Distilling three decades worth of hard rock history into a sound that still
comes off as unique is no mean feat, but Boulder pull it off. These
guys have an obvious love for heavy metal in all its various forms.
Here and there you’ll hear bits of Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest,
AC/DC, and lots of Motorhead, but delivered with a more contemporary attack.
Opening with the high octane rocker “Krank it Up” the album never lets up
until the last note fades from your speakers. The band takes a
minimalist approach to lyrics, so as to save more room for self indulgent
(in a good way) solos and killer guitar harmonies. What lyrics there
are deal with such weighty topics as rockin’ out and the merits of Asian
chicks (the sensitive ballad “Yellow Fever”). No serious social commentary
or self conscious whining here, just a solid slab of heavy fucking metal.
(Bob Ignizio)
Danzig – Dangzig 777: I, Luciferi
(Spitfire)
I had just about
given up on Danzig, but then he goes and makes an album like this one that
shows there’s some malignant life force left in him, yet. Glenn went off
the deep end for a while, and somehow thought it would be a good idea to
take one of the most distinctive voices in rock and filter it through
electronic effects until it was unrecognizable. Thankfully, on ‘I, Luciferi’
the industrial bug seems to be out of his system. “Black Mass”, “Liberskull”,
and the title track are my personal favorites, and to my ears anyway recall
Danzig’s previous group, Samhain, more than the bluesy riff-rock style of
Danzigs 1-4. There’s more filler than I would like, and the guitar work
isn’t on the level of original Danzig axeman John Christ, but this is a step
in the right direction. (BI)
Dio - Killing the Dragon (Spitfire)
Vocalist Ronnie James Dio has been at this rock 'n'
roll thing for a while now, so he's had his share of ups and downs. Despite
what I perceive as some flaws, I still think 'Killing the Dragon' qualifies
as one of the ups . The title track and "Along Comes a Spider" start
the album off with a nice one-two punch, and "Push" isn't bad either.
The riffs and the melodies are there, but the lyrics are often cliché.
Granted, Dio created many of those clichés, but does the world really need
another song called "Rock and Roll"?. All in all, however, a fairly
good Dio album.. (BI)
Down – Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow
(Elektra/Asylum)
Down’s first album ‘NOLA’ is considered a
classic by many, myself included. While a little shy of the greatness
displayed on that effort, ‘II’ still delivers the killer riffs, swampy
grooves and soulful vocals that make these guys stand out from the stoner
rock pack. There’s more of a blues influence on this album, the acoustic
“Where I’m Going” being the most extreme example. “Lysergic Funeral
Procession” and “Beautifully Depressed” lay melodic vocals over heavy rock
foundations, while rawer tracks like “The Man That Follows Hell” “Ghosts
Along the Mississippi” and “New Orleans is a Dying Whore” could have been at
home on the first album. “Stained Glass Cross” throws a satisfying
curveball with some sixties style organ and album closer “Landing on the
Mountains of Meggido” is similar to Zeppelin’s folkier moments. Some filler
towards the end throws off the pacing a little, but still a good effort.
(BI)
Distilling three decades worth of hard rock history into a sound that still
comes off as unique is no mean feat, but Boulder pull it off. These
guys have an obvious love for heavy metal in all its various forms.
Here and there you’ll hear bits of Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest,
AC/DC, and lots of Motorhead, but delivered with a more contemporary attack.
Opening with the high octane rocker “Krank it Up” the album never lets up
until the last note fades from your speakers. The band takes a
minimalist approach to lyrics, so as to save more room for self indulgent
(in a good way) solos and killer guitar harmonies. What lyrics there
are deal with such weighty topics as rockin’ out and the merits of Asian
chicks (the sensitive ballad “Yellow Fever”). No serious social commentary
or self conscious whining here, just a solid slab of heavy fucking metal.
(Bob Ignizio)
I had just about
given up on Danzig, but then he goes and makes an album like this one that
shows there’s some malignant life force left in him, yet. Glenn went off
the deep end for a while, and somehow thought it would be a good idea to
take one of the most distinctive voices in rock and filter it through
electronic effects until it was unrecognizable. Thankfully, on ‘I, Luciferi’
the industrial bug seems to be out of his system. “Black Mass”, “Liberskull”,
and the title track are my personal favorites, and to my ears anyway recall
Danzig’s previous group, Samhain, more than the bluesy riff-rock style of
Danzigs 1-4. There’s more filler than I would like, and the guitar work
isn’t on the level of original Danzig axeman John Christ, but this is a step
in the right direction. (BI)
Vocalist Ronnie James Dio has been at this rock 'n'
roll thing for a while now, so he's had his share of ups and downs. Despite
what I perceive as some flaws, I still think 'Killing the Dragon' qualifies
as one of the ups . The title track and "Along Comes a Spider" start
the album off with a nice one-two punch, and "Push" isn't bad either.
The riffs and the melodies are there, but the lyrics are often cliché.
Granted, Dio created many of those clichés, but does the world really need
another song called "Rock and Roll"?. All in all, however, a fairly
good Dio album.. (BI)
Down’s first album ‘NOLA’ is considered a
classic by many, myself included. While a little shy of the greatness
displayed on that effort, ‘II’ still delivers the killer riffs, swampy
grooves and soulful vocals that make these guys stand out from the stoner
rock pack. There’s more of a blues influence on this album, the acoustic
“Where I’m Going” being the most extreme example. “Lysergic Funeral
Procession” and “Beautifully Depressed” lay melodic vocals over heavy rock
foundations, while rawer tracks like “The Man That Follows Hell” “Ghosts
Along the Mississippi” and “New Orleans is a Dying Whore” could have been at
home on the first album. “Stained Glass Cross” throws a satisfying
curveball with some sixties style organ and album closer “Landing on the
Mountains of Meggido” is similar to Zeppelin’s folkier moments. Some filler
towards the end throws off the pacing a little, but still a good effort.
(BI)