THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: vinyl community (Page 256 of 493)

Q5 – Steal The Light

September 7, 2022 /

Other than making one of the finest hard rockin’ albums of the eighties, Q5 were mostly known for having the inventor of the locking tremolo system in their ranks, namely one Floyd Rose. There was one other album after this, When The Mirror Cracked, which didn’t reach the heights of this monster. Then due to fighting within the band, they were done, but they leave behind one of the finest albums of the period.

The album kicks off with the heavy, Missing In Action, with its fast paced groove and great riff and solo. Lonely Lady is a lot more melodic with the hook and chorus, but the riff and groove is very Maiden with it’s gallop. The title track is up next and starts with some spacey guitar, before we settle into that slow chugga riff. I love the hook and chorus on this one! The close out track on Side 1, Pull The Trigger, is my favourite on the album. It’s full of big riffs, and with the anthemic vocal, it’s a nailed on winner.

Side 2 kicks in with the very AC/DC style riff of Ain’t No Way To Treat A Lady. A great fun tune that should have you up and groovin’. In The Night feels a bit Sabbath with the start up riff and is quite a slow paced tune. Come And Gone is corny ballad city, and other than the solo, it’s meh. Rock On has a very dirty sleazy riff and groove. Then the album closes out with Teenage Runaway, and it’s another fun AC/DC style romp. It’s a shame they never made it of the starting gate, as they were a decent band.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

PANTERA – I Am The Night

September 6, 2022 /

I wish the surviving estates of Dime and Vinnie would get together and get these four early albums to come out as remasters, and stop the endless bootlegging of these titles. The market is definitely there for them. I love these early albums as it shows the influences they had, and man they could play anything. This was the last album to feature Terry Glaze on vocals before Phil would sing in Power Metal.

Hot And Heavy is just wild and Dime’s playing is incredible – see if you can spot the Van Halen riff he throws in. I Am The Night is pure Judas Priest, and we know how much the brothers loved them. Killer descending riff from Dime and pounding kicks from Vinnie. Onwards We Rock is next up and has a super cheesy lyric, but Dime is the saviour with an amazing solo. D.G.T.T.M is a Dime showcase instrumental. Side 1 comes to an end with my favourite track, Daughters Of The Queen. It’s all about the riff and Dime’s guitar sound. Quite a simple song but that guitar sound!!!

Down Below opens up Side 2 and it’s pedal to metal double kicks all the way. Oh and lots of Dime! Come On Eyes is not that great lyrically but who cares when Dime is just ripping it up. Right On The Edge has a huge pounding beat with Dime riffing Priest style. Valhalla has a killer riff with double kicks all the way but the vocals are a bit weak on this track. There is a Primal Concrete Sledge feel to the middle section. The album closes out with Forever Tonight. I guess this is as close as Pantera gets to a ballad, but which Ozzy track does it remind you of? I do love these early albums, I’m biased in that way, but they are a fun listen and Dime was such a great player.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

DEEP PURPLE – Made In Europe

September 6, 2022 /

When a band gets huge success with an album, and I’m talking Made In Japan here, some hack at the record company will have the bright idea of trying to replicate it. Made In Japan is probably the greatest live album of all time, and to try and equal that is not realistic. Now of course we have a different front man in David Coverdale which, if we’re honest, was not even the best vocalist in the band as we all know Glenn Hughes’ voice is just phenomenal.

The opening track is Burn and in my opinion it is the best track from this live set, and Blackmore is at his supreme best, in this recording anyway. Mistreated was always a bit of a showstopper with the emphasis being on both guitar and vocals. I’m not sure we’ll ever hear Ritchie play like this again. Lady Double Dealer is a standard Purple rocker, and both Blackmore and Jon Lord have their little showpiece. You’ll Fool No One is all about Jon Lord and boy do we miss that sound. Of course Blackmore gets to riff it up and take over the song completely. The set closes out with Stormbringer and it’s a fairly straight forward take on the best song on that album. So it is a short live album from a once great band, and no it’s not as good as Made In Japan.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

BLACK MOUNTAIN – IV

September 5, 2022 /

Now I’ll admit to avoiding anything that has psych in its description, but I would argue this has a much deeper stoner groove. This screams early Sabbath in places, and it’s only when the trippy vocals kick in that you get that post rock vibe.

Love the opening track Mothers Of The Son. The serene vocals of Amber Webber mixed with that heavy guitar just hits the spot. Florian Saucer Attack on the other hand has that annoying tinny indie sound that just doesn’t do it for me. Defector has a very early seventies Prog vibe to its proceedings, mainly due to the melotron at the intro. You Can Dream just has that repeating huge guitar with Siouxsie vibes a plenty. Constellations has that big post rock vibe going on and I would say this is my favourite track. Line Them All Up has the biggest psych sound on the album and is very late sixties in feel. Cemetery Breeding is early nineties Pulp. Over And Over has a Saucerful Of Secrets vibe all the way through it. Crucify Me is a beautiful acoustic piece that could have been born in Laurel Canyon. The Pink Floyd vibes are strong with the close out track, Space To Bakersfield. Not a bad album and it’s one that I would call a mood album.

7/10 from The Grooveman.

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