CADAVER
“NECROSIS”
(Candlelight)

Most of the lovers of death metal will probably know Cadaver, but for the rest I say that theses guys were founded in 1988 in Norway and recorded their first album in 1990, which is now considered as an underground classic. Then they released one more album and in 1993 they were put on ice. In 1999 they decided to reunite and they released the “Discipline” album in 2001 after Apollyon (Dodheimsgard, Aura Noir, Lamented Souls) joined the band. Now with the same line-up they release this sick album. Their music is basically death metal, but has many thrash metal and industrial elements together with some black metal parts and riffs. The vocals are really hellish and aggressive. The guitars are very fast in some parts and just fast on others. The rhythm section is very fast, extreme and aggressive and makes the whole album sicker than it could become with a normal rhythm section. If we consider that the tracks included here are their comeback, because their previous album had many old material and a few fresh songs, then I can say that they are in a pretty good shape. If you like oldschool death/thrash metal with a raw production and a sick feeling when listening to the album, then this album is something you can check.

G.K. 6/10

CAFFERY CHRIS
“FACES”
(Black Lotus)

There is no need to make special introduction for this gentleman. He is Savatage’s guitarist for a many years and has contributed a lot to the band (especially after Oliva’s sudden loss). With the Floridan band being inactive for a while, Chris seized the opportunity to release his first solo album. What is weird here is that his Sava friends are totally absent. But from some interviews I’ve read, it was because Chris chose to release a totally personal CD. This is the reason why he also chose to be the singer in this effort... something that reduces a bit the value of the effort, as Chris is not the best singer ever (not that he is bad at all, but the songs could have been lifted by a professional and experienced singer). In musical terms the approach is modern heavy metal with a few power elements and some “rock opera” touches here and there. Unavoidably the album brings Savatage to our mind, but has more to do with more straightforward contemporary heavy metal bands, like Brainstorm and Tad Morose. Worthwhile work indeed!

A.S. 7/10

CAFFERY CHRIS
“W.A.R.P.E.D.”
(Black Lotus)

Things here are complicated, as this is not completely new material. In fact it is partly unreleased, but it has not been composed after the debut “Faces” album of Savatage’s guitarist. The songs here complete the concept of “God Damn War” CD, which came as a bonus CD with the first original release of “Faces”. In essence, we find here six more tracks that have not been released in the “God Damn War” bonus CD. Plus, I have to inform you that there are two more extra songs relevant to the concept, that can be downloaded from Caffery’s website. In musical terms, the album does not differentiate itself from the known, familiar sound of the artist. US, guitar oriented heavy metal, based on sharp riffs and massive production. If you have heard “Faces”, you know what to expect, if not you can have an idea at the latest Sava albums, where Caffery has a more extended role in songwriting. Plus “Iraq Attack” is an originally Doctor Butcher song, written back in 1002, and the vocals are treated by his excellency, the mountain king, John Oliva. A release mainly for fans.

A.S. 6/10

CAGE
“DARKER THAN BLACK”
(Massacre)

This album is a true heavy metal thunder! Cage, with having released two more albums, made the big surprise. I couldn’t believe that a group could play nowadays, real heavy metal music as they do. The main influence of the band is without doubt Judas Priest when Halford and the entire band were at their best and their songs are so strong and powerful that our stereos are about to explode. That’s the kind of music those five fantastic guys choose to play with passion. It’s not only the riffs and solos that remind so much of Judas Priest but even the singer, Sean Peck, approaches Halford’s performance! Sean is a very talented singer because he has a great and powerful voice, which can combine Halford’s and Dani’s Filth vocals on some parts (on tracks “White Magic” and “Secret Of Fatima” for example). Also the guitarists, Eric Horton and Dave Garcia, seem to be great followers of the true giants Tipton and Downing. Finally, I have to mention the amazing production that is made by the well-known Roy Z. Some of you may claim that the only thing that this band does is to replicate Priest and nothing more. In a way you are right but this group has fresh ideas and plays the music we would like to listen to, from Judas Priest a decade or more. So until they release an album that approaches this incredible one, Cage is the best substitute. The tracks that I can spot as marvelous are: “Kill The Devil”, “Chupacabra”, “Blood Of The Innocent” and “Philadelphia Experiment”. Listen to this album at maximum volume!

G.K. 8,5/10

CALEDONIAN
"ACOLYTE"

When I fist saw the album's artwork and the band's logo, but also as I didn't know Caledonian before, I though that maybe they would play Norwegian black metal. But after I have listened to the album I can surely say that Caledonian have very few common things with the black metal genre, even though the vocal style of their singer is close to black metal vocals. Anyway, Caledonian play atmospheric metal with some gothic elements and the change from brutal black voice to female vocals seems to be very good. One of the strongest points of this band, which is also the thing, that like it their music, is the atmospheric parts that they had in their songs and the female vocals. About this last note I must say that Caledonian should write more atmospheric songs and give more time for Riina to sing. This could be the only way that would make them to sound different from other bands of this genre. Songs like "Lust For Celtic Dark", and "Depth Of Her Love", shows that the band has many good ideas and I think that they must take advantage of them. Mikko Paavilainen has done an excellent work on keys and generally has given to the whole album a great atmosphere. So, if you are into this kind of music and you like atmospheric metal with brutal vocals, then you should try out Caledonian. The only point that is sure, is that this band have released a nice album and they have a good future ahead of them!

T.A. 7/10

CALEXICO
"FEAST OF WIRE"

The "international" band formed in 1996 by Canadian Joey Burns and his New York friend - drummer John Convertino joined forces with multi-instrumentalists from Germany and the result is full, lovely summer music (English weather sucks). Calexico seem to continue their legacy in this record as well, producing nothing else but their pure talent. The mix includes traces of Mexican, Spanish, Cuban music, progressive and jazzy with many percussion and trumpet - brass sections. The only thing, I have to admit I dislike, is the English language used to complete this generally South-American great music. But maybe from the other hand the language selection was the key to their success...? Also check their previous albums, "Hot Rail" 2000, "Black Light" 1998.

D.F. 7/10

CALLENISH CIRCLE 
"MY PASSION YOUR PAIN"

Callenish Circle is a group that is not very popular but it is gaining ground in each album they release. The musicians of the band becoming in every new album even better and that's their advantage and the reason I handle with their new album. Their music style will surely remind you many other extreme groups like Soilwork, Pestilence, At The Gates, In Flames, The Hunted and other familiar groups. Their sound is a mixture of death and trash metal sounds with many melodies and savage vocals. Their best ability is to compose aggressive, melodic and catchy riffs and that's why this new album is full of clever riffs that are going to make your head banging! The guitarists have reached a great point and they have done excellent work on most parts of the album. The same thing goes for the bassist, although the production may injure him…. Now let's pass to the drummer-phenomenon Gavin Harte who is surely going to become one of the best drummers of the extreme scene! His playing is so tough and powerful that you can't hold from moving your hands or head according to his playing-blitzkrieg! My only objection goes for the singer (Patrick Savelkoul) who is singing much more brutal than I expected and this album is needed… The best tracks are "Soul Messiah", "Forsaken" and "My Hate Unfolds". Generally, Callenish Circle offers us fresh extreme music with beautiful and tough production. A very nice choice for most of you…

G.K. 7/10

CALVARIUM
“THE SKULL OF GOLGOTHA”
(Dynamic Arts)

The first thing that appears when you enter the Dynamic Arts site is this band. So they must be promising. Let’s see… On the cover, there is a big rotten skull, a drawing of Golgotha with the three crosses, the band logo (impossible to read of course) and the title. On the back, a photo of the artists and the song titles. You can’t see any of their three faces. The first guy is carrying at least 4 kilos of spikes and he is holding a skull. The second guy is playing air guitar (!?!) and the third one possesses a whip. Am I superstitious? No I’m not! The satanic, ambient speed picking aeons they (are trying to) play are totally lacking of inspiration and groove, they could proudly consider themselves as one of the thousand bands that shamelessly copy Darkthrone and all this why? Because you have to be originally crazy to write and perform black metal and these Finnish guys are not, they’re wannabes. The fade-outs are very funny, the album is dangerously boring, it makes you wanna beat the shit out of the singer after 40 min. listening to his voice so I suppose the fact that the number of the crosses on the cover is equal to the number of these super-Satanists is not a coincidence. If it is though, I’m full of thoughts…

T.K. 2/10

CANCER
“CORPORATION$”
(Copro)

Cancer is a well-known band because of the entrance of James Murphy in the group, back in 1991, for the second release of the band “Death Shall Rise”. Since then, they recorded two more albums and then they broke-up. So, it was 1995 when they last released an album (“Black Faith”). In 2003 the masterminds of the band John Walker (vocals and guitars) and Carl Stokes (drums) decided to reform the band. For this reunion they recruited two more musicians which are: Adam Richardson (ex- Assert) on bass and Rob Engvikson on guitars. This is EP contains their first recordings after the reunion and includes two new songs “Oil” and “Oxygen Thieves (Don’t Breath My Air Mix)”, a track from their first album, which is played again live in the studio (“Witchhunt”), a cover for the Celtic Frost track “Dethroned Emperor” and an industrial remix of their new track “Oil”. The first new track (“Oil”) balances between their familiar death/thrash metal and sounds really oldschool! The second one is an industrial track, which I didn’t like it very much… The re-recording of the track “Witchunt” is pretty good, but I think it is meaningless… The cover for the Celtic Frost is interesting, but the original still remains much better. Finally, the industrial remix for the track “Oil” is really pointless, except if they want to prepare their fans for their new music direction… Anyway, I don’t think that this EP has something to offer to you, except if you are a die-hard fan of the band and you want to have all their releases…

G.K. 4/10

CANCER
“SPIRIT IN FLAMES”
(Copro)

This historical band, after the release of the “Corporation$” E.P. in 2004 releases the first full-length album after its reunion. This is also the first album of Cancer since 1995 and many of the band’s fans would like to know how the band sounds in 2005. The music still remains old school and it is a mixture of death and thrash metal as always... The line-up of the band is the same one with the “Corporation$” E.P., meaning that two of the original members of the band are still here: John Walker on vocals and guitars and Carl Stokes on drums. The band sounds more interesting than the E.P. and I think that this is happening because the two new musicians had more time with the original members... The vocals have a bigger variety and there are even some melodic moments together with the technical parts... Of course, you will not find something new or pioneering in their music, but it’s just a nice album for the fans of the old school death/thrash metal... The sound of the band is a little bit improved, if we compare it with its past era (early 90’s). The fans of the band will surely love this CD, but the rest should firstly check it out before buying it... The tracks that I liked most are: “Insides Out”, “Hellhouse”, “Siance” and “Spirit In Flames”.

G.K. 5,5/10

CANNATA
"TAMOROK"

Cannata is the personal band of the singer-keyboardist (in this album he plays also the guitar and the bass!) Jeff Cannata (ex-Arch Angel). This is the new album that he released after almost 9 years! I mean that his last album "Watching the World" was released in 1993. Jeff Cannata's new album "Tamorok" features 7 new songs and 7 older songs, which were taken from his two rare albums "Images Of Forever" and "Watching The World". So the fans of the band will surely know those "old" songs and also they will be ready to listen to fantastic and emotional AOR/Rock. Brilliant songs like "Tamarok", "Prisoner In The Holy Land", "Fortune Teller" and the emotional ballad "Let It Be", shows that Jeff is in a good shape and he offers us once more a very listenable and "easy" album full of great songs. Some of them are gonna stuck in your head from the first time that you will try to listen to this album and you're gonna sing them all day long! The fans of AOR/Rock scene better check this album immediately cause it's really difficult nowadays to find so qualitative works from any band. 

T.A. 8/10

PS: The song "Stars 2001" is a re-recording of the Arc Angel "Stars" back in 1983.

CANNON
“BACK IN BUSINESS”
(Metal Heaven)

Well, for those who might not know it, this band from Hanover is not a new one. It exists since the mid-80’s and I think this is the second full length album. Funnily enough the music of the group shouts “hello we are from Germany ”!!! Without that being bad. It’s just that the vocals maintain this German-like accent, as if I’m listening to a better version of Udo Dirckschneider. However the music has little in common with that of Accept, we can only parallel it to the directness of the two bands. Cannon here play pure 80’s hard rock, embellished with some modern elements, especially in the production front. Catchy riffs, fancy hooks, very good drumming and good songs in general. Youthful and perky the album is a good proposal for old fashioned hard rock fans who still pay tribute to Pink Cream 69 and similar bands.

A.S. 6,5/10  

CANS
“BEYOND THE GATES”
(Sanctuary)

Ok, I think that the joke with side-projects, solo albums etc., has gone too far. We have lost the ball here, as most musicians participate in more than one band, creating (most of the times) records that they could have released with their original band. Not to mention that they force this way the devoted fans to buy the CDs of their favourite artists, without having anything to gain. Side projects only worth when the artist expresses himself/herself in a different way than in the original group (check for example Bowes& Morley or Frameshift). Well this is not the case here. Hammerfall’s Joacim Cans presents an album of tradition heavy metal (filtered fortunately under a modern prism), which could be Hammerfall’s new album. Cans here has gathered an all-star band with Mat Sinner on the bass, Stefan Elmgren (Hammerfall), Metal Mike (ex-Halford) and the drum god Mark Zonder. However the band doesn’t present anything great. Some good heavy metal songs, good melodies, well-structured songs etc. But I really don’t see the possible usefulness of this CD coming from a side-project... as if Sinner or Cans and Elmgren play anything different with their original bands. The biggest disappointment though is that the songs are soooo traditional and stuck to the clichés, that Zonder is very confined and he doesn’t offer us his unique drum capabilities. It’s as if you are having a Porshe and you’re driving with 50 km/hour! It’s not bad and some might be thrilled, but it’s a same to know that fans will prefer this one over Shiva’s last album for example. I doubt that I will ever listen to this again.

A.S. 5/10

CAPRICORNS
“CAPRICORNS”
(Rise Above)

Capricorns is a new-coming band that releases its first EP through Rise Above Records. The band comes from England, I think, and was formed in 2003 (I could hardly find any information about them…). These guys play a kind of doom music with some psychedelic parts. The three tracks included here have no vocals except the “Transcendental Evisceration”. Their sound is heavy, psychedelic and sounds like doom rock sometimes. Two members of the band that you may have heard of their names are: Dean Berry (ex-Iron Monkey) on bass and Chris Turner (Orange Goblin) on drums. I think that until they release a full-length album, very few people will be interested in them...

G.K. 5/10

CARLSSON PATRIK
“PHRASEOLOGY”
(Lion Music)

Here we have the new album of Patrik Carlsson. Patrik Carlsson is a very talented and fussy musician from Sweden. He is dealing with music and most of all with the six-string goddess since the age of 15. From studying music till giving guitar lessons Patrik put a great effort but I just think he made it!! He perfected his style and his technique and managed to create his own music. Now when I first listened to this album I was very confused. It is an album to be listened by guitar players in the majority. The sound varies a lot. Progressive music emitted with classic hard rock and heavy metal elements. His classical studies appear through his compositions and the bond between heavy and classical sounds very beautiful. Patrik is strongly influenced by Steve Vai but he flirts a lot with classical music so I could recognize some other influences such as Michel Romeo and Luca Turilli. In my opinion he created his style in a very good way. Harmonies, great riffs, a great use of tremolo-bar, string scratching, a taste from the past and love for the hard music create the sound of Patrik Carlsson. Fifteen tracks of hard music with lots of emotions and atmosphere ruling during the listening. A revision of a well known children song with his own style is a very pleasant moment in the album and I liked very much in the last track the humorous distorted voice and the very heavy riff after it. I’d surely remember this album. A nice album for lots of tastes and a “studying book” for those about to play guitar.

V.M. 7/10

G.K. 5/10

CARPET KNIGHTS
“LOST AND SO STRANGE IS MY MIND”
(Transubstans)

Carpet Knights is a new-coming band that was formed in 1998 in Sweden. The band had had some line- up changes in the past, has released some demos and now the time has come for their debut album. The influences of the band are so many that you will be able to find psychedelic and 70’s rock sounds, progressive parts, doom and folk influences as well! The use of the flute in some tracks will remind you of Jethro Tull, but it’s not only the flute... Their general sound will remind you of this great band and its early era and other bands like: Lucifer Was, Pink Floyd and etc...! The vocalist (Magnus Nilsson) may not have something really interesting to offer, but his vocals fit very well this old- school rock music. The drumming (Mattias Ankarbranth) is very tight and I really found interesting the way the band handles the rhythm section in general. The guitars have a 70’s distortion and sound and that’s a plus for the lovers of this era... Generally, I enjoyed this album enough, although I wasn’t very pleased from the production... On the other hand, I am glad that labels like Record Heaven/Transubstans Records sign bands that belong to another era and create music without just copying the great bands of the past... My favorite songs are: “All Be The Same”, “The Mist” and “Fools And Silent Callers”.

G.K. 6/10

G.K. 6,5/10

CAUTERIZE
“SO FAR FROM REAL”
(Wind-Up)

This is a good record to cheer anyone up. Cauterize (the previous name of this band from Canada, was Toe, and many songs of their debut album, were re-recorded again for this one) here play punk, highschool rock and roll, which always has the same result: to make people spend their time loosely. The CD can be played as background when you are doing your laundry, when you are in the shower, when you are driving or playing a game on your PC or even when you are getting prepared to go out on a Friday night. No special meaning here, but to be honest it is good. The songs are not all the same, rather present some variations, there are mid-tempo bridges, multiple vocals etc. Don't expect to listen to something novel, but at least you will have a good time. Nevertheless, fans of bands like Green Day etc will be thrilled. In general I think that this CD has many potentials to sell in the US. It could be the perfect soundtrack for movies like "American Pie" and other teenage ones. I think you got the meaning already. As for me? I will possibly play this album several more times, especially when feeling down.

A.S. 6,5/10

CAVE NICK 
“NOCTURAMA”

Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds are well known to anyone who loves dark-gothic metal music and not only. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Nick Cave is almost identical with that kind of music. So, the new album, which is a 10-song album, entitled "Nocturama", Cave is touching once again on many of his favourite themes - love, death, longing and darkness. Needless to say, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds are still in top form. Musically he and The Bad Seeds still manage to keep the fire. So, If you want to hear the Punk Rock side of the band just have a listen to tracks like "Baby I'm On Fire" and "Dead Man In My Bed". But there is also the other side with "softer" songs like the ballad "Still In Love" and "She Passed By My Window" or even "There is A Town". There is also as a bonus track a cover of the famous Beatle's song "Here Comes The Sun" which is surprisely good. Trying to see Nocturama as a whole result I can say that this album having a mellow and poetic start, (hey, it's Nick Cave!). It's dirty, it's fast and it's got twice the attitude of most of the bands adopting the "punk" moniker but also is poetic, (with Cave's famous abstract-style lyricism), melodic and sensitive. In other words Cave and his Bad Seeds are welcome returned to the music scene and it would be a miss if you don't hear them!

K.P. 8/10

CEA SERIN
“...WHERE MEMORIES COMBINE”
(Heaven Cross)

This band comes from Spain and I guess that this is the debut album... and I can tell you that we need such refreshing efforts in our music. The album is a positive surprise at all aspects: from the artistic artwork, the packaging, to the production and basically to the music it contains. Good aesthetics, inspiration and attitude are the elements of this progressive metal diamond. Cea Serin works as a giant mill that manages to digest all possible influences, from spanish music (folk elements) to heavy metal and symphonic relics. The band manages to deliver an amazing progressive metal album, based on guitars, in the vein of Eternity X, Leviathan... but I’m telling you that you’d better listen for yourselves to understand what is going on here, as Cea Serin manages to deliver really good music. The band seems to have worked on the songs for hours and hours to deliver such complete compositions. I seriously believe that this band along with Mindflow are the two biggest surprises in prog metal this year. Congratulations!!

A.S. 8,5/10

CELESTY
“MORTAL MIND CREATION”
(Dockyard 1)

I totally believe that Europe is producing so much power metal music that we can hardly listen to all the bands anymore. So, one band is copying the other and all of them are copying the big power metal bands of the late 80s/early 90s and the thing goes on. Thank God, some bands are an exception to that rule and without bringing anything new to the genre they are indeed offering nice heavy powerful songs. Celesty is one of those bands that are offering good music to all the power metal fans and can make you “play” them again and again. I must admit that I was trying to avoid to listen to this album in the beginning but when I did it, I played it far too many times. Celesty are playing Euro-power metal with some prog and epic elements in their songs… sometimes they brought on mind Sonata Arctica and I can say that they have some similarities with the aforementioned band. I think that this album will offer to this band a chance to be more known among the thousand European bands that are playing power metal… and you know something… ? those Finnish guys are pretty good and if they keep things up in that way they will have a lot to offer. This the band’s third album… and you know that always the third album shows the way to the top or the opposite. Personally, I’m a power metal fan but I am bored easily by the same uninspired thing that many bands are offering today… but Celesty doesn’t belong to that boring music category. Ahh… I forgot to tell you that “Among The Dreams” is a very beautiful song… and that I also like very much the album’s mysterious cover. Too bad that I didn’t have the chance to listen to the bonus track, “Final Pray” (Japan Bonus), of the album.

T.A. 7/10  

CELTIC LEGACY
“RESSURECTION”
(Self-Financed)

Celtic Legacy is a band that’s coming from Ireland and it was formed in late 1997 by Dave Morrissey (guitars/keys) and Dave Boylan (bass). After almost a year they released their debut album, which was financed by themselves. But things didn’t work out very good for the band, as you may think, and that’s why after many changes in the band’s line up, they finally slit up in April 2001. Suddenly in November, a die-hard fan of the band (Vladimir) begun to raise interest for the band in Germany and also, a campaign began to raise funds for a second album of Celtic Legacy! So, after that, the two founder members of the band recruited new musicians in order to record a second album. That’s a brief review about the story of Celtic Legacy. But now let’s go to the music part of the CD, which matters most. I really didn’t know what to expect from the band, although their name proclaims that they are close to epic music. That thought wasn’t wrong at all, cause Celtic Legacy plays traditional heavy metal music with many epic and hard rock elements from song to song. For example the intro of the album “The Fallen” is very atmospheric track which traveling us to mediaeval times where dragons are spitting flames… and then the second track “Live By The Sword” is in the way that the 80’s epic metal songs were and that’s why this song is one of my favourites! Another highlight of the album is the homonymous epicus “Resurrection” which lasts about 10 minutes and it will surely grab your attention! Other songs that you are going to like from this album are the heavy atmospheric “Emania”, the mellow “When A Stranger Comes”, the Maiden-like instrumental “Sloidephuch Doin”, the melodious “Guardian Angel” and the catchy and my favorite one “Timeless” (that song brought on my mind Styx!). To be honest, the production although is very good and strong, I believe that it could have been better especially on the guitars. But that thing won’t mind you at all. The truth is that Celtic Legacy managed to release a very good and heavy album that many bands that have the support of a label cannot and will not ever release! The fans of heavy, epic, hard rock and generally good melodic metal music should not miss, this time, the chance to listen to something really good! The “Resurrection” of the Celtic Legacy has begun!

T.A. 8/10

CERBERUS
“CHAPTERS OF BLACKNESS”
(Schwarzdorn)

Being clueless sometimes can be very funny. Now is it me, or is there something with German bands? They seem to be completely uninformed of what black metal is. I am not speaking of today’s black but the early 90’s super evil satanic black they wanted to play. And I say wanted because they didn’t make it. Corpse paint and photos in every page, stupid faces that wouldn’t scare even my 4 year old cousin, a female Fenriz behind drums (!!!!) completely irrelevant music with no sense of rhythm or tempo, intro…. outro, a murderous pentagram on their wolverine logo… Probably recorded in a room with a tape recorder from three guys and a chick and sounds more like heavy metal played by a blackster! In the thanks list (an 11 row list of band names I’ve never heard of) Alice Cooper and Dream Theater are included!! I hope Cerberus gets the rabies! Avoid it like shit.

T.K. 2/10

CHAIN.EXE
“CHAIN.EXE”
(Prog Rock Records)

Sometimes I wonder how much different progressive bands can be and how diverse kinds of music they can offer. For example Spastic Ink’s approach is hard to digest, while Spock’s Beard is more down to earth. Well, Chain.Exe’s path is somewhere in the middle. They seem to flirt with Fates Warning at times, but then we get an outbreak of power that refers to Shadow Gallery and Dream Theater. The disc contains one suite in seven parts (Cities), plus five more independent tracks and the whole duration is almost 80 minutes! Pretty enhancing right? Yes, it is because the music here is really good: electric elegies are mixed with symphonic parts, saxophone match with guitars etc. And the most important is that the band manages to make the listening interesting, diversified and unexpected. Indeed one can find all prog influences in the package of one. I seriously urge all prog fans to try and find this CD.

A.S. 8/10

CHAOSTAR
“THE SCARLET QUEEN”
(Holy)

Chaostar, as most of you know, is the classical music project of Chris Antoniou (ex-Septic Flesh). “The Scarlet Queen” is the third album for the Greek solo band and it is released after two years of recordings! This new album contains instrumental tracks that are filled with some female operatic vocals by the soprano Sapfo. The band’s music is still influenced from classical, opera, soundtracks and gothic music. All the tracks contain theatrical, dark, avant-garde, vampiric, romantic and gothic moments that are composed by Chris. The problem with this new album is that the tracks are not very inspired or they are somehow unfinished… This is because in most tracks, as I noticed, there are some calm moments and when the passion emerges (when the classical instruments play louder and faster), the track ends! I would prefer to listen to longer tracks, because this kind of music demands songs that last more than the common music tracks, in order to feel the alternates and the passion of the music. I can say that this album disappointed me, because after two years of recordings I expected it much better. The advantage of this album is the great and clean production. I hope for a better album from Chris in the future...

G.K. 5/10

CHARON
“THE DYING DAYLIGHTS”
(Spinefarm)

I remember some years ago that I listened to, by accident, the second album of Charon (“Tearstained”) and I was really surprised by this band. So, not many years have passed and Charon have already released their fourth full-length album which is called “The Dying Daylights”. What a cool title for an album, I thought when I saw it! The next step was to listen to the album and paying full attention to it of course. Those who have listened to the two singles of the album “Religious/Delicious” and “In Trust Of No One”, will have the best impressions. Well to be honest, the truth is in the middle. Of course the two aforementioned songs are good enough and maybe are the best songs of “The Dying Daylights”. Not, that the other songs are not well produced and good but something I feel that is missing from this album. All the songs have heavy guitars, nice melodies and very good production but I still feel that something is missing here. After many listenings of this album I finally realized what the hell is missing! “The Dying Daylights” do not have that song which is gonna make you say: Hey man that’s really a fucking great catchy song! It is true that the “hit” song is missing from this album but that does not mean that “The Dying Daylights” is not a good album. The fans of the band will have already bought it and they will also be satisfied. But someone who is not fan of the band, I think that this is not the appropriate album that he can get in order to be familiar with the band. The album for that work is “Tearstained” of course! The fans of gothic metal in general better listen to it first and then decide whether to buy it or not.

T.A. 7/10

CHARON
"DOWNHEARTED"

Last year Charon released "Tearstained", a remarkable album and this year with "Downhearted" are resuming the good work on the gothic metal area. "Little Angel", the first single of the new album is already a hit and we are convinced that Charon is a band that is working hard with its music and they are continuing to prove this with every new album they release. "Downhearted" is an album that it's worth your attention as it contains very good gothic metal songs. Charon is a very talented band that's working very hard, and they try to improve themselves and their compositions in all their albums. We hope that with this album, Charon will have the success and the popularity that they deserve.

T.A. 8/10      K.P. 9/10

CHASTAIN
“IN AN OUTRAGE”
(Massacre)

New album for Mr. David Chastain and his band which is titled “In An Outrage”. On the vocals we found again Kate French and her performance, I must admit, is very good. David delivers some very strong guitars riffs and some great solos once again and the production is not only very heavy but flawless as well! Everything seems to work pretty well here but I believe that something is missing. Yes, the album is well produced and the band’s members give an excellent performance but after some hearings the album becomes really boring. Yes, I like heavy metal music but I like inspiration and smart choruses from song to song, something that is not happening here. The fans of the band will like the album but I didn’t quite enjoyed it, as I’m not fan of Chastain so, it was harder for me to like a kind of average heavy metal album. Yes, David is a virtuoso but this is not everything in music. I will hardly put another time this album in my CD-player and I do not believe that “In An Outrage” can touch anyone who is not fan of the band. If you like also woman fronted heavy metal bands then listen to songs like: “In An Outrage” or “Bullet From A Gun” (the band has filmed a video clip for this song) and decide on your own. I found it rather boring after the second listening.

T.A. 5,5/10

CHEAP TRICK
“SPECIAL ONE”
(BIG3)

I didn't know that Cheap Trick had been reunited, until the webmaster gave me this one. I thought it was a good idea, since the band had released amazing albums in the past like "Dream Police", playing an amazing mixture of "symphonic" punk, hard rock. Pushing play, and the anthem "Scent Of A Woman" introduces me to a more plain sound (in comparison to their past) yet really good. The second song, "Too Much" is impressive and I think that the new album will kick ass. The ballad "Special One" isn't bad either. But then the CD takes a weird turn: "Pop Drone" is a mid-tempo ballad, with nothing good to offer, "My Obsession" targets the American radio for sure (without being bad), "Words" is a nostalgic song based on 50's forms (reminds of songs like "Lollipop"), "Sorry Boy" is heavy and chaotic, "Best Friend" is a neo-rock mid tempo song. And then things get worse: "If I Could" with the electro introduction resembles Starsailor, and then we get two horrible disco-pop songs "Low Life In High Heels" and "Hummer", which remind me of 80's trash music! Those who have respect for our webmaster should listen to these freaky songs, as he liked them and (remembering his former DJ career) argued that they are nice songs to be played in coffee-bars!!! Is this what we want from Cheap Trick?? Of course not! The CD is only for those disoriented listeners who can deal with fitting all these musical styles in one album. The grade would have been lower, but there are 3-4 tracks that really kick ass.

A.S. 5/10

CIRCLE II CIRCLE
“THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE”
(AFM)

For those who might not know the band, Circle II Circle is the group of x-Savatage vocalist Zak Stevens. Having enjoyed as hell the previous-debut album of the band a couple of years ago, I was a bit suspicious of the future movements. All the fuzz with members coming and going, the conflicts etc. I thought that the new effort would be weak. How wrong I was!! And what a fool have I been to believe that an album in which Stevens, Jon Oliva and Chriss Caffery compose songs would not be great! The result here is a bit different than the debut, heavier, yet rhythmical, less based on piano and more on guitar riffs. Savatage influences have subsided a bit, as Stevens sings a bit “harder” and not in the known-Sava vocal lines. However the whole listening is so Sava-like. In fact many songs from here could easily fit in a new Savatage album. So, I still cannot understand the reasons why Stevens ever left the band... Anyway, great melodies, heavy riffs, multiple vocals and excellent songwriting are some of the elements characterizing this album. I can hardly separate some songs, as all of them are very good, but the opening track “In This Life” is a genuine diamond. Sava fans will definitely “bite” this one and have a good time. But in general heavy metal fans should trust this band for qualitative listening. Yes, it reminds Savatage a lot. So what? How can this ever be a drawback??

A.S. 8/10  

CIRCLE II CIRCLE
“WATCHING IN SILENCE”

Ok, there is one thing I don't understand: Zak Stevens left Savatage under the excuse that he wanted more time to spend with his family, and because he was tired of musician's lifestyle. I was kind of depressed then, as I liked his voice very much (especially for Savatage). One year later Zak returns to music with his own group, for which the music is co-written be Zak, John Oliva and Chris Caffery!!!! It is really odd and puts me into thinking. Anyway, we are a music zine and not a tabloid. Well, music-wise the debut album of Zak's group is honestly and beyond doubt amazing! You don't have to ask - yes it does remind of Savatage's works with Zak on the vocals, but is more than that. To be honest (and being a massive Sava fan) this one is better than Sava's last album. And this is because it more straightforward and fresh. Zak is in great shape and delivers some of the best vocals he has ever done. The style is modern heavy metal, based on melody, powerful riffs, mid-tempo and majestic, with speedy outbrakes. The bottom line is that the group managed to produce "catchy" yet qualitative refrains, which you are keen to sing over and over again. Yes, I can say that this album is addictive! I now catch myself listening to it over and over again, since it fell to my hands! It grasps you from the beginning with the nailing introduction of "Out Of Reach" and then the river starts flowing! I can hardly single out some songs, as all of them are enchanting. However I have to refer to "Watching In Silence" which is one of the best songs of the year - and the single of the album so far. Also have to mention the piano ballad "Forgiven", where Zak and John make a remarkable duet. Choirs are mixed with desperate guitars creating noble feelings of ascension. The whole CD is flooded by sentiment, travels you from the highest mountains to green valleys and back again towards the sky. I don't know what else to write to make you understand that I am speechless. If you love heavy metal music, go and buy this album. Diamonds are forever.

A.S. 9/10

CIRCULUS
“A LICK ON THE TIP OF AN ENVELOPE YET TO BE SENT”
(Rise Above)

Circulus is a band coming from London and this is its debut album. This CD is really a not easy-listening one for the metalheads, because the music that these guys play has nothing to do with metal! Their music is difficult to be described, but I believe it is a mixture of folk, progressive, medieval and psychedelic rock music! I made the mistake to try and find their influences, but I found very few things and they are all coming from other decades or even centuries... So, I believe that the band is influenced from Jethro Tull, medieval music (in the style of Blackmore’s Night), Eloy, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Pink Floyd and etc!!! Their music is full of strange sounds and folk melodies and it concludes to become hypnotic or even psychedelic. I don’t know if there are other bands like them, but I know that they are doing a very good work. If you are fond of new sounds and folk rock, you are going to love this album and so it is recommended only to the very open-minded fans of music (not only metal...). I admit that I enjoyed very much their music and I was very surprised, so the grade below goes for my personal liking... The most impressive tracks are: “My Body Is Made Of Sunlight”, “The Scarecrow”, “Swallow” and “Candlelight”.

G.K. 7,5/10

CHILDREN OF BODOM
"HATE CREW DEATHROLL"

It is very known that Children Of Bodom are very good musicians, and that is not to difficult for someone to find out, if he just listen to an album of them or even a single song. But that fact is not the only one that I like in Children Of Bodom. I like them also because they play really aggressively heavy and they also can write very smart, good and memorable songs. Of course another advantage for the band is the leader Alex, cause I believe he is a truly clever and "psycho" person! That's why he can combine heavy, power metal music with death metal elements and brutal vocals. Yes I know Children Of Bodom are not the first that have done such a thing but for sure they can do it right now better than any one else! So as long as it concerns their new album, it continues from the point that they had stopped with their previous one "Follow The Reaper". But I think that "Hate Crew Deathroll" is better than "Follow The Reaper" cause it has many good songs, better production and more heavy - death elements (not so many power metal ones), so as a result I can say that I found it much better. Well I will suggest you to listen to "Needled 247", "Sixpounder", "Angels Don't Kill", "Chokehold (Cocked 'n' Loaded)", "Hate Crew Deathroll" and "Lil' Bloodred Ridin' Hood" and you will surely understand the evolution that they have made as a band and as composers. The album has also a bonus track, which is a cover to Slayer's "Silent Scream" and is simply good. To overview what I said before "Hate Crew Deathroll" is a very heavy and strong album and so sure the fans of the band must already have it. If you like Children Of Bodom just buy it, but if you don't like them i not very sure that this album will change your mind!

T.A. 7,5/10

CHINCHILLA
“TAKE NO PRISONERS”
(Armageddon Music)

Chinchilla is a typical case: those who are not bored to listen to teutonic power metal again and again, will definitely hail the album. All the others will possible turn their back to it. Not much differentiation from what they have released in the past, but also not much differentiation from dozens of other releases of the genre. I have to note that the lead guitars are indeed very well structured and the melodies and harmonies are very good. However there are no surprises to the songs and the whole thing seems very cliché. The only differentiation is the singer, who doesn’t sound like a Kiske replica, rather has deeper voice, offering something diverse. I personally only recommend this to people who are still not fed up with euro-power metal.

A.S. 6,5/10

CHOKEHOLD
“THE KILLING HAS BEGUN”
(Casket Music)

“The Killing Has Begun” is the debut album of the metal band Chokenhold which coming from UK and also featuring some members of the underground UK death metal band Descent on its ranks. I would say that band is playing a mix of 80s thrash/death metal which give more space on the rhythm guitars (riffs) and on the pissed vocals ala early Metallica, Testament and Xentrix. Especially this kind of music has nothing to offer me anymore and I do not think that even the younger ones would be interesting in a band that plays just like the big ones. On the other hand, that annoying drum machine really pissed me off (it never stops!)... and the songwriting of the band needs to be done in a better more personal way. Ahh… please do not try to imitate mediocre vocalists like Hetfield... mercy me!

T.A. 4,5/10  

CLOUDSCAPE
“CLOUDSCAPE”
(Metal Heaven)

This band comes from Sweden, but it doesn’t play Swedish death metal - surprisingly! This is the debut album from Cloudscape, and I can tell you that the melodic-power metal they chose to play is served very well. The band itself describes its music as “melodic, semi-progressive, symphonic heavy metal”, and I wouldn’t argue with that... but I would put under the broad sign of power metal. The influences here are plenty, but I would outline Symphony X as a major one. Despite the cliché genre that the band belongs to, Cloudscape manages to deliver some very interesting songs, full of variations, good riffs and melodies (listen for example to “Under Fire”). I bet that this debut will make quite an impact on power circles and the potential for the future is great. Indeed I feel that the Swedish seem to have enough inspiration to trace their way to European power metal. Good effort.

A.S. 7,5/10

COASTLINE
“COASTLINE”
(Vinny Records)

Coastline is a quite new band that’s coming from Sweden. Although their music style is being rather influenced from A.O.R./melodic rock acts like Heart, Survivor, Alyson Avenue, etc., they differ from the other bands of that genre cause they have a female singer. And this is not something very usual in this genre. I would characterized their music better as melodic rock with many pop elements, that’s based on strong vocal melodies and have a good orchestration. The production is good and exhales a sweet 80’s feeling alone with the exceptional vocals of Helena Rosendahl. I totally believe that melodic rock/pop fans will like songs like the opener A.O.R. “Restless Heart, Restless Mind”, my beloved melodious rocker “Masterplan”, the touching ballad “Can’t Live Here Without You”, the pop/rock “Desperate Heartbeats” (this song is coming straight from 80’s!), the up-tempo “One Step”, the melancholic ballad “Save Your Love” and the rocker “Miracle”. Well, all those who love, woman fronted, melodic rock/pop bands then should listen to “Coastline” and they won’t be disappointed. Time passes very nice while listening to it… so give ‘em a chance.

T.A. 7/10

CODE
“NOUVEAU GLOAMING”
(Spikefarm)

Code is an all-star black metal band, which consists of: Kvohst (Void, Dodheimsgard) on vocals, Vicotnik/Viper (Ved Buens End) on bass and guitars and Aiwarikiar (ex-Ulver) on drums. This is the debut album for the band and as you might have guessed from the names/bands above, the band plays theatrical black metal. These guys have managed to combine the old-school black metal (like Satyricon, Darkthrone etc.) with the progressive/experimental black metal that Ulver, Dodheimsgard and Arcturus have offered us the last years. Apart from the above groups, the band has many more influences and so in this album you will be able to listen to some parts that will remind you of Old Man’s Child, some electronic sounds and many more! The guitars are sometimes fast and others slower something which adds a variety to the album. All the tracks vary from each other and this is what makes this album so good, together with the nice ideas and the songwriting. The vocals are very theatrical, for a black metal band and change from clean/electronic to black metal ones. Generally, this is a very good album of experimental black metal music, which can transmit you many different feelings... The best tracks are: “The Cotton Optic”, “Brass Dogs”, “A Cloud Formed Teardrop Asylu”, “Tyburn”.

G.K. 7/10

COLLAPSE 7
“IN DEEP SILENCE”
(Napalm)

Collapse 7 is a new band, which was formed by members of other death metal bands (Pungent Stench, Belphegor and Hellenthon). Their experiences with their past groups made them what they are right now, and so with this album, they prove to us what they have learned in the past years by playing nice death metal music. Although I expected something not very interesting these guys managed to surprise me, because they combine aggressive brutal death metal with the melodic death metal! The vocals (Mario Klausner) are brutal and dark and sounds interesting although that I like very few brutal vocalists… The guitars (Werner Freinbichler and Gerry Huber) are sometimes aggressive and others play wonderful and powerful riffs. The rhythm section (Mario on bass and Mike Groger on drums) is very fast sometimes with classic blast-beats and others is more calm, but in the end manages to impress. The production is very good and helps the aggressive, dark and death atmosphere to posses you. The best tracks here are: “Blessed With Pain”, “Into Obscurity”, “Tombs Of Depravity” and “Legions Of Blackness”. Generally is an interesting album and the fans of death metal will surly find it interesting enough.

G.K. 6/10  

COLOUR HAZE
“COLOUR HAZE”
(Electrohasch)

Well, the subtitle for this album could have been “God, what have I done and you have cursed me to listen to this album twice in order to make the review?”!! Goodness, this must be among the most boring albums I’ve heard in the past year. The band wants to play a kind of doom rock, but it totally fails. You see, if you are not like Spirit Caravan, Saint Vitus or Black Sabbath these experiments are dangerous. Colour Haze here doesn’t use much distortion at the majority of the tracks, creating nevertheless a very moody sound... which becomes very monotonous. Maybe this album targets only the friends of the band, as I don’t see any point for someone else to buy it.

A.S. 3,5/10

COM.PULSION
“MACHINES”
(Decadance Records)

Com.Pulsion is a Spanish electro band that was formed in 1997 as a cover Depeche Mode band. In 2003 the band made a deal with decadence recs and now after almost 2 years Com.Pulsion finally released its debut album. The band’s electro/synth-pop based music is influenced, as it is obvious, by Depeche Mode and De/Vision. Furthemore do not wait to hear 80s synth-pop music here but rather a mix of futurepop/electro music with few 80s synth-pop elements... this album is not so 80s as you may think. The sound of the album is very professional and the songs are well-orchestrated. If you like electro-pop music or you worship Depeche Mode and De/Vision you should definitely try out Com.Pulsion and you will not regret it. One of the best albums on its genre.

T.A. 7/10

CONCERTO MOON
“LIFE ON THE WIRE”

Concerto Moon is a band that comes from Japan. Yes don't be surprise or don't be biased due to the country that this band comes from. The whole result of this album, as long as I remember, differs from the most groups that come from Japan. Concerto Moon is a professional band with great musicians, such as the virtuoso guitarist Norifuma Shima (he seems to have many influences from guitarists like Malmsteen and Impellitteri) and the terrific singer of the band Takashi Inoue that, it's hard to believe, that he is Japanese! His accent will make you think that he is from Scandinavia or something like that! In the music part of this album now, Concerto Moon as you have already understood, play heavy/power music that have many influences from Malmsteen, Rainbow, Impellitteri and many others guitar driven bands, and all the songs are full of melodies. To tell the truth, I didn't expect to listen to such a good album from Concerto Moon but as it was proved I was totally wrong. Highlights of the album are the emotional "Guard You Close", the heavy "Climb Up", the ala Malmsteen instrumental "When Time Runs Out", the tremendous ballad "The Answer", the hard rocker "It's Not Over" (especially the guitar extended version), the powerful "Strangers" and the wonderful "Stand By The Window". Well, I really don't know what else to write to make you believe that "Life On The Wire" is a very good album and for sure the fans of melodic metal will like it a lot. Try and listen to it in any way and for sure you won't waste your time. We must at least listen to qualitative works like "Life On The Wire".

T.A. 8/10

CONE STEVE
“DISTORTION”
(Self-Released)

I received Steve’s two latest works almost at the same time and that’s why you are seeing another album in the reviews section. No, Steve didn’t released two albums at the same time-period. “Distortion” is the new work of Steve and I must say that is a scale above “So Lo”. So, once again Steve plays all the instruments, has written all the songs, he sings and has also made the very powerful production of the album. This guy seems to love guitar-driven 80s heavy metal music, with powerful vocals and sharp guitar riffs. While listening to this album many 80s great bands will cross your mind, but Steve has managed to give his personal stigma to the album’s final result. If you are familiar with Steve’s previous works then get this album without any hesitation ‘cause it’s probably Steve’s most mature work to date. If you do not know Steve, then “Distortion” is a very good chance to get to know him.

T.A. 7,5/10

CONE STEVE
“SO LO”
(Self-Released)

Steve Cone is a musician, multi-instrumentalist/composer who has been around for many years. His new solo album which is named “So Lo” is the tenth personal work that he has released till now. Here Steve plays all the instruments, has written all the songs, he sings and has also made the production of the album which is very good. If you are familiar with Steve’s previous works then you will know what to expect from him. But if you haven’t listened to anything from Steve I must tell you that Steve loves and plays traditional 80s heavy metal music with some epic 80s (ala Warlord) elements. I shall also say that he is a very good player (especially when it comes to guitar) and his powerful voice is nice and fits to this kind of music. If you consider yourself as an 80s heavy metal fan which like some epic elements as well then try out this release and you won’t be disappointed. Visit Steve’s official site in order to get this album at: www.stevecone.net.

T.A. 7/10

CONTRADICTION
“THE VOICE OF HATRED”
(Armageddon)

Contradiction was formed in 1989 in Germany and is trying hard all these years to become popular. The band has given hundreds of live shows so far and has supported bands like Iced Earth, Overkill, Vader, Entombed and Tankard. This is the third full-length album for Contradiction and the first one under the Armageddon Music label. All the songs in this album are aggressive with a few melodic parts. There are many guitar riffs (Oliver Kδmper and Oliver “Koffer” Lux) in all songs and heavy - modern guitars in general. The vocals (Oliver Lux) are aggressive, full of hate and reminded me of the old thrash metal vocals... Their songs are influenced from Kreator, (old) Sepultura, Pantera and The Haunted. The only problem with this album is that when you first listen to it you realize that this is an aggressive album, but after you have listened to it about three or four times it becomes boring except from some very good tracks. On the other hand the production is very modern and heavy and the power of the rhythm section (Karsten Heyn on bass and Tim Obernyer on drums) can blow up your speakers! The tracks that I liked were: “The Voice Of Hatred” (the best of the album!), “Arguments”, “Nation Of Fear” and “Engines Of Greed”.

G.K. 5/10

CORNERSTONE
“ONCE UPON OUR YESTERDAYS”
(Massacre)

Those who are familiar with Cornerstone, I'm sure, that they would have waited for a really good new album. So, "Once Upon Our Yesterdays" is the third album of the band, which seems to balances perfectly between the music of the "Arrival" and "Human Stain". This is something that someone can easily understand if he has listened to the two previous albums of Cornerstone. Thus, what does this album have that makes it so good? It has those amazing A.O.R. elements of "Arrival" and the heaviness of "Human Stain". Also we can easily understand that the songwriting here is more mature than it was in the past. The production is also incredible and very strong. The line-up is just the same with the previous album with Kasper on guitar, and Allan Sorensen on drums. Of course Doogie and Steen are the protagonists here, once more, as they manage to write some of the best hard rock songs of this year. Doogie's voice sounds better than ever before and his performance is beyond any doubt! I believe that Doogie sings in this album like he has never sang before. His vocals are full of power, melody and sensitivity! Do you want a proof to that? Just make yourself a favour and listen immediately to the excellent hard rocker "Welcome To Forever", the astonishing power rocker "Hour Of Doom" (this song could have been very easily in the track list of Rainbow's "Stranger In Us All"!), the up-tempo rocker "21st Century Man", the superb heavy dark "Once Upon Our Yesterdays", the outstanding heartbreaking ballad "Man Without A Reason" (Doogie's voice will tear you soul apart!), the celtic-rock "End Of The World", the mid-tempo, with the epic feeling, rock tune "Scream" and the fantastic and my favorite one, mellow "Some Have Dreams" (this song has a killer chorus!). I cannot imagine any fan of melodic hard rock music, not to buy this first-rate album! It is for sure one of the best hard rock albums of this year and the best work of Cornerstone to date. I do not believe that there have been released more albums better than this one in this specific genre for this year. I think that the lovers of melodic hard rock have found a good "friend" for their "yesterdays and tomorrows"!

T.A. 8,5/10

CORNERSTONE
"HUMAN STAIN"

Oooh Yeah! Fucking good record!!! I hadn't heard anything about them so far and so the surprise was really big! They blew my brains to the wall!!! The mainman behind this band is Doogie White (the singer on Rainbow's "Stranger in us All") and also has the contribution of Royal Hunt's bass player. How can I describe their sound without categorize them? It is really difficult to do it as they play an amazing mixture of "guitar" heavy metal in the path of Ozzy's earlier works, Y&T etc, embellished with a few AOR bridges, in the way Royal Hunt use them, and with the keyboards contributing to the maximum to create an amazing canvas for the rest to develop their ideas. Some called them "symphonic hard rock" and I say why not? Very good work that I recommend to everyone who likes this kind of stuff. I know that there are many good records on this genre these days, and it is hard to follow all ofthem. But what can I say? From what I've heard so far, Cornerstone's album is one of the top class releases in the genre for this year so far.

A.S. 8/10

CORPUS MORTALE
“WITH LEWD DEMEANOR”
(Neurotic)

Take out last year’s “Heretic” (Morbid Angel that is) and Bloodbath’s “Ressurection In Carnage” and this is the best Death Metal record I’ve experienced the last two years, the best brutal shit from Denmark definitely and... hell yeah I’m very happy. Old-school death metal the nu way. Not as rotten as Murder Squad but as groove as possible Corpus Mortale combine Autopsy and Entombed with Dying Fetus and Cannibal Corpse, swedish guitars, american drumming, two instrumental tracks, smart lyrics (no guts and vomits) and a killer artwork. This is for sure one of the albums of the year in death metal and the good part is still to come. This is (by the law) their debut! After one demo, three Mini CDs, some “unsuccessful recording process” for a ´99 album and a few member changes. Troubles and obstacles give death metal strength to carry on heavier? Oh yes. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to see them playing live? Oh yes…

T.K. 8/10

COSMO
“ALIEN”
(Frontiers)

The brothers Fran and Antonio Cosmo finally managed to release their first debut album. Fran was busy all these years with Boston (he and Antonio also participated in the last Boston album) and he also fronted the Orion The Hunter band in 1984 where he released a very good album which is being considered up to date as an excellent AOR work by many. Most of the fans/reviews were ready to hear a new Boston record when they took in theirs “Alien” but they all proven wrong. So, many have hated it… but to tell you the truth they weren’t fair enough with Cosmo. Yes, this album mixes together classic rock with modern rock, taking elements from the 70s, 80s and 90s music era. I totally prefer songs like “Don’t Tell Me Your Lies”, “Helicopter”, “When I Close My Eyes” and “Can’t Run Away” which have some more classic rock elements and a “Corporate America” felling on them. I do not like so much (I usually skip them) the more modern songs ‘cause I’m not a big fan of the modern rock bands of our time or of the 90s. Do not know why Fran and Antonio didn’t released a more straight classic rockin’ album but I can tell you that the album ain’t that bad as some ones want you to believe. The aforementioned songs are the highlights of the album… and you know what… 4 songs out of 11 are not such a good number… but if you like modern rock too then you will totally find more songs to like except the ones mentioned above.

T.A. 5,5/10

COWBOY PROSTITUTES
“COWBOY PROSTITUTES”
(Retrospect Records)

When I reviewed the 2-track promo CD of this band some months ago, I said that they absolutely deserve a contract to a label that deals with this kind of music. I was impressed by their 2-track promo CD but I wanted to listen to more songs in order to draw a better conclusion about their music. Time has passed and Retrospect records made a smart move and signed these guys. “Cowboy Prostitutes” is the debut album of the band, which contains 10 songs of pure 80’s hard rock music mixed with rock n’ roll elements! The album is better than I’ve been expecting, the production is very good and “dirty” and Luca brought to my mind all the great singers of the 80’s. Best songs of the album are: the opener “Blood On Your Blade”, the catchy rocker “Joy” which is embellished with a very nice piano melody, the 80’s rocker “Welcome Back”, the sleazy “The Damned”, the hard rock n’ roller “Alive And Well”, the hit and my beloved “Ghost Of Venice”, with the great piano tune that haunts the song!, and the glam rocker “Over The Top” which I had the chance to listen to it some months ago. I do not know if you are missing the 80’s rock era or you just can’t find good hard rock albums nowadays but Cowboy Prostitutes are here to fill this gab. I consider this band as one of the biggest hopes of hard rock n’ roll music of our times and I just wish that they will never disappoint me. Anyway, they just started their way on rock music and I want to believe that we will talk about them in the future. If you like 80’s hard rock music along with rock n’ roll elements then just go and get “Cowboy Prostitutes”!

T.A. 8/10

COWBOY PROSTITUTES
“OVER THE TOP”
(Self Released)

This CD-single fell into my hands accidentally! Cowboy Prostitutes is a band that was formed in 2003 in Sweden. They just wanted to follow their hearts and to play the music that they love most. And they succeed it. Cowboys Prostitutes shows their love to bands like Motley Crue, Kiss, Guns N’ Roses, Poison, and in general to american hard rock music of the late 80’s, and their love to rock n’ roll music as well. The guys seem that they truly love and live by the rules of hard rock and especially the voice of Luca Isabelle will bring on your mind many great singers of the hard rock music like Bret Michaels and Vince Neil. The production of the CD-single is very good and dirty as it should be for a hard rock band. I totally like this release and I just wanted to listen to more songs from the guys, cause only two songs are not enough. They have the potentials to do something really good and they absolutely deserve a contract with a label that deals with the specific kind of music. Do not leave those guys away from music industry cause they are ready for big things. It’s obvious that I cannot rate this CD-single by listening only to two songs so; I will wait for their full-length album, which I hope it will be released soon. I do not know if they are selling this CD-single, but I only know that if everything goes right we will hear from them again soon… I can do no more than to tell to those people who are involved in the music industry to pay attention to Cowboy Prostitutes. As I learned the band is preparing to play some gigs during the summer and then go for a full-length release. Keep up the good work guys! You can contact them by visiting their official site at: www.cowboyprostitutes.com.

T.A.

CREMATORY
“GREED”
(Nuclear Blast)

Well, to tell the truth I was waiting for a long time the new songs of Crematory after I learned about their comeback. Although I haven’t listened to the whole new album, I can tell by having listening to only the CD-single, that the guys are in a very good shape. Their musical approach continues from where they had stopped before some years with “Act Seven” but they have embellished it with more melodic, goth and “electro” parts. The song “Greed” is excellent, full of heavy guitars and melodies and it is the best track to promote their new album. The fans of the band will just love this song. The CD-single that is for sale in the CD stores, contains the single version of “Greed”, the studio version also of that song, a cover version of Metallica’s “One”, a ballad named “Farewell Letter” and the video clip of “Greed”. The CD-single that I've got in my hands has only three songs, which were taken of the band’s new album “Revolution". The album was to be released in the 1st of March but due to the birth of Marku’s daughter Janina, the recordings were taken back for a few weeks. That’s why instead of “Revolution” they released the CD single “Greed”. Now as it concerns the other two songs that are including in my CD single version, I have to say that are very heavy and powerful and will surely satisfy the fans of the band. I'm waiting for the new album and as I have “tasted” it will be a good one.

T.A. (the whole album will be rated)

CRIMSON MOONLIGHT
“THE COVENANT PROGRESS”
(Rivel Records)

Here is another CD, which came into my hands from Rivel Records. Crimson Moonlight is the name of the group. I can’t recall the group’s name or any information about them. So, I put the CD in my stereo, before I have read the information included in the promo CD, and tried to remember if I have listened to anything from them in the past. The first reactions were: “Nice fast and melodic black metal” and “What a nice production for a black metal group!”. Many other groups came into my mind, when listening to this CD and I concluded that their main influences come from groups like: Dimmu Borgir, Old Man’s Child and Emperor. After the first listening I decide to read their biography. The group was formed in 1997 in Sweden and since then they have released some demos and had some line-up changes. In 2002 they signed with Rivel Records and this year they released their first full-length album, “The Covenant Progress”. Here you can find Scandinavian melodic black metal: chaotic and aggressive black metal vocals, super fast drumming with lots of blast beats, extremely fast guitar and bass lines that create an evil atmosphere and of course plenty of majestic keyboards. If the group manages to create a more personal sound, they will achieve great things in the future! The booklet is also very good and includes all lyrics, which are, by the way, very interesting and unusual for a black metal group because the group tries to transmit the Christian message through them! Finally, the production is very good and was made by Tomas Johansson and Carl Johan Grimmark (guitarist and composer in Narnia). The album is recommended to those who love the previously mentioned groups and to those who want to hear the best mix of the groups that lead the melodic black metal scene.

G.K. 6/10

CRISIS
“LIKE SHEEP LED TO THE SLAUGHTER”
(The End Records)

After seven years of absence, Crisis felt like it was about time to release a new album. If you have ever listened to their music, you will probably remember them, because Crisis is really a strange band. Their main characteristics are that they have a female vocalist (Karyn Crisis) since 1993 (when it was not so popular for metal bands to have female vocalists…) and that Karyn doesn’t try to imitate other female singers. Karyn has always been trying to express all kinds of emotions with her voice and she is doing it very well! You can hear her singing with melodic female vocals, screaming like a frantic and then growling with death metal vocals! The guitars (Afzaal Nasiruddeen and Jwyanza Hobson) are sometimes very melodic and others become doomy or thrashy! The drummer, Josh Florian, has done excellent work here and you will find some wonderful rhythms that will liven you up. The twelve tracks included in this album have a very good production (Billy Anderson is the producer) and sound sick enough. I personally like their new album very much, but I think that their music is abnormal most of the times… Fans of doom, death or ever thrash metal who also like strange and sick music will love them! Check them out if you can resist their sickness!

G.K. 7/10

CROSS DAVID
“CLOSER THAN SKIN”
(Noisy Records)

“Closer Than Skin” is a truly different musical proposal from, the ex-King Crimson violist, David Cross. David was on King Crimson in the period ‘72-‘74 and he is also responsible for the unique sound that the band had back then. Since then, he has released several solo albums and this is his fifth solo work. In the beginning, I thought that I was going to listen to an instrumental album full of violin and things like that but I was totally mistaken. “Closer Than Skin” is prog rock album with attitude in the real use of the term. It’s full of heavy guitars, nice vocals, steady rhythm section and of course violin tunes. It is quite hard to describe the music style of the album but if you bring on your mind the sound that King Crimson had in 1973 and put it under a modern prism then you will have a good idea of what you are going to listen to by getting this album. David mostly uses Arabian scales and makes the whole result more dramatic while the guitars are there to put the heaviness that this albums needs. The singer is also very good and his voice fits perfectly to the album’s atmosphere. The music was written by Cross, bassist Mick Paul and ex-King Crimson lyricist, Richard Palmer-James. The production is very good and dynamic as well. The songs that I liked most from the album were: “Are We One?”, “States Of Deception”, “Awful Love”, “Counting”, “I Buy Silence” and “Tell Me Your Name”. If you love King Crimson’s sound, especially in the early 70’s, and you like to listen to prog songs without lengthy solo excursions, that can touch your soul then you have no excuse not to buy this album. On the other hand, if you are open minded and you do not want to listen to the same things again and again then this album can offer something really different to you by any means.

T.A. 8/10

CROSSFADE
“WHITE ON BLUE”
(MTM Music)

This album tests the musical limits of our site... and my patience too. What do I mean? Simply that Crossfade are not rock, rather soul, pop or whatever else you may call it... consequently have little to do with this rock site... especially when taking into account that the “hardest” moments of the CD only flirt with the softest AOR facet. The company is pushing this as a “westcoast” (whatever this may mean) - AOR album. However this CD has nothing to do with rock, as rock music’s main constituent - the guitar - is absent or has only a supportive role. Band’s members are experienced musicians (Per Lindvall on drums – Abba & A-Ha, Göran Edman on vocals - Yngwie Malmsteen) and the production is indeed good, but the songs are hollow-mellow, incapable to create any atmosphere, without nerve and flat. I seriously think that this release aims another target group than this site’s. This is because people who think that Michael Bolton, Richard Marx or Boyzone are great artists and fancy their music, may find this CD great (and it is probably better than that anyway). For me (and hope for the rest of you too) it is crap.

A.S. 3,5/10  

 CROWN, THE
"CROWNED IN TERROR"

"Crowned In Terror" is the new album, which The Crown (ex-Crown Of Thorns) released after almost three years. And what can we expect from the Crown? What else, than fast new Swedish (with some elements from At the Gates) death metal. The vocals of this album belong to Tomas Lindberg (ex-At the Gates) and once again are excellent and very brutal (Recently Tomas Lindberg parted ways with The Crown, due to personal differences). So I don't know who will sing in the next album of The Crown or who will join them in the tour. Also, the album features songs like the homonymous "Crowned In Terror", the mid-tempo "World Beyond", "The Speed Of Darkness" and "Death Metal Holocaust", that the fans of Swedish death metal and generally of death metal are going to love. "Crowned In Terror" is a very interesting album full of speed and blastbeats but only for the fans of this specific genre. The Crown is a very good band and I'm sure that we will hear from them many good works in the future. 

T.A. 5,5/10

CROWN OF THORNS
"KARMA"

I strongly believe that Crown Of Thorns made a bad decision by putting so many modern elements in their previous work "Destiny Unknown". That move has been finally proved that it was wrong and it's very good that the band understood it immediately. So, the new album of the band "Karma" is a pure melodic hard rock one and shows that they returned back to their roots. It is also true that the album contains many good songs such as, the up-tempo "Believer", the mid-tempo rocker "Before It Slips Away", the super ballad "Once In My Life" and the unique "Shed No Tears", which is a duet between Jean Beauvoir and the German Doro Pesch. I've always considered bands like Crown Of Thorns among the most qualitative and hard working ones. "Karma" is an excellent melodic hard rock album that it will appeal to many fans of this genre. Hopefully, the hard rock genre will never die as long as bands like Crown of Thorns releases so good albums and the only thing that we can do is to trust all those bands that are really trying to keep the hard rock flame alive. Go and buy "Karma" and be sure that if you love the specific genre this album it won't disappoint you.

T.A. 8/10

CROWPATH
“RED ON CHROME”
(Copro)

Crowpath is a band coming from Sweden and “Red On Chrome” is the band’s debut album. The content of this CD is very extreme and I believe that this release is addressed only to very few people... Their music style balances between death, grindcore, metalcore and noise! There are only some riffs where you can listen clearly what the band plays, because the rest of their “music”/sound is chaotic! There is no sense of melody and they only sound aggressive and complicated to me. The vocals (Henrik Ivarsson) are extreme and you will find no choruses or melodic vocals. The drumming sometimes sounds amazing and very fast! The CD contains 13 tracks that last only 30 minutes something not very strange for a band playing this kind of music… Fredrik Reinedahl (In Flames, Gadget and others) made the production, but it is not polished at all... It is chaotic and dirty, I dare to say. I must also say that I didn’t like this album, because I cannot understand this kind of “music” and all the tracks sound the same to me. This album is only for those who love this “kind of music” and know what to expect from bands like Crowpath. The rest stay far away from it...

G.K. 3/10

CRUACHAN
“PAGAN”
(Karmageddon)

The special band from Ireland decided to release its forth album, under a new label this time (Karmageddon Media). Their strange music style has made them a unique group and this tradition continues in this new album. Celtic music, heavy metal, black metal and folk melodies are mixed altogether! For once again they have used traditional melodies and traditional instruments, such as: Irish Flute, Tin Whistles, Low Whistle, Cello, Fiddle, Pipes, Mandolin and others (most of them are played by guest musicians). The vocals vary from wonderful female ones to aggressive black metal screams. The guitars are melodic and many times follow the traditional instruments and melodies by playing the same theme with these instruments! The lyrics are excellent for once again and are talking about the Celtic myths, history and mythology and the books of J. R. Tolkien. . The artwork is wonderful and onirical as always. The only think that damages the whole album is the bad production and most of all the sound of the drums… All the previously released albums of the band had the same sound problem and I think it’s time they did something about this… Best tracks: “Michael Collins”, “Pagan”, “The Gael” (listen to the famous melody of the soundtrack “The Last Of The Mohicans” played by the guitar), “Some Say The Devil Is Dead” (influenced from the past days of Skyclad) and “The Fall Of Gondolin”.

G.K. 6,5/10  

CRUACHAN
"FOLK - LORE"

Cruachan is a very good but not very known (till know I guess) band. This is their third album and of course they play Folk-Metal music but in this record the folk elements are much more than the Metal ones.  The song "Ride On" has been also released as a single and it's definitely one of the best songs of the album. I haven't heard the original edition of "Ride On" (it's an Irish folk song) but the review that Cruachan have made is excellent. So if you like folk music and you want it to be mixed with Metal elements, this is an album for your taste. A soft and relaxing album for the sunny days of Spring.

T.A. 7/10

CRYPTIC VISION
“MOMENTS OF CLARITY”
(Progrock Records)

This is the debut album of the prog rock group from Florida. The band is actually a co-operation of three really good and very experienced musicians, Rick Duncan, Todd Plant and Robert Van Dyne, who have worked in the past with many bands and in many different posts. The music of the group is indeed interesting, and despite being a prog rock CD it is not a re-chewing of the old recipe. In fact Cryptic Vision belong to this new wave of prog rock bands that can be listened from non-prog freaks, in the sense that the songs are not complicated, not too long and without the prolonged solos and improvisations of the classic prog-rock sound. Furthermore the band doesn’t sound progressive in the real meaning of the term, rather is called so because of the mixture of different influences and sounds in its music. And by saying the above things, I don’t mean anything bad - just trying to give a stigma of the sound. On the contrary I find the music here really good and quite atmospheric and lyrical. Sometimes the style reminds me a lot of Pink Floyd’s “The Final Cut” album, but then there are so many different influences. Especially songs like “New Representative”, “Shock Value” and “Angeline” are enchanting.

A.S. 7/10

CRYSTAL BALL
"VIRTUAL EMPIRE"

Crystal Ball is a band that comes from Switzerland (they formed back in 1995) and "Virtual Empire" is their third work. They play melodic hard rock/metal and I'm sure that this album will be a nice surprise for everyone who likes melodic metal music. The production of the album is very good, it sounds very fresh although it has a nostalgic 80's feeling (when this genre was very popular) and of course that is a plus for the album. Highlights are the astonishing "Am I Free?", the sentimental ballad "Look In My Eyes" (Just listen to the crystal voice of Mark) "Virtual Empire", "Blind Side" the faster and the most powerful song of the album (one of my favorites songs), the melodic mid-tempo "Talk In Circles", "Find Your Ground", "Hands Of God" and…and…. the rest of the songs! In the other hand, I have to say that every time that I listen to "Virtual Empire", the same thought came up to my mind: "What an excellent album"! Maybe some of you will think that I'm exaggerating. But believe that "Virtual Empire" is the best album that Crystal Ball have ever released and that is obvious from the first listening of the album. Just take a chance and listen to the new album of Crystal Ball and remember that bands like them are considering by many (including me) as great hopes for the future of our music. One thing is for sure: "Virtual Empire" is a good album that you should better listen to before you buy it.

T.A. 7/10

CURT SHAW
“CURT SHAW”
(CDS)

Curt Shaw is a new metal guitarist from the US who has worked very hard all these years in order to present an interesting guitar-album. Curt of course is a very talented guitarist and his guitar technique is excellent... he is also very fast... but my only objection here is that this album addresses only to guitarist of instrumentalists in general. On the other hard guitar-freaks that like to listen to all kind of guitar oriented albums won’t find any new technique here, but the same safe leads and licks which are played very well in my opinion. If you are not so interested about the guitar techniques and you left yourself free to enjoy the music, then this album has many nice moments to offer you. After all we ought to support young talented musicians...

T.A. 6/10

CYNICON
“CYBERNETIC”
(Spikefarm)

Let’s say a few words about this band, since this CD is their debut album. In 1996 Cyon and Ellien formed an atmospheric black metal group (Solemn) in Norway, which in the year 2000 was renamed to Cynicon. They released two demos and they finally signed a deal with Spikefarm Records. Before the recordings of this CD, Cyon and Ellien (guitars and vocals) and Cymetic (bass), found the needed members for the group, which are Ailorn (keyboards) and Mecon (drums). Their music has been changed within their demos and they now play symphonic black metal with some clean vocals and many electronic-industrial moments. The main characteristics of their sound are the heavy and aggressive riffs and the electronic sounds. On the other hand the keyboards give a symphonic and a dramatic atmosphere to this album, opposing to the thrashy rhythm section. The vocals vary from typical black metal groups, such as Dimmu Borgir, Cradle Of Filth and Emperor, to very nice clean vocals (“Intragalactic). I must admit that all the musicians that took part in this recording sound very technical and I think they have many abilities in composing interesting music. Finally, the production is excellent because it is very heavy and clean and