FIVE YEARS: What a surprise… (An anniversary editorial)

5This weekend, Real Gone reaches a special milestone – five years of internet presence.  As that famous musical philosopher Mr. David Bowie once sang: “Five years…what a surprise.”  It’s been a really hard road to get so far, but it’s certainly been rewarding – over the recent years, we’ve met a bunch of really great people and heard some amazing music, a huge amount of which might have passed under our radar if we weren’t constantly reviewing stuff.  Who knows…maybe some of those albums would have passed under your radar too?

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JACK BRUCE: 14 May 1943 – 25 October 2014

Best known to most as one third of blues/psych trio Cream, Jack Bruce was one of the world’s finest bassists. In little over eighteen months as a member of that band, his profile was elevated to world-famous status, as he pitted his huge bass sound against Eric Clapton’s fuzzy guitars and Ginger Baker’s powerhouse drumming.   Those few months in the spotlight alone would be enough to ensure he would be influential to millions and forever remembered, but the work of John Symon Asher Bruce left a bigger mark on the world over a career that spanned six decades.

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DELUXE EDITION DREAMLAND: Metallica – Metallica (aka The Black Album)

In the late summer of 1991, Metallica unleashed an album that would change their fortunes forever.  Their fifth album, a self-titled record lovingly nicknamed ‘The Black Album’ by fans and critics alike, pushed the band from being a successful thrash metal band to the big leagues. The record made them a band with a record that was far broader in appeal and helped by a handful of hit singles, the album went on to sell tens of millions worldwide.

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Guitars & Zeppelins: Real Gone meets Slam Cartel’s Damo Fawsett

British rock band Slam Cartel released their debut album ‘Handful of Dreams’ in 2011.  Since then, the band have gone through a few changes and played a seemingly endless stream of gigs.  REAL GONE caught up with guitarist Damo Fawsett to discuss his influences, as well as the band’s past, present and future.   Bringing a few insights into the world of a hard-working band – as well as Zeppelin-y tangent –  a lengthy chat ensued…

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THEM CROOKED VULTURES Live at Roskilde 2010

The combination of Joshua Homme from Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Grohl and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones brings together three very talented people. Despite the amount of talent shared between the three men, the debut album from Them Crooked Vultures often sounded like Josh plus side band – a very talented side band, granted, but the end results drew too heavily from Homme’s influences. This could be frustrating since Jones began his career as a master arranger (he’s clearly not had a great influence in arranging most of the Vultures’ songs) and Grohl has proven a decent songwriter over the years.

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