Boston - Life, Love and Hope

It has been 11 years since Boston, has put out a new record.  Their last record was a bit of a disappointment, so I had high hopes for their latest release Life, Love and Hope.  Part of the reason I was put off by their last release, was the inclusion of additional vocalists.  I always thought that Brad Delph's (RIP) vocals helped drive the band.  Delph could handle the vocals by himself with ease, so I always wondered why others were brought in.  He and guitarist Tom Scholz are the signature sound of Boston, so I wasn't sure why they were tinkering with the formula, on the last release.  Unfortunately Delph passed away, so for the new release, they had no choice.

Life Love and Hope is a fair album.  Criticism one, is that the production is off, which I can't believe I'm saying, because this is a Boston album.  Scholz is a genius as a producer, but for some reason, many of the tracks on this CD sound like demos.  It sounds like a drum machine was used on more than half of the tracks.  This CD is fair, at best.  The songs are okay, but seem a bit tired.  There is no real energy or fire in the songs to make you want to turn your stereo up to 11, which is unfortunate, considering this is a Boston release.

As stated previously, it is a bit off-putting with all of the vocalists involved in this project.  Scholz needs to pick a guy and stick with him.  It doesn't need to be a variety show on each release.  With all of the different vocalitst, it seems like a solo effort rather than a group effort.  Even though the late Brad Delph is included on a few tracks, that wasn't enough to save this one.  Don't get me wrong there are some strong tracks, but they suffer due to the poor production.  Their are elements of the glory days, but they lack the spark, that ignited their sound back in the day.  All in all, not a bad release, but not a great one either.

Bottom Line:  Hopefully this isn't Boston's swan song, because it comes off a bit subpar.  Good ideas that fall a little flat due to poor production.

Standout Tracks: Heaven on Earth, Someday, Someone 2.0

-Ragman is thinking he would like to see a vintage Boston show.

Bronies - The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony

I had never heard of a Brony before, until I heard them being goofed on, by the Howard Stern Show.  If you're not familiar, a Brony is a young adult male that worships My Little Pony.  Kookie, I know and that is why I decided to watch a documentary about these pony loving freaks.  There is a lot of strange fetishes out there, but this one take the cake.  How odd is it, that a bunch of grown men, worship a cartoon created for little girls?  To each his own, I guess.

The film takes an in depth look into the lives of some Bronies.  It gives the back story as to how they becames Bronies, as well as the challenges of dealing with friends and family, after they come out of the proverbial closet.  If that weren't enough, you even get a glimpse of every Bronie's dream - Brony-con.  Brony-con, like comi-con or any convention, brings all of these folks together to celebrate My Little Pony for a day or so. 

I decided to watch this for a goof, and then realized that is was for real.  Pretty disturbing.  It is amazing to me that this isn't just a U.S. thing, it is global.  Folks from all over the world travel to these Brony-cons.  The film was well done and tries to convince viewers that Bronies are people to, and this sort of behavior is natural.  Yikes!  I guess there are worse things these people could be up to.

Bottom Line: An in-depth look into the lives of Bronies.  A well done documentary that keeps you interested from start to finish, even if it is a bit creepy.

-Ragman wonders if Jon is a closet Brony.

'83 US Festival (Days 1 - 3)

The '83 US Festival will go down in history, as one of the greatest festivals of all time.  The festival had a separate day, for each genre of music.  One of the most notable days was the metal day, of course.  A day which featured new comers Motley Crue and Quiet Riot, as well as legendary bands in their prime (Van Halen, Judas Priest, Scorpions, etc...)  The next day to grab some attention, was the New Wave/Alternative Day.  If memory serves, those were the two most successful days.  That being said, MVD Entertaiment recently released a 1 disc compilation, of some the highlights, from the first 3 days, of the festival.

'83 US Festival is a solid compilation, featuring highlights from the Heavy Metal day, New Wave Day and Rock day.  The best thing about the disc, is seeing solid performances from some legendary bands, in their prime, as well as some early performances from U2 and INXS.  The DVD features primarily performances, but also mixes in some limited dialog from former MTV V-Jay Mark Goodman as well as festival creator Steve Wozniak.  My only complaint is that I wanted more.  It is great to finally see a professional release from this performance.

The Bottom Line: Highlights from one of the most iconic festivals in music history.  A must for any music fan of 80's rock.

- Ragman is wishing they would release each day, in a box set...

Podcast #168: Tidings

Metal Santa Claus doesn't care who's naughty or nice, he's just in the business of whoopin' ass proper.Well, Christmas has come and gone but we here at The Right to Rock are still celebrating.  Sort of. Okay, to be honest the show you're about to hear was such an undertaking it took yours truly several hours to mix. "Cry me a river!" Doh!

Well, Merry belated Christmas to all of our listeners as Genghis & Ragman unveil their annual Kicks and Kisses lists for 2013. It was a great year for music and after you hear this show you'll know why, trust me! So sit back, relax, and grab a fine ale because this is the mutha of all [overdue, end of the year] podcasts!

DVD of the Show: Twisted Sister - Twisted Christmas (Live in Las Vegas)

Beer of the Show: Gingerbread Stout (Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.)
	Appearance: 3.5 Aroma: 4.0 Palate: 3.0 Taste: 3.5 Overall: 3.5	"This isn't the first beer of its kind, but the outstanding Gingerbread Stout lives up to its tagline of being 'Christmas in a bottle' with aplomb. Cheers!"

2nd Beer of the Show: Imperial Court Stout (Mustang Brewing Co.)
	Appearance: 3.5 Aroma: 4.0 Palate: 4.0 Taste: 4.0 Overall: 4.0	"Like a great raspberry lambic mixed expertly with an imperial stout, this Oklahoma beauty is a perfect cigar beer. Na zdorovje!"

Featured Tracks: JJ Hrubovcak – Nutcracker; Twisted Sister – Out on the Streets; Dokken – Santa Clause Is Coming to Town; Rush – The Spirit of Radio; The Haunted – Under the Surface; Iron Maiden – Killers

Genghis’ Kisses List: DGM – Trust; Niacin – Krush; In The Silence – Ever closer; Extrema – The Distance; Scale the Summit – Odyssey; Tesseract – Of Mind -  Nocturne; Battlecross – Flesh and Bone; Havok – I am the State; Between the Buried and Me – Astral Body; Toxic Holocast – Awaken the Serpent; Prospekt – Dissident Priests; Onslaught – 66 Fuckin’ 6; Stryper – Jesus is Just Alright; Lalu – Greed; Almah – In My Sleep; Benedictum – Die to Love You

Ragman’s Kisses List: Dreamshade – Photographs; Mutiny Within – Never; Saxon – Guardians of the Tomb; Pretty Maids – To Fool a Nation; Kiko Loureiro – Reflective; Falling In Reverse – Bad Girls Club; Soilwork – The Living Infinite 2; Omnium Gatherum – New Dynamic; Coldspell – Life Has Just Begun; Asking Alexandria – Until the End; James LaBrie – Slight of Hand; Stratovarius – One Must Fall

Ragman’s Top Solos of the year: Stratovarius – Castles in the Air; Kiko Loureiro – The Hymn; Ethan Brosh – Space Invaders; Omnium Gatherum – Living in Me

Genghis’ Top Solos of the year: DGM – Chaos; Scale the Summit – The Olive Tree; Prospekt – Shroud; Dream Theater – Behind the Veil

- Ragman was exhausted after mixing this one...

Podcast #168: Tidings

Thunder Tribe - War Chant

It's always nice to get some variety on an album, but Thunder Tribe may need to cut back on the influences a bit.The thing about the retro craze is that most of it is fashioned after the grooves of the 70s, not so much with the 80s and 90s. And I'm not saying that this sort of music has no ideas of its own or anything, I'm simply trying to give you a feel for the sound of Kentucky's Thunder Tribe. But let me be more specific...

The music on their debut album has many different sounds in terms of influences - maybe too many, but I'll get to that. Tracks like Echoes of a New Day has a Pink Floydish intro that melds into something more melodic in the vein of Extreme mixed with Enuff Z'Nuff followed by a more traditional metal sound a la Savatage. But on cuts like the title track, and the Black Velvet-inspired Above The Blue, the Kentuckians give way to a more Southern style (and effective) metal groove that fits the Native American vibe you get looking at the album cover. And then you get a track like Believe with its NWOBHM feel that brings to mind classic Judas Priest. Ultimately, this is either something great or it collapses under the weight of its influences as a single cohesive album depending on your tastes.

The Bottom Line: Personally, I dig War Chant for the songs, but I think that if Thunder Tribe wants to have a shot at success, they need to sharpen their musical focus. They've got the goods, they just need the direction. All in all, an impressive debut.

- Genghis will keep an eye out for this band's stuff...