U
July |
UNLIMITED ADDICTION - Keeper of The Knowledge Festivals and gigs are great for beginning new bands on top of watching established machines moving their wheels. Spaniards Unlimited Addiction can testify to that. Singer Marius, drummer Fran and guitarist Marcel crossed paths at the 2008 Sweden Rock Fest, putting their influences to the test. Seven years on and we finally get the result. Despite being heavily lifted from Dio's book in places, 'Keeper Of The Knowledge' displays Europe's shameless desire for timeless old school metal. Lead guitars and creening vocals that contemporary metal rags such as Kerrang and Rock Sound would inevitably detest dominate the whole forty nine minute thirty eight second duration of this disc, which is a criminally short length for this belter to last. Nothing overstays its welcome, with the lead breaks making their own tune up in the middle on occasion while the choruses are sometime under-repeated for their quality. One track also opens up with a fearsomely 'Ride The Lightning' lead-in, before letting go to allow Marius's massively Dickinson -like throat its spot. 'K.O.T.K.' is a cream cake of classic hard rock with the filling oozing out at either side with the jam, miraculously without mess. Sweetly recommended. 9/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Iron Maiden, Dokken, Dio & Scorpions. NET: www.facebook.com/unlimitedaddiction & www.soundcloud.com/unlimitedaddiction |
November 2015 |
|
UNDERCOVER DEVIL - Burn It Black
(S/R - 2015) Ley me guess a moment...these guys are going to be a sto-o-oner-r-r band. And would you believe it...indeed they are. Arkansas quintet Undercover Devil load the usual, and correct, ammunition into their weapons and simply fire. Rough, crunchy riffs and twin guitars so testicle-pickling-ly heavy that you almost have to freeze between each track to recover are what the southern fried metal sound still comes made from and it would take a fool to have these lads tame it down. Numbing seventies rhythms and scar-faced lead vocals smash every of the nine songs straight through your skull with a sharp Cathedral-meets-Metallica fingered claw. Workman like rhythms speed swing and bounce in turn to cook up a commerciality you could hardly seem coming at the start but the one that has kept this genre alive and popular since its late 90s resurgence. Scarily recommended. 9/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Corrosion of Conformity, Orange Goblin, Machine Head & Down. |
August 2014 |
|
Uriah
Heep - Official Bootleg Series Vol. 6: Live At The Rock Of Ages
Festival Germany 2008 A great show that showcases some new stuff at the time alongside some old classics in the 2nd half of the set. They are in fine form for this headline spot at The Rock Of Ages Festival that took place at Rottenborg-Seebron, Germany and delight the kraut crowd with newies like 'Cry Freedom' & 'Words In The Distance' and classics that are always mainstays in their set like 'Easy Livin' and Gypsy'. A major highlight here is the aptly thrown in 'Free Me' as they were in a German jail the previous night so Bernie tells us or what about the closing epic singalong number that is 'Lady In Black'. Bands like this make you proud to be a Brit! Trevor Bolder (Bassist) R.I.P. 10/10 By Glenn Milligan |
January
2013 |
| UNDERWELL
- Plan Your Rebirth A hardcore album hiding under a highly prog-oriented sleeve picture Italian band Underwell’s sound is still deservingly experimental. Large collisions of screamcore and alternative in an all-too-familiar manner still raise this band above B***g M* T*e H*****n in my book for some reason I take ages to apprehend. Chord-based twin guitars however seem wasted playing just the exact same thing in synchrony start to end. Despite a few far-striking riffs plus occasional solos that seem to go as soon as they’ve come, the shortfall in variation makes for a one-dimensional screen between vocals and drums. Sometimes overblended, vocalist Marshmallow’s many voices do give the album a rescued versatility, yet when its all been done before, hearing it tried again ten times over succeeds to strain on my time. Frankly, ‘Plan Your Rebirth’ cannot be the most memorable disc of the subgenre though saying this it does contain its punches. Potentially speaking it’ll be lethal as Tyson in the ‘live’ ring. 6/10 By Dave Attrill NET: www.underwell.com |
| UNITED
MIND CLUB - World Blood History (Part 2) After a worrying start with some unintelligible racket and strange grunting noises for an intro, this East European outfit’s cd is somewhat growingly accessible. Here you can watch extreme metal and prog meet head on in a spectacular tangle that gives one something to take away. Frontman/guitarist Dmitry Zimin has a versatile voice to match the changes in metal-ular direction, going from death to alternative to industrial in dainty little circles. Samples get in on the often Metallica -schooled twin guitar violence simmering angrily on and off with Eastern vocal over dubs enjoying a welcome place. Zmitry and bandmate/namesake Dmitry Kapstin’s rhythm and lead duels do still serve up the justice with some very trampoliney beats sending you up in the air and down as you listen to an extreme metal disc that is different in about as many ways as can strive to be. Manic and melodic, ’WBH’ is everything the majority of United football Clubs are struggling to be right now - thriving with success and promise for the immediate future. Impressive. 8/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Devin Townsend, Candlemass, Marilyn Manson & Testament. NET: www.myspace.com/unitedmindclub |
| UNITED
MIND CLUB - World Blood History (Part 1) United Mind Club are one of those great European metal acts who do things in a greatly unusual way. Armed with mainly extreme metal weaponry they however arrive primed for many different targets instead. Tight twin guitar punishment from both the lead shredder and singer - both named Dmitry - run here in tandem with molten poundings of pure electro- industrial fury, largely in the White Zombie and Filter way of things. 'BBBP', 'Dreams Of Luthor', 'Its Just Bleeding', 'Interview With The Beast' and 'World Blood Of History' gather every straw from the darker side of the field to deliver songs structured in such a way you wont find them pushed under any single pidgeonhole ... then again a label stating Dark Symphonic Industrial metal isnt an easy one to spot on the shelves. Large, chorus based tunes built to an often random assembly of angry musical components that click together by themselves are not a first but something within this mix secures them their aplomb. Lethally infectuous and intensely vitriolic, United Mind Clubs name sums it all up. Pow-er-ful! 9.5/10 By Dave Attrill NET: www.myspace.com/unitedmindclub |
| April |
| Uriah
Heep - Official Bootleg Volume 5 - Live In Athens Greece 2011 Cracking gig from the 'Heep in Greece where you get just over 70 delightful minutes of hits and more. Like the last one I reviewed of this series the sound is impeccable and a pure delight to the ears indeed. How can you argue when it's loaded with classics like 'Return To Fantasy' and 'Rainbow Demon' that are mixed in with lesser known songs like 'Book Of Lies' or 'Only Human'. They ain't lost their vocal and musical touch on demanding numbers like 'Bird Of Prey' with its interstellar falsetto wails and somersaulting organ and guitar lines or in 'July Morning' either. Other highlights on here include the humorous chatting by Mick Box about 1976 and more; the well orchestrated 'Gypsy' that flows straight into a fast pacing 'Look At Yourself' and of course that ultimate Uriah finisher that goes by the name of 'Easy Livin'. Essential for fans everywhere. 10/10 By Glenn Milligan |
March
2012 |
| UNTIL
DAWN - S/T Melodic metal is needing revising in its usage, I think - the heftily ambiguous term is luring people who lust after one meaning of it into enduring another they probably loathe. So to set the record straight quick as possible, Until Dawn are not anywhere quite in the Dragon force / Stratovarious department as they are in the Drowning Pool one. Melodic hardcore, or ‘more bearable screamcore’ as I sometimes hear it referred to by the skeptics is not major enemy to my ears but these lads are almost a struggle to get excited over in places. Eventually things catch on before the halfway stage with ’Darkest Flame’ amongst my easy favourites and the songs become more enticing right up to the end.UD are not without a good chorus or a few and guitar elements switch polarity notably at occasion. Frontman ’s upper pitched melodies make for the weight in favour and a massive live sounds is set in stone. Though I’ve heard too many identical sounding acts in the last eight years, there are worse than Until Dawn to sound like. 7.5/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Alter Bridge, Bring Me The Horizon & Killswitch Engage. NET: www.myspace.com/untildawn |
May |
| Uriah
Heep - Official Bootleg Volume Three - Live In Kawasaki Japan 2010 Cracking Soundboard recording on a 2 CD Set from the Heep Dudes from Kawasaki Japan on 24th October, 2010 that even features Micky Moody on slide guitar for a song or 2. Frontman, Bernie Shaw is phenomenol throughout the gig and never drops a single note once - not that you'd expect him to - with powerful bv's from the rest of the band (that they are so famous for) It starts up with classics
like 'Stealin' and 'Bird Of Prey' with the guys then playing the enitire
'Demons & Wizards' album with knockout numbers like 'Easy Living';
The Wizard' & 'Rainbow Demon' with the 2nd CD featuring a smattering
of amazing well known tunes and less known tunes such as the ballad
'Rain' with a piano they found backstage that definately won't fit on
the bus or the plane to go home. The sound quality is absolutely exceptional on here and definately a live album that you need in your collection if you crave the magicalness of those Uriah Boys and you can't go wrong with the patriotic outtro tape of the the tradition 'Land Of Hope & Glory'!! Classic!! 10/10 By Glenn Milligan |
| March |
UNMASK
- Sophie Told Me Unmask are an impressive four-piece from Rome, playing that most audacious of musical genres for four sprightly young lads their age - prog rock. Venturing only a safe distance into the technical end , their swish melodic metal sound is one of sheer depth and only occasional speed with no pretentious clouds in the sky forecast at all for today. Yes, of course they do solos but its all part of a well-blended parcel for this band who take the more straight ahead direction into the game. There's harmonious vocals with choruses and good instant -moving melodies pull the album along as strongly as the instrument performances smoothing off nine solid songs without needing a plain. Frequently ballad-oriented at the offsets, they all sport an eventual electric approach and sound more intensely angst -driven along the middle to the end , generating a Gabriel-era Genesis touch to some parts. Another great unmasked talent in the European wings. Try them. 8/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Dream Theater, Flower Kings, Enchant, Spock’s Beard & Queen. |
| UNRULY
CHILD - When Worlds Collide It’s here! The reunion that’s been waiting seventeen years to happen finally unveils its fruits. In the time since Unruly Child ‘s incredible debut cd, Mark Free became Marcie and the rest of the band meanwhile went through revolving doors of line ups, recording an impressive couple of records with Hurricane’s Kai Hansen on the mic. Anyway, Messrs Gowdy, Allison, Antonio and Schellen are back and accounted for, time has come to find if URC’s fourth record has been worth the fuss. A safe ‘yes’ springs to mind though it nearly suffers a small delay on entry. Opening numbers ’Show Me The Money’ and ’Insane’ kick in with a sound close enough to their old one to satisfy but are still far less instant than they should be, possibly due to the choruses with their surprisingly flat melody line. When we Were Young’ sends things soaring right to the very highest notch, one of my top cuts out of the twelve, with a strong and instantly hummable hookline and the wheels are now dangerously in motion. Seventies flavoured Ballad ’Tell Another Lie’ suits Marcie’s voice as it sounds now and just wouldn’t have probably got the same favourable attention if it had been on an earlier disc. ’Love Is Blind’ rocks with a convincing first-album -era-Talisman chug on its way to a cheerfully breezy refrain and the creamy AOR rock of the title track equipped with that unmistakable Gowdy guitar is what this band are still capable of doing for us here in the good ol’ twenty-tens. Acoustic tracks are an essential part of the best melodic rock cd and Bruce still knows the rules after all these years. ‘Talk To Me’ sounds like the sort of tune you’d have on your woofers one Christmas day morning, with a perfect wintry atmosphere in its notes that brings Bob Catley’s earlier solo material to mind. ‘Life Death’ suffers the same trouble as the first two tracks, a promising bridge brining less than expected behind, with a well built chorus but doesn’t seem to travel a lot towards the end. ‘Read My Mind’ and ‘Neverland’ are straight ahead melodic rock of he polished kind the Child do best, the latter coming in with another seventies slant .
A few shaky moments seem a distant memory as Unruly Child’s latest record makes its eight-year-wait very much worth it and the term ‘has-been‘…. don’t even think about it. Bruce, Jay and the boys still put in a typically watertight show after two decades while Marcie made sure the Child came back unruly but at least they behaved well enough for us. Welcome back guys! 8.5/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE: www.myspace.com/unrulychild www.unrulychild.net |
February |
| UCHI/Q
- Una Opportunidad Originally I mistook this outfit as Japanese with that name at the top. This Spanish fivesome delight in classic hard rock, also delivered in their native lingo. While I hardly speak a word of it myself, I enjoy eventually singing along with it as hooks do slowly catch on. Frontman, Arturo Vallano’s range, at times close to a latter-day Sebastian Bach, is so clear you can catch every syllable yet he still maintains a pure leap-behind -the -mike and -let-it-go approach. The twin guitars of David and Perico ripple along with a more than slightly Eagles/Skynyrd -like feel and great layers of blues rock suss right across. ‘Lobo Solitaro’, ‘La Noche’, ‘Eterna Juventud’, ‘Queiro Ser‘ and ‘Para No Olvidar’ are tunes many travelling the open highway on a blisteringly hot afternoon would undoubtedly pay to have on their decks. Then again even sat in a freezing Sheffield bedroom doesn’t stop me enjoying true rock 'n' roll class like this either. Muchos gracias, guys. 8/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE: Led Zeppelin, Thunder & Blackfoot |
| UNSUN
- Clinic For Dolls Another great girl-fronted scoop from Europe and one very set to make massive waves with their sound. I’ll shoot anyone who even dares to write Unsung off as mere Evanescence wannabes - this Polish troupe have a genuine niche of their own carved into them musical earth. Trying to avoid calling them Stratovarious wannabes, possibly slightly more difficult though but they have a strongly more gothic and atmospheric edge over their Finnish rivals. Traditional metal riff lines fast and slow duel against lush endlessly lush melodies for m vocals and instruments alike that sound to have come out of one single note held and changed across an eternity. The musician are from reputable backgrounds, in particular notably Mauser Stefanowicz formerly of legendary countrymen Vader here plying an impressively versatile route in his trade and front woman Aya‘s operatically tinged tones which send the roof moving pretty fast airwards. ’The Lost Way’, ’Clinic for Dolls’, ’Mockers’, ’Not Enough’, ’The Last Tear’, ’Home’ ’Single Touch’ are all strong tunes, although the entire ten uphold their due substance in respective degrees. Excellently cut clean performed metal sounds by yet another fine East European export - we don’t deserve it you guys, honestly. 8.5/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE: NET: myspace.com/unsunmusic |
January
2011 |
| Uncle
Nasty - Swallow The Business (20th Anniversary Edition) A band from Ohio, USA who split for 20 years and got back together to re-record some of their numbers from way back when. Although it does sound rather demoey there's some some killer tracks of the rock and metal format such as the excellent opener 'I Walk Alone'; the brilliant 'Nostradaumous' with wails of Stargazer; the cooking funked-out blues of 'Don't Call Me'; the soul instrumental 'Parting Friends' and the closing untitled bluesy acoustic guitar instrumental after 'Sex Wreck'. An OK CD. 7/10 By Glenn Milligan |
September |
The
Uncommon Houseflies - Excrement Weather Well what can I say; we have Jack Black mixed with Surfin MOD and Pizza ‘n Beer by AOD with a Ramones punk style. As stated on their web site ‘sounds like the Ramones beating up a clown’. We have 11 tracks of comical lyrics that will have you laughing, crying and going oou! As they sing about ‘Pink Party Vomit’, ‘Beating up Hippies’ and ‘Nick the carnivorous Pony’, But that’s as far as it goes. The tracks are cheesy without the cheese and painful with a lot of pain. They have tried to get a good party feel to the disc but I feel they left the party and went home alone to masturbate over cottage cheese. If you want a bit of a laugh and don’t want to take things too seriously within the music industry, then this is one for you. 5/10 By Tony Watson |
Undercover
Slut – Amerikkka Macht Frei Coming from Paris, France they sound like a collision of Marilyn Manson & The Murderdolls and eve feature Eric Griffin on ‘Kastration Kar Krashes’ a well as being produced by Chris Baseford at Chop Shop who produced none other than Rob Zombie, the double M and the Genitorturers. I guess you get the idea of what you are letting yourself in for. A lot of it is similar styled with crashing industrial sonding guitars and squawky vocals a la Wednesday 13 and Manson etc etc. Hard to highlight anything from anything else to be honest as its all simplistic distortive deadbeat riffs and shouting hard to work out the lyrics throaty singing that’s full of angryness. There is an overusage of the words f*ck, f*ck*rs and f*ck*d – hahaha – though there are some some funk dance riffs at times. The spoken word ‘Jesus Kills! Coroner Saves!’ is an interesting piece though with loads of scary facts found there. File somewhere near Ministry & Murderdolls. 6/10 By Glenn Milligan |
|
The Union – S/T
(Payola Records – 2010) One hell of a great album from a band that features 2 members of Thunder, Guitarist, Luke Morley & Bassist Chris Childs with Pete Shoulder on vocals (of 21 Guns fame) who throatwise reminds me of a cross between David Coverdale, Gary Cherone and the 2 Chris’s – Cornell & Robinson. It’s 2 dozen tracks are extremely real and very earthy and organic whereby many of the numbers are stripped down to the bare roots to the essence of the blues that you’d associate more with the Deep South meeting the North on the Mason Dixon line of the USA than from a band of the London area and beyond. It’s very Americana to say the least. Over the duration album there are simply many, many high points that including the opening quietly bluesy come electric ‘Watch The River Flow’; the full-on acoustic ‘Holy Roller’ ; the Thunder & Black Crowes like ‘You Know My Name’; the beautiful coutryesque ‘Come Rain Or Shine’; the strong almost Zep riff richness of ‘Amazon’ where he’s a rabbit in her headlights and the closing ‘The Space Between Us’ with it’s strong poetic statement of a chorus. An album that is one brilliant song one after another and it’s little wonder that people are talking about these guys so much. Definitely a band that the whole of the UK needs to hear. 10/10 By
Glenn Milligan |
July |
|
UFO MAMMUT - Eve
(Supernatural Cat - 2010) Brace for what is not just Metalliville first but possibly a rock industry one as well. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the ONE SONG ALBUM !!! Or at least Italian three-piece UfoMammut do. Actually split across 5 tracks, I soon wish they’d kept it for Im struggling after five minutes, let alone 45, to keep interested. While an experienced machine in the progressive/ psychedelic genre, UFOM just won’t keep people other than their most dedicated and musically masochistic followers awake by recording a full cd of incessant three-note progressions, lyricless vocals and irritating sci-fi noises while occasional piano and bass layers struggle to keep the boat floating. Based around an alternative story of the first woman on earth, the concept seems interesting enough but the music struggles for three quarters of the three quarter hour to be that itself. Only some near-decent soloing on track four seems to keep me playing but even that sounds tortured most of its stint. Do not get me wrong, for as always reviews are based on one’s individual perspective - if this type of product does it for for you, go for it but don’t claim I haven’t warned you. For me though, this remains a ‘mammut’ headache. Sorry. 3/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE: |
| June |
| Unholy
Ritual - Rex Mundi Unholy Ritual sound like what you would imagine. Full on death/thrash metal with no room for movement. Rex Mundi is as hard as it gets with an influence of ‘Cradle of Filth’, ‘Bathory’ and ‘Gorgoroth’. As we are hit by a heat seeking missile, Unholy Ritual build up the pressure in your skull to a point of explosion, to release a pain that hasn’t been experienced before as they take us to the underworld of ‘Killer Instinct’, ‘Exiled as a Serpent’ and ‘Where God’s Light is an Error’. Rex Mundi has pain anger and violence to soothe the restless souls that has been tamed by ‘Subquantum’ to then be buried alive with ‘Unholy Ritual’. Like most death metal bands around today, Unholy Ritual aren’t nothing new, but establish themselves of being part of a dying breed with a dedicated following. 7/10 By Tony Watson |
January
2010 |
|
UNSOULED - Start
Over
(Molusco Discos - 2009) Spain’s Unsouled take a healthy leaf out of the book opened by other promising new metal acts such as Sworn Amongst and Gama Bomb of late by doing thrash they way it used to be with revitalised feel. Ready to brush down the old-school boilers , applying tight new fittings as they do, they play nine finely tuned…erm tunes… of classic melodic speed metal and almost sounds like melodic hard rock on one or tow occasions. ’Echo Off’, ’Fire In The Wormhole’, ’ Human waste’, ’She’, ’Coldness’ and ’Absence’ have much in league with Canadian legends Annihilator’s earlier produce yet still rage with the pounding force of the less commercial machines. The row-of-skulls-being-smashed-with-a-repeatedly-swung-overarm-sledgehammer attack of their stomping rhythm guitar breaks is unusually fearsome for an outfit with almost ac many subtle interludes but it places them up here with the potential best of the future. Getting great attention on their native turf, Unsould will very likely watch it extend worldwide throughout 2010. Brilliant. 8.5/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE: |
| October |
|
Uriah Heep –
Celebration – Forty Years Of Rock
(EAR Music/Edel – 2009) Cracking new album from those Classic Rockin’ Legends, Uriah Heep who have re-recorded their biggest and best numbers and added 2 new songs. Well it beats a greatest hits album of all the original versions that all of us have already got. It really is awesome where you get powerful state of the art renditions of gems like ‘Sunrise’, ’Stealin’; ‘The Wizard’; Easy Livin’; July Morning and ‘Look at Yourself’ and many others. The 2 new songs ‘Only Human’ and ‘Corridors Of Madness’ perfectly fit the mould too. What more do you need to know – apart from just go buy it and play it high. 10/10 By
Glenn Milligan |
| June |
|
UFO – The
Visitor
(SPV – 2009) Those UK Rock Legends are back from their rock ‘n’ roll planet but they’ve not got Pete Way on board this time as he is sadly suffering from liver disease. Get well soon mate! Anyways, despite the above omittance, the band are back and sound great on these new numbers and slide it upon us straight away with the slide-guitar intro’d rocker ‘Saving Me’ and it just keeps getting better. Highlights include the gutsy addictively riffed ‘Helldriver’ or the great bluesy rockin’ ‘Rock Ready’ & ‘the closer ‘Stranger In Town’ as great examples on how fine an album it is. 8/10 By Glenn Milligan |
|
Ulysses - The Gift
Of Tears
(Symbioses Music – 2009) Ulysses are a new age of prog rock, with a deeper meaning to their style of rock. The Gift of Tears has let the vocalist Michael Hos to express himself, which my wife said sound like Geoff Tate of Queensryche. Listening from a distance I can totally understand where she is coming from. The Gift of Tears is a long epic, containing only 7 tracks lasting a full hour. From ‘Family Portrait’, which I thought was a poor first track, releases the passion of Ulysses. The second track ‘Guardian Angel’ I believe should be the first track as this track grabs your inner soul and transform you into a world of make believe with dancing fairies, mystical animals and forgotten secrets. The rest of the CD produces the same style and the same magical feel, with its melodic interludes, powerful chords, and a very balanced vocal content. As Rush, Pink Floyd, Marillion or even Genesis fan, I believe this is a new beginning to the style that is developing and is a must to try. 7/10 By Tony Watson |
March
2009 |
|
Uriah Heep –
Wake The Sleeper
(Sanctuary Records – 2008) One of those bands that never seems to want to retire – but when they are sounding as goods as this, why would they? They’ve still got the trademark sounds of Mick Box’s Guitar, high–ended vocal exercises and plenty of Hammond sound. Highlights include the title track opener ‘Wake The Sleeper’; ‘Overload’; ‘Book Of Lies’; ‘Ghost Of The Ocean’; ‘Shadow’ and closer ‘War Child’. Brilliant album – proves theirs loads of life in these guys yet. 10/10 By
Glenn Milligan |
| December
2008 |
| Untamed
– Insanity Bound
A quintet from Peterborough UK that sound like they could have come
out in the early to mid 80’s as its got that NWOBHM written
all over it in style as well.
6/10 |
|
U.D.O. - Mastercutor
(AFM – 2007) Udo Dirkshneider is the renowned Accept vocalist, now on his 14th album fronting U.D.O. Although I've only heard a small proportion of this output it is apparent that the traditional style of metal that forged the career of Accept has always been evident and this release is no exception. Tracks like 'Master
of Disaster', 'The Instigator', 'Walker In The Dark' and 'Vendetta'
will surely tick many boxes for well established fans. The vocals still
sound as reassuringly strong and distinctive as ever, the guitarists
have some memorable riffs to work with and show flair in the solos. 7/10 By Al Hoath |
|
UFYCH SORMEER - Crazy
M.A.C.
(Holy Records - 2006) The most unlikely sounding outfit you’d expect Holy to harbour within the confines of their roster, Ufych Sormeer’s rather wacky prog metal is actually fun though I do strongly advise that all prepare for a lethal cheese bombardment throughout. Based – ever so slightly – on a sci-fi concept –
in a not dissimilar way to Gerry metal act Iron Saviour but twice as
overblown in their approach, these guys manage to muster a little experimentation
along their musical travels and if you can forgive the irritating cyborg
voices ( yes, even for the theme of the album) that crop up at random
intervals sometime during almost every number there are plenty of quite
palatable metal tunes hiding behind these obstacles. 7.5/10 By Dave Attrill RECOMMENDED
IF YOU LIKE Iron Saviour, Royal Hunt, Edguy |
|
UFO – The
Monkey Puzzle
(SPV – 2006) They still got it they have, even without Mr. I’m Leaving Again and then he’s back again – Vinnie Moore is just as good and rather more reliable as well when it comes to doing gigs. A huge slab and hard rock awaits with plenty of bluesy roots especially in cracking cuts the opening 12-bar like ‘Hard being me’ with plenty of piano tinkling, the Jeff Healey-like ‘Some other guy’ – love the harp wailing on here; ‘World Cruise’ or the AC/DC like ‘Rolling Man’. A good album that Classic Rockers and fans of the band will like in their collection – there’s even a couple of ballads as well like the closing ‘Kingston Town’. 8/10 By
Glenn Milligan |
|
UNDEROATH - Define
The Great Line
(Tooth and Nail Records – 2006) No, any Dokken fans who have just seen the name of this band’s label, turn away right now, unless you also have an ear for noises slap bang at the opposite end of the metal spectrum. Gut-shredding scream-core is as you might suspect the name of the game here, Underoath doing practically everything by the book which of course means putting some melodic vocal moments into each tune and the result being a noticeably noisier version of Boy sets Fire. There is nothing much here I haven’t heard before especially with Cds by so many other bands of this type coming my way of late but poor tunes don’t quite appear a speciality of these chaps either and plenty of anger-laden attitude lies throughout on top of some solid head-stamping guitar lines. Filed under just-above-average, they at least keep to the musical oath they’ve sworn. Worth hearing. 7.5/10 By
Dave Attrill |
|
UMPHREY’S MCGEE
- Safety In numbers
(Inside Out - 2006) U.M.G. are six chaps from Chicago who take a bit of explaining and that’s not just their name. Labelled a ‘jam band’ they have just experimented with every type of rock related music in existence plus countless other genres though their sound does have quite a progressive side to it. Think Jethro Tull, Yes and surprisingly enough, the Police will clue you up and if you excuse the pun, it would be a crime to give these guys a try. No ten minute epics in sight, they operate mostly round conventionally structured verse-chorus-verse tunes though spread out across larger space to allow for their instrumental dabblings to come across. Not quite Saturday night in the car type material, this stuff requires a clear head and an open mind, which to say the members of Umphrey’s McGee have, is an understatement. 8/10 By
Dave Attrill |
|
Uniting The Elements
– Rebel At My Core E.P.
(Self-Released – 2006) German female fronted Metal band who are doing the rounds in the UK in and around the last few months. This 5 tracker has some killer moments, the best of which is the soaring ‘Thank You’ as it’s got a fantastic arrangement and hook to it and the closing title track ‘Rebel at my core’. They are a tight unit and Dawn has got a cracking high soprano voice. A full length album is gonna be one hell of a listen if this is anything to go by. Be sure to check ‘em out at a venue near you. 7.5/10 By Glenn Milligan |
2005 |
| Unchained
– S/T
(Sound Riot Records – 2004) No it ain’t the UK Van Halen tribute but this is a Swedish Metal band that has been going since David Blome’s day of school. It’s of supreme quality who empower supreme melodies to theirsongs. They even refer to Yngwie Malmsteen as God in ‘The Analyst’ so they get our vote. Of epic proportions throughout the album – take ‘Seventh Sign’; the madly titled ‘Ghost of the Alchemic Hall’ or the exuberant ‘Like the Candle’. The Swedish are the best at this type of metal. 10/10 By
Glenn Milligan |
Uncle
Sid - Rock In The Universe
(S/R - 2004) Coming across like Canada's answer to our beloved 'Saxon' (well almost) and other early 80's bands as well as holding an flourish of an AC/DC vibe in places. A good band with a vocalist called 'Wolf' who sings mid mainly but can also hark out a terrific high wail. Best cuts are the ballad 'Let me go'; 'Rock 'n' Roll' that's very Tikaboo Peak come Deadline. Elsewhere it's very Dio and Saxon epecially the cut 'I'm the One' - worth checking out. 7/10 By Glenn Milligan |
August |
Under-Radio
- Bad Heir Ways
(Lion Music - 2004) A wild army of different styles ranging from aggressive metal to American acoustic country folk. They are an outfit who feature Eric Zimmerman (Guitar/Bass); Greg Bisonnette (ex-David Lee Roth on Drums); his brother Matt (Bass) and Vocalist Robbie Wykoff. This album has tones of vision, making them totally uncategorisable and will guarantee to have a festival promoter scratching his head on which live slot to place them in. The title track itself, 'Bad Heir Ways' is crashy nu-metal meets grunge while 'Noel (The Christmas Truce)' is what would happen if Alice Cooper (in his 'Nightmare era) worked with Led Zeppelin in acoustic mode while sparkin' up a strange but smooth contemporary Incubus like vibe. 'Devil's from a Midwest town' steps into the blues and 'Safety in Numbers' goes from Death to Funk Metal coming across like a bunch of Mike Patten bands rolled into one (and I'm talking Faith No More, Fantomas and Mr. Bungle - I kid you not!!). An album that is both musically and mind expanding. Releases of this nature are not a regular occurrence. Worth investing in for defo. 8/10 By Glenn Milligan |
June |
Unleash
- Live in the Studio
(S/R - 2003) The UK Rock band cookin' it up live in the studio environment on 11 numbers. Just as good as they are when they've studio layered it - but they are a great band anyway who need no safety net at all. Now playing the odd gig at The Classic Rock Bar, Sheffield after umpteen supports to various tributes at The Boardwalk. There are some gripping stoner riffs and Black Label Society like urping blasts ('Mother' being a good example) to US Southern Rock styled offerings like 'Black Rain'. A drum solo is also thrown in - it ain't a ten minute Toad meets Moby Dick thank god but enough to flow into the smouldering, Wylde smiling 'Dead'. I'm chuffed that they've done 'Mornin' Song' and made it the last number - a deep, groovin' bluesy stoner number - a fave of mine that goes into the land of Lynyrd Skynyrd's vocal phrasing territory. More please. 8/10 By Glenn Milligan |
April/May |
| THE
URBANE - Glitter
(SPV/Inside Out - 2003) Like Artenzia seem to have established themselves as melodic rock's new big label, so progressive rock appears to have found itself a new secure hostel with SPV. Then we can't judge an album by its cover, of course. The name Urbane has occasionally come to our attention previously and now, so have they. Originally a studio project between two chaps, namely John Mitchell and Gary Ford, once of a band called Monsterrat, this outfit's roots dates back to the mid nineties and one album 'Neon' eventually came together. Having somehow missed out on said disc, I have to jump on at this further stage and their second disc 'Glitter', thankfully nothing to do with any child molesting glam rocker that might be around, instead and accept this for what it is. Well, it's that sort of crossover business again, this time we've got the three P's, Pop, Punk and PROG?! This I've got to hear, and so have you actually. Without relying on complex structures and 10-30 minute long tracks to spread over, they pack the elements into 14 standard length numbers, little being spoilt in doing so, and the result is a quite hearable selection of tunes packed with catchy melodies and better use of guitars than in most other bands popular in this day and age. I'm still having difficulties naming names on the 'best songs' side of matters at time of reviewing but if you're open-minded enough to tackle this mixture of trendy and untrendy, get in there. 7/10 By Dave Attrill |
| Pre-December
2003 |
| UNRULY
CHILD - UC3
What is it with some of melodic rock's most prolific outfits that prevents them having another album out less than several years after their debut? Hardline and 21 Guns both had their inaugural stonkers out in 1992 , the scene's swansong year at the top of the popularity roster and fellow US faves Unruly Child were feared lost forever as grunge muscled its way in. Thankfully, as with Scott Gorham's act, URC's sophomore offering followed only six years on in comparison to the entire decade it took to cajole another out of Gioelli and chums. And only five years on, Bruce Gowdy and gang are back with their third batch of brand new creations. At time of writing, UC3 is the only Child album I so far own but having heard the lion's share off the previous two, I'm able to draw out the progression they've made, from disc to disc. Quite removed from their earlier output, this material is still above scratch - and one is advised to think of a pleasant combination made formed from elements of Royal Hunt, Whitesnake, Survivor, Harem Scarem and Pulse, aided by frontman Phil Bardowell's impressive Soto-esque creenings. I still can't understand why Mark Free left so soon - apart from his ensuing transsexual meanderings - but a legend's duties have been performed ably by the new hand and on the second spin of the disc, I noticed a slight hint of Steelhouse Lane's Keith Slack in the chap's voice. And when guitarist Gowdy still writes them more or less as good as he plays 'em, and the result is another fine chapter in the Unruly Child Saga, it's just a pity we don't hear from this band more often than we do. Please try and get yourselves a place on the Gods 2004 bill, you deserve a chance over here. 8/10 |
| URBAN
TALE - Signs Of Times
Scandinavia forever continues to fly its flags on the melodic hard rock map, this time being a blue cross on a white background rather than a yellow on a blue one. Yes you see Finland has fine produce to offer too, and Urban Tale know the job in hand. Their second album is very much a follow-off from as it is a follow-up to the debut but lighter in parts. The songs are all there and of the twelve, at least ten of them lodge in on first listen, and incur many further. The central trio of 'Son Of A Gun', 'Open Your Heart' and 'Captain Of Clouds', whilst 'Starship Of Giants', 'Houdini's Eyes' and 'Mary' are amongst others pushing the weight. Kimmo Blom is amongst probably the best of the Scandi vocalists doing the rounds at the moment, and he, along with the other four fine chappies making up this magnificent orchestra, provide the sort of harmonies that an album of this sort needs to make an impact of the size they seek to, in melodic rock today. Everything is in place on this disc with the guitars and keys perfectly synchronized in particular. An excellent album leaving these Urban guys with a Tale to tell. 9/10 By Dave Attrill |
| UNSANCTUM
- Ignite the Skies
An English death metal band.. Interesting.. Yes, you heard that right. AN ENGLISH DEATH METAL BAND. A rare sight, and sound, indeed. So how English are they, exactly. Well for starters, as four lads just starting out, they only give us their first names (then I know a certain English melodic rock band from Sheffield who are like that) and that's just about where it ends. With a sound that's just about as likely to come from any of their heavyweight US/Scandi, Unsanctum have however taken an interesting step with the non-inclusion of guitar solos - being substituted in due course by fast moving, fast changing riffing patterns that keep a vaguely melodic air smelt round the area they stand in. This and vocalist Tom's sometimes Chuck Billy-like garglings are the vital acids in this surprisingly lethal battery. Homegrown extreme metal at its best, packed with hate and aggression often seen in bands across the pond. or the North Sea. I like it indeed. 8/10 By Dave Attrill |
| Pre-July 2003 |
| Uriah
Heep - …Very 'eavy, very 'umble
(Sanctuary Records - 2003) It's not a stones throw away since the first few 'Heep albums were out in a miniature box set called 'You can't keep a good band down' but now you buy the first two separate again with bonus tracks. The original album has stood the test of time with the frustration felt 'Gypsy'; the disturbing 'Come Away Melinda' and the kickin' 'Real Turned On'. Like many bands of the era, BBC Radio Sessions were an essential part of the promotional campaign and on this re-release you are rewarded with BBC versions of 'Gypsy' and 'Dreammare' as well as unreleased studio versions including 'Born in a trunk' and 'Wake Up (Set your sights)'. Plus there's plenty of photos, full lyrics and words from band members as well. 10/10 By
Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
| Uriah
Heep - Salisbury
(Santuary Records - 2003) Like 'Very 'eavy…' it runs the same kinda course and joins the original album with some bonus tracks. From the momentous ballad 'The Park'; the electric/acoustic 'Lady in Black' masterpiece about some chick that came on to one of the band members one winter morning or the momentous title track itself with all the orchestrations - they just don't make 'em like that anymore, do they? The bonus tracks this time around include a single edit of 'High Priestess'; an unreleased version of 'Here I Am' and unreleased mixes of songs like 'The Park'. 8/10 By
Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
| USURPER
- Necronemesis
(Earache) Scandinavia may have been a highly active production line in death metal bands over the last decade, but the US of A have never been in a position to be left out. Chicago's Usurper have been around for about as long but this is the first time their sweet music has made it within hearing distance of yours truly's earlobes. Well, sweet may not quite hit it right on the line but for the leather-clad aficionados of the worlds gathered, not much should disappoint. As with a lot of death metal acts from across the pond, they are capable of switching to and fro from venting their utmost spleen to stepping back in a noticeably pedestrian manner and letting a bit of melody and traditional chug dominate the guitaring alongside the rhythm lines, themselves fitted with multi-gear speed options. Thus the styles and the style changes are there and the outfit make good use of the 72 minutes to show what they're made of. 8.5/10 By
Dave Attrill |
| USURPER
- Twilight Dominion
(Earache) Back again, already. Actually, I got this along with that other disc from the veteran US metal act. Prob' is, I'm wondering if either that or this one is an older disc that has been reissued by the label as the two sure sound different. 'Twilight..' Goes straight to the eighties for its inspirational supplies, with the singing located quite clearly in the Bar Area section and the instrumental body keeping up the more melodic side of extreme metal's nature. Hints of classic British acts, in particular Venom, are quite traceable in the picture and the images of a fledgling Sepultura can't quite be missed, either. One can probably guess that the material on this album occupies a large part of the band's live sets as it sounds quite stereotypical of the intended direction of their musical style. I understand that Manowar and Cradle Of Filth are amongst the acts that Usurper have joined on the road in times past, but with such a noticeable versatility in their produce, even acts like Maiden or Priest might be impressed enough to invite them onto their schedules too. 9/10 By
Dave Attrill |
| USURPER
- Visions From The Gods
(Earache) Never before have I reviewed THREE albums by the same group in the space of one day and rarely have I done two either. So what have we got here this time, then. Not just another album of brand new material, this time opting for an odds n' sods set but it's still new to me, even though there is a live version of 'Warriors Of Iron And Rust' from the 'Necronemesis' disc amongst songs. 'Deep In The Forest', 'Visions From The Gods' and 'Dusk' are the stronger of the first few tracks, whilst I can't make up my mind which version of Soulstalker - original or '96 - I prefer. Strong points of the remainder include 'Charon', a surprisingly commercial guitar line there, lads and 'Bonefire' which has an opening riff borrowed rather precariously from Diamond Head classic 'Am I Evil'. I would have enjoyed that live track more too, had it not been for the atrocious production effort afforded it. Still, not a flaw to the entire disc. A hardworking act, amongst the many that exist in metal today. 8/10 By
Dave Attrill |
| Unleash
- Circles
(Self- Released - 2002) A band I saw supporting an AC/DC tribute outfit at Sheffield Boardwalk and to be honest, I preferred Unleash. The Burton quartet emulate a fresh, active Stoner Grunge groove without sounding dingy like many others can. Matt Stevenson has a pure as crystal voice as opposed to the usual bawling bullfrog stoner vocals - so here is a good stand from the start. Stamping the albums musical style is 'Mr. Strange' that's very Black Label Society in the riffage department. It's a release that really rides the spirit of Sabbath and ballsy rock in general with slight blues like 'Morning Song' that's easily the best number that starts off real quiet before notching up with heavy globbing riffs to the point of climax. Scarred reminds me of the late Ugly Kid Joe in a progressive 70's mode as vocally it's very Whitfield Crane. Unleash must be one of the only bands I've for seen for the first time that have actually impressed me in the last year or two. It's time that Unleash were noticed for who they were and not simply as a support for tribute bands - then again it's a good way of grabbing the right audience. 8.5/10 By Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
| Unruly
Child - The Basement Demos
(Now and Then/Frontiers - 2002) A collection of demos from the LA based hard melodic rockers that ranges from mediocre to sheer class. Mark Free (now Marcie Free) has a crackin' voice and especially worth bringing to the boil are numbers like the cock rockin' 'Rock me down nasty' and 'Lay down your arms', the Led Zeppy 'Long hair Woman as well as many more that you can discover. It's a CD and DVD set for the melodic rock completits although if bought it'll create an interest in the band, especially since Unruly Child 3 is to be released - in fact it's probably out right now as your reading this review. The DVD is a nice little item that features original rehearsal footage, 1st album studio footage and an interview as well that tells the story of the songs and acoustic jams of some of them also. What lets the DVD down is the fact that some segments aren't long enough and would work better if pieced together in one full sequence as opposed to flicking around the mini-menus. 7/10 By Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
| UFO
- Sharks
Back for another round, Schenker's old boys deliver us their new studio album - but it's an album that could have been lost in the post for around 20 years - it's the same old, same old bad pub rock with a different sleeve. Some of the songs are highly embarrasing lyrically, such as the opener, 'Outlaw Man' - with references to being a rock and rolling man in the chorus- you don't say !!! It's absolute crass to say the least and songs like this are prime examples of giving the genre a bad name. I get the impression that Mick Box is quite simply treading the boards, since vocal range and texture is virtually non-existent throughout - it's more like he's reading the lyrics in the vocal booth and going for the first take because there's no real passion to his voice at all and a lot of the phrasing is on one level from song to song. There's a couple of decent sound bites here such as the ZZ Top come AC/DC stompers like 'Someone's gotta have to pay' and 'Fighting Man' or the 45 second instrumental entitled 'Hawaii' that finishes the CD from a solo Michael Schenker - maybe that's the direction he could be going in next?? This band needs to get more original with their next release or stick to the Live in Las Vegas oldies circuit - when are they gonna write songs as cool as 'Doctor, Doctor' or 'Only you can rock me' that will fit snugly into the new millenium and not sound out of place in these present times. Totally dated and unoriginal - although no doubt, it'll be a big hit album somewhere. 5/10 By Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
| UNLEASHED
- HELL'S UNLEASHED Well the 90's Swedish death
metaller's have released their 10th CD symbolically entitled 'Hell's
Unleashed', this poor excuse for a death metal CD is about as scary
as listening to birds singing on that early summer morning while the
dew on the grass glistens with the ray of sunshine catching every shimmering
movement, O' sorry I nearly went into writing a love novel then, I do
apologise. As I quote from the band 'We create hell, you unleash it!!!' and yes they have definitely done that as this has been hell to my bleeding ears, I think they need to have buried themselves alive with this 46 minutes of sh*t. 1/10 By Tony Watson |
| Uriah
Heep - You can't keep a good band down
An 8-CD set of 5" sized miniature versions of 7 Uriah Heep albums coming complete with an extensive booklet. Starting off with their debut, 'Very 'eavy, very 'umble' (1970) that saw the band begin their journey into Progressive Rock and including climatic cuts like the amzing 'Gypsy' and the haunting melodramatic 'Come Away Melinda'. Going down purple foly pastures saw the band discover the enchantic harmonics created by falsetto vocals used on the 'Salisbury' album that came out the same year. The falsetto comes into power on the opener 'Bird of Prey' or the acoustic come electric 'Lady in Black' - let's not forget the long 'n' epic title track itself as well - pure prog heaven if ever I heard it. By the time of 'Heeps next release came along, 'Look at Yourself' (1971), the use of strange organs in their music (and I am talking those with black and white keys, I may add) was in full-flight - they became one of their magical minerals. Highlights include the title track itself that has become an anthem in itself, the ballsy 'n' rocking 'I wanna be free' or the skyward opening vocal and music melodics of the exquisite 'July Morning' or the beatley brilliance of 'What should be done'. It's exceptional listening of the highest order. 'Demons and Wizards' has got to be the pinnacle album of the bands career, especially since it features their most famous hit, 'Easy Livin' - a number which sits on the pedestal with Deep Purple's 'Smoke on the Water' and Black Sabbath's 'Paranoid'. The other stand-out has got to be the sing-along with the chorus number, 'Raindow Demon' . Simialar in style is 'The Magicians Birthday' - in fact it's like the brother or sister albums - this is where to go to find exceptional cuts such as 'Sweet Lorraine' 'Sunset'. And if you'd like to hear some of the above best tracks in concert then check out the originally titled double album 'Live', recorded in Birmingham, January, 1973 to a very excitable crowThese guys are just as good live as on record. It's simply irrestible with milestone epics like Gypsy (that's shouted out by a member of the audience - it's one of those that features the moog), 'Look at Yourself', 'Easy Livin' and 'Love Machine'. It's only spoilt by the crass Rock 'n' Roll medley of crap songs like 'At the Hop' and 'Mean woman blues' etc - ahhhhhhh !!! - Oh well, it was the 70's so I'll let 'em off. We skip a few years as the last CD of the set, 'High and Mighty' was released in 1976 and features the cheesy rock number 'You can't keep a good band down' - so that's where the title of the boxed set came from. This album although good in its own right just hasn't got the same outright appeal of the earlier albums - it kind of missing something and is more like a going through the motions release. That said, the odd stand-out cut like the quiet ballad 'Keep It Silent'. It'll be intersting to see
if there will be another boxed set of miniatures of the next few albums.
We heep up our hopes in large quantities. In the meantime though, there's
enough here for you to be wearing the cd player out with. 9/10 By
Glenn Milligan, BA Hon CS |
| Under
Suspicion - Under Suspicion
8/10
|
| ULTIMATE FAKEBOOK - Electric Kissing Parties (Noisome Records)
Interesting idea's flow through
in a somewhat basic sounding american 6/10
by David Roberts, BA Hons F.S. |
| Urban
Tale - Urban Tale
Here's another band for the fans of Journey, who actually started off jamming Journey tunes (it is their favourite band after all). Kimmo Blom's voice has the voice for it - but has a softer, loving tone to it as opposed to Steve Perry's high-pitched stringiness. The rest of the band makes a strong platform to build the vocals on - and those backing vocals are nice - and a top example is the song 'King of Hearts'. Urban Tale have broken down the barriers and don't simply stick to the safe grounds of AOR - colour by numbers style. They have gone down the funky, almost disco route with 'Passion Takes Over', which sees Tuomo Kovalainen's Bass and Erkka Korhonen's Guitar play a major part in the arrangement - and with an added finish whereby the keyboards of Timo Pudas come streaming over the top. It's like hearing Stevie Wonder alongside a band like Chicago who are getting off on each other's music attributes. 'Runaway Train' will more than likely be a nice stage sampler with it's blinding guitar solo. This is most definitely a band that will be taken on open-armed by lovers of AOR everywhere. 8/10 By
Glenn Milligan, BA Hons CS |
