by Ron and Don Higgins Staff Writer Extreme and one-time Van Halen front-man, Gary Cherone, is finally on the verge of getting Hurtsmile (his side-project with his brother that began in 2007) off the ground with the release of their debut album on Jan. 19 in Asia, Jan. 21 in Europe and Feb. 8 in [...]
by Justin Gaines Staff Writer Opus Eponymous is the eagerly anticipated debut album from the mysterious Swedish heavy metal band Ghost, whose membership is still a mystery and who play live in robes and the priestly attire depicted on the cover of Opus Eponymous. Remember the hysteria over [...]
by Trevor Portz Staff Writer For those unfamiliar with Elvenking, the name and cover art for their newest release, Red Silent Tides, would surely lead most well-trained metal heads to make some reasonable assumptions about the music contained therein. Hell, the name Elvenking and accompanying log [...]
by Joe Mis Staff Writer After numerous delays, Timo Tolkki’s long-awaited and self-proclaimed “classical rock opera” entitled Saana – Warrior of Light will be released on Scarlet Records on Feb. 22. Better known as the fine and energetic guitarist of the power metal band Stratovarius, [...]
by Cyndi Jo Staff Writer The counterculture ideology of punk is an outcry into a vast chasm of a person’s poignant crap. The soundtrack to such matter would be an album that screams punk-rock adrenaline– in your face, audio assault– perhaps, created by a band that are out to challenge [...]
by Alissa Ordabai Staff Writer Aiming at an epic feel and heroic, larger-than-life atmospherics, this New York City quartet presents a curious mixture on their debut record: that of Pantera-inspired heavy grooves, retro synth parts channelling early Yes, 80s shred-style guitar leads, and generic [...]
by Justin Gaines Staff Writer Dominion is the third album from US-based traditional metal band Benedictum, one of the most promising bands to emerge in recent years. The band is fronted by a female vocalist (the beautiful and insanely talented Veronica Freeman), but in case you were thinking that [...]
by Joe Mis Staff Writer Southern rock that doesn’t come from the South – how good can that be? You’d be surprised… From out of the Pacific Northwest (Puyallup, Wash. to be precise) comes SweetKiss Momma, and they deliver twelve tracks of intense old-school blues-based rock without [...]
by Alex Barbieri Staff Writer It is often the case that after an artist passes away, their art is truly appreciated. While Ronnie James Dio was revered in life, the new live album Donington UK: Live 1983 & 1987 is a welcome opportunity to again appreciate the live power and majesty of RJD. Dio [...]
by Marc C Staff Writer While 12 years of history and numerous line-up changes would be enough for any band to lose focus and wander, Battlelore not only found a way to keep it together, but may have recorded their defining album in Doombound. Drawing on the inspiration of JRR Tolkien’s Middle [...]
