Pearl Jam - Dark Matter (Monnkeywrench/Republic Records) [Rich Piva] No matter what people think about the quality of the later period Pearl Jam records, a new album by the legendary band is something to celebrate. There are always a few really great songs on each of the records after the ones that people still consider classics (the stopping point for classics is debatable, anywhere from Vs to Riot Act, I am in the Yield camp personally) and usually a new record means a new tour, which is obviously where PJ excels these days.  Album number twelve, Dark Matter, fits exactly into the dis ..read more

UFO - Covenant & Sharks (Cherry Red Records) [Paul Hutchings] Mention UFO and thoughts usually focus on their seventies catalogue. Unsurprisingly really, given that throughout their career it was tracks from albums such as Lights Out, Force It, Phenomenon and No Heavy Pettin’ that formed the bulk of their live sets. However, dig deeper into the band’s 22 albums which span their 50 years together, and you’ll find many gems buried deeply and tucked away. Having disbanded for several years in the late eighties, 1991 saw vocalist Phil Mogg put another version of the band together, before man ..read more

Blind Guardian & The Night Eternal, The Academy, Manchester, 13.04.24 Heading up to Manchester for a gig from South Wales could bee seen as a bit of a mammoth task but when that bands are one of the best epic metal bands to come out of Germany and this is only one of three UK shows they are playing it was well worth doing. A two band show is something of a gift, especially after a long trip, but what it really does is give the support band a chance to play a longer set and show the crowd what they do. The support band in question are classic metal troop The Night Eternal (8) also from Ge ..read more

Manic Eden - Manic Eden: 30th Anniversary Remaster (Music Theories Recordings) [Rich Piva] When David Coverdale put Whitesnake on ice for a bit in the early 90s, the musical backbone the band, Adrian Vandenberg, Rudy Sarzo, and Tommy Aldridge did not want to sit still and rest on their Whitesnake laurels, so instead they formed the one of and pretty much lost over the decades project Manic Eden, that is becoming found again in the form of a 30th anniversary repress/remaster. This album, while excellent, was met with a resounding level of indifference, as this type of rock was just not the thin ..read more

1000mods, Pale Bastard, E11even, The Bunkhouse, Swansea, 11.04.24   Despite m'colleague Mr Piva stealing all the stoner, this is the scene I was brought up in. Give me some fat riffs, fat blunts and grooves for days and I'm a happy boy. Especially if those bands are from the legendary Swansea stoner scene or the reversed Greek stoner scene. Getting to see both in one night was a real treat as two home grown riff machines came out to The Bunkhouse in Swansea to support some Greek scene veterans. Kicking things off were E11VEN (8) a band I'd not seen but, Hail Satan do they make and impres ..read more

Benighted - Ekbom (Season Of Mist) [GC] Having formed all the way back in 1998 when the world was overtaken by Nu-Metal, France’s Benighted had other ideas and decided they were going to mix grindcore with brutal death metal and it’s obviously been a roaring success as Ekbom is their 10th album. Now, I have said it before and will say it again I LOVE death metal BUT also feel that ‘’brutal’’ death metal is so hit and miss that I cannot stand most of it, as many of my reviews will attest to! However, everything deserves a chance to prove me wrong and this is Benighted’s turn. Prodome is an i ..read more

Esoterica & Scarlett Riot, The Asylum, Birmingham 11.04.24 It’s early doors at The Asylum, for as I walk in at just gone half past Seven, opening act Skarlett Riot (10) are already in full swing. I know absolutely nothing about the band, a search online post gig gives me a few answers, the band are from Scunthorpe, fall into the Alt Metal/Melodic Metalcore genre and have a blend of female/male vocals.  Lead vocalist Chloe Drinkwater holds the audience captive and leads us through tracks from their back catalogue and recent release Lullaby. A promising start to the evening, they leav ..read more

Furze - Caw Entrance (Devoted Art Propaganda) [Patches] Psych Black Metal from Norway! Furze’s trebly acoustic intro paints a picture of the awful fuzzy production of a tape player resting against an uncleaned festering sheep’s skull. Which is precisely what we want in our black metal! The intro, simply called intro actually reminds me of a bit of Acid Bath. Remember them? Foresee His Infernal Rights starts with a surprisingly wonky circusy blues full of punky mischief and more treble.  An interesting mix of psychedelic tremolo picked highs and doomy lows play off like somebody released ..read more

 The Lunar Effect - Sounds Of Blue And Green (Svart Records) [Rich Piva] It is fitting that I write a review for a band called The Lunar Effect on the day eclipse mania is hitting here in the US. Not just for their name, but for how much my love of their new record, Sounds Of Blue And Green has eclipsed my expectations for how much I would enjoy the London band’s second album. For those unacquainted with the band, they play a heavy and fuzzy stoner heavy blues mix with some elements of psych thrown in.  Sounds like a pretty good mix of stuff, right? Well, let me tell y ..read more

Khirki – Κυκεώνας (Venerate Industries) After I compared Κτηνωδία, the debut album from Athenian rockers Khirki, to the likes of Baroness and Mastodon. I was anticipating their sophomore to be just as good and bloody hell it was worth the wait. Since 2021 and 2024, they have discovered that melody is a good thing, adapting the sludgy aggression into groovy 70’s rocking on the brilliant Pumping The Vein, the trio channelling legendary bands such as Budgie, UFO, Lizzy and Wishbone Ash.  These classic rock trappings creeping into the continual heavy blues style of Baroness or Mastodon, par ..read more