Hard Attack Magazine

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FEEL THE STEEL

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Editor In Chief Dave Tedder Managing Editor Chris Gillespie Volume 2 Issue 1 Layouts and Web Design Sick Addiction Studios

Table Of Contents Features Page Destroying Divinity

Art Direction Chris Gillespie, Dave Tedder

“Burning Down Inside”....................................................................66

Santa Cruz

“Wasted &Falling”...........................................................................6

Contributing Writers John Dokken Sean King Terri “The Queen” Knight Vince Newman Phoenix Romero Donny Rosko D. Salut Peter Scallen Skully Tony Sison Tim Welch

Serious Black

“Don’t Call Us A Supergroup”.........................................................24

Shredhead

“From The Promised Land To Metal Heaven”................................67

Tuff Luck DVD Special

“What Could Possibly Go Wrong?”................................................32

Interviews Page

Adrenaline Mob “Never Judge A Book By It’s Many Covers”....................................7

Alice Cooper

“50 Years Of Self Sacrfice”................................................ .............34

Crazy Lixx

Contributing Photographers Khris Poage Richard O’Connor

“All Hooks, All The Time”................................................................28

Harem Scarem

“Never Say Never, Indeed”.............................................................9

Onslaught

T”he 31 Year Game of Musical Chairs”..........................................20

Vamps

“One Bite At A Time”.......................................................................40

Comin’ Atcha! (Live Reviews) Page Featuring LIVE Reviews and Photos of: Accept, Anvil, Banshee, John Corabi, Faster Pussycat, Raven and Uli John Roth.............................................. 11

Cd Reviews Page Chock full o’ reviews for over 40 releases!....................44

Contact Us Hard Attack Magazine 7620 E. McKellips Rd. Ste. 4-206 Scottsdale, AZ 85257 USA www.hardattackmag.com www.facebook.com/HardAttackMagazine Twitter - @hardattackmag

©2015 Here’s Your Medicine Publishing

Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 3

A Letter From Our Editor In Chief Here we go again. This is the second time around for Hard Attack and, well, let’s see if we can actually make it out of the gate again in May (We will – no worries).

Hard Attack was initially launched back in 2001 and lasted all of one whole issue. One and done, as the saying goes. I could say that it was such a phenomenal issue that we decided to stop while we were ahead, but …

The truth is reality got in the way. People had real lives to attend to: babies being born, those pesky day jobs that tend to get in the way of what people really want to do and a lot of the writing staff just couldn’t carry on. So, for the five or six of you that sent in eMails asking when the next issue would arrive, I finally have an answer for you – TODAY!!!

The music business has been completely turned on it’s head since that first issue. The way music is discovered, the way it’s consumed, the way it’s purchased, the way it’s delivered. Over my entire writing career (dating back to 1988), I had been sent tons of vinyl, cassette and CD promos, all the way up to 2001. With this issue, not one single physical promo was sent by a label or a PR company – all digital. Haulix, Hightail, Dropbox, Digipromo … those are now the preferred delivery methods these days. And they work perfectly fine, aside from the fact that, for the most part there are no liner notes to read through. Who produced the album?

Where was it recorded? And so on and so forth. Those days are long gone and they’re never coming back.

Kind of sad, really, but you have to move forward in life. Hell, even this magazine is only available digitally.

So, why did Hard Attack come back? To be blunt, it’s largely due to the dumbing down of the publication industry. I get it, everyone makes mistakes and misspelling a word isn’t really a crime, but, well, let’s just say some editorial attempts should be crimes and leave it at that. I know, we’ll make mistakes every now and again, and as my big, lofty title is “Editor in Chief” (ooh, aren’t I powerful?!?!) it’s my job to cross the I’s and dot the t’s and to ensure things flow and make readers want to continue coming back every issue. Hell, there may be a mistake or two in this issue but, if so, you’re going to have to look real hard to find it.

And speaking of that, in this issue we have some material that’s a few months older than we’d like it to be and we also have a couple of things that were literally just delivered the other day, but hey, it’ll all even out soon enough, right?

We have features with longstanding Canadian hard rock heroes Harem Scarem and relative newcomers, Santa Cruz as well as Japanese electronic metallers VAMPS, powerhouse melodic rock act Crazy Lixx (are they Sweden’s new rock kings? You tell us!) and the cover stories with living legend Alice Cooper and supergroup, Adrenaline Mob. We introduce you to extreme bands Destroying Divinity, Shredhead and another supergroup (but don’t call them one!) Serious Black. And hey, you can even win a DVD! Right over there ----> go check out our mail section for some fun. Yep, we’ve already gotten a few eMails about our site (which admittedly hit a rough patch in the beginning …) and, well, a certain frontman, from a certain Canadian metal band who didn’t seem to care much for a certain live show review, which not only appears in this issue but also on the site (although his band members and publicist seemed to enjoy it just fine).

So just sit back and enjoy the ride … we’ll try not to veer off of the tracks too often.

Dave Tedder

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LOVE/ HATE MAIL Hey there Saw your site mentioned in one of the forums on Metal Sludge aong with the new AC/DC video and thought I’d check you out. Not a lot of stuff up here yet but I’m looking forward to seeing how it all goes. Good luck guys.

Tony Tony – Thanks for checking us out! And yes, we promise to update the news more often – just stick with us!

Hey Hard attack Can you do something about the way your site loads? It takes forever and I could have taken a nap waiting for it to even become readable.

Philippe Hey Philippe – Thanks for writing in. You’ll be happy to know that our crack website team got it all sorted and it now loads at a standard rate. Whatever “standard” means! hey there you should really update your news more often. kind of boring.

Hey back atcha – We’re getting there … in the meantime, did you know that if you hold that key that says “Shift” down while you press another key a capital letter will appear?

Cool site. Looking for writers? I’ve been writing for different sites for about 5 years now and I’m always looking to place my stuff with new people.

Craig Hi Craig – We are absolutely looking for writers. Please send a sample review to info@hardattackmag.com and we’ll give it a look.

Your article is not worthy of posting...extremely insulting to say the least...we won’t forget who you are in case of future encounters..LIPS Hi LIPS – How are ya?? Care to expound on what exactly was so offensive about the review? Could it have been where he said that you guys were obviously still having a good time after all these years? Or would it be where he actually praised your guitar solo? Oh, I know, it would probably be where he said Anvil “are an awesome band to go see and have a great time with.” That’s it, right?

Ya know, Anvil’s had a bit of a hard run at it over the years and you’ve shot yourselves in the foot a time or ten. After reading your eMail it’s painfully obvious who’s been pulling the trigger.

Dave (figured I’d sign this one directly so you know who to direct your next lovely communication to.)

If you’d like to get in touch for whatever reason – to give us a lead on a new band you’d love to see featured or reviewed here or maybe to discuss one of the interviews or reviews or maybe even to tell us how much we suck, send it on over to info@hardattackmag.com . We’d love to see what you have to say (well, maybe).

Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 5

the Range Festival alongside Slash, Judas Priest and Godsmack.

Wasted & Falling

The album’s first single was actually released closer to their debut than their current album. Archie explains: “All of the material on ‘Screaming for Adrenaline’ was older so we had a clean slate to work with. Our single, “We Are the Ones to Fall” was recorded over a year ago and Johnny and I produced it ourselves so we just shoved it out there in early 2014. It worked so well that we produced the next single, “Wasted and Wounded” and then recorded the rest of the album last fall after playing a bunch of summer festivals. It felt good making the album with no outside help.”

ESPN has licensed a number of Santa Cruz songs to air during their sporting events and Kuosmanen couldn’t be happier. “Yeah, if I’m watching X-Games or hockey and I hear one of my own songs on there I just about crap my pants, dude!” he exclaims. “Definitely one of the highlights of my life so far.”

Archie Kuosmanen and Hard Attack Idiot in Chief, Dave Tedder discuss wardrobe soiling and running directly into the apocalypse.

But, NOT Fight Club …

It turns out that albums aren’t the only things the band members produce themselves. Archie says the Fight Club theme for the “We Are the Ones to Fall” video was an idea that he came up with and the rest of Santa Cruz ran with it. “I just took that idea to the guys and they liked it. Johnny and I were about to do the “hit me as hard as you can scene” also but decided to give up on that idea. It’s pretty hard to top Brad Pitt and Ed Norton, you know. I probably shouldn’t be telling you this stuff … if you know what I mean.”

Huh?? Oh, yeah, well, as they say, rules are meant to be broken.

And arms, legs, ribs ... Yeah, let’s change subjects, shall we?

“When we got there the entire city was in chaos ... we were lucky to be alive.”

Vocalist, Archie Kuosmanen and guitarist, Johnny Parkkonen put the foundation of Helsinki’s newest glam metal kings, Santa Cruz together in 2007, adding bassist, Middy Toivonen the following year, along with a succession of drummers until settling on Taz Fagerstrom in 2009. The quartet became a sensation amongst the internet’s glam elite upon the release of their first two demos and their self-released Ep, ‘Anthems for the Young N’ Restless.’

‘Anthems for the Young N’ Restless’ catapulted the youngsters into the national and international spotlight with coverage in Classic Rock magazine and appearances on Finnish national television, all the while playing upwards of 100 live shows with no record deal and no agent.

In 2012 Finland’s hottest label, Spinefarm, home over the years to bands such as Children of Bodom, Nightwish, Finntroll, Michael Monroe and others, came knocking. And Archie and Johnny answered the door. Inking with what is essentially a hometown label worked in the guys’ favor and when their f bomb laden debut, ‘Screaming for Adrenaline’ hit the streets in the spring of 2013 it was supported by a plethora of promotion by the label and slammed into the Finnish national Top 40 chart (Suomen) and wielding three hit singles.

Two years on and they’re on the verge of releasing their self-titled sophomore effort and their first full blown US run, supporting labelmates Amaranthe, as well as an appearance at this year’s Rock on

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Santa Cruz has virtually toured nonstop since 2009 so you must have an interesting tour story or two …

“We were in Koln, Germany last year with Skid Row and Buckcherry and this huge storm broke out. So we ran to our van and headed to the next tour stop, Bochum. When we got there the entire city was in chaos. Fire trucks everywhere, trees lying on the ground … it was like a post-apocalyptic scene or something! The next day we heard that a few people had died in the storm so we were lucky to be alive.”

And on that doom laden note, I bid Mr. Kuosmanen farewell …

I have to be brutally honest here. When I first heard that Adrenaline Mob had formed my first reaction was “yawn … another batch of ubermusos are getting together to indulge in some overblown musical wankery. Wake me when it’s over…” And I didn’t even give the first two releases a chance. This knee-jerk reaction was despite, or more likely because of, the respect and admiration I had for the likes of Symphony X and, Dream Theater, et al. I mean, these aren’t exactly known to be subtle players, are they? They are masters of the “Look at me, I’m better than everyone else” school of musicianship. And while Adrenaline Mob’s members’ primary bands do have good songs, the material seems to take a back seat to the talent after a while for the average listener.

Then I heard the band’s blistering cover of Heart’s ‘Barracuda” from 2013’s ‘Coverta’ Ep. Suddenly I was interested. I hit trusty ol’ YouTube in search of further music and found covers of “The Mob Rules” and “Kill the King,” both also coming from ‘Coverta.’ Okay, so they can play other people’s songs well, but, can they write their own songs? And, by songs, I meant, well, songs. Not just widdly diddly bullshit but well thought out, patterned songs. To my shock and surprise, I discovered that not only were they writing songs loaded with melody and hooks there was very, very little of the preconceived “widdly diddly bullshit” that I just knew this band would be all about. Shows ya what I know, eh??

“We have been really blessed in having such great talents in the band and are equally excited with our current line up as well.”

I hit upon “Down to the Floor” from ‘Omerta’ and was blown out of my seat. Picking myself back up and “Hit the Wall” knocked me down once again. Then I stumbled across the heartfelt ballad “All on the Line”, also from ‘Omerta.’ Wait, a ballad??? Okay, well, a mid-tempo ballad, but a ballad all the same. Straight to the record store I went and soon both ‘Coverta’ and ‘Omerta’ were part of my collection, as well as last year’s ‘Men of Honor’ release, which I didn’t even bother to preview, I just went out and grabbed it upon it’s release.

Which now brings us to ‘Dearly Departed,’ the fifth release in total and fourth for powerhouse Century Media Records. Comprised of cover songs, original material, stripped down versions of previously released songs and a kitchen sink or two, the

Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 7

mini album shows the Mob at their finest and introduced the band’s ninth member in the ever revolving door of musicians to play in the band. I had the chance to catch a few minutes with guitarist and founder member, Mike Orlando.

One again produced by Russell Allen and Mike Orlando, ‘Dearly Departed’ was recorded at Orlando’s Sonic Stomp Studio and as with ‘Men of Honor’ and ‘Coverta” Mike also handled mixing and mastering duties.

You’ve done a few Ep’s now, as well as two full length albums. Is this because of time restraints or is this how you see the industry moving? Away from a full length every year or so and towards a couple of Ep’s every year, that is ...

It honestly wasn’t planned at all, it came out that way. We love to track and record albums and having my own studio where it’s a turnkey situation really helps the process along.

I feel blessed that I’m able to record and release albums and

“You never think it will happen to your band until you’re in that moment grabbing on to something with all your might thinking you’re going to die.”

I will always embrace and cherish that. It definitely helps, I feel, though to try and continually keep content and music coming to your fans, be it a full length or an Ep. Why the title ‘Dearly Departed’? Does it have a significant meaning?

The song, “Dearly Departed” really encompasses the sound of Adrenalin Mob in many ways so we decided to lead with it this time around, go to radio with it and use it as the title of the album. Russ had a great idea for the cover scene as well so it all tied together real well.

Adrenaline Mob has sort of become yours and Russell’s own project to do with whomever may be available, it seems. Was this always the intention and I just missed that memo?

The band’s sound and writing always started and remains with myself & Russell. Even in the beginning. ‘Omerta’ was written and completed by us before we even moved on to completing the line-up. It wasn’t intentional at all, it’s just the way the writing is done. We have been really blessed in having such great talents in the band and are equally excited with our current line up as well. I’m honored to be able to share the stage with such incredible players and bandmates.

How do you pick the covers you do and is there anything you haven’t covered yet that you would love to do but the guys keep shooting you down? That guilty pleasure pop song of yours from the 70’s or 80’s, perhaps?

On ‘Coverta’ we picked some tracks we had been performing live already then we all came up with the other tracks.

‘Dearly Departed’ was real easy as well. We go with bands we love and sometimes tracks you wouldn’t think we’d cover like “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” I’m a huge Sabbath fan so the medley was pretty damn easy as I just picked some of my all-time favorite songs. Russell definitely has

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the pipes to pull off anything, so I thought what better than Queen and the iconic track “Tie Your Mother Down.”

I do have some guilty pleasure tracks for sure but I’d rather not say haha. I’m sure we’ll get around to tracking them so I’ll keep them a surprise!

You had the honor of participating in the Randy Rhoads Remembered show at NAMM again this year. As a guitarist paying respect to one of the most beloved guitarists of our time, what’s going through your mind while this is going on - aside from “just get the song right!”?

I’ve had the pleasure to do a few Randy Rhoads Remembered Shows so far and it’s truly an amazing honor to be part of the RRR Family. Randy is one of my favorite rock players and he was a huge influence on me early on and still to this day! I am very proud and honored to be going on the upcoming Randy Rhoads Remembered “Rhoads Across America” 2015 Tour. I’ll be joining the tour May 27th to June 14th after Adrenaline Mob comes back from our ‘Dearly Departed’ Brazilian tour. The only thing that goes through my mind is doing my best to pay tribute to one of the greatest rock guitar players of our time.

How did Erik Leonhart enter the picture after John Moyer’s departure? Was he already a friend of members of the band … or?

The funny thing is I actually started the band with Erik even before Russ was in the band. It was originally called Adrenaline Fueled Junkies and Erik performed bass as well as sang on demos of several of the tracks on ‘Omerta’ so it’s funny how things came full circle. He’s been a close friend of mine for quite a long time and it finally worked out that he ended up back in after all that time.

The accident last year, while you were out with Avenged Sevenfold and Hellyeah ... life changing in a way, yes?

How does one recover from that? A thousand bands are on the road every month and they all pretty much make it back home safe and sound, but this time you barely escaped a major, major tragedy. What goes through one’s mind when you’ve just realized what has actually happened to you and some of your close friends?

It was definitely one of the scariest situations I’d ever been in my life. It took some time to recover from the accident as I did get pretty banged up. You never think it will happen to your band until you’re in that moment grabbing on to something with all your might thinking you’re going to die. It actually took me a while to realize what really happened to us. It was a combination of being hurt, stunned, dazed and just in complete disbelief as I stared at the wreck and equipment that was destroyed. I’m just glad we were all okay in the end.

That’s all that matters in a situation like that.

As this story went to press, the world found out that “current” Adrenaline Mob drummer, AJ Pero, best known for his 34 year tenure with Twisted Sister had passed away on the band’s tour bus from an apparent heart attack. Our thoughts are with both the Adrenaline Mob and Twisted Sister camps as well as Pero’s family and friends at this time.

The Canadian quartet Harem Scarem first made their presence felt way back in the early nineties when they signed with Warner Music and hit the charts in their homeland with the single, “Slowly Slipping Away.”

With their sophomore release, ‘Mood Swings,’ the band’s popularity in Japan reached a fever pitch and from there the band experimented with several variations of the rock genre and even changed their name for a short time (in 1999 to “Rubber”).

In 2008 after the release of ‘Hope’ the band called it a day but continued working together in various configurations until announcing a band new studio album, ‘Thirteen’ in September of 2014.

Hard Attack’s Terri “The Queen” Knight recently sat down with Harem Scarem mainman Harry Hess to discuss the new album as well as a dive into the past.

Reckless! Unpredictable! Just two of the words used to describe the words "Harem Scarem" but musically the two words that really have a better fit for those words would be "Harry Hess".

This band made a name for itself in 1991 and continued to pull fans in from all over the world with the release of their debut self titled album "Harem Scarem".That album went on to create an international following for several future albums.

It's always interesting how they make a play on words as in this newest album titled ‘Thirteen,’ in recognition of their 13th full studio album.

I got the chance to talk with Harry about this as well as musical directions of where they have been and where they are headed.

Harry Hess! I've loved your music for a long time and especially with what you've done with Harem Scarem .. millions of records sold in 43 countries and I'm so happy I have been able to watch you along that ride.

Thank you. Thank you. Always a pleasure to chat with people that acknowledge us and even like us!

The really cool thing is that you do all the studio work also so you come from so many different levels of the music. I would imagine that helps you "hear" so many different things.

It actually interested me just as equally in the beginning. I remember when I was 15 years old we were lucky enough to make a record with a producer, "A real producer" when I was that young … and I was playing with older guys in a band so I got hooked! The minute I got into the studio and we were making records I just loved the whole technical side of it and the fact that you could multi track and create things. It just blew my mind and I've been chasing that ever since my first time in the studio. I was just trying to understand it and perfect it. It's one of those things like life you know - it's a journey, it's not a destination to try getting better at it. A giant part of music for me has also been creating music. Not only for myself and Harem Scarem but for other people as well so a ton of my time is spent working on other people's records too.

That list goes on forever it seems, the amount of people and the caliber of people you have worked with is just amazing.

With Harem Scarem, I have always loved the music and I know last year you came out with ‘Mood Swings II’ which was originally released in like, 1993, somewhere around there, and it was then you guys really came around and started reconnecting with your fans.

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Yeah it's true. We needed to take a break just because it was an endless cycle. I'm 46 now and started making records when I was 15.

It really never stopped! I mean it was insane how much material we not only recorded as a band, but like I said earlier, I had been involved in. I just needed to not have that on my plate.

We were in a situation where we had finished our current recording contracts and we could have signed on again for another 4 records and I said ‘you know what, I'm just not feeling it. I don't want to sit down and look at a blank piece of paper and start all over again for something I had been doing my whole life’ and Pete (Lesperance - guitarist) felt the same way. You know we kept working together on doing stuff for everyone else. We put a lot of work and effort obviously into making Harem Scarem records but for the most part it's just the two of us so there's a lot of labor that goes into making those records and when you are sometimes working on other people's stuff you can rely on other people as well. You are part of a team which is a relief to me sometimes, quite honestly. Yeah we really reconnected with the fans and a lot has changed in the last 5 or 6 years with social media being in the forefront, being able to connect with people directly. It's been really cool to come back and make part of coming back with that interaction being in the forefront of this record making, but to have direct feedback from the fans and keep them involved. We're doing this pledge music campaign where we're hopping on Skype and doing question and answer periods … we're filming footage in the studio of how we do it and the hardcore fans are really into it. It's kept us motivated and makes it new for us again.

“We could have signed on again for another 4 records and I said ‘you know what, I'm just not feeling it.”

I love the fact that you named this new album ‘Thirteen.’ That's really symbolic since this is your thirteenth album.

Yeah this is our thirteenth full length studio record and you know we kind of thought it was funny because obviously people think 13 is an unlucky number. We just thought "let's run with this" and then we literally thought we would change the title at some point but then the artwork guy in Sweden we worked with came up with this concept that you see on the album cover and I think it's really cool. He tied it in with the whole numeric 13.

I think one of my favorite songs is "Never Say Never" and all of your songs are like this: you have a really cool build going into it and then of course leading into your lyrics and "never give up on your dreams" is one of my mottos anyway.

Well thanks! I try to consciously keep as many of the songs with a positive message as possible. Sometimes music just dictates that it's not going to go that way but we've always kind of walked the line of positive messages or even dark messages with positive happy sounding music. We kind of try to intertwine those two things together and make them seamless and take you on a bit of a journey with whatever the vibe is with the song. It's funny how a word or even a sentence or whatever can really dictate what the vibe of a song is. You know the music feels uplifting once the chorus hits and it feels like it's moving and lifting and then having that lyric married to it in that way is the right thing to do. If I had a darker lyric or something that did not have that message I don't think the song would have the same impact.

It's funny but fans of hard rock are very specific about what style of music they like and I think the Harem Scarem trademark is walking that line between doing some darker uplifting stuff, if that makes any sense at all, because you know the heavier elements give you a vibe and a feeling but lyrically takes you down a road.

I'm glad you noticed that on this because that was our Intent to keep it uplifting and happy but not have it fluffy.

I know you're going out on tour with this one as well aren't you?

Yeah we're talking to promoters now and it'll be 2015 dates starting around March and going into the summer. We don't have anything specific yet but we'll have dates and we'll post them via Facebook and stuff like that and we'll get the word out as soon as we know the details.

Best of luck to you on this one

Thanks for your time and hopefully we'll be talking again next time we do one.

You can count on it.

- Terry “The Queen” Knight

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ACCEPT Corner Hotel Melbourne, Australia

Cumin’ Atcha!

They might be pushing forward without original vocalist Udo Dirkschneider (which might be sacrilege to some purists) but Accept’s much overdue first tour of Australia was welcomed with high anticipation and admiration here in Oz. The sold out Melbourne show on the Saturday night was always going to be a highlight of the Australian tour and it was a revelation in quality, true traditional heavy metal.

With rains pelting outside, a packed house welcomed the predominantly German metal pioneers to the Corner Hotel stage. Approximately a thousand metalheads roared as the band opened the night with “Stampede”, which was closely followed by the anthemic grunt of “Stalingrad”. The Accept live sound is as rich, heavy, and abrasive, as I have heard from any metal band in a club show atmosphere – this band wrote the true metal blueprint, so really I shouldn’t be surprised. Three studio albums AD (After Dirkschneider) and there is no denying that the current line-up is in its element, both in recorded form, and when it hits the stage. Any stage, large or small.

American Mark Tornillo (ex TT Quick in my appreciation of this singer) may have been with the band for three studio albums but he is still the new guy filling the rather big army boots once worn by the out and out legend of Dirkschneider.

Tornillo does a fantastic job and really does hold his own as a vocalist and frontman.

He sings the new material in his own style without crossing the line, and handles the classic material with vigor and respect. Mark was awesome live. Kudos is well deserved!

The heavy metal royalty of Wolf Hoffmann and Herman Frank bring a massive guitar sound to the kingdom. This is trademark Accept! The power of the guitars live did not disappoint anyone in attendance, be it the, volume (and they were loud!), riffs and tasty solos. Bass player Peter Baltes was also looming in his attack of the stage and contributed to the army-barracks gang backing vocals. These three on the front line did appear larger than life (appeared like 7 foot Germans), towering over the considerably shorter Tornillo, as they all worked the stage as pure professionals.

The two hour show comprised of nine classic Accept toons and twelve gems from the last three Accept albums. Quite a reasonable split when you consider the band is forging ahead with the current line up. First of the Udo era songs was “Losers and Winners,” then came “Starlight” from ‘Breaker,’ which brought the house down. “Restless and Wild”, “Princess of the Dawn” and “Fast as a Shark” were also always going to bring mayhem with the diehard fans here. Of the newer songs “Dying Breed”, “Hellfire” and “Pandemic” really hits the spot in the feel good True Metal stakes.

The standout “Fast as a Shark” (with drummer Stefan Schwazmann going absolutely ballistic) closed the set before the encore of “Metal Heart” and mighty “Teutonic Terror” reeking further havoc with Melbourne. The power and quality of “Teutonic Terror” has already made the song a crowd favorite and it sits comfortably with any of the Accept classics. “Balls to the Wall” as the closing song was a good choice and really brought the crowd and band together as one. Hoffmann himself did appear quite taken aback at the response from Melbourne as Accept dismantled Melbourne throughout the night. I am sure he is asking himself why the band had not ventured down to Australia much sooner.

It has been discussed that the band could have played more of the Udo era songs given it was their first trek to Australia but personally I think it was a good spread. “Son of a Bitch” and “Breaker” would have been winners in my opinion but then I would want to hear the full ‘Breaker’ album.

Accept appear to be touring everywhere on this current Blind Rage tour ( I did see they recently played Lithuania!) – if you have the opportunity to see them, don’t think about it – just do it!

– John Dokken | Photos by Richard O’Connor

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Cumin’ Atcha!

ANVIL / SUNLORD The Riot Room Kansas City, Mo It was freezing outside. Snow and ice everywhere in the area and I had just gotten word that one of the opening bands, Lord Dying, had canceled their appearance due to getting caught in a storm near Nashville. I was worried that Anvil would be a no go. If it did go on, the crowd would be minimal.

Thankfully, Anvil and Sunlord had made it past that area already and were firmly in KC at the time. So tonight’s show would go on. Sadly, I was correct about the crowd. A real shame mind you, as this band should be playing packed out mid level theaters at the very least.

A couple of local bands filled in the two earlier available slots, doing their best to get the crowds warmed up. It was obvious who they were here to see: everyone was saving their energy for Anvil.

Then Sunlord came on and changed all that. The crowd was really sparse around the stage until about the third song in. At that point, they began migrating to the front to check the hard hitting trio out. Admittedly, I had no idea who these guys were coming in, but I was curious to see what their set would bring.

Alfonso Ferrazza sang his heart out and worked the crowd up all while handling guitar duties, while Jeff Almeyda (drums) and Bobby Dead (bass) delivered solid foundations for the Argentinian frontman to work off of. Good music, nothing that stood out to me in the set though.

Next up of course came Anvil. Ah yes, the Canadian heavy metal power trio. Subject of their own documentary. THAT Anvil.

The band gathered onto the stage and got their gear ready and when Robb Reiner (drums) and the band’s newest bassist, Chris Robertson finally got themselves comfortable, Lips (guitars and vocals) took his guitar and jumped off the stage into the small crowd. At first he seemed to just be playing around with the guitar and just basically schmoozing with the people nearby. What he was really doing was breaking into the song “March of the Crabs” from Anvil’s seminal album ‘Metal on Metal.’ Reiner and Robertson joined in and it was on.

Stopping between songs to chat and joke with the audience it was obvious they were still having a good time after 38 years.

They genuinely appeared to be having just as much fun as the audience was.

©2015 Sick Addiction Studios

The classics, “666” and “School Love” followed and then they launched into “Badass Rock N Roll” from their recent album 12 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

‘Hope in Hell,’ the first of three they would play from the new disc.

They screamed further through the set with “Winged Assassins” and “This Is Thirteen” with Robb faltering momentarily somewhere along the two songs and losing a drum stick, until they got to “Mothra”. This is where Lips pulled out the ever so famous dildo for his guitar solo. Putting his stamp on the mark of “BUZZING GUITAR SOLOS”. Ah, the good stuff.

Entertaining to say the least.

“On Fire” and “Thumb Hang” were followed by Lips taking a moment to talk about his new “Lips-O-Matic” guitar from October Guitars, with which he promptly did a little guitar wankery on before the band broke into “Swing Thing.” Mid song Robb launched into a powerful drum solo before finishing. Still a powerful drummer, it’s actually fun to watch him slam the skins.

The band finished out the night with “Hope in Hell”, “Eat Your Words” and last but not least the band’s classic, “Metal On Metal” which sounds as good today as it did back in 1982.

Over half the set, surprisingly, was more recent material. The albums ‘Hope In Hell,’ ‘Juggernaut Of Justice’ and ‘This Is Thirteen’ were heavily represented. Not something you see everyday from bands of that era that are still putting out new material. I would have loved to have heard some more classic era material, but with limited time to play, it was understandable. The newer songs fit in well with the set overall and shows just how true Anvil has stayed to their roots.

Lipps might get a little sloppy on the guitar, but it is clear that he is having a good time (and my favorite guitar players of all time are far from technical) and he clearly loves being on stage. Robb is a solid player and could teach some of these young dogs some new tricks as well. Robertson is a great fit for the band onstage, and I was surprised by how well he handled his instrument. His playing was a nice touch to the evening.

Are they the greatest band in the world to see live? Probably not. Are they an awesome band to go see and have a great time? Oh HELL YES. As Anvil would say, KC was “SMASHED”.

- Chris Gillespie

©2015 S ick Addi

ction Stu

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FASTER PUSSYCAT The Scene Kansas City, MO When Faster Pussycat opened the show with their usual “Pussy Is a Powerful Thing” taped intro followed by “Jack the Bastard”. It was almost immediately noticeable that this was a tired band this evening. Taime and company seemed sluggish right out of the gate and the usual energy of the band just was not there tonight.

Taime pretty much stayed planted to the center of the stage (when doesn’t he though?). Ace kept his posing to a minimum, Chad and Danny kept a solid but relaxed rhythm and Xristain, although seemingly tired as well, smiled almost the whole night through!

They then churned through a couple of their staples; “Slip of the Tongue” and “Sex, Drugs and Rock n’ Roll” before breaking into “Don’t Change That Song” and “Cathouse” at which point the band seemed a little more energized but still not firing on all cylinders so to speak.

Taime brought out a large lighted cross and sat on it for “House of Pain” and finished (as usual) reminding everyone to keep in touch with their families no matter “how fucked up they may be”.

They then fired off into the rarely heard (for me at least) “You’re So Vain”. The crowd was eating it up and singing along, proving that the Carly Simon cover was and still is a good fit for the band. Even Taime’s tired sounding vocals could not bring this one down.

Afterwards, there was a brief discussion of what to play next by the band. Apparently they no longer use set lists and have memorized well over 30+ songs to choose from (and are working on adding a few more).

After a moment of brief silence, two haunting notes floated over the crowd from Ace and I instantly knew what was coming. A Faster Pussycat rendition of INXS’ “Don’t Change.” It took the crowd a moment to realize what was happening here and what they were hearing, but once it hit, everyone was singing along!

The band followed with “Bathroom Wall” with Ace taking over vocals midway through for a song called “Strychnine” (a cover of The Sonics song from 1965). Followed by Danny “Youtube wonder boy” / “Tender” Nordahl singing his version of “Pretty Fucked up” before finishing up “Bathroom Wall”.

The band finished out the set with a cover of the Betty Blowtorch song “Shut Up and Fuck” and closed with “Babylon,” from their debut.

This was not the band I have been used to seeing tonight and I think the almost nonstop touring over the last year or so has started taking its toll on the band. I understand they will be taking a short break and will be back next year with a new CD (and hopefully a more refreshed band)!

Overall I would have given tonight’s performance a solid 6 out of 10 but the surprise songs form the band gave them a couple of more points from me, so I give it an 8 out of 10. If you get a chance to check them out, I recommend it. The “no set list” approach really helps keep shows fresh and maybe, just maybe, you’ll hear that gem you’ve been waiting forever for them to play!

- Chris Gillespie

RAVEN The Riot Room Kansas City, MO Going in, I have to say that I have been a fan (not a die hard, but a fan nonetheless) of Raven since I first heard their album ‘Life’s a Bitch’ on my buddy’s tape deck in his room back in 1987. Yet, until this day, I never had the chance to see them live. This was going to be something else. I had no clue just how special it was going to be!

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First off, the band was very late getting to the venue. I arrived only to find that no one was there! I returned to my car and waited for the band to show. I was getting a little concerned as time passed, but finally, they arrived.

This show was supposed to include Night Demon, but due to the singer coming down with an illness and unable to sing, the band could not perform and did not come to the venue at all.

I did however find out, that Raven would be playing an extended set to make up for it.

Shortly before the band’s set, I counted the audience to find only 30 people in attendance. In Kansas City on a weeknight? Yeah, that’s about right …

I then found my spot and waited.

When Raven hit the stage I was surprised, no, floored. John Gallagher sang his heart out from the beginning of “Hard Ride” and then carried it through right into “Live at the Inferno”. All while posing and pulling off bass acrobatics and hamming it up for the people holding their phones up for photos. Brother Mark Gallagher was tearing up the guitar and running around the tiny stage like he was in an arena. Posing and showing off his fretboard pyrotechnics to anyone who wanted to get a closer look. Joe Hasselvander pounded the drums like he was summoning the God of Thunder himself.

These guys had energy that bands a quarter of their age could not match.

Somehow, they managed to keep it up for the entire show! Most performers from the same time period would have collapsed by the third song!

The band took a moment to greet the crowd before going back into the set with “All For One” which found the audience singing along almost word for word. There were some diehard fans here tonight!

The broke into a brand new song from the forthcoming album ‘Extermination’ called “Destroy All Monsters” with a catchy back end of “Exterminate, exterminate” reminiscent of a certain set of bad guys from a well known British Sci-Fi series!

The band then played a medley of songs for the true die-hards in the audience. Offering up “To Be Broken,” “White Hot Anger,” “Lambs to the Slaughter” in series with John still singing the high notes throughout the set as well.

The band followed that with “Rock Until U Drop” with a short but sweet guitar solo from Mark and a painfully teasing short tidbit of “Stay Hard” that left everyone wanting more before finishing his solo and going into a quick medley of “Speed of Reflex” and “Run Silent Run Deep.”

The trio then launched into “Mind Over Metal” and then another new track from the forthcoming disc; “It’s Not What You Got” which still follows in the mold of that “old school” Raven sound.

The less than memorable “On and On” from the ‘Stay Hard’ album followed “Faster Than the Speed of Light” just before the band took a brief break. Mark took time educating the audience about their early days back in Newcastle when the brothers decided they needed to do something to “get outta this place” quoting The Animals hit of the same name as an influence to their future endeavors.

John Gallagher then took over the stage for a bass solo. Now mind you, I know the old joke, “Time for a beer!”. Not so here. John destroyed the bass in ways I have not seen in a long time. How is it possible in all these years that the man has slipped unnoticed in the music world as the amazing bass player he is? John’s solo alone was worth the price of admission.

The band then played “Break the Chains” interspersed with a medley of some well known (and not so well known) covers “Rock Bottom”(UFO) / “Need Your Love” (Cheap Trick) / “Dog Eat Dog” (AC/DC) “Symptom of the Universe” (Black Sabbath) / “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (The Who) / “Genocide” (Judas Priest) before breaking back into the original song and calling it a night.

The band left puddles of sweat and blood on every inch of their stage and still came out to greet everyone after the show. If there is a band deserving of so much more in this field of music, it is absolutely Raven.

If you miss this band when they come to your town, you’ll only have yourself to blame!

- D. Salut

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Cumin’ Atcha!

John Corabi’s “Motley Crue ‘94” tour with Banshee The Aftershock Merriam, KS John Corabi is currently on tour. Big deal right? Corabi seems to LIVE on the road! But this is different. John is touring in support of the “20th anniversary” of some say, was Motley Crue’s “best” album and others say “the worst” depending who you ask. Personally, being a fan of the “MC94” album, I was excited to see this show.

After a couple of local acts, a newly rejuvenated Banshee screamed onto the stage with “Taming The Beast” from their recent album ‘Mindslave.’

Featuring original guitarist Terry Dunn and classic line up era bassist Bill Westfall with Paul Berrian on drums and George Call (Aska, Omen) on vocal duties, the band is back in full force.

They powered through an amazing set of songs culled heavily from the new album and a few from Banshee’s past thrown in. “Mindslave,” “Precious Metal,” “Hangman Lies,” “The Phalanyx” a cover of Black Sabbath’s “The Mob Rules”, “Full Circle”, “We Want You” and “Cry In The Night” were all delivered by the powerhouse quartet without a stutter.

Being a classic era Banshee fan and not really fond of George Call’s work with his prior bands I was pretty skeptical about this line up. I couldn’t have been more wrong. George was nothing short of amazing onstage. Running across the stage like

he was being attacked by a horde of angry bees and singing his heart out through the set, I’d long forgotten about their old singer by the time they finished “Precious Metal.” Paul Berrian pounded the skins as if he’d been in the band from day one.

The band only paused for introductions, to chat with the audience a few times while changing guitars and to poke at Bill Westfall’s underwear choices before going back into every song full throttle.

For fans of Banshee, it was looking pretty grim for the promise of ever seeing them “own a stage” ever again. Terry and Bill have managed to bring it all back in fine form with the new guys.

Long live Banshee!

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John Corabi brought along a very worthy band for this evening of “Motley Crue ‘94.” Corabi’s son Ian on drums, Topher Nolan on bass and Josh Dutoit and Jeremy Asbrock sharing guitar duties.

Corabi came to the stage and started the show with a brief hello before the band delivered on their promise of a full Motley Crue ‘94 set. Playing the entire album in order from start to finish.

From the first track, “Hooligan’s Holiday” through to final track “Driftaway.”

John paused the show a few times to talk about how his manager suggested to him to do a tour celebrating MC94 as the Crue wasn’t going to ever play any of the songs, how some of the songs came to be, as well as the challenges of playing “Welcome To The Numb” live onstage with three different tunings on the guitars. John commented that when he brought the problem up to the band “Jeremy Asbrock lit up a bowl ...” and then remembering there were younger children in the audience in front of him he quickly added, “of CHEERIOS!” Then, said “Bitch! I love a challenge!” He then asked the audience to judge if he was right - that the song couldn’t be done, or if Asbrock was right (that it could be). At the end of the song. Jeremy, of course, was right. All I could think was ‘what a great song to hear live!’

At one point in the show John was faced with a challenge, a fan was able to wrap her arms around his torso when he got close enough and she would not let go. He shimmied and wiggled and pulled back a few times but she was resilient. Others even attempted to assist by prying an arm off him to no avail. Finally she let go and John spent the rest of the evening eyeballing her. At the songs end he declared to her and the audience, “Lady, I don’t know what your last name is, but I am officially changing it to VICE-GRIP!” The experience of the full album being performed was only made all the more special with John’s son Ian pounding the skins on the original drum kit that the album was recorded with. Gifted to Ian

by Tommy Lee himself. Ian played Lee’s parts expertly and with great energy.

The band finished out the night with a couple of songs some “deep listeners of Motley Crue would recognize” as John said. “10,000 Miles Away” and “Babykills” from the Quaternary EP (“10,000 Miles Away” was released on the Japanese version of ‘Quaternary’ as well as the Motley Crue Box Set ‘Music To Crash Your Car To Volume 2’).

All in all this band was top notch and played the songs with true devotion. Not even Motley Crue reunited with Corabi could have ever pulled these songs off this well.

If there is ever a must see “Special night of full album” type show to see, this is it!

- Chris Gillespie Photos ©2015 Sick Addiction Studios

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Š2015 Sick Addiction Studios

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The 31 Year Game of Musical Chairs Onslaught was originally formed in 1983, by Nige Rockett and Steve Grice in Bristol, England. They began the first of their two journeys into the music scene being noted as a “thrash metal”, band with a wide variety of hardcore punk influences such as Discharged and the Exploited. During the span of Onslaught’s career from 1983-1991 then again from 2005present, they have released 6 albums, 1 compilation album, 5 singles, 1 live album, 1 DVD and played one hell of a game of musical chairs, 19 musicians in all have traveled through this band.

In 1983 the original line-up as they worked on their first demo was Nige on Guitar, Steve on Drums, they then enlisted Jason Pope vocalist and Paul Hill bassist.

This line up recorded and released a demo called ‘Wessex ’83.’

Before 1983 was over Jason and Paul had been relieved of their duties and replaced by vocalist, Roge Davies and Paul Davis on bass. A second demo was recorded titled ‘What Lies Ahead.’

By 1984 Roge Davies both replaced by Paul Stallard respectively. maneuver actually musically as they from their punk influstarted to head toheavier; satanic (if eventually became album released in label, Children of the

and Paul Davis were Mahoney and Jase This musical chair did impact the band began to stray away ence. Their writing ward a metal, darker, you will) vibe that the ‘Power from Hell’ 1985 via the tiny indie Revolution Records.

In late 1985 the band would undergo a dramatic game of musical chairs as Sy Keeler joined the band as lead vocalist. Although Paul Mahoney was replaced as the band’s frontman he quickly switched to bass guitar, enabling Jase Stallard to assume the new role of second guitarist making Onslaught a two guitar band for the first time. It was with this new duel guitar lineup that the bands sophomore album ‘The Force’ was released through Under One Flag, proving to be even more successful then ‘Power from Hell.’

And yet the endless musical chairs game was still not over…. The end of 1986 saw Paul Mahoney exiting the band to be replaced by bass player James Hinder making him the tenth member of Onslaught. In 1987 the band decided that Jase Stallard was not fulfilling his duties as rhythm guitarist to their liking so he ousted in favor of Rob Troutman and began to embark upon a third album, ‘In Search of Sanity.’

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At this point Onslaught had managed to catch the eye of London Records. Once the ink on Onslaught’s agreement was dry London decided that Keeler wasn’t the man for the job and encouraged the band to replace him with the “more polished” Steve Grimmett (ex of Grim Reaper at the time). Unfortunately ‘In Search of Sanity’ wasn’t nearly as well received as both the label and band had anticipated.

In early 1990 Grimmett left Onslaught citing personal reasons to be replaced with Tony O’Hora (later of Persian Risk and The Sweet). The band, ready to begin the journey of a fourth album, was abandoned by London Records and with no label deal in sight Onslaught disbanded for the next 15 years.

We asked Nige Rockett what was he up to during Onslaught’s fifteen year hiatus: Well I had a band called Frankenstein straight after, then Jeff, our current bassist, and I formed the Power Junkies; it was 1977 style punk rock like the Sex Pistols sort of thing with a metal edge. These are the only two projects I did while away from Onslaught. We were so close to something massive with the Power Junkies and then all of a sudden it just fell apart; it was like the final kick in the teeth I could take. So I slid the guitars under the bed and that is where they stayed for 11 years.

Do you think you would now consider doing the Power Junkies on the side?

Yea, it is what Jeff and I have been talking about What is the hardest part of the writing process?

We are very self-critical. Andy and I have written the last 2 albums and we are very different in the way that we write.

Most bands write 15 songs and chose the best 10 for the album. We don’t, we write like eight or nine songs and are very picky about them until we feel they are perfect.

How do the fans differ in America from the European fans?

Different cultures, the American metal scene is not as massive as it is perceived in Europe. The album sales are going up but show attendance is rough.

“The American metal scene is not as massive as it is perceived in Europe.”

What do you consider the greatest accomplishment of Onslaught to date?

Improving on the previous record. The reviews we have received on the album ‘VI’ have been fantastic - some of the best reviews we have ever gotten. It is definitely the best album of our career so far, very old school.

In 2005 Just like they attempted to do with Humpty Dumpty, Onslaught was put back together again by Nige, drummer, Steve Grice (another original founding member) and Sy Keeler (again), James Hinder on bass and new addition, Welsh guitarist Alan Jordon. It was with this line up the writing for the long awaited fourth album began. But in 2006 James Hinder left the band before ‘Killing Peace’ was released the following year and yet another new band member - Jeff Williams - entered the fold making him number fifteen on this ever climbing list of personnel.

It was also in 2007 that Onslaught filmed their first and only DVD in Warsaw Poland entitled ‘Live Polish Assault.’ But by Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 21

2008 guitarist Alan Jordon was on his way out the door and Andy Rosser – Davies being ushered in. From 2008-2011 the band managed to record their ‘Live Damnation’ album (via Candlelight), at the festival of the same name, find a new deal (current label AFM Records out of Germany) and release a fifth album, ‘Sounds of Violence,’ unbelievably with an intact lineup throughout.

Although three years with no member change was a record for Onslaught all good things must come to an end and so they did in 2011. Founding member Steve Grice decided to leave the band, oddly enough on the eve of a European tour.

He was replaced with current drummer Michael Hourihan. With Michael being confirmed as a “full” member they recorded the ‘VI,’ which they are still out touring and supporting.

In 2012 they added a third guitar player, Leigh Chambers. In 2014 while planning a tour it became clear that due to the health issues Sy Keeler’s son was enduring the frontman would not be able to take to their road . Onslaught made the decision to hire a “live touring” vocalist … not to replace Sy but to simply fill in. Enter onto the stage Neil Turbin, of Anthrax fame.

So why did Onslaught arrive in the Arizona desert without their “live show” singer Neil Turbin just 2 shows before the end of the tour?

This is what Nige had to say about the absence of Neil Turbin for the last two shows on the tour.

This tour was booked in April/ May and since then Sy’s lad has not been very well for a long time. We had to look at things and decide what to do for the tour so we acquired Anthrax singer Neil Turbin. Things never really went that well with Neil. In our opinion he had a fair amount of time to learn the songs, yet he showed up at the first show in New York with a teleprompter. And the teleprompter was still on the stage last night when we fired him. So for the last two nights on the tour I will be doing my best to cover the vocals, because we are not going to disappoint the fans with only two shows left.

And this is what Neil Turbin was quoted as saying about his demise from Onslaught I sincerely hope Sy Keeler's son can find a cure and get better soon. I agreed to do the Onslaught tour to fill-in for Sy Keeler who couldn't do the tour due to his son's illness. I turned down the offer 3 times because it was very low. I agreed after Nige Rockett wouldn't let it go and kept after me and increased it slightly. The contract was signed a month before the tour and that's the amount of time I had to learn an entire “the only way I could sing the proper set of complex lyrics and vocals. There was no time on the road, except for poor sit up sleeping in the van lyrics would be with some help, since and numerous nights without hotel rooms, driving we never rehearsed once” straight from gig to gig. That being said upfront it was shared with Nige that the only way I could sing the proper lyrics would be with some help, since we never rehearsed once and 4 weeks was not enough time to learn the amount of lyrics.

On Monday before show time in Anaheim, I had a meeting with Nige and let him know I needed to be paid each of the last 3 shows the money that was owed to me which was a few hundred dollars, so he did not confirm or assure me that I would be paid and it was suspect the fact that he collected all the money from the Brazilian tour dates, even though the tour was cancelled.

In Montreal before we played there were major arguments by some of the other members with Nige expressing concern 22 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

that they weren't being paid. With this concern heavily in mind I asked Nige Rockett who told me he needs to get paid $2000 by Nate. I then spoke with Nate Klug [tour manager] who said that all the money is going to the van and said Nige was supposed to pay me. When Nige didn't on Monday night after the Anaheim show. I then told Nige and the band C-ya.

No Pay No Way No Show! Therefore his interview providing false information about what happened is just damage control. I left the tour on Monday by my own accord of not being paid for the final week of the tour. Nige Rockett stating that I was fired because of a teleprompter is total rubbish.

I would like to add that whatever they pay Sy Keeler should be increased to double the amount to tolerate the verbal abusiveness and passive aggressive behavior of Mr. Rockett. I quit the Onslaught tour due to non-payment. Nige had no intention of good faith and no intention of paying me. That is the only reason I am not playing the last shows. The rest is Nige Rockett damage control and anger venting.

This was the last member (thus far) of the 31 year game of musical chairs that has plagued this band from the early days of 1983. (Nige Rockett is the only member to have be consistently in the band the entire time) Clearly for a band to have been around 7 years and then after a 15 year break to resurrect itself and continue on for another 15 years, they are dedicated to their music as well as their fans….and they clearly live true to the phrase “The Show Must Go On.” -Phoenix Romero

“Don’t Call Us a Supergroup” Hot summer nights in Spain tend to lead to a lot of things. Often unsavory, shallow and with questionable results, what happens deep in the bowels of Madrid stays (or should stay at least) deep in those bowels. However, a chance conversation between former Helloween and current Masterplan guitarist Roland Grapow and Emergency Gate drummer Mario Lochert deep in those very bowels on a hot August evening led to an idea that would prove to be as vital as it was unexpected.

As it turns out Lochert had been knocking around the idea of putting a power metal supergoup together and, after a few cold adult type beverages, he was able to make Grapow realize that his idea was valid.

“After a few cold adult type beverages, Lochert was able to make Grapow realize that Serious Black was a valid idea.”

With the guitar hero convinced that this needed to become a reality, Mario then made a phone call to his longtime friend Thomen Stauch, ex of Blind Guardian, who immediately jumped onboard. Before long, both Jan Vacik (keyboards, ex-Dreamscape) and guitarist Dominik Sebastian (Edenbridge) were both in the game and busy setting about writing the album that would become ‘As Daylight Breaks,’ their debut for AFM Records.

Entering Dreamsound Studios in Munich in January of 2014, the band had no name, no singer and no real idea of where the music they were writing would take them. Working without the pressure of having to deliver an album on a deadline, the writing process took shape and ideas began to flow swiftly and easily and before they knew it the five musos had eight rough but strong ideas for a powerfully melodic power metal record. “Everything just flowed so smoothly,” says Mario. “We actually did those sessions in a week but after we had all the material for the album, we had reworked those original eight tracks. Some beyond recognition.”

Now, to find a suitable singer to round things out. After discussing several possibilities, the newly christened Serious Black tracked down Swedish expatriate Urban breed (ex Tad Morose and Bloodbound) who happened to be living half a world away in the States.

The band sent breed a sample or two of what they had been working on and he was immediately in and they began sending song ideas back and forth. “Even though Urban lives in Alabama we make it work. He’s over in Europe enough so we use that time to meet up and work on our stuff.”

(Guitarist Roland Grapow has left Serious Black to concentrate on Masterplan. He has been replaced by Firewind’s Bob Katsionis) - Dave Tedder

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Uli John Roth with Black Knights Rising The Scene - Independence, MO Going out to this show, I had the sense that something special was about to occur this night. Call it a feeling in the air or some kind of cosmic wavelength zeroing in on everyone destined to the venue for the show. It was an undeniable feeling that seemed to rush through everyone even as we waited for the doors to open. Oh yes, this was going to be a good night.

Canadian rockers Old James opened the show and they were a good and proper band that were right at home with the true 70’s classic rock fans. One would barely be able to tell by looking at the band though, as none of them looked old enough to drink. Singer, Brian Stephenson ran around like a madman while guitarist, Andy Thompson delivered tasteful lick after tasteful lick. The rest of the band held solid ground and were a great way to warm up the crowd for what was coming.

Next up was Black Knights Rising, an all star “cover band” formed just for this tour. Drummer Vinnie Appice was to have exited the tour the night before to be replaced by Bobby Rondinelli but when the lights came up it was Appice behind the kit. So this move effectively placed half the “Dream Evil” era Dio line up on the stage for the night with guitarist Craig Goldy being the other piece.

Joined By Elliot “Dean” Rubinson on Bass and Tim “Ripper” Owens on vocals, the band was a true force to be reckoned with.

The band came out all fired up, tearing through their version of Rainbow’s “Death Valley Driver” followed by a rousing rendition of Black Sabbath’s “The Mob Rules”. Next they were joined by Uli’s singer John West for Deep Purple’s “Burn”with Ripper and West trading vocal duties. Ripper quipped that “this was how John West warms up for the night, by joining them on stage for one song!” From the quality of the two trading vocals back and forth (Ripper doing his best Coverdale and West doing his best Hughes) I’d say West was already warmed up, actually.

After West’s departure from the stage, the band fired back into Rainbow territory with their covers of “Man on the Silver Mountain” and “Long Live Rock N Roll” with Deep Purple’s “Black Night” snuck in as well.

Ripper’s moment to really shine came for their next cover. Dio’s “Stand Up and Shout”.

He seemed to be channeling Dio himself. It was as if Ronnie was guiding his performance with his own hand. Even Ripper’s mannerisms seemed to mimicking the legend’s movements. Pointing and throwing up the horns at all times through the song.

The band then took a short break while Vinnie Appice took over for a drum solo.

Throughout the evening he had been “playing” with the low ceiling and at this point decided to even incorporate the vent just above his head into the solo. Appice even took the time to make sure the audience participated by chanting out loud “VINNIE!” a few times. Very entertaining solo that easily took the listener back into time and allowed one to remember the glory days of huge drum solos performed in arenas (with the exception of “air vent” cymbals!). Well played Vinnie, well played.

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The band returned to the stage with one of my all time favorite Black Sabbath songs, “Neon Knights.” What a treat that was to hear it played so well and once again delivered by Ripper in true Dio fashion. I had chills. The band followed through with Deep Purple’s “Mistreated.” interrupted in the middle for a great guitar solo from Craig Goldy. Goldy’s playing reminded the audience of his talent behind six strings and why Dio chose him to follow in Vivian Campbell’s footsteps. Tastefully and melodically done. Another “days gone by” moment.

The band finished out with Deep Purple’s “Highway Star” and for what was the only real miss from Ripper for the night. He seemed to be straining to finish the song. Perhaps his voice was worn from an otherwise solid night of singing.

While waiting for the set change for Uli John Roth’s set, we saw a very visibly limping Kofi Baker setting up his drums. It seems that he injured himself just outside the venue earlier that evening. I won’t lie, I was a little concerned about how Uli’s set was going to be with Kofi’s injury.

Uli appeared at the side of the stage and the crowd broke out into shouting “ULI!” several times before he came to the center of the stage and greeted everyone. Uli’s band (consisting of John West on vocals, Elliot “Dean” Rubinson on bass, David Klosinski on guitar and Corvin Bahn on keyboards and backing vocals) broke into an evening of classic Uli era Scorpions tunes.

Playing through “All Night Long,” “Sails Of Charon,” “Sun In My Hand,” “We’ll Burn The Sky” and “In Trance,” Uli traded guitar licks periodically with Kosinski who held his own alongside the legend onstage. Kofi showed no signs of his injury as he played throughout the set with a ferocity seldom seen in today’s drummers. As a friend of mine said about Kofi’s performance, “now that there is a BADASS!” If you closed your eyes, you could almost believe singer John West was Klaus Meine himself singing, my second set of chills for the night. The band paused only for Uli to chat with the audience occasionally and reminisce about the last time he had visited the Kansas City area “some 30 years ago.”

Uli then brought out a recently acquired acoustic “Sky”guitar from Dean Guitars. A seven string guitar for which he proclaimed he was “going to play all of them.” And play all of them he did. As the rest of the band took a break, Uli played a heavily classical tinged session of pure guitar bliss.

Kofi took over to play a tight, powerful solo (choosing to leave the air vent out …) before the band returned to finish the set with “Polar Nights,” “Fly To The Rainbow” and “Dark Lady.”

Singer West was the only one to leave the stage at the end of the set.

After a brief moment onstage, Uli asked if the crowd wanted more to which they replied a resounding “YES!.” The band followed through with cover of Bob Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower” and finishing the night with Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing” with both songs getting some artfully extended guitar soloing thrown in while Uli provided the vocals for the two.

A special night and an experience you do not want to miss indeed.

-Chris Gillespie | Photos ©2015 Sick Addiction Studios

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Š2015 Sick Addiction Studios Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 27

Although Crazy Lixx frontman, Danny Rexon doesn’t seem so sure about it, I’m pretty convinced that since the early 2000’s something has been leaked into the water in the Scandinavian territories … some sort of superior melodic rock craftsmanship drip, if you will. How else can one explain the phenomenal amount of talent emanating from the Cold Dark North?? From Babylon Bombs to Miss Behaviour and from The Poodles to Zan Clan, the new generation of powerful bands exploding from, especially, Sweden, is unparalleled.

From the early / mid 2000’s on, Hardcore Superstar and CrashDiet have generally been considered to be the Kings of Swedish Sleaze. However, the crown is in serious jeopardy of being stolen (some would say it already has been) by the quartet hailing from the thriving seaside city of Malmo known as Crazy Lixx.

In late 2002 singer Danny Rexon and guitarist Vic Zino formed Crazy Lixx based upon their mutual love of 80’s “Only a small percentage of our albums are hard rock and began hitting the clubs alongside basssold in Sweden while the majority are sold in ist Luke Rivano and drummer Joey Cirera, perfecting their craft before signing with the tiny indie Swedmetal Southern Europe, the Americas and a bunch in in 2007 and releasing their debut album ‘Loud Minority.’

Japan.”

Featuring songs such as “Dr. Hollywood,” “Want It” and “Make Ends Meet” the album became an instant favorite among the hard rock faithful praised far and wide on genre relative sites and blogs, hailing the band as the next Def Leppard and so forth.

2008 saw Zino take on a guest role with Hardcore Superstar, filling in for the departed Thomas Silver on the European run for that band’s ‘Dreamin’ in a Casket’ album, only to join them on a permanent basis after the tour’s conclusion.

Without missing a beat, the Swedes added guitarist Andy Dawson (aka Adde Zata Eriksson) to the lineup, signed a new deal with the powerful Frontiers label and jumped headlong into their sophomore effort, ‘New Religion.’ Once again met with critical praise across the board, the success of the album allowed Crazy Lixx a further reach throughout the continent as well as building some solid notoriety in their homeland, although the followup, ‘Riot Avenue’ tested that notoriety just a bit with their audience split, pretty much down the middle on the progressive nature of the record (not progressive, as in “prog rock,” you nitwits … more “modern leaning,” you could say), as well as adding second guitarist, Edd Liam to the mix.

Well, in the eyes of the fans who were disappointed with ‘Riot Avenue’ (which I thought was fantastic, by the way), the band has fully redeemed themselves with their fourth, self-titled album, out towards the close of 2014. Upon the album’s release, a million people collectively stopped holding their breath (okay, a few thousand maybe), first children were 28 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

promised to the band members, parades were held daily at noon in both Malmo and Stockholm city squares for a week straight and the AOR Mafia squealed with glee from the roofs of skyscrapers across the globe – their heroes were back! Although hitting the streets (and the cyberworld) at the ass end of the year, ‘Crazy Lixx’ (see review on page 49) quickly found itself sitting at the very top of those notorious “Best of Year charts” punching and kicking other releases out of the way as it climbed and climbed in short fashion.

Frontman, Danny Rexon went one on one with us regarding this glorious new piece of plastic (and errr, data).

The first thing run past him, of course, is that “something in the water” question that’s so perplexing and he, much to my chagrin, has no real answer, “I get asked that all the time and I never really have a good answer, “ he remarks. “What I will say, though, is that the competition in Sweden is fierce. There are tons of bands trying to make it and I guess that could be why the ones that do branch outside of Sweden tend to be so high quality. There is so much competition that we sort of have to ‘out-write’ each other, if that makes any sense. “But, you know, it’s actually real hard to get a break on our home turf,” he continues.” Only a small percentage of our albums are sold in Sweden while the majority are sold in Southern Europe, the Americas and a bunch in Japan.”

Rexon himself sat behind the console for the new record, alongside guitarist, Adde Zata. “Yes, this was actually our second co-production, the first being our previous album, ‘Riot Avenue. I really enjoy working in the studio, especially when I’m not recording anything myself. I can just focus on the other guys’ performances and pull the sound together.” And, as for whether he’d be interested in producing anyone else, he adds, “I would definitely consider producing other bands if anyone would be interested in letting me poke my fingers into their stuff. I think I could add a lot of good input, especially when it comes to layered vocals; gang choruses and stuff like that, which is something that I think a lot of bands attempt but do poorly.”

The song, “Sound of the Loud Minority” has a familiar ring to it, was it left off of the debut or did you just happen to go back to that title?

“It was written in parts for ‘Loud Minority’ but the only bit that was any good was the chorus and at that time there simply wasn’t enough time to re-write the verses before we started recording that album. Besides, we had enough material already so that chorus just collected dust for a few years but everyone who heard it thought it sounded cool. When time came to work on this new album, I picked up that chorus and finally finished the song!”

Speaking of that first album, the band have reworked the live favorite “Heroes are Forever” for inclusion on the 2014. I just have to wonder if there’s any chance of my personal favorite off of that album, “Dr. Hollywood” seeing the light of day again and getting the recognition it fully deserves.

“Ah, yes, another great song that I know a lot of fans would appreciate if we re-recorded,” he conveys. “There’s actually an acoustic version that we did not so long ago lying around. Maybe we’ll release that in the future. And, who knows, there could be a new version of “Dr. Hollywood” on the next Crazy Lixx album.” (oh, thanks for the tease, Danny … you’re back in the studio tomorrow, right? RIGHT???)

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Having been a band for a little more than a decade you’re bound to have learnt some life lessons along the way and had some decent advice spat at you …

“Hmmm, I guess I’ve learned a lot from myself, really. Not only from where we fit in as a band in the industry but of the industry as a whole, the history of it, the inner workings, that stuff, you know. It’s a real messy business and I could talk about it for hours and I’m just glad to have the creative freedom that Frontiers gives us. Not all bands are that fortunate.”

What led to the departure of longtime bassist, Luke Rivano and how did Jens Sjoholm enter the picture?

“We started to have different working methods, I would say. And we knew Jens from another local band, Solity, which he still in. At first he was just meant to fill in for a few gigs but once we got to know him better and realized how skilled he was we decided to make him a permanent member of the band.

On the live front, what have been some of your favourite cities / countries to play?

No hesitation: “I have to say Germany is a big favorite. We’ve played some really big festivals and venues over there and it’s always been a good crowd. But, I guess with a population of 80+ million people you’re bound to get a lot of metal heads.” (Spoken like a man who has quite obviously never set foot in the United States …)

So, getting back to the new album – you have a track on it called “Girls of the 80’s.” I’m pretty sure that if we put all of your birth certificates together you might collectively be of “a certain age” to have known that particular generation of the fairer sex. So, uhhh, whatcha tryin’ to pull, eh??

“Seeing the older rock videos and the girls in them is something special. It was sexy, yet at the same time, classy,” “Well, it depends on how you look at it, doesn’t it,” he suspectfully responds. “It could mean girls that were born in the 80’s, which would be the case of our girlfriends and wives.” I’m still not buying it, however, so he offers up, “Okay, okay, you’re right” (as if there was any doubt …!). The oldest member of the band was, like, 10, when the 90’s started but seeing the older rock videos and the girls in them is something special. It was sexy, yet at the same time, classy, which is far from what I could say about the twerking big bootied women of today’s videos.”

And with that, young Mr. Rexon tires of my questions and heads off into the cold Swedish winter night, where he will, at some point undoubtedly, have a glass of water, which will, of course, provide an entire new album chock full of nutritious hard rock goodness.

Until that next album drops, celebrate the band’s return to form, if you wish, but whatever do you, make ‘Crazy Lixx’ the definitive sound of the loud minority.

-Dave Tedder

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TUFF LUCK: DOCUMENTARY “What Could Possibly Go Wrong?”

The road to adversity is littered with hard rock bands from the 80’s and early 90’s.

We’ve heard of all of them, we have all of their demos and independent records. We still wonder what the hell happened to them. The most famous of these bands, of course, is London, who were basically a training ground for future rock stars, boasting the likes of Nikki Sixx as well as various members of Guns N’ Roses, Cinderella, LA Guns and more as part of their lineage. The UK had City Kidds, Germany had Steeler, New York had Skin N Bones.

And Florida had Tuff Luck.

25 years after their heyday, director (and brother of Tuff Luck drummer, Todd Kelly) Andrew Klein has released a DVD documentary detailing the backstory, the trials, tribulations, successes and the misses of South Florida’s favorite glammy sons.

But, why do this?? Why spend the money to put this together after all these years?? Who in their right mind would buy it?? We would.

Klein has done a fantastic job of piecing together archive footage and pairing it with very personal firsthand accounts from not only the band members themselves but guitarist Dave Scott’s parents, Todd Kelly’s family members, former crew members, girlfriends and “rival” musicians from back in the day, as well as Marc Ferrari, Mike Varney and Jason Flom – who camethisclose to signing the band to Atlantic, but ultimately passed.

The DVD covers the band’s history from their earliest days as Cryer, who first had a shot at the brass ring, but turned down a bad offer from CBS Records only to be told by their attorney that they’d “never have another chance.” Nothing like a bold faced challenge like that to piss a bunch of teenagers off and drive them to prove you wrong on every level. And it worked. Well, to an extent, anyway. From drawing a thousand plus fans at shows at Ft. Lauderdale area venues like The Button South and The Treehouse (remember kids, this was an era when people actually went to see bands) to trips to New York and Los Angeles to get some attention – any attention.

As everyone by now knows, the small indie, New Renaissance Records bit and released the band’s eight song demo as an Ep / mini album, receiving praise the world over. Getting that major deal was next on the agenda.

But, how to do this? Well, you send a cute blonde girl, who just happens to be the drummer’s sister to NYC with a bag full of press kits and voila! Atlantic Records came a calling. All the way to an oversold showcase at the band’s home, The Button South. Atlantic VP of A&R, Jason Flom was blown away. He was calling Todd’s sister and introducing the band to very high profile managers and record producers. And then he wasn’t anymore. The band was a little bitter (who wouldn’t be?!) but they got over it, buckled down and moved to NYC to be closer to the industry at large.

And, as (tuff) luck would have it, they were late to the party. This was right went the music industry changed drastically and bands like Tuff Luck were no longer in fashion.

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Returning to Ft. Lauderdale, sans beloved frontman, Kenny Monroe (who decided to seek out new opportunities in The Big Apple), the three remaining members made another go of it, running through a succession of singers, none of whom brought that “magic” that the trio had with Monroe. Both, a band name and musical direction change followed, while the members slowly came to the harsh realization that maybe they had missed their chance and that they could either quit or forge ahead with what they were currently doing. They chose the latter option and who knows what might have happened …

They would never find the answer to that out, as drummer Todd Kelly was tragically shot while at work one night. Bringing an end to not only one of their best friends lives but, also to the band at large, as Dave Scott and bass player, James Marino, cashed in their chips and called it a day on the band(s) they had shared for the past decade or so of their lives.

The DVD manages to capture a moment in time and bring it into the present with relative ease.

The DVD manages to capture a moment in time and bring it into the present with relative ease. And, unlike a lot of “Behind the Music’ type docs, there’s no mudslinging, no finger pointing and no drama. Everyone interviewed, from the five different band members – including original bassist Kenny Allen Thomas – and extended family all seem to still have a genuine love and respect for one another after all this time.

If you’ve ever wondered what it was like to be in a popular band then this DVD is a must see. If you’ve ever “almost been there” as hundreds of musicians over the years have been then this DVD is a must see. If you’re currently in a young band then this DVD is a must see, if only for the work ethic, even.

Marc Ferarri jokingly summed the bands run of misfortune up perfectly: “THEY NAMED THE DAMN BAND TUFF LUCK – WHAT DID THEY THINK WAS GONNA HAPPEN?!?!?!!!!!” And there you have it.

- Dave Tedder

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ALICE COOPER 50 Years of Self Sacrifice Terri “The Queen” Knight

Photo credits: Khris Poage

Artistic Genius! Mezmerizingly Mad (I guess I just invented that word)! Just a few adjectives one can use to describe Alice Cooper’s live shows. Make no mistake … at 67 years young not only is his stage show as strong and powerful as ever but so are his vocals. Age is just a number and he proves it! I hope those skeptics that think a 60+ rock musician gets on stage with a walker get to see a show because, truth be known, he’s probably in better shape than most of the guys half – and a quarter - his age are. The band? OFF THE CHAIN! This is definitely one of the most talented bands he has ever taken out with him. When Coop said his new guitar player Nita Strauss shreds like Jimi Hendrix he was absolutely right. Put that together with Chuck Garric, Ryan Roxie, Tommy Henriksen and Glen Sobel and all those bad boy songs you grew up with and you can see why the number one stage villain will never fall from his lofty height.

If the site of (fake) blood bothers you don’t sit in the front row! If you do sit in the front row make sure you’re wearing white! You will quite possibly walk away with a few (fake) bloody spatters on your clothes. There’s no telling what will be thrown into the audience so it’s a good place to be!

“There was a time when Alice’s onstage antics would terrify you - the guillotine where they lop off his head” For those who have been sleeping under a rock for the past decade or more, Alice’s band members individually have their own unique backgrounds: Chuck Garric, (bass) has been with Cooper for a good 10 years plus now and has co-written several songs with Alice including prolific live favorite, “Dirty Diamonds.” Garric has also spent time playing with Dio, LA Guns and alongside Ted Nugent, as well as fronting his own band, Beasto Blanco, with whom he’s recently released ‘Live Fast, Die Loud.’

Guitarist, Ryan Roxie, joined Alice’s band in 1996 after spending time with LA power pop glam pioneers, Candy and Electric Angels, later spending time with Dad’s Porno Mag and Slash’s Snakepit, amongst others and now spends his time living in Stockholm, Sweden playing with the band Casablanca.

Nita Strauss (guitars) is the newest member of the band – stepping into the slot vacated by Orianthi - and is also the guitarist for the arena football team, LAKISS, is a member of all female Iron Maiden tribute band, the Iron Maidens, has been featured in Revolver Magazine’s annual “Hottest Chicks in Hard Rock” issue for the past two years and was ranked #1 on Guitar World’s “10 Female Guitar Players You Should Know” list.

Tommy Henriksen (guitars) has shared the stage with the likes of Lady GaGa, Steel Magnolia, David Cook, Warlock and Daughtry to name but a few. A multi-instrumentalist, Henriksen released his own self-titled album in 1999, spawning the Top 40 hit single, “I See the Sun.” Rounding it all out is drummer, Glen Sobel, who came aboard in 2011. Sobol has graced the stage with the likes of MacAlpine, Shark Island, Beautiful Creatures and, steeping out of the rock genre, rap rock hybrid SX10 and pop songstress Tiffany. In 2013, Glen was 1st runner up in DRUM Magazine’s Drummies Readers Poll in both Rising Star and Rock/Metal categories.

There was a time when Alice’s onstage antics would terrify you - the guillotine where they lop off his head, the 34 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

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Frankenstein lab where the monster comes to life and even seeing him writhe around in a straightjacket with the evil nurse and giant hypodermic needle. In today’s world our society has been numbed by so many true horrors it’s a little harder to actually frighten anyone. So, as Alice says he has to rely on his humor and his theatrics and make light of it all. Brilliant theatrics at that.

Cooper was born in Detroit, MI but moved to Phoenix, AZ with his family and it was there that The Alice Cooper Band was born from high school. He told me that it started out as something fun to do but then destiny took hold and what started out as kids doing something fun became something the public craved. He was actually discovered in 1969 by none other than Frank Zappa in Los Angeles.

Alice Cooper himself came through some very dark days and when you really stop and think about who his buddies were when he started - Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Keith Moon, John Lennon and Janis Joplin were all like family. Thankfully, however, Alice did not join The 27 Club.

There is so much history about those days when Alice had trouble separating his character on stage and the man off stage. Alice was surrounded by enough love that finally things leveled out and he was able to find himself again.

Nowadays he will tell you that when the lights go down so does Alice. Vincent Damon Furnier (tis his birth name, ya know!) tucks Alice away until the next show and lives a “normal life” (whatever that may be like for him). Off stage those still around him call him “Coop.” It is a very interesting journey to follow and I had a moment with the person behind the character backstage which was cool to see. You will be hard pressed to find a nicer or more gracious artist. You will also never see a better or more energetic live show!

Here is the time I spent with the man behind the mask.

I love your radio show Oh thank you! That’s the most fun thing to do - just turn the mic on, play the records I like and start talking!

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That’s kind of what I do! I think the coolest thing about you is that you started out when music was in its prime. You know, the days of Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison and the like. There was a real personal connection with rock during those early days when the artists were out trying to find themselves. I’m sure you found yourself in that category too.

Well I was, you know. Those guys ended up being my big brothers. They came to L.A. and we (The Alice Cooper Band) were the next generation after they were and I drank with all of those guys. We opened for the Doors and Jimi was one of our best friends. Janis Joplin could drink all of us under a table - she was hardcore! But I mean, Keith Moon and Henry Neilson and John Lennon you know … these were all my drinking buddies! We had a drinking club called The Hollywood Vampires and it was like the last man standing.

In the beginning I know you were trying to find yourself too and create your own persona and identity and all of that but I read the incident with the chicken and I guess when that happened you realized people really did need this bad guy on stage.

(Chuckling) To me, well, I knew there was a villain missing from the puzzle. I mean everyone was cool, everything was great and all that, all these heroes. And I just start asking, “Where’s Captain’ Hook”?? When is the other boot gonna drop here? We needed a villain and I was just prime to be that. I was built to look like that and I had that dark look. I was slim with the black hair and the makeup and I said let’s just keep it up. And the reason is that he’s gonna fulfill a need in rock n roll. He’s gonna be the dark comedic Lord of Rock n Roll and you know you had to add that comedy. If you don’t have that comedy in there, that sense of humor to it then it falls flat. Tongue in cheek, you know, and then on top of that you have to have a producer and you have to have songs that make people just go “Whaaaaat?!”

“Dali and I got to be pretty good friends.

I was an art major in school so getting to meet Salvador Dali was like meeting the Beatles to me.

He was so much not from here.”

In your movie “Super Duper Alice Cooper” there was a big scene where you got to meet Salvador Dali.

Dali and I got to be pretty good friends. I was an art major in school so getting to meet Salvador Dali was like meeting the Beatles to me. He was so much not from here. He was from some other dimension and even after I got to work with him for a week he was still from that dimension. He never did ... you know when you meet people then you kinda go ‘well ok they’re kind of normal but not at all?!’ He was just bizarre but at the same time he was probably the greatest graphic oil painter of all time. On top of that, his insanity got him through it and when you meet the guy he’s just as insane as you think he is.

Haha that’s awesome. Well, in a couple of weeks you’ll be doing the Rock Legends Cruise and then you’ll be out with Motley Crue again.

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you had our show which was like the Vaudeville show with all the hits and the guillotine and the snakes and the nurse and the whole thing and all the songs and then you have Motley Crue as a second punch with all their stuff and they bring it every night so it was really a great rock n roll show.

Have you ever realized that people were not really getting the big picture - that it was as much about good as well as evil?

Well, you know I did like to write ironic songs. The idea of Alice, who was the scourge of everything. I was being blamed for the Vietnam War. I was being blamed for everything back then. I was the worst thing that could happen to your children. Then I went ‘Okay that does it! No more Mr Nice Guy!’ It was like, you mean it gets worse than this? (Laugh) and “Schools Out,” you know being the fact that every kid in the world understood that song. “I’m 18 and I like it!” instead of I’m 18 and I’m frustrated and horrible. I’m 18 and I enjoy the chaos! haha

“I was being blamed for the Vietnam War. I was being blamed for everything back then. I was the worst thing that could happen to your children”

Tell me about the band’s current live show.

I’ll tell you what, this is the best band I’ve ever worked with. I’ve got 3 gunslinger guitar players. We just got this girl in the band named “Hurricane” Nita Strauss, who shreds, just shreds! She looks like a model and she shreds like Jimi Hendrix. It’s a very, very cool band and what I enjoy is this: I get the reviews the next day and normally it’s “Well the guillotine and ...” Well, now the first thing they say is “Wait till you hear this band! This band live is killer!” and they really are. And I love the fact that now the music gets reviewed first and then the 38 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

theatrics.

The thing is, every night we look forward to … well, the high point of the day for us is getting on stage and doing the show because everybody in the band loves doing the show. I think we have as much fun as the audience.

You have persevered all these years so you have fun at what you do. You don’t look at it as a job. It’s just your life.

Yes it is and if I take too much time off I start missing it. That’s why we do at least 100 to 125 shows a year.

I do regret not asking him about his golf game. Cooper is an avid golfer and seems to fit in a game wherever he is.

Alice Cooper has been nonstop busy lately and he wouldn’t want it any other way. This past summer he did a trek with Motley Crue and will be going back out with them again starting in May. This, being Motley Crue’s final tour (hey, they’ve even signed a contract saying so!), teaming up with the legendary Mad Man just makes great sense. They start out in New Zealand and play shows across Europe before coming back to The States in July.

He’s also just recently started another project “Hollywood Vampires” with Johnny Depp and Joe Perry, the moniker coming the name of the drinking club Cooper shared with those 1960’s buddies. I’ve actually tried to visualize what that would have been like and now I’m afraid to sleep at night … Can you imagine the oceans of alcohol downed by this troupe? Well, Cooper decided to bring that name back for this new supergroup minus the alcohol, of course. I can see it. In fact, I must see it.

In addition to his live shows you can also catch Alice making time for Cooper’stown (his Phoenix-based restaurant/sports bar) and his Nights With Alice Cooper nightly radio show, syndicated domestically and worldwide on over 100 stations.

One solid thing we have in this diverse world of rock that seems to be changing with the tides - we always have shows like Alice Cooper’s to remind us where our rock roots have come from.

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One Bite at a Time The Japanese just seem to do things better than most everyone else, don’t they? Let’s begin with the obvious. That’s right, beer vending machines on street corners. I mean, c’mon, that’s just a win / win, right?

Next we have video games. Any gamer will attest to that. And then, we have anime and cartoons. Heading back to the early, lower budget days of “Speed Racer” and “Ultraman” to the modern day sky’s-the-limit-productions of “Absolute Duo” and “Is It Wrong to Try to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon” (ummm??? – ed.), the Land of the Rising Sun blows away the competition with ease. Next we have robotics and well, who doesn’t love ASIMO?? Which brings us to another thing the Japanese do better … and that’s ROCK. I mean, seriously, who hasn’t heard of Loudness, EZO, X (Japan) and, of course, new sensations Babymetal, to name but a few … and then we have the powerhouse dynamic duo that is VAMPS. Formed in 2008 by singer Hyde and guitarist, K.A.Z, both superstars back in their homeland with their respective outfits, L’Arc-en-Ciel (who even headlined Madison Square Garden in 2012) and Oblivion Dust, VAMPS combines elements of heavy metal and dance music to create an infectious and unique blend of musical mayhem that’s as at home on upscale trendy dancefloors as it is in theaters and concert halls.

The band has just released their newest effort, ‘Bloodsuckers’ (see our review on page 63) via the Finnish super indie label, Spinefarm and they’re taking to the US road this Spring.

VAMPS will be touring the US with SIXX AM in April. This is your first major US tour, correct? And I understand that they supported VAMPS in Japan. How was the audience reaction to them over there?

HYDE: It isn’t our first US tour, but it’s the first time we’re touring so many places. The Budokan gig was even greater than we expected. Our fans really enjoyed themselves too, so everyone had a great time. It was a really happy show.

K.A.Z: There were lots of fans who were so moved they were crying. It was great. Konstanze from SIXX:AM’s management was crying too – she said that she hadn’t been so excited in a while!

How did the two of you wind up working together and are Oblivion Dust and L’Arc-En-Ciel both still performing and recording?

H: When I started working on my solo project, I asked K.A.Z to join me as a producer. That’s when we started writing songs together and here we are today as VAMPS. K: Oblivion Dust has been doing gigs too.

Growing up, did you tend to listen to Japanese artists more or were you into “western music” more?

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genres.

K: Exactly the same as HYDE. We’ve listened to a lot of similar music. That’s why we tend to agree during our song writing and have similar tastes.

What are some of your favorite current bands?

H: Uh, there’s a band which I want to tour with… they’re a two-vocal band and they sound like they use a vocoder… I can’t remember what they’re called but definitely those guys. Haha ‘Sex, Blood, Rock N’ Roll’ was the first English language record for both of you. Why did you decide to make that change from writing in Japanese?

H: In Japan we tend to play more Japanese tracks, but when we’re overseas it’s obviously hard to deliver our music if it’s not in English. Some of the hardcore fans can understand Japanese, but we’re aiming for a larger audience and want to be heard by a wider market. I also simply like the sound of English.

K: I think that melodies can sound better in English. The lyrics of a song also make up the sound, so in that sense I think English can be better.

“We like to do things like taking the digital aspects of dance music and arranging it into a more rock-style sound. Trends in music are always changing and it evolves with time” It took you four years to record ‘Blooduckers.’ Why so long?

H: Ummm… the Olympics take 4 years to prepare right? That’s exactly why! hah!

K: The main reason is that the album came about when we wanted new material. Different bands take varying amounts of time in production right? Even if we managed to make an album really fast, we wouldn’t want to release it if it’s not cool enough. So that’s why it took 4 years.

Has anyone ever bought a ticket to one of your shows expecting to see the English boy band of the same name?? If so, did you sacrifice them?

H: That was our plan all along!

K: In that case we’ll have to play one of their songs … so, noooo!

VAMPS combines a great deal of electronic / dance music with traditional hard rock. You’re certainly not the first band to do this but you do it better than anyone else I’ve heard. What’s your secret?

H: We spend a lot of time on each track and arrange each other’s tracks. We generally take a great amount of care when making a song which I guess leads to the quality of our songs.

K: We like to do things like take the digital aspects of dance music and arrange it into a more rock-style sound. Trends in music are always changing and it evolves with time, although some things are more consistent. VAMPS have a lot of variation in our style, so we’re able to express ourselves in different ways and exploit these varying trends in music.

- Tim Welch 42 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

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minds me a bit of really old school AC/ DC with the opening vocals of “Nah, nah, nah, nahhh”. You know what I am talking about, don’t deny it. Really good blues driven hard rock.

3 YEARS HOLLOW ‘The Cracks’ (Imagen Records)

AC/DC ‘Rock Or Bust’ (Columbia Records)

Fans of Disturbed and Chevelle need look no further for their next fix. Straight off the bat you are bombarded with the hard hitting drums from Chris Cushman that are found throughout the album. Followed by a wall of guitar, I am in heaven. 3 Years Hollow hails from the Quad Cities and their experience over the last few years shines through on ‘The Cracks.’

So now I start a review for AC/DC’s latest album “Rock Or Bust”. Let me get this out of the way first. IT’S AC/DC. I mean, unless you have been living under a ROCK (see what I did there?), you should damn well know what they sound like as a band!

Jose Urquiza’s powerful voice is grimy and precise. Enough angst to remind you of the hard rock bands from the 2000’s but controlled enough to stick out. Enter “For Life” featuring Clint Lowry, Like a swift punch to the face the guitar riff in this song is h-e-a-v-y. The guitar work by Tony Reeves and Neil Kuhlman is a great balance between solos and killer riffs. The passion and drive come out in the lyrics of this album. For a quick judgement listen to “Chemical Ride”, “Hungry”, “For Life” and “Lost” and get ready for some ear candy.

Everyone knows by now that this is the first album without Malcolm and many people (including yours truly) feared that it may have spelled the end of the band as we know it. On the contrary, I think this is the best release they’ve had in over 20 years.

If you are looking for loud guitars, heavy bass and drums and some solid Modern Hard Rock this is the band for you.

-Donny Rosko

Only this time, it’s a tad different. Yeah, you read that right.

They sound fresh. No, refreshed. There is definitely some rejuvenation in their music on this new disc. Comparatively speaking, the last couple of releases sounded stale and tired. They seemed to have avoided that this time around. I think the addition of Stevie Young has given this band the injection they have needed.

By this time, most everyone has heard “Rock or Bust” and “Play Ball” with their usual gusto that only AC/DC can deliver, but the third track, “Rock the Blues Away,” is my favorite. Catchy vocals, melodic and hook laden, this is the track that is played on repeat in the car and just makes you feel good. That is what AC/DC is here for. To make you feel good - like good sex for your ears.

The opening of “Miss Adventure” re-

44 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

“Hard Times” is catchy as all hell and you will find yourself singing along to the chorus of “Hard times, these hard times, sure ain’t been good to me”. Another excellent track.

“Dogs of War”, “Got Some Rock & Roll Thunder”, “Baptism By Fire”, “Rock The House” (with it’s Led Zeppelin-esque guitar sound), “Sweet Candy” (another catchy sing along tune that strip clubs are going to love) and “Emission Control” all help fill the album with quality non filler tracks.

This LP has been released on Vinyl (with the CD version included) in addition to CD and digital formats. Problem is, if I had it on Vinyl, I’d have worn it out already. It’s THAT good.

-Chris Gillespie

ADRENALINE MOB ‘Dearly Departed’ (Century Media Records) You have to wonder what Adrenaline Mob is going to offer when you pop in the CD. They have recorded original albums and cover albums and have seen success with both. This album starts off snarling with the Pat Travers classic, “Snortin Whiskey.”

Right away you get a feel for what you just got yourself into, ripping guitar and hard hitting bass and drums. There are a lot of covers on this album and this is one of the better ones. The title track, “Dearly Departed” is next and I like what I hear.

This is everything you would expect from Adrenaline Mob. The song has a lot of energy, it makes you want to drive your car fast and sing along in the choruses. Big harmonies and a dynamic vocal performance from Russell Allen which continues into the acoustic versions of “Crystal Clear”, “Angel Sky” and “All on the Line.”

By now you know what Adrenaline Mob can deliver and these acoustic tracks are a breath of fresh air. You actually feel as if you are in the room with the band during “Angel Sky”, which you immediately want to turn up in your convertible as you barrel down the freeway. Don’t worry because with “Gets You Through the Night” you get right back in the heavy with the heavy palm mutes and metal guitar tone of Mike Orlando. The band pays tribute to Black Sabbath with a medley that is not only captivating but true to form for such tremendous players.

“Devil Went Down to Georgia” … can we all just let this song die?! There is some cool guitar work during the solo section but can we just let The Charlie Daniels Band keep this one? Although they completely redeem themselves with the storming cover of Queen’s ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, which closes out the album. If you can imagine a metal/blues version of Queen than you have got this nailed. Russell puts his spin on the vocals and they match perfectly with Orlando’s interpretation of Brian May’s playing and soloing.

Because of the nature of this offering there is not as much guitar solo work as offerings in the past. This is a shame as Orlando is known as a guitar master and it lends itself to the band in a great way. That is not meant to take away from this album, but it seems to be a tame version of Adrenaline Mob. Is that bad? Is that good?

It is both, this entire album is a great listen and I would highly recommend it to any rock fan. I hope the Adrenaline Mob guys put out another album full of hard hitting originals, because that is what we all want.

(Check out the Adrenaline Mob feature on Page 7!)

-Donny Rosko

CD REVIEWS

AMERICAN MAFIA ‘Rock N’ Roll Hit Machine’ (Grooveyard Records)

New York based rock band, American Mafia unleash their powerhouse debut, ‘Rock N’ Roll Hit Machine’, serving up a hearty dose of classic blues-soaked hard rock that brings back memories of Montrose, Led Zep,Robin Trower-hell,ANY great classic blues rock of the 70’s.

American Mafia is the brain-child of Tom Jude (Doro Pesch/Holy Water) on guitar & Freddy Villano (Quiet Riot/Widowmaker/Holy Water) on bass, American Mafia also includes Bobby Marks (Dokken) on drums. The band also boasts an impressive cast of outstanding rock singers, John West (Badlands/Artension/ Royal Hunt), Jimmy Kunes (Cactus/Savoy Brown/Flood the Engine), Don Chaffin (VOX/Red Lamb), Mike DiMeo (Riot/ Masterplan/The Lizards), Ed Terry (Rondinelli/Rage & Beyond) & David Knight (Holy Water).

All 12 tracks that make up the album are like a fine whiskey on ice, smooth, yet with enough bite to let you know there is fire in that water. The album covers a range like no other, “Obsession” has that hard driving beat that keeps rock music alive, “Every Time” has that Mountain meets Free artistry, while tracks like, “Death & Satisfaction” , “Friendly Fire”, “Man On The Flying Trapeze” and a killer cover of the Stevie Wonder classic, “Living In The City” shows off the band’s bravado and tightness, and the slow burning movers “Let Me Know” and “All I Need” yield melodies that surprise.

The vocal performances are just amazing and go from an aggressive driving voice right down to passion filled. The bottom line is ‘Rock And Roll Hit Machine’ is a solid rock recording powered by

real musicians playing some of the most refreshing music to come along in a very long time. It’s a whiskey drenched rocker of a release. Just like a fine aged whiskey, it taste better with time, goes down easy, & packs a wallop! If you are sick of all the same old junk out there give American Mafia a shot. My only advice is shut your iPhone off, pop it in your car, open all the windows and play it loud!

-Tony Sison

THE ANSWER ‘Raise A Little Hell ‘ (Napalm Records) The Answer is a band that hails from Northern Ireland and has a modernized classic rock sound. Straight out of the gate you are listening to an almost funky but bluesy bass and guitar riff with the song “Long Live the Renegades.” As the song continues you can immediately understand why these guys toured with AC/ DC and were handled by the team over at Albert Productions. (AC/DC’s production company) . The song structure reflects more modern AC/DC material than their classic songs. Guitar riff after riff and grungy vocals keep this true to the classic bluesy rock of days past. “Cigarettes & Regret is a great track reminiscent of some of Motley Crue’s finer ballads. While The Answer may be keeping rock n roll alive they still seem to be missing the “it” factor.

Who cares! The Answer has been bringing it loud and proud for around a decade and they might be what mainstream rock needs. ”Strange Kinda Nothing” brings in an acoustic guitar for an almost folky blues feel. This is a nice change up, and reminds me of Heart and their affinity for Led Zeppelin. “I Am What I Am” leads

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CD REVIEWS

with a fantastic intro. Starting with a huge guitar part, courtesy of Paul Mahon, it then kicks into a song that could easily compete with the classic rock standards.

At this point in the album you can figure out what The Answer is all about if you’re new to the band - loud, unadulterated rock n roll. Full of crisp soaring guitar solos and catchy choruses. A lot of the harmonies on these tracks are straight out of the 80s and it works well.

Here comes another ballad. “Gone Too Long,” although a bit more hard hitting than what you would expect.

As I near the end of this offering I hit “I Am Cured” which is a heavy blues driven song with a certain darkness to is. Starting out with some slide guitar and a bunch of half time sections really add the heaviness.

The title track, “Raise a Little Hell’” sounds like a song that would play as I get ready for battle. Nice sludgy classic hard rock.

Overall ‘Raise A Little Hell’ is a really good album for those who love classic rock and fans of 80s hard rock (which, face it – is also deserving of the term “classic rock” anymore – ed) They are everything you like about AC/DC, Bad Company and Motley Crue but without the nostalgia. Go buy this record and change that.

-Donny Rosko

boardist, Alessandro del Vecchio.

A heavier affair than the 3 Lions material, this album falls squarely in Dare / Magnum territory and at times Nigel Bailey is reminiscent of Ten’s Gary Hughes in the vocal department.

“Feed the Flames” and “In the Name of the King” are both frantic similar sounding guitar driven numbers while “Dirty Little Secret” brings to mind ‘Premonition’ era Survivor and “Bad Reputation” (is that a horn section I hear in the chorus?) recalls Gary Moore’s 80’s solo work in delivery.

“Somewhere In Oslo” makes a run at mid tempo balladry but falls a bit short as the various sections of the song don’t seem to flow properly. The title track is up next and finds Bailey right back in Gary Moore territory. “Spend The Night” is another ballad borrowing more than just a little from Thunder’s “Love Walked In” in the verses, although the song falls apart when the chorus kicks in, dragging far too much for it’s own good.

Rounding out the album is the heavier, “Dirty Angel” which I can see going down fantastically in a live situation.

All in all Bailey’s ‘Long Way Down’ is a decently strong album, although it doesn’t check on all the boxes. It’s a very mid 80’s British hard rock influenced record, recalling bands like Little Angels, FM, and as mentioned earlier, Dare and Magnum.

The musicianship is top notch, although Nigel’s limited vocal range may hold him back a bit and Del Vecchio’s production is very strong.

- Tim Welch

BAILEY ‘Long Way Down’ (Frontiers Records) Bailey is more or less the solo project of Three Lions frontman, Nigel Bailey.

Bailey is rounded out by three Italians - guitarist, Mario Percudani, drummer, Alessandro Mori and producker / key-

BEARDFISH ‘+4626 – Comfortzone’ (InsideOut Music)

46 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

So, knowing nothing of these guys with no biography information provided, I will just have to review the tunes. Kinda guess that is what I am meant to do anyway, eh?

An intro, “The One Inside Part 1 – Noise in the Background” starts things off with a bit of a Natural Born Killers vibe into a really well structured classical feeling string movement and builds tension while being uplifting at the same time. “Hold On” is the first proper song on the album and you’re transported into the psychedelic late 60’s / early 70’s.; a bit Zappa-esque or maybe early Steve Vai (‘Flexible’ era) with a bit of Yes throw in for good measure.

There is some serious musicality going on with these guys – a great groove throughout the song and a crescendo to match any you’ve ever heard at the end. Lots of vocal changes show the singer’s range and versatility. I would love to see this song performed live.

The title track is up next and it comes across as airy and spacious with a bit of a Latino feel at times with a guitar solo to rival Santana in feel and tone. Great, offbeat rhythm and lyrically interesting , I’m guessing the vocalist here is maybe also the keyboard player as the two instruments, voice and keys, work very well together within the context of the song.

“Can You See Me Now” is a bit choppy number that must have been written by a keyboard player (no reference material to go on, sorry) and has a great Supertramp feel to it.” King” livens things up a bit. A dirty, guitar driven offering, it touches on being metallic without quite making the commitment.

“The One Inside Part Two – My Companion Through Life” starts with a beautiful steel string acoustic passage. Lyrically emotive, a nice dirty melodic guitar solo brings the song to an end.

“Daughter,” in total contrast, is a guitar driven rocker with shades of Dream Theatre and Frank Gambale rocker running through it.

The sheer epic pomposity of “If We Must Be Apart” cannot be denied. It ain’t the Yes style keyboards, or the groove (of

which there is plenty) or even the outlandish nature of the tune. It is simply down to the acoustic guitar work. These guys could release a short acoustic version of this and win. At 15.30 minutes it is a bit much but it takes you on a journey which I felt compelled to finish. I never felt the need to jump off the train.

“Ode to the Rock N’ Roller” follows and umm, well, I was not expecting that.

Amusing as hell on the lyrical front they throw out just about every cliché in the book in this one. Massive points for cleverness here, guys.

Closing out ‘+4626-Comfortzone’ is The One Inside Part 3 – Relief.” One of the stronger cuts on offer – emotive, and atmospheric with a pounding groove - and this track sounds a bit fresher than a lot of the rest of the album.

To sum up - as I have already stated, there is some serious musical knowledge and talent in Beardfish. A bit pompous at times but to be honest, with that level of skill why the hell wouldn’t you be? If you like your prog you are going to like this album.

-Sean King

more) to keep things on track, Idol also worked with his longtime partner in crime, Steve Stevens and teamed up with guitarist Billy Morrison, formerly of Cult and Circus Diablo on this release.

If you’re coming into this record expecting a plethora of guitar heroics then you’d be well advised to change your preconceptions. While Stevens’ larger than life presence is obvious, his playing is more straight forward and subdued than it was 20 plus years ago.

Opening track “Bitter Pill” is a top down, cruise control ride off into the sunset mixtape contender while “Can’t Break Me Down” (the first single) throws the listener back into familiar territory as it would blend in perfectly with any of the classic material and reminds you where more recent modern day bands like Fall Out Boy and Simple Plan pulled their influences from.

The pop angst of “Save Me Now” brings to mind 80’s soundtracks for movies such as 16 Candles and Risky Business and “Postcards From the Past” is exactly what the title suggests as you can’t help but recall Idol’s biggest hit “Rebel Yell” in this one.

Intentional (it must have been) or not it’s there. And it works brilliantly.

The autobiographical title track follows and it’s a brooding affair, lyrically profound and musically cacophonous, it’s Idol’s reflection of William Broad rather than his more famous alias.

BILLY IDOL ‘Kings & Queens of the Underground’ (BFI Records)

His first studio output since an ill advised holiday album nearly a decade ago, the sneering former MTV permanent fixture has made a solid return to form with the decidedly more mature sounding (read: NOT “boring”) ‘Kings & Queens of the Underground’ release.

Bringing in veteran producer Trevor Horn (Yes, Paul McCartney, Tina Turner,

At this point the album takes a darker turn musically as “Eyes Wide Shut,” “Ghosts In My Guitar” and “Nothing To Fear” are a bit more downplayed than the bulk of the album.

“Love and Glory” could have been lifted off of any U2 album from the past two and a half decades. Mind you, it would have been one of the better songs on any of those records. With “Whiskey and Pills” Billy and company turn the pace up to 11 with a frantic free for all for the final track. This is pretty much Stevens’ only chance to really let fly on ‘Kings & Queens ...” and he really goes for the throat,

CD REVIEWS

although it’s a bit lower in the mix than it should have been.

Overall, ‘Kings & Queens of the Underground’ is a great return to form for the cyberpunk of yesteryear. Producer Horn took the record back to Idol’s early years but didn’t quite let it jump the line.

Having co-producer Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen, Kelly Clarkson, Foster the People) on board for a couple of tracks lends a bit of modern day pop credibility to Idol’s resume, as well.

-Dave Tedder

BLOODBOUND ‘Stormborn’ (AFM Records) Power metal group, Bloodbound return with a new album of pure epic POWER! A cross between Iron Maiden, Helloween, Hammerall and a splash of Judas Priest and a touch of Ghost(!) make this a very good outing!

From the opening “Satanic Panic” one can hear all of the above listed “influences” if you will. Fast riffs, gentle break aways and soaring vocals deliver it all! Patrik Johanssen really reminds me of a young Kai Hansen (ex-Helloween). The next few songs carry on the album in the same fast paced action ala Hammerfall. Did I mention how kick ass the vocals are? The background choruses are pretty damn good as well.

Title track “Stormborn” begins in a nice ominous intro with a tense vibe and a chorus intro similar to Sweden’s own Ghost before venturing into Iron Maiden territory. Sweeping vocals and choruses throughout the song only strengthen the music tightly and well played by the six

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piece group. “We Raise the Dead” has a nice Loudness sounding intro on guitars and vocals. I am having a hard time finding fault in this disc at this point.

“Made of Steel” might just be my theme song for the rest of the year. With it’s “I’m made of metal” chorus, it’s REALLY difficult for me not to shout it out along with the band! The next few tracks continue to carry the torch with solid nods to Iron Maiden, Hammerfall. The closing track “When All Lights Fail” close it out with a fierce, fast vengeance. I just love the chorus of “When your lights fail, I will be dancing on your grave”. I have a few people I may dedicate this one to!

Stand out tracks for me are “Satanic Panic”, “Iron Throne”, “Stormborn”, “We Raise the Dead” and “When All Lights Fail”.

Damn near perfection to these ears. Expertly produced and mixed with bombastic metal hymns, fast, melodic and heavy with soaring vocals, this is going to be stuck on my iPod for a LONG time.

-D. Salut

CAVALERA CONSPIRACY ‘Pandemonium’ (Napalm Records) “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh,”……. Do you hear that? It is the echo of satisfaction, heard throughout the metal world. While it is not the long anticipated “reunion” of a “certain” band …it is definitely a reunion of Iggor Cavalera, Max Cavalera and lightning fast metal.

our-roots” thrash metal. While this music does take us back to when our metal affair with the Cavalera brothers began, it also encompasses how their music has evolved.

Max mentioned to the press that, they did not record ‘Pandemonium’ in a big studio, instead they used a house studio, they did not use a big time producer, and instead Max produced it himself. From the moment of conception this album was destined to be unpolished, rugged, brutal and ever so intoxicating.

Every track on the album will quench the thirst of a hard core metal head. “Babylonian Pandemonium,” the premier track is powerful, fast and precise. Immediately the drumming captivates you and shakes you to the core of your being. This is clearly an anthem track that the fans will be chanting along with it at every live show.

Be sure to check out “I, Barbarian,” four songs in to the album, a personal favorite. From the first note you are totally consumed, it literally makes you want to mosh around your living room. The ending is abrupt and takes you by surprise, forcing to immediately want to hit replay.

Also make sure to venture down and wrap your ears around “Insurrection,” track number 7. The guitars are STELLAR! Quite simply put, the guitar actually reaches out of this song and literally grabs you.

Although the first two Cavalera Conspiracy albums, ‘Inflikted’ (2008) and 2011’s ‘Blunt Force Trauma,’ were quite reminiscent of each other even having been born 3 years apart…brace yourself…..Pandemonium will kick your ass and leave you begging for more.

-Phoenix Romero

‘Pandemonium,’ the third Cavalera Conspiracy album, is raw, powerful, and unleashed!! It serves to remind you of how much you’ve missed the Cavlera brothers playing ferrous “take-us-back-to-

48 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

CIRCA SURVIVE ‘Descensus’ (Sumerian Records) This is Circa’s first album for Sumerian Records and it is a solid offering. Rising from the slew of post hardcore/emo bands of the early 2000’s Circa Survive has continued to rise above the stereotype and produce honest, interesting and captivating music. They kick off with the authoritative vocals of Anthony Green in ‘Schema’, the album’s first single. The syncopated drums and bass in ‘Child of the Desert’ keep me hooked as I continue throughout the album.

Green and crew bring down the tempo with ‘Nesting Dolls’, which has a dreamy feel and ethereal guitar work. Throughout the album you get the feeling the band was free to do what they wanted. The drums and bass are tight and focused, while the guitar is free flowing and full of effects. Just when you think you have this album figured out they hit you with ‘Phantom’. This smooth jazzy tune just jams and is full of emotion. Closing out the album is the title track, which is over 8 minutes long with 6 minutes of the same riff growing with guitar solos and vocal crescendos.

If you are a fan of bands like Saosin (Anthony has returned!) and The Used check out this offering from Circa Survive. Perhaps a notch down from their last album melodically, ‘Descensus’ will not leave you wanting more. Floating time signatures, dynamic guitar work and soaring vocals will please everyone who likes emo, post rock and even some prog fans.

-Donny Rosko

nority’ disc as well.

CRAZY LIXX ‘Crazy Lixx’ (Frontiers Records)

Rexon stated, “It’s really a bit of a do or die, no guts, no glory situation – after all, you only get one chance to do a self titled album, so make sure you do it (correctly).”

No worries there, as this raises the bar a bit for bands of this genre.

(Check out the CRAZY LIXX feature on page 28!)

-Tim Welch

With their fourth, self titled album, Sweden’s Crazy Lixx have made it clear that their spot at or near the top of the current crop of melodic bands is more than justified. And they’re staying put for a good while longer.

Produced by frontman, Danny Rexon this time out, the band take a bit of a turn back to the bombastic sound of their ‘New Religion’ album all the while not completely abandoning the fans that prefer the more stripped back feel of their last album, ‘Riot Avenue.’

Kicking off with the first single and video, “Hell Raising Women”, which screams of Swiss hard rock heroes Gotthard, the track is pure high energy and sets the pace immediately for the album. The anthemic “Sound of the Loud Minority” follows.

Gang vocals aplenty on this one, this is one of the band’s best to date. “Girls of the 80’s” and “I Missed The Mark” sees the quintet enter Def Leppard territory and quite possibly outdoing the Lep’s at their own game - at least based on the veterans work of the past two decades, anyway.

Strong riffing, courtesy of Andy Zata (aka Dawson) and Edd Liam, is the name of the game with “All Looks, No Hooks,” which itself has plenty of hooks. A song that you could easily break the speed limit to if not paying attention.

The band also decided to rework “Heroes Are Forever,” one of the more popular tracks from their debut. Not really necessary as it was pretty on the mark the first time around. Maybe they wanted to see that the song reached a larger audience??

Not sure but if that’s the case, maybe we’ll see them reintroducing another song or two from the now out of print ‘Loud Mi-

CYANIDE ‘Lethal Dose’ (Independent Release) I don’t often get an unsigned bands CD on my desk that I feel compelled to review.

Let’s face it, most of the stuff out there is usually a rehash of Slipknot, Nickleback, Sevendust or In This Moment. In other words, the flooded market of Modern Rock.

Then there are the bands who release stuff that is a throwback to a supposed earlier day, when spandex and hair spray ruled the world. The Swedes seem to do a good job churning these acts out, but not all of them are that great and miss the mark more often than not.

Then I heard these guys...

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and then the song kicks into gear with the “UH!” chants of the band. Singer, Rob Hussey continues to “out Vince Neil” Mr. Neil here.

“Pump It To Me” reminds me a bit of The Bulletboys in their opening salvo of “Pump it to me!” – a good sing along song. “Nikki Sixx in Disguise” is an outright nod to Motley Crue and it’s mastermind.

“Devil Inside Me” opens with some really great guitar work, courtesy of Marc Andrews for a moment before the song goes on. Lots of gang vocals throughout the song. Almost in excess, but they manage to pull it off.

“What Comes Around Goes Around” finds Hussey delving into Stephen Pearcy territory. The song comes off sounding a bit like a track off of Ratt’s ‘Invasion Of Your Privacy’ because of this, all the way down to the gang vocal chorus. I’ll take more of this, please and thank you!

“It’s a Long Road” is the obligatory power ballad that one would expect from a band of the eighties era. Still really well done.

Really good soaring guitar work on this track too.

“Flying Free,” “Groovin’,” “Lookin’ For A Good Time” and “Whole ‘Lotta Trouble” help fill out this album and keeps the overall vibe and feel of the album on track.

With the opening song, “Bitches To Blame”, one is immediately reminded of Motley Crue – a catchy song and it’s prechorus of “Take another hit!” might make some want to “light up” as it were. Great fresh Crue sound, ala Dr. Feelgood era.

Great solid musicianship. Tight rhythm section, and excellent guitar work really help this album shine for fans of 80’s hard rock. ‘Lethal Dose’ clearly captures the sound of Motley Crue’s “Dr Feelgood” era with a little bit of Ratt and The Bulletboys thrown in for good measure. One can’t help but think though, maybe Motley Crue should take the singer of this band out for a run sometime...

“Drinkin’” opens with a cheesy sound effect of a can opening and being poured and is met with the rolling of my eyes

If you are looking for some fresh music to listen to and miss the halcyon days of spandex and hair, this album is for you.

Cyanide hails from Las Vegas of all places.

Don’t let where they are from or their looks fool you. This band is the real deal.

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Yeah, it’s going to stay in my playlist for a while.

-D. Salut

DIRTY PASSION ‘Dirty Passion’ (Denomination Records) This self-titled release is the third effort from the Swedish hard rockers, and while I’ve been familiar with the name for a while I’ve never actually been exposed to any of their past music and although the name pretty much gives their style away (sleaze rock in case you haven’t figured it out), you never really completely know what you’re getting yourself into.

As soon as the opening track, “Hallelujah” kicks in, however, all curiosity is erased as the track blasts out with a quick punch to the face as it rolls straight into the breakneck speed of “Bad Karma,” which features an incredible riff delivered by Chrissie Olsson (a male by the looks of things. God, at least I hope so …). The track opens and closes with a breathy female voiceover, claiming “I am the owner of my actions” and you’re left wondering what someone might have done in their past lives ...

There’s not a lot of time to wonder, though as “Bitch” opens with a funky rock verse leading straight into a frantic chorus with great backing vocals. “Los Angeloser” opens with a great bass riff from Nasty and while it’s one of my favorite song titles ever, it slips a bit into cliché territory, while “Zip of Fire” would have fit neatly into any LA club band setlist of the late 80’s / early 90’s (read: “good song but missing that extra something”) and “Die Free” could be a deeper cut on any Ratt album after their debut.

“42 Nights” slows things down a slight bit bringing to mind Hollywood street metallers Junkyard or maybe even The Four Horsemen with it’s swing oriented verses.

But once, we hit “The Mess” we’re back off and running again with some furious riffage from Olsson.

All told the Swedes deliver in fine style on this album and have a damn fine singer in Kriss Iohikokski. I’d love to see a little more experimentation from the guys on their next go round but if you’re a fan of classic era hard rock you’ll find plenty to whet your appetite here.

- Tim Welch

FM ‘Heroes and Villains’ (Frontiers Records) After a lengthy hiatus, since releasing ‘Metropolis,’ FM have been very busy indeed in terms of touring and recording, culminating in this latest release. Having been a long-time fan of the band and Steve Overland’s since seeing Wildlife support MSG too many years ago, the chance of an impartial review is slim.

The opening number, “Digging Up the Dirt” leaves no doubt as to what you are going to get from this album - and then the man sings. Sounding a bit Def Leppardish, the song showcases Overland’s voice in the gaps of the big staccato riff.

And the rest really is a foregone conclusion in my opinion. For most albums I would normally run the highlights of an album on the assumptions that there are also low lights, but it would be difficult to pick out a bad song in this collection. The album veers from rockers with serious pop sensibilities such as “You’re The Best Thing About Me,” classic melodic blues rock like “Fire and Rain” with a contemporary intro that sounds like it is intro-

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ducing a dance/trance mix, a funkier side of the band with “Cold Hearted” and of course a mandatory power ballad opening with the man crooning over acoustic guitar and builds nicely to a crescendo in the chorus in “Incredible.” God damn it, they even pull off a song is as clichéd as the song title suggests - “(Somedays I Only Wanna Rock and Roll)” - sounding like a 70’s Rolling Stones rocker. The old adage of the singer not the song, springs to mind as, regardless of the clichéd approach, when you can sing like Steve Overland does, you can carry it off!

Is this album particularly original or innovative? No! But damnly my Frank I don’t give a dear! The man reminds us all that you don’t need a five octave range that gets used at the drop of a hat to be considered one of the best singers around and I love it. The proof was evident at the recent HRH AOR festival where he performed flawlessly throughout the hour long set.

He could be singing the yellow pages for all I care. For me this is quite possibly the best FM album since their debut and if you like them, you will love this. If you don’t, it is hardly likely to change your mind and in the words of the famous Glaswegian poet, Rab C Nesbitt, ‘Beat it!’

- Peter Scallan

FOO FIGHTERS ‘Sonic Highways’ (Roswell / RCA Records) ‘Sonic Highways’ is Dave Grohl and friends’ most ambitious work to date.

Only eight songs in length bu those songs were all recorded in different cities, pulling producer Butch Vig along for the ride and incorporating an HBO documentary into the process and therefore into the natural promotion of the album.

Sheer genius if you ask me.

With guests such as Zac Brown, Joe

Walsh, Gary Clark, Jr. and The Preservation Hall Jazz Band, you’d be right in guessing that this is a wide and varied record. But that’s what ‘Sonic Highways’ is all about - celebrating the music of the United States from every corner and every angle.

The album’s opener, “Something From Nothing” (with Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen) seems to be Grohl self validating, proclaiming that he came fro nothing and is now filling arenas across the globe.

Musically the track recalls Dio’s “Holy Diver” in points and is a flat out melt your face off rocker. When “The Feast and the Famine” (with Skeeter Thompson and Pete Stahl of Scream) kicks in, it brings to mind Bowie’s “Suffragette City.” “Congregation” (featuring Brown) adds a touch of middle America to the mix and the thundering punch of “”What Did I Do?/God As My Witness” (with Clark) is a powerful melodic rock track that heads into Queen territory about halfway through “Outside” pulls in the legendary Joe Walsh and doesn’t stray too terribly far away from the more melodic sides of Queens of the Stone Age and Eagles of Death Metal.

“In The Clear” features the Preservation Hall Jazz Band but they don’t seem to have a lot of input on the song as it’s a straight ahead fist pumping arena rockers that shoots for the back of the hall and connects The jangly pop of “Subterranean” (with Ben Gibbard of Death cab for Cutie”) follows and while it features lots of guitar work the track just doesn’t seem to go anywhere.

Closing out ‘Sonic Highways” is “I am the River.” A mid tempo ballad the song features Joan Jett and doesn’t really kick in until about midway through it’s 7:00 minute plus run, at which point it also reverts to a stomping area rock song for the modern age.

Twenty years into their career (REALLY???) Foo Fighters show that they can still deliver the goods and keep life and music interesting and non complacent.

-Dave Tedder

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FOREIGNER ‘The Complete Studio Albums 177 - 1991’ (Rhino) This is another one of those releases that, to me, looks simply, like a cash grab situation. I can just picture the marketing meeting that took place leading up to the decision to release this package.

Industry Schlub #1: “Ya know, Foreigner’s doing all right again. They’re out there, they’re playing shows - how can we capitalize on that?” Industry Schlub #2: “Well, we have their back catalogue at our disposal, still ...” Schlub #1: “Yeah, yeah ... I see where you’re going with this. I like it.” Schlub #2: “Well, I haven’t really said anything, yet.” Industry Schlub #3: “Why don’t we put out a ‘Best of ’ release?”

Schlub #1: GREAT idea!!!” Schlub #2: “No, no, it’s not. According to Amazon, they have like, eleven of those compilations in different versions ...” Schlub #2: “Remaster their catalogue and put it back out there?” Schlub #1: “Give that man a raise!!! Who wants a drink??!?!?!” Schlub #3:”Nope, that happened back in 2002.”

Schlub #1: “Awwwww, c’mon!!!!” Schlub #2: Reissue them with bonus tracks?”

Schlub #1: YE - wait ...” (looks to Schlub #3) Schlub #3: “It appears that the albums from 2002 had bonus tracks.” (Collective sigh rolls over the room) Schlub #4, who has been carefully giving himself a manicure this entire time, suddenly chimes in: “We should package all of the Atlantic catalogue, beginning with their first one in 1977 and ending with 1991’s ‘Unusual Heat’ ...” Schlub #1 interrupts: “What’s this ‘Unusual Heat’ you speak of?” Schlub #2 still on Amazon: “Apparently it’s the first album Lou Graham wasn’t ...” Schlub #3: “Gramm” Schlub #2: “Ehhh??” Schlub #3: “Gramm,Lou Gramm, not Graham.”

Schlub #2: Okay, well, he wasn’t on it.

Some guy named Johnny Edwards was.”

Schlub #3: “Who is Johnny Edwards?”

Schlub #2: “How am I supposed to know that???” Schlub #1: “Anyone else want a sandwich? I could use some pastrami or roast beef ...” Schlub #4: “ANYWAY, we could just package these all together as a single release, no changes to anything, add a minimal amount of artwork and sell it for, say $30.” Schlub #1: “Give that man a raise!!! Now, I need a drink and a sandwich. Who’s with me???” Schlub #2: “Well, we have all of these other repackaging ideas to go through. Schlub #1 groans and slinks down in his seat.

Having said all that. It’s Foreigner, these are a great to a fantastic batch of releases, although the bonus tracks are severely lacking in research or imagination. Could noone open a vault and find any leftover material anywhere?

If you don’t have the albums or have lost them or just want the 2002 reissues with a few extra full length albums then I’d say grab this because for the $30 that it retails for it’s actually a good deal financially. But if you’re looking for anything extra then you’ll be massively disappointed.

-Dave Tedder

GRINDER BLUES ‘Grinder Blues’ ( Megaforce Records)

Firmly blues based...but make no mistake, Grinder Blues is blues rock of the first order. Powered by dUg Pinnick of King’s X on bass and vocals, Jabo Bihlman on guitar and vocals and Scot Little Bihlman on drums, the band’s self titled debut release is powerfully raw, blistering, earthy with attitude and if you love the blues with an edge, then Grinder Blues is just what the doctor ordered! The trio bring a freshness, a vibrancy, and a real sense of

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urgency to the blues rock genre. The raw emotion that filters through the music that this trio generate is enough to channel into anyone’s soul, and make them nod in appreciation.

From the opening, “Don’t Go Home” the trio have your undivided attention and from there your senses are bombarded with a hybrid form of blues that hits them from all angles. The album front to back is solid, no filler here. There’s the down dirty swagger of ,”Wild One”, the heavy blues groove of, “Burn The Bridge”. The title track is just down right NASTY! dUg Pinnick vocals sound more passionate, vibrant, and alive than ever. The chemistry between the brothers Bihlman is like white on rice.

There have been some great new blues/ rock releases that have come out this year, and I know of at least 3 or 4 others that I highly recommend as a must buy for 2014, but if you don’t get your hands on this debut release from Grinder Blues, I promise you will regret it!

-Tony Sison

HAREM SCAREM ‘Thirteen’ (Frontiers Records) It’s been six yeas since Harem Scarem’s last studio release. So, was it worth the wait?

After one listen, I can tell you this: HELL YES, it was worth the wait. Once again the Canadian rockers have delivered a quality release that is not to be missed with this collection of outstanding songs filled with plenty of memorable hooks and solos.

‘Thirteen’ is extra special because the songs flow seamlessly making the album a joy to listen to all the way through every

time. In addition, there is a great balance of heavy, melodic, ballads and acoustic sounds throughout. From opening AOR gem, “Garden Of Eden” to the organic rush of, “Live It” and groove laden movers, “Early Warning Signs” and “The Midnight Hours”, this is classic Harem Scarem at their finest. And what would a Harem Scarem recording be without a power ballad? The band serve up, “Whatever It Takes”, a song that will tug at your heart string from the first to it’s last note. Harry Hess’ vocals are strong, emotive, and melodic, as always. And don’t forget to bow down before guitar god, Pete Lesperance [We’re not worthy, I tell you] He’s got more music in his mind and and technique in his fingers than any ten guitarists you could name. Drummer Creighton Doane keeps the band grounded. I can’t emphasize enough how amazing the musicianship on this album is. Why they haven’t become popular in the States is beyond me.

Harem Scarem absolutely, positively should be huge. It’s a shame that they are not. Nonetheless, if you are a true melodic rock fan, you owe it to yourself to check out this amazing band. This album is as good a place as any to start.’ Thirteen’ is phenomenal!

-Tony Sison

IN FAITH ‘There’s a Storm Coming’ (Rocktopia Records) Contenders for “Best New AOR Band “ for 2014, comes in the form of ‘There’s A Storm Coming’ the stunning debut outing from U.K. based rockers, In Faith. The band is made up of Pete Godfrey (vocals, keyboards), Tony Marshall (guitar, bass), Pat Heath (guitar), Mike Corfield (keyboards) Brooke St James (guitar) and Pete Newdeck (drums, backing vocals).

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‘There’s A Storm Coming’ is an album that shows just how good hard melodic rock can be, and should be in the collection of every young band wanting to venture out into the melodic hard rock field...This is how it’s done right! From start to finish, this is an unapologetic rocker through and through, but is so melodic and jampacked with great choruses and guitar riffs you won’t be able to get it out of your head for months. Fans of , Harem Scarem, Ten, FM, Hardline, and pretty much any melodic hard rock band will find a lot to enjoy here. The melody and virtuosity on this album is simply stunning. Every song is vital and beautifully put together.

The harmony and shear musicality of this band are fantastic.

Tracks range from arena anthems like “Does It Feel Like Love”, and “Church Of Rock’n’Roll” to the melodic gem, “Addicted” and the arresting charm of, “If That’s What Love Means”. ‘This is one of those albums that you start listening to and discover you’re still listening to it a couple of years later. It’s impossible not to love this album. . I would highly recommend it to any fan of melodic rock music...heck, I’d recommend it to anyone who appreciates superior production, songwriting and musicianship regardless of their musical taste.

-Tony Sison

JUDAS PRIEST ‘Defenders of the Faith’ 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Columbia/Legacy Records) Judas Priest has done it once again and “delivered the goods” in their pursuit of 30th anniversary reissues.

This issue brings the original album remastered along with a newly mastered radio show from 1984 at Long Beach Arena (same legendary arena that Iron Maiden

recorded ‘Live After Death’ at).

I’m not going to waste time in reviewing this track by track. You should already know what these songs sound like after all these years. The original album has been remastered very well and sonically sounds fantastic. The 2 live discs from the Long Beach show are heavy in every sense of the word. Brutal, crushing live sound from Priest here. There have been bootlegs of this show running around for years, but they have never sounded this good.

The packaging is cool as well, beginning with a sleeve that you pull the digipack case out of. Oddly though, it’s printed upside down (and therefore backwards).

If you face the “front” of the digipack towards yourself (with the “opening side to the right as many do), the cover is upside down! Opening it reveals all three discs as well as the inside printing to be upside down also. I suppose if you are left handed this won’t bother you. Me? I am a tad O.C.D. and it is driving me BATTY! The slip case has a cut out that part of the digipack cover art shows through when inserted back into the case which might explain the thought process behind the printing layout, but they could have done this a little differently.

There’s a nice CD booklet inside a slip case built into the digipack with some write ups and some really great pictures taken on the “Defenders of the Faith Tour” in 1984 as well.

My only other complaint would be a lack of vinyl availability for this release as the mix of the album and live show would, I’d venture to say, sound great on my turn table.

This is a great introduction for anyone looking to experience Judas Priest for the first time, and a must have (despite the odd printing setup) for “die hard” fans.

-Chris Gillespie

LONELY ROBOT ‘Please Come Home’ (InsideOut Music) I have to start this out by saying I’m not too much of a prog guy. That being said this is a really good album. It’s almost poppy prog (in a good way) if that makes sense. Opening with an instrumental called “Airlock” and it’s a really cool track … until the end in which you hear a cat or baby whine (eh???). Fortunately “God vs Man” enters with an intense bass and guitar riff, courtesy of Nick Beggs and mainman John Mitchell. As the chorus picks up I find myself banging my head in sheer excitement. “The Boy in the Radio” sort of has a Rush feel to the verses. Mitchell’s voice is clear, precise and poignant. Early on in this album it is evident that Mitchell has a clear direction with this album.

Enter “Why Do We Stay,” this song starts off low key with some keys and a beautiful duet with a tranquil female vocalist.

“Oubiette” is quite possibly the strongest track on this entire album, also low key, the song features more female vocals and feels familiar with it’s pulsating bass lines.

There is an ongoing theme of grandeur and ethereal sounds throughout the entire album which give it an almost 80’s feel, par for the course for the It Bites, Arena and Frost member.

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As I listen to “Construct Obstruct” I am once again welcomed with a catchy guitar riff and driving bass line. My biggest critique of this offering is that is doesn’t feel new, almost too safe in a way. It is very comfortable though, almost as if Genesis and Rush had a love child. That is a strange mental image, but after you get past that you will understand.

Everything on ‘Please Come Home’ sounds seasoned but almost predictable.

That could be because of the all star cast of 80’s contributors but either way it still works. The addition of female vocalists, melancholy narration on “A Godless Sea,” (courtesy of actor Lee Ingleby of Master and Commando and Harry Potter fame), ethereal background music and the ongoing progression of heavy to soft makes ‘Please Come Home’ an album you should listen to. Just enjoy it and let the story be told.

-Donny Rosko

LORD DYING ‘Poisoned Altars’ (Relapse Records) ‘Poisoned Altars’ is the sophomore release from Doom/Thrash metal masters Lord Dying. On first glance at the grisly 70’s inspired cover artwork by Orion Landau, one can get this sense that they are sticking to their roots for this album.

Recorded with Joel Grind of Toxic Holocaust at the helm, the band kicks off the album with a solemn intro ala Black Sabbath on the title track, “Poisoned Alters” before kicking into high gear, the lyrics espousing the twisting of religions alongside great catchy riffs and headbanging goodness. “The Clearing at the End of the Path” chugs along before a breakdown

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that revisits the feel of “Dreams of Mercy” from their first album, in all its glory. To be fair, the band does this more often than not on the tracks found here and they pull it off well.

The band returns to the Sabbath style grooves on “A Wound Outside of Time” and continues with “An Open Sore” that starts out kind of brisk before slipping into that familiar groove. I can hear the crowds chanting along with the chorus of “I Won’t Rest Until You’re Gone” from “An Open Sore”. I’m finding it very difficult to do this review while headbanging.

“Offering Pain (and An Open Minded Center)”, “Suckling at the Teat of a SheBeast” continue with great guitar leads and tight rhythm delivers thrash style nirvana. Yeah, I’m going to have a sore neck tonight. “(All Hopes of A New Day)...Extinguished” and “Darkness Remains” close out the album just as strong as it opened.

Great dirgy thrash metal from the guys in Lord Dying.

Erik Olson’s vocals are just as angry on this follow up album and it fits in so well with the material. Olson and Chris Evans deliver excellent guitar riffs and leads throughout with Don Capuano on bass and Rob Shaffer on drums keeping the foundation solid and heavy.

‘Poisoned Altars’ finds the band still creating great doom /thrash metal and tasty, crunchy riffage. “An Open Sore” and “Offering Pain” are the stand out tracks here.

If you are a fan of The Sword, Red Fang or Valient Thorr you have got to add this album to your collection.

-Chris Gillespie

METALLICA “Lords of Summer” (single) (Blackened Recordings)

MOTOR SISTER ‘Ride’ (Metal Blade Records)

Metallica, the metal giants, the grandfathers of modern metal. The boys are getting a bit older and it shows in this single. One cannot deny the influence and success of this band. I would even throw the word “legendary” around. There has been a lot of controversy with Metallica throughout their career of over three decades. But what is more metal than pissing everyone off?

Motor Sister is an all-star band of sorts, a “super group” if you will. Featuring Scott Ian (Anthrax) on Guitars, his wife Pearl Aday on backing vocals, Jim Wilson (Mother Superior, Henry Rollins) on vocals and guitars, Joey Vera (Armored Saint / Fates Warning) on bass and drummer, John Tempesta (White Zombie, Testament, Exodus).

In the heyday of Metallica they were a thrash metal act and with “Lords of Summer” they are trying to revisit that. The old Metallica is hiding in this track, but its deep in there. Maybe they are old, maybe this is a stepping stone back to their roots.

I’m not sure but for old school Metallica fans this should be encouraging for what is to come. That’s the good, the bad is…… this song. It’s weak and missing the power we all know and expect when listening to Metallica at full volume.

Did I mention this song over 8 minutes long? We all know Lars and crew can write great songs and here is to hoping this offering is the beginning to an old school thrash metal full length album and not a bunch of metalheads with an identity crisis on their hands. Lars has said the band will be entering the studio in 2015 to work on and record a new record.

The band has also come out saying they are unsure if “Lords of Summer” will be a part of that new album. If they continue down this road - with better writing - it will be the old school fans with a smile on their faces.

-Donny Rosko

Formed as a birthday request from Scott Ian, the band has now since managed to record an album. An album of 90’s band Mother Superior covers, that is.

The opening track “A Hole” fires right off into pure 70’s classic rock territory. The drums, bass and guitars work together really well to get the party started. Wilson’s vocals deliver the good throaty vocal styles of the 70’s with absolute ease. “This Song Reminds Me of You” continues with some really strong guitar work and some nice layers in the music. Real 70’s blues rock grooves here. “Beg Borrow Steal” picks up the beat a bit and delivers yet more classic 70’s hard rock.

“Fool Around” starts out strong and then slips into a slow groove and works up into a frantic overture mid song. Some really great guitar work frames the song well.

“Get That Girl” and “Head Hanging Low” continue along the classic rock line without missing a beat. “Fork in the Road” has some really great whammy guitar tricks worked in. “Little Motor Sister”, “Pretty In The Morning”, “Whore”, “Doghouse” and “Devil Wind” brings this collection to a close with more of the same 70’s feel. Of course that can’t be helped here.

Overall, this is a really strong album musically. Everyone here is a master of what

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they do and it really shows in the material. However, there is no musical ground really broken in this endeavor. I can’t really find any stand out tracks other than “This Song Reminds Me of You.” Maybe if they had let Pearl shine a bit more and given her some lead tracks? Her vocals are criminally underused in this effort.

If you are looking for some great 70’s drenched rock, this is it. Excellent in execution but I guess this one is not really for me.

- D. Salut

MR. BIG ‘... The Stories We Could Tell’ (Frontiers Records) There’s a reason Mr. Big is still massively popular in Japan. And it takes only one run through of ‘The Stories We Could Tell’ to understand just why that is.

Eight studio albums in and the band still sounds as fresh as it did back in 1989.

“Gotta Love The Ride” kicks the album off with a huge ‘70’s sounding riff and some fantastic riffing, as one would expect, from Paul Gilbert. The chorus is instantly memorable and is one of those you’ll undoubtedly wake up in the middle of the night with it running through your mind while “I Forget to Breath” is an up tempo bluesy rocker and “Fragile” is an instantly memorable pop rock track that recalls the band’s debut album.

The acoustic driven “The Man Who Has Everything” features a heart felt vocal from Eric Martin and seems to be lyrically introspective and “The Monster in Me” is a funky Billy Sheehan driven number that has “good time” written all over it.

“What If We Were New” is a late ‘60’s / early ‘70’s influenced rocker that brings to mind some Rolling Stones swagger - you

can almost envision Mick strutting across a stage singing this one, even and “EastWest” almost sounds as if it were lifted off of Tesla’s debut.

“The Light of Day” sees Billy Sheehan working overtime as he once again drives the track and at just beyond the 2:00 mark he and Gilbert deliver a short solo duel, which you just wish was a little longer.

Face it, when the general public thinks of Mr. Big, it’s the ballads that come to mind and with “Just Let Your Heart Decide” that trend is going to continue (if the general public bothers checking out this record, that is). The stronger of the two ballads on offer, the chorus reaches out and yanks you in and Martin is in absolute top form here.

At this point, the band starts to lose a little bit of steam as the last three tracks, all groove laden rockers, have the chops but not the stamina to go the distance. That notwithstanding, the other ten tracks on offer deliver in spades.

Unfortunately just before the recording of ‘... The Stories We Could Tell’ drummer Pat Torpey was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and wasn’t able to physically play on the album so he did the next best thing.

Working closely with producer Pat Regan (Deep Purple, Warrant, Blackmore’s Night, etc) he programmed his drum parts so tightly that it’s literally impossible to tell that he’s not actually behind the drum kit. In the wake of that diagnosis this album is a victory on every level.

-Dave Tedder

NIGHT DEMON ‘Curse Of The Damned’ (Century Media Records) Night Demon is a classic power metal trio hailing from Ventura, California. Yeah, the city north of L.A.

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The band consists of Jarvis Leatherby on Bass and Vocals, Brent Woodward on Guitars and Dusty Squires on Drums.

The album starts out with “Screams in the Night” which immediately invokes a feel very much like the Fastway from their first album. Not a bad thing. Aggressive and tightly played. The vocals work well with the music. Jarvis is no Dave King vocally, but that’s just as well. “Curse of the Damned” starts off with a bouncy Bass intro and some guitar feedback for a classic Motorhead vibe. It is really cool to hear the bass so prominent in the song and the mix ala Iron Maiden. “Satan” pops out of the speakers and brings in more of that classic ‘New Wave Of British Heavy Metal’ sound. The chants of “Satan!” really help drive home the overall feel.

“Full Speed Ahead” brings me back into Fastway territory and might I say it? A touch of The Rods as well. “The Howling Man” opens with a creepy old school horror movie set of sound effects, complete with thunder and the lonely howl of the wolf which brings us to the subject of the song. Sabbath style riffage gets the song started and then the tense musical pace kicks in. “Heavy Metal Heat”, “Livin’ Dangerous”, “Mastermind” and the Thin Lizzy sounding “Run For Your Life” keep the formula going. “Killer” is a catchy, fun song. Especially with its chorus of “Killer... killing just for fun.” I could see this getting played on repeat easily. “Save Me Now” completes the collection here. The lone track that doesn’t quite fit the rest of the disc. There’s more effort in the vocal choruses of this song. It’s decent, it just sounds a little odd man out here.

Great guitar work throughout the set, along with a solid rhythm section that delivers. I could very well imagine blasting this CD from a ‘82 Camaro while hanging and drinking with some friends in the parking lot before the show.

“Heavy Metal Heat”, “Mastermind”, “Run For Your Life” and “Killer” stand out more than the others. This album can sound a

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little repetitive if you’re not a classic metal fan. I am hearing a great mix of influences here: from Fastway, Thin Lizzy, Raven, Motorhead, The Rods and a touch of Iron Maiden thrown in. It’s obvious they were going for that classic NWOBHM vibe and they pretty much nailed it.

- Chris Gillespie

PAPA ROACH ‘F.E.A.R’ (Eleven Seven Music) Papa Roach is at it again. From the onset of ‘F.E.A.R,’ the Vacaville, California natives’ seventh release, you realize that the band have taken yet another musical left turn, steering slightly away from the modern melodic rock approach of ‘The Connection’ and hitting off with the electronic infused title track,“Face Everything and Rise.” The track comes off very Linkin Park or Periphery oriented until ... There it is! The chorus - this is the Jacoby Shaddix we are used to and I like it. “Skeletons” kicks in with a heavy guitar riff, I’m a bit unsure where it’s going but it’s pulling me right into the catchy chorus.

Over the years Papa Roach has brought us such hits as “Last Resort,” “Scars,” and “Hollywood Whore” never sticking to a format and taking things in any direction they wanted. This is a new Papa Roach. It’s heavier, the vocals are a bit more raw and dare I say a little djenty? This feels like a natural progression, not only for for Papa Roach but also their fans. This band has always pumped out emotionally driven songs and this offering is no different.

“Falling Apart” is the perfect example of the new direction. Heavy guitar with a great hook. Every song is easy to sing with and you want to sing with them -

LOUDLY. “Never Have to Say Goodbye” opens with piano and programming and winds up as one of the softer songs in this offering.

And this is where things get weird. “Gravity” is a full on rap/hip hop song - at least in the verses. For the chorus it circles back around to a rock song featuring none other than Maria Brink from In This Moment. I don’t know how to feel about this song but In This Moment’s fanbase will love the bridge as it sounds just like Maria and company.. Needless to say “Gravity” is out of place but I think we all knew Jacoby wasn’t far away from rapping someday, right?

The album closes out strong with “Devil” and “Fear, Hate, Love”. Both heavy, anthemic screaming songs. If you’re in the mood for some loud arena rock then grab a copy of F.E.A.R and let your neighbors enjoy it along with you …..well except that one time where Jacoby decided to be a rapper -Donny Rosko

PARAMORE ‘Paramore’ (Deluxe Editon) (Fueled By Ramen) This is a different Paramore than what you are used to. Much how artists like Taylor Swift have migrated to be more pop, Paramore is a full on power pop band now.

Don’t let that scare you, Hayley Williams still belts it out as powerfully as ever and on this deluxe edition we get to hear some live tracks. While still a bit edgy for a full on pop group, the hooks are there and I find myself tapping my foot on almost every song.

With far more mature lyrical content than past offerings, the delivery still has a youthful exuberance. I’m reminded of a more mature Relient K and at times even

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No Doubt. “Still Into You” is driven by a very catchy riff in the verse and unfolds into a potential teen anthem, something Paramore is familiar with. “Be Alone” is another very singable song which brings to mind the Killers. Did I mention ukuleles? A short interlude features a ukulele on “Moving On” paired with only the vocals of Hayley Williams.

“Escape Route” which is only available on this deluxe version, is a clear nod to the guitar work on ‘Riot.’ The live tracks are refreshing and raw. You can feel the energy from Hayley as she conducts the crowd in “Brick by Boring Brick.” You also get a glimpse of some freestyle vocal queues that are more at home in a soul setting as you continue to the live version of “Ain’t it Fun.” The band has lent themselves to some more electronic vices in songs such as “Grow Up” and “Fast In My Car”, and it works. Paramore knows how to write a good song, no matter what the style.

This is a solid release for Paramore fans.

Everything from the teen anthems to lower key songs (even featuring Civil Wars singer Joy Williams on “Hate To See Your Heart Break” ) and the live classics from past albums. There is something here for fans, both old and new.

It will be exciting to watch Paramore as they grow and venture into different facets of their genre.

-Donny Rosko

PRIMORDIAL ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ (Metal Blade Records) ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ starts out this record with a powerful, melodic yet heavy guitar driven song of the same name. They start with a long intro, it is a full one an a half minutes before we hear any vocals. The intensity somehow grows

throughout with singer Alan Averill aka A.A. Nemtheanga. They continue on to “Babel’s Tower” which is some sort of Irish doom metal ballad. Dark, powerful and captivating this track is more along my personal tastes.

On this eight song album you hear a lot of influences but the one constant is the grandeur of each song in its own right.

This isn’t surprising as Primordial has been together since the late 80s and it shows. As a band they sonically know what they want; with evident influence from Irish folk, doom and even black metal Primordial has found their “sound” and stuck with it. Alan Averill’s vocals are raw and almost on the verge of falling apart from the intensity from which he screams and narrates these tales. “Ghosts of the Charnel House” leads off the 2nd half of this album with drums pounding and then brings in heavy guitars in a bit more modern flavor.

As I get further into this album the vocals remind me of Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden. Averill has that almost operatic quality but with a lot more grit and growl.

Another constant is the musical interludes within the songs, which is something that allows the listener to get lost in the story and soul of each song. Every track feels like black metal telling of an old celtic story or legend. “Born to Night” introduces some acoustic instruments for another long intro that builds into a Maidenesque piece complete with harmonizing guitar leads and galloping rhythms.

With ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ Primordial has fallen in line with their previous album ‘Redemption at the Puritans Hand’ sticking with a more polished sound than earlier offerings. If you are looking for dark,folky doom/black metal then check out this latest release.

-Donny Rosko

CD REVIEWS

QUEEN ‘Forever’ (Hollywood Records)

This “new” release from one of the greatest acts to ever prowl the Earth is, for the most part, a collection of favored deep cuts and lesser known singles, although “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” “Somebody To Love,” “Play The Game,” “Save Me” and “You’re My Best Friend” do make an appearance. Another realization looking at the track listing is that they are all ballads and because of this the album does tend to drag a bit.

The selling point, however, are the three “new tracks.” None of which are actually new but reworked tracks. Leading off the album is “Let Me In Your Heart Again,” which was initially recorded during ‘The Works’ sessions but never made the final cut, instead winding up on Anita Dobson’s (Brian May’s future wife) album, ‘Talking of Love.’ While Dobson’s version was a fine rendition, Freddie’s take on the track is the superior of the two. “Love Kills The Ballad” absolutely demolishes the travesty of the original techno Gorgio Moroder / Mack debacle from the mid 80’s.

Brian May’s deft guitar work saves the day on this one. The third “new” song on the release is the Freddie / Michael Jackson duet, “There Must Be More To Life Than This” which is really just a demo and an unfinished one at that by the sound of things.

There is also the ‘Forever’ deluxe package, featuring a second disc, a different running order and overall sixteen more songs. Again, though, they’re really just rehashed tracks from the band’s catalogue.

Good songs for the most part, of course, although one has to wonder how in God’s name Roger Taylor’s “Drowse” made the cut, so it’s well worth the money if you want thirty six of Queen’s better ballads.

However, if you already have the songs on their original releases or even the remastered versions (mostly) from 2011 then even the most die hard fan would be well advised to run to iTunes and grab the three previously unreleased tracks to satisfy your Queen fix.

-Dave Tedder

REASON ‘The Deception of Dreams’ (Skyrocket) Reason hail from Cheltenham in the UK and are billed as a progressive rock band bringing together ‘elements of hard and progressive rock and metal into a new medium of powerful and expansive songs’ – hmmm! This is their second album, although I have never heard of the band before if I am honest, but sounds intriguing.

From the first few bars of the album’s opener, “Synchronised”, I’m thinking that this sounds like a high quality demo, especially with the absolutely awful drum sound. As the track progresses, I only become more convinced of this! Next up is “Sacrifice,” which is not much better and on the whole the album continues like that. The awful drum sound is consistent if nothing else and the mix is poor in so much that the vocals sit so far back in the mix, as does the bass on quite a few occasions. Most of the songs apart from “Nothing” and “Fire Eternal” are over five minutes long with the final song, “Souldrift” clocking in at over nine minutes.

All the progressive and melodic crossover elements are there, but after having listened to the album numerous times, it just washes over me. With most albums there are usually a few highlights but I really struggled to pick one out. However, after

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so many spins “September Child” proved to be a grower and that is about the best it gets for me.

What can I say? I really do hate to knock the fruits of what is clearly a labor of love, but there isn’t really a memorable song on this album. I hear what the guys are trying to do and I commend them for trying to do something a little different, although in places they remind of early Grand Prix – just without the songs and the vocals. Deception of Dreams? I think the guys have indeed been deceived by their dreams. But hey, what do I know?

Apparently it has already sold out the first pressing and is being hailed as criticallyacclaimed. Having been involved in a few critically-acclaimed projects myself, I can translate this to ‘lots of people said it was good, but nobody bought’. I should know my garage is full of them!

- Peter Scallan

RED ‘Of Beauty and Rage’ (Essential Records) Red fans have been waiting for this album to be released as it also includes a full length musically inspired graphic novel.

With this in mind, Red and their team really know how to hype new music. There are two things you can expect from a Red album: 1.There will be multiple huge instrumental interludes that will keep you longing for more and 2. Heavy. Melodic.

Rock. The culmination of these elements are in full force in Of Beauty and Rage.

Starting off with one such instrumental, “Descent,” leading you into the second track, “Imposter,” which builds slowly, almost telling a story.

We continue to new single, “Darkest Part”

where we get hit hard in the chorus. This track would actually be great accompaniment to sci fi or thriller film, in fact. The album continues to get heavier with “Fight to Forget” a powerful, guitar driven song.

Vocalist Michael Barnes has a conviction to his voice that is refreshing in this very layered and produced album, courtesy of Rob Graves. At times Barnes’ voice sounds similar to Matthew Bellamy of Muse, especially early on in this offering.

“Falling Sky” brings to mind earlier Red efforts, particularly ‘Innocence and Instinct.’ More straight forward, this track is just loud guitar and plenty of angst. This is what I want from these guys. There are more songs that fall into this category of “classic Red songs” including “Yours Again,” (yet another single), “Gravity Lies” and “Part That’s Holding On.” As a whole, every song on this fifteen song opus is huge and tells a story. As final track, “Ascent” comes to an end you feel as if you were part of a journey, a story expertly told.

‘Of Beauty and Rage’ isn’t for everyone but it will strike a chord with fans of 30 Seconds to Mars, Muse and Breaking Benjamin. Red has really delivered a nice hybrid of their past efforts with this album.

I enjoyed it although I would personally like to hear more hard hitting songs and less creative instrumentals. Alas Red has always done both and you have to respect a band sticking to what they do.

-Donny Rosko

REACH ‘Reach Out to Rock’ (SunHill Productions) Teetering out of Stockholm comes the newest contender to the Swedish hard rock crown. I was first introduced to the quartet about a year ago via their brilliant cover of Avicii’s hit single, “Wake Me Up,”

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(actually released in 2013 – ed) which should have been a hit in it’s own right.

Anyway, fast forward to … well, now and the band’s debut full length, ‘Reach Out to Rock’ via the new(ish) imprint Sunhill Productions. Kicking off with the hard hitting first single, “You Called My Name,” you immediately get the idea that this is a seasoned band, although they’ve only been together less than three years. An arena rock foot stomper, the chorus is one massive gang vocals that hits all the marks, the song has it all. The staccato opening of “Fame and Fortune” is reminiscent of a hundred other melodic rock numbers but when the verse kicks in the song comes into it’s own, maybe a little on the safe side but a good song nonetheless.

The next track, “Tell Me” brings to mind the ‘Pride’ era of White Lion, not just because of the title but because the songs sounds like it could have been on that band’s strongest album.

“We Are” starts out a bit slow, as the verses don’t really excite but, in true Scandi style, the choruses are a homerun in anyone’s ballgame. “Someone Like You” is a mid paced rocker ala Dokken or The Scorpions and “Make Me Believe” actually brings to mind the same bands. Album closer, “Coming Home” is singer, Alex Waghorn’s strongest moment, as he actually seems to be singing from the heart, as opposed to just singing at you, although he’s a fine singer in that regard, as well.

‘Reach Out and Rock’ does play things a bit safe- I wish guitarist, Ludvig Turner had stretched himself a bit more because for some reason it seems as if he’s holding back a little bit – but all in all this is a strong album and is further proof that the Scandinavians have become the ones to beat in the melodic rock game -Tim Welch

There really must be something in the water over there in Sweden.

-Donnie Rosko

CD REVIEWS

SELF DECEPTION ‘These Walls’ (Ninetone Records) Self Deception hail from Sweden. The four piece group bring us ‘These Walls’, an Ep complete with an acoustic rendition of one of the tracks. Starting right off with “Bedposts” Andreas Olsson enters with great vocals and I am immediately back in my car, 17 years old, driving to the skatepark. There is a synth-like keyboard riff that is reminiscent of the 80’s but wow, this song is great. Upbeat songwriting and a driving drum lines have me hooked right away. “Let’s Never Leave This Bed” is another catchy track with a pulsating bass line and driving drums. In the first verse there is a doo wop style vocal line going on in the background which leads right into another singable pre chorus.

Title track, “These Walls,” a guitar driven huge sounding track is the halfway point of the record and I’m having a lot of fun so far. There is a Foo Fighter quality with this band. Every song seems to be a hit.

The band describes themselves as modern rock but I would argue there is a touch of pop punk in there. I am already singing along Continuing with another guitar driven tune, “May This Night Last Forever” adds some light electronic touches.

These guys really have some great angst driven vocals with music that is upbeat and light sounding.

As I round out this offering with two versions of “Killed Our Love” I am left wanting more. The acoustic track is majestic. This is a very well performed and produced Ep with some great songwriting.

Fans of All Time Low, Relient K, Simple Plan and even New Found Glory will really enjoy Self Deception. I am blown away with this band whom I have never heard of before.

SODOM ‘Sacred Warpath’ (Steamhammer/SPV)

STRYPER ‘Live at the Whisky’ (Frontiers Records)

This is going to be short and sweet. If you don’t know who these guys are and are a fan of old school thrash metal, then you need to check them out.

‘Live at the Whisky’ is the band’s second live album in five years, the previous one being ‘Live in Puerto Rico’, and is their second, fourth or fifth depending upon what source you turn to. After a trip to the band’s website, the only other live album listed is 2004’s ‘7 Weeks Live in America: 2003’ so do with that what you will. If anything…

This is just a little filler EP between official albums.

The title track is very melodic and very intense. Not quite thrash but more like a slow burn, Tom Angelripper and company bring it. You still can’t help but headbang and raise the horns during the track. The chorus with it’s dirgy “SA-CRED WARPATH!” makes me want to break into a mosh. Love the guitar solo.

The other three tracks are live tracks. “The Saw Is the Law” is preceded by the now infamous (thanks to the TV show “Family Guy”) “The Bird (Is The Word)” and is just pure awesome.

“Stigmatized” and “City Of God” are both older tracks that make a reappearance here. This is just a great opportunity to check out how the band sounds live.

Very tight and well played music from the thrash outfit. Fans of Kreator, Venom and Slayer take note. You need this in your collection.

Constant listens confirm that as a whole, ‘Sacred Warpath’ is solid from beginning to end.

-D. Salut

With a boisterous “You guys make some noise for us, c’mon!” kicking off the disc you’d be forgiven if your immediate reaction was to think that you’d put a Molly Hatchet or .38 Special album on but then all confusion disappears as soon as the band tears into “Legacy” from their recent ‘No More Hell To Pay” release, which surprised me as I figured they’d open with a track from their legacy. But it works and worked so well that they took on “Marching Into Battle” also from the new album.

Both songs are delivered with an amazing amount of power and frontman Michael Sweet is sounding in top form, as usual.

The band also pull out the cover of “Jesus is Just Alright With Me” and the title track from the new album. As for older material, most of the hits are there, ‘including “Calling On You”, “Free”, “Reach Out”, “Too Hell With The Devil” (the first encore of this set) and the band closes with “Soldiers Under Command.” Sixteen tracks in total, the between song raps are kept to minimum on the CD (although I’m sure they’re there in full on the DVD version of the release), which does disappoint a bit as Michael does know how to take control of a crowd without resorting to the preaching aspect that so many

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Available from all stores in Norway, from cdon.com if you live in Europe and directly from the band at post@thesuicidebombers.com if you live in the rest of the world or want a signed copy.

Also available:

religious bands are known to do.

There are no ballads present on ‘Live at the Whisky’ and because of that I think the album flows better than it would have if they had pulled out “Honestly” or “First Love” to round out their “hits selections.

The band is incredibly tight throughout, which isn’t surprising as they’ve really never gone away and thankfully they haven’t gone for over enhancing the audience in order to make it sound like they’re playing a bigger room or touched things up too much after the fact.

Sweet does offer up that they “have another thirty years left if you do” at the end of the album ... which could be frightening on both accounts.

-Dave Tedder

SWEET & LYNCH ‘Only To Rise’ (Frontiers Records) Stryper’s Michael Sweet and Dokken/ Lynch Mob Guitarist George Lynch team up for an album and the results are well, GOOD. From the opening track, “The Wish” it is clear that Sweet and Lynch had no qualms about visiting the past and injecting it into the future. In what is expected from a team like this, the guitar work is great and Michael is spot on vocally, soaring together through the song with a solid rhythm section driving the song home.

“Dying Rose” slows things down just a bit.

George has a lot going on underneath the vocals here and keeps it interesting despite the slower tempo. I’m loving the vocals and choruses on this song. It’s got a great groove. Fans of Lynch Mob will hear the similarities to that group here.

“Love Stays” is reminiscent of Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” before hit-

ting the verses. “Time Will Tell” picks up the pace a little more from here and then dances right into old school Stryper territory. “Rescue Me” opens with some guitars accompanied by an organ. Don’t worry, it’s still a solid track and again, the guitar work is outstanding.

“Me Without You” sounds like old school Dokken (ala “Dream Warriors”) upon opening. Michael even manages to sound a bit like Don Dokken himself for a moment here. Great haunting chorus on the song that begins to wander into “Alone Again” territory from George’s old alma mater.

Have I mentioned how good the guitar work is yet? Yeah, it’s getting ridiculously redundant isn’t it? Live with it.

“Recover” gets busy and is a solid riff after riff track, “Divine” is groove laden, “September” is an ode to the events of September 11, 2001 and feels a bit forced and a little out of place. I understand the sentiment, but it just feels off.

“Strength in Numbers” crosses back into familiar Stryper territory again. I realize that Michael’s vocals can do that to anyone that listens, but listening to the music on this track, I can hear the echoes of the “In God We Trust” opus here.

“Hero-Zero”, the title track, “Only to Rise” (in which Sweet takes the listener over the top with his vocal abilities) and an alternate version of “Me Without You” which is more vocally driven and sans drums, finish out the disc.

There really isn’t a bad track on the record.

George is at his best here and Michael is singing as great as ever. Bassist James Lomenzo and drummer Brian Tichy deliver solid rhythm throughout. Hooks, grooves, soaring guitars and vocals make this a must have release.

Fans of Stryper, Lynch Mob and Dokken will most definitely enjoy this disc as well as fans of great hard rock music in general. It doesn’t sound dated but it doesn’t sound like modern rock either.

-Chris Gillespie

CD REVIEWS

TEMPT ‘Under My Skin’ (Self Released) New York City quartet Tempt are still in their late teens but you’d never know it by taking a look at their debut Ep, ‘Under My Skin.’

Obviously raised on a healthy dose of 80’s hard rock, frontman Zach Allen and Harrison Marcello led the band through five melodic hard rock songs in the vein of all of your heroes from yesterday – Dokken, Firehouse, etc. And they deliver in fine style, even down to the guitar tones, tweaked by legendary producer / engineer, Michael Wagener, best known,of course for his work with Skid Row, Motley Crue, White Lion, et al.

Kicking off with the Ep’s title track, “Under My Skin” (did I mention the cliched song titles are there, as well? Anyway, on with the show … ) you’re immediately hit with the realization that Marcello absolutely knows his way around a fretboard and that the band are well versed in the art of writing a hook. The track itself is reminiscent of the band Trouble Tribe (anyone remember them? No? Don’t feel bad, you’re not alone …)

“Use It Or Lose It” (there we go again!) pulls the band straight into Dokken territory, especially with Harrison’s lead break.

Singer, Allen seems to fall a bit short on this track, coming across almost monotone like in his delivery and his phrasing.

“The Fight” brings to mind classic Night Ranger or Heaven’s Edge material – fantastic guitar work once again and the chorus has a huge hook but once again Allen falls a bit short in the delivery department.

The song seems to end rather abruptly on it’s fade out, which kinda threw me a bit.

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With “Time Won’t Heal” we finally see Zach step up into full voice and shine. A mid tempo power ballad that once again brings to mind Heaven’s Edge, the chorus in this song has a hook that could drag a whale into shore.

Rounding off the Ep is the raw power and energy of “Aamina,” which I can only assume is someone’s girlfriend. The band shoots for the arena with this one and hits.

Gang vocals galore drive this track into the stratosphere.

Overall Tempt have something really strong going here and bring back a ouch of yesterday for music fans “of a certain age.” While the Swedes almost seem to have a lock on this sort of retro hard rock, these kids from the Big Apple may give them a run for their money. We’ll have to see what their debut full length brings to the album when it’s released later in 2015.

-Dave Tedder

THUNDERMOTHER ‘Rock N’ Roll Disaster’ (Warner Music) Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, the five piece femme fatale rock and roll outfit known as, Thundermother come roaring out the gates with their balls to the wall debut release, ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Disaster.’

Featuring Clare Cunningham on vocals, Filippa Nässil on lead guitar, Giorgia Carteri on rhythm guitar, Linda Ström on bass and Tilda Stenqvist on drums, these ladies have toured with the likes of In Flames, Zakk Wylde, Danko Jones, Opeth, Motörhead and Airbourne. Leaving lasting impressions and the upmost respect.

As Joel o´Keffe of AIRBOURNE has stated, “There are three great bands in the world: Bullet, Airbourne and THUNDERMOTHER!”

‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Disaster’, is loaded with booze-and-sweat-soaked rock ‘n’ roll that isn’t looking to change the world by abolishing Free Trade, but simply provide the ultimate soundtrack to the biggest all-night rock party there is. The album launches from their fist-pumping track “Man With Blues” through to the anthemic title track, , “Rock ‘N’ Roll Disaster” and the self-explanatory rock explosions of, “Thunderous” and “Shoot To Kill.”

It all works, the lyrics are delivered with attitude and perspective. The shout along choruses, driving rhythms, and infectious guitar make this album simply addictive.

‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Disaster’ is a blistering album that never lets up from start to finish with nice guitar work and great energy.

No,Thundermother aren’t breaking any new ground and they wear their influences like orange prison jumpsuits, but they put it together into great, tight songs.

of classic rock and soul simultaneously while the band, Marcus Kain (guitar), Mark Wells (bass, vocals and guitar), and Drew Alig (drums) throw down meaty rhythms and grooves of thick edgy electric guitar. Good Rock IS still alive and Twenty Two Hundred proves it. The music is well written and played and they are clearly one of the best new bands that rock music has to offer in recent years.

‘Carnaval De Vénus’ from start to finish is one of the most complete and compelling albums I have heard in the last few years. Fans of pure in your face, no holds bar raw passion filled rock and roll will dig what Twenty Two Hundred have to offer. ‘Carnaval De Vénus’ is guaranteed to rock your socks off! Turn it up loud and get lost in their sound. Who says rock is dead?

- Tony Sison

Thundermother are a band flat out rocks!

Play It LOUD! -Tony Sison

TWENTY TWO HUNDRED ‘Carnaal De Venus’ (Tonequake Records)

POWERFUL with ATTITUDE! Those are the words that I would use to describe the music that I experienced listening to ‘Carnaval De Vénus’, the powerful debut release from the Australian based rock band, Twenty Two Hundred. Ball busting powerful rock, that’s what you’ll get here.

No fillers! All good stuff from beginning to end. Theirs is a sound that explodes with power and passion and it translates with authority on tracks like, ‘7x Down’, “Got It Bad”, “The Rat”, “Hitman”, the down and dirty swagger of “Stone Cold” and the powerhouse mover, “Why Can’t You Love Me”,’ The whole album is rock solid! Frontman Tony Cardenas -Montana possesses a wail that stretches the corners

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TWENTYDARKSEVEN ‘Roar’ (Metalapolis Records)

You like hard-hitting rock music? Check.

How about go for the throat vocals coming from someone who can actually sing?

Check. Fully loaded guitar riffs and killer hooks? Check. From the pounding drums to the supercharged guitar work, Twentydarksven from Germany is just what the doctor ordered. The band is made up of Marcus Jürgens - Vocals (ex-Pump, ex- Brainstorm), Peter Wagner - guitar (ex-Wicked Temptation, Piledriver), Alex Jansen - Bass (ex-Mennen, FOX) and Hans in ‘t Zandt - Drums (ex-Vengeance, Praying Mantis).

The band’s debut release, ‘Roar’ is a balls to wall release that is loaded with tons of attitude and swagger. From the opening track, “Do You Like The Dark” through a stunning military parade of guitarcrunching tunes, the best of which are, “Heart Of A Lion”, “So Damn Insane”, “Edge Of A Knife” and “Hard Times

Coming”, that closes out the album with a bang. ‘Roar’ just doesn’t quit. This is a recording that doesn’t have to be played loud to be loud (but don’t cheat yourself - play it loud anyway). The bottom line is, ‘Roar’ is a kick in the teeth hard rock album. It’s heavy, yet energetic without being too fast nor too slow. The songs move well, the writing is good and the band’s chemistry is as tight as a glove. If you love guitar driven, straight ahead in your face hard rock music , look no further. Twentydarksven has what you crave in spades.

-Tony Sison

track. “Secrets in Paradise” slows down the tempo for a moment before breaking back into another guitar assault on “Meaning of Life.” “Breathless,” “Under Your Skin”, “Untouchable” and “Rebels of the Night” continue the barrage of riff after killer riff before the album comes to a close with “Words in Flame”. The track opens with a nice acoustic guitar and keyboard laden intro before picking the pace back up. The keyboards continue to accompany the guitars in keeping with yet another power metal song on the disc. A couple of changes to the tempo make the track seem almost schizophrenic though.

Overall, a great return to form for UDO. I know a lot of people would like to see him back in Accept, but I am pretty happy with where he is musically now.

U.D.O. ‘Decadent’ (AFM Records)

Stand out tracks for me are “Decadent”, “Breathless” and “House of Fake”.

-Chris Gillespie

The newest release from UDO, “Decadent” has him returning in fine form along with his band. I have been looking forward to a release like this from Mr. Dirkschneider for awhile now!

The twin guitar attack of Andrew Smirnov and Kasperi Heikkinen has really helped revitalize the sound of the music on this release. The intensity and urgency of the opening track “Speeder” immediately brings you back to UDO’s first solo album ‘Animal House.’ Great choruses accompany UDO’s throaty vocals and deliver the goods. The second song, “Decadent” follows through with a catchy and sort of anthemic feel that I can’t help but hit rewind to listen to more than once.

“House Of Fake” follows with an assault of guitars right to the face. The chorus of “We’re living in the house of fake” brings the song to a brief slowdown only to fire back into frenzy. “Mystery” is a strange song altogether and sounds oddly out of place on this release. If UDO was trying to mix it up a bit, he succeeded. It’s a good track, just kind of odd.

“Pain” is a great over the top power metal

VAMPS ‘Bloodsuckers’ (Spinefarm Records) Having not heard any previous material from Vamps, I wasn’t sure what to expect.

The album kicks off with fast paced piano driven instrumental with an electronic vibe to it which carries ove into the first song “Zero.” “Zero” has a very electronic metal sound with great vocals. Almost like Duran Duran meets Powerman 5000.

Just when you get comfortable they turn it up a notch with “Lips” which is very heavy. Singer Hyde lets loose and there is no question that the former L’Arc-enCiel frontman is clearly in his element.

“Ahead” starts out with a palm muted guitar riff followed by some huge drums, falling right in line behind “Lips” this song has some great dynamics which push and pull you around the song.

“Evil” returns to the electronic vibe with

CD REVIEWS

an eerie intro. The vocals have a horror movie-esque feel as the song builds, which is the running theme of ‘Bloodsucker.’ The guitar work of K.A.Z. is extravagant and diverse and really shines through thus far in this album. “Vampire’s Love” is a tranquil piece which showcases a beautifully written piano intro and unfolds into an epic rock ballad complete with a string section.

“Damned” brings us back up to speed with a crushing guitar riff that makes me want to start a mosh pit. In complete contrast “Get Away” brings us back to the electronic pop feel from the early part of the album. The constant here is the powerful vocal delivery of Hyde: as polished as this album is there is an atractive rawness to his voice. “Bloodsuckers” and “The Jolly Roger” continue with the heavy electronic metal vibe. Rounding out the album is “Inside Myself ” which starts off subtly and continues to build for the remainder of the track with some walking bass lines and orchestra like strings.

About ¾ of this record screams arena rock. It’s fun, dark at times and energetic.

Hyde and K.A.Z. have really knocked it out of the park with ‘Bloodsuckers.’ If you like electronic metal pop (is this an actual genre?!) this is the band for you.

(Check out the VAMPS feature on page 40!)

-Donny Rosko

VEGA ‘Stereo Messiah’ (Frontiers Records) UK melodic rock outfit Vega began life as just another project for Frontiers and why not, brothers Tom and James Martin write a fair share of material for

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CD REVIEWS

other Frontiers acts afterall. The past two albums, 2011’s ‘What the Hell’ and their new ‘Stereo Messiah’ opus see the band turning a corner and becoming a major force in the modern melodic rock era.

The album is loaded with layered everything and this is pleasantly evident from the onset as the title track kicks the album into high gear and rolls right into “All Or Nothing” with it’s majestic verses and punchy chorus. Guitarist, Tom Martin shines on the track with a fluid solo that carries it’s own weight. In fact, Martin is a bit of a star throughout the album, playing in the pocket perfectly only stepping outside to deliver the occasional bone crunching power chord or a brilliantly designed lead break. With “Gonna Need Some Love” the band veer into modern power pop territory, the track being a bit “left field” of most of the material on ‘Stereo Messiah’ but still as strong as anything else on the album.

“With Both Hands” sounds like it would fit alongside any track on Journey’s ‘Raised on Radio’ album. If “10 X Bigger Than Love” sounds like latter day Def Leppard there would be a reason for that as the song was recorded by that band during the ‘X’ sessions and the Lep’s Joe Elliot lends his vocal cords to a duet with Nick Workman on the number.

Album closer, the melancholic “Tears Never Dry” opens with some fantastic fret work courtesy of Martin and has the makings of a top of the line classic era ballad.

The production, courtesy of It Bites frontman, John Mitchell is bright, crisp and crystal clear - just what you’d want and expect of this sort of album. The only thing missing from my standpoint is a bit more of a bottom end. However, it does bring to mind classic AOR albums from the likes of Guiffria, White Sister, Streets and Journey amongst others. I’m guessing this is exactly what they were hoping for.

-Tim Welch

VENOM ‘From the Very Depths’ (Spinefarm Records) By now, you’ve no doubt heard of Venom (if not, where in the hell have you been???). This band has been around since its formation in 1979 and their influences in Black and Death metal can be seen all around us today. Slayer, Metallica and Megadeth have all cited Venom as an influence at one time or another.

‘From the Very Depths’ is their fourteenth album, which incidentally, features 14 tracks. Coincidence? Who knows?

The album opens in fine form with “Eruptus”, a spooky lead in that invokes visions of a descent into hell itself and makes it perfectly clear that band leader, and only constant member, Cronos, is keeping with the tried and true sound Venom has become known for. “From The Very Depths” follows with a ferocity that proves age hasn’t slowed the band down one bit.

In fact, I had to turn the volume up at this point. It is a PURE FUCKING ADRENALINE RUSH. “The Death of Rock N Roll” continues with the pedal to the metal. An homage to Marshall stacks if ever there were one.

“Smoke” brings in a trademarked wah induced psychedelic laced guitar intro and breaks right into some real nice heavy grooves and later, a really good guitar solo from Stuart “Rage” Dixon. “Temptation” is blast beat thrash nirvana. It’s at this point I discover that, unfortunately, I have no more volume to increase. Any further attempts would result in a broken dial and maybe some permanent hearing loss.

“Long Haired Punks” continues with the blast beats and brings Cronos out from behind the mix with some Bass bad assery. This song is a fresh anthem for long hairs everywhere!

64 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

“Stigmata Satanas” and “Crucified” bring a real Punk meets Thrash vibe together.

Getting a nice Motorhead meets Sabbath vibe off these tracks. “Evil Law” comes out with some watery sound effects and pounding bass and then breaks out into headbanging grooves. “Grinding Teeth” picks the pace back up with a frantic guitar intro. Cronos’ opening salvo sounds a bit like Testament’s Chuck Billy here.

“Ouverture” is an instrumental track that showcases a mellower side of the band and seems a bit out of place. “Mephistopheles” is reminiscent of White Zombie’s “Feed the Gods”, however, these kind of thrash riffs have been around a long time and they always seem to work with good bands. “Wings of Valkyrie” and “Rise” close out a very strong collection of tracks on this album.

The hokey “tongue in cheek” satanic lyrics are all still here. Of course, what would anyone think if they strayed off what always works right? Cronos voice is as strong as ever and his bass playing is more solid than ever. The guitar solos throughout this collection are outstanding. I really could not point out my favorites as they are all pretty damn good. The drumming from Danny “Danté” Needham is as solid as it can get. If you are looking for something reminiscent of ‘At War With Satan’ or any of the classic albums, you won’t find it here. They sound more like modern day Testament with some Sabbath and Motorhead thrown in for good measure than the Venom of old actually.

However, if you just want to mosh with the best, this is the disc you need in your collection. An outstanding album from the death / thrash masters themselves.

“From The Very Depths”, “The Death of Rock N Roll” and “Long Haired Punks” are the standouts on the album.

Up the HORNS MOTHERFUCKERS! -D. Salut

exact sentiment, the man can deliver.

WORK OF ART ‘Framework’ (Frontiers Records)

Ripping a page from Toto, Survivor, Mr. Mister and the like’s playbooks, Work of Art is another in a line of well executed high tech keyboard driven AOR bands hailing from Sweden. And this is a line that seems to grow ever longer with each passing year.

Work of Art vocalist Lars Safsund is said to have the finest voice in the genre today and whether or not you agree with that

Opening track,” Time To Let Go” is a frantic upbeat number that starts things off just fine and “How Will I Know” has a chorus with the hook from hell. Catchy, memorable, huge, the song has it all, actually. “Shout Til You Wake Up” brings to mind Toto’s material in spots, especially the keyboard and piano work from Sasfund.

With “How Do You Sleep at Night” (which brings Mr.Mister to mind) and the slightly harder hitting “Over the Line” you can’t help but wonder if Las is trying to get a message through to someone. Light and fluffy these two ain’t!

“The Machine” sees guitarist Robert Sall finally open up a bit with a Randy Rhoads-esque style riff hitting things off.

CD REVIEWS

When the songs kicks in, it falls back into Survivor territory, while “The Turning Point” opens with a blueprint Toto piano intro before picking things up but still retaining a bit of a Toto element throughout.

“My Waking Dream” closes the album on a moody ballad note and, to these ears at least, is the weakest track offered up as it just lies there with little spark or real emotion. It sounds as if this one was phoned in.

All in all a strong outing for those looking for a fresh take on their mid to late 80’s AOR gems. The members of Work of Art also show up in the bands Lionville and W.E.T. so, if you’re not familiar, go seek those two acts out, as well.

-Tim Welch

DESTROYING DIVINITY - Burning Down Inside In recent years, the countries that made up the Eastern Bloc before it splintered apart in the late 80’s and early 90’s, have unleashed a flood of bands upon the metal landscape. Despondent, ugly, head hammering slices of brutality that, without doubt, reflect the dark, bleak and dreary history of their homelands.

“Our goal wasn’t to conquer the world, the goals were actually in the creative process so, the band was sort of a hobby when we began.”

Hailing from the Czech Republic, death metallers Destroying Divinity are the epitome of this wave of bands breaking into the west. The quartet’s bludgeoning new opus, ‘Hollow Dominion,’ is textbook death metal without resorting to paint by numbers plagiarism of the genre’s leaders.

The band has gone from strength to strength since it’s inception in 2001 and the release of their first demo, ‘Created,’ recorded just three short months after the band’s inception and debut album of the same name, which was released through the small local indie. Grodshain. “Our goal actually wasn’t to conquer the world, they were actually in the creative process. So, I guess you could say the band was sort of a hobby when we began.”

The cold dark winter months of 2004 saw the release of the quartet’s sophomore effort, ‘Hell Unleashed,’ which they supported with a short trek around the Czech Republic. “The death metal scene was really alive during the era of our first two releases but, we haven’t had much of an opportunity to tour since then. We’ve played with some great bands, including Dying Fetus, hate Eternal, Deeds of Flesh, Vader and Necrophagist, as well as some great local bands and the festivals Obscene Extreme and Nuclear Storm.”

The band has weathered health issues, family and job issues, all of which interfered in the band’s ability to move forward at the pace they would have preferred it to but with ‘Hollow Dominion’ they’ve gotten their revenge on the streak of bad luck that has followed them through the past decade of their lives. “Those problems didn’t kill us, they only made us stronger.”

“All the shit we’ve gone through with the health issues, family

Now that they’ve signed a US deal (with problems, work problem, all of that, didn’t kill us. They only Brutal Bands) Destroying Divinity, the curmade us stronger.” rent line-up – Erik (vocals), Gassi (guitars), Flagin (guitars) and Ommurtag (drums) have a foundation to unleash their hell upon the West and they do so in unrelenting fashion. With influences Immolation, Morbid Angel and Deicide riding the forefront of the band’s material, the blackened perspective of Destroying Divinity was a little more prevalent than in earlier releases. “”We’ve always slipped some black metal elements into our music. It may be little more upfront with the new album but it’s always been there and always will be.”

- Vince Newman 66 | Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com

SHREDHEAD - From The Promised Land to Metal Heaven With their sophomore album, ‘Death is Righteous’ out via Danish label Mighty Music, the Berlin based Israeli ex-pats Shredhead have switched their game up slightly from their DIY 2011 release ‘Human Nature.’ While the debut was rooted firmly in old school thrash metal, ‘Death is Righteous’ pulls out influences ranging from COC to Biohazard as well as early Machine Head and post Cowboys era Pantera. Recorded at two of Israel’s top studios, Bardo and Iscream, the band just let their influences fly, says bass player, Lee Lavy. “When one of our big influences is Pantera the similarities are bound to happen. We don’t go out of our way to sound like a certain band since we add our own touch to things but what comes out comes out.” spent their early years touring their homeland constantly with Israel’s “The crew at Wacken Shredhead top metal bands BETZEFER, The Fading and Hammercult before unleashing ‘Hutreated us like we man Nature.’ They also decided that they needed to hit territories outside of Israel the key to that was winning the 2012 Israeli Metal Battle, ensuring them a spot were rock stars!” and at the Wacken Metal Battle. “The Wacken Metal Battle was our first show outside of

Israel,” relates Lavy. “It was a very humbling experience. Wacken itself is amazing overall and we had no idea what to expect. Everyone involved with the show treated us like we were rock stars and we played in front of 7,000 people with three separate mosh pits and Israeli flags flying all around us. It was awesome!”

August of 2014 saw the quartet (completed by vocalist, Aharon Ragoza, guitarist, Yotam Nagor and drummer, Roee Kahana) decided to pack up and head for the much more metal friendly concrete streets of Berlin because getting anywhere at all in the music industry is hard enough as is much less trying to do it from the confines of the not quite as metal friendly outlet of their homeland. “We decided to improve our odds even if we only wound up in Germany for a short time. So far it’s gone well, though. We’ve signed with the Danish label Mighty Music and we’ve been taken on by The Flaming Arts Agency. So, we’re off to a good start!”

Shredhead take to the road with Vader and Hate in March.

- Vince Newman Hard Attack Magazine www.hardattackmag.com | 67

IN MEMORY OF A.J. PERO October 14, 1959 - March 20, 2015