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.

Extreme Metal Retardation

Well Bill Zebub is at it again, with the release of his follow up to Metal Retardation, called Extreme Metal Retardation.  Extreme Metal Retardation picks up where the last film left off.  The DVD is a compilation of interviews that Zebub and his crew did with extreme, black and death metal bands.  Imagine a half hearted documentary of interviews with extreme metal bands. 

Bands featured range from Enslaved to Dimmu Borgir.  The point of these DVD's is not to take themselves too seriously.  Many of the questions asked, in this DVD, are just off the wall, to see what kind of reaction they can get from the artist.  It is fun to see the artist take these questions in stride and have fun with the Zebub crew.  There is also a long form interview with King Diamond, which made the DVD for me.  If that ain't enough, this DVD also includes the cult classic Metalheads.  For fans of extreme death metal bands.

Bottom Line: Get to know your favorite extreme metal band, better than you ever thought you would.  Another solid Bill Zebub feature exposing the lighter side of these extreme bands.

-Ragman got a kick out of this one.

Hotel Diablo - The Return to Psycho California

Hotel Diablo is one of those bands that kicks your ass from the first note, and their debut The Return to Psycho California is a CD that will stay in the rotation for awhile.  This band is made up of members from Quiet Riot and WASP, but don't think that is what you're going to get.  Their sound is a mix of alt rock and melodic hard rock.   The songs are well structured and are catchy as hell.  Hook-laden rock at it's best. 

It will be a travesty if songs like Bury You and What You do to Me don't get airplay.  Both songs are very catchy and have that hit factor.  The whole CD flows well and contains a nice variety.  If you're looking for a CD full of solid tunes, then you've found it.  If I had one complaint about this CD it would be that the production is a little flat.  Not sure why the band chose Gilby Clarke to produce, didn't think he could produce, and still don't; Thank goodness the songs are so strong, because you'll be able to overlook it.  Solid CD from start to finish.  Go get it!  

Bottom Line: One of the best bands I have heard in a long time.  Great melodic hard rock with an alt edge.

Standout Tracks: Bury You, What You Do to Me, All These Years and Wicked Lines.

-Ragman wanted this one for CD of the month, but Genghis beat him to it. DOH!

Helstar - 30 Years of Hell

It is hard to believe that Helstar has been around 30 years.  It seems like just yesterday, when me and the crew were banging our heads at Cardi's, to our home town heroes.  Helstar has just released their performance from the 30th anniversary show, filmed in their hometown of Houston, called 30 years of Hell.  It is aptly titled considering the Houston metal scene.  Houston's scene was descent back in the day, but never emerged as a scene to rival either coast.  Helstar luckily emerged from the scene and made a name for themselves; hence the longevity of the band.

30 Years of Hell is a nice package, containing a DVD along with 2 CD's of this historic performance.  The DVD was shot with multiple cameras and is on film rather than video.  That band looks different than they did 30 years ago, but the important thing is, that the sound was not affected.  Rivera and Co. sound as good as they did back in the day.  The audio on the DVD as well as the CD's, is spot on.  The band were on top of their game that night, and this package is a testament to how good they are.  The set list is comprised of material spanning their career.  Nice set list, but was scratching my head with the omission of Dracula's Castle.  I'm just saying. 

Bottom Line: Metal Veterans proving they can still do it live.  For those of you that missed Helstar bakc in the day, this is a great way to aquaint yourself with one of the more underated thrash acts of the 80'/90's.

-Ragman remembers the time he could not lift his head, after attending a Helstar show back in the day.  Talk about being in pain....Ughhh!!!

Re-Machined - A Tribute to Deep Purple's Machine Head

The year 2012, marks the 40th anniversary of the legendary Deep Purple record Machine Head and to pay tribute, Eagle Rock Entertainment has recently released a tribute record called Re-Machined.  Re-Machined brings together Hard Rock's elite, to pay tribute to this classic rock gem.  Unlike many tribute records, this one features many "A" list acts from the genre, like Metallica and Iron Maiden.

The highpoints of the record, were Black Label Society's cover of Pictures of Home as well as anything Glenn Hughes was involved in.  Hughes lent his monster vocals to Highway Star and Maybe I'm a Leo.  Some of the tracks fall a little flat like Chickenfoot's live version of Highway Star as well as The Flaming Lips version of Smoke on the Water, but other than that, the album was a good listen. You never know how these tributes CD's will come out, because you don't know if it will be karaoke or a new interpretation of classic.  There are some interpretations that hit the mark, but there are some, that come off a little stale.  All in all a fun tribute record.

Bottom Line: Some A-listers covering a legendary record.  Some hits and some misses, but still fun to listen to.  A nice tribute, but not strong enough to shelve the original.

Standout Tracks: Pictures of Home, Maybe I'm a Leo, Space Truckin' and Smoke on the Water (Santana version)

-Ragman was hoping for more.