KILLER – Monsters Of Rock (CD)

Killer is a Belgian trio that harks back to the 80s and killer albums like Ready For Hell, Shockwaves and Wall of Sound. They were sort of a Motörhead with slightly cleaner vocals. Well, guitarist/singer Paul “Shorty” Van Camp still keeps the flame alight. Their early albums were released on the notorious Mausoleum label, and so is the new album. This killer is back to the scene of the crime. Well, that goes for the music as well. Not much has happened here, and I tell you, that’s a good thing! Shorty sounds as good as ever, the songs are pounding and the sound is classic balls to the wall metal. Kicking off with the title track and No Exception To The Rule they prove there’s not much water that have passed under these bridges. Powerful, straight ahead, no frills, kick in the nut metal! Shotgun Symphony starts off as a heavy, detuned and doomy riffster, but picks up pace after the intro and moves into classic stomping Judas Priest British Steel territory. Good nostalgia tickling stuff, indeed!

Janne Stark

Country: Belgium

Year: 2015

Label: Mausoleum

ETERNAL OF SWEDEN – Heaven’s Gate (CD)

This Swedish combo, originally called just Eternal, released their debut album Chapter 1 in 2012, so it’s about time for a follow-up. The debut was in the vein of Eclipse, with a slightly heavier edge. Melodic hard rock with a touch of AOR. Well, opening track Ruins kicks off the new album way heavier than its predecessor. This reminds me quite a lot of Nocturnal Rites actually. Still melodic and still heavy, but even more bombastic and with Sabaton:ish warrior style choirs (which I unfortunately don’t especially like). The title track continues in the same vein, but fortunately leaving the “warriors” outside. Surrounded By Shadows draws closer to power metal in its design, but Christer Gärds is far more interesting than the majority of the current power metal singers. The production by Peter Tägtgren is powerful and heavy, but there’s something with the keyboards I just don’t like. It’s like they are floating in a dimension of their own, disconnected from the rest of the music. It’s like they are far away and with a big reverb all over it. It’s especially evident in the track The Purity Inside, but also in several other tracks. I’ve given the album a few spins and it hasn’t hit me as hard as the outstanding debut. I hope it will grow on me, but I think the main problem for me is that they have moved in a direction that is a bit further from what I’m into right now. Still, it’s top quality on musicians, vocals and overall it sounds killer, and the track Freedom Now is damn fine!

Janne Stark

Country: Sweden

Year: 2015

Label: Black Lodge

BILLION DOLLAR BABIES – Chemical God (CD)

Nope, Billion Dollar Babies is neither the original Alice Cooper backing band nor a cover band of the same. Billion Dollar Babies is a Swedish hard rock combo. The first recording in my collection is a demo entitled Ladies First, from 2007. They showed great promise already back then. The MCD Stand Your Ground was unearthed later the same year, followed by the debut album Die For Diamonds three years later. A really good and solid effort indeed. A life sign in form of the EP House of Dreams Pt 1 saw the light of day in 2012. Well, it seems the band has been honing their skills and making a new game plan in the years between then and now. Chemical God offers a new and very re-vamped band. Still heavy and melodic, but not at all as sleazy and glammy, instead very theatrical and with loads of bells and whistles all over the place. The spare no ‘spences when it comes to effects and a modern sound. Stuff happen high and low and I’m not sure how they will be able to pull it off live, but still, it works! They sometimes feel like a modern metal version of Sparks, especially in The Junkies Ball, which is sort of a This Place Ain’t Big Enough For Us with a touch of Rammstein. Frank Kooistra is also an outstanding singer, which lifts the album even higher. There are a few tracks I’m not 100 % into, but for the most part this is a damn great album! I think the babies have found their new dress!

Janne Stark

Country: Sweden

Year: 2015

Label: Metalville