Raven were extremely important for me developing an interest for the whole NWOBHM-movement during the late eighties. I remember buying the rather suspect sampler “The Devil’s Carrion” on vinyl for as little as five dollars, and also recall how impressed I was with the quality of the songs. Continue reading
So, yet another year has passed, and it’s time to look back and reflect on what was. In this first of two parts where I look back at 2014, I will focus on Metal Squadron. Part 2 will dwell around the year in metal, with of course, my top 15 list for the year that is soon coming to an end. Continue reading
I’ve always found it very interesting trying to cover the acts that not many apart from maybe the inner circle of fans in their hometown know a lot about. I guess Rabid Bitch Of The North from Belfast in Northern-Ireland fits this description. The band has just issued a three track tape through Sarlacc, and fortunately, guitarist Gerry Mulholland put a lot of effort into answering my questions, making this the in depth feature I wanted it to be. Continue reading
1. BELOW “Across The Dark River” (Metal Blade)
– Very pleasant, warm and melodic doom in the vein of “Chapter VI”-era Candlemass
2. PORTRAIT “Crossroads” (Metal Blade)
– A bit more laidback and relaxed musically/vocally than the last one?
I worked hard preparing the questions for this interview back in August 2013, but unfortunately never heard back from the band. A week or two back, half a year later, the answers finally reached me. Completely out of the blue, I would say.
1. NOCTURNAL ”Storming Evil” (High Roller)
– The first thrash highlight of 2014. Catchy as only the Germans can be!
2. COBRA “To Hell” (Austral Holocaust)
– Cool, old school heavy metal with some hard rock thrown in and the usual Southern American charm. Continue reading
Just like the recently covered Blade Killer, Chicago’s own Crusader is a relatively new heavy metal-band that has been given the chance to spread their music in physical format through one of the most hyperactive labels out there, Stormspell Records. While Blade Killer just put out their first EP, Crusader released theirs a couple of years ago. Right now, they’re ready to unleash their debut full length on the heavy metal audience. Continue reading
It certainly doesn’t seem that it will end soon, the stream of new US bands heavily influenced by the NWOBHM. In many cases we are talking about musicians with a background from other genres of metal who now wants to try their luck at replicating or creating something similar to the wave that washed through Great Britain more than thirty years ago. Continue reading
What a year 2013 must have been for Brian Ross. Not only was “Life Sentence”, the comeback album from Satan (go to the bottom of the page to check out the long interview I did with Steve Ramsey) released to rave reviews, the charismatic and highly original singer also managed to put out the first Blitzkrieg album in six years. We’ll touch on both subjects in this interview of course, along with Metallica, Judas Priest and the new compilation album. Continue reading
1. SOLSTICE “Death’s Crown Is Victory” (Self released)
– EP with two killer long tracks as well as two cool instrumentals. Long enough to convince, short enough to leave you wanting more.
2. RAVENSIRE “We March Forward” (Eat Metal)
– What an improvement on the EP! Raw, epic and heavy. It doesn’t get more metal than this! Continue reading
I really admire Steve Ramsey, I love his work in Satan as well as Pariah and Skyclad, and was really happy to finally get a chance to speak to him. The main reason is the release of the band’s comeback album “Life Sentence” of course, but I also got a chance to cover a few other aspects. So Steve, the first preview of the new album is out today. Have you gotten any interesting feedback yet? Continue reading
I’ve seen the name of the band mentioned more than once over the past few months, but as my schedule has been heavy, I’ve not had time to check out the music of NIGHT DEMON until recently. When I first started listening to the trio’s EP, I had a hard time putting it away, as I often have with these new bands’ enthusiastic and intense take on the NWOBHM-sound. Continue reading
Metal Squadron 