Author: UberAdmin

FM – ‘Synchronized’ (Frontiers)

FM – ‘Synchronized’ (Frontiers)

Posted by | May 22, 2020 | ,

Monk has to admit that, over the 35-plus years of their stop-start career, he has always found Brit AOR overlords FM to be a much more impressive live act than as a recording entity. Yes, they have produced some magnificent tunes over the years, some of those in turn quite rightly regarded as classics of the genre, but, overall, the big boss man has always found their recorded output to be patchy, not least in terms of being unable to reproduce the sheer power of their live performances. And, he is sorry to say, that this, their 12th studio album, originally due to be released last month but delayed due to the effects of the Covid-19 lockdown in Italy, does nothing to change his opinion…

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HANDS OFF GRETEL ENCOURAGE FANS TO ‘DITCH THE LABEL’ IN ANTI-BULLYING DRIVE

HANDS OFF GRETEL ENCOURAGE FANS TO ‘DITCH THE LABEL’ IN ANTI-BULLYING DRIVE

Posted by | May 22, 2020 | ,

Über Rock’s favourite garage grunge punks, Hands Off Gretel, have published a special 48-page full colour fanzine, which includes more than 70 pieces of individual fan art. The ‘zine will help raise funds for Brighton-based anti-bullying charity ‘Ditch the Label’, which was chosen by band front woman Lauren Tate, who recently spoke out about the impact of years of bullying and online harassment.

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Barren Womb – ‘Lizard Lounge’ (Loyal Blood Records)

Barren Womb – ‘Lizard Lounge’ (Loyal Blood Records)

Posted by | May 21, 2020 | ,

Lesely M hadn’t heard Nordic duo Barren Womb before but going purely on the name she felt she might be in for a tuneless screamfest. On the contrary, the metalcore band, consisting of just two members, Timo Silvola (vocals/drums) and Tony Gonzalez (vocals/guitar) describe themselves as “creating easy listening for the hard of hearing”. Their core love is actually punk rock and although they’ve been playing together since 2004, Barren Womb was formed in 2011, after their hardcore band Like Rats From A Sinking Ship disbanded. Since then, in their more streamlined form, they’ve released several EPs and three albums, admitting that writing as a duo is a far quicker process. This fourth album is preceded by three singles ‘Smokes, Let’s Go’, ‘Hairy Palms’ and the wonderfully titled ‘Be Kind, Have Fun And Try Not To Die’. 

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October Falls – ‘A Fall Of An Epoch’ (Purity Through Fire)

October Falls – ‘A Fall Of An Epoch’ (Purity Through Fire)

Posted by | May 21, 2020 | ,

‘A Fall Of An Epoch’ presses many of the buttons that John B likes for an album. It is dark and angry with long tracks that have a lot of evolution to them. It is no secret that JB loves it when an album tells a story, especially through the music. He mentions in most of his reviews how much he loves it when a track or album evolves over time. It really draws you in and makes you think about what you are hearing. This makes the experience intellectually engaging rather than just emotionally. Our man realizes that is a quite abstract statement, but it is probably the best he have, as it is an abstract concept. It is just flat out good.

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