THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Month: September 2023 (Page 3 of 11)

BLACK SABBATH – Heaven And Hell

September 26, 2023 /

It’s interesting listening to opinions of this album. Some people think it’s the best album Sabbath put out, others think it should have been called something else as the sound changed so much and was not Sabbath-like at all. Well, for sure Ronnie was the band’s saviour as after Ozzie had left and the tour leading up to that, the band were a mess. As for me… I just think it’s one hell of a piece of music and a statement to Ozzie and Sharon.

One of the best openings you will hear to a record with Neon Nights. Killer riff from Tony and that pounding groove from Geezer and Bill is awesome. The cherry on the top is Ronnie with those fantasy lyrics he was so good at. This is a 2021 remaster I am playing and it sounds really good and Geezer’s bass is really cutting through in the mix. It’s really hard to get past Neon Nights as a favourite tune but I really like Heaven And Hell as that was old school Sabbath riifage with Ronnie weaving his magic over the top, and basically a big FU to all the fans that said it would not work. There is a second disc with this reissue that contains a couple of B sides and five tracks form a live gig in the USA in 1980, which are pretty stellar.

Yeah, it’s a classic but not perfect.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

ANTHRAX – Stomp 442

September 26, 2023 /

Album number seven for one of thrash metal’s best bands. This is their second album with John Bush on vocals, and it was the first album without Dan Spitz. Also, they left/dropped the label after this claiming they gave them no support as the sales weren’t great. Maybe a lot of fans preferred the Joey fronted version?

This may be my favourite Bush era album as the groove that the “Frax” put into most of their early tunes was back on this record. Yep, it sounds raw but that’s what this version was all about. Random Acts Of Senseless Violence is a monster opening tune putting those cards clearly on the table. Couple that with the single Fueled and that’s one hell of an opening.

My favourite track is Riding Shotgun. Killer opening from Paul Crook on guitar who wasn’t credited on the cover, and that bass groove is awesome. Scott Ian was still obsessed about the whole hardcore thing and the tracks Nothing and American Pompeii reflect that, somewhat. It’s amazing that with all the anger and rage in the music on this album that a track as fragile as Bare can be on the same album.

Decent enough record.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

DREAM POLICE – Messing With The Blues

September 25, 2023 /

I’m not sure many people outside of Norway have heard of this band, which is such a shame as this is a very good record. You may have heard of the guitar player however, who is none other than Trond Holter who plays with the mighty Wig Wam and Baby Snakes, amongst others.

This album came out in ’91 and was the band’s second release, when the US had basically given up on melodic rock and melody in general. Luckily Scandinavia had not!

Look For A Lover opens up the album and man we are on a roll straight away, great groove and riff and plenty of Trond. Bad Bad Bad is next and it’s my favourite song. Such a killer tune with a massive hook and chorus, and boy does this tune swing. It’s ballad time next with Its Only Love. Great solo! Communication follows and the Extreme-style funk is on the menu. Great riff and groove, and they sure know to to write a tune. The hook and chorus are huge. Great intro to Don’t Let Go, and you will be singing the chorus for days. Brand New Car closes out Side 1 with some dirty blues.

Down On Your Luck kicks off Side 2 with some yeehaw slide geetar and man what a great hook and chorus. Superb! Some sleazy barroom jazz next with So Damned Lonely. Such a different groove but it works so well. In The Monkey Hour has that Extreme groove and vibe again. The main verse is sooo cool in this one. Woke Up This Morning is sure living up to the title of the album. Harmonica intro before the heavy blues riff kicks in. We close out the album with No More Lies, an acoustic country blues tune maybe not be the best way to close out a killer melodic rock record.

Great band and this (a part from the last track) is a great follow up to their first album.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

TOBRUK – Wild On The Run

September 25, 2023 /

The band were formed in ’81 and they released their first single on Neat Records in ’83, and it wasn’t until ’85 that this album appeared. I think with their association with Neat they were classed as NWOBHM, but in reality they were closer to Bon Jovi.

This is a very melodic album and for all the hard work they put in with touring they only had moderate success and splintered apart after their second album. If I’m honest, they were really unlucky. The songs are really strong especially the title track and Falling, which I remember did quite well in the UK and was played a lot on the radio, and the Lance Quinn production is perfect. My favourite track is Running From The Night, a great up tempo rocker which has American radio written all over it. A close runner for favourite is Rebound. A killer riff and groove and I love the guitar sound. I know you may think I’m smoking something when I mentioned Bon Jovi, but you should check out the close out tune Going Down For The Third Time. It’s very reminiscent of Jon and the boys early efforts.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

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