LEE AARON-Elevate (Big Sister Records)
When you talk about the Metal Queen, it's definitely LEE AARON!!!!!! Ow, those early days of the amazing Canadian singer and this lady is still going strong after so many years. Does she never get older?? How does she do it? After a short stint with some jazz related songs and a few AOR-type of albums, LEE AARON is back in the rock business, where she belongs. What once started out with some amazing pics in "Oui" magazine, it lifted Karen Greening's career (her real name) up to a cult name in the Canadian rock and metal scene for sure. Lee's new album is called "Elevate", which contains ten tracks and forty-five minutes of pure rock. "Rock Bottom Revolution" starts off with some AC/DC type of stomping riffs and a catchy vibe. This good opener will keep you focused right away. And she sure rocks on without hesitation in "Trouble Maker". The harmony vocals are of the same caliber that a band like KISS would have used and once again there's that catchy feeling, which makes it easy to listen to. Some songs might have a bit of a poppy feeling in a way, but a track like "The Devil U Know" definitely contains a nice guitar solo somewhere in the middle. Lee is getting very close to the sound of VIXEN on that one. "Freak Show" however contains more AC/DC type of licks, a steady beat and a chorus that is being hammered into your head, so you won't forget it that easily. The flirts with AOR and pop rock are always there, so don't expect a pure true metal album, but I can assure you that it contains enough rock to make you happy and satisfied. "Heaven's Where We Are" is an up-tempo rock song, which won't bring you to rock heaven, but it will at least put a big happy smile on your face. "Still Alive" is another ballsy rock song with references to AC/DC and DEEP PURPLE for that matter. This slow head banger has got hair on its teeth and it's one of the highlights on the album, next to the amazing album opener. "Highway Romeo" is very radio friendly and a lot more poppy, but this up-tempo song contains a great guitar solo, that can't be missed. Are there any ballads here as well, I can almost hear you say?! Well, I think, that we can categorize "Red Dress" as the obligatory ballad here. It's tender and a bit emotional and the album wouldn't have been complete without it, in my opinion. After that it's time to rock out again in "Spitfire Woman", as the title already suggests. The album closes with the title track "Elevate", which rocks you to the end with more AC/DC type of riffs. This is definitely worth checking out, if you like some easy on the ear rock songs, that will give you a good feeling. Of course Lee is the shining star on vocals and she also takes care of the keyboard parts. Her band consists of Sean Kelly on guitar, Dave Raimer on bass and John Cody on drums. On "Spitfire Woman", she called in the help of Karen Berg on electric violin. More info, go to: https://www.leeaaron.com and https://www.facebook.com/lee.aaron.7564.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
AVATAR-Transformation (Dark Age Records)
The eighteen songs on this CD are worthy of seventy-five minutes of heavy power metal with a fast beat and very powerful rhythm. The first four songs were recorded under the name TRANSFORMATION without bass player Michelle Bassett. The other songs are recorded as AVATAR and this time there's metal maiden Michelle Bassett on bass and vocals. TRANSFORMATION was formed in 1987 and opener "No Conscience" takes off firmly and it has some very powerful guitar parts. I'm pleasantly surprised. At the time, the band consisted of Andy Keckler on drums and John 'MSJM' Miller on guitar, vocals and bass. In "Freak On The Street", you will hear more high pitched vocals and some dazzling guitar work. Title track "Transformation" is on next. I must admit that it's rather difficult to compare this band to others. I guess, people, who like CRIMSON GLORY mixed with a more Bruce Dickinson type of vocal approach will really dig this. The final TRANSFORMATION song on this disc is called "Wizard's Magic". Just check out the stunning bass part here. TRANSFORMATION never played live or took any band pictures whatsoever, but this is the living proof that the band really existed. They transformed to AVATAR in 1991 and although there are more bands with that name, this album is a safe buy to your metal collection for sure. AVATAR starts off with "Dirge", which could be compared to BITCH, PHANTOM BLUE or HELLION and more female fronted power metal bands from the eighties you can think of. The technical details in their songs prove that we are not dealing with any average kind of rock band here. These musicians know how to write a good song. Just listen to "Reality" and title track "The Avatar" with its amazing riffs and lyrics, which tells the story on music. The lengthy instrumental part sounds really amazing. "Warchild" is still a topical subject in 2024, as there are too many war children in the world of today. The speed change in the middle is a great introduction to the guitar solo here. In "Avalon", Michelle tells a completely different story. This sweet song is not really my cup of tea and she gives it a very epic feeling. However, the high vocal pull outs are amazing and the guitar solo is great, too. "Troll" is an instrumental track, in which the guitar of Mark Bassett plays a leading role. Those first six songs are taken from the demo "Reality", which was released in 1996. In the next song titled "The Call", there is even room for some incredible mood and speed changes, which gives it more variation. While the song "Want You" is another instrumental tune. "Stranger" is up tempo with male vocals and some really breathtaking guitar riffs. One of my favorite songs here is the fast and furious "Righteous Pigs". It sounds louder and a bit more aggressive than the others. "Let's Go" is a nice rocker too, but in a different way. Another highlight for me is "All I Can See" with some powerful vocals and great guitar work and even a short drum solo at the end. "Single Tear" closes this great metal album and I would highly recommend it to every true underground metal head. AVATAR consisted of Mark Bassett on vocals and guitar, Andy Keckler on drums and Michelle Bassett on bass and vocals. Unfortunately, David Andrew 'Andy' Keckler passed away on January 6th, 2024, yet it's a nice tribute to this drummer, who also played in BORN IN PAINE, FINAL FRONTIER, GROUPER and LEGAL TENDER.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
BITTER VELVET-Unleashed Fears (Stormspell Records)
BITTER VELVET is a two member band from Ecuador, who released this eight track album with the help of guest musician Omarchetz on bass, cello and vocals. The album will take you away from every day's sorrow for about thirty-five minutes. It starts off in fourth gear with the incredible "A Demon In Disguise". Malice has got a fiery, raspy voice, which matches very well to this fast song. The speed goes up during "The Princess Within" and the guitar playing of Sage Zavage is really mind-blowing. Influences of YNGWIE MALMSTEEN are present, because he is as fast as hell, but he also plays with a great feeling for melody, next to his fast shredding parts. "The Long & Lonely Fight" is a great rock song, which blends very well together with their old school metal sound and the sound of today. "Heavy Metal Bomb" is a fine sing along tune. The easy on the ear kind of approach and the flashing guitar solo, definitely makes it a crowd's favorite, when playing live. "Whispers Of You" is next up, yet there is not enough room for whispering here, because the band likes to keep on rocking. They keep up the fact pace on "Tangled Web", which contains more amazing axe work. "Illumination" starts off a bit slower, although very soon the song gains more speed and power. The CD closes with the fiery "Bad Girl", in which the guitar is playing a leading role again. BITTER VELVET surprised me in a very positive way. The artwork will grab your attention immediately and won't let go until the last notes are fading away. BITTER VELVET consists of Malice on vocals and Sace Zavage on guitars and vocals. Check out this rough diamond from Ecuador, you won't regret it. https://www.facebook.com/BitterVelvet.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
BLOOD STAR-First Sighting (Shadow Kingdom Records)
Sometimes a new band grabs you by the balls right away and this amazing eight track album of BLOOD STAR did just that. Their heavy metal hits you in the face for a bit over thirty minutes. The album starts off with the fiery "All For Nothing", that will make your mind go out to the days of WARLOCK and CHASTAIN. High octane fueled metal with some powerful female vocals is what you get. And after this very promising opener, you know for sure, that you need more of this. The killing riffs and flashing guitar solos in "Fearless Priestess" will surely set your heart on fire. There is a slightly epic vibe in this song, but the power always wins and gets you on your knees for this priestess of metal. The speed goes up in "No One Wins" and I think we can state that the listener is the winner here. In "The Observers", guitarist Jamison Palmer takes over the lead vocals, which is very convincing. His voice made me think of the late and migthy Mark Shelton (MANILLA ROAD). Nothing can ever beat that man, but the resemblance is quite striking. In the final part of this song, Madeline takes over the mike again. This is followed by a two minutes acoustic track, called "Dawn Phenomenon", that is the intro of "Cold Moon" where the band steps back on the gas. This short acoustic track has been influenced by VISIGOTH's epical sound for sure. Not strange at all, when realizing that two former VISIGOTH members, bass player Noah and guitar player Jamison once played in this amazing epic true metal outfit. The next song, called "Going Home" is raging on at full speed. You would only expect such huge amount of power of classic metal bands like DIO or BLUE OYSTER CULT for example. It reaches the breakneck speed level in CD closer "Wait To Die" with the thundering bass drums and THIN LIZZY influences in the guitar work of this amazing power metal experience. Salt Lake City will be proud of BLOOD STAR, because this very strong debut album has got everything that a heavy metal fan really needs. Buy or die! BLOOD STAR consists of Noah Henley on bass, Madeline Michelle on vocals, Al Lester on drums and Jamison Palmer on guitar. https://www.facebook.com/bloodstarsl.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
BURNING WITCHES-The Dark Tower (Napalm Records/HLP)
A new album of BURNING WITCHES is always something exciting to look forward to. And this time isn't any different, because the popularity of these five witches from Switzerland has grown out of proportions these past few years. Thirteen tracks are on this amazing new album, that is worthy of almost a full hour of true heavy metal. Do you want to join me on a trip to the dark tower, deep in the woods? Well, let's go then! The dark and creepy intro of "Rise Of Darkness" will lead you to the tower, where you are welcomed by a raging storm of riffs and thundering drum rolls in "Unleash The Beast". The title says it all, I guess. The powerful voice of singer Laura Guldenmond is screaming out firmly and if you for example like ACCEPT, you will raise your devil horns immediately. This is the second single taken from the album. "Renegade" starts off with some JUDAS PRIEST type of riffs. They are a bit heavier with a rawer taste, which fits very well to this vicious ear attack. Another vicious attack is "Evil Witch", because in the order of witches there are black and white witches and some of them are good, but some of them are rather evil and out for blood and ready to take your soul. The ghost of JUDAS PRIEST dwells around here as well and the guitar licks are breathtaking. The third single is next up, which is called "World On Fire". The pounding drums are intense and the rhythm feels like magic. It’s perfect to bang your head upon, which I'm doing right now, while typing this review. You can only do this, when heavy metal is running through your veins for almost fifty years, otherwise you will end up strangling yourself into a rather weird situation, I guess. It's one of the many highlights on this album for me. "Tomorrow" however is from a very different category. This epic ballad is quite a contrast to the aforementioned songs. Maybe it would have been better to put it near the end, as now it actually splits the album in two parts and they’re not even halfway through. The guitar solo is really nice though and it has a lot of the emotion. The creepy interlude "House Of Blood" is the perfect horror type of intro to the first single and title track "The Dark Tower" will really rip the flesh off your bones. The witch will be locked in the dark tower. It's gruesome, yet it fits perfectly on the album. What a powerful dark riffs. You will scream along to the chorus lines pretty easily and raise your fist in the air. "Heart Of Ice" does the same to you. The galloping rhythm will make your thoughts go out to IRON MAIDEN, more than JUDAS PRIEST this time. "Arrow Of Time" urges you to sing along to it. The magical thundering drum beats are pounding the rhythm like a Swiss clock. "Doomed To Die" is very aggressive and therefore it ends up in my list of highlights. It pounds a lot harder, the vocals are louder and the riffs are killing me. It really grabbed me by the throat and it doesn't let go. After this the band will lead you "Into The Unknown". The band has grown a lot over the years and they are so powerful on this album. My concolusion is that "The Dark Tower" is by far their best album ever. The song contains a nice and rather unexpectedly mood change, which leads to a wild part. The vocals sound mean and aggressive and the guitar solos take care of the musical touch. In the upper part of the tower there is a door than nobody dares to open, but we want to know that final secret as well. When we open the door, it's quite obvious, This is the room where "The Lost Souls" are living. They growl and grunt into the night, the vocals never sounded that mean. The dark tower has revealed its final secret and this trip was worth every single second. The artwork of the album looks amazing as well with the pentagram made of stone skulls, the graveyard where bodies try to creep out of their final resting place, the stakes on which the heads of the prisoners were put to scare the enemies that are trying to attack the tower, the ghosts that are circling around the tower in the moonlight and the beautiful female vampire face with blood dripping out of her mouth. It's creepy, it's spooky, yet it's all done so perfect that I can only give the full score for that. BURNING WITCHES consists of Laura Guldenmond on vocals, Lala Frischknecht on drums, Romana Kalkuhl on guitar, Larissa Ernst on guitar and Jeanine Grob on bass. For more info, go to: https://www.burningwitches.ch or https://www.facebook.com/burningwitches666.
[10 points - FULL SCORE] (Toine van Poorten)
CATEGORY VI-Firecry (Moribund Records)
If someone cries for fire to light a cigarette, I’m afraid I have to disappoint them. I'm a non-smoker and therefore I had my doubts whether this album would be my taste. The answer to this question would be a heartfelt 'yes' when I hear the furious screams on the beginning of this album. CATEGORY VI has never disappointed me and I think they won't let me down here either. The album contains nine songs and is worthy of almost forty-five minutes of pure heavy metal, starting off with title track "Firecry". The cry for fire is because the witch on the CD cover has to be burned right away. A short instrumental part will lead you to the screams of singer Amanda Jackman, I was referring to earlier. She really goes berserk. Add to this the riffs and hard beating drums and a true metal anthem is born. Sometimes Amanda gives another push of breath to make a scream even longer and more powerful than it already is. "Valkyrie" is a bit faster and maybe the riffs are rawer, too. Old school metal bands like CHASTAIN and HELLION come to mind here. The mood change will lead you to the guitar solo. The horror type of intro in "The Vultures Never Came" refers to for example a band like MERCYFUL FATE. Although the power metal sound of CATEGORY VI is completely different than this Danish metal institute, the screams of Amanda have the same vibe. "She Runs With Wolves" is pretty much straight forward and has a slightly catchy character. The guitar solo here does do the trick. It will excite you and makes you wish for more. After that, they slow things down a bit and in "Heavy Is The Crown", you can almost feel the weight. It's not doomy at all, only a bit slower. You'd better get ready for the "Coven" which is next, because the force will really blow you away. It has a very surprisingly nice bass solo, that you won't hear that often. If this doesn't knock you off your feet, the guitar solo will definitely do the trick. "The Cradle Will Fall" rushes in at full force after this. Just have a listen to the final vocal pull outs of Amanda, which sound truly awesome. The last own-penned song is called "Burning Bridges". Once again it will amaze you how much passion for the love of metal these songs are being performed here. The knock-out punch, if you're not already down and out on the floor, is from the HEART cover "Barracuda", one of the loudest tracks of this amazing band from Canada. What a brilliant closure! CATEGORY VI really hit me hard on their third self-released album "Firecry". The band is Amanda Marie Jackman on vocals, Keith Jackman on bass, Geoff Waye on guitar and Brian Downtown on drums. For more info, go to: https://www.facebook.com/CategoryVI.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
COBRA CULT-Don't Kill The Dark (GMR Music)
COBRA CULT from Stockholm are back on this third album, which contains ten hard rock tracks, worthy of thirty minutes. The album also contains a warning: don't kill the dark. Well, I guess, you wouldn't dare anyway. It starts off with "Late Night Adventure", which has a catchy vibe, raw guitar hooks, a steady beat and some nice guitar riffs beefing up this up-tempo rock tune. The guitars are sounding raw and raunchy. Just listen to the riffs in "The Beast", which are as pure as life itself. However, in for example "A Price To Pay", there is also a bit of space for experimental parts and the spoken word parts of Johanna Lindholt fit very well in here. Her seasoned voice in "Stand Your Ground" is a real asset, next to the drummer Carl Johan Sillen, who asks for a prominent place in the mix with his fast drum beats. "The Colour Green" is a tribute to the light, in which the band really goes for it. They are also gaining more speed. The guitar parts are adventurous and very innovative. Title track "Don't Kill The Dark" starts off very doomy. It's definitely one of my favorite tracks on the album, because of the slightly punky input. And that punky twist and raw atmosphere continues in the next up-tempo tracks, "Forever Faster" and especially "Do Or Die", which contains some amazing guitar licks. Definitely two more highlights on this album, as far as I'm concerned. "What We Know" has some nice guitar work and in CD closure "Her Majesty", Johanna's voice remind me a bit of Chrissie Hynde of THE PRETENDERS. She even has that same dark brown tone and punky twist. In general, the sound of COBRA CULT leans more towards hard rock rather than punk rock. I really like the colorful artwork of a cobra eating a flaming skull. There's a lot of the color green in it. If you're ready for a good party, then make sure to play this heavy rock album with a punky twist to it and watch out that you don't kill the dark. Guest appearances on the album come from Joseph Toll and Robert Pehrsson on backing vocals. People, who are familiar with the Swedish rock scene will probably know their solo albums, I guess. COBRA CULT consists of Johanna Lindholt on vocals and guitar, Thomas Jonsson on bass and backing vocals, Carl Johan 'Sillen' Sillen on drums and Anders Martinsgård on guitar. For more info, go to: https://www.cobracult.se or https://www.facebook.com/cobracultband.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
COBRA SPELL-666 (Napalm Records)
Twelve tracks, worthy of fifty minutes of heavenly metal are on this new full-length album by the all-female metal band COBRA SPELL. It has a devilish title and the CD starts off with a ditto song. The snake has grown immensely and the cobra arises high above the blonde vixen on the cover of this new COBRA SPELL album. Title track "666" starts off and you don't have to be a Satan worshipper to enjoy this short instrumental intro. Sex sells - everybody knows that – which is followed by the real opener, called "S.E.X.". This song refers to a band like for example WASP, however the vocals are much lower with some high pull outs here and there. The high scream comes from the tip of the toes of singer Kristina Vega. This is a great song in their live shows for sure. The moaning sounds erotic and the melodic sound definitely gives you the chills. Guitarist Sonia Anubis is finger licking good, too, by the way. The best kept secret is being revealed in the next track, called "Satan Is A Woman". She definitely knows how to keep a secret, that's for sure. The song has a powerful vibe and with the good guitar solo on top of it, it's just a great melodic rock song. "Bad Girl Grew" is a sleazy rock tune that could very well be on any WASP, DOKKEN, RATT or GUNS ‘N’ ROSES album. It will rock your world for sure. The songs are easy on the ear and the shouting on "The Devil Inside Of Me" may refer to GIRLSCHOOL, only COBRA SPELL is far more melodic than this old school all-female heavy metal outfit. "Fly Away" is covered with pure emotion and some lovely choir vocals. It's a piece of rest, yet it has some tasty guitar chords, which gives it a melodic twist. "Love # Love" contains the sound of a saxophone. Don't be afraid, it's not really disturbing, although we might expect some metal guitars crying out loud there. One of the louder songs on this album is up next, which is called "Love Crime". It's fast and highly enjoyable. "Warriors From Hell" is the latest COBRA SPELL single taken from the album, whereas "S.E.X." and "The Devil Inside Of Me" are the debut video and single. Of course there is some breathtaking guitar work here too, yet the solos always are in service of the songs and there is no space for ego trips. Another highlight is "You're A Cheater", which is a catchy song with some amazing axe work and a real catchy vibe. The album closes with another bite: the loud and heavy "High On Love". It has some cranking guitar parts and a very fast stomping beat. The album may need a little time to speed up, but I can assure you that this is some high quality melodic heavy metal and these ladies are very fine well-talented musicians. Besides that, they are also able to bring this excellent quality music live on stage, too. COBRA SPELL consists of Sonia Anubis on guitar and synths, Noelle dos Anjos on guitars, Kristina Vega on vocals, Hale Naphtha on drums and Roxy Herrera on bass. Website: https://www.cobraspell.com and https://www.facebook.com/cobraspell.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
LAURA COX-Head Above Water (earMusic)
LAURA COX has a French mother and an English father and she is thirty-three years of age. This new album contains eleven tracks and forty-five minutes of blues and rock. The songs are very diverse and you can't say that she's only playing blues or rock. Opener "Head Above Water" could be classified as rock and the guitars are in service of the song, while "So Long" is a more bluesy track, in my opinion. "One Big Mess" doesn't sound messy at all and it's a firm up tempo rock song with a solid beat and some fiery guitar licks. Laura's guitar playing sure is in the spotlight during "Set Me Free", a longer track, in which the instrumental part sounds really outstanding. "Old Soul" is slow and filled with a lot of emotion. It's not really my cup of tea, yet it takes care of some variation here. "Wiser" is much more my taste and it sounds very bluesy. While in "Before We Get Burned" I even hear some careful sidesteps to those country type of fiddles. With a title like "Seaside" you can only expect a romantic, modest piece of music and that's exactly what you are going to get. It's sweet, soft and rather laid back. In contrary to that, she pulls out one of my personal favorite songs in "Fever", which has a nice speed change in the middle part. "Swing It Out" is a spicy dance tune with another steady beat. The album slowly fades away, yet keeping its strong quality, like in "Glassy Day". If you like an album with a lot of variation from rock to blues, then this is definitely one to check out. The band consists of Laura Cox on vocals, guitars and banjo, Mathieu Albiac on guitar, Asrien Kah on bass and Antonin Guerin on drums. For more info, go to her website at: https://www.lauracoxband.com.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
CRYPTA-Shades Of Sorrow (Napalm Records/HLP)
The all-female band CRYPTA from Sao Paulo, Brazil will surely blow you away on this second album. Thirteen death metal songs and fifty blood soaked minutes are on this silver disc. The piano intro in "The Aftermath" is rather misleading and only the true death metal believers know that this is not meant to last very long. "Dark Clouds" are on the horizon and the song takes off in fifth gear with some very impressive fast drum beats, mean growls, high screams and the vicious guitar licks, you can’t overlook. References to DIMMU BORGIR and CRADLE OF FILTH are obvious, yet I definitely hear some technical sidesteps in CRYPTA as well. In "Poisonous Apathy", the speed goes down a bit and the band throws in more variation and some dark growls. It's darker, a bit spooky and therefore more vicious in a way. If you like it more straight forward and all destroying, you'd better tune in to "The Outsider", which rages on at full speed here. It's not nice to be an outsider, but CRYPTA gives it another dark dimension here. The speed variation in "Stronghold" gives it a bit more melody and adds a nice twist to the brutal death metal attack of CRYPTA. This doesn't mean though that the song doesn't contain any blast beats at all. It's just not that melodic, you know?! If you don't know, that anger has more sides, just check out "The Other Side Of Anger". It may broaden your horizon for sure and you get some exciting axe work for free. What more do you want? Every story has a different angle and anger has more sides, too. Once again the drum beats are very adventurous here. "The Limbo" cuts the album in two and there's another short interlude on the piano. There are enough breaks in "Trial Of Traitors" to add this song to my list of personal favorites. It's also a single, taken from this album, by the way. "Lullaby For The Forsaken" is the perfect song for guitar player Taina Bergamaschi to get in the spotlight and she easily lifts this song up to a true highlight on this album. It won't get you to sleep that easily though, I guess. In "Agents Of Chaos", the speed goes down a bit, yet it contains some exciting guitar work. Although it's not chaotic at all, as the song title may suggest, it will be leave you behind astonished by its high class brutality. "Lift The Blindfold" is a fascinating death metal track and the last ear attack is from the "Lord Of Ruins". The CD closes with "The Closure", for which they took down the piano from the attic one more time. CRYPTA consists of former NERVOSA members, so a comparison to this band would be called for, however I must say that CRYPTA definitely sounds more technical at times. CRYPTA consists of Luana Dametto on drums, Fernanda Lira on vocals, Tainá Bergamaschi on guitar and Jessica di Falchi on bass. For more info, go to: https://www.cryptaofficial.com or https://www.facebook.com/cryptadeath.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
DOOL-Visions Of Summerland – Live At Arminius Church Rotterdam (Prophecy)
On national television, Raven van Dorst takes a ride at night in various Dutch cities to look if someone is still awake. Or she pimps up a farm with the help of some Dutch celebrities. During these programs, which she does for years now, they never talked about her life of being a musician in the doom metal band DOOL. They recently performed at a church in Rotterdam and the recordings are released on a live CD. Twelve songs, worthy of seventy-five minutes of high class doom metal are on it. It's also the final show with drummer Micha Haring, who left the band for personal reasons. Opener "Intro" is exactly what the title suggests it is. It's a dark collection of dreamy sounds, giving the band to opportunity to enter the stage. The next track "Wolf Moon" contains a crystal clear yet dark sound, just what I had expected, while "Be Your Sins" sounds more casual. DOOL knows exactly where to focus on, when they play a live gig. There is plenty of space for all the band members to show their musical abilities. And also the voice of Raven sounds not over the top or too much upfront at all. Everything is in perfect balance. "God Particle" for example, is a pounder with a lot of power underneath, which needs some classy guitar licks and that's just what it gets. "In Her Darkest Hour" is definitely one of the highlights here, as far as I'm concerned. It contains a lot emotion and power, which you can almost feel as well. Sometimes Raven even sounds like a little child, which fits very well in here. The song seamlessly goes over into "She Goat" after a lengthy outro. This song is loved by a lot of metal fans of today. The band doesn't talk too much between the songs, but who needs long speeches when the music does the talking?! In "Sulphur & Starlight" Raven's voice sounds higher and maybe again a bit childish, although it doesn't do any harm here. A nice instrumental intro to "Summerland" is next up. This syrupy and rather slow song has a very doomy character. It closes in a lengthy instrumental part, before it goes over in "A Glass Forest". When the question is asked if the public still likes the songs, the answer is of course "yes" and the band continues their show with the KILLING JOKE cover "Love Like Blood". The band is at full steam now and prove is given with a stormy performance of "Owynagat", which is most definitely the climax of this album for me. They close this live album in the right mood, which means in a dark, doomy and gloomy way and the song "Dust & Shadow". DOOL's live shows are an event itself, where it all meets together, sound and vision and a good feeling, despite all the dark lyrics. This time they are playing live at the Arminius Church in Rotterdam on December 23, 2022. DOOL is Raven van Dorst on vocals and guitar, Nick Polak on guitar, Omar Kleiss on guitar, JB van der Wal on bass and Micha Haring on drums for the last time. https://www.facebook.com/allthosewhowanderaredool.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
DOOL-The Shape Of Fluidity (Prophecy)
The new DOOL album contains nine tracks and is worthy of fifty smooth minutes. They keep up their reputation in the world of gothic and doom metal. DOOL has released three full-length albums so far, including last year's live album, reviewed earlier on this page. Their list of festival appearances is endless and they are also winners in writing ominous songs. Although you won’t get a happy feeling when listening to the lyrics, it sure tickles the right senses and it will get you in the right atmosphere you want to be. Just listen to the dark opener "Venus In Flames", which has got the right rhythm to make this song dynamic, powerful and energetic at the same time. Clearly, your body will move along when the rhythm changes. After a nice instrumental part, there is a dreamy piece with some childlike vocals, which fits the music of DOOL really well. Also, a psychedelic touch is never too far away. You can easily dream away to the sound of "Self-Dissect", which will put you into another dimension and get you into a trance right away. Again, the lengthy instrumental part asks for the biggest attention here. The guitar is playing the leading role and at the end when they turn up the speed, they end quite abruptly. Same goes for title track "The Shape Of Fluidity", including the dreamy vocal parts of Raven, which contains a mighty guitar part as well. I think, that the overall sound of DOOL is being displayed in this particular track. Doomy, syrupy, dark and spooky with Raven's voice as biggest point of recognition and the instrumental part where the band gets some space in the spotlight as well. "Currents" is a short and moody instrumental piece, which leads to the short rock song "Evil In You". "House Of A Thousand Dreams" on the other hand is one of my personal favorites. It's a duet with Kim Larsen of the band OF THE WAND AND THE MOON. His dark, raspy, whispering voice is a good combination with Raven's vocals here. They will create a little piece of magic in this song. You wished, that you would live in the house of a thousand dreams after hearing this track. "Hermagorgon" is next up and once again your senses will be tangled and send away to another dimension. That's the strength of DOOL. They grab your imagination and guide you to the world that they have created for you. The guitar part in this one is really mind-blowing. "Hymn For A Memory Lost" continues in a dark and doomy pace. Tribal drums will beat you towards the end with CD closer "The Hand Of Creation", another syrupy track, which slowly moves forward to the final notes. DOOL is the hand of creation on this mighty fine album. The simple artwork of a white flag is compensated by music, that will broaden your horizon and comfort zone. DOOL consists of Raven van Dorst on vocals and guitar, Nick Polak on guitar, Omar Iskandr on guitar, JB van der Wal on bass and Vincent Kreyder on drums. Website: https://www.allthosewhowanderaredool.com and https://www.facebook.com/allthosewhowanderaredool.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
DORO -Conqueress – Forever Strong And Proud (Nuclear Blast Records)
The new DORO album contains fifteen songs, worthy of fifty-five minutes and it will set your metal heart on fire for sure. She's an untamable beast, that will go on forever and for the fortieth year in succession, she delivers the goods to all her heavy metal fans. Opener "Children Of The Dawn" starts with a slightly folky sound, but soon the drums and guitars take over and gives this pounder the metal taste that it needs. The steady drum beat and choir vocals sound a bit bombastic, yet very impressive at the same time. "Fire In The Sky" is an up tempo metal tune that contains the metal spirit in four minutes. It has some dazzling guitar work topped by the highly recognizable vocals of Miss Dorothee Pesch. The JUDAS PRIEST classic "Living After Midnight" is next and I don't need to explain this, I guess. Doro does a duet here with Metal God and the highest priest of heavy metal ever, Rob Halford. "All For You" follows and once again the speed goes up and this heavy and powerful sound will most certainly appeal to the many metal heads and fans of DORO. When the motor starts to roar, it's literally time to step on the gas again with "Lean Mean Rock Machine". Whether it's a fast car, a motor or for the older people among us an electrified bike, just get your engine running on this one. In "I Will Prevail", you will scream your lungs out. This pounder might do very well in a live situation. "Bond Unending" is a short track, that Doro recorded with Sammy Amara of punk outfit BROILERS. It could easily end up in the national charts, since it is a duet with a catchy edge to it. It's a small piece of rest, before more power will be revealed in "Time For Justice", which goes into the WARLOCK direction. The next (German) song is called "Fels In Der Brandung" and it stands for bombast in a slower pace. Every DORO album needs a good ballad or love song and I think this is the one here. And I think that her fans are DORO's 'Fels In Der Brandung', because she gives all she has got on this new release. Also, the high quality songs will put a big smile on your face for sure. "Love Breaks Chains" is a bit more mid-tempo, yet less heavy in a way, but again it's a good solid rock song. "Drive Me Wild" will drive you wild. From back to forth the band steps on the gas and impresses everybody with their fast beats and flashing axe work. Just check out the speedy "Rise", that is next, which is another great song to get this rock party going. "Best In Me" is more or less the second ballad off the album. I must admit, that I like DORO's English singing more than the German song. "Heavenly Creatures" on the other hand is a firm rock song. Finally, DORO teams up with Rob Halford one more time in the Bonny Tyler classic "Total Eclipse Of The Heart". I just love the original song. This is definitely a great version as well, although it lacks the impact of the original song on people. What a nice idea to close the album with a duet like that. DORO did it again. She came up with an amazing new album, which will be loved by many fans. DORO's band is: Bas Maas on guitar, Johnny Dee on drums, Bill Hudson on guitar and Stefan Herkenhoff on bass. Go to: https://www.doromusic.de, https://www.doro.us or https://www.doropesch.com for all the information you need about this blonde vixen that still rules the ruins of heavy metal.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
ELUSION-The Fundamental Paradox (independent/HLP)
ELUSION is from Belgium and this is their third full-length album. It contains nine tracks, worthy of about forty-five minutes of symphonic metal. The concept of clear female vocals mixed with brutal male growls might be quite familiar, although Evy Verbruggen's beautiful voice is a real highlight here, which she proves in opener "...In Love And War". The guitars are by and large more upfront than the orchestration, which makes them more metal indeed. ELUSION also sounds less bombastic than for example EPICA, which leans more towards XANDRIA in my opinion and they have shared the stage with so many times before. The metal level of ELUSION is extremely high. Just check out "Chiaroscuro" for example, which is next. In "Acrimonious", guitarist Domingo is showing his skills in some rather fiery solo parts. The male vocals are receiving a more prominent role in "Adversity", which closes with a short spoken word part. While "Science/Fiction" is a solid rock song, some folky pagan messages appear at the beginning of "From The Woods To The Water". In the instrumental part, the band also takes a musical journey in this very outstanding and diverse song. It sounds so much different than the aforementioned tracks. This adventurous sidestep makes it a treat to your ears. In "In Balance", the band grabs back to their well-known music style, while gaining some speed. "Isochronism" contains a mix of emotion and some blast beats to give it some kind of natural balance. Once again, Evy knows to touch me with her sweet voice in CD closer "Deafening Silence". Also, Domingo gives the volume knob on his guitar another spin and the male growls sound a lot meaner. Everything, that ELUSION stands for seems to come together for the final grand finale. Respect for this band, which tastes for more! ELUSION consists of Evy Verbruggen on vocals, Domingo Smets on guitar and Frederik van Mieghem on drums. Go to: https://www.elusion.be or https://www.facebook.com/elusionmetal for all the information you need about this great Belgian band.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
EMETROPIA-An Acoustic Endeavor (independent/HLP)
I am probably not the right person to review an acoustic album, which is not really my cup of tea. The pleasure is all mine of listening to Lisa Wallenberg's voice here though. The fantasy type of music of EMETHOPIA is definitely nice to listen to on a really dark and rainy afternoon. The four songs on this EP are worthy of about fifteen minutes of symphonic metal. EMETROPIA are hailing from Sweden and a band like for example EPICA easily pops up, when listening to Lisa's voice. I take the acoustic input here for granted. Opener "A Gentle Breeze" will bring you back to the early days of EPICA, when they were categorized as being a fantasy metal band. Lisa's voice also reminds me of Kate Bush and the male (and a bit darker) voice of Liam is getting quite close to that of David Bowie. The song has got a very casual character. "The First Flower Blooms" starts off with some male harmony vocals, after which Lisa takes over the lead vocal parts, sometimes being accompanied by the male backing vocals. I would like to refer to BLACKMORE'S NIGHT here, although the guitars are not prominent available in the sound of EMETROPIA. "The Old Gods Requiem" is a short saga with Lisa's voice upfront in the mix. Then we have arrived at the final song here, called "Shifting Seasons", which is an up-tempo track. Especially the instrumental part of this CD closer is highly enjoyable to sing along to at a campfire at night or possibly at your local pub. Although this is presented as metal, I would say it's far away from that particular category. EMETHOPIA has toured with VISIONS OF ATLANTIS, yet the borders of metal stretch out much further these days than forty years ago. EMETROPIA consists of Lisa Wallenberg on vocals, Liam Strand on keyboards and vocals, Olle Renius on guitar and backing vocals, Jonathan Jakobsson on rhythm guitar and backing vocals and Oscar Heikkinen on drums. For more info, go to: https://www.emetropiaband.com or https://www.facebook.com/Emetropia.
[6 points] (Toine van Poorten)
FRICTION-Friction (Melodic Rock Classics)
There are seventeen rock songs on this hard to find album by female fronted New Jersey based AOR band FRICTION, which is worthy of seventy five minutes. The official album, released in 1988, only contained nine songs. Melodic Rock Classic added two bonus tracks from their 1984 debut single to it and a six track official bootleg to make it even more complete. The sound quality is amazing and opener "Keep On Running" is already a good example of what you are getting served here. Their 'easy-on-the-ear' AOR music has some amazing guitar work and a slightly raw edge here and there, which sounds really great. The sometimes a bit 'poppy' songs are ready for radio airplay, yet always of a very high quality. Tell me what's not to like about the keyboard oriented "No You Won't", when you take into account that this was written almost thirty-five years ago? Halfway through, the guitar player takes some steps forward for his solo. "Christmas Song" is a bit odd here, when you write this review in the middle of spring, I guess. It's a duet that is definitely meant for the American market. Even though this may sound like an emotional tearjerker, the guitar work also receives a prominent spot in this one. "Streets" is a bit more up-tempo again. The adventurous part before the solo starts is just that little bit of extra that makes the sound of FRICTION more special. In "My Turn", I hear some raw edges in the voice of Tammy Meremianin, the female singer in the band. Almost every song has got a radio friendly character, although "Children Of The Night" sounds a bit harder than the previous songs until now. "Rescue" continues and names like the BANGLES, the FOUR NON BLONDES, T'PAU and PAT BENATAR come to mind, although the latter is maybe too heavy in this line and the newer VIXEN would be more appropriate here. In "Can't Go Back" the band pulls out their heavy side, so check out the guitar parts again, to get my point. "Crimes Of Passion" was the last song on the album back in 1988. One more time Tammy’s voice shines next to the guitar parts and both are a nice balance together between all the songs here. The CD continues with the two tracks taken from the single. I must admit, that the band sounded a bit heavier back then and opener "Games Of The Night Time" is a nice mix of guitar and keyboard parts with equal shares in the solo parts of this rock song. "Heartland Blues" is exactly what the title says it is. It is a fine up-tempo bluesy track and so much different than what we’ve heard before. It takes cares of some pleasant diversity here. Next up are the official bootleg recordings of a live show. By judging from the opener "Can't Go Back", it's obvious that he band got a lot of hidden power that is ready to explode. The next song "My Turn" has got a lot more balls, too. The songs are exactly the same, but they sound more powerful in a live setting. "Rescue" and the ballad type of "Streets" are up next. The CD closes with two previously unreleased tracks, starting with the song "Right For Me". Clearly, FRICTION sounded like a well-oiled machine and they wrote some classy songs that are now finally released on CD. "Sweet Evil Eyes Woman" is the second previously unreleased track. Clearly, the band is well-balanced and the harmony vocals fit very well in their sound. And of course there is enough room for the musicians to show their skills. The enthusiastic crowd is the cream of top of it. FRICTION never reached the big success they'd hoped for, yet they played at almost every club in the neighborhood. Their LP is a rarity of its own. Now you will get the complete picture and a whole lot more with this re-release CD. FRICTION consisted of Tammy Meremianin on vocals and guitar, Nicholas Meremianin on lead guitar and vocals, Walter Meremianin on keyboards and vocals, George Smeltz on drums and C. David Landes on bass and vocals. Back-up vocals on this album are by Gwen Hasheian and Geri Choltco.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
FRONT ROW WARRIORS-Wheel Of Fortune (Rock Of Angels Records/Metal Message)
This German bunch of newcomers is presenting their debut album to you. It contains twelve tracks, worthy of almost fifty minutes of melodic hard rock metal. Fans of melodic metal should lend an ear to this for sure, because they will be flabbergasted by their catchy sound. After the "Intro", you will be blown away by "Chasing Shadows" and the thundering sound of double bass drums and fiery guitar work. Think in the direction of WARLOCK, PRETTY MAIDS and ZED YAGO to get the idea. The long high pull outs of vocalist Elkie Gee are mind-blowing, too. "Fantastic" is the statement that you can give to the vocals and the guitar solo in this song, that follows next. "Love Is Not A Game" could very well be a good runner up in the national charts and heads up towards the HEART influences in this song, in my opinion. It's melodic, yet firm at the same time and with a steady beat. Just listen to the vocal shouts of Elkie. Don't you think that she comes rather close to Ann Wilson's here? "Deadly Sins" starts off slowly at first and then it will continue as a fast track. "Damnation" is a short and scary interlude. It's ominous, but it also belongs to the heavier tracks on this album. Just check out the heavy pounder "Hell Invaders", which sounds as catchy as hell. It also captures some marvelous axe work again, which lifts the song up to a much higher level. The creepy end is truly amazing. The title track follows next and what more can I say? Let's turn on to the "Wheel Of Fortune", which is a heavy rock song with some melodic touches. Here the band shows, that they can sound rather adventurous, too. Just listen to the well-chosen final notes. While "Hell Awaits" is another melodic metal song with a rather heavy title and it has got nothing at all to do with SLAYER. I think, that I even hear more HEART influences here. Then it's time for something rather special, because in "Dystopian Time", which is an amazing rock anthem, Elkie does a duet with RIOT singer Todd Michael Hall. Two songs will be next after this stunning duet and the first one is called "The Hunter", which is a fast and furious rock track. "Wasted Life" is the obligatory ballad and CD closer. I already missed the tender touch on this album, because every hard rock album needs one and they don't let me down. This German metal outfit is not a waste of time and they really impressed me a lot on this debut album. I think, that we will hear more of this well-talented German rock band from Stuttgart in the near future. FRONT ROW WARRIORS consists of Elkie Gee on vocals, Sorin Badin on guitar, Stef Binnig Gollub on guitar, Timo Michels on bass, Richie Seibel (ex-LANFEAR / IVANHOE/ THEM) on keyboards, Jay G on drums. Website: https://www.frontrowwarriors.com or https://www.facebook.com/FRW.official.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
THE GEMS-Phoenix (Napalm Records/HLP)
Three ex-members separated from the Swedish rock band THUNDERMOTHER in 2023 and founded the all-female trio THE GEMS. After their first live show a few months later, they signed a record deal with Napalm records and this is the final result. After the interlude of "Aurora", as they like to call it themselves, they kick off this fifteen track debut album with "Queens". Rather interesting is the fact that this song contains a riff, which could have been on the song "Tie Your Mother Down" by QUEEN and also I hear some influences of AC/DC here and there. "Send Me To The Wolves" has got a very LED ZEPPELIN kind of vibe and obviously these ladies know their classics very well and like to rock hard. "Domino" is another high octane fueled song with an AC/DC type of feeling and beat, while "Silver Tongue" is a real steady rocker on high speed. If you like THUNDERMOTHER, then this is definitely something for you as well. In "Undiscovered Paths", I hear some rather impressive high vocal pull outs. These ladies are here to rock. Yet there is a lot more where that came from, which they prove in "Maria's Song", a short instrumental interlude, that divides the album in half, so to speak. The violin is played by Maria Jern on this short piece of music. "Ease Your Pain" is the emotional type of ballad here. "Running" on the other hand is fast and contains a short but nice instrumental part and a ditto guitar solo. I also hear more Zep influences in the first riff. Then there is "Renaissance", which is another short interlude. "Like A Phoenix" is fast and raunchy and it will get any rock party started right away. "Psycho" is even more rocking, as a matter of fact. I also contains some harmony shouts by the three ladies. Be sure to check out the guitar part at the end. Are they shredding or not? "Kiss It Goodbye" and "Force Of Nature" are on next, while in "Fruits Of My Labor" the band has a shot towards a hit single with a more radio friendly approach. It's part of the variation on this album. The bonus track is an acoustic version of "Like A Phoenix", which actually gives the album a sixteenth track and completes the full forty-five minutes of hard rock here. THE GEMS really rock hard and heavy and they rise like a phoenix out of the ashes of THUNDERMOTHER. THE GEMS are: Mona 'Demona' Lindgren on guitar and bass, Emlee Johansson on drums and and Guernica Mancini on vocals. Website: https://www.facebook.com/thegemsbandswe.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
GIRLSCHOOL-WTForty Five? (Silver Lining Music)
Founded forty-five years ago and they are still hotter than hell. The sisters of MOTORHEAD are back with a bang with an album, that has twelve songs and forty-five (what a coincidence) minutes of hard rock songs. Let's go through all the songs here. Opener "It Is What It Is" is a true old school based metal track with a catchy hook and the amazing guitar work of Jackie Chambers. Backed with the well-known choir vocals, it will rock your world and take you back to the early days of the band. "Cold Dark Heart" sounds a bit darker and the riffs, that are played here, will easily cling to your mind. "Bump In The Night" will put a big smile on your face, because the band is at full steam and this might grow out to be a public's favorite during their live shows. It's a fast rock song with a ditto solo. Same goes for "Barmy Army", which has all the well-known ingredients, like a catchy melody, nice guitar work and choir vocals, that give it a traditional GIRLSCHOOL flavor. "Invisible Killer" is a slower rock tune with a more present-day rock sauce, yet the choirs and guitar solo are still there, which make it a recognizable GIRLSCHOOL rock song after all. "Believing In You" starts off with an AC/DC type of riff and it rocks forward the way we are used to of a band like GIRLSCHOOL. The band may not be that heavy like forty-plus years ago, but they will always deliver the goods and touch a soft spot in my heart for what they do. "It's A Mess" doesn't sound messy at all and it contains some firm drum beats by Denise. "Into The Night" will bring you GIRLSCHOOL at their very best. At the end of this steady rock album, the band has got a nice surprise for you. During one of the heaviest tracks on thia album, they call in the help of a very cool guest guitar player. "Are You Ready?" contains the rawking solo parts of Joe Stump, who cranks it out like we are used to from him. Joe is a first class shredder, who also works with ALCATRAZ right now. They toured with GIRLSCHOOL and one and one makes two here. "Up To No Good" is one of my personal favorites here, because it represents the old school GIRLSCHOOL sound. The fast rhythm, the repetitive shouting of the title, the guitar solo, it's all there and I love it. "Party" is of course a party song and it's soaked in the old school GIRLSCHOOL tradition. The best, at least for the many fans, that have kept a warm heart for the band in these forty-five years, is the MOTORHEAD cover "Born To Raise Hell" with guest roles for Biff (SAXON), Duff McKagan (GUNS 'N' ROSES) and Phil Campbell (MOTORHEAD). In my opinion, GIRLSCHOOL can go on for many more years to come with the fire that they have in their heart and soul. These ladies simply can't live without rock and roll and when they keep on releasing albums like this one, they won't disappoint their fans. These ladies are still hard rocking party animals, believe me, prove is given on this new album. GIRLSCHOOL consists of Kim McAuliffe on guitar and vocals, Denise Dufort on drums, Tracey Lamb on bass and Jackie 'Jax' Chambers on guitar and backing vocals. Website: https://www.girlschool.co.uk or https://www.facebook.com/GirlschoolOfficial.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
HALIPHRON-Prey (Listenable Records)
HALIPHRON is a new star that is shining bright on the heavy metal skyline of Holland. It is also the name of the biggest calamari on earth, which lives near the bottom of the ocean. You don't want to become a prey of this vicious monster that is seldom to be seen. And you don't want to get into the claws of this newborn symphonic death metal band. Be prepared for a loud ear attack, because this band will blow you off your feet in no time. Their debut album "Prey" contains nine tracks, worthy of fifty minutes. It starts with the short bombastic instrumental "Let The World Burn". Fantasy metal in the vein of EPICA is my first thought, but how wrong could I be? Let me give you a warning in advance and don't get carried away too much, because the band is just preparing to take you at full blast with "The Killing Spree". This bombastic song contains wild screams, venomous riffs and beats, that will make it thunder in your head. I think, their sound gets close to ARCH ENEMY with partially DIMMU BORGIR or CRADLE OF FILTH influences, yet fans of HOLY MOSES and SCEPTIC FLESH will definitely also embrace the brutal and sometimes melodic sound of HALIPHRON. It's like a wolf in sheep's clothing, which will take you by surprise. The keyboard parts will supply the melodic touch and there is even a short spoken word part in here. "Mother Of All Evil" is most definitely an autobiographical song of singer Marloes Voskuil, who once played in the heavy metal outfit IZEGRIM. She now screams her lungs out in this outfit and shares some of her vocal parts with keyboard player David Gutierrez Rojas, who also plays the keyboards. I guess, they are responsible for the DIMMU BORGIR influences here. "Perfect Existence" is the perfect example that the band members have a lot of input in the sound of HALIPHRON. Just check out the lengthy instrumental parts. It's obvious how experienced this band is. Title track "Prey" belongs to my personal favorite songs here. Vocalist Marloes spits out the lyrics like a predator injecting the venom into its prey for sure. The intro builds up the tension, until the hunting for their prey starts. Hide, while you still can, but where??!! There is no escape for the HALIPHRON. It's right at your heels and destined to get you, no matter what. "Human Inferno" will set you on fire and it's not a party song either. The growls are getting harder and meaner in "The Resistance" and the tempo goes up in this wild ear attack. The intro of the bonus track "Schizophrenia" sounds quite bombastic again, however it has got a lot of nice speed changes, too. There is even a spoken word part in it, performed by a young child, which gives the song a special touch. It turns this one into a wild and bizarre ride. The final death metal attack by this gruesome yet impressive creature is called "Unidentified Mess". It will pulverize your poor ear drums forever. After each 'fire', there is another salvo that will hit its target almost right away. Fans of melodic death metal will know what to do next. Feed the monster. Let the HALIPHRON eat the flesh from your bones and become an equivalent of the creature on the front cover of this amazing debut album. HALIPHRON consists of Marloes Voskuil on vocals (ex-IZEGRIM), Ramon Ploeg (ex-BLEEDING GODS) on guitar, Jeroen Wechgelaer on guitar (ex-IZEGRIM), David Guttierez Rojas on keyboards (ex-BLEEDING GODS/KINGFISHER SKY), Frank Schilperoort on drums (ex-GOD DETHRONED/THE MONOLITH DEATHCULT) and the second metal maiden in the band Jessica Otten on bass (ex-BLEEDING GODS/DICTATED). For more info, go to: https://www.facebook.com/haliphronofficialband.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
HANABIE-Reborn Superstar (Sony Music Labels Inc.)
This Japanese metal core band was founded in 2015 and presents their second full-length album, which contains ten songs in thirty minutes. It's impossible for me to read all the Japanese symbols on the album, but it starts off with a song called "Blast Off". Skip it or see it as an intro, because you will hear this at your local discotheque as well. That doesn't apply at all for the second and next violent track with an unpronounceable title. I’m not really into metal core but I can relate to the enormous power and energetic sound of this track. "Neet Game" contains some wild screaming and a lot of game bleeps as well. The stomping rhythm is fast and it’s one of the singles released for this album. The fourth song is bloody brutal and I believe that the average fan of BABYMETAL will definitely dig the sometimes weird sound of HANABIE as well. In "Tales Of Villain", I hear some ARCH ENEMY influences in the beginning, especially in the vocal parts. However, if you're really looking for some insane sounds, then you will have to turn into "Warning" and you'll be blown away by a mix of K-POP and death metal, a combination that seems impossible, until you have heard it. These four ladies have a lot of different styles for you in store, because the seventh track of one and a half minute is more hip hop music mixed with a disco beat and it has got nothing at all to do with metal. The eight track is a mix of brutal black and death metal. Yes, Metal Maidens readers the differences are that big at times. This song sounds quite extreme, while these girls are so sweet in the previous track. The song is called "Tousou", by the way and it's also one of the singles that they have released from this album. People, who get nervous by ADHD type of sounds, better skip the ninth track. It feels like one punky chaos, yet it’s great fun for every fan of this all-girl metal core outfit. The last track is called "Today's Good Day & So Epic". This type of music is so much different than we know over here in Europe, however this music style is very popular in Japan. I think, it's something we will possibly never understand at all. I had a good time listening to it though, because it's rather extreme at times and definitely not dull at all. HANABIE already played at the Dynamo Metal Festival in Holland and the band consists of Yukina on screams, Matsuri on guitars and vocals, Hettsu on bass and backing vocals and Chika on drums. https://www.hanabie.jp
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
HOLY MOSES-Invisible Queen (Fireflash Records)
The invisible queen of the German heavy metal scene has returned. Sabina Classen and HOLY MOSES took a nap, but they are back with a vengeance and this comeback album, contains twelve songs, worthy of forty-five minutes of classy thrash metal. The enhanced CD is recorded with guest singers and contains the same twelve songs in the same order of appearance. Clearly, they won't hold back the fire gathered after their latest studio release "Redefined Mayhem" from 2014. Opener "Downfall Of Mankind" is packed with so much anger, so many riffs and such raw vocals, that many old hand fans (like myself) will be pleasantly surprised right away. Sabina cleared her throat with hydrochloric acid before starting the recordings of this vicious song, believe me. However, this is still a lullaby, comparing it to speed monster "Cult Of The Machine". Sabina growls like she is being cursed by the hooved demon, such a brutal power and what a neck breaking speed. "Order Out Of Chaos" contains some wild guitar solos, accompanied by the high-pitched screams of Miss Classen. It's a very intense start and I think that HOLY MOSES dominates many bands with their brutality here. This goes far beyond all the NERVOSA's and ARCH ENEMY's, although they already make my blood boil. Title track "Invisible Queen" is next and once again the band proves that they cannot be stopped, by no one. In "Alternation Reality", they take back some speed or they would lose total control of the situation. Their fingers are totally knotted after the guitar solo here. In "The New Norm" they crank out more speedy riffs, while in "Visions In Red", they really step back on the gas again. Speed records have been broken, including some nice speed and mood changes, some choir vocals and even faster blast beats and exploding guitar solos. Did you lose your mind already?? "Outcasts" is brutal and short, therefore the brutality hits you even more than in the longer tracks. It's the short and hard pain that this 'hit-on-the-head' gives you. That's what outcasts will do to you. "Forces Great And Hidden" has got that force, too. The way Sabina spits the lyrics into the microphone can't be topped. She is really serious, otherwise you would not sound that mean. It's time to slow things down a bit now in "Too Far Gone", however in the second part of this song, the band sounds monstrous and ultra-heavy like never before. "Depersonalized" takes control afterwards and by the time you get to CD closer "Through The Veils Of Sleep", you will see that you have bruises all over your body. Then you will know what impact this "Invisible Queen" has on you. It will leave the marks of the beast on you and you will be stamped for life. But it was well-worth it, from the first second until the very last. This is brutal heavy metal how it should sound. I can only applaud the band for this amazing cool album. If you want a second ride with the same songs, but then with guest appearances, I suggest to have a listen to the second CD as well. On CD opener "Downfall Of Mankind", you will hear Marloes Voskuil of HALIPRON and IZEGRIM fame and you will hardly hear any changes in the sound, because Marloes really knows to handle some brutal vocal lines as well. The high scream at the beginning of "Cult Of The Machine" is from OVERKILL singer Bobby 'Blitz' Ellsworth and he turns it into a new OVERKILL song with his remarkable and highly recognizable voice as biggest point of recognition. Diva Satanica of BLOODHUNTER and formerly known as the front lady of NERVOSA also puts her brutal and aggressive voice sound upfront in the mix, which doesn't make it a lot different, but she gives "Order Out Of Chaos" her own trademark. Next on the list is Ingo Bajonczak of ASSASSIN, who gives "Invisible Treat" a makeover. SODOM frontman Tom Angelripper takes care of the vocal lines on "Alternative Reality" by giving it a raw and intense sound. It's a bit more in your face now. "The New Norm" is now defined by the vocal lines of Christopher Staubach of COURAGEOUS, who does a great job here. I think, that Raegina of DEMONESQUE gives "Visions In Red" an even more brutal sound than before. What a blasting power. It makes me look very pale. Leif Jensen of DEW SENTENCED screams his lungs out in "Outcasts", while Gerre of TANKARD does the same in "Forces Great And Hidden". This is a great vocal tribute to long term fans and friends of HOLY MOSES and admirers of the band, however they are unable to change the great sound of the original songs. I also would like to add, that Jens Ridman of MESHUGGAH made the song even more extreme than it already was. Daniela Karrer of HEADSHOT puts her personal stamp on "Depersonalized". And to my big surprise the final guest on the bonus cd is by RYKERS on "Through The Veils Of Sleep". I must say though, that the holy fire remains with the vocal parts of Sabina Classen. It's hard to believe that the show is over for HOLY MOSES after so many years, but at least they go out with a big bang, what a great album. HOLY MOSES is Sabina Classen on vocals, Thomas Neitsch on bass, Peter Geltat on guitar and Gerd Lücking on drums. Website: https://www.holymoses.net and https://www.facebook.com/official.holy.moses.
[10 points - FULL SCORE] (Toine van Poorten)
JENNER-Prove Them Wrong (Fighter Records)
Nine new JENNER songs, worthy of forty-five minutes is what you get on this brand new album by the Serbian all-female thrash metal band. The band recently played some support gigs with EPICA and after that, they entered the studio to record this nine track album. It starts with "No Time For Prayer", which takes off in fourth gear and influences of METALLICA are clearly audible from the time they were still good. "Prove Them Wrong" sounds even faster and their amazing thrash metal sound can certainly compete to the likes of for example OVERKILL. The fast drum beats are so energetic and on top of that are these awesome guitar riffs. This is how a good old school thrash metal band should sound. The guitar solo is finger-licking good too and so are the amazing vocal shouts here. "Born For Something More" shows a totally different band. Think in the direction of old school IRON MAIDEN. The song has got some very catchy hooks and that well-known MAIDEN galloping beat. The riffs in "Down In The Pit" reminds one of ICE AGE, except that these ladies were a bit faster. The steady drum beat give the song just that little more power that it needs. It moves over very smoothly to "Not Even You", which received a nice and slow instrumental intro because of that. The song has got a dynamic drive and more hardcore type of shouts. There is a lot of variation on this album, because after this the band grabs back to a heavy thrash type of rhythm in "Eye For An Eye". I really like the riffs in "I Saw It All Clear". The thundering drums and flashing guitar work turn it into one of the highlights on this album, as far as I'm concerned. "Never Say Die" is not the BLACK SABBATH song, in case you wondered, but it's another fast, very thrash type of ear attack. This is another highlight in my book, because of furious and angry type of sound. The CD closes with the fast and loud "Laws Of The Weak". It also has got some nice technical things to it, which makes it just a little more special. Just listen to the firm Brad Gillis type of guitar pull outs in the great instrumental part, which is truly amazing. What a great closer of a magnificent new CD of these three Serbian ladies. JENNER consists of Aleksandra Stamenkovic on vocals and guitars, Anja Mirkovic on bass and Selena Simic on drums. https://www.facebook.com/jennerserbia.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
TANIA KIKIDI-Wings Of Freedom (Grooveyard Records)
This twosome is hailing from Greece and the twelve songs on this second CD around singer Tania contains twelve songs, worthy of almost a full hour of solid rock. If you like bands like WHITESNAKE, DIO, JOE SATRIANI and JUDAS PRIEST then you'd better make sure you find a copy of this album. Just listen to opener "Rise" and you will exactly know why. It's a fast track with great vocals, a stomping beat and the awesome guitar work of Tania's partner (in crime) Stavros Papadopoulos. Title track "Wings Of Freedom" could have been on any WHITESNAKE album after 1987 for that matter, including the great vocals and finger-fast guitar playing. "Loud And Proud" is heading into the same direction and if you like good old fashioned classic and stadium rock, you can definitely check this one out. "Broken Dreams" is fast and catchy, just like all the songs that I heard until now. "High Road Easy" is the cover on this album, originally recorded and performed by SASS JORDAN and STEVIE SALAS. What an amazing track this is and it fits just perfectly on this CD. "Heart Painted Blue" is again more in the style of WHITESNAKE ("Crying In The Rain" era) and I also hear some influences of GAMMA's "Voyager" here, too. "Confession" has got that well-known DIO rhythm in it. The first riffs sound very much like "Heaven And Hell" from the BLACK SABBATH era with the man with the golden voice, who is still sadly missed. "Breaking It Down" on the other hand has more SASS JORDAN influences, whereas the focus is more on Tania's voice, although the guitar solo sounds rather impressive as well. "Bleed" has got a stunning rhythm and "Pain" is a solid rock song, that fits very well to the other tracks. "Foolish Lover" is the first ballad type of song here. And also the final song, called "Sea Of Tears" is a ballad on acoustic guitar. If you fancy this and it might be your cup of tea, have fun listening, although I liked the faster songs more and Tania's voice is better suitable for it, I think. All in all, my conclusion is that this is an absolute mind-blowing album of a band that I didn't know before. Their first album is called "Rock 'N' Roll Paradise" and this is something that is high on my priority list now. The band consists of only two people: Tania Kikidi on vocals and Stavros Papadopoulos on guitar, bass, drums and keyboards. https://www.facebook.com/taniakikidiofficial and https://www.facebook.com/StavrosPapadopoulos.OfficialPage.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
KILLERHAWK-Shadows From The Past (Sonic Age Records)
KILLERHAWK is hailing from Sweden and this compilation album contains six studio tracks and six live tracks, worthy of a bit over fifty minutes of kickass heavy metal. Starting with opener "Wish Me Well", you know that you are in for a good time with these Swedish metal heads. Speed and mood changes, axe attacks and the stunning vocals of Monica Svensson turn this song into a true highlight already. The highly enjoyable mid-tempo "Shadows Of The Night" is up next, which is a slow banger, so to speak. Think a little in the direction of Kim La Chance vocal-wise and the speed changes are an introduction to the guitar solo. In "Live It Up" it is entirely clear that the band is able to hold on to this high level here, too. It's catchy, heavy and it also contains some nice guitar work and really amazing vocal parts. "Hang On The Line" is probably a bit more poppy, although the firm guitar solo will definitely keep you focused. The main reason this band really existed is to play some killer hard rock songs and this is definitely one of them. Just check out the blazing guitar licks in "King Of Mordor". Besides the excellent guitar solo in the middle, the outro is also a real treat to your ears. "Remember The Past" is the last studio track. KILLERHAWK proves that they are not just playing catchy metal but this song goes a few steps further away from the paved path as well. It's very daring and I have deep respect for that. The same six songs are here one more time. They have been recorded from a live show in 2003. The fiery guitar work in "Wish Me Well" reminds me of the early EUROPE work, which they can take as a huge compliment. While the guitar work in "Live It Up" sounds a bit more adventurous and much rawer. "Shadows Of The Night" builds up nicely and the speed change, that introduces the guitar solo is really amazing again. "Hang On The Line" has that very nice EUROPE/SILVER MOUNTAIN kind of feeling with the great vocals by Monica Svensson of course. The heavy pounding drum intro will lead you to "Remember The Past". Finally, there's a raunchy rendition of "King Of Mordor", and by judging from the deafening noise, this must have been one of the public's favorites at the time. The live recordings are of an acceptable quality, by the way. Members of KILLERHAWK (or is it HILLERKORK, as they liked to call themselves for fun sometimes) turn up in bands like MAGUS and KALLARE AN GLASS with Janne Stark (OVERDRIVE) in the line-up. They also did a few reunion gigs and the live recordings are from that particular time when they came back together in 2003. If you like the sound of VIXEN and MALISHA for the vocal parts and the guitar playing of old school EUROPE and/or SILVER MOUNTAIN put together, than you'd better check out this KILLERHAWK album. This album is also available as limited white vinyl LP. KILLERHAWK consisted of Monica Svensson on vocals, Anders Fernlund on guitars, Mikael Nygren (R.I.P.) on guitars, Sven Jonasson on bass and Age Karlsson on drums. For more info or to order the CD/LP, go to: https://www.sonicagerecords.com.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
LUCIFER-Lucifer V (Nuclear Blast)
Recently, LUCIFER toured with ANGELWITCH and released their fifth full-length album, worthy of nine brand new tracks and forty minutes of heavy rock. The CD kicks off with a mean riff in opener "Fallen Angel", that will set your rock heart on fire for sure. This short piece of action will get you on the edge of your seat, waiting for things to come. The slower paced riffs in "At The Mortuary" have a dark edge to it, which refers to bands like TROUBLE, CANDLEMASS and BLACK SABBATH for example, although it's not as slow as that, yet it hits you hard. The crystal clear voice of Johanna Platow Andersson sounds very easy on the ear, although the lyrics are ominous and dark, which makes it a very nice combination of factors. Think of a band like PENTAGRAM, that also combines both at the same time. A good example here is the next song, called "Slow Dance In A Crypt". The title alone will make your thoughts go wild. Every dance partner wouldn't say no to a slow dance, but in a crypt is a completely different thing. This contradiction is very well-chosen and a bit spooky, too. The song however is slow and perfect for a band like LUCIFER in this context. The mysterious "A Coffin Has No Silver Lining" starts off with a nice old school riff. This is another good example of a firm rock song with a rather unusual title. "Maculate Heart" starts in an acoustic kind of way and once the thundering drums fall in, the song immediately changes into a rock song with a rather catchy vibe. It's very easy on the ear. That's the force of LUCIFER. Take a difficult, dark or tragic title or subject and give it an airy taste. "The Dead Don't Speak" is definitely a song to move or dance on, maybe in that same crypt. The subtle organ sound gives it a seventies touch as well. "Strange Sister" doesn't sound strange at all and it turns the speed up to a notch. Last but not least, the band leaves behind a nice LUCIFER thought, called "Nothing Left To Lose But My Life". It has got another killer vibe, which can put you into a dark trance. The ominous siren near the end gives the song a dark edge to it. Where's it from, what does it mean, does it belong in here? The answer might be that perhaps it's a bit unusual, still that's what makes this band so damn special. What a great album by this fantastic band from Sweden/Germany. LUCIFER consists of Johanna Platow Andersson on vocals, Nicke Andersson Platow on drums, Linus Bjorklund on guitar, Martin Nordin on guitar and Harald Gothblad on bass. https://www.facebook.com/luciferofficial.[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
MEANSTREAK-Blood Moon (Step Off Records) (EP)
Thrash metal band MEANSTREAK might be very well-known, because some band members have been married to respectively the guitarist, drummer and bassplayer of DREAM THEATER. The album "Roadkill" from 1988 is a real killer, however things got really quiet after that. They released a couple of demos and then called it quits, until four members reunited in 2023. The four songs on this EP are worthy of twenty minutes of nice modern hard rock. Opener "The Dark Gift" already gives away that maybe they sound a bit darker than on their debut album. The song is of a good quality though and especially the guitar sound and solo work of Marlene Portnoy and Rena Sands Petrucci is truly amazing. I hear some references to LITA FORD here, which is a bit darker but definitely recognizable. Next up is "Oh Father", which is a very new song, while the other tracks have been taken from old demos. Don't expect any DREAM THEATER type of stuff or any references to "Roadkill" for that matter, yet I do hear some technical abilities. Also, a name like SOUNDGARDEN comes to mind here, yet MEANSTREAK is definitely a lot heavier. They prove that in "Rubberneck" which goes back to the sound of "Roadkill" and has more thrashy roots. This song was released in 1989, which explains why. The fast drum beats, choir chants and fabulous and fiery guitar licks are the main ingredients here. Same goes for the hard and heavy "Giant Speaks", which contains more heavy riffs. Obviously, these last two songs were written at another time frame and they sound much different and better in my opinion. Just have a good listen to those amazing guitar riffs, this is exactly how I remember the sound of MEANSTREAK. The band now consists of Bettina France on vocals, Martens Myung on bass, Yael Rallis on drums, Marlene Portnoy on guitar and Rena Sands Petrucci on guitar. For more info, go to: https://www.meanstreakofficial.com or https://www.facebook.com/meanstreakband.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
MEDUSA-Dare To Rock (Lost Realm Records)
This band from Seattle was founded in 1988 and not to be confused with the English band MEDUSA from Steve Grimmett. They became a staple line-up with five band members after a while and opened for several national acts. The nine tracks on this album are worthy of about forty minutes of pure traditional heavy metal. Opener "Break The Ice" is like a good mix of WARLOCK and JUDAS PRIEST and it contains some powerful vocals and great guitar parts. In "Corruption", the ballsy sound remains and you can add OZZY OSBOURNE and the SCORPIONS to their list of influences, too. Where else do you hear great riffs and guitar solos nowadays, like in "Does It Matter"? Sure, the original recordings are from 1990 and the bonus tracks are from 1994, but back in those days true metal was as dead as a doornail and grunge ruled the scene. There are plenty of reasons to see this album as very high standard true metal. Title track "Dare To Rock" is perhaps a little bit slower, but influences of DIO are a true fact. A nice collection of references so far, don't you agree? In "Fact Or Opinion" singer Litsa Georgiadis proves, that she can reach some real high notes, too. Later on, there is another cool vocal part in here as well, which sounds quite as impressive and that's a fact. "Reach For The Sky" is the final track from these 1990 sessions. The bonus tracks from 1994 will start with "No More Chains". Clearly, the band has evolved into a more melodic sound and a name such as VAN HALEN comes to mind here or perhaps even DOKKEN for that matter. "Stay 4 Ever" is a very danceable song and also in the last track "Feel The Heat", there are plenty of guitar riffs to enjoy, although it's a lot more melodic than their early stuff. MEDUSA is Litsa Georgiadis on vocals, Billy Georgiadis on guitar, Stefan Olsson on guitar, Tim Medjrich on drums, Carl Cooper on bass (on the title track) and Ronnie Dalesio on bass. https://www.lostrealmrecords.com
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
MYTH OF ORIGIN-Sane Asylum (independent/HLP)
This is the debut album by MYTH OF ORIGIN from Holland. The CD consists of ten tracks and almost forty minutes of dark powerful rock and metal. The intro, called "Sane Asylum" sounds quite horror-like and mysterious. It's like you are entering the dark asylum and people are whispering to you in the hallway of this massive building. I wouldn't go in there at all. Still, my curiosity is fed and in opener "Black Horizon" you can feel the darkness and the forceful guitar parts will gain your interest immediately. The power moves over to a deep dark and depressing song, called "In My Darkest Hour". It's still there, although the dark atmosphere is much more upfront in the mix. I hear some influences of WITHIN TEMPTATION and also some influences of LACUNA COIL in the rock and groovy rhythm parts. The vocals in "Gravity Of This Matter" are a bit monotonous, but happily the groovy guitar parts and wild drum beats make up for it. "Over The Edge" is next up. It contains more poppy aspects, although the guitars are quite impressive here. "The Hunt" contains some brutal male vocal parts as well. The last part of the song could be categorized as 'artistic', in my opinion. There are some mysterious moments in the instrumental parts in "Screams In My Castle". It gives this song a certain tension, which lifts the mystic level up higher. "Claim The Firstborn" continues in a very powerful way. The Gregorian type of choir chant really adds something to it. The album closes with another dark tune, called "The Void". It's also the longest track here. References to LACUNA COIL are called for once again. MYTH OF ORIGIN sounds very progressive and dark indeed. When you are in the right mood, it just might be the right album for you, otherwise I would go for something easier and lighter. The band consists of Rob Reijs on drums, Marc van Herpt on guitar, Michiel van den Berg on guitar and backing vocals, Patrick Pullens on bass and Claudia Wevers on vocals. https://www.facebook.com/MythOfOrigin.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
NATTHAMMER-The Hammer Of The Witch
(Black Legion Records Peru/Ultraviolencia Spain/HLP)
This is the second album of the band around Fatima Natthammer, the former MANDRAGORA singer, who decided to form a new band called NATTHAMMER in 2018. The new album contains seven songs, worthy of thirty-five powerful minutes. The music of NATTHAMMER can be described as traditional heavy metal and the album starts off with the energetic "Don't Burn The Witch", including fast bass drum beats, crying guitar solo parts and the expressive, powerful vocals of Fatima upfront. It's fast and dynamic. The song titles already give you a clear idea that we’re not dealing with just an ordinary party metal band here. "Steel Warrior" is on next and it stands proud in the heavy metal world of today. Bands like the old school DOKKEN, ACCEPT and WARLOCK come to mind when referring to the sound of NATTHAMMER. Just listen to the explosive guitar parts here. It really will blow you away. The influences of JUDAS PRIEST are marked in "Evil Nightmare", which starts with guitar riffs that will remind you of "The Hellion", the intro to "Electric Eye". The rest of this slower track has got a more DIO type of approach to it. It has got an epic feeling because of it all. "Guardian Of Light" takes off in the fourth gear again. It has also got a very catchy and high quality sing along vibe in a live setting. "The Traitor With Lizard Eyes" is another epic masterpiece. It has got just the right vibe for the old school rockers to turn up the sound real loud. The whole album feels like you are being catapulted to the eighties. Just check out the flashing start of "Queen Of Acid Skies", which contains another mind-blowing guitar solo and the furious vocal parts of Fatima. However, I think, that the best is saved for last. "Visionary" starts like a dreamy ballad, which is definitely not the case here. The speed goes up very soon and the fire is burning, making the second part really ripping and heavy. The nice mood changes turn the song to a fast and heavy rocker. You will be astonished. Peru has got a lively metal scene and I think that NATTHAMMER is a brilliant part of it. The front cover of the CD has got a pink haired vixen on a motorcycle with burning wheels. The band is supporting RAVEN in September of this year. Now you know that we are dealing with great players in the Peruvian metal scene. They will only get bigger, when they keep on releasing albums like that. Next to Fatima Natthammer on vocals, her live band consists of Diego Porturas on drums, Aquiles Solar on guitar, Pedro Bernales on rhythm guitar and Alavaro Fontana on bass. Visit her FB page at: https://www.facebook.com/natthammerheavymetal, if you want to know more about this Peruvian traditional heavy metal band.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
NERVOSA-Jailbreak (Napalm Records/HLP)
Thirteen songs are hitting you hard on the new NERVOSA album "Jailbait". Make sure, that you are ready for a tsunami of violence, because the loud riffs and pounding thrash metal will go for it right away in "Endless Ambition", where the guitars are like a machine gun firing many salvos. The grunts sound even more brutal in "Suffocare", which is a bit darker. Speed limits have been broken in "Ungrateful" and NERVOSA proves that there is more than SEPULTURA, when it comes to brutal violence and force. Check out the dazzling guitar solo in here, it's really mind-blowing. "Seed Of Death" is a solid rock song and in title track "Jailbreak", NERVOSA proves that they do belong to the premier league of death and extreme metal. In "Sacrifice", the guitars are playing a much bigger role and the solos are flashing in a circle and very impressive. Clearly, NERVOSA receives the highest score in brutality. Just like the new HOLY MOSES album this new album has no boundaries. Check out "Behind The Wall", if this isn't enough for you. Or what about the machine gun riffs they fire at you in "Kill Or Die"? This will kill you for sure. It's the best of SLAYER, EXODUS and DESTRUCTION tradition, only these ladies sound a lot louder and they also look much better. In "When The Truth Is A Lie", NERVOSA has got a little surprise for you, because legendary guitarist Gary Holt of EXODUS plays a guest role here. The riffs are truly amazing. However, there is more than meets the eye. In "Superstition Failed", they have another guest appearance, namely Lena Scissorhands of INFECTED RAIN/DEATH DEALER UNION. The firm rock song "Gates To The Fall" is next up, but the most brutal attack is "Elements Of Sin", which has some amazing axe work. The coffin is nailed and closed with "Nail The Coffin", the final track on this amazing thrash metal CD, that constantly blasts you over at full force. You can't escape the force of this four piece all-female ensemble, that leaves out every emotion. Their sound is brutal, extreme and ultra-loud, which is their trademark for years. At the end of the CD the coffin is literally nailed and the brutal ear attack is over. NERVOSA consists of Prika Amaral on vocals and guitar, Helena Kotina on guitars, Hel Pyre on bass and Michaela Naydenova on drums. Website: https://www.nervosaofficial.com and https://www.facebook.com/nervosa.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
OLATHIA-The Forest Witch (independent)
Don’t say I didn't warn you for "The Forrest Witch", the new album by US metal outfit OLATHIA. It contains eight tracks and runs for a bit more than forty minutes. OLATHIA's sound is powerful and thrashy, yet melodic wherever needed. Every metal fan can pick the highlights on this album for themselves. Opener "Insatiable" proves, that the band is able to rage on like a severe thunderstorm, but they also like to add some melodic parts here and there. There is even a dark and moody atmosphere. The second song is totally the opposite and the diversity in styles is very well-expressed here. Just have a listen to the speed moves in title track "The Forrest Witch", where the band shoves the gear back and forth from blast beats to melodic mid-parts and back to speedy parts with screaming vocals. The "Shotgun" fires are best represented by the fast and hard beating drums, that are pounding until your eardrums are about to burst. I cannot think of a bigger change over in "Fight", which sounds very soft and tender. It won't take long before this song explodes in your face though. A fight is a hard struggle and that is what this song clearly is, too. It's a loud and forceful tune, that brings out the best of this Ohio based band. Just have a listen to the wild screams of singer Chris E. here. "Who's The Devil" on the other hand sounds very thrashy and far more aggressive. The drummer is definitely pounding at a killer speed and the riffs will rip the flesh off your bones. Chris screams like she’s being pierced with a hot rod. It must have been one of the devil's horns, I guess. The answer remains unclear though. I still haven't figured out who the hell the devil is, but I do know that it is a devlish good song. "Last Breath" is seriously a lot different and it gives the band a subtle modern taste, including some amazing guitar work. Check out the lengthy guitar solo, in which Dylan Andras brings out the best in himself. After the devil, it's now time for Satan in "Satan On My Mind". I think, you guessed it already, that this is not another love song or something. Instead it's an energetic eardrum pounder again. CD closer is nothing more than a well-performed SAVATAGE cover of their classic tune "Hall Of The Mountain King", introduced by a guitar intro of Dylan. If you have the hots for SAVATGE and stuff like that, you will be blown away by this new OLATHIA album. The band really knows to create a natural blend between classic rock and forceful thrash metal and they do it really well. OLATHIA consists of Chris E. on vocals, Dylan Andras on guitar, Joe Lowrie on drums and Terry Johnson on bass. Website: https://www.olathiametal.com.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
PHANTASM-Undercover Of The Night (Sonic Age Records)
One of the best kept secrets from the NWOBHM would be PHANTASM. They consist of former members of TREDEGAR, BLADE RUNNER, TYTAN and ANGEL WITCH and the eight songs compiled on this disc are some kind of anthology, worthy of a bit over thirty-five minutes. Expect an underground band here with an unpolished rough sound and both feet in the roaring eighties, so really wild and exciting, if you like. When listening to opener "Cry For The Future", you will already get my point. Pounding drums, dazzling riffs, high-pitched vocals, it's all there. NWOBHM mixed with the sound of US metal is what you will be served in this very powerful opener. "Nightmare Of Chimaera" has the thundering drum beats of former ANGEL WITCH pounder Dave Dufort, brother of the GIRLSCHOOL skin beater Denise Dufort. I would like to refer to a band like THE RODS here. Catchy and powerful tracks, filled with some amazing guitar riffs. Check out the marvelous fretwork in "Battle Of The Broken Hearts", which is filled with a guitar part, that could be divided in several parts. The chorus is easy to sing along to, yet it still has got that underground vibe to it. "Dangerous Game" has a bit more melody. The voice of Jan Stevens has got raw edges and I would like to refer to someone like Bonny Tyler here, singing in an heavy metal band. The title track starts off slowly, although it's certainly not a ballad of some kind, because the speed change after that gives it a firm rhythm for sure. One of my personal favorites is the hard driving "Easy Ride". The speed goes up and the power is almost beyond control. There is a lot of energy in here and this killer track lifts it up to an even higher level than before. The last two tracks have a more melodic kind of approach. First there is "This Time" and with CD closer "All For Love" these songs would be very suitable for radio airplay, although the guitar part in the last track would be too much for that, I think. For the metal fans among us, it's a fine tasty rock song and it will surely please all the fans of raw unpolished metal and people, who like to hear a more melodic input. PHANTASM has got it all and definitely even more than that. They are a well-kept secret, which has now been revealed and seen the light of day. The female warrior with the shield on the front cover may be on fire, but she is destined to survive. PHANTASM consists of Jan Stevens on vocals, Gary Jones (BLADE RUNNER) on guitar, Tom Prince (TREDEGAR) on bass, Dave Dufort (ANGEL WITCH / TYTAN / EF BAND) on drums and additional guitars come from Mark Wilde. This rough diamond really needs to be discovered by every NWOBHM and true heavy metal fan. Website: https://sonicagerecords.com.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
PHOEBUS THE KNIGHT-Chronicles (Metal Message)
This album contains five songs and thirty minutes of epic symphonic metal, which tells the story of Phoebus. The band is hailing from France, so let's go through the 'chronicles' they made up for us. Let me first warn you, that you have to be open-minded for a lot of orchestral and bombastic parts, but once you have arrived at the guitar riffs, you will know why you are reading this review here. The opener will guide you along the way through these chronicles, which is called "The Cursed Lord". It proves that the orchestral parts match very well to the fast drum beats and the well-dosed guitar parts. The organ parts are like a mix of rock and orchestral parts and a name like DEEP PURPLE comes to mind here as a reference. The dark brown voice of Axel de Montalembert is just perfect for their epic heraldic songs. The instrumental rock parts are sometimes close to neo-classical, while the drum beats go faster and louder and along with the screaming vocals you will probably end up to CRADLE OF FILTH as a reference. "The Black Dungeon" starts off with some choir vocals. This time we will also discover some female vocal parts by bass player Noemie Allet, who definitely adds something special here, in my opinion. I actually really liked the instrumental mid-part a lot. It sounds very epical. "Chronicles" feels like it should have been written for a rock opera or a musical. It matches very well here, switching from metal to orchestral pieces and back. "Surrounded By Darkness" has many sides to it. It rocks, it is very epic and the instrumental part contains some Malmsteen type of guitar solos that will really blow you away. The use of different voices and different ranges is also pleasant to listen to. Finally, we have arrived to a song in two different versions. I have to admit that this is a bit too much for my poor soul, but you should decide for yourself, right? It's called "The Tears Of Rowena" and it's in the 'normal version' and in the 'Metal Opera version'. The high singing parts in the beginning sound a bit childish and perhaps that’s the whole idea? Both tracks are a nice closure to this 'concept' album, which has a lot of variation. I will probably leave it for what it is being a heavy metal fan in body and soul. PHOEBUS THE KNIGHT consists of Phoebus on vocals, Adrien Djouadou playing the part of Oswald Croll on guitar and vocals, Adrien Guingal playing the part of Hadrian on guitar, Noemie Allet playing the part of Arkeuid on bass and vocals and Guillaume Remih playing the part of Robin Of Locksley on drums. Website: https://www.phoebustheknight.fr and https://www.facebook.com/phoebustheknight.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
POISON DOLLYS-Poison Dollys (Bad Reputation)
Twenty-five songs and ninety minutes of some of the coolest heavy metal/hard rock is on this 2 CD reissued compilation album by POISON DOLLYS. This all-female outfit from Long island, NY already impressed me with their debut album in 1985, but on this bonus disc, you will find a bunch of demos and rare tracks, which makes it highly interesting to put under the looking glass one more time. We will start with the ten track album, worthy of thirty-five minutes and the punk rock song "Love Is For Suckers". Their sound is raw edged and rocks very much. "On My Way" has got the same vibe and it contains some dirty guitar work. It also has got a catchy feeling, which makes it highly accessible for many music lovers. "Only You" is another rock song and because of the harmony vocals and choirs, it has got a very catchy vibe. Of course there is room for a nice guitar solo in the middle. "Where You Are" starts off like a ballad and after a moment, the speed goes up again. Sometimes the name of PAT BENATAR pops up here, catchy with plenty of rock influences without sounding too commercial. The short vocal part at the end brings it back to where it started. “Keeper Of The Faith” and especially "Right Time" are two very ballsy rock songs. This is the sound that made all the rock fans go crazy. The ladies of POISON DOLLYS are cranking it out loud and that's the way I like it. In "All Night Through", they pull out all the stops in this three minutes rock and roll party. Of course there is also space for a ballad type of song, which is called "Nobody's Home". This asks for a more sensitive approach of the guitar sound, yet the solo matches very well with the romantic feeling that it carries out. "The Waiting" is definitely worth the wait. It's very radio friendly indeed and it even has some rocking edges to it. The punky "Electric City" is the highlight on the album, as far as I'm concerned. Rock, metal and punk influences, catchy and melodic songs, POISON DOLLYS has it all. Or should I say: they had it all?? The second CD is actually the reason why we bought this compilation album. It's a goody bag of fifteen songs containing some very nice surprises. What about the Jerry Lee Lewis classic "Great Balls Of Fire" to start with? These ladies really nail it, just like the original song. The harmony vocals in "I Like it" remind me a lot of GIRLSCHOOL, while the song itself has more references to the other all-ladies outfit, ROCK GODDESS. The title says it all, I like it. The rocking "Long Way Down" is next and in "Just Another Day', it's obvious that the love is over now. The rock song "Tell Me You Love Me" is like a scream for love and attention. "I Will Always Be Around" is the tender moment here. Why not, it makes this compilation suitable for a wider range of music fans. Next up is the fast "Turn Out The Lights", which is another rock tune. The heavy "Nice Boy" is being introduced with a POISON DOLLYS makeover of "Hey Big Spender". While songs like "Come Up" and "One Night Stand" are mainly raw rock anthems, which prove that POISON DOLLYS really rocked very hard and heavy in the roaring 1980's. For example, just check out the dirty rock song "Here And Now". The sound quality of the rare and demo tracks is very good and a nice bonus, next to the other more familiar stuff. "Stay Tonight" contains some amazing guitar licks and with "Look Too Good" they throw in another ballad type of love song, including acoustic guitars and harmony vocals. I think. a band like VIXEN could have written this. Next up is "All For You", which is also a radio friendly love song. "Mr. Heartbreak" finishes the bonus disc in a very loud and heavy way. This is a good closure of the POISON DOLLYS story, giving a complete overview of this five piece outfit from New York. All these songs have been recorded in the period between 1986 and 1989. POISON DOLLYS consisted of Roulette on vocals, Gina Stile on guitar and vocals. Mef Manning on bass and vocals, Gail Kenny on drums and vocals, Laura Left on guitar and Danielle Kern on guitar. For more info, go to their FB page at: https://www.facebook.com/p/Poison-Dollys-100063508180691.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
ANA POPOVIC-Live For Live (ArtisteXclusive Records)
ANA POPOVIC isn't the shy blues lady that she used to be, when she started her career and gained our interest. In the meantime, she was nominated for seven Blues Music Awards and has turned into a well-oiled machine over the years and inserted a lot of soul into her modern blues songs. She played headlining shows with B.B. King Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark Jr. and many others and is endorsed by Fender, D'Angelico, Jim Dunlop and DR strings. Of course her guitar playing is still the main focus, which she proves on this seventy-five minutes and fifteen songs live album, that starts off with the soul stomper "Can You Stand The Heat", where she plays some incredible licks and solos. There is also some space for bass player Cedric Goodman to be in the spotlight here. "Object Of Obsession" contains more soulful horns in the background, yet it still has the shredding guitar licks of Ana upfront in the mix. Before playing the guitar solo in this dynamic soul tune, she also takes care of some audience participation first. "Love You Tonight" is an airy and fast song. Yes, you're allowed to dance and move your body on this one. The solo part is a duel between the guitars and trumpet, accompanied by some harmony vocals. A saxophone solo marks the slot of the song, but not before Ana pulls out another solo. "Train" is being introduced by a band introduction. The female back ground singers ensure that the bluesy sound is getting a soul injection here, which is beefed up by some stunning guitar work of Ana. Luckily, her amazing guitar licks are still there. The bass player gets another place in the spotlight, however it's the rough Stevie Ray Vaughan type of guitar playing of Ana, that will really blow you away. In "Long Road Down", which includes some stunning funky bass lines, there is some space for the organ, which works itself a way into the spotlights. The fiery instrumental part, and in detail the fiery guitar part, is really mind-blowing again. "New Coat Of Paint" introduces the saxophone and piano and in the steaming instrumental part near the end, which turns out to an amazing slot. This kind of jamming is what a live recording can accomplish and something you will never catch in the studio. The stage is on fire for sure. After that, they take a step back and slow things down a bit in "Johnny Ray". It's really showing the band at their very best and all the tempo changes are very cool. "Can't You See What You're Doing To Me" is another fast blues track, originally written by Albert King. Clearly, the band is giving their very best again. This time there's a leading role for the drummer. "Fencewalk" is a nice up-tempo blues song, all soaked in a rock sauce, while "If Tomorrow Was Today" is a mix of soul and funk. Obviously, there's a lot of variation on this album, yet the main ingredient is always the breathtaking guitar licks and looks of Mrs. Popovic. "Brand New Man" contains more influences of for example Stevie Ray Vaughan, which is actually a sizzling shuffle with his name written all over. The up-tempo "I Like It On Top" invites you to dance and shake your body from the beginning until the end, while "Lasting Kind Of Love" will give you the same vibe. Clearly, you have to be very open-minded to comprehend her beautiful songs. "Mo' Better Love" for example sounds a lot like disco and ready to hit the charts. In general, her blues and rock songs with a bit of soul and funk are of a very high quality and it has some great musicianship. The best is saved for last here. If you like the blues, the way Gary Moore should have played it, then tune in to "How'd You Learn To Shake It Like That". It features some great guitar work, which is really awesome beyond belief. What a great closure of this honest live reflection of ANA POPVIC. It's probably not suitable for every hard rock or heavy metal freak out there, but definitely worth checking out for every rock fan out there with a heart for good guitar work. The show was recorded in France in 2019, by the way. This CD is without the two bonus tracks, by the way. Ana Popovic-vocals, guitar, Michele Papadia- Hammond organ, piano, backing vocals, Cedric Goodman, bass guitar, backing vocals, Buthel Burns-drums, backing vocals, Claudio Giovagnoli-saxophone, Davide Ghidoni- trumpet. For more info, go to: https://www.anapopovicmusic.com or https://www.facebook.com/anapopovicmusic.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
PTOLEMEA-Balanced Darkness (independent/Hard Life Promotion)
There aren't too many bands from Luxembourg, but I've found one that might be of interest to you. Nine songs are on this new album "Balanced Darkness" by a band, that call themselves PTOLEMEA. Their music can be described as dark folk and pagan rock, so let's see if we can bring some light in this balanced darkness. The album is worthy of almost forty minutes and starts off with "Shamanic Lullaby", which is exactly what the title suggests it is. The dark, woolly tones of the bass guitar will put you at ease, while a soft voice whispers in the background. When you push the 'repeat' button on your player, it will be your sleeping mantra. However, you must be open-minded for this alternative stuff that also has a psychedelic and progressive touch to it. "Atmospheric Pressure Drop" is more like it and why this album is reviewed here at all. It's still very alternative and definitely not heavy metal, so probably only people with a broad musical taste will get the idea, I guess. "Fado" is initially a song about life itself, which is the Portuguese input on this new PTOLEMEA album. "Inspiration" on the other hand sounds very dark and ominous as well. It's not clear, where the band gets its inspiration from, besides CHELSEA WOLFE and ANNA VON HAUSWOLFF, that have been mentioned in the biography, as their dark sound goes beyond it all. "Universal Feedback" may touch your soul. In the right mood, this will probably touch you deep inside, but when you refuse to consider the dark sound of PTOLEMEA, you may find it too slow, boring and annoying. "My Darkest Creature" feels like the second part of "Universal Feedback", which is more or less the instrumental opener to this slow and atmospheric song. "Ease Your Mind" contains some guitar parts, yet it stays between the limits here. No sound explosions, just very sober and dark with some rays of light inbetween, which may brighten it up. A good exception to this rule might be "Leap Of Faith", that is slightly faster than all the previous songs. The final conclusion is that there is still hope. One more time you are able to dream away into the world of PTOLEMEA in title track "Balanced Darkness", which is another chant in the dark world of this band from Luxembourg. PTOLEMEA consists of Priscilla da Costa on vocals, Remo Cavallini on guitar, Martin Schomner on drums and Saran Kertz on moog. Website: https://www.ptolemea.com.
[6 points] (Toine van Poorten)
NIKKI PUPPET-Men Against Machine (7Hard)
NIKKI PUPPET kicks off with title track "Men Against Machine" on their new album, which contains twelve tracks, worthy of forty-five minutes. The band still rocks, but I think their sound is more open to a bigger public on this sixth album. It's a bit more melodic and has got a catchy vibe. The songs are played acoustic and that's the biggest difference between this and all former albums. You will definitely miss the roaring sound of the machines, the amplifiers. The fact, that the songs still stand proud, proves that they have an extremely high quality factor. "In The Woods" is next up and even the guitar solos are still there. "Another Day" is a feel-good song, like most songs on this album. The poppy character is there as well, yet it also sounds powerful, where needed. The changes of pace makes this album very diverse, because "Red Balloon" isn't just a happy tune, it's also played at high speed. "Nobody Changed Me" on the other hand is much slower and very suitable for a wild party at the campfire late at night. "Living By The Sea" is another great example of a feel-good song. It's a real pleasure to listen to it. "Coming Home" might give you the same nostalgic feeling and it also has another nice guitar solo. "Blueprint" is much slower and more or less a ballad type of song. In "Nothing More", guitarist Christos is showing his skills, who is regularly in the spotlight. "Morning Sun" is probably a nice tune to start the day, while in "I Surrender Now" Nicky is putting her whole heart and soul into it. Some songs are pretty personal and ask you to slow things down in these hectic times. The final track here is the airy and rocking "Too Blind To See". What a great closure! Perhaps this album a bit different than what we are used to of this German outfit, yet with the right pinch of rock it's a nice snack and maybe just the thing you have been waiting for. NIKKI PUPPET is Nicky Gronewold on vocals, Christos Mamalitsidis on guitar, Kai Paulmann on drums and Marc Scholz on bass. Website: https://www.nikkipuppet.de or https://www.facebook.com/nikkinikkipuppet.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
RASPY JUNKER-Bad Queen (independent)
The raw riffs in opener "Dog Fight" don't divulge, that RASPY JUNKER is actually hailing from France. The ten songs on this 2023 album are worthy of about fifty minutes of raw rock and metal, which has its roots in the NWOBHM and US Metal. This is their second full-length album and the band was already created in 2012. The guitar solos seem to go on and on, which is a good start, as far as I'm concerned. In "Battle Cry", some influences of early METALLICA turn up. It's the song structure, the beat and the motion, which refers you to one of the most successful Bay Area bands of all time. I also have to mention here that the instrumental part sounds really incredible and the different approach gives it a taste of its own. Title track "Bad Queen" is on next. The speed goes up and despite the fact that we can't really categorize it as speed metal in a way, there is a bit more aggression in the riffs as well. The melodic input in the guitar solo is also breathtaking. "Snake Eyes" proves that the band isn't just focusing on one music style alone. They play many variations and although this is a heavy pounder, it contains a lot more melody. The overall sound of the band remains catchy though with a lot of raw edges to it, especially in the guitar work. "Alive" follows next, which starts off as a slow ballad, yet not without the heavy guitar parts in the beginning. The solo part is jumping out of the song as well and it doesn't sound slow and balladesque at all. Instead guitarist Thomas is really on fire here. "Start A Revolution" is one of my own personal favorites. The contrast with the previous song couldn't be bigger. It's fast and contains a lot of flashing guitar riffs. This is RASPY JUNKER the way I like it. "Deserter" is an up tempo rock song with raw hooks and a catchy attitude, while in "Hypnotized" you can take a deep breath. After all these raunchy rock songs, the speed goes down a bit and builds itself up to slowly fade away in a dream world. GUNS 'N' ROSES for example could have been an inspiration for a song like that, in my opinion. The next song "Poison" starts off rather mysterious. It doesn't really follow the paved path, because it builds up a tension, before exploding to the instrumental part. It's definitely another highlight to me with references to METALLICA for that matter. The speed changes give it an incredible adventurous vibe and the change to a slower part in this song is incredible. CD closer "We Are Rising" sounds a bit more commercial and very easy on the ear. It doesn't alter the fact that the band made an enormous impression towards me on this album. Way to go and I look forward to hearing more in the near future. RASPY JUNKER consists of Nathalie Aranda on vocals, Thomas Noorman on guitar, Gregory Delagarde on guitar, Patrick Stefanovic on bass and Cedric Noced on drums. Website: https://www.raspyjunker.com/band/ and https:// www.facebook.com/RaspyJunker.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
RAVENLIGHT-Immemorial (Metal Message)
This album contains ten power metal songs with a progressive and symphonic edge to it and it's worthy of almost fifty minutes. Opener "Masque Of Red Death" is very much influenced by the old school sound of WITHIN TEMPTATION. It feels a bit like how most of the fairytale type of bands sounded like in the beginning of the millennium and the late nineties. "Reflections" also refers back to the nineties, yet it has a bit more guitar in the melodic symphonic metal parts. The vocal parts of Rebecca are qualitatively good and the drummer builds up the speed for the closing part of the song really well. This fantasy metal kind of sound continues in "The Painter's Dream", but again the song is filled with some thunderous drum parts to beef it up. RAVENLIGHT already shared the stage with the likes of FIREWIND, STORMZONE and EVERGREY and fans of these particular bands can certainly lend an ear to this Irish band as well. The guitar is asking for a spotlight in "Spirit Of Life" and there is a more modest sound in "Paper Ships", which takes care of some variation here. The vocals of Rebecca are quite suitable for a slower song too, that's for sure. "Rain" receives a catchy attitude and is easy on the ear. It’s quite funny that the sun began to shine, while listening to this song and when writing these lines. The symphonic input on this album shows up well in "Spiral", which is quite experimental and slightly progressive, in my opinion. It's not exactly following the overall sound of the album and digs a bit deeper in the symphonic angle of this music style. "Left Behind" is very up tempo and powerful and in the instrumental part we will hear the excellent musical qualities of this band. "The Maze" continues, which is a place where you easily can get lost. However, lucky enough RAVENLIGHT is a good guide, that will lead you to the end of this labyrinth and bring you to the last song here, called "Springtime Lament". The spoken word part, the choir part, it sounds like the band gathered all their energy to let it all come together one more time in this final song, which is another highlight for every symphonic power metal fan. RAVENLIGHT must beware, that they don't drown in the sea of releases in this type of music. They definitely know how to impress me on this album "Immemorial". The band consists of Rebecca Feeney on vocals, John Connor on guitar and keyboards, Michal Bugajski on lead guitar and keyboards and Dean Ashall-Kane on bass. Website: https://www.ravenlight.co.uk.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION-Eradication (independent)
SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION are firing a salvo of gunfire shots at you on their brand new album. Sixteen bone hard and ultra-fast songs will enter your room in approximate fifty minutes, starting with opener "Buried In The Crowd". Mix NAPALM DEATH with some fast black metal screams and you will get very close to this. "Die Anyway" continues very fast and the speed is really incredible here. The loud guttural vocal screams are coming from the toes of frontwoman Elsemiek Prins, that feel like a narrowing cry. The next song "Instinct / Extinct" starts of with a rather doomy atmosphere, although the brutality around it is just the same. You will be rather surprised, when I say that "Pay My Dues" starts off with some angel-type of vocals. There are still some black metal type of screams and guttural vocals available and the song is also very loud and wild with a lot of heavy riffs, yet it's a bit different. It shows that there is a lot of variety on this album as well. Just check out the darker and doomier "Being Prey", which sounds quite different than the fast and furious wild opener. Heavy hitting drum beats are starting off in "Cannibal Soulmate", which also contains some mind boggling guitar work. "Returning In A Cauldron" refers a little to the staccato type of songs by VOI VOD, although it grabs back right away to the fast death metal sound of the Sisters. "Hide In Plain Sight" will blow you away for sure, because of the incredible guitar licks, that are really outstanding and deserve a place in the spotlight in this brutal anthem. "Thick Red Meat" contains some awesome speed breaks and the fast parts are filled with speed record breaking blast beats that will rip off the flesh from your bones. The brutal headbanger "The Rich Will Never Die" has got another amazing intro, filled with dark bass tones and more angel-type of vocals. The basic vocal parts near the end give it another surprisingly spin, before it continues in the short instrumental, called "Elevation". It's like "How They Bleed" with that soft warm side of the Sisters, which has been added a few times more on this album. "From Downfall" however rocks like hell again, including the blast beats at the end. In "Cordon Sanitaire", the angel-like vocals match very well to the black metal screams. The slow and heavy drum beats are mixed with the fast drum parts here. "The Chosen One" is another speed killer track. It will take you by surprise in the slurry of maniacal riffs and beats. The "Outerlude" is not just any outro. It provides a worthy and classy closure, because this is not just another death metal album full of blast beats. The SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION have delivered an album with some cool surprises giving the death metal another dimension. The line-up of SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION is: Simone van Straten on guitar, Tim Schellekens on bass, Elsemiek Prins on vocals, Emmelie Herwegh on guitar and Fons van Dijk on drums. SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION has actually become Sisters and Brothers, but that doesn't really change their brutal attitude. Website: https://www.facebook.com/sistersofsuffocation.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
SMOULDER-Violent Creed Of Vengeance (Cruz del Sur)
The seven songs on this new album of SMOULDER are worthy of about forty minutes of powerful doom metal. For those of you, who liked the previous albums of this Canadian band, it's another point of recognition for sure. References to MANILLA ROAD, SOLITUDE AETURNUS and OMEN are clearly audible on their tasty epical songs, which are dealing about heraldic warriors and filled with amazing guitar parts and powerful vocals. All these aforementioned elements are combined in the intro and opener of title track "Violent Creed Of Vengeance". The speed is doubled in "The Talisman And The Blade", which adds a lot of variation to their sound. The epic feeling is back, when the MANOWAR 'ho-ho-ho' war chants are being added in "Midnight In The Mirror World". "Path Of Witchery" sounds rather energetic and fast. I guess, that every heavy metal warrior out there will get the will to fight against their enemy from songs like that. And if the fast speed isn't doing the trick, the guitar parts definitely will. "Victims Of Fate" starts off with a short spoken word part, narrated by Michael Moorcock, a British fantasy and sci-fi novelist. The synths in this song are done by a guy called Levi Jones. The band is at full force in the speedy "Spellforger", which is on next. It's loaded with tonz of dynamic power. However, the best is saved for last. The almost ten minutes long "Dragonslayer's Doom" is an amazing epic power metal anthem, which gives you all the aforementioned essential elements. The guitar work is truly outstanding and you can feel the power of the vocal parts. The drum beats are thundering in your throat and are making you gasp for air. This truly amazing masterpiece really asks for more. This is how epic power metal should be and SMOULDER nailed it one hundred percent. SMOULDER consists of Kevin Hester on drums, Collin Wolf on guitars, Shon Vincent on guitars, Adam Blake on drums and Sarah Anne on vocals. Website: https://www.facebook.com/SmoulderDoom or https://www.smoulder.bandcamp.com.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
STARBENDERS-Take Back The Night (Sumerian Records)
This is the third album by this glam rock outfit from Atlanta, Georgia. The thirteen songs here will most likely appeal to many old school rock fans of BON JOVI, GREAT WHITE and CINDERELLA. Besides that, the music of STARBENDERS is also easy on the ear. Opener "The Game" is a nice song-along tune and in my imagination I can see a stadium filled with fans jumping up and down to the rhythm of it, because the vibe is that good. The next song will gain even more interest. "Sex" sells is a true fact. The catchy vibe remains here, although the vocals sound a bit rawer. "Body Talk" continues and here and there the band implemented some sidesteps to gothic and industrial rock, which makes it a bit darker and mysterious. Just check out "We're Not OK" for example. The guitars are beefing up the more commercial “Cherry Wine” with a very grungy vibe this time. "Seven White Horses" is a bit grungy, while "The End Is Near" is a bit more rocking and I hear a lot of influences to the old school sound of JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS. In general, there is a lot of variation on this album, although the songs will keep a fine distinction. "Blood Moon" is definitely one of my personal favorites. Kim is screaming it out loud and the guitars are doing exactly what they should do and they roar and rock. "If You Need It" is a bit darker again and I hear some influences of BLACK SABBATH in "Marianne", which is pure rock song. The ALICE COOPER cover "Poison" matches quite well on this album and is highly enjoyable. "Midnight" contains some raunchy riffs, which is a good combination to the raspy voice of Kim here. Last but not least, there's the poppy "Say You Will" which starts off in an Kate Bush kind of way, although during the song, I hear more Bonny Tyler influences. A lot of references have been mentioned here and although the band is being categorized as glam rock, they surely have a lot more on their sleeve. STARBENDERS consists of Kimi Shelter on vocals, guitars and synths, Kriss Tokaji on guitars, synths and piano, Aaron Lecesne on bass, guitars and moog and Emily Moon on drums. Website: https://www.starbenders.com.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
SALLY STEELE-Alone In Love 1988-1989 (Deadline Music)
From the first notes on this six tracks twenty minutes album, you can hear the sound of the Sunset Strip in Hollywood, performed by SALLY STEELE. Her voice shows a striking resemblance with PAT BENATAR and Janet Gardner (VIXEN) and her songs are that catchy, too. Opener and title track "Alone In Love" says it all. This is pure rock soaked in the sound of the eighties. Sally is also the publisher and founder of the Vegas Rocks Magazine and she shows up in videos of rock bands, such as LOVERBOY and ERIC CARMEN to name but a few. Songs like "I Never Cry" are ready for radio airplay and as a matter of fact, they have been just that many times in America. A good guitar solo can't be missed here. And of course an emotional ballad has to be on this album, too. Just check out "The Only One" and it's there. Many rock stars in the eighties were well-known for their glorious ballads. After that it's time to rock out firmly on "Leave My Heart Alone", which could very well be on any eighties album by BON JOVI, RATT or VIXEN. Same goes for "Too Bad (It Had To Be You)", which has a stomping beat and catchy chorus. "Sold On You" closes this six songs album here and could very well hit the charts right away. It's a shame, that these songs took so long to be released. Now they finally see the light of day and they sound like magic to every devoted melodic rock and AOR fan. If you (also) buy the dark purple colored vinyl version of the album, which is limited to 300 copies, you will be able to hear the bonus track, which is called "Suicidal Love". It's the earliest recording here and from 1986. Sally sounds a bit like KIM WILDE in "Chequered Love" here. Call this hair metal, sleazy metal or glam metal, still every song rocks like hell. Fact is, that you can sing along to it right away, which is a blueprint for a successful song for sure. Sally knew how to write and record them and finally she approved to put the result down on a purple vinyl record and a silver disc. Sally is helped out here by a diverse range of musicians, like Dallas Keith on bass, Greg Capes on guitar, Todd Capes on drums, Gaylon on keyboards, Randy Richards on guitar, J.C. Berdoo on keyboards and Tracy Ferrie on vocals. Some of the songs were produced by the well-known Paul Sabu. Website: https://www.sallysteelerocks.com or https://www.facebook.com/sally.steele.94.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
NITA STRAUSS-The Call Of The Void (Sumerian Records)
NITA STRAUSS has become well-known for her work with ALICE COOPER. Her latest album contains fourteen songs, worthy of a full hour. Nita also worked with THE IRON MAIDENS and FEMME FATALE and she's a very gifted player, which she proves on this solo album. A classical thunder and lightning intro starts up the album on "Summer Storm" with a firm up-tempo polka beat. This nice instrumental tune contains some speed changes and guitar work with references to Marty Friedman for example. The list of guest singers on this album is quite impressive, too. The dark and aggressive "The Wolf You Feed" contains the brutal growls of Alissa White Gluz, however it sounds more melodic than the average ARCH ENEMY song. I have never heard of Chris Motionless before, but he's the singer of metal core outfit MOTIONLESS IN WHITE and guest singer in "Digital Bullets". The guitar parts are really incredible here. Lzzy Hale (HALESTORM) puts in an appearance in "Through The Noise", and once again the album receives a melodic touch because of that. The two together make a good combination. I hear a lot of musical notes in "Consume The Fire". It shows the diversity of Nita's guitar playing and also her speed. The diversity of guest singers also takes care of the wide variety of styles that we hear on this album. I'm not too keen about "Dead Inside" with David Draiman of DISTURBED, however the catchy track "Victorious" featuring DOROTHY is a very good single choice. You can sing along to it pretty easily and it has got a great groove as well. Next are two instrumental tracks, starting with "Scorched", a slower song with a steady beat and references to VAI and SATRIANI. It has some lengthy pull outs with a lot of melody in it. Next up is "Momentum", a firm metal song that the average doom or death metal addict will surely love. Wow, what power, I really love it. After this instrumental masterclass, vocalist Anders Friden of IN FLAMES guests in the fiery "The Golden Trail". It contains some blast beats and an incredible amount of power. What else would you expect by this singer? Of course Nita wouldn't do an album without ALICE COOPER on it. Just tune in to "Winners Takes All", which has got the name of Alice written all over. "Monster" would also have been a good song for Alice, as a matter of fact. However, this time Nita called in the help of Lilith Czar, an American singer, who is also a good match with Nita here. "Kintsugi" is a little piece of rest on this rather energetic album, which has SATRIANI type of guitar parts. The last song is saved for the guitar skills of MARTY FRIEDMAN, who guests on "Surfacing". Two guitar wizards get together for a final seclusion on this very varied album that will be an interesting release for many metal fans among us, because it covers a wide range of musical styles. STRAUSS proves that she can be an excellent shredder, a good solo guitarist and a speed freak on guitar. All in all, she’s an all-rounder on guitar, who really blew me away on this new solo album. Website: https://www.nitastrauss.com and https://www.facebook.com/NitaStrauss.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
TANITH-Voyage (Metal Blade Records)
This is the second TANITH album and it contains nine tracks, worthy of forty-five minutes. Fans of old school hard rock outfits, such as WISHBONE ASH, BLUE OYSTER CULT, JETHRO TULL (without the flute though) or ASHBURY can really dig in blindfolded. The album starts off with the fast "Snow Tiger", which contains a riff, that clings to your mind once you have heard it, just like "The Citadel" from their debut album. Responsible for this is the incredible Russ Tippins of SATAN's fame. Even the harmony vocals in "Falling Wizard" are truly amazing to me. Sometimes I would say it sounds cheesy or inappropriate, although here it sounds perfect in the structure of the song that is built upon another fiery riff of Russ. I hear some references of BLUE OYSTER CULT in "Olympus By Dawn" and 'the reaper' is very nearby. The clear vocals of Cindy Maynard fit in very well here as well. She has got a very pleasant voice. "Architects Of Time" starts with another fabulous riff. The surprising speed change makes it even more adventurous and up-tempo, than I had expected. "Adrasteia" is a real speed monster from the start. "Mother Of Exile" sounds energetic and together with the vocals of Cindy, in combination with the guitar parts of Russ, it's again an amazing song. Especially the instrumental part at the end makes you wonder if you are still listening to the same track. The album so far shows how much the band has developed over the years. Every song is a winner for me so far. Russ's vocals are a bit more upfront in "Seven Moons (Galantia Part 2)" and the mid-piece in this particular song is truly outstanding. It gives you room for improvisations in a live setting and I also hear some influences of the old school sound of RUSH (except for the high Geddy Lee vocals then!), here. And once again Russ comes up with a great guitar riff in this one. "Flame" continues the album in a more rocking kind of way. There's a leading role for the guitar of Russ in the CD closer "Never Look Back" as well. If you like the sound of the first album of TANITH, you definitely will be blown away by this second album, at least I am. TANITH brings out the best and for a "Voyage" like this, you can always count me in. TANITH consists of Cindy Maynard on bass, vocals and organ, Keith Robinsong on drums and Russ Tippins on guitar and vocals. Andee Blacksugar added some extra guitar parts. Check out this amazing stuff. Website: https://www.facebook.com/TanithNYC.
[10 points - FULL SCORE] (Toine van Poorten)
TYRANEX-Reasons For The Slaughter (GMR Music)
Ominous violin parts and strings are introducing you on "Overture" from the new nine track and thirty-five minutes album of Swedish thrashers TYRANEX. It fits just perfectly on a good slaughter party. Then "Where Light Ceases To Exist" takes off in fifth gear. Don't try this at home. Linnea's voice is wild and aggressive, the drums are pounding and beating fast and the guitars are flying at breakneck speed. The TYRANEX is showing its teeth right from the start. Vicious guitar riffs are crying in "Rise From The Dead", which is in fact the first single taken from this album. It’s another speed monster that will surely please all the speed and thrash metal fans out there that came to see blood. Polka beats are dominating the "Full Circle" with more flashing riffs and solos. The wild bashing goes on until the slaughter is finished. TYRANEX has got the power to do it quickly and thoroughly. In "Megalomania", the band shows its ability to add an ominous feeling in slower tracks. It s still a dangerous ear attack, yet it also has a bit of melody as well. There is a guest appearance of F.K.U. (Freddy Kruger's Underwear) vocalist Larry Lethal here. In title track "Reason For The Slaughter", the band focusses on the instrumental section and the guitar parts are undeniable breathtaking. Only real headbangers will be able to shake their head up and down to the rhythm of "Pyromaniac", while the song title is screamed out by the lengthy high pull outs of Linnea. The flashing guitar solo will set you on fire for sure. "Do Or Die" is a massive thrash song and I must admit that the variation on this album is tremendous. Especially old school thrash metal and speed metal fans will be very pleased. "Wipe Out" is the final song here and once again it has an impressive instrumental part at the end. It shows the skills of this Swedish metal outfit that will constantly blow your mind. Now you have survived this album, you will have a legitimate reason for slaughter, too. Their aggressive thrash and speed metal will really blow you away and I guess your eardrums must be bleeding by now. I know mine did. More, more and more of this! TYRANEX is Linnea Landstedt on guitar and vocals, Will Tomao on guitars, Martine Petersson on bass and Pontus Petterson-Gull on drums. Website: https://www.facebook.com/tyranexofficial.
[9 points] (Toine van Poorten)
VELVET VIPER-Nothing Compares To Metal (Massacre
Records)
I couldn't agree more with the title of the new VELVET VIPER album. Metal is running through my veins, it's in my DNA and it's also the main focus of this German epic metal band with legendary front lady Jutta Weinhold behind the mike. The eleven songs are worthy of sixty-five minutes, starting with title track "Nothing Compares To Metal". Their influences are crystal clear as a matter of fact and bands like MANOWAR and VIRGIN STEELE come to mind at once, when hearing the heraldic lyrics that are an honest tribute to epic heavy metal. "Invisible Danger" is a bit slower, yet it pounds harder and of course the chants are there as well. It will definitely become a public favorite during their live shows, because it really urges you to shout and sing along to it. An ominous intro will be starting up "Urd Wardande Skula" (Keep The Roots Alive). It's in a foreign language, but the message is quite clear. It refers to one of the most well-known ZED YAGO tracks with Jutta, namely "Black Bone Song". "Blood On The Moon" slows things down a little and the tribal vocals and drums will take care of their characteristic epic sound. "Speak Truth To Power" is fast and contains some venomous guitar work. Jutta stands proud in the forceful "Sorcerer's Apprentice", which is a typical 'fist-in-the-air' metal song. I'd like to ask some special attention for the fiery and outstanding guitar work of Holger here, who really shines in this song, next to the ballsy singing voice of Jutta. "Heroic Hearts" is for the connoisseurs of epic metal, who stand proud for heavy metal. That’s what Jutta and her band are and this song reflects it all. "Rise From the Fallen" is on next, which receives a more ballad type of approach. It's still loud and heavy, yet with a bit of a melancholic undertone. "The 4th Part" is slower, too. It's very epic and heraldic in some ways. It gives you the strength to go to battle and fight the enemy. The four parts are called Heaven, Water, Land and Hell. The next song "New World Child" is more happy. All in all, there is something for everybody. The final song has German lyrics, which is called "Es Kommt Die Zeit". It's a private statement of Jutta and it sounds great to me. Solid German rock to all the fans of epic and honest heavy metal. VELVET VIPER is Jutta Weinhold on vocals, Holger Marx on guitar, Johannes Horas Mollers on bass and Micha Fromm on drums. Website: https://www.facebook.com/VelvetViper
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
WAZZARA-Ombreine (EP) (Metal Message)
This three track EP by Swiss post metal doom outfit WAZZARA is worthy of about eighteen minutes, which means it's real value for money. The first track is a WAZZARA transformation of "Guggisberglied", a Swiss folk song. The doomy elements match with the folky character very well. It will take you away on a journey to the Swiss mountains and woods, where nobody dares to take a wrong turn. There are definitely some fast beats here, however the overall pace is slow, dark and doomy. Do not try to get a grip on the sound of WAZZARA, you won’t succeed. Just float away where the song will take you. Some black metal parts break through the sound of silence, however the magic of WAZZARA stays. "Visiune" feels more or less like 'visions' to me. You decide which visions you get after hearing it. It's packed with black metal type of screams and fast hammering beats, next to folkloristic sounds. Here and there the lyrics are spoken word parts, which match better very well. This song will definitely empty your head and fill it with dreamy landscapes. "What Lies Beneath" rounds off this EP, which leans more towards black metal, because of the growling vocals and up-tempo parts. This is what post metal is all about. WAZZARA is Barbara Brawand on vocals and rhythm guitar, Masi Stettler on lead and rhythm guitar, Tom Kuzmic on lead and rhythm guitar, George Necola on bass and Deniz Lebovci on drums. Website: https://www.facebook.com/wazzaraofficial.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)
WHEN RIVERS MEET-Aces Are High (independent)
WHEN RIVERS MEET are hailing from Essex in the UK and their ten track album "Aces Are High" runs for almost forty minutes. It starts off with a song called "Infected" and that's exactly what it does to you. This catchy song is very moreish indeed. Their sound is bluesy and heavy at the same time and a name like BLUES PILLS comes to mind right away. "Seen It All Before" continues and I think that their songs will appeal to many different people. Not just blues and rock fans will like their sound. Music fans in general will love their catchy songs as well. It gives you a feeling that you have heard it before, but you haven't. You want to embrace it immediately. In this second track the name of RIVAL SONS comes to mind, because of the drum beats. Same goes for "Play My Game" in which Grace Bond shows that she has a clear and very powerful voice. So far, so good, I would say. "Golden" is a duet with Aaron Bond, which is definitely a bit too much for me. It's too far away from rock, blues or metal that we review here. Title track "Aces Are High" however brings the band back on the right track again. The groovy and heavy riffs are amazing here and they repeat the title so many times that you start to sing along to it right away. "Trail To Heaven" has the vocals of Aaron upfront in the mix at first and then he changes with Grace several times. Grace's voice is so much more powerful and she gives the songs a special spicy flavor. Aaron's spicy flavor comes from his six string instrument. "Perfect Stranger" is on next, which is another nice solid rock song. "The Secret" sounds groovy again and I'd like to ask some special attention for the instrumental input here. It does belong to the highlights on this album for me. "By Your Side" is also not really for me. It's too sweet, too far away from my personal taste of music. I really understand their choice to put it on here and it gives the album some variation. The last track is called "Five Minutes Until Midnight" and once again there is a lot of power in the drum beats and the voice of Grace. Blues and rock comes together on this album, which contains some fine and very groovy moments. WHEN RIVERS MEET is: Grace Bond on vocals, mandolin and violin and Aaron Bond on vocals and guitar. Website: https://www.whenriversmeet.co.uk.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
WITHIN TEMPTATION-Bleed Out (Music On CD)
The new WITHIN TEMPTATION album is a safe buy for everybody who is a fan of the band from the beginning. The eleven tracks are worthy of almost fifty minutes of solid symphonic rock and this album shows that even after so many years, the band is still at the top and they continue doing what they believe in. And they still do it with the same high quality. There is something that has changed though. The lyrics make a political statement and more than in the early beginning, when it was all about fantasy. Just listen to opener "We Go To War". Maybe it sounds less bombastic, still the elements of a good WITHIN TEMPTATION song are still there and it's good start of the album, in my opinion. Title track "Bleed Out" is next and it is one of the first singles taken from the album. The song is darker and the music has evolved to the metal sound of the new millennium. A band with a status like WITHIN TEMPTATION needs to do that, because after all these years they still are headliners on many festivals and their albums are very successful. They know the scene, they know what their fans want to hear and they reflect that in their music. Sometimes it sounds darker, sometimes it sounds clear and airy, yet it's always done with the same class and taste for perfection. "Wireless" contains some of these more modern influences. However, the well-known vocal sound of Sharon remains and the groovy riffs and steady beats are still there, too. "Worth Dying For" sounds a bit airier and easier on the ear and it contains some great guitar work. The choir vocals are there as well. "Ritual" is conjuring, just like the ritual this song is about. Despite the distorted vocals, that are part of the transformation to a modern sound, it still is what people expect of the band. This also one of the recent singles. In that respect "Cyanide Love" is perhaps a bit too new-fashioned, but it takes care of some variation in styles. "The Purge" has got the WITHIN TEMPTATION label all over it and this up-tempo song sounds quite powerful, including the high pull outs of Sharon upfront in the mix. And if this one doesn't do the trick for you, they will try again maybe even harder with "Don't Pray For Me", which would have been a good single choice as well, if you'd ask my opinion. In "Shed My Skin", they called in the help of ANNISOKAY, a post hardcore band from Germany. They make a fine team together and this musical get together really worked out just fine. The album closes with "Unbroken" and "Entertain You", which are both perfect WITHIN TEMPTATION songs. WITHIN TEMPTATION consists of Sharon den Adel on vocals, Mike Coolen on drums, Stefan Helleblad on guitars, Ruud Jolie on guitars, Martijn Spierenburg on keyboards, Jeroen van Veen on bass and Robert Westerholt on guitars. Website: https://www.within-temptation.com and https://www.facebook.com/wtofficial.
[8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
WITHIN TEMPTATION-The Artone Recordings / Record Store Day Exclusive (EP) (Music On Vinyl)
I guess, that a lot of the metal heads out there are vinyl buyers as well. They know that on Record Store Day, some bands will also release an exclusive record that is only available on that special day. Some bands will even release an exclusive single or EP, that is a free gift for the visitors at the selected record stores. This year WITHIN TEMPTATION released a four track EP with some acoustic recordings from the Artone Studion in Haarlem, recorded in January 29th, 2024. These four songs will be on the new "Bleed Out" album. It starts off with a naked version of "Ritual". What a nice way to present your album. The song is up-tempo and it has got the right amount of melody to make it suitable for an acoustic performance. The focus is now more on the steady drum beats, that lead this song. Ominous PINK FLOYD type of keyboards will introduce you to "We Go To War". Sharon is showing her skills here in the lyrics by creating the right atmosphere. It sounds very dark. Obviously, going off to war is not a nice thing to do and the sound of maybe not coming back home is expressed very well in this version. Next is the title track of the new album, "Bleed Out", which got a catchy edge to it in this acoustic version. It's also very easy on the ear. The final song on this EP is taken from the album "The Unforgiving", which is another catchy song, called "Faster". It is actually one of the better songs from that album and also the most interesting song for yours truly. On the backcover of this EP, you will have a look at the Artone studios. A nice bonus for the fans of this Dutch band and it also makes the wait for the new album a bit shorter. My copy from this limited edition record store day only EP comes from Kay's Odyssey in Wagenberg. Thanks for taking care of this, Corry and Jaap van Zijl! The line-up of WITHIN TEMPTATION is Sharon den Adel on vocals, Mike Coolen on drums, Stefan Helleblad on guitars, Ruud Jolie on guitars, Martijn Spierenburg on keyboards, Jeroen van Veen on bass and Robert Westerholt on guitars. Website: https://www.within-temptation.com and https:// www.facebook.com/wtofficial.
[7 points] (Toine van Poorten)