For All Kings

I don't know what it is with Anthrax, but over the years, I seem to have formed a chip on my shoulder about them. While I enjoy everything up to, and including, We've Come For You All, I somehow still looked down on them with some contempt. Maybe it was because I considered Scott Ian as a bit of a self-important douche, or maybe it was because I felt like Joey Belladonna was a bit of a poser, playing the part of a Thrash frontman, while he often preferred the softer side of Rock. Either way, I thought that their 2011 reunion album, Worship Music, was kind of a disappointment, and even before it was released, I was prepared to write off this years new record as a colossal turd. Hell, I wanted nothing more that to rip it apart...and with my preconceived notions, I was underwhelmed when I first heard For All Kings...and choosing their second single as Breathing Lightning did them no favors.

Still, people across the Metal community were raving about how good For All Kings was. I downloaded it, but I was still stuck in my ways and wouldn't really give it a fair listen. Then I came across a recent interview with Scott Ian, and in speaking about how he handled some choices back in 1990, he owned his decisions. He didn't play it off, or deflect blame...he came out and basically said, "yeah, I was in a bad place at the time, and didn't handle things well". It isn't very often that you find someone, especially in the entertainment industry, that will take responsibility like that...plus he also talked about he has never been a drinker, and that helped sway me too. It was like my Grinch heart grew three sizes that day. With this new found respect, I queued up For All Kings, and tried to go into it with a more open mind. Goddamnit. I found myself enjoying it a bit.

When I saw the vinyl in the record bin at the local store, I was intrigued by the packaging. With plastic wrap keeping everything secure and tight, I couldn't make heads or tails of what was going on with the sleeve. Unable to resist, I bought it.

With the slipcover, the metallic shine on the record cover, the colored vinyl, and the d-side etching...the packaging on this is extremely well done.

The more that I've sat with this album, the more it has grown on me. While I'd initially thought this would hang out at the bottom of my Year End list, at this point, I'm starting to wonder how high it will climb, and if it has a chance to crack my Top 10. Solid album that continues to surprise the hell out of me.

Locomotive Breath

Season 2: Episode 7 of Fargo has a pretty strong opening, and through it all is a rumbling of an amazing song that perfectly sets the tension and atmosphere. As soon as the scene was done, I was immediately hitting the internet, scrambling to find out what song it was. Locomotive Breath from Jethro Tull's Aqualung album.

To me, Tull have always kind of been nothing more than a joke footnote to the '89 Grammy Award Ceremony, where they beat Metallica for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance...oh yeah, and they also played a flute. Despite my history of writing them off, with this introduction of Locomotive Breath, I was suddenly very interested to see if Jethro Tull was something that I'd been missing out on due to my own close minded musical ignorance.

Look, I know that it seems like each week I throw around claims of "this is my new favorite album", well, here I go again. This album surprised the hell out of me, and it is in heavy rotation lately. It is rare for me to spin an album more than once in a day, but Aqualung has hooked me so deep that when as Wind Up winds down, I immediately want to start the album over again.

Lately, I've been looking down on vinyl reissues, and my appetite has been more in collecting original pressings of vinyl. Yeah, I was one of those pretentious record collectors, vinyl-shaming people that were too lazy to dig through the internet vinyl bins for first pressings, and instead took the easy way out and bought the latest vinyl repress. That shit was for the common man, and only the truly dedicated put in the work, and put up the cash, for the originals...and then there I was...a hypocrite, buying the latest pressing of Aqualung.

What can I say...I'm a sucker for great packaging, and this release looks amazing. My audiophile friend, Jeff, says that the mastering for this vinyl releases gives the album the best sound, but I'm more of a visual person, and went for it because of the giant booklet that came with it.

The booklet is full of stories on the recording of the album, explanations on songs, and bits of history. Very well done, and well worth the price of admission for this 40+ year old classic.

The Shame, It Grows

I recently picked up the new Rough Kids album, and it quickly worked its way into my daily playlist...climbing the stats as one of the albums I've listened to the most this year. Such a great throwback to that late 70's punk sound.

I haven't made the jump to pick up the band's first album yet, but when I saw that Sorry State was carrying the new Lights Out single, I had to jump on it.

Only pressed in Japan, and limited to 300, grabbing this from Sorry State was a must. Had to get one before they were gone...and that exclusive b-side is another high energy song that makes me want to bounce around the dance floor.

Young And Unaware

When I was young, and starting to get into Hardcore, I remember hearing the name Warzone thrown around a lot. I figured that they must be a big deal, so when I saw their self-titled CD sitting on the racks at the local music store, I quickly grabbed it, eager to check out this legendary Hardcore band.

In hindsight, that release from 1989 might not have been the best place to start...but I didn't know any better, and as I was crossing over from Metal to Hardcore, I quite enjoyed that record.

Sometime down the road, a friend shared the REV comp, The Way It Is, with me...after hearing As One, it suddenly clicked why Hardcore kids revered this band so much. However, even after getting the first two Warzone records dubbed to a blank cassette tape, and recognizing how superior those are, I still had a soft spot for that self titled turd.

Like Token Entry's Weight Of The World, everyone likes to cast stones and ridicule these oddballs...but me, I love 'em...and since I've been checking records off the World's Shittiest Wantlist this year, I figured it was time to scratch another big time player off the list.

Purple Devotion

Back in 2009, when Devotion released their first album, I didn't give it so much as a passing glance. Go It Alone had broken up, and Mark Palm was doing what I understood to be a more "mature" record. Fuck that noise. Without even hearing a note of it, I wrote it off.

Seven years after the release of their debut, Devotion is back with their follow up LP, Headspace Astronaut...and to be honest, I was fully prepared to ignore this one as well. When Doug first brought it to my attention, I quickly dismissed him. I mean, come on, how was I supposed to take that cover art seriously. It was like a K-Mart photo session gone bad.

But Doug was interested in it, and had asked that if I was getting one, could I pick one up for him as well to save him some money on shipping to Canada. Since I'm a big fan of the Record Blog Brotherhood, I figured that I'd check the album out, because...hey, maybe there was a chance I'd like it, and I could help him out in the process. So I took the trip over to the bandcamp page to see if this was anything that I should bother with.

With Mark Palm at the mic, you can easily pick up on the Go It Alone connection, but Devotion have more in common with some fuzzed out Stoner band than they do with mid-00's Hardcore. After listening to a couple songs, and seeing the video for Ocean Of Grief, I was sold on it, and placed an order for two copies. Once again, paying attention to Doug pays off. If it wasn't for him, I would have otherwise missed out on this. Hmmmm...maybe I should check out that first Devotion record at some point.

Second Dimension Of Gruesome

Gruesome were never out to break new ground or push the boundaries of Metal. With their debut album last year, the band's only mission was to pay tribute to Chuck Schuldiner (R.I.P.) and those early Death records. Savage Land was a deliberate nod to the greatness of Leprosy and Spiritual Healing, and they nailed that sound so well, it became one of my favorite records that year.

I expected Gruesome to come raging in, bludgeon us with some old school Death Metal, and then ride off to the gates of Hell. I figured that they would be "one and done", and that would be it. So I was surprised to hear that the band was releasing a follow up EP this year.

This time around, Gruesome are still paying tribute, but instead take us back to the sound of Death's debut, Scream Bloody Gore. Things are a bit more raw this time around...the vocals a bit more guttural...and it still feels like some long lost basement tapes from Chuck.

300 pressed on splatter vinyl.

Another Kind Of Blues

For me, 2016 has been an amazing year for new music...and by new, I mean music that is well over 35 years old, but that I'm just getting around to hearing for the first time.

After uncovering a couple late 70's Punk albums recently, I became a fiend looking for a fix...hunting high and low for hidden gems that I'd never heard before. UK Subs were one of the bands whose name kept showing up on the early Punk lists that I was digging out from the internets.

Initially, I kept writing them off and ignoring them. I'm not sure why. I suppose I kept thinking of them as some kind of Oi! street punk band, and I wasn't interested in that sound. After seeing their name repeatedly thrown around, I finally broke down, and dug out a youtube video of their first album, Another Kind Of Blues.

Say hello to my newest obsession. I couldn't get enough of it, and soon, the album had wormed it's way into my daily playlists. Reading up on the band, I found that there was a Punk wartime parody documentary, Punk Can Take It, and I even found a link for it on youtube to watch during my lunch break at work. The band obviously had my attention, and quickly climbed the list of records that I'd discovered and needed to buy.

The first 20,000 were pressed on blue vinyl, and finding one at a decent price from a US seller sealed the deal. It was mine.

The initial download that I'd grabbed of Another Kind Of Blues included a live version of a song called Telephone Numbers. It was a ripper of a song, but I noticed that it wasn't on the original vinyl release. So where did it come from?

After a bit of research, I found that it was a B-side song to the Tomorrows Girls single. Okay...I obviously needed this as well.

Both Telephone Numbers and Scum Of The Earth are essential UK Subs songs. As B-side exclusives, this single is mandatory.

I love that both of these were pressed on blue vinyl. Such a good look for 1979.

Scorpion Child

While picking up the latest Grand Magus album from Nuclear Blast, I figured that I'd check for something else to add to the cart. My god...it is like a curse...that unshakable need to avoid buying just one record while checking out.

This time through the Nuclear Blast store, I noticed the 2013 debut album from Scorpion Child. I remember really enjoying this album when I downloaded it at the time, but for one reason or another, I never followed through and picked up the vinyl. This is a quality Hard Rock record, and the sale price of only $15 made it an easy decision to drop it into my cart.

Bronze colored vinyl, with an etched D-side.

Sword Songs

A couple years ago, Grand Magus released my favorite Metal album of 2014 with Triumph And Power. Needless to say, I was excited to hear they were releasing their follow up LP this year with Sword Songs.

Even with the preview track, Varangian, released back in March, it was kind of pointless, because I knew that this album was a blind buy for me. No need to waste time checking it out...I headed straight to Nuclear Blast to preorder the most limited vinyl option.

Metallic gold may be one of the worst looking vinyl colors. It always looks like shit. Still, since it was limited to 300, it meant that I had to buy it, and lie to myself that it was the best option for coordinating with the front cover artwork.

No matter the vinyl color, this record hits hard. Traditional Heavy Metal that Grand Magus does best. Another winner.

Dag With Shawn 2016

With Red Hare back on the map with a new 7 inch earlier this year, and a new LP in the works, it was kind of surprising to see a new record from Shawn Brown and his old bandmates from Dag Nasty.

I typically approach these one-off reunion recordings with some trepidation. These guys haven't been in the studio together for almost 30 years, so you've got to wonder if they have still got it, or if it will come off as some uninspired Dad (Punk) Rock bullshit that we can all ignore. Fear not. Shawn Brown ain't going out like that. These two songs are excellent.

It's a rare feeling when it comes to reunion records, but this 7 inch leaves me wanting more.

As someone that is approaching 46 years old, these pictures on the inside sleeve of "current self" next to "1985 self" kind of freak me out. "I'm looking at pictures, and I'm thinking of those times. Those times have changed, and so have I.".

Undead Gamma Ray

Despite having been around since 1989, Gamma Ray and I sat down for the first time and got to know each other last summer.

I'd never paid the band any attention before, but remembering that Doug once told me that Gamma Ray was basically the same as early Helloween, I figured that I'd take the plunge and check them out when I was looking for something new.

Sometimes music hits you when you least expect it, and when I sat down to check out Gamma Ray, I had no idea how quickly I was going to become obsessed with them. I'd always kind of kept Power Metal at arms length, preferring the all out attack of Thrash instead, but man, they soon sank their hooks in deep, and didn't let go. The band have eleven studio albums, and I currently have five of them sitting on my iPod.

When it came time to start adding some vinyl to the collection, it was a tough call on where to begin. While Land Of The Free from 1995 can command a price tag easily over $100, I figured that maybe I'd start by setting my sights a little lower, and aimed for 2014's Empire Of The Undead. A search of the discogs marketplace quickly revealed a still sealed copy that some seller was looking to unload for only $14. Sold.

Man, I'm eating this stuff up lately. How long will it take for me to break the bank, and make a run at Land Of The Free?

Playing Rough

Sometimes, new bands come along at just the right time. Lately, I've been obsessed with late 70's punk. It has been dominating my daily playlists, and I've been on the hunt, discovering some great albums from that time period that I'd never heard until now. I haven't been able to get enough of that classic punk sound, and I need more and more.

Then with the creep factor in full swing over on Facebook, I noticed a "sponsored" post on my timeline from Sorry State Records, advertising the new Rough Kids album. With a description mentioning the words "'77 Punk", I just had to check it out. A quick preview of the album from the bandcamp page, and I was hooked.

Man, this album checks all the right boxes...fast and infectious punk rock. Put me on the dance floor and let me bounce around like a nut. This fits in perfectly with everything that I've been listening to lately, and may currently be my favorite punk release from 2016.

Admiral Sir Beastmaker

When you are paying the ridiculous shipping prices from Rise Above, you might as well go all in and buy one of everything while you are shopping in their webstore. Finished off my recent shopping spree with two new 7 inches.

Rise Above actually had these two records posted in their webstore a while ago, but since they were unavailable to purchase, I assumed that I'd missed the preorder, and they had sold out. While I was picking up the new Blood Ceremony and Beastmaker albums, I figured that I'd check again, and was surprised to find they were available. I didn't hesitate to add them to the cart before checking out.

I've always enjoyed Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell, so I was looking forward to this latest two song single. No need to hunt for a preview song to check it out first...this was an automatic buy.

Two songs in that same rowdy rock n roll vein that the Shovell do best.

150 pressed on crystal clear vinyl. I love those labels with the rainbow Rise Above logo. Looking good.

Unlike the Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell record, the Beastmaker record doesn't offer anything new. I believe these were just two songs taken off the band's self released demo, but they both ended up on the album, so after a couple of spins, I'll probably just be shelving this one.

Still, I'm not going to turn my back at a Rise Above clear vinyl pressing. 150 pressed.

Beast Of Doom

While I was picking up the new Blood Ceremony album from Rise Above, it obviously made sense to buy as many records as I possibly could, so I set out to see what else I could add to my cart. While looking around, I saw they also had a new album available from a band named Beastmaker. I had no idea who this band was, but I absolutely loved the album cover, and probably would have bought the record based on the cover art alone.

I did a quick search, and found a video for the song Mask of Satan...I gave it a quick listen and was instantly sold on it. This is my kind of Doom. One of the best surprises this year.

The Die Hard pressing from Rise Above did not offer a clear vinyl option. If you wanted the most limited pressing, it was black vinyl or nothing. I don't know...given the state of record collecting today, where colored vinyl is king, it feels kind of rebellious for them to offer black vinyl as the limited pressing. I love it.

Die Hard edition comes with a bonus 7 inch, and an embroidered patch. Limited to 150 copies.

Lord Of The Blood Ceremony

Since discovering Blood Ceremony in 2011, with their sophomore album, Living With The Ancients, the band just absolutely blow me away with every new release. Even with their last album, The Eldritch Dark, I was completely floored that they were releasing something that good.

With their fourth album, I figured that Blood Ceremony was going to start to get stale. They couldn't keep their streak of greatness going for this long, could they?

As soon as I heard the preview track, The Devil's Widow, all doubts were erased. The band still sounds incredibly powerful, and have hooks and melodies for days. As soon as I heard that song, I knew that I was going to have to make a run at the Die Hard pressing, no matter the cost.

Man, there is just something special about owning clear vinyl pressings from Rise Above.

Rise Above knocks it out of the park again with their Die Hard box set pressing for the new Blood Ceremony album. Great looking box, clear vinyl, silver printed turntable slipmat, screen printed poster, and a giant bookmark. Limited to 150. Quality.

Pink and Purple Praise

Back in 2014, Praise released one of my favorite Hardcore albums of the year with Lights Went Out...and then we moved into 2015, and I promptly shelved it, and hadn't listened to it since.

So when it was announced that the band had a new record coming out, I was kind of excited for it...even though I couldn't really remember much about that last record that I apparently thought highly of at the time.

2016 finds me in a much different place than I was in a couple years ago. Back in 2014, all I wanted on my stereo was Metal, but these days my tastes are swinging back to early Punk and Hardcore, which puts me in a better frame of mind for this Praise record. Hell, these past few days have seen me revisiting Lights Went Out, and rediscovering that one as well.

I'm sure that some people are going to lose their mind over this record, and claim this new one as their favorite Praise album, and while I do really enjoy it, I'll still prefer their last one...mostly because the last couple of songs drag things down at the end of this new record.

You've got to give props to REACT!, because these vinyl colors look great.

150 on pink vinyl. 350 pressed on purple vinyl. 500 on black vinyl.

A Philips Record Product

Back in 2013, I first got it in my head that I should chase the first four Black Sabbath albums on the original UK Vertigo swirl label. Doug had heavily influenced me with a Sabbath post on his blog, and it set me down the path of spending more money than I ever dreamed I would on a single record. I eased my way into things with the relatively "inexpensive" Vol. 4, and then set a goal of adding one more to the collection each year...kind of a treat to myself whenever I got my annual bonus from work.

Over the next two years, I managed to pick up both Paranoid and Master Of Reality...leaving only the debut Sabbath album as the last missing piece to the puzzle.

Paranoid and Master of Reality were not cheap to come by. No joke. The money I spent for them was easily the most I'd ever spent on a single record. I figured that those two were the pinnacle of Sabbath collecting, and that the self titled debut album should be a little easier on the wallet.

Of course nothing is as easy as I'd hope.

A true first press of the first Sabbath record has "A Philips Record Product" printed below the Vertigo name on the label. This one line of text can send the price spiraling well out of my range...and I watched a few listings end on eBay with bids over $1,000 dollars. My heart sank, thinking that I wasn't going to be able to afford one of these.

I could have cheaped out, and gone for a second pressing, with the Philips text missing, but damn it, I refused to give up so easily. When buying Paranoid, I stood firm that I needed the first press with the Jim Simpson credit in the liner notes, and for Master Of Reality, it had to come with the original poster. Backing down now for a second pressing, would have undone all the work I'd put into this so far. Thankfully, discogs came to my rescue. While I wasn't able to escape much cheaper than I had with Paranoid and Master Of Reality, I didn't come close to spending a grand either.

Like the other UK Vertigo pressings, this one sounds absolutely amazing. Truly, the best way to listen to these Sabbath albums.

Man, that gatefold sleeve is amazing. That upside down cross. That poem.

"Among the grasses, poppies bleed before a gesticulating death, and young rabbits, born dead in traps, stand motionless, as though guarding the silence that surrounds and threatens to engulf all those that would listen."

Heads must have exploded in 1970 over this.

The seller for this, also included a nice looking poster. While it wasn't a part of the packaging for the original pressing, it is still a nice addition.

It feels good to finally finish the Big 4 for Sabbath UK Vertigo pressings. I still have some holes to fill with Sabotage and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, but at least I can breathe easy knowing that they won't set me back as much as these Vertigo swirl pressings have.

Stand Off

Youngblood Records has a bit of a reputation on moving at their own pace. They release records for some of the best bands, and are honest and trustworthy...but they ain't in any kind of rush to get shit out the door. So when Chris from Unwavering Spirit contacted me about the pre-release of the new Stand Off 7 inch, I jumped at the chance to get my hands on a copy. Who knows? Preorders for this record may not go live until 2017.

Four songs, plus a cover from The Abused, this entire 7 inch is over in six minutes. Gruff, early NY Hardcore influence from this band. It doesn't blow my socks off, but it is pretty good for what it is. Considering these songs are from the band's 2014 demo, I'd be interested to hear what they are up to now.

Specially released for the Damage City Fest, and limited to 75.