Welcome to the globalized underground music genre known as Heavy Metal. Here you will find reviews and discussions on Hard Rock and Heavy Metal music and it's bands. Prepare to be Metalized!
The mighty (in so many ways) Zakk Wylde released the sequel to his acoustic album Book
of Shadows. This new album is great! I am a fan of acoustic music and
this album definitely plays into that desire for acoustic music.
Zakk Wylde, being
the great guitar hero that he is, displays
his talent in the solos within these songs. The album is a bit lengthy with
its 14 songs. Wylde is known for his
shredding; listen to the latest Black
Label Society album which demonstrates his prowess. Book of Shadows II allows
him to show his songwriting abilities that which go beyond just metal. Each
song has this very similar tone that is translated throughout the album. This
feeling is not a detriment in the flow of the album and can make it feel as if you
were listening to one long acoustic song. The problem I see in his format style
is that there really is not a lot of differentiation to the untrained ear and
most of the songs don’t stand out from each other.
I would like to note that one of the bonus tracks on the
album contains a version of the song “Sleeping
Dogs” that features Corey Taylor
on vocals. That version of the track gives the song a really cool dynamic sound
as Taylor and Wylde alternate on vocals. So, it’s no wonder that they used that
version in the music video.
Overall, the tone on this album is very mellow and in my
opinion I find Book of Shadows II to be a cool and calm listening experience which
offers quality music. I suggest listening to this album on a nice summer
evening.
Babymetal. Need I
say more? There is a stigma around this group in that are they truly metal?
Really what I think it comes down to is that some people don’t like j-pop with
their metal. For me while I don’t care for j-pop, but I don’t hate it either.
Let’s be honest here, if Rob Halford,
The Metal God, can praise this group, there’s got to be something to them. So
how does their album stack up with other metal that is currently on the market?
Well let’s find out!
Immediately upon listening to this album, the first thing I thought
of was, “this sounds a lot like DragonForce!” and that’s because two of the
members of DragonForce collaborated
on the first song. The following song “KARATE”
which is one of the more memorable songs on the album with a more groove metal feel.
The album turns more of a smorgasbord of songs with some ups and downs. The
album fuses many elements of Heavy Metal and facets of J-Pop.
Babymetal’s
second album Metal Resistance continues on with the fusion of j-pop and
metal genres which was established in their first album. They’re continuing to
incorporate other sub-genres of metal, for example power metal and groove metal
into their music. Overall the album offers some hooks to grab you, but ultimately
not enough for me. The genres that this group is trying to fuse into their music
style, j-pop and metal, may turn some people off so that some people are not
going to give this band a listen. I think those people should listen to this
music first before forming a preconceived opinion.
Fates Warning
released their 12th studio album earlier this year, Theories
of Flight. I am not that familiar with this band, although their album,
Awaken
the Guardian, is one of my favorite progressive metal albums.
This album, Theories
of Flight, as some slower parts which are balanced out by the faster and
heavier songs. Most of the songs on the first half of the album are very
memorable with, “Seven Stars”, being
the song I think about when I want to listen to this album. The second half of
the album is where it starts to drop off and go weird. What I mean is, the
final song which is also the title track, sounds more like a space ship docking
and departing in outer space than an actual song.
If you bought the deluxe edition version of the album you
also received a second disc with six acoustic tracks. Half of these songs are
covers and the other half are different versions of their own songs. Overall
the second disc is a nice addition to the album and enjoyable to listen to if
you dig acoustic.
Fates Warning
crafted an album that they can call all their own and it shows. Theories
of Flight is a pretty good album with some great songs. Personally, I
really like this album much more than Dream
Theater’s new album The Astonishing. This album is
definitely one to check out and for all of you progressive metal and rock fans
this is an album not to miss.
Diamond Head, the
only way you probably would have known of this band back in the day is if you
were a frequent concertgoer, a metalhead and lived in Europe. The 2010 DVD concert
of the Big Four (Anthrax, Megadeth, Slayer and Metallica) in which the members
of the Big Four came out and performed Diamond
Head’s song “Am I Evil?” gave Diamond Head worldwide exposure in the
mainstream the metal scene. This year they actually released a new studio album
with new vocalist Rasmus Bom Andersen
who joined the band in 2014.
How does Diamond Head’s
new self-titled album stack up with this year’s competition? In my opinion, Diamond
Head is not monumental like other classic albums, but this album has
some great riffs and hooks. They don’t have the big production that more
successful bands do. The band’s sound is refined and un-bloated and their tunes
are pleasant to the ear. Diamond Head
relies on their laurels of good riffs, melody and hooks to create a compelling
listening experience.
Diamond Head is a pretty good metal album that shows that this
band still has relevancy and can write good songs. Definitely give this album a
listen.
The classic thrash metal band, Flotsam and Jetsam, are back with their self-titled 12th
studio album. It has been about 4 years since their last release and 30 years
since their classic debut album. One might ask how does this new material stack
up against their catalogue, is the music still relevant, and how good is this new
album?
From what I’ve read on line from some hardcore fans of Flotsam and Jetsam, this album is a
return to their original style and plays to the strengths of the band. Personally,
I’m only familiar with their debut album Doomsday for theDeceiver
and this album seems like it would have been great if it had been released about
20-25 years ago. Actually, upon release iTunes had the album year of release listed
as 1993 which later was corrected to 2016. I saw the YouTube video of this band’s
single “Iron Maiden” and thus I learned
about the release of their latest album. I don’t think this album will be the
album to break Flotsam and Jetsam
into the mainstream or into the main circles for most metal fans, but I can see
this band going out and getting some good exposure by touring with other well-known
bands.
In my opinion, this album is alright as some of the songs
for me are a bit forgettable. There are some riffs in here that definitely
stand out and it has an old-school thrash metal sound. Most of the album seem
to drown out into the background with blips of interest with some of the songs.
For hardcore Flotsam and Jetsam fans
this will be your bread and butter. If you want to hear what old-school thrash
sounds like, then definitely check out this album. Otherwise, it has a few
standout songs to take a listen to.
The current lineup from left to right: Rob Cavestany, Damien Sisson, Mark Osegueda, Will Carroll & Ted Aguilar
So far, this year I have done many mainstays of Heavy Metal music.
Starting with Iron Maiden and most recently
Metallica. Now,I would like to talk
about a band that isn’t as well known. In the Thrash Metal genre, these guys
are one of the best and unfortunately get overshadowed by the Big 4 of Thrash
Metal.
Death Angel is
band that was founded in 1982 and started to pick up steam in 1985 with their Kill
As One demo. Since that time and up to today they’ve released 8 albums,
have toured around the world, and had broken up for about 10 years from 1991 to
2001; in 2001 they reformed for a benefit concert. Aside from their earlier accomplishments,
I feel that Death Angel has created their
best album to date with their most recent album The Evil Divide being one
of my favorites.
Death Angel is
from the San Francisco Bay area. This was one of the epicenters of Thrash Metal
known as Bay Area Thrash. Many bands including Exodus and Testament still
call it home. So, with the large amount of Thrash Metal being produced, Death Angel is tried and true to their
surroundings and carry that torch. A couple things to be known about Death Angel are that when the band was
formed the members were very young with most of them being in their early to
mid-teens and also that members of the original lineup of Mark Osegueda, Rob Cavestany,
Dennis Pepa, Gus Pepa and Andy Galeon
were all related.
What really makes Death
Angel unique, more than those little fun facts, is that they play Thrash Metal
with melody in their music. This differentiated them from other thrash bands
that were going faster and heavier. One thing I will say is that due to their
break-up, Death Angel never when
through that phase of going more commercial or changing their style to match the
times.
I found out about this band in 2014 when I was listening to S.O.D. (Stormtroopers of Death) and Exodus. At that time, I was already
loving the speed and heaviness of Thrash Metal, but Death Angel brought some color into my palate of music. With the melodic
elements, it gave me a renewed scene of love for melody in my Metal music. Then
I went and got into King Diamond,
but that is another story.
Dream Theater has
been the leading band to push the genre of Progressive Metal to new heights. The Astonishing was released on January 29th, 2016 and is Dream Theater’s 13th studio album. This album is
actually a concept album and follows a man through a dystopian future. The
album has a total of 34 songs and clocks in at around 2 hours and 10 minutes.
This is their longest album to date.
Personally, I am a fan of Dream Theater’s heavier albums like Train of Thought and Awake.
For this album, The Astonishing took me 10 months to make this review. Just
kidding, but this review was a large undertaking for me to do.
The Music:
I’m not going to explain the meaning of each lyric, because
this is a concept album and each song tells a part of the story. If you want to
check out the cool concepts and the overarching story being told through each
song, go click on this page on Dream
Theater’s official website, where it details what transpires during the
story and provides the lyrics for the songs. Instead, I will be discussing the music and how it relates to the theme and overall story.
Disc 1:
Part 1 [Tracks 1-5]
The first couple of songs, especially “Dystopian Overture”, really set the mood for the album. By having
this epic and dark tone for the dystopian future concept portrayed through the
music, each song sets the stage for the story, giving the audience an
understanding of what is happening or what has already happened for the
characters and world. The following songs present the perspective of the
narrator, ‘the chosen one’ Gabriel and his older brother Arhys. The way that the songs on this album are
presented is similar to that of a musical or an opera.
Personally, I love the beginning of “The Gift of Music” because of its upbeat sound and catchy
progression. I also like the part when the song does down to this serene beat
and changes the perspective from the narrator to Arhys. The vocals are very
clear which helps us understand the message of the song. Shortly after the song
builds up from the serene part of the song, some of the lyrics have a chorus added
behind the vocals.
“The Answer” is
more of a serene song that still is able to give the emotion of insecurity of
the character Gabriel. The song “A
Better life” has this great marching sound at the beginning of the song that
sets a darker mood. Another part of that song I like is the were he says the
lyrics “I shall give him a better life, I swore this vow to my dying wife” and all
the subsequent lines after that. I also liked the part where a line would be
said then the name ‘Evangeline’ would be said after.
Part 2 [Tracks 6-10]
The first song “Lord
Nafaryus” gives the audience a foreboding feeling as well as the
motivations behind the actions of the character. The next song ,“A Savior in the Square”, begins with a melodic,
serene, acoustic sounding piece that starts off the track. Then as does in the
story, the song transitions to a tone that is reminiscent of heralding the
arrival of someone important. I love the progression of this song as it changes
tones throughout as situations unfold in the story.
In the next song, “When Your Time Has Come”, it has an
awesome wailing guitar solo. The following track, “Act of Faythe”, goes into the feelings one of the characters. It
starts with a beautiful orchestrated piece then changes to a lone piano and
vocals. The track progresses as more instruments are added into the mix, ending
with something reminiscent to the song “Lord
Nafaryus”. The riff for the song “Three
Days” is really rhythmic and catchy. The vocal melody aligns closely with
the riff. I really like the part where the vocals are sung above the riff as it
slows down, giving the character that is based on those lines a chance to
really stand out. I also like the chaotic ending of this song.
Part 3 [Tracks 11-15]
After a short mechanical instrumental from the NOMACS, “Brother, Can You Hear Me?” starts with
this militant sounding music piece that sounds like it could be in an old
military propaganda film. The first part of the lyrics sounds like a chant from
a group rather than from a singular character. After the music dies down, it
starts up again with a serene riff that builds up as it goes on. The lyrics are
the response from the main character comforting the previous group. “A Life Left Behind” starts with a chord
progression on acoustic guitar. The other instruments join in after a few of
these chords take place. The riff changes to a softer tone as the vocals start.
I like how the riff goes up when the line “I’m waking up” is sung. The next
track, “Ravenskill”, opens with
piano and what sounds like chirping birds in the background. In-between the
vocals, other noises like running water are added to the soundscape. After
about 2 minutes, the bass guitar and drums jump in and make the song much
heavier. A few minutes later, the song returns to only vocals and piano but
this later transitions into a different sound by the addition of the other
instruments which end out the song. “Chosen”
is a pretty dramatic song. It’s simple and melodic but the simple message of
the hope that the characters have is what makes this song shine.
Part 4 [Tracks 16-20]
“A
Temping Offer” opens with a few notes from a piano then followed by a riff that
comes crashing down which immediately grabs your attention. The song is pretty
intense as the story unfolds. The sound is dramatic just like the choice that
the character has to make. “Digital
Discord” is another NOMAC instrumental. It’s different and breaks up the
pace of the story to allow the circumstances to set in. The following song “The X Aspect” portrays the desperate
situation placed upon the character and the choice he has to make. The song
starts with a soft piano, then an acoustic guitar and an organ take over the
riff. The drums enter and the pace of the song picks up. I’m a sucker for
bagpipes so when they joined in, I thoroughly enjoyed their addition to the
song. “A New Beginning” has this
heavy riff that is really exciting to the ear. As the song continues, the riff
has a really catchy rhythm. It also has some resemblance to some of the other
songs we’ve heard so far like “TheGift of Music” and “Lord Nafaryus”. This song also has some
great guitar solos and keyboard solos. As choices and story plans of the
characters are being played out, the consequences of their actions are played
out in the music of the song “The Road
to Revolution”. The riff changes tonally as it goes between each of the
characters. As the first disc closes out, it seems that Act 1 is finally over and
the next Act will see those choices played out to fruition.
Disc 2:
Part 1 [Tracks 1-3]
Act 2 of the album starts with an instrumental that reacquaints
us with the themes from the previous act while also setting the tone of the
second Act. The song “Moment of Betrayal”
is where the act truly begins and paves the way for rest of the second act. It’s
a darker, heavier song which continues to get heavier as the song goes on. The next
song, “Heaven’s Cove”, has this
eerie opening as if we were in the hallowed halls of an old long forgotten building.
The song has bursts of heavy sound and then fully transitions into a heavy
sound as the vocals start.
Part 2 [Tracks 4-7]
“Begin Again” has
this emotional riff that seeps hope. The way the orchestration and vocals come
together is masterful to say the least. “The
Path That Divides” starts with what sounds like crickets chirping in the
night. After a mechanical noise, a dramatic riff plays as the character is facing
the moment of truth. As the song progresses, it gets heavier and more symphonic
in some places. The vocal melody closely follows the riff in this song. The next
song “Machine Chatter” is another
NOMACS instrumental. Even though the song itself is rather quiet, the beat of
this instrumental is exceptionally catchy. “The Walking Shadow” continues the dramatic theme from the song “The Path That Divides”. In some parts
of this song, the riff is very percussive. The track stops around the 2-minute
mark and has the sound of walking footsteps. It then ramps up the riff again as
the vocals tell the events in the story.
Part 3 [Tracks 8-11]
“My Last Farewell”
is a somber song which is in response to the dark event that had transpired. As
the song progresses, it follows the emotions being released by the character. “Losing Faythe” starts with a sadder
tone of the characters mourning. Later in the song, the tone becomes more hopeful
sounding as the situation unfolds, when an opportunity comes into the mind of
one of the characters.
“Whispers of the
Wind” continues the somber tone as the vocals portray a hopelessness of the
character, draining away any hope for the situation. In the next song, “Hymn of a Thousand Voices”, what seems
like a hopeless situation is uplifted by the events that follow in the story. The
song sounds epic as a choir can be heard in the background behind the vocals.
Part 4 [Tracks 12-14]
With the crisis now over, the song “Our New World” begins the last chapter in the story. It is an uplifting
and upbeat song expressing hope for a new better world. “Power Down” is the last of the NOMACS instrumentals on the album
and it’s the signal that the story is nearing its end. The album ends with “Astonishing”. This song incorporates elements
from other tracks on the album. It wraps up the story and album nicely as the
song builds up touching upon all the elements of the story being told through
the various pieces of music from the album.
Verdict:
I like the dystopian future concept that Dream Theater has brought. To me it
could have been generic, as many stories with a setting similar to this usually
deal with the survival of the character or the politics associated with such a
world. Dream Theater, mainly by John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess who wrote the concept and music for the album, deal
with somethingthat most writers do
not and that is the cultural aspect of such a future, especially music. Even
though this album was written mainly by John
Petrucci and Jordan Rudess, each
of the other members of Dream Theater
still get to shine within the music, whether it be in vocals or instrumental
solos.
I would love to see this album be adapted into a comic book
or movie. A musical might work, but those usually have dance numbers and this
music would not work in that kind of setting. Although, I could see this as a
movie rock opera. It really depends on how it’s handled, but a production with something
visual would be great. I really like this album and if you love progressive music
and/or concept albums, this is one of the best that I have found.
If you want to hear this album for yourself, here is the album
stream from Dream Theater’s official YouTube page:
Top 6 Songs:
1) “Gift of Music”
2) “A Better Life”
3) “Lord Nafaryus”
4) “The Answer”
5) “Three Days”
6) “A New Beginning”
From left to right: Jordan Rudess, John Myung, James LaBrie, Mike Mangini & John Petrucci
Dream Theater’s
US tour of The Astonishing is now over as of today, because today is their
last show of the tour. Next year, when they go to Europe they are going to be
celebrating the 25th anniversary of their second album Images
and Words by playing that album in its entirety.
