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| I was checking out new bands at purevolume, a site much older than myspace and quite easier to find bands at, anyway while surfing around the site, I found this band - I The Mighty. Their debut EP "Hearts and spades" was available as free download over at bandcamp and the songs on purevolume sounded very promising. This San Fransisco based rock band says their music is for fans of Say Anything, Circa Survive and Envy on the coast and I won´t argue, I especially like the instrumentation in these songs and while it´s quite technical at times, they´re also melodic and interesting. Just listen to the guitars in "I the mighty defeatist" or the piano hooks in "Technicolor", just wonderful. Great band! |
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| San Fransisco based I The Mighty has signed with Equal Vision Records, the new single "Cutting room floor" will be featured on their new EP to be released this fall. It is produced by Erik Ron (Panic at the disco, VersaEmerge) and a must for fans of Circa Survive, we´re talking alternative and progressive rock with intelligent playing here. This song has a songstructure that will appeal to both musicians and the average music listener, it´s smart and melodic, rich of nuances but explodes into a high octane rock song in an instant. Great stuff! |
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60% English and 40% American but 100% Australian Rock,a strange combination but this 5 piece modern rock band consists of 2 British guys (Mark Arnell (lead vocal) and Danny Martin (drums/background vocals)that moved to L.A and formed this band with 2 Americans (Josh Fields (guitar) and Angelo Barbera (bass) and then added another UK guitarist Matt Cheadle to make their line up complete.
Their style can be described as having Jimmy Barnes going more modern rock,a very *Live* sounding studio album if you get the point-I also think that the songs probably works a lot better on stage than it does on this self released debut.
With a Big Producer and a bigger budget this could be a real nice story but it sounds just too poor and messy,nothing wrong with the songs......I like this Aussie breathing rock but the production is nothing to get wild about!
If The Calling should record the song "Oxygen" I know it would be a huge hit but with I-94 it?s vanished up in the thin air. |
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Location:L.A,USA
Discography:Out there (2003),Don?t get nervous (2005)
Bandmembers:Mark Arnell ? Lead Vocals,Matt Cheadle ? Guitar,Danny Martin ? Drums,Angelo Barbera - Bass
Influences:U2,Oasis,Matchbox 20
Will appeal to fans of:Magna-Fi,Dishwalla,3 Doors Down,Jimmy Barnes
Album tracks:Total length: 1,05,52
1.Walls around you (4,27) *
2.Go back in time (4,11) *
3.Oxygen (3,45) *
4.One thing (4,13)
5.Air (4,47)
6.Waterfall (4,21) *
7.Good friend (4,42) *
8.Not alone (4,38)
9.I will (4,03)
10.Plasticine (3,09)
11.Out there (3,50) *
12.The entertainer (3,30)
13.Miss Valencia (4,06)
14.The end (12,05)
Kaj?s final words:This mainstream modern rock band features 1 American and 3 Englishmen who have moved from U.K to California,they have re-recorded 6 tracks (*) from the first indie release ?Out there? (2003) and added 8 new songs for their official debut album ?Don?t get nervous?.
They sound a lot better on this new album compared to the previous record that only was ok in my opinion,I liked ?Oxygen? the first time I heard it but the lack of
production was in the way of making it a fave track ? however,here it sounds so much better and the beautiful ?Air? can put tears in the eyes of any modern rocker. |
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The British/American band i-94 goes from strength to strength with their albums, "Control" is their 3rd release and all freaks of melodic modern rock are in for a wetdream with this super strong 16 track album.
With a running time of 67 minutes you would easily believe that there are some fillers on this one but I can?t find them even with a microscope, the opening track "Somewhere else" is a killer.
The more soft title track "Control" has a chorus that will warm your heart but my favorite ballad is the hauntingly beautiful "Something so wrong".
Singer Mark Arnell has a lovely voice that gives these songs the extra touch they need, i-94 are in Control!
For fans of Vertical Horizon and Mad at Gravity. |
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British/American band i-94 got better for each release with the previous album "Control" being the peak of their career, the new album is really good but it doesn´t match the huge modern rock of "Control".
First I thought the production wasn´t as crispy and clear as I wanted it to be on "Come to this" but the new album is a grower, the songs are strong and shouts out longevity.
I love their odd chord changes and thoughtful melodies, songs like "Is anybody listening" and "It takes me far" are here to stay but also the calm "Come to this" or the upbeat "Paralized" have become new faves with this lovely band.
For fans of Vertical Horizon, The Calling, Lifehouse and Collective Soul. |
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One thing about the British metal scene is that their bands have a more unique sound compared to the American style of numetal and Manchester based i-def-i is no exception to the rule,these guys knows how to pull off a load of monster riffs in the screamo vein of numetal but still with a melodic approach.
This 6 track EP "Bloodlust casualty" feels like a fist in your face - drummer Mel Stewart is as tight and fast as Lars Ulrich in Metallica,guitarist Tom Clements delivers the same type of downtuned riffs as the late Dimebag Darrell and vocalist Chris Maher goes from Layne Staley-ish melodies to raw anger a la Chester Bennington of Linkin Park.
Can you handle the truth? Can you handle i-def-i? |
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| I don´t think there is such a genre as thinking metal but if you would visit retail stores and search after bands in this genre you would probably find Queensryche, Fair To Midland and Nothing More to name a few. Indianapolis based i-Exist truly belong in this category as well because I get the feeling they want to do just more than play basic metal, there is a sci-fi vibe going through the whole album like I was riding a spaceship through the entire universe and gazing at the galaxies outside the window. There´s more to this album than 12 original songs, it sounds like music done by young hands in the modern world but with the mind of an old and intellectual person. I listened to the album in 2 parts with the first 6 songs two times before going into the second half of the album and it worked out very well. It´s not anything I normally do with albums but I felt it suited "Within imagination" better and to go below 4 stars would almost be a crime, this is an impressive album with a wonderful soundsphere. you might get a new favorite band, I know I have. |
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| I.Scintilla is a new cool techno rock band where the synthesizers dominate the music, without the guitars this would be only techno so thank god for the guitar parts. Their debut album "Optics" might be a bit too long with a running time of 55 minutes. The music tend to be a bit monotone after a while but there are certainly moments that stand out here. The opening track "Cursive eye" is one of the highlights, a great synth rock song that will stick like glue to your head and there´s more......the beautiful "Melt" is a grower for sure, love this song too. This female fronted band bring thoughts to Nine Inch Nails on the suggestive "Machine vision" while the riff on the closing track "Salt of stones" could´ve been something Rammstein´s catalogue, truly the hardest track on the album. Anyhow a good album worth checking out. |
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The Holy Grail is the second album and debut on Lion Music from Fender Stratocaster man Iain Ashley Hersey (a name I wouldn?t wanna pronounce being drunk).
This is classic hardrock that should appeal to fans of Rainbow and Deep Purple.
He brought together 4 singers for this album with Graham Bonnet being the most famous,David Montgomery of the Zeppelin tribute band Led Zepagain sings on the first 3 songs and does a good job too.
The best one out of these 3 is the Gary Moore-ish "To the sea" which is a cool pompy bluesrocker.
The lesser known 2 vocalists are Randy Williams who only sings on Rainbow sounding ballad "Blink of an eye" (is it only me who thinks it reminds of "Stone cold"?) and Carsten Schulz who sadly enough is the the weakest singer on the album,why he got to sing 3 songs is a mystery coz those feels like a big black hole where they are 18 minutes in a row in the middle of the album.
Take away those 3 tracks and we?re down to a running time of the more normal 50 minutes and the album would?ve been worth 3 stars instead,the instrumental guitar show off in the classical piece of "Toccata in d minor" won?t make anyone happy either.
No it?s the part where Bonnet,Montgomery and Williams sings on that makes the album such an enjoyable affair,however the bluesrocker "Going down" which Bonnet does his best on feels like a big cloud on these rocking blue skies.
If the songs Montgomery sang on reminded more of Rainbow,strange as it may seem but the songs "Walking the talk" and "The holy grail" which Bonnet sings on are definitely more of the 70?s rock Deep Purple plays.
Ok piece of work that could?ve been so much better with a shorter running time. |
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| Orange county based electro rock band Iammedic features members of Burning Tree Project that released the strong EP "Time and color" in 2009, Iammedic leans even more towards the electro genre but the edgy guitars keeps the songs from being too dance oriented. Their sound bring thoughts to Family Force 5 and Falling Up and that is cool, the first two tracks "Lose yourself" and "Unexplained" are best and I am willing to give this EP 4 stars but it falls a bit at the last tracks. However, it´s a very good effort from Iammedic. |
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The British electro unit IAMX is a one man band where Chris Corner writes, performs and produces everything.
Chris Corner is living in Berlin and I think life in the east has affected Corner´s way of making this type of 80´s influenced industrial synth pop.
The debut "Kiss + swallow" came out in 2004 and two years later he followed up with "The alternative" in 2006, I cannot compare this new album with the previous releases since I haven´t heard them but I can tell you that any fan of this genre should own a copy of "Kingdom of welcome addiction".
This is a really good, dark and melodic synth pop album that bring thoughts to Gary Numan, New Order and Depeche Mode (their industrial era).
It will be out on May 15th.
Highlights:Tear Garden, Think of England, Kingdom of Welcome addiction |
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Long Island progrockers Ice Age released 2 albums on Magna Carta between 1999-2001 and then finally put out the 4 track EP "Little bird" in 2004.
They were reborn as Soulfractured and released an EP in 2006, Bassist Doug Odell replaced Arron DiCesare but the rest of the line up remains intact with Soulfractured.
Singer Josh Pincus is the highlight here, his Dennis DeYoung (Styx) meets Michael Sadler (Saga) vocals turns the band´s sound into something original.
Because they have gone from a classic progrock sound with lengthy songs on their first two albums to a more song-oriented style with 4-5 minute long songs on this EP.
"Little bird" sounds like a mix between Dream Theater, Fates Warning and Shadow Gallery.
Expect pro-musicianship and elegant melodies - too bad they are out of a record deal. |
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I will add a bunch of older reviews I did back in the late 90?s when I had my old fanzine The Midwestern Skies. I will mainly add reviews of CD?s that are worth and deserves your attention and this australianpower-pop band comprised singer/guitarist Charles Jenkins, guitarist Dominic Larizza, bassist Douglas Lee Robertson and drummer Derek Smiley. Debuting in late 1992 with a self-titled EP, the group issued their first full-length release Travelling...Made Easy a year later. After 1994?s Supermarket Scene EP, Ice Cream Hands issued another stop-gap single release, Olive, before finally resurfacing with their sophomore LP Memory Lane Traffic Jam in 1997... After the review of this one at Midwestern Skies Ice Cream Hands have continued to deliver smart and well produced powerpop and did their latest album back in 2002. An album called "Broken UFO"
I have two albums with IceCream Hands, but the only thing I know about them (well as you can see above I have more info about them now the year 2006...) is that they?re from Australia and that they?re playing a superb kinda melodic pop with traces of a modern alternative vibe. Great songs and some great harmonies. Australia rules. Imagine Crowded House in a bit more modern way of the 90?s. Well IceCream Hands are actually that good. I must also mention bands like PFR, Dogs Of Peace and Merrymakers in the same sentence. I love this album! And you?re also gonna do that if you?re into what you just read. Lovely! |
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Thanks to the new label Rock Candy records,every single fan of classic rock albums will be happy to see such splendid albums like Riot?s "Narita" that our editor in chief Par Winberg reviewed earlier and this masterpiece from 1985 with Icon being re-released this year.
Also Helix "No rest for the wicked" has been released from former Kerrang journalists Derek Oliver and Dante Bonutto?s new label,but it?s Icon?s second album "Night of the crime" we?re dealing with here and it?s without doubt one of the best hard rock albums ever released.
The good ol 80?s when you were running to the record store coz you heard the new album with your favorite band had been released,the feeling when you put on an album like this one and just stood there with an open mouth and just wanted to scream.......will never be the same again as it was back then when it was alright to have fluffy hair and shining boots.
Earlier this year the Krokus singer Marc Storace paid a tribute to Icon with the Swiss band BISS on their version of "Raise the hammer",I?m a little surprised though that not more bands have done covers of these songs coz this album is like a goldmine of excellent hardrock songs.
"Naked eyes","Missing","Danger calling" and "Shot at my heart"....the list just goes on.
Singer Stephen Clifford left the band after NOTC and was replaced by Jerry Harrison on the disappointing follow up "Right between the eyes",it wasn?t until the cassette album "An even more perfect union" that Icon was close on finding that right vibe that NOTC had.
The AOR crusade continues! |
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Did you know that?
Tommy Walter, the singer best known for his Alternative rock band, Abandoned Pools, was also a former bassist and one of the founding members of Eels.
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