Tag Archives: review

Feature: The GRTR! Grotto of Greatness – MARILLION (July 2023)

Posted on July 1, 2023 by GRTR! HQ

Photo: David Randall Self sufficient free spirits who keep getting better, and in spite of “Sugar Mice”… Marillion’s entry into our hallowed portal coincides with the period that they have been self-sufficient. By 1998 ostracised by the likes of EMI … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, FEATURES, GRTR!@20, The GRTR! Grotto of Greatness | Tagged classic rock, feature, Ian Mosley, Marillion, Mark Kelly, Pete Trewavas, prog, Progressive Rock, review, Steve Hogarth, Steve Rothery | Leave a comment

Album review: GAMMA – What’s Gone Is Gone (The Complete Elektra Recordings))

Posted on June 28, 2023 by brianmc

Cherry Red [Release date: 30.06.23] CD1: GAMMA 1 (1979) CD2: GAMMA 2 (1980) CD3: GAMMA 3 (1982) The first 3 CDs from Ronnie Montrose’s band, Gamma, come nicely packaged this month, with each one including a couple of bonus tracks, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues | Tagged Alan Fitzgerald, albums, boxset, Davey Pattison, Denny Carmassi, Hagar, hard rock, Heart, Night Ranger, review, Ronnie Montrose, Van Halen | Leave a comment

Album review: THE JOHN WILLIAMS SYNDICATE – Into The Light

Posted on June 27, 2023 by petefeenstra

Pete Feenstra chatted to John Williams for his show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio playing tracks from the new album. First broadcast 2 July 2023. Wulfrun Records [Release date 23.07.23] When a gamekeeper turns poacher, or in this case … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Blondy, Claudia Brucken, ELO, Elvis Costello, interview, Into The Light, John Moore, John Williams, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Nicki Leighton-Thomas, Petula Clark, producer, radio, review, singer, Slicko DiCaprio, songwriter, The John Williams Syndicate | Leave a comment

Album review : FRIJID PINK – The Deram Recordings 1970-1971 (2 CDs)

Posted on June 27, 2023 by brianmc

Cherry Red [Release date 30.06.23] A two CD package, comprising Detroit band, Frijid Pink’s first two albums. Sometimes the movies crossover into popular music. One quote that rings true and often crops up is William Goldman’s “nobody knows anything”. Frequently, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues | Tagged Blues/Rock, Cream, Detroit, hard rock, Led Zeppelin, psychedelic, review, The Animals, William Goldman | Leave a comment

Album review: KEELEY – Floating Above Everything Else

Posted on June 26, 2023 by jason

Bandcamp [Release date 30.06.23] To some, music is a drug, constantly searching for that new high that will set the pulses racing and synapses firing. In a world of identikit artists all vying for airplay and sales, it’s a thing of … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged Alan Maguire, album, alt pop, Floating Above Everything Else, Keeley, Keeley Moss, pop. melodic, review, rock | Leave a comment

Album review: SOUNDSCAPISM INC. – Staring Down On Incandescent Cities

Posted on June 25, 2023 by jason

EtherealSoundWorks [Release date 20.07.23] Fifth album by Soundscapism Inc., the musical project created by Bruno A, who handles the production and the majority of the instruments on the album, along with composing all the music and writing the lyrics (save for … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, ambient, electronica, experimental, progressive, review, rock, Soundscapism Inc, Staring Down On Incandescent Cities | Leave a comment

Album review : BIG COUNTRY – Driving To Damascus (Deluxe 4CD boxset)

Posted on June 24, 2023 by brianmc

Cherry Red [Release date: 30.6.23] The late great Stuart Adamson and his band, Big Country, made an indelible musical mark on UK popular culture before the man’s untimely demise. The history is well documented. The nineties was a hugely fertile … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged Big Country, boxset, Driving To Damascus, Nashville, Ray Davies, review, Stuart Adamson, the nineties, USA | Leave a comment

Album review: LEAH WAYBRIGHT – Dreamed

Posted on June 22, 2023 by GRTR! HQ

Invasion Merch [Release date 17.07.23] One of the great things about GRTR! as we reflect on our twenty year lifespan is the eclectic nature of our brief. We don’t ever feel compelled to review the latest Jethro Tull or Yes … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, classical, Dreamed, Gary Blu, Happy The Man, instrumental, jazz, Leah Waybright, Mark Wood, review, Rick Kennell, Stanley Whitaker | Leave a comment

Album review: MVI (Mark Vickness Interconnected) – In The Rain Shadow

Posted on June 22, 2023 by GRTR! HQ

www.markvickness.com [Release date 17.05.23] “Sit back, pour a glass of your favourite tipple, and let this album wash over you.” That’s what I wrote about ‘Interconnected’ in 2020 making it one of my “best ofs” that year. And it could … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, classical, fusion, jazz, Mark Vickness Interconnected, MVI, new age, review | Leave a comment

Album review : ROBIN GEORGE – Ace In My Hand (2CD)

Posted on June 21, 2023 by brianmc

Cherry Red [Release date 23.06.23] What can you say about Robin George that hasn’t already been said? He seems to have been circling under rock’n’roll’s radar forever, ready to land, but never making that last critical step. Considering that the … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged 2 CDs, Ace In My Hand, album, Dave Holland, Def Leppard, melodic rock, Pete Goalby, Pete Wright, review, Robin George, seventies, Terry Rowley, Thin Lizzy, Trapeze, Uriah Heep | Leave a comment

Album review: JAN JAMES – Time Bomb

Posted on June 16, 2023 by jason

www.janjames.com [Release date b28.07.23] Jan James 2020 release ‘Justify’ was a decent set of blues & soul numbers and now we have her latest release, again recorded and written with her partner Craig Calvert (who also plays guitar and bass … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, blues rock, Craig Calvert, Jan James, Motown, review, rock, rock 'n' roll, soul, Time Bomb | Leave a comment

Singles review: JOSH TAERK, SUZI QUATRO, ALICE COOPER, DEGREED

Posted on June 16, 2023 by jason

JOSH TAERK Hold On Virginia AMG/Sony Music Josh is well known to readers of this site, and indeed listeners of GRTR! Radio, as his monthly live sessions with his family have been a treat since 2020. Now we have a new … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, Single and EP reviews | Tagged Alice Cooper, Coney Hatch, country, Degreed, Josh Taerk, KT Tunstall, new music, pop, pop rock, review, rock, singles, Suzi Quatro | Leave a comment

Album review: PRIDE OF LIONS – Dream Higher

Posted on June 14, 2023 by brianmc

Frontiers [Release date 16.06.23] Seventh studio album from Pride Of Lions. The “Survivor” name has been purged from all official publicity associated with Peterik for legal reasons, but anyone who is at all interested in the genre well knows Peterik’s … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged .38 Special, Jim Peterik, Lynyrd Skynyrd, melodic rock, review, Rocky, Survivor, Toby Hitchcock | Leave a comment

Album review : STARDUST – Kingdom Of Illusion

Posted on June 12, 2023 by brianmc

Frontiers [Release date: 16.06.23] Hungarian band, Stardust kick off their album with ‘War’ as the opening track. Given current events, there was always someone who’d climb on the bandwagon. Lets move on. There’s a welcome familiarity to Stardust’s melodic rock, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Cinderella, Eclipse, HEAT, Hungary, Kingdom Of Illusion, melodic rock, review, Stardust, WET | Leave a comment

Album review: GARDNER JAMES – No Strings

Posted on June 11, 2023 by brianmc

Frontiers [Release date 09.06.23] Gardner James is Justin James, who has worked with Staind and Tyketto. And Janet Gardner, who was of course vocalist with Vixen. Their history is well documented online. A pithy rock band riff can be just … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues rock, Janet Gardner, Justin James, LA, melodic rock, review, Staind, Tyketto, Vixen, Von Groove | Leave a comment

Album review: THE GUESS WHO – Plein D’Amour

Posted on June 11, 2023 by jason

Deko Entertainment [Release date 07.07.23] The Guess Who’s 2018 album, ‘The Future IS What It Used to Be’, wasn’t bad at all, maybe a bit too AOR/melodic rock for diehard fans, possibly due to Styx’s Tommy Shaw having a large … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Deko Entertainment, hard rock, melodic rock, Plein D'Amour, review, rock, The Guess Who | Leave a comment

Album review: GOV’T MULE – Peace…Like A River

Posted on June 11, 2023 by jason

Fantasy Records [Release date 16.06.23] Formed in the mid 90s as an offshoot of the reformed Allman Brothers, and led by guitarist Warren Haynes, this is the Mule’s 13th studio album. The band have long had a reputation of injecting … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, blues rock, classic rock, Gov't Mule, guitarist, Peace...Like A River, review, rock, southern rock, The Allman Brothers, Warren Haynes | Leave a comment

Album review: BLACK SABBATH – Live Evil

Posted on June 11, 2023 by jason

WIN a copy of Live Evil! BMG [Release date 02.06.23] 1982, and twelve years after their debut, the fathers of heavy metal finally released their first official live album. And what a cracker it is. And the reason for releasing … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues | Tagged Black Sabbath, classic album, classic rock, Deluxe, heavy metal, Live Evil, metal, reissue, review, Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi | Leave a comment

EP review: THE UGLY GUYS – Rolling In The Deep

Posted on June 10, 2023 by jason

Conquest Music [Release date 09.06.23] The Ugly Guys release this three track EP ahead of their album of cover versions, ‘Cover Your Tracks’, due out on August 25 on Conquest Music. Looking back to 2013 on this site this reviewer … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, Single and EP reviews | Tagged Adele, Amerciana, country, EP, Gene Pitney, pub rock, review, rock, Rolling In The Deep, The Kursaal Flyers, the Ugly Guys | Leave a comment

Album review: DALLAHAN – Speak Of The Devil

Posted on June 10, 2023 by jason

www.dallahanmusic.com [Release date 16.06.23] Dallahan base their sound not only on Scotland and Ireland’s traditional music scene, but drawing on the music of the Balkans and North America. Dallahan consists of Jack Badcock on guitar and vocals, Ciaran Ryan on … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Celtic, Dallahan, folk, instrumental, review, Speak Of the Devil, traditional | Leave a comment

Album review : FALSE MEMORIES – Hybrid Ego System

Posted on June 10, 2023 by brianmc

Frontiers [Release date: 09.06.23] Guitarist, Francesco Savino founded False Memories in 2015, but it was only when he recruited vocalist, Rossella Moscatelli in 2018 that the band’s career gained some momentum. We reviewed the debut, The Last Night Of Fall … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, PURE METAL (All posts), Pure Metal/Album reviews | Tagged album, Dark, Francesco Savino, power metal, prog metal, review, Rossella Moscatelli, symphonic metal | Leave a comment

Album review: THE PAT McMANUS BAND – Live In France

Posted on June 9, 2023 by GRTR! HQ

The Store For Music [Release date 21.07.23] It’s about time we had a new live album from Pat McManus. In August 2022 he recorded his gig as part of the Tribal Rock festival nestling above the Cote d’Azur in south-east … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues rock, Celtic, festival, folk, hard rock, Live In France, Mama's Boys, review, The Pat McManus Band, Uncle Bard & The Dirty Bastards | Leave a comment

Gig review: BONNIE RAITT – New Theatre, Oxford, Wednesday 7 June 2023

Posted on June 8, 2023 by jason

Bonnie Raitt, Liverpool Empire, 22 June 2013

A sold out show at Oxford’s lovely New Theatre and whilst most of the audience have doubtless been Bonnie Raitt fans since her early days, it was good to see some younger fans dotted around the audience. Support for Bonnie … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged Americana, blues, Bonnie Raitt, folk, Gareth Dunlop. New Theatre, gig, guitarist, John Prine, Oxford, Oxford New Theatre, review, singer songwriter, Wednesday 7 June 2023 | Leave a comment

Album review: VIXEN Rev It Up (remaster)

Posted on June 6, 2023 by brianmc

Rock Candy Records [release date 18.05.23] Minnesota band Vixen made their major label breakthrough in 1987, after moving to Los Angeles. Two albums were recorded by the original Vixen lineup, Jan Keuhnemund, Janet Gardner, Share Ross and Roxy Petrucci. The … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged AOR, Bangalore Choir, Bobby Kimball, Bon Jovi, Diane Warren, Fiona, Harry Paress, Jack Conrad, Los Angeles, melodic rock, Minnesota, Quiet Riot, review, Rock Candy Records, Steve Plunkett | Leave a comment

Album review: RENOVATIONS – Blank

Posted on June 6, 2023 by jason

Facebook [Release date 10.06.23] Renovations are an electro-rock trio based in Edinburgh, who formed in October 2019 when the French singer and bass player, Charlotte was offered a gig opportunity, but she needed to gather a group of likeminded passionate … Continue reading →