Roz Vitalis
It is completely instrumental, and while Rozmainsky is at the heart of everything which is taking place, the use of sax on five of the numbers and clarinet on the other two has the band combining jazz,
8/10 by Kev Rowland
In 2018 my good friend Olav furnished me with a copy of Doug Rausch’s second album which had recently been released. Some months later Doug tracked me down and we started having regular contact. During that period, I mentioned that I hadn’t heard the debut, and if he would like it reviewed… So, although ‘Book II’ was released in 2018, ‘Rausch’ actually came out as long ago as 2009, and we are now in the 10thanniversary year. In some ways I find it incredibly surprising there was such a gap between the two, and in other ways possibly not so much. I have lost count of how many times I have played this album recently but know that it is a great deal many more times than I would normally for something I was planning to review.
Doug is first and foremost a pianist and came to public attention when Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater) heard a college demo and then asked him to perform in the very first Keyfest. This helped in attracting guitarist/bassist Gary Wehrkamp (Shadow Gallery) with drums provided by Joe
8/10 by Kev Rowland
Originally released in 2008, October last year saw Aural Music celebrating the 10thanniversary of the album by reissuing with new artwork by Umberto Stagni, new remastered tracks plus a second bonus CD containing the previously unreleased ‘Live in Russi 2010’. This package now contains 24 songs and is an impressive 103 minutes in length. Although this is the older album, the sheer length combined both with great songs and live versions means this is the album to start with if you haven’t come across these Italian metallers prior to this. I swear some of the songs wouldn’t sound out of place on Wolfsbane’s mighty ‘All Hell’s Breaking Loose Down at Little Kathy Wilson’s Place’ (boy was I pissed when Blaze joined Maiden a few years later). This is power metal, played powerfully, with stacks of aggression, great hooks, all combined with a serious dose of commerciality. This was the first album to feature singer Francesco “Il Biondo” Grandi (who had left by the time of their latest, ‘Spacepirates’) and he has the perfect presence and vocal style to really make his presence felt over the top of a punching backline.
Accept have again also been an inspiration, but classic Wolfsbane are at the forefront of what they are doing and anyone who remembers them in their prime should be seeking this out. Aural Music often release music which is quite removed from the mainstream, but in Rain they have a band who could, and should, easily be featured on hard rock radio. They are certainly an act I am going to keep an eye on, as this is both incredibly solid and a load of fun to listen to. If you enjoy classic metal with influences from the new wave, then this is definitely something you should be seeking out.
8/10 by Kev Rowland
magine if you will Wolfsbane and Accept coming together to produce NWOBHM flavoured power metal with a very heavy bottom end, and then you may get close to what this Italian band released in 2016. Actually, this is still the most recent new release by the band who have had more than a few line-up challenges during their career, but when a band can state they will soon be celebrating their fortieth anniversary then that is something that should be expected. Prior to this album I must confess I hadn’t come across them before, and there isn’t that much information available about them on the web (doesn’t help when they have a one-word name which is a common word), but I have definitely been missing out.
True, there isn’t anything dramatically new about what they are doing, and the songs are never exactly memorable, but when it is being played at the right volume there is something about this which just makes me smile. This is metal which is all about having a good time, not trying to be anything more than music to get people moving and into the party mood. It has both the naivety of NWOBHM and the polish of power metal, combined with some reasonable tunes and plenty of riffs. There are a few power ballads, but they always keep the chords close to hand and never become too schmaltzy. Not a band or album which will ever set the world on fire, but this shows just why they have been around for so long.
6/10 Kev Rowland
Spiral’ is the second album from this Norwegian quintet, following on from 2015’s ‘Sagittarius A’. Probably the most well-known member of the band is guitarist Mattis Sørum, previously in Pictorial Wand. With a name such as theirs, the band are setting out their stall for all to see, knowing that there will be many who can’t get past that, while at the same time also setting themselves up for the critics to take pot shots at them. None of this is really fair, as while this isn’t a classic album in any sense of the word, it actually isn’t that bad either. Here is a band who aren’t afraid to bring in classic keyboard sounds, have plenty of harmony vocals, can really rock when the time is right yet are also happy to have reflective acoustic guitars or reverbed piano with little room for error.
There is a huge amount here to love, but for some reason for all the times when it really
6/10 by Kev Rowland
