THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: blog music (Page 6 of 40)

ROBERT PLANT – The Principle Of Moments

May 26, 2022 /

This was old Percy’s second solo outing after leaving the behemoth that was Led Zeppelin. This album gave him his biggest solo hit with Big Log, which has that haunting old blues riff with the chorus effect, along and Robert’s superb vocal. It’s quite a simple song but so effective. The rest of the album is Robert trying his hardest to be as far away as possible from Zeppelin.

Messin’ With The Mekon flirts between reggae and 80’s synth pop, Wreckless Love is very Talking Heads as they were becoming flavour of the month at this time, Thru With The Two Step dipped its toe into the blues with a superb solo from Robbie Blunt.

Big Log is such an obvious choice as favourite track because it’s the best track on the album. All credit to him for keeping as far away from the obvious, and he has made some good albums as a solo artist.

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

STILLWATER – s/t

May 25, 2022 /

Hailing from Macon, Georgia, which is the same area and musical vibes as the Allmans, and sounding not unlike Lynyrd Skynyrd, you get a picture of what these guys sound like. Add Molly Hatchet in the mix, and Stillwater are a love child of all three.

I first heard of this band when they appeared on the Old Grey Whistle Test, and any band that has three guitars in their line up gets my attention. Stand out track is Sam’s Jam, which I guess you could say is their Freebird as it’s guitar all the way where all three trade licks. I bought this when it came out back in ’77 and it’s still a fun listen. They made one more album then they called it a day.  

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

CIRCLES – Infinitas

May 25, 2022 /

Tech/Prog/Djent metaller’s from the land down under. This is the band’s first album released back in 2013 on British label, Basick Records. They used to be a killer label for all things awesome, djenty, and groove metal, but has since faded from view somewhat.

This is one hell of a record! Man, this grooves hard with some killer low end groove-age. The vocals are a mix of clean, very melodic, and growl screams. That doesn’t bother me a whole bunch when the they mix it up. The track, As It Is Above, and it’s companion piece, So It Is Below, is one of my favourite djent tracks by any of the band’s who go down that path. This is a monster track with superb grooves, beats, and deep monster riff-age. Add to that killer vocals and harmonies, and this is one of the best modern metal tracks that you won’t have heard of.

Even when things are more melodic in nature, on tracks like Another Me, which has superb vocals – the riffs and grooves are just insane. I know this is the norm now in this genre, but ten years ago this was from another world. Another track that blows my brain cells over my morning wheaties is close out track, Verum Infiniti. A superb lesson in how to use strange grooves and beats mixed with max heavy tune-age.

A killer band that deserve your support. I think this is still available through the band themselves, and it’s a must have for any metal fan who wants to expand their mind.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

THE CULT – Hidden City

May 24, 2022 /

This is a reissue of the band’s 2016 release produced by Bob Rock.

When you first listen to the album it’s sounds quite restrained and laid back compared to previous efforts. The production is crystal clear and Mr. Rock has really given the album a stripped back sound. This band has always been about the interplay between Astbury’s raw rock god vocals and Duffy’s raw boogie riffs, and this album is no different. Heathens is classic Cult, with the bravado vocals and simple riffage. This is what I love about the band and the opening track Dark Energy follows the same path. Sound And Fury and Lillies are a lot more fragile and simple pieces where Astbury’s vocals really hit home. There are even nods to way back when with Birds Of Paradise that have a really indie goth feel to them. They don’t make bad records and while this isn’t classic Cult it’s the band trying something a little different that really works.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

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