Album Reviews

.@Planetmosh @AnybodyBC reviews ‘Adaptation’ by Noctoa released via Pesanta Urfolk. Sometimes you just want to listen to something completely different for a change. After all, not all kinds of metal might be suitable for the current mood. You could try some dark neo-folk music for a melancholic mood or simply …

If there’s one band that conjures up the image of “folk metal”, it’s Helsinki, Finland natives and genre pillars Finntroll. Finntroll has a new release out: Natten Med De Levande Finntroll, a toothy 19-tune live album showcasing the band in full glory, performing at Amsterdam’s prestigious Melkweg Concert Hall on …

Love or hate them they have been thrilling audiences worldwide now for 40 years. They were once the masters of disguise and rock‘n’roll legends and released an astounding 6 studio albums, 1 compilation, 2 live albums and 4 solo records all in the space of 5 years in the 70s. …

Very few things in this life are certain, especially in the heady old world of rock ‘n’f’n’ roll, but there is one thing that most definitely that goes without saying – you know exactly what to expect from Triggerman, be it live or in terms of studio releases. In a …

Tarja’s latest release is not a typical Tarja album.  In fact it isn’t a typical rock album at all.  Where Tarja’s latest album, “Colours in the Dark” is a rock album with some classical elements, “Beauty and the beat” is more of a Classical music album with some rock thrown …

This year should be a year of celebration for Walter Trout as it marks his 25th year as a solo artist.  A tour was planned but had to be cancelled as he’s currently ill and awaiting a liver transplant.  Since his health problems have been going on for several months, …

Branded Bandits, are a newly formed US trio made up of brother and sister John and LuLu Demitro, with the addition of  Tyler Sanderson. Very fresh on the rock scene they’re already starting to make waves in their native America, and have now set their sights on breaking into the UK .   …

@Planetmosh @AnybodyBC reviews ‘Consumed’ by @Seprevation If you feel like listening to some fresh death/thrash metal with a hint of old school sound, I have something to recommend to you. Formed in 2011, Seprevation, a four piece from Bristol are set to  release their first full-length album, ‘Consumed‘. ‘Consumed’ is …

@planetmosh reviews Louder Than Thunder by .@BlackBlitzBand Black Blitz are a three piece formed in 2009 in Munich, Germany.  They are Thomas Bauer on guitar/vocals, Christian Reiter on bass and Thomas Pribbenow on drums. On forming the band the trio decided the best way to learn their trade was to play …

For nigh on approaching 30 years, Mekong Delta progenitor and leader Ralph Hubert has not been afraid to explore the interconnections between classical music and extreme metal in a way in which has not been attempted since the first wave of overblown prog rock bands away back in the early …

Down formed as a side project back back in 1991 and nearly 25 years later is still treading the unhallowed procession to the Sabbath Altar. With three albums and an EP under its belt, the quintet has divulged Part 2, the second in the Down IV series. Founding father Kirk …

Altus formed in Belfast at the end of 2012 and have been a hard working band since June 2013.  This is their second EP, recorded and mixed by Jonny Munro (of local hardcore heroes Gacys Threads) at his Bearcat Studios in the city. With this release, Altus have made a …

@planetmosh reviews Good Luck by @decadeofficial @lady_lulu_dvp Those cheeky lads from Bath band Decade,  have only got themselves nominated for best newcomer by Kerrang, I decided to give their debut album, Good Luck a bit of a listen, well it would be rude not to. Released on Spinefarm records/ universal …

@Planetmosh @AnybodyBC reviews ‘The Winter War Symphony’ by Frostbitten Kingdom. It is really hard to find your own way and sound in music these days. But it is always worth keep trying. That’s what I think when I listen to Finnish metallers Frostbitten Kingdom. Since the very beginning this band has been trying …

Is there life for Sabaton after, well, Sabaton? Judging by their recent tour and the mania that ensued during their show at Woodstock in Poland (captured on their live release Swedish Empire Live), you’d have to say things were pretty healthy. Pun intended given their lyrical content, the band have bravely soldiered …

The first Alien album (self-titled, 1988) is considered an AOR classic and I was fortunate to buy it on Import from Powercuts Records in Manchester. However the band’s career took a bit of a nosedive after that album, several line-up changes and albums of poor quality songs and production consigned …

The whole retro, vintage take on the classic era of Doom has been touted around now for some time, and let us be honest, in varying degrees of quality. It is one thing to pay homage to the riffs of the 60’s and 70’s but entirely another to produce something …

Haerken are a new European band, and their ten-song debut album, …Of Warriors and Kings, released in 2014, is a fresh face on the monolith that is extreme music. (At least for Latin, the ‘ae’ is pronounced “i”.) Modern, technical, crunchy, and fairly dry, the band’s sound could be described …

.@Planetmosh @AnybodyBC review ‘The Necrotic Manifesto’ by @abortedmetal released via @centurymedia Aborted is not the kind of death metal band that simply blends in among the others. These guys from Belgium definitely have something of their own and that hasn’t faded away during their 19 years in existence (even with lineup changes and the …

The King Lot are a three piece Hard Rock and Roll band from West Lothian, Scotland who I have never heard much about until now! The band members have been friends for many years, and have written and recorded in various bands and projects together as well as achieving commercial …