Tag Archives: album

Album Review: STATUS QUO – The Frantic Four Reunion – Live At The O2 Academy, Glasgow

Status Quo - The Frantic Four Reunion

Fourth Chord Records [Release date 30.09.13] Anyone with even a passing interest in Quo will know the special relationship the group have with the city of Glasgow and, in particular, the late, lamented Glasgow Apollo. Many ageing rockers in the … Continue reading

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Quick plays: BALFLARE, CHRIS NORMAN

CHRIS NORMAN – There And Back

Album review: BALFLARE – Downpour Balfare are a Japanese power metal band who have been around since 2004 and this is their fourth studio album. The music is keyboard led and keyboards player Tommy is the star of the show, … Continue reading

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Album review: DEEP PURPLE – Slaves And Masters

DEEP PURPLE - Slaves And Masters

Hear No Evil Recordings [Release date 22.07.13] Slaves And Masters might be remembered as the album that split the Purple fans (and some critics) in the early-1990s, launched in an era that spawned albums such as Tyketto’s ‘Don’t Come Easy … Continue reading

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Album Review: SYNESTHESIA – Synners and Saints

      Steeltown USA Records ( Release date – out now) Synethesia claim to encompass many rock styles, taking in power and prog metal, thrash and punk, quite a heady mix. The results of this rock mash-up are rather … Continue reading

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Album Review: OVERTURES – Entering The Maze

      Sleaszy Rider Records (Release date – Out now) Overtures are an Italian metal outfit from Gorizia and ‘Entering The Maze’ is the band’s third album. Metal infused with a large dose of melody is the order of … Continue reading

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Album review: MARTIN BARRE – Away With Words

MARTIN BARRE - Away With Words

Edifying Records [Release date 30.09.13] Perhaps the most constant revolving door of rock is that of Jethro Tull, and all the more intriguing for the recent  ‘loss’ of Martin Lancelot Barre.  For several centuries, it seems, Ian Anderson’s right hand … Continue reading

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Album review: PARTHENON HUXLEY – Thank You Bethesda

www.parthenonhuxley.com Parthenon Huxley is fine purveyor of pop rock tunes and over here in the UK maybe best known as the guitarist in The Orchestra, the band that features former ELO members (one of these, Eric Troyer helps out on … Continue reading

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Album review: THE KEV WALKER BAND – Biding My Time

The Kev Walker Band - Biding My Time

[Release date 09.09.13] A carpenter by trade, it’s been 30 years since Essex singer songwriter Kev Walker released his last album (The Dusk, 1983).  Sadly, it was the loss of his wife to cancer that inspired Biding My Time – … Continue reading

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Album review: TOMMY BOLIN – Whirlwind

TOMMY BOLIN - Whirlwind

Cleopatra Records [Release date: 26.08.13] Guitarist Tommy Bolin has an interesting pre-Purple history and this 2-CD set is an excellent chronicle of the band he formed in 1972 after Zephyr and before James Gang.  Energy, with a mix of rock … Continue reading

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Album review: SOIL – Whole

SOIL - Whole

AFM Records [Release date 19.08.13] Soil – or should that be SOiL – have been with us for a while now as their major label debut album Scars was released back in 2001. The band hail from Texas and are … Continue reading

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Album Review: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH – The Wrong Side Of Heaven and The Righteous Side Of Hell – Volume 1

      Eleven Seven ( Release date – Out now) This is the snappily titled new album from FFDP and is the first of two releases planned for this year. Anyone who witnessed the band at Download this year will … Continue reading

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Album review: EAST TOWN PIRATES – Seven Seas Of Sin

EAST TOWN PIRATES - Seven Seas Of Sin

The look of this band, and the album cover, may not initially excite.  Skulls and cross bones.  Piratical tales.  What’s new?  Well nothing really but there is a certain infectious charm to this second album from East Anglia’s bunch of … Continue reading

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Album review: EVILYN STRANGE – Mourning Phoebe

Evilyn Strange

www.evilynstrange.co.uk [Release date 13.07.13] There is evidently some humour in this band and their publicity, describing  themselves as part Beatles part Black Label Society.  Philip and Al Strange (I assume brothers but let’s take nothing for granted here) are joined … Continue reading

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Album Review – EARTHEN GRAVE – Earthen Grave

    Ripple Records ( Release date – out now) Formed back in 2008 and led by former Trouble bassist Ron Holzner, Earthen Grave have honed their sound over the last 5 years. This is the band’s first album and … Continue reading

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Album review: STEVE HUNTER – The Manhattan Blues Project

Steve Hunter

Deacon  Records [Release date 30.04.13] ‘I wanted to look at New York in a slightly different way – I wanted to look at it in a soulful, bluesy way’. Steve Hunter’s mission statement for this album is the guitarist musical … Continue reading

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Album review – MEGADETH – Super Collider

    Universal Music  ( Release date – out now ) Back in the day, when thrash was at its height, of all the ‘Big Four’ I always found Megadeth  to be the weakest link. I did persevere and caught … Continue reading

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Album review: POWERWOLF – Preachers Of The Night

Napalm Records – Out Now. Fans of Heavy Metal have understood the importance of and pledged their allegiance towards the mighty riff since guitar wizard Tony Iommi first began to perfect his power chords back in the late 60s. But … Continue reading

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Album review: MAGGY SIMPSON – Lab Rat and Lobster

Voodoo Bones www.facebook.com/maggysimpsonrocks Maggy Simpson consists of Shane Counter and Bat Kinane (of Glyder fame), who have previously worked together on Bat Kinane’s solo album. That album was a singer/songwriter one with a folk feel, whereas Maggy Simpson is more of … Continue reading

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Album review: DANA FUCHS – Bliss Avenue

Ruf [Release date 22.07.13] If blues is too often predicated on the tried and tested theme of: ‘my baby done me wrong’; then Dana Fuchs cleverly extends such familiar subject matter from an autobiographical source and into universal themes that we … Continue reading

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Album review: NEWMAN – Siren

AOR Heaven Amazingly this is the tenth studio album by Newman, which is basically Steve Newman plus long time drummer Rob McEwen. However this album features some guests in the shape of guitarists Shaun Bessant  on ‘When It Comes To … Continue reading

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Album review: REUBEN ARCHER’S PERSONAL SIN

Reuben  Archer

Toxic Arrow [Release date 19.08.13] Reuben Archer has been around the block enough times to know every doorhole, boozer and bookie by heart. The current (and previous) vocalist with hard rockers Stampede is also fronting up the Paul Raymond Project … Continue reading

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Album review: HELRUNAR & ARSTIDIR LIFSINS – Fragments – A Mythological Excavation

Prophecy Productions – Out Now. As a teenage metalhead immersed in the Heavy Metal scene of the mid 80s, I had often relied on split releases, whether in full length, EP or singles format, as a means of keeping myself … Continue reading

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Album review: PURSON – The Circle And The Blue Door

Rise Above – Out Now. Retro rock is enjoying a renewed wave of interest and, and in typical fashion for the music industry, record labels are in a rush to capitalise on it by signing as many such bands as … Continue reading

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Album review: DUCKWORTH LEWIS METHOD – Sticky Wickets

Duckworth Lewis Method (Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy and Thomas Walsh of Pugwash) return with their second album following on from their fantastic debut album released back in 2009. This album is one of this year’s most eagerly awaited … Continue reading

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Album review: THE POODLES – Tour De Force

Frontiers www.frontiers.it With fifth album “Tour De Force” The Poodles have come up with another quality slab of polished, melodic Euro rock. From the album’s ultimate highlight “Kings &Fools” to bonus track “En För Alla För En” (an almost Eurovision … Continue reading

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