Wednesday 13 - The Dixie Dead

Genre - Horror Punk?
Label - Roadrunner

Track listing:

01 – Death Arise – Intro
02 – Blood Sucker
03 – Get Your Grave On
04 – Curse The Living
05 – Too Fast For Blood
06 – Hail Ming
07 – Coming Attractions
08 – The Dixie Dead
09 – Ghost Stories
10 – Fuck You (In Memory Of…)
11 – Carol Anne… They’re Here
12 – Hands Of The Ripper
13 – Death Arise – Overture

My God I had a blast listening to this cd! I have a soft spot for songs that try to tell horror stories, hell I have been a King Diamond fan for most of my life and The Dixie Dead is an album that really is right up my street!
This is Wednesday 13's fifth studio album so we shoyuld really know what to expect shouldnt we? Well this time around the guitars have a decidedly heavier feel to them but its still the same old style at heart. Stand out tracks for me include, Hail Ming, (but then again I love most Flash Gordon theme's lol), title track, The Dixie Dead, Ghost Stories, the fun Fuck You.... and the amazing Carol Anne....They're Here! with its Poltergeist theme!
Fans of the band will love this album and anyone curious of the horrorpunk genre really couldnt do any better than starting with checking out The Dixie Dead!

Rating - 9/10

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