeding (She Was a Wicked, Wily Waitress)" is the first song on the album rather than the penultimate.
While pieces of this album drew me in at an early stage, it did take some time for this to catch on with me. Its style is similar but different from Roger's other albums. This combines a lot of the kind of improvisation and experimentalising that his previous solo work had done, as well as tricks and techniques drawn from his Queen recordings. he also utilised his band mates in places, more so than he had done in the past. Certainly, playing this material live would have been an interesting task, given the places where it almost appears as though sampling has been done. The title track itself would have been a task live at least.
So yes, there are some songs here that grew on me the more I listened to this album, some of them unexpectedly so. The title track "Shove It" was one of those. Interspersed with snatches of Freddie Mercury's "Yeah!" and Brian May-like guitar flicks and other sampled effects, and an unusual song structure throughout, this was a song that I felt I would never actually enjoy or get used to. Shows how much I know. It may have taken a while, but the song grew on me and I now enjoy its unorthodoxy. Another was "Stand Up For Love", which initially annoyed me for the over-repeated title throughout the song, almost to the point of carnage. It too won me over, much in the way some of Brian May's solo songs did. "Love on a Tightrope (Like an Animal)" I initially felt was just too basic, hardly changing its programmed feel throughout. Nope, it soon got me too, and probably when the undercurrent values raised their heads, allowing me to hear the multi-layered parts of the song as it flowed along.
Other songs were not so tough. It's easy when you already know one of them. "Heaven For Everyone" was re-recorded by Queen for their Made in Heaven album after Freddie's death. The vocals he provided here were used on Queen's version as well. as it turns out, there are two versions of this song for The Cross as well, one with Freddie providing lead vocals, and one with Roger providing lead vocals. Both provide interesting currents and flows. "Love Lies Bleeding (She Was a Wicked, Wily Waitress)" is a terrific number, featuring Brian May's lead guitar, but it allows Roger to establish the song through his vocals as a starting point.

It's interesting that this failed to chart on the UK albums charts at least. It was a time that was still dominated by pop, and the Stock, Aitken and Waterman stables was providing the path for the hits factory for several artists and saturating the airwaves. Even for someone as well known and respected as Roger Taylor, it was a tough market to crack. This album is quirky and off-centre, and hardly the easiest to promote in any market. But that's what I like about it most. It isn't a copy of material he has released before, and it isn't trying to glean off his more famous band. It is an album that doesn't grab you instantly, but grows on you gradually, such that you don't really know you like it until you HAVE for some time.

Rating: She was a rebel without a cause, she was a girl who needed applause.  3.5/5

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

842. Anvil / Metal on Metal. 1982. 3/5

After a rather lacklustre debut album, Anvil strike back harder here with their follow-up, Metal on Metal. For an album that has garnered historical significance over the years, there are still moments here that seem 'unworthy' of such praise, and yet there is enough here to make you wonder just what the fuss had been all about around the time of its release.

This is all pretty straight forward harder material, led by the eponymous title track "Metal on Metal", which opens the album with a headswinging stoush of drum beat and riff. At least on this album, the title appears to be more relevant than it did on the debut release. "Mothra" sets off at a much faster pace than the opening track, and a lengthier one at that. "Stop Me" tends to drag along, especially given the extended length of the song. Lips seems to be moaning most of the way through rather than singing, but perhaps that is because the track makes you feel that way inclined. "March of the Crabs" is a beauty, an instrumental that is untainted by vocals and travels at a speed that enhances the track. Especially prominent is Robb Reiner's drumming, it is great on this song. the speed is retained into "Jackhammer", which is possibly my favourite song on the album. These tracks are where it is easy to see Anvil gaining a heavy audience.
"Tag Team" soldiers along in its very structured mid range beat. Then comes the surprisingly catchy "Scenery", which channels Dio and Vivian Campbell in its simplistic yet enjoyable riff and melody chain. "Tease Me, Please Me" continues the reverting back a little to the lyrical chaste of the first album, before the bombardment of "666" concludes the album.
As always, it is a difficult thing to try and rate and review an album at a time subsequent to its initial release. I don't mind this album, but I have only heard and owned it in recent years. It will never be one that I love, and to be honest that could well have been the case if I had gotten this on its release, because despite the good tidings it receives from many influential bands since this, to me it is just an average plod through the park. The album begins without any major hooks or anything overly special in the riffs throughout the songs. Lips' vocals are good enough, but the background singers tend to detract from the overall effort rather than enhance it. As with all of Anvil's albums, I think Robb Reiner's drum work is terrific, and the middle section of the album is where its magic lies, with the songs moving along at a faster pace and the guitars and drums doing their best work.

Metal on Metal came along at a time when metal was beginning to find its place in the world market. While this album gives some indication as to why the band was well thought of at that time, it also tends to underline why they perhaps didn't go as far they could possibly have done so. There are moments here that shine, but just not bright enough to make up for those moments that are rather average.

Rating:  Nothin' to say but you said a lot, and in the end that's what you got.  3/5.

Monday, August 10, 2015

841. Roger Taylor / Fun in Space. 1981. 2.5/5

Up until the mid-1990's I was unaware that Roger Taylor had done his own solo albums away from his presence in Queen. It was only when his controversial song "Nazis 1994" made waves in the media during that time that I found out he was doing stuff since Queen's demise, but that he had also done stuff before that! Despite that knowledge it still wasn't until very recently that I was able to discover this music, via a box set containing all of his material. Fun in Space is the first of those albums.

This was released all the way back in 1981, and is as far removed from Queen's material as you can be given the contributions of all four members to that band. Here Roger not only takes on the lead vocals, he plays all of the instruments himself. A pretty fair way to showcase your ability.There is plenty of experimentation with the keyboards, and very little of the rock-infused music his other band is renown for. It's probably a bit too retro and funky and psychedelic and even rockabilly for my liking, but it is fun to hear this side of Roger's music uninhibited by outside influences. "No Violins" is a rock based opening. "Laugh or Cry", "Future Management" and "Let's Get Crazy" are fun enough pop rock songs in their own way. "My Country I & II" goes on too long in that kind of experimental freeform jam kind of way. "Good Times Are Now" settles back to some sort of normality, but is replaced by "Magic is Loose", which sounds like it is supposed to be a Broadway musical number on acid in space, like an early David Bowie song. "Interlude in Constantinople" continues in that vein with its keyboard dominated experimenting, before "Airheads' and "Fun in Space" complete the album.
What this does show is the amazing talent and versatility of Roger Taylor. His vocals here are terrific, and while he had done songs on his own in Queen here we are blessed with an album of Roger on lead vocals. as always, his drumming is terrific, but it is also great to hear him on those other instruments - the guitar, the bass, the piano. But then to not only play all of the instruments on the album, but to have written it all himself as well. It's quite extraordinary.

This album has helped me understand Queen's HOT SPACE album a lot more, because it came after this, and now I understand a little of how it came out the way it did. And just because you like Queen doesn't mean you will like this. In essence this isn't an album I would jump at to put on at a party or in a crowd of people. For me the main interest I had in it was to listen to what Roger can do in a solo place, and I enjoy it for its technical differences than perhaps the music itself. I wouldn't say that about many albums in a similar vein, but Roger Taylor is so obviously brilliantly multi-talented that just hearing him do his stuff is reward enough.

Rating:  Red light warning, break down coming.  2.5/5

Friday, August 07, 2015

840. Eagles / Eagles. 1972. 4/5

I enjoyed music from a young age, and remember it quite often from at home and especially in the car on long trips. My mother would often make mixed tapes from songs recorded off the radio onto cassettes, that would then be played over and over. I reckon I could still name a lot of those songs that she had on those tapes. There was also the tapes done by bands, and in particular greatest hits compilations, that also came into the mix. Despite my own musical tastes branching out into a different stratosphere from all of these early influences since then, most of that music stayed with me, to the point where some of those bands still became favourites for me. The Eagles is one of those bands. I eventually came around to owning all of their albums myself, and this was their debut release.

What becomes glaringly obvious on this first album is that this was when the band was truly a combination of musicians where everyone contributed to all parts of the recording. All four members contributed to writing the songs on the album, along with others from outside of the band such as Jackson Browne, Gene Clark and Jack Tempchin. All four members not only contribute harmony vocals in back up, they all take a turn as lead vocalist on separate songs. It is a true collective effort, and while sometimes that can be to the detriment of the end result, here it works really well. Certainly there is little doubt about where the strongest elements are, but as a whole this album works well within these confines.
The lesser known songs here, the ones that were not released as singles, all hold their own strength in the framework of the album. Glenn Frey's "Chug All Night" does just what the title indicates, and chugs along much like the opening track, with the country guitar taking prominence. "Most of Us Are Sad" was written by Glenn but sung by Randy Meisner. Like many of the songs Randy sings, the tempo is slowed down and he has the harmony vocal behind him, which always helps emphasise the emotion behind the tune. this then segues straight into "Nightingale", which was the song contributed by Jackson Browne, and was sung by Don Henley. The tempo picks up noticeably, and while the previous song was sweet and gentle due to Randy's vocals, here the song is immediately more in your face with Don's harder edged (for country rock) yet brilliant vocals.
"Train Leaves Here This Morning" was sung by Bernie Leadon, and co-written with Gene Clark, and also settles on the easy listening side of the Eagles catalogue, concentrating on the softly sung vocals and harmonising backing. "Take the Devil" was performed by Randy, whose vocals really come to the fore here over Glenn's country rock guitar. There's nothing gentle in the vocals here like in "Most of Us Are Sad", and while the song itself flows from calm to loud, Randy's vocals are the dominating influence. Te mood changes again, with bird tweeting and Bernie's banjo leading us into "Earlybird" which is a co-production from Bernie and Randy with Bernie taking on the lead vocal as well. There's a nice switching between the banjo and Glenn's guitar on this song, with the banjo giving the song an uplifting feel. "Tryin'" was the second song Randy wrote and sang, and is the closing song on the album. This is the rockiest song that Randy sings on this album. In fact, his three songs seem to span the entire range of the Eagles album. Don has a more rock beat to his drums, and the guitars are allowed to indulge themselves a little more than they have on other songs. A great way to finish the album.
The three singles are the best known songs off the album, and are dominant figures of the band's early recordings. "Take It Easy" is sung by Glenn and co-written with Jackson, and is still one of my favourite Eagles tracks. This is followed by "Witchy Woman", written by Don and Bernie, and sung by Don. Surprisingly it is the only song on the album that is credited to Don Henley. Those gravelly vocals still make this song a beauty. "Peaceful Easy Feeling" also flows on like it's title, sung by Glenn and written by frequent co-writer Jack Tempchin. The lyrics mirror the music here, as the whole song conjures up a peaceful easy feeling when you are listening to it. There is a real country twang both in the vocals and in the guitar, and Don's gentle drum beat.

This is still a terrific album, a much more country influenced album than they were to morph into as the albums progressed. It is very much an easy listening album, with few moments that really make you sit up and consider rocking out to. But that doesn't detract from the fact that the songs are strong and well written, and those vocal harmonies are still the star of the show.

Rating:  "Raven hair and ruby lips, sparks fly from her finger tips"  4/5

Thursday, August 06, 2015

839. Helloween / Metal Jukebox. 1999. 4/5

Back in 1999, when the idea was still slightly new and unbroken, Helloween found a way to break up the gap between tours and albums and keep their fans happy by releasing an album of cover versions of songs by other bands. This they then titled Metal Jukebox, which is a very strange thing to call it. Of course, I got excited by it, because I thought it would contain a dozen top shelf metal songs from other bands re-done by Helloween in their own style, a concept that was rather enticing. When I finally received my copy of the CD in the mail, what I saw on the back cover made me think my original decision to buy the album may have been an error.

The song list is a mixture of traditional heavy songs and some rock and pop hits along with some songs and artists of which I had no idea of. A metal jukebox, or my idea of a metal jukebox, it certainly is not.
As mentioned, there are songs here that I don't know - ones I have never heard of before this, and only perhaps heard since. "Juggernaut" is a beauty, flying along with guitars and drums and vocals. It is a cover of a Frank Marino cover, someone I've never heard of nor listened to his material, but I have thought ever since buying this album and hearing this song that if this is indicative of what he has written and performed that I should get around to listening to some of his work. "Hocus Pocus" is by a Dutch rock band called Focus, and is pretty much an a six and a half minute instrumental with a bit of 'hey-diddle-diddle' every so often that masks as a chorus. It's strange choice here, and one I rarely thought of until the original version was used as the basis of the Nike 2010 Football World Cup ad, and was played ad nauseum for weeks leading up to and during that tournament. It's still a strange choice. "Mexican" is a cover of a Babe Ruth song, an English band rooted in the 1970's, and it too has made me think I should track down some of their material. Helloween's version here is excellent. "Faith Healer" by Alex Harvey is a seven minute monster that, perhaps like the original which I don't know at all, is a little overblown and long winded. This and "Hocus Pocus" are out of place for my liking.
Of the songs here I know, some work great while others fall flat. I have never been a Jethro Tull fan, so the version of "Locomotive Breath" is in my opinion much better than the original, but still fails to light any fires in me. The cover of Scorpions "He's a Woman, She's a Man" is excellent and worthy of addition on this album, but it doesn't match the original. The same can be said for their version of "From Out of Nowhere" by Faith No More - Helloween's version here is excellent, but it lacks that vital element that the original versions have that makes the song special. There's no shame in that, the same can be said of cover versions made of Helloween songs. Ditto on David Bowie's "Space Oddity". It sounds just brilliant here, and Andi's vocals are quite superb. The speeded up and more belligerent version of The Beatles' "All My Loving" is okay without being super. I guess there is always that risk in trying to cove their songs. However, the band does a cracking version of Cream's "White Room", it is every bit as good as the original version, while the uptempo version of ABBA's "Lay All Your Love On Me" is also worth the price of admission.

I've said it before, and I guess I'll say it again. These types of albums are a novelty. You by them, you listen to them for awhile, and then you put them back on the shelf. From there, they may get a run occasionally, but in most cases you are more likely to either put on a real Helloween album, or go for an album that has an original version of these songs. The musicianship here is as you would expect from Helloween, and their versions of all of these songs is generally excellent. But eventually I'm going to go for their own albums when I want a taste of Helloween.

Rating:  "All my loving, I will send to you".  4/5

Wednesday, August 05, 2015

838. Quiet Riot / Metal Health. 1983. 3/5

If ever the power of MTV in the early to mid-1980's could be proven, it would have to be in the success garnered by Quiet Riot's breakout album Metal Health. Having released two albums, both of which were only initially released in Japan, and then lost members to other projects and in essence having broken up, surely no one could have foreseen the amazing success this album had in the American charts, subsequently becoming the first album of heavy metal origin to get to Number One. And surely all from a couple of music videos.

My initiation of this phenomenon didn't come until a couple of years after the album's release. I knew the single, the Slade cover "Cum on Feel the Noize" because it had been plastered over Australian radio for a short burst back in the last year, but I wasn't overly aware of the music videos for both it and "Metal Health" until the mid-1980's when music video shows began to become more popularised in Australia. But once you saw them you had them ingrained in you. They featured the over-the-top music of the band playing on stage and gallivanting around, mixed in with the story happening throughout, all in vibrant colours, music and action. You can see why it dragged people in - hell, it helped to drag me in! Both of those videos became popular viewing, and thus translated to buying the album and playing it ad nauseum as well.
The question to be posed, both now and retrospectively back to 1983 is this - is this album really very good? I mean, being popular at the time is fine, and drawing in fans through the use of clever music videos is also something that is excellent for the bottom line. But in the long run, whether it be six months down the track or 30+ years in the future, can you really say that this is an album full of good songs, or just an album built on the promise of a couple of tracks?
Let's go with the nostalgia factor first, because that would appear to be the most redeeming feature at this point in time. Now, I may still listen to this album, and I may well sing "METAL HEALTH WILL DRIVE YOU MAD!!!" and "WE'LL GET WILD, WILD WILD!!!" at the top of my voice whenever I hear it and I'm in the mood for that kind of thing. Well, those angles still work, because my pre-teenage kids will sing along with these songs now too, so the residual effect is still there in those tracks. But for me it's the feeling of nostalgia I get from these songs that makes me still like them rather than from any true brilliance of the tracks themselves. Similarly with "Slick Black Cadillac", a re-recording of the same track from Quiet Riot II. I now it and sing along with it, but I'm never really sure if I like it, or whether it is just because I know it so well. So kudos on those three songs.
But what about the rest? "Don't Wanna Let You Go" is a barren track with the clear guitar sound throughout the song and the stark, dead-sounding drum beat all combining to make it feel as though it was recorded in a big empty room. After the energy and bounce that is present in the opening two songs, this is a very strange inclusion. "Love's a Bitch", "Breathless" and "Run For Cover" are all run-of-the-mill, average hard rock tunes done in a Quiet Riot flavour. "Battle Axe" is an guitar instrumental that gives Carlos Cavazo the chance to showcase his wares. "Let's Get Crazy" is a slightly less raucous twin brother of "Metal Health", with a similar riff rock tune and vocal structure in place. "Thunderbird" was written and posthumously dedicated to former Quiet Riot guitarist Randy Rhoads, who had died in the tragic plane crash the previous year. It could have used a bit more grunt or even speed as a fair tribute to him, as it tends to just wail out the end of the album in an ineffective and somewhat less appealing manner.

In attempting to answer the question I posed myself earlier, I have been unable to come up with a definitive response. I find that much of the album to me appears less than stellar, that it is made up of songs that are of a simple hard rock method without enormous redeeming features that would combine to make a great album. And yet, despite this, I can't help but enjoy the album each and every time I put it on to listen to. It's a ridiculous notion, but the pull of great memories seems to outweigh the swing of average pandering. And as it turns out, just like in that famous single, "I don't know why... I don't know why..."

Rating:  "Got no brains, I'm insane".  3/5

Tuesday, August 04, 2015

837. Blind Guardian / Memories of a Time to Come. 2012. 4/5

What do you do when you decide it is time to take a long and well deserved break from touring and writing, in order to keep your fans remembering that you are still out there, but just on a sabbatical? Well, you release a box set containing the majority of your back catalogue firstly, and then you release a double album packed full of some of your greatest hits, with some remixing on some tracks and some remastering on some tracks, and put it out into the public sphere to feast upon.

As always, greatest hits packages are a subjective argument. There will always be songs included and songs that are left out that will be debated by fans as to whether it was warranted. This is no exception. Depending upon whether you rate one era of Blind Guardian over another, this could be seen to be somewhat of a furphy. I think the toughest part of picking out songs for a best of for Blind Guardian is the fact that all of the songs intertwine with the others on their album, making them a part of the fabric of that album, thus meaning to hear them individually sometimes doesn't work because you are expecting to hear them with their other songs around them. In time they work fine in that respect, as is obvious through the songs that make the live set list each tour, but initially that can be a bit more difficult that you would expect.
Certainly this double album is packed full of great songs, with many of my favourites here, such as "Nightfall", "Traveller in Time", "Follow the Blind", "Sacred Worlds", "Valhalla" and "Mirror Mirror". None of the entries can be questioned, and as a soundtrack to the career of Blind Guardian it serves its purpose if being used as an introduction point for the uninitiated.

So let's just say that I enjoy this collection, and it has some terrific songs on it. If I had been in charge of the track list it would have been quite different from this one - I mean really, where the hell is "Welcome to Dying" for a start?!? And the fact that these songs have had a makeover also improves the release.


Rating:  Best-of in competition.  4/5

Monday, August 03, 2015

836. Mercyful Fate / Melissa. 1983. 4.5/5

Growing up during my formative teenage heavy metal years, I had always been aware of the band Mercyful Fate, when searching furtively through the record racks at places like Utopia Records in Sydney. However, despite the knowledge of their existence, I had never heard any of their material, and knew no one who had either, and so they were always one of those bands that were on my 'maybe' list that was never actioned. More is the pity it took me so long to eventually buy and listen to this album.

It eventually took Metallica to make me walk down the path, with the release of their Garage Inc. album, and their tribute to their friends with the song "Mercyful Fate", a medley of tracks all meshed into one quite brilliant song. this cover finally pushed me to go out an buy some Mercyful Fate albums, which (by fate?) had just been remastered and re-released on CD when I went searching. Good timing all round.
You can hear immediately what drew people to this band in those early days. Great guitar riffs set against some melodramatic and atmospheric instrumentalisation, and the unusual but effective vocals of King Diamond himself. That to me was the most difficult thing to get past in order to gain an appreciation for this band, and this album in particular. The vocal style of King Diamond can be a huge barrier for some who listen to this album with me. In essence, they can't get past the enormous change in range of the vocals as they are sung. Initially for me as well, when I first bought this album. However, it really didn't take long to be able to move past that, such that I only notice it now when I am trying to sing along to the songs, and realising I just can't reach those kind of pitches.
The album starts off with the brilliant "Evil", which drags you in immediately with its brilliant guitar riff and rolling drum beat. From the very beginning you are banging your head along in time with the music. This is a super song, set off by the brilliant music but also King's brilliant vocals, the surge between normal register and then the almost-comical over exerted high pitched melody. Not to forget those guitar solo sections, that just blaze along with real spirit and passion. Just a brilliant opening to the album. This is followed by "Curse of the Pharaohs" which again has a very distinctive introduction and a great riff underlying King's vocals. Once again though its the solo guitar section that not only provides a highlight for the song, but indicates the quality of the band and its members. The solos here again are terrific, ones that make you want to pick up a guitar (generally an air one) and play along. "Into the Coven" starts off with a melodic guitar piece courtesy of Hank Shermann before breaking into the song proper, with King's high soaring vocals over the mandatory low growl heavy metal riff, with an atmospheric break in the middle of the song that sounds terrific before charging off again into the guitar solos. It is bombastic and bloody, and lyrically the kind of stuff that draws in teenage boys because it will more than likely offend their adult parents, and musically the stuff that draws them in because it is guitar and drums and loud and fast.
"At the Sound of the Demon Bell" continues down the same track, with a solid guitar riff anchoring the song throughout and following a similar theme as those songs that have gone before. "Black Funeral" rumbles along in triplet time, and ends abruptly almost mid-song without warning. Did they not have a way to end the song, and just thought 'bugger it, we'll just stop and see how it turns out'? It still amuses me.
"Satan's Fall" stretched for an interesting eleven minutes, which isn't so surprising when you take in to count that it sounds like there are about ten different short songs all meshed together to become one long song. The riffs change, the tempo and mood changes, and the next part of the song takes place, until it all seems to start again. Sometimes it is that the song almost stops, and allows you to have a direct correlation between each 'act' of the song, but sometimes it just flows into the next 'act' without pause. It must have been quite something to record, and then learn in order to play live. No matter how many times you listen to this song, you can pick up new things along the way. I don't thin it ever becomes boring, in fact I think it is a triumph. later progressive bands such as Dream Theater have written songs in 'acts', and the songs draw on for up to 25 minutes in this way. Mercyful Fate here became a pioneer of that kind of recording, and though the acts aren't individually titled, you can pick them out yourself as you listen to the song. Awesome.
The album concludes with the eponymous title track, which for me probably slightly halts the momentum of the album given its radical change in the tempo and style, but that doesn't make it any less impressive in the fact that the band continues to show diversity and the ability to surprise.

I still think, even today, anyone picking up this album and giving it a fair hearing will find a lot to like about it. It's influence is out there in the metal world, and has been showcased by some of the biggest bands of the 80's and 90's. The songs are great, but dig deeper, and listen to the fabulous drumming of Kim Ruzz, the rumbling bass work of Timi Hansen, and the amazing dual guitaring of Hank Shermann and Michael Denner. The musicianship here is superb, and is what keeps drawing me back to this album in particular. And, of course, the vocals of King Diamond. Combined, this makes Melissa an album that is worthy of your attention and of your undying obedience.

Rating:  I was born in the cemetery, under the sign of the moon, raised from my grave, by the dead.  4.5/5