The follow up to 2023's Dirt On My Diamonds Volume 1 (obviously), Volume 2 is the other side of the recording sessions at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, that blues guitar sensation Kenny Wayne Shepherd, creating a distinct flavour of each disc of this double album. Unlike Guns N Roses, KWS opted to released each part separately so people can digest it better.
So what have we got here then, well it's more traditional blues mixed with modern blues rock, throwing in a bit of funk, soul and gospel too, soaking up the Alabama history on tracks such as The Middle, with parping horns, a slathering of funk and a killer guitar solo, while My Guitar Is Crying is a smoky ballad on which Shepherd puts all a load of soul into the solo.
These are much more traditional in their approach while Long Way Down is very modern and will be played on rock radio near you (if it isn't already), Never Made It To Memphis which features some great female co-vocals and Watch You Go has a New Orleans strut while She Loves My Automobile is a throw away blues party to end the album.
A concise eight tracks of blues from a master of the genre, played together Dirt On My Diamonds is a creative showcase for Kenny Wayne Shepherd but can easily be digested in two parts. 8/10
Eclipse - Megalomanium II (Frontiers Music SRL)
Swedish rockers Eclipse bring the second part of their Megalomanium record a year after the release of part one. The first one took them down a slightly different road, the title a double edged sword as they are one of Sweden's top rock exports so have every right to feel megalomania however the title also refers to more of the political systems around the world driven by ego and personality rather than policy.
While part 1 took a few risks, part 2 doesn't this is Eclipse by the numbers, there's occasionally a change of pace or sound away from slick melodic rock but not often. You get forty minutes of big choruses, expert guitar playing and hard rock grooves that will make your head nod. It's not big or clever but it does the job and shows once again why Eclipse are so popular, especially in the last few years where they have been showcasing themselves across the globe.
The energy they put into their live show is obvious on Megalomanium II, hard rock and AOR merged well, from the 80's blast of Apocalypse Blues, the Eurotastic Scorpions-like Falling To My Knees and Divide & Conquer bring the rock and roll but in terms of slower/ballads Still My Hero is very Bon Jovi, there's the emotive Until The War Is Over and To Say Goodbye is a sure fire live stable.
Eclipse doing what they do is always a winner and it's clearly gone to their heads! 7/10
SteelCity - Reverence (Frontiers Music SRL)
Reverence is self described as an "unabashed homage to the golden age of bard rock" it's the third album from American rockers SteelCity, who owe a lot of their sound to Winger, Mr Big and Hardline.
It all comes from the guitar prowess of Mike Floros, who founded SteelCity as a solo project in Ohio, he then got a band together, adding Roy Cathey of 90's rockers Cold Sweat behind the mic, bassman extraordinare Jason Cornwell, former Cold Sweat sticksman Anthony White and keyboardist Tony Stahl close out the band.
As I've said this is a third record and it's probably their most accomplished, an impressive collection of American melodic rock, bluesy vocals, some questionable lyrics, chunky organs and very guitar driven. A track such as Hammer Fallin' will give you a solid idea of what they do, with a strutting riff that moves into gallop.
No Angel is a bit sleazier, Dizzy gets choppy, while Walk Away is similar to Motley Crue and not just because of the "motorbike" guitar sound. Most of the record is upbeat and rocky, with Floros impressing with his lead skills, even on the singular ballad The Journey, he shreds. If the bands I mentioned are up your alley then there's lots to like on SteelCity's Reverence. 7/10
Avernus - Grievances (M-Theory Audio)
In this "job" you come across albums that are so up your street that they park outside your house. Grievances, the first album after 21 years from Avernus is just that kind of album. Releasing their debut in 1997, though established in the early 90's Avernus never really made waves they perhaps should have but now returned with the monolithic second record.
Over two decades in the making its a real audio journey, written and performed by the core membership of vocalist/guitarist Rick McCoy, guitarist Erik Kikke, guitarist James Genenz and drummer Rick Yifrach, this Chicago band deal in cinematic/atmospheric death/doom so the songs are long, weaving sonic tapestries that unravel slowly and deliberately, the vocals guttural and introspective as an overall maudlin atmosphere is created, synths stitched throughout.
The fully electronic Abandoned segueing into Quietus, which shifts from death doom into dreamy textures. Nemesis, which was the first track released from this album, is the epitome of slow build 9 minutes and 33 seconds of beauty and blasphemy as the huge doom riffs shift into chugs, Exitus a proper doom experience, The Burning Down heavier again. For me though if you're a doom fan then Return To Dust should be on your playlist, it's simply devastating in it's simplicity and scope.
As I said Avernus' Grievences has full permission to park outside my house and rifle though my garage it's so good. Well worth a 20 odd year wait. 9/10
So what have we got here then, well it's more traditional blues mixed with modern blues rock, throwing in a bit of funk, soul and gospel too, soaking up the Alabama history on tracks such as The Middle, with parping horns, a slathering of funk and a killer guitar solo, while My Guitar Is Crying is a smoky ballad on which Shepherd puts all a load of soul into the solo.
These are much more traditional in their approach while Long Way Down is very modern and will be played on rock radio near you (if it isn't already), Never Made It To Memphis which features some great female co-vocals and Watch You Go has a New Orleans strut while She Loves My Automobile is a throw away blues party to end the album.
A concise eight tracks of blues from a master of the genre, played together Dirt On My Diamonds is a creative showcase for Kenny Wayne Shepherd but can easily be digested in two parts. 8/10
Eclipse - Megalomanium II (Frontiers Music SRL)
Swedish rockers Eclipse bring the second part of their Megalomanium record a year after the release of part one. The first one took them down a slightly different road, the title a double edged sword as they are one of Sweden's top rock exports so have every right to feel megalomania however the title also refers to more of the political systems around the world driven by ego and personality rather than policy.
While part 1 took a few risks, part 2 doesn't this is Eclipse by the numbers, there's occasionally a change of pace or sound away from slick melodic rock but not often. You get forty minutes of big choruses, expert guitar playing and hard rock grooves that will make your head nod. It's not big or clever but it does the job and shows once again why Eclipse are so popular, especially in the last few years where they have been showcasing themselves across the globe.
The energy they put into their live show is obvious on Megalomanium II, hard rock and AOR merged well, from the 80's blast of Apocalypse Blues, the Eurotastic Scorpions-like Falling To My Knees and Divide & Conquer bring the rock and roll but in terms of slower/ballads Still My Hero is very Bon Jovi, there's the emotive Until The War Is Over and To Say Goodbye is a sure fire live stable.
Eclipse doing what they do is always a winner and it's clearly gone to their heads! 7/10
SteelCity - Reverence (Frontiers Music SRL)
Reverence is self described as an "unabashed homage to the golden age of bard rock" it's the third album from American rockers SteelCity, who owe a lot of their sound to Winger, Mr Big and Hardline.
It all comes from the guitar prowess of Mike Floros, who founded SteelCity as a solo project in Ohio, he then got a band together, adding Roy Cathey of 90's rockers Cold Sweat behind the mic, bassman extraordinare Jason Cornwell, former Cold Sweat sticksman Anthony White and keyboardist Tony Stahl close out the band.
As I've said this is a third record and it's probably their most accomplished, an impressive collection of American melodic rock, bluesy vocals, some questionable lyrics, chunky organs and very guitar driven. A track such as Hammer Fallin' will give you a solid idea of what they do, with a strutting riff that moves into gallop.
No Angel is a bit sleazier, Dizzy gets choppy, while Walk Away is similar to Motley Crue and not just because of the "motorbike" guitar sound. Most of the record is upbeat and rocky, with Floros impressing with his lead skills, even on the singular ballad The Journey, he shreds. If the bands I mentioned are up your alley then there's lots to like on SteelCity's Reverence. 7/10
Avernus - Grievances (M-Theory Audio)
In this "job" you come across albums that are so up your street that they park outside your house. Grievances, the first album after 21 years from Avernus is just that kind of album. Releasing their debut in 1997, though established in the early 90's Avernus never really made waves they perhaps should have but now returned with the monolithic second record.
Over two decades in the making its a real audio journey, written and performed by the core membership of vocalist/guitarist Rick McCoy, guitarist Erik Kikke, guitarist James Genenz and drummer Rick Yifrach, this Chicago band deal in cinematic/atmospheric death/doom so the songs are long, weaving sonic tapestries that unravel slowly and deliberately, the vocals guttural and introspective as an overall maudlin atmosphere is created, synths stitched throughout.
The fully electronic Abandoned segueing into Quietus, which shifts from death doom into dreamy textures. Nemesis, which was the first track released from this album, is the epitome of slow build 9 minutes and 33 seconds of beauty and blasphemy as the huge doom riffs shift into chugs, Exitus a proper doom experience, The Burning Down heavier again. For me though if you're a doom fan then Return To Dust should be on your playlist, it's simply devastating in it's simplicity and scope.
As I said Avernus' Grievences has full permission to park outside my house and rifle though my garage it's so good. Well worth a 20 odd year wait. 9/10
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