RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://zebulondoom.bandcamp.com/album/come-day-of-reckoning-2 The splendid Norwegian doom metal outfit known as Zebulon unleashed this musically dynamic force of nature just a couple of weeks ago, and there is an exciting and emotive edge as well as heaps of gloom to the 6-track effort, which sports the evocative title Come Day of Reckoning, reflecting its…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.stevemorseofficial.com/ The supremely skilled Steve Morse, who has delighted us for decades with his vibrant and vigorous work with Deep Purple, Dixie Dregs, Flying Colors, Kansas, and not least his solo offerings, is back with a new album that sees him team up with such renowned musicians as bass player Dave LaRue…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://aflyingfish.bandcamp.com/album/el-pez-que-vol-act-ii The previous full-length extravaganza by A Flying Fish appropriately titled El Pez Que Voló – ACT I was one of the prog rock highlights of 2023, so naturally, this recently released successor sporting a most fabulous artwork was highly welcome, and given the content and lyrical narrative of the album, I…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://linktr.ee/LunaMarble Manchester’s very own Luna Marble are set to release this self-titled opus of theirs in early November, and I might as well start out by saying that it is a proper gem that weaves the best parts of Led Zeppelin, the Yardbirds, Jimi Hendrix, early Fleetwood Mac, Rival Sons, and Pink…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/grahambonnetofficial/ The legendary Graham Bonnet (whose highly productive career in music has lasted for more years than he probably cares to remember himself) is set to release this cool-looking live album just in time for Christmas, and it is a robust-sounding affair all around. Bonnet is arguably best known for his work…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.tobyjepsonofficial.com/ The second installment in the talented Toby Jepson’s (Wayward Sons, Little Angels) “Look Out” chronicle will be out in late October and trumps its predecessor in every conceivable way. As simple as that, really. Now, do please read on, okay? Weaving traits and influences from classic rock, early seventies glam rock,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/ronnieromeroofficial/ The immensely talented vocalist Ronnie Romero has become a household name in hard rock and heavy metal circles, which is hardly surprising given that he has lent his incredible voice to recordings by Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow, Michael Schenker, Vandenberg, Sunstorm, and Lords of Black just to list a few examples. His…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.slashonline.com/ This is something quite different yet very refreshing; a collection of classic blues tracks recorded by a wicked band comprised of Teddy “ZigZag” Andreadis (keyboards, harmonica, and vocals), Tash Neal (rhythm guitar and vocals), Johnny Griparic (bass and backing vocals), Michael Jerome (drums), and then obviously the maestro himself on the six-string, the legendary Slash. Not exactly…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://goatmilker.bandcamp.com/album/goatmilker From the wonderful albeit rain-soaked city of Bergen comes a strangely invigorating and energetic outfit named Goatmilker, and if for some reason their charming moniker is not enough to convince you that these chaps are fucking cool then their songs undoubtedly will. Somewhere between raw and catchy stoner rock and progressive…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://glutton.bandcamp.com/album/skiva-heter-vishnu The musically eclectic and consistently playful Norwegian trio known as Glutton are experts at churning out highly dynamic and oftentimes explosive songs that shift seamlessly between hard-hitting jazz rock, old-school prog, and a wee bit of psychedelia for good measure, and the results are not merely satisfying but also thoroughly intoxicating.…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.waltertrout.com/home Legendary blues rocker Walter Trout is the ultimate survivor and a divinely gifted songwriter whose compositions overflow with raw nerve, fiery passion, words that speak to the soul, and gritty riffs with enough power to shake loose your fillings and prompt you to call that much-dreaded dentist of yours. There is…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://deeppurple.com/ A much-overlooked entry in Purple’s impressive catalog is the classy and well-written Rapture of the Deep, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year. What better way to mark that occasion than remixing and remastering the entire thing and including a handful of bonus track?”! I have always felt that their…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://honeymoonsuiteband.com/ These immensely talented Canadian rockers impressed me last year by means of their melodically rich and gorgeously crafted album titled Alive, so my hopes were high for this brand-new opus of theirs. Although lacking a bit of the vigor, energy, and immediacy that made its predecessor so memorable, “Wake Me up…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://alicecooper.lnk.to/RevengePR The phrase “highly anticipated” does not quite do this one justice in that we are talking about a marvelous new opus by the original Alice Cooper group – the first one in fifty years no less. Excited? You should be as this one is a real belter in more ways than…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.francisrossi.com/ Francis Rossi of Status Quo fame recently released this seventeen-track compilation of various demo versions and alternate takes – many of which relate to his work with and songwriting contribution to the aforementioned Quo – and it is a rather intriguing album in many respects. Some of the ideas presented on…
In what has become a tradition of sorts, this scribe caught up with renowned keyboard player Mark Stanway who is primarily known for his magnificent work with such legendary acts as Magnum and Grand Slam. Since 2018 he has been occupied with a fabulous musical outfit known as Kingdom of Madness, and this talented ensemble…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.jonanderson.com/ None other than the legendary and inimitable Jon Anderson assembled a group a few years ago endearingly named the Band Geeks and recorded something akin to a Yes fan’s wet dream in the shape of this superb-sounding live album. A collection of epics and classics by Yes sure sounds good, does…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://variety-jones.bandcamp.com/album/shell-shocked What a lovely, rabble-rousing debut offering this is! Variety Jones hail from Bergen but sound like they crawled out of the gutter in Los Angeles roughly thirty-eight years ago, which is obviously meant as a compliment. With an emphasis on raw and concise riffs that will make you raise your fist,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.brakeloose.com/ What a fabulous outfit this is! Irish/Venezuelan rockers Brake Loose have made quite a name for themselves this past year or so thanks to some stellar live performances, and there is something quite refreshing and invigorating about this inspired five-track EP of theirs appropriately titled Frenetic. Taking their cues from 80s…
Blue Öyster Cult, the legendary American rock band formed in the early ’70s, has always occupied a unique space in rock history. Known for their fusion of hard rock, proto-metal, and psychedelic influences – not to mention their love of science fiction and the occult (cough Godzilla cough) – BÖC has built a legacy around…
