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Upcoming Gigs & Albums
Latest Album Reviews
Latest Gig Reviews
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Gig review: ANTHRAX – Hammersmith Apollo, London, 23 November 2024
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Gig review: BLACK STONE CHERRY – Wembley Arena, London, 23 November 2024
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Gig review: SQUEEZE – Roundhouse, London, 22 November 2024
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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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Featured Album Reviews
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Author Archives: brianmc
Album review: ISSA – Lights Of Japan
Frontiers [Release date: 20.01.23] Issa Oversveen is married to James Martin, ex of Vega. With his brother Tom, he’s written the bulk of the material here. And you can tell. Even with the best efforts of guitarist Simone Mularoni and … Continue reading
Album review: TEN – Something Wicked This Way Comes
Frontiers [Release date: 20.01.23] Here’s another Ten album title that will again appeal to the literati or the cinephiles among the band’s fans. It’s their sixteenth studio release since 1996. Ever present founder/ writer/ singer, Gary Hughes has gathered a … Continue reading
Album review: JD SIMO TRIO – Songs From The House Of Grease
Crows Feet Records [release date: 13.01.23] An album of cover versions is always a risk. But the concept is no stranger to JD Simo. This is the guitarist chosen by renowned Film Director, Baz Luhrman to play all the guitar … Continue reading
Album review: HEROES AND MONSTERS
Frontiers [Release date: 20.01.23] Heroes and Monsters is Todd Kerns, Stef Burns and Will Hunt. Their names will be familiar to you. They are three gifted rock’n’roll craftsmen – highly motivated musicians whose CVs in themselves make great reading. A … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Black Label Society, Evanescence, Faster Pussycat, Great White, Heroes And Monsters, Led Zeppelin, Michael Monroe, Michael Sweet, Myles Kennedy, review, Slash, Slaughter, Staind, Stef Burns, Todd Kerns, Will Hunt, Y&T
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Album review: TANGERINE DREAM – The Bootleg Box Set Vol.2 (7 CDs, Remastered)
Cherry Red [Release date 13.01.23] As the instigators of sequenced electronica, and pioneers of German ‘Kosmische’ music, Tangerine Dream have no equal. Add to that their 60 plus movie scores – cultural statements as well as music to match the … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, boxset, Christopher Franke, Edgar Froese, electronica, Fassbiner, Frankfurt, Komische, live, Near Dark, new age, Newcastle, Nottingham, Peter Baumann, prog, review, Sorcerer, Tangerine Dream, Tatort series, Washington
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Album Review: LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III – 2 Classic Albums on 1 CD
Cherry Red [Release date: 13.01.23] A musical family where each member is a successful, well known artist in their own right is very rare. That’s the way it is with the Wainwrights… Loudon, daughters Martha and Lucy, son Rufus, and … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged 2 on 1 CD, Kate McGarrigle, Lucy, Martha, review, Rufus, singer songwriter
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Single review: REDEMPTION – I Am The Storm
AFM Records [release date 14.12.22] Led from the front by multi instrumentalist, Nick Van Dyk, LA’s Power/Prog Metal maestros, Redemption aren’t the most prolific. I Am The Storm, the album, due for release early 2023, is only the band’s third … Continue reading
Single review: ELVENKING – Rapture
AFM Records [release date: 14.12.22] ‘Rapture’ is the first trailer track / single from the forthcoming Elevenking (2023) album, Reader Of The Runes Part 2 (of 3). The band’s fascination with backing vocals that are rooted in Gregorian chants and … Continue reading
Single review : FASTER PUSSYCAT – Like A Ghost and Pirate Love (Double A-Side)
Golden Robot Records [release date: 28.11.22] If any artists can claim to have emerged as true survivors in the post grunge period, it’s Faster Pussycat. Over two million albums sold, not a world record, but a tidy number just the … Continue reading
Album review: AFTER LAPSE – Face The Storm
Frontiers [Release date : 09.12.22] Debut album from Prog Rock classicists, After Lapse. As any aficionado will tell you, Progrock bands need more time than others to tell their story. Credit to After Lapse for holding track lengths to around … Continue reading
Album review : NEVENA – Nevena
Frontiers [Release date: 09.12.22] After contributing to the Big Deal album earlier this year, with several other female singers, Nevena strikes out now as a solo performer. Her debut walks a high wire between modern pop and melodic rock, as … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Big Deal, Contemporary pop, country rock, Frontiers, Heart, melodic rock, Mike Palace, Pat Benatar, review, Serbia
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Album review : GERRY JABLONSKI and THE ELECTRIC BAND – 105
Independent [Release date: 02.12.22] Fifth album from one of the UK’s lesser known Rock’n’Blues outfits, Gerry Jablonski and The Electric Band. (Not their one hundred and fifth). Looking at the band’s incessant touring schedules, it’s a surprise they had time … Continue reading
Album review : THE WHITE BUFFALO – Year Of The Dark Horse
Snakefarm [Release date : 02.12.22] The White Buffalo (aka Jake Smith) is hard to pin down. Aged 49, and hailing from the beautiful state of Oregon, this is his eighth studio album. So sustainability is not a problem. In fact … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Americana, Brothers Osborne, country, Eric Church, folk, Jake Smith, Oregon, pop, review, rock, You Tube
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Album review: PURE ASSASSINS – Questions
Independent [release date 25.11.22] What happens when the Pure Assassins’ drum and bass hedonist picks up a guitar and embraces existentialism? It is sometimes suggested that existentialism is just this bygone cultural movement rather than an identifiable philosophical position. But … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Buster Keaton, Calyx, Chris Rush, drum and bass, Lou Reed, Raine Maida, review, Silent Movie, Velvet Underground
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Album review: TOMMY DECARLO – Dancing In The Moonlight
Frontiers [Release date: 09.12.22] Tommy DeCarlo, the singer who joined Boston in 2007, after being discovered on MySpace by Tom Scholz, is now on his second “solo” album for Frontiers. The current iteration of his studio band includes, on guitar, … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Alessandro Delvecchio, Black Crowes, Bon Jovi, Boston, Dancing In The Moonlight, David Julien, Denis DeYoung, George Clinton, GooGoo Dolls, Marti Jepsen Andersen, melodic rock, review, Styx, Tom Scholz, Tommy Decarlo, Tommy Shaw
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Single review: BROTHERS OF METAL – Berserkir
AFM Records [release date: 02.12.22] With 3 vocalists, 3 guitarists, bass, drums and anvil (!), you’re bound to have a BIG sound. And the Swedish Power Metal band who brought us the highly successful Emblas Saga (2020), The Brothers of … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, PURE METAL (All posts), Single and EP reviews
Tagged Gladiator, Maximus, medieval, Norwegian Royalty, Odin, power metal, review, single
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Single review: ALL FOR METAL – Born In Valhalla
AFM Records [Release date 02.12.22] The All For Metal warriors claim to have been “born in Valhalla”. We’re slightly sceptical so have referred this to a Fact Checking Website. We’ll let you know. Meantime the the band have released a … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, PURE METAL (All posts), Single and EP reviews
Tagged All For Metal, heavy metal, review, single, Vikings
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Album review: ROB MORATTI – Epical
Frontiers [Release date: 09.12.22] Quite a line up Rob Moratti’s put together here. Tony (Blue Murder) Franklin, Joel (Whitesnake) Hoekstra, Pete (James Christian/ Robin McAuley) Alpenborg, Fredrik (Bloodbound) Bergh, with Steve (Tyketto/ Journey) Augeri on backing vocals. Moratti has been … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Alias, AOR, Bloodbound, Blue Murder, Brother Firetribe, Eclipse, Fredrik Bergh, James Christian, Joel Hoekstra, melodic rock, Pete Alpenborg, review, Robin McAuley, Starship, Steve Augeri, Steve Perry, Survivor, Tony Franlin, Tyketto, Whitesnake, Work Of Art
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Album review : SCREAM MAKER – Bloodking
Frontiers [release date 9.12.22] Third album from Polish Metal band, Scream Maker. Bloodking begins where 2016′s Backs Against The World left off. This is a band who’ve spent much of their pre and post pandemic time on tour (Europe and … Continue reading
Album review: LANDFALL – Elevate
Frontiers [Release date 9.12.22] Much more assured second album from Landfall, the Brazilian band led by Eric Martin soundalike, Gui Oliver. And boy does it sound good, graced with melodic, tightly constructed songs, great playing, a lean, taut production, no … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Blue Tears, Elevate, Eric Martin, Frontiers, Gui Oliver, Journey, Landfall, Mayank, melodic rock, Mr Big, review
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Album review : AUTOGRAPH – Beyond
Frontiers Records [Release date 18.11.22] We all want to love this album because it’s Autograph. Even though they’re one-hit-wonders, and even though bassman Randy Rand is/was the only remaining original member. (Rand took part in the recording sessions, but died … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Autograph, Beyond, Def Leppard, eighties, Jimi Bell, Marc Wieland, melodic rock, Our Lady Peace, Randy Rand, review, Simon Daniels, Steve Plunkett, The Beatles
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EP review : RONNIE ATKINS – Symphomaniac
Frontiers Records [release date 18.11.22] There is yet to be an “orchestral” album of rock songs that outdoes Wang Chung’s Orchesography, but this EP from Ronnie Atkins gets close. In fairness, this is Symphonic Rock in all its bombastic splendour. … Continue reading
Album review: WIND OF CHANGE – Progressive Sounds Of 1973 (4 CD Boxset)
Cherry Red [Release date: 25.11.22] The logistics: Wind of Change comprises 4 CDs, 5 hours of music and 49 tracks. No doubt many will look at compilations like this one and think you just cannot maintain the quality level over … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Reissues
Tagged 4 CDs, Al Stewart, album, boxset, Camel, Caravan, ELO, ELP, Family, Hawkwind, John Martyn, Jon Anderson, Kevin Parrish, Manfred Mann, Procol Harum, Progressive Rock, review, Roy Dyke, Tony Kaye, Traffic, Yes
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Album review: KIDS ON THE STREET, UK POWER POP AND NEW WAVE 1977-81 (3 CD Boxset)
Cherry Red [release date: 25.11.22] Kids On The Street is a great title for this 3 CD, 77 track compilation, emphasising the uncomplicated vitality of that era’s popular music. The better informed will know it’s from The Stiffs’ song of … Continue reading
Album review: SARO COSENTINO – The Road To Now
Cat Sounds Music [Release date 18.11.22] If only we knew just how much musical talent flies below the mainstream radar. You look at the line up on this, Saro Cosentino’s third “solo” album, and you find, amongst others, Gavin Harrison, … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, David Rhodes, Disney, Gavin Harrison, Karen Eden, King Crimson, Michael McDonald, Pete Hammill, Peter Gabriel, Porcupine Tree, review, Saro Cosentino, The Road To Now, Tim Bowness, Trey Gunn, Van Der Graff Generator
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