Thursday 14 June 2012

The Treatment - Then And Again EP (2012)


Genre - Hard Rock / Classic Rock
Label - Spinefarm Records

Track listing -

01. Motor Bikin'

02. Let's Work Together
03. Evil Woman
04. Run Run Run
05. Take Me Back Home

So Brit hard rockers The Treatment have decided to release a five track Ep filled with covers of rock songs from the 1970's, well, thank god they did!
Here we see the band in rather a restrained mode in my opinion, faithfully working their way through Chris Speedings Motor Bikin', Canned Heat's Lets Work Together, ELO's Evil Woman, Jo Jo Gunne's Run Run Run and  Slade's Take Me Back 'Ome, all 70's rock classics, anthems of a bygone age, and The Treatment faithfully bring them back to life for a new generation, resisting the urge to put too much of their own stamp on them, and well, just playing bloody great songs really bloody well!The guys really do the song's justice, which is really suprising considering these guys are barely out of their teens and these bands must seem somewhat like dinosaurs to them, but apparently this was their idea, a way of paying hommage to the legends of the day that helped define their influences.
The Treatment are fast becoming a top rate British Hard / Classic Rock band and are definetley a band that you should keep your eyes on!
All that I can say is thanks for breathing life back into these tracks guys, loved the Ep!

Get out and buy it guys

Raing - 10/10


Rush - Clockwork Angels (2012)

Genre - Progressive Rock
Label - Anthem / Roadrunner Records

Track listing -

01. Caravan

02. Bu2b
03. Clockwork Angels
04. The Anarchist
05. Carnies
06. Halo Effect
07. Seven Cities Of Gold
08. The Wreckers
09. Headlong Flight
10. Bu2b2

11. Wish Them Well
12. The Garden

The Grand Masters of prog rockreturn with what is their 20th release to date in the form of Clockwork Angels, and suprisingly this is their very first concept album!
Now I dont need to go into too much detail here because well, if you are reading a Rush review, then you already know what to expect from the album, suarve, stylish, grandoise prog rock, (yet restrained and never too over the top), at its best, and this album delivers it all. Now before I go any further, dont let the fact that this is a concept album put you off because each of the songs stand up pretty well on their own when stripped away from the limitations of a concept, which is pretty bloody good in itself, but here we have 12 great little tracks and one hell of an album, quite possibly their one of Rush's strongest albums to date!
The title track, Clockwork Angels and Halo Effect are the two tracks that stand out the most for me, but as whole this is an album to listen too in its entirity.
Im pretty damn sure that Rush fans are going to love this album, and it could well introduce a few new fans to the fold as although Rush have been at it for five decades, they sound as relevent and vibrant as ever.

This album is well worth checking out!

Rating - 9/10


Thursday 7 June 2012

Jettblack - Raining Rock (2012)

Genre - Hard Rock
Label - Spinefarm Records

Track listing -

01. Intro

02. Raining Rock
03. Less Torque, More Thrust
04. Prison Of Love
05. System
06. Black Gold
07. Something About This Girl
08. Sunshine
09. Temptation
10. Never Gonna Give It Up
11. In-Between Lovers
12. Side Of The Road
13. The Sweet And The Brave
14. Raining Rock (feat. Udo Dirkschneider) [bonus track]
15. Weapon [digital exclusive bonus track]

Raining Rock continues where the bands 2010 debut, Get Your Hands Dirty left off, Killer riffs huge hooks and well songs to die for! From the opening notes of the albums intro, you know yhat you are in for a ride, a classic hard rock rollercoaster through fist pumping anthems, adrenaline fuelsed rockers and ballads so smoothe, well they bring the preverial babys bottom to mind!
Tracks like Raining Rock, Less Torque More Thrust (a brilliant play with words), In-Between Lovers, Side Of The Road and Temptation are destined to become live favourites, whilst songs like Prison Of love, Black Gold and The Sweet And The Brave could give the likes of Whitenake and Bon Jovi a run for their money even back in their hey day!
This album is classic hard rock as it should be, great riffs, great hooks and well just bloody good songs by a band really on top of their form. Sure some of the lyrics are a little cliched, but in a brilliant way in which they really do work, just as all great hard rock classics have in the past!
The UK hard rock scene is looking rather healthy at the moment with the likes of Jettblack, Falling Red, Black Spiders etc leading the way, and this album is sure to help convince the rest of the world to sit up and take notice.
As I have already ststed, Raining Rock is a brilliant album from begining to end, but if I had to pick out a few favourites then they would be, Raining Rock, Pison Of love, In-Between Lovers, Side Of The Road and Something About That Girl.
This album is very highly reconmended, in fact get out there and buy the bleeder right now, support a great British hard rock band, playing great hard rock music!

Rating - 10/10




Saturday 2 June 2012

Gotthard - Firebirth (2012)

Genre - Hard Rock
Label - Nuclear Blast

Track listing -

01. Starlight
02. Give Me Real
03. Remember It's Me
04. Fight
05. Yippie Aye Yay
06. Tell Me
07. Shine
08. The Story's Over
09. Right On
10. S.O.S.
11. Take It All Back
12. I Can
13. Where Are You
14. Starlight Acoustic-Version (Bonus Track)

Swiss hard rockers, Gotthard, return in fine form with their latest album Firebirth. Packed with fourteen stunning tracks, firebirth really dsee the band at their best. Standout tracks for me include, I Can (my favourite track on the album), Fight, SOS, Where Are You and Give Me Real. The production is first class, and as I have already said the songs are brilliant. This is a great album from a verteren band that proves that they are still as relevant as ever.

Highly reconmended to fans of the band and hard rock in general.

Rating - 9/10





Jorn - Bring heavy Rock To The Land (2012)

Genre - Hard Rock / Heavy Metal / Classic Rock
Label -

Track listing -

01. My Road
02. Bring Heavy Rock To The Land
03. A Thousand Cuts
04. Ride Like The Wind
05. Chains Around You
06. The World I See
07. Time To Be King
08. Ride To The Guns
09. Black Morning
10. I Came To Rock
11. Live And Let Fly (Bonus Track)


Jorn Lande returns with his latest studio album, the first since 2010's tribute to the late great Ronnie James Dio, Dio with Bring Heavy Rock To the Land. (Although 2011 saw the release of the stunning live package, Live In Black!)
No one, and I mean NO ONE can afult Jorn's vocals, with a voice that is the perfect cross of Ronnie Dio's and David Coverdales, this man was born to sing rock! And thats just what he does on this album, eleven tracks of pure (and might I say brilliant) classic hard rock and metal. Sure the lyrics are occassionally cliche'd, but hey so are the lyrics of some of the best rock anthems to have ever been recorded, thats one of the things that makes great hard rock songs!
Msically every song is amazing, the production is really top notch, and Jorn's voice seems to be in fine form.
After a couple of listens I have alreader found a few new Jorn classics, Ride To The Guns, Chains Around You, Ride Like The Wind, Black morning and I Came To Rock are all anthems in the making.
If you are a fan of Jorn's previous releases, then you are surely going to love this album, and if you are a fan of great traditional hard rock music, then check this album out, you wont be disappointed.
So with this album Jorn really does "Bring Hard Rock To The Land".


Rating - 9/10




Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead (2012)

Genre - Doom Metal
Label -

Track listing -

01 – Prophet
02 – The Sound of Dying Demons
03 – Dancing In The Temple (Of The Mad Queen Bee)
04 – Waterwitch
05 – The Lights of There
06 – Psalms For The Dead
07 – The Killing of The Sun
08 – Siren Song
09 – Black As Time


Swedish Doom Metal merchants, Candlemass, return with their stunning new album, Psalms for the dead. Nine great tracks of early Black Sabbath inspired doom metal. the production is superb, the songs are great, although to be honest Waterwitch is a tad too long for my liking, and the band are in absolutley amazing form.
Stand out tracks include, Prophet, the Sound Of Dying Demons, the uptempo Dancing In The Temple, title track, Pslams For the Dead and Siren Song.
The songs twist and turn through riff after riff, that the riffmeister Tony Iommi himself would be proud of, and lyrically, well the songs are excellent.
As I say the only negatives that I can find with this alum are that Waterwitch seems to drone on a little and the narrative introduction to Black As Time personally annoys me, although it does give way to a blinding track!

Highly reconmended for fans of the band and genre!

Rating - 9/10