LIVE! | Rise Against with A Day To Remember & Title Fight

by Sara McCarthy
Staff Writer –

May 7, 2012 at New York State Fairgrounds Chevy Court in New York, NY

On a very wet and dreary Tuesday night, Rise Against brought their tour to Syracuse, NY. Despite the horrendous weather, a crowd of about 4,000 descended on the New York State Fairgrounds, it takes more than a day of torrential rain to stop Syracuse rockers from attending the first outdoor show of the year.

Title Fight, hailing from Kingston, PA started playing at 6:00, which was the same time the gates were opened. This scheduling snafu prevented a lot of audience members from seeing the band perform. Formed in 2003, the band lists Blink 182 as a major influence and that is apparent in their music. A grinding mix of punk and hardcore, Title Fight gave an energetic performance and truly seemed to enjoy themselves on stage. Their last album Shed was released in May 2011 under Side One Dummy Records and recently announced their plans to enter the studio this summer and release their new record in September 2012.

http://www.title-fight.net

A Day To Remember was next on the bill for the night. An already rowdy crowd went ballistic when band members took the stage. The band opened with “The Downfall of Us All,” and crew members threw dozens of large beach balls out to the crowd. For about five minutes it wasn’t safe to be a bystander, you never knew when you might get beaned with a wayward ball! Ripping through each song, this band held nothing back and neither did the kids in the audience. Fist pumping and singing right along; there was a constant stream of crowd surfers coming off the front of the crowd. At one point, just before playing “Homesick”, Vocalist Jeremy McKinnon crawled inside a huge transparent blow-up hamster ball, rolled off of the stage and ran/rolled all over the top of the crowd. Each successive song brought more energy and a larger response from the crowd, and a few different times it appeared as if the barriers in front of the stage were not going to hold. Finishing up their dynamic set with “The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle,” this group of guys from Ocala, FL left the crowd wanting more and primed for Rise Against.

http://adtr.com/

Set List:
The Downfall of Us All
A Shot in the Dark
I’m Made of Wax Larry, What Are You Made Of?
My Life For Hire
All Signs Point To Lauderdale
2nd Sucks
You Be Tails, I’ll Be Sonic
It’s Complicated
Homesick
Better Off This Way
Have Faith In Me
All I Want
The Plot to Bomb The Panhandle

The set for Rise Against featured five vertical rectangular video screens, evenly spaced across the stage. These screens lit up, showing movie scenes and dialogue taken from “The Shameless Opportunist” in Catch-22. As the intro concluded, band members took the stage, and opened their set with “Survivor Guilt.” The momentum started by A Day To Remember was continued by Rise Against, band members were all over the stage, playing it up for each section of the crowd. When they broke into “Help Is On The Way,” the video screens played clips of demonstrations and the clashes that can break out at these events. The main part of the set was finished up with “Prayer Of The Refugee” which drove the crowd insane; they started surging forward and once again called into question the stability of the barriers. Things cooled down a bit when vocalist Tim McIlrath brought out an acoustic guitar and played both “Audience Of One” and ‘Swing Life Away.” At this point in the evening, the rain started once again, drenching everyone in the area. The crowd stayed strong and when the opening strains of “Make It Stop (September’s Children)” started, the started jumping and screaming. This song deals with the problem of homophobia in today’s society and how it is affecting our children, with an increase in suicide rates. This is a band not afraid of serious and unsavory topics.

Rise Against put on an amazing show that left the audience satisfied that they got their fill of rock on a wet Tuesday night. As the thousands of people filed out of the exit gates, members of PETA stood handing out fliers, as Rise Against are active supporters of the controversial animal rights organization.

http://www.riseagainst.com/

Set List:
Survivor Guilt
Ready To Fall
Collapse (Post-Amerika)
The Good Left Undone
Broken English
Help Is On The Way
Disparity By Design
Drones
Re-Education (Through Labor)
Blood To Bleed
Satellite
Paper Wings
Prayer Of The Refugee

Acoustic:
Audience Of One
Swing Life Away

Make It Stop (September’s Children)
Give It All

Encore:
Midnight Hands
The Strength To Go On
Savior

Rise Against & A Day To Remember 2012 Photo Gallery

Photos appear courtesy of Sara McCarthy

LIVE! | Hornet, The Burning Crows & Black State Highway

by Jimmy Millard
Guest Writer –

March 29, 2012 at THE INTREPID FOX, SOHO, UK

It was Thursday night and I and a few mates decided to head down town for the Hornet show with support from The Burning Crows and Black State Highway at The Intrepid Fox. After reading a live review from last months show online and watching the band’s videos on their website I was excited to see their thundering show right in front of me for my own two eyes. My original plan was to drink round the corner beforehand for a few quick pints until three girls in Hornet T-shirts approached us in the street handing out flyers for the gig (which we were already going to) and managed to convince us to head straight to the venue for drinks and a good time… so we strolled up to The Intrepid Fox, one of London’s best rock bars, grabbed some drinks and walked upstairs to wait for the first band of the night Black State Highway.

Black State Highway ripped into a powerful classic rock onslaught reminiscent of Led Zeppelin topped with a modern southern rock twinge. Lead vocalist Liva Steinberga had a strong domineering rock voice which was refreshing to hear as girl vocalists in rock bands tend to go for the Hayley Williams look and sound which I find very cliché but not these guys! It was a very tight set from Black State Highway with some very skilled musicians, however for me the visual performance wasn’t very exciting but I do think the music did the talking very much so for these guys and the more this band plays live the further I think they will go. They are definitely worth watching live, so go check them out.

More and more people were entering the venue and things were starting to heat up (literally) with the anticipation building strong for the current talk of the town Hornet. Tonight’s main support act came in strong with The Burning Crows and I was looking forward to seeing what they had to offer, I had heard good things. The Burning Crows took to the stage and quickly livened things up with their high energy rock ‘n’ roll. Played hard and well these guys gave off an overall sound of Steel Panther (minus the jokes) meets Ratt with hints of ‘DC. Vocalist/Guitarist Whippz did a stellar job to liven the ever building crowd up between songs and the whole band kept the music on lock down with drummer Chris Chapman, Bassist Will Lockett and guitarist Lance Daniels. The band claim they spent innumerable hours on the road, playing countless shows to master their craft and it really does show. Check these guys out as they went down a treat!

Next on stage was Hornet the band that both my friends and I had been waiting for and from the reaction of the room that’s what everyone had really been waiting for all night. By now the room was packed out and it was ridiculously hot, however Hornet burst onto the stage and opened with ‘Down To The Bone’ which had a real thumping guitar riff. Hornet went wild from start to finish and the crowd matched them jumping up and down, screaming and cheering all night long. One thing I loved was mid set when Joe Thompson took out his camera and asked the crowd to raise their hands in the air and scream ‘HORNET’ whilst he took a picture. What a great idea and something I’ve never seen before at any gig.

Thunderous Bassist, Max Thompson kept it tough and tight with Drummer, Alex Burt who was hitting hard and heavy and kept the groove down impeccably which allowed guitarist, Tollef Rikje-Pearson to play riffs and solo to his hearts desire and together with vocalist and frontman Joe Thompson they ruled the stage. There was some fantastic songs in Hornet’s set and I enjoyed them all but my particular favorites were ‘Drive On’ and ‘Under Pressure’ they had huge hooks and chorus’ and are real sing-a-long songs. It’s a shame the band don’t have an album out yet as I desperately wanted to buy one that night but for now their three track EP will do.

As we know all good things come to an end and after a hot and sweaty 45 minutes Hornet played their final song ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Riot’ and brought their set to a impactful close. Brothers Max and Joe Thompson along with Alex Burt and Tollef Rikje-Pearson came to the front of the stage and bowed as their strong and loyal fan base shouted for an encore which the band then preceded to play. Their final song allowed their fans to mosh and go mad once more before the end of the night.

After a superb night I’m already prepared for the next Hornet show at The Intrepid Fox with two other great bands Wasted Sinners and Four Wheel Drive on Thursday 26th April 2012. Make note people the yellow and black army are invading. See you at the front!

Mark Evans | DIRTY DEEDS: My Life Inside/Outside of AC/DC

by John Kindred
Staff Writer –

Former bassist with Australia’s legendary AC/DC unveils the band’s secret world behind the curtain. AC/DC’s rough and tumble existence is revealed through the words of former bassist Mark Evans. Malcolm Young was handling those duties before Evans joined the band, but he wanted to return to hammering out chords as the rhythm guitarist. AC/DC’s journey to their future bassist is told by Evans, beginning with his childhood and his landing the gig, his departure and subsequent musical accomplishments, to personal tragedy and, finally, understanding and acceptance.

This is first-hand look of not only Evans but of AC/DC from behind the scenes. Evans paints the picture that highlights the band as a well-oiled machine, driven and controlled by Malcolm Young and the Young family. Those in the band Read more

Andy Timmons Band | Plays Sgt. Pepper

by Alissa Ordabai
Staff Writer –

Somewhere between the sublimity of Bill Frisell’s recent tribute to John Lennon “All We Are Saying…” and the kitsch of Big Jim Sullivan’s renditions of the late 60s- early 70s pop classics, the record at hand is a hit-and-miss affair, albeit ambitious in its choice of material.

Apparently aware of the prerequisites for tackling material of this magnitude, Timmons offers an interpretation of the greatest album in the history of pop which is more often homely than daring. Mostly it’s faithful renditions of the classic tunes – safe and tame, not attempting to extrapolate extra meaning from what is already there. Notable exceptions are “With a Little Help from My Friends” where Timmons breathes bitter-sweet magic into the familiar-from-childhood original, and “She’s Leaving Home” where he goes beyond the prescribed and unfolds the song from an unexpectedly intuitive, deeply personal angle.

Otherwise the vocal polyphony of the originals, the subtleties of the songwriting and the nuances of the original production are lost, turning a multi-dimensional piece of visionary work into a humdrum, albeit pleasant and tasteful affair. Versions of “Getting Better,” “Fixing a Hole” and “Lovely Rita”, however, sag below average, sounding at times like a bunch of tracks that have fallen off the final mix of some sketchy demo.

Overall this is a perplexing record with a perplexing choice of material – given the level of casualness with which Timmons treats it – and an even more perplexing in its unwillingness to search for meanings and connections beyond the apparent and the familiar.

Genre: Instrumental Guitar, Pop, Rock

Track Listing:
1. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. With a Little Help from My Friends
3. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
4. Getting Better
5. Fixing a Hole
6. She’s Leaving Home
7. Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite
8. Within You, Without You
9. When I’m 64
10. Lovely Rita
11. Good Morning, Good Morning
12. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)
13. A Day in a Life
14. Strawberry Fields Forever

Label: Favored Nations

Online: http://www.andytimmons.com/

Hardrock Haven rating: 4/10

Jay Parmar | Circle of Fire

by John Kindred
Staff Writer –

Jay Parmar returns with his sophomore studio release titled Circle of Fire on Steve Vai’s label Digital Nations.The album follows up his 2005 debut release, Strange Day, and tracks his musical progress and growth over the last seven years. Although it seems like quite a stretch in between releases, Parmar has been busy with building his studio, writing and demoing this forthcoming release and touring as second guitarist in the band Eden’s Curse in 2009. That tour produced a live album, Condemned to Burn, which featured Parmar on two of the recorded songs.

Parmar finds himself in great company on Circle of Fire. His hard work and networking ability has led him to becoming friends with fellow musicians Carsten Lizard-Schulz (Evidence One/Paradise Inc), Andreas Novak (House of Shakira/Mind’s Eye), Pete Newdeck (Eden’s Curse/Tainted Nations), Tim Wallace, Mike Rotella and guitar legend George Lynch, all of whom contributed to Circle of Fire. And, as all of Parmar’s friends and fans know, George Lynch is a good friend and inspiration to the guitarist.

The core of Circle of Fire is built around the original arrangements written by Parmar. He worked with Pete Newdeck to arrange and record the foundation of the music. Newdeck handled the drums, while Parmar provided the bass, keys, rhythm guitar and his lead solo tracks. From there, each of his “guests” continued to bring the music to life, contributing lyrics, vocals and additional guitar solos. Circle of Fire comprises 12 songs, all of which maintain a cohesive vibe even though different vocalists sing throughout the CD.

Although the inspiration may come from his influences, Parmar pushes forward, letting his voice be heard compositionally and vocally. The music is melodic hard rock, and the vocalists reflect this as they perform melodic and catchy vocal melodies. Newdeck and Schultz handle the majority of the songs, while Novak only is the featured vocalist on “Test of Time,” Wallace appears on “Harm’s Length.” Parmar makes his singing debut on “When Angel Cry.” Circle of Fire delivers great all-around vocals from everyone involved. At times, they fall in between the AOR and Melodic rock world, almost pushing into the ‘80′s stadium-rock-arena on several occasions.

There is no getting around the fact that George Lynch has had a major influence on Parmar’s own guitar style. He won’t deny it. You can hear it within the context of his rhythm guitar work, but it is more evident in his solos. His legato phrasing, attack, harmonic squeals and guitar sound pull a lot from Lynch. It would be bad if he did a poor job of it, but Parmar is extremely accomplished. It’s almost as if the torch is being passed from one legend to the next generation of shredders. Hopefully, as Parmar continues to write and record, his lead guitar work will evolve into a signature style that is all his own. For now, he nails it song after song.

Parmar and Newdeck build a solid foundation for the 12 songs that comprise Circle of Fire and deliver inspired, melodic hard rock bliss. Rotella and Lynch, both, deliver amazing fret board acrobatics alongside Parmar. The slick production magnifies the high caliber of musicianship that comprises Circle of Fire. Unlike a lot of independent artists out there today, Jay Parmar has taken the time to learn his craft, with his guitar and in the studio, before unleashing himself on listeners with sub-par studio albums. His approach and music is a mature and confident. This is reflected on Circle of Fire in his songwriting ability and the quality of professional musicians who brought the album to life.

Highlights: “Hell Is The Place,” “Walking In Circles,” “Dragon,” “Circle of Fire”

Genre: Melodic Hard Rock

Line-up:
Jay Parmar (g)(b)(k)(v)
Pete Newdeck (d)(v)
Carsten Lizard-Schulz (v)
Tim Wallace (v)
Mike Rotella (main solo on “Hell Is The Place”)
George Lynch (intro/main solo on “When Angels Cry”)

Track Listing:
1. Walking In Circles
2. You’re Not Alone
3. Test of Time
4. Lost In You
5. Now You’re Gone
6. Hell Is The Place
7. Stop Laughing
8. Guilty
9. Harm’s Length
10. Circle of Fire
11. The Dragon
12. When Angels Cry
13. Circle of Fire (Single)

Label: Digital Nations

Web: http://www.jayparmar.com/wp/

Hardrock Haven rating: 9/10

LIVE! | Hornet, Damn Dice & Western Sand

by David Cox
Guest Writer –

February 23, 2012 at THE INTREPID FOX, SOHO, UK

Until the other night I hadn’t previously been to a SED Records UK gig at The Intrepid Fox, however I recently heard great things about their monthly live nights and thought it was about time that I attended. This gig had been covered by a ton of online websites, radio stations and I’d seen posters and flyers plastered all over London all stating that this night was set to be hot! So was it hot?

Well… I got myself down to the venue for around 7 o’clock and grabbed myself a drink downstairs with some friends getting ready for the music to start. I must say that I know Thursday nights get busy in Central London but not usually until 10pm. The Fox was already very busy with punters, about half an hour later a hoard of excited fans arrived all sporting black t-shirts with big bold yellow font across the front saying “Hornet” this was exciting to see as I had previously heard amazing things about this band from bar talk around Soho and Camden.

I ventured upstairs for roughly 8 o’clock when the doors opened to make sure I didn’t miss any of the action, I grabbed another fresh pint of lager and got ready for the first band of the evening, Western Sand. Western Sand hit the stage at 8.30pm prompt (it’s good to be at a gig where things run on time) and the band opened up with a crunching hard rock sound. I was made aware by the promoter that these guys had traveled from Bournemouth and had brought some home-town fans with them who cheered as they tore through their 70’s sounding rock set. Lead singer Tyler Hains had a strong voice and his banter with the crowd between songs was well articulated. Drummer Nathan Kay kept things tight (in the vein of Airbourne’s Ryan O’Keeffe) and with Findlay Hotchkiss rocking bass, it kept Western Sands overall sound very AC/DC, not that there is anything wrong with that! The lads played very well together and the songs were well received by the evening’s ever growing crowd. My only real criticism is the bands look; I personally felt that only guitarist Jimmy Bradshaw had the look. Lead signer Tyler Hains looked like he was ready for a smart casual night out on the town not to play a rock ‘n’ roll show especially in Soho the London’s heart of heavy rock and metal. But boys perfect your look and I think you will go far!

The atmosphere was getting lively in Soho’s awesome Intrepid Fox. As bands switched over I got myself another pint, chatted to my mates and readied myself for the next band. Main support came from the outrageously dressed London glam rockers, Damn Dice. They hit things off with a bang and aptly named lead singer, Bobby Valentine had the girl’s hearts racing and the guy’s adrenaline pumping throughout a roller coaster ride of a set. The band had simple sing along songs with, as you would guess, some nice shredding guitar solos from guitarist Wallis. Sometimes people can’t take glam rock seriously with bands like Steel Panther around but Damn Dice do it well… not too much cheese you know? And this is coming from someone who isn’t into “glam rock” particularly. However an added tight performance from bassist, Marco and drummer, Fransoa mixed in with loads of charisma from the whole band made for a good show. If you are into dudes in make up such as Mötley Crüe, Poison and Reckless Love then you’ll love these guys!

I personally would have omitted the cover of Ke$ha’s ‘Tik Tok’ from the set though… I don’t think it went down too well with the crowd but that aside they worked and rocked hard on stage. Keep going for it guys as I think you will go far!

By now the room was packed out and I mean packed… I would guess there was between 160-170+ excited people squashed into this intimate venue and it was getting hot, sweaty and sticky and the tension was building for the headliners.

As Damn Dice left the stage and made way for Hornet the DJ span some classic rock tunes as the audience readied for Hornet. The lights hit as Hornet took to the stage. Vocalist/Frontman Joe Thompson said “Hello Soho, we are Hornet and we play rock ‘n’ roll” and the band quickly kicked into their first song “Down To The Bone” and what a fantastic riff this was with a dynamic verse climbing into an intense chorus of “Suck me dry, strip you bare, right down to the bone” all with sweet backing vocals to top it off. Things just got more exciting as Tollef Rikje-Pearson’s insane guitar solo kicked in with Joe Thompson, Max Thompson and Tollef Rikje-Pearson all coming together to the front of the stage and rocking in unison to the pounding drum beat, after the building guitar solo we heard a “Metallica” styled breakdown with Bassist, Max Thompson and Guitarist Tollef Rikje-Pearson aiming and firing their instruments like guns towards the crowd which made for an epic opener as these were certainly on target tonight.

Hornet rocked so hard that before their third song the band was asked to tell the crowd to calm down due to the rabid crowd going too wild. However this didn’t stop the crowd nor the band slowing down. The young lads ploughed through a couple more of their tracks (which were awesome) and then came the part which blew me away. I believe it was during a song called “Hunky Dorey” Frontman Joe Thompson put guitarist Tollef Rikje-Pearson on his shoulders and span him around whilst trawling through the rabid crowd; who at this point were screaming with excitement. After the climatic end to “Hunky Dorey” the band continued through the rest of their set. Whilst it was hot in the venue you could see the band sweating their nuts off with a pure passion to rock whilst there was a professional live video being recorded by Ignacio Crespo Valdez which I will be watching again to get my fix of Hornet before the March show.

Hornet played a new song “I’m Gonna Be The Man” which went down a storm and their loyal fanbase were clearly hungry for the new material! Sadly after 45 minutes the set came to an end and when Vocalist Joe Thompson said “We’ve got one more for ya, but we’re back next month, this is our last one it’s called rock ‘n’ roll riot” I just knew things we’re gonna go wild and boy did they, the crowd went into a wild frenzy which I have not seen at an upcoming band live show in years and one of the staff ran on stage and crowd surfed and was being thrown around the venue, it was chaos, I loved it!

After the end the band came to the front of the stage and bowed as the fans roared, cheered and begged for one more… did they play one more? Of course they did! The encore was “Bite Down” it was fast and people went mad one last time and all I can say is Hornet have it and were in full flight tonight! I don’t think it will be long until they’re touring major venues and record labels will be fighting to sign them.

Putting Hornet to one side, I must say all the bands tonight were absolutely bloody fantastic, and so was the venue and the bar staff, with an atmosphere that was just grand. It’s great to see a decent promoter pushing real hard working bands in London so hats off to you mate, whoever you are. I for sure will be back at The Intrepid Fox on Thursday 29th March for some more and I hope you will be!

Kory Clarke | The Trial

by Steve Beebee
Guest Staff Writer –

The most important thing to know about The Trial – this remarkable, squalling, sneering, despairing riot of art rock – is that this is the proto-Warrior Soul. The place, for Kory Clarke, that it all truly began.

By the time Warrior Soul started swinging blows of timely warning from the shadows of New York City, Kory had abandoned his drum kit and was standing up front – all hair, raised fists and metallic street poetry. Nothing has changed. Those that truly supported him then truly support him now. But how many of those people are aware of The Trial, the origins of Warrior Soul and an important band and album in its own right? Even the most ardent fan probably only knows of The Trial by name, and fewer still will have ever heard their music.

That time has now ended, with the release of this extraordinary and pivotal album, a release that quite incredibly hails from 1983, not merely years before the rise of grunge and alternative metal, but even pre-dating the Hollywood hair metal era that that scene usurped. If you wanted any further evidence of Kory’s artistry and forward thinking, here it is.

Confrontational and steeped in reverb, The Trial’s music stalks the dark underground channels between the first Warrior Soul album and classic Killing Joke. “Where do I fit in?” roars Kory in 9th Grade, the start of a quest that continues today. Songs like this, the fiery New Rock and the deliciously cynical Human Beings, fight the fight for the underdog and the disenfranchised, the self-proclaimed losers that don’t fit. Drenched in psychedelic, seething guitars – a sound familiar to those who freaked out to Warrior Soul’s Trippin On Ecstasy – the canvas is colored in dark hues. It is propelled by Kory’s exhausting rhythmic barrage and, of course, his voice – a voice that sounds like the last voice at the end of the last bit of everything. Last decade, dead century anyone?

It’s impossible to listen to this decades-delayed work and not picture the doubtless head-fucking spectacle of the band playing live. Kory at the back, singing and playing drums simultaneously (no small achievement in itself!) but projected to the audience on big screens at the front. Footage interspersed with disturbing images of corpses, of porn and American TV advertisements. This already was an artist seeking to challenge people’s preconceptions, to disturb, probe and ask questions. The wicked riffs and anti-establishmentarianism that pummels “Ruler” along is yet another sign of things to come. The skittering guitars and shout-out-loud hooks of “Skeleton Dance” follow suit.

Much has been written, not least of all by this writer, about how Kory Clarke and Warrior Soul were among the most important artists to emerge in metal’s turn-of-the-Nineties rebirth, and that by rights they should also have stood alongside its biggest selling. No feeling of injustice, however keenly felt, can ever re-write history but, satisfyingly, this early project confirms that we were right all the time. For Warrior Soul fans past and present, it’s time to stand Trial.

Track Listing:
Casper Hauser
Helicopter
Human Beings
Jailhouse
New Rock
Romans
Ruler
Skeleton Dance

Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10

[Steve Beebee is a journalist, author and broadcaster, best known for his work with Kerrang! magazine. Beebee is one of the magazine's longest serving writers.]

Queen | Days Of Our Lives

by Kathy Kindred
Staff Writer –

In January, Eagle Rock Entertainment/Eagle Vision released a two-part documentary, Queen: Days of Our Lives, which was produced by two lifelong Queen fans and collaborators, Simon Lupton and Rhys Thomas, and directed by Matt Casey. The legendary rock band asked Thomas and Lupton to do the almost impossible; condense four decades of Queen into a comprehensive, compelling historical documentary to celebrate the band’s 40th anniversary.

Days of Our Lives chronicles the collective lives of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor through 40 years of Queen – the good, the bad and the ugly. Part one of the documentary covers the beginning of Queen, when the four college students met in 1970, and continues up to 1980. Part two chronicles the band from 1980 to today. It is the most definitive Queen documentary to date and comprises much more than outtakes, scenes from the cutting room floor and never-before-seen or heard music and film footage.

It is obvious that Lupton and Thomas took great pains during the yearlong making of Days of Our Lives to ensure that Queen’s entire story was told in an honest, compelling and interesting manner. The band’s story is told by in-depth interviews with Brian May, Roger Taylor and Jim Beach, Freddie Mercury’s manager, archival footage, a never-before-seen television performance and Queen’s spine-tingling performances at Wembley Stadium. Perhaps the most compelling and inspiring part of the documentary focuses on Mercury during his HIV diagnosis, progression to AIDS and his final days. Mercury was musically driven and recorded solo tracks for songs that he knew he would never live to hear. It it particularly interesting how the last three albums were put together.

During his final days, Mercury told Beach, “Do anything you want with my music dear, but never make me boring!” Days of Our Lives is anything but boring and leaves viewers wanting more; more of Freddie Mercury’s Queen, the band that forever changed the landscape of rock and roll. For Queen fans, the 40th anniversary documentary is a must-have. In Days of Our Lives, Queen tells its story in the band member’s own words, and viewers will end up having a greater appreciation for Queen and perhaps listen to their music with a different perspective.

Genre: Rock

Band:
Freddie Mercury
Brian May
John Deacon
Roger Taylor

‘Queen: Days of our Lives’ Blu-Ray & Standard DVD content descriptions:
Documentary Part 1 – 59 mins.
Documentary Part 2 – 59 mins.

STANDARD DVD: 

Format: DVD-9
Standard: NTSC
Region Code: Playable in all Regions
Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo (documentaries) LPCM (Videos)
Selection #: EV304009
Catalogue #: 801213040094
MSRP: 14.98
Duration: 164 minutes

BLU-RAY : 
 

Format: Blu-Ray 50
Standard: (NTSC)
Region Code: Playable in all Regions
Audio: LPCM
Selection #: EVB334079
Catalogue #: 801213340798
MSRP: $19.98
Duration: 221 minutes

Product Details:
ADDITIONAL VIDEOS – Blu-Ray and Standard DVD (24 mins):

Seven Seas Of Rhye 2011: A compilation of all four Top Of The Pops and Rainbow Live performances from 1974 – all unseen

Killer Queen 2011: A compilation of two Top of The Pops performances, one the familiar 1974 Christmas Special, the other – discovered in the late British comedian Dick Emery’s private collection, hasn’t been seen since 1974, the original master tape wiped from the BBC archives.

Somebody To Love 2011: This is a new edit of the video using the four takes shot on the day, most of which has never before been seen.

We Are The Champions 2011: In 1977, cameras filmed Queen recording a new version of the song for the promo video. This video shows the band performing and mixing this unreleased version in two live takes. An instrumental version of this closed Part One of ‘Days of our Lives’. Here for the first time the video can be seen in its entirety.

Crazy Little Thing Called Love 2011: A new edit of the video compiled from the rushes including outtakes and unseen angles.

Under Pressure 2011: A new video intercutting Queen’s first live performance of the song in Montreal 81 and Queen + David Bowie at the Freddie Mercury Tribute.

Radio Ga Ga 2011: This new video includes unseen color footage from the 1984 Radio Ga Ga video shoot plus rushes and outtakes.

BONUS SEQUENCES – Blu-Ray (59 mins) / Standard DVD (21 mins only):

Queen: The Beginning: A detailed look at how Queen formed in 1971. Covering Smile, finding John Deacon, and the early struggles of the band.

Queen On Tour 1974-5: Featuring Queen at the Rainbow and unseen footage of the band touring Japan for the first time. Includes excerpts of ‘Now I’m Here’, ‘Killer Queen’ and ‘In The Lap Of The Gods’ live.

Bohemian Rhapsody: Brian reveals how John Deacon made a cut in ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ for the record company, only to be dismissed by Freddie: “Either it’s released in its entirety or not at all!.”

Working Together: The Band discuss their working relationship, including unheard archive of Queen having a ‘creative discussion!’

Leaving John Reid: An in-depth account of how the band left manager John Reid and set up Queen Productions – plus the revelation that Freddie was not sober during the making of ‘Spread Your Wings’/’We Will Rock You’ in Roger’s back garden.

Don’t Stop Me Now: Brian and Roger discuss ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ and the ‘Guitar Version’ discarded by Freddie.

Flash Gordon: A short sequence on the making of Queen’s first film soundtrack, ‘Flash Gordon’, plus an alternate promo video.

Making Videos: The band discuss the video making process, featuring lots of unseen outtakes.

Scrabble Wars: A hilarious sequence about Queen and their love of Scrabble. You will just have to watch!

From Magic to The Miracle: In the three years between A Kind Of Magic and The Miracle, the members of Queen went through some life changing experiences in their working and personal lives. This chapter sheds light on what went on behind closed doors.

Going Slightly Mad: The Making of Innuendo: In 1991 Queen hit the charts with a No.1 album and single, “Innuendo.” Creatively the band were reinvigorated, their material better than ever, but beneath the surface, they all had to face the fact that Freddie was seriously ill and time was running out.

Made In Heaven: Roger and Brian talk about the making of the last Queen album, Made In Heaven, working with Freddie in his final weeks, as well and working with the material he had recorded after he had passed away and the emotional distress it caused.

Return To Imperial: Brian returns to Imperial College and shows us around the college where he and Roger first met, formed Smile and ultimately Queen.

BONUS INTERVIEWS – Blu-Ray (19 mins). Not included on Standard DVD: The Bonus Interview section contains various interesting, funny and insightful footage that didn’t fit into any particular sequence but was too great to leave on the cutting room floor.

Official website: www.queenonline.com

Label: Eagle Rock Entertainment

Hardrock Haven rating: n/a

Doors | Mr. Mojo Risin’: The Story of L.A. Woman

by John Kindred
Staff Writer –

Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the release of L.A. Woman, the Doors and Eagle Rock Entertainment have released Mr. Mojo Risin’: The Story of L.A. Woman on Blu-ray and DVD. This documentary tells the story of the making of L.A. Woman through interviews with living band members; Manzarek, Krieger and Densmore. Interviews with original band manager Bill Siddons, engineer/co-producer Bruce Botnick, Elektra Records founder Jac Holzman and many other industry insiders lend a broader and balanced perspective to the recording sessions and events that were happening during this time period.

Featuring live and studio performances and rare footage of the band in high-definition video, fans are treated to a comprehensive snapshot of time within historical timeline of the Doors. Chronicling L.A. Woman from writing, recording and releasing the album up to the untimely demise of Jim Morrison, this perhaps is the most informative documentary of the band from a specific time period ever released. Most of the previous documentaries cover the entire history of the band and never provide as much detail as Mr. Mojo Risin’: The Story of L.A. Woman.

L.A. Woman, released in 1971, produced timeless music that is as relevant today as it was 40 years ago. Including the title track, “Riders of the Storm” and “Love Her Madly,” the album became the band’s second best-selling studio album and explored the band’s root influences, including R&B and Jazz. The album included additional support from guitarist Marc Benno and bassist Jerry Scheff, who beefed up the overall sound. The lyrics hinted at the departure of Morrison, and before the album was mixed, he left for Paris. The rest is rock ‘n’ roll history.

Along with the release of the Blu-ray and DVD, Rhino Records is releasing L.A. Woman (40th Anniversary Edition). This is a two-disc CD release that includes a newly discovered song “She Smells So Nice” and eight never-before-heard versions of songs from the album.

Band:
Jim Morrison
Ray Manzarek
John Densmore
Robby Krieger

DVD and Blu-ray Track Listing:
MAIN PROGRAM
Intro 

Early Doors


The Changeling


Been Down So Long
The Miami Effect


The Doors Workshop


Crawling King Snake


Love Her Madly


L.A. Woman


The Wasp (Texas Radio & The Big Beat)


Riders On The Storm


Cars
Hiss By My Window
Jim In Paris


Hyacinth House


Closing Doors

BONUS FOOTAGE –
John Densmore On L.A. Woman
Riders On The Storm

The Doors Guide To L.A.

Thoughts On Performing Live

Crawling King Snake
Blu-ray Disc Features:

Note: An Additional 35 mins of material previously unseen on TV
Previously unreleased track “She Smells So Nice” accompanied by newly created picture montage

Widescreen -
1.78
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 – English
DTS HD Master Audio – English
PCM Stereo – English
Subtitles – English, French, German, Spanish

Label: Eagle Rock Entertainment

Hardrock Haven rating: n/a

Iron Mask | Black as Death

by Nikiforos Skoumas
Staff Writer –

It is arguable that Belgian neo-classical metal band Iron Mask put out one of the best albums of the genre in early 2010 with the release of their third album Shadow of the Red Baron. At that time guitar hero and band leader Dushan Petrossi had been credited for saying that if the album’s commercial life-cycle was significantly impeded by illegal downloading, that would be the last of Iron Mask as a band.

Two years past that time, Iron Mask seem to have won that bet with Shadow of the Red Baron, resuming their activity with a new album Black as Death and a bigger label, being the German AFM Records. Still, it seems victory has its price and Iron Mask have suffered losses in their line up. Gone are drummer Erik Stout, keyboardist Andreas Lindhal and powerful vocalist Val Halla Jr.

Never the less, reinforcements were never far away; enter drummer Rami Ali (Frontline, Kiske-Somerville), renowned Swedish keyboardist Mats Olauson and on lead vocals, arguably the most iconic of all neoclassical singers, Mark Boals.

As your intuition probably tells you, Iron Mask have developed into something greater than the personal outfit of the Belgian guitar virtuoso; It’s a neo-classical metal force to be reckoned with, hence going no longer under the moniker ‘Dushan Petrossi’s Iron Mask’ (which served as the band’s full name up until the previous album), but plainly ‘Iron Mask.’

And it is all entirely justifiable since the changes in line up brought along changes in the musical style. Songwriting wise, the album is substantially heavier in terms of rhythm section and guitar riffs than anything Petrossi has attempted in the past (add to that the fact that Black as Death was produced by Denis Ward, and it all makes perfect sense).

Not only are we presented with a heavier album but with a thematically darker concept as well. From the majestic opening of the title track to its melodic yet sorrowful chorus (an epic composition that only Mark Boals can pull off so convincingly) one more-or-less gets the picture of what Black as Death is all about. That is not to say however that long term fans of the band are not going to find the characteristic neoclassical scales and vibrato-based vocal harmonies that have defined the band’s sound since their debut.

It is not a question of stronger songs over weaker tunes; simply tracks like “Broken Hero”, “God Punishes I Kill,” “Rebel Kid” and “The Absence” are expected to connect with the listener from their opening note, while “Black as Death” and “Feel the Fire” should require more plays for one to feel at home with all their musical twists and turns.

Believe it or not, with Black as Death, Iron Mask are actually pushing the creative boundaries of neoclassical metal in 2012 and that alone is a major accomplishment. One strongly feels that through Black as Death, Iron Mask offer something challenging but ultimately rewarding to the listener.

Genre: Neo-classical Metal, Melodic Metal

Line up:
Mark Boals – Vocals
Dushan Petrossi – Guitars
Vassili Moltchanov – Bass
Roma Siadletski – Vocals/Shouts
Mats Olausson – Keyboards
Ramy Ali – Drums

Track Listing:
01. From Light Into The Dark
02. Black As Death
03. Broken Hero
04. Feel The Fire
05. Genghis Khan
06. God Punishes, I Kill
07. Rebel Kid
08. Blizzard Of Doom
09. The Absence
10. Magic Sky Requiem
11. Nosferatu
12. When All Braves Fall

Band website: http://www.iron-mask.com/index.php

Label: AFM Records

Hardrock Haven rating: 9/10

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