Rambling Man's Reviews

  Release Date: May 5th                            Record Label: Napalm Records The five enchantresses of Burning Witches return with a call to arms for old-school metal. The Dark Tower  is a varied album with plenty of riffs and 1980s-fused heavy metal. Produced by Destruction Frontman Schmier, The ladies' fifth studio effort will be released this Friday, May 5th via Napalm Records. Led by the colossal vocals of Laura Guldemond, the album focuses on the bone-chilling tales of ghouls, witches and monsters. The album begins with an opening monologue 'Rise of Darkness' to set the scene for a full-out assault of the earlobes. The bone-shattering riffs of 'Unleash The Beast' whets the appetites with guest guitarist Courtney Cox (Not Monica from Friends!) linking up with regular guitarist Romana Kalkhul to do battle with a two-pronged attack. The infectious 'Renegade' and 'Evil Witch' deliver enough muscula...

  UK Post Grunge Newcomers Coastal Fire Department " get a kick out being an outsider". The theme of their latest LP,  Outsiders,  released via L'islet Records. The quartet was formed a decade ago in Guernsey Since then, Coastal Fire Department has gained a reputation for continually evolving its sound. Outsiders  is a follow-up to 2021's debut album,  Connected, which   sees the band create a guitar-driven record with lyrical content based on social observations and stories. The album's swirling guitars, angular vocals and tongue-in-cheek perspective on life are expected to win them over a new following. Recorded by QOTSA producer Kelli Scott, the aggressive opening riff to 'What I Do' is a slab of 2000's post-grunge with cascading vocal melodies and a singer in deep reflection. Next is the emotive 'Cry Your Heart Out', a sound reflective of radio-friendly rock acts like Editors. CFD aim to write tracks that appeal to the members of society ...

Record Label: Sun Records Release Date: April 21st Legendary singer/songwriter Ian Hunter has been a household name for an incredible seven decades, since his humble beginnings with Mott the Hoople . Defiance: Part One is the first of two releases featuring a star-studded lineup, due for release this Friday, April 21st via Sun Records. Ian Hunter brings all the talent to help tell his stories in the best way. Produced by longtime collaborator Andy York, the album features stars as diverse as Billy F Gibbons (ZZ Top), Slash (Guns 'N' Roses), Todd Rundgren and the late Jeff Beck. Hunter recorded the album in 2020 during the lockdown in Hunter's Connecticut Basement with the help of a computer, V5 Piano and 'A very small keyboard'. The album begins with the ferocious guitar leads of Slash and grooves of Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo on 'Defiance' Trujillo borrowed the fretless bass used by the late Jaco Pistorius on Hunter's second release, 1975...

  Release Date: April 14th        Record Label: Fron s.r.l The regular reader of these pages can handle the tale of Mr  Tracii Guns  and  Guns 'N' Roses:  We all know how that played out. Today, Mr Guns is back with his  LA Gun s, particularly  Black Diamonds,  due out this Friday (April 14th) via  Frontiers Music s.r.l. Produced by the man (Tracii Guns) himself , Black Diamonds  is the band's fourth album since Guns formed the band in 1988.  The band have had their well-documented issues but has rekindled the original energy since Guns and Vocalist Phil Lewis reformed the band in 2017. The album was recorded last year, and the 11 tracks show significant 1970's influences from  Led Zeppelin,   and, more recently,  Guns and Rose s,  Alice Cooper. The album opens with the post-grunge vibes of 'Betray You', Lewis croons over distorted, psychedelic riffs. Next is the hook-laden grooves of 'Wr...

  Texan Progressive rock act Little King celebrates 25 years of their existence with a tongue-in-cheek look back over those years. 'Silver Tongue' is a compilation of the band's work with references to previous album titles referenced throughout the track. Formed in 1996 by guitarist/singer/songwriter Ryan Rosoff, he named the band after a Gaelic translation of his name. The band have released five LPs and two EPs to date. The track mixes hard rock, blues and metal with progressive elements to create a fun track. The distinctive sound of a dirty blues riff gets the listeners on their feet. The song builds tempo with a hook-laden chorus before it transitions into more melodic grooves. The darker grooves slow the tempo before the bridge explodes into ominous vocal melodies. 'Silver Tongue' is a raucous slice of rock with meaty riffs and enough twists to send the listener off the scent. Words by Anselm Anderson Follow this link  here  to keep updated with all the late...