Angry Metal Guy

Iron Maiden // The Final Frontier
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — A good record…
Label: EMI
Websites: ironmaiden.com
Release Date: EU: 08.13.2010 | US: 08.17.2010

Iron Maiden is the greatest heavy metal band to ever live. Thirty years after the release of their self-titled album, they are arguably just as relevant as they ever have been—not resting on their laurels and imitating a hits jukebox, but instead touring the world playing their new material to the joy of fans everywhere. After what was a rousing success with their most recent record, the 2006 release of A Matter of Life and Death, there is actually maybe a bit more pressure on the band to produce something that is quality, memorable and, frankly, classic. Especially with the rumors floating around that this is Maiden‘s final album, spurred even further on by the fact that Steve Harris helped write every song on the record, the pressure cooker of fan scrutiny is reaching fever pitch. And so it falls to this Angry Metal Guy to try to put all of this into some sort of context; to try to listen to my favorite band with fresh ears—and I’ve come to some realizations about the band in the process. Continue reading

Well, it’s on us again. Iron Maiden fever. I have no idea whether or not there will be promo for this. I’ve already been bugging my local EMI people about this stuff, but they’ve been hiding behind a website and pretty much no contact whatsoever. But I can promise that I’ll be keeping you up to date on this whole thing. And fuck. August 16th starts Maiden-mania again. Man, this is going to be a rockin’ summer for me..

Continue reading

Poisonblack // Of Rust and Bones
Rating: 2.0/5.0 — Boring.
Label: Century Media
Websites: poisonblack.com | myspace.com/officialpoisonblack
Release Dates: EU: 22.03.2010 | US: 03.23.2010

In the wake of Sentenced it’s no surprise that Poisonblack has continued strong, with support from fans of the previous band and has become bigger and bigger in Finland and throughout the world. Many miss the tongue-in-cheek depression that went hand-in-hand with later Sentenced records, at the same time as missing the band that once was. Of Rust and Bones, the new Poisonblack record (the band that features former Sentenced vocalist Ville Laihiala) basically continues on with the Sentenced legacy of mid-paced heavy metal with depressing lyrics, but doesn’t do it with the same kind of conviction or freshness that was embodied by the former band.

By now, I’m sure the band is sick and tired of Sentenced comparisons and, as a reviewer, one is always aware of the fact that certain kind of comparisons are lazy and/or inappropriate. But, like Bruce Dickinson will never escape Iron Maiden (and vice versa), Ville Laihiala was the voice of what was probably one of the greatest bands in Finnish history. So listening to this album its really hard to not think back to later Sentenced material and do the comparisons, and frankly, this isn’t far off. Think about it: it’s mid-paced heavy metal, simplistic riffs and chord progressions. The vocals are the focus of this music, and while Poisonblack has longer songs and is less pop-oriented than, say, The Cold Blue Light was, it is still remarkably similar.

From “My Sun Shines Black” to “The Last Song”, Poisonblack produces markedly similar riffs, vocal melodies and content to Sentenced, but with none of the same energy that existed. To sum it up with one word, the music is boring. It’s basically just a bunch of rehashed heavy metal riffs, rock beats and self-depreciating lyrics. The formula seems pretty simple and the band doesn’t move too far away from it, though some interesting song craftsmanship does actually happen here and there. For the most part, however, the rehashed feel pretty much pervades track after track, turning the record into more of a slog through boredom than an enjoyable listen.

Fundamentally Poisonblack is still stuck on blues-based 70s and 80s hard rock, with the verses for every song just be vehicles for a big, catchy chorus. And that works for them, and if you like that kind of thing you will probably love this. But just like the myriads of bands who are fundamentally stuck on this sound and can’t seem to ever really update it, Poisonblack seems more mired in a rut than anything. One can only write the same song so many times before the boredom starts to set in personally—and that’s pretty much how this sounds. Tired. Bored. Maybe depressed because of too much Koskenkorva and too little sunlight, but whatever the reason, it’s still not compelling.

‘Course, could be that I just don’t get it. I am, indeed, Angry Metal Guy not Sad Metal Guy. Fans of later Sentenced and gothic rock are encouraged to check this band out, but it’s definitely not something I’ll be spinning again. Ever.

Barn Burner // Bangers
Rating: 1.5/5.0 — Pretty good album marred by very banal, lackluster vocals
Label: Metal Blade
Website: myspace.com/theinfamousbarnburner
Release Dates: EU: 15.02.2010 | US: 02.16.2010

I don’t know about you, but when I think about classic rock I think about vocalists. Guys like Steve Perry, Steven Tyler, Robert Plant, Geddy Lee.. you know, big voices, amazing melodies, and sure while you might not like every single person there, you appreciate what they offered in the sense of their huge influence and their technical skill. Hell, even look at early metal vocalists, guys like Paul Di’Anno, Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson were all very different stylistically, but had gripping melodies, great presence and pushed forward with their sounds. So what fascinates me is that any band with sort of a classic rock influence and approach would ever select a vocalist with a 4 note range.. but I have now encountered it on Barn Burner‘s Bangers.

I do not begrudge a band its style. No, every band has its own style, for better or worse, and should be accepted for that style. And stylistically there are some very compelling things about the band Barn Burner, which is releasing their debut record on Metal Blade in about a week. The record is heavy and thick with a nice, old fashioned analogue sound that is pleasing to the ears and that is reminiscent of a time when men were men and bell bottoms were hip. The riffing is iron clad and enjoyable, pumping out excellent classic rock influenced licks that build tension and make you want to rock on tracks like “Medium Rare” and “Brohemoth”.  The foundation here is worth a listen to, really, ’cause this Canadian foursome has some pretty serious chops.

However, despite the record being rock solid and thick there’s this guy who drones over it. I’m actually not kidding about the vocalist’s 4 note range. I think it literally is like four notes. I didn’t count them to be sure, so I might be showing some kind of terrible bias here, but honestly it feels like ONE note the whole time, so I’m being generous by saying that he has a four note range. I could publish my notes for this review, but I think it would just add insult to injury because they all say things like “Monotone melody. Band has great chops. Four note chorus.” and “Vocalist sucks.” Or my personal favorite: “Band good. Vocalist bad.”

Honestly, I’ve been trying to figure out who this guy sounds like but I really can’t come up with it. So imagine a guy with the range of Blaze Bayley and the delivery of Bob Dylan. And actually, he kind of reminds me of the vocalist from that stupid band 3 Doors Down, except that (shock!) that guy has a better range. That probably explains it. Sure, one could say that this is sort of punky and raw, but I don’t think that’s really true. Guys in punk can sing like Bad Religion or NOFX or Propagandhi and the list goes on. Paul Di’Anno was a punky, raw metal vocalist and he has some serious fucking chops when he wanted them! No, this dude pretty much just drones at the listener for 40 minutes and at the end you’re left thinking, “Who let that guy out of the bar bathroom?”

Now, I know that this is stoner rock and I have never claimed to be a fan of stoner rock. With tracks like “Brohemoth” and “Beer Today, Bong Tomorrow” you know what we’re dealing with here. But I’m pretty sure that the dudes from Led Zeppelin were stoned like ALL THE TIME and somehow Robert Plant still manages to be a compelling vocalist. I’ve heard death metal growls with more diversity and range than this dude. I want to say for the record so that it doesn’t seem like I’m just taking cheap shots at the dirty hippies that musically, aside from the vocals this band has a ton of potential. I really enjoy the sound and the production, it’s beautiful, old school and meaty. Those are things that are missing in a ton of modern metal and rock and so I feel kinda bad for these guys that they’ve been saddled with such a vocalist. If they could get someone who has a little bit more range and personality, these guys would probably do well enough that they could buy some really good weed.

Blaze Bayley // The Night That Wouldn’t Die
Rating: CD: 4.0/5.0 – DVD: 3.0/5.0 — A great live record, but a DVD that leaves some things to be desired
Label: Blaze Bayley Productions
Website: blazebayley.net | myspace.com/blazebayley

Blaze Bayley, for those who don’t know (where the hell have you been??) is the solo project of former Wolfsbane and Iron Maiden frontman of the same name. Honestly, this guy’s story is a true underdog story. To hear it told, he was the singer that no one wanted until he got picked up by Wolfsbane and then he was chosen to fill Bruce Dickinson’s shoes in Iron Maiden after Bruce decided he was too cool for the band. There was absolutely no way for him to win in that situation. A man with a baritone register filling Dickinson’s shoes is just ridiculous and everyone should’ve known better: but this reviewer humbly submits that X Factor is a classic record and that Virtual XI, while definitely weaker, was not weak because of Blaze, but instead because of Steve Harris’ writing and the very poor production. In fact, I’m still waiting for those two albums to be remastered.

“But how is this relevant” you may be asking yourself. Well, The Night That Will Not Die is a live record and, as such, knocks out the greatest hits from Blaze‘s underrated career. Opening with a shot, the band knocks out three great shots from from the self-released The Man Who Would Not Die and it pretty much sets the stage for the album to come. The songs on here are the songs that fans of the band have come to expect that they would get. The best of from Bayley’s BLAZE incarnation: “Stare at the Sun,” “Born as a Stranger,” “The Launch,” “Leap of Faith,” in short, pretty much all of the songs that I want to hear live. Mixed in, of course, are the Iron Maiden tracks, much-maligned by the average fan, but songs that are close to my heart. It was especially exciting to hear “Edge of Darkness” live, as that’s one of my favorite tracks from X Factor.

Finally, the band litters the album with tracks from the new album, including a track dedicated to Blaze’s late manager and significant other Debbie (“While You Were Gone”—a great track), who tragically died earlier in the year. As a fan, this was emotional for me as well, a dimension that suits the record well. While it’s not visible on the album, of course, you can see on the DVD that the show jumps up a notch when you get to the new material and the dedication. It heightens the feel of the record and, frankly, you can’t help a bit of sympathy for this man who has had some pretty hard knocks, out on the road trying to live up to her memory and the help that she gave him, when there are times when he probably wants nothing more than to sit in a dark room and mourn.

From a visual perspective, this DVD needs a lot of work. Shot with only two cameras, I just wonder if it really was best for the band to release this instead of just doing the live record. Live DVDs are tough to make interesting. Even highly funded DVDs, like the Amon Amarth 5-disc monstrosity, are boring in my opinion. To be totally honest, the only concert DVD I’ve ever seen that was really good is Iron Maiden‘s Rock in Rio. The comparison to Rock in Rio is absolutely impossible and totally unfair. Iron Maiden has the kind of money that Blaze Bayley, self-funding and pulling themselves up by their very metal bootstraps, simply could never have. But on that note, it might have been better to to avoid releasing a DVD and save that money for something else.

Therefore, this DVD has some limitations. The show is great, as stated, and aside from losing “The Launch” due to a giant cardboard cutout that some jackass was holding up in front of the camera, this show is pretty good! Blaze’s personal joy at doing this show is definitely fun to watch. The grin that breaks out on his face at times when he’s trying to pull some kind of metal face just demonstrates to me how much he loves what he does. It shows the kind of passion he’s got for this and he’s fun to watch.

Larry Paterson, the drummer (and apparently author of a bunch of books on German U-boats), is also very fun to watch. He seems to really be enjoying himself and is only upstaged by David Bermudez who is a fucking beast onstage. That guy is a total pro and he almost upstages the man himself! He is about as metal as it gets and it is really, really great to see that kind of energy and enthusiasm on stage. However, both guitarists need to step it the hell up. A lot of their stagecraft looked really forced and, frankly, like they were bored out of their minds for a good portion of the material. They did peak up a bit when they were playing the new material, so I guess part of it is probably that they don’t like being a “cover band,” but c’mon guys! It’s a damn DVD! Spice it up a little bit!

The final question for long-time fans of the band will be, of course, “does it live up to As Live As it Gets?” In it’s own way, definitely. I think the live record is definitely in the running. This is not the same band, and sure, they don’t have Andy Sneap in their pocket (a damn shame), but with the addition of the new songs this record is quite good and cohesive. As a fan, you should definitely pick it up because you won’t be disappointed. It also is a great way to showcase the new material to old fans, which I think is important. I know of many old fans who were so disillusioned by the crumbling of the old band that they didn’t even bother to check out The Man Who Would Not Die. This record definitely shows that the new material stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the older material, even if it isn’t the same band.

Frankly, this record makes me excited for a future for Blaze Bayley, which after the dissolution of BLAZE, I wasn’t looking forward to new material. But once again, and apparently thanks to the woman who this CD & DVD are dedicated to, Mr. Bayley is back in the saddle and knocking out good material. I await the new album, 2010 and to know what’s happened since we last left our hero…

Blaze Bayley is quite possibly one of the more controversial figures in modern heavy metal history because of his stint in Iron Maiden as the, unfortunately unpopular, frontman who replaced Bruce Dickinson.  More recently he suffered some very personal tragedies, with the crumbling of his band (the excellent BLAZE) and the death of his wife.  I’ll be reviewing his DVD and live record coming up, but apparently there’s more news that I was unaware of.  A book, called At the End of the Day, will be released on the 25th of September and can be ordered via the band’s website.

Here’s the full press release:

After ten months of intensive touring, the band are back in the studio writing their new album.  Recording is due to begin at the end of September after their headline show at Metalfest, UK.

The double live album and live DVD ‘The Night That Will Not Die’, recorded at Z7 in Switzerland, have been released on Blaze Bayley Recordings; the concert filmed by director Kris McManus and all audio mixed and mastered by producer Jase Edwards.

On 25 September the book ‘At The End Of The Day’ will be released.  This follows the story of ‘Blaze’ Bayley Cooke from Wolfsbane to Iron Maiden to BLAZE and, ultimately, to the current self-titled Blaze Bayley band. However, this book is not solely about Blaze; rather it traces the history of all the band members, back to their roots in New Zealand, Colombia and…Bristol.  ‘At The End Of The Day’ is available to pre-order from the band’s website.

So there you have it, folks. I’m thinking about getting my hands on a copy of that book before the interview. That’d be pretty sweet, right?