Metal Music Reviews from martindavey87

ROB ZOMBIE Hellbilly Deluxe

Album · 1998 · Industrial Metal
Cover art 3.75 | 11 ratings
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Released in 1998, ‘Hellbilly Deluxe’ is the debut solo album by Rob Zombie, taking his first steps into a solo career after the disbandment of his former group, White Zombie. With plenty of horror overtones and imagery, and a huge-sounding production, giving the music an incredibly big, beefy sound, it’s a high-octane adrenaline ride of industrial and groove metal.

Well, the first few songs, anyway.

The album starts off with some absolute bangers, such as ‘Superbeast’, ‘Demonoid Phenomenon’, ‘Living Dead Girl’, and of course, the dance floor filler, ‘Dragula’. These are all fantastic songs that combine heavy grooves and thumping beats, and Rob’s instantly recognisable gravelly vocals are great for getting the listener pumped up. Overall, he has a great sound and style going on here. But it’s not to last.

Sadly, I find that after those few tracks, the album gets quite repetitive. I struggle not to zone out, but it feels like I’m hearing the same song over and over. Even the vocals, both melodies and lyrics, start to feel quite samey in every song. It’s frustrating, because the album starts on such a high, but from the midway point, my interest just seems to vanish.

There are a few songs with weird vocal effects or some such tomfoolery, as well as some “interlude” songs, and none of these inspire me to pay closer attention. And it’s a shame, because I am a Rob Zombie fan, and while ‘Hellbilly Deluxe’ generally seems pretty well-received, I just can’t seem to enjoy it all the way through. Regardless, if the first few songs are anything to go by, Mr. Zombie’s solo career should be an exciting ride, and I look forward to checking out his next album!

THE UNION UNDERGROUND Live...One Nation Underground

Live album · 2002 · Nu Metal
Cover art 3.00 | 1 rating
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This is a fantastic live EP by forgotten nu metal quartet the Union Underground. Released in 2002, it features six tracks and flies by in 20 minutes, but it’s an adrenaline-packed 20 minutes that doesn’t let up for a moment.

The Union Underground only ever released one album, 2000’s ‘…An Education in Rebellion’, and that was literally one anthem after another, and this live performance perfectly reflects that, with the band smashing through a number of songs, full of energy and youthful vigour. They should have gone so much further than they did.

The sound is really good, the performances are tight, and the set list is great, including such bangers as ‘South Texas Deathride’, ‘Killing the Fly’, ‘Revolution Man’ and their biggest hit, ‘Turn Me On. Mr. Deadman’, but overall, this EP isn’t really worth owning unless you’re a big fan of the band. Their only studio album is an absolute gem from the nu metal scene at the turn of the century, and it’s cheap enough too, so just get that instead.

ADRENALINE MOB We The People

Album · 2017 · Heavy Metal
Cover art 3.92 | 2 ratings
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Released in 2017, ‘We the People’ is the third studio album by American groove metal band Adrenaline Mob. Following on from previous outings, it’s full of massive-sounding, energetic, fist-pumping anthems of a very high standard. While the band was originally considered a supergroup when they first formed (they still are, somewhat…), it’s pretty obvious by this point that the core of the band is vocalist Russell Allen (of Symphony X fame), and guitarist Mike Orlando.

Not that that’s a bad thing, as these two have fantastic writing chemistry. Orlando’s absolutely furious guitar playing is insane, and Allen has one of the most incredible voices ever. Sounding extremely “metal”, yet able to drop emotion in on a whim, both of their styles fit really well.

As for the music, yeah, it’s pretty similar to everything they’ve released before, but why fix what isn’t broken? It’s heavy, groovy and melodic, and an amazing production gives it the massive, beefy sound that it deserves. Highlights include ‘King of the Ring’, ‘Raise ‘Em Up’, ‘We the People’, ‘The Killer’s Inside’, ‘Bleeding Hands’ and ‘Chasing Dragons’, but, to be honest, the whole album is just brimming with bangers, and each track flows into the next effortlessly.

Overall, ‘We the People’ is another fantastic record by one of the most underrated metal bands of the 2010’s. Everything about this album, from the songs, the production, even the artwork and the imagery, all fall perfectly into place, and if you like your music heavy (and you’d better, if you’re listening to this), then this is definitely an album worth owning.

METALLICA Live Shit: Binge & Purge

Boxset / Compilation · 1993 · Thrash Metal
Cover art 4.35 | 33 ratings
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Originally released in 1993, ‘Live Shit: Binge & Purge’ is an audio and visual tour de force of live music by Metallica. During the absolute peak of their world tour for 1991’s ‘Metallica’, they released a monstrous box set featuring three different concerts, two on video (later DVD, thankfully) and one on three CD’s.

Having become worldwide megastars with their 1991 self-titled release, the band would go on to tour the world, multiple times for over a staggering three years. Which brings us to the CD’s and the first DVD; the live album part of it is from a show in Mexico City, whilst the DVD is of a similar show from San Diego. Both concerts are fantastic, with excellent performances, sound, and in the case of the DVD, great picture. However, one major downside is the endless “noodling” and messing around between songs.

Yeah, it’s come to be expected, and is pretty harmless enough, but there’s so many random solo spots, messing around, jams, and countless other bits of shameless banter, that after a while, it does wear a bit thin. At one point, there’s 20 minutes of tomfoolery before they start another song, and during ‘Seek and Destroy’ James interacts with the crowd for over ten minutes. It’s fun at first, but after repeated listens, it does get quite boring fast.

Then there’s the second DVD, filmed in Seattle and taken from the bands 1989 tour in support of ‘…And Justice For All’, and this is a fantastic concert. This was a great time for the band as they were still “on the way up”. The playing is incredibly tight, the sound and picture are excellent, especially given the age of the footage, and with a great set list to boot, this random addition to the box set makes it totally worthwhile.

Everyone performs brilliantly on all three concerts. Even Lars, bless him, far from the best drummer in the world, but his boundless enthusiasm and excitement is infectious, and Jason Newsted’s copious amounts of energy makes me sad for how things turned out for him. With around nine hours of content, ‘Live Shit…’ is certainly not for the faint of heart, but overall, any detriments aside, this is an absolute beast of a box set, and truly belongs in every Metallica fans collection.

BON JOVI Bon Jovi

Album · 1984 · Hard Rock
Cover art 3.42 | 25 ratings
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Released in 1984, ‘Bon Jovi’ is the self-titled debut album by hard rock band, Bon Jovi, named after their vocalist and soon-to-be worldwide megastar, Jon Bon Jovi.

Featuring radio-friendly AOR at its finest, the album is a pretty mixed bag. The songs for the most part are all good, some more memorable than others, with perhaps one or two particular standouts. There’s some fantastic interplay between guitarist Richie Sambora and keyboard player David Rashbaum, which certainly helps give the music its mainstream appeal, and Bon Jovi’s voice, not yet ravaged by time, sounds great!

And the songs I consider standouts? ‘Runaway’ and ‘Roulette’, in particular, are early classics from the band, with other notable songs including ‘Shot Through the Heart’, ‘She Don’t Know Me’, ‘Burning For Love’, ‘Breakout’ and ‘Love Lies’. These aren’t as polished as later hits, but considering this is an 80’s rock band making their debut, they’re showing a ton of potential early on in their careers.

And it’s potential that we know they’ll live up to! Of course, the New Jersey quintet will go on to become one of the biggest bands on the planet, and the seeds for what’s to come have certainly been planted here. While ‘Bon Jovi’ is far from their best work, it’s a solid debut, and well worth owning if you’re a fan.

ENGINE Engine

Album · 1999 · Alternative Metal
Cover art 3.36 | 5 ratings
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Engine are an alternative metal supergroup, consisting of Ray Alder from Fates Warning, Joey Vera from Armored Saint (and also Fates Warning), as well as Bernie Versailles from Agent Steel, and Pete Parada, at the time in a band called Face to Face, but would eventually go on to drum for bands such as Halford and even The Offspring.

Released in 1999, ‘Engine’ is their self-titled debut album. Considering the progressive metal background of some of the musicians involved, it’s surprising that this is a very stripped down, laid back affair, focusing on a more groove metal sound that fits in with the nu metal-influenced scene at the turn of the century. I guess sometimes these guys just want something nice and easy to rock out to.

And rock out, they do! ‘Engine’ is brimming with plenty of heavy and grooving guitar riffs, Ray Alder’s fantastic vocals work great with this style of music, and the writing here is very polished. The band plays together very well, almost feeling like a “proper band” and not a “side project”.

Standout tracks from the record include ‘Tree of Life’, ‘Falling Star’, ‘Monster’, ‘Alone’ and ‘I Don’t Need’, but in all honesty, at barely 44 minutes in duration, this is a solid listen from start to finish. Engine might be a pretty obscure band for the casual metal listener, but if you’re a fan of any of the musicians involved, or like your metal simple, without endless noodling and complex melodies, then you can’t go wrong by giving this a go.

METALLICA S&M2

Live album · 2020 · Symphonic Metal
Cover art 4.41 | 10 ratings
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Twenty years after the first ‘S&M’ concerts, and Metallica team up once more with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra for a musical extravaganza, as metal meets classical in the ultimate musical collaboration.

Containing two CD’s and a DVD of the concert, ‘S&M2’ lives up to its predecessor, but is as different as it is similar. Besides advancements in technology allowing for much, much better sound and picture (on the DVD), the band have this time, taken the performance from a concert hall to a huge arena, and with thousands of Metallica fans in attendance, the audience participation really enhances the experience, especially on the ending of ‘The Memory Remains’.

The differences don’t stop there. What’s noticeable on the DVD, is that, unlike the first ‘S&M’, where Metallica were in their late 30’s, battling shifting musical trends, addictions, and personal strife, and “taking a risk” with the whole endeavour, this time the band are now all in their late 50’s. They’re sober, a cohesive unit, and they’ve done this before, and you can see how they seem so much more relaxed this time around. Conductor Edwin Outwater’s visual energy is infectious, and the orchestra musicians are no doubt, absolute professionals, but I can’t help but feel like the pep talk backstage was something like “hey, don’t worry, just have fun”.

If any risks are taken this time around, it’s the middle segment which sees the orchestra given time to shine. With classical pieces, a double bass tribute to Cliff Burton, as well as an orchestral version of ‘The Unforgiven III’, which sees James Hetfield go guitar-less. I don’t think this has happened since he burnt his arm in the early 90’s?

While sentimentality and nostalgia will always make me prefer the first ‘S&M’ over this one, the reality is that ‘S&M2’ is every part it’s equal. Featuring classics such as ‘One’, ‘Enter Sandman’ ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ and ‘Master of Puppets’, as well as newer songs, ‘The Day That Never Comes’, ‘Moth Into Flame’, and ‘Halo On Fire’ (which sounds incredible with the orchestra), the CD’s and DVD make for a fantastic audio and visual experience, and this is as essential a part of any Metallica collection as the first. Will the band still be around in their 70’s for part three? Let the waiting begin!

MEGADETH Warchest

Boxset / Compilation · 2007 · Thrash Metal
Cover art 4.35 | 9 ratings
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Released in 2007, Megadeth’s compilation boxset, ‘Warchest’, is an absolute tour-de-force of material. A great collectable for fans, you’ve got four discs of music and a DVD, which covers a huge variety of original songs, covers, demos, live recordings, and everything else in between.

The first three discs are compilations running in chronological order through the bands career. Interspersed with live tracks, demos, remixes, live recordings and short interludes of Dave Mustaine talking, they cover every aspect of the band, from 1985’s ‘Killing is My Business…’ all the way up to 2004’s ‘The System Has Failed’. This is a fantastic starting point for newcomers to the band, or a great retrospective for long-time fans.

My only real complaint here is that most of the songs are the 2004 remasters. Not that it’s that big of an issue, but personally, I think a lot of these tracks sounded better in their original versions.

Disc four is a live concert from Wembley Stadium in 1990. Shortly after the release of ‘Rust in Peace’, this is thrash-era Megadeth at their best, and the live recording proves that. And finally, disc five is a live DVD, shot in 1992. Admittedly, I love Megadeth, but live, I do find them a little boring. They kind of play the songs, and that’s it. Occasionally they headbang, but they don’t really seem overly animated. Still, the sound and picture are great, and at barely 50 minutes in duration, it’s a totally harmless watch, and more than worthy of belonging in this boxset.

Die-hard fans will want this for any unreleased tracks, in particular, discs four and five. Accompanied with a 36-page booklet, and beautiful 3D packaging, this is a fantastic set, and while it might seem a little dated by today, the absolute wealth of material makes it a must-have for fans.

SAVATAGE Still The Orchestra Plays: Greatest Hits Volume 1 & 2

Boxset / Compilation · 2010 · Heavy Metal
Cover art 4.08 | 2 ratings
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‘Still the Orchestra Plays’ is a 2010 compilation album by legendary cult metal band Savatage. After years of inactivity, this CD package just randomly popped up from nowhere and probably left most fans wondering if it was a sign that anything new was coming. Sadly, that was not the case, as it would be another three years until the band would once more pop up out of the blue with a re-released narrated version of their rock opera, ‘Streets’.

But back to this one, and yeah, as you’d expect, this is a fantastic compilation! Two discs full of absolutely top quality music. Sure, there’s a few omissions that I feel should have been included, but overall, it’s a nice career retrospective, perfect for newcomers to the band, or long-time fans who need a reminder of how brilliant these guys are.

From ‘Power of the Night’, ‘Hall of the Mountain King’, ‘Gutter Ballet’ and ‘Edge of Thorns’, to the likes of ‘Morphine Child’, ‘The Wake of Magellan’, ‘Chance’ and ‘One Child’, there’s no shortage of Savatage classics here. And three newly-recorded acoustic versions of previous hits are a welcome sign that the band were still trying to somewhat maintain active.

This CD package comes with a bonus DVD, which has the classic ‘Japan Live ‘94’ concert on it. Originally released on VHS, it was nice to finally be able to own a copy of this. Granted, the sound and picture are quite dated, but the performances are excellent, and it’s just great to be able to see a full concert video of the band.

Overall, this is, quite simply, a fantastic compilation. It’s definitely a great starting point for newcomers, but also has plenty of value for fans too. A worthy addition to any rock or metal collection!

AXEL RUDI PELL Black Moon Pyramid

Album · 1996 · Heavy Metal
Cover art 3.90 | 7 ratings
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Released in 1996, ‘Black Moon Pyramid’ is the fifth studio album by German hard rock guitarist/band Axel Rudi Pell. It follows on from the incredibly strong ‘Between the Walls’, which marked a creative shift in the band, as the quality of writing, production and overall performances took a huge step up.

However, in all honesty, perhaps they took a slight step back with this one. It’s a solid album, don’t get me wrong, and continues in exactly the same vein as its predecessor, but there’s just nothing overly remarkable I can think of to comment on.

‘Fool Fool’, ‘Getting’ Dangerous’, ‘Hole in the Sky’, ‘Touch the Rainbow’, ‘Aquarius Dance’ and the title track itself are all good songs, displaying furious guitar virtuosity and Jeff Scott Soto’s powerful vocals that demand attention. But that’s about all I can think of worth mentioning. ‘Black Moon Pyramid’ has been on my playlist for quite a white now, and I just couldn’t figure out what to say about it. It’s a solid, hard rock record, simple as that.

LIMP BIZKIT Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water

Album · 2000 · Nu Metal
Cover art 2.92 | 24 ratings
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Released in 2000, ‘Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water’ is the third studio album by American rap rockers Limp Bizkit, who, having gained mainstream recognition with their previous outing, really stepped up the ante on this one, and produced an album that totally defined an era. Not just in music, but in pop culture.

It’s crazy to think how big this band was back in 2000, but Limp Bizkit were literally one of, if not THE, biggest band on the planet. ‘Chocolate Starfish’ produced five chart-topping singles, a memorable soundtrack to a huge, Hollywood blockbuster, the music to one of the most highly revered Wrestlemania events of all time, and had mainstream appeal thanks to cameos by hip hop superstars DMX, Xzibit and Method Man.

And in all seriousness, it holds up well to this day. I know it’s cool to hate this band, and it’s cool to hate this album… but whatever, I love it! It’s just pure energy and attitude throughout, whilst never taking itself too seriously, nor coming across as a parody. The band have a sound and style that they stick to, and don’t care what anyone thinks. Fred Durst’s lyrics are often daft, but always memorable, and Wes Borland’s unique guitar playing is taken to a whole new level here. The production is fantastic too, and this sounds as fresh and exciting as it did way back at the turn of the century.

Need proof of how awesome this is? ‘Rollin’’, ‘Take a Look Around’, ‘Boiler’, ‘My Generation’ and ‘My Way’ are all the massive anthems that everyone knows, but in their shadows are some fantastic tracks such as ‘Hotdog’, ‘The One’, ‘Getcha Groove On’ and ‘I’ll Be Ok’. This is an incredibly well put-together album. If you’re looking for something deep and introspective, this isn’t for you. Neither too serious nor too daft, this album hits all the right spots if you just want to rock without a care in the world.

MINISTRY With Sympathy

Album · 1983 · Non-Metal
Cover art 3.13 | 14 ratings
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The 1983 debut album by industrial metal pioneers Ministry, ‘With Sympathy’, for whatever reason, was released in Europe under the name ‘Work For Love’. I don’t know why, nor do I know why the track list was rearranged, with one song even being given a new name. But what I do know, is that I’m too cheap to find a CD copy of ‘With Sympathy’, as they are very rare to find, and very expensive. While still fairly costly, ‘Work For Love’ was much more affordable.

Regardless of titles, the main thing is the music, and what a surprise I got with this one. Known for their relentless guitar riffs and jackhammer beats, this first album by Ministry is more in the vein of synth pop or new wave. It’s more of an 80’s dance album than the furiously aggressive metal I was expecting.

But you know what… it’s still pretty damn catchy!

The songs can get a bit samey, the lyrics a bit goofy, and band founder Al Jourgensen sings with a fake accent, but ultimately, they’re still pretty decent. ‘Work For Love’, ‘Do the Etawa’ (a re-titled ‘What He Say’), ‘Say You’re Sorry’, ‘Revenge’ and ‘I Wanted to Tell Her’ are all particular highlights, but in all fairness, the album is fairly short and flows quite nicely. Now… onto the heavier stuff…

ANUBIS GATE Purification

Album · 2004 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 3.31 | 17 ratings
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Having heard a number of random tracks over the years, Anubis Gate are a band I’ve always held in pretty high regard. Typical of most European progressive metal bands, they’re not very well known, but despite remaining mostly off the grid, they’ve put out an impressive array of high-quality albums. Keen to delve properly into their discography, 2004’s debut, ‘Purification’, seemed like the best place to start.

Except it probably wasn’t.

Sadly, to my surprise, I’ve found this a very hard album to get into. I’ve had it in my playlist for what feels like forever, and I just can’t seem to really remember anything from it. Every time I play it I zone out. The playing is fantastic and there are a few rather tasty guitar riffs, likewise, vocalist Torben Askholm has a great voice that really suits the music and its themes. But the overall writing is just so dull, all the songs seem to mesh together and just plod along at the same pace, all sounding similar to each other and thus, making it impossible to really distinguish most of them.

If I had to pick out any highlights, ‘In the Comfort of Darkness’, ‘Hypernosis’ and ‘Downward Spiral’ are all decent enough, but even then, I don’t think I could sit and listen to them all the way through without losing interest. And it’s a shame, because I know this band are capable of much better than this. But overall, ‘Purification’ just does nothing for me, and it’s fortunate that I’m already familiar with some of the bands later material, otherwise, had this been my first exposure to them, I probably wouldn’t bother coming back.

STRATOVARIUS Dreamspace

Album · 1994 · Power Metal
Cover art 3.36 | 25 ratings
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Following on from two fairly lacklustre efforts, 1994’s ‘Dreamspace’, the third studio album by Finnish power metal band Stratovarius, starts to show some early signs of the Stratovarius we’d all go on to know and love.

As before, the music is a fairly upbeat, energetic power metal, but the band are starting to incorporate some progressive elements in their song-writing, with keyboards in particular, becoming more prominent. Band leader Timo Tollki is a fantastic guitarist, and his neoclassical style of shredding is brilliant. However, while I give him credit for handling vocal duties whilst playing guitar, his singing can be a bit boring and uninspired at times.

Unlike the previous two releases, this one actually has a number of memorable songs, including ‘Abyss’, ‘Reign of Terror’, ‘Hold On to Your Dream’, ‘Chasing Shadows’, ‘Wings of Tomorrow’ and the title track itself.

Sure, some of the slower songs tend to drag, and particular mention must go to ‘Thin Ice’, which is absolutely awful, but the aforementioned tracks are all fantastic, and while ‘Dreamspace’ isn’t likely to be anyone’s favourite Stratovarius album, it’s a very confident release, and a sure-fire sign that the band are constantly improving.

DREAM THEATER Cleaning Out The Closet (Christmas CD 1999)

Promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs) · 1999 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 3.54 | 8 ratings
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‘Cleaning Out the Closet’ is a compilation album by progressive metal legends Dream Theater, released in 1999, exclusively to fan club members. It features a variety of unreleased songs and singles b-sides, most of which were recorded and intended for 1997’s ‘Falling Into Infinity’, but ended up not making the cut.

And that’s probably a good thing, too, because some of these songs can be pretty average at times. That’s not to say that they’re bad, but they were clearly left unreleased for a reason! However, a number of these have gone on to garner almost classic status. ‘To Live Forever’ has been floating around the bands live set for years, and ‘Raise the Knife’ appeared on their 2006 live album ‘Score: 20th Anniversary World Tour’.

Other notable highlights include ‘The Way It Used to Be’, ‘Cover My Eyes’ and ‘Speak to Me’. Although, in all honesty, while this compilation is decent enough, I don’t think I’d ever choose to listen to any of these songs over any of the bands official studio output. Still, if you can find it, this is worth owning if you’re a die-hard Dream Theater fan.

DEEP PURPLE Deep Purple In Rock

Album · 1970 · Hard Rock
Cover art 4.43 | 141 ratings
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After three releases playing psychedelic rock, and one playing classical with an orchestra, it was time for Deep Purple to truly establish their identity and give us a taste of who they are. With a major line-up change and at the insistence of guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, the band would go down the route of a heavier, more hard rock style, and it would pay off in dividends.

Released in 1970, ‘In Rock’ would go on to become one of those classic, genre-defining albums. Along with Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple were laying down the foundations of heavy metal with a bigger guitar sound and a high standard of musicianship by everyone involved.

‘In Rock’ would also see the debut of vocalist Ian Gillan, who’s banshee-like wailing set the bar for metal vocalists a decade before Bruce Dickinson and Rob Halford were screaming their hearts out. Giving the band a much broader and more versatile range to work with, the chemistry between Blackmore, Gillan and keyboard player Jon Lord (and everyone else, for that matter) really starts to shine through here. For the first time since their debut album, the band sound genuinely inspired and confident.

With that out of the way, I do think that perhaps you had to be there in 1970 to truly appreciate this album the most, because listening to it today, there are a number of songs I tend to skip. But the ones I don’t skip, such as ‘Black Night’, ‘Speed King’, ‘Child in Time’ and ‘Bloodsucker’, are without a doubt, Deep Purple classics. And packaged with its iconic and instantly recognisable artwork, this album is a pivotal moment in rock and metal history, and thus, belongs in everyone’s collection.

METHODS OF MAYHEM Methods of Mayhem

Album · 1999 · Rap Metal
Cover art 3.00 | 1 rating
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Back in 1999, drummer Tommy Lee quit world-famous glam rockers Mötley Crüe, to embark upon a new endeavour delving into the (then) increasingly popular world of rap metal. The result was a smorgasbord of genres and guest appearances known as Methods of Mayhem.

Personally, I love rap metal. I think the worlds of metal and hip hop blend together perfectly. Both in musical terms, in attitude, and in image, the two were made for each other. And this album is a fine representation of that. With an excellent production and very polished writing, this album is nonstop adrenaline and energy.

Besides Tommy Lee, this album features the likes of Fred Durst, Kid Rock, Snoop Dogg, Lil’ Kim, Phil X, Chris Chaney, The Crystal Method, and Mix Master Mike. There’s a true mix-up of rockers and rappers, but somehow the album flows coherently, as though everyone is all operating under the umbrella of this being one very legit band, rather than a whole bunch of guest appearances for the sake of it.

Sadly, there are a couple of songs that are kind of passable, but for the most part, this is a solid album, and when the band get it right, damn, they really smash it out of the park! ‘Hypocritical’, ‘Who the Hell Cares’, ‘Get Naked’, ‘Proposition Fuck You’, ‘Anger Management’, ‘Narcotic’ and ‘Crash’ are all absolute bangers that make this album a more than worthy addition to any rock, metal, or hip hop collection. The only real shame is that it would be ten years until the next album.

MEGADETH Unplugged in Boston

Live album · 2006 · Thrash Metal
Cover art 2.33 | 2 ratings
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Originally released in 2006 for fan club members, ‘Unplugged in Boston’ is a live acoustic album by thrash metal legends Megadeth, recorded in 2001 whilst touring for their album, ‘The World Needs a Hero’. While there’s nothing overly wrong with this, in all honesty, there’s nothing right with it, either. Who actually wanted to hear acoustic versions of Megadeth songs? Anyone? Didn’t think so.

Not that there’s anything bad about them, the performances are good and the sound is fine for what it is, but this is Megadeth. Some bands’ songs lend themselves well to more intimate, acoustic settings. Megadeth isn’t one of them!

At 40 minutes in duration, it’s a harmless listen, and is an acceptable addition to any Megadeth fans’ collection, but really, wouldn’t you rather listen to this songs with distorted guitars, pounding drums, and just a little bit of that Dave Mustaine attitude? I know I would.

CLOUDSCAPE Cloudscape

Album · 2004 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 3.56 | 8 ratings
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I’ve had this album on my playlist for quite a while now, mainly because I just couldn’t think of anything in particular to say about it! ‘Cloudscape’ is the self-titled debut album by Swedish progressive metal band, uh, Cloudscape. Released in 2004, this sounds very typical of bands in this genre, but with an emphasis on strong writing, melody, and catchy hooks.

The band members are all excellent musicians, and I particularly love the blending of melodic keyboards and heavy, crunchy guitars. And this album has that in abundance, as well as powerful vocals, interesting lyrics, and a fantastic production. There isn’t anything overly unique about this band, but that’s fine. Not every album needs to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes good music just speaks for itself.

Admittedly, with that said, at one hour in duration, the album does drag a little at times, with some of the songs sounding kind of similar to one another. But on the other hand, some of them are absolutely fantastic! ‘As the Light Leads the Way’, ‘Witching Hour’, ‘Everyday is Up to You’, ‘Under Fire’, ‘Out of the Shadows’ and ‘Slave’ are all amazingly well written songs, and should be more than enough to satisfy any progressive metal fan.

TIME REQUIEM Time Requiem

Album · 2002 · Power Metal
Cover art 3.18 | 3 ratings
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‘Time Requiem’ is the 2002 self-titled debut album by Swedish progressive power metal band, Time Requiem. Formed by keyboard player Richard Andersson, the band plays a style very typical of progressive metal, with a strong neoclassical influence, and an emphasis on powerful vocals and fantasy-themed lyrics.

The most prominent aspect of Time Requiem’s music is shredding, and it comes in boatloads! Andersson and guitarist Magnus Nordh are absolute beasts on their instruments, furiously ripping up the chromatic scale at every opportunity. It makes for some lavishly flavoured riffs and colourful solos, but sadly it does get a little repetitive after a while.

Most of the songs are very strong and well-written, but also rely on similar tropes. At times, they sound very reminiscent of other bands, such as Symphony X, Dream Theater and Stratovarius. But if you can accept a group wearing its influences on its sleeves, then you might just enjoy tracks such as ‘Watching the Tower of Skies’, ‘Time Requiem’, ‘Milagros Charm’, ‘Visions of New Dawn’, ‘The Aphorism’ and the absolutely psychotic instrumental, ‘Brutal Mentor’.

‘Time Requiem’ can be challenging to sit through in one go, especially if you’re not keen on the sheer technicality of the music, but perseverance and repeated listens can be rewarding. Over time, the album grew on me, and while the band offers nothing new or unique, this is a very solid debut, and I’m excited to hear where things will go with future releases.

KISS Alive!

Live album · 1975 · Hard Rock
Cover art 4.36 | 31 ratings
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‘Alive!’, released in 1975, is the first live album by legendary American rock band, KISS. It’s often cited as their best album, period, and is the definitive summary of their music and legacy on one recording. So why do I feel like it’s a bit overrated?

Barely two years into their career, it’s impressive that this is the bands fourth release, and with three albums to draw material from, there’s a wealth of songs for their live shows. The problem is I’m just not really into those first few albums.

Don’t get me wrong, I love KISS. But my love of KISS pretty much starts from what would be their next studio album and onwards (that album being the fantastic ‘Destroyer’). Yeah, the live versions of those original songs sound better, and “how KISS are meant to be heard”, but mostly, those songs still don’t really do much for me.

That’s not to say that I don’t like this album, because I do. Despite the cheesy dubbed crowd noises, there’re still some great performances on here. Songs like ‘Deuce’, ‘Strutter’, ‘Hotter Than Hell’, ‘Cold Gin’ and ‘Rock and Roll All Nite’ probably sound better here than they would on their studio recordings, but then, that might also be because I rarely, if ever, listen to the studio recordings.

‘Alive!’ is no doubt regarded as a classic album, and sometimes considered one of the greatest live albums of all time, and that hyperbole may be the very reason why I feel it isn’t. I think it’s good, maybe even very good, but one of the all-time greatest? Sorry, to any KISS fans reading this, but no. Not for me. Just a “good” live album, but one that I’m not likely to listen to that often.

EXTREME Extreme II: Pornograffitti

Album · 1990 · Funk Metal
Cover art 3.95 | 40 ratings
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‘Extreme II: Pornograffitti’ is the second album by American hair metal band, Extreme. Released in 1990, it came out at a time when there was a sense of change in the air. While grunge hadn’t yet completely taken over the world, there was certainly a feeling that a lot of the glam and party antics of the 80’s were becoming dated, which is unfortunate for this Boston quartet, as they had just released what could arguably be considered their best album.

I’ll never understand why hair metal was on such a decline back then, with energetic showmen traded for angsty introverts and flashy guitar solos traded for three chords. Perhaps people were just sick of the image of it all, or just not being able to relate to the lyrics? But regardless, the musicianship was still truly spectacular. For Extreme in particular, praise must go to guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, whose absolute ferocity on the guitar is insane, and vocalist Gary Cherone has an incredible and charismatic voice that totally fits the funky shred style of the riffs.

And I won’t leave out drummer Paul Geary and bassist Pat Badger, who are absolutely solid as a rhythm section, providing plenty of groove and funk.

There’s an absolute abundance of hits on this album, but particular highlights for me include ‘Decadence Dance’, ‘Get the Funk Out’, ‘It (‘s a Monster)’, ‘When I’m President’, the frantic shred-fest that is ‘He-Man Woman Hater’, soft ballad ‘More Than Words’ (which was actually a massive hit for the band), as well as the title track itself. But in all honesty, this album is just non-stop banger after banger, and if you can shake off the 80’s glam stigma, this is an incredible album, and an essential addition to every rock or metal collection.

PITCHSHIFTER Industrial

Album · 1991 · Industrial Metal
Cover art 2.46 | 4 ratings
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I first got into Pitchshifter when I heard the song ‘Genius’ on the soundtrack to ‘Mortal Kombat: Annihilation’ way back in the late 90’s. I loved that song back then, and very quickly got into albums like ‘Deviant’, ‘PSI’ and ‘www.pitchshifter.com’. I enjoyed their energetic industrial style and their rebellious attitude, and these were very impressionable on a young, teenage me.

But then it came time to delve into their back catalogue and check out their debut album, and… what the hell happened here?!

Gone is the industrial energy and rebellious anthems, and in their place, is some sludgy, grimy, death metal nonsense. Not that I really have anything against sludge or death metal for the record, but I just find this album plods along at a very slow, very dull, and very repetitive rate. The incoherent vocals, indistinguishable guitar riffs and mechanical drum machines do nothing for me.

And I tried. I really did. I had this on my playlist for a little while and gave it multiple listens, but absolutely nothing is sticking. I just find myself constantly bored and wanting to listen to any one of the bands later releases, which I know they’ll go on to release some true industrial gems. So with that said, this will retire to the CD shelf, most likely to never be played again, but kept because my collector OCD dictates that it needs to stay with the rest of my Pitchshifter collection.

CKY Volume 1

Album · 1999 · Alternative Metal
Cover art 3.66 | 3 ratings
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‘Volume 1’ is the 1999 debut album by American alternative rock band, CKY. Through their ties to the TV show Jackass (the drummer is Bam Margera’s brother), the band were synonymous with the skater scene around the turn of the century, and had somewhat major success due to a particular hit of theirs.

That hit is ’99 Quite Bitter Beings’. I have never in my life been a skater (I can’t even stand on one without getting all wobbly!), but back in my teenage years, I had a lot of friends who were skaters, and EVERY single hooded-topped, baggy-trouser-wearing one of them liked this song.

Fast forward approximately 20 years, and it’s time to dig into this album and give Camp Kill Yourself a proper chance, and I must say, I’m actually surprised how much I enjoy this album. There’s a lot of very interesting guitar riffs, emphasised even more by their choice of sound, with heavy low-ends, making for some very intriguing writing. The lyrics are mostly tongue-in-cheek, but are catchy and infectious.

Overall though, this is just a solid, hard rocking album. The instrumental work is very good and fairly unique for this kind of band, and with tracks like ‘Rio Bravo’, ‘Lost in a Contraption’, ‘Disengage the Simulator’, ‘My Promiscuous Daughter’ and of course, ’99 Quite Bitter Beings’, there’s an abundance of tasty guitar riffs and captivating ideas that makes me regret waiting so long to properly check this band out.

ANTHRAX Among The Living

Album · 1987 · Thrash Metal
Cover art 4.34 | 98 ratings
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Released in 1987, ‘Among the Living’ is the third studio album by American thrash metal band Anthrax, and is hailed by fans as one of the genres greatest albums. Much like the other members of thrash metal’s “big four” (look ‘em up if you don’t know), Anthrax were at this time, riding an upward trajectory of both creative and critical success. Their previous outing, ‘Spreading the Disease’, solidified them as one of metal’s most promising bands, and this follows on exactly from where they left off.

With the same line-up of musicians, having toured and played together for a number of years now, it’s no surprise that everyone is firing on all cylinders here. The twin-guitar assault sounds even tighter than before, with rapid-fire thrash riffs that refuse to slow down. The bands tongue-in-cheek approach is here in spades, in particular with vocalist Joey Belladonna’s performances, sometimes serious, oftentimes humorous, all the time impressive. All the ingredients for a great Anthrax record are here.

The production sounds good for its time, though nothing overly remarkable, it sounds pretty much as you’d expect an 80’s thrash album to sound, and it holds up well to this day. With fist-pumping anthems such as ‘I Am the Law’, ‘Indians’, ‘Caught in a Mosh’, ‘Among the Living’ and ‘Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)’, there’s an abundance of Anthrax classics here, helping make ‘Among the Living’ an essential album that belongs in every metal fans collection.

AEROSMITH Aerosmith

Album · 1973 · Hard Rock
Cover art 3.61 | 38 ratings
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Released in 1973, ‘Aerosmith’ is the self-titled debut album by American hard rockers, Aerosmith. Showcasing a young band with a whole bundle of confidence and potential, this is hard rock in a similar vein to bands such as KISS, AC/DC or The Rolling Stones. No gimmicks here though, just solid songwriting and loads of energy.

The production on this album is good for its time, and holds up well. Vocalist Steven Tyler isn’t hitting the high notes like he does in later years, not yet anyway, but you can certainly hear the passion and charisma in his voice. The bands sound is still pretty grounded in the blues, having not taken on that harder edge just yet. But again, it’s all good, and we all know what’s coming over the next few years. Or decades.

Overall, this is just a good, solid rock album. At barely 36 minutes in duration, ‘Aerosmith’ absolutely flies by, and tracks like ‘Make It’, ‘Mama Kin’, ‘Walkin’ the Dog’ and early, huge hit for the band, ‘Dream On’, make it a worthy addition to any hard rock collection.

FAITH NO MORE Live At The Brixton Academy

Live album · 1991 · Alternative Metal
Cover art 3.17 | 14 ratings
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As far as live albums go, ‘Live At the Brixton Academy’ can only be rated as “okay”. Released in 1991, this comes off of the success Faith No More had with previous studio outing ‘The Real Thing’. You can certainly feel the energy radiating from the band, with confident and charismatic performances, especially by vocalist Mike Patton, but sadly, the sound is far from brilliant, and as such, I think most fans are better off just listening to the studio albums.

There’s also not really much here to entice repeated listens. They play the songs, the crowd applause, Mike Patton says something, onto the next song. The set list is pretty good, with all the major hits present, but again, overall, there’s just nothing particularly memorable about this disc.

One best kept for die-hard Faith No More fans. And even then, I doubt many of them listen to it that often.

FAITH NO MORE The Real Thing

Album · 1989 · Funk Metal
Cover art 3.97 | 90 ratings
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Released in 1989, ‘The Real Thing’ is the third studio album by alternative metal band Faith No More, and is notable for being the first to feature vocalist Mike Patton. With former frontman Chuck Mosley gone, it’s the addition of Patton that helped the Californian’s truly find their sound and establish themselves as a huge name in the rock and metal world. A certain hit single didn’t hurt, either.

Further pushing the boundaries of where they could take their music, Faith No More’s chemistry as a band really started to pay dividends here. Blending metal, funk, and even pop and disco elements, with a variety of singing, rapping and growling, the band really hit a creative high with their unique sound and unique singer.

Of course, the main focal point of ‘The Real Thing’ is arguably the bands most well-known song and their biggest hit, ‘Epic’. A song that still garners endless radio rotation to this day! Along with ‘Epic’, there are other great tracks, such as the energetic ‘From Out of Nowhere’, the funky ‘Falling to Pieces’, the heavy ‘Surprise! You’re Dead!’ or the title track itself. Though, I must admit I do feel halfway through the album there’s a decline in quality. While the songs are easy enough to sit through, I generally find them quite passable.

Still, overall, this album is regarded as a classic, and rightfully so. It really put Faith No More on the map as mainstream superstars for a short time, and while their brief flirtation with commercial music wouldn’t last long, this record still holds up pretty well to this day, and definitely belongs in the collection of every rock and metal fan.

DEF LEPPARD On Through The Night

Album · 1980 · NWoBHM
Cover art 3.70 | 41 ratings
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Released in 1980, ‘On Through the Night’ is the debut album by legendary British metal band, Def Leppard. It thrust the Sheffield rockers into the upper echelon of what was known as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, and along with bands such as Iron Maiden and Saxon, helped revitalise the stagnating metal genre and carry it into the 80’s, where it would reach all new heights of success and popularity.

This however, is a very different band to the one that would become worldwide megastars just a few years later. Switching stadium anthems for a more traditional heavy metal sound, the writing here is raw, but the energy and passion amongst the members is very palpable. From one intense hard rocker to the next, this album doesn’t let up with its blistering, nonstop guitar riffs and early precursors to what will become the bands trademark sing-along choruses.

Highlights include some early Def Lep classics, such as ‘Rock Brigade’, ‘Rocks Off’, ‘Hello America’, ‘It Could Be You’, ‘Sorrow is a Woman’ and ‘Answer to the Master’, each one giving us a taste of what this band is truly capable of. With a great production and its iconic cover art, there’s no doubting this is a solid debut album, and while it may not be the bands best or most famous work, it’s still a worthy addition to any rock or metal collection.

DEICIDE Deicide

Album · 1990 · Death Metal
Cover art 3.95 | 33 ratings
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‘Deicide’ is the 1990 self-titled debut album by Florida-based death metal band, Deicide. I can admit prior to listening to this, that I’m not the biggest death metal fan. I’ve dabbled in it here and there, but mostly find it just too aggressive. But over my years of dipping my feet in the water, there’s been a handful of bands that I “didn’t mind”.

Decide is one of them.

Well, at least, I thought they were. Because this, their debut album, does nothing for me.

I’ve given it multiple spins, hoping that something will catch on, but it’s just not happening. Glen Benton and his motley crew are all more than competent musicians, but none of these songs stick with me. Just endless, mind-numbing guitar riffs that offer nothing other than the usual chugging away on the bottom string, with guttural, aggressive death metal vocals to boot.

I’m sure Deicide were one of those bands I “didn’t mind” for a reason. Maybe they just needed time to evolve, mature or develop their sound a bit more. Perhaps, rather than reviewing their albums in chronological order, I’ll pick something from a few years later, when they’ve established themselves and “found their groove” so-to-speak. Or perhaps I should just put the death metal down and go back to listening to some Yes or Nickelback.

Sorry Decide fans. This one’s just not for me.

PAPA ROACH Getting Away With Murder

Album · 2004 · Alternative Metal
Cover art 2.50 | 6 ratings
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After 2000’s hugely successful ‘Infest’, and it’s follow-up, 2002’s ‘Lovehatetragedy’, Papa Roach, like many, shifted their sound away from the dying nu metal subgenre, and became more grounded in hard rock or post grunge (or whatever style all the nu metal bands became once the fad died down). It was around this time that I lost touch with Papa Roach, a result of my own musical tastes changing, so I was keen to revisit these superstars from my teenage years to see what they’ve been up to since I left off.

‘Getting Away With Murder’ sees Papa Roach do away with a lot of the metal elements in their music, with the most notable being that the guitars don’t quite sound as edgy or aggressive. There’s less focus on rapping vocals, and the lyrical content itself is nowhere near as bleak or angst-ridden as before. The songs are a lot more poppy and radio-friendly, with vocalist Jacoby Shaddix displaying more singing ability than he’d done on previous releases.

But none of this is a detriment. Sure, it’s not quite the same Papa Roach that caught everyone’s attention by ‘cutting their life into pieces’, but there’s still some good, well-written rock songs that show a band maturing and evolving. I might have been disgusted at this change back in 2004, but now, I can see it for what it is. And I’m glad to be making up for lost time.

‘Take Me’, ‘Getting Away With Murder’, ‘Scars’, ‘Blood (Empty Promises)’ and ‘Be Free’ (which features an amazing vocal performance) are all great radio rock songs that demonstrate the band changing with the times whilst still maintaining a high quality of writing. And while ‘Getting Away…’ is far from their best work, it’s still a solid album which definitely has its share of unforgettable tracks.

KAMELOT One Cold Winter's Night

Live album · 2006 · Power Metal
Cover art 4.29 | 8 ratings
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Released in 2006, ‘One Cold Winter’s Night’ is a live album by progressive power metal band Kamelot, recorded earlier in the year whilst touring in support of their absolute masterpiece, ‘The Black Halo’.

Coming off of the success of their most highly revered and ambitious release, it should come as no surprise that everyone in the band is in peak form here. The playing is absolutely fantastic by everyone, and you can really sense how energised and passionate the band members are. Praise in particular to vocalist Roy Khan, who is just blasting each song as heard on their studio counterpart note-for-note.

The set list, as you’d expect, is stellar, featuring pretty much every major fan favourite, with plenty of focus given to material from ‘The Black Halo’, ‘Karma’ and ‘Epica’. Oh, and speaking of Epica, there’s a guest appearance by Simone Simons, giving us a spine-tingling duet with Khan for ‘The Haunting’.

With a crystal-clear sound, excellent set-list and unforgettable performances, this really is a remarkable live album, which truly belongs in every Kamelot fans collection.

THE BLACK MAGES The Black Mages III: Darkness And Starlight

Album · 2008 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 2.14 | 3 ratings
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The Black Mages is an instrumental progressive metal band formed by Japanese composer Nobuo Uematsu, renowned for his work on the Final Fantasy video games. While I’ve never actually played the games, I can appreciate video game music, and consider the Black Mages’ first album an absolute masterpiece. Their second album was a very strong follow-up, and so it’s unfortunate that their third album falls a bit flat.

Released in 2008, Uematsu and his motley crew had 21 years of video game lineage to take inspiration from, but with their third release, ‘Darkness and Starlight’, I think it just goes to show that what works as background music in a video game doesn’t necessarily work as a metal song.

And it’s a shame, because in theory, this isn’t much different than the previous two albums, except the magic just isn’t there anymore. The excitement and energy that made the first album so fantastic seems missing, like they’re just going through the motions now.

The playing and production, as always, is exceptional, and there’s a few highlights, including ‘Opening: Bombing Mission’, ‘Neo Exdeath’, ‘Distant Worlds’, ‘Assault On the Silver Dragon’ and closing track ‘Life (in Memory of Keiten)’, but in all honesty, these songs are still fairly passable, and I’d much rather just listen to either of the previous two records. In addition, the only vocals on this album feature in the title track, a 15-minute Japanese prog metal opera, which, I might add, is one of the most horrendously boring and long-winded songs I think I’ve ever heard.

Overall, this isn’t a terrible album, but I really think at this point the band has used up all the best ideas from the franchise, and since they called it a day shortly after, I think they knew that too.

NIGHTWISH Century Child

Album · 2002 · Power Metal
Cover art 3.62 | 34 ratings
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After a slow and steady upwards trajectory over the course of three releases, it seems that with 2002’s ‘Century Child’, their fourth studio album, Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish have refined their sound, and taken a huge step up in both critical and commercial success.

Treading the thin line between power metal and symphonic metal, the band have really hit their stride with this album, sounding more inspired and more confident than ever. With a strong emphasis on the symphonic and operatic elements, as well as additional male vocals to compliment Tarja Turunen’s voice, ‘Century Child’ has a much more well-rounded sound than its predecessors.

With great instrumental performances and an excellent production that really gives the music a rich, vibrant sound, there really aren’t many faults with this release, other than a couple of filler tracks, it’s all pretty stellar.

And with some absolute bangers such as ‘Dead to the World’, ‘End of All Hope’, ‘Bless the Child’, ‘Slaying the Dreamer’, the underrated ‘Feel For You’ and the obligatory symphonic metal band cover of ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, ‘Century Child’ displays a band who have really established themselves as one of the top bands of their genre, and is an album that belongs in every metal fans collection.

NINE INCH NAILS Pretty Hate Machine

Album · 1989 · Non-Metal
Cover art 3.71 | 37 ratings
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Released in 1989, ‘Pretty Hate Machine’ is the debut album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Mostly written and recorded by singer and instrumentalist Trent Reznor during down-time whilst working at a studio, it would become an influential and pivotal album in the early days of industrial rock, and in particular, industrial metal.

Seemingly years ahead of its time, ‘Pretty Hate Machine’ sees a blend of rock and electronic elements fused to create a very harsh, gritty and bleak-sounding album. The angst-ridden vocals convey despair and anguish, while atmospheric keyboards create moods of desperation and isolation. This album is heavy, yet danceable!

With early hits including the infectious ‘Head Like a Hole’, ‘Terrible Lie’, ‘Sin’, ‘Kinda I Want To’, ‘Sanctified’ and ‘Down in It’, there is no shortage of potential here, and it’s easy to hear that even on early releases, you know that Nine Inch Nails are destined for bigger things.

RUSH Caress of Steel

Album · 1975 · Hard Rock
Cover art 3.84 | 98 ratings
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I knew early into my love affair with Rush that I was mainly a fan of their 80’s synth-heavy era. As a long-time prog fan, I gravitated to albums like ‘Grace Under Pressure’, ‘Moving Pictures’ and ‘Signals’. That’s not to say I disliked the bands more hard rock material, I just had a firm belief of what my preferences were. So, going through the bands discography from the start, 1974’s self-titled debut is a solid hard rocker that holds up today, but after that, it’s been all downhill so far.

1975’s ‘Fly By Night’ didn’t really do much for me, and sadly, neither does this, the bands third studio album, ‘Caress of Steel’.

Which is a shame, because Rush are one of my favourite bands, and the trio of Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart have created some absolutely stellar albums over the years. But there’s just nothing about this one that clicks with me. There’s a couple of decent tracks, such as ‘Bastille Day’ and ‘I Think I’m Going Bald’, but I’m really not likely to listen to any of these by choice.

And to top it off, the Canadian’s make their first foray into full-on progressive rock territory, with two tracks reaching durations of almost 13 and 20 minutes respectively, but holy hell these tracks are boring! I absolutely struggle to keep listening without losing interest, oftentimes forgetting it’s even the same song I’m listening to.

And sadly, that’s ‘Caress of Steel’. As much as I love Rush, this album just isn’t resonating with me, and since their next studio album is a firm, prog classic, I think it’s time to move on to that one…

DEMONS & WIZARDS Demons & Wizards

Album · 2000 · US Power Metal
Cover art 3.69 | 21 ratings
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Released in 1999, ‘Demons & Wizards’ is a power metal collaboration between Jon Schaffer of Iced Earth, and Hansi Kürsch of Blind Guardian. Any band featuring two such prominent names within the power metal community could be amazing, and this SHOULD be amazing, but sadly, it fails to live up to its full potential, leaving us with something that sounds exactly as you’d expect; Iced Earth music with Blind Guardian vocals.

And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the problem is that this is just so damn average. There’s plenty of high-energy metal thrashing, galloping guitar riffs, epic orchestrations and Gregorian chants (like, who asked for these?), but amongst all of that, there’s only a number of truly memorable songs.

There’s no doubting that tracks like ‘Heaven Denies’, ‘Poor Man’s Crusade’, ‘My Last Sunrise’, and ‘Fiddler On the Green’ have all the makings of power metal classics. But the rest, well, they’re all pretty forgettable. And it’s a huge shame, because this had the potential to be an absolutely classic album, but sadly, for whatever reason, it’s not.

RED CIRCUIT Haze of Nemesis

Album · 2014 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 3.00 | 1 rating
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‘Haze of Nemesis’ is the third album by German progressive metal band Red Circuit. It was released in 2014, five years after its predecessor, and follows on exactly where the band left off, with plenty of explosive, high-energy tracks, centred around massive sounding guitar riffs, atmospheric keyboards and the incredibly powerful voice of renowned Sri Lankan singer, Chity Somapala.

Unlike the bands previous two outings though, ‘Haze…’ does seem a bit samey after a while. That’s not to say it’s bad, but this sounds almost identical to everything the band has done before, and the seeming lack of variety does get a repetitive.

Still, it’s not all bad, as there are some absolute bangers here. ‘Oceans Apart’, ‘My Lonely Heaven’, ‘Serpent’s Smile’, ‘Believing a Lie’ and a cover of Peter Gabriel’s ‘Digging in the Dirt’ are all fantastic reasons to give this album a chance. And with a great production that really makes every song sound absolutely huge, there’s no denying that, although the band stick to their established formula, they do it very well. So why change what isn’t broken?

KISS Rock And Roll Over

Album · 1976 · Hard Rock
Cover art 3.74 | 32 ratings
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‘Rock and Roll Over’ is the fifth studio album by legendary American rockers KISS. Impressively, it’s their sixth release (including a live album) within two and a half years, and follows on from ‘Destroyer’, an album that quite literally changed my life. However, impressive feats aside, this is very much KISS, by-the-numbers.

That’s not to say this isn’t a good album, in fact, this is oftentimes considered by fans to be one of their most popular releases. And after the creative peak of ‘Destroyer’ and the success of 1975’s ‘Alive’, KISS were really on top of the world. But for me personally, I guess when you’ve heard one KISS song, you’ve heard them all, it’s just a matter of how many of them I like. And while ‘Rock and Roll Over’ has its fair share of great tunes, it also has a number of fillers.

Tracks like ‘I Want You’, ‘Take Me’, ‘Calling Dr. Love’, ‘Hard Luck Woman’ (which could easily be a Rod Stewart song) and ‘Ladies Room’ sees the classic line-up of Stanley, Simmons, Frehley and Criss at their sleazy best, coming out with such gems as “put your hand in my pocket, grab hold of my rocket”, but hey, that’s what we expect from KISS, and on that, they deliver.

Overall though, while ‘Rock and Roll Over’ is a decent enough album, and with a duration of barely 32 minutes, it’s not exactly difficult to sit through. It’s just that I think there’s much better KISS albums out there. But still, this is KISS in a nutshell, and if you’re a fan of the band, then this is certainly a worthy addition to the collection.

MAGNUM Chase The Dragon

Album · 1982 · Hard Rock
Cover art 4.14 | 12 ratings
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Back in 2002, I had a sampler CD with an issue of Classic Rock magazine, upon which there was a song on there that had a beautiful piano intro, followed by some dramatic but powerful vocals, and plenty of big, epic guitar riffs. That song was ‘Sacred Hour’, and it introduced me to British AOR band, Magnum.

Admittedly, I’ve never been the biggest Magnum fan, and they’ve only ever been a small blip on my musical radar. After checking out their discography, I found their first album to be a pleasant surprise, though its follow-up, the creatively-titled ‘Magnum II’, was pretty disappointing. So it’s good to hear that with their third album, 1982’s ‘Chase the Dragon’, the band are back on track.

Following in the same vein as their previous outings, the British quintet don’t stray too far from their established formula, mixing classic hard rock and progressive rock elements, with plenty of keyboard-driven riffs mixed in with a healthy dose of pomp and cheese. This is top notch dad rock at its finest.

The songs here are pretty solid, and the musical performances are of a high standard, in particular, vocalist Bob Catley is really belting it at times, and guitarist Tony Clarkin and keyboardist Mark Stanway have excellent chemistry together. The production is also very good, though very typical I suppose, of 80’s hard rock.

With highlights such as ‘Soldier of the Line’, ‘The Spirit’, ‘The Teacher’, bonus track ‘Down to Earth’, and the aforementioned rock ballad ‘Sacred Hour’, ‘Chase the Dragon’ is just a straight-up good album. I’m sure the band will improve with later releases, but this is none-the-less a worthy addition to the collection.

PEARL JAM Ten

Album · 1991 · Heavy Alternative Rock
Cover art 4.22 | 78 ratings
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‘Ten’ is the debut album by hard rock band Pearl Jam. It was released in 1991, during grunge’s heyday, and with the help of a number of hit singles, it sold in its millions, rocketing the Seattle band to superstardom, and becoming one of the most influential bands (and albums) of the early 90’s.

But for all the accolades and praise this album receives, I find it to be more of a mixed bag. The first half in particular, are all absolute bangers, and arguably some of the bands best material, as well as some of the most famous rock songs to come out of the first half of the decade. But the rest, well… they’re not terrible… but they’re not overly exciting either.

Don’t get me wrong, they’re not bad, and the album as a whole still flows quite nicely. But the first half gives you the likes of ‘Evenflow’, ‘Once’, ‘Alive’, ‘Why Go’, ‘Black’, and of course, mega hit ‘Jeremy’, basically, some of the best hard rock songs of their time. The second half just feels like background music. A lot of the energy and grungy angst is gone, and replaced by what feels like chilled out, elevator music. Special mention to funky bonus track ‘Dirty Frank’, while slightly unusual, is embarrassingly catchy!

Overall though, the good on this album outweighs the bad, making this an all-round solid debut. Its status as one of the all-time greatest might be slightly hyperbolic, but yet, it HAS held up for all these years, and despite the filler tracks, it’s still fairly easy to listen to all the way through.

FOZZY Boombox

Album · 2022 · Heavy Metal
Cover art 3.00 | 1 rating
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‘Boombox’ is the eighth studio album by American hard rockers Fozzy. Released in 2022 and coming off of the huge success of their 2017 release, ‘Judas’, the band, who have been on a constant upward trajectory since their 1999 conception, have played it pretty safe with this one, and followed in the same vein as their previous album.

The brainchild of wrestling superstar Chris Jericho (the best in the world at what he does), and Stuck Mojo mastermind (and my hetero man-crush) Rich Ward, I don’t think anyone back in 1999 would have expected the band to still be around doing this as long as they have been. But they’ve overcome comedy cover band antics, being named after one of the Muppets, and being more than simply “Chris Jericho’s band” to become a very legit, very authentic group of musicians.

But while the last few albums have been absolute bangers, it feels with ‘Boombox’ the songs just aren’t all up to par. And I don’t mean that to sound horrible (and I don’t want to make the list!!!), because Fozzy are one of my all-time favourite bands! Literally every album they’ve released has been of exceptional quality, and while this one certainly has its moments, I do find myself preferring to go back to any of their previous outings instead.

Still, the likes of ‘Sane’, ‘Nowhere to Run’, ‘I Still Burn’, ‘My Great Wall’ and ‘Purifier’ are all remarkable songs, and with an excellent production and a pretty sick sleeve artwork, this is still a very solid album. And while it may not their best, it’s still definitely worth owning for rock and metal fans, and plenty worthy of the name Fozzy.

METALLICA Fan Can 2

Promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs) · 1997 · Thrash Metal
Cover art 3.00 | 1 rating
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martindavey87
Amidst the live albums and endless bootlegs, singles b-sides and bonus tracks, there are absolutely countless numbers of live recordings and releases by Metallica. And ‘Fan Can #2’ is literally no different than the thousands of others.

Seeing as this was exclusive to fan club members, meant to be a limited collectors item, don’t expect the most definitive track list of all time. We get the likes of ‘One’, ‘Fade to Black’, ‘Wherever I May Roam’, a portion of ‘Master of Puppets’ as well as a mistake-laden ‘King Nothing’, which the band jokingly start again after messing up the intro, but by 1997, you know that any Metallica live release that fits on one disc is going to take a few shortcuts.

Overall, this is a nice little collectable for fans though. Sadly I don’t have the accompanying VHS, only the CD, and it’s not likely I’ll ever go back to listen to it. But regardless, it’s still a worthy addition to the collection.

BLIND GUARDIAN The Forgotten Tales

Boxset / Compilation · 1996 · Power Metal
Cover art 3.59 | 13 ratings
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martindavey87
‘The Forgotten Tales’ is a 1996 compilation album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. Rather than a retrospective look over their five-album career (at that point), this gathers up all the loose ends, in particular, singles b-sides and bonus tracks from various different releases, but of course, there’s a number of new recordings too. Varying from covers, acoustic renditions and live recordings, it’s quite a mixed bag, but it’s very definitely Blind Guardian through and through.

The covers in particular, are all pretty fantastic. Paying homage to the likes of the Beach Boys, Mike Oldfield, Queen, Little Richard and Uriah Heep, these are unlikely artists to cover, but the Germans have stamped their sound all over them, and truly made these songs their own.

There are also live and orchestral versions of some Blind Guardian classics, and again, these work wonderfully. Especially considering the themes of the music, they really add a new depth to the bands writing and ability to tell stories.

Overall, this might be a bit hit-or-miss for casual listeners, but for die-hard Blind Guardian fans this is an absolute treat. Tracks like ‘Surfin’ USA’, ‘Mr. Sandman’, ‘Barbara Ann’ and ‘To France’, as well as new renditions of ‘Bright Eyes’, ‘Mordred’s Song’ and ‘Lord of the Rings’ are all excellent reasons to get this album. And while the band would delve into more ambitious, progressive territory after this release, this works as a great bookend at that point of their career.

LINKIN PARK Somewhere I Belong

Single · 2003 · Nu Metal
Cover art 2.00 | 1 rating
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martindavey87
The lead single off the bands second release, ‘Meteora’, ‘Somewhere I Belong’ reassured us all that Linkin Park could indeed follow up their debut with another fantastic album. Beautiful verse melodies, great vocals, catchy lyrics, this is a great song, and helped the bands second album go on to become arguably the peak of nu metal.

I rate it two though, simply because CD singles are obsolete, and as much as I like ‘Step Up’ and ‘My December’, I’ve lost count of how many singles and EP’s I have with some version or another of these songs on them.

NIRVANA Bleach

Album · 1989 · Heavy Alternative Rock
Cover art 3.21 | 30 ratings
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martindavey87
Two years prior to becoming one of the biggest bands on the planet, and giving us one of the most famous and recognizable albums in history, grunge rockers Nirvana released ‘Bleach’, their 1989 debut.

While it’s noticeable that this album is much more raw and gritty than its successors, there’s no denying the quality and sincerity in the writing. The band is already laying the foundations for what’s to come, not only in their own work, but for the whole grunge scene. But sadly, underneath the solid writing and musical performances, a lot of the songs do get a bit repetitive after a few listens.

The production is pretty rough, mostly at times sounding like it was recorded by a bunch of amateurs in their garage, but then, I guess that’s what appealed to a lot of grunge fans. It’s not too overproduced or polished, and I guess it suits the grittiness of the music. And while the record feels a bit samey after a few songs, I suppose there are a number of highlights worth mentioning. ‘Blew’, ‘About a Girl’, ‘Mr. Moustache’ and ‘School’ are all pretty decent tracks. But in all honesty, I don’t think I’ll ever really go out of my way to listen to any of them.

As a whole, ‘Bleach’ isn’t a bad album, I just don’t think it’s particularly memorable either. It’s clear to see what direction Nirvana were going in, and how they would have stood out in the late 80’s music scene amongst all the rock and pop acts. But ‘Bleach’ just isn’t for me. And since their next output will become one of the most famous albums in history, I think I’ll just listen to that instead.

NIGHTWISH Wishmaster

Album · 2000 · Power Metal
Cover art 3.68 | 50 ratings
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martindavey87
Released in 2000, ‘Wishmaster’ is the third album by Finnish symphonic metal band, Nightwish. It comes two years after its predecessor, ‘Oceanborn’, and pretty much continues in the same vein. At this point the band was just beginning to break into the mainstream, and it’s easy to see that the strength and quality of their writing was garnering them a bigger and better reputation with metal fans.

The musicianship on this album is fantastic, with particular praise going to keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen and guitarist Emppu Vuorinen. The chemistry between these two is exceptional, with plenty of intense guitar riffs and a flurry of complex keyboard melodies blending together with ease. And amidst it all, singer Tarja Turenen’s operatic vocals suit the style of music perfectly.

‘The Kinslayer’, ‘She is My Sin’ and the title track, ‘Wishmaster’, are all absolutely fantastic songs, and could easily rate as some of my Nightwish favourites, and the rest of the album is filled out nicely with the likes of ‘Crownless’, ‘Fantasmic’ and ‘Wanderlust’. Other than one or two fillers, the album flows effortlessly.

Overall, this is a strong follow-up to ‘Oceanborn’, and a step in the right direction for the band, and although it may not be Nightwish’s best album, there’s some very strong tracks that make this an album worth owning.

KORN Korn

Album · 1994 · Nu Metal
Cover art 3.50 | 43 ratings
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martindavey87
By 1994, metal in the mainstream was dead. Grunge had taken over, and other than a select few torch-bearers keeping the flame alive, most metal bands had either gone underground, gone grunge, or simply gone away. Then a band from Bakersfield, California came along, and changed all of that.

There’s no denying the impact Korn had on the metal genre. They were ahead of their time, and pioneered what would become nu metal, thus given heavy music a lifeline and appealing to a whole new audience. Their sound captured the angst, moodiness and self-loathing of grunge, but combined with the heaviness and attitude of metal.

But listening to this today, damn, this hasn’t aged well!

Back during my teenage years, I, like many newcomers to the metal and rock genre, loved Korn! They were edgy, dangerous and exciting, and any school kid who was bullied, felt rejected or left out could relate to them. Their low-end guitar riffs, percussive rhythm and Jonathan Davis’ unique blend of singing, shouting, rapping and scatting (is that what it’s called?) were totally unique! And that album cover is still as striking and eerie as it was back in 1994.

But listening to ‘Korn’ today, I’m surprised how quickly I got bored by it. Sure, it’s got classics such as ‘Clown’, ‘Shoots and Ladders’, and of course, ‘Blind’, with its famous opening line. But honestly, I really struggled to sit through this all the way. Every song just sounds the same and plods along. And I know that’s kind of common for most Korn albums, but I just seem to remember loving this when I younger. I guess I’m just not that young anymore. Sorry guys…

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS Freaky Styley

Album · 1985 · Non-Metal
Cover art 3.50 | 14 ratings
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martindavey87
Released in 1985, ‘Freaky Styley’ is the second album by funk rockers the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and follows on from their 1984 self-titled debut. I didn’t really like that album, although there was nothing in particular that I disliked, it was just a case that none of the songs did anything for me. So going into this one, I had literally no expectations, and that was probably the best thing I could have done. Because as it turns out, I was in for a pleasant surprise!

The band is still completely “out there”, but the songwriting here has improved vastly, and while I thought their previous outing was a completely incoherent mess of an album, everything here flows really well. There is a palpable energy, with every song displaying non-stop enthusiasm and excitement. Perhaps it’s the drugs, or perhaps just the sheer passion these guys share. Either way, you can tell this is a band having fun. The musicianship here is exceptional, with particular praise to bassist Flea, who really brings the funk elements, and vocalist Anthony Kiedis, whos blend of rapping and singing brings out his tongue-in-cheek humour and in-your-face attitude.

With highlights including ‘Nevermind’, ‘American Ghost Dance’, ‘Jungle Man’, ‘Catholic School Girls Rule’ and the ridiculous ‘Sex Rap’, this is a massive step up in quality for the Chili Peppers. While much better things are to come, ‘Freak Styley’ is raw, dirty, and full of boundless energy, making it a pure joy to listen to.

DREAM THEATER Taste the Memories (International Fan Clubs CD 2002)

Promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs) · 2002 · Progressive Metal
Cover art 3.12 | 4 ratings
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martindavey87
‘Taste the Memories’ is an album by progressive metal pioneers Dream Theater, released in 2002 by the bands official fanclub. It features a number of live tracks from two different shows in Japan, taking place in 1992 and 1993, as well as an early studio version of the bands first major epic, ‘A Change of Seasons’.

The sound quality and performances are very good, and the band are still fairly young here, meaning that, in particular, James LaBrie’s voice has yet to be ravaged by time and age. And the track list features a number of early hits, including ‘Take the Time’, ‘Under a Glass Moon’, ‘Only a Matter of Time’ and ‘To Live Forever’, as well as an interesting live jam titled ‘Moon Bubbles’.

Dream Theater have released much, much better live albums over the years though, and the only thing here that might appeal to fans is ‘Moon Bubbles’ and a weird, live jam of the ‘Mission: Impossible‘ theme. Overall, ‘Taste the Memories’ is a decent enough CD, but definitely one to leave to the die-hard collectors.

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