In Flames-Siren Charms   ©2014 Sony Music
​Seems that there is always differing opinions with every release that In Flames offers. 'Siren Charms' is no exception. The band to me continue to evolve and while they may not be releasing music in the same intensity as their earlier stuff, there is still something to like about what they do. The music on this album continues in the trend of previous albums and has intensity in a lot of places, but is also a bit more subdued compared to the early stuff. It's all okay in my opinion. If you like it, then take a listen, if you don't, then just move on. I found the album to be decent with some memorable songs.
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Swedish Hitz Goes Metal-Volume II   ©2014 Doolittle Group AB 
​Seems to be a trend going on here these days. It wasn't cool years ago to mention even liking bands like Abba, let alone covering their tunes as a metal band. Sure, there are other covered songs on this album, but the larger amount are Abba tunes. There is a market for this stuff now days and guess what? This band does this stuff very well. The fans wanted more after hearing the first release. The band Features Tommy ReinXeed from Swedish power metal act ReinXeed and sounds every bit as good.  It's definitely entertaining and the band is absolutely solid. You can do it! Go check it out!
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In Faith-There's A Storm Coming  ©2014 Rocktopia/Cargo Records
​While this album may seem familiar to some as there are definitely similarities to bands like Harem Scarem or maybe even Winger, this album stands on its own musically. This band has been a long time coming if you check out their biography. The music is stellar. With all of the albums that come out, every now and then comes an album above the rest. That is 'There's a Storm Coming'. Very melodic hard rock with not only good musicianship, but great vocal work as well. Songs are very well crafted and become memorable instantly. Definitely one of my favorite melodic rock releases of the year!
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Hans Van Even-Stardust Requiem   ©2014 BP12 Productions
​Instrumental release from Belgian musician Hans Van Even. Some impressive songwriting on this release especially when it comes to the creativity of it. There is a wide variety of different sounds here including Rock, Blues, and even a taste of Jazz. Sometimes these albums can get a bit muddy and hard to listen to due to their being a bit too much complexity. This album doesn't suffer from that. There are also some impressive guests including Tony MacAlpine and Brett Garsed performing duels with Hans. If instrumentals are your flavor, this is a good album with some good quality and length!
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Tantric-Blue Room Archives   ©2014 Pavement Music
​You know, this band has been around for awhile now and for one reason or another, I haven't taken the opportunity until now to check them out. I like what I hear. The album contains some unreleased music as well as some of the bands bigger hits. I find most of this album to be fairly laid back and at times kind of catchy. Most of the songs I do like. I will probably end up keeping Tantric on my radar as every now and then I like something different. To me this band is not what I would consider as run of the mill. It's a decent listen with some good unreleased music geared to the fans! Good stuff!
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