Wildstreet - III (2021) Review

 

After almost ten years of anticipation New York rockers Wildstreet released their third album simply named III. For someone who is discovering this band right now that might sound like a huge gap in band's discography, but in reality it was quite an opposite. The band adopted that new approach which is now known as a "releasing singles strategy" that started all the way back in 2017. It is a legitimate strategy nowadays by the way, but you know what, nothing beats the day when an album is released. Sure it means more streams and more buzz created for every single release but in the end it's an album that gives us all the required ingredients to understand what one band really is about. 

And what is Wildstreet all about than? Led by the charismatic singer and frontman Eric Jayk, complemented with a group of first class musicians Jimmie Marlowe (guitars), Johnny D (bass), Lock (drums) and Dom (guitars), this five-piece unit is a group that you simply cannot miss if you are into pure sleaze hard rock. But things are not just that simple when Wildstreet is involved, especially when you start digging the album itself. It starts on a very high note with an opener Tennessee Cocaine in the vein of the sound trademarked by the late 80's bands from both Sunset Strip and New York acts such as Faster Pussycat, Guns N Roses, The Throbs and even Spread Eagle. High-octane blazing guitar riffs combined with Eric's dirty and raspy vocals and some stone hard throbbing rhythm section will immediately bring you back in the era when rock n roll was about sleaze, debauchery and fun, like for example in the second song of the album called Three Way Ride. Next one Set It Of is a bit different with that crunchy riffs and some subtly layered synths underneath which alludes that Wildstreet is not afraid to go into an experimentation. After that things get a little bit mellower as we have the first ballad of the album which is well written and flawlessly performed.

The other half of the album starts with a furious rocker Midnight Children which was the only remaining song, the last peace of a puzzle, that we hadn't heard as a single. And boy, what a song it is. After ballad-style relaxing this song feels like a hurricane that is coming to destroy everything on it's way. It has almost a Judas Priest vibe with all that galloping riffs, screaming vocals and pounding bass lines. It is also the moment when the whole story is becoming more serious, more scarier, darker and gloomier which continues all the way to the end. The next one is Born To Be, which is in our opinion one of the best songs that Wildstreet has written. Remember all that sleaze and debauchery mentioned before? Yes it is still present here but it is now on a whole different level than before. This is where the band proves that it is not all about being stuck in the 80's or early 90's. Modern hard rock can also be fueled by all those ingredients and remain fresh and relevant. Next tune called Raise Hell is a pure proof of that. By the way this songs was the first one to be released back in 2017. 

And now ladies and gentleman, prepare yourself for a "seven and a half minutes psychological thriller that uses a horror influenced metaphor to paint a picture of the depths in a main characters madness". Yes, you heard it! It is exactly how Gabe Anel from Hair Metal Mixtape described it along with Eric Jayk in episode the no.4 of his show. That is the song that closes the album and it is called simply - Mother. I also have just one word for it - EPIC. And it really is. It's and epic tune that we are sure nobody expected to hear in Wildstreet's catalog. It is Coma (GNR) level epic to be precise. Just pay attention to those creepy Eric's vocals and sinister guitar riffs and you'll get the feeling of being inside a house tormented by ghosts and madness for real.

As I mentioned before the other half of the album is the place where Wildstreet showed us that they are not afraid to experiment with stuff. The aforementioned song Mother just proves and seals that claim. In conclusion, Wildstreet is unquestionably not just another sleaze rock band stuck in the 80's. It is a cool and modern hard rock band with some obvious sleaze-glam influences which combines elements of old and new sometimes entering more classic rock, pop and even doomy-gothic influences. 

On the other hand, I must say that despite all that great music, Wildstreet is one of the most hard working bands in rock'n'roll right now. They are all over the place and they always have something new and something fun for their fans. I hope they will get even more of that  attention by the fans around the globe, cause they really deserved it.   

Check out out ratings for this album! 

Wildstreet @  Facebook - Twitter - Instagram 

You can listen to the whole album here

Dobermann - Shaken To The Core (2021) Review

 

There is still a pretty big hype about Italian rock 'n' roll, at least here in Europe,  after Måneskin's  big win at the Eurovision contest. For most of the rock fans these youngsters are probably the first introduction to the Italian scene, but for those with a much more interest, one name usually comes up first - Doberamann! This powerhouse trio led by the bassist and vocalist Paul Del Bello, along with guitarist Valerio Ricciardi and drummer Antonio Burzotta released their fifth album Shaken To The Core at the beginning of June.

Album Shaken To The Core comes four years after their last effort Pure Breed which introduced us to the English version of this bands discography, more or less. It was a great record and the bar was set very high with it's release. Therefore expectation of the new one was obviously even higher. Dobermann's carrier was not always easy so to speak. Most of the time they were on their own, without a label or proper promotion. But that didn't stop them. They worked hard touring all over Europe with acts like The Quireboys, Great White, Inglorious and more.

Listening to the whole album I got the impression of the bands significant improvement. Yes, the whole thing is still raw, it still has that unique bite (the dobermann bite), but there is certainly a big musical improvement or better say experimentation with different styles and different solutions. Songs like Staring At The Back Road and Over To Top, for example, show us that the band was not afraid to tune down a bit and step in that contemporary new rock style with a classic feel. NWOCR in other words. On the other side tunes like Shaken To The Core and Stiff Upper Lip reminds us of that the good old Dobermann high-octane, sleazy raw rock 'n' roll with Paul's unique raspy vocals on top and Valerio's crispy overdriven tone. There is also one quite of a jam in the song Dropping Like Flies too. 

The other part of the album has a couple of great tunes like Summer Devil and Rock Steady which reminds me a bit of a new Gilby Clarke album and his unique guitar riffs. In the end there is one more pure Dobermann breed song, Run For Shade, filled with a frantic guitar riffs, fantastic extended guitar solo and raspy screaming vocals. The very last one Last Man Standing is a bit different from everything else on this record. There is some piano work there and a little bit mellower tone overall accompanied with "not that raw" vocals delivered from the group's leader Paul Del Bello. Even if it is that contrasting, the song does not ruin the whole feeling. On the contrary - it ends it with style. Italian style! 

In the end the aforementioned bar was reached and the task was completed. The guys from Dobermann managed to create something different from the last time, mostly due to little bit of experimentation. There are some fans that might not be satisfied with it but hey, it is a positive thing and also it is a sign of maturing and gathering all that experience from touring. If you are into new wave rock with a classic feel Dobermann's Shaken To The Core is something you cannot miss. If everything gets better Dobermann is also a band that you must not miss live. Believe me, you got to see Paul breathing fire on the stage (like I did in 2010 when he was playing with Adam Bomb) with all that raw energy that these guys are delivering. These guys are aiming really high. Italians won the Eurovision with a rock song. Only if they can win the coming EURO (which I really really hope) it would be a magnificent year for this European country! 

Dobermann - Facebook - Twitter - Instagram 

You can listen to the whole album below:

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Author: JP

Budderside - Spiritual Violence (2021) Review

Spiritual Violence album review (English)

Budderside released their second album named Spiritual Violence at the end of the March this year. After five years of waiting the guys are back with a set of fantastic ten new songs. There are a lot of new bands these days that can be heard all around the world bringing the redefined modern sound of a classic rock, but there are only a few who manage to put it on another level. And yes, Budderside are definitely one them. From the roaring opener Wide Awake it is clear that this is not just another hard rock album. Guitarists Sam Bam Koltun and Logan Nikolic are delivering highly electrified riffs that are clearly influenced by some of the best known artists from past 30 years. Added to that, what really put this album even higher is a perfect bland of Patrick Stone's amazingly sinister vocals. The next song called Zen is a perfect example of that. With Budderside every next song is just so unexpectedly interesting. 

There are some collaborations here like in the third song Amber Alert (feat Carla Harvey from Butcher Babies, and in fourth Pardon Me, with the great Motorhead axeman Phil Campbell joining. Up until the very end of this record the Budderside guys are not dissatisfying their fans. Especially with the tunes like Soul Searches and Daygobah. 

Overall it is a must have album if you are into pure modern hard rock music. Budderside's influences differ from the likes the 80's LA glam metal, Guns N Roses/Velvet Revolver type high octane rock n roll to the grungy depths of Seattle's 90's scene.  It's a remarkable blanding of sounds and influences. In a perfect world, this album would definitely top all the charts, sell millions of records (streams) and Budderside would totally be one the hottest bands in the world right now. Plus, they are from LA, they heave it in their veins! 

You can also check out the ratings we gave to this record

Spiritual Violence recenzija na sprskom

Losanđeleska hard rock petorka Budderside obajvila je krajem marta meseca svoj drugi album u karijeri pod nazivom Spiritual Violence, koji dolazi posle ravno pet godina od izdavanja njihovog Self Titled prvenca. O grupi smo već detaljno pričali u predstaljvanju, tako da ako ste to kojim slučajem propustili, obavezno pročitajte pre nego što nastavite a ovom recenzijom.

Spiritual Violence izdat je za, kao i abum prvenac uostalom, za izdavačku kuću Motorhead Music, koju je osnovao pokojni Lemmy i koja je i lansirala ovaj mladi bend u muzičku orbitu. Za producenta ovog izdanja Budderside su izabrali Jay Baumgardner-a koji je od ranije poznat po radu sa bendovima poput Bush, Godsmack i Papa Roach. 

Na albumu se nalazi deset novih numera i ukoliko bi smo ih uporedili sa pesmama sa prvog izdanja, kojih je takođe bilo deset, može se reći da su ovoga puta Budderside odlučili da se drže isključivo jednog kursa. Na prvom albumu bilo je dosta lutanja dok je Spiritual Violence striktno hard-rokerski orijentisan. Međutim, kao što što smo i rekli u predstavljanju benda, hard rock koji ovi momci prezentuju sadrži u sebi primese raznih drugih muzičkih pravaca, posebno onih alternativnijih, tako da ovo definitivno nije samo još jedan običan bend. Numere popur Wide Awake, Zen i Daygobah to i dokazuju. Na samom albumu bilo je i nekoliko gostiju. Phil Campbell svirao je na pesmi Pardon Me, dok je pevačica grupe Butcher Babies Carla Harvey gostovala je na numeri Amber Alert. 

Visoko-oktanski rock rifovi, pevljivi refreni, melodije ispresecane zlokobnim muzičkim primesama, šljunkoviti vokal frontmena Patrick Stone-a i nesvakidašnja alternativna rešenja, samo su neke od etiketa koje bi smo ovom bendu mogli da prilepimo. Možda i najbitnija od svih stvari, koja važi za gotovo sve pesme koje su do sada izdali, jeste neka vrsta diversifikacije koja vas na kraju svake pesme ostvalja u rebusu: šta očekivati od prve sledeće? Možda je caka sa grupom Budderside upravo u tome.

Kako smo ocenili ovaj album pogledajte u najnovijem Albumometru!

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Autor JP