For the 2nd album from british progressive rock/hard rock-band Atomic Rooster, vocalist and bassist Nick Graham had left the band and guitarrist (the 1st album did not include guitars) John Du Cann from the acid/progressive rock-band Andromeda was recruited. He also took over vocals duties in Atomic Rooster. Carl Palmer, founder member of the band left prior to this album and he's spot was filled by Paul Hammond. Carl Palmer later became a well known member of Emerson, Lake And Palmer. The album reached nr. 12 on the british chart in 1971, the year after it's release and is today considered a prog classic.

Vincent Crane died in 1989, aged 45, of an overdose of painkillers after a lifetime struggling with mania-depression; Paul Hammond died in 1992, aged 40, of an overdose and John Du Cann died in 2011, aged 65, of an heart attack, meaning that all of the musicians on this album was dead by 2011.

1)Death walk behind you (7,0) Slow, heavy mystique doom-laden 7-minute start.

2)Vug (8,0) Very good instrumental song with organ in the forefront and cool guitarplaying.

3)Tomorrow night (8,0) Very melodic song with a catchy refrain.

4)Seven lonely streets (8,5) Great prog! Intense, driving rhythm and great organ-/guitar-riffing and singing.

5)Sleeping for years (7,5)

6)I can't take no more (7,5) Very nice melodic heavy rock song.

7)Nobody else (7,5) Wonderful melodic piano/vocal that goes into a progressive guitar rocker in the middle and then ends as the beginning.

8)Gershatzer (8,5) Just great instrumentalsolo/improvisation! The band's connection to Arthur Brown can really be heard here!

Score: 7,81

Vincent Crane-Hammond organ and piano (1943-1989)

John Du Cann-vocals and guitars (1946-2011)

Paul Hammond-drums (1952-1992)

The cover promises evil and heavy music, and indeed that is what you find on this classic album from 1988. Labeld as "doom" metal and even the godfathers of doom, this album sounds like it's recorded a few years earlier because it's amateurish production and sound, but in this case I would say that that makes the music more interesting. I also like Wino's limited voice. This is metal for metal-lovers but I understand that it did not break any charts because it needs better songs to be a really good album.

1)The creep (6,5) Way too short song since it has a good riff and drive and could've been developed more.

2)Dragon time (8,0) A 7-minute heavy and slow doom-laden tune with a cool guitarbreak.

3)Shooting gallery (6,0) Very much Candlemass on this one. Very very slow and a little too boring and too long.

4)Bitter truth (8,0) Nice acoustic intro to a great super-heavy midtempo tune.

5)The troll (5,5) Doom! But nothings happens...

6)Looking glass (6,5)

Score: 6,75

Scott "Wino" Weinrich-vocals and guitars on 2,4 and 6 (b.1960)

Dave Chandler-guitars

Mart Adams-bass

Armando Acosta-drums (1952-2010)

A Swedish band that I had never heard of that I found at the musiclibrary. Moa plays a hard-described kind of experimental, intellegent, musical and punky pop-rock-something-like-that... It's interesting, dark and crazy but not something that I would listen to very often.

1)I walked into the hotel room and the TV was on... (-) Cool intro.

2)Cannibal (7,0)

3)Crash, burn and die (6,5)

4)DanceSingDreamSmellTasteFuck (7,5)

5)Like a soldier (6,0)

6)Bulldozer (6,0)

7)The M in S and M (5,5)

8)Lynch (6,5)

9)Crazy (6,5)

10)Hunt you down (6,5)

11)Moneyman (6,0)

12)Appendix (4,0)

13)The end (5,0)

Score: 6,04

Moa Holmsten-vocals, guitars and electric piano

Tony Naima-guitars

Markus Ingberg-bass

Fredrik Haake-drums

Per "Ruskträsk" Johansson-saxophone and clarinet

+

Conny Nimmersjö-guitars on 8, 10 and 12

Swedish "death"-metal band Arch Enemy with the german singer Angela Gossow here released another album with what is considered Death metal, but I can not see this as death metal except for some parts here and there in the songs. Mostly its just heavy metal with growl vocals. The following text discribes it pretty well:

7 years since their last album, the death metal-band Morbid Angel from Florida released a new album that took 5 years in the making. One can wonder why the album is such mediocre when they had so much time. In a few songs the band has mixed in techno-beats instead of real drums and, tried to make something new? These songs are terrible; I don't mind them trying something new, and why not try this, but it really isn't any good at all, just endless repetition of the same beat and lyric-lines. The "normal" songs on the album are better but it's just too much for me.  I want to have more melody and heavy riffing, not just playing as fast as possible.

On this album Destructhor is the new 2nd guitarrist. He is norweigan and has played with Myrkskog and Zyklon. It's the 1st album to feature drummer Tim Yeung who replaced longtime drummer Pete Sandoval who has undergone back surgery. Tim plays with Divine Heresy and World Under Blood.

1)Omni potens (-) Intro.

2)Too extreme (2,0) Crazy and meaningless mix of death metal and techno.

3)Existo vulgore (6,0) This is real death metal! Skullcrushing superfast drumming and brutal vocals. Too repetitive refrain though.

4)Blades for Baal (5,0)

5)I am morbid (5,0) A heavy metal-song. Boring.

6)10 more dead (6,0)

7)Destructor vs the earth/attack (3,5) Strange Rammstein-marching techno-track.

8)Nevermore (5,0) Sounds just like some of the other tracks. No variation, just aggressivity and boring vocals.

9)Beaty meets beast (4,0)

10)Radikult (5,0) More variation but the techno-marching is also present here. Terrible.

11)Profundis-Mea culpa (2,5)

Score: 4,40

Mr. Vincent-vocals, bass and keyboards (b.1965)

Trey Azagthoth (George Emmanuel III)-guitars (b.1965)

Destructhor(Thor Anders Myhren)-guitars (b.1978)

Tim Yeung-drums (b.1978)

This is the first full album I hear with the american/german hardrock/metal-band Axel Rudi Pell. I have also seen them live at Sweden Rock Festival a few years back and as good as this album is, as good was the concert, and then I mean that this really is a killer album and killer band! They have become an absolute favorite band of mine and continues to release good music well into the 2010's. I love the sheer power of the music, the incredible sense for melody, the singing, the production, the ballads and the playing. This really is an enjoyment of an album and great cover!

1)The curse of the chains (-) Intro.

2)Edge of the world (8,0) Very good melodic and powerful start.

3)Coming home (8,0) A slowtempo 7-minute song with great feeling. A little too repetitive.

4)Live for the king (8,0) A ballad for 3 minutes and then same as song 3. for 5 minutes.

5)All the rest of my life (8,0) Melodic and "big" ballad.

6)Follow the sign (9,0) A great driving hardrocker with a nice guitarsolo and great chorus.

7)Time of the truth (8,0) Very good for 6 minutes but the last 2 minutes are too much. Why such long songs if they don't have enough good music too fill them out?

8)Heartbreaker (8,0) Another ballad. Too many ballads but they are on the other hand very good.

9)Saint of fools (8,0) Good hardrocker.

10)Under the gun (7,5) Good ballad but too repetitive and a little too cheesy.

Score: 8,06

Johnny Gioeli-vocals (b.1967)

Axel Rudi Pell-guitars (b.1960)

Volker Krawczak-bass

Mike Terrana-drums (b.1960)

Ferdy Doernberg-keyboards (b.1967)

ISE:s second album and the ex-Hellacopters frontman Nicke Andersson continues to spit out high-quality punky pop-songs just like that and damn it, I like it! Andersson is really a master in this gem and it's a pure pleasure to listen to he's music since he has a tremedous sense for melody combined with catchy guitar riffing. It's not as good as the first album but that is just asking too much. Since the last album the band has played the big festivals and as warm-up acts to Guns'n'Roses and Kiss. The bassist Dolf De Bortsplays inThe Datsuns from New Zeeland, the drummer Tomas Erikssonhas played with Captain Murphy and the guitarrist Tobias Egge plays in The Objects. Listen and enjoy! Great album cover with Nicke sitting on a horse!

1)Uh huh (8,0) Great high-energy, melodic and short start of the album.

2)The narrow line (7,5) A good and simple rock song.

3)Can't seem to shake it off my mind (7,5) A very Beatles-like rock song.

4)Back on main (8,5) Superb driving rhythm and good melody.

5)Waltz for Vincent (6,5)

6)Shelter in the sand (7,0)

7)Empty hands (8,0) Very cool, simple and good song!

8)Monarchy madness (7,5) Short and intense.

9)Deride and conquer (7,5)

10)Enough to break your heart (6,0) Good for 3 minutes but the last 3 minutes are quite meaningless.

Score: 7,40

Nicke Andersson-vocals, guitars, bass and percussion (b.1972)

Tobias Egge-guitars

Dolf de Borst-bass

Inge Johansson-bass

Tomas Eriksson-drums

Johannes Borgström-piano