Welcome to another collection of latest releases in the rock and metal world. As usual it s a wide range of music from Bowie-like to death metal. Overall it s pretty good, whatever the age.
DVD Reviews
Catamenia: Bringing the Cold to Poland
It seems oddly appropriate to film a live DVD in Poland. After all this lot of Viking metallers are not the first lot of their kind to hit Poland. Of course, last time they were raping and pillaging; this time they are merely raping eardrums.
This is a pretty good package with twelve live tracks from all eras of the band, a couple of behind the scenes videos, and a promo video for Tuhat Vuotta . There are extra audio tracks in the form of their 95 demo and their Winds demo from 96 for a total of 120 minutes.
As with most good DVDs these years, there are the normal links, photos, and discography.
While the DVD is not the flashiest one you have ever seen, it is quite a good package that does what it says on the tin. The music therein is some damn good, well played, heavy metal from the cold north. Melodic death metal from Finland is always nice.
What is there not to like?
CD Reviews
Decoy: Call of the Wild
Former Grand Illusion singer Peter Sundell has a new band which produces quite clever hard rock. The title track is typical of this genre and is quite unsurprisingly a good mix of excellent musicianship.
It has a good arrangement and that wonderful Scandinavian take on the genre. Songs like How Long have all the elements one needs whether it is the instantly catchy chorus or memorable music. Is this CD breaking any new ground?
Not really, but its material like this that make a great addition to your listening rotation.
Foreway: From the Ashes
Interesting collection of tunes from a band I had not heard of yet. This Spanish group of hard rockers is really doing their bit for a piece of the hard rock action.
There are still a few language problems that remind you of Klaus Meine s attempts in the early days of the Scorpions but that does not really distract (save for a few chuckles) from the solid rock on here. While there is nothing spectacular on this disc, they do give a cracking good shot at covering Hall Oates Maneater . This release is certainly good enough to get them a deal with a bigger player in the hard rock game in Europe.
It s a solid effort that surprises in its consistency. Ones to watch methinks.
Razorback: Deadringer
Like Jorn, Stefan Berggren, is a journeyman singer who tends to move around a bit but picks his bands very cleverly.
Having fronted Company of Snakes, M3 and a few other variations of Whitesnake Mark 1, he brings a certain level of quality to anything he gets involved with.
He was also with several Whitesnake alike bands before being spotted by Moody and Company. I have quite accidentally been following his career for quite a long time.
Razorback is no exception to the quality output from this guy with great songwriting and strong performance. In a nod to their past, the CDs last track Razor Blues is a wonderful bit of bluesy fun.
If you like your heavy rock with style, substance, and panache then give this lot a look.
You won t regret it. Oh and the rest of players have experience with bands like Rage, Masterplan (Mike Terrana), and Tony Martin Band (Rolf Munkes). Quality stuff that I would recommend.
Turku Romantic Movement: Rock, Rythmn and Revolution
This lot has not ditched their daft as stink moniker on this mixed EP. However, the lads do show their Bowieisms are getting better both live and in the studio. Six tracks are on here three of each.
Of the new tracks The Classic does not quite live up to its name, but shows quite a bit of promise to get close enough. On the live tracks you just have to love the attitude of Sonic Redemption . It is obvious this lot like what they do and do it pretty well.
I look forward to hearing what next they have for us.
Pestilence: Mind Reflections
Now with a name like Pestilence it s not hard to figure out that this is a death metal. It s death metal with a twist of thrash that developed into some a bit more sophisticated before the band broke up and headed off to further musical opportunities (jazz-fusion for at least one).
As with many bands, they never really got to the level they should have because of constant line-up changes and an ever-evolving style. Said by some to be ahead of their time, the band had enough fans to warrant a best of , which is what I have here.
Originally released in 1994, the new version has been remastered and supplemented by a bunch of bonus material and a video for the title track.
The original contained tracks from all four albums as well as rarities in the form of Hatred Within . If you are a death metal fan or have even the slightest interest in this lot, this release will be well worth your hard earned cash. They were clever musicians who knew when they had worked the death metal beast as far as it could go.
Well that is your hard rocking mass for this week. As I carefully flush out my ears for the next batch, I urge you to head off and check out live music where and whenever you can. Stay safe, rocking, and keep it live.
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