Ballsy Bakken burst forth with power début

REGULAR readers know we here at Belfastmetalheadsreunited have no time for labels. Yeah, sometimes you need to add a wee classification, but if it's good metal, hard rock or punk then that's all needs to be said.

Bakken could, potentially have several labels attached to them, but they deserve more than to be labelled as thrash/classic metal/NWOBHM/power metal crossovers. The sum of the parts is more - much more
Having burst forth from seemingly nowhere they have produced a life-affirming album, Death Of A Hero, which is to be released in September. Hold on to your hats people, because Bakken have produced a spectacular début platter.

For a band who have had their fair share of turmoil and tragedy is remarkable that they have emerged with fists pumping, guitars roaring and a pounding defiance that whaever fate has thrown their way they can emerge stronger.

Album opener Darkest Day is eight minutes plus of snarl, riffs, rumbling with a Maiden-esque rhythm and a contemporary structure. Niall McGrotty's drums and Brian O'Kane's bass the power-house upon which the song is built.

With Simon Pickett's vocals dripping with attitude the flesh of the track is on Pickett's and Mark-Anthony McGinnis's twin guitar attack the template is set for the rest of the album.

Up next Mystic Mogul and Cursed are now available from the band to listen to for free. Mogul has more than a slice of NWOBHM at its heart, with Pickett's vocals taking a slightly higher tone, emphasising the roots of the song. Cursed [sampler below] has more of a contemporary feel; steady paced and chopped chords breaking up the riffs; married with a chant of the title makes a perfect setting for the middle eighths and breakdowns.

However, debts any twin guitar act have to their predecessors must be paid: self-proclaimed Lizzy fan Pickett pays that debt in full in Sasquatch, with a Celtic feelign series of harmony guitars layering together nicely.

The album closer Voyage of Aodh is perhaps where the depth of the band can be found. After a heavy opening, subtleties of structure, slower sections and emotive lyrics build up over almost eight minutes; there is a feeling in the complexities of prog metal, a dash of black metal and a cap nicely doffed to the likes of In Flames, pace varies, tempos change before a headlong rush of melodic guitar lines, underpinned with impressive drum lines and rampant bass.

In pulling together this album - other tracks are the equally impressive Back to the Future, Get Back to Your Feet, and Fortress of Evil - Bakken have laid down a marker of future intent. All in all a welcome addition to the local output that surprises with its depth and delights with its structures in this ballsy début release

I've got a band, got some tunes...what next?

IT's a difficult time out there, economically, with austerity the word of the political day. And, with an ever-growing number of bands cutting tracks, what can you do to make sure your hellraising, hard rockin', ass-kickin' outfit of rock 'n' rollin', headbanging, axe-wielding mean mothers stand out from the crowd.

On more than one occassion Belfastmetalheadsreunited have been asked for some PR or marketing advice. Some know, as principal writer for the site I cut my teeth with six plus years full-time journalism, before 15 years in PR; some even know I have been part of an award-winning PR team.

But, sometimes advice given to a band for free, isn't always valued the way paid advice. Nevertheless, I cringe at some the basic errors that bands make as they try to make sure their work receives the right audience at the right time. Of course a large part of that is if you manage to get signed by a major label and they help out with the hard business of distribution.

So, below are some hints and tips to help out as undergo the metal odyssey of a crowded media marketplace, all the more complicated by that 'tinterweb beast.

Put it bluntly, following these tips won't get you a major deal and a million-selling, but they might help you.

One sheet

Right, if you don't known what a one sheet is, now is the time to learn. You will not get anywhere quickly without a one-sheet. As the name says it is information about your band that can fit on to one sheet of paper, even if it is in electronic version.

At the top the basic details: list who you are, what the album is called, catalogue number, etc and possibly where you are from. Nice to put a picture of yer ugly mugs beside it, or the cover of your latest album or ep release.

Then simply describe yourselves in three or four concise paragraphs, and details of the release. Put web links and contact information at the bottom. Using a text box list the band members (and what they play), the track list of your release and any relevant discography.

Photographs

You want the groupies to know who you are don't ya? Okay, that suonds very 1980s and your missus might kill ya if you're caught, so be careful out there; still it is important for the hordes of autograph hunters out there to recognise you.

If you can't afford a professional photoshoot then get hold of a decent SLR and have someone who knows how to use at least the autofocus. And remember of you're a death metal band don't go all smiley. Equally, no matter what genre of punk, hard rock or metal you are in, do not, under any circumstances scowl. It makes you look like a neandrathral with a headache.

Wear your stage clothes for the pics! Sounds simple, but that's how people recognise you (and if you don't have clothes that you regard as stage clothes then....get some now and set them aside as your live gear).

Pick a good backdrop for the shoot. In Northern Ireland there are dozens if great locations if you don't have access to a studio. Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Csstle, Giant's Ring, Loch Erne, Loch Neagh, bridges across rivers (Foyle Bridge?), industrial sites...take your pick for the pic.

Writing

Everyone thinks of themselves as a great writer. You're not. Lyrics, yes, blurb no. Even after writing every day since I left the hallowed institution of advanced drinking, called university, I learn something new about writing every time my little fingers grace a keyboard. Get a mate to look over what you do, have band colleagues check it out, and use all the writer's tools: metaphors, alliteration, etc etc but no adverbs!

Hype kills. Every music journalist despises bands who claim they are the best thrash/rock/death/black/industrial/old school act to pick up an axe. You are not. Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, Iron Maiden, Motley Crue, Amon Amarth, The Answer, Behemoth are all rightly at the top of their genre. Do NOT under any circumstances claim to be the best ever/the definitive/greatest exponent. You're at the start of your journey to stardom - you're not superstars yet!

It helps if you can reference acts that you are similar to. If you look at the reviews section of many of the major magazines, quite often they'll tail the review with a simple line: For fans of...


Journalists

They're all scum, right? Wrong. Unlike the tabloid press, most music journalists are generally interested in the music. And if they work on Metal Hammer or Terroriser they're not likely to be into Kylie Minogue. That also means they are very discerning. While blogs tend to be more effusive or more vicious, again most are fans first, bloggers or magazine reviewers next. First off, if you get a bad review, get over it, suck it up and use it to motivate yourself for your next show.

Next, develop relationships with music journos - no not that type of relationship! Make sure you know they're Twitter names, like them on Facebook, find out they're email address to send tracks to, or even if you have a hard copy of your latest release ask if you can get their address to send it to them, they appreciate it. Don't get downhearted if they don't review it, but a polite request for feedback can produce wonders. Remember - polite.

While the main music magazine writers get paid, most blog sites get a pittance, or nothing at all for their efforts bar the music to review or a +1 into a gig.


Social Media

This is the area where so many bands screw up  - thankfully very few in Northern Ireland make the mistakes other bands to. The community nature of much of the music here means that there is a mutual support.

Do NOT beg for people to check you out, listen to this, listen to that. If you have content to share, just say it. Think, what sounds better: "Check out or fantastic new music video!" Or: "We've just released new video - what do you think of it?"

The latter line invites people to watch it and give you feedback. And then you can re-tweet that or give it a like on Facebook.

Find out who is following you and liking you. Follow them back, apprecite it and send them a thank you.

Other bands are in the same position, roughly, as yourselves. Follow them, like their content and make sure you mention when they are gigging - that usually means they'll return the favour.

People follow/like other people who share good content - therefore make sure you are regarded as a good source for other 'stuff' and it pays off.

Do NOT ever, ever post/tweet anything involving nudity, anythingm sexist, rascist, sectarian or otherwise stupid. It will cost you, it could lead to being unfollowed, and people mouthing off about you. Such posts are not big, and they're not clever.

And do NOT pester anyone. It sounds desperate.

It's business

Yeah - it's called show business, and while you're delivering the show, the business side can slide. Set aside some time to make sure that you are taking care of business. Simple things help you a lot. Does your band have a bank account? It helps organise your finances - and means you can out aside the money for buying merch, for example, or petrol money for going to play gigs. It really is simple. If travelling to a gig costs £20 in petrol, withdraw that, and deposit the fee you receive (if any) together with merch or CD sales.

Yes, I know you want to practice every spare moment, but a fortnightly band meeting to agree the finances really helps everything stay on an even keel. Agree who and when you're posting items on social media, which journalists you're contacting and sending stuff to.

Management? Do you need it? Can you afford it, or are you better doing it yourself? And, should you decide that you need management, some basic rules. Never pay an up front fee; check out their track record; ask for references from other bands; get everything in writing; and, make sure you have someone professional, or experienced to check over any contract before you sign it.

Equally, be very, very careful should a label approach you. Membership of the Musians Union is a valuable investment. You can benefit enormously.

Equally, think carefully before you agree to any marketing or distribution deals.


And, finally...

Your music should stand up large enough for you to gain some form of acknowledgement, the rest is common sense.

Be polite, be courteous ["Thanks for that review", "Hey, thanks for following us.Here's a link to our latest single", "Cheers man, that was nice of you"].

And then, rock as hard as you can, to quote Metallica, "bang that head that doesn't bang" and enjoy yourselves! You know your music is good, you know that you are always learning, and when you tip that first post-gig beer back you will know that not only have you delivered a 'cracking' set, but that all that time on Twittter, Facebook, contacting journos and sharing other bands' material will mean that you are amongst friends


If you have other tips you want to share with other bands, or friends, post them in the comment box, or if you want to contact me directly, my email addy is here.

Forged in fire, tempered by tragedy

"GOOD music is something to fall back on in tough times." The words of Bakken's Simon Pickett, when we caught up with the lead singer and guitarist of Northern Ireland outfit Bakken as they prepare to launch their début album 'Death of a a Hero' in just over a month's time.

And Bakken are a band that knows how much it means to have music pull you through. Simon contracted a serious illness and another band member lost a close relative in tragic circumstances. But as a result of this Bakken have pulled through, are a tighter unit and make what statements they need through their music.

Simon spoke to us about the process of recording the album enabled them to move on, grow and develop - reflecting as many readers of this blog know, metal isn't always about darkness.

"It's fair to say that some of the band has had a horrible last few years," he said. "But as I'm sure most metal fans do, I always feel that good music is something to fall back on in tough times.

"When we started the band I was still quite sick and was obviously quite depressed, but I found that airing some of the negative emotions and frustrations I felt through music was a really cathartic process and helped me through it.

And that catharis has produced an inner strength; "For me, heavy metal (or at least the bands I like) always have a positive vibe or an element of strength and hope in the music and this was the same for me when I was writing the songs.

"I like to think that this really stands out in our music too and that other people listening to it can find the positive messages in there and be inspired themselves.."

That musical inspiration can be something apparent as musicians step on to the stage, when a mixture of nerves, angst and excitement bubble into the best of sets. Getting ready for the studio is a different matter.

Simon explained that Bakken were prepared for the challenge: "We actually had the songs very well mapped out as demos and practiced them hard before we gigged them, so that made things a lot easier in the studio.

"Having said that, the pro level studio experience was new adventure for all of us and it took us a bit longer than originally planned to record the whole album, mostly due to the complex nature of some of the songs."

They also had - like many taking to a professional studio for the first time - the challenge of making sure that the live vibe was not lost in the studio.

"Capturing the live feel was quite difficult but was important for us," said Simon. "Specifically we wanted to avoid using a constant unchangeable click track beat wherever possible as this can make some sections sound dull and monotonous.

"We also stayed true to the equipment we use live and tried to resist the temptation of layering the instruments too much. Most of the time there are only two rhythm guitars playing which retains the percusive raw edge to the sound; the vocals also have a raw live feel about them too."

So what can the listener expect from Bakken? The one-sheet explains that they are a mix of classic metal, NWOBHM and thrash. It's a heady mix on Death of a Hero [Review to come later] with early Bruce era-Maiden, Diamond Head, and Thin Lizzy caught up in structures and styles fans of the likes of In Flames, and the better Trivium songs will recognise. They are all clear influences, but they are not slavishly followed.

"The influences are quite obvious to those versed in classic metal," explained Simon. "As the main song writer my main influences come from my love of 70s and 80s rock and metal, Thin Lizzy, Queen, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Helloween, etc.            

"Niall is a hard hitting drummer who is a fan of very heavy contemporary bands and is very skilled at fast “double kick” drums, something we used a lot in the album; also Mark-Anthony (the second guitarist) is also a huge thrash metal fan (as I am too), so combined with these harder influences I like to think we have created a fairly unique sound that doesn't compromise on either melody or heaviness."

But it's not just metal that Simon draws his influences from - he has a musical reference point in common with the late Cliff Burton.

"In terms of finding unique inspiration, I often listen to classical music (composers like Mozart and Bach) [Burton was a skilled classical musician who cited Bach frequently] which has definitely opened up my mind to incorporating innovative approaches to composition.

"For instance, a lot of the time, the two guitars and the bass are playing different things, which when added together give a full, more complex sound. You mentioned contemporary influences like Trivium; some people often comment that we sound a bit like them, although I wouldn't say this would be a result of a direct influence but more probably from a shared set of classic metal influences. That's not to say there aren't any modern bands that influence our style; personally I am a huge fan of melodic death metal bands like Children Of Bodom and In Flames, these influences often creep in to our music too, so its a real mixing pot I think."

Death of a Hero is the soundtrack of a band that has emerged from dark times, who have feen forged in fires of misfortune, but used tragedy to temper their attitude into an honest reflection of how metal can birth hope, and, as epitomised by the words of Simon brings hope and strength.

Review to come later... 

Thrash it to death...after a bit of flaying of course

WE suspect that the good people of Somerset have been boosting the strength of the scrumpy and cider - how else could one possibly explain the sheer ferocity of Flayed Disciple, whose latest release - Death Hammer - landed with a suitable thud on the metal mansion doormat courtesy, of the good people at Grindscene Records.

Flayed Disciple are not the sort of cuddly band to introduce your ma to, even if she still hankers aftedr being a milf rock chick.

These natives of Taunton have released mixture of thrash and death metal that pins yer ears back at the audacity of some of the arrangements. As regular readers know I care not the names many sub-genres of metal are labelled with; if its good, then it needs no label and Death Hammer is a damn good album. Not for the faint-hearted, but good nevertheless.

Riffage from the golden era of thrash in the 80s is forced via guitars weeping in pain into a contemporary feel, with Tim Whyte's vocals at times threatening to become so guttural that passing whales can be thrown off course at the ulstra low frequencies.

Lyrically they are not afraid to tackle themes familar to those of us with one juaundiced eye on the news, the vile Westboro baptists - the church that threatened to protest at Dio's funeral - merit themselves the Flayed Disciple treatment on 'The Westboro Massacre'.

As the album builds the guitars of Thurston Howe and Jon Whitfield grow into a mixture of tight groove and at times searing, soaring heights. To be fair, it is probably the second or third listen before you can 'get' the complexities of this pairing. The clever, but not overdone, use of a few samples - vocal mainly - serves to accentuate their work.

By the time you get to 'Interceptor' you can fully appreciate the rhythm work - it is no mean task for any rhythm section to hold down the precarious balance between thrash and the more modern death interpretations of timings. Paul Williams (bass) and Phil Tolfree (drums) seem to freely interchange who exactly is taking the lead to ensure that tracks such as 'Exodus' and 'Bleaching in the Sun' maintain a dyamism.

The album stands out - to these ears anyway - largely with closing trio, which have titles not for sensitive Bon Jovi fans. 'Torsofucked', 'Ejaculate While Killing' and 'Pig' are blistering. All three are noteworthy with different takes on the Flayed Disciple template, but it is album closer 'Pig' that lays down eight plus minutes of sheer, unadulterated dark joy: how the hell anyone is meant to stay in the pit for that long is another question in and of itself, given the pace and dexterity of this aggression.

Death Hammer is the first time we at the metal mansion have come across Flayed Disciple - and hears to the next time. Once again Grindscene have caught the right band at the right time, with the right extreme edge in the metal spectrum.

A million sins and dollar saints

JOHN Cougar Mellancamp once said that rock music had begun to bore him, because it was the same three or four chords just changed around a bit. Mr Mellancamp's boredom could be cured quite easily here in Northern Ireland where whiskey-soaked and beer drenched good times show the true path of hard rock.

And, he could do worse than check out the sinners, the saints and the party underway as Million$Reload unleash their new album shortly.

But, what is more this is a band that is aware of just what it is, just what it does and understands that clichés are all part of the magic of rock - after all a chliché by its very definition comes into common use because of the fact that it has rather tautalogically become a truism.

Rather than try to ignore the path of goodf honest hard rockin' Million$Reload's latest offering's penultimate track - Pretty People - acknowledges that in the bar rooms and the clubs rock - and its bastard spawn are cluttering up the world with the very worst chat up lines...and from that clutter A Sinner's Saint emerges head a shoulders above the many pretenders.

It's an album that is best enjoyed either speeding down the motorway with the top down, or in a packed house, beer flowing and a crowd of raucous mates. Live Million$Reload deliver and to a large extend A Sinner's Saint captures that energy.

Opening with the statement of intent Fight the System it is followed by a brace of tracks - Bullets In The Sky and Blow Me Away - that have more hooks than a shark fisherman; singalong, raise your fist songs.

But anthems and catchy choruses are not the only things that Million$Reload can deliver. Boy bands and R&B artists will be sucking the barrels of 9mms at the thought that bands from Northern Ireland can produce tracks like Broken. Rather than trying to re-invent the wheel on Broken Million$Reload just make it run smoother than melting cream off any body part you choose. And what is more Broken is life-affirming...

Amidst the party rockin' there is a lyrical depth, with Broken, Pretty People and album closer It Ain't Over all showing that just because some people think hard rock is dumb ass music doesn't mean it is.

Singer, Phil Conlon delivers the lines with aplomb and a cock suredness that only frontmen intent on getting their lungs a solid workout really can. And he is sure about what A Sinner's Saint stands for.

“Rock ‘n’ roll is escapism…you can forget about your everyday troubles and woes, rock out, sing and scream along, have a beer and a smoke!” he said “It’s nothing new, this kind of balls-out rock ‘n’ roll, but it’s been buried away these last few years because too many people in the industry wrote it off as old fashioned and out of touch, but people are beginning to realise what proper rock ‘n’ roll really is!”

With the twin guitar attack of Andy Mackle and Brian Mallon backed by the ryhthm section of Kie Murray (bass) and Sean McKernan (drums) behind Phil it is easy to believe that it is time for the industry to take off the blinkers and get behind Million$ Reload - they are in the vanguard of a music scene in Northern Ireland that, if the world is a just and proper place, should be given the chance to explode worldwide.

A Sinner's Saint? Lead me to the path of righteous rock oh Sinning Saint...

Across Europe A Sinner's Saint is available on Frontiers Records from 29th June and in North America from July 3rd.

Blasting from the past comes one Ms Ford

ON Monday (18th June) Lita Ford came blasting back from her past with a snarling defiant single finger to the doubters, to the people who may have hurt her, and to the ones who have dismissed this once Runaway.

For younger readers Lita Ford was amongst the first real all-female rock group, The Runaways, with a punk snarl, overt sexuality and a penchant for being ripped by management: hell they even made a movie of their journey from top to bottom.

While her partners in Runaways crime went on to different careers, including one Ms Joan Jett, Lita Ford took what she learned and paved her own metal furrow with tunes like Kiss Me Deadly and a duet with Ozzy ("If I Close My Eyes Forever").

After a spell in semi reclusion, Lita Ford is back; punk sensibilities and rock tonality all mixed in with her sense of what makes a good tune, what riff mixes best, and most of all a defiance that swats away any doubts that this once teenage sex symbol can still cut it.

Then new release, Like a Runaway, is full to the brim of tracks that stay embedded in the soul, like Asylum, Relentless and Love 2 Hate U.

But while this is a statement of intent, an album where Ford allows full expression to inner and outer demons, her personal issues are dealt with sensitivity and with clarity, especially on the title track and Mother.

Her determination not to become a footnote in rock history is laid out on Relentless - and with lyricist Michael Dan Ehmig, she has captured about herself and the intent of recording this collection.

"There have been days in my life when I ran away, when I was unhappy and had to get out of my previous life," Lita confesses. "It's like walking through fire and being able to come through the other side unscathed.

She continues: "I wanted to write an album which gives people couragle, inspires them and gives them new power, in other words the power of music."

The power of music and fans was emphasised when Rob Flynn of Machine Head introduced Darkness Within recently in Belfast, and although coming from different points of view, it's that power that can heal and raise hope.

"...I want this music to help people to get through tough times, while remembering their happy times as well," said Lita. "It's happened to me plenty of times: fans come up to me and tell me how my songs have helped them in difficult situations, in a way its almost like a soundtrack to their lives"

This is a life-affirming album, with perhaps the only downer being the Nikki Sixx penned track, A Song to Slit Your Wrist By; which has at its heart a great tune, but is the only track which lacks the space to let the passion flow easily.

There are some who would write off the likes of Ms Ford as older rockers for older rockers, which misses the point. Good hard rock keeps on giving and Ms Ford has gave us a platter of par excellence hard rock and roll, with a metal twist and a punk punch.

Living Like a Runaway is now out in SPV/Steamhammer.

Preach the rock, pull the trigger

THE first time we at Belfastmetalheadsreunited had the privelege to witness Triggerman we dipped our heads in the time-honoured sense and nodded our bonces in time to their beer-soaked, whiskey-drenched fervour. We had witnessed the dawn of Preacher Metal.

Since then the Derry outfit has grown stronger and tighter with each outing.

Now we have in 2012 their latest platter of delight on our decks and once again the Riff Holds Sway. Hail to the River Gods is an evolution where gradual change has merged the nighty back catalogue of Triggerman's releases into a coherent set of new raucous riff-tastic sounds.

This is a band ready to stomp on the stoner vibe, bash the clichés of biker rock with size ten boots and where singer/guitarist Bap once more is in the pulpit and his dark sermons take us on journeys of mysticism, wakes and geography lessons...

Geography lessons? Right kiddies, if you're asked about precipitation in geography class, or if older listeners want to show off, one wondrous lyric explains rain and the cycle of water life. The title track explains: "The mount feeds the river, the river feeds the sea, the sea feeds the sky..." A nice summary of why if feckin' empties out the heavens here; surrounded by seas and oceans, ringed by mountains and wet. And this is why you must never (at pain of a good kicking) never confuse what Triggerman do as 'Stoner Rock'.

Stoner rock emerged out of the dry desert, with weed and contemplation, with a glazed look and a gently nodding head. Triggerman rip that head off and shit riffs down its neck. The ...River Gods are from the Oak Leaf County and the shillelagh carved from oak is weilded at mediocrity as surely as the guitar and bass of Triggerman are knitted hand in glove withy a stomping drumbeat.

Sure, on 'Wake The Dead' a cap is doffed to Queens of the Stone Age as the sing opens, but then pretty boy Josh Homme has his face seared off by an ode to the tradition of toasting the departed with a good ol' binge.

Opener 'Rage of the Goddess' taps into the power of the 'weemen' in ancient Irish history, but this no shrinking violet goddess, nah, this is a goddess with sharp teeth and nails honed to a point if you mess with her.

By the time you've captured the rage and riff of '...Goddess', 'Rise of the Woodsmen' and '...River Gods' your thirst will have risen and you will only be able to slake it with 'Thon Strange Brew'. A glorius tone poem to the restorative powers of what fundamentalist preachers call 'The Devil's Buttermilk' but we just know as booze.

'Thon Strange Bews' might leave youn hungover and headachey the next day, but as your hands shake you know it was worth every gulped paracetemol and fry up because you had one helluva night, and even though you're not sure how you got home, it was never a beer too many.

'Flower of Life' rips along at a steady, pummelling pace before the album closes with a peak at the place we can only see with satellites, 'The Blind Side of the Moon'. Here Bap opens with a faux American twang, the tempter gently offering us all that we need, all that we want and all the power...sounds like a politician. But as the power rips apart the soft promises the lyric is a rejection of the fake, the frauds and a welcome to freedom.

And it is the freedom of expression that is the hallmark of '...River Gods'.

Pop along to their web site, order yourself a copy and check out the next time you can see Triggerman live. You won't regret either buying the album or seeing the riffs slay in reality. You'll hear Preacher Metal, where the sermon is on theme of the water of life, sometimes known as whiskey, and where you'll just need a beer chaser or eight to make sure you've got 'Thon Strange Brew' of booze and rock.

When did Norn Iron become a metal mecca?

YOU just got to wonder when Norn Iron became a rock and metal mecca - was it something that someone said; did Rob Flynn's praise go on to some secret booking agent's hotline; did Lemmy say "Belfast? Nice town"; did someone notice that UFO keep coming back again and again; or is it just the fact that we produce so many shit hot bands that acts want to check us out.

Of course the cynical amongst you may argue that bands will look for a few extra quid either side of festival dates or UK tours, but to hell with you! We should just glory in the fact that so many bands are coming here.

Announced this week is a visit by Sepultura on August 12th just after their Bloodstock appearance. And don't forget this Tuesday, Lamb of God will be recovering from a soggy Download in the dry and sweaty environs of the Mandella Hall.

Unfortunately owing to circumstances beyond my control I can't be at Download but daughter is helping make up the Belfast metal numbers.

But if Lamb of God is a wee bit on the heavy side for ya, then Tuesday also sees Stormzone at the Limelight with a personage who goes by the name of Sebastian Bach, you may have heard of him in some wee act called Skid Row...

Ahh the summer, where blossoms bloom, where cold glasses of wine [Editor's Note: surely not wine? Beer or nothing!] sit awaiting imbibing and where Iced Earth will, somewhat ironically raise the temperature in August.

Oh I ncould witter on for years about this stuff, but with several albums and singles to review, is it enough to mention that Anthrax are playing hetre, so are Dragonforce, Alestorm, Y&T, Bowling for Soup and there are dozens of local gigs coming up too! Check out RockRadioni's gig guide for a pretty comprehensive listing!

Feel it in your heart, your head, your soul; and may you embrace the metal

FROM the outside there is something faintly ridiculous about heavy metal – bunch of long haired types, cramming into a sweaty venue, fuelled by drink and rage at our dystopian society, shaking their heads as if trying to kill all remaining brain cells and slamming into each other with a ferocity verging on synchronised self-harm.

From the inside there is a pure, honest glory; the glory of release; halfway between catharsis and sheer abandon; dervishes driven by power chords; minds set ablaze by lyricism and borderline lycanthropy. Inside the Ulster Hall on May 28^th the glory, the power and the unbridled joy that is heavy metal landed like a tow ton hammer determined to smash the venerable old building’s foundations into submission.

Machine Head – better known as Machine Fucking Head to those in the know – are ironing out any kinks in their set after the Eighth Plaque tour of the US and the festival circuit across Europe. As declared from the stage Machine Head have a special affinity with the island of Ireland and Belfast in particular.

That they keep coming back is a tribute to promoters and the band’s sheer bloody mindedness.

Kicking off the show were Dublin hopefuls Dead Label, who warmed up the slowly filling hall with their full on approach. Definitely a band with prospects, they however, were at times one dimensional, and the precussion while precise relied too much on crash and ride cymbals rather than using these as punctuation. This experience will help hone their skills, but we have to ask why a Dublin band was given this slot when so many Northern Ireland bands that gig constantly, produce solid releases and, we would contend, are more experienced are not given these opening slots?

Evile were the filling in the sandwich between openers and the main attraction. With Evile you know what you get. Straight forward (well as far as thrash can be straightforward technically speaking!) thrash that lays it down as if grunge and hair metal never happened.

In a quick, frenetic blast through old and new releases Evile brought a simmering Ulster Hall close to boiling point, with new song ‘Cult’ being notable together with ‘…Pit’ in provoking the first half serious moshing.

They may not be everyone’s cup of thrash tea – and some damn them unfairly for apparently not being born when thrash was at its height – but Evile have developed a skill level and dexterity that trounces the naysayers. And announcing a headline slot at The Limelight on October 20^th was one sure way to endear themselves to the crowd even if a good percentage of their fans won’t be old enough to get in let alone take a refreshing sherbert.

But when it comes to a band that crosses generational boundaries its Machine Head; not because they’ve been around for almost 20 years and not because they deliver crushing riffs, hummable solos and choruses right out of the 80s metal playbook. No, it is because they touch at the sheer unadulterated delight of metal; the delight that sees strangers roar in each others’ faces, not in anger, but in primal howls of pleasure.

New(ish) album Unto the Locust was given most airplay, but after all that’s only fair. And they were equally fair to diehard fans with older songs and an impressive stage show.

Full-on crowd participation was the order of the night, and there was little need for the call to arms from the stage, although the banter about trying to be louder than Dublin is a little old for even Machine Head.

Flynn commended Belfast for its intensity, but this is a reciprocal arrangement. The more intense the performance, the more intense of the crowd response, which feeds off the band’s intensity and so on, creating a virtuous heavy metal feedback loop.

With faultless performances of Sonata and Be Still and Know pushing already boiling temperatures that bit higher by the time Imperium was pounding out febrile fans down the front were rabidly calling out the songs.

Literacy is a hurdle that many bands fall over as they attempt to construct songs and the lyric. Clichés too often abound. But Machine Head – and Rob Flynn in particular know that the two are wed. As he outlined onstage Locust is an allegory for a certain type of doomed relationship, but Darkness Within is on another level.

It is an ode to the power of heavy metal. In what felt like a genuinely heartfelt tribute to Belfast, Flynn recalled the band’s 94 support tour with Slayer, saying that Belfast was the second date on a tour that saw four young Californians first trip outside the States, to be greeted by armed police and soldiers and fans with an intense love of heavy metal. He spoke of how metal touches at the hearts, reaches its dark fist into your soul to bring light and how background mainstream and dance ‘music’ can never, ever match the peerless ferocity of metal.

Encores saw Halo delivered with its usual guitar-laden aplomb and then ‘Freedom Rang with a shotgun blast’ as Davidian ended the night.

There will always be naysayers who readily knock any band, but they are a tiny minority when it comes to Machine Head. They’ve earned every ounce of their success; they deserve every plaudit. Once they were asked live whether they were thrash metal, black metal etc etc. Rob Flynn and Phil Demmell looked blankly at the camera and said: “We’re just a heavy metal band!” All hail that sentiment.

HEAVY FECKIN’ BELFAST

LET’S face it, with all this unseasonal sunshine and the thermometer sitting at stupid hot degrees centigrade, we rock and metal fans are left to glower at the showers of summer frocks and pink-skinned spides stalking Northern Ireland’s streets.

Well, you know what? They can piss away off because the only fashion sense you need is a black t-shirt and jeans of cammos. And if it really is too warm, get the scissors out. Instant cropped top tour shirt and trim those trous to shorts.

Because when you step inside the hallowed halls of metal, the temperature already is at boiling point and the bands just crank it that wee bit further, because when it comes down to it metal is stoked from the fieriest pits of hell.

Tonight, things get even hotter that any of Danté’s imagined circles of hell when Machine Fucking Head descend on to unsuspecting mortals in their pre-Download attempt to rip the Ulster Hall a new arsehole.

Hard to imagine it, but Rob Flynn and his merry band of metal monsters have been crushing like the proverbial two ton hammer for almost 20 years, but over the last three albums they have become a real force – like the plague of locusts that

And the allegory of locusts now stands as not only the band’s new(ish) album title track, but also like the fans who are becoming more ready to devour any output from the band.

And as far as Roby Flynn goes, playing metal, for as long as he has done now, ripping it up for fans is the only course he knows. He told one interviews:

“I’ve been playing in bands since I was 15 years old. I’ve been on tour since I was 18. I don’t really know anything else, so I’ve never had a Plan B — this kind of had to work.

“I think when you try and tackle something with that much tenacity you make it work. A lot of people told me how I should get a Plan B, but I don’t want a Plan B, this is what I want to do.”

If you want to see why Mr Flynn and his Machine Head compatriots do not need a Plan B then get down tonight to the Ulster Hall to see Machine Fucking Head, with retro-thrashers Evile and and Dead Label…

And  if that isn’t enough, think on fellow madmen and madwomen of the metal flock. Post-Download we have the mighty Lamb of God to come…Heavy Feckin’ Belfast indeed!

Machine Fuckin' Head...no excuses now

RIGHT arseholes,  no excuses now. The two winners of the Machine Head ticket competition have been drawn. If you haven't received your email by now then deepest regrets, but you've no excuses left, get your fingers out of your rear end and buy your own tickets for the May 28th, Ulster Hall show.

Why? Well Machine Head are one of the most important bands leading the charge to make sure metal is remembered amidst a world of mediocrity; where the mainstream has waved goodbye to credibility; they're a band who have been through more ups and downs than a roller coaster in an earthquake zone, and have emerged stronger, harder and tighter than a shark's sphincter.

When they hit Belfast it will be a warm-up for an hour-long second headline slot at Download: acclaim from the metal world that Machine Head are climbing yet further towards the upper echelons, and are near the very top.

They are touring the new album 'Unto the Locust', an album which shows a band confident in ability and songwriting. From the ascent back that began with 'Ashes...' to the battle cry of 'Blackened' Machine Head are now in a place where they can release black paeons to the power of music in the 'Darkness Within' to threat of the title track - right through a worthy addition to the Machine Head catalogue.

More later on Machine Fucking Head, but right now remember to head along to your usual outlet or Ticketmaster and make sure you're there!

If Iggy had been a woman and from Dublin...

IF Iggy Pop has been a woman and from Dublin then there is a certain chance he would have been a Panther Queen...

Yep Vengeance and the Panther Queen, with the release of the début ep have encapsulated the insanity of prime time Iggy before he started selling car insurance.

And let's face it when the title of the ep is "We Who Feel Our Lobes of Penitence Groped By Things With Petrol Claws" you know that sanity has been left lonely on the doorstep while the party rages on indoors.

As regular readers will know this blog does not believe in classifying the multitude of genres that print mags inpose on music. Where they would start in classifying Vengeance and the Panther Queen is another matter. The PR blurb describes them as "Irish Punk-Mental-Party Rock Metallists" which is sort of right, but not close to the chaotic joy; joy with a snarl and attitude dripping off every screamed note and soaring solo.

We confidently predict that 70% of the readers of this column will not give Vengeance and the Panther Queen a second listen. Their loss. Another 15% will give it a firm Whiskey Foxtrot Tango before walking off wondering what the world is coming to. The remaining 15% will get the brews in, and have their ears assaulted in the Panther Queen's weird world.

This four-tracker is a cocked single finger to convention, a spit in the face of the Cowel culture of manufactured shit.

It kicks off with 'This Is Not A Dignified Way to Make A Living' which stomps: background choral vocals a strange but fitting counterpoint to Tara McCormack's banshee shrieks. Layered beneath it all are metal grooves that develop like lost power chords in the maelstrom, with solos appearing both with the simplicity of punk riffing and also metal shredding from Mik Pyro and Darrock, who appears to have lost either a surname or a given name...

Benjamin Loose on bass and Andres Antunes on drums seem the only anchors as this ship of mania tumbles around the strange seas of whatever psychiatric, but wonderful delusion, weaves its way away from the shores of convention.

'My Ebola' is that fuck you towards the scenesters and their blind following of what is right according to the media darlings and the pretentios pseuds. This is punk as it was meant to be, with speed and riffs as an added bonus. And the short solo that ends this...well it could fit on many a metal geetarists 'best of; list.

With no time to waste, Tara beckons us to the worst house party for pacifists as she declares her intention on 'Party Fight'. In a world faced with austerity for the poor and working classes while rich bankers swan around in their Bentleys this Party Fight is where the balance may be redressed. Politicians? We vote, they don't care, we then party.

Concluding with a cover of a Million Dead Cops 'I Hate Work' this is a more straightforward track, and while equally enjoyable doesn't quite have the edge of Vengeance and the Panther Queen own tracks.

On one level this ep is so far off the avant garde scale that it makes Metallica and Lou Reed's Lulu shite seem acceptable pop rock. On another it has the punk edge that challenges, spits and pogos as if there was a sea of mods to dance upon.

Yeah, so quite a few won't get the Vengeance and the Panther Queen vibe, but if Iggy Pop ever gives up appearing on ads for car insurance then he can book himself to support Vengeance and rediscover why the Stooges captured a generation of misfits. Vengeance and the Panther Queen have their Petrol Claws embedded in our flesh and that pain feels soooo good.

Win tickets to Machine F**ckin' Head!

WE'RE too generous, we know it, and the good folks at Shine/CDC are way too generous. We have two pair of tickets up for grabs to see the awesome, the wonderful, the heavy as a ten-ton hammer Machine Fucking Head in Belfast.

Let's face it Machine Head have practically defined heavy metal in the 21st Century with lead breaks to die for, guitar harmonies to sear your face, intelligent and challenging lyrics and most of all they love Belfast. Why else would they keep coming back.

Machine Head, with Evile play the venerable Ulster Hall on May 28th. If you haven't got your tickets yet, then why not?

If you have already got your tickets then enter this competition and help a friend discover Machine Head's heavy glory. Better still buy your tickets right now, and enter this competition to share in the heaviness with a couple of friends.

So what do you have to do to win one of these heavy as fuck tickets?

The question: name Machine Head's latest album. Email us here with your answer and full name.

Winning answer will be drawn on 19th May.

Spare a thought for Paramore...

OKAY let's get this straight from the off. We're not Paramore fans and we're unlikely to ever to be converted: there are some boundaries we refuse to cross, and we have crossed many in the past.

However, we must concede it is a bit of coup for Belsonic to secure the emo-popstars with the outrageous Hayley Williams and her fanbase of screaming girls, and androgynous males.

Paramore appear at Belsonic on August 19th, the night after Thin Lizzy, The Answer, FM and Sweet Savage.

Now much as we have a distaste for Paramore, here's a wee thought. Paramore are basically a guitar orientated band. Their fans, who may have seen them at their King's Hall headliner, are now a couple of years older, and hopefully wiser. They'll no doubt want to re-visit the band that now have a total of three albums under their belt.

However, we hope that with emerging maturity, and a sense that true music (i.e. the music we write our shite about!) is more than a scenester thing. We sincerely wish, down to the bottom of our satan-embroidered socks (he did that as a wee favour) that Paramore fans will seriously consider the world of hard rock, 'eavy fuggin' metal and punk. Better still they might even support a local band or three.

So, Paramore fans - enjoy August 19th. The tickets go on sale on May 18th. Now may we humbly suggest that you all calm down, sit in a darkened room and listen to Trucker Diablo, The Answer, SLF, Stormzone, Sinocence, Honey for Christ, Baleful Creed, Double Wide, Sweet Savage and find out how local bands rock out.

Enjoy it; we'll be rockin' on the 18th August to The Answer, FM, Sweet Savage and Lizzy and we'll have to pass on Paramore - collective metal hangovers shall be our excuse!

Tyketto Dig in Deep and produce a gem

THE first time I came across the fine pipes of Mr Danny Vaughn was when he was lending his talents to the wonderfully shambolic Mr Pete Way's side project Waysted. Waysted were supporting Status Quo at a now closed Belfast Leisure Centre. In front of a packed audience Mr Vaughn won a lot of admirers, not least with performances of Heaven Tonight and How The West Won.

Since the 1986 release of Save Your Prayers with Waysted the versatile vocalist has appeared on 15 albums, the latest of which 'Dig In Deep' is currently on release, and yet again it proves that Danny appears happiest in a band setting.

Dig In Deep offers no real surprises in terms of what you'd expect from Tyketto, AOR with panache, but with a subtle understanding of the components that make up a truly great hard rock album.

Faithless, as an opener sets the tone for what is to come, a dynamic track punctuated with guitars set at the right level of riffage and solos; while Danny displays a range that many an upcoming singer would envy.

And there is a maturity about Dig In Deep, that suggests, lyrically, a reflective tone, exemplified by 'The Fight Left In Me' and the title track, which unfortuately for a great track, dips in the chorus's play-out despite a fantastic pre-chorus build-up

Minor quibbles, however, can be identified: 'Battle Lines' sounds a little predictable and a touch schamltzy. But that is to nit-pick.

'Here's Hoping It Hurts' is a tour de force fuck you to relationship killers and 'This Is How We Say Goodbye' is an album closer that comes from the hearty; a folksy coda. The narrative of love could also be read in the lyric "...family is what matters most of all" as an emphasis of how a band setting - and Tyketto in particular - is where the members, and the trio of original members Brooke St James, Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Clayton especially, can be at ease to produce damn fine tunes.

One can only hope that is not how Tyketto wants to say goodbye.

There is too much talent in this band, and too much talent in the pipes of Mr Vaughn for Tyketto to have this as a swansong. Dig in Deep is currently on release worldwide - fans of hard rock, only two words...Buy It!

Cú Chulainn’s rockin’ the house - and we're right in the middle of the Stormzone

THERE’S a lot of stories about the fighting, fucking, all round bad ass Cú Chulainn in the Ulster Cycle. The Hound of Ulster can rightly be described as one mean so and so of a bezerker…

But like all myths, the story Cú Chuliann was probably just some bloke who enjoyed a pint of ale, partying, and when it came down to it could fight a wee bit – the hype sort of got out of control…

And hype is what too often afflicts rock and metal bands. The ones that reach the mainstream media usually have teams of A&R people, PR specialists and pluggers. Even the metal bands at the upper echelons have to strive hard to meet all their obligations and end up doing the work partly themselves.

But here in Norn Iron we have a profusion of talent in rock, punk and metal…and on Saturday night at the Spring and Airbrake three true exponents of great rock and metal came to the fore. Cú Chuliann would have been right at home, pint in hand and head-a-banging.

The night was to celebrate the launch of Stormzone’s latest album, Zero to Rage – a platter destined to go down as one of the finest local releases in 2012, and maybe of releases further afield.

Kicking out the jams as party openers were Triggerman – masters of the riff and lords of groove. At least two seasoned reporters and reviewers were down the front, hair flying and generally getting down, because as we all should know, the Riff Holds Sway…and the crowd didn’t catch the lurgy. (check the Triggerman site to see what these references are, if you don’t know already!)

The intensity was cranked another notch with the technical exponents of metal, Sinocence blazing a trail of solos and songs designed to pummel and also challenge. Toes-a-tapping, bonces nodding and mouths gapping at their prowess is the usual reaction to Sinocence…and it was difficult not to appreciate the precision of the performance as they were met with the same appreciative reaction.

But Cú Chuliann was there to party with Stormzone…

Zero to Rage is a fine platter that acknowledges the history of local rock and metal as eloquently demonstrated by album opener and surefire live testimony to the band’s roots. Where We Belong is a statement of intent...a eulogy to Northern Ireland and metal.

It would be fair to say that one or two members of Stormzone have been round the metal block a few times – some might see that as a criticism, but on Saturday it was clear that experience counts for more than just having a good set of great songs.

Any set of songs have to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck and thrown to the crowd as sacrificial offerings. Being a singer doesn’t just mean you chant out the tunes – you have to be a frontman prepared to pound and cajole the audience into adoration. Being an axeman means you deliver the licks and show the audience that you have wrestled the stringed beast to meet your will and the will of the audience. Being the drummer or the bassist you have to lay it down with beats and tone that have breastbones vibrating.

Did Stormzone meet all these criteria? Damn right they did! Harv used all his experience at the front, and Davey, Graham, Andy and Steve stepped up to the plate as a unified a force for metal.

Title track Zero to Rage was the stand-out song, there’s no need to hype this – on the album it’s great, live it moves on to another dimension.

With tracks new and old given an airing this was a band comfortable in themselves and excelling.

In Northern Ireland the ancient differences are not in evidence when rock and metal rule the house. Cú Chuliann’s myth has been misappropriated by both nationalist and loyalist groups. But when Stormzone sang Cú Chuliann’s Story, the Hound of Ulster was reclaimed from political clutches and honoured as one who epitomises the flawed hero – a hero we can respect, and a hero whose tale resonates in metal.

And where Stormzone heroes of metal on Saturday night? They were. Now if there is justice for all in this world they should be among the pack of acts rampaging from these shores to tell the world that this wee country on the outer edges of Europe rocks like a bastard.

Northern Ireland's answer to Amon Amarth

ARE Darkest Era Northern Ireland's answer to Amon Amarth? Now before you raise a steeply arched eyebrow at such a bold claim, hold on to your cup of ale, still that whiskey that was about to caress your lips with its golden bite, and draw closer to where an ancient fire burns...

Amon Amarth draw deepy from the well of ancient Scandanavian culture, using the past and present influences. Before 'With Odin on Our Side' they were struggling to break out of the niche media and audiences. All that has changed and now they are an international metal force, still with their roots in the fjords and dim winter nights.

In Ireland, north and south, bands have became comfortable expressing their gaelic roots (and for pedants Northern Ireland and the province of Ulster led the resurgence on the Gael influence long before it was politicised thanks to dissenter presbyterianism). Perhaps it is the peace process that has led this comfortable expression of Irish culture in metal. Perhaps it is because all true rock and metal sees religion and sectarianism as interruptions to drinking time. Perhaps it is because Thin Lizzy and Rory Gallagher led the way...

The crop of bands with a tint of the Celtic culture in their metal is growing ever stronger, from Primordial and Waylander through to the likes of Mael Mordha, who kept proceedings going last night in Belfast's Limelight after opener Celtachor.

As co-headliners, Mael Mordha entertained with their tin whistle take on journeys through misty swamps and dark journeys, where the gods and goddesses of ancient Ireland bring forth an air of menace and an air of joy in proceedings. A surpride Bathory cover of Vinterblot off a forthcoming tribute CD raised the proverbial horns.

Amon Amarth claimed in their song Cry of the Blackbirds that they had routed the Irish, but bemoaned the fact that the king of the Irish had slipped away before total victory. Well the kings and queens of the Celts have risen from the mystical lochs and byways of Enniskillen, where tales of far off times seem all too close as the tendrils of fog slip across the land of bogs; where a misstep can leave you in a place where ancient, vengeful princesses await the unwary traveller...

From this land emerge Darkest Era, a land where you can be just one step away from a Heathen Burial.

Recently back from a piratical cruise with the Alestorm rogues, a journey described pre-show by vocalist Krum as both "scary and exciting"; the experience has tightened the Darkest Era set and performance.

The interrlinked work across the rhythm section of Lisa and Dave nails down a landscape that allows Ade and Sarah to punch out the celtic chords and runs that emerge like Lizzy's Emerald on steroids.

With the Last Caress of Light album to the fore, Krum is ever more confident taking the audience on the lyrical journey, where a matriarchical ancient culture kept the dreams alive of re-birth.

Standing out  in the set were An Ancient Fire Burns and title track The Last Caress of Light Before the Dark. But there can be no doubt that set closer and album opener The Morrigan rose head and shoulders before many a Celtic contender. As for the Vikings, they'd really stand no chance if there was to be a re-match.

Is it then a bold assertion to compare Darkest Era with Amon Amarth? Amarth are still to approach the zenith of their career. They are on a climb. Darkest Era? Their still down the slopes, but any realistic observer will see that the upper slopes may still be a way off, but the rumbles and stirrings are shaking the Trolls from their dark Scandanavian slumber, and the Trolls are shaking lest they have To Face The Black tide that surely must be the rightful ascent of Darkest Era.

When in metal need you call the veterans to go from Zero to Rage

WHEN the armies of Alexander of Macedon conquered half the known world he kept his general Parmenion's verteran's in reserve to deliver the crushing blow to Persian hordes at the right time.

When Genghis Khan conquered half the known world, sometimes his shock tactics needed the determination of veterans to smash through stubborn ranks across the sub-continent.

And when you feel the odd twinge that the new shit ain't rockin' quite the way you thought, it's time to call up the metal veterans to slash and burn all in their wake: veterans who can go from Zero to Rage in a heartbeat.

Yeah, there are one or two members of Stormzone who have been around the block as much as we have, but fear not, because when you need yer rock and metal turbocharged with a heady mix of classicc vibes and bang up to date arrangements then it'll be a safe bet that veterans deliver everytime.

And on this, Stormzone's third studio album delivery is key to its success.

Opening up with a statement of intent Where We Belong the intensity stays high as the title track Zero to Rage keeps the rev counter pushing the red.

Stand-out tracks This Is Our Victory and Last Man Fighting are epic, for different reasons. Victory is a statment of where the band are, what they have achieved, while Last Man Fighting takes all the best plays from the rock playbook and melds them into shape with a slow build towards a juistified strut.

And perhaps it is not fair to pick out stand out tracks: there is a consistency here that puts many album artists to shame. Harv's vocals have matured in terms of intonation without sacrificing the high range. The unsung hero too often in reviewing albums is the rhythm section. Anchored by a drummer who knows his way round a kit like the back of the proverbial hand, Davey Bates proves that flash isn't what holds down a track: solid delivery and flourishes for punctuation beat the stick show-offs any day of the week; meanwhile Graham McNulty's bass holds the bridge between the guitars of Steve Moore and long-time Harv collaborator Keith Harris.

Moore and Harris as a duo mix together riffage with axemanship par excellence. Give the one dimension shredders a rest and let these two guitarists tear it up and show real understanding that soloing doesn't always need to be a blur when you can sprinkle reflections of the song's direction.

The nicely balanced solo on Fear Hotel shows that a solo needs real structure and must merge as part of the song seemlessly

With songs averaging at around six minutes there is plenty of room for expression without self-indulgence. The shorter mid-set Uprising keeps breakneck pace going throughout, while Voices in My Head nails down hard rock melodies from vocals and guitars.

This 12-track platter proves that Harv and his cohort can deliver their own conquest. With a short Spanish stint with Sebastian Bach and no doubt some well deserved festival appearances Stormzone's continental conquest lies ahead as they move through the gears from Zero to Rage to meet yer rockin metal needs.

Stormzone launch Zero to Rage at the Spring and Airbrake on April 28th.

Belsonic newsflash

WITH The Darkness pulling out of their support slot for Thin Lizzy, here's the new confirmed line-up:

• Thin Lizzy
• The Answer
• UFO
• FM
• Sweet Savage

That rates a hell yeah from us

Dark prophets in their own land

THEY say that prophets are not always listened to in their own land; and it is a land here in Northern Ireland that has been riven with strife for millenia, and a land where the heartbeat of music has never been far from the ears of its inhabitants.

This is a land where the fife and drum were once a call to arms, now laid out as threadbare excuse for antagonism; a land where the gospel songs mingle with the folk strains of nascent nationalism caught in webs of sickly sentamentality.

But in this land a heart of rock, cold to the mainstream, but warming the faithful, beat steadily in the darkest times. When the impetuous fires of punks rebellion burnt a swathe through the norm they left a musical landscape ripe for rock; and from the fumblings of that scene were born the children of metal.

That evolution has come forth with a host of talent, but too often the prophets of this metal have been, like some biblical relic of a man, unheralded in their own land.

Darkest Era have been bubbling under the wider Northern Ireland radar for some time, at the same time reaching out to wider and wider audiences - the culture, the torment and the majesty of Darkest Era's melancholia bears the hallmarks of the great Irish rock and metal bands, from Thin Lizzy through to Primordial.


We explored this connection when we caught up with Darkest Era's guitarist Ade Mulgrew ahead of the band's spiritual homecoming to The Limelight for Saturday's gig with Mael Mordha. Are the Irish folk subtelties of Darkest Era's music hitting home beyond the shores of these isles?

"We've always had a stronger following in mainland Europe and beyond. Irish folk definitely isn't something that has a 'cool' image here, while people from other countries seem to be a little more open to the cultural influences woven through the music," said Ade.

"Having said that, I think audiences here connect with it as well. In our music it is quite subtle really; it manifests itself in a kind of melancholic folkish kind of way. But certainly we think audiences outside Ireland appreciate these influences a little more, at least that's what I've noticed in reviews. They pick up on a certain kind of atmosphere and style of melody that they attribute to band from this island it seems."

And there is a melancholic thread that runs through Darkest Era's music, a thread that is woven through much of modern Irish metal, both north and south of the border. Ade takes up the theme:

"It's been said before that there is a kind of melancholia present in Northern Irish/Irish metal that is unique. I think it's fair to say that bands like Mael Mordha, Primordial, Altar of Plagues and Mourning Beloveth have a certain atmosphere in common.

"Obviously melancholic metal isn't solely a characteristic of bands from here, but there is definitely an undefinable misery working it's way into the music somewhere. This is present in our own lyrics and music too I guess, in terms of the kind of language and imagery present in our lyrics and the kind of atmosphere that we try and create."


The first time Belfastmetalheadsreuntied came across Darkest Era it was at an all ages gig in Belfast's Black Box. Darkest Era's singer Krum was leading a ragged mellé of youngsters from the heart of a circle pit.

"That seems like such a long time ago now," said Ade. "[Since then] our journey has been like any other band; one of artistic development and personal growth. Our songwriting has matured a lot since then; we're a lot more confident in what we're doing both in the rehearsal room and when we take to the stage.

"We have a stronger identity now and we are a lot more focussed. I guess a few more people are paying attention to us too now that we've got an album out on Metal Blade. In general I would say the band has moved forward at a steady, sustainable pace. We've had time to reflect on things as we went along and now we are especially driven to take the band to where we want to go."

Recently Darkest Era were treading the boards with a UK tour with Scottish mentalist pirate metallers Alestorm. Apart from seeing the right way to quaff a quart of rum, we wanted to know just what the band learned from the experience.

"This was our first real tour, with 14 shows in a row across the UK, and as it turns out you really find out whether you are worth your salt as a live act in this kind of situation," said Ade "Thankfully we rose to the challenge and put in some really solid performances on that tour.

"Touring is a totally different beast than one off weekend shows or festival shows; it has it's own rhythm and it's own set of challenges and you have to be prepared to meet them.

"On this tour we were playing to large audiences, 90% of whom had never heard our music before. so you have to really work hard to win audiences over and put an energetic show across. We were using the local front of house engineer at each show, so it was a challenge to perform each night to the same standard despite varying levels of sound quality on stage and so on. We are a much stronger live act after that tour, we feel. We learned a lot about our craft."

With the Metal Blade release of Last Caress of Light impressing critics and fans alike, and a tidy video for 'An Ancient Fire Burns' out, it begs the question of what next, for this band that are sneaking their way towards wider acclaim and attendant success, after Saturday's Limelight slot:

"We are very much focussing on writing after this show. We are entering the studio later in the year to record album 2, of which we will be announcing details soon hopefully.

"We've done a lot of work since the album came out in the background to help build the band; but now nothing else matters apart from writing songs and making an album. It's liberating in a way to be back at this point again; some of the tracks on the album are a few years old and our next record will be all new songs written over a much shorter period of time. We're excited about embarking on the creative once process again."

And that is surely good news for each and every fan of local metal. It may have taken a while but Darkest Era's journey has been one that has marched steadily upwards. From the early self-produced Nemesis demo in 2006 to the poise and confidence displayed on Last Caress of Light the drums are sounding a welcome to Darkest Era, a welcome that should be heard more and more in their homeland and further afield.

Darkest Era appear in Belfast's Limelight on Saturday, 28th April with Mael Mordha and Celtachor. Doors are at 5pm and tickets are yours on the door for a measley £7 - well worth it for such melancholic grandeur.