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Upcoming Gigs & Albums
Latest Album Reviews
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Album review: TRAGIK – Propaganda Elite
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Album review : ELECTRIC MOB – 2 Make U Cry And Dance (Digital Deluxe Edition)
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Album review: THE MILK MEN – Milky Way
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Album review: FATAL VISION – Four Sides To Every Story
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Album review : PRIDE OF LIONS – Unbridled
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Album review : STATUS QUO – The Early Years Vol 2 (1970-72) 5 CD Boxset
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Author Archives: GRTR! HQ
STEVE LUKATHER – Transition
Mascot Records (Release date 21.01.13) There is a lot to like about ‘Transition’ from the production quality, the sincerity, to the musicianship. The lyrical themes are again based on Luke’s recent musical and personal rejuvenation and in truth the album … Continue reading
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Tagged album, fusion, guitar, guitarist, Steve Lukather, Toto, Transition
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DBA (Geoff Downes/Chris Braide) – Pictures Of You
X2X Records DBA is a collaboration of Geoff Downes (Asia, Yes) and Chris Braide (producer for Lana Del Rey and David Guetta amongst others). If it owes something to the duo’s overt pop sensibilites as evidenced by Downes with The … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Asia, Buggles, Chris Braide, DBA, Downes Braide Association, Geoff Downes, Pictures Of You, pop, rock, Yes
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Album review: DAVE KILMINSTER – Scarlet – The Director’s Cut
www.davidkilminster.com Dave Kilminster is perhaps best known as a session guy – the one who answers Keith Emerson’s and Roger Waters’ call, and who has also appeared in Heather Findlay’s band more recently. ‘Scarlet’ is Dave’s first solo album, perhaps … Continue reading
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SNAKECHARMER – Snakecharmer
(Frontiers Records) Release date 21.01.13 It’s unusual when a ‘superband’ is greater than its constituent parts. But, if anything, Micky Moody and Neil Murray have created a wonderful vehicle – at last – for Chris Ousey (Heartland, Virginia Wolf ). His … Continue reading
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Tagged Adam Wakeman, album, blues, Chris Ousey, Harry James, Heartland, Home, Laurie Wisefield, Magnum, Micky Moody, Neil Murray, review, rock, Snakecharmer, Thunder, Whitesnake, Wishbone Ash
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FM – Only Foolin’ – EP
(Riff City Records) www.fmofficial.com FM were the nearly-men of AOR in the mid- to late-1980s. The past few years has witnessed their comeback, attempting to make up for lost ground and the intervening years which have never been particularly kind … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, Single and EP reviews
Tagged AOR, EP, FM, melodic, Only Foolin, review, rock, Steve Overland
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DEACON BLUE – Reissues – CD and DVD
(Edsel) The first thing to say about these reissues: this is how it should be done. Reissuing the original albums with just a handful of bonus tracks wouldn’t suit Edsel and they have really come up trumps. In some cases, … Continue reading
LEVELLERS – Reissues
(Edsel Records) The Levellers are one of the most enduring and, it must be said, likeable bands to have been around for the past twenty-five years. Their blend of anarchic punk anthems aligned to touching folk sensitivity has been a … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged album, Black Tar Rivers, bonus tracks, DVD, Edsel, Headlights, Hello Pig, Levellers, Levelling The Land, Mouth To Mouth, review, White Lines, Zeitgeist
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ED ALLEYNE-JOHNSON – Purple Electric Violin Concerto
20th Anniversary Special Edition (Edsel Records) Release date 26.11.12 Is it really 20 years? Cripes. I first heard ‘Oxford Suite (Part 1)’ on BBC Radio 1 (I am sure it was ‘Fluff’ Freeman’s Saturday afternoon show) and was immediately drawn … Continue reading
ATKINS/MAY PROJECT – Valley Of Shadows
(Gonzo Multimedia) Al Atkins is a founder member of Judas Priest – writing ‘Victim Of Changes’ – although he left the band to make way for Rob Halford in 1973 . He has also written a very informative autobiography of his … Continue reading
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Tagged Al Atkins, album, Atkins/May Project, heavy metal, Judas Priest, Paul May, review, Valley Of Shadows
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AOR (Frederic Slama) – L.A.Temptation
(AOR Heaven) There’s no doubt that AOR has been enjoying a revival in recent years, epitomised perhaps by the revival of the band FM, a dedicated UK-based print magazine, and a forthcoming UK festival. And of course Firefest goes from … Continue reading
MERMAID KISS – Another Country
www.mermaidkiss.co.uk This, the third album under the Mermaid Kiss name, is tinged with a bit of sadness. Founder member Evelyn Downing has decided to hang up her microphone. But she does immerse herself in her final album with the band; writing, … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Another Country, Mermaid Kiss, review
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Album review: THE MENTULLS – Time Flies
www.thementulls.com There’s already a buzz surrounding this Yorkshire teen outfit mainly because of their young age and the fact they sound like a band twice their age. And it’s true to say that on ‘Time Flies’ their third album (!!!), … Continue reading
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Tagged album, blues, mentulls, review, rock
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QUIET RIOT – Reissues
QUIET RIOT – Metal Health/Condition Critical Rock Candy Records Formed in the early 70s, Quiet Riot featured guitarist Randy Rhodes, and the band split when Rhodes joined Ozzy Osbourne. Reforming in the early 80s, Metal Health would be the band’s … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged album, Condition Critical, Kevin DuBrow, metal, Metal Health, music, Quiet Riot, reissue, review, rock
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T & N – Slave To The Empire
earMUSIC 0208329ERE Okay, is it a tribute album or isn’t it? T & N would have you believe this offering should stand up in its own right. Dokken alumni George Lynch, Jeff Pilson and ‘Wild’ Mick Brown have assembled seven … Continue reading
LOVE & MONEY – The Devil’s Debt
Vertical VERTCD096 Twenty years on, can Love & Money still cut it? Their re-grouping at the start of 2011 for a couple of Scottish gigs and tentative UK dates last autumn suggested a resounding ‘yes’. To hear that the band … Continue reading
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Tagged album, James Grant, Love & Money, review, The Devil's Debt
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STRING DRIVEN THING – The Machine That Cried
(Esoteric) Signing to act-breakers Charisma should have assured better fortune for this electric violin-driven four-piece but in the notes of Esoteric’s reissue guitarist Chris Adams, band co-founder with wife Pauline, grumbles over the label’s preoccupation with Genesis as neglectful of … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged album, music, prog, progressive, reissue, review, rock, String Driven Thing, The Machine That Cried
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GENTLE GIANT – I Lost My Head
(EMI) Writer Daryl Easlea muses over the meaning of the word ‘contrapuntal’ in his excellent notes with fresh band interviews accompanying a great value 4CD box of albums recorded for the Chrysalis label (plus rarities and unreleased) by this epitome … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged 1975-1980, box set, Chrysalis, compilation, Gentle Giant, I Lost My Head
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THE AUSTRALIAN PINK FLOYD SHOW – Exposed In The Light DVD
TAPFSDVD04 The Australian Pink Floyd Show are one of the very few tribute acts in the world that have somehow seemed to move away from that genre and even though playing another bands music have turned into a band in … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, DVD REVIEWS
Tagged DVD, Exposed In The Light, live, review, The Australian Pink Floyd Show
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FOCUS – X
Eastworld Recordings (2012) One of the great rejuvenations of recent years has been the Thijs van Leer version of Focus, things seemed to click with the arrival – in 2006 – of original drummer Pierre van der Linden and they’ve … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Dutch, Focus, Holland, music, Netherlands, Pierre van der Linden, prog, progressive, review, rock, Thijs van Leer, X
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STEVE HACKETT Video Interview – 10 October 2012
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Video Interviews
Tagged 10 October 2012.Genesis Revisited II, guitar, guitarist, interview, prog, progressive, rock, Steve Hackett, video
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DEKE LEONARD Video Interview – 13 October 2012
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Video Interviews
Tagged book, Deke Leonard, guitar, guitarist, Iceberg, interview, Man, Twang Dynasty, video
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QUICK PLAYS – Police Dog Hogan, Nicole Maguire
POLICE DOG HOGAN – From The Land Of Miracles As the name might perhaps suggest Police Dog Hogan are a rabid high-energy bunch – an eclectic seven-piece, combining fiddle, finger picking banj and mandolin, drums and guitars with four-part harmonies … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), Quick Plays
Tagged acoustic, album, folk, Nicole Maguire, Police Dog Hogan, review, rock, singer, songwriter
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THE GATHERING – Disclosure
I have to confess I’ve never tripped over The Gathering – a Dutch band who started out in 1989 pedalling death/doom metal, but who like the rest of us have mellowed with the passing years and evolved into something quite … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Disclosure, Dutch, electronica, Holland, prog, progressive, review, rock, The Gathering
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HEART – Fanatic
What the hell are Heart sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson on? The Lance Armstrong performance enhancement programme? It must be something with one hell of a kick, because they just aren’t sticking to the script. Artists who’ve been treading boards … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Ann Wilson, Fanatic, Heart, music, Nancy Wilson, review, rock
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MOSTLY AUTUMN – The Ghost Moon Orchestra
Mostly Autumn are one of those bands who seem to consistently top the Championship, but never quite make promotion to the Premier League. Constant squad changes, and player rotation has perhaps not helped their cause, and there’s also that Pink … Continue reading
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Tagged album, Bryan Josh, Iain Jennings, Mostly Autumn, music, Olivia Sparnen, prog, progressive, review, rock, The Ghost Moon Orchestra
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