Bloodstock Metal To The Masses Heat 4 Review

Metal To The Masses South Wales Heat 4, Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff

Having barely recovered from the excitement and drama of Heat 3 we were back at Fuel once more for another evening of suspense, drama and above all excellent hard rock and metal as Lead By Lies, Incursion, Fallen Temples and Anal Floss Is Boss locked horns in a testosterone fuelled aural wrestling match. With the winner going through to the semi-final by right and a second band picking up the wild card nomination the atmosphere was as electric as it has been for all the previous rounds.

The draw had been made earlier and it pitched Lead By Lies (6) into the opening slot. The local five piece were making their M2TM debut and hit hard from the off. Their intense brand of metalcore which mirrors elements of Avenged Sevenfold, Parkway Drive and Bullet for My Valentine got a big reaction from their faithful at the front but also from a number of members of the crowd. Pumped with energy, Lead By Lies worked incredibly hard to keep their initial momentum going. This is a massive challenge to all the opening bands, the adrenaline that kicks in from the opening bar can dissipate in seconds. Vocalist Ryan Griffiths is a focal point of the band, his large frame dominating the stage. Unfortunately, his vocals were a little ropey from the off, with his cleans struggling in the early tracks. Happily, he found his range and combined the cleans with more aggressive growls. As their confidence grew, Ryan and bassist Ashley Ball took advantage of the small amount of space in front of the stage to make daring forays into the crowd!! As the night wore on this couldn’t have happened so kudos for the band for indulging. Musically the band are a little generic for my tastes, but they earned a solid response and polled well at the end of the night.

Whilst Lead By Lies may have been playing their first MTTM, veterans of previous campaigns Incursion (8) knew they had to step up their game to match last years efforts where they reached the final. We won’t comment on vocalist and guitarist Johnny Foxall’s joyous birthday celebrations but let’s just say he was fully in the zone by the time the thrash three-piece hit the stage. And hit it they did, with an intensity that hadn’t been seen since 2018’s semi-final. Incursion play an unworldly style of thrash that mixes numerous influences but at times flickers between Machine Head, Devildriver and Strapping Young Lad. Mixing the set up with some humour, a new song and revitalised versions of older tracks, the first sweaty pits (brought to you courtesy of most of Democratus, Sepulchre and Blind Divide) of the evening opened. Things took a turn for the bizarre with The Hobnob Song, which saw a foolhardy audience member called Eddie attempt to retain a packet of Hobnobs through the duration of the song whilst the rest of the pit attempted to wrestle the biscuits from his grasp. Cue much chaos and many crumbs!! Last year one of the areas that the Bloodstock judge suggested needed work was the clean vocals and Incursion have learnt from this with Jonny’s performance much improved. As the band launched into their anthem Scourge to close the set, and despite the absence of Adam’s mum in a wall of death, you knew that Incursion were going to be there or thereabouts at the end of the evening.

It suddenly took a step up in both quality and professionalism with band 3 on the night, Fallen Temples (9). These guys have been around for a good while, and if you read our interview with guitarist Adam Vaughan, you’ll have learnt the history of the band. Veterans of the hard rock scene across the UK, Fallen Temples have already played some huge events in their career including Planet Rockstock and Hard Rock Hell, and it showed in their composed and compelling 30 minutes which just flew by. Tracks such as Euphoria and Phoenix got the place moving, although the band deserved more people watching them. With their infectious groove a combination of Clutch, Pantera, Orange Goblin and Soundgarden most pleasing to the ear, those that did watch were treated to possibly the best set of the competition so far. Tight, engaged and absorbing, Fallen Temples just steamrollered the venue with their sheer class. Watching drummer Joe Stirland batter his kit, sing backing vocals and spend more time off his stool than Lars was mesmerising whilst bassist and man mountain Joe Lewis, splendidly clad in a Clutch shirt, never stopped moving. This was combined with some stellar guitar work and perfectly delivered vocals from Adam, all leading to the set of the evening. Humble throughout, Fallen Temples deserve to get wider exposure.

All roads had to lead to this, and for the second week in a row, the one-man band took the headline spot. As those in the know took a collective intake of breath, Dirty Dez brought us 30 minutes of pandemonium through the medium of porn grindcore. Yes folks, the man who lists Cock and Ball Torture, Cliteater, Cemetery Rapist and Mortician amongst his influences hit the stage as Anal Floss Is Boss (8), immediately encouraging chants of “Floss is Boss”, mosh pits, crowd surfing and a sterling rendition of Sospan Fach. Toilet paper streamed through the air from the start, (which we hope wasn’t too much of a challenge to clean up – sorry Fuel) as Dez hit his routine hard. A rabid crowd engaged fully in the show, which included household favourites Felching Fecal Fantasy, the groovy Reasons To Watch Porn and closing anthem Death By Cock. At times it was easier not to think about how to write this review and just enjoy the chaos that was unfolding in front of us. Slick dance moves, grooves and beats saw shapes that hadn’t been thrown in Fuel for a while, all topped off with a slab of the heaviest grindcore around. Smiles all round as the set came to an end, with disappointment that the porno infused shit fest was over.

If the previous heats had been challenging to judge, this Heat added even further difficulties. With Incursion polling a massive number of votes, and with a performance that was vastly improved on 2018, it was no surprise when they claimed top spot. A tight decision then saw the wild card go to Fallen Temples but Anal Floss Is Boss could consider himself desperately unlucky. Quality won out on the day. Commiserations to both AFIB and Lead By Lies, who also polled well and who we hope will recuperate, reflect and reapply next year. Another massive night, with thanks to all involved including another huge crowd. Next heat, Heat 5, is on 29th March and promises to be a ball breaking evening. Come, join us!!!!

A View From The Back Of The Room: Wille & The Bandits

Wille & The Bandits & Rainbreakers, Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff

A Thursday night and in change from the usual heaviness we have it was time for something a bit more laid back. Organised by those folks at Pity My Brain it was an evening of blues based rocking originally meant to be three bands on the night only two played so it was a great chance to watch two bands play elongated sets to show their prowess to a reasonably big audience most of whom were there on the back of the Wille & The Bandits being announced for Steelhouse festival. So grabbing a pint of Goose Ale (craft ale flows at Clwb Ifor Bach) it was time for the openers.

Shrewsbury four-piece Rainbreakers (7) are a blues band with a dash of rock n roll thrown in. They've been the main support for the whole tour and to be honest I can't think of a better opening act. They have a refreshing sound that melds modern sounds with the greats of the 60's blues in fact they're name is far too similar to John Mayall's Bluesbreakers for that to be a coincidence, there was also touches of the soulful sounds from Humble Pie and the grunge fuzziness of The Black Keys, they set a temperature in the room to a steady sizzle with the crowd receptive of their blues rock brassiness.

Though it was the main act that was got the room up to the boil coming on to the stage the Cornish trio immediately showed that they were extremely good musicians with frontman Wille Edwards moving between electric/acoustic guitars and his slide guitar on a rack, drummer Andy making full use of his and the various bits of percussion (including bongos and tabla drums) while Matt is a true bass virtuoso having 6-string bass which meant that they perfectly replicated tracks from their whole career with astonishing accuracy. Focussing mainly on the cracking new album Paths which rallies against the government a lot, Edwards even noting this during the gig, although he went against this with the paen to his daughter called Watch You Grow. It was a surprise that the funky Make Love coming early in the set, as Keep It On The Downlow (which had a snippet of Rapper's Delight) brought a savage bass solo (see told you he was a virtuosos).

Make Love was followed by a percussive freak out of Black Magic Woman (Peter Green), they also blazed a trail with Judgement Day. The band are known as being the purveyors of Acid World Rock so with this in mind they went back to the earlier part of their career, the elephant in the room of Wille's missing Top Hat reared its head, Edwards said it was in his loft and gave the punter in question to buy it. (the outcome of that offer has yet to be confirmed). To go back to their earlier sound Mammon brought the vibes of Led Zeppelin III with an upright electric double bass giving a throbbing rhythm and the acoustic guitar some world music beauty. Wille explained it was a seriously deep cut from when the band were acoustic before they developed into the rock band they are now.

The upright bass added a new dimension to the show with Middle Eastern influxes creeping in on Four Million Days over the blues and Latin rhythms that have come before. Problem is people proceed to talk all the way through Mammon and I know we keep going on about it but it's fucking rude! After the epic Four Million Days they powered into One Way which led to a guitar battle between guitar and bass, though they were nowhere near finished having quite a large catalogue they proceeded to rock Clwb Ifor Bach with a great set to an audience that had definitely been won round, with many now expecting big things up the Mountain from Wille & The Bandits (8). 

Reviews: Tragedy (Interview/Live/Album Review By Gareth)

Tragedy, Interview with Mo'Royce Peterson, Review of Goes To The Movies album and live review of their show at the Lexington in London

"It's very much a Concept album," Founding member, guitarist and vocalist Mo'Royce Peterson of Tragedy (the all-metal tribute to the Bee Gees and beyond) tells me in between sips of Diet Coke, a couple of hours before showtime at the Lexington, London.

"It's not a super high concept, but we're taking a lot of title tracks from movies, as well as songs that were big from soundtracks" Tragedy have provided us in their latest album ...Goes To The Movies, with a musical experience of being taken to the pictures with your favorite Disco Metal loonies.

Both album and concert started with a brutally heavy version of the 20th Century Fox fanfare, on the album you can hear other punters taking their seats in Tragedy's Cinema of the ear. In concert, we were treated to a recorder performance of said fanfare by the band's village idiot, Lance, who throughout the gig performed such acts as firing confetti canons and fondling blow-up sex dolls, and just generally being Heavy Metal's answer to Bez from The Happy Mondays. The band then kick into a riff not too dissimilar to Motley Crue's Looks That Kill, before the familiar lead guitar melody of the Musical theatre classic Fame begins to play over it as we are lead into the first of many sing-alongs of the night.

Another joyously cheesy sing-along was a nice a bouncy rendition of Dolly Parton's 9 To 5, with another guitar lick that sounded somewhat familiar, an homage if you will, to Poison's Unskinny Bop. "We call those easter eggs," Mo'ryce told me when I mentioned this "sometimes it happens spontaneously when we notice similarities in the songs, other times we think of ways to put in a reference to another song." One such reference in the live set was the band's version of The Weather Girls' It's Raining Men (or should that be Reign-ing Men) as the song begins with a pretty faithful rendition of Slayer's iconic Reign In Blood main riff, before dropping into a NWOBHM-Esq. groove. I feel these references pleased the more obvious Heavy Metal fans in the audience, of which there were less than 40% by my estimation.

"It's really a beautiful thing, (our audience) is a cross section of anybody who went to see a concert this year" Mo'ryce commented "we have teenagers bringing their parents, or parents bringing their kids. We had a 70-year-old mother who apparently had been begging her daughter to bring her to a gig for four years. We play for people from all walks of life, people who've never listened to Metal, to really hardcore Metal fans coming to see us, birthday parties, hen parties" Et cetera, et cetera. I could see several groups in attendance who fit that bill that night, lots of people in costumes, having a proper night out at Tragedy, men in drag, the odd John Travolta-White satin suit, and lots of sparkly Mum blouses. All walks of life, however, could all appreciate the truly powerful version of James Bond theme Skyfall that was placed both late in the set and on the album, an atmospheric, dark and brooding interpretation with some of the best musicianship of the night.

The show, of course, drew to a close with some classic Bee Gees jams, my favourite being How Deep Is Your Love, which had been effortlessly morphed into a Russ Ballad/Rainbow style upbeat pop-rock gem. Stayin' Alive then closed what was very much the most enjoyable gig I've been to for a long time. The album ends as the concept should, with the end credits rolling and the members of Tragedy leaving the cinema. Mo'ryce confirmed there plans to make a sequel to Goes To The Movies, followed by a prequel, making Tragedy the first band to make a prequel album. I'm looking forward to the whole franchise. Tragedy was supported by The Abba Stripes (songs by Abba in the style of The White Stripes) and Tenacious G (a Tenacious D tribute band) who both performed solid and enjoyable sets.

Tragedy at the Lexington 9/10

Tragedy Goes to the Movies 7/10

A View From The Back Of The Room: Ward Thomas (Live Review By Becca)

EDITOR'S NOTE: Just thought I'd chime in and say that as we are a Cardiff based blog we are invited to numerous gigs in the city, this proved to be one of the more interesting ones despite it not really falling into our normal 'metal' remit. However variety is the spice of life and if Paul can review Middle Eastern Jazz then I'm sure we can cover country/folk/Americana. We managed to find a girl (who is a friend of the blog) who jumped at the chance to cover the show and she's done a great job in reporting back. So without further ado here's here review:

Ward Thomas & The Wandering Hearts, St Davids, Cardiff

As we went into the St David's Hall on a Monday night we were greeted by a stage that had been set up nicely, thin mirrors spaced out evenly in front of a white screen. Lights set at bottom of each mirror with beaming from ceiling. The crowd was a massive mix of people, from young children with their parents, middle aged couples and young groups of friends. We took our seats as the opening act came on.

The Wandering Hearts (9) were up first and they started the show with the catchy Fire And Water that got everyone tapping their feet. They told the audience a bit about themselves and gave a brief introduction before each song which was pleasing and of course the mention of Cardiff and how they were excited to be performing in such a “beautiful venue”, got the biggest response. They have previously only played The Globe and radio shows in Wales so they were hoping to return to do more shows in future. As far as a performance goes the lovely harmonies between the vocalists was brilliant and they kept the crowd onside with a lot of communication with audience in between songs. The set was made up of some new songs off their new album such as Your Love Hurts which had a great reception from the crowd.

They stated their album and merchandise would be on sale during interval where they also encouraged the audience to say hello to them (as is only normal in St Davids Hall). They also played the title track from their debut album Wild Hearts before finishing off their set with the biggest crowd pleaser Devil which had the entire audience dancing along and getting out their phones to video the performance. (Poor form - Grumpy Ed). What was endearing was the each member of the band made a point to speak to the audience throughout their performance making it feel more personal. They also all played instruments from guitars to tambourines throughout their set. With the they were playing it music was hard not to tap your feet along too and songs would be stuck in your head the next day. They were perfectly in tune throughout the entire set and a real pleasure to listen too. Lets hope they come back soon!

A short interval between Wandering Hearts and the headliners. This was Country two-piece Ward Thomas (7) who started loud and with strips of flashing strobe white lights that drove them straight into first song Lie Like Me. They then continued with another 2 upbeat songs guilty flowers and same love that really got the audiences excitement up. The dramatic lighting changed in colour and effect throughout the show depending on the tempo of the song which balanced out the basic set well. It was 3 songs in before the girls spoke with the audience. Both of them said how they were excited and happy to be in Cardiff, had spent the day singing at the Castle and were enjoying playing at such a lovely venue.

Most songs would fade out, lights would dim and straight into new song. The band consisting of 4 men then left the girls on stage alone with a guitar and keyboard to do some slower paced songs such as Cartwheels and No Fooling Me. Lizzy did stop singing at this point to ask for the smoke on stage to be reduced. Small issue with lighting during one song with the system shutting down which the crew rushed to try and sort out. This did not stop the sisters performing and was soon resolved. Ward Thomas soon got audience involved to stand up and clap with music. Even making a competition with each sister having one side of audience and seeing who could sing louder.

Throughout the show, Catherine who wore a striking pair of pink flared trousers with a sharp red blouse seemed to interact a lot more with the audience than her twin who wore a less bright black and white dress with a flat cap and diamante covered trainers. (Makes a change from black t-shirts and jeans - Fashion Ed) They made a point of introducing band members and asking audience to give a round of applause to each member. The sisters gave a little insight into some of their more personal songs such as No Filter which inspired a lot of the album. This was based on their experiences of social media in a modern world, they expressed that the album itself had been written based on their personal life experiences such as growing up as twins, having the same friends and living together.

After stating that one of their recent singles Never Know would be their last song, they then returned onto stage alone just the two of them and a guitar each for an encore. They began singing No Fooling Me when Lizzy stopped the show and pointed out that Catherine had accidentally got lyrics wrong and made them start again. Catherine did well to joke about it with audience and said that nobody would have noticed. Once this song was finished the rest of the band came out to do another final song Coming Home. The Audience all stood up and clapped along with final catchy and upbeat song.

Overall it was a really enjoyable show. The girls sound was clean and well rehearsed although a few minor errors such as the lighting problem and Lizzy's need to request less smoke meant the show didn't run quite as smoothly as it could have. The girls had clearly worked hard to sound polished and as a result I think Lizzy had overdone it as her voice which is the slightly more powerful of the 2 appeared to crack on a couple of songs. Despite this it was clear to see that both girls have beautiful voices that balance each other well

Reviews: Kaleikr, Crystal Lake, Far From Refuge, From Sorrow To Serenity, Motorpsycho (Liam & Mark)

Kaleikr: Heart Of Lead (Debemur Morti Productions) [Mark]

Well shit, Kaleikr have done something that I thought was near enough impossible with modern music. That thing? Delivering a healthy dose of shock and surprise. Beheld At Sunrise opens the album with a magnificent intro, almost film score in its atmosphere and build up, added strings are a nice touch, but then the track descends into a din of black metal, a wall of noise, this could turn you away from the rest of the album if you weren’t coming in prepared, the cadence of this track doesn’t really match what’s in store from Heart Of Lead. The liner notes given by the band state that the album becomes “darker and stranger with each following song”, and I thought Kaleikr were just blowing smoke and I was in for another stale and predictable black metal album, I was very wrong. The Descent opens with a riff reminiscent of early Ihsahn solo material, then continues to deliver on progressive trump card after trump card, seemingly one upping itself over and over. Internal Contradiction tops out as my highlight for the entire album, great intro, loads of atmosphere, progressive and cleverly wrought, the vocals seem to fit this track most on the entire album, it feels like a band really finding its form and delivering on what was promised.

The instrumentation is immaculate throughout, every note is in time, on point and well placed, hats off to this two man crew for producing something that sounds like there were five or six different people with creative input working away to create Heart Of Lead. Already mentioning three tracks in this review, it’s really hard to narrow it down to what’s good from what’s great of the other four songs, all of them offering something, some new twist on the delivery of atmosphere and crushing riffs, the only less than stellar track is the opener, but even that grows on you after a few listens. Even though this album only consists of seven tracks, the musical journey seems to take strides above and beyond it’s small track count with big atmosphere, aural landscapes and genre hopping abilities. Kaleikr have delivered a truly epic album with Heart Of Lead, but don’t just listen to this once, go through a few times and you’ll start picking out the intricacies of an album that is much more diverse than wall of noise black metal. 8/10

Crystal Lake: Helix (Sharptone Records) [Liam]

Following up from 2016’s True North, the Japanese metalcore quintet are going in harder and heavier than they have before. Opening with short intro Helix here a robotic voice mutters ‘I am the one above all. Every living thing will spiral into dust. Helix" That intro alone is a sign of things to come. First track Aeon comes at you light a heavy freight train. No messing around here, just straight up, in your face metalcore, and the album doesn’t get any lighter from here. Agony treats you to a little techno intro, but is as hard hitting as Aeon with more of a catchy chorus. +81 is a song that was made to be performed live. You can feel the energy that was put into this song as they envisioned performing it.

A good headbanger song, even with the short techno bridge toward the end, but it adds to the energy nonetheless. Lost In Forever is a little more mellow but doesn’t stray from the albums path of being metalcore as it weaves in and out of being heavy as balls with a more melodic chorus. Outgrow is the slowest song on the album, but while still heavy, doesn’t do it for me and feels like it was just added for filler. Shame really. But it makes up for that with Hail To The Fire. This is by far the best & heaviest track on the album, my personal favourite. The rest of the album is decent but nothing noteworthy, jut your generic metalcore. This band is just getting started. And with a slot at this year's Download festival, they’re one to keep an eye on. 8/10

Far From Refuge: Far From Refuge (Self Released) [Liam]

Founded in 2016, and only recently releasing their self-titled EP, Far From Refuge are giving you a taste of they can give to the current state of metalcore. Opener, righty titled, Emergence is just the tip of the iceberg showing you what they're capable of with a catchy, yet simply repetitive, chorus. Still, it’s a good start from the boys from Cambridge. Second song The Architect is a strong one. The mix of clean/unclean vocals actually fits this song pretty well, some techno breaks fit in well behind the breakdowns, good effort. Second single Circuits is just a beautiful song. The vocals blend so well with each other and the song as a whole is just made with so much energy. First single There Was A Light just brings pure heaviness. With crushing breakdowns and brutal vocals, it’s just the gym song you’ve been looking for if you need inspiration. EP ender Beings is a fitting end to this metalcore quintets first release. If you love prog metal/metalcore, keep an eye on these boys, you won’t be disappointed. 7/10

From Sorrow To Serenity: Reclaim (Long Branch Records) [Liam]

With an EP & full-length studio album under their belts, Glaswegian metalcore group From Sorrow To Serenity return with Reclaim, and they’re firing on all cylinders with this record. Building up the atmosphere with Denounce, it gives you a taster of the next 10 songs to come, and it only gets better. Second song We Are Liberty is a pit starter if I've ever heard one. The chorus is a war anthem and was made to have crowds shout it as loud as they can. Title song Reclaim is a tad on the mellow side musically to start but get back into the groove. Gaz King’s guttural vocals stay the same throughout and just blend with the song perfectly.

Alight sounds a little more technical during the breakdowns, which is always good as it leaves you with a dirty gurn throughout. Personal album favorite Perpetrator, is just an unrelenting metalcore ambush on your senses, and the chorus make the song even better. Solitude is a decent song, nothing to complain about but nothing to take note of. Unity Asunder brings out the bands heavier side as it’s a bit faster and more heavy adding to the diversity of the album. Inside A Soul is slower but still brings the heaviness you’re looking for making a great song. Last three songs Supremacy, 7 & Resurgence are all as technical and heavy as the last making a great end to a great album. If you’re in Japan they’re on tour with Betraying The Martyrs later this year. If not, then keep an eye out. These are not to be missed 8/10

Motorpsycho: The Crucible (Stickman Records) [Liam]

A little disappointed with this album to be honest. When I found out it was prog rock I was all for it, but felt a little deflated after finishing it. With three songs and totaling to just under 40 minutes it just wasn’t my cup of tea. Nothing really stood out to me. The vocals were a bit flat and strained on some parts leaving me slightly disgruntled that they were happy enough to put it out like that. Some parts you can hear were influenced by other prog rock bands, notably Pink Floyd, but it wasn’t enough for me to enjoy it. But I'm just one man. Someone else will love it. Give it a go yourself to test the waters, but it’s not for me unfortunately. It’s not a BAD album by any means. It’s just, boring. 3/10

Reviews: Der Weg Einer Freiheit, Sadhus, Bonzai, Kaisas (Paul S & Paul H)

Der Weg Einer Freiheit: Live In Berlin (Season Of Mist) [Paul S]

German black metal band Der Weg Einer Freiheit have been going since 2009. The band have quite quietly produced several very good, critically well received albums in the last 10 years. The four piece have patiently developed a following through the aforementioned quality albums and with lots of touring and festival appearances. So now the band have reached a milestone in any bands development; the live album. Live albums can be a difficult thing to get right, how have these 4 Bavarians got on? Well, very well, is the short answer. As I said, live albums are difficult, and black metal live albums are even more tricky to get right, so how have Der Weg Einer Freiheit pulled this off. Firstly, they chose a gig in Berlin, not a home town gig, but the capital city of their home country, this has guaranteed a decent sized, and passionate audience. 

They have built on this by miking up the audience (I have heard other black metal live albums where this has not happened, and it sounds so weird getting to the end of a song and hearing silence), so this sounds like a vibrant live gig. The rest of the recording is done very well. All the instruments sound crisp and rich, the drums are powerful and this is all held together by a great mix, at times this is as good as a studio recording. The band is clearly very well rehearsed and is as tight as any band I have heard. The material on offer here is culled from right across the bands releases, we get material from Der Weg Einer Freiheit (2009), Unstille (2012), Stella (2009), and 2017’s Finisterre. There is a nice flow of material, the bands style which is blast beat heavy orthodox black metal, but with a nice melody lead over most of the material, giving the band a melodic type of brutality. Extreme, but beautifully tuneful. 

Personally the tracks Skepsis Part I and Skepsis Part 2 are my favourite, but it’s difficult to single out individual tracks when the quality is this good. Live In Berlin is a great live album, one of the best black metal live albums I’ve heard. If you are an existing fan of the band then this is essential, if you’ve never heard of them before, then this is a fantastic sampler of their work to date. Highly recommended. 8/10

Sadhus (The Smoking Community): Big Fish (Fuzz Inc Records) [Paul S]

Sadhus (The Smoking Community), who for the purposes of this review I will refer to as simply Sadhus, are an Athens based 4 piece. Big Fish is the band's second album coming 5 years after their first album The Smoking Community. The band play a brand of huge stoney sludge that is closer to smoker metal than hardcore. The first track Hyper Roller, quite frankly sounds exactly like its title. Huge, bouncy up tempo smoking sludge, masses of energy, with that head nodding rhythm that is so stoner metal. Flesh is slower than the track that preceded it, the opening riff is so Black Sabbathy. The song has a quieter, brooding sections that a very well juxtaposed with the huge and heavy tri-tone riffing. Longest track on the album Lazarus, also has a huge/heavy, quieter and brooding structure, but this time the huge and heavy is much more up tempo, and has a bit of a bounce to it. At points the heavier parts gets up to hardcore levels of intensity. 

Title track Big Fish starts slowly, but once it gets going is monolithically huge and heavy, really heavy, my god this is heavy! The track has a verse section that is very quiet, but is also menacing and nasty. After the huge heaviness of Big Fish, we then get Sobbing Children, which has a very bouncy intro, before going back to massive and heavy. The track then combines the two for a huge and heavy and bouncy and full of energy section, which is a neat trick if you can pull it off (and Sadhus pull it off very well). The album is brought to a close with the track I.P.S. which is slow and massively heavy, with very intense vocals. A fine way to finish a very good, heavy but with lots of drive and energy, album. Big Fish is a great piece of huge stoner sludge, well worth checking out, I’ve really enjoyed it, delightfully enjoyable way to destroy your neck muscles! 8/10

Bonzai: Seeds To Roots (Self Released) [Paul H]

Another stoner band, this time from Thessaloniki, Greece, with eight tracks spread over 50 minutes provides the Greeks with plenty of time to explore and expand their mind-bending tunes and they certainly do their best, with some crunching riffage. Heavy, doom riddled songs that promise to explode and crush you abound, such as the massive On Repeat, which lumbers through the first five minutes before accelerating for the line in fine style. Or the sinister Original Sin, which opens with a filthy fuzz infested riff and some space rock as it slowly expands to maximum intensity. The band are tight without losing that flexibility you demand from stoner bands. Giannis Omp’s depressed vocals match the mood of this album. Omp and Dimitris Paresis’s guitars ensure maximum damage. Chunky bass lines come via Matthew Omp whilst the steady drum beat of Nicko Ridi ensures stability. This is a solid release which sits comfortably in the upper levels of the Stoner league. 7/10

Kaisas: Martyria (Sleaszy Rider Records) [Paul S]

Kaisas are the band based around Greek guitarist Babis Kaisas. Kaisas is based in California, they have released two albums Unify in 2010 and Degitalize in 2014. The lineup of Kaisas has never been that fixed other than the eponymous Babis Kaisas. On this album he is joined by Gordon MacIntosh on vocals and Fotis Nestor Canister, with Babis playing all guitars and bass. The main style on the album is broadly hard rock, there are small nods to Def Leppard, Whitesnake and The Scorpions in the style presented here. First track Calling From Another World kicks things off in a fairly lacklustre way. The initial riff and gang vocals sound promising, but that promise is broken almost strait away. Once the song gets going the structure of the vocals don’t really work. The other thing wrong with the vocals is the fact that they are out of tune, which is a problem right across the album. The song just doesn’t hang together properly, there are issues with the timing being out, strange pauses which make this sound like a band that has been playing together for about 10 minutes. 

These are very basic errors, things that no band at the stage of recording and releasing music should be doing. Burning Wheels Of Fire has the same problems, rhythmic, structural, and vocally. The other strange thing on this album is the lack of bass. According to the info that came with this album, Babis plays guitar and bass, but I can’t hear the bass, anywhere. Bloody Red is fairly cliched, but does have a very tuneful melody lead. So they got something right! Unfortunately the rest of the song doesn’t match up, the chorus is badly sung and isn’t that inspiring. Cold Feelings has the same problems but this time the vocals are particularly awful. For Freedom is just as bad as you are expecting, hackneyed and plodding. Filthy Lying System is ok! Not a bad track, the rhythm has a bit more pace to it and the chorus is actually quite strong! Unfortunately, the good stuff couldn’t last. Can’t Fight In Dreams is awful, too slow, uninspired and the vocals are SO bad, the beginning of the song is a little like a ballad, so the terrible vocals really shine through; risible. Steaming has a faster tempo, which is better, but the vocals sound affected and the lyrics suggest the band own a rhyming dictionary. 

Meet Captain Death starts with a riff nicked from the opening of Operation Mindcrime By Queensryche, but it quickly goes wrong with bad structure, drumming and vocals. Whores Of Babylon has a better pace than most of the other tracks on here, but the track feels bitty; not all of the parts of this song feel like they fit together. The other problem is the rather horrible misogynistic lyrics, that are sung badly. Can’t Hide The Pain is a ballad. Do I need to describe how bad it is or can you guess? It’s abysmal. Heaven Denied is lacklustre with bad vocals (possibly the worst vocals on the album, and that’s pretty tough competition), not much of a surprise really. Final (thank god) track Modern Day Apocalypse has the same problems that all the rest of this album has, but add out of tune whistling to the now massive list of musical crimes that this band is guilty of. As you might have already picked up, this is a terrible album. 

There are odd bits that do work. Some of the guitar parts are ok, occasionally the pacing works and it feels like proper, driving hard rock. But these moments are few and far between, most of the time this album is awful. They need to sort the vocals out. I am aware that vocals can be down to personal taste, but there is no excuse for them being out of tune. The band need to either spend much longer over recording so they get good takes, or replace the vocalist. They could also rehearse more so the band feel tight, and don’t have all the pacing and structural problems that are all over this album. To be honest, I’m not sure if it’s worth the effort. Only to be bought as an act of charity. 3/10

Reviews: Hedfuzy, Last In Line, The Devil And The Almighty Blues, Wicked Witch (Manus)

Hedfuzy: Waves (Hostile Media)

Hedfuzy mastermind Pat Byrne proves himself something of a musical visionary on Waves, his second record under the Hedfuzy moniker. It features an entirely different roster of musicians than its predecessor, with the exception of Byrne himself, of course. It also features a much more evolved sound, which is impressive for such a new band. It’s prog rock, but it’s exhilarating prog rock, not boring and full of technical wankery. It is technical, but the technicality is essential to the songs and pulled off expertly. It’s hard to have a record contain so many musical styles and a sense of cohesiveness at the same time, but Waves does it. This is really an album—not just a collection of songs written at different times in different mindsets.

Hedfuzy has a signature sound when it comes to the prog elements, especially the way synths are used, but the songs incorporate bits of straight up hard rock (The Boy Who Killed The Man), funk (Black River), and even some hints of new wave (The Promise). And that’s just to name a few of the diverse styles these songs incorporate. The complex songwriting on Waves is incredible, but what really makes Hedfuzy stand out among their prog contemporaries with this album is its risk-taking. It’s not really experimentation; the songs feel calculated and like there was a clear vision in mind to be carried out. But Hedfuzy aren’t afraid to venture into atypical territories on this album, and the result is unique. 9/10

Last In Line: II (Frontiers Records)

Last In Line’s sophomore record won’t stand up against any of the classic Dio records, but realistically, it would be ridiculous to expect it to. For what it is, it’s solid. It’s fun, and it reminisces the 1980s heyday of heavy metal in a nice way. That being said, it very much sounds like something that was done for fun. It makes sense, given that it’s not the main project for all its members. Since these ex-Dio musicians originally formed Last In Line to play old Dio material anyway, its not really a waste for the band to hold side-project status. II is still worth a listen. It won’t blow anyone away, but it’s an enjoyable record nevertheless. The dedication to the classic heavy metal sound is commendable, even if the album never takes off in any new directions. There’s nothing terrible about any of the songs. Some of them, like Sword From The Stone, are even pretty good. 6/10

The Devil And The Almighty Blues: TRE (Blues For The Red Sun)

Norwegian quintet The Devil And The Almighty Blues mould together an array of styles on album number three, TRE. For the most part, the songs are written as blues songs, but they aren’t played in a blues style. Stoner, doom, psych and sludge elements all find their way into the music—and manage to blend together. The dual guitars of Petter Svee and Torgeir Waldemar Engen carry the songs, and while there are some killer and memorable riffs, there are times when they go on for too long. It sounds like those passages would probably work better in a live setting, but without the momentum you get in a performance, they kind of drag on. There’s enough packed into the record’s six songs to make up for it, though. There’s excitement in the upbeat tracks like No Man’s Land and One For Sorrow, and passion in the slower ones, like Heart Of The Mountain and Lay Down. If there’s one riff in particular that really stands out here, it’s the main riff in the album’s opener, Salt The Earth. Though the songs are long, with only six of them, the album as a whole feels a little short. Still, most of tracks warrant second and third listens. 7/10

Wicked Witch: Wicked Witch Of Boston (20th Century Music)

The 2018 sort of self-titled release by Wicked Witch is an old-school heavy metal extravaganza. The members of Wicked Witch are veterans of the scene, having played in Savatage and as Machines Of Grace before, so no less would be expected. Chalked full of huge hooks, heavy riffage and ear-splitting shredding, the record’s guitar work alone is nearly arena-worthy. The vocals are perfect for the style, being both heavy and melodic, and delivered with power and force. The band can play, alright—and they play killer songs.

Fortunately, the songwriting is not overly formulaic, because the record would be boring if it was. Wicked Witch plays a style of metal that many other bands do and have done for decades. It would be a simple move to recall the glory of respected metal acts and stay inside those lines, but Wicked Witch do their own thing on this album. It’s easy to hear the group’s influences in tracks like Soul To Fire and Breakdown, but that doesn’t mean the songs sound like other bands’ songs. With just the right number of sing-along choruses and ripping solos thrown in, Wicked Witch Of Boston is a strong debut for this reformed band. 8/10

Reviews: Venom Prison, The Air Turned To Acid, Transients, Xeria (Paul S & Paul H)

Venom Prison: Samsara (Prosthetic Records) [Paul S]

To say Venom Prison’s second album has been highly anticipated, is an understatement. Venom Prison exploded onto the death metal scene in 2016 with their debut album Animus. The South Wales based band were known for the savagery of the music they produced, but were also known for their anti-misogynist and anti-fascist lyrics. The band still did gore type lyrics, but this time the victims were rapists and murderers; for once it was possible to listen to unremittingly nasty death metal without feeling like you were increasing the amount misogyny in our society, or making life more dangerous for women. In many ways it was high time death metals victims were people who had done something to deserve the horror of death metals lyrics, rather than focusing on attacking innocents. Since releasing the Animus, Venom Prison have become a very busy live band, they have built a reputation of being just as savage and bloodthirsty on stage as they are on album (I live in South Wales, and am very proud that I run a regular comedy club at Fuel Rock Club, the venue where Venom Prison had their second ever gig).

So, there is a lot riding on this new album Samsara. Have the band lived up to the promise that Animus suggested? The album gets under way with a huge blast of feedback before Matriphagy blasts into its first riff. The track is blasting death metal right up there with masters of the genre Cannibal Corpse and Dying Fetus. The album sounds fantastic, great drum sound, guitar and bass thick and full bodied, and the mix is perfect. The track has some great guitar work, the constant touring has clearly got these guys chops to godlike proportions. Megillus & Leana is another blast of death metal energy. The tempo is slower than the previous track, but the intensity is right up there. Vocally, Larissa Stupar has excelled herself with this album, and it really shines through on this song. Low, harsh, screaming, high register, there seems to be nothing she can’t do. 

Two tracks in and I’m already battered and bloodied. Uterine Industrialisation, is another absolute stormer. Really fast, but my god the intensity and power of this track has to be heard to be believed. In the second part of the song it takes on a slightly more grindcore feel; more simple, but also with more inertia and directness. Self Inflicted Violence is less intense but more musical, it starts fast, but most of the track is mid-paced and powerful. The track has a relentless quality that I’ve really enjoyed, the fact that the band are just as comfortable at this sort of mid-paced nastiness as they are with insanely fast blasting shows how the band have matured during the 3 years that separate the two albums. Deva’s Energy is a short dissonant soundscape, a short break from the blasting. Asura’s Realm also shows us how much this band has increased their musical chops. The intro sounds a little like Heartwork Era Carcass. Ash Grey and Ben Thomas’s guitar work is stunning on this track, it’s really good all through the album, but on this track it’s sublime. The technicality of this song is verging on technical death metal, although the other elements on this track make it too extreme to be classed in that way. 

Sadistic Rituals starts in a mid paced, slightly dissonant way. The song is very interesting rhythmically, it feels slightly lurchy, as if the band do not want the audience to feel comfortable. This track feels as if the band want to go beyond death metal into less structured viscousness. Implementing The Metaphysics Of Morals, the longest track on the album, the pace is slower than a lot on this album, but still with a neck breaking intensity that feels like this albums calling card. At points on this song the pacing and heaviness is more like sludge. Dukkha starts with foreboding drums before a slow nasty riff, with a disturbing sample playing under it. The track then goes into some simple blasting Death/Grind. It is simpler than a lot of the material here, but that just blasts the listener into the ground. The complexity is brought back with a fantastically fluid guitar solo. Final track Naraka has a slightly softer feel to it, mid-paced with some very good guitar work. The tempo does increase, and when it does the vehemence increases with it. 

Samsara is a fantastic album. It will probably be one of the best Death Metal releases this year, in fact it’ll be one of the best metal releases full stop. The album feels like it has had a massive amount of work put in to it. There was a huge amount of expectation associated with this album, Venom Prison have exceeded that expectation massively. The album is extreme, brutal, vicious, crushingly heavy, and just about the most intense album I’ve heard in a very long time. Animus had a huge amount of promise, Venom Prison clearly keep their promises. This album is stunning! 9/10 

The Air Turned To Acid - Black Zen Instruction (Hibernacula Records) [Paul S]

This is the first album from The Air Turned To Acid, the band have been going since 2011, and have released a demo and a split before this. The band is a 5 piece and they are based all around the UK. The style on offer here is a particularly nasty brand of sludge that is intense and aggressive, at some points verging on death or grind-core. The album starts with a short intro called 4 Combined. This then goes into the first track Hounds. Hounds is a very angry piece of hardcory sludge. The track is dissonant and in the second half a little drone-like. Pinstripe Grey With Party Welts has a beautifully off-putting lurching tempo, it feels out of kilter but at the same time is perfect for head-banging. The track is also quite short, it turns up kicks you in the knackers and immediately fucks off. Anketell Brewer is slow and very heavy, again there is a lurching tempo to the track, and the riffs are dissonant and pounding. 

Vocally this as as intense and aggressive as any death metal vocals. It’s A Long Walk To Coney Island has a pounding and relentless quality that is very pleasing. The track is aggressive and combative, lovely. Gutter Punk is huge and staggering, the aggressiveness and intensity of this album has to be heard to be believed. The second half of the song has a huge groove to it, but at the same time is no less viscous. The album is brought to an end by the longest track on the album The Tent Murders. In some ways the band has left the nastiest track for last, the song has an impenetrable, dark aspect to it, it is brooding and evil sounding. The track ends up feeling so huge and monolithic, it is the perfect way to end a particularly nasty album. Black Zen Instruction is a beautifully nasty album. It reminds me a little of the current albums by Mastiff, Leeched and Minors. This is sludge done in an overtly viscous nasty way, and if that is a style of sludge that you like then you need this album in your life. Horrific in all the best ways. 8/10

Transients: Enemies Within (Self Released) [Paul H]

This is a six-track EP rammed to the gills with pumping metalcore that slams, punches and kicks its way in lively fashion until the final track, Legacies (The Path I Lead), which is destroyed by some awful opening vocals. For the majority of this 25-minute EP, the Reading based five-piece deliver standard metalcore in an energetic manner. I don’t really understand the attraction of this style of metal, with the constant variation between clean vocals and cookie monster growls over the top of a djent style backing beat. Full of crunching riffs, insistent barrage of drumming and the soaring vocals which are mirrored by many bands, Transients do nothing wrong. It’s solid, well delivered but completely devoid of any originality. Add them to a list of metalcore bands that continues to expand every week. 6/10

Xeria: Tierra (Self Released) [Paul H]

Little information to give you about this one. Xeria is a Spanish symphonic metal outfit who sing in their native tongue. Tierra which means Earth is an 11 track album. I can’t understand a bloody word but that doesn’t detract in the slightest from the music, which is at best Eurovision in style and delivery. The emotionally charged En Ti (In You), a hideous skin crawling ballad. I’m not a huge fan of symphonic metal at the best of times, be it fronted by female singers (Marina Sweet here) or male singers and whilst this is confidently delivered and at times quite emphatically heavy, two plays were more than enough to sit through. If you fancy a bit of Eurovision soft rock, then you may well enjoy this. I’m off for a lie down in a dark room with some Slayer!! 4/10

Reviews: Smoke Signals, Aenimus, Echoes Of Eternity, To The Rats And Wolves (Reviews By Polly)

Smoke Signals: Letting Go (Self Released)

I’m finding this album difficult to review because honestly, I enjoyed it that much. If Breaking Benjamin added some beef to their band’s diet I believe this would be the outcome. I particularly like how they go from having catchy choruses and then spring on epic growls that just come from nowhere. Destruction being a favourite on the album has the type of drum beats paired with vocals that make you want to walk like a badass. It generally gives me nostalgia of when I first discovered the metal genre in early 00’s but with its own modern twist that is needed to stay relevant at the speed metal genres progress. 

I’m a little disappointed that there aren't enough breakdowns on the album, it doesn’t make me want to get up and go wild which is something I look for in music. It’s easy to see why they named the album Letting Go as the track on the album stood out to me the most and has been made an addition to a couple of my playlists. It has the perfect transition from Dead Inside into Fight and it's having songs like this one after the other, is one of the reasons I adore this album. They all differ in their own way but have their own statement that binds everything together. Fight has a moment where there is a perfect pause before a grinding head banging riff sets in. Overall I’d say this album is a winner with a few tweaks needing to be made, but no one is perfect. 8/10

Aenimus: Dreamcatcher (Nuclear Blast)

This album is exactly what I needed to conclude my weekend, with a combination of head bopping riffs the album progresses into pure, raw and awesome djent. It’s safe to say the album has left a djent in my heart (don’t hate me for that pun). The opening track gives a whimsical vibe that had me hooked immediately. On a first impression, drummer Nick Bothelo’s random impulses of speed stood out for me the most. After 3 or 4 times listening I found myself saying “this is my favourite bit”. The technical groove of the guitars in The Overlook with softer tones as the song progresses to my favourite solo of the album. 

In terms of vocals that moment was the growl halfway through Caretaker with the cleverly placed horror-esque chime moves into a piano melody painted a picture of Stockholm syndrome. It's an album that has a lot things to I love with other favourites being; My Becoming, The Dark Triad and Second Sight. Final song Dreamcatcher is the perfect conclusion to an album that I will binge-listen to on a loop. The album is a brilliant contribution to the prog and djent genre. 8/10

Echoes Of Eternity: Ageless (Self Released)

My first impression of this record, was that the vocals felt a little bit cliché, but the more I listened the more it grew on me. Although it isn’t an album I’d usually be drawn to, I did enjoy it. The acoustic touches of the album were a refreshing contribution. A combination of Francie Boucher’s soaring vocals and the melodic riffs of the album give a soothing vibe, this was evident as my road rage decreased significantly when listening to the album (impressive). My favourite tracks on the album are; Ageless and To The Sea. 

I did find myself singing along to a few tracks on and then leaving myself in disgust by how much I failed miserably at even attempting to reach Boucher’s impressive vocal range. There is an elephant in the room, why are the demos on the album just demos? Although to be quite honest I preferred the demos to the majority of the album, so they have boosted my overall score. I enjoyed the album and would definitely listen to it again and keep an eye out for what the band do in the future. . 6/10

To The Rats And Wolves: Cheap Love (Arising Empire)

To be honest I was disappointed with the To The Rats And Wolves fourth album after being a fan of their previous work. The album began on a high with a few tracks that were catchy but nowhere near the standard they have previously set. The opening track Cheap Love was perfect to introduce the album with the combination of trance and metalcore. The favourable tracks on the album would be; Cheap Love, Therapy and Friendz that has salvaged my overall opinion of the album. The album falls more into the category of pop-rock than metalcore, even though it is catchy and I can see it took a lot of work I wouldn’t put it up there with my favourite type of music. Sorry guys, but not your best work. 4/10

Reviews: Tedeschi Trucks Band, The Picturebooks, Little Villains, Gatekeeper (Matt & Paul H)

Tedeschi Trucks Band: Signs (Fantasy Records)

If any band can be considered a family it's Tedeschi Trucks Band, the 12 piece is made up of a conglomerate of Susan Tedeschi and her husband Derek Trucks' solo bands, they all consider themselves to be one big circus of blues and Americana, even going as far as bringing their own families on tour with them. Signs is the latest entry in the band formed after the Allman Brothers (of which Trucks was a member) started to wind down and then parted ways. It's an album that is now tinged with sadness as on the day of it's release keyboardist and flautist Kofi Burbridge died at the age of 57, it's also an album that deals with death itself as Derek was still dealing with not only the loss of Gregg Allman while writing but the tragic passing of his uncle and Allman Brothers bandmate Butch Trucks.

Trucks himself has said that the album puts him in a particular mindset and has some raw nerves, however not to be too flippant about it but tragedy makes the blues blossom and hear it makes a beautiful bouquet of American roots music that is a tribute to Butch, Gregg and Kofi, who's keys/hammonds/Fender rhodes etc are so integral to the rhythms of the band. They bubble in the background with the rhythm section (including two drummers) shuffle, swing and rock away with the brass section filling in the gaps. Guitar aficionados know how good Trucks is as guitarist by Tedeschi is no slouch either and her voice is brilliantly soulful and earthy augmented by harmony vocal trio for the record.

As if 12 members wasn't enough there are some guests here with former Allman members Warren Haynes and Marc Quiñones along with noted musicians such as Oliver Wood and Doyle Bramhall II. The band have yet to fail, making a triumph out of tragedy, Signs is up there with their Grammy winning debut, a magnificent record that marks the first time I've been brave enough to review one of their albums for this blog, buy this and seek out the back catalog you'll thank me. 9/10

The Picturebooks: The Hands Of Time (Century Media)

Fynn Grabke (vocals, guitar) and Philipp Mirtschink (drums) make up The Picturebooks, their percussive brand of fuzzy heavy blues rock stunned me when they supported Clutch last year, they had been touring for a long time when I saw them, having traversed the globe with their previous two albums they returned to the studio to record The Hands Of Time an album that they say "is about accepting and celebrating nothing but the truth, the ups and downs of life, the tears and laughter and the deep friendship between the two band members". It's that friendship that makes them so much of a force, they are fully in unison when they play with Fynn attacking his guitar for strutting riffs while Philipp uses a myriad of to beat the heck out of.

On this album though they've elected to add some wider instrumentation to this record with chiming piano thumping in the background, they've also created some hand made percussion instruments to giver a bigger scope to their sound and it's the tubular bells and chains that stand out with the latter adding a blues/gospel feel to Like My World Explodes and the doomy The Day The Thunder Arrived but it's the mix of genres here that makes the band so interesting, they are deep in the American traditions of blues/soul/folk/country, there's a steam train shuffle on the title track, country picking on Howling Wolf, chugging riffs on Electric Nights and a definite Morricone vibe on Rain.

The entire album brings to mind the stories of outlaw troubadours fighting against the grain they've even enlisted the husky vocals of Chrissie Hynde for the spiritual sounding You Can't Let Go. The Hands Of Time will hopefully see the band touring again but they've concentrated on the sonics of this album so it's a s close to their thundering live sound as possible, it's an experiment that has yielded fruit. 8/10

Little Villains: Philthy Lies (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Paul H]

On first listen, this is merely a rampaging half hour of punchy rock and roll fueled by a punk attitude. And then you listen to some of the more firecracker tunes contained in this little gem and think, I recognise that drumming style. Yes, this is Little Villains, the outfit that featured the ferocious talent of late Motörhead drummer Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor along with James Childs (Avon, Airbus) and Owen Street of desert rockers Waxy and sludge unit Vails. Now with Chris Fielden behind the kit, the band sought permission from Taylor’s family before moving towards a release later this month. If nothing else, this album demonstrates that Philthy’s explosive drum techniques remained intact many years after his departure from Lemmy & co. However, this is an enjoyable and thumping blast, fast and furious and whilst attention will inevitably focus on the drumming, the rest of the chaos is just as good.

In between songs, the live recording of the interplay between the band is hysterical, such as the moment after the blistering Traitor finishes, with Taylor exclaiming that his kick pedal has “been fucked”. The rawness recalls early Motörhead recordings with the 100mph drumming of I Am Dying reminiscent of ‘Philthy Animal’ at his best. Recorded at Unit A Studios in Palm Springs, California in February 2007, James has recently carefully carved the record's sound to maximum justice from the original tapes. Hopefully this will come without the confusion that accompanied Leader Of Down’s 2018 release and can be accepted as a final record of one of rock’s finest drummers in a band that I hope will continue to go from strength to strength. 7/10

Gatekeeper: Grey Maiden EP (Cruz Del Sur Music) [Paul H]

Totally left scratching my head by this one. This is the fourth EP release by the Canadian five-piece, who have been in existence since 2009 when they were started initially as a solo project by guitarist Geoff Black. They finally released their debut album East Of The Sun in 2018 and have followed it up with this. A four-track release, the opening two songs are relatively standard epic heavy metal style fantasy and mythology in the Manowar vein, one of which I understand appeared originally on a 2013 release. Nothing special whatsoever, but inoffensive and nothing to get too vexed about. And then we get to Moss. An acoustic bard style piece, it is without doubt one of the worst songs I have ever heard in my life.

Awful vocals, a whining guitar and effects that sound like nails on a blackboard. It is astonishingly bad. Completing the EP is a faithful cover of Richard III, by Tredegar, the band formed by Ray Phillips and Tony Bourge after they left Budgie. I say faithful, because there really is little else to say about it apart from Jean Pierre Abboud’s vocals once again are astonishingly bad. The original is a million times better. I’d not heard of Gatekeeper before I received Grey Maiden to review, I hope I never hear them again. Avoid. 2/10