THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Day: November 16, 2023

HOUSE OF LORDS – Indestructible

November 16, 2023 /

This is album number seven for House of Lords, since their comeback in 2004. It goes like most of their modern releases: huge, fat, crunchy guitar, lots of keys, and plenty of melody in the choruses. Jimi Bell is the secret weapon here as he can throw out some serious heavy riffs seemingly at will, with the added bonus of being a top drawer shredder.

Killer opening with Go To Hell. It’s got maximum riffage and groove, with a kickass hook and chorus. The title track is up next and this may be my favourite. A nice chugga riff with a great swing to the groove, and I really love the hook and chorus. Third track in and it’s power ballad number one with Pillar Of Salt. The solo is killer though. Maximum riffing and groove returns at 100mph and it’s not a cover of the Vardis tune. I love this one! Call My Bluff closes out Side 1 and it’s an AOR fans wet dream. Lots of keys, and plenty of melody.

We Will Always Be One opens up Side 2 with a whimper as it’s ballad time again. Superb eerie intro to Die To Tell, which gives way to a huge rifforama with a superb melody over the top. Great tune! Another Dream follows and if this was 1984 I would release this as a single. Everything about this song oozes class. Eye Of The Storm is up next and this is the song that I like the least. It feels like a demo compared to the rest. Ain’t Suicidal verges on Prog metal territory in the verse with a great four to the floor groove. The album closes out with Stand And Deliver, and we are going out with a bang. It has a great uptempo driving riff and groove.

Another solid release that they seem to do with ease.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

LIONHEART – Hot Tonight

November 16, 2023 /

These guys, (according to the press) were supposed to be somewhat of a NWOBHM supergroup. This is because Dennis Stratton, after his departure from Maiden and Jess Cox, after his removal from the Tygers Of Pan Tang came together to form the band. They put the band together around ’81, but it was not until ’84 that this album (their debut album) final surfaced. By this time Cox had gone and was replaced by Chad Brown. Stratton was still there on guitar, Steve Mann was guitar and keys, Rocky Newton on bass, and for this album only Bob Jenkins on the pots and pans.

By now the sound was more akin to aor/melodic rock. A top notch producer in Kevin Beamish was brought in and outside writers were used to try and find the elusive hit single. Die For Love was the track that maybe should have cracked the charts, but I’m not sure if it was released as a single. The emphasis on the whole album is on the big hook and chorus, with a melody you can sing to. My two favourite tunes are Hot Tonight and Dangerous Game. Both have the twin guitars in the mix and you can’t fail to sing along to either.

The band should have been aimed more at the American market, because melody was king at this point. A definite forgotten gem.

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

QUEENSRYCHE – Rage For Order

November 16, 2023 /

This is the follow up to the very metal album: The Warning. It was the birth of what would later be coined progressive metal. A lot of reviews were less than favourable. Some said that the band had sold out, and even called them a glam metal band. Whoever wrote that review had never listened to the album and chose to review the record by just looking at the band’s pictures on the cover. Which admittedly, were a tad glam but that was record company stupidity.

I’m not a lover of Operation Mindcrime. This is a better album, as the songs gel a lot more and it feels  as though I’m listening to a BAND. If you want to know where Dream Theater took a lot of influence from check out The Whisper and tell me how many DT songs that reminds you of.

The best tune on the record is Screaming In Digital. The band are pushing boundaries on this tune and it is as far removed from The Warning as you can get. Tate’s voice is incredible and I love the arrangement. The only gripe is that the production is so quiet and you have to really crank it to hear it fully.

An album that gave birth to a genre.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

AC/DC – Highway To Hell

November 16, 2023 /

This is my second favourite AC/DC album, right behind Powerage. This is the first album recorded with Mutt Lange, who laid down the blueprint for what came next. Everything about this album is top drawer, from the songs, the performance, and the production…everything! This was the band’s seventh album and they had been knocking on the door for a few albums before it, but this was the one that smashed everything wide open.

Angus and Malcolm were on fire at this point. They made killer riff, after killer riff and every song you just wanted to bang your head to. I remember when Shot Down In Flames came out as a single and they were everywhere on TV, you felt like that they had finally broke through. These were great times indeed, and when the news came through of Bon’s death it was devastating.

There are so many good songs to choose as a favourite, but the record company definitely got it right with Shot Down In Flames as the single. That is everything the band were great at: killer riff, awesome groove, and a superb hook and chorus. That’s what great producers do, highlight what defines a band.

Superb record!

10/10 from The Grooveman.

Archives

© 2025 THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑