Liberty Lies, Halestorm and Shinedown all on one ticket is a very strong lineup, and I had been looking forward to it for a very long time.
It is shame then that I managed to miss Liberty Lies completely. In truth due to unbelievable car parking conditions I nearly missed Halestorm! Thankfully though, I got in with just a few minutes to spare before Lzzy and the band stormed on stage and blasted through current single ‘Love Bites (And So Do I)‘. Continue reading
Our sister website Moviescramble has just posted a review of an album soundtrack for a film which didn’t exist!! You can read the whole review for Themes For An Imaginary Film over there now…
A bit of a stretch this one for a movie review site. A review of the 2012 album Themes for an Imaginary Film by the band Symmetry featuring Johnny Jewel and Nat Walker.
During the making of the 2011 film Drive, the director Nicolas Winding Refn and star Ryan Gosling approached Johnny Jewel to provide the score. Jewel is a prolific musician and producer for a number of acts on the Italians do it better label including The Chromatics and Desire. The Chromatics album Night Drive (2007) had been extensively used while location scouting for the film took place. A score was produced by ultimately not taken up as the production turned into a much bigger deal than first thought and seasoned film composer Cliff Martinez was drafted in. The soundtrack retained some input from Jewel in the form of a Desire track and a Chromatics track (both featuring the two members of Symmetry) . Since the film was released there has increased speculation that the unused score was superior to the official one and it would receive some sort of release. Continue reading on moviescramble →
A few weeks ago Feeder came back with a new single, ‘Borders’ which is the first from their forthcoming album Generation Freakshow and first new release since charity single ‘Side by Side‘.
I loved Feeder when I heard their second release the Swim EP was back in 1996. They were a catchy, heavy rock band and for three albums continued to remain heavy and yet always have a hook in the song.
Then they lost their drummer Jon to suicide and (understandably) it all changed. The style of their music changed almost entirely with comeback album Comfort In Sound yet ironically this change led them to much greater commercial success, and a strong set of follow on albums. Continue reading
To be honest this is something of a big deal. Even before a note has been heard, what I have in my hands is arguably the first important release from Van Halen in decades. No offence to Sammy and Gary, but Van Halen with Dave Lee Roth is really truly Van Halen in my book, and A Different Kind of Truth is the first album of new material since 1984.
Opening with the frankly brilliant ‘Tattoo‘ it is clear from the outset that it is “business as usual” and this would always have been the next album if Dave hadn’t parted ways. Clever, light, funny and musically tight the song is exactly what you expect from that classic era of Van Halen. Sure, there’s a rumour reported in Blabbermouth that actually this is exactly the case – but who cares? It sounds superb and there is a real stench of sour grapes from ex-members. Continue reading
Before I start this review in earnest, I have to admit that I’ve not been a Snow Patrol fan for a while. I like the first two albums Music For Polar Bears and When It’s All Over…, and for the most part enjoyed Final Straw, but from then on I kind of lost interest and considered them to be a bit pedestrian, a bit of an everyman’s band and not one to instil much passion in their fan base. Based on tonight’s performance though, I might need to give that position a little bit of a rethink as they put on a cracking show to a hugely appreciative audience. Continue reading
Lamb of God kick off the 2012 with what I consider to be one of the most anticipated releases of the year already. It’s been just over two years 2 years since Wrath was unleashed to a decent reception. Certainly it was the most polished and well produced album they’d ever created and the same is true of Resolution.
There’s absolutely no doubt who you’re listening to as it’s very distinctly a Lamb of God creation with all it’s volume, powerful drumming, glorious guitar work with some blistering solos, and the ear splitting shrieks wails and screams, but for me there’s just something missing to give it that ‘must listen’ factor. Continue reading
Up until tonight I’ve never seen Mötley Crüe live. Though never their biggest fan, I’ve been listening to them for years and yet never spent the exuberant ticket price to go see them before. I’ve heard great things about their live shows in the past, and I’ve seen all sorts of stuff on the internet that I thought looked really cool, and so I built up the anticipation of a blinder of a gig. In my head, I’d already enjoyed the greatest show on Earth even before they come on stage.
But it’s said you should never meet your heroes, and although I wasn’t that lucky, I should have treated this event with the same trepidation as I believe I haven’t been so disappointed by a band in my entire life. Perhaps some of it was my own fault, but the dream just didn’t match the reality at all. Continue reading
