Pushking - The World As We Love It

Genre - Hard Rock / Classic Rock
Label -

Track listing -

01. Intro
02. Nightrider (Billy Gibbons: vocals, guitar)
03. It'll Be OK (B. Gibbons: vocals, Nuno Bettencourt: guitar)
04. Trouble Love (Alice Cooper: vocals, Keri Kelli: guitar)
05. Strangers Song (John Lawton: vocals, Steve Stevens: guitar)
06. Cut The Wire (Paul Stanley: vocals, Steve Salas: guitar)
07. My Reflections After Seeing the Schindler's List Movie (S. Vai: guitar)
08. God Made Us Free (Graham Bonnet: vocals)
09. Why Don't You (Glenn Hughes: vocals)
10. I Believe (Jeff Scott Soto: vocals)
11. Tonight (G. Hughes: vocals, Joe Bonamassa: guitar)
12. Private Own (G. Hughes: vocals, Matt Filippini: guitar)
13. Open Letter To God (Eric Martin: vocals)
14. Nature's Child (Udo Dirkschneider: vocals)
15. I Love You (Dan McCafferty: vocals)
16. Head Shooter (Joe Lynn Turner: vocals)
17. Heroin (Jorn Lande: vocals)
18. My Simple Song (Dan McCafferty: vocals)
19. Kukarracha (All Stars: vocals, Steve Lukather: guitar)

Pushking is a melodic rock band that was formed in 1994 in Russia. Somehow they have managed together a pretty much who's who of melodic rocks finest stars to guest on this album with, to be honest mixed results.
There is absolutely no doubting the talents of the guest stars, they are all superstars in their own rights, Alice Cooper, Jorn Lande, Joe Lynn Turner, Glenn Hughes etc, but the obvious talents of the guest stars only serves to highlight the inadequacies of the band themselves.
There are some good songs on here, even if many of them do sound a little dated, but enjoyable none the less, but as I said many of them are saved purely by the talents of the guest stars, a great example is track five, Reflections, purely forgettable and skip able if not for some great guitar work from Steve Vai.

This album is for fans of the guest stars only, to be honest, and really only for completists.

The Band are
Konstantin “Koha” Shustarev - Vocals
Nikolai Yegerev - Guitar
Dmitry Losev - GuitarValeriy Sadakov - Bass
Vicktor Drobysh - Keys
Andrey Kruglov - Drums

The Guest musicians :
Paul Stanley (lead vocals)
Glenn Hughes (lead vocals)
Eric Martin (lead vocals)
Graham Bonnet (lead vocals)
Joe Lynn Turner (lead vocals)
Jorn Lande (lead vocals)
John Lawton (lead vocals)
Alice Cooper (lead vocals)
Jeff Scott Soto (lead vocals)
Dan McCafferty (lead vocals)
Udo Dirkschneider (lead vocals)
Billy Gibbons (lead vocals and guitar)
Stevie Salas (guitar)
Steve Lukather (guitar)
Matt Filippini (guitar)
Joe Bonamassa (guitar)
Steve Stevens (guitar)
Keri Kelli (guitar)
Steve Vai (guitar)
Nuno Bettencourt (guitar)
Eric Ragno (piano, organ)



Website - Pushking
Rating - 7/10

The Treatment - This Might Hurt

Genre - Classic Rock / Hard Rock
Label - Powerage

Track listing:

01. Departed
02. The Doctor
03. I Want Love
04. Just Tell Me Why
05. Lady Of The Light
06. I Fear Nothing
07. Winter Sun
08. Shake The Mountain
09. I Will Be There
10. The Coldest Place On Earth
11. Nothing To Lose But Our Minds
12. Stone Cold Love (Hidden Track)

Hailing from Cambridge UK, The treatment are classic hard rockers playing their music the way that it should be. The surprising thing about this band is their age, with the songs sounding this good, you would expect The Treatment to be seasoned veterans, yet the band only formed in 2008, by drummer Dhani Mansworth, when he was only 15!
The songwriting really is excellent, as is the musicianship, and vocalist Matt Jones has a great set of pipes on him!
The bands influences include everything from ACDC to Led Zepplin and Aerosmith, and yes you can hear them all in the band’s sound, you these guys have their own classic rock sound thing going on too.
This album and band are full of energy and must be great live, something that I’m looking forward to finding out for myself!
Every song is full of energy!
Standout tracks for me include, Departed, Stone Cold Love, I Fear Nothing and The Doctor, but to be honest I could list the entire track list as every song is a corker!
A great addition to the growing UK classic rock resurgence!
These guys have the talent and songs to be huge!

Website - The Treatment
Rating - 10/10

Angel Air Rocks! (various) - War Horses!

Genre - Hard Rock / Heavy Metal
Label - Angel Air records

Track listing -

01 - Door Opens
02 - Misunderstood
03 - Harry Farr
04 - Bleed Me Dry
05 - Radio Silence
06 - Rebecca
07 - Candice Larene
08 - Going Down
09 - 747 (Strangers In The Night)
10 - Hit The Right Button (Make The Elevator Stop)
11 - Savage Song
12 - Prayer For The Dying
13 - Blood Comes Easy
14 - Judy
15 - Wishing Well
16 - Oh Well (Single Version)
17 - M.A.D. (Mutually Assured Destruction)
18 - My Life's In Your Hands
19 - Door Slams

'War Horses!' is a wholly appropriate title for this compilation. It features a huge collection of talent spanning the 14 year career of the Angel Air label, featuring artists like, Damage Control, Stray, Robin George, Notorious, Heavy Metal Kids, Gillan, British Lions, Bullet, Krokus, McCoy, Maggie Bell, Quatermass II, David Byron Band, Nobody’s Business, Gerry McAvoy Fandango and Freedom. It’s a great compilation that truly showcases some of the labels artists. Stand out tracks from are Judy (Robin George), Radio Silence (Notorious), Harry Farr (Stray) M.A.D. (Gillan) and Blood Comes Easy (Krokus)
Extensive sleeve notes gives a brief history of each artist and how they came to be on Angel Air.
This cd is a great way to check out some long forgotten gems, and get a taste for what the label has to offer.
Well worth checking out!

Website - Angel Air

Rating 10/10

Mournblade - Anthology Vo1

Genre - Punk / Metal / NWoBHM
Label - Angel Air Records

Track listing -

01 - Anthem Of Chaos
02 - Servants Of Fate
03 - The Stairway
04 - The Machinery Of Joy
05 - Science Fiction
06 - Desolation
07 - In The Arms Of Morpheus (live)
08 - Eternal Champion (live)
09 - Hunter Killer (live)
10 - Battlezone (live)
11 - Titanium Hero (live)
12 - Sidewinder/The Sorcerer (live)
13 - Servants Of fate(live)
14 - Titanium Hero (remix)

Once hailed as the future of heavy metal by the likes of Kerrangs Derek Oliver, things never quite panned out for Mournblade.
This Anthology is a collection of early demos and live tracks taken from their 1984 / 1985 era, collected together here by one of the Uk's most prestigious heritage labels, Angel Air Records.
One thing that makes this collection of interest to me is that lead singer, Dunken Mullet would go on to briefly handle vocal duties in the early incarnations of one of my favorite bands, The Wildhearts.
Now the sound quality is not the best on this cd, but then again it is primarily a collection of demo and live tracks, some recorded on a simple 4 track way back in 1983 / 1984, so that’s to expected I guess, but I’m not too sure where Mr. Oliver was getting his impressions from.
Mournblade's sound is a kind of cross of NWoBHM and 70’s punk, but also heavily influenced by prog rock bands such as Hawkwind ect.
Another thing about this band, is that like many of their contemporaries they weren’t afraid of hard work, the band gigged the London club circuit to death and later the regions- throughout 1984 and 1985 alone clocking up no less that 400 shows including regular headlining slots at London's MARQUEE, 100 CLUB and DINGWALLS, building themselves a healthy fan base, but lineup changes and the shifting tide in musical tastes meant it was all for nothing.
Anthology is a great reminder of a band that could have been big, if not massive, and fans of the the band will surely appreciate finally having the many hard to find tracks together on one cd at last. Fans of NWoBHM will find this album interesting, other than that I’m not sure how relevant this cd will be in today’s musical climate.

Standout tracks include, Servants of Fate, Desolation, and the 2009 remix of Titanium Hero


Rating 6/10

Website - Mourneblade

Matt Gunston - Friday Night of the Broken Man

Genre : Acoustic / Rock / Surf
Label : Independant

Track listing -
01. Lost
02. Burning
03. Waiting Up
04. One Night Stand
05. Midnight Lover
06. In Search of Cash
07. Call the Police
08. Four A.M.
09. Meet Me
10. Coming Home
11. Friday Night Of The Broken Man

Friday Night Of A Broken Man is the second album from London / Madrid based singer / songwriter / rocker Matt Gunston.
Friday Night of the Broken Man really is a one man show, with all songs written, performed, produced and mixed by Matt Gunston, not that you can tell as every song kind of has that band feel to it. The songs are typically melody and vocal driven, telling stories about characters and life experiences, for better or worse!


His diverse songwriting may stem from the fact that he includes the likes of Bob Dylan, Neil Young, John Lennon, The Band, Van Morrisson, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Waits, The Stones, Johnny Cash, Zeppelin, B.B. King, Otis Reading, The Doors, Joni Mitchell, Nick Drake and . Jimi Hendrix are counted amongst his influences.

A great chilled out album from a very talented singer songwriter, whom given the right breaks could just be huge!


website - http://www.myspace.com/mattgunston
Rating - 10/10

No Strings Left - La Pris De La Bastille

Genre : Rock / pop / /punk
Label : Upton Records / New Model Label
Tracklist:
1. Avant la bataille
2. No strings left
3. East of the sun
4. Campaign
5. November
6. Manage your beauty (olvidate)
7. Wastin' time
8. Little song to dance to
9. The eternal promise of charm
10. Un istante prima
11. Get me out
12. Outro

Italian rockers, No Strings Left, offer up their debut album, a great mix of high energy pop punk / rockers and psychadelic 60's inspired soundscapes. The band are heavily influenced by the sounds of the late 70's and 80's, and an ear for a punky pop rock track such as No strings Left and Manage Your Beauty. Wasting Time is one hell of a track too.
A great album to drive too, and a band that are well worth checking out!

Website - http://www.myspace.com/nostringsleft
Rating - 8/10

Overdrive Orchestra - The Grey Area

Genre: Alternative / Rock
Label: Independent

Track listing -

01 - Better Off
02 - What Could Have Been
03 - Goodbye
04 - Lust
05 - Dive
06 - Nothing Left
07 - Oven
08 - As Cold As Concrete
09 - Save Me From Myself
10 - (Untitled)

Overdrive Orchestra are a trio hailing from HARTLAND, Michigan, United States. They formed in 2007 with the sole intention of reviving a dying rock music scene, nothing like high expectations hey?
With The Grey Area, the band have come up with a strong and very solid release, thick meaty riff's, a true rock star styled vocal and a solid and strong rhythm section.
From the opening track of Better Off the band set the standards high, and it never slips. A classic but contemporary rock sound is what the band has achieved here, and every song is well written and brilliantly executed.
Stand out tracks for me include Better Off, Goodbye, Lust and Save Me From Myself.

Well worth checking out!

website - http://www.myspace.com/overdriveorchestra
Rating 9/10

Pat Peltier - Turn It Up

Genre - Classic Rock / Rock
Label - Independant release

Track listing -
01. Whiskey Time
02. Cherry Love
03. One Nighters (Were Wild Fires)
04. My Time
05. The Source
06. Feel the Night
07. Once Again
08. All Fired Up
09. Saviour of My Soul
10. My Lady My Baby
11. Turn It Up

"Pat Peltier – Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Producer and a member of the Wikwemikong First Nation on Manitoulin Island, Ontario, Canada."

Pat is one hell of a songwriter; let’s just get that out of the way to start with. Turn It Up, Pat's debut solo release, is filled with eleven stonking tracks, ranging from classic rock anthems like One Nighters and Feel The Night, to subtle ballads such as My Time. The press release describes the music as classic rock, but there's so much more to the music on offer here, with touches of southern rock also clearly on display, and for some reason, on My Time Pat's voice seems very reminiscent of the mighty Meatloaf!

This is a great album with many highlights well worth checking out!

website - http://www.myspace.com/patrickpeltier
Rating 9/10

Space Fight - Space Fight EP

Genre - Alternative / Melodramatic Popular Song
Label - Glasstone Records

Track listing -
01 - 22
02 - Control
03 - In To The Blind
04 - 22 (RAC Maury Mix)
05 - In To The Blind (Lushlife Mix)

Hailing from London (UK) Space Fight offer up a fun blend of Alterative Rock and pop / power pop music. The music this trio delivers is interesting to say the least, and with influences ranging from The Beach Boys, U2, and The Squeeze you wouldn’t expect anything else would you.
Of the five songs on offer here (two being remixes!), Control and In To The Blind seem to be the most appealing.
These guys have the pop thing nailed down well, lots of textures to the music and some great vocal harmonies in there too.
An interesting release from a promising band, it will be interesting to see what they come up with next!

website - http://www.myspace.com/spacefight
Rating 8/10

Fantasist - Giggle Juice

Genre - Alternative / Progressive / Rock
Label - Rocksector records

Tracklisting -
01 - X's & O's
02 - See-Thru
03 - Darkness
04 - Time To Leave
05 - The Truth
06 - Mistakes
07 - The Divide
08 - Ego
09 - The Void
10 - The Sleeper
11 - Smokescreen
12 - {rivate Life

Fantasists hailing from Manchester (UK) were born from the ashes of prog rock band Idiom and Post Modern Geisha. They are a power trio, with a talent for mixing heavy riffs with almost Jazz like sections and great melodies and hooks. The band have already begun to build quite a reputation for themselves on the live circuit, and judging by the material on offer here, their debut album, Giggle Juice, I can see why.
The riffs come thick and fast, but always tempered with great tempo changes, and brilliant melodies. Opening with X's & O's the band set out their stall for all to see.
Songs like See-Thru, Darkness, Time To Leave, Mistakes, and The Void are exquisitely catchy songs. Ego has a kind of ska / reggae thing going on, this album is brilliant.
The band manage to mix so many different influences, which be down to their time spent in the Prog rock field with Idiom, but the songs are always solid and remarkably catchy.
These guys offer up something different, like the bastard son of Black Sabbath and The Cult!
Congratulations and thank you to Rocksector Records for snapping these guys up and putting this album out.
The band have just been confirmed for 2011's SOS Festival along with the likes of Gun, Fury UK and Exit State so get on down there and check them out!

Website - www.fatasist-band.com
Rating 10/10

Jezebel - The Sting In The Tale

Genre - Hard Rock
Label - Unsigned

Track listing -
01 - All Night
02 - Psycho
03 - Running Free
04 - Sting In The Tail

Nottingham rockers, Jezebel, return with their latest Ep / demo entitled 'The Sting In The Tale', a four track release showcasing the bands diverse songwriting skills.
First up is 'All Night', a good rock, contemporary but some classic rock noddings in the direction of ACDC and even Chuck Berry, (well that’s what they say, I just call it great rock music!).
Next up is Psycho, another great song, which as the press release says does have some NWoBHM leanings, but again is just a good solid song to me.
Running Free is this Ep's penultimate song, and know it’s not a cover of the classic Iron Maiden track, it’s a 'rock ballad that ignores genre rules with a nice twist', but I have to be honest, I think this song is quite possibly the best song that the band have come up with to date!
Sting In The Tail closes out the Ep, an up-tempo yet chilled out track, which again showcases a different side to the bands songwriting.
The band still maintain that raw sound, which works well for them and the guitar is excellent., the songs are very, very strong, I really can’t wait to hear a full length album!
If I had to pick a fault for this self released and self financed Ep, I would say it would have to be the production, don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing particularly wrong with it, it’s clear and you can hear everything, it just comes across a little thin to me. I’d love to see what Jezebel could do with a top notch producer, because there is simply no denying this bands undoubted talent and songwriting ability.
Definitely a band to keep an eye on!

Highly reconmended

Website -
http://www.facebook.com/Jezebelrockuk
rating 9/10