THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Category: Vinyl Reviews (Page 6 of 492)

VAN HALEN – Fair Warning MoFi Original Master Recording

June 22, 2025 /

Well, I thought I would do this review straight after Women And Children First because it arrived the same day. Maybe I should just cut and paste the first VH MoFi review for all of them as I’m just in awe of these releases. I have loved them all from the first day of each of their relative release dates, and I think I know them pretty well, but the listening experience of these releases is stunning and I have the full goosebumps treatment.

This is a lot of people’s favourite VH album (mine too) and it’s also seen as the darkest lyrically and vibe wise. Mean Street reinforces the fact even more that’s it’s my favourite VH tune because the full menacing undertones assault my ears. Hear About It Later just sounds freaking amazing and the clarity is astounding. Again, I could pick anything as a favourite tune but today I’m going for the quirky outro duo of Sunday Afternoon In The Park and One Foot Out The Door, purely for the fact that Ed’s playing is just amazing and how we miss him so much.

You know the drill by now, everyone needs this in their life.

1,000/10 from The Grooveman.

VAN HALEN – Women And Children First MoFi Original Master Recording

June 19, 2025 /

So, here we are with the third Van Halen and the third MoFi Ultardisc One Step master recording. I convinced myself that after buying the first album that my curiosity was filled and I didn’t need to get the others, but here we are.

I have always thought that of the first six records, this one was the rawest and most similar to their live sound. I was very keen to hear how this sounded with the full treatment. Well, consider me mind blown again because it’s like listening to it for the first time. So crisp and clear, and the separation is just perfect. You don’t miss anything that was slightly buried in the mix as it’s all just perfect – especially the guitar tracks where both the rhythm and lead are very clear. Today, Romeo’s Delight is my favourite track, but I love it all.

Again, if you want splash to the cash and you’re a DLR era Van Halen fan, then this is must have.

1,000/10 from The Grooveman.

DREAM THEATER – Images And Words

June 17, 2025 /

I’m glad this album has come out again because it’s the only one I missed from the Music On Vinyl reissues. It’s a bonafide classic and the album that launched a whole movement.

With the opening track Pull Me Under and the accompanying video that went with it, the band just exploded and have never looked back. Bear in mind, that the song is 8:11 minutes long, so not the usual song length to capture your attention. Also, this was released in ‘92; prime time grunge and it still took off. Not all rock fans had jumped to the land of depression and some still wanted melody and killer playing in their lives. It was also the rebirth of the epic song with song times well above the 3 and 4 minutes. Learning To Live that closes out the album is 11:30 minutes and the birth of the Metropolis saga is 9:30 minutes.

Words can’t describe what this album did for me as it opened a whole new world and appreciation for a format I had left behind. Prog was back baby, but a lot more hard, heavy, and awesome. Take The Time is my favourite song here. It starts with a very heavy opening riff and groove, and goes through so many changes, vibes,  and grooves that I remember just bursting with joy when I heard it for the first time. That would be the DT blueprint right up until the present day as I wait with anticipation for their new release.

Absolute killer record and yes every home should have one.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

IRON SAVIOUR – Firestar

June 16, 2025 /

Fantasy power metal anyone?  Iron Saviour’s first album appeared in ‘97 and they have released fourteen albums so far, of which this is the latest. So, they are no slouches in releasing albums.

I’m not a fan of the 100 mph speed metal approach as I think there is not much room for manoeuvre and all the songs just blend into one. Now, Iron Saviour are guilty of that, like on Curse Of The Machinery and the title track, but they also know how important groove and swing is to heavy metal. On tracks In The Realm of Heavy Metal and Demise Of The Tyrant they have nailed it. Sure, it’s old school, but it kicks ass. The riffs and grooves are killer but also the hook and vocal melody are superb. My favourite track however is Through The Fires Of Hell. Great mid-tempo chugga that the head just bangs to. Also of note, Side 1 is loaded with all the good stuff and only Nothing Is Forever is the only belter on Side 2.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

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