My CD Reviews!

[Deathstroke]

Just a quick note for the music board denizens. I've started my new gig with Rock Is Life.com.

If you keep an eye out on my signature from now on, you'll see updates on the latest CD reviews I write.

The first two have been added.

Hope you enjoy them.

So Buried Alien doesn't freak, this is a one time only post just to make people aware.

I'll add the previous reviews as they get replaced in the signature to this first post.

2005 Reviews

Robert Plant - Mighty Rearranger (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/mightyrearranger.htm)
Circle II Circle - The Middle Of Nowhere (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/middleofnowhere.htm)
Harem Scarem - Overload (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/overload.htm)
Shadow Gallery - Room V (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/room5.htm)
Royal Hunt - Paper Blood (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/paperblood.htm)
Bruce Dickinson - Tyranny Of Souls (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/tyrannyofsouls.htm)
Dream Theater - Octavarium (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/octavarium.htm)
Slik Helvetika - Slik Helvetika (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/slikhelvitika.htm)
Dog Faced Gods - Stoned Council (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/stonedcouncil.htm)
Evergrey- A Night To Remember (DVD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/anighttorememberdvd.htm)
Pain Of Salvation - BE (DVD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/painofsalvation.htm)
Robin Beck - Do You Miss Me (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/doyoumissme.htm)
Overkill - ReliXIV (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/relixiv.htm)
Steve Walsh - Shadowman (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/shadowman.htm)
Tremolo - Love Is the Greatest Revenge (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/loveisthegreatest.htm)
Sarah Blasko - The Overture and the Underscore (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/overtureunderscore.htm)
Al Kooper - Black Coffee (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/blackcoffee.htm)
The Michael Schenker Group - Live in Tokyo 1997 DVD (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/msgdvd.htm)
Antigone Rising - From The Ground Up (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/antigonerising.htm)
David Pack - The Secret Of Movin' On (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/secretofmovinon.htm)
Eliza Gilkyson - Paradise Hotel (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/paradisehotel.htm)
Beautiful Creatures - Deuce (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/deuce.htm)
Beth Hart - Live at Paradiso DVD (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/bethhartdvd.htm)
Azrael's Bane - Wings of Innocence (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/wingsofinnocence.htm)
Smile Empty Soul - Anxiety (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/anxiety.htm)
Life of Agony - Broken Valley (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/brokenvalley.htm)
Terra Nova - Escape (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/escape.htm)
Les Paul & Friends - American Made World Played (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/americanmade.htm)
Mojo Gurus - Shakin' In The Barn (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/shakinthebarn.htm)
King's X - Ogre Tones (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/ogretones.htm)
Jaded Heart - Helluva Time (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/helluvatime.htm)
Five.Bolt.Main - Venting (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/venting.htm)
Steve Howe - Spectrum (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/spectrum.htm)
Alien - Dark Eyes (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/darkeyes.htm)
Stream Of Passion - Embrace The Storm (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/embracethestorm.htm)
The Ike Reilly Assassination - Junkie Faithful (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/junkiefaithful.htm)
Eugene Edwards - My Favorite Revolution (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/myfavoriterevolution.htm)
Orange Sky - Upstairs (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/upstairs.htm)
Index Case - Index Case (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/indexcase.htm)
Shenoah - Bleeding In The Red (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/bleedingthered.htm)
The Mob - The Mob (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/themob.htm)
Trigger Point - A Silent Protest (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/silentprotest.htm)
Jaugernaut (a. d.) - Contra-Mantra (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/contramantra.htm)
Neil Diamond - 12 Songs (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/12songs.htm)
Jack Foster III with Trent Gardner and Robert Berry - Raptorgnosis (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/raptorgnosis.htm)
Felony - First Works (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/firstworks.htm)
Shane Hines and The Trance - Zoe (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/zoe.htm)
Warren Zevon - Mutineer (FLASHBACK REVIEW) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/flashbackreviews/mutineer.htm)
Liz Phair - Somebody's Miracle (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/somebodysmiracle.htm)
Bad Habit - [hear-say] (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/hearsay.htm)
Iommi w/Glenn Hughes - Fused (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/fused.htm)
Soul Doctor - For A Fistful of Dollars (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/forafistfulofdollars.htm)
Carrie Underwood - Some Hearts (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/somehearts.htm)
Steve Lukather & Friends - SantaMental (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/santamental.htm)
Mick Harvey - One Man's Treasure (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviews/onemanstreasure.htm)

2006 Reviews

Iron Maiden - Death On The Road (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/deathontheroad.htm)
Journey - Live in Houston 1981: Escape Tour (DVD/CD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/journeydvd.htm)
Fates Warning - Live In Athens DVD (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/fateswarningdvd.htm)
Deep Purple - Rapture of the Deep (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/raptureofthedeep.htm)
Bob Catley - Spirit Of Man (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/spiritofman.htm)
Ambition - Ambition (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/ambition.htm)
Ten - The Essential Collection 1995 - 2005 (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/tentheessentials.htm)
Judas Priest - Rising In The East (DVD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/judaspriestdvd.htm)
Tuff Jeff Salen - The Endless Road (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/endlessroad.htm)
Slave To The System - Slave To The System (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/slavetothesystem.htm)
Kabang - Degeneration (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/degeneration.htm)
The Exit - Home For An Island (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/homeforanisland.htm)
Cavalier King - The Sun Revolutions (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/thesunrevolutions.htm)
Phil Vincent - Unknown Origin (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/unknownorigin.htm)
Whitesnake - The Definitive Collection (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/whitesnakedefinitve.htm)
Jim Peterik - Above The Storm (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/abovethestorm.htm)
ISM - Monkey Underneath (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/monkeyunderneath.htm)
Warren Zevon - Reconsider Me: The Love Songs (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/reconsiderme.htm)
Architects - Revenge (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/revenge.htm)
Dark Illusion - Beyond The Shadows (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/beyondtheshadows.htm)
Glenn Tipton - Baptizm Of Fire (Remastered) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/baptizmoffire.htm)
Melissa Etheridge - Greatest Hits: The Road Less Traveled (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/etheridgegreatest.htm)
Oval Opus - Oval Opus (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/ovalopus.htm)
Queensryche - Operation:mindcrime II (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/operationmindcrime2.htm)
Survivor - Reach (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/reach.htm)
Tipton, Entwistle & Powell - Edge Of The World (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/edgeoftheworld.htm)
Movies With Heroes - Nothing Here Is Perfect (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/nothinghereisperfect.htm)
Violent Divine - Violent Divine (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/violentdivine.htm)
The Telegenic - AsphaltGasolineChromeFleshBloodnBone (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/asphaltgasoline.htm)
Europe - Live From The Dark (DVD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/europedvd.htm)
Disturbed - Ten Thousand Fists (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/tenthousandfists.htm)
House Of Lords - World Upside Down (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/worldupsidedown.htm)
American Heartbreak - American Heartbreak (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/americanheartbreak.htm)
Blackmore's Night - The Village Lanterne (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/villagelanterne.htm)
The New Cars - It's Alive! (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/itsalive.htm)
Michael Kiske - Instant Clarity (Reissue) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/instantclarity.htm)
Gillan - Live Edinburgh 1980 (DVD) (http://www.rock-is-life.com/2006reviews/gillandvd.htm)Benedictum - Uncreation (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/uncreation.htm)
Dixie Chicks - Taking The Long Way (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/takingthelongway.htm)

Continued In Post #3

[Will]

And if this isnt hijacking the thread, (apologies if it is), you can check out reviews I have written at www.metalmonk.co.uk :)

[Deathstroke]

2006 REVIEWS CONTINUED

Doro - Warrior Soul (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/warriorsoul.htm)
Exodus - Shovel Headed Kill Machine (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/shovelheadedkillmachine.htm)
Cheap Trick - Rockford (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/rockford.htm)
Susan Cagle - The Subway Recordings (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/subwayrecordings.htm)
Some Girls - Crushing Love (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/crushinglove.htm)
Eidolon - The Parallel Otherworld (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/parallelotherworld.htm)
Desperado - Ace (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/ace.htm)
George Thorogood & The Destroyers - The Hard Stuff (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/hardstuff.htm)
Various Artists - Forever Neil Diamond (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/foreverneildiamond.htm)
John Gorka - Writing In The Margins (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/writinginthemargins.htm)
Carmine Appice Project - Ultimate Guitar Zeus (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/ultimateguitarzeus.htm)
Ian Gillan - Gillan's Inn (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/gillansinn.htm)
Red Lotus - De Pinche Nada (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/depinchenada.htm)
Pride Of Lions - Live In Belgium CD/DVD (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/prideoflionsdvd.htm)
Rainbow Live In Munich 1977 (DVD) (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/rainbowdvd.htm)
Iron Maiden - A Matter of Life and Death (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/amatteroflifeanddeath.htm)
The Summer Obsession - This Is Where You Belong (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/thisiswhereyoubelong.htm)
Billy Talent - II (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/II.htm)
GMT - Bitter and Twisted (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/bitterandtwisted.htm)
Johnny Cash - American V: A Hundred Highways (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/americanv.htm)
Blackmore's Night - Winter Carols (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/wintercarols.htm)
Jon Oliva's Pain - Maniacal Renderings (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/maniacalrenderings.htm)
Circle II Circle - Burden Of Truth (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/burdenoftruth.htm)
Rory Gallagher - Live At Montreux (http://www.rockislife.com/2006reviews/liveatmontreux.htm)

[Will]

Why of course I did! :)

[Hiromi]

Can I wear a T-Shirt saying "I read Deathstroke's CD reviews before he sold out and started playing stadiums" now?

:>

[Deathstroke]

Can I wear a T-Shirt saying "I read Deathstroke's CD reviews before he sold out and started playing stadiums" now?

:>

That'll be $19.99 for typing my copyrighted phrase.

[Patient Boy]

Hey... you're not using your secret identity anymore.

[Deathstroke]

Hey... you're not using your secret identity anymore.

SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

[Hiromi]

That'll be $19.99 for typing my copyrighted phrase.

*sob*

It used to be all about the music man!!

[Deathstroke]

By the way, I'll not only be posting the links to the CDs I review for the website, I'll also be posting reviews of albums that don't fit the parameters of the site.

Depending on how tonight goes for me, I may be doing one tonight.

[Deathstroke]

Coming up later tonight will be two brand new reviews!

[Deathstroke]

New Reviews are now active in my signature.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Deathstroke doin Reviews! Hype It man. Plug em because thats all we have. Pluggin stuff. If there was a law against that I'd be gone from CBR most likely:


You can read my complete Legends of Green Lantern arc at The Never Ending Forum right now as we speak. Plus Countdown to Infinate Crisis: Pariah ! Yep.....gotta plug somethin. ;)

[Deathstroke]

Well, I'm hoping to draw people to my reviews and the site. I don't want to hear from the Mods so I'm not being obnoxious about it.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Well, I'm hoping to draw people to my reviews and the site. I don't want to hear from the Mods so I'm not being obnoxious about it.


Ahhh I'm sure Buried would have said something If ya were. Most do give warnings and all. But It has to do with music and I'm sure he'll be cool with It. Good luck with the reviews.

[Deathstroke]

A new Review for Royal Hunt's "Paper Blood" is now active in my signature!

[Deathstroke]

My signature has now been updated with the latest CD Review!

[Deathstroke]

The latest review I've written is now online in my signature.

It's for the new Dream Theater CD "Octavarium"

[Deathstroke]

I've got two new CD reviews going active in my signature.

[Deathstroke]

I've got a couple new reviews in my signature. They are for two concert DVDs.

[Hiromi]

I may need to check out Evergrey

[Deathstroke]

I may need to check out Evergrey

The concert disc, as I said, was superb.

[Deathstroke]

The latest CD review I've done is now linked in my signature.

[Deathstroke]

I got some feedback on the Robin Beck CD Review I did.

It came from her husband, House of Lords singer James Christian.

Kind of cool!

[Deathstroke]

I got an email a couple days ago from Pain of Salvation's Daniel Gildenlow. He wasn't pleased I gave a negative review of the group's DVD "BE."

[ZombieHavoc]

I may need to check out Evergrey

i had heard a song on comcast's metal station and i liked it and i bought the CD and i didnt really get into it much. i dont know what the hype's about.

[Deathstroke]

I've got new reviews up!

Check out my signature as of 7/18/05!

[Deathstroke]

My latest review has been added to my signature.

[Deathstroke]

I've got a new review in my signature for everyone to check out as of August 1st, 2005.

[Deathstroke]

There's two new reviews in my signature for everyone to check out!

[Deathstroke]

I've got a new review in my signature for those interested to check out!

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews up this week, check out my signature!

[Deathstroke]

My signature has been updated with two new reviews.

Also, I have two new mini reviews on line for 8/29/05 at the website's Reviews In Brief page. (http://www.rock-is-life.com/reviewsinbrief.htm).

The albums in question are Copper's The Fragile Fall and Wycked Synn's The Vision, just scroll down the page a bit to read them.

[Deathstroke]

There's 3 new reviews in my signature as of 9/5/05

[Deathstroke]

I've got a new review in my signature as of 9/12/05.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews have been added to my signature!

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of September 26th, 2005.

[DrewTheXenocide]

Not criticizing or anything, but from what I've seen, you like to give out those five outta fives, don't you?

[Hiromi]

Stroke's just been getting the good uns to review. BTW is anyone going to review the Demons and Wizards album?

[Deathstroke]

Not criticizing or anything, but from what I've seen, you like to give out those five outta fives, don't you?

I only give it to albums that deserve it.

The other review I did this week was in the Reviews in Brief section of the site and that was a 1 out of 5.

The one I did for this coming week already wasn't good either.

[Deathstroke]

New review up as of 11 pm on 10/2/05.

[berk]

I just glanced at a few of them. The Al Kooper one looks interesting. Have Brian Cronin and all the other Dylan nuts seen that I wonder?

[Deathstroke]

I just glanced at a few of them. The Al Kooper one looks interesting. Have Brian Cronin and all the other Dylan nuts seen that I wonder?

I've got no idea. While I'm sure there are people looking at the reviews, I don't have any idea who they might be. The feedback I get is rather limited.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 10/17/05

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews as of 10/23/05!

[Deathstroke]

My review of the Eugene Edwards CD - My Favorite Revolution was linked on the singer's website.

You can see the evidence here. (http://www.johnhoskinson.com/eugene/FavoriteRevolution/reviews/)

It's the one for Rock Is Life.com posted on October 24th, 2005.

That makes the second one I've done that has been directly linked on the artist's reviews page.

[Deathstroke]

Three new reviews in my signature as of 10/31/05!

[Deathstroke]

New Reviews posted on my signature as of 11/8/05!

[Deathstroke]

My review of the Jaugernaut CD Contra-Mantra has been added to the group's website.

You can check it out on their site by clicking this link! (http://www.jaugernaut.com/newReviews.htm)

[DrewTheXenocide]

Huh. Just noticed something. Would that be your real name down there, in your reviews?

Oooh.

[Deathstroke]

Huh. Just noticed something. Would that be your real name down there, in your reviews?

Oooh.

Actually it's one of many of my false names, why?

[Deathstroke]

There's three more reviews in my signature!

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 11/28/05!

[Deathstroke]

3 New Reviews up in my signature for 12/5/05!

[Hiromi]

Totally agree with the Fused review.

[Deathstroke]

Totally agree with the Fused review.

Glad to know you've read it!

[Deathstroke]

I've got one new review in my signature this week, plus the link to the article co-written by me for the Best of 2005 albums.

[Deathstroke]

New review in my signature as of 12/20/05!

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews have been added to my signature as of 1/2/2006!

[Davideaux]

Two new reviews have been added to my signature as of 1/2/2006!

Kind of a luke warm review for Mick Harvey. I love Nick Cave's stuff and would be willing to check out this CD.

[Deathstroke]

Kind of a luke warm review for Mick Harvey. I love Nick Cave's stuff and would be willing to check out this CD.

It was a lukewarm review because that's basically how I felt about it. I listened to it twice but just couldn't really get into it that much. It's not my preferred type of music. While that normally doesn't matter because through the website I've discovered a ton of new music to listen to, this one just didn't come across overly well to me.

Thanks for reading though!

[Hiromi]

I'll likely pick up the Maiden album later today.

[Deathstroke]

I'll likely pick up the Maiden album later today.


Good to hear!

[Hiromi]

Yeah you hit it pretty well, though in their defense Can I Play with Madness has always come off a bit weak live, this version was about as good as the one they did in Live at Donnington. And I'm happy to finally get a version of Lord of the Flies with Dickinson singing(and it was awesome). As for the new material both Paschendale and Dance of Death sound really good live.

[Deathstroke]

Glad you liked it!

[DonC]

"Can I Play with Madness" is kind of like "Run to the Hills," it's great on the album, but it is really hit or miss live.

"Pashendale" is amazing on Death on the Road, I can't wait to see the DVD.

I like "Wildest Dreams" here. In fact, I think it's better than on Dance of Death. I enjoy the new opening and while Bruce does seem off on parts, those parts are few and far between.

I also love "No More Lies," but then again, I like the song. (Even if it isn't Maiden's most original song.)

In fact, most of the best songs on the CD are new ones. I really wish more Maiden fans would give the new stuff a chance. Should they ever do a full US tour again, I'd love it if they would play more new stuff. I've seen the "classics" half a dozen times, already.

[Deathstroke]

"Can I Play with Madness" is kind of like "Run to the Hills," it's great on the album, but it is really hit or miss live.

"Pashendale" is amazing on Death on the Road, I can't wait to see the DVD.

I like "Wildest Dreams" here. In fact, I think it's better than on Dance of Death. I enjoy the new opening and while Bruce does seem off on parts, those parts are few and far between.

I also love "No More Lies," but then again, I like the song. (Even if it isn't Maiden's most original song.)

In fact, most of the best songs on the CD are new ones. I really wish more Maiden fans would give the new stuff a chance. Should they ever do a full US tour again, I'd love it if they would play more new stuff. I've seen the "classics" half a dozen times, already.

I give every album a chance. I usually end up loving them, and I've been a big fan of Brave New World and Dance of Death.

I'll be adding two new reviews to the signature later tonight by the way.

[DonC]

I give every album a chance. I usually end up loving them, and I've been a big fan of Brave New World and Dance of Death.


I wasn't singling you out or anything, reading your review of Death on the Road shows you give the new stuff a chance. I was talking more about the fans Bruce Dickinson was complaining about, the ones who only want to hear the old stuff. I would honestly love it if they dropped songs like "2 Minutes to Midnight" and "The Trooper" for newer stuff.

[Deathstroke]

I wasn't singling you out or anything, reading your review of Death on the Road shows you give the new stuff a chance. I was talking more about the fans Bruce Dickinson was complaining about, the ones who only want to hear the old stuff. I would honestly love it if they dropped songs like "2 Minutes to Midnight" and "The Trooper" for newer stuff.

No worries, I know you weren't singling me out.

However, the two songs you suggest, I would rather see in the set list.

Dropping Can I Play With Madness? is a move I would prefer if they can't do it any better than DOTR.

Oh, and over on Bruce Dickinson's forum, someone informed me that the show was recorded on a night when Bruce was in the midst of vocal problems anyway. He had been sick or something.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews are now available in my signature.

[Hiromi]

Need to pick up the Deep purple un.

[Deathstroke]

Need to pick up the Deep purple un.


Yes you do!

[Hiromi]

Found something interesting, the recent Maiden live album took place in Dortmon I think, here's another concert they did in Dortmon, only difference is that it happened 23 years ago on the Piece of Mind Tour.

http://youtube.com/w/Iron-Maiden---Iron-Maiden-83%27?v=ZsBen5BCsbA&search=Iron%20maiden

compare and contrast? Bruce has a lot more power in his upper vocal range than he did back then, funny how his voice only gets better as he gets older.

[Deathstroke]

It's a rare thing when a singer can maintain or get better on his vocals as they get older.

Ronnie James Dio is superb as well like that.

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of today 1/23/06!

[Deathstroke]

New review now in my signature!

[Deathstroke]

Two New Reviews are in my signature as of 2/6/06!

[Hiromi]

Silly DS should put the links in his sig before announcing them =p

[Deathstroke]

Silly DS should put the links in his sig before announcing them =p

They are in the signature. They went in right after I posted the message.

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of 2/16/06

[Deathstroke]

New Review as of 11:09pm on February 19th, 2006.

[Deathstroke]

Brand new CD review in my signature as of 2/26/06

[Deathstroke]

Got some feedback from my most recent review on the Phil Vincent CD. He emailed me and thanked me for the good review.

[Deathstroke]

More reasons to love my gig writing CD reviews!

Today I got two new solo releases from Judas Priest guitarist Glenn Tipton and the brand new album from ex-Survivor keyboardist Jim Peterik.

[Deathstroke]

A new review has been added to my signature.

I also wrote up a review for our Reviews In Brief section of the site. It was for the Y&T remastered edition of Black Tiger. I didn't really care much for it and gave it 2 out of 5.

[Deathstroke]

I've got two new reviews in my signature as of 3/14/04!

[Deathstroke]

2 New Reviews this week!

[Deathstroke]

A brand new review is in my signature for the week of 3/27/06.

[Deathstroke]

Three new reviews in my signature as of 4/3/06!

[Deathstroke]

New review in my signature as of 4/17/06!

[Deathstroke]

Two more reviews in my signature as of early AM 4/24/06!

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 2pm on May 1st, 2006.

[Deathstroke]

New review in my signature as of 11:37 PM on May 7th, 2006.

[Deathstroke]

My latest review is now linked in my signature as of 5/15/06!

[Deathstroke]

My newest review has been online for a few days but I hadn't gotten around to posting the link in my signature until today!

[Deathstroke]

I've added another review to my signature as of 5/29/06.

And there's plenty more reviews coming. I just got a whole bunch of new material from the site owner, and I'll be in new music for a while now.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 6/5/06!

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 6/12/06

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews up as of 6/18/06.

[Deathstroke]

After a two week delay, I've got 6 new reviews up as of 7/9/06. The four featured reviews are in my signature.

The other two brief reviews for albums by Millionaire and Apollo Up! can be found HERE! (http://www.rockislife.com/reviewsinbrief.htm)

[Deathstroke]

3 new reviews in my signature as of 7/24/06.

[Deathstroke]

The link to my review of the new John Gorka CD is now in my signature as of 7/31/2006.

[Deathstroke]

There's a new review in my signature as of 8/14/06.

[Deathstroke]

I've got two new reviews in my signature as of 8/28/06

[Deathstroke]

There's a brand new review in my signature as of 9/11/06.

[DonC]

Do you know of a site that has samples for that Pride of Lions disc? I was a huge Survivor fan back in the day and am curious what Lions sounds like.

[Deathstroke]

Do you know of a site that has samples for that Pride of Lions disc? I was a huge Survivor fan back in the day and am curious what Lions sounds like.


DonC,

http://www.aprideoflions.com/music.htm has REAL Media samples of the first album AND a real Media video for Sound Of Home.

Samples of the live album -

"Sound Of Home" (http://www.frontiers.it/portals/0/multimedia/polive_03.mp3)
"The Courage To Love Somebody" (http://www.frontiers.it/portals/0/multimedia/polive_08.mp3)

You know Survivor released a new album this year right?

[Deathstroke]

New review in my signature as of 9/18/06.

[Deathstroke]

My review of the new Iron Maiden is new in my signature as of 9/24/06.

[Hiromi]

I agree, Bruce's softer voice is just as enjoyable to listen to as his air raid yell.

[Deathstroke]

I agree, Bruce's softer voice is just as enjoyable to listen to as his air raid yell.

The man has got the pipes either way, that's for sure!

[Deathstroke]

My signature has been updated with two new reviews!

[Deathstroke]

I've got two new reviews up as of 10/30/06. Check my signature.

[Deathstroke]

There's a new review in my signature as of 11/05/06.

[Deathstroke]

There's two new reviews in my signature as of 11/12/06.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

You gonna do a review of Chinese Democracy if it comes out this year , Deathstroke ? (you can hear a finished 1 minute clip of Better for the Harley Davidson commercial ...so maybe its comin closer to reality)

[Deathstroke]

You gonna do a review of Chinese Democracy if it comes out this year , Deathstroke ? (you can hear a finished 1 minute clip of Better for the Harley Davidson commercial ...so maybe its comin closer to reality)

It'll depend on if we get the album sent to us. I have no intention of buying it. However, I think the site owner will save that for himself, which I have no problem with.

[Deathstroke]

Don't forget to check out my new review and my Top 10 CDs of 2006 in my signature!

[DonC]

Sadly, I've only listened to two of the CDs on your list. I want Jon Oliva's Pain's CD, but I can't find the damn thing. I'd probably also get Doro's CD if I could find it.

Time to head to a CD store, I think.

[Deathstroke]

Sadly, I've only listened to two of the CDs on your list. I want Jon Oliva's Pain's CD, but I can't find the damn thing. I'd probably also get Doro's CD if I could find it.

Time to head to a CD store, I think.


I know Jon Oliva's CD is out in the US, I'm not sure about Doro's album though.

[Deathstroke]

Sugarland - Enjoy The Ride (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/enjoytheride.htm)
Richie Zito - Avalon: The Richie Zito Project (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/avalon.htm)
Slamer - Nowhere Land (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/nowhereland.htm)
The Vicious Martinis - The Vicious Martinis (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/viciousmartinis.htm)
Metal Church - A Light In The Dark (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/lightinthedark.htm)
Robert Plant - Nine Lives (Box Set CD Sampler) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/ninelives.htm)
Steve Perry - Street Talk (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/streettalk.htm)
Maria McKee - Live Acoustic Tour 2006 (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/liveacoustic.htm)
Lunatica - The Edge Of Infinity (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/theedgeofinfinity.htm)
Journey - Escape (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/escape.htm)
Journey - Frontiers (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/frontiers.htm)
Dokken - The Definitive Rock Collection (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/definitivedokken.htm)
Warren Zevon - Excitable Boy (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/excitableboy.htm)
Woodale - Finish What You Start (EP) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/finishwhatyoustart.htm)
Warren Zevon - Stand In The Fire (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/standinthefire.htm)
House Of Lords - Live In The U.K. (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/holliveintheuk.htm)
Pride Of Lions - The Roaring Of Dreams (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/theroaringofdreams.htm)
Warren Zevon - The Envoy (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/theenvoy.htm)
Eliza Gilkyson - Your Town Tonight (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/yourtowntonight.htm)
Steve Perry - For The Love Of Strange Medicine (Reissue) (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/fortheloveof.htm)
Chris Caffery - Pins and Needles (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/pinsandneedles.htm)
Black Sabbath - The Dio Years (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/thedioyears.htm)
Threshold - Dead Reckoning (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/deadreckoning.htm)
Kelly Keagy - I'm Alive (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/imalive.htm)
Robben Ford - Truth (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/truth.htm)
Kate Voegele - Don't Look Away (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/dontlookaway.htm)
Frederiksen-Denander - Baptism By Fire (http://www.rockislife.com/2007reviews/baptismbyfire.htm)

[Deathstroke]

New Reviews are up as of 2/12/07, check my signature!

[DonC]

I've been meaning to tell you, I finally got a copy of that Jon Oliva's Pain CD. That is some good stuff there. Great hard rocking songs with some cool ballads (even if I'm an athiest).

[Deathstroke]

I've been meaning to tell you, I finally got a copy of that Jon Oliva's Pain CD. That is some good stuff there. Great hard rocking songs with some cool ballads (even if I'm an athiest).

Did you think it was better, even, or worse than what my review said.

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 2/26/07.

[Deathstroke]

1 new review in my signature as of 4/2/07.

[Deathstroke]

5 new reviews in my signature as of 4/15/07!

[Deathstroke]

I've got a couple new reviews in my signature as of 5/1/07.

[Deathstroke]

Here's my latest review. It's just a mini one so I'm copying and pasting.

TEN
The Twilight Chronicles
Frontiers Records 2006
"I wanted to be able to rave over this album, but I found that it simply didn’t appeal to me all that much. I enjoyed “The Chronicles”, “Hallowed Ground”, and “Oblivion” immensely. The tracks are up-tempo and these are the songs where vocalist Gary Hughes shines the brightest. The guitar leads and solos from Chris Francis and John Halliwell are outstanding throughout most of the album. The problem I had with the album is that the rest of the vocal performance from Hughes struck me as remarkably bland. There wasn’t a whole lot of vocal modulation in his delivery and it made of lot of the vocals just blend together for me. The three songs I mentioned above are great, but this CD ends up sounding rather repetitive after a while."

-- Jay Roberts

2 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

New Reviews in my signature as of 6/5/06!

[Deathstroke]

New Reviews in my signature as of 7/31/07.

[Deathstroke]

One new link in my signature as of 8/17/07.

Here's a brief review of another album.

CROSSFADE
Falling Away
Columbia Records 2006

"The follow up to the band’s self-titled 2004 debut release continues the band’s trail of gritty vocals and aggressive guitar work. Vocalist/guitarist Ed Sloan has some really down and dirty guitar riffs on display throughout the disc. The opener “Washing The World Away” features some gruff guitar lines. Bassist/vocalist Mitch James and drummer James Branham combine with Sloan to form a heck of a rock trio.

The album features 10 edgy rockers that move from a midtempo groove to all out driving rhythms. “Already Gone”, “Drown You Out” and “Breathing Slowly” are superb examples of the latter while “Invincible” and “Someday” typify the former. The 11th track and album closer is the only real misstep in song selection. “Never Coming Home” is the lamb coming after the lion (the other 10 tracks). While the band’s lyrics can be a bit depressing at times, I really think the band has something going for it and look forward to seeing them continue their winning ways on their next album."

[Deathstroke]

There's a new review in my signature as of 9/10/07.

[Deathstroke]

I've got a couple new Reviews in Brief for anyone interested!

ENEMY REMAINS
S/T
SELF-RELEASED –2007
http://www.enemyremains.com

THE VERDICT

The band founded by ex-Fates Warning drummer Steve Zimmerman in 2005 combine a mix of their progressive metal roots and the traditional power metal sound of yesterday and today to form one amazing sound on their self-titled and self-released 3 song EP.
I loved the alternating gritty and soaring style of vocalist Brian Betterton. On “Live For Today” the main verses had the grit, while the chorus had the soaring style. The tempo variations within “Holdin’ On” are noteworthy and ear catching. The riffs and overall musicianship on “Fallen” were superb.
This was a great introduction to the band. The 3 songs are superb and I can only hope that it will be sooner rather than later before I hear a full-length album with some heavy label support. Yes, the disc was THAT great!

RATING

4 ½ of out 5


RICHIE KOTZEN
Into The Black
FRONTIERS RECORDS – 2006
http://www.richiekotzen.com

THE VERDICT

The ex-Poison guitarist continues to explore the musical landscape far and away from that glam metal period with the deeply blues influenced rock and roll found on Into The Black.
Kotzen’s got a nice gritty edge to his singing voice and his musical ability should be without question as he wrote, arranged, produced and performed the album by himself.
“Misunderstood” has a hot burning groove to it, while the last track “My Angel” closes the CD in a much slower fashion. The song still manages to have a sweet riff towards the end of the track though. The harder rock edged tracks “You Can’t Save Me” and “Sacred Ground” both have a flaming hot delivery.
I consider the Poison album Native Tongue the best release the band ever did. I think it comes as no surprise that it’s the only CD on which Kotzen played with the band. He’s got a great musical vision and he continues to unveil and refine it with every successive release. Into The Black is one beautifully wonderful step on that continuing musical evolution.


RATING

4 ½ out of 5

[Deathstroke]

Two new reviews in my signature as of 10/3/07!

[Deathstroke]

SONATA ARCTICA
Unia
Nuclear Blast Records 2007

"The musical pace is definitely on the high energy fast paced side, but “The Harvest” and “Fly With The Black Swan” are the only songs that resonate with any signs of life. Otherwise the album comes off as some very bloodless, cold and antiseptic prog metal."

-- Jay Roberts

2 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

STARZ
Greatest Hits Live
MVD Entertainment Group 2007

"The live collection of the 70’s rockers greatest hits seems to capture the band in fine form. The CD is compiled from at least 3 different performances and while I found the sound to be adequate to mediocre, the quality of their material does seem to shine through.

While I wouldn’t put the band in my own personal Top 10 of 1970’s rockers, they are pretty good. I think it is a shame I wasn’t musically aware in the 70’s because I probably would have liked the band. They’ve got a lively and energetic sound tied to that particular era and it does keep the ears engaged, even during the first half of the disc where the quality of the recording isn’t even as good as some bootlegs I’ve listened to over the years.

The audio quality is the biggest problem I had with the entire disc. I think if you are going to reissue this type of album, you really need to make the sound more presentable than what a typical bootlegger could accomplish.

You want to check out tracks like “Detroit Girls”, “Any Way That You Want It”, and “Cherry Baby” in particular, but surprisingly at least to me, each song is pretty good.
If you like the 70’s rock era, you probably know of the band. You’ll definitely like this release. If you, like me, weren’t really into music when you were less than 10 years old, Greatest Hits Live provides a look back to a time when hard rock was in the infancy stage of what the genre has become today.
"
-- Jay Roberts

2 1/2 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

MY 2008 CD REVIEWS

Overkill - Immortalis (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/imortalis.htm)
Squealer A.D. - Confrontation Street (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/confrontationstreet.htm)
Nightwish - Dark Passion Play (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/darkpassionplay.htm)
Winger - IV (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/4.htm)
Richie Kotzen - Return Of The Mother Head's Family Reunion (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/returnofthemother.htm)
Robert Plant / Alison Krauss - Raising Sand (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/raisingsand.htm)
Queensryche - Take Cover (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/takecover.htm)
Warren Zevon - Preludes (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/preludes.htm)
Metallica - Death Magnetic (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/deathmagnetic.htm)
Sugarland - Love On The Inside (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/loveontheinside.htm)
Marc Cohn - Join The Parade (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/jointheparade.htm)
Melissa Etheridge - The Awakening (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/theawakening.htm)
American Angel - Vanity (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/vanity.htm)
Ramos ~ Hugo - The Dream (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/thedream.htm)
Indigo Dying - Indigo Dying (http://www.rockislife.com/2008reviews/indigodying.htm)


My review of the June 20th, 2008 Iron Maiden concert in Mansfield, MA is available via this link (http://www.rockislife.com/soundoff/ironmaiden2008.htm)

[DonC]

You summed up my feelings about that perfectly.

[Deathstroke]

You summed up my feelings about that perfectly.

We're thinking alike? That can't be good for the world.

[Deathstroke]

GODHEAD
The Shadow Line
Cement Shoes Records 2006

"Godhead’s most recent disc finds the band in peak form. The lead track “Trapped In Your Lies” is a real attention grabber. It’s a classy and classic rocker for the future to come. You’ll also want to check out “Once Before”. The song is another fantastic example of what makes Godhead so good. The band has a superb handle on how to approach their songwriting and it shows throughout the album because other than “Another Day” which I didn’t think much of, the musicianship and lyrical content is top-notch. They can rock with the best and then bring out the more moderate tempo for tracks like “Your End Of Days”.
Godhead is a fantastic live act and The Shadow Line CD lives up to the standard set by their performances."

[Deathstroke]

Here's some brief reviews I've done lately:

MARC COHN
The Very Best of Marc Cohn
Rhino Records 2006
"While he may not be as prolific as his fans might hope for, this collection showcases exactly why he is considered such a gifted songwriter." - Thumbs Up

THOMPSON ROBINSON WILLIAMSON
Rivers of Paradise
Frontiers Records 2007
"The debut album from TRW features a superbly pedigreed trio of musicians that have recorded and played with notables such as Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Steve Winwood and many more. The musicianship is without question. The members are big fans of classic rock and roll and the reverence they hold shines through.

The track “Gonna Be Some Changes” features some superb guitar work, “One Good Woman” holds up just fine under any critical scrutiny, and the song "Indiscretion” is a truly incredible recording. Sadly, for me at least, I found the rest of the material to be strictly adequate.

There was a bit of a flat feeling to tracks like “Only A Letter” and “Love Comes Calling.”I think that there is undoubtedly more to be heard from TRW, but right now, this just didn’t click for me fully." 2 1/2 out of 5


TRISHA YEARWOOD
Greatest Hits
MCA Nashville 2007
"The newest collection of one of country music’s brightest stars runs the gamut of her albums from first to last. All the big hits like “She’s In Love With The Boy”, “Wrong Side Of Memphis”, and “XXX’s And OOO’s (An American Girl}” are included in the 17 track set.

I was disappointed to see that they stuck to strictly the radio hits instead of including a couple of the more popular album cuts, but then again this is a hits collection and that normally implies radio success only. The two new cuts on the album “Just A Cup Of Coffee” and “Nothin’ To Lose” are both good songs. I wouldn’t necessarily included them among a best songs Yearwood has recorded, but they are good.

She has long been considered by this reviewer to be the premiere interpreter of other writer’s songs and I always lean towards her decision to record a song. This album, all in all, is a decent if relatively unspectacular package to encapsulate her career to date." 4 1/2 out of 5

CHANA ROTHMAN
We Can Rise
Oy!Hoo Records 2007
"The debut album from the folk slash singer-songwriter Chana Rothman finds the listener swept up in her quite obvious talent for melody. The lyrical content of the songs ranges from love to religion to social concerns. I’m not always a big fan of preachy type lyrics but when done right you can still hear an interesting viewpoint and be entertained musically. For the most part Rothman does the latter instead of the former.

I didn’t care for the plodding “One Stone” or the simply lacking “Draw A Circle” but I found myself really liking the rest of the album’s tracks. The song “Summer” is an outstanding combination of lyrics and music while “The Wind” has a slower paced delivery that echoes after the song ends. The very pointed “Walk A Mile” is probably the best example of the issue-oriented lyrics shining alongside with solid musicianship. In other words, a really good debut disc from a voice I’m sure we’ll hear more of in the future." 3 1/2 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of 4/4/08!

[Deathstroke]

My latest review is of the latest Nightwish album.

Check out my signature.

[Deathstroke]

A new review is linked in my signature AND here's a new minireview:

GINA GERSHON
In Seach of Cleo
Takes the Biscuit 2007

"The actress turned singer-songwriter finds her debut disc filled with an array of alternative rock/pop songs and a few torch or cabaret type numbers as well.
The lead track is pure torch song. It’s a decent little way to open the disc. “Midnight Girl” is another good song, but the best track on this album has to be the bluesy stomp of “Marie”.

Sadly, while I’m sure there is an audience out there for this type of material, I am definitely not among that crowd. I found the rest of the songs rather ponderous and thunderously painful to listen to for review purposes.

I guess for me, I need a little more rock to go with the pop. Gershon is a good actress but I just can’t see her doing music full time if this album represents the best of the written material she has. She’s got a good voice, but you can’t make it on a good voice if there’s nothing to sing about."

1 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of 6/6/08.

[Deathstroke]

A new CD review and a concert review are now posted in my signature as of 7/21/08.

[DonC]

It sucks that there were sound problems at the Maiden concert you went to.

[CoreyB]

Glad to hear you liked Robert Plant & Alison Krauss' Raising Sand. I've heard a song or two from it and was really impressed with the results of such an unlikely pairing. I'd like to get it eventually.

[Deathstroke]

Glad to hear you liked Robert Plant & Alison Krauss' Raising Sand. I've heard a song or two from it and was really impressed with the results of such an unlikely pairing. I'd like to get it eventually.

It's well worth the price. Fantastic album and I hope they do a second album together.

[Deathstroke]

New Review in my signature as of 8/24/08!

[Rob.H]

Ooooh, I was listening to the Robert Plant & Alison Krauss album today. It's so good! $5 at a friend's film fund-raiser.

[Deathstroke]

PAGAN'S MIND
God's Equation
SPV Records 2008

"The progressive and power metal mix put forth by Pagan’s Mind was previously unheard by me, but I was quite taken with their approach after listening to this disc. The two instrumentals on the album were decent. “The Conception” opens the album and “Farewell” conveys a finely constructed example of mood as the album preps to close out. The vocal work from Nils K. Rue is superb overall. I did think the pronounced delivery on “Hallo Spaceboy” seemed a bit forced. Otherwise, the guy is a vocal powerhouse.

As for the rest of the songs on the disc, you really can’t find much to fault with the material. “United Alliance” is a simply great tune that shines a light on each member of the band. I really got into the pounding rhythms of “Atomic Firelight” which ended up as my own favorite track. “Alien Kamikaze” and “Evolution Exceed” also burn and shred with their aggressive tempos. If you want to know how the band sounds when they slow down their aural assault, “Painted Skies” is the track you are looking for. The closing track “Osiris’ Triumphant Return” is a galloping burst of energy.

The band has over the course of their five albums carved out a place in the progressive metal pantheon with their tight songwriting and vibrant performances…I’m just sorry that I haven’t been onboard until now."

4 1/2 out of 5


and there's a new review linked in my signature as of 9/11/08.

[ibwib]

Is this a thread for CD reviews, or a thread for your CD reviews? I've got a few I'd like to post, but I'd hate to tread on toes.

[Deathstroke]

Is this a thread for CD reviews, or a thread for your CD reviews? I've got a few I'd like to post, but I'd hate to tread on toes.


Well the title says "My CD Reviews".... I started this thread to have a single thread to post my reviews instead of separate threads.

[Deathstroke]

INNERPARTYSYSTEM
The Download EP
Stolen Transmission 2007

"An interesting mix of straightforward rock songs ruined by an overabundance of “studio magic” dooms this EP in my eyes."

RATING: THUMBS DOWN


DOMAIN
Stardawn
Limb Music Productions 2006

"The album features superb symphonic metal with attacking musical interludes and well crafted story ideas with the songs"

RATING: THUMBS UP


HARTMANN
Home
Frontiers Records 2006

"I found myself really enjoying this album when I didn’t have any built in preconceptions of the artist from listening to past material. I liked the songs that featured the grittier rocking guitar sound more than the slicker produced material, but overall, there were only a few minor things that didn’t satisfy the musical hunger.

The songs of note included the very catchy pop sounding “Coming Home To You” as well as “The Sun’s Still Rising” and “Somewhere Someday”.

I don’t know what went wrong with “My Everything Is You” but even for a ballad it sounded excessively wimpy. The album did go out with kind of a whimper with “Crying” and “Lay All Your Love On Me”, two songs that did absolutely nothing for this reviewer’s ears.

I’m definitely interested in listening to more from Hartmann, especially if the material leans more towards a grittier sound as in 5 of the songs featured on the Home disc."

RATING: 4 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

And the point of your post is?

[Deathstroke]

I just got 24 new albums, 17 of which have to be reviewed.

So besides the five albums I have listened to but not written up yet, you can look forward to future reviews of:

Jimi Jamison
Crown of Thorns
Thunder
Ramos-Hugo
Honeymoon Suite
Metal Church
Exodus
Kiske
Eclipse
From The Inside
Godhead
Starbreaker
Joe Lynn Turner
Brother Firetribe
Avantasia
Benedictum
The Poodles

[Ottmeister X]

No Tesla album up for review?

[Deathstroke]

No Tesla album up for review?

I don't have a copy of it. I'll have to get it and honestly, with money the way it is, it is going to be a while.

I'd like to of course, but circumstances warrant doing the stuff I get for free before dropping cash on other stuff.

[Deathstroke]

No Tesla album up for review?

I didn't write this one but the review that was put up yesterday on the site is:


TESLA
Forever More
Tesla Electric Company 2008

"Tesla was one of those bands like Queensryche and Def Leppard that got lumped into the 'hair metal' crowd, when in actuality they weren't even close. How does acoustic bluesey guitars, experimental sounds, and thought-provoking songs even compare with the hair metal image? Yes, Tesla was a minor player in the music industry, finally finding a hit from someone else's material. Anyone that has followed the group knows they offered so much more than signs.

Forever More delivers a less bombastic Jeff Keith vocal. Clearly time has not been kind. He still maintains his gritty-ness, but just can't bring the range. That minor issue aside, the group delivers some dark material ("Forever More"), some anthemic material ("So What"), some high-octane energy ("All of Me"), inspirational material ("The First Time"), ballads ("Just in Case"), and some heart-felt tear-jerker's ("Pvt. Ledbetter)."

Tesla have hit their stride in 2008, and if this was a different era, the group would have a number one album on their hands.

4 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

SONIC X
Thirteen
Chavis Records 2008

" The 2nd album from Sonic X comes off as a solid if relatively standard collection of tracks that range from the basic hard rock format to the more metallic sounding material like “Disgrace”. That song features a killer guitar solo. The ballad “Breathe” avoids the path to sappy by adding just the right touch of crunch. The other two tracks that stood out best to me were “Carried Away” and the rocker “My Condition”.

I haven’t been able to put my finger on exactly who Adam Troy reminds me of as a vocalist, but there is a familiarity to his voice for some reason. I was a little disappointed when doing some research online for this disc to find rather important things missing from my review copy. The first thing is that the title of the disc appears nowhere on it. Also, the track listing online says there is supposed to be 16 tracks to the CD. Sadly, the disc I have has only 13. The phrase “the devil is in the details” is perhaps something that needs to be reinforced to whoever is responsible for that particular aspect.

In all, while I’m not going to run off and become a fanatical worshipper of the band, I did enjoy a majority of the band’s songs on Thirteen and will be interested in hearing more as time goes by."

3 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

A couple of new brief reviews:

ACTION
S/T
Frontiers Records 2007

"When I first listened to the CD I thought the first five tracks were awful. In going back to listen again to the album, I found my opinion changed. I still think the first five songs are weaker than the last 6 tracks but the lead track “Without Your Love” is actually quite a decent rocker. The 80’s rock vibe is present throughout the disc and I loved the guitar work on “Don’t Leave Me Lonely”.

The material consists of mostly up tempo rocker tracks and for me the songs “Loveless” and “Cinderella” are the standout cuts. If you grew up in the 1980’s, when you hear this album, I think you will find yourself transported back to that musical era and find that Action is definitely where it’s at!"

3 1/2 out of 5


GARY HUGHES
Veritas
Frontiers Records 2007

"I find it fascinating that an album showcasing the vocal prowess of Gary Hughes would also shine an equal light on rather outstanding guitar work. There are at least 6 songs that feature guitar riffs that simply shred. The title track features a strong musical intro with a high octane tempo. The smooth and dare I say velvety tones of Gary Hughes are in full bloom here and throughout the songs on the disc.

Veritas features a couple of power ballads and “Wide Awake In Dreamland” is pretty good at that. I loved the track “The Emerald Sea”; it’s probably the best song on the album. Other standouts included “Strange” and “All I Want Is You”. My main problem with the disc is “Synchronicity”. It has a 90 second opening that is among the most irritating things that I’ve ever heard in my life.

Worse yet is that it repeats in the background throughout the entire song. I darn near wanted to rip the CD out of my player and break it after listening to the 8 plus minute cut. You get a great melodic rock album featuring one of the best voices of the genre. You won’t be disappointed overall and you’ll find yourself with a touch of musical greatness."

3 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

The site I write for has already had someone else write a review of U.D.O's latest studio CD Mastercutor.

I got a copy of the album and figured I'd post my own review here.

U.D.O.
Mastercutor
Candlelight Records - 2007
http://www.udo-online.de

I'm not fully immersed in the back catalog of Accept, vocalist Udo Dirkschneider's former band, but I have to think that he is coming out with material that is at least as equal if not surpassing the old stuff now.

Proof in the pudding would be Mastercutor which features a fully whisky over razorblades and a cheese grater vocal performance from Dirkschneider as well as an amazingly adept band pounding out rhythms that can shake the paint off the walls.

Despite Udo's obvious vocal shortcomings, the man is a tank that won't stop rolling. Even the two songs were he is aiming more towards a singing feel as opposed to growling, you can feel the effort that goes into giving a full accounting of himself. "One Lone Voice" and "Tears Of A Clown" are surprisingly good songs with a slower tempo, the latter being the "ballad" of the album. The former has a really heavy vibe going for it in the lyrics.

I liked how the album opens and closes with pieces designed to emulate the credits of a 7-'s or early 80's game show.

My favorite song on the disc is "Vendetta". Heavy epic sound that would be the perfect track if the movie V For Vendetta had had a heavy metal soundtrack.

Other great tracks: Mastercutor, The Wrong Side Of Midnight, The Instigator and Crash Bang Crash.

That last song is all sound and fury and is a fantastic way to close out this album of pure classic power metal.

The one track on the album I didn't really care for was "We Do For You". The music was great, but I thought the lyrics were trite even beyond my limits.

Like your power metal harkening back to the 80's? You'll get it here. I've really been growing into more of a fan of U.D.O.'s with each successive release and Mastercutor only serves to reinforce that statement.

This is a GREAT album.

RATING: 4 1/2 out of 5

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[Deathstroke]

ONLY NOW EXISTING
Escape Artist
Vision Records - 2007
http://www.onlynowexisting.com

Take alternative rock and throw in electronic music, mix and serve. That is usually a musical recipe that I will turn my nose up at without a moment's hesitation.

Surprisingly though, it wasn't exactly the case with this CD. To be sure, it isn't a CD I really have plans to listen to again. But for a one time listen, I have to be honest and say that it wasn't all that bad. Nice rhythms and served a decent purpose of background music while doing other activities.

I made a joke with myself and said this album is music for alt-freaks to make out to. I don't think that it is a very accurate statement, but it was one of the first impressions I had of the music.

All in all, I didn't hate the disc.

RATING: 2 1/2 out of 5

http://cdbaby.name/o/n/onlyne.jpg

RYAN BINGHAM
Mescalito
Lost Highway Records - 2007
http://www.binghammusic.com

Produced by ex-Black Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, Mescalito finds alt-country singer songwriter Ryan Bingham really impressing the hell out of me.

Using a whisky and cigarettes vocal style that has earned him comparisons to a young Tom Waits, Bingham is a pretty impressive "find" for me.

The track "Bread and Water" has a real stomp your feet/clap your hands feel going for it. I liked the switch between English and Spanish lyrics on "Boracho Station". While a mid tempo song in general, there are some really superb guitar licks on "Hard Times". The opening track (it was the first single) "Southside Of Heaven" gets things off to a great star.

The band has the country twang, but a good dose of attitude as well. My favorite track on the CD was "The Other Side" as it was representative of all the aspects of the band. Their lyrics, their style and the vocals.

A couple of songs were merely "okay" but in general I had no problems with the disc. I wish I had been able to get around to reviewing the album when it was originally released because I feel that I really missed out on this one.

RATING: 4 out of 5

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[Deathstroke]

AC/DC
Black Ice
Columbia Records - 2008
http://www.acdc.com

Let's get the obvious out of the way up front shall we? The newest AC/DC album sounds like pretty much every other AC/DC album. You've got the scratchy straining vocals of Brian Johnson and the pounding rhythm section as the foundation for the bar band blues guitar licks of the eternal schoolboy Angus Young.

That being said, the first studio album from the band since 2000, has really electrified their old fanbase and given them a huge entry into gaining new fans. Why? Well, the sound may be the same but the band seems to have more of a cohesive direction to the music this time around.

The first single "Rock 'N Roll Train" captured the ears initially via the radio and then you get other smashingly fantastic tracks like "Big Jack" and the title track. My personal favorites were "Skies On Fire" and "War Machine".

Check out "Spoilin' For A Fight" and "Rock 'N Roll Dream" for more goodness.

I think the album loses a bit of steam heading into the last part of the album. When you've got 15 songs on the disc, that can't be an overly large surprise. I thought "Wheels", "Decibel" and "Stormy May Day" were pretty weak tracks.

I've been hearing rumors that this CD and tour will be the last with Brian Johnson. I don't know if it is true or not, but if it is the case, the band came up with a totally winning CD to make their swan song (with Johnson or as a band completely) with.

RATING: 4 out of 5

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[Deathstroke]

Joe Lynn Turner
Live In Germany
Blistering Records - 2008
http://www.joelynnturner.com

One of the quintessential voices of rock and roll is Joe Lynn Turner. In various points of his career he has fronted both Rainbow and Deep Purple. He's carved out a stunningly prolific solo career, worked with the legendary Glenn Hughes on the Hughes-Turner Project and even sang lead on what I consider guitar wizard Yngwie J. Malmsteen's best album Odyssey.

He's got a voice that acts as a rubber band allowing him to sing some fast paced high energy rock and roll and then bounce back and lay down the sweet melodic tones required in a ballad.

He's a pro's pro in the rock and roll world.

And yet I can't help but feel a little disappointed in this live release. To be sure the performance from Turner and his band is phenomenal. He rocks out on a selection of tunes ranging from his Rainbow and Deep Purple days and tracks from the two most recent solo albums he's had (a fact pointed out at least a couple of times during his stage banter).

I can't say anything bad about the performance. What ultimately disappointed me was that for a live album it BARELY felt like it was live. I don't know who made the decision to include so little actual crowd noise in the mix but it was a particularly bad decision.

The way the crowd for this LIVE album was marginalized to such a point that this could've just as easily been recorded in the studio and crowd noise from any generic concert spliced into the audio tracks.

I love Turner's voice and he always seems to come up with a winning collection of material, but this time the flaws in the presentation dimmed my enjoyment of the disc. As such I'm giving this one a split grade.

RATING - 5 OUT OF 5 (MUSIC) 2 1/2 OUT OF 5 (PRESENTATION)

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[Deathstroke]

MY 2009 REVIEWS

Jimi Jamison - Crossroads Moment (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/crossroadsmoment.htm)
David Readman - S/T (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/davidreadman.htm)
Exodus - Let There Be Blood (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/lettherebeblood.htm)
Metal Church - This Present Wasteland (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/thispresentwasteland.htm)
Eclipse - Are You Ready To Rock (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/areyoureadytorock.htm)
Heaven & Hell - The Devil You Know (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/thedevilyouknow.htm)
Honeymoon Suite - Clifton Hill (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/cliftonhill.htm)
Thunder - Bang! (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/bang.htm)
House of Lords - Come To My Kingdom (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/cometomykingdom2.htm)
Queensryche - American Soldier (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/americansoldier.htm)
Machines of Grace - Machines of Grace (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/machinesofgrace.htm)
GMT - Evil Twin (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/eviltwin.htm)
Crown of Thorns - Faith (http://www.rockislife.com/2009reviews/faith.htm)

[Deathstroke]

I've got a couple new reviews in my signature.

Here's a brief one I wrote up as well.

STARBREAKER
Love's Dying Wish
Blistering/Frontiers Records 2008

"I really enjoyed vocalist Tony Harnell in TNT and looking forward to hearing this album I was really hoping to hear a lot of good music. While there are moments of goodness, I have to say that I was rather disappointed to find the music on Love’s Dying Wish to be stunningly mediocre.

There are some good guitar riffs and overall vibes to a couple of songs but not enough to recommend the disc. Another disappointment was the fact that I only got to hear 9 of the songs out of the twelve on the album. The review disc I got had skips through the last 3 songs on the album."

1 1/2 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

I've got a new review in my signature and here's a brief review I did of another CD:

GODHEAD
At the Edge of the World
Driven Music Group 2008

"I’m hoping that it is not a case of me getting too old to rock and roll, but considering I believe the combined deductive powers of Sherlock Holmes, Charlie Chan and Batman couldn’t fathom what the hell is going on with this album, I’m on safe ground.

To be honest there are a couple of decent rockers on the disc, but overall this just sounds like a collection of noise that someone slapped onto a blank CD and called it marketable. If you consider how much I enjoyed the band’s previous release, you’ll understand how I can say that the track on this CD “The Origin of Suffering” sums up what it was like to listen to this even once."


1 out of 5

[Deathstroke]

Four new reviews are now in my signature!

[Deathstroke]

My last four CD reviews are now posted in my signature.

[Deathstroke]

I finally got around to listening to the Kim Richey CD from 2007 called Chinese Boxes.

It was pretty good and had four stand out tracks in particular.

"The Absence Of Your Company"
"I Will Follow" (probably my favorite)
"Not A Love Like This"
"Something To Say"

I'd grade the CD out as a straight B.

You can check her out at http://www.myspace.com/kimrichey

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[Deathstroke]

The Scorpions - Sting In The Tail


I listened to the CD at last after having it for a couple of weeks.

While it had a couple of tracks that struck me more filler than killer, I thought the album was a nice final collection of tracks.

You kind of know what you are going to get with a Scorpions CD (killer rock guitar riffs, Meine's voice, couple of power ballads) but it all comes out great in the end.

The track "Raised on Rock" has a few effects in the mix but for me it sounded almost as if there was a conscious decision to have the song sound more stripped down that the normal bigger production sound of their songs. On this album the title track would be a good example of that production sound.

I loved the tracks "Slave Me", "No Limit" and "Rock Zone". All three songs were very uptempo rockers as was "Turn You On".

The closing number "The Best Is Yet To Come" was decent enough and a nice way to cap their recording career.

Overall I'd say the album comes in around a B+. It's not quite the standout that I found the Unbreakable CD to be but it is pretty darn good.

[Deathstroke]

ACCEPT
Blood of the Nations
Nuclear Blast Records - 2010
http://www.acceptworldwide.com

Here's a reunion of sorts that I don't think anyone really thought would come about.

After years of being broken up, the band got back together with original singer Udo Dirkschneider for a tour but when it came about that the other members wanted to do a new album, Udo had no interest.

Enter new singer (their third, the other was David Reece) Mark Tornillo and now they have really set themselves a path back to the hearts of metal fans.

Packaging: The high glossy cd case and booklet indicate a real effort to give a high class backing to the new album. The standard song lyrics and photos of the band members are included. I did like the thematic approach of the identifying dog tags for the members though. Also included are two stories. One how the band came to be as it is now constituted and the other one is about the songwriting for the band in the past and now. I was really pleased with how the packaging turned out.

The Music:

If you were worried that Accept was going to hire some high powered smooth as silk voice, let me allay your fears. While Mark Tornillo isn't nearly as gravelly voiced as Udo, he holds his own quite nicely in the whiskey and razorblades throaty vocals.

To be honest I had never heard of him before but this guy just kicked my butt.

Producer Andy Sneap crafted the band's sound to maximum effect. One of the stories in the CD booklet gives an insight how he helped the band to focus on writing all killer no filler songs.

The anthemic nature of Accept's past is alive and well on Blood of the Nations. The high gear is hit from the opening track "Beat The Bastards". The band's first "single" "Teutonic Terror" is a bit slower in tempo as track number 2 but no less heavy. (It also turned out a pretty decent performance video).

"The Abyss" was a pretty solid rocker but I did think when the song dropped into a slower delivery, it kind of stalled the song. The title track was utterly fantastic. The big backing vocal on the chorus was a plus.

"Shades of Death" was decent and "Locked and Loaded" was a total speeding down the highway kind of rocker.

"Time Machine" has a sly sneaky feel to it, the main lyrical verses start off with a free and easy delivery and then as it moves towards the bridge and chorus it gets heavier and a bit of that vicious metal growl works its way in.

I have to say that guitarists Wolf Hoffman and Herman Frank seems to be having a rollicking good time on this disc. The guitar work is solid (no surprise) and spectacular (again no surprise). Hoffman's got the flash of a guitar hero but the chops of the seasoned veteran who knows how to craft the power riffs necessary to capture the listener's ear.

"Kill The Pain" was the band's "ballad" track and while I am not opposed to ballads or slower softer type of songs, I do have a higher standard for them. I want them to be GREAT not just good. Unfortunately for me, I just did not get into or connect with this track at all.

The band kicked back into speedy rock and roll with "Rolling Thunder" and Tornillo blasted through the lyrics while the band kept the beat and pace musically. You can say the same for the succeeding track "Pandemic".

"New World Comin" was a solid track, I liked the guitar work mostly on this one. It was more of a mid tempo track but with that muscular backing sound that keeps the song from falling into schlock.

"No Shelter" was another uptempo rocker I found to be good.

The bonus track "Bucketful of Hate" stars off with an intro that reminds one of a sing-along nursery rhyme and then the power chords kick in to blow that image from your mind. And what a killer song they chose to end the CD on. It just tears at your throat and doesn't let you go until the final notes.

When a band gets back together it is always a bit worrisome. Will they be able to put out something worthy to their glory days or will it be an exercise in futility that makes you question why you ever liked the band in the first place.

I'm happy to say that Accept has hit it out of the park. They got a superb replacement for Udo Dirkschneider and came up with an album that taken as a whole stands up fine alongside Metal Heart and Balls to the Wall.

For me the only misstep is the ballad "Kill The Pain". Otherwise, call this a 9 1/2 out of 10, 4 1/2 stars out of 5, or Grade: A

This is what we as music lovers should expect from musical heroes of our past coming back for another run at the brass ring!

Favorite tracks: Beat the Bastards, Blood of the Nations, Time Machine, Pandemic, Bucketful of Hate.

[DonC]

I've got a new review in my signature and here's a brief review I did of another CD:

GODHEAD
At the Edge of the World
Driven Music Group 2008

"I’m hoping that it is not a case of me getting too old to rock and roll, but considering I believe the combined deductive powers of Sherlock Holmes, Charlie Chan and Batman couldn’t fathom what the hell is going on with this album, I’m on safe ground.

To be honest there are a couple of decent rockers on the disc, but overall this just sounds like a collection of noise that someone slapped onto a blank CD and called it marketable. If you consider how much I enjoyed the band’s previous release, you’ll understand how I can say that the track on this CD “The Origin of Suffering” sums up what it was like to listen to this even once."


1 out of 5


I missed this before now, but I wanted to say I agree 100%. The Shadow Line was a great CD. Then they dropped this turd. I can see why the band's future is kind of up in the air. (Right now it looks like Jason Miller is trying a solo career in southern rock/country.)

[Deathstroke]

I missed this before now, but I wanted to say I agree 100%. The Shadow Line was a great CD. Then they dropped this turd. I can see why the band's future is kind of up in the air. (Right now it looks like Jason Miller is trying a solo career in southern rock/country.)

I can't recall the last time I even thought about Godhead.

[Deathstroke]

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HALFORD
MADE OF METAL
METAL GOD RECORDS - 2010
http://www.robhalford.com

The notion of a brand new studio album from Rob Halford really brought a smile to my face when I heard about it.

I love him in Judas Priest but I have found his Halford releases to be just as good and in some cases better than some Priest releases.

While I do think Made of Metal is a good album, I do have to say that I was just a bit disappointed. Perhaps this is due to my own high expectations, but I didn't totally love this album.

The majority of the tracks on the disc are unsurprisingly fast paced and in your face. There are a couple of mid-tempo numbers like "Heartless" and "I Know I Stand A Chance." Both were okay but didn't really stand out that much to me.

The song "Matador" uses crowd noise at the beginning and end of the song but I can't say for sure if this was a "live" track or just noise added into the mix. The song was pretty good though.

Other cuts like "Fire and Ice", "Like There's No Tomorrow", "We Own The Night" and "Twenty-Five Years" were all decent.

"The Mower" featured Halford in full throated scream, reminiscent of some of his best screaming (for vengeance perhaps?).

The lead off to the disc was "Undisputed". A fiery rocker with some killer musicianship. And it was killed for my own personal taste with an abysmal chorus that made it sound like the song was pandering for a boxer or a MMA fighter to use it as their theme song.

The title track was another song that featured great music, but the lyrics simply struck me as being silly.

I loved the song "Speed of Sound". It just throttled you as it sped by. "Thunder and Lightning" started off with a slightly slower groove but kicked it up through the song.

The funniest thing about the material is my favorite song on the album is the one that sounds the least like what you might have come to expect from Halford.

The song "Til The Day I Die" kicks off with this slow guitar sound that would have you thinking of the bayou or some bluesy club at 2am. It goes that way through the first lyrical verse before an edgier rock sound comes in before that slower bluesy feel returns to close out the song. I kid you not when I say that it is one of my favorite Halford songs period.

Made of Metal is a good album, but at least for me, I think it is lacking a little something. But I do recommend anyone reading this definitely check the album out and decide for yourself.

[Deathstroke]

Robert Plant
Band of Joy
Rounder Records - 2010
http://www.robertplant.com

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A lot of the pre-release press I read made this album sound as if it was more of a collaboration between Robert Plant and Patty Griffin, akin to the the Plant/Alison Krauss Raising Sand CD.

It is not. This is a Robert Plant solo album with guest appearances. Only one original song with the other 11 tracks being covers, but worth the investment.

There was a full beefy or muscular sound to the the album's quite uptempo opener "Angel Dance".

"House of Cards" was decent but the backing vocals on the song's chorus tended to overshadow Plant's own singing.

The one original track was "Central Two-0-Nine". It was co-written with Buddy Miller (who also co-produced the album). It was a decent uptempo little number.

The song "Silver Rider" had a much more deliberate pacing and the track just didn't work for me in the least.

"You Can't Buy Me Love" was fantastic.

Another slow track "The Only Sound That Matters" was an example of how to slow the pacing of a song and still have it be fantastic. It is probably my favorite song on the album.

Plant has been exploring the southern country/folk/bluegrass type of sound the last couple of discs and he is doing a really good job at it. Two songs that stand out in particular on Band of Joy in this area are "Cindy I'll Marry You Someday" and "Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down".

A couple of other tracks featuring the uptempo feel are "Even This Shall Pass Away" and "Harm's Swift Way" which was just a great song.

Robert Plant is in great voice on this CD and while it is a markedly different approach than his collaboration with T-Bone Burnett and Alison Krauss on Raising Sand, it is an album worth checking out.

Grade: B Plus

[Deathstroke]

Ryan Bingham & The Dead Horses
Junky Star
Lost Highway Records - 2010
http://www.binghammusic.com

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61sXLQR77ML._SL500_AA300_.jpg


Take the familiar yet totally cool mix of Bingham's whiskey, cigarettes and razorblade vocals combine it with a mix of supremely well crafted songs and you get a full sound that continues his streak of winning albums.

The title track paints a bleak yet lyrical picture. "Direction of the Wind" has some pointed social commentary in the lyrics yet it doesn't overwhelm what is a great song.

A couple of songs have a real in your face vibe to them: "Strange Feelin' In The Air" and "Depression"

Other songs to check out are "The Wandering", "Yesterday's Blues" and "Lay My Head On The Rail".


Sugarland
The Incredible Machine (Deluxe Edition)
Mercury Records - 2010
http://www.sugarlandmusic.com

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The deluxe edition of the new Sugarland CD includes a DVD that documents the making of the album as well as the behind the scenes creation of the tour set, the live show and two music video.

The problem is that it just isn't all that great an album. Sugarland is a modern country act. And that is a good thing. I like some modern country and this group is by far one of my favorites. And normally I'm in favor of experimentation to keep your sound fresh and your artistic sense progressing. But this is more of a rock and roll album and most of it didn't work for me.

In the press I read before I bought the CD it said the first single "Stuck Like Glue" featured some lyrics done in rap by Jennifer Nettles. Okay, even writing that sentence seems strange. But I heard the song on the radio and it made me wonder what the reviewers were talking about. As it turns out, the version playing on country radio stations is edited to cut out the middle portion of the songs where she is rapping. After having heard the full song, I can only say that it is a good thing. The country radio version is a really good song. The full song with the rapping included is totally ruined by the rapping.

"All We Are" is a decent enough opening number rock track. "Stand Up" is a fantastic song where Kristian Bush actually has some lead vocal work. (He also handles vox on "Incredible Machine (Interlude)".)

"Little Miss" and "Every Girl Like Me" are good and the closing ballad "Shine The Light" stands out too.

The problem I had is it seems to my ear that the group is trying TOO hard to not sound like themselves in order to be called experimental. While the album is not a total washout, this is my least favorite of their four studio albums and I would prefer that when they push their artistic boundaries they continue to keep in mind what got them to where they are in the first place.

[Deathstroke]

Dio
At Donington UK: Live 1983 & 1987
Niji Entertainment - 2010
http://www.ronniejamesdio.com

The first release from the company created in the wake of Ronnie James Dio's passing, Niji Entertainment is the 2 disc live recordings of Dio in his solo incarnation at the rather famous Castle Donington Festival.

You'll find two full concert performances here and you can't go wrong with either show. It is kind of expected that when you hear a live concert that Ronnie James Dio is performing that he will sound fantastic, and that is obviously the case here once again.

The quality of the sound recordings here is magnificent. The band sound great, the crowd noise is there but never overwhelms the actual performance.

The song selections from the solo Dio era weren't classics at the time but along with the Rainbow and Black Sabbath cuts, they've all become Dio concert staples.

And the packaging for the release isn't skimpy either. You get two replicas of the all access backstage passes from the two shows, the artwork posters for each show are recreated on the disc holder sections and an interesting essay about the performances.

About the only thing I can say remotely negative about the set is that while it is a pretty great collection from a historical angle, it is otherwise, just another live release from Dio of which there have been quite a number of them over the years. Being a fanatic fan of Dio myself, that is okay. However, for those less devoted to the music of Ronnie, a live release with songs they've heard both the studio and many live versions of already might be asking a bit too much.

Grade: A Minus

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[Deathstroke]

IRON MAIDEN

The Final Frontier

Universal Music - 2010

http://www.ironmaiden.com



Iron Maiden has gone once more unto the breach and this time, like the Star Trek Enterprise, they are headed towards the Final Frontier.

Ahead of the album's release a website was set up with the latest online video game you can play as you listen to some of the album preview tracks.

Unfortunately, the band would've put their time to better use if they'd left off with the video game and put a more concerted effort into the entirety of the album itself.

There has been a vocal portion of the Maiden fanbase that hasn't loved everything the band has done since the return of Bruce Dickinson to the lineup. I am not a member of that particular faction but I do have to say that this album despite the high points is the first that I have found myself disappointed with since the first time I heard the very first two Maiden albums with singer Paul Di'Anno on vocals.

The album opens with the song "Satellite 15...The Final Frontier". It has a curiously long music intro that goes on for 2 1/2 minutes, during the first lyrical passage that lasts about 2 minutes it was painful. So for an 8 minute and 40 second song there is 4 1/2 minutes of ear rot. The music does get better from that point onward but the repetition of the title of the song really grated on this listener's ears.

I've always appreciated the epic length tracks that Maiden has laid down, they are some of the best songs the band has ever recorded. But the song "Isle of Avalon" and "Starblind" were painful to wade through. While the former has the multiple pacing changes you would expect, there is just nothing to latch on to as being worthy of being labeled a standout track. The chorus in "Starblind" was substandard. These two songs also highlight what to me was a problem in the phrasing of the lyrics. While Dickinson sounds fantastic as always, the way the lyrics are delivered at times reminded me of driving along in a car, suddenly stopping for no reason, and then trying to quickly get back up to speed. This drove me nuts.

"The Man Who Would Be King" was also something that just had me wishing the song would end already."

Okay, so that's the bad. Now before I'm crucified by whatever Iron Maiden fans have been sharpening their blades, let's get to the good.

I noticed that a few of the songs tended to really stick in that mid-tempo kind of groove until the high points of the song where the pace picked up. The exception to that would be "The Alchemist" which was kicking out the licks from beginning to end.

The first song to be released to the public to whet the appetite for the full disc was "El Dorado". I successfully avoided hearing it until I finally played the CD myself. It's a decent song. "Coming Home" was also pretty sweet to hear.

The track "The Talisman" opened with a slow and deliberately "quiet" feel to it. The lyrics throughout the song fit the tempo. During the opening the words felt perfectly composed for the pace. Later, when the song kicked up into a machine gun salvo, the lyrics were again well cast to be spit out in a more rapid fire manner.

The album closer "When The Wild Wind Blows" included sound effects of the wind blowing and given the atmospheric feel the band conveyed, it was a great choice to coincide with the title of the song and the lyrics. It was a superbly told story, a great total band performance and heck, they even managed to throw in a big twist in the tale at the end. It is a cautionary tale told in 11 minutes and an apt demonstration of the ability of the band to convey such a story.

My personal favorite track was "Mother of Mercy". The song had a great set of lyrics and a really heavy vibe.

Since Iron Maiden is loathe to go out with a new studio album and just play 1 or 2 songs from it, let me be bold enough to suggest that an altered set list to reflect this album's material include "Mother of Mercy", "The Alchemist", "The Talisman" and "When The Wild Wind Blows" as The Final Frontier's concert representative tracks.

If this was school, it would be easy to grade the album. 4 out of 10 I didn't like. It would be a barely passing D. But this isn't school and while I do have a great sense of disappointment with the four flat tracks, the other tracks make up for them quite nicely.

I guess I just wish that while Mr. Air Raid Siren himself sounded fantastic, whoever was supplying the lyrics for the songs in question had done a more uniformly interesting job crafting what Dickinson was singing.

GRADE: B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Disturbed

Asylum

Reprise Records - 2010

http://www.disturbed1.com



Disturbed's 5th studio album kicks things off with a slow mood setting instrumental called "Remnants". In all honesty, I thought it was a waste of time as it did nothing to add to the overall quality of the album.

However, that instrumental leads directly into the album's title track and that is just a balls out fantastic rocker.

The chorus of "The Infection" didn't flow well but otherwise the song was pretty cool. "The Warrior" was decent as well.

The album's lead single release "Another Way To Die" was interesting song. Since I haven't really heard the song before it was surprising to me how slow it started out. Whenever I caught a portion of the track on the radio, it was after it was in the midst of the more aggressive sounding part of the song. The pacing of the opening verse came off as a bit forced to me.

Disturbed's lyrics took a turn for the serious on a few songs. "Never Again" was about the Holocaust. The song was fast paced but amazingly well crafted.

The lyrics for "My Child" dealt with the feelings brought on by the birth of a first child. Since the songwriting credits are listed as the band as a whole, I'm not sure if the lyrics are by singer David Draiman or not. If they aren't, he does a great job of making them his own through his vocal performance.

The song "Innocence" deals with those who would destroy that very thing in the young. It's a hard driving song that I consider one of the best on the disc.

I heard the song "The Animal" via this board's Videos of the Week forum. I hated the video and wasn't crazy about the song either. It just didn't sound like the band for the most part. That opinion didn't change after listening to the song again. I didn't much care for "Crucified" either.

The song "Serpentine" was okay. It started off decently for me but kind of lost its way as the song wound to its conclusion.

On some songs where Draiman changes up his usual vocal sound, the quality of the song felt lacking. However, on "Sacrifice" I really enjoyed the deeper sound he brought to the performance.

It isn't listed on the album's tracklisting, but the disc contains a 13th track. It's a cover of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For". I wasn't crazy about the over the top metallic guitar solo in the song but otherwise it was okay. It doesn't change my usual opinion that if I wanted to listen to the song I'd listen to the far superior original track but at least it doesn't turn my stomach as some covers tend to do.

While I have a hard time rating this album above the band's other 4 albums, overall I think the band's streak of winningly good to great albums is intact. They are one of the few metal bands I have become a fan of in the last 10-15 years and they have always repaid my fandom with one metallic anthem after another.

GRADE: B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Heart

Red Velvet Car

Legacy Recordings - 2010

http://www.heart-music.com



The new release from Heart unsurprisingly features vocalist Ann Wilson's still eminently powerful voice. The acoustic nature of the album may soften the music a bit but it doesn't tame the leather lungs of Ann in the slightest.

That said, I found myself kind of disappointed in this release. I'm a huge fan of Heart but for some reason I just didn't connect with most of this album. For me, it felt like some of the passion was missing.

The songs ranged from the okay to the good but the chorus of "Queen City" annoyed the hell out of me.

I did like the heavier sound of "WTF".

And while there wasn't a BAD song per se, the only songs I would say were standouts were "Safronia's Mark" and "Sand".

I like acoustic music. I love Heart. But this album felt a pedestrian by the numbers release for the most part.

GRADE: C PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Heaven & Hell

Neon Nights: 30 Years of Heaven & Hell - Live In Europe

Armoury Records - 2010

http://www.heavenandhelllive.com



The live concert from Wacken Open Air is presented on this the "final" album from Heaven & Hell as constituted with the dearly departed Ronnie James Dio on vocals.

If you are a fan of the band, you have likely heard most, if not all of the songs captured here. There are 11 tracks from the "Heaven & Hell" track and "Mob Rules" to the most recent songs "Bible Black" and "Fear".

It is a solid release, the sound is decent. I thought it might be muffled a bit but that could just have been my ears playing tricks on me. The band sounds in fine form and as for Dio's vocals, you can still feel the luster in his voice all these years into his career. He continually put to shame far younger vocalists.

The album liner notes contain an essay about the band right up until the passing of Dio. The band also released a live DVD companion to this CD. I'll likely get around to reviewing that at some point.

Just know that if you are a fan, this release is a bookend to the band's career that originally as Black Sabbath far exceeded to me at least, the Ozzy led version of the band.

GRADE - A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Black Country Communion
S/T
J & R Adventures / Fontana - 2010
http://www.bccommunion.com


Take a legendary vocalist/bassist, a keyboardist extraordinaire, the drumming progeny of the legendary John Bonham and a blues rocking guitarist and what do you get?

Well, after the the mixing is done, you get one ass kicking record. It's contemporary rock with the classic rock feel so many people are looking for. 12 songs of just balls out rock and roll that despite 72 minutes in length will likely leave you wanting more. The best thing about the length of the disc is that none of the songs leave you with the feeling of wanting the song to be over before it ends.

Before I talk about the material, I want to point out that you need to check out the liner notes. The band didn't skimp there either. You've got a track by track breakdown from Glenn Hughes. Each band member has their say about the requisite thank-yous, but Hughes pays tribute to the late Ronnie James Dio and someone else provides a bit of comedy. And if you get the two disc version of the release, there is a 40 minute DVD to watch as well. The DVD includes a music video, band interviews, a behind the scenes featurette, photos and a note from producer Kevin Shirley. (The DVD is NOT part of my review here.)

The album kicks off with an awesome opening riff on "Black Country". The song really gets the blood pumping from those opening few moments.

I'm an admirer of Glenn Hughes to say the least. Of course I was late getting into him, coming along with his solo CD Soul Mover, but I have gotten his 2 CDs with Joe Lynn Turner and his two CDs with Tony Iommi. I can say with at least a smidgen of authority that his voice is musical gold. It's got the soulful quality to set your ears at ease, but then he can let loose an unbelievable wailing that reminds you of just how good he is. And let's not forget that he is also the band's bassist where he continually powers the smoking hot rhythms.

I have to admit prior ignorance of Joe Bonamassa but holy cow, he rocks as a guitarist and I loved the track "Song Of Yesterday" he sang on this CD. Fiery guitar licks, ripping solos and smooth rhythms...I have to get more of his own stuff. The song is one of my favorites on the disc.

It would be easy for Jason Bonham to coast on his background being the son of Led Zeppelin's John Bonham. But throughout his own musical career he has acknowledge his dad while simultaneously carved his own path. He can beat the heck out of the drums like no one's business but he establishes a great foundation for the rest of the band to build on here.

As for Derek Sherinian, well I loved the time he spent with Dream Theater and by all accounts, his solo work has been impressive as well. Keyboards can sometimes overwhelm a band's collective sound but not in the hands of a true professional like Sherinian.

The song "One Last Soul" is a hot little uptempo number. "The Great Divide" ranged in pacing but it was a nice combination.

The cut "Medusa" opens up slowly but unfolds into a pounding plodding rhythmic exercise. Not bad for a song that Hughes wrote 40 years ago. And the guitar solo is outstanding.

"Revolution In Me" had a pace that reminded me of a superior force marching on the outnumbered inferior force. You know it is coming, but you don't know when and from where. You can't even really give words to what "it" is. But you know you like what you are hearing. And then you get the guitar solo.... This was the only track on the CD where Hughes wasn't involved in the writing of the music or the lyrics.

"Sista Jane" opens up in playful fashion with Hughes and Bonamassa switching off with the opening lyrical passages. It is a restrained feel to this song with a strong current of building ferocity running underneath until it explodes out later in the song.

The songs "Beggarman" and "No Time" simply shred. Pure rocking goodness!

The song "Stand (At The Burning Tree) is a bit restrained for the most part but when it cuts loose...look out! And Sherinian has a nice bit of solo work within the song.

The closing cut "Too Late For The Sun" is an 11 minute epic that manages to build from a slow burn and then, to sound like a cheesy 80's music add, rocks your socks off.

You can call this a supergroup if you so desire but the best thing you can say about this collection of talent called Black Country Communion is that they aren't bound by their individual reputations. They craft quality songs within the framework of being a band of performers rather than a band of egos.

It is always a risky proposition to put too much faith and hope in the so-called supergroups, but I have to say that I am ready to take that plunge in this case. Black Country Communion took 10 days to record this album and it is without a doubt another prime example of what rock SHOULD be. I know this is going into heavy rotation for me. You simply have to hear this album!

GRADE: A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Helloween
7 Sinners
The End Records / Sony Music - 2010
http://www.helloween.org


I've long been a fan of Helloween. Moreso of the earlier part of the Michael Kiske era because that's where I came in on the band's career but I've generally enjoy the tenure of Andi Deris as well.

The album's liner notes are notably lacking in song lyrics. The band also continues their unfunny manner of listing the band members.

7 Sinners opens with the pounding rhythms of "Where The Sinners Go". The pacing picks up throughout the song and I liked the big backing vocals both supporting and deepening the voice of Deris in the song.

"Are You Metal?" kicks the tempo up fast and furious as the background of asking a question that has been asked by numerous performers and fans of the metal genre for years. I liked the guitar work in the song. And the keyboards give the song a slightly different vibe without sacrificing the power of the song.

Throughout the album, in what may be no surprise, drummer Dani Loble produces solid foundations while at the same time shining when given the moment or two of spotlight.

The power metal riffs are attacking the listener's ears throughout "Who Is Mr. Madman?" (The cut features a spoken word intro by Saxon's Biff Byford), "Long Live The King" and "Raise The Noise". In the latter, the band throws a curve during the solo. Instead of a guitar or bass solo, it is a flute solo. Yes...A FLUTE SOLO. Before you vomit in horror, you've got to hear it, it actually kind of rocks!

In "World of Fantasy" the band momentarily slows the pace a little and turns in a stunningly good song. The main lyrical passages are crisp and clear.

A soft piano opens "The Smile of the Sun" before combining with power chords to create a heavier than standard type of power ballad.

A rather bluntly titled "You Stupid Mankind" rips and shreds from the opening notes while guitarist Sascha Gerstner's lyrics take the human race to task for the perceived faults. Well, at least that's what I got out of it as well. I will concede that perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but with that song title, I don't really think I'm that far off.

The socially conscious bent continues on the next track. "If A Mountain Could Talk" was written by bassist Markus Grosskopf and the lyrics are decidedly leaning towards a protect the enviornment and natural resources viewpoint. It is all couched in a fast paced aggressiveness so the message doesn't overwhelm the song.

I liked the sound of "The Sage, The Fool, The Sinner" and "My Sacrifice" but didn't really get into the lyrics.

"Not Yet Today" is a brief interlude that reminds you a bit of the chanting monks music and leads into the album closer "Far In The Future". While the former is rather an unnecessary bit of fluff, the latter finds the band aiming for that epic sound. They hit it musically but I found the lyrical content a bit lacking.

The one thing that has tended to hold me back on loving Andi Deris is that at times his vocals either get lost in the mix which would be a production issue or they appear unintelligible without reading straight from a lyric sheet. In the middle of "Long Live The King" that ugly problem rears its head but for the most part things are crystal clear.

The album is chock full of what you might expect if you are a longtime listener of the band but what makes the band and album a bit special is that they still manage to make everything sound fresh and exciting. While it is not a great album, I think you'll find the CD very enjoyable and well worth the investment.

GRADE: B

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[Deathstroke]

Brian Howe
Circus Bar
Frontiers Records - 2010
http://www.brianhowe.com

In 1997 Brian Howe released the solo album Tangled In Blue and I'm not positive but I think it disappeared about as fast as the movie Gigli did from movie theaters. I actually didn't even know it existed until I heard about Circus Bar coming out. I got that CD and found it to be more of a pop album with a few guitar riffs thrown in. I didn't think much of it.

Now the former Bad Company lead singer is back with his second solo offering and he brings the rocking down quite adeptly.

The album contains an essay from Howe with the story behind the making of the album. And while this album is defined by his voice, this was a heavy collaboration with Brooks Paschal. He co-wrote 8 of the songs on the disc as well as did the producing and engineering. Paschal also played guitar, bass and provided backing vocals. The collaboration works well as Circus Bar has a far more aggressive rocking sound to it. Of the guest appearances on the CD, guitarist Pat Travers stands out.

The album opens with a kick in the pants rocker called "I'm Back". The lyrics as well as the song title serve as a statement of fact to the listener that Brian Howe is indeed back in action.

"Life's Mystery" was a decent track that switched tempo from a middle of the road vibe to uptempo throughout the song. "It Could Have Been You" was another song that switched tempo during the song.

Howe acknowledges his most recent musical past with new versions of the Bad Company songs "How About That" and "Holy Water". The former is a good straightforward cover, while the latter reworks the tempo and arrangement. Normally, I am not a fan of significantly re-working songs when you cover them. The song goes from an electric rocker to a contemplative piano based track. "Holy Water" is one of my favorite Bad Company tracks and this new version is simply outstanding.

The little snippet at the end of the album "Little George Street" was a waste of time and the power ballad "I'm Surrounded" was weak.

The lyrics on some songs really rise above. "Flying" touches on the loss of a loved one. The song was inspired by the near loss of Howe's own mother during the recording of the album. The slow pace of the song was perfect.

"How It Could Have Been" is from the point of view of someone trying to understand a break up. The faster paced "My Town" is an ode to a childhood hometown and all the things one did or might have done there.

I really liked "If You Want Trouble". The rocker finds Howe sounding really aggressive, to the point where his vocals are a bit screaming in spots. The last main verse is more spoken word than sung.

Not wanting to be confused as any kind of softie, I have to admit that two of my favorite songs on the album revolve around the theme of love. "There's This Girl" is uptempo with a good set of lyrics and a hot guitar solo.

And then you have the ballad "What Am I Feeling". If you have ever found yourself in a situation where you wanted to say something to the object of your desire and been unable to find the words, check out the lyrics to this song. Brian Howe has pretty much done the work for you. It is a magnificent song.

I know that there is a faction of Bad Company fans that didn't like Howe's work with the band but I found him a great addition to the band. I'm a big fan of his voice and I'm always happy to hear him coming through my speakers.

It has been a long time between solo albums, but with the bar set high with the release of Circus Bar, I can only hope it won't be more than a decade before the next album comes out.

This is a great rock and roll album.

GRADE - A MINUS

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[DonC]

Helloween
7 Sinners
The End Records / Sony Music - 2010
http://www.helloween.org
The one thing that has tended to hold me back on loving Andi Deris is that at times his vocals either get lost in the mix which would be a production issue or they appear unintelligible without reading straight from a lyric sheet. In the middle of "Long Live The King" that ugly problem rears its head but for the most part things are crystal clear.

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I'm not entirely certain Deris is singing in English in the middle of "Long Live the King."

[Deathstroke]

Circle II Circle
Consequence of Power
AFM Records - 2010
http://www.circle2circle.net

I'm a big fan of ex-Savatage vocalist Zachary Stevens. I've even met him and he seemed quite cool.

That being said, Circle II Circle is a completely perplexing band. I've been consistently disappointed in their material other than the first disc.

The track record of disappointment continues with Consequence of Power. Yada Yada Yada, it's a concept album. Musically the album is quite good. It is mostly an uptempo disc and quite electrifying.

And then sad to say, the lyrics kick in and the interest wanes and ultimately dies throughout the first half of the album. To borrow a curse word from the science fiction show Farscape, the lyrics for the first five songs are frelling boring. To make things worse, Stevens sounds almost bored or perhaps a near monotone vocal performance was the ultimate goal.

Things picked up a little in the second half. I liked the chorus for "Episodes of Mania" and both "Redemption" and "Take Back Yesterday" were good songs all the way around. The closing track "Blood of an Angel" was a power ballad type number that turned out remarkably well.

All things considered, the album is fair to middling and that leaves me more than a bit underwhelmed. I've been busy supporting all the various offshoot projects from Savatage members but setting aside the first CIIC album, it is much harder to do with this band than any of the others.

GRADE: C MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Whitesnake
Forevermore
Frontiers Records - 2011
http://www.whitesnake.com

NOTES: This review is of the CD version of the release. There is a CD/DVD version which includes 3 alternate mixes of songs on the 1st disc. The DVD has a track by track take on the CD, the music video for "Love Will Set You Free" and making of documentaries on the video and the album. But to be perfectly honest, I didn't want to spend the additional 8 bucks for that.

Musically speaking, the album is one sure fire rock and roll extravaganza. The band is in fine form, most particularly the twin guitar combo of Doug Aldrich and Reb Beach. They both absolutely shred on this disc. With the exception of a couple of slower tempo songs that are seemingly requisite on any rock disc for the past 25 years, you want a rock and roll record to, ahem, ROCK. And you will find that seeming to follow formula or not, Forevermore does indeed rock.

Have a party with your rock friends and they will not be disappointed with the soundtrack of this album. There is riffage galore here.

Fairly or not, the majority of Whitesnake lyrics will be stereotyped (generally for good reason) in one of three categories:

1. I used to love you.

2. I love you.

3. I REALLY want to "love" you. (substitute your own for letter word for the quoted word).

This doesn't bother me in the least because I'm not looking for the wheel to be reinvented, lyrically speaking. David Coverdale can get away with a song like "Dogs In The Street" because he does it both tongue in cheek AND with a seriousness that belies the double entrendres. In short, he makes it work because he can sell it so well.

But then you have examples where he can make you pause and reflect. The song "Fare Thee Well" is a goodbye song that if it had been sequenced as the final song on the disc would make you wonder if Coverdale himself was about to call it a day:

"I'm on my way

I'm going home

My bags are packed

and I'm ready to roll...

I'm going home

Don't you cry

Let's have a drink

Before we say goodbye..."

He can also turn a phrase like few can. In "My Evil Ways" he sings:

"I was born my Mother's son

Since I could crawl I been having fun...

Now I've been poor

& I've been rich

But, I've always been a son of a bitch"

Now the elephant in the room has been the stupendous reviews this album has been receiving and the stated disappointment, at least here on the Classic Rock Bottom forum, with the sound of Coverdale's vocals.

Let's acknowledge that his vocals are drastically different. He simply doesn't sound like the David Coverdale of the 1987 Whitesnake CD that launched him into megastardom. In the interest of fairness however, let's acknowledge also that this isn't 1987 anymore. Coverdale is 60 years old. And the last time I checked if you throw in vocal issues and the loss of vocal elasticity from age, you are not going to sound the same as you did 24 years ago.

How did he compensate? Well, if you notice the vocals are not quite as up front in the mix as they used to be. In the opening cut "Steal Your Heart Away" there was a couple times the music overwhelmed the singing. He also does a lot more of attacking the vocals to match the fast charging pace of the songs themselves. He also doesn't try to pretend to be what he isn't anymore. The long winding howls of the arena rock days are not quite as in evidence as they once were. And in the cases of a song like "Fare Thee Well", I thought the raspier sound to his voice gave more weight to the song.

Rockers like "Tell Me How", "Love & Treat Me Right" and "I Need You (Shine A Light)" will kick you square in the butt. They are songs I think stand up against the band's past material quite well. It may not be the Whitesnake you are used to, but that doesn't mean it isn't a really solid album that they have delivered.

Whitesnake started off as a blues rock spinoff of Deep Purple, rocked arena's in the 1980's with glitz, glam and a ton of hairspray and now they are rock and roll survivors delivering quality material in a time when no one seemingly expects them to do anything other than go away.

Whitesnake...Forevermore...indeed!

GRADE: A MINUS


The full track listing is:

01. Steal Your Heart Away

02. All Out of Luck

03. Love Will Set You Free

04. Easier Said Than Done

05. Tell Me How

06. I Need You (Shine A Light)

07. One Of These Days

08. Love & Treat Me Right

09. Dogs In The Street

10. Fare Thee Well

11. Whipping Boy Blues

12. My Evil Ways

13. Forevermore
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[Deathstroke]

Armored Saint
La Raza
Metal Blade Records - 2010
http://www.myspace.com/armoredsaint1

So can you name me a criminally underrated metal band that always seems to turn out quality album after quality album and gets praise from their fan base and nobody else it seems?

Of course, you can. I'm thinking Metal Church....okay, them and of course the band that I am writing about now, Armored Saint.

Since the release of the Raising Fear album, each time a new Armored Saint release hits store shelves, they just rock your socks off.

They don't seem to come up with that one or two outlandishly popular songs that would launch their fanbase into a new stratsophere but what they do instead is give you as much bang for your buck as possible.

On La Raza, I can say that I enjoyed each of the songs. Three tracks in particular stood out for my own personal tastes but overall, you will find stupendously hot guitar riffs that lead each song on a sonic attack against your ears. John Bush may have gotten screwed over by Anthrax but his "true" band should always be Armored Saint. His voice sounds fantastic through and through.

I honestly can't recall the songwriting credits for past albums, but on this album, Bush wrote all the lyrics while all-world bassist, producer and writer Joey Vera wrote all the music. 8 rockers, and two more mid tempo songs. One of those rises to a harder faster edge towards the end of the song.

I liked the song that was the "single" from the album, "Left Hook From Right Field" and "Get Off The Fence." For me though, the best song on the album was the track "Little Monkey." The band just goes balls out with their performance and Bush lets loose with his vocal delivery and just WAILS.

Again, I liked every song on the album but in order to be honest, I was slightly disappointed in the CD in that the songs weren't as instantly memorable upon first listen as the tracks on say, Symbol of Salvation. Of course, that album set the bar so high, it is hard to match up to that every song, every time. And you never know, the songs may just end up growing on me even more as I listen to the album more and more.

Rating: B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Chastain
Voice Of The Cult
Leviathan Records - 1988


Thanks to Record Store Day, I checked out a CD store that I hadn't been to before and found some decent bargains. I picked up a used but very good conditioned CD edition of the 1988 Chastain CD The Voice of the Cult.

I've long liked the band but didn't have a lot of their material.

This CD features David T. Chastain on guitars. He also wrote most of the songs. You've got Leather Leone on vocals, and she wrote the lyrics for two of the songs. Mike Skimmerhorn holds down the rhythm on the bass and Ken Mary pounds the skins.

The production on this CD sounds raw but not in a bad way. And oddly enough, Leather's vocals manage to sound smoother or perhaps I should say "cleaner" than on her solo CD from 1989 Shock Waves.

The CD features 9 songs and 8 of them are full on rockers. Only the closing track "Take Me Home" slows the pace down. Musically, I really liked the album. It keeps the blood pumping. But oddly enough, I wasn't enamored with most of the songs lyrically. Now don't get me wrong, I think Leone's vocals work was fine. I just didn't get into what was being said/sung all that much.

Of course there were some exceptions to that statement. Three of them to be exact. The songs "Child of Evermore" and "Soldiers of the Flame" were both well done. But for me, nothing can beat the incredible title track. "The Voice of the Cult" is just flat out awesome. Everything you could want in a song you can find within the track.

And I think that might also be why I ended up disappointed a bit in this CD. You know they can put the whole package of a song together because they did it with the title song and a couple of others as well. When you have 6 songs that don't measure up to that standard, it is to me disappointing.

The Voice of the Cult is now a part of my music collection for the first time. I just wish it had been more to my liking.

RATING: B MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Judas Priest
Nostradamus
Epic Records - 2008
http://www.judaspriest.com

A 2 disc 23 song Judas Priest concept album about the life and times of Nostradamus? Wow that sounds freaking cool.

Until you hear the album anyway.

Four songs: "Prophecy", "Persecution," "Visions" and "Nostradamus" are really good songs. "Prophecy" would've been a freaking cool song to hear on a standard JP record.

Unfortunately for me, beyond those four songs, this album was a colossal bore. The instrumental pieces meant, I'm guessing, to establish a mood or a tone were annoying, and too often the lyric driven songs were just mind-numbingly dull. It's like they forgot, for the most part, that as a rock band, no matter what they are attempting to do, they've still gotta bring the ROCK.

I'm tempted to call this a noble failure because I like the idea of the band stretching their artistic wings this late in their career. But whatever target they were aiming for, they missed by about 137 miles.

Rating: D PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Chastain
For Those Who Dare
Tribunal Records / Divebomb Records - 2010
http://www.divebombrecords.com

The remastered and reissued 1990 Chastain album For Those Who Dare comes with an introductory essay and an interview with guitarist/mastermind David T. Chastain.

The standards are here, with the lyrics reflecting stances on social issues, lightning fast guitar riffs and the instantly memorable voice of Leather Leone. David T. Chastain wrote most of the songs on this album but Leone did write the lyrics for four of the songs.

The album opens with "The Mountain Whispers" and for the most part continues on a very intense heavy rocking sound all the way through. I did like the tempo changes in "Please Set Us Free" though. It opens with a menacing sound with a midtemp pace, rises to the pace of the other rockers on the album and then settles back into how the song began for the final verse.

The title track is fantastic, and the video they made for the song while standard fare did make its way into airplay back in the day. You can see it below.

Other than the title track, my favorite song on the disc had to be "Night of Anger". The song works perfectly lyrically and musically.

I liked the way the band covered the Heart song "Barracuda" in a very metallized way. Although, I think Leather did over sing in a couple of spots. The song "Secrets of the Damned" would've been better if the vocals hadn't been buried in the mix.

I didn't particularly care for how the vocals were delivered in "Not Much Breathing". The whole performance vocally just felt off to me for some reason.

The album closes out on a pretty good note with another hard charger, the song "Once Before".

The band was tight and powerful under the hand of Chastain who produced the album as well. Leather Leone left the band after this album and practically disappeared for a good 20 years, though thankfully she's starting to get back into the scene.

I love that the album got reissued, nothing can top bringing a band as good as Chastain was back into the spotlight. This album was decent (read the interview for what Chastain's problems with it were). I don't think you'll necessarily bring in a large new crowd of admirers but there is a lot to love here despite my own misgivings with some of the songs.

RATING: B MINUS





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[Deathstroke]

An old CD, newly reviewed now that I actually got around to buying it:

U.D.O.
Mission No. X
AFM Records - 2005
http://www.udo-online.de


I've been VERY slowly working my way towards acquiring some CDs that have been on my pull list, and I finally got around to picking up some more U.D.O. discs.

You know, I first heard Udo Dirkschneider when he was with Accept because of the song "Balls To The Wall". At first I just hated the vocals because it sounded so much like he couldn't sing. It took me a bit to grasp how good the pit bull growl with the shards of glass and razorblades sound of his voice was. And I'm glad that I have come to really appreciate his vocals because it lets me appreciate his music that much more.

In the past I've had the Man and Machine and Mastercutor albums and I've loved them.

Now I've found more U.D.O. enjoyment with Mission No. X. The album opens with a brief instrumental track before launching directly into the title track. This is a midtempo rocker that was pretty good.

I loved the anthemic "24/7". The band rocks behind Udo's declaration of living life "24 / 7...24 hours 7 days a week".

The odd way the vocals were delivered in the main lyrical passages on "Mean Streets" ultimately made me less interested in the song. A shame because the chorus was decent. I also didn't care much for the slower tempo track "Eye of the Eagle" which is charitably a ballad.

"Cry Soldier Cry" has a softer vocal take to start the song off and then heads back into more familiar territory. However, in this case it actually works.

The high energy attack of "Shell Shock Fever" rips your head off. "Stone Hard" has a slightly slower pace but the heaviness makes up for the lack of speed.

The remaining three tracks on the album are "Breaking Down The Borders", "Way of Life" and "Mad For Crazy" and they are all driving rockers.

Essentially this is a great album. A couple of tracks that I didn't care for overall, but Mission No. X is otherwise a superb metal album and more proof positive that Dirkschneider & Company are in the business of simply "bringing it" when it comes to pure powerful metal.

RATING: A MINUS

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[Ottmeister X]

Black Country Communion
S/T
J & R Adventures / Fontana - 2010
http://www.bccommunion.com

I have to admit prior ignorance of Joe Bonamassa but holy cow, he rocks as a guitarist and I loved the track "Song Of Yesterday" he sang on this CD. Fiery guitar licks, ripping solos and smooth rhythms...I have to get more of his own stuff. The song is one of my favorites on the disc.

Joe Bonamassa kicks ass and ranks right up there with any current living guitarist. Blues fans who haven't been aware of him for the past decade or so should check his stuff out. BB King knew Joe was going to be great when Bonamassa was a kid and that's a strong endorsement.

[Deathstroke]

Joe Bonamassa kicks ass and ranks right up there with any current living guitarist. Blues fans who haven't been aware of him for the past decade or so should check his stuff out. BB King knew Joe was going to be great when Bonamassa was a kid and that's a strong endorsement.

I'm looking forward to hearing what the group comes up with for the 2nd album.

[DonC]

So can you name me a criminally underrated metal band that always seems to turn out quality album after quality album and gets praise from their fan base and nobody else it seems?


Overkill.

.

[Deathstroke]

Overkill.

.

I'd disagree because I didn't like a lot of albums they did after The Years of Decay.

[abbott]

An old CD, newly reviewed now that I actually got around to buying it:

U.D.O.
Mission No. X
AFM Records - 2005
http://www.udo-online.de




Good review. Agree with you.

[Deathstroke]

Finally got around to picking this up a few weeks ago, here's what I thought:


Queensryche
Mindcrime at the Moore
Rhino Entertainment - 2007
http://www.queensryche.com

When the original Operation:mindcrime album came out and for a few years after, Queensryche was my favorite band. The story they told was just far and away the most explosive tale I'd heard in a music recording. A friend and I used to make up stories set in the Mindcrime World. I saw the full Mindcrime performance on the band's Empire tour (TWICE!). I bought Operation: Livecrime.

Like many, I was very wary when the news was announced that the band was recording a sequel. While most people had a mixed reaction to the finished product, I thought Operation:mindcrime II was a pretty good follow up.

Now comes Mindcrime at the Moore, a three night recording of the band playing both albums and recording it for posterity. Musically, the band sounds pretty good.

To the surprise of I'm sure no one, there are musical changes and flourishes that weren't a part of the original studio recordings. Thankfully nothing that really amounts to such drastic change that one hates the new version.

The thing that bugs the heck out of me is that Geoff Tate sounds horrible. I'm sorry, I used to think Geoff Tate was one of the best singers in the metal world, but unless my ears have completely gone wacky, he just cannot do justice to the material all this time removed from the original performance. Of course 20 plus years will change a voice, I understand that. But there are times when he struggles to hit notes that aren't even as high as the original songs. Not too mention he sometimes sounds off-key.

The two encore songs of Queensryche classics "Walk In The Shadows" and "Jet City Woman" round out the evening as a come down from the two albums, but this is one fan who has been mightily disappointed in LIVE Queensryche recordings once again.

Rating: C

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[Slackbert]

Yeah, I have the DVD. The C applies to that as well, imo.

[Deathstroke]

Yeah, I have the DVD. The C applies to that as well, imo.

I haven't seen it yet since I don't own it, but I didn't hold out much hope for it anyway.

[Deathstroke]

I just got my hands on this album so here's my review.

Whitesnake

Good To Be Bad

Icarus Music / SPV / Steamhammer - 2008

http://www.whitesnake.com



This album was one heck of a rocking disc. 7 out of the 11 tracks were outstanding. "Best Years" and "Call On Me" were particularly notable for the guitar playing.

"A Fool In Love" had a cool bluesy opening while "Til The End of Time" sounded as if it belonged on the soundtrack to a Western film.

"All I Want All I Need" started off slow but featured more of a rock rhythm in the chorus. The band's ballad "Summer Rain" was a great little number.

The song "Good To Be" was decent overall but I thought the chorus was a bit weak. I didn't like the bare bones opening of "Lay Down Your Love"

The version of the album I got contained a bonus live disc with 7 songs from a concert and a video clip. The performance was fine but I would've liked it if the CD booklet had mentioned where the concert was performed. The track listing for that CD ranged from a 2 song Deep Purple medley to the blues rock version of Whitesnake and the more 80's metal version of the band.

All in all, while I liked the band's latest CD Forevermore a bit more, this album is a wonderful installment in the band's discography.

GRADE: A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Queensryche
Dedicated To Chaos
Loud & Proud Records / Roadrunner Records - 2010
http://www.queensryche.com



Having successfully avoided hearing any audio samples from the album but not online opinions, I didn't know what to expect but had a sinking feeling about Dedicated To Chaos going into my playing of the disc for review.

I came out rather pleasantly surprised for the most part. I think in order to really enjoy the disc, you have to accept that Queensryche as anything resembling a metal outfit is dead and buried. They are now a rock and roll band and this isn't a case of splitting musical genre hairs.

I continue to be amazed that Kelly Gray does a decent job producing the band when he was such a lousy addition as a band member.

I didn't like the "chaotic" design to the interior CD booklet for the album.

As for the music, I really liked the opening track "Get Started". Geoff Tate really sounds pretty good on this album and I'm hoping that it is all him and not some Autotunes stuff going on. "Hot Spot Junkie" was a nice uptempo track.

"Got It Bad" sounded almost like it was intended to be a pop song. And the band hasn't completely left themes behind either, "Retail Therapy" has some decidedly pointed lyrics on society's materialism. The song itself is okay.

The version I got of the album had 3 bonus tracks mixed in among the standard album cuts. "I Believe" and "LUVNU" were both bright spots but "Hard Times" was awful.

I also didn't care for "Broken". A few of the other songs were kind of iffy, but didn't rise to the "I HATE IT" category.

This isn't an album that will thrill longtime fans of the band, of which I consider myself one. But time and the musical interests of the band have moved on and it is either move on with them or move on FROM them.

It is a decent album if you can do the former.

As an aside, I really wish the band would NEVER do another caberet tour ever again. It was beyond embarrassing to see videos of their performances. And while Tate sounds good on this album, he comes off as an embarrassing wanker at times in interviews.

GRADE: B MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Seven Witches
Call Upon The Wicked
FrostByte / eOne - 2011
(No Active Up To Date Website That I Can Find)



With nary an easing off on the gas, Seven Witches stays on full throttle throughout Call Upon The Wicked.

And with the lineup they have for this album, it isn't any wonder why? James Rivera is back on vocals and you've got the founder of the band, Jack Frost, shredding on guitar. If that wasn't enough, you've got the solidly built metal foundation of drummer Taz Marazz and Symphony X's bassist Mike Lepond.

You've got a great CD package with superb production from Frost, Lepond and Armored Saint's Joey Vera, who has become one of the most active guys in metal the last few years whether as an artist or producer.

With Rivera back on vocals, the band has a much better sound. I'm sure Alan Tecchio has his fans but I didn't like the vocals on Amped all that much and for a while there the band fell off my radar. Rivera has a classic metal voice that propels the band to a sound that remains both powerful yet accessible.

The title track on the disc is actually the one that would seem to be the one that would be most likely to get radio airplay back in the day.

There were three live bonus tracks on the album and they were OK, nothing great overall until the closing Judas Priest medley.

On "End of Days", Marazz gets the spotlight early in the song as his pounding of the skins is pushed to the forefront. The band chose a really interesting song for a cover. They did "White Room" from Cream and while I don't think Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker will think much of how metallized their song is, I think this version is rather good. I'm normally very wary of cover songs but Seven Witches got this one right despite the changes to tempo and tone.

The thing they got wrong was the song "Mind Games". The repetitive nature of chorus highlight a dearth of creativity (I'm only speaking of this song) in the lyrics.

I also loved the uptempo tracks "Ragnarok" and "Fields of Fire". (The video for the latter is below in this review)

Seven Witches has consistently turned out decent albums. I thought their Passage To The Other Side was positively brilliant. While they do get their share of acclaim, I think they remind me of Metal Church, where they turn out quality music but their albums seem destined to be heard by only their hardcore fans.

That being said, expand your metal horizons and check out Call Upon The Wicked. I think you will agree that the band is an underrated gem and the album a proud addition to your CD collection.

GRADE: B PLUS
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[Deathstroke]

Simon Kirke
Filling The Void
Megaforce Records - 2011
http://www.freewebs.com/simonkirke/


The first thing I made note of when doing some minor research to talk about this album was that it wasn't the first solo CD that Simon Kirke has done. He apparently did one back in 2005. I'm thinking that must've been really low key because I've never heard of it until now.

And I might just have to check it out if it is even half as good as Filling The Void turned out to be.

Simon Kirke may be best known as the drummer for Bad Company, but he is so much more than that as he demonstrates so aptly on this CD. Besides singing and playing drums on the disc, he wrote or co-wrote all of the songs plus played bass, piano and guitar on various tracks as well.

You probably wouldn't think of him as a band leader, but when you take his smooth vocals that fit the material so well and smart songcraft, he is all that and more.

The album's booklet is a fountain of information on the creation of the disc. It's got an essay/interview with Kirke plus a track by track commentary. It also keys you into the who's who that guested on the album. His daughter Domino sang on two track, Mick Ralphs appeared on the track "Make Up Your Mind" and Howard Leese was on the title track. G.E. Smith and Steve Conte also made appearances along with others that I will let you discover for yourself.

As for the songs, the title track opens the disc. It is a confessional song related to the time Kirke spent in rehab and how things in his life were at the time. His daughter's singing on the track makes it that much more poignant.

"Message From The Lost" was inspired by his time spent as a Red Cross driver after 9/11. The story of the life and times of a long term couple in "Angel In My Eyes" was interesting because normally you'd find that type of subject to be in a ballad, but here the song was more uptempo.

"Over There" was the second song to touch on more of a topical subject matter, Kirke listed it as being his homage to the soldiers who had died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The saxophone makes an appearance on two tracks and provides the two songs with a headier sense of atmosphere. On "Jaunty Sarcasm" (which is just a great title by the way), the story of a really bad relationship is set to a music soundtrack that has me feeling like I'm in a swinging smoky nightclub at 2am. "Melting On Madison" is a slow song about a couple so into each other that they barely notice the world around them. The sax here makes you feel as if you are right there in the rainy night.

While rehab has apparently worked for Kirke, it doesn't seem to have left him without a sense of humor as evidenced on the rather entertaining "Make Up Your Mind" which is a bluesy/country type of song that is "a tongue in cheek ode to drunkeness".

The midtempo song "Going Home" really hit home for me. Not necessarily the lyrics, which are about a guy driving to get to his girlfriend who he fears has done something crazy. It was how Kirke sounded, to me at least, when singing. The song, co-written by Derek St. Holmes (Ted Nugent), has him sounding a whole lot like Warren Zevon. And that is just fantastic to my ears.

"Talk To The Hand" is about a mysogynist and while the song isn't necessarily all that great, I liked the guitar solo.

The album is full of songs of love (both good and bad), loss, longing and a few topical subjects. It is a superbly recorded and performed album. It won't "rock your socks off" because it is not a rock and roll album full of chunky riffs and bombastic drumming.

What it is is something that classic rock fans will love to add to their collection. Simon Kirke steps out from behind the drum kit and shows the world that he is the total musical package.

GRADE: A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Great information! I agree most of you here and I’ve been looking for something like this for a while now. Thanks!

Glad you liked.

[Deathstroke]

Doubled post

[Deathstroke]

Tripled post.

[Deathstroke]

U.D.O.
Rev-Raptor
AFM Records - 2011
http://www.udo-online.de

Upon first listen of this new U.D.O. CD, I was a bit disappointed. Thankfully I took the time to listen a couple more times for a better grasp of the album.

I still think some of the vocals got muddied up in the mix but overall I really enjoyed the album. U.D.O. has been turning out some of the most entertaining metal lately. I've been listening to a lot of the band's albums recently and despite some flaws, they have all been well worth the time it took to listen to them. Rev-Raptor continues that streak.

The title track is one of the songs that had vocals that got lost in the mix a bit, but it kicked off the disc quite nicely. "Renegade" was a fast paced number that I really enjoyed. Though it has a bit of an odd song title, the track "Fairy Tales of Victory" was a nice mid to uptempo song with rather pointed lyrics.

Two songs that benefited from me listening to the album more than once were "Dr. Death" which is a ball-busting dose of metallic speed and "Rock 'N' Roll Soldiers", a "we are true metal warriors" anthem.

The last two songs on the album close things out quite nicely. "True Born Winners" and "Days of Hope and Glory" were superbly done. The former is attacking in its pacing while the latter slows down just a bit but still stays in line with the entertaining yet entirely metal anthemic nature of the disc.

The band also has what is now a standard slow song and this one is truly outstanding. "I Give As Good As I Get" is a great song without an overabundance of singer Udo Dirkschneider's metallic growl. He's "singing" on this track for the most part. What really sells the song is the starkly supreme video. It was recorded as a one shot and the visuals are amazing. Most of the video is a closeup on Dirkschneider as he sings and it captures every nook and cranny of his face. It reminded me of the video for Johnny Cash's cover of the Nine Inch Nails song "Closer".

The CD booklet was nicely done and includes an themed illustration for each song.

All in all, I really enjoyed the album despite the vocal issues. It is something metal enthusiasts will like as well.

RATING: B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Toby Hitchcock
Mercury's Down
Frontiers Records - 2011
No Artist Website

As a big fan of the group Pride of Lions, when I heard that one half of the singing component of the group was releasing a solo album I was pretty excited.

Toby Hitchcock has a powerful voice that can hit the stratosphere and the majority of the material on Mercury's Down works to that advantage.

The lead single "This Is The Moment" has a huge intro before launching into the song proper. Most of the songs are up tempo rockers, but a couple of the songs were slow tempo at least to start. "How To Stop" burned slowly before moving to a more rocking vibe. Unfortunately, I felt the song with the lyrics would've worked better at a slower pace for the entire song.

Breaking it down, there are 7 songs on the album that are really outstanding and one that is pretty good. "Let Go" is just OK. I didn't care for "Summer Nights In Cabo" though.

One of the biggest problems I had with the CD is the song "One Day I'll Stop Loving You". I liked the nice slow opening but then the song and Hitchcock step all over themselves with an amazingly overwrought delivery in the song's chorus that made me want to shut off the disc.

The other problem I had is one that is newly discovered by me. Hitchcock isn't a songwriter. Each and every track is written or co-written by other people. I never realized that with the three Pride of Lions CDs for some reason. It isn't something that is a complete mood killer, but call me old fashioned, outside of country music I prefer my singers to be the writers or co-writers on songs. Not every song of course but they should be able to write a song. Instead, Hitchock is a song interpreter. He's got a fantastic voice no doubt so this wouldn't keep me from listening to the songs, but it was a disappointment to learn.

As for the people involved in the writing for the disc, Eclipse guitarist Erik Martensson along with songwriter Miqael Persson wrote or co-wrote all the songs. Persson has worked with Martensson with the group W.E.T.

Martensson played must of the instruments on the album along with some appearances by Eclipse bandmates Magnus Henriksson on guitar and Magnus Ulfstedt on drums.

They know how to write a rip roaring rock song which makes the album a success in my book, but in the end when you learn how much involvement Hitchcock actually had in the creation of the album, it feels more like a group project with special guest star Toby Hitchcock rather than a true solo album.

GRADE B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Bad Company
Live at Wembley
Eagle Records - 2011
http://www.badcompany.com

Capturing the band's reunion tour of the UK, the 15 track live CD hits all the high notes of the band's highly noteworth back catalog.

The sound on this disc is fantastic. I know the band's shows were reportedly some of the best sounding of their career so I'm hoping that any overdubs on the recordings were minimal at most. Paul Rodgers can still bring it on vocals like few performers have ever been able to manage.

With Mick Ralphs and Simon Kirke on guitar and drums respectively, the band never wallows in their age, they just rock and roll all over the place. They get help from guitarist Howard Leese (Paul Rodgers solo band, ex-Heart) and bassist Lynne Sorensen (stepping in for the late Boz Burrell).

The art on the CD itself was nicely done up so that it looked like a vinyl record. There is also an essay about the band from Classic Rock Revisited.com's Jeb Wright. It is pretty good but personally I feel it glosses over the band's success with second vocalist Brian Howe.

The CD is mostly the performance with very little between song conversation. It doesn't really bring anything new to the table but it does capture a band that while career-wise might be long in the tooth, isn't quite ready for the rocking chair. This show is also available on DVD and blu-Ray.



GRADE: B PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

Beth Hart
37 Days
Universal Music - 2007
http://www.bethhart.com

I've known about this release since it was first announced back in 2007 that it would be coming out. The unfortunate thing is I don't think it was ever released in the US. The import costs were prohibitive so I've waited a long time to get my hands on this album.

It was well worth the wait. Judging by the photos in the CD booklet, it seems as if the album was recorded with the band all in the same space playing at once. It gives the album a more immediate and intimate feeling. The band is jamming and with Beth Hart's Janis Joplin-like rough and tumble vocals, you simply can't go wrong.

I have to admit that I was hooked on Beth Hart from the very first time I saw her. It was in Boston. It was The Beth Hart Band at that point and they were playing outside of Fenway Park on the top of a van. And it was amazing. I was on my way into the Red Sox game but all I could think about was getting that first CD Immortal. Then came the first two solo discs Screaming For My Supper and Leave The Light On. Those releases were then encapsulated in the electrifying super sweaty and oh so sexy live album Live At Paradiso.

Now, the next chapter of Beth Hart's musical journey ranges from the beautifully spare "At The Bottom" where it is just Hart's voice and her piano playing to the near metallic "Sick" which is a flat balls out rocking number.

Though it is a most oddly titled song, "One Eyed Chicken", actually works. Weird lyrics in the bridge.

"Face Forward" is another hard rocking song and there is a superb cover of the Warren Haynes written Allman Brothers Band song "Soul Shine".

Through it all, the band is fierce and fiery and Hart continues to impress vocally. It is a shame this CD appears to never have been released in the US because more people should hear this true performer.

Grade: A MINUS
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[Deathstroke]

Beth Hart / Joe Bonamassa
Don't Explain
J & R Adventures - 2011
http://www.hartandbonamassa.com

It isn't often that I'm interested in an all-covers album. This album, however, had me not only interested but considering this a must purchase without hearing so much as a note of the disc beforehand.

Joe Bonamassa is quite well known in the blues music field and over the last year has made himself quite a reputation in the rock arena for his work as part of Black Country Communion. Beth Hart is pure awesomeness. She's got a marvelous voice combined with the actual performance chops of a master craftsman. (Or craftswoman if you happen to be hung up on proper identifiers).

When you combine the two of them it can almost be expected that their output would be fantastic. And that would be true in the case of Don't Explain. The lineup of artists that they cover is amazing. Tom Waits, Ray Charles, Bill Withers, Melanie Gardot, two Etta James songs, Billie Holliday and more.

There's a great essay that covers each track and both the recording and inspiration behind the choice of the songs. Anton Fig on drums is just one of the notable guest musicians. The musical palette combines blues, soul, rock, jazz and country.

Hart and Bonamassa duet on "Well, Well" but otherwise she is the voice and he is laying down smoking hot guitar chops. Bonamassa provides a wailing insistent soundtrack on "I'd Rather Go Blind" and simply shreds on my favorite track "For My Friends."

Hart is sultry and seductive with her burning vocals on "Sinner's Prayer". On the Tom Waits' track "Chocolate Jesus" she has this oddly endearing bouncy vocal delivery. It's a weird sounding song overall but it works.

I liked the orchestral tinged tracks "Your Heart Is As Black As Night" and the title track. "Something's Got A Hold On Me" opens slow but then kicks it up a notch to a faster tempo.

Hart oozes a smooth sultry style, she is a most favored artist by me. She simply "rocks" it whatever the material. Her live DVD Live at Paradiso confirms she can hold an audience spellbound.

Bonamassa holds the attention of any listener with his riffs and rhythms, making you love what you are hearing and left wanting just that much more.

This album, while not necessarily associated with my prefered style of music, shows you can't dismiss anything without hearing it. If you hear this album, you will be blown away with what can only be described as a musical tapestry woven with heart, passion and the desire to honor the artists who inspired Hart and Bonamassa.

Grade: A PLUS

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[Deathstroke]

The Elves (Featuring Ronnie James Dio)
And Before Elf...There Were Elves
Niji Entertainment Group - 2011
http://www.ronniejamesdio.com

Since the passing of the legendary Ronnie James Dio, his Niji Entertainment Group has put out some interesting material in their archival program.

This release is along that archival path. Before he fronted his own solo group, before fronting Black Sabbath, Heaven and Hell, Rainbow or Elf, Dio was fronting Elves.

The packaging for the CD has a hologram cover that is pretty fun. However, I was disappointed that the inside booklet contained a brief mini essay about the recordings on the album.

The songs have a very raw sound to it as this material dates back nearly 40 years. You can actually still hear that slight hiss you would hear on LPs on some of the cuts. The songs range from studio cuts and live tracks.

The disc opens with a cover of the song "You Shook Me", the blues song written by Willie Dixon and J.B. Lenoir and made initially famous by Muddy Waters. It is perhaps best known for being recorded by Led Zeppelin on their debut album.

The second song is another cover song, this time "Stay With Me" from The Faces. In spots Dio's voice sounds a little strained but otherwise a good song.

"Buckingham Blues" is very raw and aggressive. There is a slightly trippy feel to "Driftin'". "Drown Me In The River" is another hard rocking aggression filled number. I liked "Cold Ramona" and "Little Queenie" which actually finishes up with a cover of "Johnny B. Good".

The outstanding track on the disc is the far slower tempo "Smile For Me Lady". It is an early showcase of the beauty of Dio's vocals.

This may be considered an archival release but in readying to review the album, I've played this album about 10 times. Dio may have reigned as a metal god, but his early days fronting a more classic rock sounding band are shone in a bright light with this album.

It is a far different sound for the Dio you may be aware of, but I think you'll find that early or legendary, once more Dio reigns supreme.

GRADE: A MINUS
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[Deathstroke]

Black Country Communion
2
J & R Adventures - 2011
http://www.bccommunion.com

Picking up where they left off from their self-titled debut album, Black Country Communion fuses the modern day with the classic rock sound of the 1970's and comes up with another winning effort.

Although I wasn't as blown away by this album as I was with their first release, this is still one of the best albums of the year.

The varied yet cohesive talents of vocalist/bassist Glenn Hughes, guitarist Joe Bonamassa, keyboardist Derek Sherinian and drummer Jason Bonham spotlight what it is that a pure rock and roll record should be like. All Balls, No Walls!

I saw an interview with Glenn Hughes where he said they didn't mean to make it sound like a record from 1974 it just came out that way. I'm hear to say that how the album sounds is just fine by me.

The album opens with a smoking hot kick ass track called "The Outsider". Glenn Hughes (who provides liner notes along with producer Kevin Shirley) has a killer lyric in the song when he sings:

"I'm the Keeper
You know my name
Kill the reaper
Feed the Flame

I'm a rider
Blood Red Sky
THE OUTSIDER
'Til I die"

The next track "Man In The Middle" remains up tempo but features more of a groove vibe. Yet it still manages to be a fantastic song.

"Save Me" opens up slow but the tempo picks up.

Joe Bonamassa continues to shred on the disc. He's had a hell of a year. He released this album, did a covers project with singer Beth Hart that was awesome and released his own solo blues album Dust Bowl.

Besides "The Outsider", the song "Smokestack Woman" is the true standout number on the album. It both burns brightly as a flat out rocker, but then features a nice groove to it as well.

While I appreciate the sentiments behind the writing of the song "Ordinary Son", I didn't find myself really getting into it all that much. The same can be said for the bluesy "Little Secret". It's not that they are bad songs but they didn't capture my ear despite multiple listens.

One note about the album that was both a positive and a drawback was that the album's material seemed to flow effortlessly from one song into the next.

That is a good thing because you feel engulfed by the music, but for the purposes of reviewing the disc, getting carried away on this musical journey meant I'd be listening and not realize I was halfway through one song when I thought I was still listening to the previous one. This meant I had to go back and listen over and over. Not necessarily a bad thing, but boy did it take that much longer to review this album.

Grade: A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

Doro
25 Years In Rock...And Still Going Strong
Nuclear Blast Records - 2011
http://www.doropesch.com

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Heavy Metal World! For 25 Years She's Still Going Strong! Show Your Love For the Metal Queen....DORO PESCH!

And with that intro, the listener is off an amazing trip encompassing the career of the one true metal goddess Doro Pesch. From the early days with Warlock, to her current solo career and chock full of an amazing cast of friends and musical contemporaries, Doro puts on an anniversary show like you won't believe.

The CD I am reviewing represents 11 tracks from the first 19 songs in her 27 song song concert performance. This is the bonus live disc that comes with the two DVD set that was finally released her in the US two years after the concert was done and a year after it was released in the rest of the world.

The time passage doesn't hurt the electric vibe that seemingly enveloped the entire audience and performers though.

From the opening guitar riffs of the Warlock track "Earthshaker Rock", the Metal Queen gives a balls out performance that once I actually get around to watching the DVDs is only going to blow me away more.

She remains a vibrant performer 25 years in and shows no sign of giving up her crown as the Metal Queen!

The disc sounds great with a very aggressive sound that fills the Dusseldorf crowd with even more energy than it came with.

On the disc, the special guests include Honza K. Behunek on "Unholy Love", Chris Boltendahl and Axel Rudi Pell on "East Meets West" and a chorus of some of the finest female metal voices (Sabina Classen, Floor Jansen, Liv Kristine, Jin-In Cho, Liv Jagrell, Jackie Chambers and Enid Williams) on the track "Celebrate". The song "Burn It Up" features Jean Beauvoir and Pyromaniacs.

Of course Doro can stop on a dime from the high wire rockers and cool things down with "Herzblut". The disc itself closes with a cover of the Judas Priest classic "Breaking The Law". But here Doro puts a different spin on the song as she performs it in a very slow and calm manner before restarting it as the full on rocker it is meant to be.

Looking at the entire track listing I can't wait to see the concert in whole because there is a huge guest list still to come and the show is the stuff dreams are made of.

This 11 track CD is the teaser that will entice any metal fan to move onto the DVD for the full meal that is Doro's music!

Grade: A Minus
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[Deathstroke]

A new review of an album from 2009:

Ronny Munroe
The Fire Within
Ratpak Records - 2009
http://www.ronnymunroe.com

The solo debut from ex-Metal Church frontman Ronny Munroe shows both promise and flaws.

With production and engineering handled mainly by his ex-Metal Church bandmate Kurdt Vanderhoof, Munroe (who co-produced) has a strong sounding album. His power vocals retain the gritty edge any who has heard him has come to know.

The album opens up with a pretty solid rocker tune "Far". It is a definite right move to kick off the CD on an aggressive note.

I didn't care for the next track "What You Choose To Call Hell (I Call Home)". The lengthy title seemed a bit pretentious and though the song does feature a guitar solo from Queensryche's Michael Wilton, I just found the song to be flat and with an entirely too repetitive chorus.

To be honest tracks 2 through 5 were all kind of weak. Just didn't care for the lyrics mainly. Munroe co-wrote each song on the album (save the closing cover song) and while the ones he hit on were really good, the consistency of quality lyrics still kind of needs work.

The rest of the album gets better as it goes on. "Demon Opera" is pretty good, while "Across The Sea of Souls" moves from a slow opening to a faster groove. Michael Wilton contributed the guitar solo on this song as well.

Musically, the cover of "Man on the Silver Mountain" sounds really good. However, I don't know what was up with the vocals. They were all over the place. At times Munroe sounded great and at other points in the song he sounded as if was straining to hit notes. Being a huge fan of Dio, you have to do the song perfectly or I'm just not going to like it that much. Need proof of that? Check out the horrible Killswitch Engage cover of Dio's "Holy Diver".

For me the three best tracks on the album come near the end. "Evil Genius" is a fast rocker with some solid lyrics. Munroe sounds great here. The song "Ride Me" is another rocker. And the lyrics here are a tease. I'm not sure if the song is supposed to sound as dirty as I interpreted the lyrics or not, but the lyric "Ride Me Into Submission" doesn't seem to leave a lot of ambiguity to the tone of the song.

The best song is "Desperate Man". It has a great uptempo vibe to the song. The track kicks off fast and then about 2:30 into it, the pace slows down and then finishes out fast and loud. It was co-written with Vanderhoof and this should be the showcase track from the CD.

I loved Munroe's work with Metal Church so the chances are I'm going to love his solo work as well. This album is really good, but it could be better since 4 of the songs are flat out not my cup of tea.

He actually has a second album that came out in 2011 called Lords of the Edge that I'm looking forward to getting to see the next steps in his musical journey.

Grade: B

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[Deathstroke]

Anthrax
Worship Music
Icarus Music / Nuclear Blast Records - 2011
http://www.anthrax.com

It has been a long hard road for Anthrax to get this album to the people. They recorded it once with singer Dan Nelson but a falling out that led to his firing and/or departure led the band to welcome back Joey Belladonna to the fold and the album was redone.

For the most part, the long delay paid off. Leaving aside my own review, the reviews have been pretty positive. They had a nice showcase on the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon talk show and they've just seemed to have been kind of reborn again with a much higher profile.

The album opens up with an instrumental called "Worship". It serves as a mood setting for the album I suppose but I would've rather seen the band just get right to the main course songs.

I loved the pacing of "Earth on Hell" but the lyrics kind of left me cold. The track that has gotten the most airplay so far is "The Devil You Know" and it is a fantastic fast paced track and I love the bigger sound they use vocally for the chorus.

The album cover and inside album art feature zombies and the band members fighting zombie versions of themselves. So it should come as now surprise that the rocker "Fight Em Til You Can't" is a song about a zombie apocalypse. The track opens with a news report warning that the dead have risen from the grave and are attacking humans and then tears into the music. It was kind of funny to me that this song would be on the album because it kind of serves as a tie-in of sorts for Scott Ian's zombified appearance in online webisodes for the TV series The Walking Dead.

One of the problems I did have with this album is that the track listing is listed as being 14 songs. But two of those songs are mere quickie bridge instrumentals that aren't even given titles. To me at least they served absolutely no purpose and should just have not been included on the album.

"In The End" is a song dedicated to the late Ronnie James Dio and the late Dimebag Darrell (Pantera / Damageplan). The first 3 1/2 minutes of the song is a bit slower in tempo but still carries a very heavy vibe, the pace picks up after that. All in all, a song that the band worked and reworked came out as a solid tribute.

"The Giant" is a killer track. It rips through your chest musically and the spitfire vocals and lyrics are outstanding.

The track "Judas Priest" isn't about the band but this is a killer song. The lyric "I Am Become Death, Destroyer of Worlds" is incorporated nicely. The phrase comes from a quote by J. Robert Oppenheimer about the atomic bomb. He learned it from reading the Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita. I love when bands can work in stuff from the "real world" as actual workable song lyrics.

The song "The Constant" ranges from mid to uptempo and it is another great song with a fantastic lyric in the chorus "Stronger than any stretch of imagination"

As a bonus track on the CD, Anthrax covers the Refused song "New Noise" and while I haven't actually heard the original, this version sounds great.

By the way, the CD booklet folds out to a mini poster of the album cover.

I mentioned not caring for the lyrics on "Earth On Hell" but other than the song "Crawl" and those aforementioned instrumentals, the band has unleashed one of their best albums.

It was a long time coming for this disc and it took me a few listens to fully appreciate it. But I'm right there with all the other people praising the album and the band.

GRADE: A MINUS
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[Deathstroke]

Iced Earth
Dystopia
Century Media Records - 2011
http://www.icedearth.com

A new Iced Earth album brings a new Iced Earth singer. Matt Barlow has once again left the band. In his place guitarist/band leader Jon Schaffer has brought in ex-Into Eternity singer Stu Block.

And Block will knock your socks off. I had heard bits and pieces of his singing with his previous band but this is my first full blown exposure to him.

The title track opens the album with a methodic intro before blowing open to a full on kick-ass rocker. The song alternates between both a guttural and high pitched vocal delivery. The video for the song (included below) is pretty good.

"Anthem" has a menacing sound and pace to it, but the song has a more positive lyrical take than you'd think.

The track "Anguish of Youth" opens with a slow tempo before kicking things up a notch. The vocals during the main passages have a lighter touch but the harder edge features strongly during the chorus. "Dark City" also opens softly but then is a vicious attacking tempo.

The alternating vocal styles play a role in "Equilibrium" and "End of Innocence".

"Tragedy and Triumph" has an extended musical intro before the pace picks up.

The version of the album I have is the deluxe edition which includes a mini poster, a sticker and 3 bonus tracks. There is a "String Mix" version of the song "Anthem" and two fast paced songs called "Iron Will" and "Soylent Green". The latter song, at least to me, sounded as if it was not only covering the book/movie of the same name but trying to make commentary on the world of today as well. Either way the song was pretty good.

Other than the title track, my favorite song on the disc was "Days of Rage". It is a brutally vicious masterpiece. Stu Block's vocals along with the take no prisoners lyrics amp up the musical palette in the song to something truly special.

I've been a fan of Iced Earth for a while now and this is probably one of the best releases they've done from open to close in a while. In the world of Iced Earth, singers don't seem to stick around too long, but if things go well, Stu Block has found a home I'd say.

Grade: A MINUS

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[Deathstroke]

My Top 10 CDS of 2011

It's taken me a while to finish the last 2 CDs that I had to review, but with that task now complete I can move on to 2012.

Before I do though, here's my list of the 10 best CDs of 2011.

1. Whitesnake - Forevermore

The album was one of the first ones I bought in 2011 and it has never left my work bag the whole time since. This album was simply outstanding.

2. Beth Hart / Joe Bonamassa - Don't Explain

Likely the biggest surprise to me on the list. I like both artists but a covers album of jazz, R&B, soul and other songs as one of MY favorites. That shows you how good it is.

3. The Elves (featuring Ronnie James Dio) - And Before Elf...There Were Elves

The music world lost a giant when Ronnie James Dio passed. This archival release highlights an early part of his rise to the top of the Silver Mountain!

4. Simon Kirke - Filling The Void

The drummer behind all the big Bad Company hits turns the tables with this solo release. A solid rock and roll album that comes with a light touch instead of a ton of tricks of the trade.

5. Black Country Communion - 2

This album is a great album but for me it was a little less masterful than the first album.

6. Iced Earth - Dystopia

Best Iced Earth album from top to bottom in years.

7. U.D.O. - Rev-Raptor

The appreciation of Udo Dirkschneider continues to grow with each successive release from the band.

8. Anthrax - Worship Music

It was a long time coming but well worth the wait.

9. Bad Company - Live At Wembley

Documenting the band's Wembley Stadium concert in fine fashion.

10. Doro - 25 Years...And Still Going Strong

The CD part of this 2 disc DVD/ 1 CD release amply demonstrates why Doro Pesch remains the Metal Queen.