Lady Beast II Cooks Up A Delicious NWOBHM Feast

Remember the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) movement that began in the late 70's/early 80's with bands such as Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Judas Priest, Saxon and many
more? Many of the bands that fall into this sub-genre or category are securely placed among my all time favorites, and pretty much any band playing that style is something that I enjoy. Well, I'm pleased to announce that classic formula NWOBHM in all it's headbanging glory is alive and well in Pittsburg! Wait....Pittsburg? That's not in the UK! But yes, that's right, there is a group of young folks (in their twenties at my best guess) from Pittsburg, USA that are serving up huge heaping steaming bowlfuls of blistering metal. The name of this savior of NWOBHM comes in the form of Lady Beast. In fact, if one did not know one might venture to say that they originated during the NWOBHM period.

The beginnings of Lady Beast can be traced back to 2008/9, but it wasn't until 2011/12 that the lineup was solidified with frontwoman Deborah Levine, drummer Adam Ramage, bassist Greg Colaizzi and the twin axe assault of Tommy Kinnett and Chris "Twiz" Tritschler. Somehow the band's (originally) self-released and titled debut album found its way into my extensive musical library and has been spun quite regularly in the past couple of years. The old school throwback to the NWOBHM that oozes throughout Lady Beast nods to some of the greats mentioned above, blending together the best elements of the era. Finding out (through some internet research) that the album actually contains compositions written by four different guitarists was quite surprising and while the album is certainly not perfect, it succeeds on every level!

So, when Lady Beast was the fifth and final band to be announced as appearing at the M-Pre-Party (prelude and party starter to the M3 Festival in Baltimore) on April 30, 2015 I was instantly pumped. 2014 had been my first M3 Festival (including M-Pre Party), instantly creating a new addiction and I was ready to experience it all over again in 2015, but this was just like the sugary frosted icing on the cake. I re-visited said debut record and still continue to do so as a portion of my gym workout playlist. This Lady Beast live set promises to be one of the clear highlights of the three-day rock fest for me.

Does it get any better than that?...Well, actually yes it does! Lady Beast are unleashing their sophomore effort on March 27 with a live show release party at Cativo in Pittsburgh on March 28, 2015. I wonder if I can slip away from work? (searches flights in another internet window as he types this)

In contacting the band frontwoman, Deborah Levine, she was more than kind enough to forward me the album's MP3 tracks for the purpose of this review and all I can say is "Holy crap!". This album, while not overly inventively titled (Lady Beast II), absolutely kicks ass! Holding true to the NWOBHM style and could have easily fit in with the bigger guns of the era. Lady Beast II is even stronger, more cohesive and polished than the debut and it's easy to see how the solidified lineup and maturity in the band along with all members contributing cohesively to the process have worked wonders.

The album opens with "Heavy Metal Destiny" for which the band issued an advance YouTube video via their Facebook page in January, 2015 (included below). The track starts out ominously before a nice little riff begins surging it forward as it gives off an Iron Maiden style of epicness. An awesome opener to Lady Beast II! "We Are The Witches" is the next selection exhibiting a catchy chorus to it. With Levine's vocal style, which is not as high-pitched or shrill as some, she's more Doro-ish in her delivery and that's a lot of what comes through to me on this track. The whole band shines on "Bind The Runes" with its tempo changing chorus, driving riff, meaty basslines and machine-gun drumming. "Caged Fury" lyrically deals with
 inner anger issues I think, a message to those finding themselves in that situation. Another thumping bassline from Colaizzi (who owns Cobra Cabana Records responsible for issuing Lady Beast II on vinyl) can be heard during "Heroes Of Our Time", another track waving the Maiden flag. In a little internet searching it appears that "The Frost Giant's Daughter" was actually released on YouTube in 2013 (link below) and is not a cover of The Sword's 2008 track of the same name. This one blazes along and is over far too quickly for me at just under three minutes. "Forrest Of The Impaled" seems to tell a macabre tale while "Lose To Win" is a straight out classic rocker. While it's more than a difficult chore to choose one track over the rest here for winner of the "Top of the Heap" accolade, if you held a gun to my head I'd have to go with the album's closer of "Banshee". It's grinding and abrasive, smashing through from start to finish in a catchy fist-pumping anthem. Sure hope that one makes the live set on April 30! The sadness that you feel when the record is over can easily be alleviated by doing as I do and hitting play all over again. After listening several times a day since receiving the album ten days before writing this review, I still haven't had enough! The Lady Beast simply roars and for optimum results I recommend playing at an ear-bleedingly loud volume!

All throughout Lady Beast II you can hear the influences or draw comparisons to some of these bands and players, for example at points Levine has a Doro style of delivery and some have even said an impressive resemblance to the late great Ronnie James Dio. There's also a little Halford mixed in there but at times she feels a little restrained. I would love to hear Deb let loose with a primal blood-curdling scream or two (and she does on "Banshee"), I can literally feel that power in her lungs! In any case, I say that Doro should rest comfortably knowing that there is a protegee out there to carry on her "Metal Queen" reign should she retire.

***Unfortunately, I have just discovered that after the album's release show guitarist Tommy Kinnett will be calling an end to his tenure with Lady Beast so he will not be performing at the M-Pre Party. Apparently the decision to leave in order to concentrate on his family life was an amicable one with no "bad blood" on either side. It is already announced that Lady Beast's original lead guitarist, Stephen Lauck, having recently moved back to Pittsburgh from California will be stepping in.***

Cheers,
The Meister

The Meister on Facebook / Meister on Twitter / Email

Lady Beast Bandcamp / Lady Beast on Facebook

Inferno Records Website / Cobra Cabana Records on Facebook

D-Toxin Productions Website (M-Pre Party) / M-Pre Party Facebook

Anticipation of M3 2015 / M3 2014 (Part #1) / M3 2014 (Part #2)

The Anticipation of The 2015 M3 Festival....ie: The Ramblings of The Meister!

Last year I was introduced to a new addiction thanks to some friends made through my years on the Monsters of Rock Cruise.  Why, of course, it's another music festival!  With the Monsters of Rock Cruise (MORC) and Sweden Rock Festival already in the cards and Firefest UK planned for later in the year I was somehow able to squeeze in (cashflow and workwise) my first M3 Festival in Maryland in 2014.  The M3 Festival began in 2009 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland on Saturday May 30 and spent 2009 and 2010 as a single day event until spreading it's wings to include Friday night and the addition of more acts to the bill.  All of the festival dates took place in May save 2010's in June and it seems to have settled in the earlier parts of May (first and second weeks of May for the last three events).  There's even a separately hosted pre-party event presented by D-Toxin Productions on Thursday night to get the mayhem kicked off just right.
What does M3 officially stand for?  I don't really know (or much care even...lol).  I've seen reports of Metal/Mayhem/May (but one was in June) or Metal/Mayhem/Merriweather or even Mostly/Middle-aged/Men, all of which are true, but I think I'll go with Meister's Metal Mayhem!

Several months ago a friend and I (who works at a competing website and had attended last year's event with me) began to speculate on the actual date for the 2015 M3 and we made a reservation at the Sheraton Hotel months in advance.  The Sheraton is the closest hotel to Merriwether Post Pavilion, where all bands stay and we were able to secure a room for not too much more than the mortgage deeds to both of our houses!  This year we wanted to be where the action is, now let's hope we guessed the date correctly!  We became members of the Facebook group M3 Rockers somewhere along the way.  The group is obviously based around the festival but contains lots of

The Meister with friends at M3 2014

discussion surrounding this style of music.  In fact, it's the most active, fun and informative group on Facebook (aside from the Decibel Geek page of course).  There are also several M3 performers past and present that are active members in the group!  I participated in a segment they offer on Mondays called "Meet Your Members" in which one member introduces themselves via a questionnaire.  I've attached my questionnaire and answers at the bottom of this ramble for anyone wanting to "Meet The Meister"!  The Facebook group is open to anyone to join (upon Admin approval) so check it out through the link at the bottom of the page and let 'em know The Meister from Decibel Geek sent ya!  As usually happens it seems a couple of the bands "accidentally" leaked their planned performances at the festival on various internet pages, creating some excited buzz over the social media platforms and for both of us as well.  Then with the "official lineup announcement" slated for unveiling on Monday January 5, 2015 an incredible amount of heightened speculations and buzz ensued when the full event roster was leaked to various websites a couple of days before.  With a confirmation arriving finally from M3, the leak was verified.

Some have (excitedly) said it is an awesome lineup.  Some have (bitterly even) trashed the roster.  For me personally, I feel that it is a very strong collection of artists, all the bands (well almost all) are awesome performers.  Unfortunately, however, I've seen all, but two of them before.  And not only seen them before but in many cases multiple times, several of which will occur again aboard MORC the very week before this 2015 event!  There's always some who don't like the choice of performers at a festival such as this and, realistically, I can list an easy ten bands that I would have rather seen make the cut.  But, I say to the complainers (of which there are far too many in this world in all facets of society)......don't go if you aren't thinking that the roster warrants the costs!  Yes, it's expensive for me to attend M3, with the flights and hotels and so forth but I'm going to have a great time with friends old and new (any time not at work is a definite plus, no?), meet new awesome people (many from the M3 Rockers group that I've only talked to on Facebook), drink a lot of sub-standard beer (well you can't  deny that Canada's beer is better!) and see and hear (again) some of the heroes from my youth with some of the songs that I grew up with.  Hell six of these bands even appear in my tattoo!

Meister supporting KiLLeR DWaRfS

Tickets are released for sale on Friday, January, 9, 2015 and we'll both be ready at our respective computers at the ring of the bell so to speak!

Personally, I can't wait for M3 how about you?  Hope to meet you there!  If you see this idiot running around the festival (see the photo to the right) say "Hi" and feel free buy him a beer!

My reviews of 2014's M3:
(M3 2014 (Part #1)) (M3 2014 (Part #2))

Cheers,
The Meister

(The Meister on Facebook) (Meister on Twitter)

(Decibel Geek Facebook) (M3 Rockers Facebook Group)

(M3 Website) (M3 Facebook)

M3 Rockerz “Meet Your Members” 12/15

#1-Where are you from? (Who are you/ Where do you come from? What do you wanna do with your life?)

“I Wanna Rock”!!!  I’m Rich (also known as “The Meister”) from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, a smaller town about an hour north of Toronto.  I’m 41 years old, single and work in the restaurant business (for more than 20 years now).  I was born in Newmarket and have lived in Toronto and the surrounding area all my life.   I’m a rocker through and through and music always, plays inside my head, often causing strange outbursts of singing (co-workers have basically learned to ignore me!)  I do not play any instruments but do own a bass that, dammit, one day I’ll finally get around to learning!  Previously when an ex-girlfriend repeatedly told me that I was tone deaf, I didn’t listen (just like a typical man, right?) and refused to believe her as I sang away to favourite songs.  I recently found her to be absolutely 100% correct as someone recorded me singing……I apologise to anyone in earshot at M3 as not only that, but I often drunkenly monotone hum the parts of a song where I don’t know the words.   I have a full sleeve tattoo depicting a guitar case “stickered” with the logos of about 30 bands that have meant something to me throughout my life.  I travel as much as possible, taking at least four rock trips a year (MORC, my first M3, Sweden Rock Festival and Firefest UK were last year’s adventures).  I’m a writer for The Decibel Geek website and have co-hosted the Decibel Geek podcast on several occasions.  So, as you can see, I really do wanna rock!

#2-What was your first concert?

My first concert was a “chaperoned by a friend’s dad” John Cougar Mellencamp event that I don’t really count due to the chaperoning.  My first real, “trek unsupervised to the big city”, concert was Alice Cooper on New Year’s Eve 1989 Trash Tour in Toronto (still have the concert tee although I’m a helluva lot fatter now and the white cotton is so paper thin from over washing that you could easily spit through it!)

#3-What was the best concert you’ve ever seen? (Be sure to say when/where and any other details you would like to share)

An extremely hard question to answer having seen so very many concerts and festivals…..I think I should narrow things down to best band’s performance as it’s not really fair to take MORC, M3 or Sweden Rock Festival as a single concert.  I’ll also consider things on a concert that I enjoyed most, not necessarily the best performance by said band.  Definitely Saxon’s Call to Arms tour in Toronto, KISS pre-Revenge album club tour in Toronto, Tora Tora’s 25^th Anniversary in Memphis and The Four Horsemen in Toronto in ‘94 are all contenders but I think I have to go with Tyketto’s first set aboard 2014’s MOR Cruise.  There was something magical about that band, that venue (Black & White Lounge on the MSC Divina), I can’t quite put my finger on it exactly.  I went into the set only because I was dragged by a friend simply because I could not get a good view of Tesla who were performing at the same time on the pool deck of the ship.  I knew some Tyketto music, but honestly did not overly take to them, their albums getting lost in my extensive collection.  When I saw them live……..I was actually moved to tears (I know, what a loser!).  The emotion, the magic, the band giving their all on that tiny little stage for us, maybe I was just drunk.  In any case I named them best show on the boat when I co-hosted The Decibel Geek Podcast’s MORC Memories wrap-up episode and will now expand that to best concert set I’ve ever seen.

#4-What’s your favourite memory evoked by the music of the 80’s?

This memory is probably more inspired by 70’s music, but it was the 80’s when I watched the TV show.  When I was a kid, my parents used to watch what was then re-runs of W.K.R.P. in Cincinnati and I quickly fell in love with the show, characters and especially Dr. Johnny Fever.  I was 10 or 11 and I knew right then what I wanted to be when I grew up….Dr. Johnny Fever.  It was that TV show that got me into music and I would often drag the family together in the evenings and host a DJ hour where I would play songs from my parent’s record collection.  Holidays were a special treat for me and always meant a larger audience with visiting family members.  As I grew older and discovered heavier music the segment became less and less popular with the family….lol.

#5-Which band/artist is on your M3 bucket list?

While there are many bands I’d love to see play, there are three for sure that come to mind.  All three of these I’ve listened to for a long time and the logos for two of them appear in my tattoo.  I’ve never seen any of these three bands live and I suspect that unless I do some travel for a one-off show somewhere it’s doubtful that I ever will.   Twisted Sister/Lizzy Borden/ House of Lords

#6-Share something interesting about yourself that is not music or M3 related.

This whole “Meet Your Members” seemed like a great idea until I got down to this question and realised that, apparently, I’m just not that interesting…lol.  I could tell you that my ancestor was involved in the invention of the gas mask, or that I’m descended from Vikings.  How about that I have a huge stamp collection that was originally started by my great Grandfather.  Maybe that at the time of my promotion I was the youngest ever Assistant Store Manager of Wal-Mart Canada (I did this and still worked part time at the restaurant).  Or even that I have backpacked across Europe for 4.5 months.  I cannot eat mashed potatoes as they bring up my gag reflex, resulting in a disastrous date one evening when I attempted to be polite and choke them down.  I once lost a bet and had to wear a 50’s style diner skirt around a sports bar during a Superbowl game.  Or that I used to take roller skating lessons when I was a kid and I was asked to compete nationally…odd that I’m now too uncoordinated to actually walk on my own two feet!....anyone find any of that nonsense interesting?

Cheers,

Rich “The Meister” Dillon \m/