Monthly Archives december 2012

Posted in Cd Reviews

Limb Music/Sound Pollution

Having been around since 2006 CIVILIZATION ONE, formed by vocalist Chitral “Chity” Somapala, have just gotten round to releasing their second album. Belated by membership changes this album sports the lineup of Chity and original bassist Pierre-Emmanuel Pélisson, plus new recruits guitarists Nicklaus Bergen and Oliver Marmann and RED CIRCUIT drummer Michael Stein. Their aim is to put out melodic power metal that can compete with anyone, and, albeit in their own way, I believe they can achieve that.

The intro “Aazis” is an opener among many, but the title track hints at bigger things. Among their influences is something from the jungle, which is augmented by a fine arrangement and a sensible force...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Frontiers/BAM

One of Americas top vocalists of all time, or maybe in the past tense after the barren album made with Bobby Kimbal of TOTO fame about a year ago, returns to form in 2012. A very active player on the scene Jimi has been with everyone from his old bands TARGET, COBRA and SURVIVOR to the likes of ZZ TOP and JOE WALSH. This time around he has opted for a band consisting of Frontiers stalwart Erik Mårtensson (W.E.T., ECLIPSE etc.), everything but drums, Jonas Öijvall, Hammond B3, piano and analog synthesizers, Magnus Ulfstedt, drums and Magnus Henriksson, lead guitars on “Street Survivor” and “Heaven Call Your Name”. An all Swedish backing ensemble and an all-American vocalist, is that the way to go?

Opener “Everybodys´s Got a Broken Heart” almost hit the spot...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Frontiers/BAM

Frontiers seem to house most of the old SURVIVOR squad, and here goes Jim Peterik again. His fruitful venture as PRIDE OF LIONS together with the voice of Toby Hitchcock has more albums to their belt with this one. Offering a mix of ballads and rockers in the melodic rock vein the dynamic duo hopes to break it big in the US, which obviously hasn´t happened yet.

This album is more of a mixed bag that I thought. It has the big sounding five-star ballad, e.g. “Everything that Money Can´t Buy”, the catchy mastership of “Coin of the Realm” and the aged smokey rock of the long-time developed “Vital Signs”...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Lion Music/Border

Italian band LORD OF MUSHROOMS returns with their third album after seven years in limbo. In the late 90´s guitarist Laurent James and bassist Julien Negro founded the band. They started out playing covers, went through the usual lineup changes before slowly transforming into the band of today. Fronted today by ex. ADAGIO vocalist “Gus” Monsanto, the rest of the ranks are made up by keyboard playing clarinet man Luca Mariotti and drummer Marco Talevi. Always allowing themselves five years between albums the question is whether the gaps have done them good.

To be precise, the only weak moment here is the less lavish “Awaken”. Otherwise this is a myriad of riffs, movements, rhythms, refrains, variation, and arrangements...

Posted in Cd Reviews

The Spokes Band, a Swedish country-inspired blues rock quartet. Hailing from Ljusdal, they began as a cover band in 2000 and since 2007 decided to start writing their own material. Their rock and blues influenced grooves paired with high tempo drumming keeps to the soul of their music while also keeping the audience on their feet. Their newest album, “In My Head” is reminiscent of the mid-1970’s era country-blues-rock movement.

The “nothing left to lose” lyric from the track “Can’t Find My Way Back Home” keeps true to the Southern American vibe. Looking at the titles of each song with “Down in the Water” and “Lay Down in Hunger” also construct that “down-home” country effect of the entire album...

Posted in Cd Reviews

Famed for his collaboration with Scroobius Pip Dan Le Sac has taken a break and has kindly thrust ‘Space between the words’ upon us, which is kind of him. Spanning the electro side of things rather than sticking to the more tried and tested electro, hip-hop leanings of his join efforts with Mr Pip, Le Sac has enlisted a who’s who of contemporary artists, predominately British based artists as well including Emma-Lee Moss, Merz, and Pete Hefferan among others. The result is an eclectic mix but it all blends together effortlessly. Offering up Portishead-esque moments with the Emmy The Great with ‘Memorial’ and ‘Play Along’ which features Sarah Williams-White, the trip-hop feel is rife throughout the album and done superbly by all parties involved...

Posted in Gig/Festival Reviews

Refused

Jag har aldrig varit så förtjust i punk eller hardcore. Visst, låtsaspunkare var jag ju en tid på 80-talet eller kanske skinhead? För några månader sen mötte jag ett nytt gammalt band och blev störtförälskad. Jag såg ett youtubeklipp där REFUSED spelade New Noice och jag var fast. En hemlig spelning på Umeås kultförklarade scen Scharinska villa i vårvintras var tydligen fenomenal. Jag visst när det skulle var men hade tyvärr förhinder. Scharinska var fullsmockad med folk. Människor klättrade på ytterväggarna för att komma in och en projektor spelade upp konserten på husväggen.

Under året har rapporter strömmat in om Refuseds enorma framgångar från alla kontinenter. Det var bestämt att bandets sista gig skulle vara i Umeå...

Posted in Gig/Festival Reviews

Folkkära Sabaton bjuder på humor, spelglädje och en sjuhelsikes show.

Sabaton är ute på sin gigantiska Swedish Empire Tour som tar dem runt hela världen. Hur de orkar hålla igång som duracell-kaniner kväll efter kväll är ett mysterium.

Efter två intron varav ena var den fantastiska covern på Status Quos Into The Army Now, som likväl hade kunnat framföras live, klättrar publiken nästan på väggarna i all sin iver! När såväl dalmasarna for ut på scenen och smäller av med Ghost Division tänds det en gnista mellan bandet och publik som inte kommer släckas under hela kvällen. Mejeriet i Lund är slutsålt och visar verkligen varför scenen är populär bland artisterna med sina olika avsatser och balkonger.
Sabaton får en helt annan kontakt med publiken än de är vana ...

Posted in Interviews

We meet in a bare conference room in central Stockholm. After about 30 minutes of waiting in the reception at Warner Music, I get introduced to Jyrki Linnankivi, or as he calls himself, Jyrki 69. The singer of The 69 Eyes sits down opposite side of the table and starts talking directly about how much he loves Sweden, and it is something he has done for a long time. Though one thing he is unhappy with, we close the shops too early. He will go out on Christmas lookout after our interview, and his schedule is very tight.

– I was going to help Santa a bit and try to find something that I want for christmas. It will probably be the new book about Yngwie Malmsteen (written by Anders Tengner), because I want to learn Swedish little better.

We often hear about that Finns are not very happy to spea...

Posted in Interviews

I spoke to Joakim Brodén, lead singer of Sabaton a couple of hours before they took to the stage for their show in London – the only show on the UK tour to get the full stage show with flames and pyros.

Festivalphoto: Your new album, Carolus Rex was released in May. It’s a change from your usual subjects of the 1st and 2nd world wars, and instead covers Swedish military history. Can you tell us a bit about that as I suspect most fans don’t know much Swedish history.

Joakim: As you say we normally cover the world wars or more modern conflicts, but many fans asked us why we don’t sing about our own history, because in modern times Sweden hasn’t been in war much. The album spans from the early sixteen hundreds to the early seventeen hundreds...