Tag Archives: Steel Panther

Nov 29 2011

CD Scavenger Hunt (November update)

Another very slow month for CD shopping! Maybe it’s because we are nearing the holidays? Maybe it’s because I’m so far behind on new releases? Maybe it’s because I’m saving a little money? I made it out to the record store early in the month so here’s the shopping trip, the only one I made in November!

Newbury Comics

Megadeth – Th1rt3en (2011) – $12: Another new Megadeth record! That alone is enough to get my lazy butt in the car and drive 10 minutes to the record store! The last few Megadeth records have been really great, on par with the classic albums from the band’s beginning. Aside from RISK (1999), have there really been any bad Megadeth albums? TH1RT3EN marks the band’s 13th studio album and the first album since 2001′s THE WORLD NEEDS A HERO that founding bassist Dave Ellefson plays on. I’ve been catching a lot of Megadeth lately either on TV or radio so all the signs have been pointing to this new record, hopefully I will be able to catch them on tour. The new single ‘Public Enemy #1′ is a solid song and cool to hear on the radio…..at least it’s been played here in the New England area. Of course, the sale price had a lot to do with my picking up the CD right away, regular price would have been $17 so saving $5 is a good thing.

Steel Panther – Balls Out (2011) – $10: Based on the old school record cover…..a must purchase! I have to give Steel Panther credit, they don’t stray from their over the top concept and they’ve made a decent career after it whether it’s been as Danger Kitty (Discover Card commercial), Metal Shop or Metal Skool. Similar to Fozzy at the beginning I guess. I didn’t really get into their first CD, FEEL THE STEEL (2009), but I intend to give that album and BALLS OUT a fresh listen. Back to the cover…..I love the torn price tag in the top left corner: “used records….$1.69″ and the ring wear as if this was an actual used vinyl jacket. Oh yeah, there’s a chick on the cover too! If I saw this cover back when I was 13 I would have had to hide the record from my mom! Regular price was $15 and this album had come out a couple weeks before Megadeth so I was fortunate to find a copy with the sale price, saved $5.

Heavy Metal Parking Lot (20th Anniversary DVD) (2005) – $10 used: A must have for any Metal fan who spent time in an arena parking lot before a concert back in the ’80s! I remember seeing Heavy Metal Parking Lot back in the day on cable access and featured on MTV News but I re-discovered it online back in 1998 and I’ve been trying to get my own copy ever since. I’ve had this on the list a while and it’s available at Amazon, the film’s website and various independent retailers but I never got around to buying it because it’s so readily available at online video sites. This DVD wasn’t in the racks the previous couple of times I’d been to the store so seeing it there this time around was a complete surprise! Online prices with shipping are around $20 so buying this pristine used copy for half price saved a cool $10.

Trillium – Alloy (2011) – $14: Trillium is Amanda Somerville’s (Somerville/Kiske, solo, Avantasia, etc) new Metal project but she’s really been a fixture on the Hard Rock and Heavy Metal scene for years because of her extensive vocal work (lead and background) on many albums from Epica, After Forever, Kamelot, Aina, Edguy and Mob Rules. When I read she was releasing the Trillium album on Frontiers Records I knew I was buying it because the Kiske/Somerville album (with former Helloween vocalist Michael Kiske) was one of the best albums of 2010. The only problem was that the Trillium record going to be hard to find at the local shop and it would be at an import price. Sure enough, there was only one copy in the racks and the sale price was an expensive $14 (regular was $17!) but I didn’t want to order it online and pay the extra money for shipping. Finding this CD in the racks on sale saved $3 but it probably saved a few more dollars compared to ordering online.

Total = $46

Total (year) = $933

Average Price (per item) = $8.72

Total Savings (month) = $23

Total Savings (year) = $836

Total CDs (year) = 99

Total DVDs (year) = 7

Total Box Sets (year) = 0

Total LPs (year) = 1

Jan 17 2010

CD Scavenger Hunt – First trip of 2010

I waited until I couldn’t wait any longer…..I finally went out and spent the $90 in gift cards to the local record store that I received for Xmas. Do you know how hard it is to actually NOT go out and spend them right away? Usually, my gift cards are spent within a couple of days but I decided to wait, get my want list together and let the stores’ inventories re-stock.

Being a lifelong Rhode Island native means that any trip longer than 20 mins is a “day out”. There are two local Newbury Comics stores near my house: the one 5 mins up the road in North Attleboro, MA and the one 20 mins away in Warwick, RI. Like I said, for most Rhode Islanders, a 20 minute drive I way too long so I made sure that there were errands to run in that area and my wife and kids came along for the “day out”. I decided to go to the store in Warwick because I know the inventory well in North Attleboro and the Warwick store always seems to have those extra special releases that I’m looking for.

Newbury Comics

W.E.T. – s/t (2009) – $17: Finally! After weeks of waiting and trying desperately to order online, I finally acquired the debut from W.E.T.! I had tried four times to order it from a certain online retailer but the order kept getting cancelled due to the CD selling out. I went straight to the ‘W’ section and found this right away for the same price that was online. I saw this make a bunch of year end lists and MelodicRock.com gave this a perfect 100 score on their review so this was a very important album to pick up. Add in the Jeff Scott Soto factor and it was a must buy!

W.A.S.P. – Babylon (2009) – $16: Another 2009 release that I missed out on because it was out of stock everytime I ordered it online. BABYLON and W.E.T. were always in the same order that kept getting cancelled by my favorite online rock shop. I saw this record make a lot of Top 10 lists at the end of the year and it was definitely a must have. I’ve been a W.A.S.P. fan since the first record, actually before that when I acquired the ‘Animal’ single as an import, and I always look forward to a new W.A.S.P. record. Price wasn’t bad here, only a dollar more from the store I kept trying to order from and $5 less than NEH Records.

House Of Lords – Cartesian Dreams (2009) – $16: I completely missed this album in 2009, I didn’t even realize House Of Lords was releasing a new album! I go back to 1988 & 1990 with the band’s debut and SAHARA but I haven’t really kept up with the band until the last couple of albums. I was impressed with what I heard on WORLD UPSIDE DOWN (2006) and COME TO MY KINGDOM (2008) and this also made a lot of year end lists.

The Last Vegas – Whatever Gets You Off (2009) – $10: Taking a chance on a band that i have never heard before but seems to be on the rise. When I read all the Best of 2009 lists, this CD ended up being on quite a few, and it has been highly recommended to me by more than a few people. Sleaze Glam here so it’s music I like but I hope the band is not the usual L.A. Guns/Guns ‘N Roses/Faster Pussycat clone. This was the last CD I found and the price was right for taking a chance.

Steel Panther – Feel The Steel (2009) – $12: Danger Kitty…..Metal Shop…..Metal Skool…..now it’s Steel Panther! I didn’t bother buying this when it came out because the import price was way too high but I saw this finally got a U.S. release and the price today was more than half than the import. I know there are a few different pressing of this, my copy only has 11 songs…..I’ve seen a 12 song pressing and a 14 track issue.

Epica – Design Your Universe (2009) – $12: Wanted to buy it and should have bought it when it was released but for some reason I passed. I like epica a lot so I’m not sure why I passed on this before but, when I saw the sale sticker still on it, I couldn’t pass it up this time around. The CD rang up regular price ($16) when they scanned it at the register but that old sale tag saved me $4. It always pays to get the sale price…..even if your weeks after the sale!

Charm City Devils – Let’s Rock ‘N Roll (2009) – $7 used: I had $90 in gift cards and I had two CDs in my hand: Saga – The Human Condition (2009) and this one. Both CDs were used and both were $7…..making my overall total $90. I have the Saga album already, I received a promo from the label but it’s not an official pressing and I like the real CD with the booklet and packaging, etc…..but I passed. I found this copy of LET’S ROCK ‘N ROLL and it was the only used one in a bunch of regularly priced copies at $15 each. I couldn’t pass up the price and the new music and I’ve passed on this album so many times that I figured it was finally time to grab it.

Total = $90 (- $90 gift cards) = $0

Total (year) = $0

Total CDs (year) = 7