New Loud Rock - mid July 2012

As KGLT's Director of Loud Rock, I now receive a steady stream of new loud rock releases. It's exciting to have a supply of brand new music to review for the station, and I want to start sharing bands and albums with the rest of you. Here's my first installment, reviewing new material from four exciting bands.

Icarus Witch - "Rise"

As a big fan of heroic metal, just a few seconds into Icarus Witch's latest release, "Rise", and I was hooked. Lots of melodic singing, lots of guitar and full of energy; I feel right at home throughout the album. "Rise" stands out to me in that it captures the triumph of heroic metal but remains raw and real (in Tolkien terms, think "more Gimli, less Legolas"). There are definitely technical elements to the album, particularly in some of the guitar work, but Icarus Witch remains far afield from the polish and structure of symphonic metal. As I listened through the album, I was reminded of Riot, Pink Cream 69 and a recent favorite, Lillian Axe's "The Days Before Tomorrow". That's not in any way meant to suggest that Icarus Witch derives from any of those bands; it's more that they capture a similar balance between melody and technique while establishing their own unique rawness and character. "The End" and "Break The Cycle" jumped out at me and "(We Are) The New Revolution" is a classic anthem in all respects.

Baroness - "March To Sea", "Take My Bones Away" (Yellow & Green album July 17th)

I'm really excited for Baroness' upcoming July 17th release, the "Yellow & Green" album. If the two pre-release singles, "March to Sea" and "Take My Bones Away", are any indication, this will be a powerful, well-crafted album, the kind we may look back on in years to come as the band's break out moment. Baroness combines raw energy and dark tonality to create haunting and intense songs. While their overall effect is raw, they layer dirty and clean guitars to create spacious arrangements, punctuated by vivid but realistic vocal harmonies. While listening to "March to Sea" I was impressed by the dynamic variation over the course of the song. Unlike much of the smash-limited, wall of destruction metal these days, Baroness is refreshing because of their willingness to paint a full and varied picture. Check out the two singles and get ready for the full release on the 17th!

Paradise Lost - "Tragic Idol"

Paradise Lost delivers yet another unique and masterful step in their fascinating evolutionary journey. "Tragic Idol" satisfies my love for gothic metal, and fits well in my collection next to the Charon, Sentenced and Poisonblack albums, while delivering an impact reminiscent of Metallica and Systematic. The songs on "Tragic Idol" are dark and mysterious, spacious and yet powerful. The album is gripping much like an intense action drama and worth every minute of its 10 songs. If you enjoy music that balances raw power riding on a layer of intricate texture and aggressive guitar, you should give a listen to "Tragic Idol". If you're short on time, the defiance of "Crucify", the despair of "Honesty In Death" and the deep moodiness of the song, "Tragic Idol" will do a great job of capturing the overall character of the album, whetting you're appetite for a full listen when time allows.

Vintersorg - "Orkan"

Each time I listen to "Orkan", Vintersorg's latest album, I'm more intrigued. Their Viking/folk influences come through clearly on "Orkan" as do brief flashes of black metal. What intrigues me though, is the delicate balance they maintain throughout the album, with an ongoing sense of community and folk quality, yet an overall sense of detail in the arrangement and sonic textures. Fueled by complex, intricate and rough-edged guitars, Vintersorg balances that with a steady dose of keyboards, giving their songs an intense but open feel throughout. Their songs are propelled by sections of steady single-note guitars and big chunky chord harmonies. Their music is both dark and upbeat; for me, it brings the Beowulf saga to mind in both intensity and mood. I've included "Istid" in my last two KGLT playlists, but I recommend listening to "Polarnatten" and "Norrrskenssyner" to get a full overview of Vintersorg's latest release.

Mnemic - they're not your Mnemesis

When I took over KGLT's "Loud Rock Director" responsibilities, my first week was an adventure in new music. I suddenly had access to the latest metal releases, days or even weeks before the general public. One of the albums that showed up as an "add" for the upcoming week was Mnemic's "Mnemesis". Denmark's self described "future metal" band has carved out a unique blend of styles over the years, and their latest release hammers home the point.

When I listen to Mnemic, I hear many things. They combine elements of the Gothenburg sound associated with In Flames and Engel with some shock rock textures that are more at home in the music of Marilyn Manson, White Zombie and Powerman 5000. They bludgeon you like the best death metal band and then cross check you with soaring, textural hooks. "I've Been You" is a great example of that contrast, starting with pounding industrial death metal and finishing up with spacious textures and vocal harmonies.

"Transcend", the first single from "Mnemesis" is a great place to start exploring Mnemic's material. From there, I recommend listening to "Pattern Platform" and "There's No Tomorrow" to get a sense for the band's range. It's hard to say whether there's a time of day or mood that's best suited to experiencing Mnemic. They sound great when they're loud, but the more surreal elements of their songs would work just as well for those introspective cloudy days. I highly recommend exploring Mnemic's work in-depth. They are unique, deep and refreshing and I hope you enjoy the discovery.

Shadowside - the metal world continues to expand

I am often intrigued by the ever-growing world of heavy metal. Just as the mainstream continues to push metal farther and farther into a corner, the world as a whole fights back. Most of us recognize by now that northern Europe has kept the metal flames burning strong but these days I'm fascinated to hear great metal delivered from almost every corner of the globe. I recently wrote an article about the SLoT, a Russian band that got my attention last summer. Similarly, when Shadowside's latest album, Inner Monster Out, showed up in the New Loud Rock bin at KGLT, it quickly grabbed my attention. Only later did I discover that the band is from Brazil.

All it took was a quick preview of the first two songs on the album, "Gag Order" and "Angel With Horns", for me to be hooked. Dani Nolden's incredibly powerful vocals deliver a similar impact to Lzzy Hale of Halestorm and Liv Jagrell of Sister Sin. Anger, agony and frustration come through clearly in Dani's voice but she unabashedly embraces the melodic component of her voice. Raphael Mattos' guitar work, Ricardo Piccoli's bass and Fabio Buitvidas' drum parts pummel the listener and make it absolutely clear that Shadowside is a metal band.

While Halestorm draws its material as much from hard rock and even rock & roll, and Sister Sin harkens back to some of the raw melodic hair metal bands of the 80s, Shadowside is a metal band. They're overall sound will be right at home for power metal fans. Instrumentally they borrow bits and pieces from death metal but without much of the guttural vocals that are typical of that style. Fans of the many female-fronted symphonic metal bands (e.g. Nightwish, Within Temptation, Epica) will also find much to like in Shadowside. Even progressive metal fans will find familiar elements in Shadowside's music. The band manages to pull together elements from many metal sub genres, while maintaining a steady, common thread of intense energy and vocal polish that is unique.

I have already included songs from "Inner Monster Out" in my Heavy radio show and fully expect to continue that trend in the future. If you can't wait to experience Shadowside, choose your favorite streaming service and take a listen to "Gag Order" and "Angel With Horns". If you question how heavy the band can get, take a listen to "Waste of Life" and realize that Dani would be right at home sharing the stage with Rob Halford. And, just when you were wondering what else Shadowside can throw at you, check out their cover of Motörhead's "Ace of Spades". If you love metal, I think you will love Shadowside!

Director of Loud Rock!

We all have had an opportunity drop out of the sky, completely unexpected. Usually, looking back later in life we see those opportunities as the key building blocks to what differentiates us. Well, a couple weeks ago, I ran into another of those opportunities. Jim Kehoe, the music director at KGLT bumped into me in the studio while I was prepping my show. Out of the blue, he said, "Hey, how'd you like to take over as Loud Rock Director?". The student who had previously handled loud rock wrapped up her studies at MSU this term and was moving on to other things. It sure sounded really cool and important but, beneath the surface, Jim's question made a ton of sense.

This summer, KGLT is down to only one DJ that focuses on loud rock. You're reading his words right now. There are definitely other DJs that play loud rock but their shows tend to mix things up more, while my show is 99% based on the content of KGLT's "Loud Rock" drawers and my own collection. Our loud rock broadcasting took a significant hit when Cara Paul and Jodi Metzler left at the end of the Spring term. I'm not sure there's anyone else that even makes sense at the moment, so Jim knew what he was doing.

So, this wasn't exactly the result of an exhaustive talent search; perhaps this is meaningless, one of those "little" titles that we take on that has no real significance. Although I've joked about getting business cards made, or many a T-shirt, I probably will refrain for now. However, there definitely is substance to this opportunity and it will immediately impact my radio show, as well as any loud rock that's played at KGLT.

Y'see, now I'm the guy deciding what gets added to our loud rock collection and what isn't. I'm the one that interacts with the radio promoters for the various loud rock labels, and I'm the guy they ask to play their current "high priority" releases. No longer do I have to questions why certain albums never make it into the KGLT collection. If it's not there, it's my fault and I'm happy to take on the responsibility of keeping us well stocked. I also need to prepare weekly Top-10 Loud Rock reports for the College Music Journal (CMJ). That way they know what we've got in "heavy rotation" even if that's currently limited to my biweekly show.

There's more to it than that. I've been thinking lately the only real way to give metal and other heavy music a fair shake here in Bozeman is take the bull by the horns and actually make it available, on the radio, in the clubs, etc. I've been talking to some of my friends about forming some type of Heavy support group here in Bozeman, one that can help make sure that Heavy bands aren't missing opportunities or being overlooked. I see this opportunity at KGLT as a chance to really make sure we're shining a bright spotlight on great Heavy music.

You might also think I'd be feeling a bit lonely these days, the lonely loud rock guy amidst an ocean of country, blues, Americana, bluegrass, electronica, hip hop, jazz, etc. When Cara and Jodi left, I benefitted because my biweekly show shifted from midnight on Fridays to 9pm on Saturdays. That made my sleep cycle a lot more manageable, but it meant I was no longer part of a solid block of loud rock DJs (Cara at 6pm, Adam Kish at 9pm and yours truly at midnight. It also means I no longer have the chance to hang out with Adam at the end of his show, talking Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy and heavy music in general.

Having told you that, you're probably asking yourself, "Why aren't you lonely, David?". On the surface I've got some good reasons to be lonely but that's before you factor in my good friend and fellow guitarist, Jake Quittschreiber. Thanks to a perfect bit of timing on Jake's part, I've got more company in KGLT loud rock than ever before. Jake is taking the summer DJ apprentice class and has been spending time with me on my show. Much like Adam did for me, I was quick to get Jake on mic and behind the console. It's always better to dive in and not think/worry too much about being on the air. Jake's a star student and has added fun and excitement to my last few shows. Better yet, Jake gives me even more motivation in my new role as Loud Rock Director.

Now I'm not just populating the loud rock library for myself, I'm also doing it for Jake. I fully expect Jake to take over his own radio show after he finishes the apprentice class. When that happens, there'll be two of us loud rock DJs and that much more reason for a well-stocked collection. Better yet, Jake's taste overlaps quite a bit with mine, but he also covers areas of metal that supplement my own tastes. He loves death metal and knows that genre way better than I do. Because of that, my first week as Loud Rock Director was incredibly rewarding. Jake and I worked together to identify CDs we wanted to review and then sat together in the studio annex, reviewing songs together. Jake will join me for my show again next Saturday, and through our collaboration, around two thirds of the show will be new loud rock releases. It will also be fun because it truly was a joint effort to prepare it and I'm hoping we'll be able to present the show to all of you as a joint effort.

I am also optimistic and excited that this may just be the beginning for Jake and me. I'm really looking forward to working closely with him to raise the Heavy bar at KGLT, as well as promote heavier music in Bozeman. I also see my Loud Rock Director role as an opportunity to get you, the audience, more involved in the show. Both Jake and I believe strongly in the steady flow of new music, the ever-changing evolution that keeps us exposed to new ideas and experiences. We both like playing new music because we're sharing songs and bands with our audience that perhaps would otherwise go unnoticed. On the flip side, I hope that there will be times when you share new music with us. Comment here on the blog or send me a message and tell me about new musical discoveries you've made in the land of Heavy. Now I'm the guy who's responsible for getting those into KGLT's library...

Lullacry - Their latest: "Where Angels Fear"

After more than a half decade, Lullacry is back with a new album. Having only discovered them in the last 2-3 years I was disappointed to realize that their most recent release was from 2005 and their web site indicated they were searching for a new label. I was worried we'd have to go without new Lullacry material indefinitely. Thankfully, that changed over the last year. Status updates on the website indicated that not only were they back in the studio, but they had made headway on a label for a new album release.

Then over the course of April 2012, "Where Angels Fear" was released around the world and we finally have new music from the band since 2005. I have already and will continue to play songs from the new album on my KGLT radio show. Lullacry hits me right where it counts. They are always melodic, powered by Sami Leppikangas' wall of guitars and Tanja Lainio's emotional vocals. I played the title track, "Where Angels Fear" during my radio show on May 5th, and am looking forward to playing "I Am", and "Antidote To You" in upcoming shows. You can check out their video for the first single, "Bad Blood" on the band's website or on YouTube.

The "Where Angels Fear" album is, to my ear, edgier than the band's earlier material. I don't know if this was a concerted effort or a natural progression but either way it works well for Lullacry. The album sounds fresh and full of energy. The years since their previous release ("Vol. 4", 2005) have helped the band come back with a vengeance, sounding both solidly Lullacry and absolutely contemporary.

I don't know what my chances are of seeing Lullacry in the U.S., so a trip to Finland may be my best bet to catch their show. If you haven't heard the band before, go check them out on your favorite internet music service. If you're lucky enough to live near one of their tour destinations, please go check out their show and give me a play-by-play. I may need to enjoy the show vicariously through your experiences, at least for now. Can you do yourself (and me) that favor?