As previously posted,SAXON drummer Nigel Glockler was rushed into hospital on Monday. Yesterday he had one unsuccessful operation for a brain aneurysm, but today had another operation which we are pleased to say went well. You can read an update from Nigel‘s wife Gina below:
“Nigel’s surgery went according to plan & he resting tonight.
I hope to post more info as I have it, and hopefully a message from the man himself!!
Thank you all for the support, it really means so much.
Gina, Justin & Madeline”
Our continued best wishes to Nigel for a speedy and full recovery.
Tracklist: 01. King Of The World 02. Same Old Situation 03. Misery 04. Leave Me Like A Fool 05. Blue Painted Sky 06. Angel In Black 07. Living On My Madness 08. Desperate Nation 09. Adrenaline Rush 10. No More Lies 11. This Time
As I initially listened to the promo teaser, not yet knowing the situation behind this one, I couldn’t help thinking about the singer, “That guy sounds remarkably like David Reece. I’d like to hear more of this!”
Well, upon further sleuthing, I found out that indeed, Reece was asked to sit in for Robert Soeterboek, who unfortunately was diagnosed with a cyst on his vocal chords during the time the band was recording. Surgery was required, and a lengthy recovery time would have created yet another setback among many with which the band had already dealt. Upon Robert’s insistence, and after several weeks of searching, the band felt that the voice of David Reece had the right passion they needed to help carry out their vision. I feel they could not have made a better choice. Those of you who are familiar with Soeterboek’s vocal work know that the prospect of filling in for him, with a talented band such as this, would probably be intimidating for anyone else. But luckily, David agreed—and what results is one jewel of an album called “Adrenaline Rush”, the fourth release by WICKED SENSATION of Karlsruhe, Germany.
Since I first heard him as the new lead vocalist in Accept back in ’89, I’ve always thought David Reece had a great set of pipes. Having fronted bands such as Bangalore Choir, Sircle of Silence, and Tango Down, he sure honed his chops over the years, and now it seems like he’s the Morgan Freeman of Hard Rock: in the last few David has been a very busy man, working again with Bangalore Choir and Tango Down, releasing a couple of notable solo albums, touring with EZ Livin’ (his current band), and this fabulous album with WICKED SENSATION. Over the years, many singers’ voices change, and some can’t quite do what they did back then. But I dare say Reece’s voice has gotten even better with age. Oh, he can still belt ’em out, all right, but now, he’s got this wonderful smoky soul and depth to his voice that give it so much more expression and charisma. And he works it, too: David lends that extra something to each song, making them even more special.
That said, I am just crazy about “Adrenaline Rush” from start to finish. I’ve had a number of album reviews needing written, all of them first-rate bands, and though I truly enjoy every one, I keep going back to this. All the elements I love about classic hard AOR rock are here in spades.
I love Michael Klein’s playing style and tone, and together with Sang Vong, they are a twin guitar force to be reckoned with. The rhythms are tight and punchy, and the dual harmonics, leads and fills are intricate and melodic. The bit of contrast there is very appealing.
I really like Martin Mannhardt’s playing, too. The man is a groovin’ machine! His bass lines are so good that I could just sit and listen to them exclusively as well. Smooth and fluid on a few songs, bright and snappy in others, his contributions are every bit as important and outstanding to the mix as the rest of the band. Bernd Spitzner adds just the right touch with keyboards. Subtly, they enhance each song, adding to the richness of the sound without ever overpowering it. And Dirk Bruinenberg has made it impossible for me to sit still while listening to the album. His playing is so bright, energetic, and powerful. They really have a winning lineup here!
And the songs…well, there are eleven decadent rock-lover’s tracks, not a one to be overlooked. Michael Klein’s writing and attention to detail gets better each time. The hooks are so good that I found myself singing along with every song before I even fully knew them. I couldn’t help myself. They stayed with me long after the album was over, and even after a day or two break, riffs and lyric lines were running through my mind—and I wasn’t complaining a bit.
‘King Of The World’ is a powerful opener that sets the mood and the energy for the entire album. There are themes of love, unrequited and love lost, but with songs like ‘Same Old Situation’, ‘Leave Me Like A Fool’, and ‘No More Lies’, you’ll be too busy rocking to be brought down. The hypnotic ‘Misery’ is probably one that sticks in my head the most. It just draws me in, “awake all night…”. Ballad ‘Living On My Memories’ and the anthemy ‘Blue Painted Sky’ have a great mid-’80s feel to them, perfect for a summer drive or anytime. ‘Angel In Black’, energetic with a darker feel, a choir of background vocals, and some nice harmonic leads and switch offs is another winner.
The title track, ‘Adrenaline Rush’, fully lives up to its name. While I’ll gladly listen to the entire album over and over again, I kinda like hitting the repeat button on this one. Though I’ve no doubt Klein and Vong could have done an outstanding job themselves, bringing Mathias Dieth in for the solo was a nice touch and further exemplifies the special camaraderie of musicians and guitar wizards.
Closing out the album, ‘This Time’ is quite a shift in every way from the aforementioned track, but very moving in its own right! I adore the melancholy mood and the stripped-down feel of the song, performed on acoustic guitar along with some light percussion and keyboard. The simplicity and beauty of the music, along with the raw strength and dynamics of Reece’s voice, truly convey the emotion in the lyrics.
In addition to David Reece and Mathias Dieth, guest musicians on the album include:
Harry Hess – Choirs, Backing Vocals on Tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6
Eric Ragno – Keyboards on “Same Old Situation”
Ritchie Kovac – Percussion on “This Time”
Jan Knopf – Backing Vocals, “Blue Painted Sky”
Kudos also to Dennis Ward (PINK CREAM69, UNISONIC), at the production helm again to give his special touch to the mix, bringing out a real sparkle overall.
WICKED SENSATION really took it up a few notches this time around. It’s evident that they put a lot of effort and care into their latest musical offering. I feel “Adrenaline Rush” is their best yet! I don’t call it mainstream rock by any means, but every song here has “Hit” written all over it.
“Adrenaline Rush” is one of my favorite albums of 2014—or ever. I want to see this album go Big Time—there’s simply no excuse for it not to.
Rating: 9.3/10
Here’s that album teaser. See what you think!
WICKED SENSATION is: Robert Soeterboek – Vocals Michael Klein – Guitars, Backing Vocals, Bass Sang Vong – Guitars, Backing Vocals Martin Mannhardt – Bass Bernd Spitzner – Keyboards Dirk Bruinenberg – Drums
UK rockers FURYON to release their 2nd album, “Lost Salvation” via Dream Records/Cargo Records. The UK/Europe release will drop on January 26th 2015 and feature 10 killer new songs. The album will be available in stores and at all popular digital outlets. US/Canada release date to follow.
On Christmas Eve, on Classic Rock Magzine’s website FURYON‘s first new video ‘These Four Walls’ will be premiered.
Following this, on the forthcoming magazine issue #206 an exclusive FURYON covermount is included. “Lost Salvation” EP featuring 4 new tracks from the band. Exclusive review on the Album and interview bringing FURYON news bang up to date!
“Lost Salvation EP” tracks:
1. These Four Walls
2. Lost Salvation
3. Scapegoat
4. Dematerialised
The song ‘These Four Walls‘ will be also featured on the ‘Ones to Watch‘ CD, which will go out on all copies of the Classic Rock Magazine UK.
“Lost Salvation” was recorded in Atlanta, US and Brighton, UK and mixed and produced by Rick Beato (Shinedown, Fozzy) & Ken ‘GL’ Lanyon.
FURYON are:
Matt Mitchell – Vocals Alex “Nickel” Bowen – Bass Lee Farmery – Drums Luca Faraone – Guitars Tiago Rosado – Guitars
French post-black metal act DECLINE OF THE I will release its second album titled “Rebellion” on February 27th in Europe and March 10th in North America via Agonia Records.
“Rebellion” features seven new tracks maintained in an imaginative post-black metal environment. The music is multifaceted and full of motion. Premiere track off the release, “Hexenface”, is available for streaming via SoundCloud at this location.
The album was recorded in Studio de Chine with Khatchik Hovikian (L’odeur du Tchaman), while Xort (Seth, Alcest, Vorkreist, Anorexia Nervosa) took care of the mastering. Layout and artwork were created by the French photographer and filmmaker David Fitt (Aosoth, Secrets of the Moon, Svart Crown). “Rebellion” includes guest appearance by Olivier from Eros Necrospique.
The follow-up to 2012’s “Inhibition” album will be available in: digipack CD, 12″ black vinyl, limited 12″ red vinyl and digitally.
Tracklist:
1.Lower degree of God’s might
2.Hexenface
3.Le rouge, le vide et le tordu
4.The end of prostration
5.Pieces of a drowned motion
6.Deus Sive Musica
7.On est bien peu de chose
The band is led by the multi-instrumentalist A.K. who has been active in the metal scene for over 15 years and played in bands such as Vorkreist, Merrimack, Neo Inferno 262, Malhkebre and Diapsiquir. The project is his “personal approach on dark music“. He’s accompanied by musicians of Merrimack, Anus Mundi, Temple of Baal, Eibon and Drowning fame.
A.K. commented: “With this album, I wanted to express something more twisted and violant than the first one, but in a personnal way. I’m kind of sick of hearing all these bands that copy each others over and over… It’s so pointless. It’s obvious that more and more people are trying to follow a trend in order to exist somehow… With Decline of the I, you can be sure that you deal with my own neurosis, my own way of expressing my guts… I know it doesn’t “speak” to everyone’s ears. But I surely know that my art can really be intimate with ears that know how to listen. Eyes to see, ears to hear“.
The concept of band is inspired by the works of the biologist Henri Laborit.
Line-up:
A.K. – guitars, keyboards, programming, samples, bass, vocals, drums
S. – drums
V. – vocals
G. – vocals
JAKE E. LEE is clearing the air about songwriting credits during his stint with OZZY OSBOURNE, something that’s obviously been bothering him for more than 30 years according to ultimateclassicrock.com.
Lee joined Osbourne’s band just before 1983′s ‘Bark at the Moon,’ replacing late guitarist Randy Rhoads. When the album appeared, all lyrics and music were credited to Osbourne — in direct violation of an agreement Lee says they had going into the sessions.
“I was told from the get-go, ‘[If] you write part of the songs, you’ll get writing credit, you’ll get publishing. That’s part of your deal,’” Lee told Eddie Trunk in a new interview (via Blabbermouth). Later, however, after he recorded the final guitar track, “They said, ‘Ah! We have the contract for you.’ And in it, it says, specifically, ‘Ozzy Osbourne wrote all the songs. You had nothing to do with any of the writing, you have no claim to publishing and you cannot say so publicly.’”
When he balked, he says Sharon Osbourne, Ozzy’s wife and manager, told him he’d have to accept the new terms — or else his contributions would be erased. “She says, ‘Because if you don’t, we’ll give you a plane ticket, you go back home and you stand in line and you sue us. In the meantime, we have all your tracks, we’ll get another guitar player, he’ll redo your tracks, and you’ll have nothing,’” Lee added.
‘Bark at the Moon’ became a Top 20 hit album, going triple platinum, but the success always left a bad taste in Lee’s mouth. “The only reason I’m saying it now is because that was just mean — that was mean,” he said. “What am I gonna do? Really? Am I gonna say, ‘Fine. I’m going home. Take my tracks off. Some other guy will get all the credit for playing guitar, and I still have to try to sue you for the rights?’ It would have been just … not a good decision.”
Lesson learned, Lee said he got everything in writing before returning to work on Osbourne’s 1986 follow up, ‘The Ultimate Sin.’ “I refused to do anything until I had a contract in front of me,” he said, “promising me writing credit and publishing.”
Lee ended up with co-writing credit on eight of ‘The Ultimate Sin”s the nine songs, though not its breakout hit ‘Shot in the Dark.’ He’s since founded a new band called Red Dragon Cartel.
Lord Saruman The White has got a new treat in store for fans this Christmas, as reported by independent.co.uk.
Christopher Lee, the world’s oldest man known to sing heavy metal, has released a Christmas single called ‘Darkest Carols, Faithful Sing’.
The song marks the third year The Hobbit star has released Christmas material following 2012’s “A Heavy Metal Christmas” and 2013’s “A Heavy Metal Christmas Too”.
The 92-year-old’s new Christmas song appears to be more of a medley, including his heavy metal takes on ‘The Little Drummer Boy’, ‘Silent Night’, ‘Jingle Bells’ and ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’. Check it out below:
The single also includes a version of Frank Sinatra’s very unfestive ‘My Way’ – perhaps meant as a statement about the actor’s intentions to continue recording heavy metal material well into his Nineties.
‘Darkest Carols, Faithful Sing’ includes Hedras Ramos on guitar, Brook Hansen from Prog Rock Orchestra on instrumental mix and Ziv on extended vocals mix.
The single has been produced by Lee’s own heavy metal label Charlemagne Productions Ltd.
The actor has released four albums but only ventured fully into the heavy metal genre with his last record “Charlemagne: The Omens of Death” in 2013.
He is best known for his roles in JRR Tolkien’s franchise, but has starred in hundreds of other films including Tim Burton‘s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the original Moulin Rouge movie in 1952.
Chief Shock Video
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s ASA unveil the long-overdue release of "Collective Failure" + first music video for title-track! Check it out and stay tuned for more news! Click image to watch the video
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
Ads
Visionary artist KIMMO KUUSNIEMI's ANCIENT STREAMING ASSEMBLY (ASA) have released “Aurora Nuclearis”, a powerful 12-minute audiovisual experience, dedicated to the Late Keyboardist Esa Kotilainen. - Click image to watch the video
Artist: WICKED SENSATION
Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 