Tony MacAlpine’s "Freedom to Fly" is a reminder that virtuosity, when paired with intention, can still feel alive rather than mechanical. This is one of his strongest shred-era statements—not because he plays faster, but because he plays with purpose. The musicianship is predictably elite, yet it’s the songwriting that quietly carries the album. Tracks like “Salvation,” “Steam Dream”, and the title track don’t just showcase technique; ... read more

"Beyond the Red Mirror" sees Blind Guardian doubling down on their grand, orchestral ambitions, delivering an album that feels massive in scope and meticulously constructed. Layers of choirs, dense arrangements, and intricate guitar work create a near-constant sense of scale, as if every track is aiming for “epic” status.

From a musicianship standpoint, the band remains sharp. The riffs are solid, the performances tight, and the interplay between guitars and orchestration ... read more

I'm reviewing this only to give it a rating it truly deserves. This anonymous Italian Black Metal "band" is a trve struggle to comprehend. Everything is impossible to understand. What the progenitor of this murky nightmare believes is his task in creating this "art", only the gods can guess. I would give the musicianship a comment, but it's impossible to hear what's happening. I ASSUME there are songs on here, as I BELIEVE there is an actual structure to them, ... read more

I love me some Witchcraft. "The Alchemist" is one of my all-time favorite albums. This EP, however, isn't. Not even close. It's weird. Some of it is great (see "Sinner's Clear Confusion"), but most of this just feels like confused meandering. Generally I love albums/EPs that have dynamic songwriting, but some of this feels like Magnus just noodling in the studio. It's gorgeous sounding; the production is pristine. That's the only selling point on ... read more

German Thrashers that are steeped in OG German Thrash history for realz. This is like the second coming of old Deathrow. Every tune is a blazing Speed Metal thrashathon. The guitar work by Slaughter (aka Teutonic Slaughter, aka Kevin M.) is outstanding, and the riffs fucking rule. The short licks he adds to the rhythms make them 100x more killer than other bands could do. The songs are all a touch samey (even though they all kick ass), and that keeps it from attaining elite status. Production ... read more

There is a lot to like about this. The musicianship is excellent. A lot of the riffs rule. The music is played with a palpable intensity. There are some things not to like, also. The ideas on here aren't very unique. This is stuff all Death Metal/Melodeath fans have heard before. The production, while fairly decent, is a little too compressed and things get lost in the shuffle. The whole feels a bit too clinical to me and that impacts the perceived authenticity of the platter. All-in-all ... read more

The Good: The production on this gorgeous. Lucy's voice is beautiful and very pure. This is a very emotionally pleasing album. The Bad: It's boring. The Ugly: every song feels and sounds the same. At times I felt that I was listening to the same song over. The structures, tones, melodies, and vocal deliveries all feel the same throughout this album. This could have been a very beautiful EP. As it is it's a tedious hike to a summit that you never reach. The good makes this an ... read more

Long-running (nee 2003) Death / Thrash band from Finland. This is pretty much meat-and-potatoes Metal. I had a hard time finding anything about it that had me really excited. Riffs come and go, and that's pretty much what the whole EP does. Everything about it feels very standard and done before, and that's too bad because it's played with vigor and emotion. Even the production feels very standard and neither adds nor detracts from the music. The whole thing is just kinda ... read more

Greek one-man BM project from Spellforger (aka Christos Stam). I like the potential I hear on this EP. All three songs are different which is nice. Guitar riffs are great and the guitar tone is killer. For being only 20 years old, this guy has some great confidence with this release. I think the drums are live and not Memorex, also, and are competently played. He can only get better if he keeps at it. The production is the great kind of Black Metal murkiness. The drum sound is almost identical ... read more

Not sure what it is about this album. I just can't get into it. Frontman Terry Glaze, original vocalist for Pantera and most excellent Hair Metal band Lord Tracy, sounds great and goes at it with aplomb. The performances on here are decent and many of the riffs are great. The songs are very samey and there's not a lot of variation on here. In addition the highly compressed production makes it hard to differentiate the instrumentation. This still makes it seem like something I should ... read more

I think many of the reviews here are overly harsh. I found this album quite engaging. The title track is angular and unexpected in some great ways. Morrissey's voice is fantastic. The guitar work is excellent and the solos feel inspired. The songs do get samey as the album runs its full length, and some of the lyrics felt kinda phoned in. That said, Morrissey's lyrics have always been hilariously bizarre. There's enough different stuff going on that this album keeps the listener ... read more

According to their Bandcamp, these songs were part of the "Blackbraid III" sessions but didn't fit the overall vibe of that album. Not wanting to let them wither away, they put them out on this 3-song EP, along with an instrumental acoustic version of "Barefoot Ghost Dance on Blood Soaked Soil". The two tunes are very energetic and (in their own words) visceral. Pretty much a blast beat fest from start to finish. Riffs are very similar to the stuff on the aforementioned ... read more

This is a mish-mash of early-period Witchcraft, Sleep, and some Post-Punk-isms. It's a lot of fun. It's eclectic. The musicianship won't wow you, and they kinda explore similar stuff throughout the platter (except for the crasy Post-Punk "Let's Death!", which is great). Songs are all over the place, as mentioned, and I like it. Never gets boring even during their extended Psych-Rock excursions. Production is excellent, as they get all the nuances they want out of ... read more

Well isn't this a pleasant surprise: a Greek vocalist that is not only in key, but freaking awesome! The doppleganger of Eric Adams (and there are MANY Manowar-isms on this platter, lol), Mars Triumph (aka Antonis Vailas) holds his own with that legend and makes this album excellent when it could have just been good. The musicianship, while nothing that will blow your mind, is good throughout and the galloping, Manowar-esque songs will have all Metalheads banging. The production is average ... read more

French metalheads' fifth album and it's pretty darn good. The musicians on here are very adept at not trying to do too much, and the songs benefit from that controlled restraint. Frontman Julian Izard has great pipes. This is great neo-Hair Metal and will make many wax nostalgic. Songs are varied enough to keep the listener interested, but not all are winners. Production is fairly average and a little too compressed which stifles some of the energy on here. Said energy is undeniable, ... read more

A lot to like on this platter. Exceptional, heavy riffs: check. Great songs: Check. Outstanding energy: Check. Musicianship on here is really good and fun to listen to. The songs are great and take some chances with things like tempo and time changes, which is nice. Vocals are exactly what you'd expect and, although generally not my fave style of vocals, work really well with the music overall. Production is, as might be expected, pretty compressed and stifling but overall it's true ... read more

I found this album to be rousingly enjoyable. Full of ripping Trad Metal anthems, it's tons of fun. The guitar work is stellar and the riffs are tasty. The vocals are great and Mike Freeland should be lauded for keeping his voice in such great shape at 63 years young. The songs aren't the most varied sounding of all time, and are a bit samey, but they all rock so in this case it's really ok. The production is above average and all the instruments are discernable and vibrant. ... read more

For an album I genuinely enjoyed, it has its flaws. The vocals stay in the same, aspirated range and rarely stray from it, giving the songs a sameyness to them that belies the songwriting, which is strong. The songs are adventurous and fun, and never seem to get boring (apart from the vocals). The production, also, is confusing. Initially I felt like the album was a blast of EBM-ish Post-Punk, but when it settled down it became more of a minimalist Pop thing. And that's pretty much where I ... read more

This album is chock full of awesome riffs. They actually kick ass. The songs are very eclectic and never get boring, which is nice given this style of Crossover Thrash can get stale pretty fast. The big problem here are the vocals. Colin Tappe sounds like some drunk guy the band picked up at the bar across the street after they laid down their tracks and their vocalist died on the way to the studio to lay down vocals. His barked howl thing he does is fucking annoying at best and out of key at ... read more

I don't know what it is with Greek Metal vocalists, but over the decades I have NEVER heard one that I enjoy, and most are objectively bad. It always sounds like they are out of key. Maybe they are and that's just a thing. That out of the way, this album is just not good. The vocals absolutely ruin it. All of them. His clean vocals are abusively bad. His Death growls are comical. The musicianship in general is bland and average. The songs all sound identical (except for the fun ... read more