by Joe Mis Staff Writer Like a thick, juicy steak with mashed potatoes and gravy, Joe Becker’s latest album Hot As Love is simple and basic yet ultimately satisfying. The veteran blues guitarist has put together a collection of 16 (mostly) guitar-driven tracks that will sate the appetite of blues [...]
by Alissa Ordabai Staff Writer Sounding like a typical bar band pedalling an unpretentious concoction of Southern rock and punk oiled by an occasional dash of pop, this Swedish quartet still manages to show that there is more to their clichéd gravelly-voiced bad-boys-of-rock stance than an attempt [...]
by Trevor Portz Staff Writer It’s hard to decide whether or not rock and roll and dance beats were meant to be combined. A number of bands have tried it over the years—Kiss with Dynasty, Queen with Hot Space, Terrorvision with Good to Go—and the results have been mixed. Perhaps rockers [...]
by John Kindred Staff Writer Taking a break from his regular gig as the guitarist for Deep Purple, Steve Morse returns with his latest studio release under his solo band moniker Steve Morse Band. Joining Morse on his musical adventures are bassist Dave LaRue and drummer Van Romaine. Together, they [...]
by John Kindred Staff Writer Arjen Lucassen continues his prog rock explorations with his new band Guilt Machine. Lucassen is known for his creative endeavors with his project band Ayreon. On this outing, he has built a band that consists of alternative rock singer Jasper Steverlinck, drummer Chris [...]
by Alissa Ordabai Staff Writer The debut release by Swedish metallers Despite is all about confident, tight riffing, fast-moving harmonies and death-style growling unified under the umbrella of a clear and precise thrash vision. Even with the album’s demo-level sound quality, the band’s gift [...]
by Joe Mis Staff Writer Evarest is the latest entry into the now somewhat overcrowded field of female-fronted power metal bands. Fear is the Czech band’s debut effort, just released on Farvahar Records, and in all honesty, it is a fairly strong debut. The nucleus of the band got together back [...]
by Alissa Ordabai Staff Writer Overproduced, compressed sound, big riffs, raunchy guitar leads, instant-grip sing-along choruses and lyrics of debauchery, sex, and general hedonism all make these Swedish rockers’ debut release an ‘80s aficionado’s wet dream. If you still wear your ripped [...]
by Trevor Portz Staff Writer Wow, it’s hard to believe that 17 years have passed since Gwar’s third album, America Must Be Destroyed, was shat upon the metal world, and more amazing that 2010 will mark the 25th anniversary of the band. Gwar has never relented in its struggle to crush and [...]
by Joe Mis Staff Writer Consciousness is the latest release by the American post-grunge / alternative rockers Smile Empty Soul, and a very good release it is. Founded as a trio way back in 1998, two of the original three members are still part of the project. Founding members Sean Danielsen [...]
