Blog Archives
Album Review: Heimdall – Aeneid
From the big boot comes Heimdall with their latest (to be) album release Aeneid. Having never heard them before my expectations remained low or I should say nonexistent. As advertised, Heimdall captures all the beautiful elements of a genuine Power metal band; sweeping melodies; emphasis on the keyboards; and of course the epic experience Power metal bands deliver. Most importantly, I happily listened to the album from beginning to end which speaks volumes considering my attention span.
Heimdall’s music comes off with more or less a happy appeal similar to what you would find with some Helloween music; a little more upbeat. It’s the kind of uplifting Power metal that makes you feel good unlike some other Power metal bands that rely on more intensity with orchestration and theatrics. During most of the album, I felt like I wanted to sing along even though I don’t know any of the lyrics yet.
Tales From Bandcamp: When Lightning Strikes by Drakkar
Last year there was one power metal release that really caught my ear. Drakkar’s When Lightning Strikes was a thorough dose of soaring guitars, melodic vocals, and all round powerful power metal all tied together with a neat sci-fi narrative. What I really liked about the record was that it had all those fun sensibilities I love about power metal but was able to maintain a mature and modern tone and not come of hammy. To keep things short I’ll just link my review of the album here if you would like something more in-depth to read about the album. I also did an interview with band founder and guitarist Dario Beretta and you can read that here. But, if anything, what you should really do is click on the play button below and give When Lightning Strikes a listen. Let us know what you though. Enjoy!!! Peace Love and Metal!!!!
Album Review: Otehi – Noisy Spirit
Having previously taken on one of Cosmic Swamp’s roster before, I was a little more prepared for the fuzz-attack that this release was going to bring, although several surprises awaited as I sat down with Otehi’s début Noisy Spirit EP. Firstly, the band’s name means “negative karma” in the Lakota tongue, an appropriate name for the music despite the band’s Italian origins. Secondly, the strong songwriting belies the band’s lack of an anniversary, having formed in March 2011 and released this EP before the year was out. Thirdly, the DIY production puts much punk and black metal to shame, while the 37-minute runtime outstrips many full albums. And fourthly, their influences stretch across 4 decades and 3 continents. If the souls of Kyuss, Sleep and Fu Manchu (with the obligatory touch of Sabbath) were to telecommunicate between the Aussie Outback and dusty US Midwest, that should paint a good starting point for where Noisy Spirit crashes in.
Concert Review: Gods of Metal (Day 4) (Ozzy & Freinds, Opeth, Black Label Society, Lamb of God) Milan, Italy June 24, 2012
From the second I heard that one of my all-time favorite bands and fathers of heavy metal, Black Sabbath, were going to reunite for a tour I jumped on grabbing tickets as soon as possible. No other bands were yet announced, but man, an opportunity to see Black Sabbath in what could be their final tour, hells yeah, you can’t put a price on that. Unfortunately due to Tony Iommi’s battle with leukemia which arose after tour dates were set in the Black Sabbath show that was scheduled was canceled. Luckily Mr. Tony Iommi was able to muster up enough strength to pull of a single homecoming show in his hometown of Birmingham, England and got to get the satisfaction of having the band come full circle and land back at home. To Mr. Iommi, I say get well soon and I can’t wait till you can get the Sabbath ball rolling again.
But what about all the other shows that Black Sabbath promised to play? Well, what’s the next best thing to Black Sabbath? How about the face of the band, Mr. John Michel Osbourne, err, Ozzy! Well, I bought tickets to see Black Sabbath, I’ve already seen Ozzy God knows how many times now and Black Sabbath only twice. They tossed in Slash, Zack Wylde, and Geezer Butler, so I guess I can say I was sold on not trying for a refund on my ticket. Having Opeth on the bill too, helped a pinch 
But before I get too ahead of myself, how about a little info on what else went down that day, it was a festival after all.
Album Review: Lahmia – Into The Abyss
When a band has ticked most of my personal criteria for melodic death metal by the end of the first two songs, I can feel fairly reassured that the remainder of the record is going to provide some aural delight for my two ears. Lahmia offer a blend of various extreme metal genres such as melodeath (primary basis), black (mostly Swedish), death and some goth, but actually hail from Italy despite their Scandinavian sound. Their first full-length slab, Into The Abyss, is a honed hour which brings together influences such as Arch Enemy, Thurisaz and Dark Tranquillity, the latter of which remains most prominent, and is still quite a ride after multiple spins.
Album Review – Il Confine – Folkstone
When I first moved out to Italy, naturally, one of the first things I wanted to do was check out some Italian metal. The Italian language has very poetic and flowing attributes to it; that mixed with Italy’s deep history in music (both classical and modern, especially the Progressive Rock scene during the 70′s) and culture I was sure I would find some really original homegrown metal music right off the bat. Unfortunately, while I did find some great Italian metal bands, none of the ones that really connected with me sung in the Italian language (with the exception of Rhapsody who have a handful of songs in Italian), which is what I was really looking for. Fast-forward a little bit of time to when I discovered Folk Metal and went nuts with how awesome this sub-genre is. During this time I came across a band from Bergamo, Italy. Folkstone immediately rocked my socks off with their Medieval, Celtic sound filled with rocking guitars, energetic drumming, furious bass playing, and commanding and understandable singing (which was great for me as I was learning Italian at the time, and still am) all tied together with copious amounts of live bagpipes and a harp player bringing beauty to the music. Their album Damnati ad Metalla (Damned to Metal) became one of the most played albums in my music library and now I have my hands on their new album Il Confine (The Confine/The Border) and I’m happy to tell you that this one will also become one of my most played albums.
The Italian Date for Black Sabbath Just Got Sweeter
At the announcement of a new album and coinciding tour for a re-reunited Ozzy-era Black Sabbath didn’t get me worked up enough, the announcement that they would be playing a few metro stops away from my humble abode did. The Gods of Metal festival is hitting Milan, Italy on the 24th of June and will be held at Arena Fiera Milano. headlining is the fathers of heavy metal Black Sabbath, and now recently confirmed, are 3 killer bands, and 1 of which whom has turned this into a do-not-miss event for me. Lamb of God and Trivium, 2 bands that I quite enjoy have been added to the roster, but it’s the band under Sabbath that has got me excited for this show. Opeth will be playing right before Black Sabbath and I can not think of a more suited band for the fathers to follow.
As info on this festival pops up I’ll keep you all updated for all the metal fans who may want to take a trip to one of the most beautiful countries in the world for an awesome day of metal, pizza, and pasta.
Concert Review- Opeth- Alcatraz, Milan, Italy- Nov.24, 2011
For years upon years I’ve waited for my opportunity to experience a live Opeth concert. Whenever they would go out and tour, where ever I happened to be is the place they were not. So, when I found out that they would be performing at the now famous Alcatraz Night Club in Milan, Italy, which is a stones throw away from my humble abode, I dove at the opportunity and grabbed tickets as fast as I could. Content, you could say so. And then to sweeten the deal another band I hold in very high regards, Pain of Salvation, announced that they would be taking the support slot for the show. Needless to say, I went from content to elated. Not since when I got my hands on my first Iron Maiden concert tickets did I wait in such anticipation for a concert. Finally after months of being suspended in a bated breath November 24th rolled around and there I was, beer in hand, watching Daniel Gildenlöw of P.o.S. demonstrate his unearthly voice as him and the rest of the band poured out every ounce of their souls on the stage putting on a wonderful and high energy show.
