As is normal for me, I loaded this album onto the next playlist and didn’t even look at any details until I had listened to it, so consequently had now idea what was included or the style. I was somewhat surprised to discover that this album of ten songs contains...

It is always interesting when a band decides to revisit their back catalogue in a new way, and this is the first of two albums from Finnish power metallers Sonata Arctica demonstrating just that. Over the years they had performed a few songs acoustically which were...

The artwork may look pleasant at first glance, and the opening title cut may lead the unwary into a false sense of security, but we all know what FFAA are all about, and that is deathcore and here they have returned with their sixth album to pummel our senses yet...

USA Hammock Music 73mins Atmospheric and Ambient New Age Music https://hammock.bandcamp.com/album/love-in-the-void Rating 85/100 Music takes many forms, of course, the impact of which depends on where you are, what you are doing, and your emotional state at the time,...

2018 Black Widow Records CD 60.49 mins Alternative/Prog Rock/Metal www.alchemwebsite.com/alchemband www.facebook.com/pg/alchem.band/about/?ref My Rating 90/100 From a compositional perspective: ‘Alchem’ is one of those albums which will genuinely stretch your...

I know virtually nothing about these guys, apart from they hail from northern Sweden and I believe this is their fourth album. Going by the funky artwork I also believe there are four of them, which means the singer must also be a musician as we have keyboards,...

If one goes to percussionist Julian Gerstin’s website one will find it is subtitled Music of Africa, the Caribbean and the African Diaspora —percussion / ethnomusicology. That is a pretty good way of describing this music as while arguably it is jazz in its widest...

Palmerston North deathcore band The Rising Tide had a great 2022, touring for the first time in six years and here we are now with their latest EP which is being released in time for a quick nationwide tour which sees them playing Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington,...

Last year one of my daughters went on a travelling tour of the States with her partner, and of course one of the places they visited was New Orleans. This meant they had to visit some jazz clubs, and at one of them she was incredibly impressed by the playing of...

In 2009 Miller released his first album on the Summit label, ‘Rapture’, which featured drummer Bill Belasco and bassist Mario Suraci. Over the last ten years he and his trio have worked with his daughter, singer Rebecca DuMaine, recording with her on six albums, while...

Unless you were a teenager in the UK in the mid to late Seventies I don’t think it is possible to understand just how important UFO were to the hard rock scene. These days many metalheads don’t even know who they are, yet Steve Harris has never forgotten that Pete Way...

On February 10th 1998 UFO strode out onto the Civic Hall stage in Wolverhampton, and the set was recorded and soon made available as an album. Just before Christmas, Cleopatra Records reissued it in multiple forms (including purple vinyl) and it allows us to hear what...

Covid saw quite a few bands release streaming events as a way of keeping fans interested while no touring was taking place, as well of course hopefully generating valuable revenue for the bands. The mighty Behemoth were no different, and here we have the set recorded...

Mintzer has been conductor and arranger for WDR Big Band Cologne for six years now, relishing the opportunity to play regularly in an ensemble of 17 people, much like the touring bands of the Forties. These days most jazz musicians work in small groups, often playing...

Here we have another from the indispensable series of amazing bluegrass and roots music from Anti Corp, with Cooper McBean the musician to perform under the magnolia tree in the back yard. Born in Vermont, he is currently residing in Austin, Texas with his partner,...

One of my favourite musical discoveries in recent years has been that of the wonderful singer Daria Kulesh who was born in Russia, has been in the UK for the last 15 years, and is from Ingush heritage. I urge anyone who has yet to come across it to seek out her...

Here we have the debut EP by Auckland-based metalcore trio Chasing Titans who were formed in 2018 and comprise Adrian Govender (guitar, vocals), Sylvester Porizakova (bass, vocals), and Torrance Kam (drums). The name is inspired by the original Greek Titans and...

During lockdown in 2020, the 11 members of Bellowhead first re-connected online to remotely record “New York Girls - At Home”. That led to re-uniting in person for a one-off performance which was streamed to mark the anniversary of ‘Hedonism’. The band had officially...