Written by: Big Adz
Back in Autumn of 2017, I had a bad day: I was working in a crappy, soul-crushingly dull role that I desperately wanted to get out of for the sake of my own mental well-being, and had just finished up yet another day of this drudgery. Sullen and verging on despondent, I walked out of the building that housed me during said soul crushing, onto the street and hit play on the commute home playlist I had put together during my lunch time reprieve. The first track was a recommendation from a friend, a song called "Kiss of Death" by a band called Mutoid Man. Within a minute of that fateful finger twitch upon my phone, the weight of the capitalistic fuckery I had just endured lifted from my shoulders like an ascendant non-denominational messiah and my face lit up in the way that one’s does when they’ve just heard the first bit of music from their soon-to-be new favourite band.
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 Written by: Sabrina TVBand
Today The Runaways, the first all-female rock band, are highly respected. Widely acknowledged as the progenitors of the riot grrrl movement, and known for being Joan Jett and Lita Ford’s first band, The Runaways stand tall in the annals of music history. But in the 70's they were, at best, a cult favorite. The second Runaways album, 1977’s Queens of Noise, is their strongest release. In its time it only reached #172 on the Billboard 200, but it’s plain to see that contemporary audiences didn’t recognize greatness when it was right in front of them. Every Runaways album has at least two or three solid cuts, but I don’t think it’s possible to make a compelling argument that Queens of Noise isn’t the best one, even if it doesn’t have "Cherry Bomb." This is by far their most consistent and enjoyable collection of songs.  Written by: Sabrina TVBand
It’s about time I put my cards on the table; I’m not a big fan of Bruce Dickinson. I have an appreciation for many Dickinson Iron Maiden songs, but like Klaus Meine I find that Dickinson has a voice that becomes grating after a few minutes. He also has an aggressive and very British nerdy goofball energy. I realize I’m mostly alone in having this opinion, but I stand by it. The Di’Anno years of Iron Maiden have been overshadowed by the subsequent Dickinson years in a big way, but Iron Maiden’s self-titled debut is still one of their stronger albums. Di’Anno is known for being a more limited vocalist than Dickinson, but within that limited range I find his voice to be a lot more enjoyable.  Written by: Sabrina TVBand
In 1984, guitarists who could play fast were rarities. Not just “fast,” but “very fast.” Eddie Van Halen, largely because of his tapping and legato chops, was one of the fastest guitarists in his day. Al Di Meola was also pretty fast, although he didn’t make it sound easy. The fastest picker, indisputably, was Yngwie Malmsteen. Rising Force was not Yngwie’s first album; he’d first appeared on Steeler’s self titled debut in 1983, and subsequently on No Parole from Rock ‘n’ Roll by Alcatrazz. Those were the albums that introduced him to a wide audience, and let the world know how fast guitar could be played. But Yngwie’s solo debut, Rising Force, would be his first album as unquestioned artistic leader; it’s where he showed the guitar world that he was more than just a fast hired gun. 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
One of the quickest ways to pique my interest, especially in black metal, is to use a bleak painting or photo of what resembles middle-aged architecture or geography. So, Norway’s Heimland secured my attention with that alone. Composed entirely in Norwegian, their debut album entitled Forfedrenes taarer followed a brief EP that landed less in terms of memorability but gave enough of a heads-up for what was to come. As is usually the case with black metal that I eat right up, this sits right in between that warmer Hellenic melody drive and the fierce, recklessness of the band’s homeland origins. For the most part, this definitely rests on the punishing side of blistering speeds carried by blast beats, tremolos, and the classic shrieks that give no sign of comprehension. But the comforting aspects make an appearance mainly in two ways. For one, the more rhythm-oriented riffs are not only produced in a way that brings their massive punch right to the front, but their integration into the deep abyss of everything else feels very refreshing. Going kind of hand-in-hand with that, the songwriting itself is also superb, and compelling. 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
For the past couple of years, Fresno California’s Haunt had been slowly incorporating synthier and poppier elements into their brand of metal to evolve alongside the fast turnaround of album releases. This strategy fared wonderfully, and slowly became the norm. Despite not having a bad album to his name, I did fear that Trevor was beginning to craft under a stagnant umbrella, as Beautiful Distraction and Windows Of Your Heart cast similar sounds that regenerated the foundation built with the two records before that. Damn, that takes us to album number seven already, doesn’t it? I’m thrilled to say that Golden Arm takes a slight leap in the heavier direction. This could have led to a “throwback” type of release that goes back in time four years to the first two records, but instead, I’m picking up hints of power metal flavors, which I can’t say I’ve really seen much of in the band’s career yet. If nothing else, there’s certainly a hint of epic leanings that grip the speedier aspects and run with them. The record’s title track makes this evident in its calmer build before casting a powerful spell in the solo, spearheaded by an incredible transition. |
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