This should be really interesting to see and hear. Hopefully Yngwie will change direction from his stale caffeine induced Bach-ish song composing and come up with some really bombastic metal crunchers we haven’t heard since 1985 “Marching Out”. I really do think Yngwie is more talented than people are giving him credit for. He just needs to tap into gothic side of his mind little bit more and leave enough room for vocals and actual melody, instead of trying to fill every little hole in the song with blazing classical runs. Let the song breath little bit. Nonetheless this should be good. Watch out for the new album this July.

Here is the link for the story.

Beast which lay dormant underneath desolate and dreary Birmingham’s streets since mid 70’s awoken again to give us probably best metal creation ever to be put down on any type of recording medium. 1980 being the best year for metal (according to many metalheads and critics) has been given a crown. Crown being Black Sabbath’s “Heaven and Hell” album. With one masterstroke Sabbath with Heaven and Hell sealed envelope containing best metal music in the year of 1980 and sat it on the highest metal throne.
New singer and new less doomy and more mystical sound is probably the first thing that attacks listener’s ear. Ozzy is out and ex-Rainbow elf-man was brought in to revitalize this metal monster. Ronnie James Dio on the vox fronting the biggest metal band on earth does more for this record then just sings his heart out. Aside from being an archetype metal vocalist, Dio is a master lyrics craftsman. Fresh of the Rainbow wagon Dio uses words as a weapon to further accentuate already celestially crafted songs. Dio just mesmerizes listener with everything from mystical passages and witchery to tackling deepest fears about heaven and hell and just life itself. Writing is done in a very mature and deeply smart, acute but constructive way. It leaves enough room for imagination while at the same time not letting your evil mind roam too far. Here’s a little sample from the title track :

” They say that life’s a carousel
Spinning fast, you’ve got to ride it well
The world is full of kings and queens
Who blind your eyes and steal your dreams
It’s heaven and hell, oh well”

Album opens up with onward-driving and intense Neon Nights, and as soon as Dio opens up his pipes (line goes: oh no…!) one has exhilarating feeling of an operatic, warm and majestic presence. Tony and Co. cut through such a tracks like slower, environment friendly feast “Children of the Sea”, bass-riff driven Lady Evil, lordly brilliance of a title track, smart speeder “Die Young” and bluesy “Lonely is the Word”.
Everyone shines on the album. Especially Tony Iommi and Dio. And those Tony’s bone crushing riffs… Oh boy. Not much to say but that every time he picks up guitar, man is just poised to assault your deepest sense of being with majesty of royal riffery known only to him and no one else. On this album father of the metal guitar Tony Iommy becomes true ambassador of power chords.
Geezer’s punchy, melodic and tasty bass lines are in perfect sync with Bill Ward’s commanding drumming style. Note: Bill says he was so whacked out of his mind on alcohol that he doesn’t remember recording this album at all.
Dark but not too gloomy; mystical but not cheesy; magical but not fantasy, Heaven and Hell is pure metal-masterpiece accomplishment in every sense of the word.
Even when you hear this album in a post-modern production era of NOW, you will realize why it stood the test of time. You can put this album up against anything today’s super bands (especially power-metal) release and it will sound as innovative and more fresh. Martin Birch’s stellar production faithfully captures the sound of a true rock monument that rolls in only once every decade or so. Why is Paranoid more played on radio than” Heaven and Hell” is beyond science, but if you ever had a chance to hear this masterpiece and you don’t own it, I highly suggest you have your head examined.
Easily my favorite Sabbath’s album and probably in the top five metal albums of all time.
Favorite tracks include: Neon Nights, Children of the Sea, Heaven and Hell, and Die Young.

Rating:

Tracklist:
1. “Neon Knights” – 3:49
2. “Children of the Sea” – 5:30
3. “Lady Evil” – 4:22
4. “Heaven and Hell” – 6:56
5. “Wishing Well” – 4:02
6. “Die Young” – 4:41
7. “Walk Away” – 4:21
8. “Lonely Is the Word” – 5:49

Album lineup:
* Ronnie James Dio – vocals
* Tony Iommi – guitar
* Geezer Butler – bass guitar
* Bill Ward – drums
* Geoff Nicholls – keyboards

I am going to attempt to state some basic differences between Heavy Metal from two different continents. US and Europe. This will be strictly observation and not competition so if you get offended BITE ME! I am the one spending my precious hours writing and thinking about this shit so cut me some slack.

You might ask what qualifies me to even attempt this. Well, I lived in Europe for 20 years and I have been exposed to lot of metal bands there. Plus I have had (and still do) many friends over there that keep me in check with happenings and Euro-metal scene. I also dmage my wallet with those hard to find Euro metal imports.

I currently live in US (since 1995) and I’ve got exposed to many bands here as well. I have also witnessed pretty diverse reactions of my American metal friends while listening Scorpions riff vs. Pantera or Korn riffs. Face tells it all. You can see cumbersomeness of someone not liking that riff for the first time immediately.

Despite the fact of me being an American citizen, I still have very strong European tendencies in great aspect of my life so I will try not to be biased.

Let’s dive into it then. Read the rest of this entry »

1977-1984 is definitely heavy metal’s best and most productive era as far as I’m concerned, and Heavy Load is one of the first and premier classic-heavy metal bands from that era to stomp the land of the vikings and beyond. Along with other Swedish classic acts such as Overdrive, Torch, Axewitch and 220volt, Heavy Load’s music really reflects the mood and pure energy that was around at the time. Hailed by critics and adored by hard core fans Heavy Load truly represents best years of metal in their own convincing, raw yet melodic classic heavy metal. Band’s like Europe (early works) and Hammerfall definitely learned thing or two from these guys. Hammerfall actually covered Heavy Load’s “Run With The Devil” later on.

Here is one of their gems from excellent 1982 “Death Or Glory”. Just listen that convincing vocal intonation.

“Little Lies”

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Discography:

FULL SPEED AT HIGH LEVEL – NOVEMBER 1978
METAL CONQUEST – SEPTEMBER 1981
DEATH OR GLORY – OCTOBER 1982
STRONGER THAN EVIL – OCTOBER 1983

Band members:

* Styrbjörn Walhquist (Drums, Vocals & Percussion) (1976-1985)
* Ragne Walhquist (Guitars, Vocals & Keyboard) (1976-1985)
* Andreas Fritz (Bassguitar) (1979)
* Eddy Malm (Guitar & Vocals) (1979-1985)
* Torbjörn Ragnesjö (Bassguitar) (1979-1984)
* Leif Liljegren (Guitars) (1979)
* Eero Koivisto (Bassguitar) (1979)
* Dan Molén (Bassguitar) (1978-1979)
* Michael Backlund (Bassguitar) (1976-1977)

I always wanted to do review of Judas Priest’s 1990 Painkiller since I consider it to be a third metal catalyst (first being Black Sabbath’s debut and second being Metallica’s debut) that raised the bar for all future metal bands.
Heavy metal hits its plateau every decade or so and early ’90 is no exception. This album really pushed boundaries of ferocious and acrobatic playing to unprecedented level of sophistication. Angry, disappointed and just pissed off, coming straight out of the courtroom Judas Priest releases bombastic fury of a record. Painkiller is what would become foundation of all future kinetic, techno-metal and manic sonic assaults which every band will build their chops from that point on. I don’t just mean guitars, but drums and vocals as well. Just listen to Primal Fear, Gamma Ray, UDO, Silent Force, Marshall Law and countless others, and you’ll se direct influence of Painkiller. Read the rest of this entry »