This was Mudvayne’s follow-up to their multi-platinum “The End of All Things to Come.” I really enjoyed the previous album, yet I find that I just can’t get into this one.
To me, this album feels like a re-hash of the more angry, visceral bits of their previous album. Certainly, there are slower, more intricate passages, but these islands of lucidity arll too quickly degenerate into rage-fueled nu-metal.
I did, however, quite enjoy the last song, All That You Are. This particular song starts as a slow, melodic piece that then builds to a more frantic pace. Though it flirts with the visceral feel that dominated the remainder of the album, it never gets stuck there. This song, more than any other on this album, shows the musical versatility that I love from Mudvayne.

Rough day? Looking for something to put a smile on your face? Well, look no further than this collection of sixteen hits of the late 90s - swankified.
How about a smooth jazz version of Rage Against the Machine’s Guerilla Radio?
Maybe you’d enjoy Nine Inch Nails’ Closer performed as a children’s show theme, complete with classic Sesame Street riff?
This is probably Richard Cheese’s finest album to date - the music flows well, and it doesn’t really feel like he’s hamming it up. He toes the line very well on this album.

Originally intended to be a Dee Snider solo album, “Love is For Suckers” would be Twisted Sister’s final album until 2006’s “Twisted Christmas.”
Musically, this album is a little bit “lighter” than previous Twisted Sister albums. It’s still Twisted Sister, but the attitude is a bit muted. Despite damping the attitude for a few rockin’ love songs, Twisted Sister still pull of a good album.
One thing that really stood out for me was the tile track. There are a couple sections where lyrics are spoken, rather than sung. At first, I though that they had hired Alice Cooper to do additional vocals. Then I realized that I was indeed listening to Dee Snider. The light dawned - Dee Snider sounds an awful lot like Alice Cooper!
I have no idea why I never noticed that before.

Speaking of love songs…
I honestly know very little about HIM. I know that I like their music. I know that they’re quite popular with “kids these days.” I know that I often see a proliferation if HIM merchandise when I visit Hot Topic.
I’ll bet that the “true metal” fans don’t take too kindly to HIM referring to themselves as a metal band. True, they don’t have the in-your-face attitude that characterizes a lot of metal…then again, they do have the darkness and the scattered satanic overtones. My opinion? HIM is…let’s see…a hard rock band with heavy goth influences and a strong sentimental streak.
Then again, I’m not one to quibble about genre - I figure genre is only necessary to help describe music without actually playing it.

The beginning of this album is surprisingly energetic…for Swaying Smoke. An almost danceable beat greets the listener, but soon gives way to airy, very subtle drones. These softly flowing sounds are as soothing as the title implies, even when they are accented by, let’s say, the sound of an army marching in the distance (Lullaby). Well, that’s what I heard…
The song that really stood out for me on this album was Sultry. Before long, I decided that there must be some kind of joke behind the song title. To me, Sultry’s bright, cheeery chines evoke neither a sweltering summer day nor an “adventurous” night. Rather, this song takes my mind to a cool, breezy spring day. My wife and I are in the backyard, good books, and fresh iced tea close at hand…
I found out later that the title was indeed a joke, but not of the kind that I thought. It’s a pun - the song was played on a psaltry.

So, how about a little goth metal to wake you up after a few nice lullabies?
I’ve stated before that I never would have recognized that Poisonblack is a gothic metal band if Wikipedial hadn’t pointed it out to me. I’ve finally figured out the reason for this - it’s all to do with Poisonblack’s particular approach.
Most gothic metal bands tend to incorporate elements of power, black or death metal - the epic nature of these styles lends itself particularly well to gothic music. Poisonblack, however, have taken a slightly different path, in that they’ve incorporated the sounds of late 1980s metal. Take a close listen and tell me that you don’t hear echoes of Skid Row.

Thoughtful, sardonic, and poignant…is it any wonder that Bad Acid Trip caught the attention of System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian (this album was released by Serjical Strike records)?
In the world of experimental metal, Bad Acid Trip are definitely mad scientists. Their brief, furious bursts of manic energy hit your brain broadside, while the lyrics (“pop rock’s just a fashiuon rebellion”) burrow in and give you a little something to ponder.
It’s difficult to accurately describe this band, so…

This was Queen’s final album. Although released in 1995, this album makes use of vocal tracks recorded by Freddie Mercury prior to his death in 1991. Most of the vocals here were recorded by Freddie in the final months prior to his passing, although there are older bits (some unreleased, some familiar) as well.
Sad? Yes. Maudlin? Certainly. A fitting farewell to one of the greatest rock singers ever? There can be no doubt.

I discovered this melodic alt-metal band in the heyday of MTVX. “Endangered Species” is their second album, the first being one that we won’t get to for quite a while.
Honestly, I’m surprised that Flaw never really went anywhere. I think they “hit” just a few years too early. Today, they’d fit right in with the better alt-metal bands like Breaking Benjamin and Three Days Grace.
Timing is everything, I suppose.

Is it just me, or have I discussed Nevermore quite a bit lately? As far as the band itself goes, I really don’t think I can say any more - there are only so many ways to say “awesome power thrash that needs to be part of your collection right now.”
“Enemies of Reality” was actually released twice. The original release was decried by fans for the rather poor job done in mixing. Compared to previous Nevermore albums, the songs lacked character - the drums were flat, the bass was barely there… it just failed to live up. The album was remixed, remastered, and re-released in 2005, sounding considerably better.
Are you listening, Metallica? There’s still time…
My Wife thinks that the video for Enemies of Reality is gross, so of course, I have to post it.

Although it’s not immediately obvious, “Entangled in Chaos” is actually a live album. There’s really none of the “concert venue reverb” that one normally hears on a live album. whether this is due to studio touch-ups, I do not know. I can tell you that, if it wasn’t for cheering fans audible at the end of a couple tracks, I’d never have realized that this was a live album.
“Entangled in Chaos” is what I call a “best of” live album. Each track is presented as an individual live recording, with little to no linkage between the tracks. This is a fairly common sort of live album, and not necessarily bad - It allows the band to present what they feel is best about their live performance. However, I’d much rather listen to a “full concert” live album.

This 4 track EP is mostly what one expects from Dark Tranquillity. Mostly.
The Fourth Track, Archetype, is definitely the standout here. Far from being a “normal” Dark Tranqillity song, this is a very electronic techno song, which is very interesting with Mikael Stanne’s rather extreme vocal style.

I only have one song from this album: It’s The End of the World as We Know It. I’m not all that much of an R.E.M. fan, although I do enjoy most of their “greatest hits.”

As I recall, we’ve only encountered Samael once so far. A while back, I listened to “Blood Ritual,” their first album. “Era One” provides an interesting counterpoint. These albums sound like they were made by two completely different bands. “Blood Ritual” is very much a black/doom metal album, while “Era One” is considerably more electronic and melodic.
This album is definitely Samael’s largest departure from their metal roots, being more electronic than anything before or since. The next album, “Solar Soul,” would be a heavier, less electronic release.

“Escapexstacy” is the first album from this Finnish group. I first heard Poisonblack on Century Media’s “Metal for the Masses V” compilation. What caught my attention was the combination of heavy, yet melodic riffs with vocals that are melodic and passionate without necessarily soaring. I immediately set about acquiring more Poisonblack, and was not disappointed.
Wikipedia describes Poisonblack as goth metal. I can see how this description is correct, but I don’t think it’s sufficient. Maybe I’ll be able to come up with a more apt description by the next Poisonblack album.

It’s time to slow things down a bit. Warmer than “Cold” (no pun intended), “Estrella” is a fairly “spacey” album. It’s not quite ethereal - “The Burning Circle and then Dust” was more ethereal - but there is a certain otherworldly quality to these songs.
I’m particularly fond of Diablo. The ethereal guitar playing perfectly complements Tara Vanflower’s vocals.

Continuing our exploration of the evolution of Samael, this album was right in the middle of their evolution. The black/doom metal sound is still very much there, but it’s been tempered by the addition of more electronic elements. Between the more forceful drums and the clipped guitar chords, this could almost qualify as an industrial album. Almost.

This is, hands down, my absolute favorite Cathedral album. When my friend first played this album at me all those years ago, he certainly knew what he was doing - I became a Cathedral fan on the spot.
Groove heavy doom metal…bloody genius! How the hell did they come up with that?
“Can you feel the groove?”