Eight years into his tenure with the band, and the Mark Tornillo era of Accept is showing no signs of slowing down. Standing toe-to-toe with the definitive Udo Dirkschneider period, the band might not have topped the likes of Balls to the Wall, Metal Heart or Restless and Wild (all Portrait), but they’re certainly giving them a run for their money.Continue reading
It’s got to be natural for music fans across the board to broach the subject of supergroups with a healthy sense of trepidation. Does this musical meeting of the minds come from a place of altruism or are there nastier motivations that have yet to be dredged out? That’s what circled through my head for about 30 seconds before I started out Dead Cross’ self-titled debut album (Ipecac).Continue reading
While he’s been largely silent over the years, it’s hard to argue with the either quality or the diversity of Rex Brown‘s output. From Pantera’s transition from glam to thrash to pure groove, to the swampy sludge of Down and Crowbar, to borderline country music with Rebel Meets Rebel, the bassist has done it all.Continue reading
After a gap of six years, legendary shock rocker Alice Cooper is back once again to give today’s youngsters a gentle, but purposeful reminder of how it’s done. At the age of 69, just a few months shy of joining the ranks of the septuagenarians, Alice is clearly in no mood to relax Continue reading
There is definitely something in the air, or maybe even in the water, this year as many bands across all sub genres of rock and metal are changing their sounds and perspectives. One such band is Australian Deathcore outfit Make Them Suffer on their new record Worlds Apart (Rise).Continue reading
The notion of a band being a brotherhood opposed to just a collective is of course a common one, but it is one that especially rings true when it comes to young Metalcore outfit Oceans Ate Alaska. In interview cycles and the like, their tale was that of a group of school friends since a very young age, before coming together and making strong ripples with their brand of Prog-tinged Metalcore on their début Lost Isles (Fearless).Continue reading
Like Gov’t Mule’s latest album, Shaman’s Harvest new record Red Hands Black Deeds (Mascot) was worked on during the American presidential campaign of 2016 – as such there are underlying socio-political themes coursing through the record. On this, their sixth album, the Missouri rockers have taken a vintage, more organic approach to their Shinedown-esque Hard Rock resulting in a fresher, more attention grabbing sound.Continue reading
There used to be a time when side projects and “super-groups” were a big no-no in Metal. You had your band, you knew your place, and that’s where you stayed or else. Nowadays of course, you can’t walk down to the shops without another twenty bands trading members and forming new acts in the time it takes to buy a pint of milk and a cucumber sandwich.Continue reading
For a band that’s been around longer than I’ve been uselessly kicking around this earth, Prong still has plenty of juice. I enjoyed both Songs from the Black Hole and X – No Absolutes (both SPV/Steamhammer) just fine, but the vibe is different on album twelve(!), Zero Days (Steamhammer). Seems like Tommy Victor has been busy putting together a late career resurgence, not unlike the lads in Machine Head.Continue reading
Do you like loud sounds and overwhelming consistency? Great, then keep reading. Less Art is a group of musicians consisting of members of Thrice, Kowloon Walled City, and Curl Up And Die. They’ve got Mike Minnick on vocals, John Howell and Ed Breckinridge jamming away on guitar, Riley Breckenridge on the drums and Ian Miller slappin’ the bass.Continue reading