New Videos - May 2022!

End of the month means it's time for another batch of videos!  I think there's a lot of great stuff here, mostly metal, but there is some rock in there for good measure.  There's certainly a lot of stuff to look forward to this year, that's for sure.  Check these out and see if you agree!

Another champion of the melodic prog metal style, Seventh Wonder's new single is pretty standard for the style, but it works!  Tommy's vocals remain expressive, the band show some dynamic playing and songwriting, and it's even a bit catchy!  I'll have to find some time to catch up on more of their stuff!

Yet another track from new symphonic metal band Shield of Wings.  I really like their sense of scale with their songs, making me think of Antti Martikainen in a way.  They also use some harsh vocals (from the keyboardist, I believe), but they're mostly in the background to add a bit of extra spice, which is interesting.

I featured this band back in November, and it's taken this long to get to their next song, and I enjoy this one as much as the last one.  I got Twilightning vibes from this track this time, but that's a good thing.  It just means that this is some solid power metal I'll need to take the time to check out.

After a three year gap, Tobias Sammet is back with another Avantasia album, and for the lead single, he's tapped into the incredible Ralf Scheepers to join him on vocals.  While there are some of the typical symphonic flourishes one expects, this song mostly stays in the heavy/power style that fits Scheepers like a glove.

After some controversy and a new singer, GloryHammer carries on their quest to be the cheesiest power metal band in the world.  While they may still have their tongues becoming permanent residents in their cheeks, I can't deny they still have a knack for some catchy melodies and epic vocals, and newcomer Sozos Michael seems to be fitting right in.

While GloryHammer continue crafting their own stories, Blind Guardian has once again found another novel to inspire new epic tunes of their own.  Building off of the book American Gods by Neil Gaiman, Kürsch and company have crafted yet another bomastic epic, with some pretty solid guitar solos.  Perhaps nothing new, but when they do it this well, I can't complain.

Good heavens, Moonlight Haze has been prolific.  Once again, they're back with their catchy symphonic metal, featuring quite the flurry of notes to kick this one off.  This really does have a lot of good, uplifting energy, with some great singing by Chiara Tricarico.

Harry Hess is back with more First Signal, and this track has some great rocking energy.  Great use of layers for something really driving and anthemic.  I know AOR can get a little samey, but I think this is a great example of how to make this genre really stand out. 

Anniversary Series - 1987!

Moving right along with these Anniversary articles it's time for 1987!  To be honest, this year is pretty dominated by glam metal, but that's not a bad thing, as it hadn't quite worn out its welcome yet.  Sure, there were rumblings in the underground, with more extreme metal and college rock getting momentum, but those are outside the scope of this blog.  For now, let's focus on the melodic rock and metal of the year!

Like I said, it was a big year for glam metal.  Whitesnake released their massive self-titled album, featuring a re-recording of "Here I Go Again" and the big ballad "Is This Love?"  Mötley Crüe took things to the "Wild Side" with Girls, Girls, Girls, Great White put out Once Bitten, with the big hit "Rock Me," Dokken came Back for the Attack, and Guns 'n' Roses had their historic debut album.  Would classic rock be the same without "Welcome to the Jungle" and "Sweet Child o' Mine"?

However, in my opinion, the biggest album in the pop metal world is Def Leppard's Hysteria.  After having such a rough hiatus, with their drummer losing an arm, they came back with a titanic record that featured seven hit singles, and even some of the deeper tracks like "Run Riot" and "Excitable" are solid.  The story goes that the album wasn't as big at first, but when "Pour Some Sugar On Me" hit the radio waves, it became one of the best selling albums of the decade, and when I listen to it, I can't deny that it deserves it.  Just massive stadium-ready hooks from front-to-back.

Of course, the decade wasn't all metal.  Rock still had a presence here and there.  The Alan Parsons Project would release their last album, Gaudi, early in this year.  One would expect a concept album about a Spanish architect, but it's a solid release.  Other former prog rockers would put out some decent melodic rock as well.  Rush had the synth-heavy Hold Your Fire, Yes tried for, but largely failed to get big success with Big Generator, and Pink Floyd had their peculiar comeback with A Momentary Lapse of Reason, which as become one of my favorites of theirs in recent years.  Marillion also had a decent year with Clutching at Straws, a concept album about a man who missed out on success and brags about it while drinking in a bar.

Speaking of progressive music, Savatage would finally ditch any attempt at MTV success and rediscover themselves with Hall of the Mountain King, which saw them teaming up with Paul O'Neill and starting their shift into the symphonic, concept-driven metal that would take them to Trans-Siberian Orchestra in the 90s.  Other notable metal release include Manowar's Fighting the World, Dio's Dream Evil, doom metal legends Candlemass's Nightfall, and Running Wild finally finding success with the piratey Under Jolly Roger. 

Finally, I want to bring up Helloween's massive Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I.  While the band had released an album before this one, I feel like Keeper is when they finally found their sound, and as a consequence, established the sound of power metal for many bands to follow.  Between the upbeat "I'm Alive" and the epic "Halloween," it was really the first time melodic leads and aggressive riffing really came together, establishing the genre that wouldn't quite take off until a decade later.

That wraps up this year, clearly one for throwing up fists for some great rock and metal.  As always, my playlist is below with even more great tracks, and if you think I've missed something, let me know in the comments.  I hope you're enjoying these articles as much as I enjoy making them!  Until then, rock on! \m/

Last Played - May 2022! Now with EPs!

I'm starting to catch up on some newer releases, but one other thing I've decided to focus on is Extended Play releases.  To be honest, EPs are something that I've never really quite understood, but they remain a constant of the heavy metal scene.  I guess if you feel compelled to release something, I suppose it's better to release a handful of solid tracks instead of throwing on a bunch of filler tracks to fill an album.  However, reviewing them is still a bit odd.  With a full album, you can get a sense of what the band is thinking and feeling at the moment, but an EP just feels like a step or two up from a taste (which I guess would be singles, in this analogy?).

Nevertheless, as I began looking over bands' discographies and new releases, there are plenty EPs to discuss.  So I decided I would include them as little mini-reviews in my Last Played articles in between the main album reviews.  In any case, regardless of format, here's what I've listening to lately.

Eliminator - Ancient Light

After enjoying their single "Silent Stone" as a solid piece of Maiden worship, I figured I should give the rest of their latest album a listen.  Right out of the gates, these guys are clearly aiming for that early Iron Maiden era of Killers, Number of the Beast, and Piece of Mind.  Sometimes they lean into the NWOBHM side with a dash of rock, but other times, they turn up the epic, with decent results.

Of course, it's not completely like Iron Maiden, as there are a few tracks that feel closer to US power metal, like "Mercy" and the doomy "The Nightmare of Aeon," but honestly, that's a pretty subtle difference.  Regardless, this band certainly has the chops.  David Foster's vocals are very much like Dickinson's, and he's given plenty of opportunities to wail high above the music (though he does get a little buried on "Arrival").  Then there's the lead guitar work of Jack MacMichael and Matthew Thomas.  When they aren't chugging away at classic-styled riffs, they are often trading solos, or playing harmonized leads together, clearly reminiscent of Murray and Smith.  If it weren't for the modern production, this could easily make you feel like it's 1983 all over again.

If there is a problem, it's that there aren't a lot of surprises.  This album really feels the same from front-to-back.  Sure, they change up the tempo here and there, and there are a few segments were they break out the acoustic guitar, but it's usually in anticipation of some epic metal shift like "Foreverless," or in the bridge of a larger song like "Lord of Sleep, Dreamaster."  However, for those who can't get enough of that old-school Maiden sound and want to hear some guys who are pretty good at it, this is some solid classic metal.

Lovebites - Glory, Glory to the World (EP)

This release is probably a little bittersweet, as it was part of an announcement of an incoming hiatus caused by the leaving of their bassist, Miho.  While it retains much of the frenetic power metal they're known for, I don't think these songs are quite as good as what was on Electric Pentagram, which I loved.  "Paranoia" certainly shows the band's darker, more theatrical side, but otherwise, the songs are pretty standard fare for this band.  Expect plenty of high-speed shredding and catchy melodies, but nothing particularly earth-shattering.

Lionville - So Close to Heaven

After checking out their first album, I decided to give their latest a spin, and it's pretty surprising how little has changed in the 10 years between them.  While the production is a little richer and the guitars have a bit more crunch (and there are less ballads), this is still some pretty straight-forward, 80s-inspired melodic rock from top to bottom.  

Of course, it also makes it hard to review, as nothing really stands out too much.  I will say that the lyrics lean into the clichés quite a bit, but they're sung so sincerely you can't help but get caught up in the sentimentality of it all.  The music supports every word of it, with friendly, rockin' guitars and lush keyboards to make everything so warm and accessible.  It's a bit of a shorter album, but that only helps the pace feel brisk and not get bogged down.  Essentially, Lionville are the epitome of modern AOR, and it may not make many new fans, I generally enjoyed what I heard.

Greyhawk - Ride Out (EP)

Likely named after the classic D&D campaign setting, Greyhawk is very much in the vein of classic US power metal, a la Omen, Manilla Road, and Manowar.  I quite liked the vocals by Rev Taylor, and they were often harmonized, which added to the epicness.  Otherwise, it's some pretty straight-forward chugging old-school metal, with plenty of noodly guitars one expects from the style.  "The Abdication," and "Serpent King" stood out to me the most, with the former being quite epic, and the latter having some great energy.  This certainly is a solid taste of what this band has to offer, and I'm curious to listen to more, so I guess this EP did its job!

HammerFall - Hammer of Dawn

Let's wrap this up this article with finally getting caught up on HammerFall!  These power metal legends are still going, and while their sound hasn't changed much over the past decade, they still have a knack for some decent epic and melodic tracks.

Right off the bat, we get "Brotherhood" for the opener, providing a very classic HammerFall feel.  From there, it's mostly mid-tempo material, with a few change ups.  "Hammer of Dawn" and "Venerate Me" are probably the best of the stompy tracks, while "Live Free or Die," and the closer "No Mercy" do a good job to bring back the speed.  Supposedly King Diamond is on "Venerate Me," but I could never hear him (that's not a voice you can mistake; was he just part of the chorus?).  However, the really different track is "Not Today."  While it's not a ballad, it does have a more mellow rock vibe, with clean guitar tones throughout, except for the melodic choruses.  I don't recall them doing anything quite like this, but it's not bad.  A bit an experiment, I guess.

Overall, I think this is better than their last album Dominion, as I feel it's a little more consistent across the board.  However, I'm not sure how it would compare to the others.  The first five still loom large in my nostalgia goggles, and I don't think they've ever really reached those heights since.  Still, I'm glad they're carrying on, and Hammer of Dawn shows that they're aren't out of magic quite yet.

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Well, I hope you don't mind me throwing in a few EPs this time.  They broke things up a little, at least.  Looking ahead, I'm not sure where I'll go next.  I'm thinking of doing a Last Played purely on albums from 1997, as there are a bunch of big ones from that year that I haven't heard yet.  We'll see.  In the meantime, I've got another Anniversary Article coming up for 1987, and I'm finding more videos to share, so that should round out this month.  Until then, rock on! \m/