Children of Bodom: A Chapter Called Children of Bodom (2023) On 15th December 2019, Children Of Bodom, which at the time consisted of Alexi Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals), Jaska Raatikainen (drums), Henkka […]

Andy Pratt: Trio (2024) Andy Pratt, who is based in Chicago, is a fluent and melodic jazz guitarist who also sings with a deep and friendly voice. On this recording, which took […]

Zany Starblaster: The Lost Tapes (2019) I have heard quite a lot of Jerry Kingls music in recent years, but this is a blast from the past, quite literally. Zany Starblaster were a Wisconsin […]

Varathron: The Crimson Temple (2023) Hellenic Black Metal act Varathron are blessed with an incredibly stable line-up in recent years, given that the current version of the band came […]

Sarah McKenzie: Without You (2023) This project originated in 2020 when Sarah McKenzie recorded “Corcovado (Quiet Nights)” with guitarist Romero Lubambo and cellist Jaques Morelenbaum as […]

Robert Prester & Adriana Samargia: Quenara (2023) When it comes to music, there is always room for the overblown, but anyone who has been following my reviews for the last 35+ years will know I very much […]

Moofish: Entropia (2023) Here we find the duo of Rhonda Hofmans Johnson (lyrics, main vocals, harmonies, acoustic guitar) and Chris Fish Johnson (lyrics, backing vocals, spoken […]

Michael McClure: The Complete Wrx of the Shlarb Trilogy (2023) I first came across Michael some years ago when he sent me some albums by faunch to review, and now the left-handed guitarist has brought together three […]

Marius Neset: Geyser [Live at Royal Albert Hall – BBC Proms] (2023) ‘Geyser’ is a piece in eight parts which was commissioned by BBC Radio 3 and first performed by the Marius Neset Quintet with the London Sinfonietta on […]

The Lizardz: Memoria (2022) Released in 2022, this the latest release from American band The Lizardz, who first came together some 35 years ago. These days the line-up is Milo […]

Dimmu Borgir: Inspiratio Profanus (2023) When ‘In Sorte Diablo’ was released in 2007 none of us who had following the career of Dimmu Borgir to that point realised that in many ways it was not […]

Praying Mantis: Defiance (2024) Back in 1979 NWOBHM was in full swing in the UK, the year I became 16, so I was very much the target market and I was doing whatever I could to discover […]

Vanden Plas: The Empyrean Equation of the Long Lost Things (2024) I have been reviewing Vanden Plas for more than quarter of a century, and while there are times when their albums are somewhat workmanlike, there are […]

John Paul McGee: A Gospejazzical Christmas (2023) I’d rather not think of myself as being so far behind on reviewing that this is for a Christmas record which should have been written about in 2023, b […]

Gridfailure: Shards In The Wire (2023) I’ve lost track of how many of Dave Brenner’s releases I have reviewed, but it must be most of them (at least in recent years) yet I still find mys […]

Grant Haua: Mana Blues (2023) A few years ago I came across Grant Haua and I was blown away by the Maori bluesman who for me is the living epitome of the classic style. His last […]

Lazy Fifty: Devil On His Day Off (2024) single Here we have the second single from Lazy Fifty’s forthcoming ‘Neighbour of the Beast’. Adrian Athy provides all vocals and music apart from drums which […]

The Witching Tale: What Magic Is This? (2023) Two years on from their wonderful debut and Katharine Blake (Mediaeval Baebes, Miranda Sex Garden) and Michael York (Current 93, Coil, The Utopia Strong, […]

Troy Kingi: Time Wasters. Soundtrack to Current Day Meanderings (2023) Here we have the seventh release in Troy’s 10/10/10 project of ten albums in ten different genres in ten years. This time credited to Tory Kingi & The R […]

Todd Mosby: Land of Enchantment (2023) No-one can accuse guitarist Todd Mosby of skimping on the musicians on this album as he has brought in Prince bassist Rhonda Smith, woodwind player Tom […]