Reviewed: August, 2020 Released: 2020, Frontiers Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Erich Frontiers Records can always be counted on to help put together interesting projects from different artists on their label. The latest is a collaboration between singer Mark Boals (Yngwie Malmsteen, Royal Hunt) and guitarist Olaf Thorsen (Labyrinth, Vision Divine).…
melodic metal
Y&T-On With The Show (DVD Review)
Reviewed: June 2020 Released: 2019, Meanstreak Rating: 4.5/5 Reviewer: JP Y&T is still in decent rotation in my listening so I was very glad to the get Y&T documentary on DVD for my birthday. The package itself is a little disappointing, it is not housed in a DVD case, it…
PRETTY MAIDS – Maid In Japan
Reviewed: July, 2020 Released: 2020, Frontiers Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: JP Although it is certainly not a contest, I’m probably the biggest Pretty Maids fan on staff here at Metal-Rules.com. So when the band released their fourth live album, for me it was a no-brainer to review. When I reviewed the…
HAREM SCAREM-Live At The Phoenix The Covideo Chronicles-Day 25 (April 25th, 2020)
Reviewed: June, 2020 Released: Frontiers, 2015, Frontiers Rating: 2.5/5 (Just the DVD) Reviewer: JP Over the years I’ve done a number of more ambitious series of reviews instead of simple stand-alone reviews. This is perhaps my most ambitious project yet. This series of reviews was born out of three seemingly…
Sinisthra – The Broad And Beaten Way
Reviewed: June 2020 Released: 2020, Rockshots Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Beandog 15 years in the making, Sinisthra’s follow-up to their 2005 debut, Last Of The Stories Of Long Past Glories, has taken a lengthy and arduous route from conception to realisation. Significantly, The Broad And Beaten Way is a reference to…
Stargazery – Constellation
Reviewed: June 2020 Released: 2020, Pure Steel Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Kieron Hayes Constellation is the third album from Finnish metallers Stargazery. And it’s a damn good time. The Finns bring us a form of melodic heavy metal sitting comfortably within the power metal spectrum. To some, that might conjure…
Dark Fortress – Spectres From The Old World
Reviewed: May 2020 Released: 2020, Century Media Rating: 5/5 Reviewer: Kira Levine Spectres From The Old World is album number eight from the mighty melodic black metallers Dark Fortress. The band – formed in Landshut, Bavaria (Germany) – seem to lead a little more with their dark approach in terms…
GATHERED IN THEIR MASSES-A Very Brief And Incomplete History Of American Super Groups
GATHERED IN THEIR MASSES A Very Brief And Incomplete History Of American Super Groups (Version 1.6) by JP PREFACE As we hit the 50th anniversary of Heavy Metal this year (2020), as Managing Editor of Metal-Rules.com, one of my goals is to try to add more editorial content and technical…
Lacuna Coil – Black Anima
Reviewed: February 2020 Released: 2019, Century Media Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: Lee Carter To many readers, and the many bitter artists whose work has been ripped apart by a cold-hearted, dead-inside cynic, a music critic is a bitter, twisted husk of something once-human that feeds on the maniacal pleasure of…
The Dark Element – Songs The Night Sings
Reviewed: February 2020 Released: 2019, Frontiers Records Rating: 4/5 Reviewer: JP I really enjoyed the first Dark Element album. I was hoping that it would not be just a one-time, studio-only project as many of these Frontiers things seem to be. Thankfully in late 2019 my hopes were confirmed and…
Tungsten – guitarist Nick Johansson and bass player/keyboards and screams Karl Johansson
Guitarist Nick Johansson and bass player/keyboards and screams Karl Johansson – Tungsten Interviewed by: Anders Sandvall Thanks to Arising Empire for the promo pictures and cover Thanks to Iris Bernotat at PR & Digital Relations for help with setting up the interview Promo pictures taken by: Patric Ullaeus From Sweden…
Axel Rudi Pell – XXX Anniversary Live
Axel Rudi Pell – XXX Anniversary Live Reviewed: August 2019 Released: June 7th, 2019 / Steamhammer Rating: 4 / 5 Reviewer: John Haseltine The man, the myth, the legend Axel Rudi Pell is currently celebrating 30 years as a solo artist. ARP id actually more of a band then a…
Soto – Origami
Band: Soto Title: Origami Label: Inside Out Released: 2019 Reviewed: July 2019 Reviewer: JP Rating: 3.5/5 Man, could Jeff Scott Soto one of the most prolific, most in demand signers in all of Hard Rock and Metal? Do yourself a favour and go have look on his website or Wikipedia…
Bella Novela – Incinerate
May 2019 Released: April 5th, 2019 / Self-Release Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Reviewer: John Haseltine Bella Novela has just unleashed their latest album, INCINERATE and it is a duesy. Bella Novela is a three-piece from Long Beach, CA and has a familiar yet original style that baffles me that…
Cold Sweat-Break Out
Artist: Cold Sweat Title: Break Out (reissue) Label: 20th Century Music Group Year: 2018 Reviewed: March, 2019 Reviewed by: JP Rating: 3.5 I’m really enjoying these reissue campaigns being done by various motivated parties. Here is a quick lesson in the music industry. Major label record companies at times buy…