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HOT NEW REVIEWS
CEDRIC
BURNSIDE 'I BE TRYING' (SINGLE LOCK RECORDS/KONKURRENT)
I Be Trying is already the 9th album
of American blues drummer, guitarist, singer and songwriter CEDRIC BURNSIDE,
who is the son of blues drummer Calvin Jackson and grandson of blues singer,
songwriter, and guitarist R. L. Burnside. Without a doubt, the new album is a
lovely soulful bluesy pop/rock album that has such a lovely relaxing vibe, it
makes it a pleasure to listen to each and every of the 13 included tracks.
Cedric has a superb voice and his songs are very smooth and just perfect to
listen to during the warm days in the summer. No matter which song you listen
to, You Really Love Me, Love Is The Key or Bird Without A Feather, they are all
sensational and basically this man is a real genius and he should be way bigger
by now. Let’s hope this new album will give him much more publicity!
(Points:
8.8 out of 10)
VTF
PROJECT 'MACHINE SESSIONS VOLUME 1’ (INDEPENDENT/USA IMPORT)
Out of sunny Florida
comes the 3-piece band VTF PROJECT, which is formed around guitarist VICTOR
RIVERA, drummer TOMMY MCNAMARA and bassist FABIO Z. Together they recorded 3
songs and released them on CD as Machine Sessions Volume 1. The included music
is high quality instrumental jazzy fusion progressive rock with a focus on a
somewhat complicated but interesting rhythm section and excellent soaring
guitarwork. The result is a joy to listen to and it’s only a pity the 20
minutes are over quite quickly, because this is instrumental progrock of a very
high level! LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT will absolutely love it! More info
at: https://vtfproject.com/
(Points:
8.4 out of 10)
JOHANNES
DEES ‘MOVE ON MOVE ON’ (SO BLAU RECORDINGS/GERMAN IMPORT)
German
multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter JOHANNES DEES returns with a new album
entitled Move On Move On. Along with a few guests here and there on guitar,
ewi, congas and additional vocals, Johannes brings a nice calmer concept
Kraut/Progrock style on the album, which is partly instrumental and spoken word
orientated, with an epic and experimental touch sometimes. 17 songs are
included and Johannes definitely has an own style that sounds a bit like a less
commercial and more proggy version of FALCO somehow. On the other hand,
Johannes has a lot more diversity to offer and actually has an own identity.
Check out more on this talented multi-instrumentalist/composer at: www.johannesdees.com
(Points:
7.7 out of 10)
AZIOLA
CRY 'THE IRONIC DIVIDE' (SENSORY RECORDS/SONIC RENDEZVOUS)
After a long cold winter it is a blessing
to enjoy the long sunny days during the spring and summer, and despite it took
a little longer than usual, the joy is of course there when it's finally
glorious sunshine and when you are also surprised by a great new album release
during those first summer days, then it's your lucky day for sure! We are here
talking about a real winner for the fans of instrumental melodic progressive
metal in the style of LONG DISTANCE CALLING. It concerns the 3rd album The
Ironi Divide from the instrumental progressive metal band AZIOLA CRY, who are
coming out of Chicago, USA. The band released 2 albums in the early 2000s, but
it took 15 years before a new album was released, but thankfully they have
returned with a superstrong and tight new album, which contains 48 minutes of
high level instr. prog metal with not unnecessary endless complex passages, but
a clear focus on big fat guitar riffs and melodies in each of the 4 long songs.
The band consists of JASON BLAKE (Warr Guitar), MIKE MILANIAK (guitar) and
TOMMY MURRAY (drums), and this power trio absolutely delivers a great record.
This modern kinda instrumental prog metal is quite popular nowadays, with many
album releases, and you can easily add the new AZOLA CRY to your wants list!
More info at: www.aziolacry.com
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
SUBTERRANEAN
MASQUERADE 'MOUNTAIN FEVER' (SENSORY RECORDS/SONIC RENDEZVOUS)
Mountain Fever is already the 4th album of
the band SUBTERRANEAN MASQUERADE from Israel. I was not familiar with them
before, so I am glad I am able to hear and review their new record now. Without
a doubt, we are dealing with a professional band that has a superb and very
diverse sound on Mountain Fever. They were formed by guitarist/songwriter TOMER
PINK all the way back in 1997 and despite there have been numerous line up
changes throughout the following 24 years (even including the ORPHANED LAND
drummer, the SOLSTICE COIL keyboardplayer (who is still in the band) and the
GREEN CARNATION/TRISTANIA singer at one point in time), quite a few EP releases
and 3 official full length studio albums, they are still alive and well. Their
current line up consists of Davidavi (Vidi) Dolev on vocals, Tomer Pink on
guitar, Or Shalev on guitar, Omer Fishbein on guitar, Shai Yallin on keyboard, Golan
Farhi on bass and Jonathan Amar on drums. Together they create a fascinating
original sounding sound that picks the best of different worlds, because they
might be called a pure progressive metal, they add a lot of influences from
other genres into their music, and therefore they should be compared to their
homeland friends of ORPHANED LAND (of whom one of the members make a guest
appearance) The diversity of the album
makes it worth to check it out a.s.a.p., because especially during the
sensational Ascend (uptempo melodic prog metal with a strong ROYAL HUNTish
chorus) they sound at their very best, while the combination of Middle Eastern
music with Prog Metal are done at it's best during Mountain Fever (awesome
uptempo piece with even a Swedish melodic rock touch) and Ya Shema Evyonecha.
MYRATH and MOB RULES also come to mind here and there, such as can be heard
during the bombastic The Stillnox Oratory and closing track Mangata (a ballad
that starts acoustic driven, but turns into pure prog metal after a while). The
band is also not shy from the Extreme Metal influences, with the growls and
screams in songs like Diaspora My Love, Somewhere I Sadly Belong and For The
Leader, With Strings Music. Along with a tight mixing by JENS BOGREN (LEPROUS,
OPETH), this album sounds huge and is a mix of the afforementioned bands, with
just enough diversity to give them an own face! More info at: http://www.submasq.net/
AVALON
'EVERYMAN A KING' (ROCK CANDY RECORDS/UK IMPORT)
Everyman A King was a 4 tracks counting EP
by AVALON that was originally released on CAPITAL RECORDS in 1982. There have
been many more bands with that name, but this Hollywood based band from the
early 1980s completely blew me away when I first heard their only EP via a tape
trading friend (Frank van Hoeve) back in the mid 1990s. This was prime-time AOR
at it's very best, and thankfully it has now finally been remastered and
re-issued onto CD by ROCK CANDY RECORDS. Almost 40 years the 4 original songs,
the uptempo classic AOR rockers Can't Find A Way (To Say Goodbye), Crossfire
and The Writing On The Wall as well as the semi AOR ballad Deeper Than The
Heart. Timeless AOR classics that should be in the hands of every fan of acts
like TOTO, FOREIGNER, FRANKE & THE KNOCKOUTS, SHELTER, LEVEL, ROADMASTER,
etc. etc. The original line up of AVALON consisted of guitarist/lead singer
RICK NEIGHER, keyboardplayer/vocalist CHRIS COTE and
guitarist/keyboardoplayer/vocalist MIKE MIRAGE, while a number of guest
musicians (such as bassist MIKE PORCARO and pianoplayer JAI WINDING) appeared
on both the EP and the songs they also recorded in the early 80s, but they were
never officially released until now. Besides the 4 EP songs, there are also 7
bonustracks included, which probably nobody ever heard before. The sound
quality is not as good as the massive sounding 4 EP tracks, but they are still
of course very interesting to discuss. The first bonustrack Living In The
Golden Years is poppier than the 4 original EP tracks, but it's still a great
early 80s poprocker and so is the uptempo early 80s New Wave influenced melodic
poprocker River Of No Return (even features the legendary FREDDY CURCI of
ALIAS/SHERIFF on backing vocals), which does reveal THE CARS similarities, but
it also has a killer AOR hook/chorus and a lovely soaring guitarsolo like
HAYWIRE, BYSTANDER and HONEYMOON SUITE on their early records. Midnight
Rendezvous is back to pure early 80s pomp driven midtempo SURVIVOR/SHELTER ish
AOR at first, but the chorus is a bit poppier and actually reminds me of REO
SPEEDWAGON doing a BOSTON cover. Love's The Only Word is going for the classic
early 80s catchy uptempo melodic powerpop sound with a RICK SPRINGFIELDish
approach, although I also must think of bands like 4 OUT OF 5 DOCTORS, TOMMY
TUTONE and such. Spirits Of Love is going straight for the classic 1982
American picture perfect Radio AOR sound like their 4 EP tracks, yet with a
slight Westcoast touch, ending up sounding like a superb mix of FRANKE &
THE KNOCKOUTS, TOTO, ALLIANCE (1982) and a bit of HALL & OATES, so this is
definitely a superb sensational song with the classic melancholic feeling of a
long but not forgotten period when this kind of music was extremely popular in
the USA. A Matter Of Time follows more or less the same kinda direction, with
again those smooth harmonyvocals and killer hooks, so once again radio-ready
early 80s American Westcoast AOR-Rock of an incredible high level. Aside from
the production that is not as good as the original album tracks, these songs
are a joy to finally find it's way on CD. Closing track Dreamland is a very
rare live recorded song, which sounds quite raw, but is still a nice poppy AOR
tune. Concluded, this is another dream come true to see a long lost classic AOR
EP being re-issued onto CD, with extensive liner notes that informs you all
about the band and it's members. Check out more into at: www.rockcandyrecords.com
GIOTOPIA
'TRINITY OF EVIL' (INDEPENDENT/BELGIAN IMPORT)
Trinity Of Evil is the 3rd album of
GIOTOPIA, a project formed around Belgian multi-instrumentalist/songwriter GIO
SMET. The included music is a typical Rock Metal Opera style which we know from
AYREON, AVANTASIA, MAGORIA and such, with also some RHAPSODY and HELLOWEEN
influences here and there. Gio does almost everything on his own, yet he gets
help on vocals by guest singers such as Apollo Papathanasio (ex-FIREWIND),
Jürgen Wulfes (CHOLANE, ex-MOON DOC'), Kelly Thans, YGC, Sara Vanderheyden,
Ginny Claes, Nienke Verboom, Ellen Peeters, Freddy Richard, Jeff Metal,
Hannelore Van Gorp and Jennifer Thomé. Although it all sounds quite nice, none
of the songs reach the level of the aforementioned bands/projects. The songs
are just not strong enough and also vocally speaking it's just ok, but not
making a real impact like for example AYREON and AVANTASIA. Of course I
understand it's hard to get established singers for such a project, but it
definitely makes a difference. We have seen countless Rock Opera's the past 20
years, so in 2021 you really have to come up with something spectacular. It's
not bad at all, but on a future release I would suggest GIOTOPIA to make a
straight-ahead non rock opera album with the best available singer (such as
FABIO LIONE or APOLLO PAPATHANASIO), and let him join the songwriting, while a
guest drummer could also help a bit. If you're still a dedicated rock opera
fan, then add this GIOTOPIA to your wants list. More info at: https://giotopia.bandcamp.com/album/trinity-of-evil
and https://giotopia.com/
(Points:
7.0 out of 10)
SCARVED
'FLASHBACK' (SLEASZY RIDER RECORDS/SONIC RENDEZVOUS)
Out of Belgium comes the female fronted
band SCARVED, and they deliver their 3rd album so far with Flashback. They are
signed to the Greek label SLEASZY RIDER RECORDS and due to covid this new album
was postponed to the summer of 2021, because they couldn't finish the
recordings in 2020. Anyway, the album is now available and I must say that when
opener Fly is playing loud on the speakers, it is clear that SCARVED is a
strong band with a classic 70s/80s influenced Classic Hardrocksound. CARO
VERBOVEN has a nice voice, LUC VAN DESSEL is a great guitarplayer who knows how
to throw in the right riffs and solo's, while the rhythm section of bassist
VINCENT DE LAAT and drummer KJELL DE RAES keeps things tight. 10 songs are on
the album, and sometimes the overall Melodic Hardrocksound of the band reminds
me of the mid 90s when I received a lot of similar sounding female fronted
bands like this (HEADLINE, BLACK SWAN, TOUCHDOWN), although DORO, ROUGH and
BETSY/BITCH from the 80s also come to mind and you can also trace clear
influences from classic 70s hardrock and early 80s NWOBHM here and there. This
makes them a diverse classic rocking band that knows how to deliver quality
material from start to finish, with as other highlights Poison Kiss, Rising
Soul, and the fantastic semi ballad Lost In Space, with an AORish chorus and a
soarin guitarsolo. SCARVED is definitely a recommended band to check out at:
https://sleaszyrider.bandcamp.com/album/scarved-flashback
(Points:
8.2 out of 10)
REIGNING
SOUND 'A LITTLE MORE TIME WITH REIGNING SOUND' (MERGE RECORDS/KONKURRENT)
REIGNING SOUND is a band from Memphis, Tennessee,
formed back in 2001 and currently featuring Greg Cartwright (lead
vocals/guitar), Benny Trokan (bass), Mike Catanese (guitar), Mikey Post (drums)
and Dave Amels (organ) in their lineup. A Little More Time with Reigning Sound
is their 8th album so far and I have to say it sounds quite
sensational. There’s a lot of diversity going on, because you have uptempo
rockier songs such as the catchy THE WHOish Let’s Do It Again, the punky I
Don’t Need That Kind Of Lovin’, and calmer songs like I’ll Be Your Man and
Moving & Shaking (Country-ish), but also a lot of 60s influenced
radiofriendly powerpop/MOD/Garage rock pieces such as the catchy You Don’t Know
What You’re Missing (a la classic ROY ORBISON meets THE HOLLIES), Oh Christine
and A Little More Time (even retro early 80s Heartlandish, JOHN COUGAR meets
TOM PETTY), and how about the 70s Americana uptempo rootsy rocker Make It Up,
which reminds a bit of a cross between NEIL YOUNG, CALEXICO and ROD STEWART).
REIGNING SOUND are doing things just a bit different than the rest, sounding
very authentic 60s/70s influenced, combining elements of all the great acts
from that period. Check them out at: https://reigningsound.bandcamp.com/
(Points:
8.4 out of 10)
SNAPPED
ANKLES 'FOREST OF YOUR PROBLEMS' (THE LEAF LABEL/KONKURRENT)
SNAPPED ANKLES comes out of London, UK and
their latest release Forest Of Your Problems is a typical British somewhat
experimental bouncing electronic post-punk mash up affair. Done quite well,
they certainly offer an interesting package here that could easily provide them
radio hits, because their 10 original songs sound quite catchy actually. Songs
like The Evidence, Shifting Basslines Of The Cornucopians (TALKING HEADSish),
the quirky Rhythm Is Our Business and Xylophobia are very strong early 80s
post-punk/new wave influenced bouncing tunes that are a joy to listen to! I was
not yet that familiar with SNAPPED ANKLES, but they could well breakthrough
with this new album. More info at: https://shop.snappedankles.com/album/forest-of-your-problems
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
FAYE
WEBSTER 'I KNOW I'M FUNNY HAHA' (SECRETLY CANADIAN/KONKURRENT)
FAYE WEBSTER is a
singer/songwriter/guitarist from Atlanta, Georgia who delivers her 4th album
with I Know I’m Funny Haha, which is a very relaxing album that feels like the
warm beautiful summer days we are now enjoying (at least over here in early
June in The Netherlands!). It has an authentic 1970s singer/songwriter touch,
with also some westcoast/jazz influences, such as during the wonderful SADEish
Sometimes. Faye is only 23 years old, but sounds like she is already active in
the music business for decades. Opener Better Distractions was one of the
favorite songs of BARACK OBAMA in 2020, so she gained a lot of publicity since
then and now it’s time for her new album. Faye has a beautiful smooth voice and
other highlights are the titletrack I Know I’m Funny Haha, Kind Of, the
Indie/Alternative midtempo Rock influenced Cheers, A Dream With A Baseball
Player and the groovy old school R&B ish A Stranger (with a BLACK PUMAS
meets LEON BRIDGES kinda vibe). Job done well here and recommended to check out
at: https://www.fayewebster.com/
(Points:
8.4 out of 10)
MUDHONEY
'EVERY GOOD BOY DESERVES FUDGE: 30TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION' (SUB POP
RECORDDS/KONKURRENT)
I can’t believe it’s been 30 years ago
since the whole Seattle movement took place. I remember very well the time when
NIRVANA and PEARL JAM broke through and basically every major label ignored
everything that didn’t sound like those bands. It was a time when I discovered
so much more bands and musicstyles, so the re-release of the 2nd MUDHONEY
album Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge is a trip down memory lane when Studio
Brussel and VPRO were the radiostations to discover bands like MUDHONEY,
TEENAGE FANCLUB and some of the lesser known bands in the grunge, powerpop,
punk, alternative rock circuit at the time. Fast forward to 2021, MUDHONEY
should have been much bigger, because if we listen now to this 30th year
anniversary of this Seattle band’s 2nd album, they had this
fantastic diverse sound that offered much more than the grunge of NIRVANA and
Alternative Rock of PEARL JAM. Of course there was the classic Seattle Grunge
sound in songs like Ounce Of Deception, Bushpusher Man, Thorn, Overblown and
Something So Clear (one of the 5 bonus demo tracks on this re-release), but
there was also room for some 60s garage rock and roll in a song like Paperback
life and even instrumental surfpunkpop during Fuzzbuster and march From Fuzz.
Aside from some experimental screams in songs like Thorn and You’re gone, the
band delivered a ground-breaking record that eventually saved SUB POP RECORDS
from drowning and paved the way for many more records on that legendary label,
which still continues. Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge is a very diverse record,
more so than NIRVANA, ALICE IN CHAINS and SOUNDGARDEN has ever produced, but
still MUDHONEY did not reach the superstardom of those bands, which is not a
problem at all, because they always continued and are a definite cult band that
avoided the commercial success of the other Seattle bands. MUDHONEY did leave
SUB POP for a short while, but eventually returned to SUB POP and have been
successfully delivering authentic and diverse albums on their original label
for a few decades now, with this re-release of their 2nd album
on SUB POP being a major accomplishment!
(Points:
8.4 out of 10)
MORPHEUS
PROJECT/MUSTAFA KHETTY 'MOZAICK' (INDEPENDENT/QUITE GREAT!/UK IMPORT)
The MORPHEUS PROJECT is a very ambitious
project formed around classical music composer MUSTAFA KHETTY, who was born in
Sri Lanka, but he actually lived all over the world. He took all the influences
from the places where he lived and with musicians from mostly Turkey he
recorded the album Mozaick. The result is an interesting and very diverse album
that connects a lot of various music styles, ranging from progressive rock to
fusion to jazz to world music to classical music and everything else. A song
like It’s Who We Are! Mozaick is one of the finest examples of this mixture,
because this fantastic instrumental offers the best of all worlds, with lovely
melodies played on both the keyboard and guitar. Here and there we can also
hear vocals (provided by Mustafa himself, Burcu Arslantaş, Zilan Küçükbalaban
and Onur Çobanoğlu), such as during the prog metal pieces Tomorrow Never Comes
and the superb Waiting, which start with Middle Eastern influences (first song)
and becomes also quite symphonic throughout both songs (featuring classical
music influences in the second song), ending up sounding a bit like the last
couple of KAYAK albums actually. A song like Istanbul Swing is primarily based
around Middle Eastern rhythms, although I also must think of SANTANA when
listening to this song, and this instrumental ends up quite proggy as well.
Nights To Remember is one of the most progrock based songs on the album, a
fantastic piece of art that contains amazing guitarwork that would make YNGWIE
MALMSTEEN jealous, while the classical music theme in closing track Cry For
Freedom is absolutely stunning. Basically the Progrockfans will instantly fall
in love with this brilliant album! More info can be found at: https://morpheusproject.bandcamp.com/
(Points:
8.6 out of 10)
FIDDLEHEAD
'BETWEEN THE RICHNESS' (RUN FOR COVER RECORDS/KONKURRENT)
The American band FIDDLEHEAD’s 2nd album
Between The Richness feels like a trip down memory lane, because it is loaded
with pure 1990s influenced Punkpop/Emp/Melodic Hardcore record in the style of
the countless American bands from 25 years ago. NOFX, LESS THAN JAKE, BLINK
182, THE OFFSPRING, etc. etc. Thankfully there is a bit more diversity going
on, so it’s not a non-stop fast uptempo punkpop record, because here and there
FIDDLEHEAD takes a moment of calmness, such as during the lovely Loverman,
which almost feels like a melodic rocker! They sometimes also remind a bit of
FOO FIGHTERS, and among the 10 included tracks the other highlights are Eternal
You, the heavier Life Notice and the catchy closing track Heart To Heart. The
album feels very authentic and fans of especially the classic catchy 90s
American Punk/Emo Rocksound will absolutely love this band!
(Points:
8.2 out of 10)
THE
SHINS 'OH, INVERTED WORLD: 20TH ANNIVERSARY REMASTERED EDITION' (SUB POP
RECORDDS/KONKURRENT)
In 2001 the American Indie Rockband THE
SHINS made their debut with Oh, Inverted World. They were formed back in 1996
and rapidly became a popular band across the globe with this album. Now 20
years later this album has been re-released by SUB POP RECORDS. The band
meanwhile released 5 more albums and went through numerous lineup changes. The
only original member left is JAMES MERCER, who sings and plays guitar, keys and
bass, although he actually left the band as well for a short period, but
returned in 2012 as a one-man’s band, however later on others (new members)
joined him to perform again as THE SHINS. Anyway, back to their debut Oh,
Inverted World, which is now available again with expanded booklet, it is a
great record after all these years, with a sorta typical 90s sound that was
clearly 60s influenced, but also was a product of the Indie Pop movement. The
Indiepop pieces Girl Informed Me, New Slang, The Celebrate Life, the rockier
Girl On The Wing (90s college/powerpop a la TEENAGE FANCLUB/THE JAYHAWKS), the
late 60s THE BEATLESish Pressed In A Book and the calmer pure 60s psychedelic
pop of closing track The Past And Pending are all wonderful songs. It’s a very
diverse high quality record that set THE SHINS apart from the rest 20 years
ago. Check out this re-release in case you missed it the first time around 2
decades ago!
(Points:
8.6 out of 10)
EDDIE
9V 'LITTLE BLACK FLIES' (RUF RECORDS/GERMAN IMPORT)
He was born in 1996, so he’s only 25 years
old, but when hearing EDDIE 9 sing and play guitar on his 2nd album
Little Black Flies, it seems like he’s been with us forever. I was completely
overwhelmed actually when listening to this album, because it sounds absolutely
sensational. I hear lots of new albums, but this one stands out by a million
miles for sure, because this Atlanta, Georgia, USA based
multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter is ticking all the right boxes to
become as big as JOE BONAMASSA and JOHN MAYER in the future. The music is a mix
of old school Soul and Bluesrock, sounding a bit like THE BLACK KEYS here and
there, yet with an own identity due to his amazing vocalwork and songwriting
that even reminds me of the good old mighty SAM COOKE. Mix up all these
aforementioned acts, then you have EDDIE 9V’s sound. There is not a single dull
moment to be found on this 12 tracks counting album, because every song is
picture perfect, but I would like to point out the songs 3AM IN Chicago and
Puttin’ The Kids To Bed as the highlights on this superb new album of Eddie.
Eddie plays lead guitar like a JOE BONAMASSA God and sings like an old school
Soul singer, so this combination should be a guarantee for a bright future
ahead of him. On the album he is assisted by a list of guest musicians (on
bass, guitar, organ, harp, drums, sax and backing vocals), but Eddie himself is
of course the main star! Check him out at: https://eddie9v.bandcamp.com/
(Points:
8.9 out of 10)
LUNATTACK
AND ELEPHANT MEMORIES 'MOON KISS' (SAOL/CMM/BERTUS)
LUNATTACK is the stage name of German
singer BARBARA DUTCHOW, who recorded a great debut album with the French band
ELEPHANT MEMORIES. Moon Kiss is the name of their first collaboration, which
features 8 songs in total. Opener This Is Moon is a catchy radio-ready electro
melodic poprocker with a strong (poppy) chorus and also following Gate 38 is a
great straight-ahead uptempo piece, which goes a bit more for an 80s rock
direction, like PATTI SMITH doing a THE CULT cover. Strange Lover is slowing
things down to a midtempo semi-prog rock direction, which also reveals DAVID
BOWIE and PETER GABRIEL influences. Let Me Shine is poppier, but very
melancholic and revealing 70s poprock influences, even reminding a bit of
BLONDIE somehow, yet with a light proggy twist during the fantastic memorable
chorus. The following songs are going for a slightly more experimental
direction, like PJ HARVEY a bit, although the fantastic Anachromic Party
develops into an 80s midtempo pop/rock fest a la THE PRETENDERS. Jack is even
more going for that classic early 80s synth driven catchy uptempo rock
direction, while closing track Orage is a calmer French sung dark melancholic
90s inspired semi-ballad with a sorta PINK FLOYD meets RADIOHEAD meets
CRANBERRIES kinda vibe, although towards the end of this lengthy song it gets
uptempo progrocking. Concluded, we have here an interesting female fronted
diverse pop/rock album that introduces us a great new talented German singer
called LUNATTACK and her strong French band ELEPHANT MEMORIES. More info
at: http://lunattack.com
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
RAMRODS
'BRACELET CIRCUS' (SAOL/CMM/BERTUS)
The
German band RAMRODS was formed all the way back in 1966 (!), but it took them
until 2011 before they would release their official debut album Love Is The
Answer. It’s never too late of course to release original music and now another
10 years later the 2nd album Bracelet Circus is released. The
band is formed around original member TREVOR SIDNEY (keys, piano, mellotron)
who gathered musicians throughout the decades to join the band. The rest of the
current line up consists of Peter Harasim (lead voc, accoustic & electric
guitar), Ben Forrester (guitars), René Langenhan (guitars), Kalle Duringer
(bass), Ralf Gebhardt (keyboards) and Alberto Parmigiani (drums). 12 songs are
on the new album, of which opener Suffragette Woman is a superb uptempo classic
70s rocker with strong melodies and reminding me of all the great bands from
the glorious rocking 1970s. This song sounds like it was recorded back then and
is a real Classic Rock song in all its aspects (like LUCIFER’S FRIEND and URIAH
HEEP). Following Don’t Whine Baby is going slightly more for a 1960s soul
injected (psychedelic) powerpop direction, and it does it really well,
reminding me a bit of MANFRED MANN’S EARTH BAND crossed with THEM somehow, yet
with also a slight late 1970s retro American Heartland Rock touch (a la
SOUTHSIDE JOHNNY). The Last Of The Bones is a great catchy boogie rhythm
driven uptempo 70s rocker which also has a sorta Southern Rock feeling like a
band such as DOC HOLIDAY. Baby When The Sun Goes Down was written by PETER
GREEN of FLEETWOOD MAC, made popular by SOUTHSIDE JOHNNY who covered it and
RAMRODS does a nice version as well here. We’re Gonna Roam is a change in
style, because this is quite a heavy song, combing 70s groovy classic hardrock
with a bit of 80s teutonic metal and also featuring lovely shredding
guitarwork. Turbulent Skies introduce us a TOM PETTY meets GEORGIA SATTELITES
kinda sound and is actually quite a catchy tune! Next track Loves Me Dearly
slows things down to a more balladry direction, yet with still a rocking
approach. Two of Our Kind is another slow tune, while Lost Highway picks up the
classic rock tempo again, with a lot of memories of THIN LIZZY and WISHBONE
ASH, especially the superb twin-guitarwork. Dolphins is another balladry based
tune, which in this case is a TIM BUCKLEY cover. The proggy epic Bracelet
Circus Suite follows and is pure 1970s based with some URIAH HEEP influences
here and there, although progrockfans will also like this song a lot due to its
lovely guitar melodies and interesting rhythmical structures. Closing track For
Jan is a nice keyboard-led tribute to their former keyboardplayer JAN ALBRECHT,
who sadly died after his brain was damaged during a football game when he
headed the football. Concluded, this is a great new RAMRODS album, which you
can check out at: https://www.ramrods.de/
(Points: 8.3 out of 10)
VARIOUS
ARTISTS 'PARTY FOR JOEY: A SWEET RELIEF TRIBUTE TO JOEY SPAMPINATO' (TRUE NORTH
RECORDS/CANADA IMPORT)
JOEY
SPAMPINATO is a singer/songwriter/bassist who was co-founder of the band NRBQ.
Sadly he is at the moment fighting the battle against cancer and to raise
awareness a group of musicians recorded songs written by Joey and release it as
a CD tribute to Joey in order to raise money for the Sweet Relief Musicians
Fund to support Joey with his current health issues. The result is a lovely
diverse album that contains in total 14 songs performed by established acts
like LOS LOBOS, BEN HARPER WITH KEITH RICHARDS, SHE & HIM, STEVE FORBERT,
BONNIE RAITT, CHRIS SPEDDING and many more. The musicstyles are very diverse
and include folk, jazz, singer/songwriter, Rock, RANDY NEWMANish material and
much more. The CD shows the enormous influence of Joey on the music world. The
CD is available through: https://truenorthrecords.bandcamp.com/album/a-sweet-relief-tribute-to-joey-spampinato
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
TIP JAR
‘ONE LIFETIME’ (SHINE A LIGHT RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
TIP JAR
is a Dutch act formed around singer/songwriters BART DE WIN and ARIANNE KNEGT,
who deliver a very nice folk driven singer/songwriter popalbum that also has
clear Celtic and Bluegrass influences, especially during such strong uptempo
pieces like Go On To get Lucky and Kiss Me. In between there are mostly calmer
songs included that will whet the appetite of fans of singer/songwriter pop.
Nice album and recommended to fans of calmer old school 70s singer/songwriter
music, such as best can be heard during Find Your Way, which reminds me of BOB
JAMES musically speaking, while CAROLE KING comes to mind due to Arianne’s
singing. Tell Me Something is one of the few more modern sounding (soulful)
pop/rock tunes, and this is also pretty good, while a song like the jazzy The
Right Words takes you straight back to the 1930s. They did a great job here
together with a few guest musicians creating a diverse record and I would
suggest you to check out more on them at: www.tipjar.nl
(Points:
7.7 out of 10)
ESQUELA
‘A SIGN FROM GOD’ (LIVESTOCK!/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
Out of
upstate New York, USA comes ESQUELA, a band with a rootsy rocksound that
already delivered 3 albums during the past 10 years. Now it’s time for their 4th album
of this shared female/male vocal driven 70s sounding band. Their line up
consists of vocalist Rebecca Frame, lead guitarist Brian Shafer, Chico Finn on
acoustic and vocals, Matt Woodin on guitar, Keith Christopher on bass and Mike
Ricciardi on drums. Together they create this classic authentic 70s American
rootsy rocksound with catchy melodies and a mostly strong uptempo rocking
approach, with as highlights Not In My Backyard (NIMBY), Oradura, Rest Of My
Life, First World Problems and 1861, while the only calmer song is the closing
track Wait For Me, which is a nice ballad. They sound a bit like TOM PETTY,
NEIL YOUNG, CALEXICO and such, but still with an own identity due to the shared
vocals and especially the powerful vocals of Rebecca sound very impressive.
Check them out at: www.esquelatheband.com
(Points:
8.1 out of 10)
NOLAN
MCKELVEY & RON JAMES ‘SONGS OF HOPE’ (GET ONUS STAY ONUS
MUSIC/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
American
Singer/songwriter NOLAN MCKELVEY and drummer RON JAMES joined forces and
recorded a great 6 tracks counting CD that is meant to inspire hope for
children and/or anyone in the fight against cancer. The resulting album, which
they recorded along with a lot of guest musicians, it is a strong melodic
pop/rock/Americana affair with a rockier uptempo approach here and there, yet
clearly focused on memorable melodies in the style of the legendary American
singer/songwriters such as JACKSON BROWNE, JAMES TAYLOR and JIM GROCE, although
a song like Root For The Holmes Team also reveals some jazzy fusion/westcoast
influences and you can even trace some blues influences in Sweet Remission. The
6 songs pass by very quickly, which is a pity, because it sounds really good,
especially due to the fantastic vocals of Nolan. Check out more at: www.nolanmckelvey.com
(Points:
8.2 out of 10)
NOLAN
MCKELVEY WITH MEGYN NEFF & TIM HOGAN ‘INTO THE SILENCE’
(INDEPENDENT/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
Besides
the album Nolan McKelvey recorded with Ron James recently, the American
singer/songwriter also released a new CD that contains a live recording he did
with bassist TIM HOGAN and violin player MEGYN NEFF (and Bob on drums on 1
song) on July 18, 2020 in an empty theater due to covid. The result is an
authentic singer/songwriter affair that includes previously unreleased songs.
Nolan has a wonderful voice that makes it a pleasure to listen to the material
and this live recording shows that he is live on stage a truly gifted musician.
More info at: www.nolanmckelvey.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
TASHAKI
MIYAKI ‘CASTAWAY’ (METROPOLIS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
Despite
the somewhat Japanese sounding bandname, TASHAKI MIYAKI comes out of L.A. and
this trio has been around since 2011. The lineup consists of guitarist LUKE
PAQUIN, bassist SANDI DENTON and drummer/singer/multi-instrumentalist PAIGE
STARK, who has a really beautiful voice. The included music is lovely
Dreampop/Shoegaze with a focus on lovely melancholic melodies. Castaway is
their 2nd full-length studio-album so far, but they did release
a lot of mini albums as well. Anyway, from start to finish this is a great
melodic calm sounding album that will please the fans of acts like MAZZY STAR
and BEACH HOUSE. 11 tracks are on the band’s new record and they are really a
joy to listen to, with as finest song the epic and rockier bonustrack Good
Times. It might not be original, but fans of the Dreampopsound of the
aforementioned acts will love this band! More info at: https://tashakimiyaki.bandcamp.com/album/castaway
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
MY
SWEETEST PUNCH ‘2’ (PARAPLY RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
Out of
Gothenburg, Sweden comes MY SWEETEST PUNCH and right from the start of their 2nd album
2, it is clear that we are dealing with something quite sensational, because
opener All I Need Is Love is a great modern yet retro 80s sounding midtempo
melodic pop/rock song with strong vocals, cheerful synths and a slightly
rocking sound besides the catchy chorus. They could well have been a British
band, but they are once again coming out of the beautiful and most music minded
country in the world, which is of course Sweden. I don’t have much info on the
band, but when following They Tell me kicks in, it’s obvious this is a great
band you absolutely need to check out, because this song is high class 70s
influenced uptempo Westcoast/AOR/Rock with another strong harmonyvocals driven
chorus. In total 10 songs are included and other highlights are To Someone
Called My Father, the midtempo 80s Afternoon In December (even a bit COCK
ROBINish), the uptempo 70s classic rock/powerpop ish Until I Die and Being Me.
MY SWEETEST PUNCH is a highly recommended band to the fans of classic 70s/80s
melodic pop/rock/aor and for more info please go to: https://www.facebook.com/mysweetestpunch/
(Points:
8.4 out of 10)
JACKSON
BROWNE ‘MY CLEVELAND HEART CD-SINGLE’ (INSIDE RECORDINGS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN
IMPORT)
Only 1
song is included on the CD-single of the legendary American
musician/singer/songwriter JACKSON BROWNE, but it’s already enough to make a
deep impact! My Cleveland Heart is a fantastic new Westcoast/Heartland Rocking
song by Jackson which easily reaches the level of his earlier classic
1970s/early 1980s work, so let’s hope for a new full length album of this
amazing legend very soon! It would be his first new album since 2014, so
fingers crossed, but this is a great teaser! More info at: https://www.jacksonbrowne.com/
(Points:
8.7 out of 10)
THE
BAND 'LIVE IN CHARLESTON 1994 VINYL RECORD' (LIVE ON
VINYL/OBITERDICTUM/ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS)
Back in 1993 the legendary American band
THE BAND reunited and released a new album titled Jericho, which was followed
by a tour. This particular vinyl release contains the recording of the concert
they gave at the Cultural Center, Charleston on January 23rd in
1994. Their line up consisted of 3 original members (LEVON HELM, GATH HUDSON,
RICK DANKO) and features a mix of old classics and new songs as well as a great
cover of the BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN classic Atlantic City. A total of 11 songs are
included and the sound is a bit raw here and there, especially during the
beginning when the vocals are not so clearly hearable, but as with a real
authentic live performance it takes a few minutes before a band really has the
right mood and when that happens with the songs Remedy and Blind Willie McTell,
THE BAND sounded as good as back in the 1970s. Towards the end of the 1990s THE
BAND eventually quit and with the passing of 4 out of 5 original members in the
past decades, the only remaining original member is ROBBIE ROBERTSON, who quit
the band after the first split in 1978 after the release of their 9th album
The Last Waltz. He never had the intention to rejoin them, so THE BAND more or
less will never perform as THE BAND again, although several ex-members of THE
BAND and the band that were formed around the late original member of THE BAND,
they have all continued to create new material and play THE BAND material under
different monikers. Anyway, this great live vinyl record contains a perfect mix
of old and new songs of a band that started as a backing band for BOB DYLAN, but
became a band on its own, which was simply named THE BAND. The record is
available through: http://www.odmcy.com/catalog/
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
LED
ZEPPELIN 'LIVE IN SCANDINAVIA 1969 PICTURE DISC' (LONDON CALLING
RECORDS/OBITERDICTUM/ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS)
I am
personally not that familiar with all the live bootleg album releases of LED
ZEPPELIN, but some of the recordings of their concerts have probably been
released multiple times before. Anyway, I received a lovely new picture disc of
their 1969 Scandinavia concerts, which took place in Stockholm and Copenhagen
back in March 1969 and I believe both were even broadcasted live on Swedish TV
and Radio back then. It marked the beginning of one of the most influential
rockbands of all times. Their debut album was just released and therefore the
included material of this new vinyl release of the 1969 concert is likewise
focused on songs from their debut except for the OTIS RUSH cover I Gotta Move.
LONDON CALLING is the name of the UK based record label that released this
wonderful picture disc, which should be in every collection. The sound is
superb, especially since it concerns recordings that originally took place more
than 50 years ago! The album is split into the Konzerthuset concert in
Stockholm, Sweden, 14th March 1969 (featuring the songs I Can't Quit You Baby
(5:54), I Gotta Move (3:33), Dazed & Confused (10:31) and How Many More
Times ( 2:10) on Side-A, while on Side-B of the record we can hear the Gladsaxe
concert in Copenhagen, Denmark, 17th March 1969 TV-BYEN (featuring the songs
Communication Breakdown (3:00), Dazed & Confused (9:14), Babe I'm Gonna
Leave You (6:49) and How Many More Times (12:51). It is almost unbelievable
that not only the sound quality is amazing, but also how good LED ZEPPELIN was
as early as 1969 when they had just been formed out of the ashes of THE
YARDBIRDS. The sensational long versions of the classics Dazed And Confused and
How Many More Times show that the band was on fire those nights and they were
more than ready to explode and conquer the rock world during the
following decade. The foursome around Jimmy Page (guitar), Robert Plant
(vocals), John Bonham (drums) and John Paul Jones (bass) filled the gap that
THE BEATLES was about to leave behind around the turn of the decade, and
eventually LED ZEPPELIN would become the most important British band of the
1970s. This early live recording is a must-have, because it sounds fabulous on
this new shiny beautiful looking picture disc. It’s available through: http://www.odmcy.com/catalog/
(Points:
8.8 out of 10)
JETHRO
TULL 'LIVE AT THE NEWPORT POP FESTIVAL 1969 VINYL RECORD' (LONDON CALLING
RECORDS/OBITERDICTUM/ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS)
The legendary band
JETHRO TULL was formed all the way back in 1967 and they are still active, so
that’s 54 years (!). The band’s leader is of course vocalist/guitarist/flautist
IAN ANDERSON, who was the founder and is the only original member, because during
those 54 years there have been numerous lineup changes. Anyway, way back
in 1969 they performed at the Newport Pop festival, of which now a vinyl record
has been released by LONDON CALLING RECORDS. The band was very original at the
time, because they combined Blues, Jazz, Folk and Hardrock, which eventually
would be labelled as Progressive Rock. JETHRO TULL became one of the major
players in the prog genre and when listening to this authentic recording from
their 1969 performance you can clearly hear they were innovative in a way many
bands were during the roaring late 1960s and early 1970s. Back then musicians
were free to do whatever they wanted and get away with it, because the albums
JETHRO TULL released after this important gig sold millions of records and
along with YES, RUSH and GENESIS, they were in the upper league of 1970s
Progressive Rock. Although the sound quality is a little rough, it is a
blessing to hear such a rare recording of the band from so long ago. Any fan of
the band should check out this unique vinyl record release of a concert that
took place 52 years ago! The record is available through https://londoncallingrecords.com/
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
JOHN
MAYALL & THE BLUESBREAKERS 'EUROPEAN UNION (LIVE IN THE UK & GERMANY)
VINYL RECORD' (LONDON CALLING RECORDS/OBITERDICTUM/ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS)
In 12 years from now the legendary British
blues guitarist JOHN MAYALL will turn 100 years of age! He started in the 1950s
and continues to play over 100 concerts each year. In his early days he played
with THE BLUESBREAKERS, which launched the career of many well-known musicians,
such as ERIC CLAPTON, PETER GREEN, JACK BRUCE, WALTER TROUT, MICK FLEETWOOD,
MICK TAYLOR, JOHN MCVIE and many more. Now there is a lovely vinyl record that
contains material recorded by radio (including BBC) back in the 1960s and
1970s. The sound quality is a little rough, but these concern unique
performances by not only John, but also ERIC CLAPTON, JOHN MCVIE and MICK
TAYLOR. Songs like On Top Of The World, Key To Love, Little Girl, Tears In My
Eyes and Love Me Baby If You Can are timeless classics that showed that John
was much further than the standard blues musicians back in the 1960s. Thanks to
John and of course his band and its members, it paved a complete new generation
of influential guitarists to start experimenting with the blues and this lasts
until the current day. Groundbreaking concerts took place back in the day and
this vinyl record captures a couple. The record is available through https://londoncallingrecords.com/
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
G.D.
PRAETORIUS ‘BABYSITTING A BAND ON THE ROCKS BOOK’ (SONIC BOND PUBLISHING/UK
IMPORT)
When
you were young back in the 1970s in the USA, then you would probably end up
being a rock fan, which also happened to G.D. PRAETORIUS, who even got involved
in the production of stage shows in the music business back then. The man was
active during the 1970s and 1980s when he became part of rockshows like it was
never seen before, because they became bigger and bigger. He eventually left
the music business, but due to his involvement in the production of almost 200
shows, he experienced a lot what happened during those shows. The book he wrote
contains some real great stories, which you just have to read for yourself.
Almost all the big acts from the 70s and 80s are discussed, such as AEROSMITH,
AC/DC, VAN HALEN, PINK FLOYD, RITCHIE BLACKMORE, JETHRO TULL, YES and countless
more. Recommended book to read during the sunny days! The book is available
through www.sonicbondpublishing.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
GEOFFREY FEAKES ‘ON TRACK… STEVE HACKETT BOOK’ (SONIC
BOND PUBLISHING/UK IMPORT)
Guitarist
STEVE HACKETT will be personally for me always be remembered for releasing a
superb Pomprock album with the band GTR back in the mid-1980s and of course for
his time with GENESIS during the 1970. However, let’s not forget Steve is
actually mainly active as a solo performer, which he already did when in
GENESIS during the 1970s. The book as written by GEOFFREY FEAKES in the On
Track series is covering all of the solo albums Steve released during his long
solo career, including his new 2021 release At The Edge Of Light. Geoffrey is a
well-respected author and music journalist who also writes for the DUTCH
PROGRESSIVE ROCK PAGE, so he knows what he’s writing about here. STEVE HACKETT
fans will absolutely love to check it out, but thanks to the way of writing by
Geoffrey it is a recommended book to any music fan, because Steve covered so
many genres on his solo albums, which makes it interesting to read about
it in detail. The book is available through www.sonicbondpublishing.com
(Points:
8.2 out of 10)
PETER BRAIDIS ‘ON TRACK… ASIA BOOK’ (SONIC BOND
PUBLISHING/UK IMPORT)
The On
Track series continues with another edition, this time it concerns the
legendary band ASIA. Of course there are a few chapters within the ASIA
line-up, because they switched singers a few times, with JOHN WETTON leaving
and returning several times, even in the early years. Thankfully I have been
able to watch ASIA in their (almost) original line up when they made a sort of
comeback to their early sound about 15 years ago. Of course their years with
JOHN PAYNE on vocals should also not be overlooked and that’s what makes this
book a real interesting one to read. However, the first 3 ASIA albums are the
real classics and as soon as I was going through the content of this book and
read all about those ASIA songs, I was immediately eager to play them. Like in
the other books of On Track, the author is getting into full detail on all the
songs of ASIA, so any fan of the band will love reading such detailed
information about them. The author PETER BRAIDIS is a graduate in History and
Journalism and as a young boy he bought the first ASIA album back in 1982, and
from then on his love for the band started, with now as result a book he wrote
on ASIA. Without a doubt, a must-have book for any loyal fan of the band and
the late JOHN WETTON. It’s available through www.sonicbondpublishing.com
(Points:
8.3 out of 10)
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