For very special bonus bonus chaser, we are unboxing and reviewing the much discussed new Black Sabbath boxed set “Anno Domini” featuring the dulcet tones of Tony Martin! We are joined by our special guest Jamey Morris of Fistful of Doom Podcast and The Ripple Effect blog!Continue reading
While it’s certainly true that singer Tony Martin‘s time with Birmingham metal pioneers Black Sabbath is not exactly the most revered era in the band’s storied history, it’s also a little unfair to judge that period too harshly. Given the daunting, if not impossible job of following in the footsteps of Ozzy Osbourne, Ronnie James Dio, and even Ian Gillan, Martin also happened to enter the fold when the band were on somewhat of a downward turn. Continue reading
The 6th annual Cliff Burton Day, celebrating the late Metallica legend and Rock Hall of Famer Cliff Burton, as officially declared by Cliff’s hometown of Castro Valley and the greater Alameda County, was held on February 10th, 2023. It would have been Cliff’s 61st birthday. Continuing with tradition, host Nicholas Gomez hosted and spoke with Cliff’s family and friends, about their personal memories and cherished time with Cliff. Interviews include Connie Burton, Lou Martin, Flemming Rasmussen of Sweet Silence Studios, Mike Overton of Trauma, John Gallagher of Raven, Deen Dell of Vio-Lence, Brian Lew and Harald Oimoen from the movie/ book Murder in the Front Row, Photographer Gene Ambo, Castro Valley home town friends Joe Cabral, Judd of Judd’s Barn, and Tony Martin. Their stories and memories of Cliff are not to be missed and are too in-depth to be shared in just one broadcast.
This year is the 6th annual Cliff Burton Day, celebrating the late Metallica legend and Rock Hall of Famer, as officially declared by Cliff’s hometown of Castro Valley and the greater Alameda County. Continuing with tradition, host Nicholas Gomez will speak with Cliff’s family and friends, about their personal memories and cherished time with Cliff. These stories will bring you back to the influential early days, with an in-depth look into the life, the times, and the location of an unknowing musical phenomenon. Watch Jerry Only of Misfits pay tribute to Cliff in this video.
Tony Iommi has confirmed that the album Black Sabbath made with Tony Martin (read his new album review here) will be reissued in 2023. Iommi discussed the re-releases in a post on what would have been drummer Cozy Powell‘s 75th birthday on Thursday, December 29th. Iommi shared the following message:
As one of of the axe-slinger supremes of the band Allegaeon, Greg Burgess is an expert at metal, not just riffs. His own band put out an album worthy of Ghost Cult’s Albums of the Year list, Damnum (Metal Blade), which you should get. We are super-stoked that Greg shared his list of Top Metal Albums of 2022 with Ghost Cult!
It’s been twelve years since composer Arjen Lucassen released 2010’s Victims Of The Modern Age under the Star One banner, which in itself was eight years removed from 2002’s Space Metal. Fortunately, the project’s vision remains intact despite its sporadic output with all the tropes that fans have come to expect out in full force on Revel In Time (InsideOut Music). There’s plenty of cheesy Prog goodness to go around informed by Power Metal tempos, crunchy guitars, bombastic keyboards, and a slew of vocalists delivering pop culture Sci-Fi lyrics in over-the-top fashion.
Tony Martin has kept his name out there with some guest performances in recent years but full-lengths have been unfortunately rare to come by. Thorns (Dark Star) the singer’s third solo album, has been a long time coming, being his first full appearance since Giuntini Project‘s IV in 2013 as well as his first proper solo outing since 2005’s Scream (MTM). While this effort could’ve just been a stopgap for Martin to reassert his brand of doomy AOR, it ends up being an opportunity for him to explore some different aspects of his style.
Tyrant’s long-awaited fourth album, Hereafter (ShadowKingdom Records), has come out under some rather interesting circumstances. In addition to serving as the Pasadena veterans’ first full-length since 1996’s King of Kings, Hereafter sees journeyman vocalist Robert Lowe at the helm in place of Glen May. The prospects of this collaboration are certainly intriguing, especially as a fan of Lowe’s work with Solitude Aeturnus and Candlemass. I wouldn’t go so far as to think of it as Tyrant gone doom, but it approaches their established sound from a noticeably different angle.
As we celebrate fifty years of Black Sabbath, including the forty-ninth anniversary of their debut album, we are seeing a lot of outpouring of love and respect across music. One really interesting tribute is from mega fan Michael Suilleabhain. Hailing from West Cork, Ireland. By day he is Irish Nuclear Construction Safety Inspector, but by night Michael is a music producer and singer with big dreams. One dream he willed into reality was an all-star tribute to his favorite band, Ninth Star (PHD). Amassing ten former members across every lineup of the band, Emerald Sabbath features Adam Wakeman (Black Sabbath/Ozzy Osbourne), Bev Bevan (Black Sabbath/ELO), Neil Murray (Black Sabbath/Whitesnake), Terry Chimes (Black Sabbath/The Clash), Laurence Cottle (Black Sabbath/The Alan Parsons Project), Ron Keel (Black Sabbath/Ron Keel Band), Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell), Dave Walker (Black Sabbath/Fleetwood Mac), Bobby Rondinelli (Black Sabbath/Rainbow), Tony Martin (Black Sabbath/Headless Cross), Rudy Sarzo (Ozzy Osbourne/Whitesnake) and The English Chamber Choir. Other Emerald Sabbath contributors include Will Malone and Mike Lewis (Sabotage/Technical Ecstasy) Mike Exeter (Black Sabbath/Judas Priest), Jeremy J. Lewis (Headless Cross), Mike Lewis (‘She’s Gone’) Skaila Kang (Royal Academy Of Music) as well as Sabbath album graphic designers Richard Manning and Colin Elgie (Technical Ecstasy) and Hugh Gilmour (Born Again). It’s an impressive feat to have united these forces for this album, but do they pass muster. Continue reading