ALBUM REVIEW: Mr. Big – Ten


When bands make the grand announcement that their next album is to be their last this usually means one of two things. It won’t actually be their final record at all, or the end product will probably ending up being some lacklustre, contractual obligation full of second-hand riffs that never made it onto previous records. Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Fu Manchu – The Return of Tomorrow


Fu Manchu formed in 1985 as Hardcore-Punk outfit Virulence whose sole release  1988’s If This Isn’t A Dream… has been reissued by Southern Lord. After this came a name and musical style change reminiscent of Corrosion of Conformity who undertook a similar evolution themselves. Continue reading


Prong Share a Single and Video for Their Cover of Rush Classic “Working Man”



NYC metal greats, Prong, have just shared a video for their version of the Rush classic “Working Man (Regular Version).” A shorter version of the track appears on their latest album State of Emergency, which was released on Steamhammer/SPV in October of 2023. Read our recent tour coverage from the band and their tour with Voivod! Head into the article below to watch the new video and read more from Prong.
Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Zombi – Direct Inject


Great music, like great movies, can take you to another world. Instrumental synth-based duo Zombi work their transporting, soundtrack-oriented magic on the sublime, cinema-literate Direct Inject (Relapse Records).Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Today Was Yesterday – Today Was Yesterday


The expert, intricate and intriguing Today Was Yesterday (Music Theories Recordings/Mascot Label Group) finds the eponymous duo spreading their wings, unboxing various goodies and displaying many talents, in cahoots with guitar greats Alex (Rush) Lifeson, guesting on six of the 10 tracks, and Robby (The Doors) Krieger, on another.Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Transit Method – Othervoid


Music that’s right here, right now, with echoes of glories past. A dream of an album that takes off fast, edgy, in a punky rush, sounding like … a punky Rush

Continue reading


Neil Peart, Iconic Drummer of Rush, Died Four Years Ago


Neil Peart, arguably the best and most respected Rock drummer in the world with the band Rush, has died on this day in 2020 from a brain tumor. He was just 67. The news was shocking at the time since Peart was private about his illness and even died a few days before it was originally reported by the Canadian Broadcasting Company, the official news source of Canada. His death was confirmed by Meg Symsyk, a media spokesperson for the infamous progressive rock trio comprising Peart, Geddy Lee, and Alex Lifeson.  Nicknamed “The Professor” Peart was not only known as a virtuoso drummer and co-author of some of the greatest albums of all time with Rush, but he was also the bands’ primarily lyricist over most of his career with them, driving the concepts for their many layered releases. He was also a celebrated teacher, author, and mentor and inspiration to many. Among the countless tribute articles, covers, concerts, tours and posts, Read our tribute from our own scribe emeritus, Mat Davies, he himself passing a few years after penning this Also, jam some Rush today.. Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Prong – State of Emergency


 

Tommy Victor is an unsung hero of Rock. The Prong frontman (and the band’s only constant) has been putting out great records under the Prong banner since 1989’s Force Fed. Between then and the band’s latest — thirteenth studio album State of Emergency (Steamhammer / SPV) — there’s been a brief flirtation with commercial success in the early-mid nineties, an extended hiatus before and after the band’s unfairly-maligned Scorpio Rising album from 2003, and a steady stream of quality material over recent years.

Continue reading


FESTIVAL REVIEW: Bloodstock Festival 2023 – Part 1


 

A lot has changed in the twenty years since my first Bloodstock. What began as a relatively small indoor gathering in the middle of Derby city centre now welcomes around fifteen thousand metal fans from around the world annually. From two days, two halls, a signing room, and a “Metal Market” to four days, four stages, a signing tent, art gallery, gaming zone, and curiosities such as Viking battles and even early morning Heavy Metal Aerobics sessions, the changes to Bloodstock have been gradual but necessary.

Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Voivod – Morgöth Tales 


 

Although hard rock and heavy metal existed in Canada before the emergence of Jonquière genre dodgers Voivod, the loudest expulsions of northerly rage still generally belonged to disgruntled ice hockey fans and angry moose. While prog legends Rush had already made a name for themselves and acts like Exciter and Anvil were slowly gaining the attention of metal fans across the world, Voivod were about to take Canadian noise to an entirely new level.

Continue reading