Blog Archives
Thirty-five Years Ago Today: Dio avoids the “sophomore slump”
In 1983, Ronnie James Dio released an epic debut album called Holy Diver. In 1984, he recorded with the same core lineup of Vivian Campbell, Jimmy Bain, and Vinny Appice, adding keyboardist Claude Schnell to the mix, and unleashed The Last In Line. The album reached #23 on the Billboard 200 charts, and three singles—“Mystery,” “We Rock,” and the title track—received a lot of attention from rock radio stations in the United States. The album was certified platinum in 1987.
Campbell, Bain, Schnell, and Appice used the name of this album to form a new band in 2012, teaming up with vocalist Andrew Freeman to perform Dio classics and write new material. The group has released two albums so far, Heavy Crown in 2016 and II in 2019. Sadly, Bain passed away in 2016; Phil Soussan took over bass guitar duties.
Need some new rock in your life?
The Missing Peace, the brand new LA Guns album just dropped today, featuring the first new music from Phil Lewis and Tracii Guns in fifteen years. Johnny Martin, Shane Fitzgibbon, and Michael Grant join Phil and Tracii on this trip back to the Sunset Strip. It’s not just nostalgia, though—these songs are actually good! If you love the “hair metal” scene, this record will put you back where you belong. Hands-down, the best reunion album from a group of that era. There are some objectionable lyrics, as there is with much from the rock world, but there are some great clean songs as well. The musicianship is top-notch. I like Stacey Blades, but Tracii Guns is LA Guns. The Missing Peace shows how much we have missed in the past 15 years while Phil and Tracii were at odds. I am so glad they have buried the hatchet and have given us this new music. Phil and Tracii are good individually, but together they make great music.
Michael Grant adds quite a bit to the mix as well. Grant’s former band, Endeverafter, toured with Poison and Cinderella, and released one of the best hair metal-esque albums ten years ago, but went largely unnoticed due to poor promotion and a general distaste for the genre at the time. I highly recommend adding Kiss or Kill to your collection (after The Missing Peace, of course).
The Missing Peace is available on CD or vinyl, or can be downloaded in MP3 format.
Tracklist:
1. All the Same to Me
2. Speed
3. Drop of Bleach
4. Sticky Fingers
5. Christine
6. Baby Gotta Fever
7. Kill It or Die
8. Knife to a Gunfight
9. The Flood’s the Fault of the Rain
10. The Devil Made Me Do It
11. The Missing Peace
12. Gave It All Away
King Kobra’s classic first two releases set for reissue
During the 1980s the music scene was exploding with an abundance of great rock bands—including multi-platinum sellers such as Mötley Crüe, Quiet Riot, and RATT—but there was always room for talented new contenders. For King Kobra this was an invitation to launch onto a landscape that was primed for killer hard rock, enormous sales, and unlimited airplay.
It comes as no surprise then, that respected re-issue label Rock Candy Records has turned a spotlight on their first two classic albums, Ready To Strike and Thrill Of A Lifetime. Both titles are set to be reissued on February 10th having been fully remastered with enhanced 16-page booklets featuring rare photos, new interviews, and a 4,000 word essay penned by Malcolm Dome.
Formed in California in 1984, by seasoned drummer Carmine Appice (Cactus, Beck Bogart & Appice, Ozzy Osbourne) and featuring vocalist Mark Free (Unruly Child), guitarists John Michael Philips & Mick Sweda (Bulletboys) and bassist Johnny Rod (WASP), the band won instant attention for their unique look—four blondes and one brunette. Produced by Spencer Proffer (Quiet Riot, WASP, Cheap Trick) and signed to Capitol Records, the band’s debut album, originally issued in 1985, won them the attention of fans and critics alike by delivering one of the year’s best records. Tracks such as “Hunger,” “Tough Guys,” “Piece Of The Rock,” and the title track itself are pivotal examples of some of the best mid 80’s hard rock.
Thrill Of A Lifetime, their sophomore album, originally issued in 1986, saw the band shift gear, modernizing their sound and focusing on more accessible songs, perhaps modeled on the chart success of artists like Bon Jovi and Cinderella. The material was spearheaded by the hugely infectious “Iron Eagle (Never Say Die),” a track that was included on the hit movie Iron Eagle. Elsewhere there’s “Feel The Heat,” “Raise Your Hands To Rock,” and “Dream On” for further proof of their hard rocking credentials.
READY TO STRIKE TRACKLISTING:
1. Ready to Strike
2. Hunger
3. Shadow Rider
4. Shake up
5. Attention
6. Breakin’ Out
7. Tough Guys
8. Danching with Desire
9. Second Thoughts
10. Piece of the Rock
THRILL OF A LIFETIME TRACKLISTING:
1. Second Time Around
2. Dream On
3. Feel the Heat
4. Thrill of a Lifetime
5. Only the Strong Will Survive
6. Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)
7. Home Street Home
8. Overnight Sensation
9. Raise Your Hands to Rock
10. Part Animal
11. Home Sweet Home (Street Mix) [bonus track]
For more information, please visit rockcandyrecords.com.
Purchase Ready To Strike and Thrill of a Lifetime by King Kobra.
Judas Priest unleash new live CD/DVD/Blu-ray, Battle Cry, on March 25
Judas Priest
Recorded live on August 1st, 2015 at Germany’s Wacken Festival in front of an audience of 85,000, Battle Cry is available on a 15-track CD
What makes the show’s track listing so appealing is it balances new classics (“Dragonaut,” “Halls of Valhalla,” “Redeemer of Souls”) along with headbanging classics (“Metal Gods,” “Electric Eye,” “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”), as well as key album tracks from yesteryear (“Devil’s Child,” “Beyond the Realms of Death,” “Jawbreaker”).
Originally formed during the early ’70s in Birmingham, England, Priest is responsible for offering metal fans worldwide some of the genre’s most influential and landmark albums (1980’s British Steel
For decades, Judas Priest has been one of the greatest live bands in the entire heavy metal genre. And as evidenced by Battle Cry, Priest rock harder and more ferociously than ever.
Battle Cry CD sequence:
1. (Intro) Battle Cry
2. Dragonaut
3. Metal Gods
4. Devil’s Child
5. Victim of Changes
6. Halls of Valhalla
7. Redeemer of Souls
8. Beyond the Realms of Death
9. Jawbreaker
10. Breaking the Law
11. Hell Bent For Leather
12. The Hellion
13. Electric Eye
14. You’ve Got Another Thing Coming
15. Painkiller
Battle Cry DVD/Blu-ray sequence:
1. (Intro) Battle Cry
2. Dragonaut
3. Metal Gods
4. Devil’s Child
5. Victim of Changes
6. Halls of Valhalla
7. Turbo Lover
8. Redeemer of Souls
9. Beyond the Realms of Death
10. Jawbreaker
11. Breaking the Law
12. Hell Bent For Leather
13. The Hellion
14. Electric Eye
15. You’ve Got Another Thing Coming
16. Painkiller
17. Living After Midnight
Recorded live on August 1st, 2015 at Wacken Festival, Germany.
BONUS TRACKS
18. Screaming for Vengeance
19. The Rage
20. Desert Plains
Recorded live on December 10th, 2015 at The Ergo Arena, Gdansk, Poland.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT: judaspriest.com.
Lita Ford to release new album Time Capsule April 15 via SPV/Steamhammer
Album Features Guest Appearances From Gene Simmons, Billy Sheehan, Jeff Scott Soto, Dave Navarro & Rick Nielsen
American vocalist/guitarist Lita Ford is set to release her latest album Time Capsule on SPV/Steamhammer on April 15, 2016. The very special and unusual recording turns back the clock to a time when honest, down-to-earth rock music was still handmade and recorded without digital tricks and contraptions. Time Capsule is a “throwback” record that boasts identifiable voices and brilliant players jamming without any planning or pressure. Some of the album`s highlights: Billy Sheehan (bass), Rodger Carter (drums), Dave Navarro (mandolin), Jeff Scott Soto (vocals), Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander (backing vocals) and Gene Simmons (bass).
“There was a (ton) of these 24-track analog tapes in the closet in my house (in the islands),” Ford recalls. “This is some of the best work I`ve ever done and it was sitting there. I grabbed two suitcases and took them back to the United States.” Imagine Ford dragging a pair of suitcases full of analog tapes through the Caribbean dirt back to Los Angeles. “If you just put them on the reel, they would flake. I was chewing my fingernails, thinking, ´Please work! ` And they did!”
Time Capsule contains ten songs plus an intro and will be available as a digipak as well as an LP version and download. It`s Ford`s gift to fans who love the ´80s, when thrilling vocal performances, raunchy riffs, and loud, growling guitars were as essential as oxygen. Time Capsule is available for pre-order HERE
Track Listing:
1. Intro 1:35
2. Where Will I Find My Heart Tonight 04:47
3. Killing Kind 04:49
4. War Of The Angels 05:44
5. Black Leather Heart 03:33
6. Rotten To The Core 04:21
7. Little Wing 03:01
8. On The Fast Track 03:41
9. King Of The Wild Wind 05:04
10. Mr. Corruption 04:15
11. Anything For The Thrill 03:25
LITA FORD Live 2016
US/Canada
2/12: Houston,TX – BFE Rock Club
2/13: Tyler,TX – Rock N´Valentines Festival
2/14: Fort Worth,TX – The Rail Club
2/20: Enoch,AB – River Cree Resort
3/5: Beverly Hills,CA – Saban Theatre
3/19: Toledo,OH – Savage Arena
4/24: Ladson,SC – 98 Rock Fest
Europe
08.-11.06. SE-Sölvesborg – Sweden Rock Festival
13.-14.08.B-Kortijk – Alcatraz Festival
More dates will be added soon
For More Info Visit:
litafordonline.com
facebook.com/litaofficial
facebook.com/steamhammerofficial
Elefanté by BulletBoys (2015)
Elefanté
by BulletBoys
Cleopatra/Deadline Records, 2015
40 minutes
Hard rock bands come and go, but there are a few names that consistently reappear from time to time. Though Marq Torien is the only original member left in the band, BulletBoys are back with a new record to the delight of hair metal freaks everywhere, even if it sounds little like the “Smooth Up In Ya” era. Torien enlists superb musicians on Elefanté: Nick Rozz (The Tattooed Millionaires) on guitar, Chad MacDonald (Jani Lane, Kevin Dubrow) on bass, and Shawn Duncan (Odin, DC4) on drums.
Together they have created a solid record that hearkens back to the glory days while updating the sound for a modern audience. For the most part Elefanté sounds more in line with a Hinder record than Poison, but it rocks just the same. The record opens with a dark guitar riff on “Rollover,” setting the stage for a barrage of hard rock perfect for those hungry for a heavy (but not too heavy) sound.
The best tracks are the rockers “Rollover” and “Symphony” and the ballad “Kin Folk.” “Drop Your Weapon” has an awesome groove that will have you singing along by the second chorus; unfortunately it is ruined by a couple of f-bombs near the end. Hearing the group cover another artist’s song is no surprise; other than “Smooth Up In Ya,” the BulletBoys’ most memorable songs from their early career were cover songs. Here, the Elton John cover is performed well, but a better song could have certainly been chosen. Those are the two songs that disappoint the most on Elefanté.
Despite those missteps, Elefanté is a strong hard rock record that BulletBoys fans will appreciate.
You can preview “Rollover” and “Symphony” at BulletBoysOfficial.com.
Tracklist:
1. Rollover
2. Tsunami
3. Symphony
4. The Villain
5. Kin Folk
6. Saving You From Me
7. As Dumb As
8. Superhuman Girl
9. Drop Your Weapon
10. B**** is Back (Elton John cover)
11. Elefanté
