A Second opinion: After quite a few less than stellar outings, King's X finally got back to the groove-based rock 'n' roll that they do so well. This is easily the band's best effort since "Dogman."
Original review:I'm much later than promised on this one, but it's still well worth noting.
Anyone whose read my reviews knows that I love bands that break the mold and do something a little different. King's X was one of the first of those I discovered. I was watching Headbanger's Ball (the original) back in the late '80s when the video for "Over My Head" came on. Here was this lanky, mohawk-sporting black guy (a rarity in itself in those days of metal) with an incredible voice, wailing over music that drew as much influence from gospel and soul as it did from Black Sabbath.
It's been almost 20 years since that discovery, and I've had my ups and downs with the band from the outstanding first five records to the hit and miss experimentation of the late 90s and this decade. The band's latest, "XV," though, stands as perhaps its best since 1994's "Dogman." Those tight Beatles-like harmonies that the band has always been known for, here become more like the harmonies of an energetic gospel choir, and that change is announced early on the chorus of record opener "Pray." It also signals that, perhaps, there's a little more anger here than in the past, a point proven later in the record on the charging "Move" and the dark "Love and Rockets (Hell's Screaming)."
That's not to say it's all anger. The record is varied with songs like the bubble-gum "Rocket Ship," the joyful "Go Tell Somebody" and the sardonic "Broke." Drummer Jerry Gaskill also takes a turn on the mic for the first time in a number of years for "Julie." It's a strong comeback for King's X, without a bad song to be found. The song here requests "If you like what you hear, then go tell somebody." Consider somebody told.
A second opinion: After experimenting with a heavier sound on "Brutal Planet" and "Dragontown" and a more commercial garage rock sound on "The Eyes of Alice Cooper" and "Dirty Diamonds," Cooper gets back to his roots with this disturbing concept record about a serial killer. This is Alice at his spooky best.
Original review: For the past few years, Alice Cooper has been trying, with limited success, to recapture the sound and feel of his 1970s heyday. Those records, "The Eyes of Alice Cooper" and "Dirty Diamonds," had a little problem, though. While some of the tunes hit the right note, both albums had several songs that sounded like they were written by Vincent Furnier, the aging 50-something rocker who spends more time on the golf course than on the stage.
This time around, though, he nails it. A concept record revolving around a serial killer in love, "Along Came a Spider" is pure Alice, a guy who Vincent Furnier would be quick to tell you has never held a golf club unless he was clubbing someone over the head with it. This is perhaps one of Cooper’s more twisted creations. It’s a much darker record than his last two, and is filled with his trademark black humor, not the least of which is the often bouncy and happy-sounding melodies that accompany dark turns in the storyline.
I’ll be honest and say that, in the lead up to this record, I was hoping for something more in line with the heavier sounds of his 2000 record "Brutal Planet." He only delivers that on one song, “Vengeance is Mine,” which features guitar work from Slash. The lack of that heaviness, however, is not a disappointment. Most of the songs on this record are firmly rooted in Cooper’s classic 1970s blend of punk and garage rock with the occasional bit of metal or Broadway thrown in.
The only real misses on the record come in the form of the ballad “Killed by Love,” the latest failed attempt to recreate “Only Women Bleed,” and the showtune-influenced “Salvation,” which seems a bit out of place and doesn’t connect with the rest of the story.
The remaining songs on this record are all rock solid. Cooper delivers catchy garage melodies and memorable hooks on tunes like “Catch Me If You Can,” “(In Touch With) Your Feminine Side,” “Wrapped in Silk” and “The One that Got Away.” Perhaps the best example of the blending of twisted thoughts with happy-go-lucky, bubblegum rock comes on the track “I’m Hungry.” There are some less tongue-in-cheek dark moments scattered around the album, most notably the maniacal “I Am the Spider,” which closes the record.
This is easily Cooper’s best work since "Brutal Planet."
Second opinion: Disturbed is one of only a couple of the nu-metal bands to emerge in the 1990s that has remained relevant. Slinky melodies and David Draiman's unique vocal style retain their charm here. It's also nice to hear guitarist Dan Donegan get to show off his chops a little.
Original review:While I do think that metal fans owe some amount of gratitude to the nu-metal movement of the late 1990s for bringing the genre back to the forefront, the truth of the matter is that it didn't produce a lot of music worth listening to. There were a few exceptions, however, and one of those is Disturbed.
I first came across Disturbed as the opening act for Pantera on a now defunct late night concert series on HBO. I was struck by vocalist David Draiman's unique vocal style and the tightness of the band and immediately went out and found their first record, "The Sickness." Unfortunately, they drifted into more generic rock territory on their second record. With "Indestructible," the band has finally found a way to integrate the two styles seamlessly. While the crazed vocalizations that became Draiman's trademark on the first record are scattered throughout the album, there are also some strong melodies that balance it out and make it seem less cartoonish.
The perfect example of this is first single "Inside the Fire," which really showcases the blending of the band's unconventional early work with amore melodic smoother sound. "Criminal" is another strong point, with a hook that's hard to get out of your head. My personal favorite is "The Curse," one of the darker tunes on the record. I don't know that it's one of the best songs on the record, but it's certainly one of the most relatable for me personally.
Draiman's manic vocals are, admittedly, still the star of the show, but it's also nice to see guitarist Dan Donegan getting a bigger chance to shine on this record. The guitar comes to the forefront on a few songs, and Donegan takes a solo on every tune. It further underscores the musical maturation process of the band from chunky detuned riffs and edge-of-madness squawks to a legitimate, well-rounded hard rock machine.
Second opinion: Though it didn't blow me away like I expected, the reformation of Testament managed to hang around and make my top 10. "The Formation of Damnation" features a solid collection of old-school Testament thrash with some big hooks. Good stuff, if not quite as impressive as I hoped.
Original review:I'd like to call this a comeback record, but the truth of the matter is, Testament never went anywhere. Sure, it's been quite a while since they've put out a new album, but unlike many of their contemporaries, their 1990s output -- records like "Low" and "The Gathering" -- were every bit as solid as the early works. Of course, I guess it could be termed a comeback since it's a reunion of four of the five original members of the band (drummer Louie Clemente bowed out for health reasons.)
Though often overshadowed on the 1980s thrash scene by the bands referred to as "the big four" -- Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax -- Testament produced some high-quality music that matched, and at times surpassed the bands that grabbed the spotlight. They continue that trend here. It's almost as if no time has passed since guitarist Alex Skolnick left the band in 1992, and they pick things up with a lineup of songs that sound like a cross between their early work on records like the (IMO) classic "The New Order" and later albums like "Low."
After the expected instrumental intro "For the Glory of...," the band launches into the first true song, "More Than Meets the Eye," which will take fans back to Testament's glory days -- and it's actually not one of the strongest moments here. There's a nice range from very melodic pieces like "Dangers of the Faithless," which features the most memorable hook on the record, to full-on assaults with even a little touch of death metal, like the title track.
Check out "Henchmen Ride" for an all-out old school thrasher with a great squealing riff, or "Killing Season" for a great thrash groove.
In a strong year for metal releases, I thought many of these records would make my year-end top 10. Close, but not quite. That doesn't mean they're not well worth checking out, though.
Firewind, "The Premonition." Perhaps the most consistent band in the power metal genre. Gus G. should become a bonafied guitar hero.
Extreme, "Saudades de Rock." The funk-rockers successfully morph themselves into a 1970s rock style that really works. Plus, Nuno Bettencourt gets the shred on again.
Hank III, "Damn Right, Rebel Proud." While not as good as his last record "Straight to Hell," this one sees the introduction of more of the hellbilly style he's practiced on the side. (Review to come soon).
So begins my roundup of the best of 2008. By and large the year was one of the best in recent memory. Comebacks were the order with some outstanding records released by Metallica, Motley Crue, Alice Cooper and Extreme. Even Axl Rose (no, I won't call it Guns 'n' Roses) finally got his "Chinese Democracy" record on the shelves.
But there were some disappointments, too. Here are the most notable for me:
Judas Priest, "Nostradamus": This overbearing and pretentious two-disc concept record was absolutely awful. While there are a few really good songs scattered throughout, it's hard to slog through the rest of it to get to them. A lot of people say that the record grew on them with more listens. That didn't happen for me. If anything, I like it less.
Iced Earth, "The Crucible of Man": In complete honesty, my objection to this record has less to do with the music contained on it and more to do with my disappointment at the departure of Tim Owens and the return of Matt Barlow. The record itself has some decent songs, but leaves me a bit cold. It also seems that Barlow is doing his best here to look and sound like Owens. Why not just keep the guy?
Into Eternity, "The Incurable Tragedy": Having loved Into Eternity's last three records, this was one of my most anticipated releases of the year. A very personal concept record, this one is dark and morose. That's not always bad, but it's draining here. The real turn-off, though, are the schizophrenic vocals. One of the most intriguing things about the band in the past were the melodic clean vocals mixed with the death growls. Here, they're all over the place and it makes it difficult to listen.
So, tonight I stumbled across some new music on the way from Dash Rip Rock, a great rock/country/punk/party band from my backyard. The first few tracks are from their latest album, and there's some older stuff down the list from their wilder early days that I highly recommend checking out. Enjoy.
Christmas seems to come earlier and earlier every year. I've been seeing decorations in the stores since, it seems, the end of August, and I've had my tickets to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra in December in hand for nearly two months. Still, with Halloween not even having arrived yet and it being at least a month earlier than my TSO CD's normally find their way into my truck, it was a bit tough to get into the spirit.
Then the first Christmas record of the season, Armoury Records' "We Wish You a Metal Christmas and a Headbanging New Year" arrives on my desk, and despite my misgivings about the early timing, I can't resist the list of participants.
What we have here is a collection of metal renditions of Christmas songs both classic and campy with a lineup that features some legends of the genre. The compilation was put together by Wendy Dio, wife of legendary metal singer Ronnie James Dio, and features performances by Lemmy Kilmister, Billy Gibbons, Alice Cooper, John 5, Billy Sheehan, Tony Iommi, Rudy Sarzo, Geoff Tate, Doug Pinnick, George Lynch, Tim Owens, Steve Morse, Vinny Appice, Chuck Billy, Scott Ian and many others. Oddly, Wendy Dio says her husband was one of the toughest stars to convince because "he doesn't sing Christmas songs."
The performances here are remarkably good, beginning with the second track, a rowdy version of "Run Rudolph Run" featuring perhaps one of the strangest pairings here in Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister, ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons and the Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl on drums. A similar turn comes on the excellent version of "Santa Claus is Back in Town," where ex-Judas Priest and Iced Earth vocalist Tim Owens teams up with Steve Morse to show a rawer hard rock vocal that we haven't heard from him before.
Some play it straight, some put their own spin on it. Alice Cooper is most notable among the latter with his Christmas horror tale "Santa Claws is Coming to Town." In his hands, it transforms from an innocent children's song into something more than a bit disturbing. Dio and Iommi essentially turn "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" into a fairly dark Sabbath number. They're not all as strong as those two, though. Geoff Tate turns "Silver Bells" into a hard rocker, which might have worked, but his normally impressive voice sounds really, really bad here.
Of the songs that stick with the script, so to speak, one of the strongest is the grooving version of "Little Drummer Boy" featuring King's X vocalist Doug Pinnick, George Lynch, Billy Sheehan and Simon Phillips. Phillips throws a little groove on the beat, and Pinnick's vocals are just perfect. It's easily one of the strongest offerings here.
There are a couple of head scratchers as well. "Silent Night" featuring Chuck Billy of Testament, Scott Ian of Anthrax and John Tempesta of Exodus, Testament and White Zombie sounds like a train wreck on paper, but the death metal take is, in truth, kind of interesting in an odd way. The strangest choice here, though, has to be "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" featuring Stephen Pearcy of Ratt and Tracii Guns. Yeah, it's pretty much as bad as it sounds.
Of the other tunes on the album, none are bad but none stand out as much as the previously mentioned ones. Joe Lynn Turner's take on "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" is lively and energetic, and "Deck the Halls," featuring Oni Logan is enjoyable. Aside from "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" and the off-kilter "Silver Bells," the only other miss is Tommy Shaw and Steve Lukather's take on "Happy Xmas (War is Over)," which is more or less note for note and a bit bland.
It's a bit of surprise, but this is actually a really, really good record. I'd recommend it for any classic metal fan looking for a little Christmas cheer early in the holiday season.
Though we’re actually starting to get quite a few decent Christmas records, if there’s a holiday for metal, it would have to be Halloween.
As with movies, I prefer my Halloween music creepy and perhaps disturbing rather than filled senseless gore, so Alice Cooper trumps Cannibal Corpse every time.
If you’re putting together a metal soundtrack for a Friday party, here are a few suggestions. Beyond the first two, they’re in no particular order except the way they came to mind. By no means is this list comprehensive. Please feel free to add your own.
"Black Sabbath," Black Sabbath. I don’t know that there’s a better song out there for Halloween, those three bell-like notes of ringing out over a barren wasteland and Ozzy’s moaning about figures in black really set the mood.
"Welcome to My Nightmare," Alice Cooper. Let’s face it, you could probably do a whole list of Alice Cooper tunes and have a bunch left over. I’ll go with the obvious one.
"Trick or Treat," Fastway. You may or may not remember the really bad horror movie of the 1980s about a deceased rocker back for revenge. The only redeeming points of the movie were Ozzy Osbourne hamming it up as a TV preacher and the soundtrack by Fastway. The title track is a great, rocking tune.
"Bark at the Moon," Ozzy Osbourne. Here’s another obvious one, playing to the campy side of Halloween. Visions of Ozzy in a werewolf costume dance in your heads.
"How the Gods Kill," Danzig. There are also no shortage of Halloween tunes in Danzig’s catalog. When it comes to creepy, though, I’m going with the title track of his third record.
"The Thing that Should Not Be," Metallica. It’s based on Lovecraft, it’s an awesome song. It makes the list.
"Scared," Dangerous Toys. Not really creepy or spooky, but a great song nonetheless. And as a tribute to Alice Cooper, it gets him on the list a second time. He deserves it.
"Fear of the Dark," Iron Maiden. So the obvious choice here is "Number of the Beast," but I’m going to break from the pack and pick one of Maiden’s later tunes. To me, it has a slightly more Halloween feel.
"Tourniquet," Marilyn Manson. Say what you want about Manson, but this is a great song. Definitely creepy and definitely fitting.
"Cemetery Gates," Pantera. Very dark, great imagery and an incredible screaming riff when the heavy guitars kick in. You can’t go wrong with it.
"Hell’s Bells," AC/DC. Perhaps the most obvious choice on my list. Still got to get it in there, though.
"Melissa," Mercyful Fate. Another band with no shortage of appropriate tunes. "Melissa" would be my first choice.
"The Dungeons are Calling," Savatage. Being a devoted fanboy, I’ll try to get a Savatage tune in just about every list I make. This creepy little tune would be a nice intro to a Halloween haunted house.
"Captain Howdy," Twisted Sister. Disturbing in an entirely different way, especially if you’ve seen Dee Snider’s horror flick "Strangeland," this song is easily creepy enough for a Halloween mix.
"I Am Legend," White Zombie. While my first Zombie Halloween choice would be a creepy little number from the "House of 1,000 Corpses" soundtrack with a title I can’t print here, I’ll go with this musical take on the classic Richard Matheson horror tale instead.
"The Ripper," Judas Priest. What’s a Halloween party without a tune about Jack the Ripper?
"Mary Jane," Megadeth. Spooky isn’t a word I’d often use to describe a Megadeth tune, but this one fits the bill.
"Seasons in the Abyss," Slayer. There’s plenty of horror imagery in Slayer’s music, but since we’re going for dark and creepy instead of gory, the title track to their 1990 record is a winner.
I'm much later than promised on this one, but it's still well worth noting.
