SPIDERS - Spiders (10" MLP)

It’s pretty ballsy to make a debut as a 10” vinyl! Spiders look vinyl and they sound vinyl, too, so maybe it’s not that far fetched. The band consists of singer Ann-Sofi Hoyles, Witchcraft guitarist John Hoyles, Midwest bass player Matteo Gambacorta and Graveyard drummer Axel Sjöberg. The style is quite different from their former musical treats and offers more of a garagy vibe. One band I immediately came to think of (and probably noones even heard of) was Suffrajett, both the style, sound and Ann-Sofi’s rough edged vocals. I shall be honest and admit this is not 100 % up my musical alley, but they still appeal to me in some way. I really like the vibe and they also have a pretty cool twist on songs like Nothing Like You and High Society.

By: Janne Stark

Label: Crusher Records

Year: 2011

New reviews coming

Hi y'all!
Just a short note to tell you there's a bunch of reviews coming! I have, among others, reviewed:
Yngwie Malmsteen - Relentless
Coldspell - Out From The Cold
Last Autumns Dream

Stay tuned!
Janne

GUGUN POWER TRIO - "Far East Blues Experience" (CD)

Indonesia??!!! Holy crap, I don’t think I’ve ever even heard of any rockers from Indonesia! Japan, China, North Korea and even Singapore, but never Indonesia. Well, there’s a first for everything. I must say if I didn’t know I’d never have guessed it. The far east musicians often have a special touch, at least to their vocals. Gugun, however, sounds perfectly westernized. Well, sounding westernized is no proof of quality however. I’m therefore happy to say, Gugun passes my quality approval test flying colours! This is no holds barred, guitar driven, balls out blues rock leaning on the heritage of Hendrix, Vaughan, Gallagher and Bolin. Gugun is a outstanding player with a great tone, outstanding feeling and great technique. I really love his style of playing, even though it may not bring anything new and revolutionary. If you’ve got IT, you don’t need to. He’s got a solid, great pair of backing musicians in bass player Jono and drummer Bowie that really bring the goods. “Turn It On” is a prime example of a power trio working in perfect unison, with a guitarist rocking it out and a rhythm unit filling up every crack and crevice. Awesome stuff indeed! Gugun has really succeeded in bringing up a classic genre and giving it a new spin, writing songs that rejuvenates the legacy of the aforementioned kings. I truly LOVE the way he grooves in songs like “Fallin’ Down”. It’s impossible to sit still on your arse. This rocks, big time! Gugun is also a very fitting singer for this genre. Great bluesy vibe and the perfect roughness. I can’t find any bad tracks whatsoever on this album. It’s solid as a rock from start to finish. It also has a nice blend of various styles within the blues rock territory, from the funky vibe of “Spinnin’ Around Me” and “Emptiness”, to the “Little Wing” style softness of “Holding On”, the Stevie Ray:esque “Move On” to the raw heavy jams of “White Dog Jam”. A highly recommended gem!
Janne Stark
Label: Grooveyard Records (http://www.grooveyardrecords.com/)
Country: USA
Year: 2011

VINCE HAWKINS & COMPANY SLAVE - s/t (CD)

Once there was Frank Marino (well, he still IS for that matter), but not that much has come out of Canada since when it comes to retro oriented, rough edged blues players. That is, until now. Vince Hawkins is a new name for me, but man, can this cat jam or what?! Ok, if you’re looking for slick, modern sounding stuff or toothless bar style blues, f’gged it! Vince Hawkins struts his stuff just like classic players like Frank Marino and Hendrix. He’s got that heavy, dirty, rough edge that I just love. Unpolished, raw and it has the perfect nerve to it. Just listen to a track like “Three Kings” and you’ll see exactly what I mean. In some tracks I could have sworn it was recorded live in the studio, but as Vince handles both guitar, bass and vocals it’s physically impossible. So, lots of kudos for making it sound so alive! He uses four drummers on the album, one better than the other and my favourite, a cut above the others, being the loose and lethal Josh Shaw. Not saying the others are nothing short of great, but Josh’s playing, especially in the breaks of opening rocker “The Gods Made Love” is just awesome and really lifts the song. Great song, too, by the way! The material on the album takes a lot of different turns, which is nice and refreshing. One example is the cool and smooth sounding “Peace On Earth”, while “Medusa’s Head” reminds me of a mix between 70s band Rockicks with a touch of Robin Trower. There is some traditional blues stuff in here as well, where “Cathouse” and “Ashes In My Whiskey” are traditional slow blues with a heavier chorus and “My Ship” also treads quite common blues steps. Good enough stuff, and Vince’s guitars shines brightly through it all. I must however admit, I do prefer songs like killer up-tempo back beat rocker “Big City Blues”. That’s the stuff that really gets my mojo going! And, there’s much more of that on this album! Great stuff!
Janne Stark
Label: Grooveyard Records (http://www.grooveyardrecords.com/)
Country: USA
Year: 2011

JOHNNY HUNKINS - "Talladega Pile-Up" (CD)

Man, this new bunch of Grooveyard releases must be one of the best collection of discs in years! Besides Vince Hawkins, Gugun Power Trio, the Stranger compilation and the never failing Blind Side Blues Band, here’s Jonny Hunkins! Just like Hawkins, Hunkins is a multi instrumentalist, handling bass, guitars, keyboard, harmonica and vocals himself with the additional aid of drummer Ryan Hoyle (Paul Rodgers/Collective Soul). It actually quite hard to believe it is the debut of this American blues rock cat. He sounds like he’s been doing this all his life. Besides being a damn fine guitarist and singer, Johnny is the editor of a hot rod magazine. I swear at times I can hear his guitar being routed through a rumbling V8! Hunkins ain’t your average straight ahead blues rocker, I’d say his style has picked up influences from all over the place. There’s stuff that reminds me a bit of Molly Hatchet, at times I hear some ZZ Top, while some songs draw near the territory of Michael Katon. Take a song like “Floyd County Bootleg” with its detuned heavy riffing, followed by yet another shit-kickin’ down and dirty tractor pulling blues rock crusher in “Over The Edge”. Where he even adds some banjo and harmonica for good measures. Let’s however go back to the beginning with the title track, a fast pace boogie rocker where the verse riff actually reminds me of my own song “Howl For Me”, recorded by BALLS (http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ballsrock), not that Johnny has probably ever heard it, but I guess great minds think alike (*wink* *wink*). The album features guest spots from people like Wes Jeans, Chris Duarte and Ryan McGarvey. Well, truth be told, Johnny needs no help whatsoever! Just check out to his phenomenal soloing in “Rock ‘N Roll Party”. The song may be a heads down, no nonsense rocker, but listen to that guitar wail! Holy crap! These cool licks just keep flying out! As I said earlier this is no musically streamlined production, which is proved already in third track “Catch Me”, which is more of a classic hard rocker with a southern touch to it. “Henry Jackson” has some ZZ Top:ish Billy Gibbons flavour to the rhythm guitar work. The production of the album, by Johnny himself, is also worth mentioning. Sounds great! Well, I won’t go into every song, I will just state the fact that there’s not a weak song on this album and I hope this album will also break Hunkins in the world outside of cars. He sure as hell deserves it!
Janne Stark
Label: Grooveyard Records (http://www.grooveyardrecords.com/)
Country: USA
Year: 2011

NYMF - "Nymf" (CD)

Karlshamn based band Nymf, featuring members from label mates Graviators, make their debut in the true old Black Sabbath manner. Opener “The Grave” feeds you riffs that may as well have been signed Tony Iommi. The biggest difference however is lead singer Niklas Sjöberg’s vocal approach. He often reminds me of Mustasch’s Ralf Gyllenhammar and at times of Christian lindersson (Count Raven/St Vitus), except when he, like in “Dark Autumn’s Fire” decides to go into growling mode. Growl is something I’ve learned to accept and in some cases, even like. I shall however admit that, in this case, I could do without it. However as it’s a very limited effort, I can overlook it this time. In some songs, like “Regardless”, I get pretty strong vibes of Pentagram (the Liebling unit), especially when from a guitar perspective. It’s all about simple but highly effective riffs. The mix, made by Olle Blomström, brother of Johan (Blinded Colony, Overdrive, Kaptain Sun etc), is really fat and rich. The guitars build a massive wall of sound, but without diminishing the drums and bass efforts. One track that kinda deviated from the general theme is “Step Aside”, with its cool intro, but also a slightly different type of riffing and a nice arrangement. A killer track indeed. Also “Forsaken” has a softer atmosphere which gives the album some well needed breathing space. I’m happy Nymf tries not to get stuck in the traditional stoner rut. Even though it’s about heavy and doomy riffs that do rock out, like in “Evil Itself”. The album closer initially features with the most doomy riffs of them all, with a slight touch of Black Sabbath’s eponymous epos, and then picks up speed and provides some classic disharmonic Sabbathian chord changes. A nice mix of Blacks Sabbath overtones and Mustasch undertones.
Janne Stark

Country: Sweden

Year: 2010

Label: Transubstans

www.myspace.com/nymfband

GOLDEN RESURRECTION - Glory To My King (CD)

And I thought neoclassical metal was something Yngwie was the only one to still hold on to. Maybe there’s a new wave coming? As Golden Resurrection features former Narnia singer Christian Liljegren and ReinXeed guitarist Tommy Johansson, the choice of style may not be that surprising. Both have been strong keepers and followers of the aforementioned genre for quite some years. Fans of early Narnia will definitely love this album. The style is double bass drum based up-tempo neoclassical melodic heavy metal, in the same style as Narnia once were, actually with a strong touch of Johansson’s more power metal oriented band ReinXeed. Great melodies, well arranged songs and a strong melodic feel that carries the songs in a highly favourable way. I also have to say Christian probably does one of his best vocal works to date. If Calle Grimmark was the six string torch bearer or Narnia, young prodigy Johansson keeps on carrying that torch with pride and great technical skills. He does some really impressive solo work and his technique is flawless. Of course drummer Rickard Gustavsson, bass player Stefan Käck and keyboard player Olov Andersson (Grand Stand) give a strong and highly important foundation that the songs rest upon. I shall also add that this is by no means any streamlined shredder-plodding album. The variation is definitely there, and one of my favourite moments is the heavy, riff oriented and melodic “Never Look Back”, with a chorus that is closer to AOR than metal. On the other hand “Golden Flames” or the intro of “The Final Day” could have been penned by Mr Malmsteen himself. A highly enjoyable album that is a must for fans of melodic power metal and neo classical metal.
Janne Stark

Year: 2010

Label: Liljegren Records

Country: Sweden

www.myspace.com/goldenresurrection