King Hobo, the new project from Clutch drummer Jean-Paul Gaster, have announced that their debut album, ‘Mauga’, will be released on 31 May, via Weathermaker Music. The King Hobo line-up is completed by Thomas Juneor Andersson (Kamchatka) on vocals, guitars, and percussion, and Per Wiberg (Kamchatka/Spiritual Beggars/Candlemass/ex-Opeth) on vocals, bass, and keyboards.
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Regarded as “Denmark’s best-selling power metal band”, Iron Fire could be construed as something of an anomaly within the genre, as they are actually would could best be described as a “power trio”, with bassist/vocalist Martin Steene and guitarist Kirk Backarach (no relation to Burt, we assume?) rejoined by original drummer Gunnar Olsen for this, their ninth studio album in their 19-year career, having first launched themselves into the metal Überverse in the midst of the ‘Thunderstorm’ (now apparently regarded as something of a cult classic, especially in their homeland) back at the turn of the millennium.
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Marseilles’ Rescue Rangers don’t so much sound inspired by Helmet as they seem to have been scraped from the blacktop following the impact the New York alt metallers had following the release of ‘Betty’. But then, being compared to one of the 90s most scene-inspiring bands is by no means an insult, and what Rescue Rangers lack in direct individuality they more than make up for in both energy and addictive, meaty songwriting. While the band owe a considerable debt to the chunky sound of Helmet (not hurt by the inclusion of Page Hamilton at the mixing desk), Divisive has shades of so much of the 90s/00s guitar-rock sound, checking in everywhere from Nirvana to Toadies, Cave In and Therapy?, showing an omnivorous attitude to bite-sized rock songs that serves the band well.
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With prog metal maestros Opeth already heading the bill for this year’s Damnation Festival, things have just gotten even heavier with the release of four more names to the line-up.
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In what would have been the 50th year of Rory Gallagher’s recording career, UMC will release a new compilation, entitled ‘Blues’, on 31 May.
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