A Whisper In The Noise - To Forget

This Minneapolis-based alt rock duo sound more like they should be from Washington, circa 1990...Art rock implies a lot of things that are kind of antithetical to most heavy metal bands, leaving out the more progressive of the lot. But it's not all bad haircuts and self-loathing nihilism.

Of course, I say this as the guy that mostly ignores lyrics in favor of the musical vibe at hand; and that natural inclination is probably bolstered by my recent reading of Daniel J. Levitin's This Is Your Brain On Music (check it out, it's brilliant). And in the case of A Whisper In The Noise (AWITN), they actually make it pretty easy to ignore the lyrics with their ethereal crooning so heavily processed; it's like the soundtrack to a seance.

On the plus side though is the music itself. While nothing at all like the heavier stuff I tend to listen to, AWITN makes some very compelling and moody music. The beats sometimes remind me of Angelo Badalamenti's Twin Peaks soundtrack work in their dreamy, haunted retro-hipness.

The Bottom Line: Imagine the setting of a Stephen King novel with its tarnished nostalgia against the backdrop of a forgotten, cold, and windy Northeastern town; a once beautiful and familiar sight now mired in fear and regret. This is the soundtrack.

Tracks to Make You Cry for Laura Palmer: Black Shroud, Mayas Song, Your Hand

- Genghis is trying to remember some really good ghost stories now...

The Doors - Live at the Bowl '68

It goes without saying that The Doors were the blue print for most of the decadent bands from the 70's and 80's.  These guys pushed the envelope every time that they hit the stage.  The band lived hard, but were able to get it together for live performances, at least some of the time.  One of their stronger performances was captured at the Hollywood Bowl in 1968.   This film footage from Live at the Bowl '68,  has been released over the years, but was just recently, given the royal treatment.  Thanks to the folks at Eagle Rock Entertainment, the show, for the first time, has been restored in its entirety, and was recently released on Bluray.

The audio and video for Live at the Bowl '68 has been restored and remastered, and looks amazing.  Due to issues back in the day, previous releases didn't include Hello I Love You orThe WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat).  This Bluray shows the band on top of their game even though Morrison looks incoherent at times.  The video of the Bluray looks clear and smooth.  The audio is mixed well too.  If the show ain't enough, then there is more!  Check out the bonus material of some rare performance footage of the band; Which includes performances from The Smothers Brothers Show and The Jonathan Winters Show.  Good stuff.  All in all, an enjoyable watch.  Classic rock lovers will froth at the mouth for this one.

Bottom Line: A solid performance from an iconic band.  A great representation of how good these guys were.  Too bad they let substance abuse get in the way.

-Ragman is feeling psychedelic.

Dio - The Very Beast of Vol. 2

The Dio releases still keep coming, even after the legend passed just over 2 years ago.  The latest is a best of, release called The Very Beast of Vol. 2.  The first best of came out in 2000 and covered the Vivian Campbell years, for the most part.  This second volume, covers the best tracks from the latter period of the band.  The cool thing about this compilation is that you get 3 bonus tracks.  The bonus tracks included are: Electra (Magica 2), Metal Will Never Die (David Rock Feinstein) and The Prisoner of Paradise (Master of the Moon).

Beast of Vol. 2 is a nice representation of the post Vivian Campbell era.  (Lets be honest, that is the era that Dio had his most success, as a solo artist.)  This compilation will hopefully open the ears of those that didn't get past Sacred Heart.  The work Dio did with guitar phenom Doug Aldrich on Killing the Dragon was solid, as well as the darker period with Tracy G.  These are great tunes that need to be spotlighted and heard.  I was especially impressed with the inclusion of the live version of Hunter of the Heart from the Tracy G era.  This track is from the very rare live record they did called Inferno - Last in Live. (If you can get your hands on a copy, I highly advise it, because it is awesome). A very nice mix of tunes from some of the lesser known albums from the great one.  Essential for Dio fans.

Bottom Line:  A great compilation of tracks from Dio's lesser know material. 

Standout Tracks: Hunter of the Heart (Live), As Long As It's Not About Love, Metal Will Never Die, One More for the Road and Killing the Dragon.

-Ragman is glad that Tracy is finally acknowledged.  It is about time, damn it!

U.D.O. - Celebrator

It is hard to believe that 25 years has passed, since Udo Dirkschneider's first departure from Accept.  It was a bold move, at the time, but Dikschneider was determined to keep rocking and formed his solo band U.D.O.  Even though I miss Udo in Accept, I can't deny that the man has delivered with his solo band.  To celebrate, U.D.O. has recently released a 2 CD set of out takes, remixes and rare tracks from his solo career.   The set is titled Celebrator.  If you're a U.D.O. fanatic, then you may have alot of the bonus tracks on this CD, so as a bonus, he has also included three unreleased tracks: Tallyman, The Silencer and the rocking Artificialized. 

For the most part U.D.O. releases are solid, but you can always count on a few clunkers, fortunately for this compilation, it is mainly rockers.  This is a nice set, especially if you don't have most of the bonus material.  I have to say, the piano version of Balls to the Wall came off as a novelty, and was cute the first time, but doubt it will get played again.  The highlight of the set for me, was the Udo/Raven cover of Born to be Wild (Steppenwolf).  I bought this one a 12" single back in the day, and to my knowledge this is its first release on CD.  Other interesting tracks include a cover of Metal Gods (Judas Priest) as well as the inclusion of the XTC track which is technically a cover of his former band, when he was out.  Interesting.  A nice package for metal fans.

Bottom Line:  U.D.O. feeding us some earcandy before his next release.  A nice compilation of rare tracks, which is essential for any metal collection. 

Standout Tracks: Born to Be Wild, Artificialized, Free or Rebellion and Streets of Sin.

-Ragman is hoping the next U.D.O. CD rocks like this one.

Stratovarius - Under Flaming Winter Skies

To honor the departure of long-time drummer Jorg Michael, Stratovarius went on a 5 date farewell tour, to commemorate his time in the band.  The end result of this tour is the cool new live release called Under Flaming Winter Skies.   Under Flaming Winter Skies is a double CD release, with a DVD sold separately.  The band sound great and re-establish themselves at the top of the power metal heap.  The band were on fire for these recordings, and new guitarist Matias Kupiainen steals much of the spotlight with his monstorous ripping.  Matias has found his way out from the shadow of former guitarist/founder Timo Tolki and truly shines on this release. 

The CD is packed full of hits from the band's stellar catalog.  There is a nice representation of songs from every era of the band.  It is cool to hear the older songs performed with this current line up.  There are also a couple of interesting covers thrown in as well, like Behind Blue Eyes (The Who) and Burn (Deep Pruple) All of the musicians are on top of their game and perform masterfully.  My only critique is that the mix is off at times.  In several instances, Kotipelto's vocals are drowned out by the other instruments.  This package is the perfect send off for their long time drummer.  All in all a solid package.  I have to say though, if you get the CD, you must also get the DVD, because the visual is rocking as well.

Bottom Line: Stratovarius rocking it, better than they have in awhile.  The band are on top of their game and seem to be rejuvenated.

-Ragman can't wait for the next release, it should be a killer.