"GET UP"! Vote For KISS...

When I woke up this morning I said to myself, "Self what a great day to vote KISS for induction into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame". So I did, and you should too...here's why.

For years I have watched the "Rock n Roll Hall of Shame" continue to ignore the most recognizable band in the world. A band that has endured, evolved and continued to remain viable for a mere 40 years. A band that has wrote and recorded many classic rock anthems that get airplay each and every day. A band that continues to set the standard for the ultimate live rock show experience whenever they hit the road, including this year's Monster tour and the "spider stage" spectacle. A band that has sold countless millions of albums, and a band that has truly become part of American pop culture. A band that has influenced thousands upon thousands of people to pick up instruments and follow their dreams. Lastly, a band who's fans "the KISS ARMY" spans over 4 generations of rock fans who love and support them like no other band. So KISS Army, the time is now to "Get UP!" everybody's gonna grab their mouse "GET DOWN!" everybody's gonna vote right now!

In this writer's humble opinion there are a number of artists that already adorn the walls of the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame that probably shouldn't have been inducted before KISS. Hell, there are artists that are there that quite frankly aren't even considered rock and roll?!? Casablanca label mate Donna Summer springs to mind, influential artist? Yes! Disco legend? Yes! Seriously though, I have yet to hear anyone describe Donna Summer as rock and roll ever. Don't even get me started on all the Rap artists there that somehow got into the hall of fame by sampling (or should that be stealing) famous rock songs! 

Another reason you need to vote for KISS is the inclusion of Nirvana in this years inductees. Now personally I just don't get Nirvana, never have. The whole Nirvana and specifically Kurt Cobain as some sort of musical messiah is more ridiculous than having Madonna and Donna Summer already in the RNRHF. Nirvana were an average punk band at best, they were in the right place at the right time when grunge took hold and changed the musical landscape, Nirvana got lucky with one amazing song that captured an entire movement. I take nothing away from that but seriously, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains and Stone Temple Pilots all delivered better material and almost all of these bands including NIRVANA have listed KISS as influences early on.

Dave Grohl is far and away one of the coolest mofo's out there. A true rock fan and a musical force to be reckoned with, the FOO FIGHTER's have created a worthy Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nomination way before Kurt Cobain should receive that honor. Although it's probably politically incorrect to say it, the suicide is what immortalized this band. It's a sad statement but from the moment that the tragic news broke Nirvana's star power rose exponentially because now it was twice as mysterious and dangerous. That is the dark side of pop culture. I commend and salute Dave Grohl, he lost a true friend and his pain was real, but he also had reasons to be angry. Kurt selfishly checked out leaving a trail of tears, a widow, a young child now fatherless, a grieving family and a band left destroyed. Dave, the consummate rock and roller soldiered on and created a real legacy. I will be the first in line to vote when the Foo Fighters make the ballot.

Kiss have forged a 40 year legacy that should no longer be denied. Love them or hate them they are ingrained in rock history. Critics have always panned them but the ARMY have always carried them on their shoulders for the world to see. The time is now KISS ARMY to "shout it out loud" and let them know that KISS deserves a spot in Cleveland rock city. My god people, this band wrote ROCK AND ROLL ALL NITE, is there more that needs to be said?

To vote now just go here...http://www.rockhall.com/get-involved/interact/poll/

DWaRfs and Diemonds!

The première rock club in the Toronto area, The Rockpile at 5555A Dundas Street West in Etobicoke has been working hard booking some great rock acts, developing their own rock scene and destination in Toronto.  Owner Dom and in house promoter Steve are both excellent guys, very friendly and accommodating to their customers and the bands that they've booked to rock The Rockpile.  In house sound man, Jake, has been referred to as one of the best around and we've heard that phrase uttered from more than one band.  Some of the bands that have rolled through The Rockpile include, Stryper, Y&T, Quiet Riot, Brighton Rock, Kill Devil Hill, Coney Hatch, Jack Russell's Great White, Faster Pussycat and many more.  The Rockpile is easy to get to via public transit or has lots of free parking and is just a pleasure to see a show at.

Now it's double your money, double your fun as they have just opened the sequel, The Rockpile East at the other end of the subway line, 2787A Eglinton Avenue East in the west end of Scarborough.  This means now that they can entice even more bands into Toronto as they can be offered two shows on back to back nights at each venue making it more worth their while to endure the crossing the border hassles.  Friday October 4th, 2013 was the date set for the Grand Opening of the new club with none other than the recently re-formed KiLLeR DWaRfS as the kick off party.  The show was totally sold out, what a great welcome for the DWaRfS and The Rockpile East!


Wally and The Meister met up outside the club around 7:30pm, admiring the looks from the
outside.  The line up to enter was already forming across the front of the building for the scheduled 8pm door time.  We entered the club and the smell of fresh paint filled our nostrils as we were excited to check out this new playground.  Securing some frosty adult beverages, we found a great perch to catch the show.  As neither of us was feeling in tip top condition with brewing colds, we forewent our usual concert viewing area of stage front leaning and stationed at a railing by the raised bar area.  A great view of the whole stage, and close for beverage refuelling as well!

Mortal Fear was the first act on deck with their old school metal songs.  They did a decent job and we both agreed that we would watch out for them in the future. Classic "old school heavy metal" is how they described their sound with their set of Judas Priest influenced originals. Flux 440 took the stage next and we noticed that both this band and the previous were not young kids as we usually see for the opening acts.  Flux 440's last song choice was a cover of UFO's "Lights Out" which is incredibly fitting seeing as UFO themselves would grace this very stage the next coming weekend. A more melodic, classic rock sound reminiscent of Coney Hatch, these guys delivered a solid set of no nonsense classic rock.

Raised Emotionally Dead came on next after an intro from Iconic M.E.A.T. Magazine editor Drew Masters.  We had both seen R.E.D. previously and was again enamoured with their show.  There's certainly a lot going on on stage for them as there are about 10 people up there, dancing girls with boxing gloves, nurses with liquor filled syringes and more.  Their cover of KISS's "I Was Made For Loving You" is always a good time. They took some time to introduce some new songs that they are working on and if you haven't seen R.E.D live, it's an all out sonic and visual assault on your senses.

Again Drew Masters took the microphone to introduce local Toronto and Decibel Geek favourite band Diemonds.  Diemonds are proudly carrying the torch and waving the sleaze rock flag in today's musical landscape.  Diemonds would surely have made huge waves had they been around in the 80's.  A microphone issue during the opening cut hampered the song as we could not hear vocalist Priya Panda at all.  Once that was repaired near the end of the song, Diemonds proceeded to destroy the new Rockpile East playing selections from their fabulous Bad Pack  record (which has drawn the attention of Ron Keel's “Streets of Rock & Roll” radio show) like "Get The Fuck Outta Here", "Trick or Treat" and
"Take On The Night" as well as some new compositions.  Guitarists C.C. Diemond and Daniel Dekay were shredding it up as drummer Aiden Tranquada pounded out the beat.  Bassist Tommy Cee was often missing from the stage as he played out in the crowd or on the back bar while Priya Panda delivered the lyrics with the venom and attitude we've come to expect, also announcing that January would mark the seven year anniversary of Diemonds.  This band "gets it", every time they play they leave all they have on that stage. Guitars swinging, speaker climbing, it's a blur of high energy movement, blink and you'll miss something but most of all they look like they are having a fucking blast up there and that is infectious. Be sure to catch Diemonds on their fall "Skeletour" US and Canada invasion starting on October 24th.

Drew Masters once again riled up the crowd for the upcoming head liners, KiLLeR DWaRfS and also brought up a special guest for the evening of The Food Network's chef Michael Smith, who's towering height "dwarfed" the shorter statured Drew.  "Stand Tall" led the charge for the DWaRfS and Russ was a flurry of activity covering every inch of the stage.....quite different from seeing him aboard the Monsters of Rock Cruise where he was sitting on a stool and playing acoustically!  Method to the Madness's "Hard Luck Town" minus the foul mouthed miner intro that appears on the CD was next on the list and Darrell DWarRf looked almost animalistic pounding away on the drums.
 "Believe In Me" saw Russ leap into the crowd near the end of the song for a little crowd surfing.  Russ kept pushing the envelope during "The Last Laugh" which became the Russ DWaRf comedy show with his humorous monologues, wacky facial expressions and falling down to the stage and cartwheeling to his feet seconds later. Loud was the understatement of the year and we thought we might get a reprieve as we saw the acoustic guitar appear for "Driftin' Back", but the volume was still way past 11!  This show actually made us consider the use of earplugs at a concert!  "Union of Pride" stormed through to "Doesn't Matter" which saw the return of the acoustic guitar.

Russ announced that they would be back to destroy The Rockpile East again on February 1st before starting into "Nothing Gets Nothing" which again saw him surf the crowd, this time still singing the whole time and not missing a note!  The new, well newly released, KiLLeR DWaRfS album Start @ One was originally recorded 20 years ago after 1992's Method To The Madness but was shelved and only just been remastered and released.  From that we were treated to the title track.  "Keep The Spirit Alive" closed out the initial set that saw Russ doing a headstand and then another crowd surf this time hanging upside down from the lighting rafters at which time it appeared he lost his grip falling onto the audience. We cringed as for a moment it looked like he was headed for the floor but somehow the crowd was able to catch him averting a possible injured Dwarf. Ain't nothing in the world like a KiLLeR DWaRf show!

The encore performance was "Dirty Weapons" during which Russ could be seen to signal to side stage that he was done.  Too bad as the next song listed on the set list was "Heavy Mental Breakdown" from the first KiLLeR DWaRfS recording and something that both Wally & The Meister sorely wanted to hear live, oh well, maybe on February 1st.

Russ and the rest of the DWaRfS, Darrell DWaRf on drums, Gerry DWaRf on guitars and newcomer John "Johnny DWaRf" Fenton from Darrell's band Automan.ca taking over for original bassist Ronald "Bad Ronbo DWaRf" Mayer provided an awesome show showing the fun and tongue in cheek humour that is the KiLLeR DWaRfS.  They may have only played a total of eleven songs, but with Russ’ stage persona, blatant disregard for his own personal safety and body leading the charge, the DWaRfS new and old cranked up the volume until the knobs broke, blowing Toronto and The Rockpile away!  I sure hope this place was built soundly!

Keep The Spirit Alive,
Wallygator & The Meister

Episode 106 - Jan Kuehnemund Rock in Peace

One of the nicest people that we've interviewed over the past 2+ years was Jan Kuehnemund, founder of all-female hard rock band Vixen. While Jan's guitar skills and physical beauty provided her with a powerful 1-2 punch in the music industry, those things were overshadowed when you actually talked to her. Jan's dedication, integrity, and drive helped propel her and Vixen to stardom in the late 1980's. Those qualities also served her well through the many lean years that followed. All of this is what makes this week's episode so difficult for us.

Jan Kuehnemund passed away last Friday October 10th, 2013 after a long battle with cancer.

We interviewed Jan in late February of 2012 and uploaded the episode on March 2nd, 2012. The process of interviewing Jan was a true pleasure. She was forthcoming, funny, intriguing, and patient in giving us knuckleheads in Nashville an hour of her time to yack about rock music and her life in it.

We could have just gone ahead and dedicated this week's episode to Jan and proceeded with a new theme. But, Jan really left an impression on us and Aaron and I still have good memories of talking to her. The Decibel Geek podcast has really grown since April of 2012 (83 episodes ago!) and we couldn't think of a more fitting tribute to Jan than to give you all a replay of our conversation. In this talk, she talks about the early days of bringing Vixen from Minnesota to Los Angeles, their struggles to be taken seriously, and their rise to fame. She also details the difficult days of the 1990's, acrimony among band members and the beginning of reconciliation with the girls for VH1's Bands Reunited series. She also shares touring memories of working with such acts and Deep Purple and KISS.

While the war stories are interesting and entertaining, we hope you will take from this talk what we did; Jan Kuehnemund was a thoughtful, caring, and beautiful spirit that will most definitely be missed. Rock in Peace Jan. Your music lives on.

- Chris Czynszak

Direct Download

Meister's Buried Treasure: Arch Rival - In The Face Of Danger

Wow was this "Buried Treasure" project ever hard!  It seemed like such a great idea at first and I quickly chose what I thought would be a great album to feature for my "Buried Treasure".  As I cued it up for a listen it reminded me of another album, which reminded me of another.....which reminded me of another......which reminded me of yet another.....and so on and so on for three days now!  Enough! I'm stopping here and going to feature Arch Rival's In The Face of Danger.  I'm sure that I'm not the only one of our writers that experienced this problem as I know that we all have a vast knowledge of music and immense collections....perhaps "Buried Treasure" should continue each month?

With the constant spin of albums added to the playlist being cut off I came to rest on Arch Rival.  Perhaps some of you have heard of them, but I think this will be a new venture for many of you.  With no official website or Wikipedia entries and a Myspace page containing only some songs from In The Face Of Danger along with a couple more from their later releases, information on the band proves rather difficult to find.  Their Facebook page with a meagre 419 likes does seem to be in fairly recent use with some posts dating back to July.  Arch Rival is a band from Dayton Ohio, made up of Michael Harris on guitar, Gary Rigmaiden (bass), Greg Martin (drums) and Steve Snyder handling the vocal duties.  The band was together playing the club scene for several years before Steve Snyder joined the ranks.  They released their début record, the aforementioned In The Face Of Danger in 1991.  Two more albums followed, Wake Up Your Mind 1993 and Third Degree Burns 1997.

This excellent collection of melodic metal starts off on a high note with the title track to the album.  I've included the you-tube link for the official video below and really that speaks for the record, so give it a listen.  "Time Won't Wait" maintains the precedent established at the outset with it's catchy chorus, while the third track "Me Against The World" begins acoustically before pumping up about a minute in.  "Rock The Night Away", a standard rocker takes us through to the excellent "Fortune Hunter" and it's grinding riff.  "God Bless America" comes before the cover of the Beatles' "Revolution" and then we get "Mr. Attitude", another stand out track.  The sleazy flavoured "Shotgun At Midnight" and "Siren's Song" precede the album closer of "Can You Tell Me Why".  All in all the eleven tracks add up to about 45 minutes jam packed with catchy, hooky riffs, decent guitar work, melodic vocals and choruses.  There's not a bad song on here and this is a great find for fans of the likes of Dokken or Brighton Rock.  I'm surprised that with their radio friendly hard rock sound that Arch Rival did not become more of a household name....perhaps they were just another victim of the impending evil of the grunge era?

As Twisted Sister would say "Play it loud Muthas"

Cheers,
The Meister

Derik's Buried Treasure - Bride Kinetic Faith

Bride is a Christian metal band formed in Louisville in 1983 by brothers Dale (vocals) and Troy (guitar) Thompson. They signed a record deal in 1986 and recorded 3 albums through 1989. The bands first albums were not widely received by the Christian metal audience. Disenchanted, vocalist Dale Thompson went to California to possibly pursue a more secular mainstream career. It was there he met up with former W.A.S.P. bassist Rik Fox and contributed to Fox's Thunderball project.

Reinspired, he returned to Kentucky and Bride began a more bluesy approach to sound. They signed with major label Star Song and released Kinetic Faith in 1991. This album, along with Snakes In The Playground (1992) and Scarecrow Messiah (1994) are some of the bands best work. This trio of albums netted Bride 4 Dove Awards by the Gospel Music Association. I have not one, but two personal favorites off of Kinetic that simply must be listened to at full volume. Whatever your particular slant on religion is, these songs are undeniable.

 

BJ's Buried Treasure: Hawaii - Loud Wild and Heavy

Marty Friedman's first band, Deuce, formed in Washington D.C. in 1978, when Marty was all of 16 years old (all of the band's members were teenagers). Deuce released an independent single in 1981 but in 1983 Marty moved to Hawaii and formed a new band (with female singer Kim La Chance) called Vixen. Vixen morphed into Aloha and landed a coveted spot on Brian Slagel's second Metal Massacre compilation. After another name change, to Hawaii, and a switch to a male vocalist, Gary St. Pierre, the band signed with Mike Varney's legendary Shrapnel label and released a highly regarded early thrash album called One Nation Underground. To my ears the production on that record is sub-par and St. Pierre's voice doesn't quite service the songs. Thankfully, from my perspective, St. Pierre (who would end up in Vicious Rumors) was soon replaced by a singer named Eddie Day (who had apparently at some point been a member of Deuce) and this new version of Hawaii released a four song EP in 1984 appropriately titled Loud Wild and Heavy. It is, in my opinion, one of the best metal releases ever. The songs are heavy and snarling but also catchy as hell.

The opening tracks, "Bad Boys of Metal" and "Loud Wild and Heavy" are killer metal tunes with plenty of hooks and attitude and the third song, "Escape The Night," is one of my favorite songs ever, by anyone. Friedman melodic fretwork and driving riff are complemented perfectly by Day's crisp yet jagged vocals. As far as I am concerned eighties metal did not get any better than this song, and it also serves as an excellent example of what a difference production and vocals can make. Friedman had recorded the song with Vixen and it also appeared on One Nation Underground but neither of the earlier versions hold a candle to the goddamn perfection of the song as it appears on Loud Wild and Heavy with Eddie Day ripping it up. Hear for yourself:

Hawaii released one more album, a fun collection of pop metal called The Natives Are Restless. Friedman of course eventually wound up in Megadeth, his first album with the band being, not coincidentally, the band's best, Rust In Peace.

Andy's Buried Treasure- Hurricane Take What You Want

Hurricane is a glam metal band that came out of the L.A./Sunset Strip club scene in the mid 80's. Formation of the band can be traced back to Quiet Riot's late, great singer Kevin DuBrow. The story goes that Kevin introduces guitar player Robert Sarzo to bassist Tony Cavazo in the early 80's. Of course these are the brothers of Quiet Riot guitarist Carlos Cavazo and bassist Rudy Sarzo. Wanting to form a band, they then recruited singer Kelly Hanson and drummer Jay Schellen.

Hurricane was part of the second wave of the Sunset Strip glam metal bands. Take What You Want was released in 1985 and was produced by Kevin Beamish. This six song EP is a powerhouse right from the start. They hit you with the one two punch of Take Me In Your Arms and The Girls are Out Tonight. Two rockers you can't help but bang your head to. Last song on side one is the moody title track Take What You Want which slows the pace a bit but is a solid song. Side two opens up with the song Hurricane, which is a heavy tune that represents their namesake well. Next up is the ballad It's Only Heaven which is a solid song of its type. They finish the album with yet another fast rocker, Hot and Heavy, a song that I just love to sing along to. They toured heavily behind this record which landed them a record deal with Enigma records in 1988. I saw them open up for Stryper in 1987 and they put on a great, energetic show.

For me this album is a treasure because it was one of my high school soundtracks.  I can remember listening to this album just cruising around trying to find trouble and have a lot of great memories associated with these guys. Sadly, they only released three other albums and never really got the notoriety that they deserved. You can't go wrong with any of these songs, but if I had to pick one I would go with Take Me In Your Arms.

Billy's Buried Treasure - Trouble In Angel City

Lion was an American band that was formed in 1984 by Ex-Steeler drummer Mark Edwards.  It consisted of a British singer Kal Swan, and guitarist Doug Aldrich, along with bassist Jerry Best.  They should be remembered for the "Transformer's" Theme song released in 1986, but alas, nobody remembers the name of the band that recorded it. Only the song itself.  They also released "Powerlove" from the movie The Wraith which also included a song by Ozzy Osbourne.  Again, everyone remembers the song, but nobody remembers the band.

Their debut album "Dangerous Attraction" was released in 1987 and became one of my favorite albums of the Hard Rock genre.  The video for "Powerlove" got some rotation on MTV, but disappeared rather quickly and it seemed like Lion fell off the planet.

I was in Japan in 1989 and went to a record store to check out some cool Japanese vinyl.  As I was looking through the L's, mainly for some Lillian Axe, I came across a new Lion album called "Trouble In Angel City".  I was taken aback, as I didn't know they were still together.  As I didn't have a record player in Japan, I had to wait 6 weeks till I got back to the states to listen to it.  And when I did, it was AWESOME!!!! I listened to it over, and over again.  I searched every music store in Tucson for this on cd but could not find it anywhere.  I later found out that it was pretty much released only in Japan.

Shortly after the release, the band fell apart.  Aldrich joined Hurricane, then House of Lords, then reunited with Lion singer Kal Swan and recorded 3 Bad Moon Rising albums. Again, only released in Japan.  Now, all these years later,  Doug Aldrich is the guitar player for Whitesnake and he kicks ass.

Both Lion albums are 2 of my favorite albums from the 80's.  I found them both on Amazon some years ago and paid a small fortune for them as they are out of print and were only available as Imports.  If you like great hard rockin music with great hooks, melodies and guitar solo's, I suggest you check these releases out.  Besides Whitesnake, Aldrich also has a band called Burning Rain that has 3 releases out.  Everything he touches is amazing.  I have all of his music on my ipod and listen to it daily.  So, check them out and as always....

Peace out my peeps!!!!

Metal On Ice! - October 22nd is now Hoser Heavy Metal Day

Many of the Decibel Geeks are no doubt aware of my proud Canadian heritage and today marks one of my proudest moments ever as a fan of Canadian Hard Rock and Heavy Metal. An advanced copy of the Metal On Ice EP is now playing ultra loud through my sound system for the third time in a row and I declare now that Canada Day has been changed to October 22nd when this EP becomes available to the metal hungry masses. If we cant officially move Canada Day, then I will be recognizing it as Hoser Heavy Metal Day from this year on.

For those that might not have a clue just what the hell I am talking about, let me fill you in. Rocker and now Author, Sean Kelly has recently published an incredible new book entitled "Metal On Ice - Tales from Canada's Hard Rock and Heavy Metal Heroes". This book digs deep to capture the sights, the sounds and the smells of many of Canada's greatest heavy metal treasures. Culled from countless personal interviews with such bands as Helix, Killer Dwarfs, Brighton Rock, Coney Hatch, Lee Aaron, Slik Toxic, The Headpins, Honeymoon Suite and many, many more. Sean gives the readers a glimpse into what it was like out on the road as a working Canadian band, with it's unique musical and geographical challenges. As a music book junkie, it is one of the best rock n roll reads I have ever come across and the only thing that pisses me off about it, is that I didn't write it first. Kudos to Mr. Kelly.

What makes this book so special is the personal approach of the author. Sean Kelly is both an accomplished guitar player (Crash Kelly, Helix, Nelly Furtado, Gilby Clarke) but is also one of the genre's biggest fans. It's that honesty and passion about this music, he loves metal and Helix and Lee Aaron and Coney Hatch every much as I do and that excitement translates to the reader making it seem like your best friend is writing this book and not a "journalist" sent out on assignment. I am sure this also played a part in the way the artists being interviewed opened up to him with some incredible and entertaining road stories.

It is this passion that also fueled the idea for a "Metal On Ice" EP. Some companion music to listen to while you turn the pages of the book you might say. So Sean assembled some of Canada's Heavy Metal royalty (Lee Aaron, Coney Hatch's Carl Dixon, The Headpins' Darby Mills, Killer Dwarfs' Russ Dwarf, Helix's Brian Vollmer and Slik Toxic's Nick Walsh), added the killer rhythm section of bassist Daryl Gray (Helix) and drummer Dave Langguth (Nelly Furtado, Allanah Myles) and handled all the six string duties himself. The result is the Metal On Ice EP and in a word it's outstanding.

To me re-recording some of the Great White North's finest rock makes for a great treat for all metal fans. Listening to Lee Aaron belt out "Metal Queen" in 2013 gave me goosebumps, Russ Dwarf on "Keep The Spirit Alive" has me doing headstands in my living room. Brian belts out "Heavy Metal Love" like it's 1983, Darby Mills hasn't lost a step with a killer version of "Don't It Make Ya" and Carl Dixon's "Hey Operator" sounds as fresh as the day Coney Hatch released it. It's like none of these singers have aged a day, every song maintains the integrity and energy of the originals.

Two other tracks make up this EP, Kick Axe's "On The Road To Rock" with Slik Toxic's Nick Walsh handling the lead vocal duties. From 1984's classic metal masterpiece "Vices", this song has been given new life with Kick Axe bassist Victor Langen on bass and Nick doing a masterful vocal track causing the hair on my neck to stand up and rock!

L-R Darby Mills, Carl Dixon, Sean Kelly, Nick Walsh, Brian Vollmer and Lee Aaron

...and now for something completely different. Sean and Nick Walsh wrote the title track "Metal On Ice" that lyrically captures the spirit of the book in a four minute balls out rocker that features Lee, Brian, Carl, Darby and Nick trading off on the vocals throughout. A great addition that you won't find anywhere else.

Quite honestly, this EP should be included as required listening for any self respecting metal head Canadian or otherwise. Remember October 22nd is now officially "Hoser Heavy Metal Day" so grab your touque, your back bacon, some Molson Canadian, the Metal On Ice EP and turn it up real loud....eh!

LaValle's Dear Sanity gives a Nod to 80's Glam Metal

If glam metal is characterized by shredding guitar solos, extensive use of harmonies, and use of the power ballad, then LaValle has hit the mark with Dear Sanity. Actually a bullseye in this reviewer's opinion.

First of all, who is LaValle? Well LaValle is a band formed out of a song writing partnership between guitar player Eddie LaValle and bass player  Paul Logue (Eden's Curse).  Now add Paul's friend singer Carsten Lizard Schutlz and his best friend, German drumming legend, Ramy Ali and you have the base band. Keyboardist Alessandro DeNecchio was added to round out their sound after the original tracks were laid down.

LaValle is a band that has a mission statement and that is to be "a melodic hard rock band made up of like-minded musicians from the U.S.A. as well as Europe. We strive to write memorable, rocking, hook-filled songs that pay tribute to the rock bands of the 80s that we all love so much, while at the same time embracing todays modern production techniques." I say mission accomplished! 

Now for the music. The album starts off with Fading Like the Sun, which is the kind of song you can't get out of your head once you hear it. I find myself singing the chorus throughout the day after 
hearing it, plus the guitar in this song is tremendous. The next two songs, Scared to Love and Don't Cry bring a great 80's vibe to them. Next is One Day at a Time which starts off beautifully with piano but then turns into a great piece of power pop. Cry of the Wolf is probably the heaviest song on the album with more great guitar. The Lucky Ones is the catchiest song on the album branching out into AOR territory. Smoke and Mirrors is a solid rocker but then comes Break Your Heart which does the 80's power ballad justice. Rock Your World is another solid track and then comes Wait to Long. This is my favorite track on the album because of the fantastic, soulful guitar playing and the slow, sultry groove the song has. 

Overall this album gets a strong recommend from me. I can hardly wait to hear what these guys can do next after spending some time playing together.

Screaming Eagles - A Sleazy Good Time!

Like a triple shot of whiskey in a tall (and possibly dirty) glass comes "From The Flames", the debut album from a band called the Screaming Eagles. This album is balls out, four on the floor, dirty rock n roll, plain and simple and as the Stones once said, "It's only rock n roll but I Like IT".

Filled with more hooks than a fly fishing tackle box, "From The Flames" serves up ten sleazy tracks that are sure to have your head banging, horns in the air. Obvious influences include AC/DC, classic Aerosmith and probably a few of the 80's sunset strip suspects, GnR maybe? Anyways, it's a formula for some real music, something that is almost non-existent on radio today.

Hailing from North Ireland, Screaming Eagles is made up of Chris Fry on vocals, Adrian McAleenan on guitar, Ryan Lilly on bass and Kyle Cruikshank on the drums.  These guys attack their instruments with an attitude and produce a groove so thick you could lie down in it.

Opening up with a bluesy DC like riff, opening track "All The Way" had me grinning ear to ear. I could almost taste the whiskey and could imagine seeing these guys tear it up live at any local watering hole. "Down The River", "Hungry For More", hell by the third song I was over at the "merch" table asking for a T-Shirt! Ok, maybe my imagination got away with me but damn this is fun rock n roll music! Rarely does an album grab me that fast but this album just fits, it's almost like it's already a classic album with music I have been enjoying for years.

No ballads anywhere to be found "Fight the Fire", "Vampire", "Devil in the Dust" this album doesn't come up for air at all. "Rock n Roll Soul", "One Man Revolution", "Blood" and finally "Take My Time" closing out the album dripping with sweat. This people, is the blueprint for a great rock n roll record. I feel like I should go take a shower, it's that dirty.

Screaming Eagles - From The Flames!

Sammy & Friends = An Album Nobody Wants or Lulu Part Deux

World's reaction after listening to a Sammy & Friends / Lulu playlist

"As a rule, we're always supposed to applaud the collapse of the record industry.  But that collapse is why Lulu exists. If we still lived in the radio prison of 1992, do you think Metallica would purposefully release an album that no one wants? No way.  [After hearing this idea] ten minutes later Bob Rock would be parking his Lexus at the studio."  - Chuck Klosterman - Lulu Review (Grantland.com)

I quote the great Klosterman (author of classics such as Fargo Rock City, hard rock enthusiast, all around badass) as it's the only explanation that Sammy & Friends exists.

Sammy & Friends is a pointless, random cover album made with a target audience of nobody.  I seriously don't know who this album is for.

I take that back.  If you have been starving for Sammy to cover Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" and for him to complete his transformation into a mop topped Jimmy Buffet by covering "Margaritaville" along with Toby Keith then you are in for a fucking treat.  Nothing unique is added with any of the covers, its strictly Sammy Karaoke & Friends.  

I've already deleted it from my hard drive as I feared it soon spread like a virus, infect my entire library, and make Appetite For Destruction sound like Lulu. Come to think of it, the only thing missing on Sammy & Friends is a 10 minute mashup of endless Lou Reed mumbles and Sammy shouting"Oh..Yeah!"

Maybe Sammy was abducted by aliens.  Again.  

Your power to create a not awful supergroup has been erased. 

Maybe this was a blast to record but unfortunately no amount of Cabo Wabo consumed during the process helped with the results.  

Maybe I would not consider it so outrageous if it wasn't released right after Sammy helped create one of the only supergroups in the history of supergroups that didn't suck.  

I will now listen to both Chickenfoot albums on a loop along with choice solo and Van Hagar tracks while reading his autobiography Red to begin the healing process.  

Keep Drinking.  It will not help.  

A note about the author:  

Loose Cannon is a man with no credibility and a questionable sense of humor. 

LC has thoroughly enjoyed the Chickenfoot albums and is a fan of Montrose, 5150, OU812 and other select tracks from Sammy's solo career and Van Halan era. He also cannot recommend his autobiography "Red" enough - an incredible read and the business end of Sammy's career is fascinating: Cabo Wabo, other successful ventures, etc. 

LC will also help Hagar's bank account yet again as he already bought tickets for his latest tour but if he opts to bring the concert to a screeching halt playing any of these tracks, he will take this opportunity to empty his bladder. 

Bloody Hammers - Spiritual Relics

When your reviewing an album by a band called the "Bloody Hammers" you kind of have an idea of what your getting yourself into. Images of thrashing guitars and guttural screams filled my mind as I looked at the sinister album cover art for their new "Spiritual Relics" album. The album art reminded me of the time many, many years ago when I purchased Venom's "At War With Satan" album based solely on the cover art and my ears were left sodomized by Venom's wall of brutal noise that barely resembled music.

So with some slight trepidation, I eased on my headphones fully expecting a blast of double bass drums and cookie monster vocals which is not my chosen flavor of metal. Instead I was met with a crunchy guitar riff filled with overdrive and melody as the first track "What's Haunting You" kicked in. This was a great track, heavy, dark, these guys definitely drink from the waters of Black Sabbath and you can do a lot worse than having Tony and Ozzy as metal mentors.

Much like when I first discovered the first Black Sabbath record, I found myself being drawn into this album just like a good horror movie will do. "At The Well Of Nazareth", "The Transit Begins" and my personal favorite "The Source" lure me farther into this pleasure of horrors. Vocalist/Bassist Anders Manga has a great voice, dark and haunting but with plenty of melody. Certainly not what I was expecting.

The riffs continue all dark and foreboding and although there are a couple of filler tracks, "Flesh Of The Lotus" yanked me back in with it's classic Judas Priest like feel. The album ends with an acoustic track, "Science Fiction" a slow and haunting masterpiece that could be huge if given the proper push, every bit as good as Queensryche's "Silent Lucidity". Overall Spiritual Relics is a solid release from this "Doom Metal" band. If you like things that go bump in the night, then break out the popcorn and pull the blankets up tight because this will be sure to please. I give it 8 \m/ out of 10 \m/! Check them out.

Episode 105 - Radio Sucks Radio Show volume 14

We're back this week with another edition of the Radio Sucks Radio Show. We love doing this version of the show because it allows us to focus on the most important thing....the music!

This week Aaron and Christ return with volume 14 of our popular Radio Sucks Radio Show. In this episode you'll deep cuts from artists such as Tom Keifer, Tora Tora, Peter Criss, and Brides of Destruction. You'll also get a heaping helping of newer stuff from bands like Stryper, Brand New Machine, and Teenage Casket Company. It's over an hour of solid, rock-filled goodness that's just waiting to ooze into your ears so crank it up and check it out!

Geek of the Week is Jamie McNicol from Krazy Knights: The Australian KISS Podcast. Jamie and his co-host produce a weekly show about the Hottest Band in the Land from Down Under. Lots of interesting guests and interesting discussion. We here at the Decibel Geek podcast encourage our listeners to check out this great show!

Buy Music!

Song List (Click to Purchase on Amazon!)
Honky Toast - Shakin and a Bakin from Whatcha Gonna Do Honky
Tom Keifer - Ain't That a Bitch from The Way Life Goes
Tora Tora - Amnesia from Wild America
Bruce Dickinson - Tattooed Millionaire from Tattooed Millionaire
Brides of Destruction - Brace Yourself from Here Come the Brides
Teenage Casket Company - Takes a Little Time from Still Standing
Peter Criss - Bad Attitude from Criss Cat #1
Brand New Machine - Blackout Overdose from The Devil Made Me Do It
Hair of the Dog - The Party Ain't Over from Hair of the Dog
Stryper - Revelation from No More Hell to Pay

Contact Us!

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Alter Bridge - Fortress

Alter Bridge - Fortress

Alter Bridge was formed in 2004 from the ashes of what was known as Creed.  Creed came on the scene in 1997 and although the first album was alittle on the grungy side, they were one of the first of a few bands that turned the music tide from grunge back to hard rock in the late 90's.  With 3 albums released originally, they got better and better with fans clammering to hear and see this new great rock band Creed. Each album got better and better until the band became so big, that they imploded and dissappeared.

Everyone has read all the stories about how singer Scott Stapp was a prick, arrogant, whatever, and ruined the band at the height of their career.  In 2004, Creed disbanded and the 3 remaining members of Creed; Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall, and Scott Philips; joined with singer Myles Kennedy and alas, we have Alter Bridge.  Now, I for one Loved Creed. I didn't care about anything negative that I had heard in the press about Stapp.  I just loved the music.  So I was apprehensive about this new band Alter Bridge.  The first album came out and I remember hearing the first single, Open Your Eyes, and thinking, WOW! This is good. Still sounded a little like Creed's last album Weathered, which I thought was their best, but the singer, Myles Kennedy sounded awesome.  So I bought the album and slowly started loving this band.

A couple of years later, album 2, Blackbird, bought and loved even more.  Couple of years later, ABIII comes out. I was like, HOLY HELL.  How are they doing this. It was outstanding.  So, fast forward to 2013.  I see the first single, Addicted To Pain posted to their facebook page.  So, naturally, I hit the little play button. My god!!! What I heard was the heaviest riffs I had ever heard Tremonti play on an Alter Bridge album.  Note, I had bought Tremonti's solo album last year, and it borders on full blown metal, which I would never classify Creed or Alter Bridge as.  But, the boy can play his ass off.  So I am so excited!  Then I see, the album isn't for release until October.  I was like, damn.  I have to wait.  So here it is folks.  Alter Bridge's Fortress album is upon us, and oh what a ride it has been listening to this album.

Track 1. Cry Of Achilles. I hit play and heard this acoustic little interlude going on with little hints of spanish flamenco guitar at the end.  I immediately thought, oops, wrong album.  Then, NO!!! The crunches kick into overdrive and the song goes from 20 to 90 miles per hour in about 3 seconds flat.  My head instantly started bobbing uncontrollably and the race was on.  As I was at work listening to this with my Ipod, people see me headbanging all day long. But never continuously, without braking, for 8 hours straight. So, track 2. Addicted to Pain.  Most bands nowadays release their best song first for some odd reason.  But Alter Bridge is not the normal band.  This song is a fast paced, catchy chorus monster of a song, tha'ts doesn't even let you breathe.

Basically, I ended up listening to this whole album on repeat for about 6 hours straight. And guess what folks.  I didn't get tired of it, or skip any of the tracks.  Which tells me, that this album is a masterpiece.  I've told people about it and all I get is, "I hate Creed!"  They aren't even giving this a chance.  And that is so sad about so called music lovers nowadays.  This album is incredible.  I've heard every album that has been released this year, and hands down, this is the BEST album so far this year!!!  I know Alter Bridge is not what some people want to call Metal, but it's closer than they've come before, and this is what I would call Heavy Rockin Ass music.  So, if you love Alter Bridge, this will not dissapoint you.  If your not sure about them, and hold Creed against them, fucking get over it and buy this shit.  ALTER BRIDGE IS NOT CREED PEOPLE!  Get real and grow up. 

Anyways, best tracks:

Peace Is Broken is the best song in my opinion.

Cry Of Achilles is an awesome heavy rocker that kicks in and doesn't let up until the last note.
Addicted To Pain is another great track that will make you head bang till your neck is whiplashed. 
Basically, this whole album justs kills.  If this was 1987 or 1988, this album would have blown Bon Jovi off the face of the planet.  Too bad radio doesn't give a shit about trying to make or break a band anymore.  This has so many top ten singles on it, it would have made them gods back in the good ol days.  But, oh well.  That was then, this is now.  Buy this album, go see them live when  they come to your area.  You will not regret it at all.  I promise you that.  I have seen them and they are one of the best live bands around lately.  This album is so good, I don't know how they can do any better for their next one.  They may as well just break up after this.  But we will just have to wait and see!!!!

In closing, I am proud to call myself an Alter Bridge fan.  I truly believe in hardcore fans totally supporting their bands.  So support Alter Bridge.  They are REAL, and they are all great guys and deserve all the love and adoration that they get. 

Peace out my peeps!!!!!!

Confessions of a KISSAHOLIC: A Coming of Age Tale

I'm 39 years old, my name is Loose Cannon, and I'm a KISSAHOLIC.

Let me tell you a coming of age story full of twists, embarrassment and a pyromaniac.

While listening to Decibel Geek's KISSMAS IN JULY (and endless KISS references each show)   I reflected on how, through a three step process, I became a KISS junkie always chasing the high of Alive! 

 1980: When I was 6 years old, I was first introduced to KISS through my friend Brad.  And by "friend" I mean "a dude I knew because my Mom was friends with his Mom and was constantly dragged to his house."

Brad was 9 years old, liked to burn ants with a magnifying glass, and enjoyed shooting bottle rockets at anybody younger than him.  This included me. This particular visit, Brad explained that he was upset and led me to the basement where his Dad had an insane custom built model train set,  a record player, and a drum kit.

He pulled out a stack of about 10 KISS albums, including the solo records,  pulled the records out the sleeves and begin throwing them around like Frisbees, ricocheting off the walls.

Brad: I hate these guys.  Peter Criss just left the group and all their music sucks now. 

Me: Who?

Brad: KISS!  You've never heard of them?  The drummer left and now they got some other guy but it's over for me. 

I tried to relate to Brad by thinking how I would feel if Animal left the Muppets. Brad picked the already cracked records off the floor and placed them on his drum set.  With a crazed look, he performed a 10 minute drum solo instructing me to keep feeding him the records until he smashed them all into little vinyl shards.  We then took all the bits out to the woods, and set fire to them as Brad cackled.  Then I think he fried some more ants.

I never hung out with Brad again.

1983: Fast forward three years with no other KISS interaction except hearing a certain song on the radio.  I was with my Mom and brother at a old style diner that had the mini jukeboxes on the table where you could flip through about 30 songs and make your selection.  I was granted a quarter, I made my selection, and my Mom stared daggers at me while the song played.

Mom: Loose, who is this?

  Me: It's KISS!  Remember Brad ?  He introduced me between small acts of arson.  I heard this on my Jambox radio.  This song's called Lick It Up!  Lick it Up!  Ahhhhhhhah ahhhhhhhhhhhh ahhhhhhhh!

  Mom: Never play this again.

 I didn't realize until years later about the money shot / happy ending theme.

Alive II Gatefold.  Still.  Fucking.  Impressive.  

1987: No more KISS for another 4 years.  In fact, I didn't listen to any music of any genre until the summer of '87 when I was 13 and became immersed in hard rock.   I had allocated enough cash per month from lawn mowing money towards a cassette of my choice at JL Records and Tapes.  I had recently purchased Hysteria,  and Look What the Cat Dragged In. I biked to the record store and perused the store for my latest selection.  I bought one album a month so the decision was extremely important.  After much contemplation ($10 was a huge investment at this time) I decided on  KISS - Crazy Nights.  I'd heard the single, didn't like it, but went for it anyway.

 Wow.  I mean.. wow.  What the fuck was this?  This was the group that caused Brad to go bonkers in his basement?  This sucked.

I chalked it up to a loss and was much happier with next month's selection, Crue's Girls, Girls, Girls.

I wrote off KISS until that fateful day in photography/art class the winter of 1988. Our constantly stoned art teacher allowed us to bring our own music to listen to while we worked on our latest bullshit project.  Nathan and a goth girl named Anna shared my table. Nathan had a bunch tapes in his backpack and handed one to me.

Nathan: Here you go.  Keep this.  I don't listen to them anymore, I'm into real Metal. 

The tape was Side 1 and 2 of KISS Alive II. (I didn't hear side 3 and the studio side until years later)

Me: No thanks.  I bought Crazy Nights and hated it. 

Nathan: You might like it.  It's some of their best shit.  I just like the harder stuff now. 

He then plopped in Megadeth's So Far, So Good, So What and played the first track Into the Lungs of Hell while our teacher probably rethought her music policy.

 Nathan was right, I loved it and wanted more.  I went back to JL Records and found a used set of their first 3 studio albums called "KISS- The Originals" for $8.00.   Thinking this was rather pricey for an old LP, I decided to add extra value by also stuffing (read: shoplifting) the entire Alive! album into the sleeves.

I loved Alive!

The studio versions of the same songs were flat by comparison, even though Alive! is pretty much a doctored studio album.  I gobbled up the rest of their 70's albums and during a time period when KISS was unpopular, I became a KISS-aholic.

Gene trying to kill himself after listening to Asshole album on repeat

I was fascinated with the mythology, went to the library to find old interviews, scoured music stores for the old albums and sent away for outrageously priced videotapes of old concert bootlegs. - most of which are now of course available on KISSOLOGY, YouTube, etc.

Around 1991, KISS started apologizing for sucking (with the exception of a few gems) for about 13 years and that their upcoming album Revenge would be a return to form, joining forces again with producer Bob Ezrin.  I remember going to the store at 10 am to get this album - the only human in town to do so.

It was a revamped, re-energized line up with incredible sound and the only decent release they'd had since Creatures or Lick it Up. I saw them for the first time on the Revenge tour in 1992 and the next few years they remained inspired up until the cash grab of the Reunion Years from 1996 -2001.   I'm a KISS fan that couldn't give a fuck about whether Ace or Peter is in the band, in make up, etc.   Ace and Peter were great..... when they could actually play.

During the Reunion shows they sounded sloppy and like a bunch of hacks compared the the tight lineup of Singer/Kulick from 1992-1995. I've seen every tour since 1992 but nothing compares  to the set list, energy and musicality of the Revenge show I saw in the beautiful town of Ft. Wayne. Its the only era, besides the beginning years, that all members were focused and firing on all cylinders live.

So there you have it.  My KISS obsession. Summarized.

This will likely continue well past 2020 when KISS 2.0 has officially launched with Eric and Tommy left as the Elder statesmen.  We can only hope the next generation  of KISS will continue the tradition of infectious rock tunes and performance along with introspective lyrics such as:

I told her I had a submarine
she said I know exactly what you mean
I took a flight at night from east to west
I asked the hostess for my flying test
She threw the covers and we started to rock
She whispered "you can take me bottom or top"*

That's not just great songwriting, that's great hostessing.

* "Take Me Down Below" - Monster