Random albums I want to talk about #2: FINAL DOSE - Under the Eternal Shadow (2025, Wolves of Hades)

In this series of posts I'll discuss a random album in my collection I feel like talking about!

Punky black metal? Blackened punk? This is what UK band Final Dose deliver! I usually go through phases where about 80% of what I listen to for a few months or so will be a specific genre. So I might be listening to thrash metal almost non-stop for 2 months, then power metal, then traditional heavy metal etc. - you get the picture. I've already spent a few months this year indulging in far too much black metal, and I found Final Dose by looking at this year's Damnation Festival lineup. They just so happened to be black metal. Punky black metal!

I picked up their second and so far most recent album, 2025's Under the Eternal Shadow, after giving it a few listens on Spotify first. This is some good shit, people. Just under 24 minutes of short and snappy, black metal punk goodness! The vocals from Bruno Fusco are pure black metal; mostly harsh, scowling and growling. Throat-shredding, even. But there's times where they sound like painful cries for help, like on the atmospheric 'Servant', and the occasional clean delivery such as 'Drag the Light Down', 'Dark Paradise' and parts of 'Locked in the Black Dungeon'. Really, it's a diverse vocal performance as far as black metal goes, but diverse in that they deliver most of the styles you could ever want to hear from a black metal band. 

The guitars however, are not necessarily what you'd consider to be "pure black metal". The guitars aren't constantly tremolo-picked - in fact, a lot of the riffs sound like power chords played fast, hence the punk/hardcore vibe that goes with the black metal. That's not to say the riffs take away from the overall black metal feel of this album, not at all - they feel like punk riffs at their core, but with the frantic drums behind them, and the undoubtedly BM vocals on top make this a punk-infused black metal project. Oh, and let's not forget the short and punchy nature of the songs (10 in total, and like I said, a 24 minute(ish) overall length). That said, despite the mostly short track lengths, it's surprising how much variety Final Dose managed to cram into them. Whilst songs like 'Weathered Axe', 'Rite of Spring', 'Wretched' and 'Revenge' go as hard as you'd expect them to (although the riffs do range from fast to mid-tempo), there's actually some acoustic guitars on closing track 'Drag the Light Down'. 'Locked in the Black Dungeon' and 'Servant' make use of distorted darkened synths (dungeon synth I guess), and provide a layer of bleak atmosphere to match the grimy album artwork. I don't know about you, but I like a bit of atmosphere to go with my black metal, even if it's being delivered with a punkier attitude!

Although I think nearly every major aspect of this album has been executed rather well, it's not necessarily one of the best black metal albums I've heard in recent years. It didn't blow me away even if Final Dose have more than enough going for them to stand out. But it is still a very solid fusion of black metal and punk, and a great sounding album at that. The production is great. It feels raw even though it doesn't sound under-produced, if that makes any sense. There's a thick layer of distortion surrounding the album, but everything is still audible. It sounds nasty, but nasty in the way you want it to sound!

I suppose I just wanted to give Final Dose the light of day with this post. They're part of the UK's underground metal scene, and I don't really talk about a lot of bands as underground as this on my blog. But that doesn't mean I don't venture to Bandcamp every once in a while to check out and buy CDs from the underground metal world. I totally dig Final Dose's approach to black metal - Under the Eternal Shadow has a ton of charisma, and I'd love to see 'em on a Bloodstock lineup at some point in the future.
Adam's rating: 8/10

Random albums I want to talk about #1: RAGE - Soundchaser (2003, SPV)

In this series of posts I'll discuss a random album in my collection I feel like talking about!

I've been a casual fan of German metaller's Rage since... well, since I first picked up this album! They do however have a lot of albums, many of which are expensive/hard to find in the UK, meaning it's unlikely I'll ever add them all to my own collection. I mean, I've had Soundchaser in my collection since maybe 2009/2010 (which I bought bundled alongside their 2002 album, Unity), and as of 2026 I still only have 7 out of about 27 studio albums!! As usual, this is a case of "too much great music, too little time and money". I got to see them live once, way back at my first Bloodstock in 2010 - but sadly haven't seen them since!

Anyway, Soundchaser is an album that's gotten multiple spins per year since I first got my hands on it all those years ago! Why? Because this album is a friggin' awesome example of pure speed/power/heavy metal brilliance, that's why! Rage had already been around forever by the time Soundchaser appeared in 2003, so it feels like the product of a band who are very comfortable with their craft - and I mean that in the best possible sense. I feel like sometimes a comfortable band can also mean their albums feel overly safe and autopilot-y. With Soundchaser, this isn't the case.

Considering vocalist/bassist Peavy Wagner is not the world's greatest singer, he really has a way with his vocals. On it's own, his voice is distinctive and well-suiting to the music for sure, but I wouldn't say he's particularly gifted vocally from a technical point of view. Yet he's so good at arranging his vocals and coming up with hooks to die for that it doesn't matter. Rage just wouldn't be Rage without him. Throughout the album, songs like 'War of Worlds', 'Great Old Ones', 'Defenders of the Ancient Life' and 'See You in Heaven or Hell' all have choruses and verses that have stuck with me ever since I first heard this album. As a metalhead, generally speaking I consider the actual music and riffs to be the most important aspect of a band. Poor vocals can absolutely be off-putting, sure - but I find with this genre, I can often deal with subpar vocals if the music is great. That's just how it is with metal some of the time. But with Rage, I'm almost always impressed with how Peavy lays down his vocals, even if he's not a technically-impressive singer. You know, I picked up their most recent album, A New World Rising, last year and even though his voice is clearly getting worn out at this point in time... man, the vocal hooks on that record are still great! 

And as for the instrumentation, Victor Smolksi's guitar playing is just as inspired as Wagner's vocal work! This album ticks every box in terms of guitars. There's fast and intense riffage to be found here, beefy mid-tempo stuff, intricate shredding solos and tons of melodic licks and leads throughout every track - just what a traditional power metal album deserves! There's enough variety in the riffs and neo-classical solos going on that I honestly can't pick any holes whatsoever. Even the acoustic playing on the intro to 'Falling from Grace - Wake the Nightmares Pt. 1' is spectacular! I'll summarise the guitar work as melodic, focused and technical, yet still riffy and heavy enough to remind you that Rage are indeed a metal band, even if they ironically often tend to concentrate more on melody than they do actual rage!! Alongside the fantastic guitars is a tight drum performance from prolific drummer Mike Terrana. I've always struggled to discuss drums in detail, so I'll just say they're pretty damn great on this album too!

The production too, is excellent. The album has a clean and crisp tone, yet it never sounds fake or overproduced. That's a tough balance to achieve, but by golly they did it! It's also easy to forget that Rage are a power trio - just 3 guys in the band, yet their sound is massive. Great players combined with great production and songwriting will do that to a band I guess, regardless of how many members there are. 

Really, I just wanted to talk about Soundchaser because I think it's awesome. Well, that and the fact I don't know when or if I'll ever make a dedicated page to this band due to the limited availability of their catalogue in my country. But this particular album is worthy of a shoutout. Personally, I think Soundchaser is a modern power metal classic - and by "modern" I really mean "old" - this thing came out 23 years ago now! The songs never overstay their welcome; unlike your Helloween's, Gamma Ray's or Running Wild's, there are no epic-length numbers to speak of here - just fantastic slabs of pure power metal brilliance. Heavy metal songs full of energy, melody, catchy hooks, punchy riffage and technical solos. Now that's what I'm talkin' about!
Adam's rating: 9.2/10

Notable concert memories!

Some memories of certain gigs I've attended over the years. Just a bit of nostalgia for yours truly! Generally speaking, every concert I've been to has been fun, but some stand out more than others for often silly reasons. Many of them I don't have a lot to say about, other than the fact they were good - which is why they haven't made this list. See the full list here.


HEAVEN & HELL (BLACK SABBATH) @ NEC, Birmingham 13/11/2007:
I mean, it was my first proper concert. I was 15, and I can't believe it's been nearly 20 years now! Black Sabbath under the Heaven & Hell moniker (Dio/Iommi/Butler/Appice). Iced Earth when they had Tim 'Ripper' Owens on vocals and Lamb of God around the Sacrament era in support.

JUDAS PRIEST @ NEC, Birmingham 14/02/2009: 
Scott Travis' bass drum was so bloody loud I could feel it through my entire body. Also the only time I saw Priest with KK Downing. Plus, Nostradamus was the latest album at the time. I don't know if we'll ever hear anything live from that album again.

SONISPHERE FESTIVAL @ Knebworth 01 - 02/08/2009:
Check out this blog post. I went into detail about the entire festival.

NILE @ Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton 16/12/2009:
Ulcerate were one of the openers, and they were jaw-droppingly good. Also, I met Karl Sanders! 

OVERKILL @ Civic Hall Bar, Wolverhampton 24/02/2010:
The only gig I've ever attended with nearly continuous strobe lighting. Strobe lights + mosh pit = a very strange sensation indeed. It was like being in a pit running at a lower frame rate. Still never experienced anything like it since.

DYING FETUS @ 02 Academy, Birmingham 30/04/2010:
One of the support acts was the technical death metal band Origin, and I remember bassist Mike Flores continually guttural growling "COOKIE!!" into the mic during soundcheck. It was like a personal meme for me and my mate for a while. Also, my birthday is in April, and this was the first concert I attended where I was finally, legally allowed to drink.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR @ Catton Hall, Walton-on-Trent 13 - 15/08/2010:
My first Bloodstock festival, and amazingly still the only time where it rained pretty consistently for the duration of the weekend. Cannibal Corpse's set had the biggest mosh pit I'd ever seen. 

MOTORHEAD @ Civic Hall, Wolverhampton 24/11/2010:
By far the loudest gig I've ever attended. Maybe the only time I've ever felt I needed earplugs. I know some people wear them regardless, but I'm too far gone to care at this point.

SAXON @ Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton 18/04/2011:
Wolfsbane opened, and Blaze Bayley was stood around at the bar meeting everyone after their set! Super nice chap.

THE SWORD @ The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton 06/01/2013:
I swear there were more hipsters in the crowd than there were metalheads! Good gig from what I remember anyhow.

GHOST / GOJIRA @ 02 Academy, Birmingham 23/03/2013:
Both bands are fucking huge now. Ghost were still a metal band at this point too.

SONSIPHERE FESTIVAL @ Knebworth 04 - 06/07/2014:
Can't think of anything really notable, other than the fact it was a really good weekend. Basically I just wanted to say that I seriously miss Sonisphere, and wish it was still a thing.

DAMNATION FESTIVAL @ Leeds University 01/11/2014:
I was moshing to Cannibal Corpse and was completely unaware for some time that my nose was bleeding everywhere badly. Also, I got to see Bolt Thrower.

DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL @ Donnington Park, Leicestershire 12 - 14/06/2015:

I effectively slept in a puddle in my leaking tent on the Saturday night because of all the rain. Had to resort to sleeping in my car for the Sunday. Ironically, the rain at Download 2019 was even worse. Still, I saw Body Count and Suicidal Tendencies for the first time in 2015, which was awesome.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR @ Catton Hall, Walton-on-Trent 06 - 09/08/2015:
Sooo... much... weed...

RIOT FEST @ Douglas Park, Chicago 11 - 13/09/2015:
Only festival/concert I've been to abroad. Saw a multitude of different bands/acts... everything from Anthrax, Living Colour, Motorhead, Faith No More and System of a Down to Echo & the Bunnymen, Billy Idol, Merle Haggard and Cypress Hill.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR @ Catton Hall, Walton-on-Trent 11 - 14/08/2016:
I actually got to see Venom live. Since 2006 they've played the UK 4 times (according to Setlist.fm at least). 3 times in 2006 and the performance at Bloodstock I was present for in 2016. Also, this was the year Harambe died. The chant of the festival was "Dicks out for Harambe" to the tune of Twisted Sister's 'We're Not Gonna Take It' (who headlined the Saturday night).

DAMNATION FESTIVAL @ Leeds University 04/11/2017:

When Nails played I could barely breathe. The hall was packed all the way up to the bar and the temperature was through the roof.

SUFFOCATION / VENOM INC. @ The Asylum, Birmingham 12/03/2018:
In all my years of concert going, I only have 2 guitar picks - Billy Grazaidei of Biohazard (and that was only because my mate gave it to me), and Terrance Hobbs of Suffocation! Attendance was pretty low, but it was still a good night. And then we got harassed by a passive-aggressive nutjob on the way back to the train station!

THE ROLLING STONES @ Principality Stadium, Cardiff 15/06/2018:
Martin Roberts from Homes Under the Hammer was sat in the row in front of me, maybe 4 seats to the left. After about half an hour, people noticed and were taking photos with him.

SMASHING PUMPKINS @ Wembley Arena, London 16/10/2018: 
Smashing Pumpkins played a 3 hour set which I totally wasn't expecting. Also, Myrkur opened, which was odd.

ORANGE GOBLIN @ KK's Steel Mill, Wolverhampton 08/02/2019:
I was stood in the centre of the crowd maybe 4 or 5 rows from the front of the stage. Vocalist Ben Ward threw a plastic pint glass of beer at the audience, and it hit me right in the middle of the face!

DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL @ Donnington Park, Leicestershire 14 - 16/06/2019:
Rain. Non-stop rain for 5 days. Cold. No sleep. Drunk 24/7. And I wouldn't have had it any other way!

ANNIHILATOR @ KK's Steel Mill, Wolverhampton 16/10/2019:
There was a seriously drunk guy continually heckling Jeff Waters to play '21'. Eventually Jeff caved in and played the first 20 seconds of '21' just to shut the guy up.

AGNOSTIC FRONT @ Mama Roux's, Birmingham 19/11/2019:
Vinne Stigma played guitar in the middle of the crowd for at least a song or 2. Weirdly, in all my years of concert-going, I don't think that had happened at any gig I'd attended until then.

URIAH HEEP @ KK's Steel Mill, Wolverhampton 07/12/2019:
Maybe the most pissed I've ever been at a concert? Great night either way!

NAPALM DEATH @ 02 Institute, Birmingham 20/03/2020:
Pretty sure this was the last time I was in a mosh pit. Someone flew into me and seriously hurt my shoulder. It was painful to lift my arm up and it took at least 2 months to recover. I also remember sitting there in agony on the train on the way home! Can't really be bothered with moshing anymore. Also, this gig was just days before the first lockdown hit the UK in 2020.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR @ Catton Hall, Walton-on-Trent 11 - 15/08/2021:
First festival I attended after all the lockdowns. Got COVID immediately afterwards! Totally worth it.

EAGLES OF DEATH METAL @ 02 Institute, Birmingham 26/11/2021:
Jesse Hughes' tears of joy after the crowd chanted his name continually!

INGESTED @ The Asylum, Birmingham 18/03/2022:
A lot of crowdkilling/hardcore dancing dickheads, unfortunately. But then again, there were deathcore opening acts.

BLOC PARTY @ 02 Academy, Birmingham 26/05/2022:
Not the sort of band I'd normally go watch live, but fun. I must've drank at least 9 pints of Shipyard though, plus at least 3 pints of Guinness in Wetherspoons before I even got to the venue.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR @ Catton Hall, Walton-on-Trent 11 - 14/08/2022:
Disgustingly hot, heatwave weather. At least 30-35 degrees Celsius every day, and no shade other than inside the Sophie Lancaster or New Blood stage tents. Warm beer all weekend.

DEEP PURPLE @ Utilita Arena, Birmingham 25/10/2022:
The concert was supposed to have taken place 2 years prior, but COVID changed that! Still, awesome show. First time seeing Deep Purple (and their first tour with Simon McBride), so a special moment for me.

POLYPHIA @ 02 Institute, Birmingham 12/05/2023:
All I can say is thank god for the bar, 'cos there's no way I could enjoy this band sober. Zzzzzzzz.....

AMON AMARTH @ Civic Hall, Wolverhampton 14/06/2023:
Great night! And then I walked into a lamppost during the walk back to the train station.

FOO FIGHTERS @ Villa Park, Birmingham 27/06/2024:
Geezer Butler came on stage at one point, and the Foo's performed 'Paranoid' with him! 

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND @ Wembley Stadium, London 27/07/2024:
The Boss put on one of the greatest shows I've ever seen. Plus, Pierce Brosnan walked right past me twice!

DEEP PURPLE @ bp Pulse LIVE, Birmingham 04/11/2024:
First concert I took my fiancée to. 

TESTAMENT / OBITUARY @ 02 Academy, Birmingham 08/10/2025:
Destruction supported - always wanted to see them, and I finally got to. The cherry on top was meeting Schmier at the bar afterwards! Very friendly guy!

SAXON @ Civic Hall, Wolverhampton 14/11/2025:
Surprised I even made it to this one! Storm Claudia meant the wind and rainfall was insane that day. I was genuinely shocked the trains ran on time both ways, considering how fucking useless they are in this country.

EAGLES OF DEATH METAL

Reviewed:
- Peace Love Death Metal (2004)
- Death by Sexy (2006)
- Heart On (2008)
- Zipper Down (2015)


PEACE LOVE DEATH METAL          2004          (AntAcidAudio)
- Standouts: 'I Only Want You', 'Speaking in Tongues', 'So Easy', 'Flames Go Higher', 'English Girl', 'Stuck in the Metal', 'Miss Alissa'
I feel like I haven't reviewed anything not metal here since I went through the Steppenwolf catalogue about a year and a half ago! True, I reckon at least 60-70% of my collection is metal, give or take, but I do sometimes listen to other shit! Although it's hugely ironic that Eagles of Death Metal aren't actually a death metal band - let alone a metal band of any kind - despite the name! They are however a band I've been following for quite some time now. I didn't really get into them until my early 20s, but I've actually been aware of them since this 2004 debut - mainly because the song 'I Only Want You' was featured in the PS2 game Gran Turismo 4 (I sank plenty of hours into GT back in school)! Also, I'm sure I remember 'I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)' getting play on Kerrang! radio about 20 years ago... right?! Maybe I just dreamt that. Whatever! Point is, I've been well aware of this band since at least 2005, but didn't really get into them until 10 or so years after! In 2015 I saw them live at Riot Fest in Chicago (I was on holiday in the States that year) with my mate. That was the point I really started to give them the time of day because I thought they were stupidly fun on stage, and Jesse Hughes is quite the unique character and frontman. I've seen them a couple more times live since. Obviously in the studio, EODM are a duo. Hughes on vocals/guitar and Queens of the Stone Age's own Josh Homme on drums. To see Homme play live with the band is sadly quite rare as far as I know, but he's integral to the songwriting and studio albums.

And as for this 2004 debut album, Peace Love Death Metal, it's a good'un! Good old-fashioned, bare-bones garage rock n' roll with a sort of quirky sense of humour! The songs are short and simplistic in composition, but there's memorable hooks scattered all over this album. Right from the get-go, opening upbeat rocker 'I Only Want You' gets my foot tappin'! The riffs are so simple, the chorus so catchy and the song so... rock n' roll, man! Same goes for 'Speaking in Tongues', which actually packs a bit of punch. And then there's tracks like the chunky, almost bluesy 'Flames Go Higher', and the surprisingly strong cover of Stealers Wheel's 'Stuck In the Middle with You' (retitled here as 'Stuck in the Metal')! Or how about the insanely catchy 'So Easy' and up-tempo 'Miss Alissa'? Great stuff! There's so much fucking sleaze going on throughout the record too... like the songs are really boozy and greasy, and full of attitude - just listen to 'Already Died' and 'Midnight Creeper' to see what I mean.

The sleaziness of this album combined with Hughes' swagger reminds me a lot of the Rolling Stones, especially during the Sticky Fingers/Exile on Main St. era of the early '70s. To be honest, I think the attitude and delivery of Jesse Hughes is key to this band's success and appeal. Like I said, the songs are extremely simplistic and almost feel like improvised garage band jams at times - but this combined with Hughes' sense of humour and sleazy demeanour are what make Eagles of Death Metal such a fun band. He mixes his vocals up, sometimes doing this high-pitched, fun delivery, other times singing at a lower tone as well. And he's awesome live. I'm not taking away anything from Homme; I mean, this is the guy who fronts Queens of the Stone Age for crying out loud (and let's not forget the fact he was in Kyuss prior). But I think if you replaced Homme on drums, it'd have less of an impact than replacing Hughes - that's all I'm saying (plus Homme barely plays live with EODM anyway).

By the way, I know a lot of people on sites like Reddit take issue with Hughes' politics/drug abuse and whatever else, but I'm simply looking at him from a purely musical perspective - BECAUSE THIS IS A PERSONAL MUSIC BLOG AND BRINGING POLITICS INTO EVERYTHING IS GETTING FUCKING BORING!! Musically speaking, there's nothing political about this band anyway! I don't know what his reputation is in the States, but when I saw the band back in 2021 in the UK, the crowd were chanting his name which actually put tears of joy in the man's face. 

I like the production too. The overdriven guitar tones are raw and honest, and the album sounds like the product of a garage jam band - as it should. Maybe the bass/low end is lacking, but the songs feel like 2 blokes just fooling around in a little rehearsal room with a guitar and drum kit. There's enough polish that the production as a whole feels much more professional than a rough demo, but not glossy enough that it takes away from the garage rock aura of the band.

There's nothing pretentious about this album, it's just a fun, back-to-basics kind of rock n' roll affair. The music and band as a whole needs a charismatic frontman like Jesse Hughes to give these songs character; like I was saying, the songs feel like basic improvised rockers/sleaze-fests, but it doesn't mean they can't be great. With some faceless vocalist, they probably wouldn't be great - but thankfully this isn't the case! A very fun debut indeed. Not a masterwork by any stretch of the imagination, and I also feel like a lot of Queens of the Stone Age fans will check out EODM by default because of Josh Homme's involvement. They're not the same by any measure! Doesn't mean you shouldn't check 'em out though!

Edit: The last time I reviewed stuff that wasn't metal was when I was working on the Deep Purple solo artists page!
Adam's rating: 8/10


DEATH BY SEXY          2006          (Downtown)
- Standouts: 'I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)', 'I Gotta Feelin (Just Nineteen)', 'Solid Gold', 'Don't Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!)' 'Chase the Devil', 'Shasta Beast'
I normally default to either Peace Love Death Metal or Heart On whenever I feel like listening to this band, but after listening to Death by Sexy again in who knows how long for this review, I'm struggling to understand why that is. It's a rock-solid sequel! I will say that even though it undoubtedly gives similar vibes to the debut, there's still some differences present. The album sounds a little more accomplished and gives off less jamming vibes. Not that this isn't a garage rock album of course, because the riffs are still similar in style and structure, there's just a bit more going on now. I mean, the acoustic-tinged 'Solid Gold' is such a catchy, hooky little ditty! And it's over 4 minutes long! It's infectious like anything from the debut, but there's also no way this track could've appeared on said predecessor. But the sleaziness is definitely still here... and some songs certainly do sound like they've been ripped straight from the debut (e.g. 'The Ballad of Queen Bee and Baby Duck', 'Shasta Beast').

I find this album has a slightly harder-edge than the first one. Maybe that's down to the fuller production, but some of the songs have a 'lotta bite, like 'Don't Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!)', 'Cherry Cola', 'Poor Doggie' and 'I Gotta Feelin (Just Nineteen)'. Others aren't afraid to experiment a little, like the aforementioned 'Solid Gold', but also the upbeat rockabilly-ish 'Chase the Devil'. Despite these differences, the album still feels like a natural progression of the debut. Jesse Hughe's attitude is written all over the songs, they just don't feel like they're dicking around in a rehearsal room so much now. Oh, and I can't not mention the fast rocker opener 'I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)' too; as I said in the review above, I swear to god Kerrang! played this on the radio a fair bit back in '06. It's one of the first EODM songs I ever heard along with 'I Only Want You'. Production is definitely better this time too. Not that I don't like the way Peace Love Death Metal sounds (the simplicity only works in it's favour), but there's a lot more low end in Death by Sexy, and it the songs definitely benefit from this. Moreover, the guitars still have that honest, no-nonsense overdrive sound like they did last time.

Really, this album is as good as the debut - maybe even better. It's a tad more polished, sure, but it takes nothing away from what made them so fun in the first place. For whatever reason though, I still seem to gravitate more towards the first album over this one! 
Adam's rating: 8/10


HEART ON         2008         (Downtown)
- Standouts: 'Anything 'Cept the Truth', 'Wannabe in L.A.', '(I Used to Couldn't Dance) Tight Pants', 'High Voltage', 'Secret Plans', 'Now I'm a Fool', 'I'm Your Torpedo'
In my opinion, this one's the best of the bunch. Even though it's not terribly different from Death by Sexy, I just find there's a few more standout tracks on Heart On. For instance, the riffy '(I Used to Couldn't Dance) Tight Pants' and groovy 'Wannabe in L.A.' might just be 2 of their catchiest songs ever. That use of percussion in 'Wannabe in L.A.' in particular adds so much to the track, and makes it all the more memorable! 'High Voltage' too, is extremely catchy. It's driven by bass more than anything else which makes it stand out by default, but the hooks are to die for - hooky garage rock! And who could forget 'Secret Plans'? Jesse Hughe's vocals combined with the guitar synths (at least I think that's what I'm hearing!) make for a short but sweet rocker I can listen to over and over again! Hell, even the acoustic ballad (!!) 'Now I'm a Fool' is a great one! It's not a mushy, slushy ballad, it's more like a smooth, summery kind of affair! The catchiest songs on this disc - in case you couldn't tell - are SO catchy! I can comfortably throw the title track into that list too! 

Heart On also has a very similar production style to Death by Sexy, which is fine by me. It's more professional-sounding than the debut, but isn't too manufactured for it's own good. It still feels like a fine slab of good-time garage rock at the end of the day. So no complaints in that department. I do think maybe 'How Can a Man With So Many Friends Feel So Alone' and 'Solo Flights' border on filler though, but at least they still have the same sleazy attitude of the rest of the tracks! I'd be lying if I said the album isn't a tad front-loaded however, in that the first half is definitely stronger than the second. But the fact of the matter is I still enjoy this album from more-or-less beginning to end. Maybe it isn't as consistent overall as either previous record, but the best songs here totally overshadow the best one's from Peace Love Death Metal and Death by Sexy. And that's all I really look for from this band - catchy, hooky rock n' roll songs with Hughes' charm written all over them. Heart On delivers just that.
Adam's rating: 8.2/10


ZIPPER DOWN          2015          (Universal)
- Standouts: 'Complexity', 'Got the Power', 'Skin-Tight Boogie', Save a Prayer'
Things have been pretty scarce from the Eagles of Death Metal camp. They did do a covers album in 2019 as well as a jokey Christmas EP in 2021, but 2015's Zipper Down is still the most recent album of original studio tracks. I have to admit, I haven't spent a lot of time with this one compared to the other 3, even though I've owned it for several years. It always gets overshadowed, but every time I have listened to it, it's certainly provided me with enough entertainment for me to consider it a pretty good album. I think the problem with Zipper Down for me stems from the fact there's not a lot of bite to many of these tracks. Now, Eagles of Death Metal were never really hard rock band, but there was certainly a Rolling Stones-esque danger to them even if they weren't trying to be heavy. They're a rock n' roll band after all!

 As I said before though, this is definitely a listenable album, meaning there are at least a handful of cool songs to be found. 'Complexity' is an absurdly catchy opener, can't deny that. 'Got the Power' is a fun, feel-good rocker. 'Skin-Tight Boogie' is a totally sleazy, bass-heavy, slow burner, and I love it. Also, the cover of Duran, Duran's 'Save a Prayer' is a hellish fun one - this band have always been pretty great at cover songs. Really, none of the songs in general are poor, but aside from the one's I've just listed, I'll freely admit that it's hard for me to pick any other standouts. The rest of the album suffers a little from "autopilot syndrome" - songs that definitely sound like EODM, just not quite up to the same standards of any of the last 3 records, and often a little too tame to my ears. The lack of punchy, riffy songs like we had previously (e.g. 'I Only Want You', 'Speaking in Tongues', 'I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)' etc.) seems to rub me the wrong way, and many of the hooks throughout aren't as infectious as what Heart On had to offer. Maybe the novelty of the band was wearing off at this point? At least Zipper Down sounds as good as the rest from a production standpoint. And at least there are some gems to found here too.

Still, you can pick up these 4 Eagles of Death Metal albums dirt cheap - and even if Zipper Down is by far the weakest of the lot, at the very least it still sounds like an EODM record. So I won't say avoid this one completely.
Adam's rating: 6.8/10

Some album covers I don't like!

You never asked, but here's a list of some album covers I don't like anyway! Some of the picks in this post don't necessarily reflect the quality of the music of course - in fact, I think some of these choices are great albums. Doesn't make the artwork great too, though! I've deliberately stayed away from some of the obvious choices - Black Sabbath's Born Again (which I've always loved), Iron Maiden's Dance of Death, Manowar's Into Glory Ride, anything by Riot etc., because these have been talked about a million times all over the internet.


AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976)

This album kicks arse, definitely one of my favourite AC/DC records of all time. But the cover always bugged me - it was done by Hipgnosis, who were responsible for some pretty legendary album covers. But they didn't always hit the mark! I don't necessarily hate Dirty Deeds' cover, I just always thought it looked out of place for this particular album! Looks more like something a new wave or post-punk group would use to me. Certainly not a raw rock n' roll/boogie band like early-career AC/DC were back in the '70s! The pink font used for the band is totally unfitting, and a far cry from the classic logo they used on Highway to Hell and everything that came afterwards. Either way, fantastic record - but silly cover! Interestingly enough, the Australian version came with even uglier artwork!


ANNIHILATOR - Remains (1997)

I almost picked 1999's Criteria for a Black Widow, but it's cover art does at least remind me of Alice in Hell, so Remains it is! Annihilator boast one of the greatest band logos in metal (in my opinion of course), but there's far too much RED going on here! Red logo, red background, red cubes... just look at it. At least it kind of suits the industrial experimentation within the music I suppose, but who wants this thing on a t-shirt? This album was reissued on vinyl last year... the fanboy in me almost picked it up, but I'm not paying 30 or so quid for artwork as lame as this, so my old CD will have to do! 


BLACKFOOT - No Reservations (1975)

I'm no southern rock connoisseur by any means, but I've always really liked Blackfoot. However, I don't think many people would disagree with me when I say that their 1975 debut, No Reservations, does not look like the product of a southern rock band! Looks more at home on a Kraftwerk album! I actually quite enjoy this record even if it lacks the balls of albums like Strikes, Marauder, Tomcattin' etc..  I doubt No Reservations caught the eye of many rock fans back in 1975, the album cover presumably having something to do with this.


DEEP PURPLE - Slaves and Masters (1990)

I feel like I've talked about this album a lot on this blog. I said in my review that Slaves and Masters' album cover looks like something taken from Microsoft Clip Art. There has to be some computer tampering going on here, right?! Early '90s computer art! I get what it's achieve, what with the crystal ball - but the execution is terrible. To be fair, as much as I LOVE Deep Purple, they're not the first band I think of when it comes to great album covers, but Slaves and Masters is the worst culprit. On the plus side, it's no longer my least favourite Deep Purple album from a songs-perspective. House of Blue Light has taken that slot now. But I can't ignore the fact Slaves and Masters will always be terrible in terms of it's art.


DEF LEPPARD - High 'n' Dry (1981)

Another Hipgnosis misfire, I've never liked the cover to the Lepp's High 'n' Dry. The album itself is fantastic of course - one of their best - but this is some ugly-ass artwork! The centre picture fits the title of the album, sure - a bloke diving into an empty swimming pool. But what's the deal with the black and white border of guys all looking upwards? What's that all about?! Is it incredibly obvious and I'm just an idiot?! Or is there genuinely no real correlation between the border and the picture in the middle?


DEICIDE - Banished by Sin (2024)

Lets be honest here - most people are not in favour of AI generated album covers. If an album came with 2 covers as an option, nobody is ever gonna pick the AI version even if the real deal looks awful. Well, except for Glen Benton that is, hence why Deicide's Banished by Sin has made this list. At the very least this cover does kinda look like something Deicide would use, but why they didn't just use it as a template and then paint a real-life version of this demonic face (or whatever the hell it's supposed to be) is baffling. Anyway, using AI is just lazy, and considering Deicide are one of death metal's biggest bands, there's no way in hell they couldn't afford to hire a proper artist. Oh by the way, the music on this CD is actually really good! 


GAMMA RAY - Sigh No More (1991)

Gamma Ray have some great album covers, but it took a few years for them to really up their game in this department. I mean, what's going on here?! The skeleton looks kinda plastic to me, and the backdrop combined with the colours is just ugly as hell. The original logo is... okay I guess? But it's completely overshadowed by the one they'd use on 1995's Land of the Free, which they'd stick with for the rest of the career (for good reason). Unlike a lot of these picks, Sigh No More just happens to be the worst Gamma Ray album in terms of music as well. How unfortunate! It's not a bad album per se, just "meh"!


GILLAN - Mr. Universe (1979)

I stand by the fact this is one of the best albums any member of Deep Purple released outside of said band. It's a really fun, manic and eccentric slab of wild hard rock/heavy metal, yet the photo of Ian himself on the cover makes it look like some sort of pop/easy-listening kind of affair! The man himself all dressed up, stood in front of the ocean? It gives me the impression that this is an album full of smooth ballads, when it's really not! 


GRAVE DIGGER - Bone Collector (2025)

More AI bullshit, although this one isn't quite as offensive to my eyes as Deicide's Banished by Sin. Bone Collector's artwork never fails to disappoint, especially considering how many great covers Grave Digger have had in the past. The layout/concept is okay I guess; it does at least look like a Grave Digger album with a quick glance, but as soon as you look at it for more than 10 seconds and notice odd details like the weird skeleton fingers, it's quite obviously been created with AI. Thankfully the music is pretty awesome here as always from Grave Digger. 


JUDAS PRIEST - Priest... Live! (1987)

Demolition probably has the worst cover from their studio output, but Priest... Live! is easily the worst Judas Priest album cover if we're counting live albums too. It doesn't even look official! If I knew nothing about this release, I'd assume it was a bootleg. Just look at the font - it's all lowercase, let alone the fact it doesn't even say 'JUDAS' anywhere!! Where's their iconic logo?! Hell, they didn't even use the old-school gothic text logo from the first 3 albums! The shitty font combined with the horrible beige colours and random smattering of hands makes me think this was thrown together by the record label at the last minute, without the band's approval. The actual album itself isn't one of their best live efforts either, although the music is still far better than the artwork, luckily.


MAGNUM - Magnum II (1979)

Ironically, Magnum boast some of the best album covers in the game - overall they're pretty damn reliable in that regard thanks to their usage of Rodney Matthews' outstanding fantasy art. But it wasn't until 1982's Chase the Dragon when their healthy working relationship with Matthews began. About Magnum II though, it failed to chart and I genuinely think this uninspired, boring album cover may have had something to do with that. It's not horrible to look at by any means, but if you were flicking through LPs in a record store back in '79, would this have really caught your eye? Shame, because the album itself is great - a fine continuation of their debut, Kingdom of Madness. There's an updated 1988 reissue out there featuring Rodney Matthews artwork with a spaceship on the cover. It looks a million times cooler.


METAL CHURCH - Hanging in the Balance (1993)

Possibly one of the worst metal album covers of all time. Just look at it!! It's so bad that it even apparently played a part in Mike Howe's (RIP) decision to leave the band! Even the band's usually-cool logo looks unfinished, let alone the rest of this abomination!! It's crazy to me how some album covers get the go-ahead. Like, who the fuck sat down and approved this thing?! Again, the whole thing just screams "management-related miscommunication" to me.  As for the music, don't skimp on this one. Prime Metal Church indeed! In fact, on Metal Archives, it's the second-highest rated album behind the debut! I don't agree with that personally, but the music is a trillion times better than the cover for sure!


MOTORHEAD - March or Die (1992)

Considering Motorhead have one of the all-time greatest mascots in music, Snaggletooth, I'm not too sure what happened here. It looks like a rough draft - like something the artist initially submitted before starting work on the final product. I guess it's not awful... but out of every incarnation of Snaggletooth we've seen, March or Die is easily guilty of the worst rendition. Coincidentally, it's also my least favourite Motorhead album in general thanks to all the guest appearances and lacklustre production. 


PANTERA - Reinventing the Steel (2000)

Ehh... I guess the concept for this album cover is okay, even if it has nothing to do with "reinventing steel"! Some dude (actually a photo of a partygoer at Phil Anselmo's house in real life) jumping through a bonfire, bottle of bourbon whiskey in hand. You can't see exactly what whiskey the guy is drinking because they pixellated it (to avoid trademark infringement), but in reality it's Wild Turkey. The intentional pixellation makes this cover look 10 times worse already, but the product as a whole just looks ugly. At least it does 'sorta fit with the whole redneck vibe of the band! It's definitely one of Pantera's weaker albums too, but I've gotta say I also find it to be a tad overrated. Pantera on autopilot maybe, but Dimebag's tone and playing is always fun to listen to. 


QUEEN - The Miracle (1989)

Okay, so maybe this one is quite an obvious pick. Apparently the process required to create this album was complicated back in 1989, so I'll give The Miracle some credit for that at least. But to me this is easily Queen's worst album cover (compare this to News of the World!!). The way the band members' faces morph together is the stuff of nightmares, and I think that's because it hasn't been done in a cartoonish way. The concept is fine, sure, but even if the process was technically-impressive for the time, the finished result is horrid!! Of course, the album itself is a good one. The first 6 Queen albums will always be the best to me, but every one of their records have at least a handful of good tracks on them. Except maybe Hot Space.


RADIOHEAD - The Bends (1995)

I don't know what the general consensus is regarding The Bends' album artwork, but personally I've always hated it. Apparently it's a CPR mannequin photographed from a TV screen. I always thought it was some crappy CGI image when I was a kid, so knowing the actual story makes it slightly better to me... but I still think it sucks! As for the music, well, I'm not a fan of Radiohead. I find them to be overrated and their fans annoying as hell. In fact, the only reason I have this and OK Computer in my collection is because I tried to get into them many years ago because of the hype, and failed. 


RAVEN - Everything Louder (1997)

Raven were always one of the coolest New Wave of British Heavy Metal bands in my opinion. And I've always thought they sported one of the coolest band logos of the entire movement... but their albums covers, not so much. 1997's Everything Louder is a bombastic slab of high-energy heavy metal, as you'd expect from this band. The album artwork on the other hand, just looks cheap and nasty! Get a pixelated ring of fire, copy and paste 3 fists, slap the logo in the centre and voila! One album cover ready to go! One shitty album cover that is! It's quite clear the artwork was an afterthought. I've also got 2000's One for All... I almost picked that one instead, but I've had Everything Louder in my collection for far longer.


SAXON - Innocence Is No Excuse (1985)

Musically Innocence Is No Excuse isn't exactly representative of Saxon as a whole - it was released during those few years in the '80s where they were trying to break the US, meaning the songs were more radio-friendly and the production much cleaner. Even so, this is still a metal album at the end of the day, yet it looks more like something an '80s pop star would put out! A girl holding an apple with the "S" of the Saxon logo engraved in it! The good news is that of those few shiny, radio-friendly '80s Saxon albums, this one is by far the best. Very strong melodic heavy metal! 


THIN LIZZY - Shades of a Blue Orphanage (1972)

Like I said about Magnum II, if I was flicking through LPs in a shop back in 1972, I highly doubt I'd pick up Thin Lizzy's Shades of a Blue Orphanage. Granted, they still weren't really a hard rock act at this stage in their career, blending a lot of Irish folk into their brand of rock. So the cover isn't necessarily "unfitting" for the music... but nothing stands out about it. It does 'sorta look like it could be some traditional folk/blues record from decades earlier though. I'm guessing the children in the photo are supposed to represent Phil Lynott, Brian Downey and Eric Bell? I dunno. Funnily enough, Shades just happens to be my least favourite Lizzy record as well. I don't think the music is bad as such, just a bit tepid.


UFO - Mechanix (1982)

Sadly, UFO have a lot of bad album covers - but this one really takes the piss. Was this album cover thrown together in 2 minutes?! I'm not against simplicity - sometimes it works rather well. Mechanix is simplistic, yet still manages to look uglier than Ron Perlman! The whole thing kinda reminds me a little of 1940s American advertisement posters - normally that would be a compliment, but in this instance it's not. Yet again though, Mechanix is a case of unrepresentative outer presentation, because the songs are actually very good. In general, I think this is an underrated album from the Paul Chapman guitar era.

Blast from the past albums #13: VITAL REMAINS - Icons of Evil (2007, Century Media)

In this series of posts I'll discuss an album I picked up as a teenager or my early 20s and haven't listened to in a very long time.

Vital Remains' Icons of Evil was released in 2007, but I have a feeling I picked it up around 2011-ish, 'cos in 2007 I was only scratching the surface of death metal. It was still new to me, and I was probably only listening to the biggest bands of the genre like Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Death etc.. Still, it's been many years since I last heard Icons of Evil, at least in it's entirety. That's the reason I'm revisiting it for this post, and it was after their song 'Dechristianize' popped up on a random Spotify daylist for me a few weeks back that reminded me I actually have this album in my collection!

I've always thought this was a musically impressive, brutal slab of death metal - and I still do. But I also remember it being a little too big for it's boots, with a bit of a slogging length and a handful of tracks that go on for too long. Erm, I still find this to be true! The album is around 1 hour and 7 minutes long, and aside from intro track 'Where Is Your God Now' (which is just a sample from the film The Passion of the Christ) and the unusual cover of Yngwie Malmsteen's 'Disciples of Hell', every other song on here ranges from 6, 7, 8 and 9 minutes. In many cases, this doesn't automatically make an album bad - but I do find it to be a little pretentious in the case of death metal like this. These track lengths drift into progressive metal territory, and even though Vital Remains do throw in plenty of melodic guitar solos to counter the brutality of the riffs, I can't call this a progressive metal album, or even a progressive death metal album for that matter. Listen to something like Opeth's Still Life - now that's progressive death metal! Meanwhile, you won't be finding any ballads or truly mellow moments on Icons of Evil! Well, apart from the odd acoustic solo, like on 'Reborn the Upheaval of Nihility' that is! Yes, the album is too long then. The quality of the musicianship is tip-top, sure, but there's only so much of this I can take before it all gets too much. And that's Icons of Evil's biggest problem. It's a pretty big problem to have, because it means I don't want to hear this thing in full very often.

Having said all that, the good news is that the overblown length of this album is the only real issue to speak of. The songs are all very good individually. Dave Suzuki has to be one of the most underrated multi-instrumentalists in death metal, no?! Dude is a maestro, pulling off all the fancy lead guitar work, bass and even drums. The guitar solos are insanely tight and technical, full of sweep-picking and shredding, while the drums are played at break-neck speed, blast beats written all over them. Plus, alongside rhythm guitarist Tony Lazaro, Suzuki writes all the music here. The man is one hell of a player. Also, Glen Benton is one hell of a vocalist. Obviously this is the man in charge of legendary death metal band Deicide, but of all the vocal performances I've heard from him, Icons of Evil is up there as one of his best (in my opinion of course). And I like Deicide! On this album though, he's an absolute beast, roaring his way through every song. The lyrics he spouts are predictably anti-Christian, but what else do you expect to come out of Glen Benton's mouth?!

Like I said, the songs are really cool on an individual level, even if sitting through this thing in one go is a bit of a challenge. The songs are monstrously heavy, the riffs are relentless, the drums are shattering and the vocals are animalistic. But all those added guitar leads do provide balance to the sheer heaviness of the riffs - the songs are as brutal as you want them to be, but the solos do at least keep you on your toes. I know I've moaned about the album being too long, but can you imagine if the album was still the same length without the guitar solos?! I think there's some definite snobbery going on in terms of the technicality of the music; Dying Fetus for example, are as technical as they come - but most of their albums don't even break 40 minutes. So I do feel like there's some showing off from the band members with Icons of Evil, but like I said, I still think the songs are good. Songs like the title track, 'Hammer Down the Nails', 'Scorned' and 'Shrapnel Embedded Flesh' are mighty impressive and make for great, testosterone-pumping listening in the gym. 

I think the production is really solid too. Handled by notable death metal producer and current lead guitarist for Cannibal Corpse, Erik Rutan, the album has an organic sound that is refreshing for such a technically-impressive record like this. Nothing feels fake or over-produced, with guitar tones that actually sound achievable without 1000s of £ worth of pedals. I haven't picked up my guitar for a long time, but I did play a lot in my youth - and that's how I feel about the guitars on this album anyway. Maybe the vocals are mixed a little too loud, but that's the only thing I can really gripe about regarding this album's mix.

Had this album lasted somewhere around the 45-50 minute mark, I'd probably have rated it a high 8/10. Honestly, the album gives me an adrenaline rush... for about 45-ish minutes, and then I start to get tired and want to listen to something else! Don't get me wrong, I do listen to playlists - particularly in the gym. But at home or when driving I'm primarily an album guy, and I can't just overlook the fact Icons of Evil is too fuckin' long for it's own good! Consistently impressive songwriting/performances doesn't mean the album doesn't overstay it's welcome! Still, there is plenty of really strong death metal to digest here, and like I said before, the songs are all very solid on an individual level. I'm not crazy about the Yngwie cover ('Disciples of Hell'), but even that isn't terrible. Overall, the album is about as good as I remembered.
Adam's rating: 7.7/10

2026 thus far

2026 is already looking pretty damn good as far as new releases go. I've already picked up a few myself, namely Kreator's Krushers of the World, Megadeth's self-titled, Mayhem's Liturgy of Death, Venom's Into Oblivion, Metal Church's Dead to Rights, Winterfylleth's The Unyielding Season and Lamb of God's Into Oblivion. I also have Dimmu Borgir's Grand Serpent Rising and Armored Saint's Emotion Factory Reset pre-ordered, both of which are coming out on 22nd May. Even better was the announcement of Deep Purple's new album, Splat!, which is to be released on 3rd July! Naturally, I have the limited box set pre-ordered... I'm glad I pre-ordered when I did, because it's already sold out. Also coming later this year is Anthrax's new album, Cursum Perficio, plus (supposedly) new albums from bands like Saxon and Magnum. Quite a lot of stuff then! Also just released is Darkthrone's Pre-Historic Metal... not sure if I'll be getting this one yet as there's too many other Darkthrone albums I'm missing that I want, but who knows? It might still show up on my "2026 wrap-up" post at the end of the year - we'll see.

Predictably, I'm looking forward to the new Deep Purple album more than anything else. I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've listened to the last one, 2024's =1, at this stage in time. So obviously I have high hopes for Splat!... and I'm pretty confident it will be great if =1 is anything to go by. When Simon McBride entered the band following Steve Morse's departure in 2022, I think all fans were curious/dubious about what he could offer to the band - but those doubts vanished when I saw them live with him for the first time in 2022. I'm just extremely happy that they're still out there doing what they do. I honestly thought in 2021 that the covers album, Turning to Crime, could very well have been their last album (thank god it wasn't) - but no. Here we are in 2026 with another new studio album produced again by Bob Ezrin! And apparently it's their heaviest in years, which is surprising because =1 was no slouch either. I'm seeing them live again in November, and I can't wait. I'm also really looking forward to hearing the new Anthrax record, Cursum Perficio. It's been 10 years since their last release, 2016's For All Kings. 10 years! Time flies.

I don't want to talk in too much detail about the 2026 albums I have got my hands on so far (I'm saving that for the end of year wrap-up post), but I'd say I'm liking Winterfylleth's The Unyielding Season and Metal Church's Dead to Rights the most so far, with Venom's Into Oblivion following closely behind. I hadn't even planned to get the latest Winterfylleth, but my birthday was just over a month ago and I was being asked for gift ideas! Still, really bloody good atmospheric and mature black metal as expected from this band. I have a few other albums from them too, and they tend to stick to a certain formula - a formula that works, plain and simple. As for the new Metal Church, I've already reviewed it. New singer Brian Allen is great, and the album is a fine continuation of what MC do best - pure American heavy metal. Same goes for Venom's Into Oblivion. I literally just reviewed it yesterday, and it's definitely one of the better albums from the Cronos/Rage/Dante lineup.

I've enjoyed pretty much every 2026 album I've picked up so far, to some extent, but Megadeth's self-titled was a bit of a disappointment. I will say that it's grown on me a tad more since my 6.8/10 review back in January - it's a catchy album, and I'd probably rank it alongside albums like United Abominations, Super Collider etc. now it's had more time to sink in, but as a final album from a monumentally important band like Megadeth, that's not good enough! Kreator's Krushers of the World is a bit of a weird one for me too. I hadn't listened to anything from this band since 2012's Phantom Antichrist, so I was surprised by how melodic and - dare I say it - mainstream-sounding this new record is. It's a far cry from the violent, thrashing sounds of their '80s material (or even some of the 2000's albums like Enemy of God), and actually reminds me a lot of Machine Head (for better or worse)! Like I said, I won't be going into too much detail as I will be doing that in my "2026 wrap-up" post later this year, but this album wasn't what I was expecting. Then again, I've been out of the loop with Kreator for some time.

I don't have a huge amount of gigs lined up this year, 'cos I'm getting married in October - I do have priorities you know! But I did see Primal Fear at KK's Steel Mill in March - they were great. Ralf Scheepers killed it vocally, which was really cool to see. I've also got Bloodstock festival in August (haven't missed a single one since 2010) and the aforementioned Deep Purple concert in November, at the NEC in Birmingham. I'm also having a night out with my fiancée this coming Thursday, and seeing Kiefer Sutherland live at the Steel Mill! Not too sure what to expect to be honest, but it's very cool to see an actor of his calibre at a rock venue in Wolverhampton! I may also make it to the Bloodstock Winter Gathering (again at the Steel Mill, it's fairly local for me) this year in December, but we'll see. 2025's Winter Gathering last year was a fantastic night, and this year's lineup looks just as good, if not better.

That's all really. I basically just wanted to give a 2026 update thus far, but had a lot to say, hence why I've made this separate post!