Double Vinyl LP release delayed to 17th December due to post covid global lockdown causing a vinyl manufacturing backlog.
In the 1970s Vardis‘ relentless touring of the working mens clubs of Northern England took them to support slots with Hawkwind, Slade, Motörhead and Saxon, emerging with a reputation for a unique heavy rock attack and high energy technical brilliance.
On November 1st 1980 Vardis’ live debut LP 100 M.P.H. entered UK Album Charts and instantly became a foundational record of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.
The power trio’s fusion of fast punk rhythms, relentless heavy riffs and blistering blues rock solos echoes through Metallica’s 1983 Kill ‘Em All and Megadeth’s 1985 Killing Is My Business … and Business Is Good!, and became an old school Heavy Metal classic.
Four studio albums, three compilations and seven singles later, SPV/Steamhammer present to you the Vardis live experience on record for the first time since 1980: ‚100 M.P.H.@100 Club’. A double live album recorded on March 13th 2020, the 40th anniversary of 100 M.P.H., this blistering two hour set includes every track from an album that led the way for Thrash, performed up close and personal by Steve Zodiac (Guitar, Vocals), Joe Clancy (Drums) and Roly Bailey (Bass)
in London’s legendary 100 Club.
Tracklisting:CD1
1. Out Of The Way 3:10
2. Steaming Along 3:21
3. Paranoia Strikes 2:10
4. Situation Negative (Boogie Blitz) 5:37
5. Red Eye 3:41
6. Dirty Money 3:06
7. Mods & Rockers 5:25
8. Don’t Mess 2:55
9. Shoot Straight 4:22
10. Move Along 5:35
CD2
1. Destiny 3:05
2. The Lion’s Share 3:04
3. Radio Rockers 3:38
4. The Loser 5:47
5. Head Of The Nail 3:45
6. Jolly Roger 4:33
7. Let’s Go Again 3:21
8. 100mph (I won’t Go To Hell) 9:15
9. If I Were King 5:20
10. Living Out Of Touch (encore) 3:17
It’s a sign of definite quality when a band can look back at a career which started as early as 1972 (!) and are still capable of thoroughly awing their fans with every new album.
Magnum deliver this kind of quality on a regular basis and are set to prove their outstanding position once again with their latest studio offering ‘The Monster Roars’.
Even after difficult months marked by pandemic-related concert cancellations, contact restrictions and uncertain perspectives for the whole music industry, the English rock act have succeeded in creating a vibrant, homogeneous work that impresses its listeners from the first to the last note and includes a number of surprises.
‘The Monster Roars’ kicks off with a real bang:
opening with the title track, Magnum make it unmistakably clear that the group’s current line-up consisting of Bob Catley (vocals), Tony Clarkin (guitar), Rick Benton (keyboards), Dennis Ward (bass) and Lee Morris (drums) is bursting with enthusiasm.
Especially the signing of American bassist Dennis Ward (ex-Pink Cream 69, Unisonic, Place Vendome) has proved to be an absolute stroke of luck.
“Unfortunately, we havent been able to play live with Dennis yet as all concerts had to be cancelled or postponed due to the lockdown. But we’ve already rehearsed intensively with him and were delighted to discover that he not only plays a first-rate bass but also provides fantastic backing vocals,” explains Tony Clarkin and adds: “Dennis has catapulted the band to another level in a number of ways. Were looking forward to our first live shows with him and are certain that our fans will be as excited about Dennis as we are.”
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Tracklisting:
The Monster Roars 3:57
Remember 5:05
All You Believe In 5:01
I Won’t Let You Down 3:57
The Present Not The Past 5:27
No Steppin’ Stones 3:57
That Freedom Word 4:52
Your Blood Is Violence 6:44
Walk The Silent Hours 4:51
The Day After The Night Before 4:23
Come Holy Men 5:01
Can’t Buy Yourself Heaven 5:00
The title track, however, is only the prelude to a recording that features solid rock numbers such as ‘Remember’, ‘The Present Not The Past’, ‘The Day After The Night Before’ and ‘That Freedom Word’ as well as atmospheric ballad track ‘Walk The Silent Hours’ and midtempo ‘Can’t Buy Yourself Heaven’, with the anthemic ‘All You Believe In’ bringing to mind Queen and ‘No Steppin’ Stones’ sparkling with an amazing brass section.
Magnum’s lyrics are also (almost) all about the present, as song titles such as ‘Your Blood Is Violence’, ‘Come Holy Men’ or ‘Cant Buy Yourself Heaven’ prove.
Clarkin: “This album is more about social subjects, including political issues.”
No doubt about it:
‘The Monster Roars’ is a well tempered mixture of typical Magnum trademarks, contemporary influences and trailblazing approaches which are guaranteed to win the band lots of new fans.
‘The Monster Roars’ will be available from 14 January 2022 as a CD DigiPak, 2-LP gatefold, limited box set and – exclusively from the Steamhammer online shop – CD/LP and T-shirt bundle.
The first single (including lyric video) ‘I Won’t Let You Down’ has been released on 12 November 2021.
The second single ‘No Steppin’ Stones’, also supported by a lyric video, is scheduled to follow five weeks later, on 17 December 2021.
The cover artwork, which is rather unusual for Magnum, was photographed by Rob Barrow, brother of former Magnum bassist Al Barrow, and is continued in the conceptual booklet.
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Line-Up:
Tony Clarkin – Guitar
Bob Catley – Vocals
Rick Benton – Keyboards
Dennis Ward – Bass
Lee Morris – Drums
And last but not least: In addition to the twelve songs on the regular album, Magnum offer three bonus tracks as part of a limited box set, including a new version of ‘Days Of No Trust’, the opener of their 1988 album classic ‘Wings Of Heaven’, and new remastered version of ‘Sweets For My Sweet’, their very first single release from 1975, as well as a previously unreleased track from the same era.
So theres lots of exciting stuff to be discovered on ‘The Monster Roars’.
As we’ve come to expect from this exceptionally creative band!
have released their
single ‘Voices’
The band comments single and name changing:
“Voices is a big song that we’re truly proud of. It features the best aspects of our music. Beautiful, strong melody accompanied with massive harmony, heavy guitars and tasty solos. The lyrics are a poetic package for the listener to unfold. Everyone can interpret them as they like, but for us they describe the pain and elusiveness of a creative process; music, writing, dance and art in general. For us it is modern progressive rock at its finest."
Sum of Seven is a fresh progressive metal band from Finland formed in late 2011.
It first started off as a side project between Ari, the main songwriter, and Rasmus, the drummer.
After jamming together for a while, it did not take long for them to decide to grow from a duo into a full band.
Bass player Aki Niemi joined the group in 2012, solo guitarist Harri Annala at the start of 2013 and vocalist Timo Mustonen at the end of 2013.
The band was originally named Sonus Corona.
The band is all about creating music that is inspiring.
The groundwork for the release of their first album started right after Timo had joined the band.
The self-titled debut album was released in December 2015, with songs which portray the inner thoughts of a man trying to survive in a decaying world.
The album was praised by its songwriting and presents the listener with inspiring musical atmospheres ranging from heavy as hell to light as a feather.
It is a mixture of progressiveness, heaviness and melody.
In the beginning of 2017 they released a single “The Refuge” which set the tone of the second album with a powerful sound and a firm positive feel, accompanied with a music video on YouTube.
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have released their
single ‘Voices’
The song has curvy melodies, groovy guitars and mesmerizing vocals.
It also introduced keyboards (which were not present on the debut album) to their music.
Esa Lempinen recorded the keyboards and joined the band soon after the release of the song.
Miika Erkkilä took over live bass duties in the spring of 2019 and became a full-time member when Aki Niemi switched from plucking the bass to taking care of the band’s graphic look.
The second album, “Time Is Not On Your Side”, was released in November 2019.
The story on the second album progresses with a deep narrative about a struggle with a fleeting sanity.
The music complements the story with powerful riffs and diverse, rich melodies.
The introduction of keyboards adds greatly to the overall atmospheric feel.
The album received great reviews and was again praised for the ingenious songwriting.
“Time Is Not On Your Side” builds up to a solid musical experience that takes the listener from depths of despair to the height of hope.
At the end of 2020 Timo decided to leave the band to focus on other aspects of his life.
After a few months of searching, Marko Loukamaa joined as the new frontman.
In the summer of 2021 The band signed a management and booking deal with the company LManagement.
With this big development and the corona pandemic the band decided to change their name to Sum of Seven.
With Marko’s versatility and depth behind the mic the band sounds better than ever and is busy writing new music.
sum of seven: “Our main goal is to have fun and compose music that inspires us and hopefully others. We absolutely love playing live and try to deliver an energetic and powerful experience to the audience. We signed a management and booking deal recently and with that our possibilities to go forward with the band increased significantly. With this and the coronapandemic in mind we opened a discussion to change our name. The pandemic has taken millions of lives around the world and has irreversibly altered what we think when we hear the word “corona”. With heavy hearts we decided to change our name.”
Finnish melancholic dark metal band Kaamos Warriors released a new single and music video Vapaus.
The track is taken from the upcoming fourth studio album which is released on 2022.
Jani Moilanen comments:
“Vapaus is the second single from our 4th album. The melodic song combines the untouched wilderness with the freedom of choice in ones path in life”
Line-up:
Mikko Ojala (vocals, guitars, drums, keyboards)
Jani Moilanen (guitars, acoustic guitars, solo guitars)
Jyri Moilanen (bass)
have released their debut EP ‘Prophecy’
Finnish folk influenced melodic death metal band Crowen released their debut EP Prophecy on December 10th 2021 via Inverse Records.
To celebrate the release the band decided to make a music video for the song Black. It features Shade of Sorrow and Mira Cibulka.
Esa Uusimaa comments:
“The making of the song Black took place just before the previous Exosus single. As far as I remember, I first made Exosus and then Black. This is the only full song I’ve composed on an acoustic guitar from start to finish. The original harmony chords didn’t sit well with the distorted guitar tones, so I used basic chords, and the song worked better. Mira Cibulka composed the piano parts for the song, which gave it a certain kind of longing feeling, and this way, we finished with playing the instruments. The song definitely needed clean vocals for the chorus, so the only good option was Mika Kankainen (Shade of Sorrow). I’ve recorded, mixed and mastered three singles in Mika’s project myself, so it was easy to ask him to join the songs. When I heard the demos (sung on a cell phone with head deep in the bathtub), I thought the song was then finished. This is the slowest song on the EP, and it balances those blast beats. I’m very pleased with the outcome!”
A single named Exosus is released also from the EP.
Crowen is founded on 2019 by Esa Uusimaa
(Rain of Acid, Ex-Wolfheart (live)).
The band released their fist single ‘In Arms’ on September 2020 and is set to release their debut EP Prophecy later in 2021.
Line-up:
Esa Uusimaa – Vocals, Guitars
Aki Örni – Bass
Teemu Hauta – Drums
Mira Cibulka – Feature Vocals
Track list:
01. Her Words
02. Seer’s Prophecy
03. Submission
04. Black
05. Exosus
launches a riff rocket
Finnish heavy rockers Rough Grind shoot for the sky with their second single from the upcoming new album, “Hardened” (Inverse Records).
The new single is now out to light up the airwaves, and the album is due for release on 28 January 2022.
While the first single, “The Road Song”, was a stroll down the memory lane to revisit the age of hard rock giants, the second one is a modern metal juggernaut.
Titled “Dreamchaser”, the new piece is a veritable riff rocket that will irresistibly take up permanent orbit inside your head.
Founded in 2011, Rough Grind’s resumé includes three EPs – “Son of a Gun” (2014), “Four for the Road” (2017) and “Trouble or Nothing” (2018) – and their debut album “Pieces of Resistance” was released in 2020.
The releases have been well-received around the globe, getting airtime from radio stations in USA, Canada, UK and Germany, among others.
promo-pic by petri damsten
from their upcoming fourth studio album
Finnish heavy metal band Midnight Bullet is set to release their fourth studio album Hostile Resistance on March 4th 2022 via Inverse Records.
Rain on Me is a first track from the upcoming album and sets the pace right from the first hits!
The song represents exactly the straightforward energy that band wanted to bring back to the new record as well.
Tuomas Lahti, vocals & rhythm guitar:
“So awesome to put out new song for our friends out there! This song is about social media and how people are desperately trying to reach attention. Sometimes this kind of acting isn’t healthy and this can detach you from reality. Social media can be very useful tool for marketing and reaching out fans or friends, but unfortunately sometimes it’s very easy to see how people are posting pictures only because they want to have some attention. People sometimes use social media just because they want to pose or beg attention.”
Midnight Bullet is a four piece band from Finland, started in 2009 and band members lives in Mantyharju and Lahti.
Everybody in the band are around age 30 and they have been playing together for almost 20 years.
Tuomas and Mikko have been playing together for years and they decided to have a new band.
It was obvious that the new band started to play own material.
Back in the old days there were some changes with band members but this current crew has recorded two albums
(Into the Fire and Hostile Resistance).
Only bass player has changed since the first two albums
(Faraday Cage and Lose My Face).
When the band is performing live there is a lot of energy and the
heavy sound reaches the very last seat in the house.
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Track List:
1. Rain on Me
2. Hostile Resistance
3. Paranoia Obsession
4. Wait and See
5. Rise and Fall
6. Dead Redemption
7. Take Me Away
8. Enemy Number One
9. Last Escape
10. Angel of Babylon
from their upcoming fourth studio album
There is also live show element in the songs because the songs needs to work out properly live or it doesn’t even end up in the record.
Midnight Bullet continues to create a perfect mix of groove, melody and aggression for your listening pleasure!
In their music you can hear influences ranging from the classic rock & roll from the likes of Motörhead to groove metal of Pantera, and even hints of blues and punk!
They have released three albums already and the fourth titled
”Hostile Resistance” is ready to be unleashed
upon all rock and metal loving listeners out there.
they are a rock band with a metal vibe and a punk attitude and they play loud!
Line-up:
Tuomas Lahti – vocals, guitar
Mikko Nokelainen – drums
Lauri Ikonen – lead guitar
Mirko Miettinen – bass
will release on the 17th of December 2021 their debut album ‘Ways of the Pack’
Killer riffs, symphonic atmosphere, beautiful melodies and tempestuous rhythm pounding, accompanied by fantasy-inspired lyrics.
These are the trademarks of Wolftopia.
Come, join the choirs of the Pack.
Ways of the Pack is the debut album of Finnish melodic
death metal band Wolftopia.
It was recorded in the band’s home studios in Vaasa over the summer of 2020, and mixed and mastered by Ahti Kortelainen (Tico Tico Studios).
The album features eight fast-paced, bombastic metal songs, ranging from the dark to the energetic, from the angry to the empowering.
Ways of the Pack is filled to the brim with complex melodic death metal that deftly walks a fine line between in-your-face aggression and bombastic grandeur.
Musically, Wolftopia takes influences from various corners of metal genres, while still upholding its unique Finnish melodic identity and sound.
The lyrics, written by frontman, singer and rhythm guitarist Aleksander Okhotnikov, are inspired by fantasy literature and nature.
To Okhotnikov, fantasy provides a chance to explore and delve into the rich worlds that many authors develop.
In his music, he wants to combine his love of fantasy with his other love: melodic death metal.
But the rest of the band also takes pride in their craft. And that shows.
Lead guitarist Topi Karhunen plays his aggressive riffs and intricate solos with great virtuosity, and the rhythm section, formed by bassist Tim Reus and drummer Tom Israels, provides a tight backbone that’s difficult to ignore.
The release was accompanied by three singles: “Alpha”, boasting menacing guitar riffs and unforgiving blast-beat drums; the fast, atmospheric album opener “Hound of War”; and the catchy and slightly retro rocker
“Wash the Spears”.
Track list:
1. Hound of War
2. The Last Embrace of the Mother
3. Wash the Spears
4. We are Pack
5. Predator
6. May He Sever the Shadow
7. The Alpha
8. I am the Storm
Line-up:
Aleksander Okhotnikov (Vocals & guitars)
Tom Israels (Drums)
Tim Reus (Bass)
Topi Karhunen (Guitar)
The former founder and frontman of Finnish speed metal trio Terrorwheel, who also did a run as the vocalist/bass player in melodic metal band Altaria, has been busy during the last couple of years, writing material for his new hard rock/punk project Marco Luponero & The Loud Ones.
The debut album, which will be released in its entirety in March 2022, has been co-produced and recorded by Owe Inborr at Wolfthrone Studios.
“I worked with Owe a couple of years ago when we did an EP”, says Marco. “He gets what I’m after and the chemistry is great, so there was no question about what studio I’d be using this time.”
The lead vocals, rhythm guitars and bass on the album are all played by Marco. Simon Grundvall, who’s played with Luponero quite a lot in the past, handles the drums.
The album also features several guest performers, among them Jacob Björnfot of Kvaen, who recorded the guitar solo for “Hook”.
“Jakob is an extremely talented guitarist. I’m very happy to have him playing on the song. The solo turned out absolutely majestic.”
When asked to describe “Hook”, the first single from his upcoming album, Marco Luponero says “It’s one of those straightforward speed rock songs that’ll smash your teeth out from the first beat to the last – in the most pleasant way possible, of course.”
Even though “Hook” tells the story of a zombie pirate on a slashing spree, the song was actually inspired by something very serious: “A while ago, I got blood clots in my lungs. It was a scary event that fortunately ended well. But the pain was excruciating. It felt as if my lungs were ripped apart by a sharp object, like a hook or something. I knew I had to write about it.”
Inspired by classic horror movies, the video was produced and directed by Marco himself. “I’m a director as well, so it felt natural to take that job on myself. I also had a lot of help from good friends and actors. Big thanks to all of them all for their contribution.”
pic by Daria Gatska
