If there is a tag line or opening statement that will pique your interest it is this:
HEAVY METAL AT THE SPEED OF SATAN (with thanks to Bandcamp).
So, I’m hoping that this is true, and they don’t let me down.
I think Satan has lost a step.
Sorry, I was expecting BPMs off the charts, unintelligible vocals that sort of thing. I wasn’t expecting a sort of black metal Iron Maiden. Starfire Maelstrom is our starting point, and you know it kicks along at a decent rate with a nifty melodic hook that carries the song for most of its length. Once they enter the final third they drop anchor just off the island of energetic lead break, with a cracking sub-rhythm to it and straight onto Lavish Desecration, which follows that same approach of speedy rock riffs, which has one eye on being able to make room for the absolutely necessary solo that this music HAS to have.
That approach I’m sure is going to continue right to the end and you know what, I like it. I like that they putting songs together that allow for some lead guitar magic because, why not? Especially if they work well like these. Spell Shock dials in the classic rock and gives it a kick, mixing that black metal in like a master craftsman. Knowing that this is the kind of music they write, allows you to soak in it and just love it for what it is. Its Simple, uncomplicated rock similar to Motorhead. This is what you are getting. If you like it that’s great. If not, bye.
This attitude just drips from it, from the immediate blast of Seasons Of Foul Harvest that charges along at that classic rock pace with a rock steady arrangement and a wicked break that is pure 70s gold to The Harem Conspiracy that keeps the blackened rock coming along nicely to Ride Of The Iron Fox with it’s drums kicking it into high gear. That Iron Maiden theme is there and its surprising that more groups don’t revisit them. I am not suggesting in any way that they have taken any riffs directly, its more that they have pinpointed what makes an exciting and engaging song and just ran with it. Ride Of The Iron Fox has one of ‘those’ solo’s and just gives the song that boost, and we are done.
I said at the start I hope they don’t let me down; well, I think it is a big statement that they nearly make good on. Make no mistake this is a fun album, one that knows exactly what it wants to do and does that incredibly well. It’s a grand melding of black metal and classic rock delivered at a decent rate. I don’t quite pick up on speed metal within it, but so what. It is not trying to change the world; it just wants you to switch off and enjoy 40 odd minutes of metal and come out of it smiling. And there is nothing wrong with that. 7/10
Amethyst – Throw Down The Gauntlet (No Remorse) [Rick Eaglestone]
Formed in the midst of a plague Swiss heavy metallers Amethyst constructed eight more of unbridled passion for debut album Throw Down The Gauntlet.
Opener Embers On The Loose feels like I have put on Iron Maiden’s debut as its flooded with soundscapes of 80’s metal which is delivered with strong purpose and certainly highlights the bands Influences, its also got some amazing solos and added feel good factor elements, this then rolls into more of a classic rock feel for Stand Up And Fight. Dominant basslines, and gallops are on full display for highlight track Won’t Do It Again which is complimented with Running Out Of Time which has a great narrative and anthemic tones.
Amethyst have really captured the essence of an earlier time, and this album feels like a forgotten classic rather than something that was completed recently, a true testament to this is Rock Knights which I envisage being a radio and live favourite. Moving to Queen Of A Thousand Burning Hearts brings with it a real fist pumping dynamic, the rolling drums are a particular highlight and honestly, the more I listen to this album the more soundscapes come to the forefront. There is also a spoken word part that really adds to the track.
If there is one track in particular that really pieces this album together and had to picked as a recommendation to listen to the album is would absolutely be Take Me Away which flows into the final track Serenade (Under The Rising Moon) effortlessly making for an overall fresh slice of nostalgia
An absolute tidal wave of classic heavy metal. 7/10
The thing that really stands out for me on Mirror Queen is the guitar work of Kreisor. He totally rips it up on here, the title track and opener being a perfect example, with that solo in the second half when the pace picks up. Great stuff. I believe Morgan McDaniel is still the second guitarist, and if so the chemistry of the dual playing has taken another step forward, producing a nice Maiden feel to their work. Cityside has a cool little riff and moves more towards the BOC territory, once again highlighted by that axe work and almost a bit of a psych element to it.
Mirror Queen can play, have the songs, and all the right influences to create killer stuff. Dying Days is just that: killer. The guitar work shines and is the highlight, but this record is excellent from the first note until the last. 8/10
Broken Jaw - No One Cares (Self Released) [James Jackson]
In case the album title didn’t give it away, the first 44 seconds of the title track leave no doubt that No One Cares, just for good measure the chorus hammers it home; Broken Jaw are a Gloucestershire based band whose genre description pegs than at punk metal, certainly the anarchic Punk leanings towards political and social issues, whilst at times being exceptionally tongue in cheek, are evident within the lyrics, spewed in a very metalcore fashion, far more metal than punk in that regard.
The album follows this pattern, blasting beats, heavy hard hitting riffs accompanied by politically acerbic lyrics and if I could make out more than just swearing and the words of the title, One Ply Bogroll, then it too would be as much a social commentary as anything before it. Serpents Lair has an a great riff that reminds me hugely of Cannibal Corpse.
No One Cares is heavy, fast and brutal at times, but without becoming stagnant which I’ve always found to be a turn off, Broken Jaw embrace a tempo change, allow a riff to flow with groove rather than balls out ferocity which affords the album a sense of maturity, amidst the chicken nuggets and toilet roll. 6/10
This attitude just drips from it, from the immediate blast of Seasons Of Foul Harvest that charges along at that classic rock pace with a rock steady arrangement and a wicked break that is pure 70s gold to The Harem Conspiracy that keeps the blackened rock coming along nicely to Ride Of The Iron Fox with it’s drums kicking it into high gear. That Iron Maiden theme is there and its surprising that more groups don’t revisit them. I am not suggesting in any way that they have taken any riffs directly, its more that they have pinpointed what makes an exciting and engaging song and just ran with it. Ride Of The Iron Fox has one of ‘those’ solo’s and just gives the song that boost, and we are done.
I said at the start I hope they don’t let me down; well, I think it is a big statement that they nearly make good on. Make no mistake this is a fun album, one that knows exactly what it wants to do and does that incredibly well. It’s a grand melding of black metal and classic rock delivered at a decent rate. I don’t quite pick up on speed metal within it, but so what. It is not trying to change the world; it just wants you to switch off and enjoy 40 odd minutes of metal and come out of it smiling. And there is nothing wrong with that. 7/10
Amethyst – Throw Down The Gauntlet (No Remorse) [Rick Eaglestone]
Formed in the midst of a plague Swiss heavy metallers Amethyst constructed eight more of unbridled passion for debut album Throw Down The Gauntlet.
Opener Embers On The Loose feels like I have put on Iron Maiden’s debut as its flooded with soundscapes of 80’s metal which is delivered with strong purpose and certainly highlights the bands Influences, its also got some amazing solos and added feel good factor elements, this then rolls into more of a classic rock feel for Stand Up And Fight. Dominant basslines, and gallops are on full display for highlight track Won’t Do It Again which is complimented with Running Out Of Time which has a great narrative and anthemic tones.
Amethyst have really captured the essence of an earlier time, and this album feels like a forgotten classic rather than something that was completed recently, a true testament to this is Rock Knights which I envisage being a radio and live favourite. Moving to Queen Of A Thousand Burning Hearts brings with it a real fist pumping dynamic, the rolling drums are a particular highlight and honestly, the more I listen to this album the more soundscapes come to the forefront. There is also a spoken word part that really adds to the track.
If there is one track in particular that really pieces this album together and had to picked as a recommendation to listen to the album is would absolutely be Take Me Away which flows into the final track Serenade (Under The Rising Moon) effortlessly making for an overall fresh slice of nostalgia
An absolute tidal wave of classic heavy metal. 7/10
Mirror Queen - Dying Days (Tee Pee Records) [Rich Piva]
NYC’s Mirror Queen are back, and this is very exciting given how much I loved their last one, Inviolate, from 2022. For those who are not aware and to give a comparison, the band mentions Blue Oyster Cult, UFO, Camel, Wishbone Ash and Iron Maiden in their bio, so yeah, you know this band kicks ass, and they continue said kicking on their new record, Dying Days.
NYC’s Mirror Queen are back, and this is very exciting given how much I loved their last one, Inviolate, from 2022. For those who are not aware and to give a comparison, the band mentions Blue Oyster Cult, UFO, Camel, Wishbone Ash and Iron Maiden in their bio, so yeah, you know this band kicks ass, and they continue said kicking on their new record, Dying Days.
Anything on Tee Pee Records is pretty much an automatic buy, and given that MQ main man Kenny Kreisor is also the main man of Tee Pee, it is safe to assume that this one is going to be killer. I was not disappointed, as Dying Days continues the awesomeness the band has been bringing, leveraging 70s US hard rock and proto metal and blending it with NWOBHM influences creating seven more outstanding tracks to add to their already great discography.
The thing that really stands out for me on Mirror Queen is the guitar work of Kreisor. He totally rips it up on here, the title track and opener being a perfect example, with that solo in the second half when the pace picks up. Great stuff. I believe Morgan McDaniel is still the second guitarist, and if so the chemistry of the dual playing has taken another step forward, producing a nice Maiden feel to their work. Cityside has a cool little riff and moves more towards the BOC territory, once again highlighted by that axe work and almost a bit of a psych element to it.
The instrumentation on Scapa Flow is top notch, who needs words when you can play guitar like that. I love the trip back to 1978 that Closing The Gap is, as some of the band’s prog leanings show through on this one. Same with the also excellent Far Flung that has some very cool tempo changes. My favourite track is the also very BOC This Is My Song, that has a cool riff and highlights the work of the rhythm section while also including the best vocal performance on the record. This one also reminds me off something off the also very 70s inspired album by Australian rockers Butterfly, Doorways Of Time. Oh, and that solo just rips. Strider closes as we opened, with killer dual guitars and more of that NWOBHM meets BOC goodness that Mirror Queen has perfected.
Mirror Queen can play, have the songs, and all the right influences to create killer stuff. Dying Days is just that: killer. The guitar work shines and is the highlight, but this record is excellent from the first note until the last. 8/10
Broken Jaw - No One Cares (Self Released) [James Jackson]
In case the album title didn’t give it away, the first 44 seconds of the title track leave no doubt that No One Cares, just for good measure the chorus hammers it home; Broken Jaw are a Gloucestershire based band whose genre description pegs than at punk metal, certainly the anarchic Punk leanings towards political and social issues, whilst at times being exceptionally tongue in cheek, are evident within the lyrics, spewed in a very metalcore fashion, far more metal than punk in that regard.
Clean tones are mixed with growls, the emphasis of which forces home the more sensible and poignant lyrics; I say sensible because the third track in, Pineapple Pizza, takes a rather comical approach but ultimately is a track about personal preference and the right to choose, it’s a frenetic slab of blast beats, those clean/growled vocals and heavy but groove driven riffs.
The album follows this pattern, blasting beats, heavy hard hitting riffs accompanied by politically acerbic lyrics and if I could make out more than just swearing and the words of the title, One Ply Bogroll, then it too would be as much a social commentary as anything before it. Serpents Lair has an a great riff that reminds me hugely of Cannibal Corpse.
No One Cares is heavy, fast and brutal at times, but without becoming stagnant which I’ve always found to be a turn off, Broken Jaw embrace a tempo change, allow a riff to flow with groove rather than balls out ferocity which affords the album a sense of maturity, amidst the chicken nuggets and toilet roll. 6/10
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