Musipedia Of Metal

Bloodbath: Grand Morbid Funeral (Peaceville)

The long awaited fifth long player from death metal super group Bloodbath has landed and dear reader, it is fucking evil. Hammering drums from Opeth sticksman Martin Axenrot, bone crushing bass lines from the normally eloquent and softly spoken Jonas Renke combine with terrifyingly heavy guitar work from Katatonia’s Anders Nystrom and Per Eriksson to deliver one of the blackest, nastiest releases of the year. After two years of speculation since the departure of Mikael Akerfeldt, it was revealed earlier this year that Paradise Lost frontman Nick Holmes would deliver the voice. Questions were asked about his death metal vocal credentials and if he would be able to continue the Bloodbath sound. The answer: Oh yeah. An absolutely devilish opening scream on Let The Stillborn Come To Me leaves you in absolutely no doubt that Holmes is the perfect fit. Total Death Exhumed hammers that final doubt deep in the metaphorical coffin, with a guttural growl of such intensity I struggle to find a more sinister voice this side of Nergal. Of course, early Paradise Lost had a very similar vocal delivery from Holmes but he hasn't had to perform like this for a few years now.

The album is pure death metal, the majority of it played at absolutely breakneck speed, with the guitar duels lacing the tracks with a visceral undercurrent. Renke and Axenrot revel in their freedom and cut loose, driving the tracks forward at unstoppable speeds. There are moments of calm hidden within the assault. You just have to hunt bloody hard for them. Anne is an eerie composition which takes a quick pause before assaulting you whilst Church Of Vastitas opens with an atmospheric build up, doom laden drums combining with slower, crushing riffs and Holmes allowed a slower more measured delivery. And the rest of the album just pulverises you with its demonic overtures, clawing at your intestines and ripping you apart. Mental Abortion, Infernal Necropsy and My Torturer, all are dripping with malevolence and vile intent. Dripping with possibly the most brutal work that Bloodbath has ever delivered, Grand Morbid Funeral just destroys. Even the album closer, the title track is absolutely brutal with a combination of every element of the album; the cloisters echo with chanting until Holmes provides the killer conclusion with the rest of the band blasting away. The Devil does indeed have the best tunes. 9/10

Emigrate: Silent So Long (Vertigo)

The second release from Rammstein guitarist Richard Kruspe is a powerful chunk of industrial soaked rock with a plethora of guests scattered across the album. Emigrate’s first album was released seven years ago and had a slightly less industrial tinge than Kruspe's main gig. Silent So Long has a much greater industrial feel to it, with flavours of NIN, Kraftwerk and Marilyn Manson hitting you in the face from the off. Opener Eat You Alive features Frank Delle from Seeed and is very much a classic opener, rocking guitars hitting the down tuned delivery that immediately brings Manson’s sound to mind. Get Down has a guest appearance from Peaches and is a slower, grittier tune. Rock City features Lemmy leading on the vocals and sounds like a Motörhead track; pounding drumming and a fast pace as Lemmy delivers his unique style of vocal. The god of fuck himself appears on Hypothetical and is one of the stand out tracks on this solid album. Manson's voice combines perfectly with the pulsing techno back beat, huge riffs and dirty guitar. “Let's fuck” commands Manson. It's anthemic and would stand alongside any of Manson's own compositions. Rainbow has a real Depeche Mode feel with synths merging with the driving guitar work. Two other collaborations feature at the tail end of the album; firstly Margaux Bossieux, a French expatriate who was former bassist of punk outfit Dirty Mary and who is Kruspe’s partner and collaborator on his other side project, Slippin Away. Bossieux provides backing vocals on both Emigrate albums and on Happy Times sings a duet with Kruspe. Final track Silent So Long features Korn main man Jonathan Davies and like the rest of the album fuses the guitars of Kruspe and Olsen Involtini with thumping bass lines of long time Emigrate member Arnaud Giroux and Apocalyptica drummer Mikko Siren in an industrial maelstrom bringing the album to a fitting conclusion. It takes a few listens to get into this album and if the darkness of Reznor, Manson et al isn't your thing then it's unlikely that this will do much for you. It's a solid release and certainly worth a spin. It would be interesting to see Emigrate in the live arena at some time in the near future. 7/10

Incinery: Dead Bound and Buried (Independent)

Nottingham based thrashers Incinery's debut album is a fine reminder that the UK can still deliver quality thrash metal. In a year when some of the old school from across the pond have punched hard, (See releases from Exodus and Overkill for starters), Dead Bound And Buried builds on their two earlier EP releases, Nothing Left and Dawn Of War. After the obligatory atmospheric opener With Strange Aeons, it is heads down thrash all the way with riffs screaming out through Death May Die. Deceiver delivers a slightly slower paced track with skull crushing, grinding chords and some awesome solo work from the dual axe attack of Chris Kenny and Jason Chaikeawrung. Having caught some the Incinery set at BOA this year this was an album which contained no surprises but delivered brilliantly. Sometimes you really want to have the comfort of solid, well played music which kicks you in the nuts and this album does that alright. Whilst it won’t win awards for originality, it should win something for the sheer effort and drive that courses throughout. Tragedy Of One only needs the drawl of Chuck Billy to sit comfortably on the next Testament release, though James Rawlings vocals deliver in their own excellent style. Destroy The Gods pinches part of the riff from Sad But True before building into the mid-point epic of the album, slow paced power chord action moving through the Anthrax stomp before a Slayer style full frontal attack rips off the majority of your face in one hit. There is a mass of influences coursing through this release and it is monstrous. With the seemingly hopeless state of once great UK hopes Evile, Incinery along with bands like Seprevation have grasped the UK thrash mantle with both hands and are intent on maintaining a firm grip. Their appearance at Hammerfest already has classic stamped all over it and I can see a number of the MoM crew losing their shit in the pits. Devastating stuff. 8/10

At The Gates - The Globe, Cardiff

Morbus Chron

First up on a night of sheer brutality was Stockholm outfit Morbus Chron. The band have been in existence for seven years and create a formidable noise. An amalgamation of old school death metal and the more melodic groove of the progressive death scene, the band powered through a short set with aplomb. Musically they were tight, with plenty of riffs and hooks to get you interested whilst vocally Robert Andersson (according to their FB page anyway) has a tried and tested death growl approach. A decent reception was afforded from the relatively healthy but not sold out crowd (shame on you, Cardiff). 6/10

Triptykon

The opportunity to see Thomas Gabriel Fischer in the dry and in my home City meant I was always buying a ticket and was as much as a draw for me as the headliners. I have a long affection for Fischer’s (or Warrior’s) work, dating back to the early Celtic Frost days and I hold fond memories of seeing them in the long defunct Top Rank Club in the mid-1980s. I've already reviewed Triptykon this year in the live arena at BOA and on record with their excellent Melana Chasmata release earlier this year. The band battled with an appallingly fuzzy sound (which Fischer painfully acknowledged) to deliver one of the heaviest slabs of metal The Globe will have ever witnessed. Opening with Goeita from Eparistera Daimones, the room was filled with that unique skull crushing doom laden mid-paced delivery that has been the hall mark of all of Fischer’s bands. Altar Of Deceit followed, surprisingly the only track from Melana Chasmata with the huge bass sound of Vanja Slajh combining with the furious percussion of Norman Lonhard. A real treat followed with a double Celtic Frost serving; the mosh inducing Circle Of The Tyrants which got the room moving in earnest followed by The Usurper with Fischer and V. Santura combining brutal riffs with sledgehammer intensity. The final song, The Prolonging from Eparistera Daimones closed the set, albeit in a slightly extended manner. Few bands close out a five set song with a 20 minute track but this is Triptykon. Throughout the set, Fischer was engaging in his interaction with the audience and it was a pleasure to see the band and the great man in such close confines. What the hell he must have made of it all I’m not sure. 7/10

At The Gates

At War With Reality, ATG's first release for the best part of 20 years ensured that Gothenburg's death metal legends put themselves firmly back in the shop window for this tour. However, nothing could prepare for the onslaught that hit the crowd. Hitting the stage to the strains of El Altar, the band blasted into Death And The Labyrinth from At War... at full steam, pits kicking off immediately. However, any band that hits track two with Slaughter Of The Soul has serious confidence in their set list. Pulverising guitar work from Anders Björler and Martin Larsson combined with Jonas Björler’s cement mixer heavy basslines and the breathtakingly fast drumming of Adrian Erlandsson provided a captivating spectacle throughout the hour and a half show. Vocalist Tomas Lindberg delivers whether his is playing to 300 people or 3000 (This band sold out the Forum in London with ease).
A liberal dose of stuff from the new album, seven in all, was interspersed with several classics from Slaughter Of The Soul as well as a representation from their other three releases. Cold, Nausea and Under A Serpent Sun received fanatical responses whilst many of the crowd were just as familiar with some of the new stuff, such as the title track and The Book Of Sand. ATG deliver with a high degree of intensity, Lindberg urging the crowd to give as much as the band, whilst the band continue to layer slab after slab of melodic death. Closing with Blinded By Fear, Kingdom Gone and The Night Eternal, ATG demonstrated why they are revered and remain one of the metal legends in the death arena. 8/10

The only shame was that there were so few there to witness it. As a metal City, Cardiff may be able to see out Slipknot at the MIA but this is where it’s at and the South Wales metal community rarely delivers. Get into the smaller gigs, see the band really close up and have an awesome time.

Electric Six: Islington Academy

A disappointing absence of the annual Welsh date for the Detroit powerhouse that is Electric Six was turned into an excellent opportunity for a weekend visiting friends in London whilst also managing to ensure that we were able to catch the irrepressible Dick Valentine and his cohorts.

Electric Six are best viewed when well on the road to destination “bladdered” and this year was no exception. I've described this venue before; located in North London it is an 800 capacity and it was very close to capacity as Dick and the boys took the stage for 70 minutes (inclusive of encore!) of their tongue in cheek rock infused rock with disco, funk and a dash of new wave thrown in for good measure. Kicking off with Karate Lips from their excellent 2014 Human Zoo release, Electric Six were in fine form, with Mr Valentine stalking the stage, wisecracks and deadpan delivery after every song. If you've never seen these boys live you really need to sort it out as there is something for everyone. The band delivered tracks from nine albums, including some of their lesser known stuff along with four tracks from the new album. As you would expect, the older “classics” always provoke the most vigorous reaction and Gay Bar part 1 and part 2 incited parts of the crowd to deliver some rather dodgy shapes whilst spilling Hobgoblin all over themselves! She's White was rabidly received with the guitar riffs strong enough to please the metal loving elements of the audience. New track It's Horseshit prompted a smashing sing-along whilst Improper Dancing was exactly what it said on the tin!

The focus of the band is always on Valentine whilst the rest of the group remain firmly in the background; however, they are all fantastic musicians, whether it is the White Wolf on guitar cranking out the riff to Danger! High Voltage, “My drummer” pounding the rhythm to the disco funk irreverence of Adam Levine or the smooth keys of new wave infused Synthesiser. Added together they produce a heady mix which absolutely screams for a balls-out good time, something lost on a few members of the audience near us who complained about our dancing; “She’s bumped into me five times”. Unsurprisingly, the shortest of shrift was supplied and they wisely moved out of our way. The majority of the audience were quite happy to lose their shit, especially as set closer and firm favourite I Buy the Drugs swept all before it. What a song. Epic shapes thrown all around.
A raucous evening was brought to an end in fine style with the infectious Dance Commander providing the opportunity for some final brutal riffs to encourage a last boogie. As always, the band delivered a fine set, oozing with quality and fine musicianship. This band don’t take themselves seriously but are always serious about delivering a good performance. Roll on December 2015 … in South Wales this time lads please. 9/10

Primordial: Where Greater Men Have Fallen (Metal Blade)

The first album from the band in 7 years, Primordial's Where Greater Men Have Fallen is a great return. Title track and album opener Where Greater Men... immediately grabs you and doesn't let go, with pounding drums and grinding guitars. Alan Averill or Nemtheanga's voice does take some getting used to if you haven't listened before, but generally, fits well with the distorted guitars and heavy bass that come with the territory of black/extreme metal. The album is relentless in its heaviness, Babel's Tower and Come The Flood are both slow and heavy before The Seed Of Tyrants rips you right back up again. There are some great riffs throughout and Primordial show their Irish roots in nearly every song, especially Born To Night, which includes a heavy, almost folk-like 4 minute intro before getting into the song. Album closer Wield Lightning To Split The Sun is just as heavy as the rest of the album, the chanting of the band reminiscent of later-era Rotting Christ. Founding members Ciáran MacUiliam and Pól MacAmhlaigh (on guitars and bass respectively) are supported by Simon Ó Laoghaire on drums and Micheál Ó Floinn on guitars. A brutal and heavy album throughout. 7/10

Lonewolf: Cult Of Steel (Massacre)

There's something about European power metal bands with wolf-based names that just seems to capture me. Lonewolf is no exception with Cult Of Steel, their follow up to last year's The Fourth And Final Horseman. Album opener Cult Of Steel builds up with an eastern-style sound, before breaking into fast paced guitars and heavy drums. Lonewolf pretty much keep the speed throughout the entire album with solos galore and the lyrics are basic power metal fare, promoting the religion of heavy metal and (as the name would imply) wolf-related subjects, Werewolf Rebellion and The Grey Wolves being prime examples. Both Funeral Pyre and Mysterium Fidei are highlights of the album, breaking away from the quicker pace of the rest of the album for a heavier, slightly slower sound. Lead singer Jens Börner's voice is a mix between Powerwolf's Attilla Dorn and a less gravelly Lemmy, which, when combined with the guitar of Alex Hilbert, the bass of Rikki Mannhard and Antoine Bussière's drums give a great sound. Overall a great album with some brilliant music 8/10

Temperance: Temperance (Scarlet)

The first full release from Italy's Temperance, their self titled album does not disappoint. The opening track Tell Me is an uplifting track with soaring vocals from lead singer Chiara and awesome riffs from Marco, who provides the backing vocals and growls, as well as some of the clean vocals on songs such as Breathe and Stronger. While it would be easy to compare Temperance with other female fronted symphonic bands, I don't think it would do them justice. The band seem to mix the clean vocals with growls perfectly, neither seeming too much at any given time. The solos are great too, not taking up too much of the song, but providing a great bridge between the verses. The album has something for pretty much everyone; from in the form of Stronger, more dramatic songs like Lotus and The Fourth Season. A personal favourite is To Be With You which feels like a love song to the fans and how it feels how to be a fan of a band. The special edition has a surprising addition with a cover of Christina Perri's A Thousand Years, which seems to fit extremely well with the band's vocal style. With a new album out early next year, this is a band to look out for. 9/10

Behemoth: O2 Academy, Birmingham

Potentially one of the most explosive and exciting packages to hit these shores for many years, the four band line up of Winterfyllth, Grand Magus, Decapitated and Behemoth captured the imagination several months ago and tickets were duly snapped up. The anticipation had been heightened as all bands on the bill have released possibly their best works this year. It was therefore incredibly disappointing to discover a few days before that the curfew at the venue was 10 pm due to the 02's weekly Propaganda club night. This is clearly a nationwide policy as members of MoM have experienced the same problems at Bristol and Islington venues in the past few months. The challenge of getting to Birmingham from Cardiff for 6pm doors was incredible, and although I was lucky enough to take a half day to ensure early arrival, poor Ant and Elle didn't actually make it to the venue until the end of the Decapitated set, at a ridiculously early 8:10pm. Clearly something that we have to take into account for next year’s gigs, especially when the majority of our events take place away from our home soil. Food for thought. So, what about the actual music?

Manchester’s Winterfylleth (8) were afforded a mere four songs in a 25 minute set. Hitting the stage bang on 6:15pm, the black metal titans wasted no time in ensuring that all of those lucky enough to get into the venue early were fully rewarded. Building on their storming sets at BOA and Damnation (which I sadly missed) Chris Naughton and Mark Wood’s excellent guitar work combined with the powerhouse rhythm section of drummer Simon Lucas and bassist Nick Wallwork to create a wall of death metal laced with delicate and technical elements which sets the band apart from many others in this genre. A double serving from their recent superb release The Divination Of Antiquity, the title track and the quite breath taking Whisper Of The Elements demonstrated why this band are much loved in the underground metal scene. Sheer endeavour, hard graft and excellent technical skills: hopefully their star is in the ascendency.

Swedish power trio Grand Magus (9) are no strangers to the MoM crew, although for Alex and Chris this was their first time and the very reason for their attendance; they captured pride of place on the centre of the barrier for the mighty Swedes (and indeed for the entire evening – much to the admiration of the rest of the crew). JB and the band were also afforded limited stage time and they got straight to it, blasting off with I, The Jury, a svelt and shorn JB peeling off riffs ably support by bassist Fox and drummer Ludde. Grand Magus have an old school heavy metal sound, but there is also something refreshingly new about them. Inciting much fist pumping and head banging, Like The Oars Strike The Water was quickly followed by the title track of this year’s brilliant Triumph And Power before JB encouraged the ever increasing numbers in the crowd to sing along to Steel Versus Steel, which to be fair they did. Set closer Hammer Of The North proved that the audience were now totally engaged with the Swedes and a huge ovation indicated that they are well loved on UK shores.
As the strains of War Pigs kicked in over the PA, the lights dropped to announce the entry of Polish technical Death Metal outfit Decapitated (8) Another extremely short set saw Vogg and his band demonstrate that sometimes quality over quantity does work. A mere five tracks allowed, with the engaging and intimidating front man "Rasta" Piotrowski dominating the front of the stage, dreads flowing freely and guttural death vocals repeatedly delivering tough jabs to the ribs. Blistering drumming and fast moving songs helped ensure that the crowd were still engaged. A couple of tracks from the excellent Blood Mantra combined with some old school stuff such including Spheres Of Madness allowed the band to deliver nothing more than a taster of their music. This band are brutal live and it was a shame the serving was so limited.

A 30 minute change over saw the O2 change in atmosphere as the impressive stage set for Nergal and his cohort was constructed. A huge backdrop, the traditional star of chaos microphone stands and platforms for the band to stand on. Combined with an impressive light display that adapted to each song throughout the set, Behemoth (9) always put on an impressive visual show. As the house lights dimmed, orchestral music heralded the entrance of the band, complete with capes and hoods. Opening with Blow Your Trumpets, Gabriel, the next 90 minutes mesmerised, enchanted and captivated the crowd. The fury and sheer assault of the Black Death metal which has become so recognisable incited some very aggressive pits at the front of the stage and some impressive head banging in the rest of the venue. The set comprised a fair slab from the quite mind-blowing The Satanist, including the title track which was quite stunning. The drumming of Inferno throughout was absolutely destructive, powerful double bass pedals combining with rapid fire snare and symbol action. The band powered through tracks from Demigod (Conquer All And Slaves Shall Serve), Evangilon (Alas, Lord Is Upon Me) and the brutal Ov Fire And The Void along with cuts from Satanica And The Apostasy, Nergal and Seth laid down demonic riff after riff, moving around the stage with authority, and combined effortlessly with the imposing Orion on bass who stalked the stage with a demonic grin, like a serial killer hunting his next victim.

Each track was accompanied by different intros and the band slowly shed some of the stage outfits they had started with. Of course, Behemoth wear the corpse paint and this remains an intimidating element of their stage presence, adding a sinister edge to the already deathly satanic edge to their music. Closing with Chant For Eschaton 2000 the band took the obligatory photo in front of the crowd before departing. As the encore commenced, spotlights picked out each member of the band, cloaked and complete with devil goat masks with huge horns. The lighting creating a black mass type atmosphere, adding the already dark imagery. Behemoth ripped through O Father, O Satan, O Son with the crowd going crazy. A huge crescendo brought the evening to an end bang on the 10:00pm mark. Behemoth are a force to be reckoned with live and a match for anyone. The joy of seeing a fully fit Nergal is simply magical. A set worth waiting for. Just a shame the other bands didn't have enough time to really get into their own sets.

Crippled Black Phoenix - Gagarin 205, Athens, Greece

Travelling to Greece for gig may seem a bit extreme but let me put it into context. As Paul was knee deep in brutality, I was in Greece visiting my other half for a short holiday and the British post rockers happened to be playing the final show of their tour in the city on the second night I was there. Having never been to a gig in Greece I didn't know what to expect but as myself and my gorgeous companion entered the venue we were hit by the fug of tobacco smoke in the room, this harks back to when I first started gigging and you could still smoke indoors, no there is no smoking ban in Greece folks (the government tried but the Greeks hilariously ignored it blatantly) so the dry ice the blew just as the band came on stage made surrounded the stage haze.

As founder Justin Greaves and frontman Daniel Änghede ploughed straight into stomping clarion call riff of Rise Up And Fight the excitement piqued as CBF are a band I've always wanted to see but one who tour the UK rarely. Their brand of heavy, modern, Pink Floyd-like metallic rock with lots of electronics is a very unique prospect and as the first song developed, the synths of Mark Furnevall and piano of Daisy Chapman both add atmosphere add melody to the tracks as Ben Wilsker added the percussive thump from behind the kit. Staying in heavy territory we were whisked away next on the White Light Generator which was driven by Wilsker's drums and some gut rumbling guitars from the two rhythm guitarists with a third who's name escapes me adding some Frippesque elements over the sledgehammer battering. There is a reason why I can't remember the new guitarist and indeed the bassist's name, as both were recent additions to the band, their actual bassist recently had child so a friend of their's stepped in with limited practice time, still he managed brilliantly but it meant that throughout Änghede took over the bass duties for a few of the songs, the third guitarist was picked up in Sofia, Bulgaria and had no practice time for these gig, he was stunning adding a lot of Gilmour like guitar trickery to fill out the songs.

All the band pulled together to play the heavy, stirring music for a crowd that started out as quiet, but more on that later, Greaves did most of the talking during the gaps, introducing the band members and goaded the audience to make more noise. The doom of Jonestown Martin creeped in giving Daisy Chapman the first chance to shine with her haunting vocals on the disturbing song, No! is a ringing propulsive track from their last album which moves between light an shade. Änghede's voice is good being both emotive and fractious adding a real human element to the music especially on Song For The Loved and the romantic sounding Fantastic Justice which is built on Chapman's piano riff. Because of the problems we were promised a longer show in future and then the challenge was set down, the band incite a sing along to Burnt Reynolds, a tradition that started in Athens, the song is an atmospheric track that builds to its shout along section, it was the first song to really incite the crowd, the Athenians roared at the top of their lungs for the entirety of the song and for around five minutes after the song ended which prompted the encore to start with a reprise of the track inciting yet another sing along with the crowd giving their all, the band were visibly over awed with the response claiming it to be the best on the tour, it was hard to argue, as the crowd continued after the song had finished, the smoke filled room exploded into rapturous applause once again. It was time for the finale and the last song was a short, sharp, shock in contrast to the progressive, sprawling epics that had proceeded it and with the final chord of Samhain's Let The Day Begin it was all over for another tour cycle the band were elated and relived at the smiling faces in the audience. I myself was in awe of the band who seemed to give every ounce of energy to the set. Where CBP go and what they do after this is anyone's guess but hopefully it will be more UK dates nearer me after the next album. If not I know there is always Athens! A great gig in fantastic company! 9/10

Avenger: The Slaughter Never Stops (Rocksector)

With Hell, Satan and Angel Witch leading the way, the fashion for NWOBHM bands reforming in the present day seems to be very 'on trend' at the moment, the next in line are Avenger who gave up the ghost in 1985 after two albums before reuniting in 2005. As is the case with most NWOBHM bands their history is shambolic at best losing their first singer Brian Ross to fellow Geordie's Satan (where he remains to this day) Avenger promptly recruited Satan's singer Ian Swift to replace Ross. Like Ross, Swift is still firmly in place at front of the band his sonorous voice fitting the music excellently on Race Against Time, Fields Of The Burnt and he screams for his life on Into The Nexus. Founder member Gary Young still blitzkriegs the drums and as with most NWOBHM bands the guitars duel and the bass rumbles like cannon fire. Avenger sound like a band revitalised and they much like their revitalised peers they are unafraid to expand their sound incorporating other genres and more modern sounds Decimated is old school thrash with a Maiden-like finale something which continues on their cover of Maiden's own Killers. As good as the NWOBHM was for British metal for every Maiden, Priest and even Def Leppard there was a Hell, Raven, Satan and Avenger; bands that were followed with a passion at the time but were over shadowed and eventually forgotten, however in the intervening years these bands have become revitalised and have blasted back into the public conciousness. The Slaughter Never Stops is a testament to bands that never give up, yes they may drop out of sight for a while but musicians (especially those in the NWOBHM) never really give up so long as the music burns within them. Some may think that the music industry is dying but I think it's just pushing bands more underground meaning that older bands like Avenger are on more of an even playing field now. Grab your leather pants, hi-tops and some beers and get ready for a damn good thrashing. 8/10

Astralion: Astralion (Limb Music)

As is the norm with bands on the Limb Music roster, Astralion play rampaging power metal with a huge amount of virtuoso guitar playing thrown in echoing Stratovarius and even Mr Malmsteen with the neo-classical over tones seen from opening salvo of Mysterious & Victorious. The Finnish band have risen out of the ashes of Olympos Mons with singer Ian E. Highill and Bassist/Vocalist Dr K. Lundell recruiting a new ivory tickler, tub thumper and axe wielder to the fold to unleash some strong power metal with lots of classical influences. The keys sparkle on At the Edge Of The World which is prime Helloween in it's composition and this style continues on When Death Comes Knocking all of which have that Germanic heavy metal feel, they even dip into Dream Evil territory with We All Made Metal which is a thunderous mid rocker about how we indeed all make metal, Black Sails moves into Rockin' Rolf territory with a Pirate shanty made with added embellishments that merge it with Alestorm albeit with less silliness. Highhill's vocals are great especially on the soaring ballad To Isolde. The album moves between rampaging metal tracks like Mary (Bloody) and Five Fallen Angels and slower classically influenced piano-led ballads like Last Man On Deck. A great little album from these Finns steeped in the elements that make power metal exciting, one for fans of keyboard and guitar driven neo-classical metal that is technically precise but with a reliance on songs rather than showing off. 8/10

Exlibris: Aftereal (Metal Mind)

More power/heavy metal now, this time from Poland, unlike Astralion though Exlibris come from the heavy end of the spectrum with nods to Beyond Fear and Primal Fear this is because of Krzysztof Sokołowski's glass shattering vocals, people may recognise him as the singer for Night Mistress (reviewed earlier this year), his vocals are very similar to those of Tim 'Ripper' Owens with the crooning baritone and the screeching highs. The musicianship behind it too is heavyweight with big guitar riffs from band leader and guitarist Daniel "Dani" Lechmański, who spars with keyboardist Piotr "Voltan" Sikora throughout and they even duel with renowned Polish violinist Zbigniew Wodecki on The Day Of Burning. Like I've said this is an album that harks to the gruffer, some would say more Germnaic style of power metal with tracks like In The Darkest Hour echoing Primal Fear, Omega Point having the Teutonic rush of Accept. However the band also encompass more progressive tendencies on the piano led interlude Before The Storm which features some great female vocals before King Of The Pit slithers with some fist pumping metallic stomping before it concludes with some orchestral backed Maiden-like galloping. Closer has the epic heaviness of Evergrey and actually features the pipes of Mr Englund himself who croons majestically his voice blending well with Sokołowski's harsher tones. Exlibris have displayed real panache and flair on this album so if you like technical, intelligent power metal then Aftereal will really float your boat. 8/10

Saracen: Redemption (Escape)

The name Saracen may conjure up some good memories for older readers, Saracen were and still are a melodic/progressive rock band that came to fruition in the 1981 with muscular symphonic rock etched in the NWOBHM vein but with more melody and drama than many of the meat-and-two-veg bands that came out of that scene. Saracen is driven by Rob Bendelow's dexterous guitars, Richard Lowe's powerful keys and Steve Bettney's strong vocal, they released their first album to critical acclaim but as happens so often with these things the band split reforming in 2003 and since then they have released a comeback album and two concept albums, one Vox In Excelso being continually on my player. Their last album Marilyn in my opinion was a misstep (a bit too soft) but when Bendelow was challenged to write a 'classic' Saracen album he set about writing the tellingly titled Redemption. Has he achieved the old school sound of Saracen perfectly, as the one two punch of rock rifffests Rocamadour and Reacher finish you are immediately taken back to the bands early 80's hayday with some great rock riffs from Bendelow and Simon Roberts interweaving with huge slabs of keyboard from Paul Bradder providing the symphonic edge. Then comes the huge ballad Give Me A Sign before Purple-esque Geraldine (replete with big organs fit for Jon Lord). Steve Bettney's voice is still awesome, he has great power and range meaning he can mold his voice to fit any style. Swords Of Damascus is Iron Maiden meets Jeff Wayne where as Roads To Yesterday is once again in Coverdale realms with Bettney crooning before unleashing his scream in latter parts. In a tribute to their glory days, they have two re-recorded tracks from their debut album Heroes, Saints & Fools the epic and glorious Crusader which starts with searing guitar solo and continues in the same hands up high, shout it out loud manner, second in the rerecording is the rocking Ready To Fly which is a great ender for the album after the pop-rock of Let Me See Your Hands. With a pacier rock tracks interspersed between more progressive songs like the Floydian Catch The Wave, the poppy AOR of More Than Missing You, the symphonic epics of the title track and previously mentioned Crusader. Saracen have been quietly releasing classy, rock records for years now and with Redemption they have successfully merged their past and present on a record expertly produced by Tommy Hansen (producer of choice for power/traditional metal). If you like your rock'/metal with a real old school vibe brought bang up to date Redemption is the album for you! 9/10

Panzer: Send Them All To Hell (Nuclear Blast)

Panzer (or The German Panzer) play heavy metal machine music, don't worry though folks a Lou Reed collaboration is nowhere to be seen. No Panzer as you may have guessed from the name, are Germanic metal through and through, pitching themselves as a German Motorhead this three piece is two thirds Accept and one third Destruction; the artillery shell drumming comes from Accept's sticks-man Stefan Schwarzmann, the guitars are from the laser guided, razor sharp guitars of Herman Frank and the bombardment of bass is from Destruction's Schmier who also lends his abrasive vocals the recordings adding real menace to the delivery of these fast paced, Teutonic metal tracks. The assault and battery starts on the rampaging Death Knell which has the hard metallic delivery of German metal but also harks to Lemmy and co. The album rarely lets up in pace and blurs the line between old school metal and thrash playing to all three men's strengths. As you can appreciate their aren't any ballads on this record, most of the songs are about war, politics and death and Panzer do all these topics justice, albeit with no innovation at all, although none was expected with the trio involved. This is straight up, go for the jugular heavy metal and with Temple Of Doom, Freakshow and the thrashtastic Mr Nobrain. It goes without saying that the musicianship is flawless and any band that writes a song called Hail And Kill without any fear of DiMaio reprisals has to have some massive balls, something that this album has in spades. It's not all killer though Panzer is a rubbish song and a few others are clearly filler but for the most part this is fist in the air shout along heavy metal German style!! 7/10

Red Zone Rider: S/T (Magna Carta)

Ohh its like the 70's all over again just when you thought it was safe to put away those Purple, Zep and Free records along comes UFO's Vinnie Moore with a new band steeped in the funky, hip shaking rock these bands were known for. Now recently this kind of music was mainly the soul trade of Messrs Coverdale and Hughes but Vinne Moore has created a little trio built around his explosive guitar prowess, Scott Coogan's (Lita Ford, Ace Frehley) tub thumping and Kelly Keeling's (Baton Rouge, MSG, TSO) powerful (fretless) bass thud, humming organs and blues rasp, which is very much like Mr Hughes' and works in conjunction with Coogan's more melodic vocals to create an expansive vocal delivery. So another power trio peddling the music of yore, but they do it very well from the Purple-like By The Rainbow's End (which is a tribute to both Blackmore's bands knowing or otherwise), through the smooth organ drenched House Of Light, the blues balladry of Cloud Of Dreams which would have Mr Coverdale weeping into his silk sleeves, the booty shaking rock Save It which sounds like a Grand Funk Railroad cut Hit The Road has the spirit of Hendrix coursing through it's stop start guitar riff and There's A Knowing echoes the great Gary Moore in his old Parisian Days. All of the tracks on this album reek of the Golden era of rock music when the bands rocked hard with bluesy soulful vocals, a funky thunderous rhythm section, huge helpings of organ to flesh everything out and guitar solos galore from Moore who's guitar pyrotechnics light up every song. The three men on this record are all excellent musicians and their craft has been honed over hundreds of tours with numerous artists meaning that the songs on this record all feel, professional, authentic and most importantly they rock like hell making for a fun rock record that the oldies (physically or mentally) among you will lap up with gusto. 8/10

Triaxis: Fuel, Cardiff

The crew of the good ship Musipedia Of Metal gathered for our annual winter gathering in the Rummer Tavern with the absolute bonus of having the opportunity to take in local favourites Triaxis a mere stone’s throw away at Fuel for our final gig of a quite stupendous year of live music. Having supped a couple of scoops of the Rummer’s quite excellent selection of real ales, we left it right until the last minute before heading across the city and straight to the front of the cramped venue, leaving a few members of the party to continue the merriment.

A quick greeting with Krissie and the band and then it was time to party. Triaxis is a band that just improves with every show. Kicking off with the storming Sand And Silver, the band left the blocks with startling speed and didn't let up for the entire hour. Our last viewing was a mere seven weeks ago in The Exchange in Bristol but as headliners the band really stepped up a gear. Giles’ consistently excellent drumming propels the band forward, and his relationship with the brilliant Becky on bass continues to provide the band with a powerful rhythm section on which to build the dual guitar attack of CJ and Glyn. Krissie's voice is always stunning live, and despite the usual Fuel “sound”, her quality cut through crisply to once again demonstrate why we rate her as one of the top vocalists in metal today. Triaxis delivered a pacey set with a mix of tracks from their two albums along with three new tracks, all of which sounded very promising and will appear on the new album (which has pleasingly reached its Pledge target but there are still some goodies to be had so if you haven’t pledged yet, get on it).

Throughout the set Glyn's soloing was fantastic, ably supported by the sterling rhythm work of CJ. Becky’s talent is obvious as she wields her Rickenbacker around the stage with ease and with each viewing you appreciate how well she has made the transition to the Triaxis ranks. As well as the stunning vocals, Krissie has a warm and affable stage persona; no diva here ladies and gents oh no. Closing with Lies and then Black Trinity, all around the room the reasonably sized crowd were smiling and the faces of the band suggested that they too had enjoyed their return home. A final cover of Hallowed Be Thy Name brought the musical part of our evening to a close and the curtain down another year of hard gigging. I can’t think of a more fitting band to end the year with. Triaxis: check them out! You won’t be disappointed! Roll on 2015 and our next encounter with one of the UK’s most promising bands. We love ‘em. 9/10

Texas Hippie Coalition: Ride On (Carved Records) [Review By Paul]

Ride On is the fourth release from Texas Hippie Coalition or THC. Unsurprisingly, the band originate from Denison, Texas. However, somewhat surprisingly, their sound is not just the sound of another Southern rock band but a myriad of different influences and styles.
Ride On is a solid release, featuring the powerful voice of “Big Dad Ritch”, who really dominates with the tracks. The album has a huge drum sound, very much in the Hell Yeah style of Vinnie Paul, although this sound is attributed to drummer Timmy Braun. The steady guitar work of Cord Pool combines with John Exall’s bass to provide a multitude of classic riffs. Monster In Me has elements of Down, Rob Zombie and Marilyn Mason whilst Rock Ain't Dead has all the hallmarks of Soil at their peak. However, there are many other influences which appear as the album progresses; Go Pro is almost a replica of Wanted Dead Or Alive by Bon Jovi with a much heavier edge, combined with the harder side of Molly Hatchet. Rubbins Racin has a splash of Shinedown, a dash of Godsmack and the drive of Down whilst the title track has one of the dirtiest Southern style riffs you’ll hear this year. This is decent, honest, American heavy metal delivered with quality and a vocal style from BDR which merges the grit of Anselmo with the balls of Ryan McCombs. Album closer I Am The End provides yet another reference point with some sludgy Alice in Chains guitar work and BDR’s finest vocals on the whole album. Decent stuff and well worth a listen. 7/10

Schysma: Idiosyncrasy (Revalve Records)

Blasting out of Italy comes Schysma who have arrived in my inbox with an album of 10 progressive metal tracks, with technical guitars, a heavy bottom end and rich tapestry of keys fleshing out the sound. The band are kind of an industrial/electronic prog metal band if you want to be picky as their classic metal instrumentation accompanied by some pulsing synths from Martina Bellini, much like darker Amaranthe or a more electronic Breed 77, the band fuse the two genres together well and their obvious talent shows through. The one point I would raise though are the vocals of Riccardo Minicucci who has a distinctive voice but many may find it not to their tastes, however a lot of this could be due to the less than great production. Personally I think his Paul Isola-like holler/rasp fits with the music the band behind him are producing and it shines on Heremetic which moves between the fast and slow dynamic brilliantly with some great drum work from Luca Solina. The rest of the band are no slouches either mind Giorgio Di Paola works with Solina provide a locked in rhythm section on all the tracks but they are especially effective on the heavier tracks like Pendulum he also shines himself on the bass intro and led Supreme Solution. Guitarist Vladimiro Sala provides some superb guitar work with his Eastern guitars on Migdal, the bluesy rock vibe of Need A Chance and his searing virtuoso solos throughout but most especially Time Man which sounds like it could have come from an 80's speed metal album and works well as the storming album closer. With slightly better production values this album would have be able to show off the myriad of genres better. Still that aside the album is a progressive trip through multiple facets of metal music all brought together by some fantastic musicians, if you like your music unique but familiar and played with style then Idiosyncrasy will be for you. 7/10

Tarturis: Life Lessons That Only Death Can Teach (Self Released) [Review By Paul]

Kansas outfit Tarturis are a two person project who combine elements of progressive, symphonic, thrash and melodic metal with interesting yet slightly disappointing results. Delivered in advancing year segments, Life Lessons... is a concept album with a building story from birth to death, with whispered narrative providing a haunting atmosphere to many of the tracks. Steve Hall and Craig House contribute all parts of the album, with both delivering vocals, guitars, bass and drum programming. Starting with Year 0: Exchanging Flesh For Iron, Tarturis deliver a pretty devastating opener which sounds like a hybrid of Dream Theater and Wintersun, galloping fretwork slowed by more melodic keyboard parts. Year 5: Before Life Even Began is a much calmer track before some of the most out of tune singing I've head in a long time emerges in the middle. This is a lengthy track, clocking in at over ten minutes and I have to be honest, it gets a little lost. Year 13: Placebo Salvation begins with a keyboard and drum build up over the Lord’s Prayer before driving headlong into symphonic thrash once more. The brakes are then briefly applied before all hell breaks loose with a charging onslaught, ferocious drum sounds combining with slicing guitar work and layered keyboards and much more aggressive vocals more at home to Testament than some of the other bands referred to here. Another ten minute plus song follows; Year 17: Fall Of The Iron Kingdom, which has some deliciously delicate acoustic guitar work before a more traditional metal ballad type sound leads into more progressive, symphonic style music with string elements all making an appearance. Year 22: Her continues the sedate pace with acoustic build up and atmospheric vocals reminiscent of Katatonia and Pain of Salvation amongst others. However, it is really pedestrian and to be honest just a little too far on the left of depressive melancholy for me, especially with the vocals struggling to stay in tone at places. Year 24: The Atlas Punishment opens at a blistering pace, blast beats combining with some heavy thrashing guitars but by this stage I've lost a little too much interest. So what is the problem? I think it is the fact that this album is really disjointed and difficult to follow. Sure, the musicianship is pretty good, and these guys can clearly play but the way the moods change mid-track too often, combining far too many elements of too many genres is just a little too overwhelming. In fact, the length of the album also contributes to the loss of interest, a mighty 75 minutes in total, and by the end, it’s just a little staid and boring. 5/10

So here we go folks Mr Hutchings has set the bar here is my (your fearless leader) Top 20 albums for 2014:

Grand Magus: Triumph And Power
Amoral: Fallen Leaves And Dead Sparrows
Anathema: Distant Satellites
Rival Sons: Great Western Valkyrie
Nothing More: Nothing More
Opeth: Pale Communion
Unisonic: Light Of Dawn
Aeon Zen: Ephemera
Evergrey: Hymns For The Broken
The Tea Party: The Ocean At The End
Goat: Commune
The Trews: The Trews
Robert Plant: Lullaby And…The Ceaseless Roar
The Blues Pills: The Blues Pills
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: Hypnotic Eye
Fury: The Lightning Dream
Dave Kilminster: ...And The Truth Will Set You Free...
Vandenberg’s Moonkings: Vandenberg’s Moonkings
Crobot: Something Supernatural
Edguy: Space Police

Kreator (December 17th 2014)

Shining & Marty Friedman

Norwegian jazz metal band Shining opened proceedings with a cacophony of noise, their saxophone driven metal was added to by the guitar histrionics of Ex-Megadeth man Marty Friedman, who really didn't add anything to the utter dirge the band were peddling. Not any good at all will be giving them a miss supporting Devin in 2015. 3/10

Arch Enemy

This was the first opportunity to see the new line up of Arch Enemy following the change in personnel earlier this year when the ferocious Angela Gossow announced she was stepping down. Her replacement, former vocalist of The Agonist, Alissa White-Gluz had already shown her quality on their 2014 release War Eternal and the very recent addition of Nevermore guitar legend Jeff Loomis indicated this could be a tidy show indeed. Arch Enemy hit the stage at full pelt with the title track from War Eternal, with White-Gluz demonstrating that she can deliver vocally in the live arena as strongly as she can in the studio. She has a different style to her predecessor, never standing still, head banging and moving around the stage offering encouragement to the crowd and focusing attention on the excellent work of Loomis and co-guitarist Michael Amott when they were shredding. Ravenous followed, an older tune which got the heads in the audience nodding with approval. After My Apocalypse the band focused on some of the newer material from War Eternal and it was at this point that proceedings experienced a slight dip in energy and momentum. I'm pretty sure that it was the less familiar tracks that slowed the momentum, with Under Black Flags We March and As The Pages Turn generating a slightly less enthusiastic reception despite the enthusiasm of White-Gluz and long standing bassist Sharlee D’Angelo. However, Arch Enemy have several top quality songs in their armoury and the double whammy of We Will Rise and Nemesis ensured that the band finished on a massive high with a huge ovation from the crowd. A solid if unspectacular set that demonstrated that Arch Enemy have plenty of life left in them yet, although I fear that it will be difficult for them to increase their popularity in the UK. 7/10

Kreator

After taking in a highly respectable performance from Arch Enemy it was now time for the moment I had been waiting for for many months now… Kreator. Hitting the stage, surprisingly without the backing of the ever trusted and impending sound of The Mars Mantra, Kreator entered with a projection show accompanied by the ever loved Age Of Aquarius backing. Without a second to lose and pleasantries deemed (as usual) not needed, the German gods broke furiously into an opening furore of Violent Revolution, Civilization Collapse and From Flood Into Fire… damn! Each of these opening tracks was delivered with the ferocity and power of a raging bull. Even the usually lighter Flood Into Fire was thrown into our ears with a blazing thump. As fellow Musipeadian Paul suggested during this opening; “they have just f**ked us in both eyes!”…This was the perfect analogy.

The set continued over the next 90 minutes with songs from across Kreator's back catalogue, including fan favourites Enemy Of God, Impossible Brutality, Phantom Antichrist and Hordes Of Chaos. Every single song was delivered with tight heavy pounding drums, precise and screeching guitars that dropped to deep thudding breakdowns with out a moments notice, and bass with a clout that could knock you for six by its self if needed! My personal favourite Voices Of The Dead was soon offered allowing the crowd a brief yet haunting interlude as Miland delivered the lingering opening lines before the ultimate kick of pure German thrash kicked us back in the face with full force resulting in the entire of the beaten crowd lowering their heads again and collectively banging heads and air guitaring with ultimate vigour. The set came to an end with the anthem Endless Pain that saw the crowd open up another wall of death swiftly followed by another giant pit that had opened up numerous times throughout the night. As the German legends left the stage the crowd burst out into a unified chant recalling the band back to the stage to their brilliant cover of the mighty Iron Maiden's Number Of The Beast, that once again had every individual singing on the top of their voices. Miland and Co then slid flawlessly into final tracks including surprisingly old school People Of The Lie and not so surprisingly Flag Of Hate… with the flag of hate in tow, leaving the crowd batter, beaten and bruised, but ultimately… beamingly happy.

Without question Kreator are one of the tightest live acts you will ever have the pleasure to see, they've been around for years and have adapted both on record and live to keep themselves where they are; the top of their game. Mix this with their unrelenting utterly heavy thrash that is capable of breaking both hearing and limb, and you've got a live show that will never get boring. 10/10

Black State Highway: S/T (Self Released)

Former Brighton Institute Of Modern Music graduates Black State Highway are here to give hard rock a good hard kick to the balls. Formed by guitarist Ollie Trethewey, bassist Gordon Duncan, drummer Harry Bland and singer Liva Steinberga the band gigs in the local Komedia but realised they need another guitarist so quickly recruited Yonnis Crampton who gelled with the band just in time for their performance. Since then they have risen through the local British rock scene with some high profile supports and lots of press from Classic Rock Magazine and others, still as with all bands it's all about the music and with the glut of female fronted hard rock bands around at the moment, see for example Saint Jude, Blues Pills, No Sinner etc Black State Highway could fall into obscurity at any time if they didn't have the songs. Luckily as Conclusion kicks of with it's slide driven intro, propulsive rhythm section, bluesy riffage and Steinberga's holler, who exudes attitude as she tells an unnamed former lover to "Get the fuck out of my life". So far so good then and the swagger continues on Ain't Got No which really shows off Duncan and Bland's hard hitting aggressive bottom end which despite it's power also has a lot of nuances to it. The guitars ring out with huge slabs of riffage throughout on the rockier tracks like Free and Tekkers but also the solos sizzle on the slower paced Broken which oozes with class and sleaze and shows off Steinberga's voice to its full extent. For a band so young this debut is very dynamic, vibrant and very mature, the band are steeped in the 70's blues rock of Rival Sons but also they have a modern edge which stops them from getting stale and being more than just revival act. A young band with real fire in their collective bellies and a collection of songs that translate to a searing live show. Pick it up and play it loud!! 8/10

Khaos: Risen (MRR Records)

Khaos are a modern hard rock band built around guitarist Mark Rossi's sterling guitar work, he moves between intricate melodies and big hard hitting riffs. Rossi has a great line up backing him with Trevor Franklin working over the drumkit and Nic Angileri providing the rumbling bottom end. The cherry on top though are American Chandler Mogel's strong, soulful vocals, Mogel will be familiar to those who have listened to Firewind offshoot band Outloud, Mogel is the vocalist for Outloud but Khaos are a different prospect all together, whereas Outloud are 80's style AOR band, Khaos are a more modern sounding band in the style of Alter Bridge, Shinedown mixed with the slinky smooth rock of The Cult. Rossi plays like Tremonti throughout with After The Silence, Imagined Danger and Loaded Question having the heavy, melodic riffs of AB and Loaded Question also having guitar solo Slash would be proud of, End Of Daze is infused with the spirit of Ian Asbury and Billy Duffy on its snake like verses and explosive chorus, this continues on Ride The Chain. It's not all hard rocking however there are a few ballads on the record with Exalted, Hung The Moon and As FAr As We Go being three of the best. As good as the component parts of Khaos are they do try to sound a bit too much like Alter Bridge for my liking and Mogel's voice is good but he is no Myles Kennedy (but who is) and personally I believe his voice is better suited to Outloud. Still if you like muscular American rock played by the bands mention previously this will pique your interest however this might not appeal to everyone, still a nice modern rock album. 6/10

Psychostick: IV- Revenge Of The Vengeance (Rock Ridge Music) [Review By Stief]

Opening with a movie trailer-esque intro to their fourth album, IV: Revenge Of The Vengeance, Psychostick let you know exactly what you're getting into. If you're already a fan of Psychostick, then you know exactly what to expect from the band that sang a sandwich (no missing words, they literally sang a sandwich). The first song of the album, Obey The Beard gives, in this writer's opinion, sound advice. Any problems, just grow a beard. This sets up the mood of the album quite nicely and without giving too much away, they cover a wide range of topics, such as being a dog in Dogs Like Socks, Anatidaephobia in Quack Kills, how to perform the heimlich and CPR in Choking Hazard and a love of Bruce Campbell in...well, Bruce Campbell. The band are clearly comfortable being a comedy metal band and the songs are interspersed with several skits and one in the case of Dimensional Time Portal (Skit, Kinda), a mix of short bursts of metal and a small tale of how reverb can cause a rift in time. The band are solid, Alex “Shmalex” Dontre's drumming heavy along with Matty J “Moose” Rzemyk's bass, Josh “The J” Key's riffs great, all supporting Rob “Rawrb” Kersey's quite frankly angry voice. The album gives two surprises, the first in the shape of a 3 minute medley of classical music consisting of several hundred fucks and one shit. This is immediately followed by the highlight of the album, a cover of Kenny Loggins'Danger Zone which the band embrace with classic Psychostick zeal, even treating listeners to a cover-of-sorts of the chorus of Berlin's Take My Breath Away from the same film. Overall, if you've listened to Psychostick before, it's pretty much the same as always, but if this is the first time, then I'd suggest you embrace the insanity. Great metal and laughs all round. 7/10

Dub War, The Bassment, Newport

It's virtually impossible to mention Dub War without also mentioning Skindred, not least because the formation of the latter was purportedly borne out of frustrations and a tricky contractual situation involving the former. 2010's The Dub, The War & The Ugly compilation I believe sorted out the contractual situation with Earache and with enough time and water under the bridge to evidently appease the remaining frustrations so it was that Dub War returned in front of a rapturous Newport crowd a mere 16 years after their “final” UK show (the aforementioned compilation states that final show took place in London in January 1998, so the promo material hyping this as the bands'“first show in 18 years” was a little out unless it referred specifically to home town shows).

Anyone who ever saw Dub War live in their 90's heyday could probably tell that the band looked to be going places. With a unique sound and a massively charismatic front man their live shows at the legendary TJ's and other South Wales venues were the stuff of local legend. Thankfully the charismatic front man has in fact gained more charisma in the intervening years and the bands live show is still as tight as a very tight thing.

Strolling on stage clutching an air raid siren and sporting a fetching top hat Benji took the crowd into the palm of his hand as usual and did not let go until the last notes of the show had echoed out of the venue. Sounding said siren (just like old times!) the band launched straight into Psycho System followed by Respected and in doing so lived up to their pre-show promise of lots of old material getting an airing. Indeed, even Crack– a song that only appeared on their début Dub Warning EP until 2010's posthumous compilation was given a rare outing here.

The venue was packed with pretty much every patron in there moving to the stage area as soon as the band came on which made getting a good vantage point to actually see anything quite difficult until things calmed down a few songs into their set – “calm” in a relative sense of course! Even though the majority of the crowd could probably not be described as young they still gave it their all bouncing and moshing their way through the set and giving off an energy that would be impossible for any band to not react to. Judging by the near-permanent grins on the faces of Benji, Jeff, Richie and Ginge it's probably fair to say that the band were having as much fun as the audience were.

As they progressed their way through what was essentially (and necessarily) a greatest hits set I started to notice that Benji wasn't his normal wise cracking, audience baiting self. No, this was a slightly different side to the man, more humble and serious than when fronting Skindred this is yet more evidence of why he is one the best (and most versatile) front men in heavy music today.

As the likes of Nar Say A Ting, Dub War, Fools Gold, Strike It and Gorrit were my own personal highlights of the set it was the closing track that stuck with me the most. That track? Over Now, with one very simple and obvious riposte from myself and every other person crammed into the Bassment to witness a gig 16-18 years in the making that we all probably thought we'd never see (10/10).

United Progressive Fraternity: Fall In Love With The World (InsideOut)

Formed from the ashes of Australia's premier progressive band Unitopia, United Progressive Fraternity features Unitopia founder member, Mark Trueback playing in a band for the first time without long-time collaborator Sean Timms who withdrew upon the collapse of Unitopia. He has taken some members of the previous band with him the most notable of which is guitarist Matt Williams, along with Williams he has drummer Dave Hopgood and percussionist Tim Irrang both coming from Unitopia. Trueback has also recruited several other progressive all-stars to the group, multi-instrumentalist Guy Manning, bassist Daniel Marsh, sax/keys player Marek Arnold and wind player Ian Ritchie all adding their skills to the group. As you may have noticed I've said UPF are a progressive group, not a progressive rock band, they incorporate all manner of sounds into their work, with orchestras, jazz, world music, rock and all manner of other styles thrown into the progressive melting pot. As the cinematic overture We Only Get One World opens the album, we can see that the almost shamanistic, hippie spirit of Unitopia still lives on through UPF as the songs are odes to the world with "thought provoking and meaningful lyrics with an emphasis on the human condition, the state of the environment and how we as the human race arrived at where we are today" so this is all very highbrow stuff but it is not pretentious, the music is melodic, inspiring and intensely musical. Choices starts off with a tabla backed beginning, some silky guitar playing, world music influences throughout, before moving into a wind instrument filled middle section and a short sharp solo from Williams before Arnold and Ritchie put their mark all over the tracks finale, before starting proceedings on the funky but rocking Intersection. Trueback's voice is fantastic, soulful and emotive carrying every lyric on his golden tonsils, this is progressive music for old-school prog fans, with elements of Yes, Spock's Beard, Pink Floyd, Pallas, IQ and even Toto. The albums two shortest songs are firstly the percussive The Water which has an environmental message about the bands drought prone country and features the unmistakeable vocals of former Yes man Jon Anderson, which goes straight into Don't Look Back - Turn Left which is nice little break from the overarching progness of it all (it is a world). The albums Pièce de résistance is the 21 minute plus Travelling Man (The Story Of ESHU) which is the best song on the album steeped in majesty. This is a truly stunning album, can I rewrite my top 20 please? 10/10

Starset: Transmissions (Razor & Tie)

Upon finding a mysterious signal from the Ophiuchus Constellation, that foretold humanities demise, the Starset Society commissioned a group of musicians and scientists to assist them in spreading the knowledge to a broader audience. This group are collectively known as Starset. This of course is the storyline (or is it?) for Starset's debut concept album and I will say they go all out with an official website dedicated to storyline, videos and updates on the official website all pushing the story forward. So with such attention to detail what is the music part like? Well the band are classed as cinematic rock and this is a very apt description of their music, for the most part the album is modern, American alternative rock, with electronic elements that make it sound symphonic and yes cinematic. The bands only named member is Dustin Bates who is the singer of alternative metal band Downplay and as the dubstep influenced First Light starts things off with an intro of sorts before the first real song is Down With The The Fallen which is pure alternative metal with heavy riffs, angsty verses and huge hooky choruses all sung with great power by Bates who alternates between melodic crooning and the occasional scream for good measure but the sound is fleshed out by the electronic elements that are present throughout. If I was to make a comparison the band sound a lot like latter period Linkin Park mixed with Muse or Biffy Clyro and Breaking Benjamin with huge measure of 30 Seconds To Mars thrown in; especially on the choruses which have the right amount of emotion and power to appeal to radio stations and harder rockers see one-two of the majestic Halo and the dirty electronic dub of Carnivore. Telescope is a bit of transition track which shows off the orchestral nature to it's fullest and straight into the second part of the record which starts with It Has Begun that is pure and orchestral and moves straight into the obvious first single the electro thump of My Demons before Antigravity once again sets a scene and splits the album in to segments with some thrusting orchestral passages that Hans Zimmer would be proud of. This is an album that will not be to everyone's taste, if you like your metal heavy then this won't be for you but fans of radio friendly American alternative rock/metal with a distinct theatrical flair then this will be for you, I for one think it's a great album and one that will get many replays on my stereo. 9/10

Black Trip: Goin' Under (Threeman Recordings)

Black Trip are somewhat of a Swedish metal supergroup with members of speed metal maniacs Enforcer and ex-members of both Exhumed and Entombed. However this album is not extreme metal neither is it leather clad speed metal, no Black Trip are stuck rigidly in the pre-Dickinson Maiden era, the songs are about dirty women, politics and the occult with Peter Stjärnvind and Sebastian Ramstedt's guitars echoing Murray and Stratton's original twin axe attack, see Voodoo Queen, Jonas Wikstrand's drums rumble like thunder and Johan Bergebäck's bass gallops like Steve Harris on amphetamines, see the bass intro on Radar. The album is engrained with classic early Maidenisms with the trademark riffs, progressive changes of pace, melodic guitar playing backed by the thumping rhythms which is especially prevalent on No Tomorrow which could sit on Killers perfectly. The early Maiden style is topped off by Joseph Tholl's DiAnno style vocals, he has gruff but strong voice that fits the music perfectly. With so many bands ploughing the NWOBHM furrow it's nice to have band not going for the siren scream style vocals but focussing on the very early days, still this album does lean more towards the pastiche than anything else albeit one that is done very well indeed. 6/10

So a round up of the last reviews of 2014 with two late releases and one released earlier in the year

Amulet: The First (Century Media)

Amulet are an English metal band that are so deep in NWOBHM that you'd think the last thirty odd years never happened. With an album split into two sides with every song full of rumbling bass, dual guitar attack, metronomic drumming and helium vocals. The songs don't relent from the first chords of Evil Cathedral, through the stomp of Bloody Nights and into the two instrumental tracks and beyond this is an album that is straight out of 1980's encompassing all the sounds of that come with it. The 13 songs on this album are dirty, sleazy, leather clad metal with the same occult lyricism that perennial black magic purveyors Angel Witch have always peddled with nods to Priest and of course Maiden. Amulet are one band in very wide genre and they can stand up to the Swedes in terms stylistic authenticity there is very little else I can say about this album other than if you like music that harks back tot he glory days of British metal then you will love Amulet. 7/10

State Urge: Confrontation (Self Released)

Polish band State Urge make music that is steeped in classic rock style but it is also both technical and progressive without being pretentious. The claim their genre is 'White Rock' but what it actually is, is a mixture of sounds that is organ drenched 70's prog mixed with jazz and a some hard rock thrown in for good measure the first two tracks merge together into one cohesive song, with the second part Revival being mostly an instrumental piece that lets the band show off their musical chops. Despite the overarching progginess of it all the songs do not outstay their welcome with only three songs coming in at over 6 minutes long but most of them never seem like they are long pieces as the music keeps you interested as it moves through all manner of moods and indeed types of music with nods to Steven Wilson, Pink Floyd (Cold As A Lie) as well as 70's occult on Midnight Mistress which features some great organ and bells from Michał Tarkowski, the rest of the band too are all very talented musicians with the rhythm section of Krystian Papiernik's bass and Marcin Bocheński's drums providing the corner stone on which all of the songs are build finally rounding out the band is Marcin Cieślik who provides the soaring guitars and also the soulful vocals. If I'm honest Midnight Mistress is one of the weaker songs on the album but is perfectly positioned in the middle of album and ends very well before transitioning into the folk balladry of New Season and the fuzzing space rock of Before The Dawn before the album ends in strongly with the slow burning More. This is State Urges second album and it is one that will hopefully bring them to the attention of many more people, pure progressive bliss. 9/10

Renegade: Thunder Knows No Mercy (Pure Underground Records)

With so many power metal bands coming from Germany and Sweden its sometimes easy to forget that Italy have a rich power metal history and Renegade are part of that history having been around since about 2006. The excellently titled Thunder Knows No Mercy is their fifth album and unsurprisingly it follows in the same no compromise style of thunderous (sorry) heavy metal, With The World Is Dying leading the charge as the vocals hit highs only dogs can here. There is no room for emotion here with all the songs a fast metallic battering or a mid paced chug that echoes the Germanic style metal that Accept and Helloween have been playing since the 80's, they even have song called Screaming On The Eagle for God sake!! The only slowish song is Trail Of Tears but even that rocks up in the right places. There is no getting away from it Renegade are aping the Teutonic metal genre for all it's worth but they are a fun addition to any heavy/power metal fans collection and it proves the thunder indeed knows no mercy but also power metal has no shame. 7/10

Incursed: Elderslied (Self Released)

The opening instrumental track, Song Of The Ancient transports you to a fantasy realm and sets you up for this movie-like album – the second by Spain's Incursed – which then breaks into Heart Of Yggdrasil, a heavy folk tune that gives many moments to bang your head to or jig to your hearts content. As mentioned before, the album feels almost movie-like with each song feeling like a different scene, from the instrumental introduction to the galloping riffs and drums of The Wild Hunt. Another song, aptly named Beer Bloodbath makes it feel as if you're in the tavern with the band, singing along and drinking. Jötnar places you right among the fabled giants of Norse mythology with its eerie chanting, chugging riffs and heavy bass. The music is solid and easy to listen to, Narot Santos and Jon Koldo Tera playing off each others voices whilst providing rhythm and Keyboards respectively. They are supported by Asier Amo's brutal drumming with Juan Sampredo providing bass and Aiser Fernàndez giving out the riffs. Incursed are not afraid to use their native language, as is shown in Suaren Lurraldea (The Land Of The Fire) which is one of the folkiest songs on the album, almost bordering on power metal in places. As with every movie, there's an epic battle and this comes in the form of One In A Million, a ten minute song which ranges from Folk metal to fast solos to the spoken word, putting one in mind of Rhapsody of Fire in places, to brutal growls and heavy drumming and all the way back to folk again. The band close the album with Promise Of Hope which, for those patient enough to wait through two minutes of silence, has a heavy cover of the Game Of Thrones theme as a bonus (which can be found separately on the EP of Beer Bloodbath). Overall a great and varied album. 9/10

Celtic Legacy: The Lie Of The Land (Eternal Legacy Records)

The fourth album, and the first in five years from the newly reformed Celtic Legacy, The Lie Of The Land starts with an eerie instrumental track before breaking into heavy folk tunes. The title track sounds very Maiden-esque, with galloping bass and rocking guitars, but with folk elements thrown in to make a great sound. The third track Emerald Eye, has a slower pace, yet still retains the steady folk beat, with some excellent solos from Dave Morrissey. Ciaràn Ennis' voice reminiscent of Mr Dickinson's in places, albeit with an Irish lilt. The Body And The Blood is the album's 'main track' so to speak, sitting at an impressive 11 minutes, starting off with a folky theme, before calming down and letting Morrissey show his skills on bass, keyboard and guitars before picking up the pace again and breaking into some great heavy metal riffing. The rest of the album follows the heavy metal/folk fusion, Reckless Abandon being one of the more folkier (It's a word now- Stamped & Official Matt) songs, with plenty of areas to start jigging to, Irish elements scattered throughout the song. Album closer Journey's End is also an outlier, being more of a ballad with two excellent solos from Morrisey, Ennis' voice soulful and almost lamenting. A good mix of heavier and lighter stuff, here's hoping the band continue with this sort of sound. 8/10

Dissorted: I (EP) (Self Released)

The first release from Germany's Dissorted, this EP is a great indication of what's to come from this band. Opening with the brutal Bloodshed Divine, the band don't let up, keeping the brutality coming all the way through. Mirco's angry vocals ranging from clean to growls and screams are supported by the melodic yet ruthless riffs of Sebastian and Flo, Martin's fast and heavy drumming and Dillon's chugging Bass. Every song is savage, The Somnabulist bringing in a brilliant riff and breakdown halfway through. Very much looking forward to a full release from the band, especially if they keep up this level of thrash. 8/10

Forevers' Fallen Grace: Ascending The Monolith (Self Released)

Forevers' Fallen Grace are progressive power metal band from Massachusetts and they play traditional American Prog/power metal with nods to Shadow Gallery, Symphony X and Dream Theater. The songs are progressive but in no way are they lightweight, this is heavy metal with crunching riffs, rapid fire drumming and some booming vocals that are very Russell Allen but with elements of King Diamond especially on the Gothic Mausoleum Of Dreams which is pure Mercyful Fate. As well as the progressive influences, they also have nods to Iron Maiden on Crown The Night Blind Guardian on Iron Will (Not a Grand Magus cover). These songs are swaggering anthems full of technical guitar playing from Kenneth E. McKee and Nelson Moore, the progressive drumming of Jim Norris and the nimble bass work of Kyle Hannon, all of which is at it's most evident on Suffer Our Sins and the instrumental Wombshifter. Frontman Michael Ferro is no slouch either mind bellowing the lyrics over the metallic assault that backs him. This is a great album for fans of power/progressive metal that hits much of the competition over the head with it's heaviness, if you like your metal technical, melodic and most of all heavy then FFG will be right up your street. 7/10

Premortal Breath: They (Self Released)

Heavy metal from Mannheim now with some thrash and classic metal thrown in to the pot to create a modern mix of styles. Yes this album is on the heavy side with big, hulking riffs from Sebastian Herbold and Tobias Eymer who emulate the likes of Machine Head, Trivium and Pantera with their groove infected thrash driven by Dominik Eymer and Thomas Pettrich's chunky rhythm section, Pettrich's drums especially are very good sounding like a ten tonne truck. The album falls down a little with the vocals which are an acquired taste, a bit Hetfield, a bit but Anselmo, but they do fit the music well, with Thomas Greulich's roars and growls punctuating the metallic assault behind it. If you like your metal with slab of groove, a touch of thrash and a whole lot of balls then They will be right up your street. 6/10

Gypsy: Twisted Levity (Salute Records)

Twisted Levity is Indian band Gypsy's debut EP featuring 5 songs of 80's style Glam metal in the style of Dokken, Mr Big, Motley Crue and even Van Halen in places. I'll address the elephant in the room, the production is not great, but is does give it an authentic crackly sound. The songs kicking off with the filthy and misogynistic Give Me Your Load but this type of music has always been known for its attitude to women still the music is good with a hard rock backing being the basis for most of the songs while nearly all of them have virtuostic solos that George Lynch and Paul Gilbert would be proud, however in a bizarre and novel addition only a half of these are guitar solos with the others coming from a sitar, the first two tracks are speedsters, while New Boy In Town is funk rock song shamelessly aping Extreme. The music is good but the band are let down by Sayandip Pahari's vocals who does the croon well on slower tracks like Judgement Day but his higher register is very grating. (Since the release of this record they have changed their singer, so I hope Sankalan Samaddar's vocals are better than his predecessors. Overall a neat little Ep from a band that only need a few changes to become very very good. 6/10

Iris Divine: Karma Sown (Zinkferd)

Iris Divine is a three piece progressive metal outfit from Alexandria, Viriginia. Karma Sown is their second full length release and follows 2011’s Convergence. The band, is Brian Dobbs on bass, Navid Rashid on vocals and guitar and Kris Combs, drums, keyboards and programming. Karma Sown is a powerful release, with a heady mixture of eastern influences combined with epic soaring progressive sounds and some excellent playing. Dobbs' bass is prominent throughout; played more as an additional lead at times with climbing scales and driving rhythms. At times the band provide you with the scent of some of their influences; shades of early Queensryche and Dream Theater with the odd dash of Kings X all present. Rashid provides some stunningly good vocal work with his clean delivery fitting in perfectly with the band’s sound. He is no slouch on the guitar either with some soaring solos which complement the drumming of Combs along with the subtle keyboard work and sympathetic programming. As a huge Rush fan, it would be highly hypocritical of me to criticise the band for using programming to enhance their sound. Well worth a listen 8/10

Karma Rassa: Music Into The Void (Self Released)

Formed in 2013 in St. Petersburg, Russia, Karma Rassa’s debut is full of melody, introspection and the atmosphere you’d expect from symphonic and progressive European metal. As well as sweeping melodic keyboard and synth sounds, the band demonstrate a harder edge with some tasty guitar riffs and a crashing rhythm section. The vocals of Nagual are a combination of Jonas Renke and the growling edge of Insomnium’s lead vocalist Niilo Sevänen. In fact, Karma Rassa sit very nicely in the same camp as the Finns, as well as Ghost Brigade, Swallow The Sun and other such bands. The album has a quality balance of light and shade, with tracks such as Apology Of Regress allowing the guitar work of twin guitarists Sigmund and Naar to come to the fore whilst Melaer’s keys are allowed to dominate other pieces, for example during Drawing The Steel. However, the band maintain a heavy edge throughout and the clean vocals are refreshing and also demonstrate Nagual’s vocal prowess. The songs are details and complex with impressive compositions, containing frequent time changes and blasts of real almost death metal at times combining with the sound of Dream Theater and Opeth to provide some delicious contrasts. Midway point in the album sees the band explore a bit of a psychedelic avenue with Explore Your Own Cosmos, which is a title that needs little explanation. Ice sits nicely in the melodic progressive metal genre and is a powerful track which merges some frantic riffing with delicate piano. This is a pretty decent album from a band who will hopefully get the opportunity to demonstrate their wares live before long.7/10

Melkor: Irlicht (Self Released)

A solo project from German Patrick Baumann, who has been a key member of several other bands, Melkor, named after a character from Tolkien’s middle earth, released this second full length album late in 2014. It is an interesting result, with Baumann delivering all of the music and vocals. With some mighty riffs, powerful drumming and vocals that sound like Cronos with a bad throat, Irlicht is very likely to appeal to the black metal fan. However, there is substantial melody and numerous hooks throughout the album. A variety of tempos and styles provide many complex layers and hidden depths throughout the eight tracks, and although the production isn't crystal clear, it is a solid slab of metal which has enough about it to warrant a listen. 7/10

Sylosis: Dormant Heart (Nuclear Blast)

Four albums into their career and Sylosis are coming of age, with Edge Of The Earth they really showed what they could do with a technical thrash near-masterpiece full of epic songs. They then took this more progressive style and went back to their extreme roots on Monolith. So where do they go now? Well as Where The Wolves Come To Die kicks off with it's slow, heavy riff replete with frenzied drumming the atmosphere is built as it crescendos and dives straight into the rapid death metal of Victims And Pawns which once again shows Sylosis' thrash roots but also their progressive tendencies as it slows in the middle before frontman Josh Middelton solos like demon. One thing that always strikes about Sylosis is just how damn fine their musicianship is; Middleton is both an amazing vocalist and a sublime guitarist ably backed by Alex Bailey's rhythm and the frankly abusive rhythm section of Chris Parnell and Rob Callard (who has since left). Dormant Heart is both heavy and melodic and shows Sylosis' keen ear for melody and also their use of light and shade to colour their works, they blend extreme and the more mainstream effortlessly and on this album with tracks like the thrashtastic Overthrown and Leech which echoes Rob Flynn and co. In fact as this album progresses you can't help but think of how the American acts like Machine Head and Trivium have progressed in their careers moving from straight thrash, through metalcore and then adding more progressive elements to their sound and comparing this trajectory to the one Sylosis are on, they seem to have done similar but in fewer albums, successfully mixing their past and their current more mature form together perfectly. This album is a musical experience with twists and turns throughout, every song gives gives you another facet to Sylosis' sound. Tracks like Indoctrinated move from brutal speed, an uplifting middle section a vicious breakdown and then back again, before being followed by the more 'proper' metal of Harm, the stomping metalcore of Mercy, the emotive Callous Souls before the album ends with the nine minute Quiescent which is a distilled version of everything Sylosis do from textured acoustics to extremity in one song. The two bonus tracks are also good with the atmospheric Pillars Erode which sounds a lot like Stone Sour and a cover of Smashing Pumpkins'Zero. Sylosis have come of age on this record and thoroughly staked their claim as the British equivalent and indeed successors to bands like Machine Head, expect them to reach these lofty heights soon because of this awesome album, produced by producer extraordinaire Scott Atkins, its the album Sylosis have been aiming for since their inception lets hope it translates to the respect and admiration they deserve. A great way to kick off 2015!! 9/10

Neopera: Destined Ways (earMusic)

There does seem to be a fashion for bands with a trio of vocalists at the moment and Neopera follow that with two male and one female vocalist. Now what does this sound like I hear you ask? Well imagine a mix between Amaranthe, Lacuna Coil and Epica and you wouldn't be far off. This is your normal symphonic metal fodder with orchestrations galore, chugging metallic backing (with Gamma Ray's Henjo Richter providing the solos) and even some electronics thrown in. Add to this the trio of singers, these being a female soprano in the shape of Nina Jiers, Mirko Gluschke's aggressive harsh vocals and Thorsten Schuck's rich, deep baritone. The vocals work together well with all three having great voices and the musicianship is precise and well performed by all involved. However this album is not at all memorable, the songs blend into one and other and much of the music featured on this record has been done many times before. If you are a fan of symphonic metal (and I mean a real hardcore fan) then you may like this album however it didn't really grab my interest at all I'm afraid, it's just all a bit too safe and sounds like one long song towards the end. 5/10

Lacertilla: Crashing Into The Future (Self Released)

I've seen Lacertilla live a few times now and they are band that get better every time I see them, so having heard these songs in their ear-splittingly loud live form, I was excited to see how it would translate to record, would the frenzied madness and shamanistic grooves still be as effective in the studio. Well as the rampaging riffage of the title track opens this 5-track EP everything looks good. This collection of South Wales based musicians, members come from The Witches' Drum, Throun and Akb'al, play psychedelic, doom laden, space rock; with nods to MC5, Kyuss and especially early Orange Goblin, much of this comes from vocalist Matt Fry who is a dead ringer vocally for Ben Ward with the right mix of anger and spaced out mysticism, luckily he is backed by some top quality musical backing with Carl Richards tub thumping and Neal Palmer's bottom end providing the thick, sludgy groove for tracks like Abstract Reality as well as some dirty funk on Do Something! (which features the now immortal cowbell) The guitar contribution is also great with Lucas Zaluniski and Michael Young-Temple providing riffs that cut like a laser beam through James Bond as well as more intricate melodies and solos. the tracks move and twist as with lost of light and shade and a metric fuck tonne of riffage throughout but also more spacious, blissed out passages like the beginning to the trippy We Are The Flood which also features some tablas from Young-Temple before everything comes together around three minutes in on this musical headtrip before finally turning into the final track Tryin' To Do A Good Thing which is driven by a repetitive all consuming riff that brings the album to a monumental close. This is a great release that really shows off Lacertilla's chops as a band and does give you a sense the bands live power especially when played live. A full album please guys as this is well tidy!!! 8/10

Reviews: Bloodbath, Emigrate, Incinery (Reviews By Paul)

Another Point Of View: At The Gates (Review By Paul)

Another Point Of View: Electric Six (Review By Paul)

Reviews: Primordial, Lonewolf, Temperance (Reviews By Stief)

Another Point Of View: Behemoth (Review By Paul)

The View From Another Country: Crippled Black Phoenix

Review: Avenger, Astralion, Exlibris

Reviews: Saracen, Panzer, Red Zone Rider

A View From The Back Of The Room: Triaxis (Review By Paul)

Reviews: Texas Hippie Coalition, Tarturis, Schysma

Matt's Best Of 2014

Another Point Of View: Kreator (Review By Paul & Nick)

Reviews: Black State Highway, Khaos, Psychostick

Another Point Of View: Dub War (Review By Neil)

Reviews: United Progressive Fraternity, Starset, Black Trip

Reviews: Amulet, State Urge, Renegade

Reviews: Incursed, Celtic Legacy, Dissorted (Reviews By Stief)

Reviews: Forever's Fallen Grace, Premortal Breath, Gypsy

Reviews: Iris Divine, Karma Rassa, Melkor (Reviews By Paul)

Reviews: Sylosis, Neopera, Lacertilla