First Spin Impressions

[phaffas]

Skansis - 'Take your chance' - this does not sound like Shakra... this IS a Shakra album... with a different band line-up. Seriously, this is 100% Shakra from start to finish. Nothing separates the two bands. I liked the first song but after that it all just pretty much blended into a Shakra-esque "oaky but average" trip. It's good, but this stuff does little for me these days. I just need a good hook or catchy chorus somewhere in there. It's good solid hard rock but nothing that's not been done 14,000 times before.

I still feel that way after repeated listens. I enjoy when a song comes up in shuffle mode, but I never actively look for them in my iTunes library.... average, average, average... but not in a bad way...

 

aww

 

this was my third fave disc of 07. i love it. I felt it totally destroyed Shakra's Infected.

[Geoff]

Skansis - 'Take your chance' - this does not sound like Shakra... this IS a Shakra album... with a different band line-up. Seriously, this is 100% Shakra from start to finish. Nothing separates the two bands. I liked the first song but after that it all just pretty much blended into a Shakra-esque "oaky but average" trip. It's good, but this stuff does little for me these days. I just need a good hook or catchy chorus somewhere in there. It's good solid hard rock but nothing that's not been done 14,000 times before.

I still feel that way after repeated listens. I enjoy when a song comes up in shuffle mode, but I never actively look for them in my iTunes library.... average, average, average... but not in a bad way...

 

aww

 

this was my third fave disc of 07. i love it. I felt it totally destroyed Shakra's Infected.

I'd be lying if I told you Shakra's 'Infected' got a lot of spins in my CD player, but from what I recall I think I probably just preferred it - slightly. Maybe. I'd have to spin them both again... and I don't really feel like doing that to be honest.

[Jez]

Rockarma - 'Bring It'

 

So far I'm loving this cd. The guitar player isn't half bad either. This cd is just a perfect blend of late 80's Melodic Hard Rock with great songs, excellent vocals and probably the the greatest guitar playing your ever going to hear. My fav songs so far are "Bad June", "All 4 You", "I Know", and "Missing You". I'd say if you like late 80's/early 90's Melodic Hard Rock your gonna love this.

 

 

Edit: Geoff you're gonna love this.

 

As I just said to Kivel John, been spinning this one virtually non stop since yesterday. In a totally honest and unbiased opinion (Pete and John avert your eyes) this is pretty damned good stuff. The first thing that strikes you when listening to this is the excellent, punchy production with special note for the rhythm section - the Bass and Drums sound mighty fine on here. Lots of good songs on show , so big plus points for the consistency in the song writing. 'Bad June', 'Bring It', 'I Know' and 'Here After' are my faves so far, with only one or two tracks at the end not really 'Floating My Boat' as such. The vocals really remind me of Vince Neil at times, which is not the strongest side to the album, but they are ok non the less. I also really like the very subtle use of Keys (who plays these?) on a few tracks which add to the overall sound of the disc. Pete plays great (of course) and the rest of the guys produce a pretty damned good sound as well. All in all great stuff and definately glad I picked this one up!

[TIM (2)]

SEBASTIAN BACH - Angel Down

 

Only picked this one up recently, as having never been a Skid Row fan I would normally have passed on it. But this is definitely the best I've ever heard him sound, I just love the screaming. This guy should've fronted Priest or a big Metal Band after Skid Row, he has a serious set of lungs. And the tunes on here are top class. It's mostly Metal, with a few standard Hard Rock numbers in the first half that I skip over, but I genuinely love this disc. Is great when you are expecting nothing & get something that blows you away.

 

Now if he can just get the likes of Rob Halford guesting on his albums instead of losers like Axl Rose, ditch the occasional plodding hard rock number, & get a decent producer in (this thing sounds f***ing terrible) his next album will be totally killer. Very good stuff.

[TIM (2)]

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE - Scream, Aim, Fire

 

Have had the demos of this for a month now, but finally have the finished version, & you know what? They should've released the demos instead. This is well produced no doubt, but the ultra-slick polished sound does nothing to aid their fairly generic songwriting approach. This band make Trivium sound like Slayer. There is hardly any screaming on here, which some will prefer, but not when the 'clean' vocals on show are this weak. And not when (title-track aside) this is just so generic it's a very uneventful listen. The track: "Hearts Burst Into Flames" is the worst ballad in Metal history, bar none.

 

I still like this more than their debut, & they are still going to shift a lot of records (especially in the UK, where we take to our own acts even if they're not that good). If you like your Metal to sound sterile, with run-of-the-mill riffs & fail-safe choruses, then check out BFMV. In other genres bands have over-commercialised themselves to death (i.e, 18 VISIONS), BFMV should escape this fate but believe me, there are a million better albums out there than this.

[heaven&hell]

Jaded Heart-Sinister Mind

 

This cd is just horrible. What the fuck happened to these guys? Did they forget how to write a good song? I mean the last cd wasn't that bad and had quite a few good songs on it but this one maybe has one good song and the rest is pure shit IMO. Bring back Michael Bormann please, and do it quickly before you ruin this bands once great reputation.

[Doksdad]

Jaded Heart-Sinister Mind

 

This cd is just horrible. What the fuck happened to these guys? Did they forget how to write a good song? I mean the last cd wasn't that bad and had quite a few good songs on it but this one maybe has one good song and the rest is pure shit IMO. Bring back Michael Bormann please, and do it quickly before you ruin this bands once great reputation.

Glad I am not the only one that has noticed this. Same with the last Bormann-less album. What the hell happened to this band?

[heaven&hell]

Jaded Heart-Sinister Mind

 

This cd is just horrible. What the fuck happened to these guys? Did they forget how to write a good song? I mean the last cd wasn't that bad and had quite a few good songs on it but this one maybe has one good song and the rest is pure shit IMO. Bring back Michael Bormann please, and do it quickly before you ruin this bands once great reputation.

Glad I am not the only one that has noticed this. Same with the last Bormann-less album. What the hell happened to this band?

 

They have perfected the art of sucking.

[Geoff]

Leverage – ‘Blind fire’ ; Cool second release. This, like the debut, is very consistent. I have to say the debut really, really grew on me. This is a good album but I don’t think it’s quite as strong as the debut and I’m not sure it’ll do the same. Still, fans of the band will not be disappointed.

 

Quietdrive – ‘When all that’s left is you’ and Ashley Parker Angel – ‘Soundtrack to your life’ ; Two splendid CDs. I bought both “blindly” after hearing a couple of samples and both kicked my ass. Recommended for Faber Drive fans, these are both packed full of delightful modern melodic rock ditties. I cannot fault either album. Which do I prefer? There seems to be a few more stunners (like the first 2 songs) on the Ashley Parker one.

 

Toymaker’s Dream – ‘Try me, I rock’ ; Thanks to Wes for the hook-up. This one is awesome. I know nothing about these guys, except this thing is awesome. This sounds like one of the better mid-90’s Indie hard rock releases. Big thumbs up.

 

Uzi Suite – Not sure what the EP I heard is called, but it’s kinda average. Didn’t do much for me at all.

[heaven&hell]

Toymaker’s Dream – ‘Try me, I rock’ ; Thanks to Wes for the hook-up. This one is awesome. I know nothing about these guys, except this thing is awesome. This sounds like one of the better mid-90’s Indie hard rock releases. Big thumbs up.

 

Glad to see you dig that one. I figured you like most of the songs on there for sure.

[heaven&hell]

Cornerstone-Arrival

 

Very good stuff on this one, I'll have to admit that I'm pretty damn impressed with this band. Dougie White's voice is excellent as always and it's nice to hear him sing on some great songs unlike the crap he's singing on with Malmsteen.

Many winning songs on this one such as "Walked on the Water"(what a great song this one is), "Jungle", "Straight to the Bone", and "Top of the World". An all around solid melodic rock cd IMO.

[Jez]

Cornerstone-Arrival

 

Very good stuff on this one, I'll have to admit that I'm pretty damn impressed with this band. Dougie White's voice is excellent as always and it's nice to hear him sing on some great songs unlike the crap he's singing on with Malmsteen.

Many winning songs on this one such as "Walked on the Water"(what a great song this one is), "Jungle", "Straight to the Bone", and "Top of the World". An all around solid melodic rock cd IMO.

 

Great disc and still my fave of the 4. Very 'Magnum'esque in places - I like this one a lot.

[heaven&hell]

Cornerstone-Arrival

 

Very good stuff on this one, I'll have to admit that I'm pretty damn impressed with this band. Dougie White's voice is excellent as always and it's nice to hear him sing on some great songs unlike the crap he's singing on with Malmsteen.

Many winning songs on this one such as "Walked on the Water"(what a great song this one is), "Jungle", "Straight to the Bone", and "Top of the World". An all around solid melodic rock cd IMO.

 

Great disc and still my fave of the 4. Very 'Magnum'esque in places - I like this one a lot.

 

What others do you recommend?

[Jez]

Cornerstone-Arrival

 

Very good stuff on this one, I'll have to admit that I'm pretty damn impressed with this band. Dougie White's voice is excellent as always and it's nice to hear him sing on some great songs unlike the crap he's singing on with Malmsteen.

Many winning songs on this one such as "Walked on the Water"(what a great song this one is), "Jungle", "Straight to the Bone", and "Top of the World". An all around solid melodic rock cd IMO.

 

Great disc and still my fave of the 4. Very 'Magnum'esque in places - I like this one a lot.

 

What others do you recommend?

 

All the others are pretty strong, more of a Classic Rainbow sound to them, but all pretty good discs overall.

[heaven&hell]

Cornerstone-Arrival

 

Very good stuff on this one, I'll have to admit that I'm pretty damn impressed with this band. Dougie White's voice is excellent as always and it's nice to hear him sing on some great songs unlike the crap he's singing on with Malmsteen.

Many winning songs on this one such as "Walked on the Water"(what a great song this one is), "Jungle", "Straight to the Bone", and "Top of the World". An all around solid melodic rock cd IMO.

 

Great disc and still my fave of the 4. Very 'Magnum'esque in places - I like this one a lot.

 

What others do you recommend?

 

All the others are pretty strong, more of a Classic Rainbow sound to them, but all pretty good discs overall.

 

That's what I've read from reviews that they have the Classic Rainbow sound, which I love.

[aMetalhead1966]

Vixen-"REV IT UP"..or it will die....I never listened to this when it first came out...

Good call on my part...This is the blandest, dullest release I have had the (Un)pleasure

hearing..Too many keyboards and a case of mind rot ...I really like the first release...

but this..ahh NO...don't know why I got it...

[heaven&hell]

Vixen-"REV IT UP"..or it will die....I never listened to this when it first came out...

Good call on my part...This is the blandest, dullest release I have had the (Un)pleasure

hearing..Too many keyboards and a case of mind rot ...I really like the first release...

but this..ahh NO...don't know why I got it...

 

I kind of liked that one but haven't played it for 15 years.

I think "Love is a Killer" was my fav song if my memory serves me.

[Geoff]

Vixen-"REV IT UP"..or it will die....I never listened to this when it first came out...

Good call on my part...This is the blandest, dullest release I have had the (Un)pleasure

hearing..Too many keyboards and a case of mind rot ...I really like the first release...

but this..ahh NO...don't know why I got it...

 

I kind of liked that one but haven't played it for 15 years.

I think "Love is a Killer" was my fav song if my memory serves me.

I really like the disc… ‘How much love is it gonna take, to prove I’m not another heartache!’ Yeah! Sing it, girls!

[heaven&hell]

Shy Tiger - Feed the Kitty

 

This is one excellent melodic hard rock cd. It's almost as if Stevie Rachelle was singing for Firehouse with a hint of Hardline. There's not one hint of filler on this thing. Great Melodic Hard Rockers like "Will you be there", "Believe in you", "Young and Only" and "I'll never forget you". Awesome hard rocking tunes like "Hearts on Fire" and "Desperate" and the hilarious "Drink until she's Cute". Also there's one hell of a ballad in "Lay Down and Cry". All in all one of the more kick ass unknown cds that I've heard in some time. This band should of been huge.

[Geoff]

Shy Tiger - Feed the Kitty

 

This is one excellent melodic hard rock cd. It's almost as if Stevie Rachelle was singing for Firehouse with a hint of Hardline. There's not one hint of filler on this thing. Great Melodic Hard Rockers like "Will you be there", "Believe in you", "Young and Only" and "I'll never forget you". Awesome hard rocking tunes like "Hearts on Fire" and "Desperate" and the hilarious "Drink until she's Cute". Also there's one hell of a ballad in "Lay Down and Cry". All in all one of the more kick ass unknown cds that I've heard in some time. This band should of been huge.

Backed and backed over again. One of my all-time favourite CDs. One of my most treasured, too.

[Fat Freddy]

Gypsy Carns - THE WATCHMAN

Never heard of this guy until this promotional CD landed in my mailbox yesterday, although his bio sez he's been in various blues/Southern rock bands since the early 60s (!) and that this is his 8th (!) album as a solo artist. Gypsy is a Christian southern/biker rocker, if you can imagine such a thing. I'm not terribly well versed in the Southern Rock genre but what I hear sounds quite impressive -- this guy can JAM on a gee-tar! The lyrics are hardcore religious End Time Prophecy kinda stuff, which may be tiresome to listeners who are bothered by Christian lyrical themes, but they don't bother me any. I guess the CD can best be described thusly: Imagine if members of Molly Hatchet, ZZ Top, and Lynrd Skynrd got some old time religion and got together to jam a praise/worship album. Interesting stuff.

[Fat Freddy]

Dog Faced Gods - SPIT IN MY EYE

 

With a band name like Dog Faced Gods, I had hoped that perhaps these guys would sound like Testament. Unfortunately they don't. Competent but generic "modern rock" aimed at the Godsmack/Disturbed/Creed crowd. Not bad but nothing I would have paid to hear. Pass.

[aMetalhead1966]

Shotgun Alli-S/T.

Okay most of you know that this is Pete's(Blue Charvel) Band, and have probably

heard it. This is my first time so here it goes...

ONLY ONE...a Killer slinky groove on this song with a great melody...great chorus here

as well...The Solo is a true statement of taste and chops...Great Song!!

HEAVEN..Not your typical Ballad at all...once again I'm really digging everything

this song has to offer..The Solo is the highlite for me...It builds and releases

and takes you somewhere..Great Job Pete and Great Song....

SO ALIVE...This one is probably my fave on this release...this song Builds nicely

it is full of melody and hooks...plus some very deep lyrics that make you think a little harder.. The Solo shows us that Pete is an incredible player. He's Got the Tone and

Touch that many a seasoned player wishes they had...Pete can cut loose with

some blistering runs yet he keeps it all relivant to the song..Great Song as well

TIME..Cool Riff and Groove again...I Must say that these Guys have that Something

that can't be bought or taught...it's an unstated chemistry and it works well on this

and all the songs here.

FLY? the last song is not titled so I'm taking a wild stab at the title...And again

It is a great song...another sweet groove and Pete's playing as well as the WHOLE Band

is Top Notch!!

 

The Production and the sound of this release is INCREDIBLE!!! Hat's off to

Scott Metaxas (Of Prophet) for a great job!! This was done BEFORE Pro-Tools

and yet it sounds fresh!!!

The Vox are Incredible and the Band know how to groove, to swing and ROCK!!!

Pete Great Job !!!

[Blue Charvel]

Shotgun Alli-S/T.

Okay most of you know that this is Pete's(Blue Charvel) Band, and have probably

heard it. This is my first time so here it goes...

ONLY ONE...a Killer slinky groove on this song with a great melody...great chorus here

as well...The Solo is a true statement of taste and chops...Great Song!!

HEAVEN..Not your typical Ballad at all...once again I'm really digging everything

this song has to offer..The Solo is the highlite for me...It builds and releases

and takes you somewhere..Great Job Pete and Great Song....

SO ALIVE...This one is probably my fave on this release...this song Builds nicely

it is full of melody and hooks...plus some very deep lyrics that make you think a little harder.. The Solo shows us that Pete is an incredible player. He's Got the Tone and

Touch that many a seasoned player wishes they had...Pete can cut loose with

some blistering runs yet he keeps it all relivant to the song..Great Song as well

TIME..Cool Riff and Groove again...I Must say that these Guys have that Something

that can't be bought or taught...it's an unstated chemistry and it works well on this

and all the songs here.

FLY? the last song is not titled so I'm taking a wild stab at the title...And again

It is a great song...another sweet groove and Pete's playing as well as the WHOLE Band

is Top Notch!!

 

The Production and the sound of this release is INCREDIBLE!!! Hat's off to

Scott Metaxas (Of Prophet) for a great job!! This was done BEFORE Pro-Tools

and yet it sounds fresh!!!

The Vox are Incredible and the Band know how to groove, to swing and ROCK!!!

Pete Great Job !!!

Thanks bro, 24 track analog baby... the only way to fly!

 

The guitars were done with my old 100W Carvin head through a Marshall slant 4x12 cab and with a ProCo Rat pedal. Don't get much more homegrown that that.

 

Thanks again man, I hope it continues to satisfy after further listens.

 

Oh yeah, the last song is indeed called "Fly" as you suspected.

[Fat Freddy]

Hermano - ...INTO THE EXAM ROOM

I somehow or other managed to miss out on the Kyuss mini-phenomenon altogether when they were critical darlings back in the 90s. I may have heard one track and decided it wasn't my thing. Anyway, one of the former Kyuss guys is now a member of this band. After one spin I'd file this one under "trippy stoner/jam rock," not my kinda meat at all but for what it is, it's not a bad listen.

 

Load, Point, Pull - DOWN IN FLAMES

The singer does a hell of a good Rob Zombie impression. That's about the nicest thing I can say about this extremely average "modern metal" release.