First Spin Impressions

[Geoff]

Firenote - s/t

Another release for the Wig Wam/Brother Firetribe/Poodles lovers...... and this one doesnt let you down either! Sounds like maybe a rough mix of Brother Firetribe and Edguy... the cheesy aor side...

 

Yep I quite liked the sound of this too, have this coming anyday now. The vocals are a bit suspect, but some cool hooks....

There better be a thread somewhere here on these guys - never even heard the name before.

[phaffas]

Firenote - s/t

Another release for the Wig Wam/Brother Firetribe/Poodles lovers...... and this one doesnt let you down either! Sounds like maybe a rough mix of Brother Firetribe and Edguy... the cheesy aor side...

 

Yep I quite liked the sound of this too, have this coming anyday now. The vocals are a bit suspect, but some cool hooks....

There better be a thread somewhere here on these guys - never even heard the name before.

 

There was a review on melodic.net a few days ago...

 

should be a grower...

 

gotta ove the final track "she stole my speedos" or something... and its a top song!

[Jez]

Cheap Trick - The Latest

 

A MAJOR highlight of the year for me (and many others it seems, judging by the rave reviews this one is getting all over the place). All the classic elements of this band are still here - The songwriting is back BIG time (a major reason why the last album 'Rockford' was so good too) and the consistency of the material on here is truly excellent. The album starts with a short dreamy intro 'Sleep Forever' before going into the brilliant 'When The Lights Go Out'. Bun E.'S trademark drum sound and a chorus you will be singing for days afterwards (love the 'Ello Kiddies' guitar motif RN manages to slip in aswell). This was originally a Slade track, but the boys have put their own stamp on it and turned it into their own. 'Miss Tomorrow' is mid tempo, with another very good chorus and also notable for the 'Dream Police' strings which are back into the mix aswell. 'Sick Man Of Europe' is a really old song, but belts along in genuine CT fashion. 'These Days' - reminded me a little structurely of Bruce Springsteen in the chorus for some reason, great tune though. 'Miracles' is a very Beatles influenced track, and probably the weakest track on the album - not bad at all, a little weak in comparison to what else is on offer. Back to the up tempo stuff in the very short 1.17 interlude of 'Everyday You Make Me Crazy' and 'California Girl' before the string led 'Everyday Knows' which is a nice ballad. 'Alive' thunders back in with the 'Dream Police' strings in the chorus and this is another unmistakable Cheap Trick style rocker which is excellent. 'Times Of Our Lives' - Mid Tempo, nice song without being anything special. 'Closer, The Ballad Of Burt And Linda' and the lovely 'Smile' end out the album in fine style, although again, these are both mid tempo/ballad style songs, where a more rockier one would have been better.

My one minor groan is that there are too many of the mid tempo and ballads towards the end and maybe a slight reshuffle in the tracklist would make this run a little more smoothly, but that is a minor niggle. This could well top the list at the end of the year, as it is in places, a quite brilliant piece of work. Exhisting Cheap Trick fans (and hopefully a few new ones aswell) are gonna seriously love the hell out of this disc, as it contains all the classic elements of their sound, from the Power Pop rockers, to the Beatles influenced ballads and as I said above, even the 'Dream Police' strings are back in full force on some tracks. Robin Zander still sounds fantastic and really is one of the best there is at this game, even after all these years. The rest of the band are playing with a renewed freshness, which was first really obvious in 'Rockford' back in 2006 and something they had maybe lost in part from the mid 80's onwards because of the 80's gloss and outside writers.

 

Don't forget to check out another track - 'Transformers :The Fallen' off the new Film soundtrack album, which is really great aswell.

[Jez]

Howard Leese - Secret Weapon

 

I was quite looking forward to this one, as I have been a life long fan of Heart (early and later period) and their associated projects for as long as I can remember. Howard Leese has always been a nice, tasteful player and produced some great stuff in his 22 years with Heart. 'Secret Weapon' is his very first solo album and to be truthful, I really don't know what to think of it. There are some nice Bluesy Hard rock tracks on here featuring Joe Lynn Turner and the magnificent Paul Rodgers especially, which are clearly the best songs on here, but mixed in with those are some pretty pointless instrumental pieces with various guest musos, that really screw up the whole feel of this album. It leaves the whole thing sounding really disjointed and and makes it really difficult to get into the album as a whole piece of work. As I said, some of the individual tracks ''Alive Again' with JLT, 'Heal The Broken Hearted' with Sir Paul and 'The Vine' with Jimi Jamison are really nice tracks, but the rest I will be hard pushed to play again too often if I am honest. Much better to have ditched all the guest musicians and their instrumental slots and carried on with the songs proper, as this guy can obviously pen a tune or two. Disappointing

[Dead Planet]

Faster Pussycat...The Power & The Glory Hole.............not very good......it won't get many replays...

 

 

Dead Bang............Dancing On The Edge...............now this one is very good and will be getting much more airplay....

[rob62972]

Lillian Axe - Sad Day On Planet Earth

 

Here we have the new disc from one of my favorite all time bands LILLIAN AXE. I immediately think this sounds better than the last album "Water's Rising". Going through my first spin of this and I like most of the songs so far.

 

Cocoon -- an instrumental opener complete with a nice acoustic piece. Not bad.

 

Megaslowfade -- sounds like a song that should have been on "Water's Rising". Dark and moody but pretty aggressive also. Don't care for it but it's not horrible.

 

Jesus Wept -- Ahh.... this sounds much better. Nice guitars and the vocals are terrific. Sounds more like the classic Lillian Axe. Like it a lot. This song would fit perfectly on "Psychoschizophrenia". Love the build to the monster chorus.

 

Ignite -- see track #2. Another song that could've been on "Water's Rising". First track I pressed the skip button on. Very modern sounding track.

 

The Grand Scale Of Finality -- Pretty cool track. Another classic sounding Lillian Axe tune. Another track that could have been on "Psychoschizophrenia".

 

Sad Day On Planet Earth -- Slow and moody number but a very good one. This screams Lillian Axe! Sort of similar to "Until The End Of The World". Classic Axe chorus.

 

Hibernate -- Another kickass track. Another strong chorus. Where were these songs on the last album? Love it!

 

Within Your Reach -- Slow track with some classic Steve Blaze guitars. This fits nicely on any of their albums. Another pretty good track.

 

Down Below The Ocean -- This track is reminicent to "Water's Rising". Not bad but not one of the better tracks either.

 

Blood Raining Down On Her Wings -- Another slow beginning.... with nice melodic guitars and vocals. Reminds me of "Second Of May". Also is a little reminiscent of "The Day I Met You" from "Psychoschizophrenia". Song builds nicely.

 

Cold Day In Hell -- Wow.... a classic sounding track. Love this one too. Another slow track but it works well.

 

Nocturnal Symphony -- Not too bad but too similar to the last album for my taste. Modernized Axe.

 

Divine -- Another modern sounding track but sounds pretty good to these ears. Another song that could have been on "Psychoschizophrenia".

 

Kill Me Again -- Uh.... this track again. Really didn't see any need to put this on yet another album. Slightly updated but keeps the feel of the original. Lefevre just doesn't have Ron Taylor's pipes for this song but it's still a good tune.

 

Fire, Blood, The Earth & Sea -- Another slow orchestral and acoustic track. Fitting closer to this disc. Another track to builds as it goes. Kicks ass once it gets going. Not the greatest closer but not bad. Clocks in at over 8 minutes.

 

Overall, this is a really strong disc. A few fillers but this is a million times better than "Water's Rising". Kickass guitar work by Steve Blaze and really strong vocals by Derrick Lefevre.

 

Fans of the bands back catalog will enjoy this. I am about to give it a second spin.

[rob62972]

Well, second and third spins through, I'm really digging the new Lillian Axe disc. Standout tracks for me were: "Jesus Wept", "Sad Day On Planet Earth", "Hibernate", "Within Your Reach", and "Cold Day In Hell".

 

9/10

[Metal T]

Judas Priest Touch Of Evil...Live

 

F--king great live disc!...great sound and nice setlist.Only gripe ive got is that they should've put several more tunes on there and made it a double-live,and wtf is up with 'Painkiller'? Rob i guess decided to scrap some of the high parts...a real metal live disc for true heavy metal fans nonetheless...Judas 'f'n Priest!

[Jez]

Judas Priest Touch Of Evil...Live

 

F--king great live disc!...great sound and nice setlist.Only gripe ive got is that they should've put several more tunes on there and made it a double-live,and wtf is up with 'Painkiller'? Rob i guess decided to scrap some of the high parts...a real metal live disc for true heavy metal fans nonetheless...Judas 'f'n Priest!

 

Backed on that mate - should have been a double definitely. Band sound great live even after all these years.

[heaven&hell]

Lillian Axe - Sad Day On Planet Earth

 

Here we have the new disc from one of my favorite all time bands LILLIAN AXE. I immediately think this sounds better than the last album "Water's Rising". Going through my first spin of this and I like most of the songs so far.

 

Cocoon -- an instrumental opener complete with a nice acoustic piece. Not bad.

 

Megaslowfade -- sounds like a song that should have been on "Water's Rising". Dark and moody but pretty aggressive also. Don't care for it but it's not horrible.

 

Jesus Wept -- Ahh.... this sounds much better. Nice guitars and the vocals are terrific. Sounds more like the classic Lillian Axe. Like it a lot. This song would fit perfectly on "Psychoschizophrenia". Love the build to the monster chorus.

 

Ignite -- see track #2. Another song that could've been on "Water's Rising". First track I pressed the skip button on. Very modern sounding track.

 

The Grand Scale Of Finality -- Pretty cool track. Another classic sounding Lillian Axe tune. Another track that could have been on "Psychoschizophrenia".

 

Sad Day On Planet Earth -- Slow and moody number but a very good one. This screams Lillian Axe! Sort of similar to "Until The End Of The World". Classic Axe chorus.

 

Hibernate -- Another kickass track. Another strong chorus. Where were these songs on the last album? Love it!

 

Within Your Reach -- Slow track with some classic Steve Blaze guitars. This fits nicely on any of their albums. Another pretty good track.

 

Down Below The Ocean -- This track is reminicent to "Water's Rising". Not bad but not one of the better tracks either.

 

Blood Raining Down On Her Wings -- Another slow beginning.... with nice melodic guitars and vocals. Reminds me of "Second Of May". Also is a little reminiscent of "The Day I Met You" from "Psychoschizophrenia". Song builds nicely.

 

Cold Day In Hell -- Wow.... a classic sounding track. Love this one too. Another slow track but it works well.

 

Nocturnal Symphony -- Not too bad but too similar to the last album for my taste. Modernized Axe.

 

Divine -- Another modern sounding track but sounds pretty good to these ears. Another song that could have been on "Psychoschizophrenia".

 

Kill Me Again -- Uh.... this track again. Really didn't see any need to put this on yet another album. Slightly updated but keeps the feel of the original. Lefevre just doesn't have Ron Taylor's pipes for this song but it's still a good tune.

 

Fire, Blood, The Earth & Sea -- Another slow orchestral and acoustic track. Fitting closer to this disc. Another track to builds as it goes. Kicks ass once it gets going. Not the greatest closer but not bad. Clocks in at over 8 minutes.

 

Overall, this is a really strong disc. A few fillers but this is a million times better than "Water's Rising". Kickass guitar work by Steve Blaze and really strong vocals by Derrick Lefevre.

 

Fans of the bands back catalog will enjoy this. I am about to give it a second spin.

 

You're making kind of want to buy this.

[heaven&hell]

Tango Down - Damage Control

 

Holy Shit this is good. Another homerun for Kivel Records. If you love Melodic Hard Rock then you will LOVE this disc. So many good tunes to choose from like "Empty Hole", "I Can't Wait", "All Fall Down"(this kicked ass live), "I'm Done Lovin' You", "Radio" and "The Light". Buy this now!

[heaven&hell]

Tango Down - Damage Control

 

Holy Shit this is good. Another homerun for Kivel Records. If you love Melodic Hard Rock then you will LOVE this disc. So many good tunes to choose from like "Empty Hole", "I Can't Wait", "All Fall Down"(this kicked ass live), "I'm Done Lovin' You", "Radio" and "The Light". Buy this now!

 

Does no one else have this yet or have heard it yet?

[Geoff]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

Martin Briley - 'It comes in waves' ; bought this for pocket change and had a silent hope for it maybe being okay... which was crushed in a second. The first song was okay, but after that this is just one big, long and painful ballad. It honestly wasn't terrible, but really not what I'm about at all. An instant move to my trade list for this one.

 

Faktion - s/t ; I actually dug this one. Another pocket change whim, but this one paid off. Actually reminds me of Silly Fools in places, though not quite the hooks. There was one track here - track 7? - with a long minute + intro which is one of the coolest instrumental sections I've heard in a song - modern or not - for ages! I really loved that one. Good disc.

[glam_junkie]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

One of my favourite aussie albums of all time. This one stands the test of time imo.

Gasoline is a classic!

[Blue Charvel]

Lynch Mob - Smoke and Mirrors

 

The good thing is that this SOUNDS like Lynch Mob again finally! First listen rocked me, but I'm not sure about the songs yet, whether they're keepers or not, but bottom line this will definitely be getting a bunch more spins from me just to listen to Oni and George rock it old school!

 

Outloud - Outloud

 

Really liking this, Chandler sounds like he's really in his element. I liked his work with Talon, but he sounds at home with this stuff. Great guitars, quality production and big hooks. Is it a keeper? I don't rightly know yet, but I'll definitely be playing it several more times to find out.

[Blue Charvel]

Ecliptica - Impetus

 

Wow, I REALLY don't like this, sounds like third rate Dream Theater with a weak singer. Proggy and with some decent hooks, it just doesn't sound cohesive at all. Weird vocal parts coming out of nowhere, parts that don't sound tight, and songs that just aren't that good. This may not even get a second spin...

[TIM (2)]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

One of my favourite aussie albums of all time. This one stands the test of time imo.

Gasoline is a classic!

 

I love that band/album too. In the Top 5 Aussie discs IMO (one place above Rolf Harris).

[Jez]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

One of my favourite aussie albums of all time. This one stands the test of time imo.

Gasoline is a classic!

 

I love that band/album too. In the Top 5 Aussie discs IMO (one place above Rolf Harris).

 

Yep - great disc, but i would say 'Midnight Sun' tops it by quite a way.

[phaffas]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

One of my favourite aussie albums of all time. This one stands the test of time imo.

Gasoline is a classic!

 

I love that band/album too. In the Top 5 Aussie discs IMO (one place above Rolf Harris).

 

Yep - great disc, but i would say 'Midnight Sun' tops it by quite a way.

 

Geoff = shit

[highvoltage]

Lillian Axe - Sad Day On Planet Earth

 

Fans of the bands back catalog will enjoy this. I am about to give it a second spin.

 

I'm a fan of the back catalogue but didn't like this one much at all. Find it kind of depressing and dull ... maybe I need a few more listens

 

 

Cheap Trick - The Latest

 

Exhisting Cheap Trick fans (and hopefully a few new ones aswell) are gonna seriously love the hell out of this disc, as it contains all the classic elements of their sound, from the Power Pop rockers, to the Beatles influenced ballads and as I said above, even the 'Dream Police' strings are back in full force on some tracks. Robin Zander still sounds fantastic and really is one of the best there is at this game, even after all these years.

 

Agreed. Like this a lot as well. Classic Cheap Trick and Zander sounds like he hasn't aged voice-wise at all

[Geoff]

Choirboys - 'Big Bad noise' ; I almost feel unpatriotic for saying this, but I just didn't feel it. 'Run to paradise' is obviously great and so was 'Like fire'... but the rest? I don't know, it's just average pop rock to me. I could see how growing up with this as a kid I could have a sentimental love for it today, but hearing it for the the first time in 2009 does nothing for me.

 

One of my favourite aussie albums of all time. This one stands the test of time imo.

Gasoline is a classic!

 

I love that band/album too. In the Top 5 Aussie discs IMO (one place above Rolf Harris).

 

Yep - great disc, but i would say 'Midnight Sun' tops it by quite a way.

 

Geoff = shit

Backed. Oh, and with Jez too. Remember I liked 'Midnight sun'... much better than this one.

[Geoff]

Heavy Pettin' - 'Rock ain't dead' ; this isn't the first time I've heard it... well, most of it. I owned this CD long ago but sacrificed it for the sake of a great trade offer. Always loved it though and played the CDR often. Fast forward 10 years and I was delighted to pick up the Majestic Rock re-issue... mostly because of the last song, 'City Girl' - a KILLER bonus track, as good as anything on the CD, which is pretty much all excellent. Delighted to have this back.

 

Holy Soldier - 'Promise man' ; Wow, I actually just read out a formal apology to my ears for hearing this. This makes Danger Danger's, Warrant's, PC69's, Dokken's 1995 sell-out albums sound like Blue Tears - s/t. This album is fucked. I said it, no edit, 'cause it is that bad. Holy 'Alice In Chains' Soldier have retained none of their original sound and delivered pure grunge, even worse than Wildside and Sven Gali's ear-stabbing efforts. Truly the worst 1995 sell-out effort I've heard. Woeful.

[Jez]

Heavy Pettin' - 'Rock ain't dead' ; this isn't the first time I've heard it... well, most of it. I owned this CD long ago but sacrificed it for the sake of a great trade offer. Always loved it though and played the CDR often. Fast forward 10 years and I was delighted to pick up the Majestic Rock re-issue... mostly because of the last song, 'City Girl' - a KILLER bonus track, as good as anything on the CD, which is pretty much all excellent. Delighted to have this back.

 

I just got the 'Pettology' Box set last week, with 'Lettin' Loose' 'Rock Ain't Dead' aswell as the live album plus DVD. Nice package that only cost me £10. It is a great disc and definitely their best one, although 'Lettin' Loose' does have it's moments too.

[heaven&hell]

Reece - Universal Language

 

A pretty solid peice of melodic hard rock. While it's not near as good as what David Reece did with Bangalore Choir or Accept this disc is still very good. "The River", "Before I Die", "I'll Remember You", "Once in a Lifetime", "Flesh and Blood" and "All the Way" are currently my favs. If I was to compare this to any of David's previous projects it would be last years Gypsy Rose release and while this might not have as many great songs the production is quite a bit better IMO. I also will point out that it's taken me a few listens to fully appreciate this.

[Geoff]

Heavy Pettin' - 'Rock ain't dead' ; this isn't the first time I've heard it... well, most of it. I owned this CD long ago but sacrificed it for the sake of a great trade offer. Always loved it though and played the CDR often. Fast forward 10 years and I was delighted to pick up the Majestic Rock re-issue... mostly because of the last song, 'City Girl' - a KILLER bonus track, as good as anything on the CD, which is pretty much all excellent. Delighted to have this back.

 

I just got the 'Pettology' Box set last week, with 'Lettin' Loose' 'Rock Ain't Dead' aswell as the live album plus DVD. Nice package that only cost me £10. It is a great disc and definitely their best one, although 'Lettin' Loose' does have it's moments too.

Nice. I want to get 'Lettin' Loose' too. As you say, not near as good as 'Rock ain't dead' but a fine album nevertheless. What about the third one which was shelved and then released later? 'Big Bang'. Is that available in re-issue form?