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Satanic Curses
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Special edition with bonus tracks."At first, I was somewhat unsure what I was going to get when I was sent this promo. The name seemed to be an attempt at a funny pun on the name of a “Harry Potter” character from my childhood. Then I read the press release, and just who was involved and realised it was going to be something awesome. Featuring ex-HELLOWEEN member Roland Grapow on guitars, as well as Thomen Stauch, who used to be in BLIND GUARDIAN, amongst other particularly good musicians, I just knew it was going to be a power metal treat.The album opens up with “I Seek No Other Life” and we’re straight into awesome riff territory, and some fantastically delivered vocals from Urban Breed, combined with awesome riffs and a powerful rhythm section, further developed by some nice bombastic keyboard melodies from Jan Vacik (ex-DREAMSCAPE). This is followed by “High And Low” and this has an awesome main melody that meets perfectly with the powerful chorus as well. A nice sense of groove really moves this song along.Some nice piano melodies open up “Sealing My Fate” in a delicate fashion, with some equally soft vocals here, before the song slams into a nice heavy yet melodic riff. This song has a really nice powerful chorus, and some great playing throughout. “Temple Of The Sun” is an instrumental with a fitting melody considering the title, with a highly symphonic sound to it, which then slams into “Akhenaton”, which is of course thematically similar to its instrumental introduction. This one has a real STRATOVARIUS feel to it, with really good use of dynamics in amongst some fantastic musical moments.“My Mystic Mind” is a real hard hitting track with some great guitar melodies and some nice use of dynamics, clashing stabbing guitars with piano melodies in a really interesting way. “Trail Of Murder” is straight off the bat a fantastic song, with some great guitar riffs meeting some tasty melodies. Again, the strong sense of dynamics is at play here, with lots going on in the song.Title-track “As Daylight Breaks” is a softer track, mainly relying on symphony and vocals to carry the track, with some really well performed parts all around making this a nice emotional sounding track with plenty of build and atmosphere. “Setting Fire To The Earth” follows this up and this one feels like PRAYING MANTIS on steroids, with heavy riffs and some great lyrical themes and vocal harmonies colliding to form a great track.Penultimate track, “Listen To The Storm”, builds an aptly moody atmosphere to start off with, with thunderous sounds meeting some nice guitar parts. The song develops nicely as it goes, with a really nice catchy chorus!The album ends on “Older And Wiser” and this is a nice high energy power metal track to finish things off, with some nice virtuosic playing and a nice fast pace throughout. This closes the album on a real nice note, leaving you feel pumped up and ready for more.The production is spot on, everything has a nice sense of power to it when needed, and softer moments are also equally well done. All the different things that are going on are mixed nicely, from heavy guitars to the softest piano moments. The vocals are also really nicely done, and a heavy rhythm section sound really powers this album along.“As Daylight Breaks” is a must-have for fans of Power Metal the way it should be done, there’s heavy and melodic riffs, soaring vocals, and great songwriting throughout this mammoth of an album. Keep your eyes peeled for this in 2015." - Metal Temple$9.00 -
"It took almost 20 years for German power metal masters IRON SAVIOR to release a live DVD/CD. The band, founded in 1996 by Piet Sielck, Kai Hansen (Gamma Ray) and Thomen Stauch (ex-Blind Guardian), has unleashed eight studio albums since then and has just recently issued a reworked version (remixed, remastered, partly re-recorded) of their Megatropolis album, titled 'Megatropolis 2.0'. Now with their first ever DVD, IRON SAVIOR will satisfy their fans again completely: 'Live At The Final Frontier' includes the band's recent hometown concert (Hamburg, Germany January 2015) on DVD and 2CDs (as package in digipack format). Additional bonus (video) material (backstage/concert) rounds off this extensive package, which is a must-have for all IRON SAVIOR fans!"$12.00 -
"Steve Thorne returns with his fourth album, playing the majority of the instruments bar Nick D’Virgilio (Cirque Du Soleil/ex-Spock’s Beard) and Bob White on drums with Tony Levin and Gary Chandler (Jadis) also guesting. Also former IQ member Martin Orford pops out of musical retirement to play flute on two songs.What I like about Steve Thorne is his strong and topical lyrics, coupled with melodies that transcend the prog rock genre he is often lumped in. A bit like It Bites, Steve Thorne’s music can take in many musical influences to create an entertaining and enjoyable listen.‘Already Dead’ looks at modern culture and how modern technology can turn us into a nation of zombies. Good way to start the album with the heaviest and most aggressive song on the album. ‘Everything Under The Sun’ is a lovely piece of music, albeit rather sad as an older person looks back on their life and realises how alone they are now. The melodic vocal and subdued music add greatly to the song. ‘Distant Thunder’ is the nearest to classic Brit prog rock on the album, whilst Martin Orford’s flute expands the sound of ‘Moth To A Flame’ nicely. ‘Bullets & Babies’ again sees the heavier side of Steve Thorne’s work come to the fore tackling the subject of boy soldiers and how war affects people from an early age.An artist where you can start with any of his albums to date and not be disappointed. As mentioned previously Steve Thorne can appeal to the prog rock fans but also a wider audience who appreciate melodic rock with thought provoking lyrics." - Get Ready To Rock$14.00 -
Not sure what needs to be said about this album - I get weepy eyed just thinking about the first time I heard it. One of the greatest progressive rock albums of all time - residing in my all time top 10. The best album Pink Floyd never made. Extraordinary, expansive space rock journeys that will transport you to another place and time. This long awaited remaster comes with two non-lp bonus cuts: "Child Migration" and "Let The Sun Rise In My Brain". Essential listening!!!Please note this disc incorporates EMI copy control technology which seems to allow you to do whatever it is you would normally do with a CD but you can't rip it. Bummer.$13.00 -
"Alternative Rock is not a genre that graces my ears very often, but as always, they are open; as is my mind. The funny thing is, any time I am exposed to something I wouldn't normally find myself listening to, there is always something about that band that has my wanting attention for one reason or another, be it the sound of the vocalist, the mixing, or those infectious hooks in the chorus. For its genre, the ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN (formerly AGUA DE ANNIQUE) is perfectly postulated and is a leading act, with their non-repetitive writing (something I hear too often in commercial rock), excellent vocals and songs leaving you burning with an urge to sing along.Their latest release, "Drive", is no exception; as an album, it proves to be versatile, with no two songs sounding identical, but every song keeping the rhythm and mood to make the album fit piece by piece. "We Live On" feels like a typical pop-rock track, upbeat and driving, with an extremely powerful vocal performance in the choruses by Van Giersbergen. "Treat Me Like A Lady" does not want to be treated like a lady, and takes a noticeably heavier tone, brimming with attitude. "She" begins ever so modestly, making us think we're brought back to some level of calm, but explodes into an incredibly fast-paced chorus for such a Rock band, and includes yet another infectious chorus; something that is fast becoming an obvious highlight. "Drive" – I adore the sound of the bass in this song, the way it is dislocated from the drums, adds another dynamic. Van Giersbergen's even more stellar performance in the chorus demonstrates her large vocal range and versatility. Save for electric bass, "My Mother Said" is an entirely acoustic song and is the softest, most heartfelt song on the album; the band's namesake flawlessly demonstrates her ability to fit her voice around any song to emote any mood wants. "Forgive Me" is especially different, demonstrating unusual chord progressions, totally different instrumentation, and revealing even more, the extent of control that Van Giersbergen has over her range. "You Will Never Change" is upbeat and punchy, through-and-through with an – okay, let us just assume that every song on this album has an infectious chorus; definitely one of my favorites on the album. "Mental Jungle" begins with a strange, Arabic-sounding vocal melody, also featured on the chorus; I do indeed also love this chorus, as well as the interesting chord progressions. Quite easily the most unique song on the album, it strays from the pipeline rock sound that this record has been purveying. "Shooting for the Stars" takes the cake for the 'radiorock' track on the album, where every note, every beat, every lyric, screams commercialism and airtime. Not necessarily a bad song, but not the most interesting on the album. The album closes with "The Best Is Yet To Come" which makes me thing, Anneke has even better music to offer us in the future? The song itself takes first place on the album for me; the presence of the overdriven guitars and bass compliment her voice perfectly to create a powerful and catchy, yet Heavy Rock track, with interesting and unpredictable licks and hooks.Van Giersbergen and her band are quickly cementing themselves as one of Europe's currently most powerful and gorgeous-sounding rock groups, whom don't necessarily always cling to the commercialized, radio cliché sound, although no doubt perfectly suited to long air time. Coming from a metal head who listens to a fair share of female singers, I believe she could sing anything she wanted to, and the band of musicians that have got together and recorded this organic album with her have done so masterfully, and I'm not sure if the best is yet to come." - Metal Temple$14.00 -
"When one thinks of countries that are a hotbed of prog metal bands, places such as Norway, Sweden, and Finland come to mind. However the Land Down Undah’ otherwise known as Australia has been churning out amazing prog metal bands for the past decade. Bands such as Hemina, Voyager, Lord, Carnivool, Caligula’s Horse, Teramaze and Melbourne’s Vanishing Point have been wowing the prog metal scene for the past decade. It’s been seven long years since the release of Vanishing Point’s The Fourth Season, but the melodic metal quintet consisting of Silvio Massaro (Vocals), Chris Porcianko and James Maier (Guitars), Simon Best (Bass), and Christian Nativo (Drums) have finally returned with their fifth studio album Distant Is The Sun on AFM Records. The band has stayed true to their unique blend of progressive, power, AOR metal and have secured the talents of Sebastian “Seeb” Levermann of Ordan Ogen for mixing duites on Distant Is The Sun. Picking up right where The Fourth Season left off, the musicianship and songwriting on Distant Is The Sun is exceptional.The album kicks off with the short instrumental track Beyond Redemption and powers right into the first song King of Empty Promises. The double bass drum attack from Nativo and melodic keyboards lead the way and the harmonious soaring vocals during the chorus are a perfect way to officially start the album.The title track is next and begins with a heavy groove and transforms into a light piano tinged verses with Massaro’s impressive vocals leading to a catchy and melodic chorus. The twin guitar harmony lead attack from Porcianko and Maier is a thing of beauty during the solo section.Symphonic keys signify the start of When Truth Lies, an epic slab of energetic melodic progressive metal with a driving headbanging beat. Sonata Arctica frontman Tony Kaako lends his melodic pipes to the fast and furious power metal of Circle of Fire. Kaako and Massaro’s vocals compliment each other extremely well and create an amazing metal duet.The keyboard prominence on Denied Deliverance is pronounced in the mix but never overshadows the heaviness of the track, it just adds to the overall melody of the song. A blazing guitar solo section highlights the middle portion of another stellar song. Let the River Run has an impeccable acappella vocal harmony section that begins this mid tempo metal gem. The beautiful vocals during the chorus will be stuck in your head for days after listening.The album slows down for the piano based Story of Misery but don’t be fooled into thinking this is a traditional power ballad. The emphasis is on POWER with a emotive vocal performance from Massaro. Era Zero speeds things right back up with a frenzied double kick attack with plenty of soaring melodic vocals throughout and a shredding guitar solo from the tandem of Porcianko/Maier and culminates in a symphonic ending and bursts right into Pillars of Sand which keeps the hard and fast metal flowing.The eerie keyboard intro of As December Fades melds into a Maiden-esque guitar harmony and a glorious AOR sounding chorus with a symphonic element that is reminiscent of Within Temptation. A bright piano melody signals the beginning of Handful of Hope. Once again Massaro gets his chance to shine with an impressive vocal performance filled with passion and emotion. The bands penchant for writing catchy power metal is on display on Walls of Silence. The brilliant symphonic melodies and heavy guitar compliment each other perfectly. The album closes with the acoustic guitar tinged instrument titled April, an understated yet effective piece of music with a keyboard accompaniment underneath in the mix. It is a curious choice to end the album, but well done nonetheless.After a seven-year absence, the world of melodic prog welcomes back Vanishing Point with open arms and hopefully Distant Is The Sun will shoot the band to the next level of popularity outside their native Australia. This goes to show that like a fine wine, Vanishing Point only improves with age!" - Lady Obscure$15.00 -
" Living Madness, available everywhere June 16, is VANGOUGH's crowd-funded live CD that was recorded while on tour with Pain of Salvation last fall. Topping just over 40 minutes with seven tracks; Living Madness is a testament to VANGOUGH's unhinged and dominating live performances, which touched down in such cities as New York City, Toronto, Seattle and San Diego among others.Taking a cue from their 2013 album Between the Madness, VANGOUGH have upped the ante in terms of ferocity as is displayed here on their live release. Featuring tracks from across the band's career, including a medley from 2009's debut Manikin Parade, fans will be very pleased to hear their favorite tracks in a new way. "Seeing as this was our very first tour, we wanted to capture all the raw energy and emotion you'd expect from a first-time touring act."Recorded by guest guitarist Cameron Conyer, Living Madness was then mixed back in Dallas by long-time collaborator and producer Sterling Winfield. "I love working with Sterling and always trust him to produce a killer mix." The band also connected with famed album artist Travis Smith for the cover. "We felt like it was time to further shift the artwork into a more brooding and disturbing direction as is befitting of where we're headed. Travis' vision fit perfectly with ours.""Most importantly, this album was made possible by our amazing fans who backed us via our Kickstarter campaign. We are truly humbled by their show of support and hope that this album is a reflection of how hard we work to bring you the very best that VANGOUGH has to offer.""$10.00 -
"What do you get when you take a rough and ready Germanic power metal band and add two members of Blind Guardian? You get a better rough and ready Germanic power metal band. Sinbreed is that band and features the talents of Blind Guardian guitarist Marcus Siepen and drummer Frederik Ehmke, which gives them some instant musical credibility and clout. Their 2009 debut When World’s Collide was a rock solid slab of slick, but angry metal in the vein of modern Accept, Herman Frank and Paragon and Shadows improves on that template with even more raspy, Udo-like vocals and thrashy guitar lines. These cats don’t go in for the frilly aspects of Euro-power and prefer to pummel and attack with aggression while maintaining enough melody to hook you in. That makes Shadows a feisty, ill-tempered collection of speedy riffs, catchy choruses, and pissed off attitude, and when power metal is done this well, it’s pretty hard to resist. Not revolutionary, but it sure satisfies that need for edgy power sans pirate shirt.If you loved the last two Accept albums, songs like “Bleed” and “Call to Arms” will go down gangbusters. Lots of fast, in-your-face riffs and the excellently raspy roar of Herbie Langhans combine for some headbanging good times with all the Germanic flair you expect from acts like Grave Digger, but this is much better and more jacked up. It’s one speedster after another, each with a more than adequate chorus and ample nutsack. Sometimes they remind a bit of Steel Attack (title track), others times there’s a distinct Steel Prophet feel to the songs (“Leaving the Road”). Regardless of what influences they borrow from, they keep things straight-ahead, simple and rocking.Tunes like “Reborn,” ”Black Death” and “London Moon” have simple, memorable refrains and manage to be catchy without dialing back on the aggression. Most songs ride along on simple, but heavy riff patterns and rely on Herbie’s vocals to do the heavy lifting, pausing only for some satisfying, if typical power metal solos. It’s a simple approach, but it works for them, though there isn’t much difference from song to song and things do start to bleed together a little on the album’s back-end.Speaking of Herbie’s vocals, he’s a helluva good front man for this type of music. He has the raspy, gravely style down pat and reminds me a lot of new Accept singer Mark Tornillo. He has quite the powerful range and can hit all sorts of interesting notes when he so desires. He also has a bit of Bruce Dickinson’s flair and swagger hiding between his harsher approach (especially on “Standing Tall”) and it helps put the music over and make an impression. Marcus Siepen and Flo Laurin deliver the badass riffage required for this style and their solo work is pretty nifty (especially on “Broken Wings”). Nothing they do will make you fall out of a chair, but they manage to keep things moving for all ten songs and the album feels like it goes by quickly, which is a good thing.A typical dose of Teutonic terror, but a very good one, Shadows blasts away with all barrels, stays very consistent and checks all the required boxes on Yea Olde Power Metal Checklist. These guys are one of my favorite bands of this ilk and between them, Accept and Herman Frank, I get all the Germanic rage I can handle at my advanced age. If you need more muscle in your power metal, these guys have the iron injection ready to go. Go heavy or go home." - Angry Metal Guy$12.00 -
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Remastered with 2 bonus tracks."Judas Priest's major-label debut Sin After Sin marks their only recording with then-teenage session drummer Simon Phillips, whose technical prowess helps push the band's burgeoning aggression into overdrive. For their part, K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton employ a great deal more of the driving, palm-muted power-chord picking that would provide the basic rhythmic foundation of all but the most extreme heavy metal from here on out. Sin After Sin finds Priest still experimenting with their range, and thus ends up as perhaps their most varied outing. Yet despite the undeniably tremendous peaks here, the overall package doesn't cohere quite as well as on Sad Wings of Destiny, simply because the heavy moments are so recognizable as the metal we know today that the detours stick out as greater interruptions of the album's flow. The proggy ballad "Last Rose of Summer" is the biggest departure here, with florid lyrics and "red blood/white snow" imagery that would be fully at home on any goth rock band's most depressing bedsit dirges. "Here Come the Tears" is musically dissimilar, with heavy guitars and Halford's downcast wailing, but it's just as lyrically mopey. These two sit rather uneasily against the viciousness of the more metallic offerings. Classic opener "Sinner" is packed with driving riffs, sophisticated guitar interplay (including a whammy-bar freakout during a slower middle section), a melody that winds snakily upward, and nifty little production tricks doubtless inspired by Queen. A galloping, fully metallic reimagining of the Joan Baez folk tune "Diamonds and Rust" is a smashing success, one of the most effective left-field cover choices in metal history. "Starbreaker" is the first of many "alien monsters from the sky!" tunes in the band's catalog. Proggy, churchy guitar intro "Let Us Prey" quickly leads into the speed-burner "Call for the Priest," which may just be the earliest building block in the construction of speed metal, and features some of Tipton and Downing's most impressive twin-guitar harmonies yet. "Raw Deal" is a less immediate metal offering that faintly recalls the band's blues-rock roots, though it may be most interesting for the blatant lyrical references to S&M bars and gay haven Fire Island, not to mention an unmistakable endorsement of gay rights. Things close on a high note with the utterly stunning "Dissident Aggressor," one of the heaviest songs in the band's catalog, so much so that it was covered (and not outdone) by Slayer. Once the bludgeoning main riff abruptly kicks in, Halford screams at what must be the very top of his range; a completely manic Phillips offers some of the earliest double-bass drumming in metal; and the crazed guitar solos prove that Tipton and Downing had more than just pure technique at their disposal. It's not a stretch to say that at the time of its release, "Dissident Aggressor" was probably the heaviest metal song of all time. It's the biggest sign here that as good as Judas Priest already was, they were on the verge of something even greater. In what must seem like a much bigger oddity now, the inaugural American tour that ensued found them opening for REO Speedwagon and Foreigner." - Allmusic Guide$7.50 -
"True in the name of fantasy, true in the name of what is Metal and the heavenly meaning of life of enjoyment and partying, looking for the right thrill. It is above and beyond being mere serious about things, it is about letting yourself out, free as bird, or an eagle in the sky looking for chances, for its next prey. Keeping it steady as they go, not abiding by any other contemporary trend, there is the German FREEDOM CALL, a veteran band led by Chris Bay, no short or far in their musical range than late 80’s / early 90’s HELLOWEEN along with a hefty dosage of mid to late 90’s GAMMA RAY, retaining it Teutonic, massively melodic and bombastically memorable as it can be. Following a tight stature, FREEDOM CALL is about to release their eighth album, “Beyond”, via SPV / Steamhammer Records. Though easily a reminiscent of everything that is considered German Metal, minus ACCEPT, or melodically within the German Metal scene, this album strongly positioned FREEDOM CALL as a free spirit, implementing flowing and smooth songativity, a measure of cheerfulness, plenty of imagination but with a distinct upfront Power Metal prowess.Fortunately, I had the chance to write about the band’s previous, “Land Of The Crimson Dawn”, and also the “Legend Of The Shadowking” album, and it helped me to keep a certain perspective with “Beyond”. Scouring and molesting this album for countless of times, it made me realize how glued I was to the songs. It is fairly true that FREEDOM CALL are the last band to be recognized as genuine, especially with the adjacent proximity to GAMMA RAY (Sometimes even Chris Bay sounds like Kai Hansen) and at times one would notice how their melodic guitaring, meaning the leads and licks aren’t that varied and being represented as clichés under equally similar templates in different versions. However, in an awkward kind of way, this foursome crew has the ability to keep certain elements as their own, for example their commendable lust for life that inspired positivity within their tunes, adhering party like tracks of Traditional Metal, leaving Hard Rock and emotive AOR behind, while flaring the Boogie with heaviness and class. In overall, “Beyond” felt less dark, needless to say sinister, than its previous contenders. On the contrary, it is much more welcoming, haunting, harmonic, fluent songwriting that somewhat focused on the traditional structure of 80’s oriented songs along with emphasizing the choruses that are the bread and butter for any sing along. Instrumentally, I noticed raging rhythm guitar heavy riffery and brick wall rhythm section searing speed junkets by the book, while pampering all the merits that preserved German Metal’s influence. Also several tuned thundered with wonderful soloing and of course, hard to pass it by, tremendous vocal performance under an extraordinary vocal production, nothing shorter than a semi operatic conclusion.Thus, while virtually crossing the hour mark, “Beyond” felt as if it was much shorter in length, it passed me by so rapidly that I just had to push the play button once again to let the material sweep me for another outing. “Heart Of A Warrior” is yet another war hero track, a hymn that is one of the many that signaled me why Metal music is the best thing that ever happened to, a classic Power Metal emblem that had me thinking of early HAMMERFALL, specifically due to its emphatic chorus. “Paladin” and “Follow Your Heart”, a chain of two hits, one by one they barraged my essence with memorable sheer moments of heavenly glory, musically nothing really changed, captivating melodic turmoil, sparkling with a few heavier passages, yet I was more obsessed by production of the vocals, typically on these two, multi channeled fury highlighting an imposing spiritual release, riding into the night under the wings of a dragon. “Beyond”, could be mistaken as the album’s epic, yet though its length, it is nothing of a sort from my end. This song’s character is the precise formula and means for the creation of an ultimate Power Metal track tracking over seven minutes. Infusing GAMMA RAYish harmonic main lead guitar riff, bombastically treading near operatic proportions and combining them with both slow to fast tempo drum ignitions, you may have yourself a winner, an ultimate song that will carry you with it for just enough time for you to grasp it straightforwardly.FREEDOM CALL, in their own special way, might be disjointed a bit from what is happening around them, as our existence became harsher over the years, however, they remained true to their previous forms, snubbed Hard Rock a bit in favor of hard to the bone Metal, reoccurring themselves occasionally but in this here release formed a heartwarming demonstration of notable songwriting that would cause you to bite the bullet time and time again." - Metal Temple$15.00 -
Beautiful second album from this Greek symphonic rock band fronted by the etherial vocals of Evangelia Kozoni. Ciccada is a quartet but this time around they are augmented by a number of musicians including Johan Brand of Anglagard. Mellotron not withstanding the music has a very strong folk component. Given the lead instrumentation blend of flute, guitar, and keys I'm often reminded of the first White Willow album "Ignis Fatuus" but if you wanted to throw in a comparison to Tull's "Thick As A Brick" I guess I wouldn't argue. What the hell - let's throw in all those obscure British female fronte folk bands of the 70s. You know who I'm talking about. Heavyweight gatefold sleeve. Highly recommended.$26.00 -
"Pantera's back, and all is as wrong with the world as it ever was. They're going to make sure you know it, too. Despite the four-year absence from the studio between Great Southern Trendkill and Reinventing the Steel, Pantera's unflagging aggression is confirmed by the full-throttle rhythms, throat-ripping vocals, and crunchy guitars. Call it their Metallica legacy, except that Pantera are more Metallica than Metallica these days. Heavy metal of this breed may be past its heyday, but Pantera's not going away quietly. In fact, evidence suggests that they're not going away at all--no matter how low you keep the volume knob, Reinventing the Steel is loud, loud, loud!" --Genevieve Williams$9.00
