Four years ago Elina Englezou and Bob Katsionis created Goditha - The Rock Opera, well now they go nautical with their newest rock opera Captain Hawk. It's a bombastic, cinematic, epic record with a multitude of vocalists playing the parts, to tell a story of gold, sirens, sea witches and mutiny.
Again Englezou writes the story and the music, brought the singers together "wrote all the choir parts and made all the artworks, videos, booklet and LP designs" according to Katsionis even though she was trying to take time off. Englezou plays Balalaika and Ocarina on the album but it's Katsionis who plays pretty much everything else, his veteran power metal status and Sound Symmetry studio affording him the luxury of playing guitars, bass, keys and programming the drums while also arranging, mixing and producing the album.
Aggelos Pavlos and Vassilis Koilakos add violins and ud, fleshing out the joyous power metal with traditional instruments. Influences such as Running Wild are obvious but also Avantasia, Aina, Ayreon and any of the other metal operas around. So yes there's are no less than seven guest singers from Diviner, The Silent Wedding, Enemy Of Reality, Prydain, Disharmony, Endomain along with The Fantasy Choir conducted by Charalambos Stergiopoulos and arranged by Thanassis Pelekanos.
This means it's a full bodied vocal approach, like a full blown musical set to symphony power metal, echo voice different, so you can identify who is who. It's massive in scope, tells a great tale and is full of impressive performances, safe to say Elina Englezou and Bob Katsionis strike gold again with Ghosts Of The Sea, I'd love to hear more in future from Captain Hawk and crew. 9/10
Empty Frame - Underdogs (Coma Records)
Originally a band that paired rock and classical instruments, Empty Frame are a rock band who try to innovate with every release and are getting heavier with every record. Having been around since 2005, Underdogs is only their fourth album and its the most rabid they've released, choppy post rock riffs that are augmented by cello and violin, sort of like a heavier style of psychedelic 60's rock or a riffy ELO on the woozy High Plains.
The best use of the classical instruments comes on The Rider where Holst meets Morricone, Nikos Solomos' violin and Kaiti Pantzari's cello used brilliantly together as Kaiti's vocals are there to counterpoint Panagiotis Fetsis' baritone. He's the bass player of the band too, bringing doomy grooves to Sing Along, Babis Vasileiadis' drums adding loads of breathing room on the title track. Christos Kallimanis' are the most varied though from jangling melodies to ferocious riffs and a everything in between on the closing Mountain Cloud.
Empty Frame have a unique sound, I hear a lot of R.E.M or Madrugada in Empty Frame's sound, its unique and evocative, more so than a lot of rock bands. 7/10
The Vulcan Itch - Rise Of The Fallen (The Lab Records)
The Vulcan Itch state bands such as Helmet, Mars Red Sky and Alice In Chains as influences and their music does sit in-between the alt/grunge and stoner scene, the bright and breezy Wasted reminding me of first two albums Foo Fighters or QOTSA; jangly guitars, throbbing basslines and punchy drumming continuing on Perfect Life.
This is album is apparently their most melodic, making it lighter than their previous records, one EP and one album, but I've never heard those so this is my first impression of the band and while I do like this trios sound it never really varies from the QOTSA blueprint (The Way) with a bit of Helmet in their too.
They get angular on Addicted To The Dark, riffy on Now Or Never and Is It Happening, while Liars And Betrayers has a snarl of punk. It's all pretty decent musically, if you love melodic alt/grunge rock then there's a lot to scratch this itch. 7/10
Under The Sun - Bell Of Doom (Sound Effect Records)
It seems a like a lifetime since Under The Sun released their debut EP but in 2024 the Bell Of Doom rings again and Under The Sun return with this debut album. Having been cranking out riffs since 2015, Under The Sun are a fuzzy, heavy rocking band who bring in stoner, doom born out of the voodoo blues much like Nightstalker and Orange Goblin, grooving bass drives things forward with fuzzy riffage from the guitars.
It's pacey from the off those OG influences coming on Smoking Angels, the cry of "Oh Yeah!?" getting the bluesy stoner riffs moving at full throttle, pace kept fast on the punky C.O.C-like Cry Out, this is filthy stoner metal to start a debut, the influences I mentioned earlier coming to the surface. On the title track, which is proceeded by a rolling bell, adds those doom sounds with a bit of Electric Wizard fuzz and Sabbath worship of course.
It's the first proper doom track on the record as psych wandering of desert rock is key to the woozy One Reason, while Pony Ride puts Sabbath against the NOLA sound, the production making it sound decidedly retro as there's a two channel approach so listen on headphones or through twin speakers. Their debut EP leaned a little too much on sludge doom but on this full length they let the filthy rock n roll breathe a bit more. Killer riffs from Athens. 9/10
The Vulcan Itch - Rise Of The Fallen (The Lab Records)
The Vulcan Itch state bands such as Helmet, Mars Red Sky and Alice In Chains as influences and their music does sit in-between the alt/grunge and stoner scene, the bright and breezy Wasted reminding me of first two albums Foo Fighters or QOTSA; jangly guitars, throbbing basslines and punchy drumming continuing on Perfect Life.
This is album is apparently their most melodic, making it lighter than their previous records, one EP and one album, but I've never heard those so this is my first impression of the band and while I do like this trios sound it never really varies from the QOTSA blueprint (The Way) with a bit of Helmet in their too.
They get angular on Addicted To The Dark, riffy on Now Or Never and Is It Happening, while Liars And Betrayers has a snarl of punk. It's all pretty decent musically, if you love melodic alt/grunge rock then there's a lot to scratch this itch. 7/10
Under The Sun - Bell Of Doom (Sound Effect Records)
It seems a like a lifetime since Under The Sun released their debut EP but in 2024 the Bell Of Doom rings again and Under The Sun return with this debut album. Having been cranking out riffs since 2015, Under The Sun are a fuzzy, heavy rocking band who bring in stoner, doom born out of the voodoo blues much like Nightstalker and Orange Goblin, grooving bass drives things forward with fuzzy riffage from the guitars.
It's pacey from the off those OG influences coming on Smoking Angels, the cry of "Oh Yeah!?" getting the bluesy stoner riffs moving at full throttle, pace kept fast on the punky C.O.C-like Cry Out, this is filthy stoner metal to start a debut, the influences I mentioned earlier coming to the surface. On the title track, which is proceeded by a rolling bell, adds those doom sounds with a bit of Electric Wizard fuzz and Sabbath worship of course.
It's the first proper doom track on the record as psych wandering of desert rock is key to the woozy One Reason, while Pony Ride puts Sabbath against the NOLA sound, the production making it sound decidedly retro as there's a two channel approach so listen on headphones or through twin speakers. Their debut EP leaned a little too much on sludge doom but on this full length they let the filthy rock n roll breathe a bit more. Killer riffs from Athens. 9/10
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