Airrace: Untold Stories (Japanese Edition) (Frontiers)
Get your hair backcombed and your dad-rock dance moves out...that's right, it's another AOR review. Surprisingly, this is only the third full album in 35 years from hard rockers Airrace. who have been around since the early 80's and boast Jason Bonham (Son of Led Zeppelin's John) among past members.
The newest iteration boasts some impressive additions, with this being vocalist Adam Payne's first recorded stint. Original member Laurie Mansworth continues on guitars with his son Dhani (of The Treatment) taking up the drums. Lionheart's Rocky Newton throws out some excellent bass lines, and Linda Kelsey-Foster is wonderful on keyboards. The first thing that's noticeable is the sound. Despite being a year younger than the band's founding, Adam Payne is definitely a great choice for the vocals, his voice fitting perfectly with the hard rock/bluesy sound that the band have evidently refined over years of touring.
It's your standard AOR fare, with tight melodic guitars, harmonies, great piano work and even some layered vocals in places. You even have your classic ballad, with Lost, which is a nice rest stop before the get-your-lighters-out chorus of Love Is Love. The inspiration from their peers is evident, with some songs including the aforementioned Love Is Love taking cues from Queen and Led Zeppelin amongst others, whilst still retaining their own personal style. A definite one to add to the collection for any fans of hard rock. 8/10
Baest: Danse Macarbe (Century Media)
As you can probably tell from the name (which translates to beast in Danish), this isn't any old metal band. This is the first full album from the Danish quintet, and straight from the outset, they grab your eardrums, assault them and barely relent. The band certainly live up to the name, with Simon Olsen's guttural growls sounding extremely vicious, especially working with the tight guitarwork from Sven Karlsson and Lasse Revsbech. Sebastian Abildsten's drumming pounds into your eardrums, and 'Muddi' Melchiorsen's basswork helping to bring the band's sound to that dark place we all want to be when we look for death metal.
It's hard to believe this is Baest's first album, as the band sound extremely polished, and it seems the its no surprise they've been seen supporting greats such as Dying Fetus, Entombed A.D and the like. What's also interesting is the way the band isn't afraid to shy away from the acoustic, with interlude Ritual giving a well needed rest before tearing straight into Vortex. Similarly, the title track begins with a calming acoustic solo before ripping you apart with melodies and deep growls. Definitely a band to keep an eye on! 9/10
Leviathan: Can't Be Seen By Looking: Blurring The Lines, Clouding The Truth (Stonefellowship Recordings)
This is a journey. One of those strange journeys with some odd twists and turns, a journey that when you finish, you're not sure where you are, and unsure if you were heading anywhere in the first place (bit like getting to Llantwit Major then? - Ed). Leviathan have a storied past, with several different versions of the band popping up since their founding in 1991. However, the latest includes John Lutzow doing a triple stint on guitar, keyboards and vocals, Mark Zonder on drums, Brazilian Raphael Gazal taking up vocals and Derek Blake covering the bass. The band's sound is very decent and ranges from borderline power metal to pure prog-rock, Gazal's skilled range easily fitting into any category.
Get your hair backcombed and your dad-rock dance moves out...that's right, it's another AOR review. Surprisingly, this is only the third full album in 35 years from hard rockers Airrace. who have been around since the early 80's and boast Jason Bonham (Son of Led Zeppelin's John) among past members.
The newest iteration boasts some impressive additions, with this being vocalist Adam Payne's first recorded stint. Original member Laurie Mansworth continues on guitars with his son Dhani (of The Treatment) taking up the drums. Lionheart's Rocky Newton throws out some excellent bass lines, and Linda Kelsey-Foster is wonderful on keyboards. The first thing that's noticeable is the sound. Despite being a year younger than the band's founding, Adam Payne is definitely a great choice for the vocals, his voice fitting perfectly with the hard rock/bluesy sound that the band have evidently refined over years of touring.
It's your standard AOR fare, with tight melodic guitars, harmonies, great piano work and even some layered vocals in places. You even have your classic ballad, with Lost, which is a nice rest stop before the get-your-lighters-out chorus of Love Is Love. The inspiration from their peers is evident, with some songs including the aforementioned Love Is Love taking cues from Queen and Led Zeppelin amongst others, whilst still retaining their own personal style. A definite one to add to the collection for any fans of hard rock. 8/10
Baest: Danse Macarbe (Century Media)
As you can probably tell from the name (which translates to beast in Danish), this isn't any old metal band. This is the first full album from the Danish quintet, and straight from the outset, they grab your eardrums, assault them and barely relent. The band certainly live up to the name, with Simon Olsen's guttural growls sounding extremely vicious, especially working with the tight guitarwork from Sven Karlsson and Lasse Revsbech. Sebastian Abildsten's drumming pounds into your eardrums, and 'Muddi' Melchiorsen's basswork helping to bring the band's sound to that dark place we all want to be when we look for death metal.
It's hard to believe this is Baest's first album, as the band sound extremely polished, and it seems the its no surprise they've been seen supporting greats such as Dying Fetus, Entombed A.D and the like. What's also interesting is the way the band isn't afraid to shy away from the acoustic, with interlude Ritual giving a well needed rest before tearing straight into Vortex. Similarly, the title track begins with a calming acoustic solo before ripping you apart with melodies and deep growls. Definitely a band to keep an eye on! 9/10
Leviathan: Can't Be Seen By Looking: Blurring The Lines, Clouding The Truth (Stonefellowship Recordings)
This is a journey. One of those strange journeys with some odd twists and turns, a journey that when you finish, you're not sure where you are, and unsure if you were heading anywhere in the first place (bit like getting to Llantwit Major then? - Ed). Leviathan have a storied past, with several different versions of the band popping up since their founding in 1991. However, the latest includes John Lutzow doing a triple stint on guitar, keyboards and vocals, Mark Zonder on drums, Brazilian Raphael Gazal taking up vocals and Derek Blake covering the bass. The band's sound is very decent and ranges from borderline power metal to pure prog-rock, Gazal's skilled range easily fitting into any category.
The changes can be jarring at time to time, and often feel like 3 songs in one, which is actually the case for The Struggle To Be Seen As Human, which is seemingly split into 3 distinct topics. Voice clips - including Will McAvoy's impassioned speech about America from The Newsroom - are peppered throughout the album, which all highlight the theme of the album. In the words of the band themselves; "focusing on the decline of the worlds middle class, corruption in politics and poisoning of the environment" with some of the titles being a bit more on the nose than others (Lies Are The New Normal [No Lesser Of Evil] being one that comes to mind.) Although it does help bring the message through, it often feels like the clips are being used as filler in places. Overall, as mentioned at the beginning, it's an odd one, and definitely needs a few listens before you decide exactly how you feel. 7/10
Man With A Mission: Chasing The Horizon (Sony Music Records)
When a band of wolf mask wearing people claim to be created by Jimi Hendrix as the ultimate life form, you know you're not getting some basic album. The band's sound ranges from disco-esque electronica with rap interludes, to pure nu-metal. Tokyo Tanaka's vocals would not seem out of place with bands like Fallout Boy and the like, whilst Jean-Ken Johnny's rapping would fit perfectly well within Limp Bizkit or Linkin Park. It's hard to put a pin in the exact sound of Man With A Mission due to the diversity. There's mixing and sampling from DJ Santa Monica, straight up riffs from Jean-ken, and Spear Rib's drumming varies between the manic drumming during Dog Days and the steady rhythm of songs like Sleepwalker.
One second you're listening to Mindless Self Indulgence, then you're thrown into soaring distorted guitars a la 30 Seconds To Mars. However, there are some nice touches, including the band using their native Japanese in Find You, and even jumping between English and Japanese in the calming album closer Sleepwalker. This is the first of Man With A Mission's albums to be released internationally, so pick it up, give it a listen and decide for yourself. Definitely worth a look in at least 8/10
Man With A Mission: Chasing The Horizon (Sony Music Records)
When a band of wolf mask wearing people claim to be created by Jimi Hendrix as the ultimate life form, you know you're not getting some basic album. The band's sound ranges from disco-esque electronica with rap interludes, to pure nu-metal. Tokyo Tanaka's vocals would not seem out of place with bands like Fallout Boy and the like, whilst Jean-Ken Johnny's rapping would fit perfectly well within Limp Bizkit or Linkin Park. It's hard to put a pin in the exact sound of Man With A Mission due to the diversity. There's mixing and sampling from DJ Santa Monica, straight up riffs from Jean-ken, and Spear Rib's drumming varies between the manic drumming during Dog Days and the steady rhythm of songs like Sleepwalker.
One second you're listening to Mindless Self Indulgence, then you're thrown into soaring distorted guitars a la 30 Seconds To Mars. However, there are some nice touches, including the band using their native Japanese in Find You, and even jumping between English and Japanese in the calming album closer Sleepwalker. This is the first of Man With A Mission's albums to be released internationally, so pick it up, give it a listen and decide for yourself. Definitely worth a look in at least 8/10