Monthly Archives: October 2020

Album review: PARA LIA – Gone With The Flow

Posted on October 19, 2020 by jason

Independent [Release date 02.10.20] German husband and wife team, Rene and Cindy Methner are Para Lia, now on their second album. Pop, Electronica, Indie Rock, alt.rock, alt.pop, Dark Wave, New Wave, Old Wave? In fact, it’s all of the above. … Continue reading →

Album review: THE STRUTS – Strange Days

Posted on October 18, 2020 by jason

Polydor [Release date 16.10.20] They may hail from Derby, but the Struts have that glam meets classic rock appeal that goes particularly well in the US. Neat idea behind this album to record it in ten days whilst in lockdown. … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, classic rock, Def Leppard, glam rock, Joe Elliott, Kiss, Luke Spiller, review, Robbie Williams, rock, Rolling Stones, Strange Days, The Struts, Tom Morello | Leave a comment

Album review: MARK BOALS & RING OF FIRE – All The Best!

Posted on October 18, 2020 by jason

Frontiers [Release date 09.10.20] Yngwie Malmsteen has introduced many fine vocalists to rock and metal fans including Jeff Scott Soto and Mark Boals, who sang on the classic ‘Trilogy’ album. Since then he has worked with many bands and artists … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, best of, Mark Boals, melodic, neoclassical metal, prog metal, review, Ring of Fire, symphonic metal, Tony Macalpine, Yngwie Malmsteen | Leave a comment

Album review: AMERICAN TEARS – Free Angel Express

Posted on October 18, 2020 by jason

Deko Entertainment [Release date 23.10.20] Since Mark Mangold brought back American Tears in 2018 they are now onto this, their third album – the sixth in the band’s history. This latest, ‘Free Angel Express’ features Alex Landenburg (Stratovarius, Kamelot, Rhapsody) … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, American Tears, Dave Brubeck, Free Angel Express, hard rock, Jazz rock, Mark Mangold, pomp rock, prog rock, review, rock, Touch | Leave a comment

Album review: GEEZER BUTLER – Reissues

Posted on October 18, 2020 by jason

WIN! Competition (closes 30 October 2020) BMG [Release date 30.10.20] Bassist Terry “Geezer” Butler is best known as a founder of Black Sabbath, and not only provided the band’s groove but much of the lyrics. While Black Sabbath endeavoured to … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues | Tagged album, Black Sabbath, Black Science, Burton C Bell, Fear Factory, Geezer Butler, Industrial, metal, nu-metal, Ohmwork, Ozzy Osbourne, Plastic Planet, reissues, review, Tony Iommi | Leave a comment

Album review: GREG LAKE – The Anthology

Posted on October 18, 2020 by jason

BMG [Release date 23.10.20] Famously, the late Greg Lake was an integral part of King Crimson and more substantially, of Emerson Lake and Palmer. Both bands have had such a deep impact on progrock and indeed rock music generally, that … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Asia, Carl Palmer, Classic Albums, classic rock, ELP, Greg Lake, Keith Emerson, prog rock, review, The Anthology | Leave a comment

Film review: PHIL LYNOTT – Songs For While I’m Away

Posted on October 15, 2020 by andynathan

Break Out/ Eagle Rock Productions [Release Date 30.10.20] Autumn 2020 is one of those times when the Thin Lizzy legacy is getting one of its periodic dusting downs. Alongside a bumper budget compilation and a 6 CD box set of … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, DVD REVIEWS, FILM REVIEWS | Tagged DVD, film, hard rock, Phil Lynott, review, Songs For While I'm Away, Thin Lizzy | Leave a comment

Rising Stars: THE BEAUTY OF GEMINA

Posted on October 14, 2020 by jason

Swiss band The Beauty Of Gemina have just released their second UK single ‘A Night Like This’ , taken from their forthcoming album ‘Skeleton Dreams’. Frontman Michael Sele tells us more about the band and their music… Can you describe … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, Interviews/Rising Stars | Tagged alternative, bluea, folk, gothic, interview, Michael Sele, Rising Stars, rock, the Beauty of Gemina | Leave a comment

DVD review: DEF LEPPARD – Hits Vegas

Posted on October 13, 2020 by jason

Eagle Rock Entertainment Initially only available as part of the highly popular “London to Vegas” live box set, Def Leppard are now releasing stand-alone versions of their “Hits Vegas, Live at Planet Hollywood” set, these being available in DVD/2CD, Blu-ray/2CD, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, DVD REVIEWS | Tagged classic rock, Def Leppard, DVD, Eagle Rock, Hits Vegas, Joe Elliott, melodic rock, review, rock | Leave a comment

Feature: Albums that time forgot…EUROPE – Secret Society

Posted on October 13, 2020 by GRTR! HQ

Sanctuary (2006) Back in 2007 my fellow GRTR! reviewer and pal Pete Whalley, and my aspiring guitar hero son Ben, made our way through a February snowstorm to Liverpool Academy. It was a fairly low key gig for the Swedish … Continue reading →

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Album review: MARILYN MANSON – We Are Chaos

Posted on October 13, 2020 by jason

Loma Vista Recordings [Release date 11.09.20] Marilyn Manson certainly doesn’t disappoint with album number eleven “We Are Chaos”, in fact, I would go so far as to say that this is currently my favourite Manson record to date. Produced by … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, alternative, electronica, Industrial, Marilyn Manson, metal, review, Shooter Jennings, We Are Chaos | Leave a comment

Album review: FISH – Weltschmerz

Posted on October 12, 2020 by Davoski

Fish Music [Release date: 25.09.20] Put simply, if this is to be Fish’s final studio production, he leaves us with a masterpiece. The release has been much delayed. After the project was announced back in 2015, Fish has suffered the … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Fish, Marillion, prog, review, Steve Vantsis, Weltschmerz | Leave a comment

Album review: JENNY STURGEON – The Living Mountain

Posted on October 11, 2020 by jason

Hudson Records [Release date 16.10.20] For Scottish singer-songwriter Jenny Sturgeon the environment, ecology and the elements are an essential part of ‘The Living Mountain’, her second solo album. She has been nominated for Composer of the Year at the 2018 … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, environment, folk, Inge Thomson, Jenny Sturgeon, Nan Shepherd, Northern Flyway, review, singer songwriter | Leave a comment

Gig review: MARK MORRISS- Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, 3 October 2020

Posted on October 10, 2020 by andynathan

Perhaps it wasn’t quite squarely in GRTR’s ballpark, but the last time bands with guitars dominated the charts, possibly forever, was when Britpop ruled. Led by the likes of Blur, Oasis and Pulp, the movement defined the sound and style … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged Britpop, gig, Mark Morriss, singer songwriter, the Bluetones | Leave a comment

Feature: Albums that time forgot…JAMES LABRIE – Elements Of Persuasion

Posted on October 10, 2020 by GRTR! HQ

InsideOut (2005) For many band members, the band becomes all consuming. It means, as a result of the constant cycle of touring, writing and recording, they can’t deliver their own solo album. There are 15 years between John Petrucci’s first … Continue reading →

Posted in Albums that time forgot, ALL POSTS, FEATURES | Tagged album, Dream Theater, Elements Of Persuasion, feature, heavy metal, James LaBrie, Marco Sfogli, Matt Guillory, Mike Mangini, nu-metal, progressive metal, review | Leave a comment

Album review: TOMI MALM – Coming Home

Posted on October 10, 2020 by jason

Website [Release date 16.10.20] “Coming Home” is the second album from Finland’s classically trained writer/ producer/ musician, Tomi Malm. Three years after his highly successful “Walking On Air” album, he again recruits some of the best in the Westcoast Rock … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Coming Home, melodic, Randy Goodrum, review, Robbie Buchanan, rock, Steve Lukather, Tim Pierce, Tomi Malm, Toto, West Coast | Leave a comment

Feature: Albums that time forgot…DON DOKKEN – Up From The Ashes

Posted on October 10, 2020 by GRTR! HQ

Geffen Records (1990) At the turn of the 1980′s there was a last hurrah for the genre that had sometimes been called glam metal, or more specifically hair metal. Bolstered by albums such as Whitesnake (1987) and Winger (1988) the … Continue reading →

Posted in Albums that time forgot, ALL POSTS, FEATURES | Tagged album, Billy White, Don Dokken, feature, hair metal, hard rock, interview, John Norum, melodic, review, Up From The Ashes | Leave a comment

Album review: PADRAIG JACK – Making Sand

Posted on October 10, 2020 by jason

Website [Release date 25.09.20] Padraig Jack writes and sings in Gaelic and English, being born and raised 10 miles off the west coast of Ireland on the Aran Islands. Padraig has won second prize at the Pan Celtic National Song … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, alternative, folk, indie, Making Sand, Padraig Jack, pop rock, review | Leave a comment

Album review: QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT – Live Around The World

Posted on October 9, 2020 by jason

EMI [Release date 02.10.20] Live Around The World presents a compilation of concert highlights captured the world over personally selected by Taylor, May and Lambert from over 200 shows they have performed and it is also the first release under … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged Adam Lambert, album, Brian May, classic rock, Freddie Mercury, Live Around The World, melodic, Queen, review, rock, Roger Taylor | Leave a comment

Album review: IKER PIRIS & HIS DUAL ELECTRAS – Electra

Posted on October 9, 2020 by jason

El Toro Records Spanish bluesman Iker Piris releases his debut album with the Dual Electras – Abdell B. Bop (upright bass) and Andy Martin (drums). Piris has previously released a solo album and been involved with various blues artists in … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, boogie, Electra, guitarist, Iker Piris, review, rock, rock 'n' roll | Leave a comment

Album review: GEOFF EVERETT BAND – Swamp Frog

Posted on October 9, 2020 by jason

Facebook [Release date 12.08.20] It was only a matter of time before Kent’s-own blues aficionado, Geoff Everett, got deep and dirty in the Garden of England, disappeared into the swampland and emerged with a gunny sack full of lush slide-dripping … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, blues rock, Geoff Everett Band, guitarist, review, rock, Swamp Frog | Leave a comment

Gig review: GARY FLETCHER AND NICK RITCHIE – Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, 2 October 2020

Posted on October 8, 2020 by andynathan

Of course it’s trivial compared to those who have lost loved ones or their own livelihoods, but one of the biggest effects of the Coronavirus pandemic has been cutting live music dead in its tracks. Having been to over 80 … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged blues, Blues Band, Eel Pie, Gary Fletcher, gig, Nick Ritchie, singer songwriter | Leave a comment

Album review: THE EXPLORERS CLUB – To Sing And Be Born Again

Posted on October 8, 2020 by jason

Goldstar Records [Release date 16.10.20] This covers’ album, simultaneously released with “The Explorers Club”, is a mixture of the obscure and the enduring. The picks self evidently come from an era that embraced bubblegum pop and sublime pop artistry at … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Covers, Emeen (Spirit Kid) Zarookian, Jason Brewer, melodic, pop, progressive, review, the Explorer's Club, The Turtles, To Sing And Be Born Again | Leave a comment

Album review: EXPLORERS CLUB – The Explorers Club

Posted on October 8, 2020 by jason

Goldstar Records [Release date 16.10.20] Less a revolving door band, more a fluid musical construct, The Explorer’s Club’s single constant is founder, Jason Brewer. This is his fourth album in 12 years, not exactly prolific, but when you spend most … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Emeen (Spirit Kid) Zarookian, Jason Brewer, melodic, pop, progressive, review, the Explorer's Club | Leave a comment

Album review: MIKE ROSS – The Clovis Limit, Pt 2

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Davoski

Pete Feenstra chatted to Mike Ross for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio in June 2021. Taller Records (Release date: 30.10.20) Talented Brighton-based blues/americana merchant Mike Ross is back with a follow up to last year’s ‘The Clovis Limit, Pt 1’. … Continue reading →