THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: vinyl community (Page 71 of 472)

BARREN CROSS – Atomic Arena

April 7, 2024 /

Back in the day if you were tagged as a Christian rock band then it was a near certainty that your chances of making it in the mainstream were zero. There was a huge stigma attached to these bands which meant that rock fans were missing out on some good bands. Of course, the exception was Stryper who managed to make a go of it.

Barren Cross were operating in a slightly heavier plane, with a more metal sound. In fact, vocalist Mike Lee is a ringer (vocal-wise) for Bruce Dickinson and that should give you an idea of the sound of this album.

Killers Of The Unborn is a great tune with lots of metal riffage, and a definite nod in Maiden’s direction, as well as the following tune In The Eye Of Fire, complete with galloping riff and groove. My favourite track however, is album closer Living Dead. Another galloping riff with huge Maiden overtones, and it’s hard not to imagine Bruce is actually singing this one.

For lovers of mid-eighties metal, this one is definitely for you. Don’t be put off with the Christian tag as this is a damn fine record.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

TEMIC – Terror Management Theory

April 4, 2024 /

A big thanks and thumbs up to Rob (@vinyl_ragazzo) for putting me onto this one. This is one hell of an album, full of twists and turns, dynamic ups and downs, and most of all, killer guitar and melody.

The technical prog metal genre is a packed playing field, that often has overly way too much technique and lacking in the melody department. This record is not one of those. Temic are a cool band that I don’t know too much about, other than Eric Gillette who is a great guitar player. And, if you are familiar with Neal Morse, then you will know all about Eric. I’m now a fan of Frederick Bergersen whose vocals are a joy to the ears. My only gripe with the whole package is the dreaded etched side, even though this one is visible with a black etching.

Favourite tune? Well, that’s a difficult one as this is a killer record. But, for today I will go with Count Your Losses. It has huge, low down, fat riifage and heavy grooves to match with added beauty and melody through Frederick’s vocals and atmospheric keys. Skeletons also blows my mind just as much as Acts of Violence does with its ripping solo.

I hope this isn’t a one off because they create such great music together and it has been in heavy rotation upon its arrival. A definite must have.

9.5/10 from The Grooveman.

NASTY IDOLS – Cruel Intention

April 4, 2024 /

Album number two of six for these Swedish glamsters. They initially called it quits in ’95 but reappeared in 2006 and have released three albums since then. I don’t think there will be more though because vocalist Andy Pierce died in 2013.

It’s got a bit more balls and crunch than Faster Pussycat, who Andy Pierce reminds me of. The album is filled with a lot of crunchy riffs and melody in the songs, and there is more variety in the material, ranging from blues to borderline metal and in Pete Espinoza they possess one killer guitar player.

Songs that should rock you are the excellent opening tune The Way Ya Walk with its killer riff, Cool Way Of Living with a more sleazy vibe, my personal favourite Alive N’ Kickin a great uptempo monster with a killer riff and groove, and running for a close second is Side 2 opener House Of Rock N’ Roll. When it’s done well like this, then I quite like the whole sleaze/glam vibe.

A totally fun record that should be played very loud on your way to the next gig.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

T&N – Slave To The Empire

April 4, 2024 /

Yet another one off project from George, this time with three quarters of Dokken with him along from the ride, as well as Mick Brown and Brian Tichy drumming on some tracks.

This album first came out in 2012 and this is a reissue. If you want to know what Dokken would sound like without Don on vocals then maybe you should give this a spin. Jeff Pilson sings on the majority of tunes but there are some guests like Doug Pinnick, Sebastian Bach, Robert Mason, and Ripper Owens to give weight to the project.

Dug lends his golden tones to a cover of Tooth And Nail, and I have to say that the original takes it for me as this is a more supercharged version whereas the original is ingrained in my brain, but it’s still a killer rendition. In fact, there are a lot of Dokken covers mixed in with some originals. One of my favourite Dokken tunes is Its Not Love and this version is more raw and less polished with Robert Mason on the vox, and I really like it.

Also, a big thumbs up goes to Into The Fire. Another great song and sounds awesome with Jeff singing, that raw feel suits this song. Of the original tracks, Rhythm Of The Soul ticks all the boxes. Killer groove and vibe, and Jeff shows here what a great vocalist he is. Award for the best guest vocalist goes to Seb Bach for Alone Again. He has great control and delivery. This is obviously a big FU to Don as he was probably on one of his “ I wrote all the tunes in Dokken” rants.

A cool record and a fun listen.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

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