At a time when so many AOR albums seem to be constructed from predictable European inflected bombast – often well played but full of forgettable material, or else just poorly executed all round – it’s an absolute pleasure when a disc comes along that impresses. This full length release from State of Salazar does just that. Bringing together the talents of various Swedish musicians and fronted by vocalist Marcus Nygren (previously of metal band 8-Point Rose), ‘All The Way’ offers something near melodic perfection. With similar sounds to their closest contemporaries Work of Art, celebrating the sounds of Toto and Survivor, the result is the best AOR record since State Cows dropped their debut in 2011.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
MOONLAND – Moonland feat. Lenna Kuurmaa
The record company office, sometime early 2014. Approximately 2:47pm, European time. A couple of hours of brainstorming for new ideas has reached a typical impasse. A man in his mid fifties with thinning hair paces up and down anxiously. Without anything fresh to put forth, he calls for assistance. Taking a phone from the pocket of his thirty year old stonewashed jeans, he pokes at the keypad.
“Is that Del Vecchio?” he asks, somewhat expectantly, “we need your help… Do you have any new songs? Bueno. Do you have connections to any European female vocalists we’ve not yet recorded? You do? Stupendo!”…
CAFFIENDS – Heebee GBs EP
Orlando’s Caffiends play good, raucous punk that’s strongly influenced by early Screeching Weasel, The Vindictives and NOFX. Since their formation, they’ve issued several EPs and shared stages with The Ataris, The Queers, Swingin’ Utters, Teenage Bottlerocket and numerous other top bands. 2014 saw the release of a sixteen track full-length release reissuing a bunch of out of print tunes, so for those who’ve yet to experience the band that record is an excellent way to catch up.
X-DRIVE – Get Your Rock On
Spearheaded by unknown guitarist Jeremy Brunner, X-Drive is a hard rock project that celebrates 80s melodic rock in a particularly unashamed and brazen fashion. Joining Brunner on this particular journey are ex-White Lion bassist James Lomenzo, Montrose vocalist Keith St. John and Midline drummer Fred Fischer. They say you can’t always judge a book by the cover, but this band’s general style should be obvious after one look at their dubious choice of album sleeve. It’s not as bad as Montrose’s staggeringly awful ‘Jump On It’ – a sleeve that clearly inspired the end result – but it’s pretty unnecessary.
NORTHERN OAK – Of Roots And Flesh
As far as metal-based subgenres are concerned, folk metal is often overlooked. While Skyclad are often viewed as that particular niche’s favourite sons (they have arguably been the most commercially successful), dozens of other bands have worked hard to make a place for themselves within the scene. Sheffield’s Northern Oak built a cult following after releasing their debut EP in 2008, eventually gaining critical acclaim from Terrorizer Magazine for their subsequently released albums. After releasing their second full-length album ‘Monuments’ in 2010, the band appeared at the Bloodstock Festival and concentrated on live work. Breaking a four year studio silence, ‘Of Roots and Flesh’ (recorded with Electric Wizard producer Chris Fielding and again self-released) is a very accomplished work, its dozen tracks creating a sprawling musical landscape; often dense, but always with just enough atmosphere to ensure nothing ever feels too overwhelming.