Aug 20 2011

Def Leppard – Mirrorball: Live & More (2011)

Def Leppard – Mirror Ball: Live & More (2011, Mailboat Records)

Disc 1

  1. Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)
  2. Rocket
  3. Animal
  4. C’Mon C’Mon
  5. Make Love Like A Man
  6. Too Late For Love
  7. Foolin’
  8. Nine Lives
  9. Love Bites
  10. Rock On

Disc 2

  1. Two Steps Behind
  2. Bringin’ On The Heartbreak
  3. Switch 625
  4. Hysteria
  5. Armageddon It
  6. Photograph
  7. Pour Some Sugar On Me
  8. Rock Of Ages
  9. Let’s Get Rocked
  10. Action *
  11. Bad Actress *
  12. Undefeated **
  13. Kings Of The World **
  14. It’s All About Believin’ **

* bonus live track
** new studio track

Disc 3 – DVD

- Behind the Scenes on the Sparkle Lounge Tour 2008-2009
- Live Performances: Rock! Rock! (‘Til You Drop), Armageddon It, Pour Some Sugar On Me, Hysteria
- Music Videos: Nine Lives, C’Mon C’Mon

Band Lineup:
Joe Elliott – Lead Vocals & Acoustic Guitar
Phil Collen – Guitars & Backing Vocals
Vivian Campbell – Guitars & Backing Vocals
Rick Savage – Bass & Backing Vocals
Rick Allen – Drums & Backing Vocals

Producers: Def Leppard & Ronan McHugh

Country: United Kingdom

Total Time (CD) = 2 hours
Total Time (DVD) = approx. 45 mins

Def Leppard

It’s hard to believe that Def Leppard has never released an official live album until now with MIRRORBALL, a full 31 years since the band’s 1980 debut ON THROUGH THE NIGHT. You would have figured that the band would have put out a live set between studio albums somewhere in their ’80s heyday or at least in the late ’90s/early 2000s because they have been a touring juggernaut since the band first burst on the NWOBHM scene. I’ve been lucky enough to catch the band a couple of times back in the ’80s and on various tours since the 1999 tour for EUPHORIA but the concert I saw in 2006 on the YEAH! Tour, the concert I saw in 2007 promoting YEAH! , and the show in 2009 for SONGS FROM THE SPARKLE LOUNGE (2008), are all represented on this live collection. If you take a look inside the nice booklet that is inside the old school multi-CD jewel case, you’ll notice that no specific cities or dates for the recordings are list, just the quote: “Recorded at various points around the world, in the not too distant past.” While I would have liked to know the specific tour dates, it’s a small ommission that can be overlooked because of the quality of the live album.

The Leps have followed the business model that Journey, KISS, Foreigner and AC/DC have forged by releasing MIRRORBALL exclusively in the U.S. through retail giant Wal-Mart…..that means a low price and more than a few extras. First, the actual set is 19 songs long on the CDs with two bonus live tracks added in with ‘Action’ and ‘Bad Actress’. In the last three times I’ve seen Def Leppard live since 2006 they’ve played 15, 16 and 17 songs respectively and the live show on this album is a perfect representation of what’s been played on the last few tours. I missed this summer’s tour for MIRRORBALL but the 16 song set they played at the Comcast Center in Massachusetts is pretty much the greatest hits pack you have here along with the David Essex cover ‘Rock On’ and opening with the new song ‘Undefeated’. Back to this album though…..it’s good to hear ‘C’Mon C’Mon’, ‘Nine Lives’ and ‘Bad Actress’ live as I was only given ‘Nine Lives’ in concert the times I’ve seen the band live. The rest is a hits collection culled mainly from the three blockbusters PYROMANIA (1983), HYSTERIA (1987) and ADRENALIZE (1992) with a couple tracks from HIGH ‘N DRY (1981) thrown in with the instrumental ‘Switch 625′ coming right after the obligatory power ballad ‘Bringin’ On The Heartbreak’. Would be nice to get another cut from HIGH “N DRY or maybe from the first record but I’m not complaining because Def Leppard has had huge success and there’s just so many songs you can fit into a concert. Personally, I would have cut out ‘Rock On’ and the bonus live track ‘Action’ (a cover orginally done by The Sweet) for a couple more Lep originals but that’s just me. As far as the sound goes, it’s perfect but did you expect anything less from Def Leppard? These guys have sounded great in concert everytime I’ve seen them since the ’80s and their studio album always have top quality production so MIRRORBALL has the same BIG sound that’s crystal clear. Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen are a seasoned guitar tandem and are as good as the classic team of Collen and Steve Clark and Rick Savage always keeps the rhythm in line on bass while Rick Allen continues to impress on drums. The wild card has always been Joe Elliot’s voice and he’s had some concerts I’ve witnessed where he wasn’t that great and some that he sounded like he was still in his 20s. On MIRRORBALL, Joe sounds pretty good although you can tell that age has become a factor and he doesn’t reach the high notes he used to, a surprisingly good vocal performance though.

There are three new studio songs added to this package which I always think is a good idea for the longtime fans but there has to be quality. The current tour opener is ‘Undefeated’ and it’s a heavy guitar track with a great drum intro that reminds me a little of the opening to Bon Jovi’s ‘Lay Your Hands On Me’. The song sounds like your current day Def Leppard song that could easily have fit on SPARKLE LOUNGE with it’s heavy sound and big harmonies, the only difference is that Joe’s voice sounds a little raspier and deeper. Like I said before, Joe Elliot is not 20 years old anymore and he knows what he’s able to accomplish as he gets older. Not a bad vocal though just slightly different and a little lower register than the usual. Good track though and the best one to play on the current tour. ‘Kings Of The World’ is Def Leps ode to Queen with it’s bombast, piano, harmonies and Brian May guitar tone. Rick Savage wrote this song and he had to be going through his Queen records but, then again, the band has always cited Queen as an influence and they are friends. ‘Kings Of The World’ is good but it’s not really what you would expect from Def Leppard. ‘It’s All About Believin’ sounds like a track from the EUPHORIA sessions, very upbeat and HYSTERIA sounding and it actually has some parts that sound like ‘Animal’. Of the three, I’d rate this as my favorite because this is the Lep sound and I was a huge EUPHORIA fan, I wouldn’t mind hearing this live either.

As far as the bonus DVD goes, it’s a nice extra but really only a one time view for me. Some of the footage I’ve seen before and some I haven’t, the backstage footage is always fun to see. It’s nice to get the ‘Nine Lives’ and ‘C’Mon C’Mon’ videos and I enjoyed the live songs but I would have enjoyed more full live performances instead of just four. If you compare this package to KISS’ or Foreigner’s the difference is full concerts on those bands’ Wal-Mart releases, same thing with Whitesnake’s LIVE AT DONNINGTON 1990 on Frontiers Records (a double disc live with DVD). It’s a small criticism because I have hope that the band will release an official live DVD but they really didn’t have to add this in to the live album so it’s a good bonus to have.

Bottom Line:
A solid live set from Def Leppard full of hits and sounding great, a lot better than I expected. The production is great and the band sounds as tight as they were when I saw them in concert over the last few years. The surprise is how well Joe Elliot sounds, I expected that he’d sound a little rougher on a live recording but he sounds pretty good, maybe a little studio overdub? Hopefully not, I hate knowing a live album is studio enhanced but I can say that Joe sounds much like he did over the last few tours. Adding three new original songs is always a good deal and they are all good, the DVD is run of the mill for me but a cool bonus nonetheless. For the $10 price, this is a nice album to pick up.

Best Songs:
The live songs are all great sounding but I have to pick ‘Animal’, ‘Foolin’, ‘Make Love Like A Man’ and ‘Nine Lives’ as my favorites. Of the three new tracks, I’d rate ‘It’s All About Believin’ as my favorite, ‘Undefeated’ second and the Queen tribute,’Kings Of The World’, last.

Aug 20 2011

Press Release: UFO – The Chrysalis Years (1973-1979) box set to be released 9/13/11 on Capitol/EMI

From Capitol/EMI Records:

UFO – THE CHRYSALIS YEARS (1973-1979) TO BE RELEASED SEPTEMBER 13, 2011 BY CAPITOL/ EMI

5CD and Digital Collection Includes Five Studio Albums, Plus a Previously Unreleased Concert Recording, BBC Radio Sessions, Singles, B-sides, and Rare Remixes

On September 13, Capitol/EMI will release an expansive 5CD and digital collection spanning UFO’s Chrysalis Records tenure.  Across 81 tracks, UFO’s The Chrysalis Years (1973-1979) collects all of the songs the band recorded for Chrysalis during the 1970s.

UFO’s musical odyssey started in 1969, when singer Phil Mogg was joined by drummer Andy Parker and bassist Pete Way. This trio would become the backbone of the band for the next 13 years, and mainstays for much of UFO’s forty-plus year career.

The Chrysalis Years (1973-1979) chronologically charts UFO’s career, from the obscure 1973 German single “Give Her The Gun” to 1979’s hit single version of “Doctor Doctor,” backed with its live B-side, “On With The Action” (available on CD for the first time). Collecting all five studio albums to feature wunderkind guitar virtuoso Michael Schenker, who was only 18 when he originally joined the band for 1974’s Phenomenon, this anthology also includes, in their entirety, Force It (1975), No Heavy Petting (1976), Lights Out (1977) and Obsession (1978).  In addition to BBC Radio sessions recorded for Bob Harris and John Peel, single edits and rare remixes, this collection boasts a previously unreleased 45-minute concert recording from UFO’s first U.S. tour.

Recorded in 1974 at Atlanta’s Electric Ballroom, the multi-tracks for this concert were recently discovered in the Chrysalis vaults, and have been given a brand new mix at Abbey Road Studios. Featuring rare live outings of “Give Her The Gun,” the pre-Chrysalis song “Prince Kujuku,” and most interestingly, UFO’s eight-minute interpretation of John Lennon’s “Cold Turkey,” this gig offers unique insight into the early days of this important and influential British rock institution. Completed by the U.K. Top 10 breakthrough double live album, Strangers In the Night, recorded on Michael Schenker’s “farewell” tour, the package also includes liner notes based on a recent interview with UFO vocalist, Phil Mogg.

 UFO: The Chrysalis Years (1973-1979)

DISC ONE

1. Give Her The Gun (Single A-Side)
2. Sweet Little Thing (Single B-Side)

Phenomenon 
3. Oh My
4. Crystal Light
5. Doctor Doctor
6. Space Child
7. Rock Bottom
8. Too Young To Know
9. Time On My Hands
10. Built For Comfort
11. Lipstick Traces
12. Queen Of The Deep
Bonus Track
13. Doctor Doctor (Single Edit)*

Bob Harris session (28th October 1974)
14. Rock Bottom
15. Time On My Hands
16. Give Her The Gun

DISC TWO

Electric Ballroom, Atlanta, GA 5th November 1974** 
(Previously Unreleased)
1. Oh My
2. Doctor Doctor
3. Built For Comfort
4. Give Her The Gun
5. Cold Turkey
6. Space Child
7. Rock Bottom
8. Prince Kujuku

Force It (Side One)
9. Let It Roll
10. Shoot Shoot
11. High Flyer (4:09)
12. Love Lost Love (3:22)
13. Out In The Street

DISC THREE

Force It (Side Two)
1. Mother Mary
2. Too Much Of Nothing
3. Dance Your Life Away
4. This Kid’s (Including ‘Between The Walls’)

No Heavy Petting
5. Natural Thing
6. I’m A Loser
7. Can You Roll Her
8. Belladonna
9. Reasons Love
10. Highway Lady
11. On With The Action
12. A Fool In Love
13. Martian Landscape

Lights Out (Side One)
14. Too Hot To Handle
15. Just Another Suicide
16. Try Me
17. Lights Out

DISC FOUR

Lights Out (Side Two)
1. Gettin’ Ready
2. Alone Again Or
3. Electric Phase
4. Love To Love
Lights Out Bonus Track
5. Try Me (Single Remix)*

John Peel session (27th June 1977)
6. Too Hot To Handle
7. Lights Out
8. Try Me

Obsession
9. Only You Can Rock Me
10. Pack It Up (And Go)
11. Arbory Hill
12. Ain’t No Baby
13. Lookin’ Out For No 1
14. Hot ‘N’ Ready
15. Cherry
16. You Don’t Fool Me
17. Lookin’ Out For No 1 (Reprise)
18. One More For The Rodeo
19. Born To Lose
Bonus Track
20. Only You Can Rock Me (Single Version)*

DISC FIVE

Strangers In The Night
1. Natural Thing
2. Out In The Street
3. Only You Can Rock Me
4. Doctor Doctor
5. Mother Mary
6. This Kid’s
7. Love To Love
8. Lights Out
9. Rock Bottom
10. Too Hot To Handle
11. I’m A Loser
12. Let It Roll
13. Shoot Shoot
Strangers In The Night Bonus Tracks
14. Doctor Doctor (Live Single Edit)
15. On With The Action (Live Single B-Side)*

*Available on CD for the first time
**Previously unreleased

Aug 19 2011

Cinderella and Mass in concert at Showcase Live (Foxboro, MA) – 8/3/11

I’m a little late in posting the review but I caught Cinderella on their 25th Anniversary Tour at Showcase Live in Foxboro, MA on August 3rd. A solid show overall with a surprise opener, melodic metal band Mass, who you may remember from back in the ’80s. The Showcase Live is located at Patriot Place, in the Foxboro Stadium complex (home of the New England Patriots), and it’s only about 20 minutes from my house. A lot of shows have come to the club like Michael Schenker Group, UFO (saw the show in May and never reviewed it!), Jackyl, Uriah Heep, Kip Winger and the Mr. Big show next week. It’s a great place to see a show and it accommodates about 1000 – 1500 fans for a standing room only concert. It’s a state of the art venue and a great place to see a show! Tickets weren’t bad, $35 for a ticket…..a very reasonable price for two solid bands.

Mass opened the show and played about eight songs, four being off their 2010 album SEA OF BLACK. Unfortunately, I was unable to write the setlist down but it was high energy and a great performance. I was able to sing a long to the newer songs but I forgot which ones they were two weeks later! I did recognize a couple of the older songs but I had no idea about the song titles or which albums they came from, they just sounded familiar. Foxboro is 30 minutes outside Boston so this was a home gig for Mass and they had a lot of faithful fans in the packed house…..and it was just as packed for Mass as it was the headliners. If SEA OF BLACK didn’t open my mind to Mass, their performance did and I’ll be acquiring the rest of their releases through the band’s official website soon. Nice guys all around, even hung around their merchandise booth to shake hands, sign autographs and take pictures.

Cinderella setlist:

Once Around The Ride
Shake Me
Heartbreak Station
Somebody Save Me
Night Songs
The More Things Change
Coming Home
Second Wind
Don’t Know What You Got (‘Til It’s Gone)
Nobody’s Fool
Gypsy Road

Encore:
Long Cold Winter
Shelter Me

I’ve been a Cinderella fan since the beginning with NIGHT SONGS (1986) and I saw them open for Bon Jovi on the Slippery When Wet Tour back in 1986 in Providence, RI. I caught them again on a couple of summer tours with Poison and they had the crowd going just as much as Poison so they have a great fanbase and the songs to put on a great show. The original lineup is intact for this 25th Anniversary Tour led by the Steven Tyler influenced Tom Keifer on guitars, piano, sax & lead vocals, Eric Brittingham on bass & vocals, Fred Coury on drums & vocals and the underrated Jeff Labar on guitars & vocals…..rounding out the band on keyboards is longtime touring member Gary Corbett. The band had the great venue, great crowd, great sound so I expected an awesome setlist. Basically, all the hits were played from the first three albums with the most notable exception of  ‘The Last Mile’ from LONG COLD WINTER (1988) and ‘Hot And Bothered’ from STILL CLIMBING (1994). I couldn’t believe that they ignored the fourth album, STILL CLIMBING, because I remember ‘Hot And Bothered’ getting plenty of airplay in 1992 because of it’s inclusion on the Wayne’s World movie soundtrack. Adding those two songs to the set would have put this show over the top for me but it was a solid show anyway with five songs off the debut NIGHT SONGS, five from 1988′s LONG COLD WINTER (my personal favorite!) and three from HEARTBREAK STATION (1990). I figured that the first two albums would get a ton of songs but I was glad to see the band focus on HEARTBREAK STATION because it’s an underrated record even though it was a Top 20 album and went platinum. The band was tight and played great with all the big vocal harmonies you hear on the records. Tom Keifer is heavily influenced by Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler not only in his look but his vocal style with that gritty blues styled voice that sounds like he gargles with Drano at times. I personally think Tom got stronger vocally as the show went on and he was easily in classic form a couple songs in. I was on the Jeff Labar side of the stage so I watched him closely…..definitely an underrated guitar player with a cool style and swagger. You would never be able to tell that Cinderella hadn’t released an album in 17 years and has only done a few summer tours in the last decade because they sounded great. Surprises of the setlist? Definitely ‘Second Wind’ (that ended Side 1 of LONG COLD WINTER) and opener ‘Once Around The Ride’ (from NIGHT SONGS)…..’Second Wind’ was always one of my favorite tracks on LONG COLD WINTER but I was surprised with ‘Once Around The Ride’ because I would have bet that the band would have played long time concert staple ‘Push Push’ from the same record. All in all, another good concert with two solid performances at a good price. Mass will get a closer look and the hope Cinderella will put a new record out is burning brighter with me.

Aug 18 2011

CD Scavenger Hunt (July update)

After a solid month of purchases in June to end the first half of the year, it’s time to set sights on the second half of 2011. Will the money be there to spend? Will the CDs be there to buy? What treasures will be found? The answers start now…..

Newbury Comics

Metalium – Hero Nation: Chapter III (2002) – $6 used: I started off the month of July with a very easy purchase…..a used copy of Metalium’s third album HERO NATION for $6. You may be asking why this album has so much significance, and there really isn’t any, the price was right and I have been watching this CD sit in the Used Metal section for at least six months! Over the last six months I think I’ve checked my collection at least a dozen times to see if I already own this CD but I would forget everytime I’d be in the record shop. Finally, I wrote it down on the growing Want List but I never got around to buying it until now. I never like to miss a bargain and my online research tells me that this CD still gets at least $15 regular price so I decided to make the purchase and saved myself around $9. This puts the Metalium collection a little closer to being completed, now I just need Chapters IV, V, VI, VII and VIII! Bonus enhanced CD included on this also so it was a great find.

Deep Purple – Phoenix Rising (Special Edition DVD/CD) (2011) – $14: I love Deep Purple, all lineups, all albums…..they are one of the founding fathers of Heavy metal as we know it and the credit is well deserved. I saw an add for this DVD in Classic Rock Magazine so I checked it out when it received a U.S. release. The special edition DVD is based on the Mark III and Mark IV Purple lineups that include David Coverdale, Glenn Hughes and Tommy Bolin along with founding members Ian Paice and Jon Lord and it’s a great snapshot in time of a Deep Purple era that so many have for gotten about. There is a DVD with a Japanese concert from 1975 and a documentary, the CD version of all the live tracks and two special booklets. Add in a bonus interview with Lord & Hughes and the COME TASTE THE BAND press kit and you get a little more for the money. The difference between the standard DVD and the special edition was $4 so I went for the extras as I always do. Regular price for the special edition was $20 so I saved $6.

So on one shopping trip, I made it over to the Newbury Comics location in Warwick, RI…..this was my usual store until a location opened near my house a few years ago. If it wasn’t for the 20 minute drive (I know, 20 mins is nothing but it is to a true Rhode Islander!), I’d be down there all the time because it’s a bigger store and they get some great used bargains. I went diving in the used bins, especially the real cheap CDs, and here’s what I pulled out…..

Project X – Blueprint For Xcess (1996) – $2 used: I knew nothing about Project X but I noticed that the album was released in 1996 on Escape Music, distrubuted by MTM Music…..that’s a Hard Rock/Melodic Rock label! Closer inspection at the back tray card revealed the name Don Wolf who used to be the lead singer for White Wolf and was Don Wilk back then. I remember White Wolf from back in the early ’80s, I tried to win a cassette copy of STANDING ALONE (1984) from an ad in Hit Parader magazine. Never won that tape but I did get to dub a copy of the record from a friend of mine…..remember dual cassette decks? So with the Escape Music link and the White Wolf pedigree, I picked this up used for a cool $2. How can you go wrong with $2 for a used disc? I did some research on my phone when I got to the car and it seems that you can get this CD online anywhere from $7 to $20 depending on where you shop. Assuming we go by a regular price of $12, I saved about $10.

Brother Cane – Seeds (1995) – $3 used: This is where the Collectorz software I use came in handy! As the long time readers know, I’ve had the Collectorz Music Collector software software for awhile and I’m slowly putting my collection in the database…..I also have the Android app that lets me put what I have on my main computer on my cell phone. Well, I’m not too far along (in the D’s) but I was able to double check to see if I owned this Brother Cane disc. Lead singer/guitarist Damon Johnson is in Alice Cooper’s band and he’s played with Sammy Hagar, John Waite and Jack Blades. I remembered Brother Cane from their first record and ‘Got No Shame’ so I decided to grab this used for $3. The funny thing about it is that there were three other used copies in the same spot priced at $5, $7 and $10! I’m the lucky one I guess! Considering a regular price around $12 for an older album from the early ’90s, I saved $9.

Twisted Forever (A Tribute To The Legendary Twisted Sister) (2001) – $4 used: Tribute albums, cover albums, cover songs…..I could generally do without them but it seems that I own a ton of them! Chalk that up to getting them cheap in used bins over the years! Of course, there are a few essential ones I need because the tributized band adds a song or two in there. This time around, it’s this Twisted Sister tribute that I wouldn’t have bought if it wasn’t for the low price and the fact my oldest daughter’s favorite Hard Rock band is Twisted Sister. There’s some good bands on here paying tribute (doing covers!): Motorhead, Anthrax, Overkill, Hammerfall, Sebastian Bach…..and some questionable ones like Chuck D. from Public Enemy and Lit. Of course, Twisted Sister is on there last with their cover of AC/DC’s ‘Sin City’ which is nothing I hadn’t heard before but it’s a nice package overall. Last copy I saw in a record store was going for about $10 brand new so I saved $6 since spotting it last and I made my daughter ultra-happy!

Jimmy Page – Outrider (1988) – $4 used: OUTRIDER is an album I’ve had on my list for a while, seen it hundreds of times new for $12- $15, but never pulled the trigger because it’s not the best record in the world. I remember a lot of my Rock friends getting psyched for this album back in the day because it was Jimmy Page, guitar god from Led Zeppelin, with Jason Bonham drumming on six out of nine tracks! This fuelled the Led Zep reunion rumors and my group was heavy into it. I’ve never been an overly huge Zeppelin fan even though I like them but I was more interested into where Page was going to go from after The Firm broke up (an underrated band by far!). I remember having a taped copy from a friend (there’s that dual cassette deck again!) and listening to the lead single ‘Wasting My Time’ but that’s about it. I wasn’t going to pass this up at $4 and I assume I saved around $10 by passing on all those new copies over the years!

Ian Parry – Visions (2006) – $4 used: You might remember Ian Parry as the lead singer for Elegy or The Consortium Project, at least that’s how I know Ian Parry! Obviously name recognition went into this purchase as well as the label was Escape Music. Taking a look at my collection it seems I have most of the Elegy albums so I figured that spending a whole $4 on an Ian Parry solo album wouldn’t be much of a stretch musically. To be honest, outside of his name and his work with Elegy, I really don’t know much else about Ian so I’m taking a chance in a way. I don’t own any Consortium Project CDs which is actually odd because I see them used everywhere. The cool thing is that I found another copy of this in the Metal used bin for $8 so I saved $4 off a used price and my research online shows that this album still lists for $15 in most places…..overall I saved about $11.

Carmine Appice Project – Ultimate Guitar Zeus (2006) – $5 used: All right, the only reason I picked this up was because I know Carmine Appice and I heard an interview with him on the Talking Metal podcast. From what I know, GUITAR ZEUS and GUITAR ZEUS II were released in 1995 and 1997  respectively and released to fan club members only. The songs include originals and a few covers that Carmine, bass god Tony Franklin and singer Kelly Keeling teamed up to record along with some of the biggest names on guitar like Zakk Wylde, Ted Nugent, Slash, Brian May and Neal Schon. ULTIMATE GUITAR ZEUS is a compilation of songs from volumes 1 and 2…..of course, when I heard the Talking Metal podcast, Carmine was promoting GUITAR ZEUS: CONQUERING HEROES (2009) which I believe is a double disc that is both volumes in a nice package.  Considering that this CD, the first two original albums, and all the Japanese pressings are out of print and go for various prices on Ebay, all I have to go buy is the newest installment that retails at $15 via Carmine’s website. I’ll assume I saved $10.

Enough used bin diving…..back to the new releases! More trips to the local store near my house for the new albums on Tuesdays…..

Rhapsody Of Fire – From Chaos To Eternity (2011) – $10: Rhapsody Of Fire, formerly just Rhapsody, seems to release album after album, and E.P. after E.P., and I always pick them up! Didn’t I just buy a new CD from Rhapsody Of Fire recently? The problem with  Rhapsody Of Fire is their distribution to North America is later than Europe and Japan so something released everywhere last year might only see a release in the States this year…..at least FROM CHAOS TO ETERNITY is brand new and released worldwide on Nuclear Blast. What’s crazy now is that I just read today that the band is splitting in two and keyboardist Alex Staropoli and lead guitarist Luca Turilli will be parting ways in a friendly manner. Staropoli retains the Rhapsody Of Fire name and all previous rights and Turilli retains the name “Rhapsody” and will have a new band under that name. Confused yet? At least I bought their last offering on sale, regular price was $16, so I saved $6.

TYR – The Lay Of Thrym (2011) – $12: THE LAY OF THRYM came out months ago but I’ve kept this album on the want list because of the insane amount of copies at every record store I’ve been to. Is TYR that popular? I seem to acquire all the TYR albums and I like their Viking Metal sound but I just couldn’t bring myself to buy it, even when it was on sale, knowing that eventually the record stores is going to discount the price further to get rid of overstock…..I was wrong. I went into the store for the new Rhapsody Of Fire and Iced Earth releases and I noticed that all the copies of this album were off sale and at a $16 regular price. Further investigation found a copy of this disc in the Misc T. section still on sale for $12 so I grabbed it right away. When I got to the register the CD rang up at the $16 regular price, of course they price adjusted it so I ended up saving $4 with the sale price.

Iced Earth – Festivals Of The Wicked DVD (2011) – $16: I’ve been an Iced Earth fan since 1997 when I picked up THE DARK SAGA (1996) and the DAYS OF PURGATORY (1997) double disc compilation so I was looking forward to getting this DVD of the latest Iced Earth lineups at some of the biggest European Metal festivals from 2007 and 2008. two DVDs, three concerts, an hour long documentary and some bonus material totalling over foive hours of footage, that’s a bargain for $16 the day of release! Regular price was $24 so I saved $8. Here is where I complain a little…..there’s an audio CD of FESTIVALS OF THE WICKED that was released the same day and I planned on buying that too. The sale price was $13 for the CD so I figured I was going to get a 3 CD set of the concerts kind of like I did when I bought the ALIVE IN ATHENS live set back in 1999. So I grab the CD immeadiately but I never checked it until I got to the register…..the CD version is a compilation of songs from all three concerts and only 12 songs! Absolutely disappointed and I never bought it. I’m not sure who thought of this at Century Media but you’ve got to be kidding! With other bands releasing DVDs with bonus CDs of the music, and vice versa, all the time you would think that Century Media could have easily released a 3 disc audio set of the DVD. I would have put that on my Ipod and enjoyed that like crazy! Somebody dropped the ball at the label!

Twisted Sister – Double Live: North Stage ’82 & New York Steel ’01 DVD (2011) – $18: Here’s another Twisted Sister release that had my oldest daughter going crazy! Nothing beats a good DVD and you can’t miss with Twisted Sister finally releasing both of these concerts on DVD, especially New York Steel 2001 because it was a benefit for the New York Police & Fire Widows & Children Benefit 11 weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I read about New York Steel back in 2001 and it was not only a great cause for the band to unite for but it was also the rebirth of the band as a touring and recording entity. The North Stage show from 1982 is there last club performance before the band flew to engalnd to record their ’82 debut album UNDER THE BLADE. A little vintage footage, some recent footage (although 10 years old!) and you’ve got two solid concerts. Add in the bonus interviews with the band talking about each show and it’s a nice package. There was no audio companion release but I would have bought one had it been listed for release. Regular price was $25, I paid $18, so I saved $7.

George Lynch – Kill All Control (2011) – $12: I grew up a Dokken fan so I ended up as a Lynch Mob fan back in the day too. George has such a cool guitar style and I’ve been listening to WICKED SENSATION (1990) a lot lately so I kept this release on my list. The only problem with buying this is that I didn’t get into some of his last few albums I bought like SYZYGY (1998), SMOKE THIS (1999) and the Lynch/Pilson album WICKED UNDERGROUND (2003) and I didn’t want to get burned. You’ve got some guest stars here as this isn’t Lynch Mob but George solo: London LeGrand (Brides Of Destruction) is singing and touring with George right now, Marq Torien from the Bullet Boys, Fred Coury from Cinderella is on there and a few more. I read a few good reviews online so I decided to take a chance. The record store had only one copy so I grabbed it figuring I wouldn’t see it again on sale…..regular price $15, saved $3.

Total = $110

Total (year) = $669

Average Price (per item) = $10.29

Total Savings (month) = $99

Total Savings (year) = $435

Total CDs (year) = 59

Total DVDs (year) = 5

Total Box Sets (year) = 0

Total LPs (year) = 1

Aug 13 2011

Journey – Eclipse (2011)

Journey – Eclipse (2011, independent release)

  1. City Of Hope
  2. Edge Of The Moment
  3. Chain Of Love
  4. Tantra
  5. Anything Is Possible
  6. Resonate
  7. She’s A Mystery
  8. Human Feel
  9. Ritual
  10. To Whom It May Concern
  11. Someone
  12. Venus

Band Lineup:
Arnel Pineda – Lead Vocals
Neal Schon – All Guitars & Backing Vocals
Jonathan Cain – Keyboards & Backing Vocals
Ross Valory – Bass & Backing Vocals
Deen Castronovo – Drums, Percussion & Vocals

Producers: Kevin Shirley, Neal Schon & Jonathan Cain

Country: USA

Total Time = 1:06:26

Journey official website
Journey MySpace page

Journey marked their third comeback with a new singer in Arnel Pineda, and a great album with REVELATION, in 2008 and achieved both critical and commercial success that had been missing since TRIAL BY FIRE (1996). Credit the critical acclaim to the band getting down to business and writing well written, catchy, melodic songs and Arnel dazzling everyone with his superb Steve Perry styled vocals on record and on tour. The commercial success came through a great business deal with retail giant Wal-Mart to exclusively release REVELATION (including a DVD and re-recorded hits package) and get the band their first platinum record in over a decade. Band leaders Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain are superb musicians, as well as knowledgeable businessmen, so it’s no surprise that they hit big with the REVELATION album and tour. That was then and this is 2011 and Journey, and specifically Pineda, have to prove that this REVELATION wasn’t a fluke and that Journey has the talent and drive to continue well into the future. That proof comes with their new album, and another Wal-Mart exclusive, ECLIPSE.

As I do with many reviews I write, I have to tell you that I’ve been a fan of Journey for a long time, at least since 1981′s ESCAPE, so I’ve grown up with the band and heard all the big hits and all the albums countless times. REVELATION was one of my favorite albums of 2008 so I was really psyched up for the new record’s release especially when I read all the press that this was going to be a heavier album, a true Rock record. Neal Schon has always been one of my favorite guitarists and I’ve always thought that he doesn’t get the credit he deserves because Journey is sometimes seen as a Pop band or a ballad band, take a listen to his solo material (ELECTRIC WORLD from 1997 is awesome!), his work with HSAS, Bad English, Hardline or Soul Sirkus and you’ll hear some great riffs and solos along with more melodic, blues and jazz elements. A Journey album with more guitar? Sign me up! I drove to Wal-Mart the day of release to buy it and I don’t shop at Wal-Mart on principle! At first glance, ECLIPSE doesn’t give off the “Wow!” factor in terms of packaging especially when compared to the deluxe, three disc, brightly colored digibook that was REVELATION, ECLPISE is a darker album cover and the packaging is a simple slim digipak with a four page booklet. So they value factor isn’t there as far as bonuses (no extra discs) but the price was definitely low ($10) and the music is the whole point of an album.

Starting off ECLIPSE is the melodic and upbeat ‘City Of Hope’ that sounds like a typical Journey rocker and could have easily come off ARRIVAL (2001) and the guitar driven ‘Edge Of The Moment’ that sounds like late ’70s/early ’80s Journey from EVOLUTION (1979) or DEPARTURE (1980). Right away you notice that both songs are guitar oriented with thick riffs and heavier solos compared to the usual Journey fare but the underlying detail is that Jonathan Cain’s keyboards are not as up front in the mix. One of the reasons that Journey sometimes gets a reputation for being too “lite” is because the keyboards so up front in the overall sound, immeadiately you hear the guitar driving the songs and the keys a compliment. The other thing I hear right away is that Arnel Pineda is adding his own flair to the vocals rather than straight up copy the classic Steve Perry sound. Back on REVELATION it was obvious that Pineda could do a solid Perry imitation, listen to that second disc of re-recordings and it’s pretty spot on, but on these first two songs you can hear an edge. Of course, I write those words and there’s a keyboard intro to ‘Chain Of Love’ and Pineda’s voice soars and sounds just like Perry’s on the album’s first ballad ‘Tantra’. ‘Chain Of Love’ is a heavy mid-tempo track that gives off a dark moody feeling that is the direct opposite of typical Journey, a song full of chunky riffs that sound so thick that it may throw some people off. ‘Tantra’ is your typical Journey ballad that starts out slow with Cain’s piano leading the way and Pineda crooning like Perry but then Schon kicks the guitar in and the entire band comes together to deliver one of the most powerful songs on the album. Say what you want about straight up Rock songs, sometimes a power ballad can be as heavy, as rocking, and as powerful, that’s ‘Chain Of Love’. The first four songs on this new album are great with plenty of sonic changes and a focus on Schon’s guitar…..if the rest of the record is as good then Journey has another winner on it’s hands.

‘Anything Is Possible’ is a mid-tempo AOR number that easily recalls Steve Perry/RAISED ON RADIO era Journey and it’s definitely one of my favorite tracks on the record, very catchy and clean as far as the sound goes. I like Cain’s underlying piano and the guitar solos are a pleasure to hear but it’s Arnel’s showcase and he sounds like a seasoned veteran of the AOR ranks. ‘Resonate’ is a darker song that takes time to build and it follows a similar pattern to ‘Anything Is Possible’ as it builds to the chorus. Again, another guitar driven track that really gives off this dark tone but the contrast to the beauty of the singing is what makes it, and the entire record, work well. I like the acoustic intro to ‘She’s A Mystery’ and it just builds into one of the best songs on the album! About halfway through, the band dismisses the acoustic balladry and goes for it with a powerful full band electric swagger…..that’s a pretty good way to describe ECLIPSE: “balladry with an electric swagger”. ‘Human Feel’ has this tribal drum intro from Deen Castronovo and a cool Hammond Organ from Jonathan Cain to compliment another heavy handed riff from Schon. It kind of reminds me of ‘Ball Of Confusion’ from The Temptations in some parts with a bit of that Motown swing underneath but once Arnel sings, it sounds like straight Rock. The guitar solo is powerful but so effortless…..the hallmark of a guitar great! The rocking tempo continues with ‘Ritual’ and it’s the kind of upbeat song that was a staple of previous records post-Perry, it could use some bigger background harmonies to give it that extra punch but it’s solid.

‘To Whom It May Concern’ is another proper ballad that adds a little more Jonathan Cain in the way of piano, keyboard and orchestration. While it’s not a bad song at all, I feel a bit of a disconnect. Maybe that’s because the power of ECLIPSE is in Neal’s guitar? Arnel is the star of the show here with another great vocal but I could go for a little more harmony to make the song sound bigger. More uptempo AOR with ‘Someone’ and it’s sounds like a traditional Journey rocker and could have easily been a hold over from REVELATION. It’s got that sing-a-long hook that makes it worth the wait but I wish they had placed it more up front in the tracklisting. It’s a “happy” kind of classic Journey track and contrasts well with the darker parts of the record. Ending the album is the instrumental ‘Venus’ that uses parts of ‘To Whom It May Concern’ and is a band showcase minus Mr. Pineda…..it’s cool but not my thing from Journey.

Bottom Line:
Journey is Journey so you know what you’re going to get when you spin a Journey record: uptempo/upbeat AOR and Melodic Rock with a few ballads and top musicianship. For most fans, that’s enough but Journey music is such a part of American culture that fans always expect the best. For my money, the REVELATION album from a few years ago fit that bill easily and ECLIPSE falls a little short of my expectations when comparing the two. I’m not saying that ECLIPSE is a bad record, quite the contrary, I think it’s one of the best of the year but the darker tone/feel of the album has thrown me a little. That’s a good thing though because it shows a vibrant and creative band not willing to compromise and to continue to grow. The more I play ECLIPSE, the more I like it and the more I enjoy it. What I like most is that this is a guitar record. There are many times when the name Journey makes you think of keyboard heavy rockers and piano ballads but ECLIPSE is a Neal Schon showcase with some of the coolest riffs and solos I’ve heard on a melodic rock record. The rest of the band is as solid as ever and Arnel Pineda has turned in another outstanding vocal performance. The songs are well written and the sound is crystal clear thatnks to producer Kevin Shirley. Definitely a recommended album…..just give it a few spins so you can really get into it.

Best Songs:
‘City Of Hope’, ‘Edge Of The Moment’, ‘Chain Of Love’, ‘She’s A Mystery’, ‘Someone’

Aug 12 2011

R.I.P. – Jani Lane (1964-2011)

R.I.P. – Jani Lane (1964-2011)

 

From Noisecreep:

Jani Lane, the former singer of hard rock band Warrant, has died. He was just 47.

According to TMZ, police found Lane’s body in a room in a Woodland Hills, California Comfort Inn hotel. Right now, no official cause of death has been released.

Lane penned Warrant’s most famous songs including “Cherry Pie,” “Heaven” and “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” Over the years, Lane and the remaining members of Warrant had a tumultuous relationship. Lane left and rejoined the band several times, most recently reuniting with the original members in 2008. This reunion lasted only a few months and Lane was permanently replaced in Warrant by vocalist Robert Mason. In between his time with Warrant, Lane worked on several solo projects and toured with other 80s metal acts.

In the past, Lane suffered publicly with alcohol addiction and pleaded no contest to DUI in 2010. Lane appeared on VH1s ‘Celebrity Fit Club 2′ in 2005.

Jani Lane official website

Warrant official website

——————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Another sad and tragic loss in the Hard Rock community. Unfortunately Jani Lane had his problems with different addictions and it made the later part of his life and career hard at times, especially with his former band Warrant who have replaced him twice for their last two studio album. Back in the day I liked Warrant but, after reading all the controversy and problems in the Internet age, I had a major Warrant backlash especially with Jani Lane. Despite the guy’s issues, dying at age 47 is a sad tragedy that should have never happened. Hopefully, Jani is now at peace. Condolences go out to Jani’s family, friends and fans…..may his memory live on in the music he created.

– Steve

Jul 17 2011

Anvil – Juggernaut Of Justice (2011)

Anvil – Juggernaut Of Justice (2011, The End Records)

  1. Juggernaut Of Justice
  2. When Hell Breaks Loose
  3. New Orleans Voodoo
  4. On Fire
  5. Fuken Eh!
  6. Turn It Up
  7. This Ride
  8. Not Afraid
  9. Conspiracy
  10. Running
  11. Paranormal
  12. Swing Thing

Band Lineup:
Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow – Lead Vocals & Lead Guitars
Robb ‘Robbo’ Reiner – Drums
Glenn 5 – Bass & Vocals

Additional Musicians:
Lisa Joy Pimentel – Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, Clarinet and Saxophone

Producer: Bob Marlette

Country: Canada

Total Time = 45:02

Anvil
Anvil Metal
Anvil MySpace page
Anvil Facebook page
The End Records

It’s taken Anvil four years to follow-up their last studio album, the doom laden THIS IS THIRTEEN (2007), but you can’t fault the guys because they’ve been pretty busy the last five years. While filming the critically acclaimed documentary ANVIL!: THE STORY OF ANVIL, they recorded THIS IS THIRTEEN. Then you’ve got the constant promotion, the touring, more promotion, more touring and then, years later, enter the studio to record JUGGERNAUT OF JUSTICE. It’s interesting because the band announced the title years ago while doing promotion for the documentary and then they just got so busy they had to put off recording it! Robb Reiner stated on That Metal Show last season that JUGGERNAUT OF JUSTICE was the METAL ON METAL (1982) of this era…..big words because METAL ON METAL is considered a classic.

Anvil is Anvil and they are always going to make the same ’80s Thrash-pioneering, classic Heavy Metal album they’ve always made but the key is good songwriting and production. The band channelled their collective energies to create THIS IS THIRTEEN with the guiding hand of super producer Chris Tsangarides and they’ve done so again this time around with the production duties being handled by Bob Marlette (Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath, Airbourne). A point Tsangarides discussed in the documentary was that if the songs are subpar, no amount of production is going to make the album good, and, if the production is bad, good songs will be wasted. First of all, the Marlette production on JUGGERNAUT is excellent, the album sounds crystal clear and it has that BIG sound. I can’t really identify any production “tricks”, it just sounds like the guys plugged in and started playing! As far as the songwriting, the band has channelled the positive experiences of the last five years and created a solid collection of tunes. The opening title track is a retro Metal feast that gets the album off to a chugging start and ‘When Hell Breaks Loose’ is the band at their thrashy best. Listen to Robbo on this song, that guy is one of the greatest Metal drummers out there! What’s always a plus is if there’s a hook to the song, doesn’t matter if it’s Hard Rock, Black Metal, or Pop, if there’s a hook then people are going to remember the song. Both ‘Juggernaut Of Justice’ and ‘When Hell Breaks Loose’ has that kind of hook that makes the chorus stick in your head and gets you singing along, maybe it’s because the songs are so straightforward and good. ‘New Orleans Voodoo’ is a doom laden Black Sabbath style track that would have easily fit on THIS IS THIRTEEN and is one of my favorites on the album  and ‘On Fire’ is another speed track that sounds very familiar but I can’t place it.

 Most Anvil records have that simple humorous song that seems so juvenile and this album’s is ‘Fuken Eh!’, probably the weakest song on the album because the lyrics aren’t as good as the others on the record but it does have that simple chorus that sticks. Of course, ‘Fuken Eh!’ is really a song about the band it self surviving and persevering and doing it their way…..fuken eh! There’s more guitar frenzy from Lips with ‘Turn It Up’ and ‘Not Afraid’ and the themes are pretty much reflect the experiences of the last few years but the jewel in between these two burners is the Glenn 5 sung ‘This Ride’. I wasn’t really expecting Glenn 5 to get a lead vocal, especially since Lips’ vocals are as much a signature of the Anvil sound as Robbo’s drumming is, but Glenn does a solid job with a growl that sounds like a more aggressive Lips and that just makes the song sound heavier. ‘Conspiracy’ is another slower mid-tempo chug that is reminiscent of classic Accept and could have easily fit onto THIS IS THIRTEEN, listen for the guitar solo in the middle of the track, another excellent one on an album full of them, Lips sounds like he’s been rejuvenated by the recent success. ‘Running’ is another retro Thrash sounding track that’s simple in it’s writing and delivery, guitars and bass sounding like buzzsaws with Robb pounding that kit away but the crown jewel is seven minute doom epic ‘Paranormal’. It’s a heavily Sabbath influenced song that takes Anvil into new territory and is more experimental for them compared to their trademark sound. Sounds like a cross between ‘Black Sabbath’ and the quieter moments of Spinal Tap’s ‘Stonehenge’. I’m not saying that to bust the band’s chops, it’s what came to mind right away! I like ‘Paranormal’ a lot, it’s different and unexpected on a record like this. The same goes for ‘Swing Thing’, a jazz influenced speed instrumental complete with horns, trombones, sax and trumpet! That’s a different kind of sound and not easily identifiable with the trademark Anvil sound but, if you take those extra instruments out, it’s a straight ahead thrash song…..definitely something creative and different.

(Just a quick note here, it seems that there are two versions of the album: the standard release that I have here and a limited edition through the retail chain FYE that contains two exclusive bonus tracks – ‘The Station’ and ‘Tonight Is Coming’. I totally forgot about the limited edition when I bought this record the day of release so I will add these two songs into the review when I acquire the limited pressing.)

Bottom Line:
Success is always a good thing and it can bring an energy, vitality and creativity to a band instantly. Anvil has had a busy five years with plenty of product released and gigs played, hopefully the reaped a financial reward because they deserve it. Anvil has been a band that I grew up with back in the ’80s but lost track of as the years went on, it’s good to see them attain a level of success that has eluded them since the early ’80s. That said, you can immeadiately tell by listening to JUGGERNAUT OF JUSTICE that the last few years have been more then kind to the band…..the energy is there, the songwriting is great and the performances are excellent. I like the fact that the band stuck close to their classic sound but decided to experiment with a few songs to add some variety. Lips plays a blistering guitar and Glenn 5 matches him riff for riff on the bass while Robb Reiner continues his legend by pounding that drum kit with a controlled recklessness…..this is what Heavy Metal is all about: good songs played with an excellence and passion by a band that has been an influence to more successful Metal bands. Anvil doesn’t compromise, they give you what you expect, with JUGGERNAUT OF JUSTICE I expected a great record and they delivered. One of my favorite albums of 2011!

Favorite Songs:
‘Juggernaut Of Justice’, ‘New Orleans Voodoo’, ‘This Ride’, ‘Paranormal’, ‘Swing Thing’

Jul 14 2011

CD Scavenger Hunt (June update)

It’s been a slow year so far for buying CDs and collecting but I made up for the last few months with a quality buying spree in June. There were a bunch of new releases on sale, a few hidden bargains in the used CD racks, trips to a few different record stores and the discovery of my childhood record store re-opening in the local flea market! June was definitely a good month for the Hunt…..

Luke’s Record Exchange (@ The Big Flea Market in Cumberland, RI)

Luke’s Record Exchange was my childhood record store that got me started as a record store regular and a CD scavenger hunt expert. Unfortunately, the long time Pawtucket, RI location closed a few months ago for good but a chance trip to The Big Flea Market in a neighboring town provided a link to my record store past…..Luke’s re-opened as a large booth. Prices were pretty good: 50% off the stickered price on all CDs! My oldest daughter loves music and has the record store addiction like her dad and she absolutely loved searching the racks and dark corners that the original Luke’s store had. I’ve tried to teach my oldest daughter as much about Metal and collecting as possible, now it’s up to her to decide what direction to go in.

Hair Of The Dog – Rise (2000) – $7: I started scouring the racks of CDs Luke’s had and I found plenty that used to be at their store and plenty that I already owned but with 50% off you have to buy something. I saw this Hair Of The Dog CD and remembered the name from the late ’90s editions of Metal Edge magazine so I snatched this up to try the band out. When I got home I realized I mixed up Hair Of The Dog with another band, American Dog, but a quick check of my back issues and this purchase was worth making. I’ve read some positive reviews online on Hair Of The Dog, and the band was signed to Spitfire Records back in 2000 (a label with plenty of Hard Rock bands and reissues) so I will definitely check them out when I get around ripping the cellophane off the case! Regular stickered price was $14 so it was really $7 for a brand new sealed copy of RISE. Saved $7.

Vince Neil – Live At The Whiskey: One Night Only (2003) – $6: I always meant to buy this live album when it came out but I had read some bad reviews and I decided against it back then. I did keep it on the want list just in case I came across a used copy somewhere. Over the years I’ve seen this album still at regular price anywhere from $12 to $15 and I’ve passed each time. I’ve seen Vince Neil in concert twice with his solo band and he’s been just OK performance wise and the set is always dominated by the big Motley Crue hits so it’s no surprise to only get one Vince solo song (‘Look In Her Eyes’) on this live record. maybe if there was more from EXPOSED (1993) or CARVED IN STONE (1995) then this would have been a more essential buy. Like I said, you can’t beat 50% off so I finally filled a hole in the Vince Neil solo collection. Another brand new sealed copy stickered at $12, the 50% off making it $6. Saved $6.

Wal-Mart

Def Leppard – Mirror Ball (Live & More) (2011) – $10: I hate going to Wal-Mart! In my life there is no reason to ever set foot in one but some of my favorite bands like KISS, AC/DC, Journey and now Def Leppard have forced me to enter the worst shopping place on earth to buy their exclusive releases! Sure, I could have someone else go in and buy it for me, or maybe buy it online, but sometimes we must sacrifice for the thrill of the Hunt! Definitely an old school move by the Leps with the old bulky multi-disc packaging for their double disc live record with the bonus DVD included. I’ve seen Def Lep on every tour since the 1999 EUPHORIA Tour and I saw them back in the day on the HYSTERIA Tour in 1988 so I know how good these guys are live. It’s a little surprising that it’s taken 31 years to finally get an official live album from Def Leppard but it looks like the band’s last few successful tours have finally given it to us. This was more about the new songs for me and their are three of them on Disc 2. The only positive thing I can say about the Wal-Mart experience is that the price can’t be beat…..$10 is a small price to pay for 21 live tracks, 3 new studio songs and a DVD.

Newbury Comics

Twisted Sister – Under The Blade (Special Edition) (2011) – $12: I already own UNDER THE BLADE on CD and on vinyl but I had to pick this up because of all the bonuses included. First, this is the original mix of UNDER THE BLADE as heard on the original Secret Records pressing (the 1985 reissue is remixed) so that saves the vinyl. Second, the RUFF CUTTS E.P. (1982) is the bonus on the CD. The RUFF CUTTS vinyl is easy to find but high in price for a mint copy, it’s nice getting the music on CD. Finally, the bonus DVD is the band’s performance at th 1982 Reading Festival. This is how you do a reissue! Unfortunately, some of the other Twisted Sister reissues on Armoury Records leave a lot to be desired as far as bonus material but this reissue was worth getting even at the regular price of $16. I bought this the day it was released so I got the $12 sale price saving $4.

Black Stone Cherry – Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sea (2011) – $10: Black Stone Cherry is one of those newer bands that I’ve followed from their first album to present but I haven’t really gotten totally into them. I have the band’s first two albums, and I enjoy them, but the band hasn’t had the staying power for me to keep coming back. I’m hoping that BETWEEN THE DEVIL & THE DEEP BLUE SEA breaks that cycle and also forces me to revisit the band’s first two records for a fresh listen. Good band and good music but I’m just not completely hooked. This was another day of release purchase to get the sale price of $10 and save $4 but even the $14 regular price seems reasonable. Of course, the day I purchased the album, I get home from the record store and check my email and find a link from Roadrunner Records PR dept for a download of the album so i could review it! I would have bought the album anyway.

Warrant – Rockaholic (2011) – $13: Frontiers Records was kind enough to send me a download of the album for review so I have been enjoying ROCKAHOLIC for a few months prior to it’s U.S. release. In most cases when I receive a promo download for review, I buy the album for my collection if I enjoy it so I caved on buying the new Warrant. For me Warrant has a stigma…..the Jani Lane stigma. Back in the ’80s, I liked Warrant like most Hard Rock fans tuned in to FM radio and MTV but I started to really dislike the band after I got the internet in 1998 and started reading about all the dumb ass things Jani Lane used to do (cancel concert, quit and rejoin, go onstage drunk, etc). Anyway, after seeing the band reunite on the Poison summer tour a few years ago, I had hope but Jani screwed it up again and again. I thought the band’s move to replace Jani with Jaime St. James from Black ‘N Blue for BORN AGAIN (2006) was a great move resulting in a solid record. This time around it’s Robert Mason (formerly of Lynch Mob) replacing Jani (again!) and Jaime (who has a reformed Black ‘N Blue) at the mic and it’s a solid album that actually charted on Billboard’s Top Hard rock Albums Chart at #22! It’s such a good record that I would have easily paid the $17 import price but I saved $4 by waiting for the U.S. release.

Whitesnake – Live At Donington 1990 (Special Edition Box Set 2CD/DVD) (2011) – $16: Again, thanks to Frontiers Records, I was able to preview the CD portion of LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 for a few weeks before it was released but this special edition wasn’t one I was going to miss adding to my collection. Recorded on 8/18/1990 at the Monsters of Rock Festival at Donington Park, this is Whitesnake at it’s chart-topping best: a live album with mostly all the big hits from 1984 to 1990 and a DVD of the exact performance all packaged it a double gatefold CD digipak with full color graphics and booklet. Remember how big Whitesnake was back then? Well their bands before them were The Quireboys, Thunder, Poison and Aerosmith! Import prices online were around $25 plus shipping at most shops but the U.S. release was a regular $20…..I bought it day of release so I saved $4.

Hammerfall – Infected (2011) – $10: I had no idea that Hammerfall was releasing a new album until about a week before the release date…..and I have been following the band since 1998! It’s no secret that I’m a big Power Metal guy and Hammerfall has been one of my favorites since the Power Metal resurgence of the late ’90s so this was a no-brainer purchase for me. “No-brainer”…..that’s a funny way of putting it because the concept here seems to be zombies and being infected as one. It’s a different direction for Hammerfall but one I’m hoping to enjoy as much as their last few records. I’m a little puzzled by the lack of vibrant graphics and no sign of Hector, the band’s knight mascot that has been on every album cover, but if it’s something different then why not try it? Regular price was $16 so I saved $6 buying the album the day of release but I was lucky to get a copy because there were only two copies available when I hit the new release rack at the shop.

U.D.O. – Rev-Raptor (2011) – $12: Here’s another album that I received a promtional download for so I could review it but I added it to my want list. I’ve been an U.D.O. fan since he formed the band after his time in Accept so I’m going to buy every album that comes out but I really wanted to get the European limited edition with the bonus tracks but the online shops sold out quick and I didn’t really want to drop around $25 for a couple extra songs and a couple videos. I’ll give Udo Dirkschneider credit, he knows how to do it Gene Simmons style because there were four pressings of REV-RAPTOR: the regular jewel case, the limited edition European with 2 bonus tracks & videos, the Japanese with different bonus tracks and the special box set with a t-shirt and other souvenirs. I wish there was an easier way to get all the bonus material instead of having to buy to high price imports but I’m happy with my U.S. version. Regular price was $16, sale price was $12, saved $4.

Arch Enemy – Khaos Legions (2 CD Limited Edition) (2011) – $14: It’s only been recently that I’ve really gotten into Arch Enemy so this new album is kind of a new start for me. There’s been a lot of press on KHAOS LEGIONS so I’m hoping that it’s as good as the older material I’ve been listening to. What makes this release interesting is that there are 2 versions: the regular jewel case or the limited edition with a 4 track bonus disc and a code for a free t-shirt. I was grabbing the double disc version but what astounded me was the regular prices: $16 for the single, $25 for the double! Good thing I buy the new releases the day they come out because I save a lot of money…..in this case, the single disce was on sale for $11 and the limited edition for $14. How could I not buy the limited edition and save $11? Add in the free t-shirt and it’s a great buy even if I have to pay the shipping for the shirt and then give it to my daughter because I can’t fit in an XL!

Pagan’s Mind – Heavenly Ecstacy (2011) – $12: I got into Pagan’s Mind with 2007′s GOD EQUATION but I really haven’t gone back and tried to acquire the band’s previous releases. I like the band and I’m a fan of Progressive Metal but Pagan’s Mind just hasn’t taken hold in my listening rotation, hopefully that will change with this new album. This is another band that I didn’t know was releasing a new album but I was pleasantly surprised to find out in the Newbury Comics weekly newsletter. There are two versions of this album too: the single disc or the limited edition with 2 bonus tracks. When I went to the record store the day of release they only had the limited edition (the version I was buying anyway!) and they had plenty of copies. Regular price was a high $17 for the two extra songs but the sale price was only $12 for a savings of $5. I have been to the record store since I purchased this in the middle of June and I still haven’t seen the standard version but I assume that it’s without the bonus tracks and priced around $15 regular price.

Black Country Communion – 2 (2011) – $13: Black Country Communion is Glenn Hughes, Joe Bonamassa, Derek Sherinian and Jason Bonham…..now that’s a supergroup! The debut BCC album was awesome and made my list of the Top 30 Albums of 2010 at #5 so I was surprised when I read that the band had a new record ready to go. I waited on buying the first BCC album and ended up paying full price, the sting of that purchase was easier to take because the album was so good, but I wasn’t waiting around this time. Day of release and on sale for $13, I pulled the trigger. I like the old school stadium rock sound BCC has and Glenn Hughes keeps sounding better as he gets older while I am totally into Bonamassa’s guitar sound and now checking out his solo material…..good to see this album get on the U.S. Hot 100 chart with it’s debut. Regular price was an expensive $17 so I was glad to get the sale price and save $4.

Alestorm – Back Through Time (2011) – $13: Alestorm is another band I’ve followed from the beginning and I’ve grown to enjoy their Pirate Metal that’s a continuation of what Running Wild was doing a decade plus before. The thing is that the pirate themes and concepts are going to wear thin on the ultra serious metal fans but it’s all done well and in good fun so I don’t mind dropping a few bucks for good pirate party. I ended up buying the special edition of this album too with the hardbound book packaging and the two bonus tracks that are included. I didn’t see a regular jewel case edition at the record store but I read only that it exists. I actually almost pre-ordered this online through Napalm Records with the free t-shirt but they didn’t have the 2XL I need, the price on that package was $25 with shipping. Regular price for the special edition was $17 at the shop but I bought this on sale for $13 saving myself $4.

AC/DC – Live At River Plate DVD (2011) – $12: I’ve had my eye on this concert DVD for a few weeks but I never picked it up because the local shop had a ton of copies for weeks and the sale price kept going. Usually they take off the sale price after a couple week but they had so many copies of this DVD that the sale price was still there about a month after release. I had a little extra money to burn so I went to go pick up a copy but there was only two left this time! I’m not sure if the shop had a run on them all of a sudden or maybe transferred some to other locations but where there were many stood only two and one copy was regular price $15. Lucky for me the other copy still had the sale sticker on it so I knew that I’d be getting the price I wanted. Sure enough, when I got to the register, the DVD rang regular price but they price adjusted to the $12 sale price and I saved $3. I saw the Black Ice Tour in Foxboro, MA so LIVE AT THE RIVER PLATE will be a nice tour souvenir.

Night Ranger – Somewhere In California (2011) – $14: This is another album that I’ve had the promotional download for through Frontiers Records but I decided to pick the album up for the collection. I remember when DAWN PATROL came out back in 1982 and I was a fan of the band straight through to the break-up and reformation in the late ’90s…..this is another no-brainer purchase for me. I didn’t really get into the band’s last album, HOLE IN THE SUN (2008), right away because of the more modern sound the band used but it was still Night Ranger and it grew on me. From what I’ve read and my initial spin, SOMEWHERE IN CALIFORNIA sounds like classic ’80s Night Ranger. I caught the band’s tour last year in Connecticut and it was a high energy show and the band sounded great, maybe taking that energy into the studio proved successful? Regular price here was $17 because it’s technically an import but I got it on sale for $14 and saved $3.

Symphony X – Iconoclast (2 CD Special Edition) (2011) – $13: I haven’t really listened to Symphony X since 2002′s THE ODYSSEY and I had no idea that they were releasing a new album (I’ve got to keep up on my Metal news!) so I was a little hesitant when i saw this album in the new release rack at the record store. Do I take a chance on a band that has released only two records since 2002? I noticed that there were two versions of this CD also (a trend for June I think!): the single disc and the special edition digipak that’s two CDs and has extra songs. I’m a sucker for bonus tracks and the sale price for this version was only $2 more than the regular so I snatched it up! I also noticed that there were a lot of copies of both versions of the album, a lot of which are still unsold and still onsale in mid-July. Regular price for the special edition was $19 so I saved $6 on the day of release. I’m hoping ICONOCLAST is a surprise record for me this year.

Queensryche – Dedicated To Chaos (Deluxe Edition) (2011) – $16: Another deluxe/special/limited edition for June’s hunt! Things with Queensryche have been hit or miss since 1994′s PROMISED LAND but I really enjoyed AMERICAN SOLDIER (2009) and I’m hoping that DEDICATED TO CHAOS is a continuation of the quality material I know the band is capable of. The wild card here is Geoff Tate and the direction his writing and leadership takes the band, one look at the back cover and seeing a bald Tate could either be a bad sign of he’s channelling his friend Rob Halford. Either way, I’ve been a fan of the band since the QUEENSRYCHE E.P. (1982) and THE WARNING (1984) so I’m always going to support the band. I bought the deluxe version for the three extra songs for only $3 more than the standard version. If you’re going to spend $13, why not just spend the $16 and get the whole package? Regular price for the deluxe version was a scary $22 so there was no way I was going to let a sale price pass me by with an opportunity to save $6 on an album I would easily buy.

Zebra – No Tellin’ Lies (1984) – $6 used: This was easily my bargain of the month and well worth the time spent digging through the used sections. I had gone to a different Newbury Comics location that had better selection than my usual store with my daughter and niece so I gave them each some money to shop so I could dive into the used bins. Unfortunately, I own most of the discs I found but NO TELLIN’ LIES, Zebra’s second album, was sitting there at a perfect price at $6 used! I’m not passing that up especially since all the Zebra records are on my want list so I can replace my cassettes. I was particularly psyched about finding a Zebra album because they had just played a local club in Massachusetts back in May (that I missed!) and the band’s hit from the first album, ‘Tell Me What You Want’, has been all over the local rock stations. My online research tells me that an original Atlantic Records pressing of this CD retails at about $15 if you can find it and the double disc reissue with the band’s third album, 3.V (1986), goes for around the same price and is easier to find. My digging saved me about $9.

Zebra – 3.V (1986) – $10 used: When out on a CD hunt always be mindful that where there’s one Zebra CD, there could be another! Zebras travels in herds don’t they? Seeing that I had good luck finding NO TELLIN’ LIES in the used bins, I decided to take the hunt over to the “Misc. Z” section of the Rock/Pop bins and there it was…..bargain #2 of June…..Zebra’s thierd album, 3.V from 1986! Here’s another pristine original pressing that goes for the same $15 alone or in the latest reissue with NO TELLIN’ LIES so I wasn’t about to pass it up! I haven’t seen original pressings of these Zebra albums in local record stores in at least ten years so I’m hoping that the recent concert at Showcase Live made some people clean out their collections. I’m not saying Zebra is a bad band, quite the contrary, but you would be surprised how many people dump their collections after a concert comes through town or the extra used stock the stores have in back makes it to the sales floor. Either way, it pads my collection and gets the want list a little shorter. Spending $10 for a used CD is a little high but I was sure I wouldn’t see it again and I still saved $5 off what would be a $15 regular price.

Helix – Walkin’ The Razor’s Edge (1984/2009 reissue) – $20: Now this was a big purchase but a necessary one. Ever since I rediscovered Helix back in 2005 when I bought lead singer Brian Vollmer’s autobiography Gimme An R!, I have been snapping up a lot of their back catalogue. Rock Candy Records in the U.K. are a great reissue label that takes great care in releasing high quality reissues of classic albums by working alongside the artist in getting the album back in the stores. In the case of WALKIN’ THE RAZOR’S EDGE, I do have a cassette that is well worn and I have the single ‘Rock You’ on an ’80s Metal compilation CD so I’ve been content to wait out the last couple years and get this reissue at a good price. Depending where you look online, you can get this reissue anywhere between $15 and $25 plus shipping charges, that’s too high. When I saw the record store actually stocked the album, I jumped on it despite the price. I figured I’d pay at least $20 on the low end of the online price so I decided to buy it now instead of having to wait a week or two because of the mail services.

Total = $239

Total (year) = $559

Average Price (per item) = $10.75

Total Savings (month) = $97

Total Savings (year) = $336

Total CDs (year) = 49

Total DVDs (year) = 2

Total Box Sets (year) = 0

Total LPs (year) = 1

 

Jun 30 2011

Scheepers – s/t (2011)

Scheepers – s/t (2011, Frontiers Records)

  1. Locked In The Dungeon
  2. Remission Of Sin
  3. Cyberfreak
  4. The Fall
  5. Doomsday
  6. Saints Of Rock
  7. Before The Dawn
  8. Back On Track
  9. Dynasty
  10. The Pain Of The Accused
  11. Play With Fire
  12. Compassion

Musicians:
Ralf Scheepers – Lead Vocals
Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens – Vocals on ‘Remission Of Sin’
Mat Sinner – Bass & Keyboards
Snowy Shaw – Drums
Sander Gommans – Guitars
‘Metal’ Mike Chlasciak – Guitars
Magnus Karlsson – Guitars & Keyboards
Alex Beyrodt – Guitars
Victor Smolski – Guitars
Kai Hansen – Guitars

Producers: Mat Sinner & Ralf Scheepers

Country: Germany

Total Time = 52:39

Primal Fear
Ralf Scheepers Facebook
Ralf Scheepers MySpace
Frontiers Records

Current Primal Fear lead singer Ralf Scheepers has been talking about making a solo album for a few years now and, with Primal Fear taking some time off, the time has come for him to release his solo debut titled SCHEEPERS. Those that are unfamiliar with Ralf Scheepers outside of Primal Fear should definitely look into his early work fronting Tyran Pace and Gamma Ray and also remember that he was one of the finalists in the auditions to replace Rob Halford in Judas Priest in the mid-’90s. It’s easy to hear that Ralf has one of the most powerful voices in Metal and can easily hold his own against the master Rob Halford and the prodigy Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens. Actually, Ralf sounds more like Halford than Ripper does and even than Halford himself does!

So what does a solo album from Ralf Scheepers sound like? Basically, this album is a continuation of Primal Fear…..the songwriting and music sound exactly like Primal Fear. Of course, Ralf is the most identifiable part of the sound, as most singers are, so the instant connection is made between the solo work and the band work.  There is also plenty of involvement from his Primal Fear and former bandmates: Mat Sinner co-writes, produces and plays bass and keyboards, Magnus Karlsson adds in guitars and keyboards and also co-writes, Kai Hansen adds his guitar and current Halford guitarist Metal Mike Chlasciak and former Priest singer Tim Owens also make appearances. So it sounds like Primal Fear, Judas Priest and Halford…..exactly the sound that Ralf has cultivated for years (I still have no idea how he didn’t get the Priest gig!).

Supposedly, this album was written over the last few years that Primal Fear was promoting their last few records but the material didn’t fit the bands current direction. Primal Fear has started to expand their sound over the last few records and SCHEEPERS harkens back to the days of the debut Primal Fear album and JAWS OF DEATH…..there’s a ferocity and bite to most of the songs and the album is a straight forward Power Metal recording that sounds like a hungrier and younger Priest. Songs like ‘Locked In The Dungeon’, ‘Cyber Freak’, ’Back On Track’ and ‘Play With Fire’ are blistering Power Metal feasts that could easily fit onto an early Primal Fear album while songs like ’The Fall’, ‘Doomsday’ and ‘Compassion’ have a more contemporary Primal Fear sound as heard on albums like NEW RELIGION (2007) and 16:6 (BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD) (2009). There is a lot of Judas Priest worship on SCHEEPERS, no surprise because Ralf is compared to Rob (and Primal Fear to Priest), and that’s not necessarily a bad thing because Judas Priest is an iconic Metal band worth emulating. You can hear the Priest-isms in the guitar tones of the ‘Painkiller’ tinged ‘Locked In The Dungeon’ from Metal Mike Chlasciak (Halford band) and the the vocal duel between Scheepers and Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens on ‘Remission of Sin’, one of my favorite tracks that reminds me of the duet between Rob Halford and Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson on ‘The One You Love To Hate’ from Halford’s RESURRECTION (2000) album. It’s extremely interesting to hear the logical replacement for Rob Halford to my ears (Scheepers) sing a song with the former heir apparent (Owens) that is extremely powerful…..at times I lose track of who is singing because they are so similar but after repeated listens you can hear both doing their best Halford while injecting their own unique vocal abilities.

Another couple of Priest styled offerings are the ultra-catchy ‘Saints Of Rock’, this album’s metal anthem, the epic power ballad ‘The Pain Of The Accused’ that reminds me of ’70s Priest like ‘Beyond The Realms Of Death’ and ‘Dynasty’, a song that sounds more like Halford solo. Listen for the high pitch vocals on ‘Dynasty’ for a great comparison of Ralf’s dynamic vocal range and I defy anyone not to sing along to ‘Saints Of Rock’ because the chorus just digs deep in and has that big arena rock sound. The title is a little bit cliché and reminds me of something Saxon would have on one of their albums but the songs is really good and I like that “hammer” effect and the thumping bass line from Mat Sinner. My second favorite song on the album is ‘The Pain Of The Accused’, a very moody and emotional track that starts out as an acoustic ballad but moves into a mid-tempo metallic wall of sound. I like the use of both the acoustics and the heaviness because the song could be done fully in either direction and it’s as catchy and melodic as ‘Saints Of Rock’ around the chorus. What’s also striking is Ralf’s range on this song from the lower register to the higher, if there’s any doubt that Scheepers is more than a Halford clone, that doubt is squashed here. I could do without the spoken word part of the song but it’s quick and doesn’t take away too much from the overall presentation. The inclusion of a cover of the Priest classic ‘Before The Dawn’ is an obvious move to kind of keep that infamous connection/influence in our faces. Usually I immeadiately disregard any cover on an album of originals a throwaway track because I’d rather have an original song but I have to admit that Ralf does a great job keeping this as close to the original as possible and the lead guitars from Rage’s Victor Smolski are dead on to that of Priest’s duo of Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing.

Bottom Line:
I’ve been playing this album a lot in the last few months and it hasn’t disappointed yet. Power Metal gets a bad rep most times in the Metal community because of it’s subject matter, it’s imagery or it’s bombast but, when it’s done right, it can be some of the best Heavy Metal out there. If you look at the roots of Power Metal it’s basically just Traditional Metal or regular Heavy Metal formed by the legends Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and their contemporaries and Primal Fear is at the forefront of keeping that style alive and their success has given their singer the opportunity to release his forst solo album. SCHEEPERS is more than just a solo album, it’s a continuation…..a continuation of a career rooted in traditional Heavy Metal. Sure, Ralf Scheepers sounds a lot like Rob Halford, and the comparisons will always be there, but he has become one of the top vocal talents in Metal today and he contributes to Primal Fear’s writing. It’s no wonder that his first solo album is going to sound a lot like his main band’s catalog. Personally, I can’t find a weak song on the album and I can’t even consider the cover of ‘Before The Dawn’ a throwaway because it’s done so perfectly. All in all, I’d have to give Ralf and his guest musicians a ton of credit for making one of the best Power Metal albums of 2011.

Favorite Songs:
‘Remission Of Sin’, ‘Cyberfreak’, ‘The Fall’, ‘Saints Of Rock’, ‘The Pain Of The Accused’ and an honorable mention of the cover of Judas Priest’s ‘Before The Dawn’.

Jun 8 2011

Nelson – Lightning Strikes Twice (2011)

Nelson – Lightning Strikes Twice (2011, Frontiers Records)

  1. Call Me
  2. Day By Day
  3. Ready, Willing And Able
  4. How Can I Miss You?
  5. You’re All I Need Tonight
  6. To Get Back To You
  7. When You’re Gone
  8. Take Me There
  9. Come
  10. In It For The Money
  11. Change A Thing
  12. Kickin’ My Heart Around

Musicians:
Gunnar Nelson – Vocals & Guitars
Matthew Nelson – Vocals & Bass
Brian Burwell – Drums
David Morgan – Piano & Background Vocals
Gary Corbett – Piano & Keyboards
Gary Schlecta – String Arrangements on tracks #6 & #8
Steve Lukather – Guitar solo on track #6

Producers: Gunnar Nelson & Matthew Nelson

Country: USA

Total Time = 54:07

Nelson
Nelson MySpace page
Nelson Facebook page
Nelson Twitter page
Frontiers Records

If you listened to FM radio or watched MTV in 1990 & 1991 then there was no way you were going to miss Nelson. Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, twin sons of the legendary Ricky Nelson, debuted with the AOR/Melodic Rock bombshel AFTER THE RAIN (1990), an album that produce the #1 hit ‘(Can’t Live Without Your) Love And Affection’ and three other hit singles while selling 4 million copies. The band was every label’s dream: two good looking twins who had the family musical legacy, crafted slick pop-flavored Rock, and made the girls swoon and the guys quietly sing along. I admit to buying AFTER THE RAIN back in the day and proudly playing alongside my Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Metallica albums but, after too much exposure, the party ended in 1991 and the backlash began. The brothers became the butt of the joke, kind of like Winger did, and the Grunge movement spit in the face of sugar-coated melodies and sweet ballads. By the time 1995 rolled around and Nelson released their follow-up, BECAUSE THEY CAN, mainstream fans had moved on and the album went unnoticed. The Nelsons never left, they just started in a new direction over the last 15 years by releasing a darker edged concept album, IMAGINATOR (1996), going a little Country on another album and covering their father’s songs on 2000′s LIKE FATHER, LIKE SONS. All this and doing it all in house on their own label and continuing to tour. Now 20 years after their successful debut, the Nelsons release what could easily be termed as the natural follow-up to that record with LIGHTNING STRIKES AGAIN.

***(Before I get into the review, let me explain the album’s release year. Technically, this album was released in late 2010 on Frontiers Records everywhere BUT North America. I wasn’t going to buy an import, especially when postage rates to the U.S. from Europe & Japan are so high, so I decided to wait for the U.S. release. I ended up picking this up in February, shortly after the January U.S. release. So technically it’s a 2010 release but I’m counting it as a 2011 release because of where and when it got proper distribution.)***

Opening the album is the infectious ‘Call Me’, a hit single if I ever heard one, that is complete with melodic guitars and the signature Nelson harmonies that make every song sound huge. ‘Call Me’ has that good time party vibe that gets you singing along right away and immeadiately transports you back to 1990. As if that wasn’t enough to hook a melodic rock fan in, the brothers continue the upbeat retro sound with the Bon Jovi slick ‘Day By Day’ (a song Jon Bon Jovi would kill to have written, maybe it would have saved his last record!) and the harder edged ‘Ready, Willing And Able’ that has a ’70s Classic Rock feel to it with the big harmonies and superb vocals. Both songs follow ‘Call Me’ perfectly and could easily be singles in their own right and they continue that “big hair” sound from the late ’80s/early ’90s that made the Nelsons platinum successes. The album takes a twist with the opening Scorpions style guitar intro that reminds me of ‘Still Loving You’ and hints of a ballad with the opening lines, then the song turns into a dark rocker that moves into a heavier groove until that big harmonized chorus. It’s kind of hard to describe a Nelson song as dark, maybe moody is a better? Maybe harder is better than that? What grabs me here is the guitars…..listen closely and you can hear that Scorpions tone in the licks and it just works. It’s harder but melodic, it’s Nelson but slightly different. The band heads back into the classic AOR sound for the first proper single and video from the record — ‘You’re All I Need Tonight’. This is classic melodic Nelson at it’s finest, easily a hit single if this was 20 years ago and definitely a great song today that should get radio airplay.

Surprisingly, we haven’t had a ballad yet! That changes with ‘To Get Back To You’, a song that Jon and Ritchie would probably kill to have written for that last Bon Jovi album! This is a signature ballad with acoustic guitars, piano, keyboard orchestration and the big vocals from the brothers…..definitely one of those “raise your lighters” moments. Add in a special appearance by guitar maestro Steve Lukather (Toto) for the guitar solos and it all comes together perfectly. More catchy Melodic Rock returns with ‘When You’re Gone’, a song that sounds like Bon Jovi mixed with Damn Yankees on the vocals and melodies with a touch of Tom Scholz guitar (Boston). This is one of my favorite songs on the album, probably because it’s one of the more truer Rock songs but with that catchiness that gets me singing along immeadiately. It’s a feel good song…..actually, the whole album is feel good! Isn’t that what good music is about? Ballad #2 arrives with ‘Take Me There’, another one Jon & Ritchie wish they stole, I mean wrote! ‘Take Me There’ doesn’t feel like a ballad because the guitar really kicks in for extra power (listen for the solo!) and the song builds into the glorious chorus. Another straight ahead rocker comes with ‘Come’, a song that channels Damn Yankees at their commercial best with a vocal that sounds very Tommy Shaw like. ‘Come’ is heavy mid-tempo with some heavier guitar work and more up front drums but I’m a little distracted by the vocal and, among an album of strong songs, I’d have to call this the weakest so far but it’s still pretty good. ‘In It For The Money’ is another catchy song that has an underlying Classic Rock feel to it and it has the one thing you expect from a poppy, melodic, party album…..handclaps! The chorus is extremely catchy too. ‘Change A Thing’ is a moody mid-tempo ballad that becomes the weakest song instead of ‘Come’ because it just sounds out of place on such a happy rock record. It’s not a bad song, just out of place and a level below the rest of the songs on the album. Last tune is ‘Kickin’ My Heart Around’ is another mid-tempo track that has a crunch to it when the guitars kick in for the chorus but goes mellow for the rest. For me, not one of my album favorites but a decent song in it’s own right.

Bottom Line:
I never thought I would honestly say this but Matthew and Gunnar Nelson have made an album that equals, if not surpasses, their multi-million selling debut and I think it’s one of the best Melodic Rock albums of 2011. Twenty years after AFTER THE RAIN, the Nelsons have given us a worthy successor with LIGHTNING STRIKES AGAIN and, while it’s not going to sell millions, it’s still going to be a success in returning mainstream popular Rock to an audience willing to rejoin the party. Maybe the time away from this kind of music fueled the fire? Maybe the next album the brothers release will be a continuation of this sound that made them famous? Either way, LIGHTNING STRIKES AGAIN is a great comeback for two musicians that really never went away. I was really surprised by this album right from the opening of ‘Call Me’ and I have listened to this probably more than any other new album this year. I can honestly say I like this record better than AFTER THE RAIN and I’m going to put the latter day Nelson albums on the Want List because I’m sure there’s something I haven’t heard and am missing out on. This is a must for Nelson fans and fans of AOR/Melodic Rock but also for those of us who were kids back in the day that secretly listened to Nelson but made fun of them around our peers. The joke is on us because this is a great record well worth checking out!

Favorite Songs:
‘Call Me’, ‘Day By Day’, ‘Ready, Willing And Able’, ‘You’re All I Need Tonight’, ‘To Get Back To You’, ‘When You’re Gone’

Jun 7 2011

CD Scavenger Hunt (May update)

May was probably the slowest month of my collecting career! I bought only 4 CDs! That’s usually just a quick trip to the record store, not a whole month of purchases but I do have a good excuse…..money. Money is key and, in this economy, I’ve tightened the wallet a lot. So here’s May’s buys…..

Walmart

Journey – Eclipse (2011) – $10: There is nothing I hate more than having to walk into a Wal-Mart but it’s a necessity a couple of times a year now as many bands decide to use the retail giant as an exclusive deale for their new album. After the platinum success of REVELATION through exclusive Wal-Mart sales, Journey decided to partner with the company again for their brand new studio album — ECLIPSE. I reluctantly went to my local store with the plan to enter, get the CD and checkout fast to spend as little time in retail hell as possible and all went well. Can’t beat $10 for a new CD but I was initially disappointed because for $12 or $13 a few years ago I got the REVELATION album package that included the re-done greatest hits and the live DVD. Where’s the extras this time around? It was nice to see the new Journey well-stocked and displayed next to the new Lady Gaga CD…..maybe some Gaga fans will grab a Journey disc too!

Newbury Comics

Anvil – Juggernaut Of Justice (2011) – $10: Riding the wave of success from the publicity, fame and opportunity that arose from their movie documentary, Anvil finally release the follow-up to 2007′s THIS IS THIRTEEN with the long awaited JUGGERNAUT OF JUSTICE. Anvil was an imprtant and formative band in my Metal youth but their music became lost to me as I became an MTV and FM radio disciple and went more mainstream. THIS IS THIRTEEN and the Anvil movie were excellent and re-established Anvil as a potent metal force. Now the guys may not be on Metallica’s level now but they’ve moved up from obscurity and have people talking. Looks like the guys might have made a couple of bucks on the deal too because, after 5 years of filming, recording and touring, the band has released a solid album. I bought most of the Anvil catalogue since 2007 and I had to have the new record the day it came out. Regular price was $14, got it on sale for $10, saved $4.

The Rods – Vengeance (2011) – $10: This was a must have for two reasons: 1) David ‘Rock’ Feinstein delivered a solid solo album with BITTEN BY THE BEAST (2010) and 2) this album documents one of Ronnie James Dio’s last performances on the track ‘The Code’. For me, the Dio involvement is enough to pick this up but I remember The rods from back in the ’80s and I’ve been trying to track down their albums on CD over the last few months, specifically the High Vaultage reissues from the late ’90s. I happened to get to the local shop on time for once and I saw this album in the new release rack, I grabbed it right away! My rules for CD hunting are simple: always pick up a CD that you might want and make your final decisions later, that way you won’t miss out on something because someone else grabbed it. Also, be at the store in time for the doors to open, that way you are the first one in to grab those new releases that they only get one copy of. These rules are essential and they have been learned the hard way over the years. As soon as I grabbed this CD, another guy walked in and asked for the album at the counter. Unfortunately, his trip to the new release rack came up short and he noticed I had the CD in hand. He must have been a big Rods fan because he offered me a $5 for it but I declined, I’d rather have the disc immeadiately. Regular price was $14, sale was $10, saved $4.

Blackguard – Firefight (2011) – $10: I know nothing about Blackguard but I wanted this album for some reason. I actually wanted it so bad that I had the record store special order it because they were out of stock every Tuesday since the album came out. They brought in a few copies each week but they would sell out before I would make my weekly hunt! That tells me that there’s a buzz out there on Blackguard. That and the fact that they are touring with Amon Amarth right now. No real reasoning behind buying this, more of a luxury purchase, or maybe a risk seeing that I know nothing about the band. Anytime I take a chance on a new band, or a band I’ve never heard any music from, I like to spend as little as possible so I figured that the sale price wouldn’t last more than a month and I was snagging this about four weeks after its release. Regular price was $14, sale price was $10, saved $4.

Total = $40

Total (year) = $320

Average Price (per item) = $10

Total Savings (month) = $12

Total Savings (year) = $239

Total CDs (year) = 30

Total DVDs (year) = 1

Total Box Sets (year) = 0

Total LPs (year) = 1

 

May 3 2011

WANTED: Bret Michaels – Ballads, Blues & Stories (2001)

WANTED

Bret Michaels – Ballads, Blues & Stories (2001)

You might be wondering why I would put a Bret Michaels CD into this installment of WANTED! because I have crucified his last couple of records as being the repackaged shams they are instead of the true new studio albums they should be and were billed as. So why do I want BALLADS, BLUES & STORIES? Simple…..it’s rare, out of print and hard to find. Plus, it will complete my Bret solo discography and I am all about owning band’s entire catalog…..it’s a collector thing! There are ten songs on the album (1 new and 9 previously released on other Bret solo albums) but there’s an interview track before each song where Bret explains the songwriting process and the stories to go with the tunes. Basically, this CD is the same deal as the last two albums Bret released…..compilations of previously released material. I know, I know…..I’m falling into the trap again but it’s definitely cool to have a rare CD and one that no one I know actually has. I’ve never seen a physical copy in a record store but I have seen a few floating around on Ebay for the general price of about $20. This Bret disc isn’t at the top of the want list but I added it in to watch for if I find it on the cheap!