ALBUM REVIEW: Mad Max manage to keep it vital on 35

HOLY shitballs - but when Mad Max formed we were a mere 16-years-old - which sort of came home when they named their latest release '35'.

But no-one seems to have told the German rockers that after that length of time they should be kicking back and looking towards more relaxing times...

Instead '35' is a testimony as to why no band - or for that matter individual - should measure their output by some arbitrary measurement of time.

Despite their (band) vintage this release has all the vitality of what hard rock was about in the 1980s and still sounds fresh in 2018  - just take the energy oozing from 'Goodbye To You' with its frenetic opening pace and well-spaced soundscape that will have listeners chanting "She's A Radical" along with the band.

This Steamhammer/SPV release is bursting with tunes that will have heads nodding and the likes of 'Thirty 5' will surely be live favourites with its brooding mid-pace menace and acknowledgement of their road so far.

And, unlike many other bands they have the guts to say upfront about their influences - they might have had some reservations about the overtly Extreme influence on 'Snowdance' but they were right to include it.

Equally - the bonus track 'Paris Is Burning' is a cover of the Dokken song - with the blessing of Don Dokken himself - that is both faithful to the original and has the Mad Max stamp too.

Michael Voss' vocals sound fresh and passionate - especially on 'Rocky Road', their tale of the highs and lows of being a long-enduring band.

But, it is the cohesiveness of the sound created by Voss, Jürgen Breforth (guitar), Axel Kruse (drums) and Thomas “Hutch” Bauer (bass) that makes this such an enjoyable listen.

In the accompanying blurb to this release Breforth explained why they stay so fresh with an album packed with great songs.

“We’ve never produced a new album just because a record company asked us to or because it was supposedly high time to come up with a new recording,” he said.

“For us the all-decisive question before every production is merely: Do we still have enough ideas for an album that we as well as our fans will get excited about? Only if everybody involved agrees on that point will we begin to work.”

Among the stand-outs that must have everybody picking up their instruments is 'D.A.M.N. (Devil's After Me) which has an energy few can equal, with lyrics by Jason Smith and Breforth.

But the most significant track is 'Beat Of The Heart'. Reflecting the band's previous hit 'Night Of Passion' it has all the elements that make a great song - this really is classic rock in the best sense of the phrase.

It would be easy to discount bands like Mad Max in 2018 - but you know what, so long as they keep releasing albums like this they'll remain as important as the heroes they had that made them first pick up their instruments.

Review by Jonathan Traynor

35 is released on Steamhammer/SPV on August 10th

ALBUM REVIEW: Axel Rudi Pell delivers once again on Knights Call

SAY what you like about Axel Rudi Pell - he is one consistent man. And, with Knights Call album number 17 does what you would expect.

As a technician he masters his instrument, but his ability to capture exquisite playing within songs - yes actual songs - that sets him apart from many so-called shredders.

On Knights Call he picks up from 2016's wonderful 'Game of Sin' with a collection of tracks that have the right shading, the right variety and the right balance to have fans salivating.

From the rousing 'The Wild and The Young', the balls out 'Long Live Rock' and the balladic 'Beyond The Light' this album contains everything you'd expect from Pell.

But, as always the 57-year-old pushes himself a little bit further all the time. 'Tower of Babylon' Pell tips a hat to Rainbow, but interpreted in his own unique way.

Yes, we get all the usual mysticism and folklore added to the stadium rockers, but in the hands of Pell's lyrical playing and Johnny Gioeli's passionate singing it all makes sense.

And, as for Bobby Rondelli's drums - you know he lays it down pure and simple.

What is striking about Knights Call is that it feels a complete album, which in the past hasn't always been the case. At times there were albums released by him that sounded as if maybe one song could have been culled, or the placement of each track tweaked a little.

Instead this is a collection that holds together, never jarring and with touches like Pamela Falcon's work on 'Beyond The Light' that add that extra flourish.

Stand-out tracks abound, however the impassioned 'Slaves On The Run', a cry to free yourself from whatever shackles that tie you down.

There are no shackles on Pell. Knights Call may be the culmination of all his work...leading to the question, how can he top this?

Review by Jonathan Traynor

Knights Call is out on Steamhammer/SPV on March 23rd

ALBUM REVIEW: Ignore The Sign slick work outs on A Line To Cross

WHEN a band declares itself 'Saviors of Rock' on the first track of an album that on first listen is middle of the road, radio-friendly rock then one can be excused for having more than a soupcon of cynicism.

But give a full proper listen to Ignore the Sign's release 'A Line to Cross' and within are some gems. Given the array of musicians on the album then it should be expected.

Delve into the tracks and for a few you are transported into that period in the 1980s when rock of all shades got its fair shout. On 'Days of Thunder' this is acknowledged, with more than a hint of DP and early Whitesnake.

There are tracks here that would sit comfortably in the arsenal of Foreigner, Journey or Night Ranger - and that isn't a criticism.

Ignore The Sign have out and out rockers such as 'The Story Isn't Over' and the tender notes of 'When Words Aren't Enough' - indicative of a group that is prepared not be shackled into one style.

The band was originally meant to be a solo outing for Ossy Pfeiffer, but instead he gathered a troupe of excellent musicians.

In addition to Pfeiffer on vocals and various instruments are guitarist/vocalist Anca Graterol of Rosy Vista, former The Sweet and current MSG guitarist Steve Mann, bass player Lars Lehmann, studio musician with British rock legend UFO and member of ex-Scorpions guitarist Uli Jon Roth’s band, as well as percussionist Momme Boe and drummer Kristof Hinz, who has just finished the drum takes for the new Eloy album.

Now that is one serious set of people...and their work is a complete contribution on the likes of 'Behind The Wall'.

In many ways the album is a statement that Ossy and co are prepared not to be shackled by conventions or trends but have produced music that they want to record and play.

Review by Jonathan Traynor

ALBUM REVIEW: Sumptuous, elegant, edgy eloquence from majestic Magnum on album #20

BY now you would expect veterans like Magnum to be calling in their albums, dialled straight in, with all the formula expected. Not for the Brummie rockers. Nope, this is a band that have a distinctive sound, but always stretch themselves.

And, on their 20th album, Lost On The Road To Eternity' they once again push what is expected of them to produce an album that is lush, filled with textures and touches that demand repeated listens to appreciate the depth within,

Opener 'Peaches and Cream' may have an innocuous title, but there is more than enough mid-tempo menace to intrigue and demand attention.

The theme is repeated throughout, and the tracks are allowed the time to breathe with the time and arrangements. Only the opener is less than five minutes (only by a second).

The eight-minute 'Welcome To The Cosmic Cabaret' is sumptuously wonderful, and deceptively edgy. Don't let the ease of the opening deceive you.

Title track 'Lost On The Road To Eternity' features a guest appearance from Tobias Sammet of Edguy/Avantasia fame. Given Bob Catley has contributed on Sammet's releases this may seem just as a favour returned, but it this is so much more. The atmosphere is added to with the Wolf Kerschek Orchestra adding that bit extra.

While Tony Clarikin and Catley remain the core of Magnum the addition of Lee Morris (taking over from Harry James (Thunder) and Rick Benton filling the shoes of Mark Stanaway, plus the 16-years serving bassist Al Barrow has given Magnum some deft touches.

It could be argued that the additions give the band overall a new breath, a new eagerness to stretch themselves creatively. Certainly some of the new rhythms and touches of other musical cultures beam through.

The growth of the band over the past 20 years has been exceptional. While some still demand the hits on the live circuit it is remiss of any Magnum fan to overlook recent releases, and especially this album.

Sure, 'Without Love' will stand out in any live set, the likes of the extraordinary closer, 'King of the World' and 'Ya Wanna Be Someone' deserve to be heard on stage. Indeed the latter becomes better with each listen.

With a tour already lines up to support 'Lost On The Road To Eternity' this is an album that every Magnum fan needs to grab hold of as soon as it is released.

Review by Jonathan Traynor

Lost On The Road To Eternity is released in a variety of formats on January 19th on Steamhammer/SPV

Magnum play Belfast's Limelight on 1st March, 2018 

ALBUM REVIEW: Virgin Steele's proposterous and grandiose theatrical metal brought back to CD

SOMETIMES you come across a band and really don't know whether to take them seriously or laugh - remember Manowar signing a contract in blood?

First time round in the late 90s and early noughties when Virgin Steele completed three 'metal operas' on theatrical stages one didn't know whether to take them with the proverbial pinch of salt or write it off as power/symphonic metal taken too far...they even were reviewed in Opera News magazine!

However, sitting down with the re-release of 'Visions of Eden' maybe it is time for a re-evaluation. After all, set aside the operative pomposity 'Visions of Eden' itself was the 11th Virgin Steele album and stands proud in the band's oeuvre.

This month Virgin Steele the album is out as a double CD - one featuring "Barbaric" re-mixes of 'Visions of Eden', the other "Romantic" re-mastering of the same album. Confused? Well, seems a little superfluous on the surface, but with a decent stereo or set of headphones you can notice the differences.

Having said that whether fans of Virgin Steele would want to shell out for another version of 'Visions of Eden' remains a moot point because for those who have maybe had Virgin Steele pass them by this could serve as a good introduction.

There is an excellent variety of styles on display, from the full on power metal ('Childslayer'), symphonic swoops and sweeps ('The Hidden God') and slowed down material ('When Dusk Fell', and ('God Above God') and enough to entertain and ponder.

Of course the 'vision' behind the album was never to re-count a biblical myth, rather a challenge to a belief system that left previous mythos such as paganism and others, especially the male dominated divinity rather than the goddesses of previous beliefs.

Indeed the full title of the album as presented was 'Visions of Eden - The Lilith Project: A Barbaric Romantic Movie Of the Mind'. Overblown? Well what other way would you want your power/symphonic metal?

This is somewhat a rather self-indulgent project (coming after several other Vigin Steele re-releases) to metal fans in the British Isles, but when you go back to this album, like many of Virgin Steele's releases, it stands the test of time, and marks a moment in time when you can at last admit you love all the grandiosity that comes along with it.

Not that we're going to sign anything in blood to that effect!

Review by Jonathan Traynor

Visions of Eden is released on Steamhammer/SPV on 17th February