Turbulence-Frontal   ©2021 Frontiers Records
​When one thinks of places that offer up great music and metal bands, I wouldn't think Lebanon would come to mind. With that being said, Turbulence is an amazing progressive metal band from Lebanon with a ton of potential. The music has the sophistication you would expect from progressive leanings, but wow, the riffs are tasty and the music is delivered with great power, but also with a bit of finesse. Vocal work is smooth and consistency is one of the band's best attributes. I wasn't sure what to expect from this band upon fist checking them out, but came out of it with a great admiration for the abilities and music I had just partaken of. They lean a bit to the heavier side of the genre, which is where I like progressive the most. I would recommend fans of metal and progressive in general to be sure to give this band a listen. Excellent stuff!
Release Date:  March 12, 2021
Chez Kane-Chez Kane    ©2021 Frontiers Records 
​Recently there have been a few bands that we have checked out that were superb, especially when it came to capturing the 80's sound in the current generation of melodic hard rock bands. The UK's Chez Kane is another one of those artists who did a masterful job of this. If you think of bands like Vixen or even Lita Ford and the sound they created back in the 80's, you will get where Chez Kane is and her approach. The sound and overall delivery when listening from that angle is absolutely superb. I lived the 80's and a lot of those bands and it gives me hope for the genre to see artists like Chez Kane so successfully embrace this sound and all of the little things in it that make it special. This self titled release is a fun filled and very well delivered batch of tunes. There will be no need to skip anything as it is all very good. A new favorite for us!
Release Date:  March 12, 2021
Motorjesus-Hellbreaker  ©2021 AFM Records
​I had not had a chance to check this band out until now. 'Hellbreaker' is the 7th album and the music is a dirty rock 'n' roll type of sound. Although polished, there still is a raw feel to it in ways. The band have been active for some time now and it shows in the music. You can tell when a band hits their groove and the creativity flows. The band knows what they do well and it shows here. Although this band is a heavy rock band, you can feel other influences in this batch of songs. I felt there was a bit of a Punk influence and overall this album has a more modern feel to it. the songs are all high energy and could end up helping form a mosh pit at the live shows. It's that type of sound. With the energy of this band, it needs to go to the live experience. It has been some time now since all of that was possible, but when it does get back to the live shows, bands like Motorjesus are going to tear shit up. Just you watch! Cool high energy release.
Release Date:  April 9, 2021
Slammin' Gladys-Two   ©2021 Jib Machine Records
​I was pretty surprised to see this band pop back on the scene. Their first album was a lot of fun in my opinion, but I did have to go back and re-familiarize myself with it. It was just as I remembered it. Good melodic hard rock songs with a funk vibe which was kind of thing back around the time the first album was released. All of these years later, we get the band back and a new follow up record that is also a lot of fun. The band have once again written good rock tunes with a variety of vibes including a bit of that funk sound. The album offers 9 tracks and some good versatility. Some of the tracks are a bit more laid back and there are quite a few different sounds going on here. Overall it's obviously a rock album with songs that have slightly different personalities. It may have taken a long time to get to this point, but you can feel the chemistry of the band is still intact. Definitely check this one out especially if you were a fan of the band!
Release Date: February 12, 2021
Every Mother's Nightmare-Resurrect The Faithful   ©2020 Highvol Music
​This album was one I didn't want to miss, but somehow did. I wanted to rectify that as the music here is really good. It's a more modern version of the band obviously and has a similar feel to the 2017 album 'Grind' which we liked as well.  Songs have an edge to them and a pretty cool vibe. I was a big fan of the band's first two albums back in the rock 'n' roll heyday early 90's, but with the whole scene shaking up only a couple of years later, we didn't get to see a lot of progression from some bands. Every Mother's Nightmare has done great things with their recent albums. Obviously Rick Ruhl's vocals make everything feel familiar, but the music itself, although a bit more modern has the same likability factor that those early albums had. The album flows smoothly with some well crafted tunes and helps us see that progression I mentioned before. Check out the new version of 'Love Can Make You Blind'. Good stuff as always!
Release Date:  October 23, 2020
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