Holy Knights - Between Daylight and Pain

Haven't heard some really great power metal in a while. Luckily Holy Knights came along from Italy to kick my fat ass.It's a testament to the talents of those involved that Sicilian power metalllers Holy Knights was able to put out their follow-up album to 2002's Gate Through The Past in spite of the inner turmoil the band has endured - something that delayed their sophomore effort for so long - in the last ten years. And I say this because 2012's Between Daylight and Pain is just fucking awesome. Sounding kind of like a cross between Symphony X and Angra, Holy Knights knows how to craft epic songs with everything you'd expect from the genre. Keyboardist/vocalist Dario Di Matteo sounds great, reminding me of the powerful voice of André Matos (Angra), while guitarist/bassist Simone Campione shreds all over the place, backed by the rhythm of Claudio Florio's thunderous drums. It's amazing that just 3 guys make music that sounds like a band twice this size.

There's a slight progressive element to it all, and a fair bit of orchestration that belies their expected Italian influence. Be warned, this is classic power metal, so if you're not prepared for the bombastic nature of the genre, you may be turned off. But while Rags is more the power metal guy between the two of us, I can easily get caught up in the energy of it all; the galloping rhythms, the fiery shredding of the abundant keyboard/guitar solos, the balls-out quasi-operatic wailing - it's all here, man. And it kicks ass.

The Bottom Line: Power metal fans (and Holy Knights fans especially) rejoice, for thy deliverance hath come. Holy Knights is here to rock you in a sonic maelstrom, and you're gonna love every minute of it.

Tracks to Air Jam to Until Your Hands Cramp: Mistery, 11 September, Awake

- Genghis broke out into a sweat jamming to this album...

Mares of Thrace - The Pilgrimage

If you still don't believe that there're chicks that can crank out heavy tunes as well as dudes. Check out Mares of Thrace.I had never heard of noise-doom duo Mares of Thrace until I received their new album for review. But according to the press release, their debut album The Moulting apparently made many Metal Album of 2011 lists in their native Canada. And while I have a hard time enjoying the more edgy doom metal stylings, this dynamic duo knows how to make a heavy groove sound good.

The whole shebang is held together by Thérèse Lanz (guitar/vocals) and Stefani MacKichan (drums), two chicks you would walk past on the street and probably never realize they can totally rock the shit out of a stage. If you require proof, check some of their impressive videos on YouTube to get a sense of the tightly wound mayhem they unleash on their audience. You'd find chunks of the Pussycat Dolls in their stools. And it's not that I don't dig doom metal, it's just that sometimes it's just too heavy (especially with the Angela Gossow-like screaming), and I find myself enjoying the more laid back moments, as on The Three-Legged Courtesan... or the opening to The Goat Thief. Still, there are some really great moments on this album that take me back to high school when I would have given my left nut to be in a band like this.

The Bottom Line: You know that indefinable quality of rock and roll that makes it so cool and alluring when you're young (where you just think "this is...bad-ass!")? Well these chicks radiate that with music that's raw but tight. You can't fuck with this groove!

Tracks to Make You Wanna Get Your Mind Right: The Goat Thief, The Three-Legged Courtesan..., ...and the Bird Surgeon

- Genghis can hardly believe that two quiet-looking chicks can rock this hard...

Trixter - New Audio Machine

It has been 20 years since Trixter have put out any new music.  Trixter is one of those one hit wonders, that could have been more, had it not been for their timing.  They came out right before the grunge implosion, and had some success, but by the time their 2nd CD Hear! came out, it was all over.  It was ashame, because I think Hear! was stronger than their debut.  Fast forward 20 years, and the band is back with New Audio Machine.  This is the first new material we have had from the band in awhile, so it will be interesting to see/hear how well they did.

New Audio Machine is Trxiter in the new millennium and sounding a little more mature and a tad more modern, which is what you would expect.  The CD starts off strong with the catchy as hell Drag Me Down.  It starts off acoustic, before kicking in with a killer groove.  As I mentioned before it has a catchy melody and chorus that will etch itself into your memory.  The next track Get On It, keeps the momentum going and rocks you just as hard, but after that the CD starts to drag a little.  There are some okay tunes, but nothing that grabs you.  It wasn't until the 5th track Live For the Day, that my ears perked up again.  It is a solid power ballad from the band, that'll bring a tear to your eye.  The rest of the disc was kind of a hit and miss.  Not a great CD, but not bad one either.  I think this one will grow on me in time.

Bottom Line:  Trixter showing that they can still deliver the goods.  Not their best effort, but definitely something to build on, in the event that there is another.  For fans of melodic hard rock.

Standout Tracks:  Drag Me Down, Get On It, Tattoos and Misery and The Coolest Thing.

-Ragman was hoping for a little more from this one.

Sophicide - Perdition of the Sublime

Hard to believe the mastermind behind this one man show is only 22, but this is some pretty good (and heavy) stuff.One of the dangers of being a music reviewer/critic/pundit - even if it's not in a professional sense (i.e. a trained person getting paid for their skills) - is that there can be a temptation to pigeonhole the artists you listen to. I don't think it can be helped that humans make sense of their world by comparing what they perceive to what they know, it's one of our strengths that we recognize patterns so readily. So when I started listening to Sophicide's debut album Perdition of the Sublime, my brain saw the grandiloquent title, heard the machine gun blast beats, the cookie monster vocals and thought "Technical metal? Meh. Does the world really need another atonal, 300bpm, wall of sound that's too clever for its own good (and makes my teeth hurt)?"

Well, I was wrong.

What began as a one man project a couple of years ago by musician Adam Laszlo (who was only 19 at the time) has since grown into a fully realized album that is able to stand shoulder to shoulder with material from the likes of Allegaeon, The Faceless and The Red Chord. It's not clear who does what with regards to the music as the only information I can find says that Adam is the vocalist and that Sebastian Bracht handles guitars. But, regardless, this is some well crafted music that was written, recorded and mastered apparently at Laszlo's home studio which is equally amazing as the production on this brutal CD is on par with anything I've heard in the genre.

The Bottom Line: Touted as a one man operation, Sophicide is a buzzworthy new name in the field of technical death metal and deserves a place in the collection of fans of the genre. Here's hoping we hear more from this German wunderkind soon. 

Tracks to Risk Shattering Your Car's Windows to: Of Lust and Vengeance, Freedom of Mind, & Folie Á Deux

- Genghis is suitably impressed, but still wondering who played what on this album...

The Story of Rock 'N' Roll Comics

The Story of Rock N Roll Comics is a documentary about Todd Loren, who was the publisher/founder of Rock N Roll and Revolution Comics.  Todd's idea was to do comics about rock bands and kind of exploit their antics in print.  The Comics featured about every hard rock band you could imagine, from Pink Floyd to Metallica, he covered the gamut.  Todd came under fire by many of the artists, and was sued in many instances, but came out on top in a landmark First Amendment case; Unfortunately Todd didn't live long enough to reap the benefits of the decision, because he was brutally murdered shortly thereafter.

The DVD was interesting, which featured some archival footage of Todd as well as interviews with many of his co-workers.  They were also able to grab Alice Cooper, who was okay with publication, to make a cameo.  Many of the artists were pissed that Todd was putting out these comics, but some of them got it, and actually partnered up with the company like Kiss (Gene Simmons specifically).  The DVD was interesting, but went on a little too long for me.  It was interesting to hear how it all came together, but after awhile it started to drag.

Bottom Line: If you dig hard rock and comics, this might appeal to you.  Also, if you dig a murder mystery, you might be intrigued as well.  Had this one been about 20min shorter, it would have been a home run.

-Ragman found the candlestick in the coat room.