Latest Reviews
 | Titans Eve - The Divine Equal Titans Eve take on Milton’s immortal poem probably won’t have the lasting effect as the works from Danzig and Symphony X, but their vision is valid, nonetheless. The harmonies will get its listeners singing chorus lines and humming guitar melodies. “The Divine Equal” is a solid debut... [Read] |
 | Brutal Deluxe - Wall of Damage Brutal Deluxe are a trip down memory lane and “Wall of Damage” showcases what just what Metal Hammer and Kerrang were raving about in the early 2000’s and this is, unfortunately, where it should have stayed... [Read] |
 | Halford - San Francisco, The Regency Ballroom I struggled with this review, much like I now do trying to wedge my behemoth bellies (yes, plural tense) into my high school era Levi’s 501 and FU’s denim slacks. The struggle I faced with the Halford show was not girth but quality related... [Read] |
| Billy Idol - San Francisco, The Fillmore Billy Idol introduced his band for one final time, “From San Francisco … Jeremy Colson. From England, Billy Morrison. On keyboards, from Santa Cruz, Derek Sherinian. And from New York City, on lead guitar, fu**in’ Steve Stevens! And I am on guitar and my name is Billy fu**in’ Idol!”... [Read] |
 | Hour of 13 - The Ritualist Their music conjures visions of a time when Mercyful Fate was the most evil band on the planet, Candlemass coined the term doom metal and Ozzy Osbourne was no laughing matter to parents. Crank up “The Ritualist,” carve a pentagram in your hand and swear to Satan!... [Read] |
 | Gentlemen of Distorted Sound - Bone Idol EP Fronted by a distant cousin of non other than Ted Nugent, these UK sleaze rockers have released a hard driving, groove-laden 5-Track EP that provides a perfect taste of what we can expect, and I for one am quite excited... [Read] |
 | Widow Sunday - In These Rusted Veins Widow Sunday is not a band that is stuck in one certain style. They are constantly mixing genres and styles to the point where you just can’t label them as one genre. The band’s diverse musical background leaves the listener not knowing what to expect next... [Read] |
 | Daggers Drawn - 2010 EP Daggers Drawn may be circulating the underground, but their debut will surely elicit a wide spread enthusiasm. There are passages within the six numbers that are reminiscent of Gojira and Machine Head, but that certainly doesn’t mean these Plymouth headbangers are copycats... [Read] |
 | Infernaeon - Genesis to Nemesis Death metal legends Deicide, Obituary and Cannibal Corpse have proved the test of time, but the metal world needs bands like Infernaeon to progress into the next ten years. “Genesis to Nemesis” contains moods and atmosphere that the typical death metal band lacks. Those with an open mind and lust for extreme metal take notice... [Read] |
| Exodus - San Francisco, Slim's Before Impaler RD said, “Now I am seeing old school mother fu**in’ moshing here tonight. This one goes out to (Paul) Baloff [late, original Exodus vocalist]. It is called the Impaler.” Impaler is a solid rocker that began with JG and TH’s heavy, mid tempo bass lines and drum beats, as well as GH and LA’s palm muted guitar riffs... [Read] |
| Foreigner - Concord, Concord Pavillion Even with my troglodytic disposition I can spot a polished professional band before the first verse of the set opener. Foreigner is undeniably such a band. Foreigner is more like champagne than malt liquor, more like the opera than open mike night at a dive bar, more like steak than Spam, more like … well you get the point... [Read] |
 | Hekz - Orfeo Hekz are a band that enjoy putting together quality metal that sounds like the best bits from many great bands but they inject their energy and humor and craft something that is uniquely theirs. I implore you to see these guys live, support their cause and help bring back good time metal... [Read] |
 | Godflesh - Streetcleaner Having helped spawn such styles of metal as post metal and industrial metal, Godflesh has a widespread influence. Fear Factory, Isis, Neurosis and many other have used Godflesh as a starting point. The group formed in 1988, broke up in 2002 and reformed in 2009... [Read] |
| Cannibal Corpse - San Francisco, Slim's Before Scattered Remains, Splattered Brains an inebriated fan shouted, “Hey George I am thirsty.” With little pause GF matter of factly responded, “Go buy a drink. I am not a soda machine, nor a cooler.” (fans shouted to show their enthusiasm for the band) “I am trying to talk. Shut the f**k up... [Read] |
| Kreator - San Francisco, Slim's In contrast to my other reviews that contained off the cuff lighthearted commentary, I found it inappropriate for this review. Kreator is a no frills thrash band that gets on stage and decimates everyone and everything in its path, making it asinine for me to venture in that realm, somewhat like belching at the loudest decibel while eating at a fancy French restaurant... [Read] |
 | The Other - New Blood New Blood is a fun record, full of catchy rhythms and choruses. There's nothing distinctive about its style, but it has a good-natured spookiness. If you can't get past the MISFITS comparisons, however, then you won't like THE OTHER, simple as that... [Read] |
 | The Contact High Five - Thrills, Chills & Bone-Crunching Spills “Thrills, Chills & Bone-Crunching Spills” is a humorous punk rock album by a band full of true entertainers. Not every one will understand or embrace The Contact High Five’s humor, but fans of rude-and-dirty 1980s punk should enjoy it, regardless of the imagery implanted into our brains of a “pink sock!”... [Read] |
 | Ozzy Osbourne - Scream The haters out there might say “Scream” is overproduced, has commercial pop songs, rehashed riffs and is not heavy enough. But this is a new Ozzy release, and they should be revelling in it, for this could be his last. Overall, this is a pretty good album, and Ozzy is still a supreme artist... [Read] |
 | Kingdom of Sorrow - Behind the Blackest Tears The 12 tracks are powerful-yet-melodic and vary in aggression. Opener "Enlightened to Extinction" gives you a good example of what’s in store. The riffs, mixed vocals and choruses are just monstrous. The Corrosion of Conformity-styled "God's Law in the Devil's Land" is what KOS does best. "From Heroes To Dust" is something you'd never hear on a Hatebreed album but is very welcomed here... [Read] |
 | In This Moment - A Star-Crossed Wasteland The great thing about In This Moment is the mix of aggression and melody. Maria Brink's range is unlike any other female metal vocalist’s. The way she goes from melodic croon to hardcore scream in the blink of an eye … it’s pretty spectacular. Each of the 10 tracks displays a diversity and maturity that should propel In This Moment higher... [Read] |
 | Watain - Lawless Darkness Watain create grim atmospheres and discordant sounds of evil. On the Swedish demons’ fourth release, "Lawless Darkness," vocalist/bassist E (Erik Danielsson), drummer H (Hakan Jonsson) and guitarist P (Pelle Forsberg) play old-school evil black metal with flair. Watain are one of the most well-respected black metal artists of today... [Read] |
 | Triptykon - Eparistera Daimones Triptykon is his understudy that was announced following the departure from Celtic Frost, and without his well-documented presence, Eparistera Daimones would be torn to shreds with a criticism based essentially on ripping off Monotheist. If this is the pure successor to Monotheist then why on earth didn’t Fischer simply reassemble Celtic Frost?... [Read] |
 | Meshuggah - Alive A band of Meshuggah's caliber knows how to put on a great live show, and on "Alive," they know what they're doing extremely well. If you're not really a fan of live albums, you should still give "Alive" a shot, because the sound is so precise and clear, plus the live DVD is well worth it... [Read] |
 | Eluveitie - Everything Remains As It Never Was Their metal influences are present throughout the 13 tracks on "Everything Remains As It Never Was," but their melodic Celtic side is displayed as well. The perfect melding of metal and Celtic influences puts Eluveitie above the rest in the genre. I believe this album as a whole, has something to offer for all music fans. Give it a chance and see for yourself... [Read] |
 | Enemy Of The Sun - Caedium The 14 tracks on Caedium are thrash-based aggression injected with melody, along with other experimental sounds. There's plenty of catchy riffs and choruses with loads of variation. Because there is so much going on, some parts of songs become a little disjointed, but it's only a minor flaw and it doesn't disrupt the flow of the songs... [Read] |
 | Cypher 16 - The Man of the Black Abyss “The Man of the Black Abyss” is more of taster of what’s to come than anything, and whilst there are signs of brilliance there are also moments that are pretty dull and I could happily skip. The opener “Symphony to End it All” is obviously going to be one of the “fan-favourites”, with it’s haunting Synths throughout... [Read] |
 | National Sunday Law - The Fifth Ape What makes NSL’s tribulations that more interesting is their sheer modernism, fusing both progressive and post-rock movements into one doom image. NSL’s case in point is their refinement and fat trimming. Rarely is it found that acts so early in their careers, possess the nous to make an excellent debut album sound meeker, in light of a follow-up E.P.... [Read] |
 | Annihilator - Annihilator All points of negation aside, Waters and company deserve credit for being true artists and not creating the same album over and over again. Annihilator’s invigorating display on this self-titled effort shows he still has a few good albums of metal annihilation left... [Read] |
 | Bison B.C. - Dark Ages Bison B.C. has many of the markings of a stoner rock band, especially in the realm of guitars. The British Columbia, Canada group creates mammoth grooves with a fuzzy texture that does their name justice, and tempers this sound with cosmic guitar effects and dynamic changes... [Read] |
 | Scorpions - Sting in the Tail Sting in the Tail has that familiar formula and sound we have all come to know and love from the Scorpions. It's not a bad album, but it's just not the hard-rocking finale I was expecting. There are too many ballads and there is nothing groundbreaking about any of the songs... [Read] |
 | Commandment - No Mercy US power metal band Commandment were one of Chicago's premier bands from 1986 to 1990. Their 1987 debut, "Engraved in Stone," reached cult status. The band were set to release album No. 2, but their label went bankrupt, thus shelving the recording, and the band ultimately split up in 1990... [Read] |
| Anvil - San Francisco, The Fillmore Steve “Lips” Kudlow (“SK”) plays and wears what he desires with a carefree dismissal of whether he is hip or fashionable. Any doubt about SK’s disinterest in musical trends is laid to rest by comparing Anvil’s first two records, Hard ‘N’ Heavy and Metal on Metal, with Anvil’s latest record, This is Thirteen... [Read] |
| Styx - San Francisco, The Regency Ballroom The hazing by my high school friends for attending a Styx concert was inevitable. One friend stated, “Boy, Arash, I’m sorry. I feel for you. That must have been a brutal, awful night.” It was shocking to my friends that I would see Styx because even as early as age 14 I literally developed whiplash from head banging and carpal tunnel from overuse of the devil horns... [Read] |
 | Fear Factory - Mechanize On "Mechanize," Fear Factory goes back to their roots, playing the influential industrialized metal that people grew to love on "Soul Of A New Machine" and "Demanufacture." Fans will not be disappointed with "Mechanize," and they’ll be reminded of why Fear Factory were one of the most important bands of extreme music at one time... [Read] |
 | Hazy Hamlet - Forging Metal If you are a fan of cheesy over the top Manowar styled metal albums (like myself) then you will enjoy this album. It is good fun it wastes an hour and makes you want to head bang. It’s not a classic by any stretch of the imagination but I will raise my goblet of metal on high and salute Hazy Hamlet for a very enjoyable debut effort and one of the strangest names in metal... [Read] |
 | Dioramic - Technicolor Technicolor’s press release is riddled with the sorts of hyperbole best described as inextricably pretentious. Language like “Art-core” (not hardcore), “opposing acoustic concepts”, and “scientific law”, already say much about a band with a lot to say, but in the completely wrong way... [Read] |
 | At The Soundawn – Shifting Each track presented is memorable and distinct, to where it is going, and where it wants to take you. Every ingredient heard has had the breadth and scope of experienced and talented artists. Shifting is At The Soundawn’s defining record, so far in their otherwise short-spanning career... [Read] |
 | Order of Ennead – Order of Ennead Short and straight to the point. This embodies Order of Ennead as if it were their own design philosophy when it came to piecing the music together. Many will be wondering about Steve Asheim’s (Deicide) influence on the production, and one can easily respond; this isn’t another Deicide reiteration, just dangerously close... [Read] |
 | Ephel Duath – Through My Dog's Eyes Don’t be fooled, though the title may suggest otherwise, this is as deep and complex an experience as their previous black metal instalments. It’s also quite a departure from there documented style. Anything else worth a note? Other than “Through My Dog’s Eyes” being the dogs bollocks, not really... [Read] |
 | Charred Walls of the Damned - Charred Walls of the Damned CWOTD is the brainchild of former Iced Earth and Death drummer Richard Christy. Joining him is bass extraordinaire Steve Digiorgio (Sadus/Death/Control Denied) and guitarist Jason Suecof, who is perhaps better know for his producing skills, working with bands such as Trivium, The Black Dahlia Murder and God Forbid to name but a few... [Read] |
 | Blaze Bayley - Promise and Terror On Blaze Bayley's fifth studio album, "Promise and Terror," the second album released by the band since they changed their name from Blaze, we are treated with 11 songs of traditional heavy metal. "Promise and Terror" introduces different elements as varied as NWOBHM, progressive sounds and some slight Swedish melodic twin guitar harmonies. The album as a whole is more catchier and accessible... [Read] |
 | Dark Tranquillity - We Are The Void "We Are The Void" continues the consistent sound of Dark Tranquillity and will keep them in the forefront of the melodic death metal genre. They aren't exploring any new boundaries, but the band stays true to the Gothenburg style and the formula of creating good Swedish melodic death metal, and that's all you can ask for in a Dark Tranquillity album... [Read] |
 | Borknagar - Universal Established Norwegian act, Borknagar has fulfilled its contract with Century Media—a contract that spanned over a decade. Borknagar has helped break some of Norway’s most prolific black metal vocals of a dual tongue such as Ulvers’s Garm and I.C.S. Vortex. After nearly a decade of fronting this black metal/folk/prog outfit, Vintersorg once again steps to the mic for “Universal”... [Read] |
 | Headhunter DC - Gods Spreading Cancer Headhunter D.C. first laid down the death metal goods 1987—a time when death metal still sought to rub away the velvet from its newly formed devil horns. Here we are twenty years later and Headhunter lives on in the shadows, but still gets out its message of blasphemy in the form of “Gods Spreading Cancer,” which proves they must be doing something right... [Read] |
| Gwar - San Francisco, The Regency Ballroom On November 24, 2009, Gwar decimated, desecrated, and devirginized the once pristine Regency Ballroom. Gwarmania began at 9:50 when the band showed a spoof Gwar documentary on the large projection screen behind the drum set that gave a history of the band. While the movie was playing, I quickly put on a one piece coverall under the mistaken belief it would protect me from Gwar slime... [Read] |
 | Astra - From Within "From Within" will take you by surprise, even if you're not a prog or power metal fan, the music is so infectious and memorable. Fans of anything Dream Theater has ever done, or prog rock in general, will absolutely dig this slab of grooviness. Pick it up... [Read] |
 | Fashion Bomb - Visions Of the Lifted Veil The only downside to "Visions Of the Lifted Veil" is that some songs sound too familiar, as if the band's influences start to invade their own sound. But that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Fans of Tool, Ministry, Marilyn Manson, Disturbed, Fear Factory and NIN will find something very likeable about "Visions Of the Lifted Veil."... [Read] |
 | Devin Townsend Project - Addicted It’s an obvious ploy made by Townsend, to not least further his career but to keep us (and himself) guessing on the eventual output. Ki was a success. It spanned of everything deep within the Townsend vein and some. Following on from Ki was sure to be deflating... [Read] |
 | Primordial - A Journey's End “A Journey’s End” is a classic album of pagan black metal recorded during a defining time, not only in the band’s career but also for this style in general. Too bad this album just missed the new millennium because it would have been included in this scribes top list of the decade... [Read] |
| UFO - San Francisco, The Independent On November 1, 2009, UFO landed at the cesspool known as The Independent (“TI”), a grungy club in a fairly scruffy neighborhood. This marks the second consecutive concert UFO has played at TI, the last time also being on a Sunday, July 25, 2005. TI is a 375 seat club built approximately 50 years ago that previously operated under names such as The Kennel Club and Viz... [Read] |
 | Revengine - Plan Your Escape There's nothing groundbreaking or unique on "Plan Your Escape," however, there's something about the music within that is promising. On the other hand, they sometimes have a formula of everything that I hate about generic rock bands like Creed and the aforementioned Hinder and Theory Of A Deadman... [Read] |
 | Andreas Kisser - Hubris I & II There's no doubt that Sepultura guitarist Andreas Kisser knows how to shred, but on his new double CD "Hubris I & II," the Brazilian displays a different side to his playing and songwriting. He mixes rock, blues, classical, flamenco and Brazilian folk music to create an eclectic blend of harmonious moods and melodies, yet remains close to his metal roots... [Read] |
 | Nostradameus - Illusion's Parade Nostradameus should finally get the recognition they deserve, as they are proving to the metal community that they are not just another run of the mill power metal band. They step outside the norm and weave great melodies, combined with a heaviness that most bands of this genre would not feel comfortable in doing... [Read] |
 | Steven Wilson - Insurgentes The massive degree in mood swings, create a dark and sombre undercurrent that is touching and felt with unease. The 55 minutes are so rich in detail, that when Wilson decides to throw a curve-ball (and he throws many) the impact might not be as greatly felt. However, in a sea of superlatives these kinds of criticisms have never felt smaller... [Read] |
| Alice Cooper - San Francisco, Warfield Theater Non stop, jack rabbit virgin sex is the best phrase I can use to describe the pace of Alice Cooper’s set. AC’s band, that includes Keri Kelli and Damon Johnson on guitar, Chuck Garric on bass, and Jimmy DeGrasso on drums, bulldozed through 26 songs in one hour and 25 minutes before the encore break. No pause between songs, not even the ubiquitous utterance of “How ya’ doin’ San Francisco?!”... [Read] |
 | Lääz Rockit - Nothing$ $acred There are some great tunes on "Nothing$ $acred," such as "In The Name Of The Father And The Gun" and "Greed Machine," which has classic thrash riffs mixed with 80s aggression. This re-release features three bonus tracks, I don't know where they originated from, but all three kick major ass, with "Ten Eyes" and "Plague" being standouts... [Read] |
 | Future Is Tomorrow - Fit To Die (Part I) This is a great achievement from an unsigned and mostly unknown band that possesses great musicianship, interesting ideas and a desire to create something magical. I hope that Future Is Tomorrow don't get labeled as just another power metal band, because they deserve much more and I expect bigger things from this band in the future... [Read] |
 | Hellcircles - Stillness Power metal newbies from Cremona, Italy create aggressive-yet-melodic arrangements on its self-released five-song demo "Stillness." Formed just a year ago, Hellcircles are a tight and cohesive unit. A great sign of the times to come from Hellcircles. Keep an ear out for these guys... [Read] |
 | Green Jelly - Musick to Insult Your Intelligence By “Musick to Insult Your Intelligence by” yields mixed results. The humour doesn’t stand up to older tracks such as “Cereal Killer” and “The Three Little Pigs,” and much of the lyrical content doesn’t make any sense. Because the album elicits an ambivalent response, Green Jelly is much like their mentors Gwar in that these songs should translate much better in a live setting... [Read] |
 | Vendetta - Heretic Nation UK-based Vendetta has a style that is deeply rooted in '80s traditional metal, with crunchy riffs and melodic hooks. Traces of Maiden, Priest, Scorpions, Triumph and Saxon, among others, are eloquently placed throughout their 2nd album "Heretic Nation." The band mix melody with aggression, combined with great harmonies... [Read] |
 | Extreme O.D. - This Is The End Extreme O.D. are not happy, not happy at all. In fact, you could say the UK band are downright angry. Brutality meets groove is what Extreme O.D. serve up on their three-song EP "This is the End". They haven't created anything new, but "This is the End" is a pretty brutal slab of pulsating groove metal... [Read] |
 | Mob Rules - Radical Peace Although not as popular as Helloween or Gamma Ray, Mob Rules create dynamic power metal. Their sound is more along the lines of Edguy and Ivory Tower when compared with German bands of this genre. A hint of Savatage, Rhapsody of Fire and Stratovarius come to mind as well... [Read] |
| Foreigner - San Francisco, The Fillmore As the years progressed and the Bay Area thrash movement blossomed like a maggot-covered carcass in a fog laced graveyard, my tastes began to lean to harder edged music, Slayer, Exodus, Celtic Frost, Metallica, and Anthrax. For this reason, I initially wavered on attending the show... [Read] |
 | Uneven - Vrzino Kolo Heavy metal is truly global. Take Serbia's Uneven, who is proving that a band from a little country in central/southeastern Europe, which is not usually known for its abundance of metal music, can be a noticeable force in the genre... [Read] |
| Motorhead - San Francisco, Warfield Theater Having secured the final spot along the barricade, I had the dubious distinction of being within three feet of the amplifiers stacked stage right. Normally this would not be of great concern. However, my last Motorhead experience and the warning of a Steamhammer Records representative during two recent phone conversations raised concern that was cemented when the show started... [Read] |