Author Archives: GRTR! HQ

HENRIK FREISCHLADER – House In The Woods

Posted on January 2, 2013 by GRTR! HQ

Cable Car CCR0311-39 If ‘House in The Woods’ isn’t quite a fully conceptualised album title, then Henrik Freischlader’s sense of introspection and ongoing search for a retreat offers a resonant statement of his current mindset. The funky, smoking grooves and … Continue reading →

Gig Review: SQUEEZE, HMV Forum, London, 12 December 2012

Posted on December 24, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

Squeeze belong squarely in a distinguished tradition of bands, from the Kinks to Madness, who have added a distinctively english dimension to popular music, particularly with their acute, socially observant lyrics. While their hit making days may be long gone, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged 12 December 2012, Chris Difford, gig, Glen Tilbrook, HMV Forum, Housemartins, London, Paul Heaton, pop, review, Squeeze, The Beautiful South | Leave a comment

STEVE LUKATHER – Transition

Posted on December 22, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, fusion, guitar, guitarist, Steve Lukather, Toto, Transition | 1 Comment

DBA (Geoff Downes/Chris Braide) – Pictures Of You

Posted on December 22, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Asia, Buggles, Chris Braide, DBA, Downes Braide Association, Geoff Downes, Pictures Of You, pop, rock, Yes | Leave a comment

Album review: DAVE KILMINSTER – Scarlet – The Director’s Cut

Posted on December 17, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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

Posted on December 9, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | 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 | 1 Comment

FM – Only Foolin’ – EP

Posted on December 9, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 | Leave a comment

DEACON BLUE – Reissues – CD and DVD

Posted on November 28, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues | Tagged bonus tracks, CD, Deacon Blue, DVD, Edsel, Fellow Hoodlums, Homesick, Raintown, reissue, Ricky Ross, The Rest, Whatever You Say Say Nothing, When The World Knows Your Name | Leave a comment

LEVELLERS – Reissues

Posted on November 26, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 | Leave a comment

ED ALLEYNE-JOHNSON – Purple Electric Violin Concerto

Posted on November 26, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged 1992, 20th anniversary edition, classical, Ed Alleyne-Johnson, instrumental, New Model Army, Purple Electric Violin Concerto, rock, violin | Leave a comment

ATKINS/MAY PROJECT – Valley Of Shadows

Posted on November 20, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged Al Atkins, album, Atkins/May Project, heavy metal, Judas Priest, Paul May, review, Valley Of Shadows | Leave a comment

AOR (Frederic Slama) – L.A.Temptation

Posted on November 12, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Frederic Slama, Goran Edman, James Christian, L.A.Temptation, melodic rock, Paul Sabu, Paul Shortino, Philip Bardowell, review | Leave a comment

MERMAID KISS – Another Country

Posted on November 5, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Another Country, Mermaid Kiss, review | Leave a comment

Album review: THE MENTULLS – Time Flies

Posted on November 4, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, mentulls, review, rock | Leave a comment

QUIET RIOT – Reissues

Posted on October 27, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 | Leave a comment

T & N – Slave To The Empire

Posted on October 27, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Dokken, Doug Pinnick, Foreigner, George Lynch, hard rock, Jeff Pilson, Mick Brown, review, Ripper Owens, Robert Mason, Sebastian Bach, Slave To The Empire, T & N | Leave a comment

LOVE & MONEY – The Devil’s Debt

Posted on October 26, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, James Grant, Love & Money, review, The Devil's Debt | Leave a comment

STRING DRIVEN THING – The Machine That Cried

Posted on October 24, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

String Driven Thing - The Machinbe 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 | Leave a comment

GENTLE GIANT – I Lost My Head

Posted on October 24, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

(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 | Leave a comment

THE AUSTRALIAN PINK FLOYD SHOW – Exposed In The Light DVD

Posted on October 24, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 | 1 Comment

FOCUS – X

Posted on October 17, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Dutch, Focus, Holland, music, Netherlands, Pierre van der Linden, prog, progressive, review, rock, Thijs van Leer, X | Leave a comment

STEVE HACKETT Video Interview – 10 October 2012

Posted on October 16, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 Josh now hosts “Taerk’s Tracks” as part of the Singer Songwriter Sunday sequence on Get Ready to ROCK! … 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 | Leave a comment

DEKE LEONARD Video Interview – 13 October 2012

Posted on October 15, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

Posted in ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Video Interviews | Tagged book, Deke Leonard, guitar, guitarist, Iceberg, interview, Man, Twang Dynasty, video | Leave a comment

QUICK PLAYS – Police Dog Hogan, Nicole Maguire

Posted on October 14, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 | Leave a comment

THE GATHERING – Disclosure

Posted on October 14, 2012 by GRTR! HQ

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 →