Rock N' Heavy Metal - A Book Display to Honor Ozzy

 Post #404

On July 22nd, 2025, The Godfather of Heavy Metal, Ozzy Osbourne, passed away after a years-long struggle with Parkinson's Disease. A founding member of Black Sabbath, Ozzy's legacy in Heavy Metal Music is immense.

I have written reviews of Ozzy's music and concerts on this blog many times, and will continue to do so, perhaps until I've mentioned every note of music he ever sang! You can see all my reviews relating to Ozzy Osbourne here.

On Tuesday afternoon on the 22nd, the day the news of Ozzy's death broke, a coworker of mine tracked me down to let me know he'd created a book display in my Library's Nonfiction section titled "Rock N' Heavy Metal". Faced-out on the shelves of this glorious display were the memoirs of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Black Sabbath, and other greats from Rock and Heavy Metal's history. Those books pertaining directly or tangentially to Ozzy were on the honorable top-shelf. My coworker had heard of my fandom and about this blog I write, and asked me to pose for a photo with him and other coworkers to promote this display.

You can find these books on display at the Schaumburg Township District Library until the end of this month. But wherever you live, go to you local library, find your Reference Librarian, and ask them where you can get a biography on Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, or Heavy Metal music. Chances are, even if they don't own their own copy, they can get one for you, free of charge! Your heavy metal IQ will thank you for it.

Before I leave you, I want to take a moment to express my sympathies to Sharon Osbourne, and all of the Osbourne's children and extended family. For all the grieving we may be doing as fans, imagine the loss felt by those who were lucky enough to be truly close to him. Let us not forget that Ozzy was also a Father, a Husband, a Grandfather, a Brother, a Son, an Uncle, and perhaps a literal Godfather as well (on that last one, I'm just guessing).

I do have more things to say about Ozzy Osbourne, and will post about them on this blog (hopefully) in the near future, including a review of his memorable final concert performance: Back to the Beginning. Follow this blog so you don't miss it when I get around to it!

Rest in peace, Ozzy. We love you. We love your music. The joy it brings us... Well, that feeling is the true reason I named this blog "HappyHeadbanger.com"!

Metallica - 72 Seasons (2023)

 Post # 403

Metallica released 72 Seasons in 2023, almost 7 years after their last album, Hardwired... To Self-Destruct. With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting in 2020 and slowing the world down for over a year, one might wonder if that lengthened the gap between albums. Perhaps it did, and gave the band members some unexpected downtime to focus on writing music? Or maybe it held them back from jamming together, and stalled the creative process further? We may never know. Nevertheless, it's here now and Metallica are over a year into their M72 tour in support of this album. It's high time I took an in-depth look into it.

The album opens with the title track - '72 Seasons', a fast-paced, heavy thrashing number that opens with a galloping bass line, pacing cymbals, and after a few measures, the rhythm guitar kicks in, giving the song it's definitive key and direction. Lyrically the song seems to tackle the dog-eat-dog nature of our competitive society and how it shapes us through our first 72 seasons (18 years). Metallica have said that the overall theme of the album is this formative stage of life: our first 72 seasons.

A powerful, stop & go, mid-tempo riff introduces the next track, 'Shadows Follow'. It has a unique groove, and a distinctive riff to define itself. Overall, the bulk of 72 Seasons could be described this way- distinctive and creative riffs, introspective-to-esoteric lyrics, a strong mid-tempo groove delivered by bassist Rob Trujio and drummer Lars Ulrich's concrete rhythm section. Over the course of their career, the mid-tempo groove-thrasher has been Metallica's bread & butter formula: 'Enter Sandman', 'Wherever I May Roam', 'Seek & Destroy', 'For Whom the Bell Tolls'... you see it now. This album will give you plenty of songs in a similar vein.

When we reach the 6th track, we get this album's crown-jewel of a track in 'Lux Æterna'. Like the title track, this is another top-notch, fast-tempo thrasher that can be comparatively ranked among the best songs from their glory days in the mid 1980's. It was the first track released prior to the album's release, and deservingly so!

As a long-time Metallica fan, I found a couple of elements, be they lyrical, or musical, that I felt made connections with classic songs from the band's past. 'Crown of Barbed Wire', for instance, reminded me of the Load-era hit, 'King Nothing'. Similarly, I thought 'Inamorata' could almost be a sequel to The Black Album's 'My Friend of Misery', as they both focus on a personification of the emotion of misery. Whether these connections are intentional or coincidental is hard to say without sitting down and interviewing the band directly about it, but as a fan, it is fun to speculate.

Overall, this is an album packed will killer riffs, and plenty of introspective and cathartic lyrics. If 72 Seasons has any flaws it may be that it's too solid, too consistent, or too formulaic. One of my favorite elements of Metallica's music has always been their use of clean guitar tones, especially in songs where they juxtapose them with powerful, distorted riffs in songs like 'One', 'Fade to Black' and 'The Day That Never Comes'. For whatever reason, clean guitar sounds are as absent on this album as guitar solos were absent on the St. Anger album. Maybe Metallica just found a groove on this new album and stayed the course, believing there's no such thing as 'too much of a good thing'. It has certainly pleased the fans, and probably welcomed thousands more! While it may still be new and fresh, I will always look forward to the next Metallica album. Let's enjoy this one to the fullest in the meantime!

My recommended tracks from 72 Seasons:

-72 Seasons (Links to official music video)

-Lux Æterna

-Crown of Barbed Wire

-Too Far Gone?

-Inamorata

As with their last album, Metallica again filmed music videos for every track on the album. I won't embed every single one of them here, but I'll give you this link to their Youtube Playlist, 72 Seasons: The Videos.

Check out my personally curated (shorter) Metallica playlist on Spotify.

Or my Longer Metallica Playlist (10+ hours)

And as always... HAPPYHEADBANGING, Y'ALL!

PANTERA - Far Beyond Driven: 30 Years On...

 Post # 402

Pantera released Far Beyond Driven in 1994, the same year I graduated High School. It was their 3rd major-label release, and it changed the world of heavy music forever. On a personal level, it also changed my world of music appreciation. It was the first album I owned that was considered 'extreme' metal. I had mainly been into "glam" and ''hair" metal bands, like Guns 'N' Roses, Def Leppard, and Ratt, before then. I broadened my horizons and embraced the rage, aggression, and power that pulses through every measure of Far Beyond Driven. I was far from the only one to, literally, buy into this band with this specific album: it debuted at #1 on the Billboard music charts (the heaviest album to do so at the time).

With it now being 2024, I thought it fitting to commemorate this now-classic album with a fresh blog post. I did, of course, review it on this blog previously, in Post # 63-here, but this time around I'm just going to feature several links to my favorite tracks through video and streaming links. I have re-read the post, and stand by my opinions of each album as I wrote them.

This album spawned several singles, and music videos, despite its lack of radio-friendly melody. With their first 2 albums they set a tone with their following as a purely heavy, aggressive and intense band that wasn't going to bend to fit any trends in the music industry. Already established as one of the most promising new heavy bands, Far Beyond Driven doubled-down on Pantera's aggression, and it is arguably their heaviest album to this day.

Singles from Far Beyond Driven:

-I'm Broken

-5 Minutes Alone

-Planet Caravan (Black Sabbath cover)

-Becoming

My other personal favorites:

-Strength Beyond Strength (the album-opener! This song hit me like a ton of bricks! If you've never heard it before, check it out and tell me it doesn't!)

-Shedding Skin

-Use My Third Arm

-Throes of Rejection

Stream Far Beyond Driven on Spotify here!

Check out Pantera's Official Music Video Playlist on Youtube!

My personally curated Dimebag Darrell Playlist on Spotify (this one includes other bands he played in- including Damageplan & Anthrax!)

Happy Headbanging!

Tony Martin interview about the Anno Domini box set with Now Spinning Magazine Podcast

 Post #401

While it is a great thing that Black Sabbath finally reissued the Tony Martin albums in the Anno Domini box set, it also may leave new listeners with a few questions. I found several answers to my own questions in this fantastic interview. Enjoy!

Black Sabbath - Anno Domini 1989-1995 (2024 Box Set)

Post #400

    I became a fan of Black Sabbath for the first time in the early 1990's, largely due to the fact that I was a fan of Dio, and I heard that Ronnie James Dio had reunited with Black Sabbath for the Dehumanizer album in 1992. I added that album to my collection, and proceeded to track down most of Black Sabbath's back-catalog over the next several years. Most of the albums I tracked down featured Ozzy or Dio as vocalists, but there were a couple more-recent ones featuring some guy named Tony Martin as the lead singer.

    The Sabbath/Dio reunion did not last beyond the Dehumanizer album, and the next album they released, Cross Purposes, again featured Tony Martin on vocals. As a new fan, I was a little frustrated with the inconsistency of their lineup in this era, but at the end of the day I didn't think much of it. They had one more album with Martin, Forbidden, released in 1995. Little did anyone know this would be the final studio album from Sabbath for years and years to come...

    Fast-forward to the post-iTunes, and streaming era of music, and all these digital platforms have a huge gap in Black Sabbath's discography: all the albums released under the I.R.S Records label! Coincidentally, these albums included 4 of the 5 albums that Black Sabbath recorded with Martin as vocalist. The first album he sang on, The Eternal Idol, was the band's last release under the Warner Bros. label.

    For years, the only way to hear these 'missing' albums was if you owned them in physical format from their initial release. The I.R.S. label folded in 1996. I had collected some, but not all, of these Tony Martin Sabbath albums as CDs, but for years I was missing others. In recent years I've become a 'streaming music' listener, and frequently craft my own playlists to listen to on my daily commute. The absence of these Black Sabbath albums left gaps in my Black Sabbath playlists, and the songs from these albums faded into obscurity...

    Thankfully, Tony Iommi, Black Sabbath's founding guitarist, and only member who was in the band throughout it's entire career, has been diligently working for years, if not decades, to try to get these missing albums reissued. Now, in 2024, this has finally happened!

Anno Domini 1989-1995 is a 4-disc box set collecting these 4 albums previously unavailable since 1996. 3 of them have been remastered and the 4th (Forbidden) remixed by Iommi himself. I have this box set on CD format now, but perhaps more important is the fact that they are now available on streaming platforms for the masses to access. I have also revised several of my playlists to now include tracks from these albums. Don't worry, I'll post links to some of these playlists at the end of this post.

    Now let's look back on the I.R.S. years, and the Tony Martin era contained therein. Joining Sabbath in the late 1980's, Tony Martin brought with him a voice that was perfect for the times: melodic with plenty of range. He was able to sing with power and grit, but also hit high, falsetto notes. While his voice can be described as closer to Ronnie James Dio's than to Ozzy's, it is still a unique voice, and deserves respect and appreciation in its own right.

    Another important element of their sound during this era is the keyboardist Geoff Nichols. Nichols adds the ambiance of keyboards on each of these albums. While their prominence varies from one song to another, they are perhaps most prominent during this era than in any previous incarnation of Black Sabbath. With these musical elements in mind, I'll now share my recommended tracks for each album.

Headless Cross

-Headless Cross (for this lineup, this song is like the track 'Heaven & Hell' was for the Ronnie James Dio Lineup)

    -When Death Calls

    -Nightwing

    -Cloak & Dagger* (a bonus track, not available on original release)

Tyr

Tyr is essentially a concept album based on Norse mythology. Tyr is the son of Odin, and is known as the God of War.

    -Anno Mundi

    -The Law Maker

    -The Battle of Tyr/Odin's Court/Valhalla (the centerpiece of the album, these tracks form a medley of continuous music, best played in order!)

Cross Purposes

 -I Witness

    -Immaculate Deception

    -Evil Eye (Cowritten with Edward Van Halen)

    -What's the Use* (another bonus track, not available on the original release)

Forbidden 

Forbidden has long been my favorite album from this era, and with Tony Iommi giving it a thorough remix with a fine-tooth comb, it has only gotten better!

    -The Illusion of Power (a slow and heavy, doom-laden track, but the most unique element? Guest vocals by the hardcore rap artist Ice-T!)

    -Can't Get Close Enough (starts off with the feel of a ballad, but morphs into one of Iommi's classic, heavy riffs- one of my favorites!)

    -Rusty Angels (a faster-tempo number, this one really rocks!)

    -Loser Gets it All* (another bonus track, nicely closing out the Tony Martin era of Sabbath)

Now, as promised, here are the links and brief descriptions of my updated Sabbath playlists that feature songs from this box set:

"The Sabbath Stones" This one is directly copied from the track list of a compilation of the same name, one that was briefly available from I.R.S. Records, but now can only be found for resale in the far corners of the internet...

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/346jU680sRtuUptujFCkhY

"Best of Tony Martin" A response to a playlist challenge posted in a Facebook group devoted to the Tony Martin Era of Black Sabbath.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2xpO1pKrsAjQ9R6odoEKHk

And last but not least, "Black Sabbath - Dark Sacrament" This playlist is focused on Tony Iommi's guitar work, and I've included some tracks from every recorded album I could find. Originally this was compiled on 4 CDR's, and progressed from early-to-late releases. I've even included Iommi's contributions outside of Black Sabbath where I could find them...

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1U5FL6HPnDBI67l4WwbV10

Happy Headbanging!

SLAYER- The Final Tour (5-25-18)

Post #399
(this post is belated: half-composed immediately after the concert, but just finalized recently.)

Slayer have been a cornerstone of metal since their inception. Along with being one of the 'Big Four' of Thrash metal, they are persistently cited as a major influence in nearly all extreme genres of metal, from thrash to death metal to hardcore, grindcore, black metal, etc...

As they announced they would do a Final Tour in 2018, I made it a priority to see this show if at all possible. They enlisted a top-notch opening lineup for this tour, making it even more irresistible. Anthrax, Behemoth and Lamb of God rounded out the lineup.

I regret that I missed Anthrax as the first opener, due to traffic and parking delays. Still, I will include their setlist below, and perhaps check out some videos from this tour to get a feel for their stage presence, and the performance I missed.

Behemoth were halfway through their set before I made it to my seat, unfortunately. I'll include their setlist below, but suffice to say, they put on a powerful setlist filled with demonic themes.

Lamb of God were up next. They killed it with a short set of their fan-favorite concert staple tracks. Their newest album at this time was Lamb of God VII: Sturm und Drang. Again, I'll include their setlist below.

But before long it was time for Slayer themselves. The crowd was almost electric with anticipation, and then their intro began to play. Their stage set up was a vision of the apocalypse itself. With their opening number "Repentless", the stage seemed to erupt in flames! 

I had been to several Slayer shows, and the mostly incorporated pyrotechnics, but this time they were truly going for broke. It was such an adrenaline rush! From one classic to the next, their song selection did not disappoint the Slayer faithful. They even included a track from Divine Intervention: 'Dittohead'

 

If this was truly the end of Slayer as a touring and recording entity, it was a fitting send-off. A concert that Slayer fans will cherish as a final memory of one of thrash metal's true icons.

Setlist:
-Delusions of Saviour (intro)

-Repentless

-Blood Red

-Disciple

-Mandatory Suicide

-Hate Worldwide

-War Ensemble

-Jihad

-When the Stillness Comes

-Postmortem

-Black Magic

-Payback

-Seasons In The Abyss

-Dittohead

-Dead Skin Mask

-Hell Awaits

-South of Heaven

-Raining Blood

-Chemical Warfare

-Angel of Death

Lamb of God setlist:

-Omerta

-Ruin

-Walk with Me in Hell

-Now You've Got Something to Die For

-512

-Engage the Fear Machine

-Blacken the Cursed Sun

-Laid to Rest

-Redneck

Behemoth setlist:

-Ov Fire and the Void

-Demigod

-Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer

-Wolves ov Siberia

-Chant for Eschaton 2000

-O Father O Satan O Sun!

Anthrax setlist:

-Caught in a Mosh

-Got the Time

-I Am The Law

-Evil Twin

-Antisocial

-Indians

Mad With Power VI-Day 1 (2023) - Madison, WI

 Post #398

On August 18th, a Friday afternoon, I headed north to Wisconsin's Capitol to finally catch a festival of Power Metal I'd been looking forward to for years: Mad With Power VI. This time, 2 bands I've been following were both scheduled to perform. I had seen them both for the 1st time back in 2011, at Dame-Nation III: Shield of Wings and A Sound of Thunder. Unfortunately, just days before the show, A Sound of Thunder had to cancel due to injury. Still, I was hyped for this music fest, and wasn't going to miss it!

With travel time being a major constraint on a weekday (the drive to the venue would take me over 3 hours), I utilized the promoter's Livestream on Twitch to enjoy the first couple bands of the evening. While I was only able to listen, my daughter got to enjoy the video feed as well. The opening act was my longtime favorite: Shield of Wings.

Shield of Wings are Chicago's answer for symphonic metal, and I feel with each passing show they prove they truly hold their own. I feel like their opening performance set a very high bar for all the acts to follow. The crowd was pumped, and into their captivating performance from the first note to the last measure of their set. Shield of Wings delivered a stunning performance of many of the best tracks from their new album 'Unfinished'. They even included a cover from The Elden Ring video game soundtrack! While I heard it, and caught glimpses when I stopped at red lights on my journey, it all just made me wish I could be there in the venue with them. In time, another opportunity will present itself. But for now, I leave you with their setlist...

-Cedar

-Native Colossus

-Breathing

-The Final Battle (Elden Ring ST-cover)

-Mind of Myth

-Wetland

-Sunfire Shower

Next up was Greyhawk, a Seattle-based power metal band. They came out and immediately struck with soaring riffs, cascading lead guitar solos, and powerful vocals delivered with deep baritone and a force of will. Their tempos were fast and furious. their themes were medieval and fantastic. Again, I had to hear the majority of their set through the livestream, but we did manage to arrive just in time to hear their closing number. Their debut released in 2020, and they have a new single from 2022. Look for this band to release a 2nd album in the near future! Their setlist for Mad With Power VI...

-Gates of Time

-Frozen Star

-Call of the Hawk

-Halls of Insanity

-Don't Wait for the Wizard

-Steelbound

We took a few minutes to browse the merch, meet the members of Shield of Wings face-to-face. They were gracious enough to pose for photos with fans. Then we made our way back to the floor to prepare for the evening's literal surprise: what band would fill the vacant slot in the lineup?

The answer was Seeker Pearl. Seeker Pearl are a Chicago-based heavy metal band blending elements of hardcore, ambient-metal, and come electronic elements. Vocally their singer delivered a lot of smooth melodies in the verses and often let it rip with screamed choruses. Their lead guitarist gave us some great guitar leads and solos here and there too. When they went heavy, they really hit hard! 

They seem to be the newest band of the entire lineup. Their earliest release on Spotify is from 2022. They seem to take a more modern approach to the art of recording, by releasing singles as they record them. Their artist page features several singles, but not full-length 'album' as of yet. Regardless, I will keep following them for new releases- singles, EPs, or full-length albums: whatever they choose to give us! Songs available to stream from their setlist are:

-Tempest

-Ouroboros

-Shadow Machine

-Deja Vu

-New Tide

-Oversoul

Next up was Wilderun- a Boston-area Progressive power metal band. They have been around since 2012, with their latest release being in 2022. Their compositions are epic in length, and span multiple genres as they incorporate symphonic elements, folk metal, power and death metal. If I would compare them to any band it may be Opeth. If their setlist seems brief, keep in mind that most of the songs they played are in the 8-10 minute rage!

-Passenger

-Far from Where Dreams Unfurl

-O Resolution!

-Vaunting Veins

The penultimate band of the evening was Powerglove. These guys changed things up and really gave the audience several laughs as their gimmick became evident as they took the stage: the played power-metal versions of video game theme songs! (and a couple cartoon soundtracks thrown in for good measure!) Some of their selections go WAAAY back! I'm talking Street Fighter, and the original Tetris! For each song, they also had a video element, displaying scenes from the video games or cartoons while that jammed out with ferocious intensity! The guitar solos were top-notch, and they even had perfectly timed sound effects! Their setlist:

-Kraid's Lair

-Tetris

-Under the Sea

-Kirby

-Guile's Theme

-Age of Aggression

-Gotta Catch 'Em All

-Mario Minor

Finally, it was time for the final band. Seven Spires. Another band from Boston, Seven Spires were the perfect headliner, Symphonic power metal with some death-metal and black-metal screams woven into different songs... They could swoon the audience with operatic vocal in one minute and devastate us with demonic screams the next. Musically their talent was superb: complex song structures, intense tempos, and soaring guitar solos to rival the likes of DragonForce. They were like Nightwish and Jinjer rolled into one.

They are a relatively new band themselves, with their first album, Solveig, from 2017, and their latest- Gods of Debauchery, dropping in 2021. As a fan, I am so glad to see that they've made it to this side of the pandemic, and eagerly look forward to their next new album, whenever they can manage to release it. For now, I'll leave you with their setlist:

-Gods of Debauchery

-Distant Lights

-Lightbringer

-Ghost of Yesterday

-Succumb

-Drowner of Worlds

-Bury You

-Gods Amongst Men

-Oceans of Time

-Echoes of Eternity

-Serenity

-Fall with Me

-Dreamchaser

-With Love from the Other Side

-The Trouble with Eternal Life

-This God is Dead

-Through Lifetimes

If your are a spotify user, check out this playlist, featuring all the setlists described here, in order:

https://spotify.link/Hpzi69SgVDb

If you use a different music streaming service, try visiting www.tunemymusic.com to convert it to you music app of choice!

And lastly, if it is still available, you can watch the archived livestream of the whole show on the Twich.tv channel by Lords of the Trident here: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1902334654

Mad With Power VI was a 2-day music festival, and this was only the 1st day. I unfortunately could not attend the 2nd day, but again, the livestream should be available at the same Twitch channel. 

Happy Headbanging!

Scorpions: The Early Years (1972-1977)

 Post #397

The Scorpions are best known for their international hits released during the 1980's as part of the 'Hair-Metal' era of mainstream heavy metal. In fact, during this era many fans of their music, myself included, were unaware that they had several albums that pre-dated their Mercury Records 'debut' album Lovedrive. It was only about a decade later, in the mid 90's, when the internet provided a means of discovery for these early works by the Scorpions. Prior to that, you'd have to know a specialty retailer that sold 'imported' albums of international bands.

So, this post is intended for those more casual fans that may now be eager to discover this early era of the Scorpions. We'll go back to a time when they were not an established 'Hair Band', but rather a mid-'70's rock band exhibiting a different pallet of sounds and styles than they're known for today. Sometimes more bluesy, other times more psychedelic, and occasionally flirting with a progressive-rock vibe, the Scorpions were definitely more experimental in their formative years. Check out some of these tracks for the more vintage sound of Scorpions!

Lonesome Crow (1972)

-I'm Goin' Mad

-In Search of the Peace of Mind

-Action

Fly To The Rainbow (1973)

-Speedy's Coming

-Fly People Fly

-They Need a Million (Check out the lead vocals by Rudolph Schenker ;-)

-Far Away

In Trance (1975)

-In Trance

-Dark Lady

-Robot Man

Virgin Killer (1976)

-Catch Your Train

-Virgin Killer

-In Your Park

Taken By Force (1977)

-Steamrock Fever

-He's a Woman - She's a Man

-We'll Burn the Sky

-The Riot of Your Time

All of these tracks (and a couple extras) can be enjoyed in this Spotify Playlist

Cauldron's Frequent Cover of a Classic Venom Track...

Post # 396 

Back in 2013, I heard Cauldron perform this track at Orion Music + More 2013. By the time I found this Bandcamp link the limited edition vinyl was sold out. However you can still stream their cover at the link below!

Shield Of Wings - Unfinished (2022)

 Post #395

It's been a while since I reviewed Shield of Wings on this blog. Their first recording, the EP Solarium, was released in 2011. I reviewed a concert they played in August of that year, and have been following them since then. 

I was pleasantly surprised to hear their announcement of a new, full-length album, Unfinished. I was instantly curious to hear how they sound on this new material. Guitarist and main songwriter, James Gregor, and fellow founding member Patrick Eulitz (drums), have recruited a new lineup, featuring Aliyah Daye on keyboards and backing vocals, Alex Luke on bass guitar, and Lara Mordian on lead vocals. My first exposure to any of the new music was their music video for the first single, "Wetland". After that experience, I was eager to hear more. Their overall sound and style of symphonic metal sounds complete, fresh, and epic! Beyond that, the recording reverberates with top-notch production. Every instrument can be heard crisp and clear.

To reference a couple established bands in the symphonic metal genre, I'd compare Lara's vocal style to Epica's Simone Simons. Lara uses a smooth blending of head-voice and chest-voice throughout most songs. Aliyah adds backing vocals in styles ranging from melodic harmonies to death growls. While this may seem stylistically similar to Epica as well, Shield of Wings doesn't implement the harsher vocal style as prominently. Theirs is a primarily melodic, operatic style of vocals with a small peppering of death growls, and only in a fraction of their songs.

Musically their formula sounds close to mid-era Nightwish, as they use heavy guitars, and synthesized symphonic and folk elements to navigate the mood of each piece. Patrick Eulitz could practically be channeling Nightwish's Jukka Nevalainen, he's so precise with the rapid, double-bass drums, and keeping a tight and powerful rhythm through the heavy moments of the music. Nearly every track incorporates multiple elements, with segments that shift from dark heavy tones, to light operatic phrases and back again. Tempos ramp up to furious paces, only to calm again and build the contrast further. Yet every transition flows so seamlessly, they sound like they've been in this field for years, if not decades.

On the track "Cedar", they introduce elements of folk and Celtic music, with a wide array of instruments to match. Heavy guitars and symphonic elements join in, and make this song an immersing musical experience. It's one of my favorite track on the album.

The closing track, "The Scarred Clay Reshaping" is the crowning jewel. The longest track at seven and a half minutes, and lyrics that bring the album full circle, even referencing their early EP in the chorus: "Unfinished solarium, one more cut of the seeker's tongue." Themes of life, struggle, despair and rebirth abound throughout the album, but culminate in the closing lyric: "Ode to the scarred clay reshaping, ode to the ever-flowing river!"

Prepare to be transfixed... Here is the video for "Wetland":

The overall lyrical composition of this album is truly soul-searching, with themes about attainment on levels both personal and existential. Every element of this album, from the music, instrumentation, lyrics, direction, production, mixing, and performance is truly top-notch. Unfinished is, without question, my favorite symphonic metal album since Nightwish's masterpiece Once. If you have even the slightest appreciation for the symphonic metal genre, you owe it to yourself to listen to these songs. Blending beauty and aggression so seamlessly, I feel Shield Of Wings have a bright future ahead. 

Recommended tracks from Unfinished:

-Crushing Hail (another incredible music video, with lyrics as as well!)

-Frozen Harbor (favorite lyric: "Too old to write of innocence, too young to write of wisdom.")

-Cedar (as mentioned previously, this is the 'folk-symphonic-metal' track!)

-Wetland

-Mind of Myth (A favorite lyric from this one: "If I do Not Die How Will I be Reborn?")

-The Scarred Clay Reshaping

(advance digital review copy provided by James Gregor and Shield of Wings)

Shield of Wings' music is available on several platforms, such as...

Bandcamp

Amazon Music

Spotify

Stream, Download, or Order a CD copy today!

*Unfinished is scheduled for release on February 11th, 2022.

Tetrarch-Unstable (2021)

 Post #394

In 2021, Tetrarch released Unstable, their follow-up to 2017's Freak, and on this release the band show much consistency and growth as they tighten their grip on their trademark sound. They also continue to impress with their music videos, of which they now have for 4 different tracks from Unstable.

Unstable opens with "I'm Not Right", a blisteringly heavy number that picks up right where Freak left off without missing a beat! This is also one of the 4 official music videos I mentioned. I will link to a couple of those at the end of this post.

While Tetrarch are great at writing those fast-paced shred-fest hardcore songs, they also deliver quite a few songs with a more moderate tempo on this album. "You Never Listen" is one of those songs. It's still quite heavy, don't get me wrong, but they can switch up their delivery as good as any band out there.

One of my favorite elements of heavy metal music has always been guitar solos. While most of the time you can hear Diamond Rowe's lead guitar reverberating in the background throughout most of their songs- again channeling an eerie mood-setting vibe in a style similar to Korn, there are several songs here where she shows off her chops with some shredding guitar solos. Check out the tracks "Sick of You", "Addicted", or "Pushed Down" for some of her best soloing techniques. If I'd compare her style to a well-known guitarist, I'd pick a late-era Dimebag Darrell. Keep on shredding Diamond!

Not to leave behind another element of metalcore, blast-beat drumming, you should really hear the song "Take a Look Inside". Staccato power chords mirror the driving beat of the bass drums and bass guitar in this song. Their drummer, Ruban Limas' technical skills cannot be questioned after hearing this one! If I have any song to compare this one to, it might be "Primal Concrete Sledge" by Pantera. I love the powerful, relentless groove it gives!

Lastly I'll mention the closing number, "Trust Me", which is a bit of a departure from the rest of the tracks, in that is slows the tempo way down, and projects dark and ominous moods. This gothic alt-metal brilliance in its own right, and the drummer drives the rhythm mainly with loud cymbal crashes throughout, almost like Black Sabbath's "War Pigs", but slower and heavier.

Recommended tracks from Unstable:

-I'm Not Right

-You Never Listen

-Sick of You

-Stitch Me Up

-Pushed Down (this one has a chorus that just begs to become an anthem: "We are the psychos, the untouchables!")

Now for those promised music videos, but first, you should be sure you check out Tetrarch's Youtube channel and subscribe so you don't miss out on their next awesome video!

Here are their videos for "I'm Not Right" and "Stitch Me Up"

Tetrarch-Freak (2017)

 Post #393

Tetrarch spent their time from 2013 to 2017 relocating (they moved from Georgia to L.A.) and also reinventing themselves. Their early EPs might have fallen comfortably inside the 'metalcore' subgenre, but by the time they dropped Freak it was clear they'd discovered a new calling and were headed in a  new direction...

The album opens with the title track, "Freak"- an aggressive hardcore song that puts some of their new formula on display. Diamond Rowe's guitar leads emulate an eerie vibe that seems to channel Korn's Brian 'Head' Welch. Vocalist Josh Fore pours forth emotion with ever line. His voice could be compared to Chester Bennington when singing melodically,  or Corey Taylor when screaming. If this sounds like a promising formula of sounds for a metal-head, that's because it is! Plus you have to love the bridge lyric: "In the darkness the strange becomes ordinary..."

The next track, "Spit", takes them a step closer to Korn-esque alt-metal, as Fore employs new inflections in his vocal delivery, bringing comparisons to Jonathan Davis to mind. However, as the 3rd track, "Pull the Trigger" unfurls, we are once again blown away with an assault of aggressive metal. 

The rest of the album continues in this fashion, swaying back and forth between hardcore, brutal metal riffs, and eerie, haunting melodies. Drums and bass that bludgeon the senses relentlessly, guitars that can shred in one moment and entice the mind the next, and a masterful blend of melodic and hardcore vocals, this band gives us a great metal album with Freak. If you crave this blending of angst and aggression, then please do yourself the favor of checking out this band!

Their Music video for the title track:

Other recommended tracks from Freak:

-Pull the Trigger

-Oddity

-Break the Trend* (this is a personal favorite- very close in style to their previous metalcore/thrash sound)

-Torn Apart (a little softer sound on this closing track, but still very dark in the pictures painted both in sound and lyrics)

Watch for my review of their new album Unstable coming soon!

Tetrarch- The Will to Fight and Relentless (EP's 2011, 2013)

Post #392

Tetrarch first came on my radar in 2011. I was on the lookout for independent bands to feature in my annual reader's poll contest for Independent Band of the Year, and somewhere, somehow I had heard their track 'We are the Hunters', and it blew me away. This was around the time I was diving deep into melodic metalcore bands like Trivium, All That Remains, Atreyu, and Killswitch Engage. Tetrarch reminded me of all of those bands, but also with more thrash metal influences. Riffs that will pummel your ears, and tempo that is... well... relentless, and powerful vocals that blend screams with melodies. And a singer who has drawn comparisons to both Corey Taylor and the late Chester Bennington. Needless to say, this review is long overdue, and more reviews of their recent work will be coming soon!

This song turned out to be from their debut EP, The Will to Fight. I loved every track on this EP, and I became an instant fan. These guys fit right in with all the newer bands of metalcore I had just been discovering. While these recording may no longer be available for direct download, I believe you can still find them on youtube, so I'll embed the links to those songs for your enjoyment here. Happy Headbanging!

Though it may no longer be available through iTunes, you can find the complete album on youtube to stream. Every track is worth recommending.
The song titles are:
We are the Hunters

The Will to Fight

Set to Flames

Sons of the Sea

Two years later they released a 2nd EP entitled Relentless, and it was every bit as awesome as the first.

This EP may also be unavailable on iTunes. Still, you can try youtube for tracking these gems down...

The song titles are:
Final Words

Leave Me Alone

Relentless

Take Your Best Shot

Watch for reviews of their newer albums Freak and Unstable, coming soon!