In this Unknown Music Thursday Blog, we are going to get into a local Detroit base hard rock band. The band was started around 2010 with Brian Thomas, who is the lead vocals of Halloween. I am talking about Halloween not Helloween. Halloween is hard rock and metal group based in Detroit in the 1970’s to now. There is not much history on this band. They are having fun with this band and trying not to take it too serious. The band on their Facebook page says anyone from the 1970’s hard rock to today’s metal will like their band. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Sabbwacwij
The song starts out with a nice piano music. I love the guitar playing that echoes the piano music. I love the guitar work on the main part of the song. There is a nice pace to this song. I love the screaming from the lead singer before he sings the main part of the song. There is some good music and lyrics. There is a well placed and good guitar solo towards the middle of the song. I love how they used the back up vocals towards the end of the song.
The Machine
I love the drumming at the beginning of “The Machine.” The simple but perfect guitar and bass riff. I love how they shaped the music around the lyrics. I love the lyrics. There is some well placed sound effects. This song sounds like something that Anvil would have written as far as music and lyrics wise. I love the guitar break towards the middle of the song. I love the ending.
I’ve Always Hated You
I love the speed on this song. The drumming is insane. I love how they let the bass player free and he dances around. I love the lyrics. There is some really good music on this song. I love the guitar solo at end of the song. This is classic speed metal song.
Marching On
There is a killer guitar riff. I love the drums. There is some killer metal music on this song. There is some nice acoustic guitar work during the versus. Ass has written some awesome music on this track. I love how they build up to the guitar solo towards the end of the song. They know how to use the back up vocals.
Falling Angel
There is a pretty good guitar riff at the beginning. The singing is solid with some great lyrics. I love the groove and pace on this song. The drummer is really good along with the bass player. Ass has a great rhythm selection and that is key to a successful band. I love the guitar playing on this song.
The Running Of The Bull
Hola! I love the start of this song. There is some nice acoustic guitar and a nice dancing bass playing. There is some nice music on this song. It is Mexican Metal music. This is a pretty fun song. Si! The singer has written some great lyrics and the singer is a pretty solid. There is a nice guitar solo towards the end of the song.
I Am A Warrior
I love the guitar playing on this song. There is some nice lyrics and singing from the lead singer. I love the drumming and bass playing. I love the groove on this song. There is a guitar solo that is well placed half way point of the song. I feel they need to turn up the lead singer on this song. He just seems like he is singing in the background along with the rest of the band.
In closing, this record was passed to me by a friend and co-worker, who is Ed Harker. We love our music and we are always trading and leaning out our music. He told me to check out this band for two reason. One I am from the Detroit area and two this is some good metal music. I have to say I was pretty impressed. I know Brian’s singing from his Helloween years. I have a few of their records. I love the pace of all these songs. They know slow but their fast is over the top good. The lyrics are funny but really good. Brian’s singing is really good and strong. The guitar playing is really good. The drumming and bass playing is awesome. I will be looking for this band when I come back to visit Michigan. Go get some Ass! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this Music Monday Blog, we are going to get into the third record from a super group, who is called Black Country Communion. The third record is called Afterglow. We will get into the history and then the music on this blog. Let us get into the history of this young super group.
History:
Glen Hughes and Joe Bonamassa met at a NAMM Show in 2006 and they jammed at Hughes studio. In 2009, the two artists did jam after three years since their first jamming session. The band had Jason Bonham, who is the son of John Bonham of Led Zeppelin, and Derek Sherinian, who was park of Dream Theater. Bonamassa producer, who is Shirleys, suggested to pick these musicians. Joe wanted a second guitar player not a keyboardist. The band named their band called Black Country, however, there was a band out of Maryland that put a lawsuit against the band. The band later named themselves Black Country Communion. The band entered the studio to record in their first record in 2010. In the later part of 2010, the band released their first record which was self titled. The record was a UK success. The band did not tour to support their first record. In that same year, the band started to talk about recording their second record. Black Country Communion Two was released in June 2011. The band did a short Europe dates and a seven-day dates in the United States. The band announced it was going to record a live record. The band released their live record in later part of 2011. The band took a little break to work on their other projects. In 2012, the band return to the studio to start recording their third record, which is AfterGlow. This is the record that will be reviewed on this blog. Afterglow was released in the later back of 2012. Glen Hughes did not like the lacking of touring and the support from Bonamassa. Joe said the band can tour but I had to pick the guitar player. The band did not like this at all. Joe finally left the band in March of 2013 he left the band. Glen said that the rest of the band would recorded in the future in the another name. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Big Train
The guitar, bass, and drums start-up the song like a driving force. I love the touch on the music when Glen comes in singing. There is a nice driving groove to this song. I love the back up vocals on this song. I am not a fan of the lyrics but I love the music on “Big Train.” There is a nice guitar break halfway through the song that turns into a nice guitar solo. I love the slow down on the music after the guitar solo. The band turn to the main riff and chorus to finish up the song.
This Is Your Time
I love the dark theme guitars at the beginning of the song. I love the melody that Glen wrote for his vocals. I love the lyrics on this song. I love the pace of this song. This song has elements of Bad Company and Deep Purple in it. I love the guitar solo towards the back half of the song. The bass line and drums are simple but are perfect the song.
Midnight Sun
I love the guitar riff at the beginning of the song. I love the music on the main part of the song. There is a nice pace on this song. Glen’s singing is strong with some great lyrics. He sounds better than ever. I have always loved his singing since Deep Purple. There is a pretty good guitar solo that does not need all the reverb on his guitar solo. It is pretty good but I just feel like this song could live without a guitar solo. There is some nice drumming towards the end of the song.
Confessor
I love the heavy music at the beginning. This is classic hard rock driving song. There is some really good singing and I read the lyrics before listening to this song. I have to say I love how they wrote for “Confessor.” Jason is killing it on the drums on this song. There is a nice guitar and organ solo towards the end of the song. It seems forced but it smooths out towards the middle of the solo. I love the ending of the song.
Cry Freedom
I love the classic hard rock guitar sound and riff. There is some nice music on this song. The singing is strong on this song. The singing is pretty Blues like on “Cry Freedom.” I love how they are using the back up vocals. There is a nice guitar solo towards the middle of the song. The singing on this song reminds me a little bit of the Deep Purple Mark III and IV era. There is nice guitar break at the mid-point of the song. The guitar work kind of has a little Robert Kriger, who is the guitar player from The Doors, feel to it.
Afterglow
The title track for this record is “Afterglow.” There is some nice music at the beginning of the song. I love the acoustic guitar playing and the singing is pretty strong. There are parts that sounds like later Led Zeppelin. The drumming and bass playing has that feeling too. There is some pretty good music on this song. The lyrics are pretty average but the music is what saves this song. I love the build up to the ending of the song.
Dandelion
There is some nice driving music at the beginning of this song. I love the drumming and bass playing on this song. The singing is pretty good with some great lyrics. I love the music on this song. There is a well placed guitar solo towards the end of the song. I thought the ending was a little weak.
The Circle
I am not sure on how I feel about the beginning of this song. I am not sure on how I feel on the singing and the lyrics. I love the keyboard playing in the background. The music did get a little bit better during the chorus part of “The Circle.” I am really not liking this song. I hate to say it but I really do not like this song. I can see someone liking this song and it could be you.
Common Man
I love the music at the beginning of this song. There is a killer guitar riff on this song. I love the movement on the bass. There is some pretty good singing and good lyrics. There is a nice guitar solo towards the middle of the song. The band switches off and on in the solo part. I love the organ playing right after the guitar, bass, and drum solo. The back half of the song there is some nice playing from the bass, drums, and organ players. There is some nice playing over the top from the guitar player.
The Giver
There is some nice slow pace music on “The Giver.” There is some nice singing and some pretty good lyrics. I love the pick up going into the chorus part of the song. I am really not liking the guitar riff during the main part of the song. I am not a fan of the guitar solo towards the end of the song. It does not fit in the song. I love the music and the singing for the ending of the song.
Crawl
I love the music on this song. This song has some powerful music on it. There is some great singing and lyrics. I love the keyboard touch on this song. This song is full with no holes in it. There is a nice guitar break towards the middle part with a nice keyboard solo right after it. I love the trade-off solos between the keyboard and guitar players.
Current Line Up:
Glenn Hughes – Lead Vocals, Bass Guitar, And Acoustic Guitar
Joe Bonamassa – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, And Co-Lead Vocals
Jason Bonham – Drums, Percussion, and Backing Vocals
In closing, I was so sad to hear that this band has broken up. I was a little late picking up this record. I feel bad for it. I have to say this record lives up to their last two records. There is some great music and lyrics on this awesome record. There is a few songs towards the end of the record that I could do without on the record. This is one of the best super groups put together in the last few years. I am glad Glenn clean up his act and is drug free. He is a great bass player and singer. I love all his work and I cannot wait to see what he will be doing next. I highly recommend this record and their first two records. Please, hope this band gets back together and tour with some more new music. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this beer blog, we are going to get into a two-year old fall seasonal from Redhook Brewery. It is their Out Of Your Ground Pumpkin Porter. If you read my earlier beer blog posts on their brews, you know the history of this brewery. If you have not, please, read those beer blog posts to get to know this brewery. Let us get into beer.
It has a black and brown color without a head on this fall seasonal. The smell is chocolate cover pumpkin. The taste of this light to medium body beer is chocolate cover pumpkin with a fade smokey pumpkin aftertaste. It is pretty drinkable beer.
Out of Your Gourd Pumpkin Porter is dark chestnut-brown in color and is made with pureed pumpkin. Cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger are added to the whirlpool and maple syrup is added during fermentation. This full-bodied, rich roasty porter makes you want to eat turkey and watch football, or build a bonfire.
Here is their website and twitter addresses:Website: www.redhook.com
Twitter: @redhook_brewery
Ending, I am a huge fan of Redhook as many of you know by reading on this blog. This is not one of my favorite beer from this brewery or fall seasonal. This brew is still a really good brew. It has a nice balance from the pumpkin and porter. It has taste of chocolate cover pumpkins. This is a great sessional fall beer. This is a beer you can drink during fall cook out or bonfire without having something too heavy. This is a great brew and Redhook brewery did a great job on this brew. I recommend you trying this brew. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this beer blog, we are going to get into a brewery I have been wanting to try in a very long time. I am talking about Epic Brewery from New Zealand. The beer is their Armageddon India Pale Ale. Epic Brewing was started in 2006 by the founder, who is Luke Nicholas. In 2007, Steam Brewing Company sold all the Epic Brewing and the brands to Luke Nicholas. The brewery started to sell their beers to Australia in 2009. The United States and Sweden in 2010 and Belgium and Italy in 2011. They brew several different beer styles. Let us get into the beer.
It has a clear copper color with pure white head on this India Pale Ale. The smell is grapefruit. The taste of this medium body beer is a carbonated grapefruit notes with a slight dry hop aftertaste. It is pretty drinkable beer.
In the beginning, there was nothing. Then an impish brewer piled a ludicrous amount of hops into a batch of beer. This zymurgical big bang is Epic Armageddon, an apocalyptic assault on your preconceptions and taste buds. It may be too huge for this fragile planet so enjoy this beer like it was the last one on Earth.
Closing, I am not disappointed with this beer after a long wait of wanting to try it. I will be hunting down the rest of their brews. This brewmaster did a great job on this brew. He and his company put some thought behind this brew. The beer is nice balance with some great hop notes and character. It is pretty drinkable for the beer style. I will be looking for more of this beer in Detroit beer market. Thanks Luke for giving the United States craft beer drinker a good import IPA. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! \m/
In this Unknown Music Thursday Blog, we are going to get into another newer and upcoming band. The band is called Black Wizard and the record is their self titled. There is not much on the history of this band. They were formed before 2009 or 2010 because of their Facebook joining date. I do not know about you but I am looking forward to get into this music. I love how they label themselves. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Spacer
There is a nice acoustic guitar at the beginning of the opening track. There is some nice drumming and bass playing. It is pretty calming at first. I love how they worked the second guitar playing over the top of everything. I love the effects on the guitar. The music is pretty strong so far on this song. The singing is pretty good and it fits the music. The effects on his vocals are perfect mix and haunting. I love the back up vocals. There is some pretty good lyrics on “Spacer.” I love the guitar break and time changes about the mid-point of the song. It sounds like time changes. There is a pretty solid guitar solo but short towards the end of the song. I love the ending.
Young Wisdom
I love the music at the beginning. The singer is singing pretty good. There is some pretty good lyrics too. I love the drumming on this song. The bass playing has been pretty solid so far on this record. I love the guitar playing on this song. I love music change half way through with the acoustic guitar and then enters a short guitar solo. It enters a slower part of the song. This is a pretty dark song. There is a nice guitar break towards the end of the song that turns into a pretty good guitar solo.
Midnight
I love the drumming and guitar playing. The singer is singing like all the rest of the tracks and it is pretty good. I love how they used the back up vocals on this song. This song has a nice pace to it and a little different from the rest of the songs thus far. There is some nice music on this song. I have to say this is one of my favorite songs so far on this record.
H.U.G.H
This song might come off being heavy but it has some weird influence in it that I cannot figure out. I love the singing and the music is pretty good. I love faster pace towards the back half of the song. The drumming and bass playing is solid for being the backbone of this band. They have a really good rhythm selection. I love the guitar solo that is short and to the point. I love how they are using the back up vocals on this song. I love the ending to this song.
Danger Dances
I love the acoustic guitar and the slightly distorted guitar at the beginning. I can hear some Radiohead influence on this song. This might be the shortest song on the record, however, it is one of the best songs as far as it comes to the music side. They wrote some great music on “Danger Dances.”
Somethin’ Sweet
I love the classic hard rock sounding guitar at the beginning. The drumming and bass playing are pretty solid. I love the bass playing in the main part of the song. I really not a fan of bass players playing with a pick. The drumming is pretty crazy on this song. The lead singer is singing is solid with some great lyrics. The lead singer’s screaming singing is well placed and not over the top. I love the guitar players trading off on the guitar break.
Appetite
I love the guitar playing along with the bass and drumming. I love the singing on this song. I am not a fan of all the effects on his vocals in some parts. I love the guitar playing at the mid-point of the song. There is a nice guitar solo towards the end of the song.
Wicked Wanderer
The last song on this record is “Wicked Wanderer.” The guitars remind me of something that Megadeth would do on their songs. The drumming and bass playing is solid. I love the bass playing before the singer starts to sing. I love the build up to the main part of the song. This is a pretty solid ending track to this record. There is a nice guitar solo towards the end of the song. I love how the guitar players are playing the same riff to give that double-sided sound. I love the ending to this song.
Closing, this is a pretty good band with a heavier side that you do not want to mess with anytime. I love the music and the singing. There are some parts of the singing that I just feel the band needs to get away from with the effects on the vocals. Overall, the music is pretty solid and lyrics are pretty good. They wrote a nice first record and I highly recommend you to check this band out. You will not be disappointed. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this beer blog, we are going to get into the first brew from O’Fallen Brewery from Missouri. It is their Fall Seasonal, which is Pumpkin Beer. O’Fallen Brewery was founded in 2000 by Fran and Tony Caradonna. The brewery was sold to Jim Gorczyca in 2011. Fran Caradonna is still part of the company to this day. They brew several different beer styles. Let us get into the beer.
It has a light amber color without a head on the beer. The smell is a heavy cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin to this fall seasonal. The taste of this light to medium beer is heavy pumpkin with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg notes. It is pretty drinkable beer.
Like pumpkin pie in a bottle…we add 136 pounds of real pumpkin to the three-barley mash and then season the finished beer with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Available September 1.
Style: Herb and Spice Beer Alcohol: 5.6% ABV Bitterness: 11 IBUs Color: 8.7 SRM Grain: Pale, White Wheat, Caramel 90L Hops: Cluster
In closing, I have had a few of their beer over the years. I have to say they are average to slightly above average. I love my fall beers but over the years I have been disappointed. This Pumpkin Beer I have been wanting to try it. I had a chance this season to get a bottle from my local liquor store. It is a really good brew and I believe they did a great job brewing it. The problem like many beers coming out-of-state I believe it is overpriced. I am not saying it is bad because it is overpriced. I just would pick up one six-pack in the season but that is a maybe it. There is so many newer seasonals and breweries hitting the market everyday. It makes it harder and harder for the breweries that have been in the market for years to have their brews sell well. I recommend you trying this beer and try rest of their brews. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this beer blog, we are going to get into the new Fall Seasonal from New Belgium Brewery. It is their Pumpkick Ale. If you read my earlier beer blog on their Imperial IPA, you will know the history of this brewery. If you have not, please, read that beer blog post to get to know this Colorado brewery. Let us get into the beer.
It has a light copper color with a constant white head on this fall seasonal beer. The smell is heavy pumpkin with slight cranberry notes. The taste of this light to medium body is a cranberry and pumpkin notes with a pumpkin aftertaste. It is pretty drinkable beer.
Here is a description from the beer bottle:
What’s that bite of tartness doing in a pumpkin beer? Adding the unexpected kick of cranberry juice to brighten this traditionally spiced seasonal ale. Pumpkick is brewed with plenty of pumpkin juice cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice, but it’s the cranberries and touch of lemongrass that send your taste buds sailing.
What’s that bite of tartness doing in a pumpkin beer? Adding the unexpected kick of cranberry juice to brighten this traditionally spiced seasonal ale. PUMPKICK is brewed with plenty of pumpkin juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice, but it’s the cranberries and touch of lemongrass that send your taste buds sailing.
Closing, I am not a really huge fan of this brewery, however, the last few new brews that they have release. They are winning me over pretty quick. I love their Rampant Imperial IPA and Shift Pale Lager. This beer that is being feature is really good gives me hope more for this brewery and all fall seasonals. This pumpkin beer is pretty well balance with the complex favors in it. There is a ton going on in this brew. It is not over the top from the pumpkin and cranberry. I highly recommend this brew. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this New Music Monday Blog, we are going to get into a band I wish I had a chance to see them way back in the day. I am talking about the band called Anvil. This is their new record that is called “Hope In Hell.” This record is their fifteenth studio record. This band has went through several line up changes but Lips and Robb are the only original members. Anvil has been known to influence several big names in the Metal, Speed Metal, and Thrash Metal world. They never made it until their movie hit the air a few years back. We are going to get into the history and then the music. Let us get into the history.
History:
Anvil started in Toronto, Canada back in 1973. A few high school friends who are Steve “Lips” Kudlow, who is the lead singer and guitar player, and Robb Reiner, who is the drummer. Marty Hoffman, who is a guitarist and neighbor, was in the band for one show but left shortly after it. In 1978, Dave “Squirrely” Allison, who was the second guitar player and Ian “Dix” Dickson, who was the bassist joined and the band called themselves Lips. The band released their first record which was independent release called “Hard N’ Heavy.” The band was signed to Attic Records and they changed their name to Anvil. David Krebs and Paul O’Neil signed Anvil as their management team. They had Attic Records to release them from their contract because they could get them on a major label. David stop returning phone calls and did not get the band a major label contract. His management team release the band from their contract. In 1987, the band signed with Metal Blade Records by William Howell. Metal Blade Records re-release their first three records and their fourth record, which is called “Strength Of Steel” in the United States. “Strength Of Steel” was the most commercially success in the United States. It reached 191 on the Billboard 200. The band was picked up by Maximum Records and then from 1996 on the band was signed to Hypnotic Records and Massacre Records, which is from Germany. Anvil will say to this day if it was not for Germany for buying their records. There would not an Anvil today. In 2001, the band put out “Plenty Of Power.” They toured and toured and there would be gigs where no one was there to watch them play. In 2006, the band decided to record a record called “This Is Thirteen” with Chris Tsangarides, who is the producer from “Metal On Metal” record. It was released in 2007. The band was filmed in a movie called “Anvil! The Story Of Anvil” This movie put the band back in the public mind. They released a book on the band author by Lips and Robb. They appear on “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” which was the first time the band was on TV. They supported AC/DC, which was in the United States, and Saxon, which was in United Kingdom, on their tours. The band went on headline tour of Europe in 2010 and sell out each place they played. In 2011, the band release their fourteen studio record, which is called Juggernaut of Justice. Also in 2011, the band release their second greatest hits record and all their old records under their new record label. Glenn Gyorffy in 2012 quit the band and was replaced by Sal Italiano. In 2013, Anivl put out their fifteen studio record, which is “Hope In Hell.” They are out on tour supporting this record. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Hope In Hell
The opening and title track of the record is “Hope In Hell.” The beginning has some sound effects and the guitar, bass, and drums jump into the song. The drums and bass has a nice groove and pace to them. I love the guitar playing from Lips. Lips’ singing is pretty solid. I love the lyrics he has written on this song. There is a nice guitar solo from Lips about the half way point of the song. I have always love his guitar playing through all their records. This song has elements from the first few records. I love the ending to the song with the sound effects.
Eat Your Words
I love the fast pace and the drumming is insane on this song. The bass playing is simple but it fits the song and it is perfect. I love the guitar riff on this song. I love the lyrics. It is classic Anvil lyrics. Robb is playing out of his mind on this song. Lips is killing it with the a guitar solo half way through “Eat Your Words.” This is a classic Anvil song. I love the exiting guitar solo at the end of the song.
Through With You
I love the distortion on Lips guitar . I love the drums and bass. “Through WIth You” has a nice driving feeling. Lips wrote some great lyrics and he is singing is pretty average. I love it. I love the melody. I also love the guitar playing during the chorus. This record so far has a nice pace to it. This song is not as fast as the last few songs but it has a nice pace and groove. I love the guitar break half way through the song. It turns into a nice guitar solo. I love the build up guitar solo towards the end that ended the song.
The Fight Is Never Won
I love the guitar, bass, and drum action at the beginning of the song. The drumming is pretty insane on this song. I love Lips’ singing and lyrics. He has a nice melody on this song. The drums are something else on this song. There is awesome guitar solo towards the middle of the song. The bass playing has been pretty solid throughout this record so far. The last few songs has had some nice guitar solos ending the song. This is yet another pretty solid ending.
Pay The Toll
I love the groove and pace so far on this song. The guitar, bass, and drums are awesome. I love the music on “Pay The Toll.” I am not a fan of the lyrics but it is classic Anvil. Lips’ singing is pretty good. There is a nice guitar solo towards the middle of the song. I have to say this guitar solo just seemed a little forced into the song. This is a quick and to the point song. I love some of Anvil’s short songs.
Flying
I love the drumming at the beginning and the guitar and bass enters the song. There is a nice guitar solo before singer starts to sing. I love the lyrics and singing on this song. This song has some meaning for the band that is one thing I love about this band. They put some feelings and emotion behind their lyrics. There is a nice guitar break and guitar solo towards the end of the song. I love the build up to end the song. Nice guitar solo to end the song with the drums and bass going nuts too.
Call Of Duty
I love the music at the beginning of the song. I love the lyrics. I love the pace and rhythm of the music. I will have to look it up. It seems Anvil wrote a song for the Video Game franchise. It just seems like they wrote a song for the video game. It is not the case. There is a killer guitar solo towards the middle to the back half of the song. Anvil wrote some awesome music and lyrics on “Call Of Duty.” The ending on this song is one of the best ending for a song so far on this record.
Badass Rock N Roll
I love the start to this song. It has that old school classic hard rock meets speed metal to metal. I love the drumming on this song. I love how Lips is singing on this song. This song sounds like a song that Kiss of Gene Simmons would have been singing if he wrote it. Hey Kiss, here is your next cover song. There is a nice and well placed guitar solo towards the middle of the song. I really love how the guitar and the rest of the band re-enter the back into the main part of the song. I love the lyrics and the ending to this song.
Time Shows No Mercy
I love the drumming at the beginning with some well place highlighting from the guitar and bass player. I love the short guitar solo before they enter the main part of the song. I love the lyrics and the singing is pretty solid. The music is pretty song. There is an awesome guitar solo towards the middle of the song. The drumming is crazy during the guitar solo. Most drummers would sit in the pocket because they do not want the song sound thin. I will have to say this song does not sound thin. I love the build up to end the song.
Mankind Machine
The song starts with some sound effects. The guitar and drums come in to start the music part. The bass is shortly after that with the singer coming in strong. I love the singing and the lyrics on this song. The music sounds like a bunch of robots or machines. There is a nice guitar break to a solo towards the back half of the song. There is a nice drumming break just after the guitar solo.
Shut The Fuck Up
The last song of the record before the bonus tracks. It starts how as a fast pace to the music. I love the lyrics and the singing. This is a pretty solid record so far. This is classic Anvil. The music is so good on this song. This is a perfect song to finish this great and soon to be classic Anvil record.
Hard Wired
I love the drumming, bass, and guitar playing at the beginning of the song. There is a nice short guitar solo at the beginning just before Lips starts to singing. I love the melody he wrote for his singing. There is some nice lyrics. The guitar solo towards the middle of this song is good but it just feels a little forced into the song. I love the ending to the song.
Fire At Will
The song starts out with some strong music with everyone playing at the same time. Lips singing is pretty solid with some great lyrics. I love singing before the chorus and then in the chorus. I love how they set up the guitar solo and the well placed solo in this song. This guitar solo feels right in the song. This is a perfect ending with the bonus tracks for “Hope In Hell” record. I love how the song ends.
Fuel the fire, Anvil keeps on going and they are still writing some great music and records. Anvil puts out yet another classic record. I know I was not their at the beginning but I wish was to see Anvil at the beginning of their career. I discover them before their movie came out. I heard some of their tunes. I had a hard time finding their records. I overpaid for their first greatest hits because I wanted to play it on my radio show, which is www.stfu.fm. I wanted to support this great band. I had a chance to meet the whole band outside of their Chicago show. I was able to get all their records from www.ebay.com and some release. I have to say this record “Hope In Hell” as lived up to the rest of their records. This record is solid from start to finish. I highly recommend you checking out this record and this band. I would go see the movie if you have not. If you are not a metal fan, I would go see it. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this New Unknown Music Thursday Blog, we are going to get into a new and upcoming band known as Three Wolf Moon. This is their first record which is called “Masters.” This record was just released this month of August in 2013. Here is a little bio from their website (www.threewolfmoon.bandcamp.com):
Three Wolf Moon is the psychedelic-folk-rock imagining of friends Adam Grant, John Sayer, Tyler Maynard, Max Grant and Evan… Joel. Three Wolf Moon is emotive and transcendent, eerily transitioning from sparse song-writing to ambient fullness, added by masterful keys and the robust sound of two drummers.
The haunting sound of Three Wolf Moon is sure to have its audience howling.
This band was former around the late part of 2011 in the western part of Canada. They worked on this record the whole year of 2012. There is not much information on this band. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Drone
I love the keyboard to organ playing at the beginning of the song. There is nice calming acoustic guitar over the organ playing with singer coming in over the top. His singer reminds of singer from Counting Crows to Black Crows. There is some 1960’s and 1990’s influence in this band. I am not fan of all the reverb but I can live with it. I love the drum beat with the dancing bass in the background. This band is like taking elements from The Doors and Black Crows and mixing it. It is a really nice mix. There is a nice guitar break to a short solo towards the back half of the song. It has a nice groove and pace to the song. I am enjoying the time changes. This is a nice jamming song. I love how this song is ending with the fade out.
Dog
I love the piano playing at the beginning with the calming drums and bass playing. The guitar is perfect support element to the song. It is crazy since knowing the name of the song. I can picture a dog running in the park in a warm summer day. I love his singer’s singing. It fits where this band is going with their music. There is some pretty solid lyrics on this song. The blending of the guitar and piano is the key to the success of this song. I love drumming and the bass playing on this song. I am not a fan of Jam bands but I am really digging this band. I love the organ that is being put forth on this song.
Joe Walsh
This next song is name after one of my band members from The Eagles and The James Gang. I love the overdrive guitars at the beginning and the hard-hitting drums. There is some nice organ and bass playing at the beginning. I love the music and the pace. I love the guitar break a quarter into the song that turns into a nice solo with some nice effects on the guitar. There is some nice drumming on this song. I love the guitar, bass, and drums paces towards the middle of the song. The organ is kind of not fitting in the song now. It just rebound from it almost death on this song. The singing and well placed back up singing is awesome. There is some nice lyrics on this song. This song kind of reminds me of early Deep Purple like Mark III and late Black Sabbath with Ozzy like their last two records before Ozzy was fired.
In Bad Dreams
I love the acoustic guitar at the beginning of the song. The organ, bass, and drumming comes in shortly after the guitar. The singer with a ton of reverb comes after that build up. I love the lyrics. I am not a fan so much with his singing. I love guitar break and back into the main riff. I love the guitar solo towards the middle of the song. This song has a nice pace to it. Nice snare drum roll into a nice guitar break and solo. I love the ending to the song.
Water Wine
I love the guitar, drums, and bass playing at the beginning of the song. I love the bass playing quarter into the song. There is also some nice guitar playing in this song. The drums are solid that becomes a nice support device. I love the singing and the lyrics. I love the time change towards the middle of the song. I just feel this singer does too much screaming then singing. The guitar playing with the piano towards the end of the song is solid. The two drummers adds to the nice sound on this song and the band.
The Worst
I love the beginning of the song. I love the acoustic guitar and the nice drums and bass playing. I love the movement of the bass playing on this song. The singer on this song reminds me of a little Neil Young. There is some solid lyrics on this song. This is pretty solid song. There is some nice back up vocals towards the middle of the song. I love the slight time change towards the back half of the song. There is a nice guitar break during this time frame.
Words Can’t Explain
I love the guitar playing at the beginning of the song. There is a nice organ playing in the background with some great drum beats. I love the singing with the reberb. This makes senses for the song. I love the build up into the main part of the song. This song will slap you in the face if you are not paying attention. It will then just run away and hide while watching you in the distance. I love the pace of this song. I love the music at the middle. It seems like the song is about to end but it teases you as a music listener. I love the organ and guitar playing after that period of the song. The drums and bass playing starts to build it back up. There is a nice guitar break at this point of the song that goes into kind of guitar solo.
Night Walk
There is some nice acoustic guitar with some nice drumming and bass playing. The singer is singing and he is singing very well. He kind of reminds me a little Radiohead. I am really not a fan of the pace of this song for being the last song off this record. I do love the organ playing towards the middle of the song. The song kind of picks up towards the end. The singing is pretty strong towards the end of the song. The song might be too slow to end the record but the singing echoes the story behind the name of the band.
Line Up:
Adam Grant – Vocals and Guitars
Tyler Maynard – Keys and Synth
Evan Joel – Bass
Max Grant – Drums
John Sayer – Drums and Percussion
Ending, I was not expecting this type of music. I have to say I am pretty impressed with the music they have written for their first record. This music brings back the Jam bands of the 1960’s and 1990’s. To me, they sound like something between The Doors, Black Crows, and Counting Crows. It is a nice break from the hard rock and metal that I normally listen to and review on this blog. Maybe the northwest part of Canada has the future sound of music. This will be interesting where this band goes in the future. I enjoyed it and I recommend you checking this band out. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
In this New Music Monday Blog, we are going to get into the new music and the EP from Skid Row. The EP is called United World Rebellion Chapter One. We are going to get into history of this once 1980’s Pop Metal and into this great EP music. Let us get into the history.
History
Skid Row was founded by Rachel Bolan, who is the bass player, and Dave “The Snake” Sabo, who is the lead guitar player, in a town of New Jersey in 1986. Rachel and Dave filled out the rest of the band with Scotti Hill, who is the second guitar player, Rob Affuso, who is the drummer, and lead singer Sebastian Bach, who replaced Mark Fallon. Jon Bon Jovi was good friends with Dave Sabo and each promise each other if one made it big to help the other person out. Bon Jovi’s management sought out Skid Row and sign them to a management deal while the band signs a deal with Atlantic Records in 1988. In 1988, the band return the studio to record their first record. Jon Bon Jovi asked Gary Moore, who was part of Irish Blues band called Skid Row, if you would sell the name to American Skid Row for $35,000 US Dollar. Gary Moore agreed to sell the rights to the name but the rest of his former band mates still dispute these events. Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora signed Skid Row to a punishing deal which would become an issue when the band became successful. The band toured and opened up with Bon Jovi. Skid Row released their self titled record in 1989. It was success with hit songs like “I Remember You,” “Youth Gone Wild,” and “18 And Life.” The record went five times platinum. The band went back into the studio in 1990 to record their second record which is called “Slave To The Grind.” It was released in 1992 and it went number one in the first week of sale. It produced hits like “Monkey Business,” and “Wasted Time.” The band went on a world tour with mostly Guns N’ Roses. Before the band started working on their third record, they recorded EP called “B-Sides Ourselves” in 1992. The band started recording their third record in 1994 with Bob Rock, who replaced Michael Wagenger at producer. “Subhuman Race” was released in 1995. It produced some hits but it was not as successful as their last two records. Sebastian Bach was fired by the band in late 1996. There was a fight between Bach and Balon about opening up for Kiss. The band never really broke up but they did play under another band name called Ozone Monday with Shawn Mars. Rob Affuso left the band and was replaced with Charlie Mills. The band performed under the name Ozone Monday from 1998 to 1999 around the world. In 1999, the band went back with the name Skid Row and hired new lead singer, who is Johnny Solinger. Charlie Mills left the band and was replaced by former drummer of Saison Kick, who is Phil Varone. The band released their fourth record, which was called “Thickskin” with Phil Varone on drums and Johnny Solinger on vocals. This record was the first record in eight years. Dave Gara came a board to play drums in 2004. “Revolutions per Minute” was their fifth record and it was released in 2006. The band did several tours around the world and on the water as a cruise. In 2010, Dave Gara left the band and was replaced by Rob Hammersmith on drums. In 2011, rumors started to fly that Bach was returning to the band as the lead singer. Dave Sabo put all those rumors to a stop after Bach started it on “That Metal Show.” In 2013, the band signed a record dead with Megaforce Records. They put out this EP, which is called “United World Rebellion Chapter One.” This band has put out five studio records, two EP, one live record, and one greatest hits. Let us get into the music.
Track List:
Kings Of Demolition
I love the heavy guitars and bass in your face at the beginning. Johnny singing is strong and solid. I love the main riff with some nice playing from the rhythm selection of the band. I love the melody from the singer. There is some solid lyrics on this opening track. This is a really good singing with some great music and well written lyrics. There is an awesome guitar solo towards the end of the song. There is a normal Skid Row ending to the song.
Lets Go
Just like the opening track, “Lets Go” starts out the same way but a little bit slower. However, it has a nice pace with some solid lyrics, I love Johnny’s singing better than Bach’s vocals. I believe Bach’s vocals would not fit on the music Skid Row is putting together on their last three records. There is some nice lyrics. There is an awesome and well place guitar solo towards the middle of the song. This song you can hear the punk influence in the band. Another awesome ending to a song.
This Is Killing Me
I love the touch of the acoustic guitar with a slight overdrive guitar over the top with a short guitar solo. Johnny is singing with passion and feeling along with some great lyrics. I love the pace of this song. The drums and bass are calming but perfect for the song. I love the well placed keyboards in the background. They put some nice lays of the music here. In the middle of the song, I can hear a nice dancing bass line in the background. There is a nice guitar break towards the back half of the song that turns into a nice short guitar solo. I kind of feel that one was forced.
Get Up
I love how the guitar starts out with bass and drums being the forces point at the beginning. The drums and bass are forced in the main part of the song. I love the touch of the guitars. I love the singing from Johnny and the lyrics he is signing. I love the pace and the way place back up vocals. I love the change of pace towards the middle of the song. It goes right back to the main riff. I love the guitar solo ending the song.
Stitches
I love the fade in guitar work with some nice drums and killer bassline. This music is pretty sick in a good way. Johnny comes in with a nice punk like singing. This song is in your face but in a nice way. I am not a fan of the lyrics but they will have to grow on me. The music is making this song right now. This is a perfect ending to this EP.
In the end, Skid Row has been a band has been on my radar. They were a band that was at the end of the 1980’s metal scene. I believe to this day they do not get the credit they should for their music. Was their first record like all the bands of their time? Yeah, their records after that shows more than just your normal 1980’s metal bands. Yes, they are part of that era and they cannot block that out of their career. I have to say Skid Row has come a long way from their self titled record. Even with Bach, the band did get heavier and I felt they push themselves away from their peers. This band has re-establish itself in the hard rock and metal world. Skid Row was awesome in the 1980’s and early 1990’s but I feel this is the real Skid Row. Skid Row is back and better than ever. I cannot wait to see what the next chapter. I highly recommend you checking this band out. Let me know what you think of it. Go get some! Drink it! Enjoy it! Metal it! \m/
DJ Weiser 