It’s hard to imagine that the Tokyo Dragons, in their brief, two-album career, could have influenced anybody, but here come fellow UK’ers Black Spiders, swingin’ their hot nuts and givin’ me the fear like the Dragons used to do. Of course, it might make more sense to compare the Spiders’ explosive, hi-top arena rock to bands like KISS, AC/DC, and Motörhead (all of whom the band have referenced in their music by way of lyrics or cover songs), and I wouldn’t be surprised to find out there’s a Soundgarden, Circus of Power, and Four Horsemen freak in their ranks too, but you know what I’m getting at here: this is music for keg parties, biker rallies, or any event where a hot tub and cocaine are present. Sons of the North is the band’s first full-length after a steady diet of EPs for the last two plus years (The St. Peter EP, Cinco Hombres [Diez Cojones], and No Goats in the Omen) and thumps its chest so loud and proud it bruises the heart deep inside. Old fans of the band will notice some familiar bite in the previously released songs “Stay Down,” “Just Like a Woman,” and “St. Peter”, but the way the album seamlessly weaves eye-lined sleaze rock excitement (“KISS Tried to Kill Me,” “Easy Peasy,” “What Good’s a Rock Without a Roll?”) with bearded stoner rock bullying (“Blood of the Kings,” “Man’s Ruin,” “Si, El Diablo”) is a mouthful of deliciously bloody meat you’ll want to feast on for a long time to come. Pull this one out at the next hot tub biker keg party rally you attend and you’ll find yourself fighting and fucking the night away, guaranteed.
Check out the video for “Just Like a Woman” from Sons of the North (even though this video was shot when they released the song on No Goats in the Omen)!
Year-end, best-of lists are the worst. I’ve never read one I’ve agreed with. If they don’t make me mad as hell they make me question my own taste and judgment…for about three seconds. But man, do I ever hate those three seconds! Of course, the truth of it is it’s all arbitrary bullshit, nothing more than one-upsmanship (sic) spouted from the pedestal of holier than thou record collections by bearded twats just like me. Which brings me to my 2010 wrap-up, naturally. I urge you to take it for what it is, a cursory, but hopefully entertaining, glance at the most noteworthy aspects of the 105 albums I reviewed this year. And nothing more, except maybe your own three seconds of lame agony.
Italian power folk from 10 year veterans, Elvenking, who’ve ridden that long, singular path through the forest of glory, beset on either side by heathens, ravens, and cobblestone cottages with roaring fires and pints of mead. At once queer, organic, heavy, and melodious, Red Silent Tides blends Elvenking’s usual fiddle and lyre feel with epic, eye-lined riffing to create a tempest of catchy metal best suited for laser-lit arenas rather than jousting tournaments. It’s damn near impossible to pick out the most ridiculously delicious moments, but songs like “The Last Hour” and “What’s Left of Me” will surely stick in your head for days and leave you smiling like a drunk jester. Sure, compared to 2001′s Heathenreel or 2004′s Wyrd, there’s very little traces left of the fairy tale magic in what Elvenking offers, but I’ve always preferred their more pop-oriented power metal stuff anyway, so the fact that Elvenking now sounds like Blind Guardian, Edguy, Power Quest, or Throne of Chaos is pretty majestic as far as I’m concerned.
Check out the video for “The Cabal” from Red Silent Tides!
Black Spiders
Elvenking