47 de FEVEREIRO - LUTA PELA MANUTENÇÃO (2018) PORTUGAL

Hello dear brothers of this fascinating world we call music. Long time no see. I'm so sorry but after a long time unemployed a ton of work came my way, so,...
A few days ago i came across something that caught my attention. Being portuguese i have to say that in this small piece of land fronting europe against the trump feud, it breaks my heart to say that Portugal doesn't have a rock scene, everyone who attempts it, has to live underground, so it was with enormous joy that i received a copy of a new rock project called 47 de FEVEREIRO. (47 of February; the same is to say 19th of march). The name of the band says it all, or better yet, says nothing. Eheheh. I like this, i truly do. Uncompromised rock with a lot of everything and then again a lot of nothing. Nonsense with humorous play, but... there is a lot of maturity in it, everything was made with a purpose, so if you start to listen to this collection of pieces of irresponsible music i might just take your fun right now and spoil it for you, these 4 boys know exactly what they are doing, and they are very hardcore, (on the attitude towards life and society, not the music itself, allthough,...).
As musicians they have been around for a long time in several well known projects in the portuguese music scene, and now they came together like a "buzz" on a sunday night, saying i don't want to go to work tomorrow, man ...
This is a street fight statement on society. Random acts of inglorious lives that instead of being captured by a camera were captured on musical statements; a true exhibit for the Casa de Serralves.
The record then. Songs build upon slogans and football metaphores, with some very higly regarded passages of people like Gunter Grass or George Orwell. "stayed for the intention, in extremis, la favorita, infiltrated, vagabond, pigs in the attic, outside the law, extra time"; are a bouquet of fabulastic musical arrangements, flute, portuguese guitar, vocals that sang in italian or in medieval expressionism; what do you say to some doom metal played with portuguese guitar melodies and arrangements in fresh and captivating theme called "á margem da lei"? Or some psycho prog in "la favorita". And again some misterious flute played on first take as if on a jam in a dark prog ambient of Gunter Grass. who is Jon Anderson? Jethro Tull on a heavier tuxido.
This record was made under no influence, that means, no record company pressure, in fact there's non what soever, this is an independent effort and if you dont like it, the band says; "that's cool, bro! we do! and that's enuff". For the record companies, well, some "green mint". As for the other kind of influences, only the band can confirm or deny.
Before listening to this record, i was adressed to the new effort of the swedish outfit Freak Kitchen in wich i find a lot of resemblances with this 47 de Fevereiro's debut. I believe they don't know of each other but the influences could very well be the same, Rage Against the Machine, Body Count, Motorhead, Metallica, or some electric jazz fusion; this is what some people call "a Trip". Let's take one? So what are you waiting for, go listen,...
For the rest of the world, this record might seem a frustrating journey, but music is universal and "gUgle" translator might help you surpass some of that disapoitment. For the latin boys and girls, this will be an amazing treatment, or as my dear friend Roque Xandeiro used to say, espantástico!(a mix word of amazing and fantastic); remember this, old friend?
This record was edited on the 19th of march 2018, that saying, 47 of february, cool, hah?
Glad to be here for all of you!
McLeod has spoken!

GEISHA - PHANTASMAGORIA (1987) DENMARK

This is a Very Rare gem long forgotten in my dusty vinyl trunk, that i've rediscovered again while taking some time to clean up. Does any one know who Peter Jacobson is? or Tony Niemistö? Or Micael kiriakos Delaoglou? Hal Patino? Joewall randall? Yenz Cheyenne?
Well, let's see if i can remember it all. Peter Jacobson, aka Pete Blakk, was the axeman for King Diamond from 1988 to 1992. Tony Niemisto aka Tony Reno aka Tony Lace, was the first drummer for the ginormous band Europe, from 1979 to 1984, in wich he played on the first two albums and subsequently substituted by Ian Haugland. Micael k. Delaoglou aka Mikkey Dee, also needs no introdution, is currently the basher for the teutonic champions, Scorpions, and also played with king Diamond, Don Dokken and Motorhead, as on Helloween and Thin Lizzy. Hal Patino, another King Diamond employee; joel Starander formerly on Blakk Totem, and finally Yenz Cheyenne, who was also the bass player for Piet Sielk's Iron Savior, among others.
So given the premisse, the band. Geisha were a hard sleaze metal band from Denmark. They were quite known in scandinavia and after few line-up changes and demos edited, they recorded an album in 1987 baptized "Phantasmagoria". The line-up for the record was Yenz Cheyenne on vocals, (this one afterwards formed the band Y with Tony Lace; yes, the one and the same Tony Reno); Pete Blakk on guitars, Tony Niemisto on drums and Joel Starander on bass
This is amazing hard'n'heavy with not one bad cut, with lots of "tilsentown" influences. For the year 1987, this is a great rock album with only 7 songs but catchy enough to put you banging your head, but with a not so good production. It's good enough, believe me, but this could have been big. They tried to play it by the book, and that they did, but the result wasn't the one that was expected. Never-the- less, for that year, when bands like Guns'n'Roses were emerging it was a good thing to hear, i really did enjoyed it, and i'm enjoying it again. they were on to a good thing but... strange ways parted them to other projects. it was fun finding this again because they were full of potential and i recomend you to give it a go, but please do it with an open mind and not like if you were to find the holy grail or you'll miss something very interesting. For this 31 year run i thank my good friends herr Olli making his way in the swiss alps and Joe aka DEV, who were the ones that presented me to this rare gem.
McLeod has spoken! 

WARKINGS - REBORN (2018) "ANCIENT ROME"?

Who knows anything about this misterious new heavy metal outfit? Well, i don't, but if you pay attention you'll see that the frontman is non other than Niklas Itsfeldt from Dream Evil and i'm not 100% sure but the axeman is the hellenic Gus G. from the same band as well as ozzy's guitarrist. Another commercial coup? I wouldn't like to think so, but... you see, the songs are Dream Evil "Book of Heavy metal" era, and inspite the record cover this is not Manowar. To keep doing the same thing in another set of clothes i just don't see the point, or maybe i do...
Good songs? Well, if you like Dream Evil revisited, yes they are. If Dream Evil went separate ways i think this could be a very good new restart for some of the ex-members, but the KISS era is dead and buried and as for Crimson Glory, well time speaks for itself. In todays world of digital transcendence, anonimacy has no place in public life, I like it but "big brother" doesn't; and in this case BB is all of the interested parties this game, so,...
Heard, seen and done. for the newcomers to the genre this might be amazing, has for me...
McLeod has sopken!

TEN - ILLUMINATI (2018) UK

It had to be this way. Sometimes when we follow something or someone's life or evolution, even if we don't pay much attention, we came to a point were we know almost exactly what's going to happen. Ins't the powers of the mind amazing?
A few weeks ago, i was informed of the new record about to be released by the fabulous TEN. For the ones new to the hard 'n' heavy music world, TEN are an english supergroup wit a few million albums sold and if this doesn't open your appettite to discover more about the band, well, there's three out of two, either you're lazy, or you don't care or you're in the wrong page. Just to tell you that they have a fabulastic record named "Babylon" wich is a masterpiece and a reference in rock, a conceptual album about a not so futuristic love story in a digital world. Is it good enough now?
Moving on; my first thoughts about the new recordings were: what it will be like? heavier, with a lot of class? a strong theme? more direct and yet in your face atittude? Yes to all! You see, i've been following the bands career for decades now, inclusively my first record was "The Robe" in the distant year of 1997. The times when Gary Hughes was enjoying a status of the new british rock sensation artist, then accompannied by the british guitar hero Vinnie Burns, and well deserved for that young boy back in the last century, when he had a lot more hair, sorry Gary, couldn't resist the joke while i take the time to remember those videos again as i write, don't worry, i don't have that much too, sign of the times my friend...
Concerning the new times, i just bought this new record and it's a nuke ready to radio-active you to air-guitar or whatever...
"Illuminati" really is a powerful theme. For the ones acquainted with history or Dan Brown's books, you'll understand it. Heavier? well, when the acoustic prelude of the first theme ends and the main introduction riff starts, the heavy-speed german outfit Running Wild, came to mind, and from here you can imagine,... eheheheh, no, this is not speed power metal, but the power of the riff is really in your face, you lazy monks.
"Shield walls" is a battle tune with a triumvirate of screaming shred guitars, can't get enough of this, it's really powerfull to the core, well done Gary! not to forget the keyboards that set the pace to the holy taking of Jerusalem, courtesy of Darrel Treece-Birch.
"Esoteric ocean" is a first world class tune. Reminding me of past tunes from bands like Pretty Maids when metal was uprising and taking the world by storm. The dark environment given by the dark-noir set of keyboard playing sets the way for another fiercing guitar moment. A fantastic evolution of the band is the voice game in the songs, several chorus in falsetto, even i who can't sing a note feel like a first class singer, eheheh, really an amazing and fun album so far...
"Jericho" comes to me as a prologue, a direct rock tune but with a voice-off feeling, like in a history tv documentary, a bit too long, but then again...
This time they dare to enter the field of prog metal with a classic rock feeling, ideal for the main theme, a timeless tune, "illuminati"; just like history itself.
This is a concept record, not so direct like a story of sorts but history like, a journey through time.
just love it, and i'm pretty shure you will like it too. It's money well spent and one of 2018's best records so far; stil there's a lot to listen, i just couldn't find another 24 hours in the day to listen to them all, but i'll try.
McLeod has spoken!