Album Reviews

Recorded on November 7th 2012 at the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco, this captures the original line up of Asia as they toured in support of the “XXX” album. Geoff Downes, Steve Howe, Carl Palmer and John Wetton truly make this a night to remember as the set list features …

Constant Source of Disappointment, often shortened to the initials C.S.O.D. are a  four piece Thrash Punk Metal band formed in Blackpool in 2004. Final Insult, released in May 2015, is the third and final E.P. in their ‘666 Trilogy’. Lead vocalist Ligzig Rightguard said “Since we formed as this line up in …

Veteran German and Dutch extreme thrash-death act Dew-Scented has released its tenth and latest studio effort, titled Intermination, on Metal Blade Records. The digital edition of Intermination contains 15 tracks of high speed malevolence that promises to sweep rage and fury across the airwaves. The band seeks to build inter-album …

So, this album is why a lesser black metal album has not yet been reviewed and this one is pro bono for Mr. Alonge. A few years ago, Jarrod Alonge made a name for himself as a YouTube music comedic star. He set out to mock a number of genres …

It would be too easy to say “Hemispheres by Rush is 2 long songs, 2 short songs, go buy it now” but as this is my favourite Rush album ever then it deserves more attention! On buying it at the age of 15 I was so struck by the music …

It’s been the best part of 25 years since I was first introduced to Helloween back in the late eighties. I remember being blown away by, at the time, these Germanic speed metal merchants that were something akin to Maiden but with pace and even more wonderful vocal and guitar …

Graveyard Johnnys a Punk/Psychobilly trio from Chepstow formed in 2008. With a self-funded EP, ‘Streetblock and City Lights’ and debut album ‘Songs From Better Days’ already under their belts. A few line-up changes along the way, they released their latest offering ‘Dead Transmission’ via Bomber Music on the 11th May …

After the comeback with the album Silverthorn in 2012, Haven is the 11th studio offering from Kamelot and the 2nd album to feature vocalist Tommy Karevik. In this album I feel Karevik has really established he is exactly where he belongs in Kamelot; by having more input in the writing …

People adore them, people despise them and some people don’t want to know about them because they’re still as confusing as ever. Whatever your opinion though, the bottom line is that Babymetal have been the most talked about band for the past 18 months and have surpassed everything we thought …

@planetmosh reviews Black River by .@DoomsdayOutlaw Doomsday Outlaw are a five piece from Derby who went into the studio to produce this, their debut album after reaching the East Midlands finals of Metal to the Masses but narrowly missing out on a spot at Bloodstock Open Air in 2014.  Fast forward …

The second full length album from Birmingham based Captain Horizon sees them stretching their musical boundaries even more. Released on May 11th 2015 via Rocksector Records and a well attended album launch/gig in Birmingham on May 22nd shows the leaps and bounds they are making since they were formed by …

It is rare that an album comes along that sits outside the defined genres and makes you really sit up and listen. Tribulation formed in 2004 and this is their third full length release and it defies all laws of pigeon holing into one genre or another. Sweden after all …

  Sometimes, just sometimes, when the celestial bodies align , on a clear moonlit night I’ll find myself drawn to the coast. To sit on rocky cliff tops and gaze out onto the ocean, to ponder humanity’s foibles and achievements, as the white Lunar rays dance and skip on the …

Fans of the original wave of Swedish death metal are in for a treat, from Entrails‘s latest release, Obliteration. As the band says, it’s ten tracks of “death metal and nothing else.” Entrails formed around the same time that bands like Entombed and Grave were just beginning to garner some …

There is something morbidly fascinating about goregrind.  It’s a musical sub-genre which often inhabits the darker, more taboo elements of the human psyche, addressing lyrical issues which many, more mainstream, artists only dare to skirt around with the comparative finesse of a housewife cleaning her most precious porcelain compared to …

Formed in 1974 in Newcastle Upon Tyne by brothers John and Mark Gallagher, Raven have stuck to their guns through thick and thin resulting in their 13th studio album release ExtermiNation currently available via SPV/Steamhammer Records. Fan friendly formats include a CD Digipack with bonus track ‘Malice In Geordieland’ and …

After selling upwards of 80 million albums as a part of rock titan Journey, guitarist Neal Schon has released his latest solo offering, Vortex. For Vortex, a two disc set, Schon was joined in the studio by keyboardist Igor Len, and fellow Journeyman, drummer Steve Smith. Schon has the freedom and the space to explore …

The Dynamic Aussie Duo strikes again! Right from the word go The Graveltones second album ‘Love Lies Dying‘ hits you like a rampaging rhino that tramples all over you, backs up, and for good measure, tramples all over you again and again to make sure the job is done! That …

Soulsteal are a Doom/Death Metal band from Cyprus that formed over ten years ago.  They released their debut EP in 2009, then in 2012 followed this with their debut album.  Now three years on, they are releasing their second album, Tenebris. The songs are fairly short with almost half clocking …

Melbourne, Australia’s Deez Nuts brought forth their fourth studio album, Word Is Bond, in the spring of 2015. Word Is Bond is a 14 track disc filled with monolithic, aggressive hardcore crossover thrash metal that will sear your feet to the floor and melt your face simultaneously. The overall sonic …