By Greg Maki Have you ever thought to yourself, “What would it sound like if the singer of Volbeat made a death metal album?” No? Yeah, I didn’t think so. As some know, before starting Volbeat and taking the band from Denmark to international success, Michael Poulsen fronted the death metal act Dominus, which released... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki Is it too early—May 10 as I write this—to declare an album of the year? Surely, it is, but that’s how strong the reaction in me is to hearing “War Remains,” the third long-player from Richmond, Virginia’s Enforced. LP is a bit of a misnomer here, as the record clocks in at... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki Djent schment. Never one for subgenre labels, I’ve always thought of Periphery as a progressive metal band—and one of the leading progressive metal bands in the world at that. So while the members of Periphery take a stand—with their tongues at least somewhat in their cheeks—against the label with the title of... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki You’re forgiven if you haven’t given much thought to Dope in the past decade-plus. A band tends to fall off the radar when it releases only one new studio record in a 13-year period. That was the case for the Edsel Dope-led, industrial metal outfit prior to 2023, with its only new... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki Two decades is a long time to run on what essentially is a single joke, yet here stands Steel Panther 23 years after its founding. Something to consider: This ‘80s hair metal-inspired act now has existed more than twice as long as the decade it parodies/celebrates. That’s staying power that I doubt... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki And just like that, we’ve come to the end of another year. And as always—if you know where to look and keep an open mind—2022 was filled with plenty of good to great releases in metal and hard rock. Here are the best of what made it to my ears in the... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki If you like your metal melodic with a bit of a modern, technological sheen and a whole lot of rebellious swagger, then let me direct you to Germany’s League of Distortion, the brainchild of vocalist Anna Brunner (Exit Eden) and guitarist Jim Müller (Kissin’ Dynamite). On the band’s self-titled debut, you can... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki If you’re like me, music is a big part of spooky season, and spooky season is not confined to October; it’s whenever you want it to be. This year, a new band out of Central Florida, has loudly crashed my Halloween playlist and is sure to remain in heavy rotation when the... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki As I’ve stated in previous reviews, I’ve never been much of a death metal guy. I’ve also never been the biggest fan of hardcore. Put two and two together, and you probably can figure out that deathcore isn’t exactly my favorite subgenre of heavy music. Maybe that’s because, as far as I... Continue Reading →
By Greg Maki Bolstered by powerhouse new frontman Erik Grönwall, Skid Row suddenly is relevant again, and that just might be one of 2022’s biggest stories in hard rock. With the young Swedish singer leading the way—he’s the rest of the band’s junior by about a quarter century—Skid Row truly sounds like the chart-topping sensation... Continue Reading →
