Heretic’s Dream – “Chains of Blood” SINGLE (2013)

Independent Release

Review by Tony Cannella

The Italian – now based in the UK – Gothic/prog metal band Heretic’s Dream released their debut album “The Unexpected Move” last year and it proved to be an unexpected surprise (positively so). Now the band returns with some new material. Actually, just one new song, entitled “Chains of Blood”.

Happily Heretic’s Dream’s Gothic/progressive metal sound remains happily intact, but what this 6-minute track represents is a progression in the right direction. The guitar riffs are rumbling throughout the track and lead vocalist Francesca Di Ventura’s angelic vocals are just as assured and self confident as they are on the debut. Continue reading »

Yo La Tengo – “Fade” (2013)

Label : Matador Records

Review by Davide Torresan

I have to confess that I have never heard of this band. From the name I was expecting a Spanish group, and definitely not a metal one. Searching around to find some informations, I discovered that Yo La Tengo (the abbreviation is YLT) is an alternative rock band and it’s fairly well known. This American group is founded in 1989 and since 1992 the line-up has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitar, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drum, piano, vocals) and James McNew (bass, vocals). I was saying alternative rock…well, YLT is considered among the most important representatives of the American alternative rock scene of the 90s. In more than 10 years they have been able to blend many musical influences, from pop music to rock, with violin and sax inserts too.

This one is an unusual instrument in this genre, isn’t it? “Fade” is their 13th album and its sound slightly differs from their previous work, “Popular Songs”. In this one the electric guitar was present in each song, but in “Fade” it is almost gone. You feel strongly this absence. Indeed it seems like something is missing in these songs. There’s a lack of rhythm though the album’s atmospheres are soothing because of the beautiful voices of Ira and Georgia. There are no drum’s accelerations, the classical guitar and bass strings are softly plucked. They call it dream pop. Continue reading »

INTERVIEW: Lucy & Veon – Mechanical God Creation

Interview by Connie Bach

Translated by Disgraced

Released on Wormholedeath, Mechanical God Creation’s album “Cell XIII” is all finely-tuned fury. There is nothing but steelyaggression in MGC‘s brand of well-crafted death metal.

HI!!!

The album was born from the wish to express our inner, undeclared and huge anger. We have thought about how our society denies us the possibility to free and vent our inner rage, if not only in determinated occasions, as a matter of fact we’re all chained to this concrete armchair, as was Prometheus to the mountain. From this analysis we’ve decided that it was time to let our voice be heard and represent this huge and inner force.

 We tried to make music and lyrics fit together in order that no one of them abandoned each other. It was like we have tried to weave a well-stichted and tight texture that oozed all this aggressivness: the more the music was getting violent, the more my voice and my vocal lines were becoming aggressive and violent!

“Cell XIII” helped us to find the perfect way to develop a composing process, a musical alchemy that sadly has been lost later on, since some members left the band. Of course the work done didn’t lose its value: it’s been the ground for a great, personal growth that will surely be useful for the nex record and that will help me going on on my musical road. Neither me nor the other MGC will stop, on the opposite we’ll get better and better with the new line-up!

As I told you before, we started exploring the world of repressed anger where the body acts like a cage: the word “cell” comes from here and also the artwork leads to that concept, actually there’s a person chained up in a cell. “XIII” has an esoteric and symbolic meaning, according to a worldwide tradition: it’s an ambiguous number open to a myriad of interpratations and it represents the human duality, our inner and outer self.

MCG is a more personal project, I feel it mine more than the others because I created them out of nothing; I founded this band to try and create something new, something that was only mine in the world of extreme music. This is my band and not a band that I simply joined! The past lives on as a legacy in terms of songwriting and live experiences, professionality and a huge care for those details both musical and non-musical that gravitate around the band. Moreover, past experiences obviously help you to deal more easily with some situations and people and so they allow you to better understand what’s going on. What nowadays is often denied is basic, without any doubt, to build an important project!

Lucy: The first artist who inspired me the most was Cadaveria: I liked her vocal style a lot, very aggressive but with a feminine touch nevertheless.

Veon: There are surely three artists who had a big influence on me, which are Jaco Pastorius, Steve Di Giorgio and Jeroen Paul Thesseling. They have been in bands that I always loved. Another aspect that influenced me a lot stylistically and melodically has been the one of bringing bass-playing to a new level: not only a rythmic one but something inbetween rythmic melody and soloist parts.

Well, playing Wacken is always a dream. I’ve been there as a fan and I can say it’s a very cool festival, so many people and interesting bands. But there are of course a lot of other places where we’d like to play. Our biggest love, so to say, are big open air festivals. Now I won’t list here all the bands we’d like to share the stage with… way too many!

When the concert is over and you go downstage many emotions always linger on: in front of you there was someone who was there to listen to you, who was searching for something in you, who wanted to find a strong emotion in your music and therefore you hope you managed to communicate all that. You hope you played a great show, something unique because after all every gig is unique and unrepeatable and so wonderful! I take the chance to thank everyone who follows us and all those who support us in what we do!

I think that MGC‘s music can appeal to several kinds of listeners: of course lovers of classic extreme metal as well as modern one and in general to whoever craves for a surge of adrenalin and wants to hear something fresh and new for some aspects. Last but not least, why not?, I think we might be appreciated also by those who want to rediscover the Italian death metal that in these last years gave us lots of nice surprises!

It’s surely a stylistical and harmonic research that at first is aimed to create confusion in the listener but then wants to give a sensation of rage, safety and personality to the songs, both lyrics-, musical- and vocal-wise. Nowadays being out of trends using darker themes isn’t easy but there are some unxplored points of view that grant a new personality to his kind of music. It’s impossible to say how through words, you have to communicate and feel it with music’s own language.

Thanks to you for this chance and for the nice and challenging questions! Hope to hear you again soon!

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Interview : Robin Beck

Interview by Miriam C.

If metal impersonate as a queen the German Doro, instead in the melodic rock/AOR territory the true deal is the US Robin Beck. Known for the uber huge hit single “First Time” in 1988 born from a jingle of a Cola Cola commercial, after 6-years-break from the last album “Livin’ on a Dream”, Robin do her comeback with her 9th album “The Great Escape” on her own imprint, Her Majesty’s Music Room. Want to know more? Continue to read this extensive interview…

Hi Robin, first of all thanks so much for accepting this interview! For me is a real pleasure to host and promote you in my webzine and I thank you for finding time out of your busy schedule to reply this humble questions.

Thank you Miriam I am happy to.

On your official biography, you stated that since you’re a little child you wanted to be an artist and when you were 10 yrs old you have written your first lyric. Now, being passed so much time, did still keep it and what you think about it?

This is not a secret lyric. It’s a childhood song about love of course… “Key to My Heart” Sort of a country song. I think it was pretty good for a kid.

Despite the fact that you are world famous singer, during your break for raise your daughter Olivia, you have still recorded album as a background singer. From this experience what you have learnt? Any good memory to share with us about that period?

I don’t have anything but good memories… and still more coming. My daughter is the light of my life! You do learn from being a mother how to be a parent from your children. If they are happy… then you’ve done a good job… so I give myself a gold star. I will also say that from having Olivia that I became more conscience of how important school really is… this something I took for granted while I was growing up. I hated school but it’s the most important part of our lives to begin with.

Let me get you to the early times of your career, at that time what were your favourite musical acts and are your musical tastes changed now?

Ha… Janis Joplin, Joe Cocker, Aerosmith, Queen, the Beatles, Stevie Nicks, Carol King, Crosby, Stills, Nash, Taylor and Reeves and the Supremes. Just to mention a few.

Your debut top hit single “First Time” in 1988 was a spin off for a Coca Cola commercial, how you got involved in it? Also the video clip was different in EU and in the US, why?

I was chosen to sing “First Time” the jingle… then the song was written and it just flew high by popular demand first in the U.K. – They then did an American Version since Americans don’t speak English I guess! LOL It was perfect the way it was first created… then we simply rocked it out for the simple reason that I was noted as rock artist and that’s the way they envisioned it for the States.

How was the genesis of your last album “The Great Escape”, when you have started to nail down the first lyric?

Hummm… really don’t remember specifically. It just came when it came… and out popped the entire album. We worked for about 5 months straight on it.

Your latest studio album was 2006′s “Livin’ on a Dream” (now I’m excluding the re-release of “Trouble or Nothing”), why it passed so much time since then?

I was putting together my own label and time was just flying by. I was also managing a band at that time and devoted a lot of attention to them.

How’s born the partnership with Tommy Denander and James Christian (that’s your husband)?

I met Tommy during a “Radio Active” invite to sing a song… and from there it was a relationship of 3. Me, James and Tommy. We are all very tight. James my husband is in House of Lords. He might be the best producer I’ve ever worked with. Not just because he’s my husband, but because he really gets me and knows better what I can do than even I do sometimes… it’s great to have these 2 men by my side.

What’s your personal meaning and what do you want to express with the title album “The Great Escape”? Or it’s simply related to a lyric present in the album?

For me it’s meaning was simply to take a break from life and listen to some great music. But the song is literally about getting away or escaping the trappings of a bad relationship. The title of the album really has nothing to do with the song I’m afraid. I kept it because I just loved the image I had created in my own head. When I’m listening to music that I love… all my cares vanish. That’s what I want for my fans.

Two songs that totally hit me are “The One” and “Don’t Think He’s Ever Coming Home”. What are the subject of this lyrics?

You hit the nail on the head with these two songs Ms. Miriam. “The One” is clearly about the love of my life and how to let him in on it. “Don’t Think He’s Ever Coming Home”, is a whole other story… this is an unhappy ending for a girl who tries to keep a man that truly wants to be with his intended. Some girls are just lying to themselves and this song spells it out for them in a most unforgiving light.

On “That All Depends” you sing with Joe Lynn Turner, how do you feel to realize such a dream? How was standing literally (and singing) beside him?

Ha… that’s funny… I’ve known Joe Lynn Turner and have sung with him for years and years… you’d think I’d be immune’d by now … but he’s dreamboat. I’ve always loved his voice and his way. I can’t say enough nice things about Joe Lynn Turner. It was great that he took the time to do this with me. Hopefully we will do another song together in the future.

In February 2009 you founded your label Her Majesty’s Music Room, why? I mean you haven’t no more faith in the labels?

Yep! That’s it in a nutshell. It’s a smaller system but much more satisfying. I mean really… working with a label can make you or break you… but working with my own label makes me happy.

The re-recorded release of “Trouble or Nothing” include 4 bonus tracks. If I got it right the songs are original from that session and why at the time weren’t included into the album?

No no no…. these songs were not from that time period. They were fresh newly written for the re release of “Trouble or Nothing”.

In the 80′s MTV was the leader in broadcasting and promoting AOR bands/singer like you now after 20 years or so we find that internet, with its connections of webzine and sites dedicated to music, is taking the lead. What do you miss of the 80′s from this point of view? And also how much do feel confortable this all this new technology? Have you already notice any pros and cons for your activity?

It’s great… no matter what this is how we evolved. For me it’s wonderful. I have much more exposure… sometime not the exposure that you want but as they say… all press is good for the artist… good or bad.

Watching your long, stellar career what it is missing is a full concert DVD. Any plans to record it?

Yes… we almost did it at Firefest. But I’m looking to do something that spans my career, not just a rock concert. This takes time but I can assure you not too much longer.

Finally your EU fans have the chance to meet you during your upcoming “Here Comes Trouble Tour” made of 10 dates running thru Germany, UK, Switzerland and Austria. Any project for a full European tour?

I am trying to put that together already. It was only the beginning to start this year after so many years of being missing from the touring circuit. It will take some more time to build up the audience awareness… let’s start here. Tell everyone to keep an eye on www.robinbeckrocks.com for coming tour dates in 2013 and Facebook as well.

After this EU tour, what are your next plans and if yes, are you involved in other musical related stuff?

I am in the middle of making a new album right now. We are also discussing new tour for 2013.

Olivia, your daughter is following your artistic footprints, would you mind present her and her songs?

She’s amazing and living her dream right now as an actress… but this girl has pipes and she can do anything she wants to. I would be proud to see her live her life and use her talents to make her own dreams a reality.

I’ve a just a little curiosity to fullfil, you know I’m from Italy and time ago you have recorded a duet with Pupo (that’s a real famous songwriter/singer here). Do you mind tell me how’s born this collaboration? To me, discovering this was such strange because Pupo doesn’t really represent the attitude of a rock star.

Well there’s not that much to tell… he reached out to me to do a duet with him and I did. It was fun… and Olivia was only 10 months old at the time so she was in my arms the whole time I was with Pupo singing.

Well, Robin, we’re at the end. I really thank you for your time. Please greet your fans and our readers as you like. Really thanks, Miriam.

Please come visit me at my website www.robinbeckrocks.com and on Facebook. I would love to see you there. If I’m in your area please come out and say hello. Watch my website for any details in the coming months. All my love.

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Interview : Liv Jagrell, Jimmy Hiltula & Dave Sundberg – Sister Sin (2010)

Interview by Connie Bach

Rock with attitude. This is Sister Sin’s personality. The “attitude” aspect is loud, edgy, and melodic. If you are furious with someone this is a great album for the situation. And if you are not in a rage, there is energy for entertainment, and plenty to spare.

Hi, Liv. What’s going on with the band right now?

Hi! Right now we are playing lots of shows in Scandinavia and doin’ some tours in Europe, we hope to be back in US early next year! The album is just released in Japan too so hopefully we will get the opportunity to do a tour over there next year too.

This one’s for the whole band.  How did each of you get involved in rock music? What’s your background?

Liv : Well, I started to get into rock in my early teens when I found Nirvana and Hole, and a Swedish metal band called Drain. Drain had Pantera as their favorite band and that got me into Pantera and the heavier stuff. I so wanted to become a rock star that I forced my to best girlfriends to start a band with me. After a while they got into it too ha, ha… We were called Sisters of Kali and we´re very, very dark and angry on everything.

Jimmy : I got into rock music seriously when I was around eleven years old. I loved Metallica and Pantera at that time which friends introduced me with. Then I discovered more extreme music such as Slayer, Sodom, Entombed and later on bands like Morbid Angel, Deicide, Suffocation, Gorefest and also a lot black metal. I played in many bands in those days, mostly death and black metal bands. Then I had a break from playing and one day I heard from a friend that Sister Sin was looking for a new guitarist, knew nothing about who they were. But I gave it a shot since I always had a soft spot for classic hard rock and heavy metal. It turned out to be perfect!

Dave : I stole all my brother’s heavy metal vinyls after discovering Vanessa Warvick hosting “Headbangers Ball” in the early nineties. After that I got in to a lot of punk, hardcore and eventually black metal as well. Started playing guitar back then but moved on to drums for the usual reason that there weren’t any drummers around. And here I am today, piss poor but happy with a Metal Heart, ha ha.

It’s been a few months since Benton, Sister Sin’s bassist, unfortunately had to part ways with the three of you. Liv, how is the search for a new bassist going? What challenges does a change in line-up present, even with the qualifications you have in mind?

It’s always very hard to find replacement for someone that you liked and that suited the band so well and we have been thru this before so we are pretty tired of this whole bassplayer thing. That’s why this time we really need to find someone that has the passion for music and touring that we do and that could dedicate their life to this band. Even if you do find someone who is technically qualified the most important thing is always the social aspect. When spending so much time as we do in a van you can’t have one guy you wanna choke to death every half hour. I think we´ve actually found the right man for job but he´s gonna do at least one tour before we make it official, for both parties sake.

Why does Sister Sin require that the new bassist have studio experience?

Do we? Ha ha… I didn’t know that. No, but I guess it´s more of sorting out the serious ones, like we get so many e-mails from people who think that anyone can play bass and let me tell you; just because you can play guitar and get by doesn’t mean you can play bass.

What are you expecting with the tour with Grave Digger and Grand Magus?

I think that will be a blast! We haven’t toured so much in Europe with all the focus that’s been on U.S last two years so it´s gonna be cool for sure and we are hitting some very interesting countries as well, so I’m really looking forward to that. 

What determines where a tour takes Sister Sin, or any other band? Why?

Since we haven’t really sold shitloads of albums around the world we can’t exactly pick and choose where and when we wanna tour and whom with. Many people ask why we go on tour with bands like Arch Enemy or OTEP and the reason is just that we got offered those tours and we need to be on the road all the time. Got nothing against any of the bands we´ve toured but yeah, if we could choose we would definitely tour with headliners that are more close to our genre and fan base. We´ve been over totimes and the reason for that is that our label has spent more promotion over there and we need to back that up.

Liv, you are featured as “Miss November” in Revolver’s “Hottest Chicks in Metal” calendar. How do you feel about the award? Nice job. The reason I ask is that for some it is a source of pride, whereas some feel it mocks women in metal.  

For me it’s a pride!! I’m very, very glad to be one of the girls in that calendar, it’s an honor. I truly can’t believe it really, I’m just a working girl from Sweden and a big American rock magazine wants me in a calendar ? That’s so cool! And I don’t understand these people that think it’s mocking women, if you are a beautiful woman with a talent, show it! Both your talent and your beauty, that calendar is a way to celebrate both in my opinion!

“True Sound Of The Underground” did quite well on the charts. What does that mean for the band?

Of course it means a lot to know that people enjoy our work and that we hopefully can inspire others with our music. Not that you have to sell a lot of copies these days to end up on a chart but it´s a nice motivator for us that there is a growing market for the kind of music we play.

Do each of you have a personal goal that you are fulfilling through being in Sister Sin?

Jimmy : Yes absolutely. I get to play guitar just they way I dreamed of when I first picked up a guitar and all the countless hours of practice finally pays off with releasing albums and touring, it certainly is a privilege and a dream come true.

Dave : Ever since first got in to heavy metal I always wanted to tour and see the world. And now I get to travel, see new places, new people and be on stage every night doing what I love to do. I’ve never dreamed of making lots of money (although it would be nice! ) and playing big arenas, I’m just glad that 3 nobodies like ourselves who have been stuck in a rehearsal studio for 5 years never gave up and it´s paying off the way I always wanted it to do.

Liv : This is my personal goal, to be able to be in a great band and play live all over the world! One thing that would make it even better would to be able to live from the music one day, that’s very much a goal for me. To just live 100% for the band, now I have to share my time with my job as a personal trainer.

Liv, Sweden (especially Gothenburg) has a huge metal scene, with many famous acts. Why does this scene influence Sister Sin?

I really don’t think there are any Swedish bands that influences us really. There´s a lot of extreme metal coming out of here which obviously is what Sweden is mostly famous for in metal. A lot of those bands, like In Flames for example definitely inspire in another way though that you can make it if you just hang there, never quit and be true to what you love.

Liv, Dave, and Jimmy, thanks a lot for your time. Your musical energy and commitment to Sister Sin is impressive. Hopefully we’ll see you in the States again soon.

We will be back 4 sure!

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