Reviews

»Love, Fear And The Time Machine« is a new top-shelf album confirming that Riverside keep reaching, very successfully, for new challenges, masterfully pouring the big ideas they absorb in their melting pot into a format of absolute artistic…

“Love, Fear And The Time Machine” is a new top-shelf album confirming that Riverside keep reaching, very successfully, for fresh challenges, which they masterfully work, in a melting pot of absorbed big ideas, into a format of absolute…

With »Seize The Day«, Galahad have kicked off their 'season' of four consecutive EPs that marked 2014 in style, and it's bound to go down well with longtime fans and plenty of 'newcomers' too.

With »Until All the Ghosts Are Gone«, Anekdoten have made an excellent album that ranks among the best of their output so far and is built entirely to the taste of longtime fans, so the long wait for a new studio effort was more than worth…

With Coma Ecliptic, Between the Buried and Me prove they still haven't run out of ideas for making a different kind of album. Once again it's a demanding, unconventional record that makes it clear music needs a lot of experimenting and…

»The Book of Souls« is no great leap forward for these long-lived and wildly successful heavy metal champions, since the quality of what's on offer is pretty mixed. But it's definitely their most ambitiously conceived album since the end of…

Label: Parlophone Records / BMGRelease date: September 4, 2015Production: Kevin ShirleyAlbum length: 92.11 min (2CD)Genre: Heavy Metal / N.W.O.B.H.M.Rating: 8.0/10 "The Book of Souls" is the sixteenth studio album from heavy metal…

With »DNA D,« Dan D have come down from the »heavens« onto solid, real ground! The ground of rock'n'roll in its original form, which they tackle 100% the Dan D way. Here's the first part of a brand-new story!

»Secrets of Angels« is a hugely welcome and much-needed shot of fresh blood for modern prog folk, and it might just win Karnataka a somewhat wider audience.

»Thunder, Storm And Passion« is a great jumping-off point for diving into the world of Mad Max. Classic material played anew, plus a bonus live CD! Something real fans of the band have had at home for ages!

Jameson Raid have finally put out their first real studio album, with material that ties in seriously credibly with the road they've traveled and their classic stuff from the eighties. A proper haymaker "straight to the skull" for all you…

Even if »I Heard You Listening« most likely ends up overlooked, Echolyn more than successfully hold on to their cult status on it and stay true to their own distinctive sonic vision.

You already know this review, of course!

The »Wassail« EP is a fascinating warm-up for the upcoming new Big Big Train album, and it's naturally aimed first and foremost at the faithful fans who are already finding it hard to wait for »Folklore« to drop.

»Story Tellers - Part One«, the work of one lone man, is one of the loveliest neo-prog surprises of 2015.

The compilation »Best for Sale!« is a welcome one, since the band's studio albums are almost impossible to find on the market these days. It also lets all the freshly baked fans of melodic, hard-hitting heavy metal discover this unjustly…

»Starless Starlight« will appeal to anyone who swears by Fripp's various soundscape-based ambient projects and values his past collaborations with Brian Eno, with Cross's violin adding a completely new dimension to the subtle waves of…

»The World« is yet another successful (and the last) live take on a classic PFM album in a winning streak.

All in all, "Shockwave Supernova" is a really lovely new studio release from a seasoned master and refined guitar virtuoso, but it brings nothing we haven't heard before, so it's no creative peak in his career.

Unlike its predecessor »EEPS«, »Celebration« zeroes in on compactness. In places the compositions aren't as loose and sprawling anymore, and this time Marco paid a touch more attention to tightly structured arrangements.

Unbelievable but true: the masterpiece "The Oblivion Particle" proves that Spock's Beard's sonic evolution is far from over, despite their move into the 'golden years' and all that mileage, and that the band can still surprise us with…

»Live At The Orleans Arena Las Vegas« is, as expected, a real live treat for all fans of the famous Chicago rock institution, who in the glare of the Las Vegas spotlights brought some beloved evergreens to life in fine style and even pulled…

»ExtermiNation« is an album where Raven hold on to their incredible youthful drive, with a razor-sharp edge that credibly ties the band, more than 30 years on, to the run of albums they put out from 1981 to 1983!

»Legacy« is the band's tenth studio album overall and their second for Frontiers Records, and it stands proudly shoulder to shoulder with their most prominent works, debut studio album »Time Tells No Lies« (1981) included!

IQ's various, mostly unsuccessful attempts to morph into a hybrid prog pop rock band, which peaked on "Are You Sitting Comfortably?", were thankfully short-lived and ended with Menel's (expected and welcome) departure.

If the »Megatropolis« that Iron Savior re-recorded in 2015 had been made back in 2007, we could have declared it the band's creative zenith, or career peak.

" 'Live at the Final Frontier' is an excellent live document that fans of this sadly often overlooked but terrific German power metal band will be thrilled with and then some."

»Live at the Final Frontier« is a superb live document that fans of this sadly often overlooked but excellent German power metal band will be thrilled with and then some. With this release, Iron Savior prove that, despite how rarely they…

Every saga, no matter how sprawling, comes to an end sooner or later. The posthumous project "Dance Me This" is the final studio album from the great Frank Zappa.

»Underworld« walks the perfect middle line, fusing aggression and musicality into a fascinating symbiosis. In an otherwise complex musical vision, these progressive metal heavyweights have never struck a balance like this before.

"The prog-leaning masterpiece »Seventh Son of a Seventh Son« was the finale of Iron Maiden's epic album trilogy, kicked off by »Powerslave« and »Somewhere in Time«, and it's a worthy successor to both of those triumphant predecessors, with…

The prog-leaning masterpiece »Seventh Son of a Seventh Son« was the grand finale of the epic trilogy of Iron Maiden albums kicked off by »Powerslave« and »Somewhere in Time«, a successor every bit as good…

»Dry Land«, the one and only How We Live record, is pretty rare these days, but it's still a very good album, and especially interesting for fans of the Marillion classic »Holidays In Eden«, where the major sonic…

Label: Sony MusicRelease date: 24.07.2015Album length: 64.01 min.Production: Joihn Cuniberti & Joe SatrianiGenre: Instrumental Rock / Art RockRating: 8.5 / 10 The man who more or less enthroned instrumental guitar rock in the…

If you don't mind that half of "Escape From The Shadow Garden - Live 2014" leans on newer material, or that Catley's best singing days are long behind him, you'll get plenty of seriously enjoyable listening out of this solid Magnum live…

With their sixth studio album, Unearth mostly show consistency. Over the course of their career they've made enough progress that, for now, there's no need for anything more.

True, there are plenty of bands out there these days who handle death/doom better than Paradise Lost, but with The Plague Within they prove who the daddies of the genre are, and after more than a quarter century in the game they still…

With their fifth studio album, Carnifex show they're evolving, just slowly. Sadly, too slowly. The songs, built mostly on speed, aren't polished enough to rise above an average record.

"The Eternal Idol" was another major sonic rebirth for Black Sabbath and the start of their next evolutionary phase, with both Tonys in the lead roles.

»The Eternal Idol« was yet another major sonic rebirth for Black Sabbath, kicking off the next evolutionary phase with both Tonys in the lead roles.

Ne Obliviscaris mostly confirm on their second album that they won't stray from their original concept. The listener gets long, complex songs with a hefty dose of extremity and epic grandeur.

»Emerson, Lake & Powell« was a pleasant surprise when it came out, a cautious return to classic ELP form after the pretty embarrassing artistic stumble of the late seventies.

This release is more about Frontiers Records marketing the name of a famous band than anything else. It isn't essential, but it does make up for the pale impression left by the group's dismal form on the live release "High Voltage" (2014).

"Vortex" came out just one year after its predecessor »So U« and is stylistically closer to "The Calling". It keeps the inspiration, a heap of brilliant ideas and solutions, and the full-blooded creative challenge of an inexhaustible…

Chris Impellitteri remains a one-of-a-kind musician in both approach and style. That makes him the architect of the singular Impellitteri catalog, and that holds fully true for the excellent new studio album »Venom« too.

Hard rock never really suited them, and this time there are too many ballad sections and mid-tempo tracks on the album, so the real heart of Virgin Steele metal gets lost across the record's long running time.

»The Other Side of Life« was a well-deserved hit on the synthpop scene of the day, even if next to the classic achievements of the pioneers of symphonic progressive rock it comes off as almost tragicomic.

Tears For Fears' artistic and commercial peak, "Songs From The Big Chair," has stood the test of time. Three decades on, it's still a new wave masterpiece that wows with an enviable level of sonic sophistication and arrangement ingenuity.

Listening to "About Face", which wasn't an (un)expected masterpiece but 'just' a very solid record that confirmed the iconic guitarist/singer could hold his own, you often get the sense that Gilmour was enjoying himself immensely, finally…

Sepultura won back some of the trust with Kairos (2011), and with The Mediator the band proves it's holding steady while also trying out something new. These days Sepultura are still pretty overlooked, thanks to the old-school fans, which…

Not long ago, David Coverdale came up with the idea of dedicating an album to Deep Purple. It's not a bad idea at all. The band is basically stretching its creative songwriting break and diving into a fun reworking of rock classics.

»Indestructible« brings no stylistic departure from its predecessor »Precious Metal«. Barely a year passed between the two albums. And House of Lords remain a proven constant of quality and style that just doesn't know how to disappoint.

»Human Era« keeps Trixter's creativity at a high level well into their mature years, and even though a full 25 years have passed between the debut and the new album, you'd never know it.

More than three decades on, "Rebel Yell" is still the brightest jewel in the crown of the eternal rebel, and one of the best albums of the 1980s.

»Cocktail« was in many ways the cornerstone of the early Buldožer albums with Brecelj on lead vocals, so every fan of the Yugoslav/Slovenian prog rock scene knows exactly how important it is.

Back in the day, no band anywhere in the former Yugoslavia brought the sounds of synth/electro pop and new wave to local ears as effectively as Denis & Denis did. "Demo Tapes" adds the lost pieces to the mosaic of the band's story.

»Ta tobak je sladka travca« is the closing chapter of Aleš Hadalin's folk-song trilogy. It's another heartfelt and seriously fun studio document from the Karst's vocal nightingale!

The album is full of bizarre arrangement choices, and this time Helloween are a shadow of themselves. It's been glued together badly. An album of total gray mediocrity that you can easily give a wide berth.

Most of Ian's followers would happily forget his creative period between 1983 and 1984, even though »Walk Into Light« was a somewhat more bearable effort than the electronic monster that came next, »Under Wraps«, which left a black stain on…

»Last of Our Kind« proves the quartet still has the stallion power and then some. Given how polished the songwriting is, it signals that The Darkness are only now approaching their creative peak.

"The basic premise of the band's calling card hasn't changed. It's a fresh ring match-up of AC/DC, Thin Lizzy, UFO and Queen. Blended, of course, according to The Darkness' one-of-a-kind recipe, which keeps cranking out a brand-new,…

After, hand on heart, the not exactly convincing predecessor »VI«, the guys needed an album with a clearly defined musical sensibility, even if that gives the aura of "Infra" a retro-nostalgic feel.

Catacombs of the Black Vatican, BLS's ninth studio album, doesn't really bring anything new to the table. It's a more reserved record that can boast a hit or two and a ballad, but next to their earlier work, the album as a whole is anything…

"Waters' personal frustrations, which hit their peak on "The Final Cut", would surely have come across as more credible on a solo debut, instead of being projected through the Pink Floyd frame, with his longtime partners in misery reduced…

Waters' personal frustrations, which hit their peak on "The Final Cut," would surely have come across as more credible on a solo debut, rather than projected through the Pink Floyd frame, with his longtime fellow sufferers relegated to a…

Of all the Supertramp albums, »...Famous Last Words...« had the most untapped potential. With more commitment from the whole band, it could have been a much better record than it ended up being.

With »Chicago 16«, one of the best moments in their sprawling discography, Chicago finally made a successful entry into the eighties and delivered an album that's still interesting today, even for most Toto fans.

In terms of quality, »Sonic Attack« lands roughly in the 'golden mean' of Hawkwind albums, which means it's mostly the band's longtime followers who rate it highly today.

"B2" is an exceptionally lovely, light-hued (indie) rock album with superb songwriting and sound design, plus a dash of folk, that comes across as irresistibly catchy and radio-friendly.

»The Ghosts Of Pripyat« perfectly captures the essence of Rothery's refined guitar genius, so that even though it's entirely instrumental, each composition touches the listener's soul in the most emotional way possible.

Nine whole years have gone by, a solid nine years. The band is back. This time with a proper album full of original music. It took a long time, and it was worth the wait.

So »Nostalgija« is definitely a special kind of album, and on it the Klemm couple show remarkable artistic daring and courage, setting off successfully into the waters of reshaping familiar folk music in a unique way and adding lively color…

If its predecessor "Drenov Grič" defined the stylistic foundation of Nula Kelvina's music, then its successor "Levak na Luni" cements that direction: vivid authorial charisma and artistic originality.

"Levak na Luni" is another outstanding record that's immense fun, yet also hits home and shakes the listener awake through Marko Boh's sparkling, razor-sharp lyrics. It's also a big teaser for the full-blown theatrical excess waiting for us…

Released by: Self-releasedProduction: Hannes Grossmann, V. SanturaRelease date: March 2015Album length: 73:01 These days we can probably say, no need to think twice, that extremity in metal has peaked. But every year some band turns up…

With their outstanding debut, Alkaloid have shown just how far progressive death metal can be pushed into the extreme.

A new, extremely listenable art rock album with a clearly distinctive voice. It embodies the great songwriting maturity of Samo Budna, who got the whole Elevators band to join him in creating this wonderful record.

The album "Mestni vrvež" is the studio debut from Idrija progressive rock standouts Divje jezero, and we can say with a clear conscience that it's the high point of 2015 for Slovenian rock releases.

"AkordeON" is a hugely ambitious album that puts the accordion in a special spot in the musical universe, one far removed from what we usually get from an everyday encounter with the instrument.

"“AkordeON” is an extremely ambitious album that puts accordion playing in a special corner of the musical universe, a far cry from the one we usually get in everyday encounters with the instrument, which in Slovenia has always come with a…

Built on nothing but vocals and piano, this cabaret chanson record is the product of brilliantly palpable chemistry between its two players, and its lived-in intensity hits right at the heart of what makes artistry authentic.

" An outstanding album that, alongside Feedback from Tolmin, delivers a badly needed progressive rock link on the Slovenian scene between the new generation and the look and spirit of the seventies bands (Izvir, Predmestje, September,…

"'Concrete Gardens' is the album true Tony MacAlpine fans can only wish for. It's a fresh wet dream for everyone who loves boundless guitar slicing and top-shelf virtuosity, dosed with a hefty helping of musicality that binds the album's…

»Concrete Gardens« is the kind of album real Tony MacAlpine fans can only dream of. It serves up fresh wet dreams for everyone who loves boundless guitar slashing and top-shelf virtuosity, dosed with a hefty helping of musicality that ties…

"Ragbag" is a fun, colorful patchwork of world music, ethno and folk, heavily weighted with jazz, where the two musicians never run short of cheeky inspiration when it comes to working in all kinds of improvisational inserts.

»Sančo Pansa« is an exceptionally beautiful studio debut from Bort Ross. It came together through subtle, unobtrusive, creative gestures of great sincerity, under the watchful guidance of the deep perfectionism this singer-songwriter comes…

An exceptionally nice debut that most loves to flirt with funk kinetics, but also throws in jazz, soul, R&B and even cabaret chanson, so »The Best Of« never gets boring.

Die Hamsters come out of an alternative rock basin, but they build it on a danceable, swaying and deliberately simple rhythmic frame. Very recognizable in that sense, in the vein of British acts like Franz Ferdinand or Arctic Monkeys.

What "Na liniji" kicked off years ago, »Tu je raj« carries on. A push toward the part of the audience that isn't musically spoiled. The majority of the public. And the commercial success that follows.

»Adventures in Modern Recording«, which bizarrely charted better in the US than at home, where it was a pretty hefty commercial flop, was a somewhat less interesting achievement than the cult debut, but it still had plenty of quality ideas,…

»After The Flood« is a brilliant collection of 'dusty' BBC archives, some of which are seeing the light of day for the very first time, so as a whole it offers a feast of listening pleasures for every single Van Der Graaf Generator devotee.

“Chance” already belonged in the category of Manfred Mann's Earth Band albums that are “mandatory” only for their diehards and can't be counted among the art rock classics, because after holding up remarkably well through the whole of the…

Label: PivecRelease year: 2015Production: Blaž Celarec & Marko TurelAlbum length: 35.24 minGenre: Folk / Rock Time flies! Four years have gone by since the album Noč čarovnic came out.. It feels like it was yesterday. And now…

»The Art of Suspended Judgement« is an incredibly bold, gutsy studio debut from MeduzaleM, one that announces right from the start of their career that this is a three-piece developing a truly original voice of their own.

Unlike its predecessor, which was an album of original music, »Enci Benci Katalenci« is at its core an album of children's folk counting-out rhymes that have been put through a radical process of so-called »Katalenization« or…

Label: AFM RecordsRelease date: 26.04.2015Album length: 54.01 minProduction: Piet SielckGenre: Heavy Metal / Power Metal The Lord works in mysterious ways, doesn't he? You produce your own studio album, and a few years later you…

»Anyone's Daughter« was an interesting piece of work that came out at a time when this kind of music was extremely unpopular, though the band members didn't lose much sleep over it.

"An exceptionally beautiful and, for a debut, remarkably mature piece of songwriting: full-blooded indie rock that promises great things for the future."

An exceptionally beautiful, compositionally mature record for a debut, packed with full-blooded indie rock, and it makes for a very promising future.

The album "Glorious" won't spark a rock revolution on this planet, but for Bonfire it's finally a proper follow-up to the band's golden years, and it puts them back on the European hard rock map.