Rating: 5 stars!

Bobby Blitz Ellsworth is best known as the voice of New Jersey Thrash icon's Overkill, but the man behind that sinister voice has finally began a side project that's very different than Overkill in that this project reminds me of Trouble alot..it's got a serious Black Sabbath feel to it & there's a down & dirty groove that you don't really hear anymore..the music is tuned down, but it's not nu-metal..it's just dark & in the same vein as Thrash metal, except it's slower & darker. "Wij Levin Is God In Frankryk" starts off with the strains of "I Love Feelin' Bad" & it's just the coolest thing ever, because it's so evil sounding, but also kinda goofy to a degree, I mean I've always loved really dark, gloomy music that's got a point, but at the same time, you have to see the irony in the fact that they are making a living from the gloom, & the thing I really pick up on alot on The Cursed's cd is that they have alot of fun & this CD wasn't made to sell a million copies, it was made for the love of the music, & the music is raw, murky, & churns like a well oiled machine & all 11 songs on this cd are equally dark & good! "Serpentine Slither" is the song that really stand out to me..it's dark, sexy, & really nasty in a good way, & "Generate Her" is also in that same vein, except that one is way heavier & there is a sexual overtone to this cd that Overkill never really touched on, which is also interesting. As a whole, this is a great cd & I really hope it gets the push it deserves, because there's some great jams on here!

Rating: 5 stars

Image wise, I LOVE this band..they took what the Ramones had & gothed it up slightly & as far as their music is concerned, the closest thing I can describe them to is The Cramps..they have a little Surf style, alot of punk, & I kinda hear like that late 60's garage sound in there as well..the band sounds sloppy & all over the place, yet their cd is produced really well & there's no flaws in the sound, it's just their conventional ways of trying to sound unconventional that truly make the band stand out. "Sheens is a Parasite" is the bands dingle off thie EP & there's an accompaning video that's equally weird, yet somehow cool in a weird b-movie sorta way! I think this might be what the White Stripes could sound like if they had a full backing band..the music is just raw & gruff with more than enough edge & loads of bite! I have to say too that I am totally digging the hige gloss coat that they used on their cd digi-pack..it's looks really classy!

Rating: 6 stars

It's interesting, & I have to give my honest opinion here, that I think once Nick Oliveri was let go from Queens of the Stone Age, Josh Homme really took the band to an outer extreme that's a weird mix of art fuzed with acid rock...the result is tones & sounds that are far from conventional, at times very wicked sounding, & the focal point of the entire cd is the abstract reality that IS Queens of the Stone Age. Intially, I always consider the band to be a stoner rock outfit that owed alot of their sound to early Black Sabbath, but as time as gone on, the band has developed into this weird little melting pot of experimentation personified, & I might describe the bands latest opus, "Era Vulgaris" as a modern day interpretation of Frank Zappa in that there's no real genre to define the music on this cd..some stuff has elements of rock, some stuff is funky, some stuff is just weird, & if you enjoy creativity on ANY level, then this is a CD that will take you places if you let it! I personally think this cd sounds best on headphones, because you can really capture every note & sound...played out loud on a stereo it loses something I think. "Turning on the Screw" opens the cd & it's totally NOT a good representation of what the entire cd is about, because if you look aside from the quarky stuff, this cd is well written, but it still maintains a very garage band/unfinished feeling that's refreshing to hear. Do I think this cd will sell a millions copies, or even top "Songs for the Deaf"? No, but that's fine, because this cd is as important to this culture as the first 3 Velvet Underground records were back when they were released & that's actually saying alot! "Era Vulgaris" is definitley the most interesting cd Queens of the Stone Age has EVER released!

Rating: 4 stars

Hmmmm, I wanna explain my review of this cd before I get into the music...I gave this cd 4 stars simply because I just don't like a bi-lingual band...1/2 of the songs are in English while the other 1/2 are not, & much like when I hear J-Pop..it just loses something for me as an American that only speaks English...I like to know what I am listening to & get what the words are about...for me, listening to a song in a foreign language is like listening to an instrumental song...if it's me playing, I can listen to my own instrumental music forever, but to hear other people play instrumental music just kinda bores me..if this entire cd was in English it would be an easy 6 stars because the music is well written, but the foreign language is what I don't like. Ok, with that aside, "Wheel of Time" is a really good song..it's got total indie rock credibility & it also has a pop balance that makes it really flow, & "The Part of Me that You've Thrown Away" really has hit single potential because it's a cross over song that's rock, but also singable & could be on pop & rock stations. "Me Duele No Estar Junto A Ti" is a rocker, but I have no clue what it's about or what they are even saying, so although it's a great song, it just loses something when it's in a language that I can't understand..it's kinda like turning past Telemundo late at night! I'm not dogging the band, I just don't personally enjoy a cd that's not totally in English, so that's reflected in my review...the songs that are in English are great!

Rating: 6 stars

Wow, deja vu..when I first popped in this cd, the first song reminds me ALOT of Mike Muir &early Suicidal Tendencies...loads of aggression, punk rock power, & attitude o' plenty! The CD sounds really rough & almost like a demo, which I REALLY dig..there's no smooth edges here, the vocals are gnarled & exploited, while the guitars are choppy, coarse & The Gain is set at a great level which actually kinda overpowers the rhythm section at times, & that's a really key signature sound to the punk rock purists! "Call Me Animal" reminds me of GBH at times & it's probably my favorite song because it's something you can really sing along too & also mosh with! "Werewolves By Night" offers an interesting guitar riff that really kicks you in the head & I have to give it to these guys..every song is equally heavy, equally hard, & just pure punk rawk passion that makes Greenday, The Offspring, & certain other "modern day" punk bands seem pale by comparison!

Ladies & Gentleman, Boys & Girls, if you've never heard Frank Black's solo music, then this is a CD you MUST have! I'll admit that I knew a little of his solo material..I remember "Los Angeles" was played on the local rock radio stations, but his other solo stuff didn't get any plays here, & when I was listening to this cd, the first thing I thought was, wow, if it wasn't for Frank Black I don't think there would be The White Stripes, The Hives, The Vines, or alot of similiar artists who really borrowed a page from Mr. Black's musical career! "Los Angeles" is the most metal you're gonna get on this cd, & the other tracks on this cd really show the many phrases Frank's gone through...some sounds reminds me of early David Bowie, some are very Rolling Stone's inspired, & other's offer more indie rock cred that ANY artist I've ever heard! There's a really niec bonus disc included with this cd that's a live show that has totally different songs that the first disc of studio music & I'll admit that I would like to hear some of the "hits" played, but it's really unique that an artist put so much effort into making sure that the entire packaging is artist specified & set up in a way so that the fans get the best possible package, & even the packaging is ecofriendly & fits Frank Black to a tee...very simple & to the point! There's been alot of interesting greatest hits packaged up & sold to the public, but in all honesty, this has to be one of the best one's I've ever seen...it's really long, really good & this is a cd that you can listen to on a road trip from start to finish & not get bored with.

Dave Mustaine always has been & always will be MEGADETH, but I will admit that I kinda had my concerns of whether or not a new Megadeth record would be a good career move, because it appeared as if the band was done a while back when Mustaine injured his hand, fired David Ellefson, & went through what appeared to be a meltdown, BUT, I give it to Mega-Mustaine, because "United Abominations" is one of Megadeth's best brandings on disc EVER! The cd kicks into high gear with "Sleepwalker" that has Mustaine's signature guitar chugs all over it & in all honesty, it kinda takes me back to the early days when he was in Metallica because this particular song is just so heavy in both vibe & sound that it's amazing! "A 'Tout Le Monde" features Cristina from Lacuna Coil, but to be honest with you, any longtime Megadeth fan will know this song because it's a Megadeth standard that the band has done for many years now & I've always agreed that the song never really got a good push, because it could have been a radio single, but to be honest with you, I prefer the original version from a few years back & again, that might just be because that's the version I've known the longest...when I first heard that Cristina was going to sing on this song I thought, "Oh Man, she's gonna overshadow Mustaine & make it sound like Lacuna Coil", BUT, for what it's worth, Mustaine is still the predominant voice on the song & it's still very much Megadeth! "Washington is Next!" is an amazing example of justhow powerful Dave Mustaine still is in the heavy metal world, & as I listen to this cd, I have to thank Dave Mustaine for not giving up, for pushing forward & for continuing to play & create the music that so many people like myself grew up on & respect. The artwork features an updated Vic Rattelehead & all I can say is, thank God Dave Mustaine & Megadeth are back & still rockin out!

Unpredictably poppy at times, & straight up rock others, the new Manic Street Preacher's cd, "Send Away the Tigers" is a great dose of modern rock n roll that's not particularly heavy in sound, but definitley heavy in vibe, & the band has really changed so much over the years since their first few releases..gone are the punk influenced anger anthems & in it's place are well written, balanced rock songs that are very radio friendly & less about anger & more about life. The cd's title track is probably the best song, but the entire cd really flows well & it's good music for a Sunday morning..it's not super heavy, it's just good rock music. This cd reminds me of soe of the more well written songs by the band Therapy?..it's invoverted, introspective & intelligent, but still goofy enough at times to be a great rock record.

It's interesting, the new cd "The Silencing" by Better Left Unsaid, opens with "Never Again" which starts off with a classical metal type intro, then the song kicks in with Hatebreed style hardcore vocals, but don't let that fool you, because there are some clean vocals in the breakdown, but the guitars are easily the star of the show with their tuned down, dark, & murky chugs. The interesting dynamic of the band is that every song has the hardcore vocals/screams & then the melodic clean vocals fall in during the breakdowns or chorus & it's really an interesting mix, not that it hasn't been done before, but I would really describe this band as what I wish Hatebreed was at times, because Better Left Unsaid has way better dynamics than alot of the hardcore bands out there & the guitar solo's are short, but really good! "Under My Skin" is my personal favorite off the cd & it's just soooo brutally heavy & in your face that it's sick! Actually, the other band that Better Left Unsaid reminds me of quite a bit is Shadow's Fall, but that's more in the direction of the music. This entire cd isunder 25 minutes, & trust me, it's fast, heavy, & louder than hell...if you like Hatebreed & Shadow's Fall then you'll dig this band!

Deep Purple is a band that I remember my Dad used to listen to..I am too young to have witnessed Deep Purple in their heyday, other than watching tv clips of the band from their past, but the band that I remember hearing, was what I considered to be the precurser to heavy metal...it had heavy keyboards in it that played alongside the heavy guitar tones of then guitarist Richie Blackmore, & the vocals of Ian Gillan were the icing on the cake. I remembered seeing pics of the band when they were young & they all had long hair, looked really cool, & they fit the mold of what a 70's rock band was supposed to be! Well, flash forward to 2007 & as I'm watching the new Deep Purple dvd, it hits me immediatley..wow, these guys are alot older & probably around my Dad's age, & yet they play better than alot of bands where the members are in their 20's! I really never stopped to listen to the newer line-up of Deep Purple after Richie Blackmore left the band...for some reason, I just figured, ahhh, these guys suck now! Well, to be totally honest with you, Steve Morse is every bit as good as Richie Blackmore, if not better!! The Montreaux 2006 concert is available on both cd & dvd, & the audio on both sounds superb, crisp, & clean, but the dvd's where the band really got me, but on another level, to just listen to the music on the cd, you really have no idea that this band is older because of the intensity & passion that the band has for it's music! The bulk of the songs played early on in this concert are newer songs, & it's not until the clast few songs that you get to hear the songs you really wanna see/hear! "Space Truckin'" is smply amazing & the keyboard/guitar solo's make the song even more dynamic & way longer than the studio version, & "Highway Star" is as strong today as it was when it was created, but it's not surprise that "Smoke on the Water" is the song that everyone goes apeshit for & that is the encore/highlight of the entire show, but I have to admit, Steve Morse is a great shredder & his playing is REALLY good & Ian's voice is still really strong, which surprised me as well.

Rating: 6 stars

It's funny, I saw this tour last year on my birthday, & I remember Geoff Tate telling me that this was going to be released in 2007 & what do I have in my grimy little hands? The very cd that Geoff was telling me about! This 2 cd set captures the entire Mindcrime trilogy on a 2 cd set, as well as 2 non-mindcrime era songs & the surprise to me is that "Empire" wasn't included since that was usually played during the encores for this tour! This live cd captures the original version of Queensrych, minus Chris DeGarmo in their prime, playing out hard rock via an opera & Geoff's voice is definitley the thing that grabs your attention because he's got an almost operatic tone in some songs, & the band is really dead on, but I think the dvd is more interesting than the cd..the cd is just the music, & if you saw this tour, you know just how intense this entire story is & the actors really bring it all home, & Geoff is actually acting while singing..he wears a fast food style headset/mic & the stage production is uber-impressive! I don't know what else I can really say about this cd other than it captures the band exactly as they are live...perfect!