Do you remember Planisphærium, released ten years ago? If so, you might know what to expect with this new full length by one of Spain’s most technical Grind / Death bands ever. But even if you think you know what to expect, you might be surprised by the enormous evolution these guys made in mean time, especially when it comes to the technically perfected side of the game.
Volbeat is a Danish metal band which was formed in Copenhagen. The band is known for playing a fusion of rock, metal and rockabilly. They are inspired by classic rock and roll artists such as Johnny Cash and Elvis as well as more modern rock, hard rock and metal bands.
Quintet Vikingore hail from Seville, Spain, and are now debuting with Wolves In The Battlefront (in 2010 there was a self-produced and self-called demo), which brings a fantastic mixture of somewhat early nineties-oriented Death Metal, Scandinavian-inspired Viking / Black Metal and a handful of modern experiments. The band varies a lot in between aggression and melody, in between energy and integrity, in between tradition and progression.
As you can surmise from the caption of this review, this album is in fact the soundtrack to a movie...but not just any movie, and it also is not your common soundtrack! You see, there's a nice story behind the coming along of both! It so happens that Sound City was the studio where Dave Grohl and his band Nirvana recorded the album Nevermind, you see? Situated at Van Nuys, Los Angeles, the studio was renowned for having the best sound where drum recordings were concerned.
This Baroque tinted Progressive Rock act has a somewhat fuzzy history which goes back all the way to 1989. It is apparently the year when the foundation of the current band was laid. Wackily enough, they were already known as Tucana and re-named themselves from Wistaria.
Stratovarius have been around for quite some time now, and this album ‘Nemesis’ is their fourteenth opus so far. Who thought that this band would be finished, when Timo Tolkki left the band, ought to re-think his or her words? ‘Nemesis’ is an album that is bursting with energy, right from the opening track ‘Abandon’, which goes back to the all too familiar old Stratovarius sound. The second track goes in another direction, and sounds much more melodic, but despite a rather soft piano intro, contains some very heavy riffing.
I have little to no knowledge what's going on in the progressive rock scene at the moment, but I do know this, I enjoyed what veterans Spock’s Beard have to offer. It's prog, so you know what to expect.
I would never have guessed this band comes from France. After all this is not your typical French metal or hard rock. Yet they are, and have even been around for the last decade, albeit with different line ups.
The music Shannon plays definitely has its origins in the eighties, and sounds like a cross between hard rock and European heavy metal. As a matter of fact this album is already their third full release, but I had never before heard of this band.
Rage Of Angels is not a band, but a project. It is the brainchild of original Ten keyboard player Ged Ryland. He wrote all songs over a 10 year period.
Their comeback album was released shorter than a year ago, and now Player is ready to release some new material upon the world. This is their sixth album, despite going back to 1977 to trace the roots of this band.
