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Upcoming Gigs & Albums
Latest Album Reviews
Latest Gig Reviews
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Gig review: CARDINAL BLACK – Sub 89, Reading, 15 November 2024
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Gig review: SUZI QUATRO – London Palladium, 13 November 2024
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Gig review: HRH XVII, Great Yarmouth, 7-9 November 2024
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Gig review: WHEN RIVERS MEET, CHANTEL MCGREGOR, XANDER AND THE PEACE PIRATES – Dingwalls, London, 7 November 2024
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Gig review: DEEP PURPLE – 02 Arena, London, 6 November 2024
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Gig review: ELLES BAILEY- Islington Assembly Hall, London, 2 November 2024
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Featured Album Reviews
Features
Single & EP Reviews
DVD Reviews
Book Reviews
News
Features
Author Archives: GRTR! HQ
Album review: DAN REED – Liftoff
Zero One Entertainment [Release date 04.12.20] At the end of a horrific year for humanity, and also for music, Dan Reed’s latest solo album arrives to provide the perfect antidote. Dan’s solo works since the “comeback” – ‘Coming Up For … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Dan Reed, Dan Reed Network, Liftoff, melodic rock, review, singer, songwriter
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Album review: MAGNUM – Dance Of The Black Tattoo
David Randall chatted to Tony Clarkin for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio with tracks from the forthcoming compilation. First broadcast 20 December 2020. SPV/Steamhammer [Release date 08.01.21] What do inveterate songwriters do in Lockdown when they’ve no band to steer … Continue reading
News: The Best of 2020 – Get Ready to ROCK! reviewers choose their Top Albums of the Year
2020 has been a horrendous year for live music, silenced by the coronavirus pandemic. With live music off the agenda, there has been no shortage of album/EP releases, so this year our reviewers have concentrated on selecting their Top Albums, … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, NEWS, The Best of 2020
Tagged 20/20, album, best of, blues rock, breakthrough act, melodic rock, Progressive Rock, reissue, reviewer.top albums, singer songwriter
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Album review: GRYPHON – Get Out Of My Father’s Car!
Talking Elephant/Gryphon [Release date 20.11.20] Gryphon will always occupy a small but significant place in my musical heritage. Coinciding with my interest in (and performance of) early music, in the early 1970s they became a cross-genre novelty act. And with … Continue reading
Quick plays: ANNA ELIZABETH LAUBE, PEACH & QUIET
ANNA ELIZABETH LAUBE Annamania (Ahh…Pockets! Records) [Release date 22.01.21] You’ll find reviews of Americana singer songwriter Anna Laube’s last two releases – ‘Anna Laube’ (2015) and ‘Tree’ (2016) buried in the Get Ready to ROCK! archives. Sufficient to say the … Continue reading
Album review: THE QUESTIONNAIRES – Atlantic Ridge
Boom Chang Records [Release date 15.01.21] It seems a bit disingenuous in the PR blurb to refer to Jane Wade and Steve Hall, aka The Questionnaires, as having been ‘around a bit’. For most, me included, their formative bands – … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged acoustic, album, Atlantic Ridge, pop rock, review, singer, songwriter, The Questionnaires
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Album review: ZEBRAS DON’T SMOKE – Don’t Mention The Swedes (ABBA Tribute)
Singsong Music [Release date 20.11.20] www.singsongmusic.com ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus said what he thought of streaming live music during Lockdown. He wasn’t impressed and thought kitchen gigs will never be a substitute. I wonder what he would have thought of the … Continue reading
Album review: HUNTED BY ELEPHANTS – Carry On
www.huntedbyelephants.com [Release date 15.01.21] You can imagine: we receive so many promos from independent artists here at GRTR! and many, sadly, have to be jettisoned having never made the cut. The second album from London-based rockers Hunted By Elephants had … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Carry On, heavy rock, Hunted By Elephants, review
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Album review: MARK VICKNESS – Interconnected
www.markvickness.com [Release date 15.09.20] Mark Vickness is a classically trained guitarist but has also worked in jazz and fusion genres. He freely mixes world flavours with classical/acoustic/rock. On ‘Interconnected’ he is joined by some talented collaborators such as the Grammy … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged acoustic, album, classical, fingerstyle, folk, guitar, guitarist, Interconnected, Mark Vickness, review
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Album review: DORIS BRENDEL & LEE DUNHAM – Mass Hysteria
Sky Rocket Records [Release date 01.09.20] A new Doris Brendel album is a bit like Christmas coming early. That moment when your Aunty Doris invites you to dip blindfold into a tub of Quality Street, only to discover she’s mixed … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, alternative, art rock, blues, Doris Brendel, Lee Dunham, Mass Hysteria, pop rock, progressive, review
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Feature: Albums that time forgot…EUROPE – Secret Society
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
Feature: Albums that time forgot…JAMES LABRIE – Elements Of Persuasion
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
Feature: Albums that time forgot…DON DOKKEN – Up From The Ashes
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
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Album review: JAKKO M. JAKSZYK – Secrets & Lies
On Sunday 11 October, in the first hour of his weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, David Randall chatted to Jakko M. Jakszyk about his career with tracks from the new album. InsideOut Music [Release date 23.10.20] Jakko … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Radio interview
Tagged album, classic rock, interview, Jakko M. Jakszyk, King Crimson, review, rock, Secrets & Lies
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Album review: BLACK SABBATH – Paranoid (50th Anniversary Super Deluxe)
BMG [Release date 09.10.20] Another year. Another anniversary. At the dawn of heavy metal as we know it, 1970, Black Sabbath released their second album which went on to achieve multi-million selling status. A fan favourite it yielded a handful … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged 50th anniversary, album, Bill Ward, Black Sabbath, box set, Doom, Geezer Butler, heavy metal, interview, Ozzy Osbourne, Paranoid, review, super deluxe, Tony Iommi
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Album review: CIRCULINE – CircuLive New View (DVD/Blu-ray)
Inner Nova Music [Release date 09.10.20] Starting out covering Yes, Genesis, ELP, Gentle Giant, King Crimson, UK, Jethro Tull, Rush, and Pink Floyd, three members of New York based tribute band Downing Grey decided to form Circuline in 2014 as … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Blu-ray, Circuline, CircuLive New View, DVD, prog, Progressive Rock, review
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Album review: DAVID MINASIAN – The Sound Of Dreams
Golden Robot Records [Release date 11.09.20] An American film producer, screenwriter, director, and a musician, singer and songwriter, David Minasian’s work includes music videos and concert films for Camel, and Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward. Which goes some way to … Continue reading
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Album review: BLUES PILLS – Holy Moly!
Nuclear Blast [Release date 21.08.20] Blues Pills have always scored highly with GRTR! reviewers. John Stefanis was bowled over by their ‘next best thing [to the 70s]‘ 2014 eponymous debut, while Jason Ritchie considered their 2016 follow up Lady In … Continue reading
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Upcoming: European, USA & World Tour Dates and Gig Listing (2021)
Compiled by Jason Ritchie Please check with venue and/or relevant website(s) to confirm availability. Updated 10/11/2021 ALLMAN FAMILY REVIVAL November 27 – The Factory – St. Louis, MO 29 – Majestic Theater – Dallas, TX 30 – ACL Live at … Continue reading
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News: Albums of the Month (July 2020 – September 2020)
MAGENTA Masters Of Illusion (Tiger Moth) It turns back the years without ever being ‘retro’ and I would suggest is comfortably the best Magenta album since Home. Masters Of Illusion – The Musical, anyone? ***** (Pete Whalley) WALTER TROUT Ordinary … Continue reading
Posted in Albums of the Month, ALL POSTS, NEWS
Tagged 20/20, albums of the month, AOR, Arctic Rain, August, blues, blues rock, classic rock, Deep Purple, hard rock, July, Kat Riggins, Legacy Pilots, Magenta, melodic rock, Progressive Rock, September, Walter Trout
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Upcoming: New releases (CD/DVD) January 2021-March 2021
Compiled by Jason Ritchie January – March 2020 April – June 2020 July – September 2020 October – December 2020 April – June 2021 July-September 2021 October-December 2021 2021 January 1st THE BLACK KEYS ‘Brothers’ (10th anniversary edition) 8th Frozen … Continue reading
Posted in Album News, ALL POSTS, NEWS, Re-issues/special editions, Upcoming (Tours & Releases), Video
Tagged 2021, album, AOR, Bluray, CD, classic rock, DVD, February, heavy rock, January, March, melodic rock, metal, New releases, progressive, rock
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News: WIN a copy of BLACK SABBATH Paranoid – 50th anniversary super deluxe box set
Celebrating the 50th anniverary of the multi-million selling album ‘Paranoid’ BMG release a 5-LP/4CD edition on October 9th, featuring the vinyl debut of two 1970 concerts. We have a copy of the CD version and the vinyl super deluxe edition … Continue reading
Posted in Competitions, NEWS
Tagged 50th anniversary, Bill Ward, Black Sabbath, box set, competition, Geezer Butler, heavy metal, Ozzy Osbourne, Paranoid, super deluxe, Tony Iommi, win
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Album review: MARTIN BARRE – 50 Years Of Jethro Tull (2-CD)
On Sunday 18 October, Martin Barre chatted to Pete Feenstra for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, about his time in Tull and beyond. (40:33) The Store For Music [Release date 16.10.20] The first thing to say is that the cover, … Continue reading
Book review: On track…MIKE OLDFIELD (Every album, every song) – Ryan Yard
Sonicbond Publishing [Publication date 18.09.20] As Ryan Ward suggests in this survey of Mike Oldfield’s music, his calling card Tubular Bells – in 1973 – defined him and was never surpassed. He was only 20. Those of a certain age … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, BOOK REVIEWS
Tagged book, classical, dance, Every Album, Every Song, guitar, instrumental, Mike Oldfield, music, On Track, prog, progressive, review, rock, Ryan Yard, Tubular Bells, world
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Album review: IAN DURY – Hit Me! The Best Of
BMG [Release date 16.10.20] 3-CD Reasons To Be Cheerful? Well we certainly need some of those and who better than to supply a cheery soundtrack to covid-crocked times than the cheeky chappy from Harrow. Ian Dury may have died in … Continue reading
