In retrospect: Ronnie James Dio

Hi and welcome back to a new round of "In retrospect:". This time I'm tackling the career of Ronnie James Dio, although not all of his career. This might sound weird, but truth be told - the man's legacy started way before Elf, which is kind of the first band people usually know him from. Back in the 1950's and 1960's, Ronnie James Dio was already an active singer, but since this was in a time long-before hard rock and heavy metal, the music was more what you could imagine from that time.

Judging by the fact that Dio's pre-Elf career is too hard to fully trace, not to mention having an interest and patience in hearing it all, leaves me determined to not include his early, mostly unknown career in music. Actually, the same goes for his first little-to-fairly-known band Elf, which I simply haven't heard enough from, and what little I've heard didn't really interest me that much either, I'm afraid.

What I will cover is Ronnie's well-known career and legacy, from Rainbow to Black Sabbath to his solo act Dio. The only releases I will exclude from these bands are live and compilation albums, since they rarely interest me anyway.

A small shoutout before I begin, however, for Rainbow's "On Stage" album which in fact is a good one. Nonetheless, I will not include it in the list, but it's very worth checking out.

Here we go...

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Rainbow


1975 - Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow

Ronnie James Dio's first well-known album, and his first mainstream introduction to the public, is quite a landmark. Though this album was a major factor in Dio's career, it was also important for band leader and legendary guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, who had left Deep Purple to form his own band. The release itself, however, is not quite as good to my ears as many other people think. Truth be told, I always found Deep Purple and Rainbow to be somewhat of a hit-or-miss kind of bands. It's solid and got some great tracks, but nothing awesome as a whole.


1976 - (Rainbow) Rising

Now this is a lot better than the band's previous effort, I believe. If anything, it's certainly heavier and more to my taste. While it's got a shorter amount of songs (six in total), half of the album is made-up of eight-minute songs. Back in my early teens many years ago, I was often bored of lenghty songs, but as I grew older I really started to appreciate those musical-journey style songs many bands do. This album really has got that, with music just as epic as the most classic album cover art. One mighty fine hour in Dio's career, not to mention in the rest of the band members' careers as well.


1978 - Long Live Rock 'n' Roll

Dio's last album with Rainbow has got quite an ironic title, doesn't it? Not because rock 'n' roll died, at least not as early as 1978, but because it was the last album of Dio-Rainbow. It doesn't quite matter that Rainbow switched members from every record to record (at least up until "Difficult To Cure", after that I'm not sure), the Dio-Blackmore collaboration was all that counted, really. The album itself is a good closure for Dio's tenure in Rainbow with some of both Dio's and Blackmore's best songs ever.


Black Sabbath (take 1)


1980 - Heaven And Hell

Starting off his career in a band like Rainbow, only to then go on and replace Ozzy Osbourne in the mighty Sabbath. That is one hell of a career move, right? Well, Dio had the chops to did, and he bloody well did. As a major fan of Sabbath I love every album they did with Ozzy except for "Never Say Die!", which is a bit bland. I can understand why some people didn't like a few more of their last Ozzy-fronted albums, though. Anyway, with Dio in the fold, they put themselves back on the map - big time. This album is one of the best albums of all time, particularly within the metal community. Anyone denying its mastercrafted heavy metal sound of grandeur is an idiot. Dio himself stated at several times that this was his very favorite album, as well.


1981 - Mob Rules

While it doesn't really seem like an unknown album, it's certainly underrated and overlooked in comparison to its predecessor. I sometimes wonder if I don't even like this one slighty more, but it's a close call any way. Where this album perhaps went by more quietly, however, it was an important career step for Dio, who met his future long-time drummer Vinnie Appice who plays drums on this album. This would also be the last Dio-fronted Sabbath album in ten years to come, but what a great closure of Dio-Sabbath (mark one) it was. Very heavy and powerful album!


Dio


1983 - Holy Diver

One of the most legendary metal albums of all time. The debut of Dio's solo band really showed the world that the little man with the big voice could make it on his own. An album that surely helped out a lot with putting American heavy metal on the map, because after all, Ronnie James Dio was American. While Dio himself was American, however, his new and sensational young talen Vivian Campbell came from Ireland. Viv Campbell is today more known as one of the guitarists in Def Leppard, something that is quite far away from the style of Dio. Anyway, this album showed everyone that the Dio band was just as good, if not better, than both Rainbow and Black Sabbath had been with Dio. Most worthy of mentioning is also Dio's classic rhythm section with Jimmy Bain on bass and Vinnie Appice on drums. Just one of the great rhythm sections of all time, what a band!


1984 - The Last In Line

For a long time this was my favorite Dio album. I don't know if it still is, but it's one damn good album to say the least. Coming from "Holy Diver" which largely lacked keyboards, something which was pretty crucial and prominent in the soundscapes of Dio's former bands, this one saw keyboardist Claude Schnell recruited and a lot of more keyboards being present in the music. I believe this really helped cementing the Dio band's sound, especially with Ronnie's fantasy-themed lyrics which fit the 1980's heavy metal scene very nicely. This album is a very heavy and atmospheric journey of heavy metal music that everyone should own. A great mix of heavy, speed, and poppy metal.


1985 - Sacred Heart

Somewhat unintentionally controversial, this album would prove to be the last album featuring the classic Dio line-up. Guitarist Vivian Campbell and Ronnie had clashed by this point, for whatever reasons (they are widely discussed throughout interviews if you're interested). It's a most typical Dio album in a musical sense, but it does perhaps feature a somewhat more commercial sound. The album's lead singles are quite poppy and the fans were largely split with opinions about this one. This fact along with the ultimate demise and departure of Vivian Campbell's tenure in the band made it somewhat of the controversy it is. But I am one of those fans who love this album. A few tracks do tend to sound a bit more filler than usual, but still - it's a pretty fucking good album anyway.


1987 - Dream Evil

Marking the first album without guitarist Viv Campbell, this was the first (and ultimately at the time the only) album to feature Craig Goldy. I've always been very fond of this album, especially considering it's Craig Goldy who plays on it. That might come across as I don't like the guy's playing, but I'll come back and explain that on later albums. What this album sounds like is a mix between Dio's previous three solo albums and his Rainbow albums. Goldy seemed to be very influenced by Ritchie Blackmore, and perhaps even a bit too much so. The guitar playing is just phenomenal but not really as original or interesting as on previous albums. At the end of the day, however, this release does feature some of Dio's most underrated songs, and for any fans who loved Dio in Rainbow, this one would surely be the album to check out from Dio's solo records.


1990 - Lock Up The Wolves

Dio's fifth album once again showed a change within the band, albeit a much larger one this time around. For this album, Dio had changed out his whole backing band. Some of the old guys got fired for whatever reasons and the rest felt uncomfortable playing with the replacing guys. I can only suppose it was inevitable and a much needed change at the time. But how does it affect the album then? Well, it sounds quite different (obviously). Compared to the previous albums, this one is way much more guitar-driven, with hardly any prominent keyboards at all. Perhaps a sign of the times as the 80's was over, I dunno. The guitarist here, Rowan Robertson, was infamously only seventeen years old at the time he joined the band, and boy was he full of great talent! Ultimately, it's not the strongest Dio release. It took me a few years to truly get into this, but when I finally did, it became a very good more hard-rock/glam metal-influenced record than its predecessors.


Black Sabbath (take 2)


1992 - Dehumanizer

Dio let-go of his solo band in favor of rejoining Sabbath during the early 90's. I suppose the reason was that both the Dio band as well as Black Sabbath had been struggling somewhat throughout the last few years, and while they assured everyone it wasn't about the money, well ... I beg to differ, especially considering how ill they spoke of each other during the 80's. But it all happened anyway, and the end result was one hell of a heavy album. Perhaps even the heaviest Sabbath album of all time, but in the end I always felt this album fell somewhat flat in comparison to Dio's previous Sabbath-albums. It's a solid album, but nothing too spectacular. Sabbath simply did better doom metal with Ozzy in the 70's (without disrespecting Ronnie's performance or place in the band). This reunion was, however, very short-lived.


Dio (take 2)


1993 - Strange Highways

Without a doubt this is the most overlooked and underrated album of Dio's career. I suppose the reasons for it were maybe not all that surprising, though. Seeing as how the 90's obviously changed the music market for this kind of metal, and Dio and his solo band were largely associated with "dragons and rainbows", I just guess nobody was interested anymore. Well, that sure as hell was their huge loss, because this album is fucking awesome. Once again, the old trademark-keyboards are almost completely gone on this one as well, and it's way heavier than any solo record Dio ever did. This one is a lot more like Sabbath's Dehumanizer, p. 2. The only difference is - I think this one turned out way better, to be honest. For this album, Dio used his new guitar player Tracy G. along with former Dokken bassist Jeff Pilson, and his former long-time drummer Vinnie Appice came back to the fold as well. Some fans ultimately disliked Tracy G. and his playing (strongly), but I guess it's mostly because the guy played his own solos on old Dio and Sabbath tracks when they played live. Otherwise, I think the guy had a great guitar tone and I love his "loose" riffing style.


1996 - Angry Machines

And without a doubt this is Dio's worst album of his (more well-known) career. I've tried to get into this but I just can't. It sounds like a further exploration within doom metal, this time taking an even heavier approach. The end result is just plain bad. The songs are boring, uninspired and most of all - it doesn't sound very much like a Dio album. I can only suppose that for those who disliked Tracy G., this album did nothing but further cement that opinion of theirs. This was ultimately the last album to feature Tracy G. (as well as Vinnie Appice), who left some years later due to even Ronnie getting tired of his solo-style during live performances. I liked the guy and his personal playing, but this album was pretty bad. Him not playing the older songs' solos properly either, well ... fans were obviously gonna be pissed.


2000 - Magica

This album marked four noteworthy things: the return of guitarist Craig Goldy, as well as drummer Simon Wright (who played on "Lock Up The Wolves") and the former classic and long-time bassist Jimmy Bain, and most of all: the return of Dio's trademark fantasy-style metal. The end result, however, is a bit hit-or-miss. Seeing as it was 2000, with new ways of making digital recording cheaper to use, as well as Dio having not had any greater success for almost ten years by this point, the album sounds rather cheaply recorded. The production is very flat-sounding. On top of this, Craig Goldy's return to the band is more of a disappointment than it is a success. The riffs just tend to sound very much the same over and over. His old Ritchie Blackmore-influenced style of riffing is long-gone on here, and while it was maybe Ronnie who wrote the riffs, it's still a pretty boring performane from Goldy. Simon Wright's stellar-rather-than-loose playing style (if compared to Vinnie Appice) just further makes this album stiff and a bit lifeless. It's sad because this album really had potential in its songs.


2002 - Killing The Dragon

Following much in the same vein as "Magica", this album is more of a success to my ears. It sounds more inspirated and more true to Dio's 80's albums than any Dio album has done post-80's. Maybe this was because of guitarist Doug Aldrich, who temporarily replaced Craig Goldy for a few years while the latter became a father. Still present, however, is the somewhat of the stiff sound from the previous album. It's not nearly as much, however, as the production is a bit more "full" and the guitars (especially) are more varied and alive on this one. Not really a superb album, but without a doubt the best album Dio did after "Strange Highways" in 1993.


2004 - Master Of The Moon

Ultimately what would become the last Dio album, this one once again sees the return of bassist Jeff Pilson as well as Craig Goldy(!), and along with him comes (once again) a more stiff performance like "Magica". Now these two albums have really left me wondering sometimes what this guy did to lose his amazing performance-style from "Dream Evil". It's just sad to see such a promising guitarist become so uninspiring and boring fifteen-to-twenty years down the line. This particular album itself, however, is not bad, but not very good either. Just like with "Magica", this is somewhat of a hit-or-miss kind of album. It's a bit more keyboard-oriented which is nice, but otherwise there's not really one single track that truly stands out as memorable.


Heaven & Hell (a.k.a. Black Sabbath, take 3)


2009 - The Devil You Know

Sometime soon after the mid-2000's, Ronnie once again reunited with his former Black Sabbath bandmates. Sabbath had not too long ago stopped playing with Ozzy Osbourne, whom they had reunited with in the late 1990's. Needless to say, Sabbath was most likely facing another rather unsuccessful bunch of years ahead of them, while Dio had already been working too hard for too little for several years at this point. The guys reunited once more, opting to change their name after the legendary "Heaven And Hell" album this time instead. They released their first and ultimately only full-length album in 2009, which I suppose was successful (judging by time of illegal downloads, etc). The album itself is also a very good one, being the best album by the Sabbath guys (Tony and Geezer) and Dio (with Vinnie Appice) in a long, long time. It's a very heavy doom metal album and a great way for Ronnie James Dio to (sadly) end his career.

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That was it for this time, guys. These are my reflections and presentations of Ronnie James Dio's albums in short. I hope you enjoyed and see you next time!

//J.

In retrospect: Magnum (UK)

Welcome to my second round of "In retrospective:", which today will feature non other than the excellent British band Magnum. If you're European, especially British, German or Scandinavian, then there's a good chance you know about these guys. If you're American and never heard of them before, then I wouldn't be surprised. Magnum tried and they failed at breaking the American market back in the day, but in Europe they were fairly successful or at least well-known with a dedicated fan-base.

My introduction to Magnum was through my old man, who was a big fan of Magnum as he grew up in the 80's. When I grew up and got a liking to hard rock and metal music in 2002, I eventually discovered his old vinyl stash, and with practically every Magnum album from studio to compilation being included (except for "Chase The Dragon", sadly), it wasn't long before I was another fan of the band.

The thing I've always loved the most with Magnum is the vocals. Bob Catley's such an amazing artist with a most passionate voice full of emotion, like Ronnie James Dio for instance, but with another character to it of course. His stage presence is also rather unique, as my girlfriend pointed out after watching old and new live videos of them. Then of course we have guitarist and song-writer Tony Clarkin, who is yet another (sadly) way underrated veteran in the genre. Writing all the music and lyrics for Magnum, I think his talent is very apparent, especially if you consider how all the other members the band has had throughout the years, were alright with him being the sole writer.

Musically speaking, Magnum is usually referred to as simply hard rock, or more often (and probably correctly) melodic hard rock or pomp-rock. Personally, I dislike the latter because of the word pomp's meaning in my native language; Swedish. I don't know how many ways and meanings you use it for in the English language, but in Swedish the word pomp, which is translated into "pompös" or "pampig" most of the time, can have both a positive and a negative meaning. Generally, however, I believe the word is mostly used in a more negative sense, like describing something or someone who is pompous in a bad or irritating way.

But enough of my talk now and let's instead go into their discography. Just like last time, I will present their releases (excluding some compilations and live albums) and make brief comments about my opinion regarding them, but also try to add a fair score to each and everyone of them. Let's go!

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Album / (year) / score (out of 10)
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Kingdom Of Madness (1978) - 7.0

Comment: The debut album which was actually recorded in 1975 already, but delayed for three whole years. I can only assume it was because of label bullshit, or a lack of one altogether perhaps, but this album is rather special in their discography. It doesn't quite sound like the classic Magnum, leaning more towards a progressive rock sound and sounding quite like a product of its time. Some tracks are really good, especially the title-track (though it was later remade) which is a classic live-staple of theirs. A solid release but the best is yet to come.


Magnum II (1979) - 8.5

The band's second album a lot closer to the classic Magnum sound, although still leaning a lot towards the progressive influences. This album was done before the band's long-time and classic keyboardist Mark Stanway joined the fold, but it's still a very keyboard-driven album. Actually, I would even say that it's at times more keyboard-driven rather than guitar-driven, and the keyboards do not rarely give me vibes of how the likes of Jean Michel Jarre, Vangelis or Tangerine Dream sounded at the time. A very good album.


Marauder (1980) - 7.0

A rather classic release from the band, this one happens to be a live album. To be honest, I am not too big a fan of live albums but I do enjoy some classics, with Judas Priest's "Unleashed In The East" being the perhaps best live album ever made. So, with that said, this is not a bad one by any means, but it just doesn't quite interest me that much either. However, I thought it was important to include this one since it appears to be well-appreciated among the band's fans, not to mention that several of the live takes on here are featured on several compilation albums instead of their studio-album counterparts. But once again, like always with live albums, I have no clue how much of this album is actually recorded live (or not).


Chase The Dragon (1982) - 9.8

Just like the debut record, this one was recorded in 1980 but delayed until 1982 because of label bullshit. This is in several ways somewhat of the "real" debut album for the band, as it was the first to feature long-time keyboardist Mark Stanway, which would cement the classic ever-going trio of Catley-Clarkin-Stanway. The album itself also features the true trademark sound of Magnum, not to mention it's heavier (perhaps their closest one to being heavy metal, without quite being that). The songs are all just excellent compositions and Bob Catley's vocals are really powerful on here. Why he didn't get more recognition for his amazing voice is beyond me. Needless to mention to other Magnum fans, this album also features several live-classics for the band, with particularly "Sacred Hour" being in mind, and what an amazing intro it's got!


The Eleventh Hour (1983) - 8.5

This one always struck me as being a classic release by the band, but from what I've come to understand through several fans and the band themselves, this album is many times closer to being "disliked". I personally can't imagine this to be very true. Sure, the band themselves were quite bitter at their label during this album's release, and thus maybe associate it and its music with bad times, but for me as a fan, this one is just another great album. What I particularly like about this one is how it once more manages to sound different while still maintaining Magnum's trademark essence. Musically, I always thought this album sounded like "English pub folk-rock music", something that would fit perfectly into the painting for the band's next album.


On A Storyteller's Night (1985) - 9.2

The band's first breakthrough came with this one, featuring classics like "Just Like An Arrow", "Les Mort Dansant" and particularly the ever-going live-staple epic "How Far Jerusalem". While it's certainly a somewhat more easy-accessible record and cleaner-sounding in the production department, I think it still manages to maintain a complete Magnum trademark sound, not to mention it feels like a natural progression for the band. Perhaps this one is more AOR-oriented, but it's still driven by a duel between guitar and keyboards, with heavy pounding drums and Bob Catley's fantastic voice in a very good performance. This would probably, really, be the best introduction you could get into the band's music.


Vigilante (1986) - 7.0

Another classic to many, somewhat of a sell-out to others, but to me this one is most of all a typical sign of the times album. Featuring an ultra-clean(ed up) production and lots of rather cheesy keyboards, this one was very much a typical 80's AOR album. Compared to the band's previous efforts, this one has more in common with the likes of Bon Jovi rather than Magnum themselves. Sure, some of the tracks are really good and well-worth getting the album for alone, but some tracks sound like leftovers from Billy Idol's then-new "Whiplash" album. Not bad, actually pretty good for what it is, but far from Magnum's finest hour (or trademark sound).


Wings Of Heaven (1988) - 6.0

At its time, this one was the band's most successful record in England, but in most other countries as well, I believe. I always found it rather ironic, however, that their most commercially successful album would prove to be the one I like the least (at least thus far). Once again, it's not at all a bad album, but its particular ultra-80's AOR sound doesn't really appeal that much to me.


Goodnight L.A. (1990) - 6.5

A continuation of the band's more easy-accessible sound, and also their most American-friendly release. Specifically aimed at the (north) American audience to try and break there, it does sound like a mix of recent Magnum albums with some typical American radio-rock. I actually prefer this one over the previous album since this at least is a bit rockier again, but it's kind of a hit-or-miss album. To summon it as best as I can; if I look at the album's track-list, I recognize a few songs all of which I like. The rest I cannot even recall what they sound like.


Sleepwalking (1992) - 6.8

A good step away from what the band (or label, rather) tried to do over the last three albums. This is certainly sounds more like the good ol' Magnum again, but in a somewhat more "mature" approach. I mean, the guys were like 40 years or so at this point, so it's understandable the sound matured a bit with them. But overall this is not something that I truly appreciate, yet. Some songs are really good and while the album maintains a better standard than the previous few albums, it's simply (still) not quite appealing to me.


Rock Art (1994) - ?

I don't recall ever listening to this on or its tracks. I don't have in my collection either, so I'll let this one pass for now. (After a quick Googling, I found out at the band themselves are very fond of this particular album, looking back on it today. I will have to get my hands on it.)


Breath Of Life (2002) - ?

The second (and last) album from Magnum which I currently don't have. I have heard some stuff from it, like the two songs which are featured (remixed or re-recorded) on the Evolution (2011) compilation, and a snippet or two perhaps, I don't remember. From what I've heard about this album from the band themselves, however, this album doesn't really sound like Magnum, but rather a mix of Mag and Hard Rain (the band Tony and Bob were in with current bassist Al during the 90's). I haven't heard the Hard Rain records either, so I don't have many clues about what this album is like, but the band themselves don't seem too interested in this one these days. I'll leave its rating blank for the moment.


Brand New Morning (2004) - 7.0

Widely considered to be the first "real" Magnum album since their reformation in 2001 by the band and fans alike. To my ears, it sure does sound like a modernized Magnum as well. The album itself, however, is not really their strongest effort since their reformation. Apart from perhaps Breath Of Life (I wouldn't know), this is their weakest post-reformation album. Some songs on this one, like the opening/title-tack for instance, are the best songs by Magnum since 1985. Some other songs just tend to not be as strong, and that's both alright and understandable, but at this point, Tony Clarkin and Magnum were just getting started with crafting their modern sound which we're familiar with today.


Princess Alive And The Broken Arrow (2007) - 8.8

This is officially, to me and many other fans alike, the best Magnum album in a very long time. To me, it's the band's best since 1985, but some fans hold this one as the band's best album, period. It's a bloody fantastic record which shows the return of the band's long-time artwork maker Rodney Matthews (one of my favorite artists, I might add). The album continues in a very similar direction like the previous album, but with more focus and better songs, I believe. Some of the band's strongest tunes to date are present here, and this was luckily just the start for a completely reborn Magnum.


Into The Valley Of The Moonking (2009) - 8.0

A slight step down from the previous record, but it's neither surprising nor a bad thing. It was kind of expected considering how good the previous one turned out. What is a bit weird, however, is why they chose "Cry To Yourself" as an opening track. I honestly have a hard time coming up with another example of opening tracks this inappropriate. It doesn't suck you in at all and it's a rather low-pace, ballad-esque tune. Otherwise, this album is very strong. It's a bit more ballad-esque overall I think, but they're all strong songs. The more rockier numbers also give me strong vibes of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, which is a good thing. Another thing I've gotten the impression of is that this album is somewhat overlooked among Magnum fans. No one seems to talk about or listen to this one, and that is very odd considering how good it is.


The Visitation (2011) - 8.0

Another just-as-strong effort from Magnum, and yet another proof that the new-born Magnum is a force to be reckoned with. Compared to the previous album, this one is both less Rainbow-esque and ballad-esque in its approach and sound. The rockier numbers, particularly the opening track "Black Skies" are heavy-riffing melodic hard rock and has a similar vibe to (the track) "Brand New Morning", both of which in turn remind me of Led Zeppelin somehow. Overall, however, this album manages to vary itself more compared to the previous one, but instead loses somewhat of Moonking's consistency. At the end I'd say they're both equal in quality, though.


On The 13th Day (2012) - 8.2

Once again Magnum takes a slight turn musically and once more delivers a more varied album, but also a very colorful one. This album has got an excellent album art once again done by Rodney Matthews and it's full of lovely colors in almost a carnival-esque setting. The music sounds very fitting in relation to the album art, for sure. So this basically covers several areas in a wider stretch compared to most of the band's albums. There are some typical Magnum anthems such as the opening track "All The Dreamers", classic Magnum ballads, and even a real heavy one this time around in "Dance Of The Black Tattoo". It's got a lighter atmosphere at times compared to the recent three albums or so, but also darker moments. Overall a very good mix.


Escape From The Shadow Garden (2014) - 9.5

In a way, this is Magnum's very finest hour in my opinion. There are a few of their records that come close, but the only one that would possibly beat this one is Chase The Dragon, and that's out of a sheer nostalgia factor. This album is absolutely lovely and somewhat of a contrast to On The 13th Day. If that one was mostly light and joyful, then this one is darker and viler. I just love everything about this one from the tunes to the very dark artwork (by Magnum standards). Most of the guys in the band were around 65 when they did this one, and they rock harder on this one than they've done in a long time. It's an absolutely fantastic record and every song is great, making the album all-around very consistent and interesting.


Sacred Blood "Divine" Lies (2016) - 9.0

The band's most recent album as of today. I honestly didn't doubt they would come back with yet another great album, but I maybe expected another 8:er. I certainly did not expect the band to follow up their previous triumph with an album worthy of a solid 9, but they did. This album kind of follows the last one in style and sound/production, but it's not quite as dark-sounding this time around. Still, the songs aren't really as colorful as On The 13th Day, either. What it is is a melodic hard rocking journey through Magnum's lovely trademark keyboards and riffs, with some (still) amazing vocals by Bob Catley. Seriously, the man's voice is still as passionate as ever, and it's a crime by everyone who doesn't acknowledge his chops.


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If you're knew to Magnum and love 80's hard rock, melodic rock, AOR or NWoBHM, I suggest you check out Magnum. Either use this guide to buy an album or two, or go digital via iTunes, Spotify or Google Play. It's a lovely band with lovely music, and it's a great shame that they never made it bigger.

Top-10 Most Underrated Or Overlooked: Hard Rock & Metal Bands

I'm launching a new to-be-recurring series here today. A classic top-10 most underrated list. Not very original perhaps, but opinions will always differ - making every list personal and unique. With that said, this list will be my personal opinion, and not some official "agree with this list, now" bullshit, or whatever.

This is purely for entertainment purpose, but hey, maybe you guys will find yourself agreeing with me, and maybe you'll even find something new. //J.

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Thing: Band / Status: Underrated or overlooked
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10. Saxon (UK) - Underrated

Although they are well-known in the metal community, I always felt that they were overshadowed by bands like Iron Maiden and particularly Judas Priest, with their reminiscent biker sound. Sure, Saxon came along a few years after Priest, but at the time (late 70's) Priest hadn't quite yet gone into that more-straight-forward style metal they introduced on "British Steel", and also maintained for several albums to come after that one.

Saxon did mostly focus on that ride-motorcycles-on-the-highway heavy metal sound, with lyrics either focusing on those kind of things, or medieval stuff. Vocalist Biff Byford has also got a very distinctive voice which is very nice and suitable for the band's sound. To my ears, they were a very good band (and remains so to this day). It's very sad that people didn't acknowledge them as much as Maiden or Priest, but I guess that Saxon still was luckier success-wise than bands like, say, Angel Witch or Tygers Of Pan Tang.
 

9. Strapping Young Lad (Can) - Both

Okey, so Devin Townsend is pretty well-known these days and has a strong and loyal fan-base. He might not be a superstar, but at least in the metal community he is very well appreciated. But that doesn't necessarily go for all of his many projects that he's done over the years. SYL was a most underground band when they released their debut "Heavy As A Really Heavy Thing" back in 1995, which infamously sold like 15 copies in its first week of release, literally.

In 1997 Townsend and SYL returned with "City", an excellent record that remains my favorite Townsend work to this day. But the sound sure doesn't appeal to everyone, certainly not people who are not into metal. Being rather extreme industrial-style metal, there has rarely been a record more genuinely pissed off-sounding than that one. SYL would release three more full-length albums during the 2000's, all of which are good albums, with especially 2005's "Alien" being another masterpiece. But I guess people were more into the radio-friendlier bands such as Fear Factory, Rob Zombie or Marilyn Manson.
 

8. Crimson Glory (US) - Overlooked

These guys had it all - music, production, vocalist, label, etc. Something went wrong along the way, however, with possibly the record label (Roadrunner Records) being right on paper, but not in practice? They did two albums during the 80's both of which sounded great, and they had an amazing vocalist in the late Midnight (yes, that's simply what he called himself). Truth to be told, I even think he's my favorite power/progressive metal singer of all time. Halford, Kiske, Tate... Non of them beats Midnight in my opinion.

Whatever fans they managed to get seemed to be very much into the band, as their first two works are generally hailed as masterpieces of their sub-genre, yet still when listening to or mentioning them, no one knows what the fuck you're talking about. Strange and sad. These guys were like a mastercrafted Queensrÿche if the latter is just a novice band.
 

7. Death Angel (US) - Underrated

If you would expand the Big 4 into the Big 8 instead, Death Angel would likely enter it along with Testament, Overkill and Exodus, albeit on place 8 I guess. That just doesn't sound fair to my ears, since DA fucking wrings and torns 'em to out to shreds (any DA fan should see what I did there).

Any thrash fan are likely to be aware of their infamous debut "The Ultra-Violence" from 1987. After that one, fans are a bit divided when it comes to the quality of the band's next albums. But in latter years, I really think they were reborn. From 2010's "Relentless Retribution" and on, the band has just been on fire on every album, and today they also stand out as perhaps the best old school thrashers doing new albums. Particularly vocalist Mike Osegueda remains in great shape vocally today, much more so than any other major thrash band vocalist I can think of from the old bands.
 

6. God Forbid (US) - Overlooked

One of the bands included in the NWoAHM (New Wave of American Heavy Metal) movement, a.k.a. metalcore. These guys were great and had a pretty unique sound going on, which I personally would call a mix of Chimaira, Mastodon and thrash bands. It's a shame these guys didn't make it, but I suppose they were overshadowed by the likes of Lamb of God and all the emo shit-bands back in the 00's. They also got better by every album, with their last two being their best (and thrashiest) works to my ears.
 

5. Saigon Kick (US) - Overlooked

Although they managed to make a Gold-selling single in "Love Is On The Way" from their second album, their actual full-length albums did not do nearly as good. With that said, I guess they were potentially quite successful, but just otherwise overlooked since they came just as hair metal was becoming passé and grunge had exploded (fuck you, Nirvana).

While their sound was rooted in typical hair metal of the times, they stuck out by having unique influences and touches to their sound. They do sound like they took Skid Row's sound as a base, then spiced it up with a weirdness and poetical touch of The Doors, the joy of Jane's Addiction and the hard edge of Warrior Soul (which is another massively underrated band, btw). This stuff was experimental hair metal, in a way, and should've appealed to more people than it did.
 

4. Magnum (UK) - Overlooked

I absolutely love this band! If you're American, I would not even be surprised if you don't know what the hell Magnum is - I would rather expect it. It seems these guys went by mostly unnoticed in the US market throughout their entire c. 40-year-old career. They are, however, well-known and loved in the UK, Germany and the Scandinavian countries. Hell, here in Sweden, hard rock fans are always fans of the band, and for obvious reason.

They started off as a rather progressive rock band in the mid-70's or so, at least that's when they recorded their debut album "Kingdom Of Madness", but it wasn't released until 1978 - in the midst of punk conquering the UK. In the early 80's they got some opening slots for Ozzy Osbourne and Whitesnake which gave the band some recognition in Europe, and later got somewhat of a brake in 1985 with the excellent "On A Storyteller's Night". The band at this time had become more of an AOR-oriented Queen-meets-Thin Lizzy hybrid, and they would later receive a Gold record in the UK for their "Wings Of Heaven" (1988) album, which I ironically find to be their least-good record.

They're still growing strong to this day, releasing albums regularly and maintaining a solid progressive-esque hard rock sound. Oh, and Bob Catley is a truly underrated vocalist!
 

3. Chimaira (US) - Underrated

Without a doubt the best and thus also (sadly) most underrated band of the NWoAHM movement. They did kind of scratch the surface, but could never manage to rise to the level of Lamb of God, Machine Head or Trivium. Instead, they were a little more harder in their sound, whereas their metal elements were harder than any other bands, and likewise with the hardcore elements. They also had a groove to their sound, albeit not as groovy as MH or particularly LoG. What helped Chimaira stand out from the masses were their electronical elements, where they incorporated light use of keyboards, and a lot of sound effects, for loss of a better description.

They released six albums and an EP in total, where I love anything apart from their first and last albums. Everything in between is, more or less, gold to my ears. They also constantly evolved from record to record, which is another feat I really like about them. Too bad the kids in the scene either were too emo or too mainstream to really dig into these guys other than carefully scratching their surface.
 

2. Nocturnus (US) - Overlooked

Classic Tampa death metal that is pretty well-known for fans of the genre, I suppose, but for the larger death metal crowd, they're mostly overlooked. Featuring former early-days Morbid Angel drummer Mike Browning on drums (and also vocals on the debut, "The Key"), it kind of sounds reminiscent to the likes of Morbid Angel. The difference that makes them stand out, however, are heavy use of sci-fi keyboards. That's right, Nocturnus is sci-fi influenced death metal with strong and atmospheric keyboards. These guys apparently influenced bands like Children of Bodom a lot, but these guys are a lot better in my opinion.

Their career was ultimately rather shortlived, only lasting two albums and an EP before splitting in 1993 or so. Tensions arose within the band, particularly between main-man Mike Browning and the others, leading them to infamously go behind his back, acquiring the rights to the band name and all, and later firing him from the band he himself founded. Total dick mode if you ask me, but maybe the guy (Browning) was an ass, I don't know. Still, that's a fucking dick move. However, the remaining band did eventually reunite and release another album in 2000 called "Ethereal Tomb", but I don't really like that one at all. Biggest reason for it? Mike Browning's missing, and so is the original (good) sound with him.
 

1. Mordred (US) - Overlooked

Number one this time around is none other than the truly massively overlooked band Mordred. Hailing from the San Fransisco bay area, they started out as some kind of true heavy metal band, like Manowar or whatever. At least that's the impression I've got from what I've heard and seen. Later, however, they did some line-up changes and voila - it was 1989 and thrash metal was at its peak. But Mordred wasn't just a thrash band all of a sudden. On the rise was also funk metal, with Red Hot Chili Peppers popularizing the sound, which in 1989 would also be further popularized by Faith No More.

Mordred made a distinctive sound for themselves by incorporating bay area-thrash with funk metal. A real nice mix if you ask me, as it gives the sound this groovy feeling while also being fast, hard and intense. However, the band's debut was more of a pure thrash album which experimented with funk on a few tracks. It wasn't until 1991's excellent "In This Life" that the band really incorporated funk fully into their sound, and boy did it sound cool!

Like too many other bands at the time, however, the band had suddenly launched its sound the midst of the grunge outbreak (once again, fuck you Nirvana). Sure, Faith No More was huge at the time (though they sounded like a lot of other styles besides just funk) and RHCP would become massively popular with "Blood Sugar Sex Magik", but still Mordred went by mostly unnoticed. Maybe their thrash elements were their death sentence, as that sub-genre was pretty much passé at the time.

They would go on to release a great EP in 1992, and one last full-length in 1994 featuring a new vocalist. I never listened too much to that album, though. It just wasn't the same for me without their "classic" singer Scott Holderby's nasal rapping and thrash rambling. He's quite the frontman, so... Anyway, as of 2016 (or '15 at least), the band was once again active and due for an EP release. This, however, still remains unreleased as of right now, and I haven't heard anything in a long time now.

In retrospect: DEATH ANGEL

Welcome to the first installment in my new series "In retrospect:". I will make a short career-spanning discography review of bands where I comment on every album they've done, or at least those albums which I know and listen to. So today I thought I was gonna start with a band that I am actually listening to a lot at the moment, and one of those bands are the old Bay Area thrash metallers Death Angel. I'm not gonna drag on any further, let's dig in!


1987 - "The Ultra-Violence"

The band's debut album is undeniably what most thrash metal listeners associate Death Angel with, and for good reason. This album is nothing but killer - it's legendary! The whole album is a non-stop thrash metal assault with simplistic but very effective riffing, and the production is just one of those perfect examples of where the production actually suits the music like a battle jacket on a headbanger. It's simply just one of the very best thrash metal albums ever made, and should be at least top-100 best metal albums of all time for any metalhead.

Favorite tracks: Thrasher, Mistress Of Pain, Final Death


1988 - "Frolic Through The Park"

A rather unintentionally controversial second album. This album has met a lot of criticism from fans, and critics as well (but who gives a fuck about what them tools think anyway), and perhaps a bit unfairly so. I mean, I personally don't like this album very much, never did, but that's also after hearing their debut album first. I mean, they really peaked with the debut and I imagine it was hard writing, recording and releasing an album (just as good) in just one year after the debut. It's not really a bad album, but it's rather too tame and not nearly as memorable as the debut.

Favorite tracks: Bored, 3rd Floor, Guilty Of Innocence


1990 - "Act III"

The bands third and last album for a long while before their reunion. Now this album partially picks up where the last left off, but it's also a natural progression for the band. Here we get to hear that Death Angel obviously is a constantly evolving band and that is something I can totally respect. However, just like the previous album, this one tends to fall a bit short in quality and interest compared to the debut.

Now, to be fair, this album is a lot more diverse and experimental than the debut, fusing together funk riffing with the thrash, and even having an acoustic ballad. It's a complete different album, but still I always felt this album left much to be desired. Some songs are just too boring, but I am a big fan of Faith No More, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Mordred, so the funk elements are a welcome refreshment to my ears.

Favorite tracks: Seemingly Endless Time, Stagnant, Discontinued


1994 - "The Organization" (BONUS)

After Death Angel split up around 1991 or so, all the guys except for lead vocalist Mark Osegueda went on to form The Organization, an alternative/funky metal band named after a song on DA's last album. Since it still basically is Death Angel without Mark's voice (the other guys sang regularly as well), it's kind of what I imagine the band would do after Act III. It feels like a natural progression and I actually like this one more than Death Angel's last two albums (up till that point). They did a second album before splitting this project up as well, but I've never managed to track down and/or hear that one.

Favorite tracks: Free Burning, Policy, Bringer, The Past


2004 - "The Art Of Dying"

The band's comeback album. This is the album I know the least so I can't perhaps give a completely justifying opinion on it, but from what I can say this is basically a thrashier continuation of where the last album left off. The reason why I don't know this album that well is simply because it doesn't appeal that much to me, to be honest. The few times I listened to it it felt a bit run-of-the-mill.

Favorite tracks: The Devil Incarnate, Spirit


2008 - "Killing Season"

This album and the previous one kind of remind of that Frolic to Act III scenario all over again, where non of the two are really anything that special, but at least the latter is an improvement from the former one. This album did raise my hopes for the future a bit, and I think this is an overall better album and where the band is starting to find itself again.

Favorite tracks: Dethroned, Soulless, Buried Alive


2010 - "Relentless Retribution"

Before this album, some members left the "family business" that used to be Death Angel (everybody was cousins), and in came some fresh and unrelated blood. I don't know what went down in the band or why some of the guys left, but musically I find it to be a good thing. With this album I think that Death Angel really returned, and this is finally the closest album quality-wise to The Ultra-Violence. With that said, this is by no means TUV pt. II, it has a different and more modern thrash sound going on, but it's fucking kick ass!

Favorite tracks: Claws In So Deep, Truce, This Hate, Opponents At Side


2013 - "The Dream Calls For Blood"

The band's follow-up to Relentless Retribution had left me torn between high hopes and fear that the band would once again come to a "Frolic scenario", but no, the band did not let me down. For the first time in the band's career, I think they actually managed to follow up a great album with an even slightly better one. This album is kind of similar to the previous one, but a bit heavier and better I believe. I don't know if this tops TUV, but if I would ever play it to death, then I'll always have this one to call my favorite instead. They also did a kick-ass cover of Black Sab's "Heaven And Hell" where Mark really gets to shine with his great stronger-than-ever vocals.

Favorite tracks: Left For Dead, The Dream Calls For Blood, Execution / Don't Save Me, Succubus


2016 - "The Evil Divide"

The band's new album released merely two weeks ago (of this date today, obviously) and the third album with the "new" line-up. While probably being sliiightly less to my taste than the previous album, this one is still really good and a solidification that Death Angel is in grate shape and one of the best old school thrash acts still left in the game. This album also once again slightly differs from the previous efforts, embracing a bit more of the modern metal sounds. Actually, this in a bit of hardcore influences here and there and is at times reminiscent of (the awesome) Chimaira's Resurrection album, which was also produced by Death Angel's now long-time producer Jason Suecof, so perhaps that is not too far fetched. I have very high hopes for Death Angel's future!

Favorite tracks: The Moth, Father Of Lies, It Can't Be This, Wasteland (The Mission cover)

Top-10 Most Overrated Metal Bands

Yo everybody! I've been listening to a lot of stuff lately, particularly thrash metal, and I've been thinking a lot of how some bands are really overrated. Particularly in thrash there are many bands to be found that meet that criteria. I'm sure you're already on to a few of those which I'm about to talk about. But instead of dragging my shit any further, let's start looking the actual overrated metal bands (of all styles).

***Just note***This list doesn't necessarily intend to make these bands appear as bad ones. Just overrated in some kind of sense, which I will also describe in their descriptions respectively.

***Extra note***If you xpected to see some shitty band that is missing, then maybe it's just so shitty that I simply don't listen to it altogether. Examples: Limb Bizkit, FFDP, Slipknot, etc.


10. Iron Maiden

To start off this list I'll go with my very first favorite band in metal. Now, Iron Maiden is awesome, most of us agree on that, but many of us also cannot deny the fact that they're very, very repetitive. I mean, how many galloping bass lines can you make songs out of? Many, apparently. Also, let me just point out that my favorite songwriter in Maiden is Adrian Smith.


9. Sepultura

Another great band ... until "Roots" came along. I absolutely love Sepultura pre-"Chaos A.D." and post-"Kairos", but most of those records in between there were not at all my kind of metal, and my opinion says that I don't understand how "Roots" (in particular) could become so popular.


8. Van Halen

An absolutely amazing quartet of musicians, both the Van Roth and Van Hagar eras, although I never ever liked the Van Hagar era. I listened a lot to these guys during my first few years as a headbanger, and while they're perhaps not that "metal", they still apply to us metalheads, I believe. But what happened is that they did an awesome debut record, and went straight downhill after that. The other David Lee Roth-fronted albums all had a few songs each of interest, but not really that much worthy of noting (although the musicianship was always great).


7. Kreator

Three words plus one equals? "Pleasure To Kill" = awesome. I love that record. The one before it, the debut, was pretty okey as well. However, after PTK I just don't know what the fuck happened. I just find the rest of their stuff to be very boring thrash. Also, "Extreme Aggression" is one of those classic examples of what kind of sound/production a metal record should not have. It just strips away all the weight from the music. It's supposed to sound heavy, right? Well, it fucking doesn't.


6. Morbid Angel

Much like the Kreator of death metal to me. "Altars Of Madness", of course, is an awesome classic. After that I just thought they lost it. I know many people like a few more records they did, but I just don't think they could ever match the success of their debut ever again.


5. Metallica

"Oh, what an obvious choice!", I can hear you thinking. Well, people are right about Metallica being overrated. Partially. Their first four are fucking awesome, I will always love them. However, post-"...And Justice For All" they've been most mediocre or outright bad. I mean, I understand why people love the first four albums, but that's not enough to make them as big as they indeed are. So yes, they are one of the most overrated metal bands. Plain and simple.


4. Sodom

Oooo, now I'm starting to invade on dangerous territory. I am very well aware of how much appreciated Sodom are with metal fans, but I simply could never really understand the fuzz about them. I found it even harder after hearing "Agent Orange", their perhaps most loved and well-known record, because to me it just sounds like a manifest of stolen riffs. I can hear Megadeth, Sacred Reich and other stuff in that. They just never came along as very original to me. With that said there still are some stuff I appreciate, like "Tapping The Vein" for instance. That one is pretty cool.


3. Exodus

Now I'm slowly conquering just about every thrasher's closed-minded ego here. If any band on this list were plain out bad, then that one band certainly is Exodus. I can honestly say that I've never ever understood what so many people see in their music. To me, they just sound so goddamn fucking boring. Unimaginative riffs, uninspired songs, and worst of all are the extremely cartoonish B-rate vocals a'la Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth (Overkill) style.All I can say whenever I hear Steve "Zetro" Souza, at least in Exodus (he was pretty good in Tenet), is "thank Satan that Testament got Chuck Billy instead". I honestly did not even think that the widely acclaimed "Bonded By Blood" album was anything special. Thanks but no thanks, Exodus.


2. Slayer

And now I've officially pissed off every metal around the world. Well, honestly, I know I don't have. I actually think it's relatively common to see metalheads express their distaste for Slayer these days. Not that I don't like 'em, fuck no, I love Slayer! Don't get me wrong, they're fucking awesome! I especially love the "Hell Awaits" album, but everything up till "Divine Intervention" is very good, really. It's just that they lost their steam after that, and there are so many other bands that do or did a similar thing to what Slayer did, but even better. I mean, "Reign In Blood" is by far the most overrated thing about Slayer. Ever heard Dark Angel's "Darkness Descends" album, or Kreator's "Pleasure To Kill"? Pretty much the same thing, only way better, and both of those were (also) released in 1986. Catch my drift? Very good band, just not that good.


1. Nirvana

And the crowned king of this list is none other than the grunge kings Nirvana. I'll admit that I at one point in time did listen to them, a bit (like five songs), when I was like 12 (I am almost 26 now). As I grew up, however, they sound like nothing but children's or angsty teens' "punk" rock to my ears. I'm not overly too fond of grunge otherwise either, but I do love Alice in Chains in particular, and I enjoy listening to some earlier Soundgarden and Mother Love Bone as well. But Nirvana? No. Once again, they're not really a metal band, but since grunge is generally affiliated with metal and its fans, I chose to include (and crown) them for this list.

...

I hope you enjoyed this list. Remember, this is just my opinion. It doesn't mean shit to you, just like yours means shit to me. But it can be fun to share and discuss. Well, this is my invitation to discussion, agreement or disagreement.

Peace! //J.

My Top-10 Favorite TV Shows Of All Time

In all my boredom at night I decided to do a top-10 of my favorite TV shows of all time. Really a quite simple task, except I stopped watching TV in 2007 pretty much altogether. I was fed up with all the fake-ass competition shows, stupid reality shows, uninspired series, and most of all those never-ending fucking commercials, a.k.a. propaganda. I didn't even have any TV channels for almost three years when I lived on my own, before I met my girlfriend. Now she wants TV, but I rarely watch it to this day.

So basically this is now rather a list of a top-10 few shows I actually did watch at some point, but I still managed to try out a bunch more throughout the  years via Netflix, watching with friends and whatnot. But these ten are the shows I remember with most joy.


10. Biker Mice From Mars

This was likely the first show I ever truly loved. I remember in like 1995, as a kid, sitting on the floor before the TV and watching this show in awe. I loved everything about it: they were cool mice-men, rode motorcycles, had attitude, listened to heavy metal, and drank root beer - which in Sweden was dubbed to "läskeblask", meaning soda pop rather than root beer, which I of course thought looked like Coke, which was and still is my favorite drink ever. I guess this show had a great impact on my future, as I grew up listening to metal music and loving motorcycles. My favorite character was Throttle.


9. Hell On Wheels

The latest TV shows I've watched about cowboys. Perhaps not so much about cowboys as I initially had hoped for, but it's still a very interesting show from a historical point of view, and some of the acting is very good as well. A rather underrated TV show in modern TV history, that sadly has gone through a lot of trouble and is now sadly ending after a delayed, but also partially disappointing, last fifth season. My favorite characters are Durant and "the Swede" (who is really Norwegian, and totally hilarious).


8. Prison Break

I watched this faithfully during in its entire original run from 2005-2009. I even remember the third season being delayed and shortened to a half-season in 2007, because the economy crashed and Hollywood was striking, if I remember correctly? Anyway, this show had an an absolutely amazing and thrilling first season with a great plot, characters and MacGuyver-ish solutions for the escape plan. But the show's downfall was in a way it's own name, as a prison break can only go on for so long. The break was done and over by the first season's end, and after that it was just a constant bland soup of repetitiveness and new story turns.

The second season was really an unimaginative and very repetitive 22-episode series of cat-and-mouse play where several characters, including keys, were caught and escaped, over and over by several times. By it's end, some of them went back to (another, more brutal) prison. Season 3 dealt with a prison break from the new prison, which was nowhere near as good or interesting as the first, but managed to at least keep relevant to the series name. Season 4 was the last season and dealt with another irrelevant story line, which only served a few purposes for the story's background to the first imprisonment. Not very interesting or original, to say the least.

Though most people probably didn't reflect on it, this show pretty much doomed itself right from the start by choosing its name. Season 2 were basically cops and robbers, while season 3 only served the show's name and initial story theme half-hearted, while season 4 certainly had gone from Prison Break to Conspiracy Break. Lame. It was sad to follow such a good and promising series just become dull and uninspired, for the money-hungry assholes willing only.

My favorite characters are Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell, John Abruzzi, and Alexander Mahone.


7. The Simpsons

Teen cartoons. I kind of started with South Park when I was 12 or so, but later stopped watching it (probably because MTV is gay and stopped airing it just like music), only to later watch The Simpsons daily after school. It's so light, fun, and down-to-earth. I love it still. My favorite characters are Homer, Bart, Otto, Mr. Burns, and Chief Wiggum.


6. Hem Till Midgård

An old Swedish series which in English translates to "Home To Midgard", and is a comedy show about failed vikings. It's rather silly at pretty much all times, holding itself at a rather childish level with a lot of poop jokes and similar themes. But they're so funny in their different personas and how they fight among themselves, not to mention how they always fail at trying to be successful vikings. If you could find it with English subtitles, I'd totally recommend it. My favorite characters are all four of the key characters, they're just so awesome each one of them.


5. Vikings

And another series about vikings, simply called "Vikings", but this time in a serious and historical/educational way. This series is not only good but indeed very educational. I don't quite know how accurate its facts are, but it's interesting to watch and learn anyway. The show also keeps a good pace throughout with a lot of fighting and progression, as well as spontaneous character killings, going on at all times. It's very unpredictable to say the least, but it's also well-acted and looks good - nice settings, scenery, clothing, etc. My favorite characters are Ragnar, Lagertha, and Floki.


4. Miami Vice

I obviously wasn't around when this show originally aired, being born the year after it ended in fact. But my love and fascination for the 1980's grew strong early on with the music, clothing and great movies that decade offered. I started watching Miami Vice when I was 15 and the DVD boxes were released. People were talking about the show as something of the best to come out of that decade, and I understand why. I've seen so many 80's shows like Knight Rider, Magnum P.I., and MacGuyver, and none of those hold up to this day in comparison with Miami Vice.

Now, what made me love this show so much is its way of perfectly put together story with scenery and music. That is also what really makes it hold up to this day, despite it really being overly 80's because of its traits. But, that is also exactly why it's still so good - because it's a great historical documentation about what the 80's were. Well, the American 1980's anyway. Watching this show really gives a nice look into that decade's clothing and car fashion, music, architecture and much else. I can only say that I was born and am young in the wrong era. My favorite characters are Sonny Crockett, Zito and Gina.


3. Married With Children

The first and last sitcom on this list. I never was much for them to be honest. I always found shows like Seinfeld, How I Met Your Mother, and The Big Bang Theory to be rather boring, while other shows like Friends were a lot better. But Married With Children took the cake for me. It was actually the last show I discovered through TV and started to watch regularly, still to this day. I was talking with my buddy on the phone in 2007 while he suddenly shouted, "dude, turn on channel 6! There's a really hot girl on right now!", and so I did. Kelly Bundy, that's who he meant of course. It was a re-run of one of the earlier seasons, like 1989 maybe, when she was this mega-hot rocker chick with big hair, which I just love. After that, I started watching the series simply because I wanted to see more of her.

Quickly I started to recognize the series from my childhood. It was Al Bundy sitting on that ugly-ass couch that I recognized rather strongly. I must've watched it with my mom or something as a small kid. Anyway, I was turning 17 in late 2007, so I was probably 16 when I first saw this show, and a 16 year old puberty rocker into 80's hair metal girls ... let me tell you, my friends, ... that certainly is something to get the testosterone and hormones going. From that moment and for the two years to come, Kelly Bundy actually became my teenage crush, even though Christina Applegate at the time was pushing 40. But still, her Kelly Bundy character (and appearance) was immortalized in this show, and I was living in my own little made-up 80's world during all my teens.

But looking beyond that, the show was not all about Kelly Bundy, but I actually found it to be a great and fun show as well. All the characters, especially Al, are just hilarious and in many ways even role-models for the common man. In the end, I watched through all the episodes and I still to this day think of Al Bundy in many everyday scenarios, especially when life sucks (haha). I also remember Kelly Bundy as a big part of my later teens, and though she was a fictional character which happened to be my teenage crush (15 years too late, but still), she made a better, not to mention sexier, dream-girlfriend than what my actual girlfriends did during my teens.


2. Game of Thrones

Everybody knows GoT, right? Perhaps not everyone watches it, but they are certainly well aware of it. It's just, like, the biggest show in the world right now, and rightly so if you ask me. Initially it took me like three times trying before I got into it - it was just too many characters and too much blab to go through. But I started to like it eventually. Now I am somewhat of a fanboy over it, despite not having read the books (I hate reading books). I just love the deep characters and unpredictable story, and of course, the sex and violence. My favorite characters are Tyrion, Bronn, the Hound, Oberyn Martell, and Dolorous Edd.


1. Sons of Anarchy

And here we have the king of this list. Like with Game of Thrones, many of you people surely did follow SoA during its run, at least at some point. It had a good seven season long run and ended about a year and a half ago. The biker lifestyle depicted in this show is just very interesting to follow, to me as a motorcycle enthusiast. The acting was also very good most of the times, with only a few very minor character sometimes not being quite up-to-par with the otherwise amazing regular cast. This is the kind of show I'd like to follow, a deep and rich story arc that ends in a bittersweet way.

10 of the most disappointing metal albums ever

Have you ever been massively anticipating a band's new album, or discovered a new band whose shit you just seem to absolutely love, only to discover that most of their discography isn't at all the same quality as that which you discovered them through? I can be honest when I say that I rarely get disappointed by an album by bands I like, really just about whatever band it is in question. But sometimes, hell yeah, I have felt failed by my sworn idols.

Now, I really do support artistic freedom. After all - as a musician myself, I'd like to do whatever the fuck I want to do, but sometimes...your supporters just won't accept it. I'm gonna list ten albums down below that I felt disappointed about. This does not necessarily mean that I completely dislike the album, not at all, but simply that it (like really) didn't live up to my expectations, or just felt too different. Here we go...


10. DevilDriver - Beast 

When this album hit in 2011 I wasn't exactly stoked - I wasn't really the bigget DevilDriver fan at that time, yet, but I knew them a little bit and I was fairly new to modern metal, so I figured I'd give 'em a fair chance. Well, after a fair chance I thought it was fair enough to say that it was one big disappointment. I didn't look back on it for several years after that, but these days I'm quite keen on their sound - like 'em a lot. However, while this certainly is not bad by any means, this does not really remain among my favorite DD albums either.


9. Chimaira - Crown Of Phantoms

I started listening to Chimaira in 2009 when they released "The Infection", which is my favorite album of theirs btw. They were, together with Lamb of God, like the first bands of modern metal that I came to appreciate. However, after a lot of touring for "The Infection", half of the band left, including powerhouse drummer Andols Herrick and their most unique addition to their sound, keyboardist/electronics specialist Chris Spicuzza. They made another album, "The Age Of Hell", in 2011 which wasn't really well received (I love it, though), and then both of the bands' longtime guitarists Rob Arnold and Matt DeVries left too.

2013 came and an all-new Chimaira, apart from ever-lasting frontman Mark Hunter, delivered "Crown Of Phantoms". What can I say about it? Some people think it kicks ass while others seem to dislike it. I, personally, just don't feel like it was Chimaira anymore. I mean, it obviously sounds completely like another band to me. The guitars (especially the solo stuff) and drums have different vibes and styles compared to before, which is logical, but just not the same. I simply just didn't like its sound and direction very much, and (un)fortunately(?) they broke up after this album. As I see it, it was for the better - the original band was already gone since a long time, and it didn't sound like Chimaira anymore. Yet, it's fucking sad that they're not around anymore.


8. Mötley Crüe - Theatre Of Pain

After a great debut album in "Too Fast For Love" and even greater follow-up in the legendary "Shout At The Devil", the Crüe traded in the red and black satanic leathers and imagery for happy-colored women's clothing with dots and shit on 'em. I just think their new image spoke for itself in the music as well - having closed the "Shout At The Devil" album with a song called "Danger", it was the last time the Crüe actually sounded and/or appeared dangerous as well. On this one, they just sound like whatever fucking party glam band there ever was. Some tunes are still good though, but I hate most of it.


7. Life of Agony - Ugly

After unleashing the lyrically deep, musically awesome and just ripping debut "River Runs Red" in 1993, as well as some great hardcore demos before it, Brooklyn's LoA released this in 1995. It's not a bad album, but it's fucking let down after the assault the debut provided. This just sounds a lot more "safe" and influenced by alternative/grunge music (something that would only progress further on later albums as well). Mjah, I just never quite felt this album.


6. Iron Maiden - No Prayer For The Dying

I love Iron Maiden but after ten years they released this piece of shit. Yes, I called it that. I'm not a fucking fanboy - if a band, even if I really love 'em, releases a shit record, I will regard it as such. This was a shit record, kind of acknowledged by Steve Harris himself as well, but I was okey with it. Why was I? Because Maiden worked hard for over a decade, provided seven(!) amazing albums throughout the 80's, lost one of their key-writers (and my favorite writer in Maiden) in guitarist Adrian Smith the year before this album. They had a lot to live up to, and they failed this time around. It was understandable after so many years and albums. Sometime there must be a shit record. This was their first one (of very few). They compensated this failure with several amazing albums in the 2000's instead.


5. Megadeth - Th1rt3en

Dave Mustaine and his many different setups of company have been riding a lengthy roller-coaster when it comes to good and bad albums. They started off greatly with some awesome thrash albums in the 80's, then they made the highly acclaimed "Rust In Peace" which I actually never were very fond of, before jumpin' on Metallica's "black album-train" like so many others. They did the melodic "Youthanasia" in 1994 which I love, but after that they fucking lost it - well, until 2004's "The System Has Failed" anyway.

Dave and some of his companies did "United Abominations" and "Endgame" in the late 00's which I really liked as well, but after those came "Th1rt3en" - a mix of re-worked old vault songs as well as some new stuff, if I remember correctly. Well, I'd like to think that there was a reason for much of this material to have been scrapped before - and much of it should've just stayed that way.

This whole album is just a mix of aged turds that Dave and co. in vain tried to polish up. Some stuff here, especially lyrics, make me fucking cringe. I cannot shake the thought that this is the same mastermind who wrote "Peace Sells", "In My Darkest Hour" or "A Tout Le Monde". This album is just plain fucking crap, and fans were surprised by how shitty "Super Collider" was. Let me tell you, after this piece of crap I didn't expect anything from "Super Collider" at all, but I actually prefer that one over this seasoned crap collection. At least that was experimental and explored new ideas, for better or (probably) worse.


4. Danzig - Skeletons

Glenn Danzig - legendary frontman and musician - love the guy's works - from the Misfits to, well, Danzig. He announced in, like, 2011 or something already, that he was working on a covers album. I didn't think much about it, his music hadn't been all that great since 1994, even if I did really enjoy "6:66 Satan's Child" and "Deth Red Sabaoth".

Anyway, this album was finally released in 2015 - so it was at least four years in the making. Let's just say that... Glenn is cool, he's still got a nice voice, but his fucking band (especially Tommy Victor of Prong on guitar) is just so wrong for Danzig's music, not to mention that Glenn's own production skills sound like shite. Half of the covers on here aren't that interesting or good either, unfortunately. Let's just say that it was a too long wait for almost nothing. Glenn should stick to making originals - his original arrangements for covers on this album were the only good ones as well.


3. Spread Eagle - Open To The Public

Not many people know this band but they were a sleaze band that came out with their most excellent debut in 1990. Think a punkier and/or thrashier version of Skid Row, even if you think of "Slave To The Grind". These guys were from NYC, not L.A. They were raw - not polished.

Anyway, their debut went by pretty much unnoticed, which is a real fucking shame (it's actually my favorite album of genre glam/sleaze - ever). Three years later they release their follow-up and ultimately last album - "(Spread Eagle -) Open To The Public" (ha, that's funny). The first song is really cool, I like a lot, but after that one is just one endless fucking shitfest of boring songs leaning more towards alternative crap than their original sound. Disappointing to say the least.


2. Fate - Cruisin' For A Bruisin'

These guys are from Denmark and released a really nice debut in 1985. It was actually Hank Shermann from Mercyful Fate who went on to form this band after MF disbanded, but it's not the same musical style. These guys were more towards the same sound as, let's say early Europe, early Bon Jovi, and such likes. However, the guitar tone and style was just the same as on MF's "Don't Break The Oath" album, so it was still fucking cool. Next they did another album where the guitar was turned down a lot in favor of keyboards, you figure the rest. It was an okey album but Hank Shermann left after that one in 1986.

Now, fast forward to 1988 and Fate's third album - this sausage fest. I have honestly don't listened to this album too many times throughout the years, and I will let the reason for that be obvious. I'll just tell you - if you hate Bon Jovi's "Slippery When Wet", Europe's "Out Of This World", or...whatever, then you'll fucking hate this one too. It's just one of the shittiest records I've ever heard, and a most disappoint album (and direction) after their great debut three years prior to this one. Fear not though, Fate actually redeemed themselves already in 1990, and also in latter years, with several (at least) solid albums again.


1. Mötley Crüe - Dr. Feelgood

And the winner of this shitfest sausage makarov blöjkaka is the very same band that is now also officially listen twice on this list: Mötley Crüe. First off, let me tell you. I am a huge fan of the Crüe's first two albums as well as "Girls, Girls, Girls", but obviously "Theatre Of Pain" wasn't on par with those to my ears, and this album...well.

Let me just put it like this: when a formerly constantly drugged-out band did a few great records, and they all of sudden decide to get sober to do an album, it can only end in one way: this way. And let me tell you, the Crüe's music lost all of its fucking balls when the drugs went out of the picture. This is truly the most disappointing record I've ever heard in my life. I just think Mötley Crüe should be junkies, that's the way they did great music. This shit is just lame, like glam metal for middle-aged moms who'd like to party while believing themselves to still be 20 when they're really 40. Fuck this shit.