Heavy Metal Resource Reviews-Lacuna Coil, Raven, Machine Head, Giant, & Sleep Theory

Index

Needed to catch up with the latest from Lacuna Coil. It came out in February, but we didn't want to totally miss this one. This is a heavy record. It's Lacuna Coil after all and the heaviness is in the vocals and the sound of each song. It's like heavy Gothic with depth. The music has a good degree of depth and atmosphere to it in a good chunk of the album. Sometimes even moody. If you got into the 'Black Anima' album, you'll get the idea. The band is sounding very comfortable at the moment and everyone is bringing their 'A' game to the record. Female vocals are top notch and the screams add the other side of the spectrum which brings the whole thing together into a very dynamic album. It has been fun to watch this band evolve. I dove in on 'Comalies' and have watched the band get heavier with each release. Good heavy stuff with some sophistication!

Release Date: February 14, 2025

Looking back to my history with Raven, this era was where it began for me. Sure, I went back to the early albums, but I cut my teeth on the albums in this set. When I saw the mention of this release, it was an immediate preorder. I always felt that the domestic versions of at least the Atlantic albums issued by a small label if I remember correctly were barely passable. No notes, just an album cover with nothing on the backside and a cd. This boxset remedies that situation. There is a nice booklet with lot's of history about the albums in the set. This box has 4 CD's. 'Stay Hard', 'The Pack Is Back', 'Mad' EP, which is on the Pack disc, 'Life's A Bitch', and finally 'Nothing Exceeds Like Excess' which was Combat Records. I love this era. I am happy to finally have a respectable set that sounds good and offers a window to the mid 80's era of the band. Great!

Release Date: April 25, 2025

For whatever reason, I kind of lost track of these guys. I bought all of the early stuff, saw them live, etc. Fast forward to 'Unbound'. Saw that video and it kicked me right in the teeth. That heavy riffing that I loved about this band was blowing up my speakers again. I always loved the guitar tone and degree of flash in the riffs. I always felt that it set this band apart and made them stand out in a genre filled with good bands. This record has been a blast to check out. Have been through it many times and can easily recommend if you like your metal heavy with more aggressive vocal work. The band even found ways to add some catchiness to some of the music like the track 'Bonescraper'. The album in my opinion feels uniform and has a very good consistency in terms of quality to it. I've gone back and have been filling in the gaps. Will be paying better attention now!

Release Date: April 25, 2025

Giant has one of the most classic melodic rock albums ever with 'Last Of The Runaways'. Whenever I check out a Giant album, I always compare it to that brilliant debut. The latest album features Kent Hilli from Perfect Plan on his second Giant record. Also here is Jimmy Westerlund who fans will remember from One Desire. Original members David Huff and Mike Brignardello round out the lineup. This is a great record. There are parts of this album that remind me a lot of 'Last Of The Runaways'. Both in terms of tone and feel. Plenty of great mid tempo rockers and some very good melodic numbers. 'It Ain't Over Till It's Over' is my favorite light track and would have been huge if we were in a different era. The band really hit it out of the park with this record. It gets better with each listen and it was awesome to begin with. Very good job on this one!

Release Date: May 16, 2025

I have been taking a journey through a lot of younger bands in the last month or so. Sleep Theory is one that really stood out to me. The band is a modern hard rock act with great vocal work, both clean and screams. Songs tend to be quite catchy overall and really show the band gaining some quick traction. The album really doesn't have any music that would be worth a skip. Start listening and take the entire ride. Also, they do have some material including some reimagined versions that are amazing that you can find on Bandcamp and possibly other digital platforms. This band is definitely poised to make a splash. Upcoming tours including some shows with Falling In Reverse. There will be some good exposure for sure. We'll be looking forward to what this band does in the future. They already sound amazing and I'm sure they will evolve in time!

Release Date: May 16, 2025