Category Archives: ALL POSTS

Gig review: BLACK EYED SONS- The Lexington, London, 16 December 2024

BLACK EYED SONS- The Lexington, London, 16 December 2024

This debut gig by the Black Eyed Sons marked the start of something new, after one of the more ill-fated episodes in rock history. When the other members of the Quireboys dismissed Spike, whatever the ins and outs, without the … Continue reading

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News: Get Ready to ROCK! announces top albums of 2024 based on weekly chart and poll (December 2024)

Get Ready to ROCK! The Best of 2024 - Top 30 Albums

Popular rock music website Get Ready to ROCK! has announced its end of year Top 30 album chart.  This is based on weekly activity at the website and via social media. News and reviews editor Jason Ritchie explains: “We introduced … Continue reading

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Album review: EARLY JAMES – Medium Raw

Early James - Medium Raw

Easy Eye Sound [Release date 10.01.2025] ‘Medium Raw’ is the third album from Early James and one, as the album title suggests, recorded with a sound that thrives on a lived-in, real-world ambiance. Dan Auerbach (the Black Keys) once again … Continue reading

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Album review: MICKY JUPP – Times Like These

MICKY JUPP – Times Like These

Conquest Music [Release date : 13.12.24] Described by The Guardian as “a quietly but profoundly influential figure in British pop music”, much of Micky Jupp’s influence has come via his songs being covered by the likes of Dave Edmunds, The Judds, … Continue reading

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Gig review: BRAVE RIVAL- Thames Side Brewery, Staines, 8 December 2024

BRAVE RIVAL- Thames Side Brewery, Staines, 8 December 2024

The choice of several of this website’s writers, me included, as act of the year, I’ve seen Brave Rival many times over the past two years. Of all the venues, my favourite was the Thames Side Brewery, not too far … Continue reading

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Album review: MAGNUM – Live At KK’s Steel Mill

MAGNUM - Live At KK's Steel Mill

SPV Steamhammer [Release date 10.01.25] Twelve months on from Tony Clarkin’s passing, and marking 50 years since he formed the band with Bob Catley, Magnum’s latest (and maybe last) live hurrah allows us more grieving time. The band had put … Continue reading

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Gig review: STRAY- The Cavern, Raynes Park, London, 7 December 2024

STRAY- The Cavern, Raynes Park, London, 7 December 2024

My sixth and final trip of the year to the Cavern which has been keeping the flag flying for live music ‘Sarf of the River’ was, fittingly, for a true rock legend.  Stray founding member and guitarist Del Bromham has … Continue reading

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Gig review: THE SHEEPDOGS, THE COMMONERS- Islington Assembly Hall, London, 5 December 2024

the sheepdogs-dec.web-16 - Copy

By coincidence, for the second week running, Islington Assembly Hall played host to a pair of bands playing music inspired by the sounds of the American south, yet based thousands of miles apart.  On the heels of Robert Jon and … Continue reading

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Gig review: GUN – Barrowlands, Glasgow, 14 December 2024

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Over the years many bands have embarked on a pre-Christmas tour around the nation. Status Quo and Motorhead are two that spring to mind, and going further back in time, the Sensational Alex Harvey Band’s Xmas shows in the Glasgow … Continue reading

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Album review: WITHIN SILENCE – The Eclipse Of Worlds

SILENCE 150 WITHIN Eclipse

Ulterium Records [Release date : 06.12.24] On their third album now, Slovakian Power Metal band, Within Silence have reached the point where their grasp is the equal of an ambitious reach. From the moment the opening track, ‘Land Of Light’ … Continue reading

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Album review: WE ARE BODIES – The Love Was All We Had

we are bodies the love was all we had

Bandcamp [Release date 06.12.24] We Are Bodies is the British duo of Dave Pen (BirdPen, Archive) and Robin Foster. They create anthemic electro-prog soundscapes that combine guitars and electronics with lyrical subjects inspired by love, loss, paranoia and….robots! Now, before you … Continue reading

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Album review: DELLA NOVA

della nova

Facebook [Release 13.12.24] Della Nova is a project born from the early days of lockdown, and has been meticulously crafted by Alex, the band’s frontman. The new album has been four years in the making, having gone through various changes … Continue reading

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Album review : STATUS QUO – Driving To Glory

STATUS QUO 150 Driving image

Cherry Red [Release date : 06.12.24] You’ve really got to hand it to whoever guides Status Quo through the pop and rock music jungle. Brilliantly marketed, with ads that hit all the right notes in the right places, Quo’s latest … Continue reading

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News: The Best of 2024 – The Get Ready to ROCK! Reviewer Selections (December 2024)

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We started 2024 with the sad news that Tony Clarkin of Magnum had passed away just days before the release of the band’s latest album.  The band have been venerated over the years by GRTR! and were celebrated in our … Continue reading

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Gig review: THE DAMN TRUTH – The Grace, London, 26 November 2024

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I saw The Damn Truth last Summer at the Islington Academy and was impressed. Eighteen months later, the Montreal rockers were back in town, playing to a sold out The Grace, and put in an even better show. The band … Continue reading

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Album review : BLUE OYSTER CULT – Live In NYC Third Night (2 CD+DVD Deluxe Ed)

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Frontiers Music [Release date : 13.12.24] The third time’s the charm. In 2022, Donald (Buck Dharma) Roeser and Eric Bloom, plus “new boys”, Richie (Band Geeks/Jon Anderson) Castellano, Danny Miranda and Jules Radino celebrated their 50th Anniversary as the Blue … Continue reading

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Gig review: LAZARUS HEIGHTS – The Auditorium, Bassilac, SW France, 7 December 2024

Lazarus Heights

It’s not everyday a Dordogne based Anglo-French band records a live album in a local auditorium, but Lazarus Heights are nothing if not adventurous. They are also resilient and versatile, related facets which serve them well in a seated venue … Continue reading

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News: Albums of the Month (August – December 2024)

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A quarterly feature highlighting album releases rated highly by the GRTR! review team and worthy of your investigation MARY COUGHLAN Repeat Rewind (Strange Brew) … it is everything you might expect from a vocalist who has a rare ability to … Continue reading

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Feature: Baker’s Dozen – Librarians With Hickeys

LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS - How To Make Friends By Telephone

Librarians With Hickeys are an indie pop rock duo consisting of Ray Carmen and Mike Crooker. Here both of them choose an eclectic Baker’s Dozen… Ray Carmen (in more or less no particular order) 1. Paul McCartney – Maybe I’m … Continue reading

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Album review : STORACE – Live And Let Live (plus bonus live CD)

STORACE 150 liveandletliveCOVER

Frontiers [Release date : 13.12.24] Marc Storace’s Live and Let Live is an album born in the depths of the Covid pandemic. Skipping through the “singer meets musician, they swap ideas” part of the plot, the album was eventually recorded … Continue reading

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Album review: THE BLACK CROWES – Happiness Bastards

THE BLACK CROWES – Happiness Bastards

Silver Arrow [Release date: 15.03.24] Well, seeing as I picked this as one of my albums of the year, I really ought to review it! Released in March, it is refreshing to pen a few words about an album I’ve … Continue reading

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Gig review: ROBERT JON AND THE WRECK – Islington Assembly Hall, London, 28 November 2024

ROBERT JON AND THE WRECK- Islington Assembly Hall, London, 28 November 2024

On Thanksgiving Day, what could be more appropriate to go to than a gig, from a California based band peddling the very best in southern rock? Luckily in recent years Robert Jon and the Wreck seem to have constantly been … Continue reading

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Album review : ILLUSION FORCE – Halfana

ILLUSION 150 FORCE Image

Frontiers [Release date : 13.12.24] Five year veterans of the Japanese rock/metal scene, Illusion Force have now been recognised by Frontiers’ Music as indeed, a force to be reckoned with worldwide. They cite Dragonforce and Helloween as being among their … Continue reading

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Gig review: STEVE HOGARTH – The Crypt, Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, 5 December 2024

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What we need in the pre-Christmas period is a warm and cosy festive gig, maybe in an unusual location, to lift the flagging spirits. To help us take our mind off political posturing, the smell of Musk, Black Friday overspend, … Continue reading

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Gig review: THE VAN MORRISON ALUMNI BAND – The Apex, Bury St Edmunds, 25 November 2024

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Few artists have gained the stature of Van Morrison, the Belfast born troubadour a true legend whose blend of soul, jazz, blues and rock is oft imitated but seldom bettered. Whilst his recorded output has never been less than industrious … Continue reading

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