Tag: heavy metal

Upcoming New Releases – The Heat Is On

On By bigbadburchIn Upcoming Music5 Comments

We’re getting to the end of the school year and into summer around here. In terms of new music it seems like acts are hitting the road in droves and the interesting upcoming albums list is maybe dwindling a bit. But there are still some new albums queued up for release so I’ll have a look at some lead singles from upcoming albums. Not a ton this time but some compelling stuff.

Behemoth – Ov My Herculean Exile

Leading off with the Polish extreme metal stalwarts Behemoth, whose new album Opvs Contra Natvram arrives September 16. The provided video is pretty intense fare, though nothing unusual for Behemoth. It’s a bit of a mini horror movie.

The song is interesting but not particularly dynamic in terms of Behemoth. The group have been one of extreme metal’s bigger draws for several years now. In that time band leader Nergal has dealt with various controversies, including being charged with blasphemy by the Polish government multiple times. He has also muddied his own puddle a time or two, like when he invented a story about being thrown out of a gym for wearing a Darkthrone shirt for reasons unclear to anyone beyond him.

The new album is inspired by Nergal’s hatred of social media and “cancel culture,” a statement that hasn’t been playing well on social media. Will a pointed outlook and a less-than-stellar album see Behemoth’s time at top come to an end, or will the album proper offer up enough to keep the group afloat? Guess we’ll see this fall.

The Chats – 6L GTR

Australia’s punk sensations are back with a new album, Get Fucked, out August 19. The band has just wrapped up a US tour, getting out post-pandemic a few years after their 2017 viral smash hit Smoko took over the Internet.

The new song is really good and pretty much just what you’d expect from The Chats. I will certainly line up to get fucked this coming August.

Grave Digger – Hell Is My Purgatory

The venerable German institution is back with their 21st (!) studio album Symbol Of Eternity, out August 26. The band sound in fine form here after all these years, not that anything has been stopping them anyway. Grave Digger often do theme-based albums and appear to be on a Knights Templar kick here. I’m sure the new record will be a fine addition to their stupidly huge discography.

Iconic – Fast As You Can

Hey everyone, it’s another Frontiers Records throw-together group. Michael Sweet is in this one, along with Tommy Aldridge and some other folks from around the rock universe. The music is fine but of course there is a fair bit of Frontiers fatigue these days. Will this project stand out from the mountain of others? Second Skin is out just around the corner on June 17.

Municipal Waste – High Speed Steel

It’s been quite some time now since Municipal Waste helped put thrash metal back on the map and they have returned for another round with Electrified Brain out on July 1. It’s business as usual for the group and sounds like another must-have record on release. Usually these retro metal waves come and go, but this thrash one has been around for eons now and shows no signs of going away.

Chat Pile – Slaughterhouse

No you’re not seeing double – Chat Pile is distinct from The Chats. This group is an Oklahoma-based noise rock outfit that put out a few EP’s and are now prepping their full-length debut album for release. God’s Country will be released July 29. It is dark, noisy and fucked up, which is often just how I like it. It sounds like the world looks right now, which isn’t good for the world but is great for Chat Pile.

Lorna Shore – Sun//Eater

The main event is here and is the first track from the most hotly-anticipated extreme metal release of 2022. Last year Lorna Shore took over the internet with their three-song EP And I Return To Nothingness on the strength of To The Hellfire, which wound up with my 2021 Song Of The Year Award. Now the deathcore collective has the unenviable task of following that up with a full-length. That comes in the form of Pain Remains, which will see release this October.

While To The Hellfire generated unseen amounts of hype, it also set a bar very, very high for whatever comes next. Sun//Eater delivers the symphonic, “blackened” deathcore that Lorna Shore showcased on last year’s EP. It’s a fine addition that showcases vocalist Will Ramos and the band’s dynamics without resting on the laurels of …Hellfire. Time will render verdict on the new record but the hype train for Lorna Shore is chugging along now with the full-length on the horizon.

That does it for this month’s edition of upcoming releases. Conspicuous by its absence is any new Megadeth material even though the new album has been ready “any day now” for like three years and is supposed to be out in July. It feels like Ben Stein’s iconic scene in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off where I’m standing in the front of class calling out “Mustaine? Mustaine?” over and over again when I type these. Maybe next month…

The Song Remains The Same – Breaking The Silence

On By bigbadburchIn The Song Remains The Same4 Comments

I’m gonna start a new series today. This is one that has been on my mind for quite some time but I just never got around to fiddling with it. The time is now, I suppose.

The premise is simple – in music, there are a lot of different artists and bands. Many of those artists record songs with the same title, though the songs themselves can be radically different. The goal here is to have a look at some of these songs and see which one I’m into the most (if at all). It will also introduce songs from genres I don’t typically listen to (not today, but in the future). Note that this is NOT about cover songs, these are all original artist recordings going up against each other.

This is really meant for fun more than anything – there are more piles of different songs with the same name than I can practically get to in my life time. Ones like today are pretty easy, while stuff like “I Want You” or “I’ll Be There For You” could have books written about them.

To get this series kicked off I’m going with one that sees four different artists having the same song title. All of the bands are in the general category of metal, though they take on different forms. Three are groups I at least appreciate, if not enjoy and one is a group I haven’t listened to in almost 20 years and wasn’t chomping at the bit to hear again now. But a project is a project so press on I must.

A perpetual disclaimer for this series – this should not be taken as a complete list of songs with the same name. I’m using the first few websites I find in Google for my “research” on this and this isn’t a scholarly exercise. Feel free to mention anything missed on these if you know of one or more that got missed.

Today’s inaugural Song Remains The Same, uh, song? Breaking The Silence

I have found four different recordings of a song called Breaking The Silence. Two are from bands I am familiar but not well acquainted with, one is from a group I am vastly familiar with, and one is from a band I never fell over myself to know in any capacity. Let’s have at it.

Breaking Benjamin

This group is a 2000’s alt-metal outfit from the US. I’m sure they are pretty well known, they were all over early 2000’s radio and I saw their name around a lot. They aren’t a group I’ve ever sought out to listen to and, save for this exercise, I doubt I ever will. Let’s see what we get here. The song comes from their 2015 album Dark Before Dawn.

The song is generally pretty good. Pretty decent clean passages, I’m not personally into the “rappy” bits but they don’t ruin anything. It isn’t my thing but I’ll give credit where credit is due and say that I think it’s alright.

Firewind

This group is one I’m familiar with. I’ve heard their stuff before but I’ve never owned it or been heavily invested in it. The group is from Greece and is helmed by guitarist Gus G, the same guy who did a stint with Ozzy Osbourne. The cut is from their 2006 album Allegiance and the song was released as a single in Greece in 2007.

The song is fine. It’s in a style of power metal that isn’t entirely for me but I can appreciate what they’re doing. I suppose it’s indicative of why I never got into the band in the first place. But they definitely know how to play and to put a song together.

H.E.A.T.

This is a Swedish hard rock group that probably needs no introduction across most of my readership. Their take on Breaking The Silence comes from their 2012 album Address The Nation, which was the first to feature vocalist Erik Gronwall. Of course, Grownall has now gone on to helm Skid Row. I’m personally not overly familiar with them and have only heard them in bits and pieces.

This is really good. I like what I’m hearing here. Just a very nice rock anthem. This is clearly a band I’m going to have to give more attention to, I have been missing out.

And if this whole thing ended here, we’d have a clear winner. As it is, the boys will have to settle for silver today.

Queensryche

Let’s be real – this was never a contest. Also, is this a good time to mention that Operation: Mindcrime is my favorite album of all time?

Even though this could be taken as a set-up, I don’t think there was any real chance the other contenders were going to topple Queensryche here. It’s the Seattle outfit at the height of their creativity in the late 80’s and a well-known cut from their acclaimed masterpiece. They just nailed everything on this album, including this track that sees the story’s protagonist out in the wind after the death of his lady friend. Perfectly executed, perfectly produced, it’s all there.

And that does it for the first installment of The Song Remains The Same. This one was in the can from the moment I decided to do it (and it wasn’t actually where this was supposed to begin, a story for another time). In the future I’ll try to provide a bit more suspense to the results but there was no messing around with a cut from my favorite album ever.

A Story And A Song – Merci

On By bigbadburchIn A Story And A Song6 Comments

This story has to do with buying music in a strange land, far away from home. For the song I’ll choose one from one of the two albums I bought that day – Pantera’s The Great Southern Trendkill was one of my pickups at a mall in France at some point in 1996.

War Nerve was one of the album’s signature songs. Like much of the record it is harsh, abrasive and even more heavy and savage than anything from their 1994 offering Far Beyond Driven, which was (and likely still is) the heaviest album in history to hit number one on the Billboard charts. …Trendkill would hit number four on the same charts and also slot in during Pantera’s time at the top of the metal heap in the mid-1990’s.

War Nerve is a song that sees frontman Phil Anselmo lashing out at how the media portrays him. While he had some room for argument there, he has also historically given the media more than enough material to work with. Whatever the circumstances, the song is a savage onslaught and is one of my favorite tracks from the album.

Now for the story. As I said, I was in France at some point in 1996. I honestly don’t remember which city we were even in – I am over 90% certain it was Marseilles but it possibly was Cannes. This is when I was in the US Navy and was in Europe for most of the late 90’s. Memories are a bit fuzzy after all these years but we were definitely in France and one of the cities on the Riviera, that much is certain.

A handful of us music die-hards went to the shopping mall to hunt for albums. Of course CDs were the format of the day and also a very easy to use format when living on a Navy ship. And the mall wasn’t much different from an American mall – maybe a bit less garish and more along the lines of a sterile department store, but it had a bunch of stores selling a bunch of shit so there we go.

I was in the mall and found a few CDs I wanted. I went to check out at the register. A quite lovely woman was behind the register and she rang up my purchase. She told me the total in French, a language I don’t speak. Thankfully the register was like one over here that displays the total so I could read how much money I was supposed to hand her. This was a few years before the Euro became the currency of the continent so I was using francs and wasn’t radically familiar with how many francs a dollar was worth and all of that.

I gave her the money and she handed me my change, then in the snottiest, rudest voice possible told me “merci.” And the look on her face matched the utter contempt in her voice. This woman did everything in her power to murder me with her eyes and her voice. I quickly gathered my CDs and got the hell out of there.

I obviously have no actual explanation for her attack upon my person. Most likely she was offended that I did not speak French. It was (and I guess still is, I don’t know) a thing that many French people were not into Americans who couldn’t communicate over there. It has always been my assumption about the episode. Maybe she was just having a bad day, but she seemed pleasant enough when I first got to the counter. Or maybe she found Pantera distasteful, I don’t know.

I find it a little odd, since it was probably common news that several hundred Americans were running around the city. I wasn’t even the only US Navy person there at the time I was in the store, and I know for sure that other non-French speaking US sailors went to the same store. Maybe she just got fed up with communication barriers and I was the one she took it out on, I don’t know.

And I don’t mean to type this as some customer service complaint from 26 years ago or anything. I’m just filling space in a post and recalling an amusing story from buying music overseas. It was more funny than anything and I hope the woman had a better day after I left her death gaze. I got my CDs in the end and all was well for me.

That’s essentially the story, nothing more to note. No one else that I talked to on the ship had any kind of run-in at that store, though many more seasoned vets did recount similar incidents with the French in their travels.

I guess there is one other bit of information – what is the other CD I bought? Like how The Great Southern Trendkill was a new release at the time, so was the Scorpions’ Pure Instinct. And anyone who has heard that album can easily figure out why I chose to feature Pantera.

Spinal Tap Two

On By bigbadburchIn Uncategorized4 Comments

A short post today but one to confirm some very welcome news that came down the pipe last week. I had just discussed Spinal Tap a few weeks prior – I dug into the music as part of the Album Of The Week and I gave a post to the immortal film.

Last Thursday some earth shaking Spinal Tap news came out – Rob Reiner has confirmed that a second Spinal Tap film is in the works. This is a proper sequel to the 1984 film, in contrast to the 1992 offering that was mostly a live show. Spinal Tap II (or whatever it will be called) is intended for release in March 2024, which will coincide with the 40th anniversary of the original film.

This is very happy news, of course. Fans have clamored for a sequel ever since the original gained its cult-like following decades ago. The principal actors refused, saying they would only do it when they felt they had a good premise and the time was right. Apparently they found their premise and here we are, a shade under two years away from a Spinal Tap sequel.

Reiner has given some details about the film’s plot – the band, having been splintered apart for years, reconnects with Marty DiBergi after being unhappy about the documentary he filmed years ago. The band are on the hook for one more gig – in their contract with manager Ian Faith there remains one legally binding performance. Ian has passed on but his widow is calling in her owed performance, so the group must reunite for one more show.

It sounds like the troupe have a solid idea for a film that should tick many of the same boxes as the original. The cynical cash grab reunions of many legacy acts has been a long-running joke in the music world for a long time now, and it’s perfect fodder for Spinal Tap’s deadpan delivery.

I’ve notice a fair bit of negativity towards the announcement, but that’s not something I’ll really bother with. The cure for cancer would be shouted down online these days. I see no reason why a new Spinal Tap movie can’t work. It might not be the masterpiece the first one was but with the key players still involved there’s no reason it can’t be good.

We have a ways to go before this movie hits in March 2024. Hopefully society doesn’t collapse before then, it is a real possibility. But it’s great news that we’ll get to visit this glorious movie and band one more time and I have every hope for another killer masterpiece.

And one more thing – hopefully the reunion gig is booked in Cleveland.

Album Of The Week – May 16, 2022

On By bigbadburchIn Album of the Week4 Comments

This week’s album comes from 1993 and when extreme metal looked like it might be poised to be big business. This album marked a stylistic departure for one of Sweden’s pioneering death metal acts and also served as an ill-fated marketing ploy on the part of an opportunistic record label.

The unedited, original version of the album

Emtombed – Wolverine Blues

Released October 4, 1993 via Earache/Columbia Records

My Favorite Tracks – Contempt, Full Of Hell, Demon

Entombed were one of the original Stockholm wave of Swedish death metal luminaries, along with Grave and Dismember, who used headache-inducing guitar tones to accent their brutal approaches to extreme music. The band’s first two albums Left Hand Path and Clandestine are hailed as essential building blocks of the death metal genre. The magic of downtuning and the Boss HM-2 pedal were on full display in Sweden’s death metal scene.

In 1993 Entombed threw a curveball with their third effort. Wolverine Blues, while still savage and rancid-sounding as ever, was not standard death metal issue. Instead the band were playing fast and loose with their sound and incorporated a fair bit of rock and groove into their formula. They would be chief among several in starting the subgenre of “death n’ roll.”

There is a lot to talk about here, both the implications of stylistic change and a major media tie-in offer quite a bit to discuss. But for now I’ll get through the 10 tracks that run a lean 35 minutes, then I’ll jump into those other issues.

Eyemaster

The opener sets the tone with sick riffing and a lot of hoarse singing going on about “I’ll do me and you do you” kind of stuff. A bit of philosophy sprinkled in with our death metal, I’m cool with that.

Rotten Soil

A very gnarly, nasty tune that exemplifies how scuzzy and scummy death n’ roll can be. The lyrics are a bit of an incomprehensible mess but apparently walking on rotten soil will cause your blood to boil, and even better, blood will be pissing down your spine. Pretty good shit there.

Wolverine Blues

The title track lives up to its animal namesake’s ferocity. The wolverine is some kind of mutant badger/bear thing that is just utterly destructive. It is towards the top on a list of animals you don’t want to run into and Entombed capture the ferocity of the animal very well in song form.

This is also the link to the coming media tie-in I’ll be discussing later.

Demon

A very tight, well-done tune that invites demonic possession. Not something for church but a highlight from the album, which as a whole is also something not for church.

Contempt

This blistering song takes aim at society, or “civiliezation” as the lyrics spell it. While heavy metal and misanthropy have long been dance partners to the point of it getting boring, Entombed bring the fire on Contempt. The low-tuned, sloppy music fits like a glove but is almost secondary to some of the lyrics L.G. Petrov is belching out here. The line “No matter how low you are, there’s always someone to look down upon” is one I find in my head a lot these days as society seems desperate to tear itself apart. This is the star of the show.

Full Of Hell

Not to be outdone, this song also shines with its descent into willful madness and chaos. The lyrics flow right along with the disgusting riff and it’s a full-speed bullet train straight into insanity. It’s a death-groove stomp through just going nuts and it works splendidly.

Blood Song

We’re out of the peak of the album now and into a bit of a valley. As the title might suggest, we are cosplaying as vampires here. The marriage of death n’ roll and vampirism doesn’t quite pan out. The song is sufficiently heavy but the theme doesn’t quite land. It sounds like Petrov is just fucking off as he delivers the lines, which include gems like “I fuck your blood.” It’s probably a good thing that Entombed’s media tie-in wasn’t with Interview With A Vampire.

Hollowman

Off now to the song chosen as the album’s single. Hollowman was released as an EP, which for an album the length of Wolverine Blues is like half the album. The song is a bit abstract in its lyrical fare but does post the equally profound and dumb question “Who examines the doctors?” I think doctors do but I’m not entirely sure. At any rate it’s another worthy track and a good pick-me-up after whatever the hell happened before it.

Heavens Die

The song is monstrously heavy and a nice addition to the record. I have no clue what’s going on in the lyrics, this is some masters-degree level philosophy shit here. It’s beyond me.

Out Of Hand

We close the record on a song that leaves no lingering philosophical questions – everything is fucked and fuck it all. Even on an album full of nasty, intense songs, this one kicks the dial up a notch further and bookends the album in properly brutal fashion.

Wolverine Blues was a curveball album from Entombed. Just as death metal was making international noise and gaining in popularity in 1993, one of its formative bands changed gears and threw out a death n’ roll platter instead of staying on the death metal train. The album did alienate a fair portion of fans, to this day many swear off the record.

The album does have its fans, myself included. There’s just something about the nasty, unhinged approach to it that makes everything work. Death n’ roll would not spring up as much of a subgenre though a few other bands took a stab at it. It would mainly become the music that Entombed was known for. They would continue on a similar course for years afterward with the band eventually splintering and leaving only vocalist L.G. Petrov, who for legal reasons had to change the group’s name to Entombed A.D. Petrov would succumb to cancer in 2021.

For all the talk of the album, there is also a discussion to be had involving the record label and their decision to force a corporate tie-in on the band and record. Against the wished of Entombed, the label Earache Records got a hold of Marvel Comics and produced a variant cover to the album featuring the mutant comic character bearing the same name as the album. A mini-comic was included in the CD’s booklet.

The Marvel version

It was an attempt at marketing to a wider audience and it wasn’t a really good one. There was no real connection between the Wolverine of the comics and the song or album. Comics were a bloated mess by this point in the 90’s and were destined for a huge crash, and any link between comic books and death metal is minimal at best. The album was also edited in order to avoid issues with the tie-in that would obviously appeal to younger audiences – instances of the f-word in multiple songs were cut out, and the track Out Of Hand was cut completely.

It’s also worth noting the presence of Columbia Records on the label spine – this album was part of an ill-fated pact between Earache and Columbia to capitalize on interest in death metal in the early 90’s. Nothing really came of the merger and it ended without doing much good for any of the bands. If anything, dumb tie-in ideas like this were all that the partnership brought. Carcass did get paid for an album twice because of the dissolution of the arrangement, but that is another story for another time.

The Wolverine and Entombed mash-up did not bear much fruit – the band remained underground and hordes of comic nerds did not seek out the album or become death metal converts due to the tie-in. There are probably a few instances of that happening but those are few and far between I would imagine.

But at the end of the day the Marvel crossover is just a footnote in the story of Wolverine Blues. The true story is that a band changed course and provided an out-of-left-field sound that turned off some but captivated others. Metal’s underground was all over the place at this point in the early 90’s and Entombed was still able to bring something unique to the table. Even with detractors, the album is still celebrated as a triumph and is always a treat to put on the stereo.

When The Line-up Changes – Accept

On By bigbadburchIn Lineup Changes5 Comments

In this installment of line-up changes I’m going to tackle a band that has had way more than one. In fact, the group has only had one constant member in its 46 year history. Discussing every change would be an insane task and be a 50 part series on the blog. It would also be extremely dry and uninteresting – very few of the line-up changes had any massive impact.

Today’s subject is Accept, the long-running German metal outfit who have several solid albums under their belts, as well as a book’s worth of line-up changes and a few extended breaks from touring and recording. Guitarist Wolf Hoffman is the only member to remain in the band from 1976 until now and to have recorded on every album.

Accept would gain notice in the 1980’s with albums like Balls To The Wall, Restless And Wild and Metal Heart. They would begin long periods of instability in 1987 when vocalist Udo Dirkschnieder was dismissed from the group. A series of reunions and extended breaks took place between 1992 and 2005. Hoffman was insistent on taking the band further after the 2005 reunion tour but blamed Dirkschnieder for inactivity after the tour.

The line-up change of note would happen in 2009 – Accept would reconvene with a new album and tour, and this time Udo was not invited. Taking his place was American singer Mark Tornillo, who had fronted New Jersey-based TT Quick in the 1980’s.

TT Quick were a bit of a “hidden gem” band from the ’80’s, never quite breaking big but still having an influence. Their guitarist David DiPietro would bear huge influence on fellow Jersey guitarists Zakk Wylde and Dave “Snake” Sabo, neither of whom should need any introduction. But TT Quick would remain under the radar and mostly inactive after the early 90’s, save for a brief reunion around the turn of the century.

It was a huge deal for Accept to reunite and do so without Udo Dirkschnieder. Udo was the definitive voice of Accept, having fronted the early and classic albums. A few records with other singers did not stand out or have the same impact as those from Udo’s time with the group. The band toured on festivals with the classic songs and that’s what fans were paying to see.

It was a massive risk to take on a new singer and someone as relatively unknown as Mark Tornillo. While Accept have international acclaim, they are a European band and taking on an American singer from an obscure group would be strange news to fans. The Internet lit up with negative reaction to Tornillo’s appointment, metal fans are not one to react well to major line-up changes like this.

Accept were prepared for the backlash, and very well armed to fend off critics. Filling Udo’s shoes was going to be a tall task, so the group hit the studio and prepared an album before announcing the line-up change. 2010’s Blood Of The Nations was the first new music from Accept in 14 years and the first without Udo in 21 years. It also became the first Accept album that anyone truly gave a shit about in 24 years.

Mark Tornillo’s “prove it” moment was a hit out of the gate. While many fans clinging to the Udo legacy still spewed venom across Internet comment sections, critics and fans were in awe of Blood Of The Nations and Tornillo’s strong performance. The major line-up change and huge risk would pay off. Not only did Tornillo gain accolades for his work on the album, but many praised his adept handling of the Accept back catalog.

That is where many replacement singers run foul of the fanbase – a new album can be good, even great, but when the new singer can’t lend due performance to the legacy works, people get turned off. And in fairness, it’s still not hard to find people slagging off Mark Tornillo and his singing on Accept’s classic tunes. If there is an Accept article at all on Blabbermouth or wherever, there are still plenty of comments from people unwilling to “accept” the new singer.

Music is personal opinion, of course, but I think the people still ripping Accept in its current form are just crying for the sake of crying. I saw Accept live in 2013 and the band blew the roof off the venue. Tornillo was spectacular and the band as a whole was in great form. The detractors are honestly just people who want to be butthurt over Udo’s exclusion from the group. I don’t often waste my time dissecting the opinions of people who hold contrary views to my own, but in the case of Accept, it’s one I feel comfortable doing. It isn’t an Accept problem, it’s a them problem.

The line-up change for Accept has been a success. Tornillo is now five studio albums and 13 years deep into his Accept run. The band have dealt with other line-up issues since but are still keeping at it. Udo Dirkschnieder is no worse off either – he is touring constantly and releases new studio albums more frequently than some people change their underwear. And even with all the commotion over the line-up change and Udo’s complex feelings about Accept, he has offered nothing but praise for Tornillo and how the latter has handled the role.

Sometimes the line-up change works, other times it doesn’t. In the case of Accept, their risky and daring change in 2009 panned out for the band and fans, or at least the fans who were willing to approach it with an open mind and ear. I’m sure it wasn’t an accident that they went with a singer in a similar vein to Udo. Accept have been able to add a new chapter to their legacy and were able to buck the odds and re-establish themselves when up against their own history.

Album Of The Week – May 9, 2022

On By bigbadburchIn Album of the Week5 Comments

This week brings one of heavy metal’s all-time classic albums. There’s a bit of a celebration in order for it as the album was just certified double platinum in the US. But shiny things on walls don’t really matter when we’re talking about one of heavy metal’s greatest statements.

Dio – Holy Diver

Released May 25, 1983 via Warner Records

My Favorite Tracks – Holy Diver, Gypsy, Rainbow In The Dark

The debut effort from Ronnie James Dio’s newly-formed band was a big deal from the word go. Dio had made his mark with turns in Rainbow and Black Sabbath and was stepping out on his own to take control after arguments over live album mixes and such. Dio would secure the services of former bandmates from both groups – Jimmy Bain from Rainbow on bass and drummer Vinny Appice from Black Sabbath. Rounding out the group was a younger hand, guitarist Vivian Campbell.

Holy Diver entered a landscape in 1983 where heavy metal was growing to become a major force in the music world. Hair metal was well on its way to taking over the decade, thrash was emerging from either US coast and even the beginnings of extreme metal were showing up. The New Wave of British Heavy Metal had already launched its most successful bands and the foundation for power metal was laid down.

Dio would enter the landscape along those lines, with a melodic-driven, classic approach to metal. It wasn’t a massive departure from work done in Rainbow and Sabbath and it brought the older form of metal into the new age. The music would also offer elements of fantasy in theme and lyrics, something that stood a bit apart from the subject matter of hair metal or thrash.

While the album is a heavy metal monolith, it’s also an easy piece to get into at 9 tracks in 41 minutes. Let’s have at it.

Stand Up And Shout

It’s an up-tempo offering to open the proceedings. While the song’s main riff would be at home on a Scorpions album, the song is given an extra bit of kick by the rest of the band. The song offers a positive, uplifting message – it’s one of many motivating tunes that would come from Dio and became one of his calling cards. And Vivian Campbell offers the first of many electric solos he would perform in his time with the band.

Holy Diver

There is a bit of an intro here that serves a bit of an anticipation-builder for the album’s title track and its signature song. Then the band launches into a mid-tempo ass kicker while Ronnie sings about some messiah figure on another planet or some such shit.

There isn’t a lot I really need to say – Holy Diver is one of heavy metal’s best songs. This is the top of the mountain, in 1983 or any other year really. It is every bit the masterpiece it is made out to be.

Gypsy

A high-flying number with Vivian going off from the word go, the song goes on about that kind of bad girl you just can’t help getting tied up with. The song has been a bit under the radar compared to other Dio standards but it’s always been a favorite of mine.

Caught In The Middle

The pace keeps going with another song about conquering inner doubt and rising up. For all of the talk about negative theme and energy in heavy metal and music in general, Dio always provided a fair amount of “self-help” type of stuff that always got left out of those conversations. Songs like this were at the forefront of heavy metal’s motivating power.

Don’t Talk To Strangers

Often highlighted as a personal favorite by many, we get a slow-builder to change things up a bit. After a quieter first verse, the band launches back into the heaviness and pace. Vivian is really putting on a show here without any hint of wankery, it’s some very solid guitar work all over the song. Ronnie has said the song is about his distrust of people after his Sabbath experience but the track is really about not taking candy or rides from strangers, which we 80’s kids were brought up to avoid.

Straight Through The Heart

This stomping number turns the heaviness up to 11 and lives up to its title. Ronnie apparently wrote the song about the woeful love life of their recording engineer. Suffering always makes for the best art, even better when it’s someone else’s suffering. Learning the easy way is great.

Invisible

This haunting tune delves into the issue of feeling lost to the world. Even in dealing with the tough issues of confusion and trauma, Dio still manages to impart an uplifting conclusion to the proceedings. And it’s more brilliant shredding from Vivian, something not in short supply through the album.

Rainbow In The Dark

The album’s second single has become one of Dio’s signature anthems alongside the title track. It’s another song Ronnie wrote after his acrimonious split with Black Sabbath and the darkness of that time period led to one of his greatest triumphs. Everything on the track works like magic, even that synth line that stands out like a sore thumb.

Shame On The Night

We close the record with a slow burner that uses the day and night as symbolism for life and death, light and dark. Again Dio offers triumph over the evil and darkness. The music provides a bit of atmosphere to contrast from the general heavy attack but still also stomps its way through the track.

That wraps up Holy Diver and one of heavy metal’s finest moments. Dio would go on to establish a legacy nearly three decades long before his death in 2010. The band on the debut would not hold, led by the acrimonious departure of Vivian Campbell in 1986.

But nothing can diminish the legacy of Holy Diver. The album is a cornerstone in the foundation of heavy metal and its influence is felt to this day. The album got its first US platinum certification in 1989 and just recently received its second certification. And no matter the sales, it is always at the forefront of heavy metal discussion. When someone new to metal asks for a list of recommended albums to explore the genre, Holy Diver is always toward the top of that list.

Revisiting The Legacy Of This Is Spinal Tap

On By bigbadburchIn Movies3 Comments

On Monday I talked about the soundtrack to the movie This Is Spinal Tap. Today I’ll talk about the movie itself.

Of course, before I get into the main event, rest in peace again to Ric Parnell. Parnell played Mick Shrimpton in the movie and was the drummer for the 1984 album as well as the 1992 effort Break Like The Wind. Parnell died just a few days ago at age 70.

In terms of movies about music, there honestly are not many that measure up to This Is Spinal Tap. The “mockumentary” was a battle to get funding for and film, and then was a slow-burner that edged its way to cult classic and then eventually immortal status. While there are a handful of music films that are held in the highest regard (The Last Waltz comes to mind), there are few, if any, that do for rock and metal what Spinal Tap did.

The movie is a laugh riot, but the jokes aren’t the kind of setup-punchline thing. Much of the movie was done improv style and the jokes are left in a deadpan form for whoever wants to pick them up. Anyone else saying some of the stuff in the movie would come off just plain dumb, but it’s the most brilliant comedy when delivered in the movie.

And of course the film’s greatest legacy is that it’s almost not really a parody. There are many tales of rock stars seeing the movie and not finding humor in it – Steven Tyler of Aerosmith and The Edge of U2 are a few who thought the movie was so spot on that it wasn’t funny. Many musicians have recalled their own “Spinal Tap” moments on tour, the fake band’s name is now a term for real life happenings. And even the idea of having a black album cover would come to fruition – while Spinal Tap’s Smell The Glove didn’t get traction in America, Metallica’s “Black Album” seven years later would be the best-selling album of the 1990’s. That probably has more to do with Metallica than with Spinal Tap, but the parody band were openly cited as inspiration for Metallica’s cover.

And that’s really the thing about Spinal Tap – they’re pretty much just another band from the era of rock and metal. They informed the scene as much as they provided commentary on it. Rob Reiner went to see Judas Priest live as part of his homework to make the movie. And tell me that you don’t see Iron Maiden all over Spinal Tap, they’re almost the same damn band. Spinal Tap provided legitimate influence to countless bands over the years, and every big band has their “Spinal Tap” story of some absurd event almost too silly to be real.

This Is Spinal Tap is a movie that has entertained many rock denizens in the 38 years since its release and it has also bore real influence even as what was originally a mock band. The movie just rolls from start to finish with a completely packed guest list and absurd gag after absurd gag. It entered the general pop culture lexicon in many avenues – Harry Shearer’s gig on The Simpsons led to a Spinal Tap episode, Fran Drescher reprised her role as Bobbi Fleckman on her hit 90’s sitcom The Nanny, the esteemed Mick Fleetwood actually risked life and limb to become a Spinal Tap drummer for a spell in the early 2000’s, and Christopher Guest has helmed a series of award-winning mockumentaries in the same style of Spinal Tap. This led to a huge mash-up in 2003 on A Mighty Wind, where Guest mockumentary regulars Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara joined the other Spinal Tap primary players and a host of other Hollywood talent in a folk revival mockup that garnered a similar reception to Spinal Tap.

There is no questioning the legacy This Is Spinal Tap has left on the rock landscape. To wrap up I want to recall three of the movie’s most famous scenes. This isn’t a list of “my favorites” per se, honestly the whole movie is my favorite. But these scenes are the ones that people go back to and that people who don’t even know Spinal Tap at least have heard of the references.

Hello Cleveland!

This scene is an absolute laugh factory – the band are getting ready to go on stage to a very energetic crowd in Cleveland and begin their journey from backstage. The only problem is that backstage to stage is a journey longer than one of Skyrim’s longest dungeons. The band get lost at multiple points and have to ask for directions from an employee, but even that doesn’t get them on stage. The band are lost in a broken down labyrinth.

This is one of the many scenes that have happened to countless musical acts in real life. I can’t locate the exact text now but the scene might have been inspired by a similar gaffe by Tom Petty. Even if not, rock stars and luminaries from every genre of music have their own Hello Cleveland! Stories.

These Go To 11

This scene doesn’t need much exposition – I’d imagine it’s the most famous line from the movie. Nigel is showing Marty an impressive guitar collection (the sustain!) when the Marshall head that goes to 11 is shown.

And it’s not just the concept, it’s also in the delivery – when Marty suggests that 10 could be made louder, Nigel simply chews his gum for a moment and then remarks “these go to 11.” Just amazing delivery.

This is the phrase that people know from the movie even if they don’t know the movie. It’s the signature line and it’s why we’re all here.

Stonehenge

It’s all there – the band break into their epic, brought out to revive flagging attendance numbers on tour. Everything is going great, then a Stonehenge monument falls from the sky that isn’t big enough to use as a footrest. The aftermath sees manager Ian Faith quit the band and a path to oblivion unfolds – that is, until Sex Farm hits the charts in Japan.

Stonehenge is everything that goes wrong with stage props, something that happens to bands all the time. But Stonehenge actually did happen to a real band, just in the opposite fashion – in 1983, Black Sabbath had to cancel several Canadian shows on their Born Again tour because their Stonehenge replica was too big to fit in venues. And the funniest part is that one didn’t influence the other – Spinal Tap had a draft version of their Stonehenge gag before Black Sabbath’s tour. It’s just one of rock’s freaky coincidences. Spinal Tap would twist the bit and do the “too big” version in 1992 at their Royal Albert Hall performance.

Any time I go back and watch the movie, it’s always the Stonehenge scene that has me on the edge of my seat. It’s the movie’s most pivotal moment and the biggest turning point for a band slowly flailing away on a tour that isn’t working. Everything before builds up to Stonehenge and everything after is a result of what happened. The whole scene, sadly not entirely represented in the clip, is really the point of the movie.

And there we have it – one of the greatest movies of all time and one of rock and metal’s most important moments. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about the film in the future, this is a well that there is plenty more to go down before hitting bottom.

After all, what’s wrong with being sexy?

Judas Priest – RnR HoF Class of 2022

On By bigbadburchIn Uncategorized9 Comments

I’ll have at a quick post today to discuss the unexpected but very welcome news that came down yesterday – Judas Priest will be among the inductees to the 2022 Class of the Rock N’ Roll Hall Of Fame.

The induction is kind of surprising. Priest were on a months-long fan ballot with other acts and did not place well in the results. The institution behind the Hall of Fame has always stated that the fan ballot is only one component of selection and so the group saw fit to grant Judas Priest induction.

In fact the group is being inducted in a different category from the typical “performers” one. Priest are being inducted via the Musical Excellence category. This is not a very big deal, despite some of the wankery being aired on social media about it. There are several different categories for the HoF so getting in by way of this one is not some huge issue.

With induction to the HoF comes the issue of who exactly gets in. In the case of Judas Priest, the following members will be inducted – current members Rob Halford, Ian Hill, Scott Travis and Glenn Tipton will be enshrined. Along with them, former members K.K. Downing, Les Binks and Dave Holland will also be inducted.

This does leave a few people out, of course. Original Priest singer Al Atkins won’t be inducted and I’m sure he’ll have something to say about it. Halford’s replacement in the 90’s Tim “Ripper” Owens also will not be enshrined, and I’m sure will be gracious as he often is about such things. There are a smattering of other members with some contributions but the Rock Hall generally just gets the classic-era names in for induction.

There are a few points of potential drama with a few of the names on the former members list. I won’t even get into one of them, I don’t know how that’s gonna play out but hey, they’re inducting him so I guess that’s decided. In the case of K.K. Downing there has been some past acrimony over his departure, but there’s no point in getting into all of that now. Early indications are that Downing is very happy about the induction and Rob Halford has already extended an invitation for Downing to be there so I’ll just play the part of the optimist and hope it all ends well.

But in the end drama is just drama, the point still stands – Judas Priest will be in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame. I wasn’t really expecting to see the day, I’d honestly given up on the institution years ago. I’ve deliberately avoided writing posts about who I think are the biggest snubs and things like that – I would prefer to just not give a shit about the whole thing. But I will set all that aside to celebrate the very deserved induction of one of my favorite groups and one of heavy metal’s pioneering outfits. It is fully earned and finally realized, and may the world celebrate the glory of Judas Priest later this year at their induction to the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

Upcoming Music – May the Fourth be with you

On By bigbadburchIn Upcoming Music4 Comments

The title has absolutely nothing to do with the post, but it’s time to look at another pile of lead singles for upcoming releases. There is more music coming out than I can keep up with but that’s a good problem to have.

Skid Row – The Gang’s All Here

Skid Row were promising new music last month and have delivered. This is the title track to the new album due out on October 14. It marks the band’s first full-length album in 16 years.

It was pretty anticipated to see how Skid Row would sound on record with former DragonForce singer ZP Theart on vocals – and well, that anticipation will continue because the band have jettisoned Theart and replaced him with Erik Gronwall. Apparently Gronwall made waves awhile back with a cover of the Skids classic 18 And Life and now all of a sudden he’s fronting the band.

The song is a nice tune, it’s a cut from the cloth hard rocker that does recall the band’s glory days. Gronwall is the fourth singer for the group since the departure of classic-era singer Sebastian Bach in the 90s. I’m as curious as anyone why the band decided to switch singers yet again but it might be a while before anyone gives detailed accounts to the music rags about whatever went down.

Without detailed information, the singer switch feels like an attempt to capitalize on the buzz generated by Gronwall’s cover song performance. Maybe the band heard him and thought he’d be a better fit, I don’t know. If only there were a suitable singer around who could live up to the past performances of Sebastian Bach…

But anyway, the coming fall promises a new full-length and we’ll see what the band can get up to with another entry in their revolving door of singers.

Hank Williams Jr. – .44 Special Blues

The venerable Hank Jr. is releasing a new album of blues cuts. Produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, Rich White Honky Blues is due for release on June 17.

Taking on blues standards is an interesting choice for Bocephus, but it’s not at all far removed from his own roots. The blues were a big influence on country and Jr. has been vocal about his appreciation for the blues in the past. Now he is offering up a full album of the blues and he certainly sounds like he knows his way around the genre.

IV and the Strange Band – Inbred

If Hank Jr. wasn’t enough, June 17 will see the debut release of his grandson Coleman’s band. Southern Circus is the first album from the next in line of the Williams family legacy. The son of renegade outlaw Hank III was preparing a fully self-released effort last year before reconsidering in the wake of the considerable buzz he generated. This new, fully produced effort represents a more polished first step forward.

Inbred is a song about the Fugate family of Kentucky. I’ll link the Wikipedia for anyone curious, though the title should give you a clue. The song is fine, it won’t set the world on fire or anything but I like the direction this seems to be going. It’s imperative for a Williams to go their own way and it sounds like Coleman and company will be doing their own thing. It has a polished southern rock/maybe “hipster” country feel to it and that’s fine by me. It’ll be very interesting to see how the musical path of IV unfolds. Even with going his own way, it is most likely to be his father’s fanbase that will line up early to see what Coleman has to offer.

Note – the group have released a newer single since I began this post, I decided to retain my original text.

Emma Ruth Rundle – Imbolc Dawn Atop Yns Wydrn. Ice Melts As The First Resplendent Rays Of Spring Pour Over The Horizon

Ok, that was a mouthful. This is a new track from my favorite artist in recent memory and is in advance of her new instrumental album EG2 – Dowsing Voice, releasing soon on Friday the 13th. The album is being released in physical form but its digital presence will be kept exclusively on Bandcamp, hence the unusual preview format.

This song, as with surely everything else on this instrumental (though with voice being used as an instrument) work, features the use of atmosphere and texture to create soundscapes. It is a different listening experience from the standard verse-chorus structure of standard songs but it’s musical direction I’ve been leaning more into in the past few years, probably with Emma being my shepherd to that. Emma conceived the album while in Wales in early 2020, just before the world broke apart. It’s also great timing for a release, even an unusual one, as Emma just performed at the Roadburn festival a few weeks prior and her performance was a hot topic of conversation from the fest.

Billy Howerdel – Poison Flowers

The A Perfect Circle guitarist will be releasing a solo album titled What Normal Was on June 10. The song is a nice example of gothic alt-rock or whatever it is, I’m not entirely sure. But it’s a pretty cool song and will command attention as Billy launches a solo tour through the same month as his album’s release.

Oni – Secrets

Newer metalcore brood Oni are preparing to release a new album Loathing Light on June 17. “Brood” may be a deceptive term as the band proper is comprised by a sole member, vocalist Jake Oni. Oni receives help in recording with longtime friend Mark Morton, guitarist of Lamb Of God. Morton’s bandmate Randy Blythe supplies guest vocals to Secrets, as does another unexpected guest, punk legend Iggy Pop. The track is a star-studded romp, we’ll see what the full album holds next month.

Septicflesh – Hierophant

The long-running Greek symphonic death metal outfit have prepared their eleventh album Modern Primitive for release on May 20. Septicflesh have become leaders of the symphonic element in death metal and from the sounds of Hierophant they will likely keep their momentum going with their new release.

Lamb Of God – Wake Up Dead

This new track from LoG is not a precursor to a new album or anything – it is a standalone release and a cover of Megadeth’s iconic song from 1986. Lamb Of God have been touring with Megadeth on the “Heavy Metal Tour of the Year” for a few years now (COVID-delayed, of course).

The band handles the song in true-to-the-original fashion, executing it with thrash precision rather than translating it into LoG’s groove-oriented approach. The band had a helping hand in the effort – Dave Mustaine joins in on vocals and guitar. It is a nice effort and also a placeholder for that new Megadeth album that Dave says is supposed to be out in July yet we haven’t heard anything new about in awhile, much less a teaser track.

Dylan Gers – Moon Rise

This single marks the debut from Dylan Gers, who is the son of Iron Maiden guitarist Janick Gers. The song is a minimalist piece that is not at all related to his father’s work. It’s a different sort of listen but something I can stand to hear more of, it’s not out of place with other things I’ve been getting into as I get on in years. There is no word about an album or anything else yet from the younger Gers.

Liam Gallagher – Better Days

I’ve already previewed one song from Liam’s upcoming May 27 album C’Mon You Know, but I figured I’d drop this third single from the record considering that we’re getting a double-dose of Liam on the 27th. Not only does the new studio album drop but also seeing release is a live 2020 set Down By The River Thames, which Liam and company recorded on a barge floating the river as a means of holding a concert during the COVID lockdown era. The event was filmed then released as a limited streaming event and will now be available on wax and digital.

That live set will feature Liam solo as well as Oasis tracks, though the bulk of the focus will be on Liam’s new studio effort. Better Days is an interesting tune that, to me, stands out more than the other preview tracks from the new record. The video is extremely well-done and so far this song appears to be a highlight from the new album. Liam is gearing up for a headlining set at the upcoming Knebworth festival, the site of Oasis’ great triumph almost 26 years prior (my thoughts on that set’s official release here). While he will revel in the glory days of Oasis, he now will also have plenty of his own songs to insert in the set as well.

That does it for this month’s edition of upcoming releases. Time keeps flying and so do the new songs and albums. Perhaps the next edition will finally feature a new Megadeth song, we will see.