THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: vinyl of the day (Page 51 of 450)

STRATOVARIOUS – Eternal

April 2, 2024 /

This is album number fifteen for Finland’s finest exponents of speed metal, and was released in 2015. While I do like the band and what they have achieved, this album (well, the production) has me scratching my head somewhat. The vocals are there but they feel almost buried at times. There are numerous sections that have the gang vocal, maybe they were trying to hide Timo’s vocal problems. Add to that, the whole mix is muddy at times.

It’s a very one paced album and that is full on gallop mode. Now, I don’t mind a good gallop but a little variation would be good and a look back to the past might be the way forward. It sounds as though I’m being a Debbie Downer and that’s a tad unfair because this is still a good record, and it’s still a Strato record and when they are having an off day it’s still better than most bands in the genre. So, it’s no surprise that I’m going for a non-gallop tune as my favourite. Lost Without A Trace is a mix between melodic rock and Prog metal and has great dynamics with a killer solo.

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

V2 – Out To Launch

April 2, 2024 /

This little beast of an album by these German hard rockers that was released in 1990 might have just passed you by. That’s because this type of music was about as popular as a fart in a space suit at the time, and everyone’s attention was elsewhere.

The production is top notch. It features a very huge guitar sound and the vocals are high in the mix. It’s cliche time with “if this was released five or six years earlier,” they could have been huge. This is a fun rockin’ record as it ticks all the boxes in the crowd pleasing section. Big fat riff? Check. Massive guitar sound? Check. Huge singalong chorus? Check. A groove to make you bang that head? Check. It’s all here, just a tad too late.

I think the track that sums this band up is opener Hungry For You. It’s just a basic hard rockin’ song that just puts a smile on your face. They can turn up the speed when necessary, as Knock Me Out can attest to. It rips along at a fair pace a la fellow Germans, Accept. My favourite tune however, is Take Me Home. Another simple but effective groover that has 80’s rock night party time written all over it.

I love this album just for the fun it brings me.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

D’LUNA – Monster

March 25, 2024 /

Yet another album featuring the hardest working man in show biz… Mr. Jeff Scott Soto.

I think this album existed but not in this form before escape picked it up and hyphenated the name and all the major players were added. Escape Music are beefing up the hard rocking element to the label as of late, and this is another quality addition to the label.

D’Luna are the baby of guitarist Dave Deluna who comes from the groove metal capital of Texas. Whoever’s idea it was to get Jeff on board deserves a medal, because this type of groovin’ hard rock/metal is Jeff’s forte. I love the heavy drop tune guitar riffage and Mr. Deluna is one hell of a player.

The band have a unique sound and the guest vocal of Doug Pinnick joining Jeff on the ripping title and opening track, Monster, is inspired. The whole album is a heavier version of KingsX. The first five Kings X albums are must haves in anyone’s collection, so it’s great to hear a band coming out with some fresh heavy sounds along those lines.

If you read a lot of my reviews then you will know that I’m a sucker for huge heavy guitars, and this has them all over, but not at the expense of destroying the melody and groove. Every song is a just so good. Monster is a killer way to open the album as that heavy riff just grabs you by the throat and Jeff and Doug’s vocals are superb. Zombie is very similar, that heavy guitar is just wonderful and I adore the harmonies.

My favourite track is Believe In Me. A much slower, eerie, moody piece that has the goosebumps standing to attention. It’s got a killer vibe and is different to anything else on the album. You even get a hint of funk with the very groovy 123. I love it when a band mixes up the groove and vibe, making this sound so fresh. A close second for favourite tune is Blink Of An Eye, it’s got a huge, deep, heavy riff and that groove just swings beautifully.

We are only just into March and we have a contender for album of the year.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

OVERKILL – Scorched

March 25, 2024 /

Welcome to album number twenty from Overkill. With them consistently putting out quality records, Overkill should be up there with Metallica and Anthrax as pioneers of the genre. They are still delivering great thrash records, and this album testifies to that. In fact, this is up there with the best albums they have done.

The opener and title track just melts your face. It’s full of crunch, dynamics, and a cool groove change with an epic solo, it’s as though 40 years just disappeared. This is how it goes for the whole record. Man, these guys are on fire it’s tough to pick a favourite track but I will go for Twist Of The Wick which is a full on epic thrash monster that Metallica could not conjure up today. If someone came up to me today and said what is Thrash, I would put that track on. It’s an absolute belter with lots of time changes to give the old neck a rest.

Well done Overkill, a nailed on 10/10 from the Grooveman.

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