Zodiac - Grain Of Soul (2016)

Genre - Hard Rock / Blues / Stoner Rock

Label - Napalm Records

Track listing:

01. Rebirth By Fire (03:00)
02. Animal (04:29)
03. Follow You (03:42)
04. Down (05:44)
05. Faithless (03:18)
06. Crow (03:02)
07. Ain't Coming Back (03:19)
08. Get Out (04:32)
09. Like The Sun (02:45)
10. Sinner (03:18)
11. Grain Of Soul (04:40)

Following hotly on the heels of 2014’s acclaimed ‘Sonic Child’, German hard rockers Zodiac return with their forth studio effort ‘Grain Of Soul’. With a sound steeped in the bluesy stoner / grunge arena, Zodiac are bursting with swagger and confidence, on this collection of catchy, well-structured tunes.
From the opening chords of ‘Rebirth By Fire’ the listener is grabbed by a groove laden riff and a hooky chorus which demands their full attention. The tempo picks up a little on 'Animal' which powers along with a Zeppelin-style feel and a sing along chorus, before halfway through turning into something that would sit very comfortably in therapy with Therepy's  book of riffs. 'Follow You' follows and adds a slam of Bad Company styled classic rock for good measure.
Vocalist Van Delft truly shines on ‘Down’ with his haunting vocals dominating over a grungey, jangling guitar sound. It's most definitely a stand out moment on the album, along with ‘Faithless’.
'Crow' adds a southern rock element, and sounds not unlike Shinedown in places.
‘Ain't Coming Back’ has an AC/DC groove that has the listener nodding along in approval, with ‘Get Out’ continuing in a similar vein, adding a fist-pumping chorus and an infectious beat. With a brilliantly slick production from Arne Neurand ensuring that the listener doesn't miss a sonic nuance from the beginning to end, there's definitely more than a ‘Grain Of Soul’ to Zodiac’s work.
Whilst 2014's 'Sonic Child' album was a very bluesy influenced affair, 'Grain of Soul' see's the band in a much more rock orientated frame of mind.

Worth checking out.

Rating: 9/10



  

Violet Janine - So much more (ft. Tony Martin) (Coming Soon!) (2016)

Genre - Melodic Rock / Blues

Label -

Track listing:

01 - So Much More

Former BLACK SABBATH frontman Tony Martin makes a guest appearance on "So Much More", the new single from VIOLET JANINE, the project led by Swedish singer Janine Nyman.

The song was originally written for Tony Martins' debut solo album, Back Where I Belong way back in 1992 but was left unused. Pity as its a bloody great song.

This is the first that I had heard of Violet Janine, and believe me it sure wont be the last, with a voice reminiscent of a young Bonnie Tyler in places, this Woman is destined for greatness!

The song is a beautiful bluesy track, that works really well as a duet, with both vocalist voices really complimenting each other.

The song  feature the talents of the the following musicians:
Vocals: Tony Martin
Janine Nyman
Guitar: Daniel Palmqvist
Bas: Basse Blyberg
Drums: Ian Brunnberg

"So Much More" will be made available as a digital single on April 21. The song is one of nine tracks that will appear on VIOLET JANINE's debut album, "Between Red And Blue", due later in the year.

Very Very Highly Recommended!

Rating  - 10/10

David Gilmour - Rattle That Lock (2015)

Genre - Hard Rock / Progressive / Blues

Label - Columbia

Track listing:

01. 5 A.M.
02. Rattle That Lock
03. Faces Of Stone
04. A Boat Lies Waiting
05. Dancing Right In Front Of Me
06. In Any Tongue
07. Beauty
08. The Girl In The Yellow Dress
09. Today
10. And Then...

So this is what last years final album from Pink Floyd, The Endless River, could have sounded like!

Damn, has Mr Gilmour been a little greedy and kept all of his best ideas for his solo album? I think so, as this David Gilmour's forth solo album is absolutely fantastic!

On his first project since Pink Floyd put an end to their long career with The Endless River, Gilmour continues on the path the band laid down decades ago with a concept album about a typical day in the life of a middle-aged man coming to terms with loss, mortality and his varied musical influences.

Written by Gilmour with his wife, Polly Samson, "Rattle That Lock" is both autobiographical and meditative, a look at a life filled with the usual shares of love, hope, hurt and joy.
On “Today,” which comes near the end of the narrative, it’s all pretty much summed up with a Floyd-funky rhythm buoying a live-in-the-moment sentiment. It’s not heavy, and it never goes as deep as Pink Floyd classics like The Dark Side of the Moon or The Wall, but for the 69-year-old Gilmour, it’s where life has taken him.
The journey to this place is what "Rattle That Lock" is all about.

There are three instrumental cuts, which float somewhere between the ethereal and the concrete, but it’s the songs featuring Gilmour’s voice that invite, for better or worse, the Pink Floyd comparisons.
The soaring title track recalls the band’s ’80s and ’90s work, when they were trying to carve out a new identity following Waters’ departure. It's one of my favourites on the CD, and worth the purchase alone.
The biting guitar that caps 'Dancing Right in Front of Me' is vintage Gilmour, and 'Today' chugs along with Animals-era punch.
Although largely steering away from anything too arena-rock, 'In Any Tongue' is steeped in grandeur and sentiment. It's also one of the few orchestrated and epic solos - no impromptu blues here, but the full Gilmour-arsenal of wailing bends and climatic crescendos.
Album closer 'And Then' is delicate, flowing and understated; a whimsical and evocative piece of music that fellow guitarists can only wish to create with such simple techniques.
The whole track has a sense of finality, ending with a fingerpicked nylon string guitar over swelling strings that gently fades out. Simply awesome!

"Rattle That Lock" has some - obvious - Pink Floyd flashes, but it's pure David Gilmour. It's not as majestic or epic as his work with the famous British band, but following the somewhat exasperated exhale of The Endless River, it’s about as close to a classic Pink Floyd album fans are going to get these days.

Highly Recommended!

Rating - 10/10

Junkyard Choir - Let Sleeping Dogs Lie (2015)

Genre - Hard Rock / Garage Blues

Label - Self Released

Track listing:

01 -Vaya Con Dios

02 - Get It On

03 - Oh Have Mercy

04 - Let The Good Times Roll

05 - Hold Fast

06 - Shake Your Tambourine

07 - Sun Moon Stars

08 - Rehab

09 - The Wolf

10 - Let Your Love Roll In

11 - Sweet Marylou

This one again comes by recommendation of Mr Kyle Vallis and his Unsigned Melodies site, cheers pal!

Junkyard Choir is a two-piece musical powerhouse from Brighton, England (although at times you could be forgiven for thinking that they were from the USA's dirty south!) - a stripped-down garage orchestra of guitar and drums, characterised by gritty melodies and commanded by imperious vocals. Mark Woods and Tom Herbert are purveyors of a restless and dirty blues from south of the borderlands - drenched in rum, and served with lime - this is riot music, road trip rock n roll: the sounds of the desert and the soul of the swamp, forged from hunger and baptised in sweat.
One half Scottish grit, the other half Caribbean spice; Junkyard Choir is a one-hundred-percent south coast blues-grunge explosion. Established in 2014 - and formerly trading as 'Dos Hermanos Locos'.

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie is the bands debut album and what a way to introduce yourselves!
A perfect mix of dirty blues and garage rock, that is the best way to describe the way Junkyard Choir sound, with the lead vocals being very reminiscent of NWoBHM legends Samson's one time lead vocalist Nicky Moore, which is no bad thing at all!
There is not a bad track on this album at all, in fact it's quite amazing as to just how good this album sounds considering that Junkyard Choir are just a duo!
Let Sleeping Dogs Lie could be the perfect soundtrack to that road trip that you have always dreamed about taking, just laid back, gritty rock n roll. Songs like Get It On, Oh Have Mercy, Shake Your Tambourine, Rehab and Hold Fast in planting themselves in your brain and forcing you to sing along.
Junkyard Choir are a truly independent band, doing everything, and I mean everything from booking shows, designing and printing merch / flyers to producing their own videos, so show some support!
These guys are really worth checking out!

Very Highly Recommended

Rating - 10/10

Defy All Reason - The Road Ahead (2015)

Genre - Hard Rock / Blues / Southern Rock

Label - Self Released Stampede Press UK

Track listing:

01 - Midnight Train

02 - Bad Blood

03 - Behind Those Eyes

04 - You Get Me High

05 - Bad Taste Of You

06 - Finding My Way (Back To You)

07 - Shame

08 - I Run

09 - Because Of You

10 - Wanted Dead Or Alive (Bon Jovi Cover)

11 - The Only One

12 - Cure For Healing

13 - Redemption

Welsh rockers Defy All Reason, unleash their debut album, The Road Ahead, upon the world and what a bloody album it is!
Defy All Reason manage to create the perfect mixture of melody and grit, whilst throwing in a good old bit of attitude to create on of the best albums that I have had the pleasure of hearing in a long time. From the opening Midnight Train, with its heavy southern blues influences, to the gritty melodic groove of Bad Blood, the bass driven You Get Me High, the funk tinged Bad Taste Of You, to the huge power ballads of Behind Those Eyes and Finding My Way Back (To You), this album really does cover all of the bases! (including the best version of Bon Jovi's classic Wanted Dead Or Alive that I Have ever heard!).
As I stated earlier the band have found the perfect balance between heavy grooves and melody. And here was me thinking that the last really great band to come out of Wales was bloody Tigertailz!
I fell in love with this album upon first hearing it, I can see huge things in the future for these guys should they gain the right exposure and backing.

This is one album that you really should be checking out.


Rating - 10/10

Must Kill Chris - The Bearded Man (2015)

 

Genre - Punk / DIY / Alternative / Rock / Bluesy

Label - Self Released

 

Track listing:

01 - Bruce Campbell

02 - Wild Turkey

03 - Nailgun

04 - There's More To Life Than Money

05 - One-Horse Town

06 - Mexican Stand Off

07 - Lions

08 - Generator In The Desert

09 - Bruce Campbell (Decapitated Version)

Once again a big thanks must go to Kyle Vallis and his awesome new page Unsigned Melodies for giving me a heads up about this brilliantly demented album!
I had heard of Must Kill Chris via a previous pledge campaign for the Eureka Machines but had never actually heard them, and by God I am sure glad of Kyle's reminder as I bloody well love this album! You know every now and again and album comes along that leaves you hungry for more, well this album had me so enthralled that I just had to track down the entire back catalogue (available through the bands band camp page, luckily!).
So just who are Must Kill Chris?
 'Must Kill Chris' is the stage name of Chris Moore from Ipswich Suffolk, started in 2011 while his former band 'Om Nom Bomb' were on hiatus Chris started writing and recording new music on his own and has been doing so ever since. This is a true DIY project in all senses of the word, Chris handles all aspects of the writing and recording process as well as creating all artwork and videos himself.
The Bearded Man is the bands second full length release, and its a blinder.
Don't let the fact that this album is home recorded, as it easily sounds as good as any album that has been released over the last few years, sitting comfortably along side releases that had multi million pound recording budgets!
How does it sound?
Bloody manic, marvellous, awesome!
The album opens with Bruce Campbell, with a slow moody keyboard intro before exploding into an almost industrial punk opus with a scream. A great homage to the actor of Evil Dead fame!
Wild Turkey follows, slowing the tempo and the attitude down with its almost bluesy work out. NailGun is up next, returning to the distorted bass lines and punkish attitude!
There's More To Life Than Money is the next track and what a track it is. Returning to the bluesy feel of Wild Turkey with an almost nursery rhyme / lullaby feel to it. I absolutely love this bloody song! Simplicity at its finest!
One-Horse Town has the task of following, vocally it has a real 90's indie feel to it, a great song about killing Zombies with a shot gun!
Mexican Stand Off is the albums shortest track, filled with western feel meets underground punk attitude that constantly builds into a great track!
Lions follows with it cry of independence. Generator In The Desert has an almost psychedelic feel to it at times, whilst following a similar bluesy / indie / punk direction. Probably my least favourite track on offer!
The album closes with Bruce Campbell (Decapitated version), another version of the albums opening track minus the intro and straight into the distorted screams. A great album!

Support music at grass roots level!

Rating - 10/10

 

Band Links:

Must Kill Chris @ Unsigned Melodies

Must Kill Chris on Bandcamp

 

 

 

RICHIE KOTZEN - Cannibals (2015)

Genre - Hard Rock / Classic Rock / Funk / Pop / Soul / Blues

Label - Headroom Inc.

 

Track listing:

01 - Cannibals

02 - In an Instant

03 - The Enemy

04 - Shake It Off

05 - Come On Free

06 - I'm All In

07 - Stand Tall

08 - Up (You Turn Me)

09 - You

10 - Time for the Payment

After his awesome record with The Winery Dogs, Kotzen returns with another bunch of great songs from his own pen. Accomplished singer and songwriter as well, Kotzen possesses an inimitable guitar style that’s both instantly recognizable and immediately striking.
On his new album "Cannibals", Kotzen gets deeper into his inspirations. He has of course visited this territory before on past records, but on this new release, he managed to create a cohesive musical environment where heavy-funk, shred and blue-eyed soul co-exist in harmony.
This album also shows his evolution as singer/songwriter and as multi-instrumentalist as well (Richie plays all the instruments) and even have reached a new level as guitarist, playing most of his solos without a guitar pick, just with his amazing fingers.
Additionally, some song seems impregnated by The Winery Dogs' feel, a classic rock feel.
Title track opens the record with a jumping guitar riff and driven by a monster, pumping bass line. The chorus is hooky and melodic, and Richie plays one of his characteristic two-hands-on the neck solo.
Interesting lyrics too, relevant to today's society. Richie said that the title of the album (and the song) is basically his way of describing human’s condition.
Then we have the melodic, highly harmonized classic rocker "In an Instant", the uplifting mid tempo "The Enemy" (a highlight), a killer shuffle in "Shake It Off" (complete with organs) and a soulful tune in "Come On Free".
It's time for some blues on the groovy "I'm All In" and the ballad "Time for the Payment" (featuring awesome finger picking), and then some psych on the fuzzy "Stand Tall".
"You" is a very special track, composed by Richie's daughter, who also plays piano throughout.

 Richie Kotzen just keeps getting better and better.
A complete, talented multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter and now skilled producer, his new solo "Cannibals" sounds great, honest, sincere. This is music made from the heart, with flesh & blood.
It all works. It all grooves. Production is clean, 'real', organic.
Containing a diverse collection of great tunes soaked in emotion, "Cannibals" is a master class in how to write and deliver quality Classic Rock music.

Highly Recommended.

Rating - 9/10

JOE BONAMASSA - Different Shades Of Blue (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock / Blues

Label -

Track listing:

01. Hey Baby (New Rising Sun)

02. Oh Beautiful!

03. Love Ain't A Love Song

04. Living On The Moon

05. Heartache Follows Wherever I Go

06. Never Give All Your Heart

07. I Gave Up Everything For You, 'Cept The Blues

08. Different Shades Of Blue

09. Get Back My Tomorrow

10. Trouble Town

11. So, What Would I Do

As part of Black Country Communion or solo artist, there are few blues-rockers today who are as consistent as JOE BONAMASSA. And this comes clear on his new great record to be released next week under the proper title "Different Shades Of Blue", as ranges from heavy blues to funk / soul inspired blues.

To outdo himself and push his art forward with the bar already set pretty high, Bonamassa left his long-standing template of mixing in covers with originals and had a hand in writing every track for new album. But instead of writing the songs on his own, he partnered in Nashville with established composers like talented James House. 

Oh, and Bonamassa wrote with Jonathan Cain, too. Yes, that Jonathan Cain of Journey.

Joe B.’s songwriting acumen didn’t really require extra polish, but the input from these proven pros certainly didn’t hurt, either. And any anxiety that he went 'country' or 'Journey' on us should quickly be put to rest; these song bear his fingerprints much more than his songwriting mates. 

That improvement comes in a more aggressive push against the boundaries of contemporary blues, making an album that offers different, widely varied takes of the broader-based blues. That’s the freedom that often comes with writing all your own material.

The album starts off mighty strong, a killer string of four tunes that reminds us of the diversity Bonamassa finds in the broad context of the blues. The Hendrix re-worked instrumental intro “Hey Baby (New Rising Sun)” serves as a just-right passage into the killer crunch of “Oh Beautiful!”, quite heavy and very Black Country Communion in essence.

A sax from Ron Dziubla and a trumpet from Lee Thornburg give “Love Ain’t A Love Song” swift, soulful kick in the ass and the lyrics have the swagger to match the melody; it’s meant to be played loud. The horns reappear on “Living On The Moon,” a crisp blues shuffle, and Bonamassa gets a nasty thing going for his brief guitar solo.

But the best arrives in the middle of the CD.

The ultra melodic but a the same hard rocking bluesy “Never Give All Your Heart” will delight fans of classic Bad Company, and for those with a hunger for the dirty lowdown kind of blues, “Heartache Follows Wherever I Go” fills the bill and then some. It's like a song taken from Gary Moore's classic 'Still Got The Blues'.

These two songs alone worth this disc.

Kevin Shirley is on board as producer as he’s been for the prior fifteen Bonamassa albums and he declares "Different Shades of Blue" his 'favorite Joe Bonamassa record to date'. Agree with him.

This album rocks, in a bluesy style, but rocks with blood in the veins.

Like the title of the album and the deeply soulful song of the same name (another highlight), this new batch of songs points up the fact that the blues does come in so many different shades. And all of it is good.

Highly Recommended.

 

Rating - 9/10

 

 

BERNIE MARSDEN - Shine (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock / Blues Rock / Melodic Rock

Label -

Track listing:

01. Linin' Track

02. Wedding Day

03. Walk Away

04. Kinda Wish She Would

05. Ladyfriend

06. Trouble

07. Who Do We Think We Are?

08. Bad Blood

09. Shine

10. Dragonfly

11. You Better Run

12. Hoxie Rollin' Time

13. Nw8

### The following review is not my work but I couldn't agree more so I reproduce it here. All credit to the original author ###

Ex Whitesnake guitarist BERNIE MARSDEN new album "Shine" to be released next August 18, explores a wide ranging musical horizon including a cleverly updated bluesy, slick AOR, kick ass boogie, riff driven and twin guitar rock, a steaming bluesy shuffle and a book-ended instrumental.
By his own admission "Shine" includes some stockpiled material, but it’s subtly shaped, polished and nicely sequenced by his former Alaska band member turned producer Rob Kass.

Recorded in studio 3 in Abbey Road (where the Beatles cut ‘Revolver’), "Shine" sparkles with confident songs, sumptuous guitar tones, potent harmonies, magisterial playing and Bernie’s best ever lead vocals.
Producer Rob Kass strikes the prefect balance between the album’s song driven focus and the possibilities that an array of guests – including David Coverdale, Jimmy Copley, Ian Paice, Don Airey Cherry Lee Mewis, Joe Bonamassa and Mark Feltham – and a big studio offers him.
"Shine" is a coherent album that plays to Bernie’s strengths. He’s always been a consummate guitarist and a prodigious songwriter, but a combination of different vocals textures injects the steely arrangements with style and gusto.

Listen for example, to the airy, west coast vocal sweep of Danny Kirwan’s "Dragonfly" – included here as an ode to Peter Green – and the standout title track. The Cream style vocal harmonies are underpinned by Ian Paice’s pounding stick work and topped by Don Airey’s keyboard riffs and Bonamassa’s scintillating solo. All the elements coalesce seamlessly as if building to a naturally defining moment on the track.
But this is such a well paced album that the final four tracks find their sequential place as part of an integral whole, before coming to rest on Bernie’s acoustic instrumental outro.

"Shine" opens with a sledgehammer groove of Leadbelly’s "Linin’ Track" which mirrors the song’s lyrical muscularity, while the hot picking on "Wedding Day" has a lively feel, as part of an enveloping production.
The kick ass boogie and ZZ Top influenced "Kinda Wish She Would" is effectively a counterweight as Bernie’s slightly distorted vocal gives the track an extra bit of edge on a riff driven rocker with huge radio potential.

My absolute favourite is the AOR, keyboard led "Walk Away" (awesome Don Airey) with its '80s keyboard motif, uplifting hook and catchy chorus. It's a sister track to the eco message and vocal tour de force "Who Do We Think We Are", a mid-tempo melodic rocker full of magic.

The guests all make their mark, as Mark Feltham’s lyrical harp line colours the extended groove of "Ladyfriend", as it smolders, sparkles and envelops you.
It sets things up nicely for the percussive reworking of "Trouble" predicated on David Coverdale guttural phrasing. Bernie has never been reticent to explore his back catalogue and he’s rarely bettered himself than on this blast from the past.
Cherry Lee Mewis adds gritty vocal contrast on the laid back blues-rocker "Bad Blood" and just when you think the whole album has run its course on the hook laden "You Better Run", Bernie launches himself into a dirt tone wah-wah inflected Americana shuffle "Hoxie Rollin’ Time", which is surely destined to become a live favourite.

Shine" is a career high for Bernie Marsden. 

It’s an album glued together by his own deeply embedded imprint of harmony driven songs with significant hooks and burning solos. It’s almost as if he’s successfully pursued his own mission statement of cutting a definitive solo album. It may have taken him 40 odd years but it’s been worth the wait.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Rating - 9/10

The Players

Bernie Marsden - Guitars, Vocals

Ian Paice - Drums

Don Airey - Keyboards 

Joe Bonamassa - Guitar

David Coverdale - Vocals

Jimmy Copley - Drums

Mark Feltham - Vocals, Harmonica

thanks to Pete Feenstra

BLACKWOLF - The Hunt (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock / Classic Rock / Blues
Label - Self Release

Track listing:

01 - Mr Maker
02 - Keep Moving On
03 - Moving Mountains
04 - Faith In Me
05 - Trouble
06 - Only Said In Silence
07 - House Of Emerald Wine
08 - Raised On The Sun
09 - Black Hole Friend
10 - Dragging Ghosts
11 - Releif
12 - Sleepwalking
13 - Sea Of Mercy


Blackwolf are a five piece classic rock band hailing from the Bristol region of the UK. The soulful, hard and heavy rock’n’roll sound of BlackWolf, along with their energy and determination, has seen the band’s successful ventures grow from the small intimate stages of their local Bristol scene in 2010 to those of the main stage at O2 Academy Newcastle, Nottingham’s Rock City, Manchester Academy, O2 Academy Islington and many more.

Now Blackwolf are releasing their debut album in the form of The Hunt, “Sonically we wanted ‘The Hunt’ to sound like a contemporary record being made today but with some of the elements and flavours that all the great classic rock albums have." something that they have acheived here!
The huge guitars, fast hooks and loud drums provide the perfect landscape for vocalist Scott Sharp to wrap his tonsoils around, and that he does, bringing to mind many of the genre's greats as he does.
The production does a great job of capturing the vibe of each song without ever being too perfect. It remains just raw enough as not to dilute anything from the songs, a wonderful job accomplished by Jeff Rose (together with the band).
The Hunt is a very strong classic rock album, with high tempo fast paced rockers like, Mr Maker, Trouble, slower groovers like House Of Emerald Wine, melodic atmospheric tracks like Raised On The Sun, Releif, Sleepwalker and the softer songs like Faith In Me.

A really great album and amazingly strong debut album

Blackwolf release The Hunt on 2nd March 2014, grab a copy Very Highly Reconmended

Rating 9/10





Catch Blackwolf on the road

February UK Shows



WED 05 London O2 Academy 2 Islington
FRI 07 Leicester O2 Academy 3
SAT 08 Newcastle Trillians
SAT 22 Bristol The Exchange
FRI 28 Cardiff BBC Club

and as support on The Answer UK Tour - March 2014

8th - O2 Academy - Oxford
9th - Sub 89 - Reading
10th - Brook - Southampton
12th - Phoenix - Exeter
13th - White Rabbit - Plymouth
14th - The Live Rooms - Chester
15th - Sin City - Swansea
17th - The Globe - Cardiff
18th - Kasbah (formerly The Colosseum) - Coventry
19th - The Sugarmill - Stoke
20th - O2 Academy - Liverpool

Joe Bonamassa - Driving Towards The Daylight (2012)

Genre - Rock / Blues / Blues Rock
Label -

Track listing -

01 - Dislocated Boy
02 - Stones In My Passway
03 - Driving Towards The Daylight
04 - Who's Been Talkin'
05 - I Got All You Need
06 - A Place In My Heart
07 - Lonely Town Lonely Street
08 - Heavenly Soul
09 - New Coat Of Paint
10 - Somewhere Trouble Dont Go
11 - Too Much Aint Enough Love (with Jimmy Barnes)

Does this man ever stop?
Smokin' Joe Bonamassa returns with his thirteenth solo album in the form of Driving Towards The Daylight, which comes hot on the heals of last years excellent Dust Bowl and the 2nd studio release from a certain supergroup by the name of Black country Communion! Man!
Not only are there some excellent Bonamassa represented here but there are also some absolutly brilliant reworkings of some classic songs, such as the master of the blues, Robert Johnsons, Stones In My Passway, which Joe manages to give a rather Jimmy page sounding Led Zepplin feelin too!
This album once again see's Joe teaming up with versatile produce kevin Shirley, a combination that really does seem to bring the best out of Joes work!
Stand out tracks for me include, Dislocated Boy, with its sublime mix of Bonamassa blues and who style lyrics, the afore mentioned Stones In My Passway with its Zepplin feel, the excellent title track, Driving Towards The Daylight, (which in my honest opinion my just be one of the best songs Mr Bonamassa has ever written!) and Heavenly Soul, with which once again Joe proves that a white blues guitarist can write a blues riff BB King and Robert johnson would be proud of!
A truly great album!

Rating 10/10

The Itch - Spreading Like Wildfire

Genre - Hard Rock
Label - Rambo Music


Track listing -

01. Calling Me Back
02. Action
03. The Catalyst
04. Propaganda
05. No Friend Of Mine
06. Pain
07. Bring In The Wine
08. Sold My Soul
09. Mother (Acoustic)
10. If You Could See
11. Losing My Mind

The Itch hail from the south of Sweden, a country that has given the world a huge amount of talented rock bands over the past few years!
They consists of lead singer (and former Tenebre guitarist) Lukas Landerö, Magnus Wahlberg on guitar, Johan Helgesson on the drums and Tobbe Skogh on bass, and deliver an infectious blend of hard rock and blues!
from the opening track you know that you are going to enjoy the ride, with the bands sound being a in the same vein as bands like The Answer, Electric Mary, Roadstar and Heavens Basement with a few punk elements thrown in here and there.
Spreading Like Wildfire is a very infectious album, a pretty diverse album ranging from straight ahead rockers to heavy riffsters and the acoustic interlude.
Well worth checking out!
Highly recommended!

Website - The Itch
Rating - 10/10

LUTHER GROSVENOR - If You Dare

Genre - Melodic Rock / AOR / Blues /Pop
Label - Angel Air Records

Track listing -

01. Dusty Track
02. If You Dare
03. Say Never
04. Emis Song
05. Fire And Water
06. Tears Run Dry
07. Kids
08. Heroes
09. Nobody Knows
10. If You Dare (version 2)

"LUTHER GROSVENOR a.k.a ARIEL BENDER past reads like a who's who of the rock elite. A member of SPOOKY TOOTH, STEALERS WHEEL, WIDOWMAKER and MOTT THE HOOPLE he has constantly delivered a performance as a guitarist that rates amongst the finest. Luther has always rewritten the guitar players rule book, simply by remembering that technique isn’t everything: you have to have some fun as well.
Having released over the years a number of solo albums Luther has been recording for the past year the "If You Dare" album which captures both his stunning guitar playing as well as his substantial song writing and vocal talents."

Here we have a stunning peice of melodic rock / bluesy pop, written and performed by a true veteren of the industry.
Every song is a well crafted masterpeice, with tracks like If i Dare, Dusty Track and Heroes really standing out

An album well worth checking out!

Website - Angel Air
Rating - 10/10

Joe Bonamassa - Dust Bowl

Genre - Blues / Rock
Label -

Track listing -

01. Slow Train
02. Dust Bowl
03. Tennessee Plates (featuring John Hiatt and Vince Gill)
04. The Meaning of the Blues
05. Black Lung Heartache
06. You Better Watch Yourself
07. The Last Matador of Bayonne
08. Heartbreaker (feat. Glenn Hughes)
09. No Love on the Street
10. The Whale that Swallowed Jonah
11. Sweet Rowena (feat. Vince Gill)
12. Prisoner



Joe Bonamassa is an American blues guitarist who regularly wins awards in guitar magazines and has been praised by BB King, and lead guitarist for the Super group of 2010, Black Country Communion. But beyond all of this, Joe is an established solo artist in his own right, with Dust Bowl being his 12th solo album to date.
There is just simply no questioning this man’s talent, his guitar cries, sings and wails, the emotion it purveys is phenomenal!
Joe is also one hell of a song writer too! This album is filled with modern day blues classics, from the opener, Slow Train to title track Dust Bowl, upon which Joe shoes a enough restraint to really build an atmosphere when the licks he plays. Another excellent song, which I find myself listening to over and over again is The Meaning of The Blues, a truly great song!
This is also full of surprises too, with Black Lung Heartache having a southern almost Celtic folk feel to it in place.
Joes Black Country Communion cohort, Glenn Hughes, puts in a brief appearance on Heartbreaker, another excellent song added to Joe’s cannon.
This album is probably THE blues rock album of 2011, it really is that good, and you really should check it out!

website - Joe Bonamassa
Rating 10/10

The Union - The Union

(Genre - Classic Rock / Blues Rock Label - Payola Records)

Track Listing

01 - Watch The River Flow
02 - Easy Street
03 - Saviour
04 - Step Up To The Plate
05 - Holy Roller
06 - You Know My Name
07 - Come Rain Come Shine
08 - Black Monday
09 - Amazon
10 - This Time Next Year
11 - Lillies
12 - The Space Between Us
13 - Everything You Want (Bonus)

The Union is a new project formed by former Thunder guitarist and main songwriter Luke Morley and ex-Winterville frontman Peter Shoulder.
Fans expecting a Thunder / Winterville album will be a tad disappointed Im sad to say, because whilst The Union still play that blues based rock that both aforementioned bands are famous for, they deliver it in a much more mature and laid back manner, giving The Union a distinctive sound. This is a new band with a great new sound, great songs and two excellent songwriters. Stand out tracks include, Easy Street, Saviour, Watch The River Flow, and This Time Next Year.
Very highly reconmended.


website - http://www.theuniononline.com/
Rating - 10/10

E.Z.Riders - Long Way From Home

(Genre - Rock / Blues Label - Independant)
Track Listing
01 - Dangerous Behavior
02 - What Its Worth
03 - Long Way From Home
04 - To Save Myself
05 - Let Me Be Your Man
06 - Far Away
07 - Dust In The Wind
08 - Trying Not To Fall
09 - Long Way From Home (acoustic)

E.Z.Riders are back with their second album following their 2008 self-titled debut.
Combining blues, southern, country and blue grass rock flavours, these three guys have produced a mellow, very 70s sounding album which at the same time has a real freshness about it.Like all good Bluesey tracks theres a simplicity about the songs that works really weel. the production is just enough to maintain that grass roots feel and the songs are well structured. If you like your rock to have a bluesey 70's southern feel to it then this album is well worth checking out. stand out tracks include Dangerous Behaviour, Long Way From Home and Dust In The Wind. A good album but i feel the best is yet to come from these guys!

Website - http://www.myspace.com/ezridersband
Rating - 7/10

Widespread Panic - Dirty Side Down

Dirty Side Down, is the 11th studio album from US Rock / Blues /Jazz band Widespread Panic.

The band have been together an amazing 24 years, yet somehow they managed to slip under my radar, and judging from the first couple of listens to this album then damn, Ive been missing out. The band offer a up a kind of jazzy southern tinged blues rock, that's pretty unique to my ears. The songs have a very laid back feel to them, especially on the likes of 'Saint Ex', 'Dirty Side Down' and 'This Cruel Thing', yet the maintain a certain energy that keeps you captivated.
This is a very strong album, and great for those times when you just want to mellow out, this is perfect chill out rock!
Check these guys out, you may discover you've been missing out like I have!

website - http://www.myspace.com/widespreadpanic or http://www.widespreadpanic.com/

rating 9/10

Dollhouse - Rock & Roll Revival

Dollhouse are a classic rock band with heavy blues and soul influences hailing from Sweden. Rock & Roll Revival is their latest release and its a stonker!


The band have some heavy weight supporters in the likes of Michael Davis (MC5) and Nick Andersson (The Hellacopters).
All 9 tracks here just ooze class, the songwriting and musicianship is just impeccable!
Sound wise, well I can hear a bit of Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry and James Brown in there!
My favourite tracks have to be 'Last Night', the best blues stomp since, well the blues was invented, and 'Let It Shine'.

This record will be released over Scandinavia the 7th of April via Electro Church Records,

Germany, Austria and Switzerland 30th of April. Unfortunately there's no UK release planned at the moment but it should be available via import and is well worth the effort

This album is very highly recommended, and I just cant say enough good things about it, a possible early contender for album of the year in my opinion.

website - http://www.myspace.com/rockandsoul



rating 10/10

Bret Michael's - Nothing To Lose (1 track Single)

Bret Michael's is the lead singer of the popular 80's glam metal band Poison. Over the last few years, he's released solo material and toured smaller venues alone. On his personal projects, he has a much more country/blues tone than his work with Poison. This track is no different, its a typical Bret ballad, (along the line s of Every Rose and Something To Believe In) and that's not a bad thing. When Bret sings on a song like this his voice seems to connect with you on some other level, a real soul touching song.


If the rest of the songs on his new solo album are going to be of this standard then I honestly cant wait!



Rating 10/10

The Boys and Crash-3 Track Demo

Hailing from Utrecht (Netherlands) this four piece count NOFX, Descendents, Motorhead, Ignite, Useless I.D., Beerbong, Bad Religion,and The Bouncing Souls amongst their influences. The deliver a bluesy punk / garage sound with quick short blasts for their songs, and I mean short, the longest of the three songs here is only just over two minuets long with the other two clocking in at around a minute and a half. The songs are OK, pretty much what you'd expect from a band with the said influences. Id like to see them give the songs a better production, but that's a mute point. These guys seem to have a great sense of humour judging from their lyrics and must be a blast live!




Rating 8/10