Random albums I want to talk about #7: CARPATHIAN FOREST - Morbid Fascination of Death (2001, Peaceville)

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

How do I feel about Carpathian Forest? Well, I like them. I wouldn't say I love them - they're not one of my favourite black metal bands, but seeing as I own their first 3 albums (1998's Black Shining Leather, 2000's Strange Old Brew and 2001's Morbid Fascination of Death), I must like them to some extent! Of those 3 albums, I feel like talking about Morbid Fascination of Death right now. For some reason. I don't really know why.

Okay, so I may not think as highly of Carpathian Forest as I do other Norwegian black metal bands like Emperor, Mayhem or Darkthrone. But there's still a lot to like about them. They certainly have their own unique charm without feeling like they try too hard. Yes, their lyrics are often pretty ridiculous. CF are edgelords no doubt, but it's quite clear that they don't take themselves too seriously either. There's something fun about CF, kinda like how Darkthrone don't really take themselves all that seriously these days either! Yet they're still a legit respected black metal band from the same scene as all the other legendary bands to come out of the Norway in the early 90s. They still don the corpsepaint and dress the same way a lot of their contemporaries do, but they still have a personality of their own.

I'm all for raw lo-fi black metal production and trebly tremolo-picked riffing, but Carpathian Forest aren't really about all that. They have an almost black n' roll feel to their music, and a lot of their riffs have much in common with the Venom/Celtic Frost/Hellhammer-style of black metal to my ears. And that is certainly the case on Morbid Fascination of Death. The riffs are quite often big and beefy, thrashy, pummelling or even doomy. And old-school of course. That's not to say you don't get segments of the more frantic-style that is typical of second-wave black metal (for instance, like on the title track and also parts of 'Knokkelmann'), I'm just saying that CF quite often bring that more classic style of black metal to their scene. Combined with some frenetic drumming however, and CF are just as intense as the rest of their contemporaries. And a bit less serious too of course!

Most of the duration of this album is a good time for me. I totally appreciate the way they approach their riffs - it's the first thing I think of when someone mentions Carpathian Forest, and what makes them standout for me. Vocalist R. Nattefrost gets the job done too. It's hard to really pick out any notably distinguishing features when it comes to his vocals; he's maybe a bit generic in that he sounds like so many other black metal vocalists with his raspy, harsh tone - but like I said, he gets the job done. It's hard to really pick holes with him even if he's not really doing anything you've not heard before. You do get some more atmospheric moments here and there too, such as on the foreboding 'A World of Bones'. Kind of expected from a black metal band of this ilk, and they pull it off rather well too, even if other bands have done it better.

The production is one of the best aspects of Morbid Fascination of Death. I feel the same way about the other 2 CF albums I've got in my collection too. As I said earlier, I'm totally in favour of a raw, lo-fi black metal sound depending on the band in question, but it wouldn't work in Carpathian Forest's favour. Their riffs are too punchy and meaty, and I feel like a raw production would kill the intended vibe of these songs. So the production is actually a bit cleaner here than what you'd typically expect from a lot of other black metal bands. Not clean in a way that's particularly modern or over-produced, no, it just means the guitar tones are thick and hefty (as they should be considering the band's approach to riff-writing), and the rest of the instruments are mixed in a way that is comfortably audible to the listener. 

The band aren't afraid to experiment, but sometimes they go a little too far for my liking. I really can't get on board with the saxophones (!!) on the second-to-last track 'Cold Comfort'. The strange, mystical atmosphere of this track has potential, but the sax kinda kills it for me. It also goes on for at least 2 minutes longer than it needs to, and I almost always skip it about half-way. The same goes for the final song, 'Speechless'. Okay, there's no sax on this one (just pianos instead), and the song is all about slow, spacey atmosphere once again... but it doesn't really go anywhere, and I just think ending on 2 back-to-back atmospheric songs was the wrong call. Had 'Speechless' been followed-up by something hard and nasty, it'd feel like it has more purpose on the album. That's my opinion anyway.

All in all though, this is a strong effort from Carpathian Forest. A couple of filler tracks at the end bring it down a bit, and I think Black Shining Leather and Strange Old Brew also suffer from a couple of filler numbers too (BSL had that random cover of The Cure's 'A Forest' tacked on the end - I could do without it). And although there's aspects of this band that others do better (mostly vocals and atmosphere), I really do enjoy CF's approach to riffs and the overall ridiculousness of the lyrics/attitude. Of the 3 CF albums I have in my collection, Morbid Fascination of Death ranks in the middle for me. They don't have the biggest catalogue - 5 studio albums in total and a pretty notable compilation (We're Going to Hell for This). I'm not in a rush to collect the rest of their albums, but I like this band enough to pick them up if I see them for sale at a reasonable price.
Adam's rating: 7.6/10

Random albums I want to talk about #6: GRAVE PILGRIM - Molten Hands Reach West (2022, EP, Death Prayer Records)

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

US-based black metal duo Grave Pilgrim have made some of the best black metal I've heard in a long time. I have all their major releases in my collection - 2021's self-titled debut, 2023's The Bigotry of Purpose and 2026's The Pungent Wine of Pride. I think all these albums are great, but I particularly like their 2022 EP, Molten Hands Reach West. It's 7 tracks and 23 minutes of music... but mannn, this is a seriously strong and uniquely American take on black metal!!

Grave Pilgrim certainly have their own brand and sound musically, and you can hear it across all 3 of their main studio albums. For me however, I feel Molten Hands Reach West summarises the band best. It's a perfect gateway into Grave Pilgrim's music. They are unquestionably black metal in sound and character, but they fuse old folky/bluesy Americana influences into their style of black metal, with plenty of melody to go with it. It's almost like listening to Old West black metal! That's the vibe I often get when I listen to Grave Pilgrim, but in particular this EP. It's good. It's sooo good!

The folk/blues-type styles seem to go hand-in-hand with the raw yet melodic black metal the band play. It doesn't feel like their trying too hard, nor does it feel like a gimmick in any shape or form. For example, the powerful BM of 'Forged in the Fires of a Setting Sun' is seamlessly followed-up by the masterful acoustic piece that is 'John Glanton's Bones' - it sounds like it could have come from a Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western! Those Americana-style blues and folk influences are also particularly notable on the instrumental intro 'Sanguine Dawn' and 'Blood Memory', as well as the superb 'Young Hickory'. 'Young Hickory' is almost entirely traditionally blues/folk-based in terms of it's instrumentation, but the raw production, dirty overdriven guitars and dark, muted vocals are what give the track it's black metal edge. Excellent stuff.

Even the more "typically black metal" songs - 'Molten Hands Reach West', 'Forged in the Fires of a Setting Sun' and 'Hard to be a God' - standout from the crowd. They're more metallic in the traditional black metal sense than 'Young Hickory' of course, but Grave Pilgrim still write riffs in a way that make use of bluesy licks and extremely memorable melodies that with any of the tremolo-picked riffs that is textbook black metal. These tracks are riffy, and even if the production is appropriately raw, every note/chord/lick is audible - and since there's actually quite a lot going on within these 3 songs, that's a good thing. The vocals are as raspy and grim as you'd expect; maybe they're a tad too low in the mix audibly, but I don't think the vocals are necessarily supposed to be at the forefront of the songs anyway. If anything, they serve more as atmosphere - that's how I perceive them anyway.

This genre has become one of my favourites over the past few years (it only took about 16 years!) - I've liked black metal since my late teens, but I've only really grown to love it as I've gotten older. I've gotten hold of quite a lot of black metal albums over the past few years from bands old and new. Some of these I like a lot, sure, but but when I bought The Bigotry of Purpose earlier this year, I immediately picked up the rest of their main catalogue immediately afterwards. I pre-ordered this year's The Pungent Wine of Pride on vinyl too (it was released at the end of May). That's how much I liked Grave Pilgrim's music. I get a totally different and unique vibe/atmosphere from this band that I don't get with other black metal bands. It's not like I want every BM band to sound like Grave Pilgrim of course, I just appreciate bands that go out the extra mile to sound that little bit different. And as much as I really enjoy their full-length albums, it's this EP - Molten Hands Reach West - that I seem to return to the most. It's like a bite-sized looksee into their catalogue, and that's how an EP should work! Very cool stuff.

Please bear in mind that I'm reviewing this based on the fact it is an EP and not a full-length studio album. The 9/10 rating doesn't mean it's necessarily better than their full-lengths. It just means it's a really fucking strong EP!
Adam's rating: 9/10 

Random albums I want to talk about #5: BACHMAN-TURNER OVERDRIVE - Not Fragile (1974, Mercury)

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

So many music-based YouTubers out there have made "Top 100 albums" lists, and I have no idea how they do it. I could make a long list of my own favourite albums, but I'd never be able to number them. And as for a "Top 100 songs" list, well, that's even more difficult! I have hundreds, maybe even thousands of favourite tracks!! One song that would definitely make that list for me is Canadian group Bachman-Turner Overdrive's 'You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet'. I LOVE that song. And the album it appeared on, 1974's Not Fragile ain't too shabby either!

Not Fragile is actually quite a heavy album for it's time. BTO are not a heavy metal band, but it's fair to call this album hard rock. Riffy hard rock with the occasional blues/boogie influence, a bit like a heavier Status Quo maybe? The opening title track kicks arse! It's a slow, lumbering number with a fantastically heavy guitar and bass riff that drives the track along. And 'Rock Is My Life, and This Is My Song' is a stupendous hard rock anthem. The verses are melodic and mellow which build up to the fist-pumping chorus, which is completely awesome. '70s heavy rock rules! 'Roll On Down the Highway' achieved some success as a single, and you can see why. A very strong and upbeat hard rocker with some blues influence and plenty of great gooks to go with it. 

'You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet' was obviously the big hit from this album, and the BTO song that most people know. As I said, it's one of my favourite tracks of all time - which is admittedly a rather long list, but it's on there! Randy Bachman's vocals are ridiculously catchy, and I genuinely don't think the song would have had the same impact if it weren't for the stuttering chorus!! It's part of it's charm. Musically, the verses are actually pretty melodic guitars-wise, but the chorus has those simplistic yet powerfully heavy BTO riffs that you want. An S-tier 70s rock tune for me personality!! My second favourite track from this album is easily 'Sledgehammer'. Absolute banger! Like 'Rock Is My Life, and This Is My Song', there's some mellowness in the verse, which builds up to one of the biggest, most in-your-face choruses/riffs ever!! One thing I like a lot about BTO is the contrast between Randy Bachman and C.F. Turner's vocals. Turner has more of a deep, imposing voice, while Randy's is a bit higher in tone. Randy isn't necessarily great in terms of vocal ability, but I admire the honesty and raw passion in his voice. It's perfect for BTO. 'Sledgehammer' is a great example of their shared vocals. 'Givin' It All Away' too, is a top-notch speedy boogie rocker and an excellent way to close this record.

Complaints are of course, pretty minor. 'Blue Moanin'' is a fun song, but it does have a typically 70s blues rock feel compared to the rest of the album. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's the sort of thing a lot of other bands were doing at the time, and feels a little less special to the rest of the songs as a result. I guess 'Second Hand' is maybe a tad underwhelming next to everything else on here, but again, still a good time that doesn't take much away from the album (if anything at all). I also like the inclusion of the jammy instrumental 'Free Wheelin''. It was memorable ever since I first heard it. Production is great too. I love 1970s guitar tones, and the guitar tones on Not Fragile are stupendous.

In conclusion, this kicks arse. Maybe it doesn't quite top Montrose's debut as far as killer 1970s heavy albums from across the pond goes (and probably not as influential either), but it's a classic alright. I don't really know if I have an all-time favourite era for music as I think it depends on the genre more than anything, but I do find that a lot of my most played albums come from the 70s. Not Fragile is a 70s album that always puts a smile on my face. It's a 9.1/10 for me, because not every song on here is perfect, but there's more than enough outstanding cuts on here for the album to achieve classic status.
Adam's rating: 9.1/10

P.S. I own the 2012 Cherry Red issue. It bundles in their next album, 1975's Four Wheel Drive, onto a single disc (another really solid album). Totally recommend this reissue!

Random albums I want to talk about #4: SABBAT - Dreamweaver (Reflections of Our Yesterdays) (1989, Noise)

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

The list of great UK thrash outfits isn't especially long; Onslaught, Xentrix, Acid Reign, Evile... they exist, sure, but as a Brit myself, it's hard to argue that this country has produced as many seminal thrash bands as the States, Germany or even Canada. Don't assume that there aren't any classic thrash albums hailing from the UK though. Sabbat's second full-length, Dreamweaver (Reflections of Our Yesterdays), has long been one of my favourite thrash albums of all time, and frankly I think it always will.

Sabbat formed in Nottingham, and it's definitely notable that renowned metal producer Andy Sneap came from this band. Sneap is one of the biggest producers in the genre these days, having worked with some of the biggest bands in the biz - Judas Priest, Megadeth, Accept, Saxon, Testament, Exodus, Amon Amarth... the list goes on! Back in 1989 however, he was a guitarist in Sabbat and had nothing to do with music production. Speaking of which, I've always thought Dreamweaver sounds brilliant. The guitar tones on this record are sharper than a Swiss army knife, and even though the album as a whole has a very dry feel, I find it actually suits the nature of the music here perfectly. It's funny, because even though Dreamweaver is a pretty highly-rated album in the metal underground, I've actually seen it's production criticised quite regularly on the internet. It's one of the only criticisms I really hear about it. Me, I can't really imagine Dreamweaver sounding any other way.

As I said, it's probably one of my favourite thrash records ever. I've been cranking this thing since I was about 16, and I reckon I spin it at least a couple of times a year. Pretty impressive considering I'm 34 now. I don't agree with Dani Filth's claim that it's "One of the most important metal albums - ever" like the sticker says on the jewel case of my 2007 Sanctuary reissue. That's an insane take - it's not Master of Reality, Stained Class, Ride the Lightning, Reign in Blood etc. - importance suggests influence on the genre, and I don't think Sabbat were influencing the world of thrash like a lot of other US bands had already done prior. Thrash was already an established subgenre by 1989, and I don't think the band were necessarily doing anything "new" with the genre here. And it doesn't matter anyway, because you don't have to be breaking new ground to be great. Dreamweaver is an underground metal classic; a fantastically technical, almost progressive thrash metal record.

The sheer number of riffs on this album is insane. The songs don't really follow any basic, formulaic structure. Sure, riffs are repeated, but the songs are usually written in a way that stacks a ton of riffs together, with some solos/melodic parts thrown in for good measure, as well as some shorter, atmospheric interlude tracks like 'Advent of Insanity' and 'Happy Never After'. The riffing is dark, heavy and the tempos range from fast as fuck to mid-tempo and chuggy. But aside from the odd proggy melodies here and there, the music is almost always HEAVY. To fit all these complex, technical riffs, the songs are generally on the longer side - aside from the interlude tracks, the 4 and half minute 'Wildfire' is the shortest full-length number on here, with others such as 'How Have the Mighty Fallen?' and 'The Best of Enemies' clocking in at over 8 minutes long. Obviously I've always held this album in high regard, and since I'm a riff guy above anything else, Dreamweaver has always been one of my favourite thrash discs when it comes to riffs alone. Like I said, there's a stupidly long list of riffs within practically all these tracks, but all of them are great. None of them feel like they've been thrown together quickly, or laid down just to make the song longer. They're all technically-impressive, many of them are memorable and they all piece together and flow organically.

The vocals are certainly not as impressive as the guitar performances, but that's not to say Martin Walkyier deserves no credit here. His range is limited (although he does sing clean on acoustic interlude 'Advent of Insanity') - for 95% of this album, he kind of snarls/hisses his way through this entire album, and barely catches his breath. Yeah, there's a lot of lyrics within this record; when Walkyier stops singing, it's usually not for long. Since this is a concept album, the lyrics take inspiration from a book - Brian Bates' The Way of the Wyrd. Outside of Dreamweaver, I know literally nothing about it, and I can't say I've ever really cared for the actual meaning of the lyrics here either. But I've always thought these spiritual, Pagan/Celtic-esque lyrics have always suited the music perfectly, even if I've never really payed much attention to what Walkyier is actually trying to say. So even though Martin is not exactly the most memorable thrash vocalist in terms of his actual pipes, his unique approach to lyrical themes is what makes him stand out and why he suits to be on this album so much. Oh, and the lyrics perfectly accompany the album artwork, which in my opinion is one of the greatest metal album covers of all time. Look at it!

I also think Sabbat have a very unique atmosphere that is unlike any other band I can think of. Even though they thrash hard for most of the album, there's an undeniably dark, mystical atmosphere surrounding Dreamweaver. They do try to be atmospheric at times of course, like in the proggy solos/occasional acoustic and melodic moments within the tracks, but I've always felt the atmosphere never dulls at any point during the playtime of this record, regardless of what the band are actually doing. And that's impressive. To cut to the chase, this is a proggy/technical thrash album with an almost folk-like atmosphere. A folk-like atmosphere that even some dedicated folk metal bands would kill to achieve!

As much as I've enjoyed doing the "Blast from the past albums" series of blog posts, I needed an excuse to create a new, category/rule-free series of posts that allows me to talk about literally any album in my collection that I feel like. I've wanted to do a post about Dreamweaver for a very long time, because it deserves exposure. It does seem to have a cult following, at least here in the UK. I have a Dreamweaver hoodie somewhere in my crowded wardrobe, and practically every time I've worn it to a gig or festival in this country, at least a couple of people have commented on it. But worldwide, I don't really know how popular Sabbat are/were. They only made 3 albums in total, and then split up in 1991. Back in 2006 they reunited, but split again in 2010. I remember hoping to catch them live, because I first started going to concerts around this period, but I never got the chance. And since Andy Sneap is such an in-demand producer these days, not to mention the fact he's a touring guitarist with Judas Priest, I don't think we'll ever get another Sabbat reunion. 

Still, I'll keep enjoying Dreamweaver for the rest of my days. It's maybe not my all-time favourite thrash album ever, but it's up there.
Adam's rating: 9.3/10

P.S. I am fully aware of the Japanese band of the same name, the old-school blackened thrash group called Sabbat! Never checked them out, don't know why. I should change that...

Random albums I want to talk about #3: BOB DYLAN - Rough and Rowdy Ways (2020, Columbia)

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

I had way too much time on my hands during the COVID days (even though I was still working), and during that time I going out of my way to try to get into some highly-respected artists that I'd never really given much time of day to prior. Obviously I was always familiar with Bob Dylan. Any rock fan will stumble into his music at one point or another, even if it's somebody else covering one of his songs. But aside from Blonde on Blonde (which I already had) I'd never actually sat down and listened to any of his albums in full, so in 2020 I bought a few of his records - Highway 61 Revisited, Blood on the Tracks, Nashville Skyline etc.. I also picked up his then-brand new album, 2020's Rough and Rowdy Ways. Needless to say, I am still not a Bob Dylan fan or enthusiast - I'm certainly not into Dylan enough to consider myself anything more than a casual listener. But some of the albums I do own, I like up to a point. And I massively respect the man's influence and impact on modern music of course. Rough and Rowdy Ways is one of the albums I remember liking most out of the one's I did pick up. That and the country-inspired Nashville Skyline, which is weird because I can hardly call myself a country fan either. 

Of course, I'm no Dylan connoisseur. I don't really know what the fuck makes a Dylan album so great; like, I don't really know what makes Highway 61 better than, say, Love and Theft. But ask any critic or presumably any hardcore Bob Dylan fan, they'll likely tell you that Highway 61 is the better record. And I don't really know why Blonde on Blonde is considered to be better than Rough and Rowdy Ways. What I'm trying to say is the fact that I am a casual listener of Dylan at most, I suppose it means I can go into any of his albums pretty open-minded and unbiased. Maybe? 

Whatever! What I do know is that I hadn't heard this album for a good few years, despite giving it a fair amount of attention back in 2020 (although not on this blog). I still remembered practically every song on here, which is a good sign. And I think one of the reasons I liked this album more-so than many of the others I picked up is the fact I actually think I prefer old Dylan's voice to young Dylan's voice, as mental as that sounds. If we're being honest, I don't think a lot of people consider Bob to be a good singer in terms of vocal ability. This doesn't really bother me - after all, look at all the metal and other shit I listen to, what percentage of those guys can actually sing?! If the vocals suit the music and vibe, then they don't have to be impressive. Neil Young is a prime example of this, so is Billy Corgan. And Lemmy. Ozzy anyone? And the same is true with Bob Dylan! But there's something about the weathered, haggard 79 year old Bob that just works for me when it comes to this album. I couldn't imagine his nasally, higher-pitched style of his earlier days working well with any of these tracks.

The blues songs, 'False Prophet', 'Goodbye Jimmy Reed' and 'Crossing the Rubycon', are great. They sound like the product of a seasoned blues band playing some dive bar in the Deep South. They're "rough", just like the album title suggests, although maybe not particularly "rowdy"! Again, old Bob's vocals really suits the style of these tracks. I also like the folky, if oddly dark 'My Own Version of You', plus the super-smooth ballad 'I've Made Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You', with it's almost gospel/lullaby-like aura. It stands out in a good way. 'Mother of Muses' is pleasant enough, and strangely, I actually quite enjoy opening track 'I Contain Multitudes'. I say "strangely" because it's essentially a simplistic acoustic folk song with spoken-word vocals from Bob, talking about, erm, a "multitude" of crap I don't really understand (sorry)! But I like it!

Yeah, I'm not much of a lyrics guy when it comes down to it. They're not even a big deal for me when it comes to concept albums. Maybe that's one of the reasons why I'm not really a fan of Bob, even if I admire him. There's moments on this album where I really have no idea what the fuck Dylan is waffling on about, or trying to say. I wasn't sure if Bob was literally talking about himself on 'I Contain Multitudes', but in reality I think he's just talking about people in general. Maybe I'm just a total dumbass, because a lot of critic reviews of this album talk in much more detail about the lyrics, which is probably a fairer way to critique Bob's works in all fairness. For me, I somewhat pay attention, but I like a lot of what this album has to offer either way, so it's not really a big deal whichever way you look at it - from my perspective of course. Don't get me wrong, there are songs with lyrics that do resonate with me. But I certainly don't claim to be a lyrics guy, so unless the wordplay is so utterly terrible and embarrassingly stupid, they don't tend to affect my enjoyment of an artist too much. 

That said, it's hard to avoid the lyrics to the album's finale, the near-17 minute 'Murder Most Foul'. It's kind of a heartfelt epic about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. It's basically an analysis of Americana and the decay of political trust/values in the USA. And there's probably a whole lot more to take away from Bob's storytelling in this one too, I'm just not smart enough to really get much more out of it than that! But I totally appreciate what the man was trying to do with this song, and it's probably the only song on here where I actually like the lyrics more-so than I do the music. It's entirely spoken-word, in similar fashion to 'I Contain Multitudes', with no real instrumentational melody/structure to speak off. There is soft background music of course, but it feels to me like it's there to set the tone for the vocals. The lyrics are the focal point of 'Murder Most Foul' for sure. Once again, I wouldn't want to hear a younger Dylan doing this track. I just don't feel like a younger voice would've had the same impact, especially considering all the themes going on here.

I will say that I don't like everything on here. The slow, lumbering 'Black Rider' bores me. Because the more energetic 'Goodbye Jimmy Reed' comes on straight after, it's completely forgettable to me. Good lyrics at least (ironically after everything I just said in the previous paragraph), but not enough to save me from boredom! The other track I could do without - because I'm a peasant who clearly doesn't fully understand the brilliance of Dylan - is the soft accordion-driven 'Key West (Philosopher Pirate)'. I think I might have appreciated this one more if it wasn't immediately followed up by 'Murder Most Foul'. 'Key West (Philosopher Pirate)' is 9 and a half minutes long, and is then overshadowed by the 16 minute epic. Had it been positioned elsewhere within the tracklisting, maybe I'd have more time for this one, but when played in order as the album was intended, it feels like a bit of a slog to me. This is one of the rare albums I decided to buy as a new release on vinyl instead of CD. I bought a new turntable in 2020, so that was probably why. 'Murder Most Foul' takes up the entirety of side D. If you buy the CD version of the album, 'Murder Most Foul' comes on it's own disc. So maybe 'Key West' is very much Rough and Rowdy Ways' true finale, while 'Murder Most Foul' is actually supposed to be it's own separate thing?

In terms of anything else, I have no qualms with the production. It's a fine-sounding record; all the instruments are as clear as daylight, Bob's vocals are pushed quite high in the mix (but then they should be anyway), and there's absolutely nothing fancy or pretentious about the album in this regard. The lyrics could be considered pretentious to some people I guess, but then I guess Bob Dylan usually wants his listeners to think about what he's saying. And that's why I don't think I'll ever fully understand the man, even if I can still enjoy some of his music here and there!! Like I said, I've always appreciated Bob, and I get why his songs have been covered by SO many other artists throughout history. I want to be Dylan fan, even though I'm not!

And that's my review of Rough and Rowdy Ways. A review from a casual listener at best! I certainly don't hold it to the same degree as a lot of the critics did when it dropped in 2020, and I still don't "get" the album enough to consider it to be great. But I still largely enjoyed hearing it again for the first time in a while, and I suppose it'll always be a go-to Dylan album for me, unless I do somehow become a fully-fledged fan at some point in the future!
Adam's rating: 7.8/10

Black Sabbath - LEAST favourite track from every album!

I adore Black Sabbath. Always have done. But that doesn't mean every song of theirs is a favourite of mine! To be fair, most of the tracks in this list I do still like, so picking a least favourite song from some pretty stellar albums was hard. To make things potentially even more difficult, I'm NOT counting instrumentals, interludes, intro-type tracks etc. - so no 'Rat Salad', 'Embryo', 'FX', 'Fluff', 'Breakout',  'E5150', 'The Dark' and whatever else. That'd make things far too easy.


BLACK SABBATH (1970) - 'Warning'
I think the first album is pretty much perfect, so it pains to stick any of these songs on this list! But when it comes down to it, I guess I'll go with the album's finale, 'Warning'. It's a fine, lengthy blues jam - actually an Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation cover) - and certainly doesn't feel out of place among the rest of the classics to be found here. The reason it's my least favourite though, is because of the meandering nature of Iommi's guitar soloing... but the bluesy grooves are great, and the song is still heavy as hell for 1970! I suppose the other predictable choice would be 'Evil Woman' (also a cover, originally by Crow), but the fact is I love this entire record! Just because 'Warning' is a cover doesn't necessarily automatically make it weaker than the rest of the album.

PARANOID (1970) - 'Paranoid'
Putting the band's best-known song of all time here is sacrilege! Or is it? Talk to most die hard fans of any other band, and I don't think many of them would pick songs like 'Enter Sandman', 'Smoke on the Water', 'Symphony of Destruction' or 'Breaking the Law' as their favourite track! 'Paranoid' is a classic, as is the entire album. But let's be honest - 'Paranoid' is overplayed, and I only ever listen to it by choice when I feel like hearing the album in full. It doesn't make playlists for me anymore, and it hasn't done since I was a teenager! But like I said, that's not to say it isn't a great song. It's a stupidly catchy, heavy and straightforward slice of metal that's popular for a reason.

MASTER OF REALITY (1971) - 'Lord of this World'
Depending on the day, Master of Reality is sometimes my all-time favourite album. It's my favourite Sabbath record, and it has been since I was about 14. Even the short instrumentals 'Embryo' and 'Orchid' are vital, and have their place on this masterpiece of ground-breaking sludgy doom metal. I could be wrong, but I think a lot of people would pick 'Solitude' as their least favourite from MoR for the simple fact that it's a ballad - but that song is so dark and haunting that I personally love it. Nah, 'Lord of this World' made the list because, erm, Iommi's riffs to me are maybe 0.000001% weaker than the rest of the heavy songs on this album! No other reason. It's still heavy as fuck and not an outlier in any way.

VOL. 4 (1972) - 'Changes'
I've always been up and down about this one. Some days I like it, other days I skip it immediately. It's obviously a piano-driven ballad, so not typical Sabbath in any way. But Ozzy packs so much emotion into this tune that I can't call it "bad", even if some days I really don't like hearing it! Stacked up next to songs like 'Wheels of Confusion', 'Supernaut', 'Under the Sun', 'Snowblind' and even 'Tomorrow's Dream' and 'St. Vitus Dance', well, 'Changes' will always pale in comparison to the rest of Vol. 4 for me. That said, I definitely like the original more than any of the re-recorded versions Ozzy would do later.

SABBATH BLOODY SABBATH (1973) - 'Looking for Today'
Again, not an easy choice because Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is pretty much another masterpiece. 'Looking for Today' though, is maybe the one song that doesn't always spring to mind whenever I think about this record. It's not especially heavy as it's more of a lighter, floaty rocker compared to some of the other songs on here (not necessarily a bad thing) - and I have to admit, I'm a big fan of the simplistic, catchy chorus. I like it a lot. I just don't find it to be as creative/interesting as the rest of the material, especially considering this is the album that spawned songs like 'Spiral Architect', 'A National Acrobot', 'Sabbra Cadabra' and the title track.

SABOTAGE (1975) - 'Am I Going Insane (Radio)'
I really wanted to pick 'Supertzar' because even though it's an instrumental with a vocalised choir, it's still well over 3 minutes long! I still think it falls under my rule of only "proper" songs however. 'Am I Going Insane (Radio)' it is then! I don't think it's rare to see people slag this track off on the internet, and I can understand why - it's driven by synths after all. But I still like it, even if it's my least favourite from Sabotage! It's kind of bizarre, almost trippy, and that's why I can excuse the synths. The chorus is catchy too! But again, considering everything else on this record, I can't deny that it's the weakest link here. If I wanted to be really sneaky, I'd have picked the hidden joke track, 'Blow on a Jug'!

TECHNICAL ECSTASY (1976) - 'She's Gone'
The first song on this list that I've genuinely never cared much for. It's comparable to 'Changes', in that it's a slow, moving ballad (although this one is acoustic guitar/strings-driven rather than piano-based), but it just depresses me. And I have no issue with depressing music! But 'She's Gone' comes right after the fun boogie number 'Rock 'n' Roll Doctor' and completely kills the vibe for me whenever I listen to Technical Ecstasy. I can appreciate Ozzy's vocal performance on here, sure, but this tune just ain't for me.

NEVER SAY DIE! (1978) - 'Air Dance'
The most inconsistent of the Ozzy-era albums, Never Say Die! still has it's gems. 'Air Dance' is not one of them, which is a shame because the opening riff is FUCKING AWESOME!! Not exactly typical of Iommi, but so cool and melodic!! And then it just kinda nosedives into a weird, pretentious jazzy mess of a track! Don Airey guests here, so obviously the actual piano playing is as absurdly good as you'd expect. But really, 'Air Dance' is the product of an exhausted band struggling from years of addiction, with a lead singer on the brink of calling it quits and going solo - and it shows.

HEAVEN AND HELL (1980) - 'Walk Away'
An incredible comeback for the band, Ronnie James Dio taking over from Ozzy being a major reason why. I'm pretty sure I'm guilty of calling this song "filler" in the past, but in all fairness, I still enjoy 'Walk Away' a lot. It lacks the creativity of most of the other songs on here, nor is it particularly heavy. It's more of a radio-friendly rock number, so it's not as riffy as Iommi usually sounds - but dammit, Ronnie can sing more radio-friendly sounding rock like this just as well as he can sing heavy metal!!

MOB RULES (1981) - 'Over and Over'
I love this record, but 'Slipping Away' and 'Over and Over' are noticeably weaker than the rest of the songs here. Neither are bad of course, and 'Slipping Away' has a cool Led Zeppelin-y groove about it, so I've gone with 'Over and Over'. It's actually a decent and melodic ballad to close out Mob Rules with some nice Iommi soloing, but in comparison to the closing ballad 'Lonely Is the Word' from Heaven and Hell, it's definitely the weaker of the 2. So yeah, a solid ballad, but not one of Sabbath's best.

BORN AGAIN (1983) - 'Digital Bitch'
Born Again is my favourite post-Ozzy Sabbath album, and one of my favourite Sabbath records in general, so I actually love everything it has to offer. But I guess if I have to pick a least favourite track on this one, then I'll go with 'Digital Bitch'! It's a silly rocker, but it's still a lot of fun! The lyrics are totally out of character for the band. Ian Gillan has a very different approach as a lyricist to what is typically Sabbath (he's more of a storyteller, and humorous quips are something he often does) - that's not to say all his lyrics were incompatible with the Sab's, like I said, I love this album. But 'Digital Bitch' in particular feels like something he would've written with the Gillan band, lyrically! But you know what, I can't imagine Born Again without it.

SEVENTH STAR (1986) - 'No Stranger to Love'
Since this was supposed to be released as a Tony Iommi solo album, and not a Sabbath record, I don't think it's fair to really compare a lot of these songs to the rest of the catalogue. It doesn't sound like typical Sabbath, but it wasn't supposed to anyway. The older I get, the better Seventh Star gets. So I kinda feel bad in putting 'No Stranger to Love' as the worst song on the album, because I actually like this song too! It's basically a power ballad in every sense of word - not Sabbath-like in any way, shape or form - but it's still good under it's own merit. In particular, Glenn Hughes' vocal performance here is spectacular - but I have to be in the right mood to listen to obnoxiously big 80s ballads such as this. That's why it's on here.

THE ETERNAL IDOL (1987) - 'Glory Ride'
The Eternal Idol is all killer, no filler. But 'Glory Ride' is still the weakest song for me. It's still a totally solid, enjoyable melodic heavy metal romp with a great main riff and excellent vocals from Tony Martin. It just isn't as awesome as the rest of this album! 

HEADLESS CROSS (1989) - 'Call of the Wild'
In my opinion this is the best of the Martin-fronted albums, but 'Call of the Wild' is the only song on here that still makes me think "How does that one go again?" every time I listen to this record. It certainly fits in fine amongst the rest of the album, so it's no outlier in that regard. But it's definitely not as riffy as the others here, and the only song I don't feel like repeating over and over again... because I can certainly do that with everything else on Headless Cross!

TYR (1990) - 'Feels Good to Me'
I really wanted to stick 'Odin's Court' on here, but that track feels more like an introduction to 'Valhalla' despite the fact it has properly structured vocals on it. So it's gonna have to be 'Feels Good to Me'. It probably looks like I'm prejudiced towards ballads at this point, but I promise I'm not! The reason why a fair chunk of ballads have made this list is because I think they sometimes stick out like a sore thumb. 'Feels Good to Me' is competent for sure, but again, it's a pretty safe ballad and maybe even feels like it's been tacked onto the rest of this fantastic album. A good track with plenty of emotion, yes, but Tyr also boasts incredibly epic songs like 'Anno Mundi', 'Jerusalem' and 'Valhalla', the doom-fest that is 'The Sabbath Stones' and the awesome speed metal of 'The Law Maker'... how could it possibly have come out on top?!

DEHUMANIZER (1992) - 'Master of Insanity'
Dio's brief return was a good'un that's for sure. Dehumanizer is one of the heaviest albums in the catalogue! Pure doomy goodness! And again, it's much harder to pick a least favourite track rather than other way around. 'Master of Insanity' sadly takes that place however, not because it's weak or anything, just because the song isn't as memorable as the rest to me. It's a bit longer than it needs to be, and the stop-start nature of the verse riff just doesn't sound very Iommi to my ears. A decent tune overall, but doesn't hold a candle to others on here like 'I', 'Computer God', 'Time Machine', 'Buried Alive' or and 'After All (The Dead)'.

CROSS PURPOSES (1994) - 'Dying for Love'
Maybe the most well-rounded and polished of the Tony Martin albums, Cross Purposes is also the only Martin record with Geezer Butler on bass... so YET AGAIN I'm struggling to choose a weakest song!! Also yet again, I'm picking the ballad!! Yep, 'Dying for Love' is my choice. It's totally listenable thanks to another superb Martin vocal performance, but compared to the rest of the doomy brilliance of this album (listen to 'Virtual Death' to see what I mean), it's easily the track I'd choose to skip over if I had to. But really, 'Dying for Love' is still a nice and atmospheric ballad that doesn't kill the mood of this album. 

FORBIDDEN (1995) - 'Sick and Tired'
This time I'm NOT picking the ballad ('I Won't Cry for You') because I actually really like that one! Nah, 'Sick and Tired' has made the list because even though it's certainly doomy and heavy enough, the riffs on it aren't as inspired as the others this album has to offer - in my opinion anyway. I feel like a lot of people would pick 'Rusty Angels' because it's kind of an upbeat melodic number and out of place amongst the rest of the songs - but that's why it's a personal highlight for me (kind of hypocritical since I picked 'Walk Away' from Heaven and Hell, but whatever). Forbidden is an underrated album. It took me a long time to appreciate it, and I agree that the original mix is garbage. But even I learned to like this album years before the awesome 2024 remix came out. I don't hate anything from this record.

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW (2009) - ??
This is a Black Sabbath album. It's the same lineup that recorded Mob Rules and Dehumanizer, they just went under the "Heaven & Hell" moniker to let people know this was Ronnie, not Ozzy. The Devil You Know follows a pretty formulaic pattern - aside from maybe 'Eating the Cannibals', this album is slow and doomy as fuck. So a lot of these songs sound quite similar... similar to the point where I am physically UNABLE to pick a least favourite!! I can tell you the songs I like best, if that helps?! 'Rock and Roll Angel', 'Double the Pain', 'Atom and Evil', 'Eating the Cannibals' and 'Follow the Tears'!! I'm a fan of this album - the highs don't reach the same highs as Heaven and Hell, Mob Rules or Dehumanizer, but it also means there's no obvious lows either!!

13 (2013) - 'Loner'
13 is the worst Sabbath album, and I'll die on that hill. I don't care that Ozzy finally returned for this one. Unlike The Devil You Know which was hard to choose a least favourite due to all the songs being consistently good, it's hard to pick a least favourite track from 13 because there's a fair few mediocre one's lurking here! I've gone with 'Loner', because it feels like a Sabbath on autopilot. Like it could have come from any era, but the shitty compressed Rick Rubin production makes it worse and totally lacking in personality. Nothing is really memorable about it, even if it's listenable. Some of 13's songs feel like blatant rehashes of old '70s Ozzy numbers, but at least that gives them some charm almost by default (not that it makes them "good" either, mind you).

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