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REVIEW: Burning Point – Burning Point

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized with tags , , on June 12, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

When I say Finland, most of you will say metal. I don’t think there’s any country in the world who is so linked with metal as Finland is, and Finland is also the homeland of Burning Point. They’ve held their spot in the metal scene since the mid 90’s and have previously released five albums – “Salvation by Fire” in 2001, “Feeding the Flames” in 2003, “Burn Down the Enemy” in 2007 and “Empyre” in 2009 and “The Ignitor” in 2012.

In 2014, the guitarist and vocalist of the band, Pete Ahonen invited Nitte Valo (previously in Battle Beast) to take over the vocals, said and done. From that day on, they were a female fronted metalband. Their sixth studioalbum is the first album to feature Nitte and contains of five new songs and six re-recorded classics.

The first thing I notice, especially when I think back on the older material Burning Point has, is how much heavier they have gotten. While the older were more… how do I put it, more classic “calm” power-metal, this has a lot more aggression to it. There is quite the difference between the new songs and the old – the new songs are far more aggressive and fast than the re-recorded ones.  There is some softness though – like in “Heart of Gold” which is still as magical with Nitte singing as with Pete, as well as “My Darkest Time”.

It’s a well-balanced album – heavier songs combined with softer, epic songs combined with fast songs. So far so good, however, I can’t say I’m jumping of joy when I hear the new tunes. They are good, but they don’t quite match up. And the re-recordings… Some are good, some are decent. The production is good – the execution is good. Nitte’s voice is extremely powerful, and it’s one of the things that drags up the grade for me.

It’s a decent album. It’s a good start. I’m looking forward to see what they can do in the future, with their new singer. If you like bands like Iron Maiden mixed with Sabaton, you’ll like this.

Best: “Dawn of the Ancient War”. Love the song, with Nitte or Pete. “Heart of Gold” needs a little attention too, I think.

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(Label: AFM Records)

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// Sara

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Oracle

Posted in CDs on May 27, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

Do you ever have that issue that you tell yourself you are only supposed to get a certain amount of shopping done, and then you end up doing a lot more than that? No one? Okay.

Basically, I went to Knastret to pick up two CD’s to finish off my pile before Sweden Rock, since I have some twisted idea in my head that I can’t separate a group of CD’s that are bought together, and I estimated that two more CD’s would fit in the pile before it was full. Said and done, I headed over to Knastret to pick up no more than two CD’s and left with…. three.

Typical, typical me. It’s just so hard, because I picked up one CD, then I found another one and then I realized I should I have checked that section and I found a CD there and I can’t say no to CD’s… so… Anyway. Here’s what I got.

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Swedish metallers Dream Evil‘s third album “The Book of Heavy Metal“. I’ve actually been on the search for this one for AGES, and finally I found it! So happy. So despite missing two pieces of Dream Evil’s discography, I feel pretty content when it comes to that band. How awesome is that?

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Misdemeanor‘s self titled debut album. Actually, this one of the “blind-dates” I do with records from time to time. With other words, when I pick up albums with bands I’m completely unfamiliar with. It turns out, after a bit of research, this five-piece female metal band is actually from Sweden, formed in 1994. A few EP’s was released prior to this album, which was release in 2002. I haven’t properly listened to it yet, but I like what I heard so far!

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Lita Ford’s “Wicked Wonderland”, released in 2009. I’ve always thought over the years I was gonna get this, but never really got around to it. Lucky me I found it down in Knastret, and not just the album, but it happened to be the bonus tracks version. Lucky times!

Aside getting these few gems, a new bag and so on, I also met up with Anna and had a nice dinner talking about everything between heaven and hell. And hell, that is precisely what the buses here in town are. I’m not sure if it’s like this everywhere, or only here in Värmland/Karlstad, but they really have to complicate EVERYTHING. Couldn’t put money on my buscard so I very so kindly had to ask mum to come pick me up.

That’s what you get for not being able to purchase mobile tickets, I guess. Damn you, Karlstadsbuss and Värmlandstrafik!

// Sara

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Don’t Say Goodbye

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized on May 12, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

Yesterday I got two awesome albums, and what do I find in my mailbox as of today?

A PACKET FROM CDON, HEAVEN ON EARTH.

What did this little green package contain then, you may ask?

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Toto‘s “IV“. Finally. I’ve waited a bit for this, and almost freaked out when I saw it was a “made to order” album and not actually in stock. As you probably know, this is the album containing hits like “Africa” and “Rosanna”. I put this one on so late that I haven’t been able so far to actually listen through it to figure out what songs I like the most, but I must admit it got very atmospheric hearing “Africa” beat through the speakers here at home in the middle of the night.

I love getting new music. And if you haven’t noticed, I added my pop.nu feed to the blog, right under the picture and pages links. There you can see the five most recen CD’s added to my collection! Handy huh?

// Sara

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Waiting For Your Love

Posted in CDs, Music with tags , , on May 11, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

Today is a happy day people! Not one, but TWO packages landed in my mailbox today! What could it, what could it be… hey, could it possibly be my Amazon orders?!

Hell yeah it was!

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Ordered these two goodies off Amazon, as it seemed to be impossible to get them elsewhere. First of all, it’s Butcher Babies‘ first EP “Uncovered“. Five song EP that amongst other songs has their cover of “They’re Coming To Take Me Away” on it. Five songs is in my opinions way to short, and I admit it, I put the EP on repeat a few times after I got it! It’s just so fucking good. BUTCHER BABIES is just so fucking good. I wish Graspop would come sooner.

The other album is Olly Murs‘ selftitled debut album. This one has had me in a pickles for a couple of years, seeing I couldn’t get it anywhere in Sweden so eBay or Amazon it was. And I actually ordered this about two years back, but it got lost in the mail. Amazingly enough, it took me all up to now to get a new one. At last at last! This is the album that includes “Please Don’t Let Me Go” and “Thinking of Me”, if you all remember that. I must admit, these are awesome, but my personal favorites on this album will most likely always be “Don’t Say Goodbye” and “A Million More Years”. I got quite the “Hand on Heart” feeling from them, and as you know.. “Hand on Heart” is just simply the best Olly Murs song.

So yeah.

You could say my day was pretty great, huh?

// Sara

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Music Monday: Gotthard – Domino Effect

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized on April 13, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

In all honesty, I sometimes feel a bit torn writing about a Gotthard album, pointing out that this and that are the better album, because seriously, ALL their albums are fantastic. Even favorite bands like Lordi has dips (for me) every second album, but Gotthard, they keep wowing me for every album. Every release.

But with that said, it doesn’t mean that it’s no point in pointing out the albums they’ve made. And this time around, I’ll talk a little about “Domino Effect” (2007) which also happens to the first Gotthard album I ever got.

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It’s a 15 track long album, which concerned me at first. Normally, the ideal lenght of an albums is around 11-12 songs, but surprisingly, at that time when I got it, not a single one of the songs were “too much”. Each and every one are absolutely fantastic in their own way. You have the “punch in your face” kind of opening in “Master of Illusion”, the heavy title track, the more calmer section in “Falling” and “The Call”, the dramatic “The Oscar Goes To You” down to the melancholic tones of “Letter to a Friend”, which also happens to be one of my personal favorites on this album all in all, and then flowing out in the slightly cheerful, and beautiful tunes Gotthard are known for in songs as “Tomorrow’s Just Begun”… I could go on forever, talking about each and every song but that would make this entry WAY too long.

So basically, what I want to have said with this is that this album is perfect in every sense possible, even though it cuts a little bit in me to hear Steve vocals. I sure miss him every time, but I LOVE Nic Maeder, never believe anything else.

So yeah. Get this album. Like, now. At least if you like rock.

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// Sara

 

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REVIEW: Magic Kingdom – Savage Requiem

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized with tags , , , on March 25, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

Magic Kingdom is a Belgium based four-piece band, consisting of no less than Christian Palin on vocals, Vassili Moltchanov on bass, Michael Brush on drums and Dushan Petrossi on guitars. The band was launched in 1998 and just a year later did they release their debut, ”The Arrival” followed by two more albums – ”Metallic Tragedy” and ”Symphony of War”. They are now, in 2015, back with their fourth album – ”Savage Requiem”.

It opens up with the epical and big “Umbra Mea” preparing us for the quest we are about to join. We are thrown into the galopping opening song that is “Guardian Angel”, which sets the mood for the entire album.

Brought into the battle ground that is “Savage Reqiuem” we face aggressive and fast guitar riffs combined with epic keyboards and classic drums with sweet voices – pretty much the perfect recepie for a power metal album of this age. It has got it all: the triggering, battle-preparing-kind-of-songs such as “Guardian Angel”, “Savage Requiem”, “With Fire and Sword” and “Battlefield Magic”, more calm, fullmoon-witchcraft-kind-of-songs such as “Full Moon Sacrifice”, and sweet songs as “Dragon Princess”.

However, my personal favorite of the whole album is “Ship of Ghosts”, which so happens to include a piece of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, it’s a trotting melodic song with one of the best melodylines I have heard this year, and epic as hell. The pre-chorus, the chorus, the verses… I could go on and on about how much I love this song, just as with “High and Low” from Serious Black.

However, despite this song, and despite the album being close to previous material, yet new and pretty solid, I must admit it’s only so so. Possibly, I had too high expectations, but it doesn’t meet up just right. It’s decent, solid, but not what I thought it would be.

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Label: AFM Records

CDON | Amazon | Ginza

// Sara

 

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REVIEW: Wolfpakk – Rise of the Animal

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized with tags , , , on March 9, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

WOLFPAKK is a metal-allstar project like no other. Started by Mark Sweeny and Michael Voss a few years back, they have managed to collect some of the finest names in metal to make contribution to the Wofpakk Legacy, and “Rise of the Animal”, which is the third album in line, is no exception. Featuring guest appearances by people as Michael Kiske, Ted Poley, Joe Lynn Turner, Don Dokken, Barend Curbois, Ryan Roxie, John Norum, Chris Slade and Mark Terrana, even you can figure out this was going to be something special.

And well…The firs thing I’m going to say is that this album is a little all over the place. It’s starts pretty heavy with the opening track, “Riders of the Storm” followed by “Sock it to Me” only to later transcend into what I’d describe as almost nibbing on the sleaze/80’s kind of genre in songs like “Monkey on Your Back” only to then go back to fast power-metal kind of music, similar to HammerFall almost (“Rise of the Animal”) to AGAIN go back to the more “soft” things. And in the middle of it, there’s a bagpipe solo (“Highlands”). All of this is wrapped out by the calm and powerful “Universe”. Basically, you could call it a musical roller-coaster.

Is it good? Well… yeah. This isn’t the best I’ve heard, but it’s decent, you know? However, there aren’t too many memorable songs for me – the only ones I keep hearing in my head after turning off the record are “Monkey On Your Back” and “Running Out of Time”, and that, for me personally, says a lot. However, the music is done well, and the arrangements are good. You can tell it’s pro’s behind the instruments in this one, and that’s always a big plus. But aside that, it just doesn’t cut it for me. I’m sorry. A few good songs, but that’s about it.

 

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Label: AFM Records

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// Sara

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Music Crush Monday: Olly Murs – In Case You Didn’t Know

Posted in CDs, Music with tags on March 2, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

Well, I guess we’ll see how long I actually keep this up, but lets give a try.

A record I want to shine a little extra light on today is Olly Murs’ second album “In Case You Didn’t Know”. Olly Murs, as I’ve stated many many times to all of you, is a huge favorite of mine. I spotted him during one of the “Re-Micks” on Disney Channel and spent the next six months tracking down who he was since I was to stupid to remember I could just search for the lyrics on Youtube. But you know, better late then never, right?

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“In Case You Didn’t Know” came out in 2012 and like I said, it’s his second album but it’s also the first I got of him. And what can I say besides that I absolutely love it? It’s huge feel-good record through and through, with of course, some heavier and downbeat songs (“This Song is About You”, “I Need You Now”) but aside this, I guess you could call him the male version of Taylor Swift. And this is meant in a good way. But, nothing of this can beat or over-shine my personal favorite, “Dance With Me Tonight”, which was also the song that was in the re-micks. A good beat, sweet rhythms that makes literally anyone dance.

So basically, if you are not too high up in the metal zone (yes, I do recognize most of you readers are metal heads) you should give this album a try. IT WILL make you feel good. IT WILL make you happy. I am absolutely certain. And we all need that happy pill known as music. Sorry, I’m just gonna dance the night away now.

// Sara

 

 

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Music Crush Monday: Tigertailz – Bezerk

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized with tags on February 23, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

So, instead of a man crush monday, I decided to make it Music Crush Monday. Of course, when I planned this earlier today I didn’t expect Stone Sour to almost rip me off with the idea, but lets just say epic people got the same ideas.

So, anyway. I was really sitting around and pondering to myself, what should I write about? And for some reason my brain yelled “TIGERTAILZ”. I’m not even sure why, because it feels like it’s been ages since I actually listened to them, but you know what? I’m glad my brain reminded me about this amazing band.

So, what is Tigertailz? For those of you who don’t know, Tigertailz is a glam metal band that was formed in Cardiff, Wales back in 1983 with the original lineup featuring Jim Dovey on vocals, Pepsi Tate on bass, Ian Welsh behind the kit and Jay Pepper and Phil Harling on guitars. Jim was replaced fairly quickly by Stevie Jaimz, and in 1988 enters Kim Hooker, who is probably the most known vocalist of Tigertailz. Nowadays we find Jay Pepper on guitar, Rob Wylde on Bas, Jules Millis on vocals and Matthew Blakout behind the kit.

They released their debut album “Young and Crazy” in 1987, but their most famous album is the one coming three years later – “Bezerk”.

And that’s what this entry was supposed to be about to begin with.

To anyone who knows their glam metal, are very much familiar with the song “Love Bomb Baby”, which I guess you could say is the hit of the album. And it’s also one of my personal favorite songs in the genre. But it’s not only this song – the whole album is a really, really, really, REALLY, really good one. It has that bombastic theme about it (which I’m a sucker for, as you know) but it also got those you know, sleaze, naughty tunes (“Sick Sex”, for instance) rounded up by more lighthearted “Twist and Shake”. Pretty much EVERYTHING you could ask for in an 80’s kind of record.

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So yeah. If you are as much of a sucker for 80’s glam metal as I am, then this should be right down your alley. I actually had the pleasure to meet Tigertailz back at Stockholm Rocks in 2010, when Sarah Firebrand was still in the band. She’s still one of my favorite people, and role models. Ever. Love her. She was in the band between 2010 and 2011, for those who wonders.

Anyway, the thing with this album is that it seems to be very hard to find. There’s a “Bezerk 2.0” released, but it ain’t the same, so be careful when you get it. But here’s an Amazon link that collects a few who sells it used.

You’re not a lady you’re a love bomb baby, love bomb baby come on blow me away

With all of this said, I also wanna pay my respects to the late Pepsi Tate who passed away late 2007 after battling cancer for a few years. Rest in Peace, you’re a love bomb baby man. Much love.
// Sara

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REVIEW: U.D.O – Decadent

Posted in CDs, Music, Uncategorized on January 22, 2015 by Sara Hammerzmith

All the lights are turned towards social injustice and the decadence of the upper class on U.D.O’s newest album “Decadent”. It’s been two years since “Steelhammer” came out, and he’s now back with a new album where he points out all the large bad habits of the society, and the division between the poor and the bad. The album was recorded at Double U Studios and was mixed by Mattes and mastered by Jacob Hansen.

The album is twelve tracks long and consists of pure metal ala U.D.O as we know him from before. To sum this album up, you could say it’s like riding a small boat on the ocean in stormy weather. The album opens up with the fairly speedy “Speeder” and launches right into the heavy title track and the storm is a fact. After this, it’s calming down for a little moment before starting to storm again in “Mystery” and “Pain” before going down again and up when “Breathless” arrives, only to calm down for the rest of the album.

While the subjects indeed touches my heart and he’s done a good work pointing out all the things we do “wrong”, I can’t say this album is perfect. It’s pretty okay – but nothing revolutionary, and most importantly, nothing new. It’s the same solid and bold kind of “power”metal we are used to hear from U.D.O, all the way back to Accept, and the album has more dips than it has highlights, if you ask me.

The album is fine – it’s pretty much what anyone would expect of U.D.O. It’s sure worth having in your record collection, at least.

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Label: AFM Records

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// Sara

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