Album Reviews

This Sicilian combo have been hanging around the edges (sic) of the European power/symphonic metal scene for a little over a decade now, occasionally threatening to move further into the spotlight dominated especially some of their countrymen through offerings such as their two under-rated concept albums to date, ‘Hastings 1066’ …

“That Little Ol’ Band from Texas” ZZTOP are back with their first full length record in nine years, Four of the new tracks—“I Gotsta Get Paid,” “Chartreuse,” “Consumption,” and “Over You”—debuted June 5th 2012 as an iTunes-only collection entitled ‘Texicali’. ’I Gotsta Get Paid’ was also featured in the film …

Few bands have pulled off an unforeseen reinvention with the same defiant aplomb that Sylosis have in the past few years. With the departure of vocalist Jamie Graham in 2010 after making significant headway in the industry, bagging a record deal with Nuclear Blast, high profile tours and slots at …

It may be time to face facts: in 2012, metalcore is essentially dead in the water. Granted, it’s still in prominence in bastardized forms as courtesy of the Asking Alexandria’s and Bury Tomorrow’s of the world, but “classic” metalcore, if such a word can be attributed to a genre that …

For a man with a career and musical backstory spanning almost 20 years, it’s to Devin Townsend’s credit that he has never ceased to surprise us. From the progressive, extreme metal-infused stylings of the dearly missed Strapping Young Lad, through occasional dips into the electronic and ambient worlds on albums …

  This German five piece formed in 2007, the various members having bedded themselves in with various other bands up until then. Having spent the interim period mainly writing and playing live, they’ve steadily gained an ever growing fan base for their performances on stage, a stage that they have …

Oceans Of Night are an equalized balance of  progressive rock and modern metal. They experiment  with com-positional methods and technological innovations, fronted with compelling vocals. The band is made up with three highly talented musicians, Scott Mosher guitar and keyboards, Scott Oliva on vocals and Alan Smithee on drums and percussion. The nature of …

JD & The FDCs are not what you would call a classic rock ‘n’ roll band, hailing from the Midlands and sporting a fair degree of pedigree in the shape of Jamie Delerict, and made up of former members of Panic, Teenage Casket Company, The Dangerfields, Patchwork Grace and DIP. …

  Being PlanetMosh’s resident Hawkwind fan anything Hawk related tends to be passed to me for listening and reviewing which is exactly what happened with this release. The release in question is ‘Return of a Sonic Assassin’ by Lastwind. Lastwind is Paul Hayles’s band, Paul used to be the keyboard …

Sybreed return with an album that has more grooves than a Bridgestone!   It’s been three long years since Sybreed released “The Pulse Of Awakening” but the wait for the follow up full length release has been well worth it.   The band continue with their quite unique blend of …

Electric River were a band that caught my eye just by the name, so I thought I would check out what they had to offer. It also turned out that they were bringing out a brand new EP called ‘In Your Name’. When I was reading up about them, you …

Japanese band Tri Mebius come from Osaka and are a four piece band, having changed from having 5 members after their debut album was released. “Promised sense” is the bands latest single (their second), released earlier this year, with “Blind materials” being their debut album released in September 2011. Having …

The quality of bands coming out of Rock and Growl just now, to my ears anyway, is something to behold. Having recently reviewed the awesome debut from French maniacs Dead Cowboy’s Sluts, I find myself opening my lugholes to another great metal band from the land of fine wine, croissants …

With the tentacles of heavy metal now reaching into almost every corner of the known world, one scene which has been growing in both strength and profile over recent years is that in India.  Among those leading the charge of acts from the sub continent are this four piece from …

Hamburg based techno metal band Dad Maria have been around since 2001 and their latest release, the 5 track e.p Sequences sees them assaulting the senses with a frantic mixture of System Of A Down, The Prodigy and Moby. Sequences was released on 27th July 2012 and  is available on …

    So what do you get if you merge the spirit of nwobhm with the likes of AC/DC, Motley Crue, Wasp, Van Halen  and Y&T? The answer is Cure For Your Disease by Black Rose! It’s the sort of album to play before going to a gig to put …

Italian Thrash Metal kings rework past classics for a storming, riotous new album. Formed in 2004, from the ashes of Animalator, the band have been around for some time now, scoring really good reviews for their live shows and their album releases. And indeed it is to two of those …

    Formed in 1980 Grave Digger have released fifteen studio albums. Their newest edition Clash of the Gods will take the total to sixteen and I am quite excited to be reviewing it. The albums theme is Ancient Greece and mention Greek gods and legends. The album was released …

Looking like a cross between Mushroomhead and Mutter era Rammstein, Ost+Front (Eastern Front) are a Germen industrial metal band formed in Berlin in 2009.  Having released their first single Fleisch (Meat) in 2011, their debut album Ave Maria is being released on Sept 10th this year (2012) through Out Of …

The latest gothic rock band to emerge from the depths of Scandinavia, Finland to be precise, are The 69 Eyes, a band that adds another name to a long legacy of rock and metal bands from the snowy country. Their latest release, a full length studio album imaginatively entitled X …