Tag Archives: heavy metal

(review) Axel Rudi Pell – Lost XXIII (Steamhammer)

Axel Rudi Pell is a guitarist and a member of legendary German metal band Steeler. After he departed that band he formed this one, and who would say, this is a full length number twenty! Yes, twenty! Every two years this band treats us with a new full length and this opus contains ten songs, two being intro and outro. This is true metal with melody, steel, energy and up tempo, musicianship of the guys in this band along with Axel is superb, with Bobby Rondinelli(ex Warlock, ex Black Sabbath, ex Doro, ex Rainbow…) on drums, Ferdy Doernberg(ex Therion, ex Freedom Call…) on keyboards, Volker Krawczak who also played in Steeler on bass and Johnny Gioeli (Eridan among other bands/projects) on vocals creating eighties old school heavy metal for new century and decade with energy, hard rock stamina, metal gloves and heartfelt melodies. No Compromise, Survive, Down on the Streets are street metal anthems and also there is a ballad jewel on this one in shape of longer and atmospheric Gone with the Wind, and it only reminds me that metal ballads are only really great ballads. This album is a great album by these German veterans.

7,5/10

Norwegian metal band PERFECT NME released new single/video for ‘Tripwire’!

‘Tripwire’ is the second stand-alone single from ‘PERFECT NME’, following 2021 full length album ‘Remains to be seen’.

The song has all the trademarks of a PERFECT NME song : Heavy riffs, a healthy blend of intense and organic, a large chorus – all delivered within a diverse musical framework.

Lyrically, it deals with the inevitability of change, of trying to move on and the scars it can leave us with.

PERFECT NME are currently hard at work on the follow up to their debut album. More details to come!

Biography

After years spent carefully honing their sound and live performances, Perfect NME have proved themselves a force to be reckoned with. Their debut album «Remains to be Seen» was released to critical acclaim and helped pave the way forward. Hard grooves, atmosphere, blistering instrumental work, aggression and melody are the keywords. Born from a desire to transcend more tradtional metal genres, Perfect Nme first saw the light of day in 2014. From the start the members’ diverse musical backgrounds helped sow the seeds to create something unique, and with a conscious view to moulding these various influences into a new kind of monster, incorporating elements of modern metal, thrash, in-your-face beats and big choruses, perfect nme have managed to forge a sound identifiable and relevant, while staying true to their musical inspirations. 7 years on, and the band have seen two ep’s and a full album all released to great reviews; 2014’s self-titled “Perfect NME”, 2015’s “Monument”, and the debut album «Remains to be Seen», released via Wormholedeath records. The band have played numerous gigs up and down the length of Norway, both as support for larger acts and as headliner, earning them a reputation as a solid live band and attracting a large support base. They have been frequently featured in the press and have recieved radioplay rotation. The band partnered with Wormholedeath records for the release and worldwide distribution of their debut album “Remains to be Seen”. The album, pre-produced at Ronnie Le’tekrø’s (tnt) studio captures the essence of the band and its vision, and also includes the song «legion» with special guest vocals by Bjørn Strid (Soilwork, The Night Flight Orchestra).
Thematic at its core, «Remains to be Seen» covers much musical ground, yet remains a cohesive metal experience, while lyrically exploring the concept of loss and its lingering influence on the present. The band is currently working on the follow up album, and are also set to release several singles in the near future.
With the release of «Remains to be Seen», and with the follow up album in the works, Perfect NME are poised to take their brand of metal to a wider audience, both at home and abroad, and have set their sights firmly on the future.

PERFECT NME are:
Colin Emery – vocals
Eirik Jønnum grimnes – guitars
Terje Graven – guitars
Ronny Syvertsen – bass
Ravn Hansen- drums

(review) Wasteland Viper – Dead Men Tell No Tales (Wormholedeath)

Wasteland Viper is a band from Holland and they recently released their new full length opus via Wormholedeath worldwide. This new album contains ten songs and I can say with certainty that this is a strong release and full of energy head on record with no holds barred. Wasteland Viper play a mixture of hardcore punk, heavy metal and hard rock with clean, melodic, yet not cheesy vocals that fit so great in the whole structure of the band. While listening to this record you can just feel the energy flowing through your body and you catch yourself humming along and singing to the lyrics. From fast Motorhead/hardcore punk of Overdrive, more hard rock oriented Black Snow, pure heavy metal blooded title song, to surprise in the almost doo wop oriented Different World with such superb lyrics and one of my personal favorites on this opus, this album is varied and doesn´t have one filler song or one song that will not make you smile with satisfaction and joy with discovering another great band in the vast sea that we call the underground scene.

8,5/10