On February 2, 2010, Rob Zombie released his fourth studio album, Hellbilly Deluxe 2. The name sake came from the first album under the name Rob Zombie which came out in 1998, and the album itself was actually completed in 2008. It was set to come out in 2009, but Rob was busy directing his version of Halloween II so it got delayed. It got delayed once more, due to a lack of promotion, which put it at February 2010. Rob Zombie is easily one of the most creative frontmen in the world of contemporary metal. He's delivered some of the best mainstream metal of the 90's, under both the name of Rob Zombie and his original band, White Zombie. This album in particular was no different in success as it debuted at #8 on the Billboard 200, and sold 49,000 in the first week alone. The entire album is great, but as it is with every album, a few songs stood out just a bit more than others. "Sick Bubblegum" is easily the catchiest song on the album. Some people say it's overly distorted, but we found that it had the most powerful chorus of any song on the album. The orchestral arrangement in "The Man Who Laughs" was incredible; you don't ever see orchestral music being mixed with Metal. In this case, it worked perfectly. Overall, we would say this album was great, for a few reasons. First and foremost, if you are a fan of Rob Zombie, this album does not disappoint. This album would be fantastic performed live, and it makes us very excited to hear some of it live! We will be hopefully be hearing some of this album, and many other songs from Rob Zombie live this April at the 2016 Fort Rock festival. Rob Zombie will be headlining not only day one of Fort Rock, but day two of Welcome To Rockville which is the very next day. Rob Zombie will also be performing at all the big festivals around the US, such as Carolina Rebellion, Northern Invasion, Rock On The Range and Rocklahoma. While all of this is going on, Rob Zombie will also be touring with Disturbed! They've got a lot coming up for them -a ton of performances, and a new album coming out sometime this year! For further information, head on over to the official website for Rob Zombie or the respective festivals. Psssst! We also did a review for Hellbilly Deluxe, if you're interested in seeing what we had to say about the first one as well!
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Asking Alexandria's currently most recent album, From Death To Destiny came out in August 2013. They teased this one for nearly a full year, after releasing "Run Free" without much warning through Summerian Records on YouTube. They didn't release the second single from it until March 2013, though they had teased at, "The Death Of Me" several times. This is the final Asking Alexandria album to feature founding front man, Danny Worsnop before he moved onto We Are Harlot. This one was recorded in several different studios in many different places, including Indiana, Michigan, California, London, and the band's tour bus from time to time. This album got slightly dark, and very personal for Danny. He was clearly not in a good place, but did try to turn it around on a few tracks, such as "The Death Of Me", and "Moving On." There's also tracks like "White Line Fever", which very clearly speaks of cocaine use. Hands down though, the best tracks on the album are "Moving On" and "The Death Of Me", because of their meanings and what they say. "The Death of Me" is all about not letting someone get you down, and flat out says, "I won't let you be the death of me. No, I refuse to let you bring me down. I won't let you make me out to be the one who's in the wrong. I know I've lost my mind before -but I'm back and I'm better than ever." "Moving On" is simply beautiful and speaks of realizing you've hit rock bottom and just trying to get up and change the world. Its sincerely beautiful, and if someone hasn't heard it, we recommend you look it up right away. Another stand out track is actually only on the deluxe edition of the album, and originally was featured on their Reckless And Relentless album. For this album, guitarist Ben Bruce sang a full acoustic version of "Someone, Somewhere" and its incredibly beautiful. The song already had a lot of heart and soul to it, so hearing it acoustic just enheightened that. It also helps that Ben Bruce sounds a bit like an angel when he sings. It was just worth mentioning, so we did. You can catch Asking Alexandria live on tour with Bullet For My Valentine and Blessthefall here in the US between February 2, and March 11. Then they go over to Australia and New Zealand with Blessthefall to tour with Buried in Venom April 5 through April 15. They get a brief, two week break before the American festivals kick in. In this order, they will be playing Welcome To Rockville, Fort Rock, Carolina Rebellion, Northern Invasion and Rock On The Range. For further information, including exact dates and ticket prices, please visit the official Asking Alexandria official website, or the websites for the festivals. Also do not forget that they will be releasing a brand new album called The Black with new front man, Denis Stoff this March! Way back in 2005, Bullet For My Valentine released their second studio album in the UK. It didn't come to the US until Valentine's Day 2006, but it has been extremely successful over the years. By 2009 over a million copies had been sold world wide, and 500,000 of those were just in the US alone. It was also the first album to be released from Trustkill Records to be certified as gold by the RIAA, and personally go way back with this album. We discovered BFMV around 2008, which was actually around the release of their next album, Scream Aim Fire, but "Tears Don't Fall", one of the singles from this album was one of the first songs by them we had ever heard. Because of that, obviously "Tears Don't Fall" stands out greatly to us. Other tracks are, "All These Things I Hate (Revolve Around Me)", "10 Years Today", the title track, "The Poison", and "4 Words (to Choke Upon)." "All These Things I Hate" is not only another that we heard very early on, but also spoke volumes. Its all about the people around you, and realizing its toxic for you, and that you should just move away from it before it completely destroys you. "10 Years Today", tells the story of the death of a friend that happened ten years prior to that. Its now been ten years since this entire album came out, making it twenty years since the friend's passing. That wasn't really important to the song to point out, we just felt like acknowledging how old this album is. Clearly they were deeply effected by the friend's death, and did a great job paying said friend a tribute. We my not know his name, or his story, but none the less, his memory will live on forever. As for the rest, we just really enjoy them. "4 Words (To Choke Upon)" is a lot of fun live and just a great song over all. BFMV has remained very active since this album's release, and has only grown in success. This year is no different as they will be going out on tour with Asking Alexandria and While She Sleeps all over the US. That tour begins February 2, and goes all the way through March 7. They then will get about a month off before all the real craziness begins. They will fly over to Japan to play three different dates, go home for about two weeks and then will move straight into the festivals of 2016. They will be playing at Welcome To Rockville, Fort Rock, Carolina Rebellion, and Rocklahoma in the US. They're not done there though! It appears to be the year of festivals because not only are all of the ones just mentioned, and then some happening in the US, there's also a bunch of different ones happening in places like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Finland, France, Belgium, Spain, and many others. All of the European festivals are happing between June 3, and August 6, and are as follows. Rock Am Ring, Rock im Park, Greenfield Festival, Nova Rock Festival, Hellfest 2016, Graspop Metal Meeting, Rock For People 2016, Ressurection Fest, and the Wacken Fest. They've got a lot going on this year! For more information, please visit the respective festival websites or Bullet For My Valentine's official website. Way back on April Fool's Day 2013, Bring Me The Horizon released their fourth studio album, and this one was vastly different than every other album they had ever released sound wise. They introduced a hint of electonic music to their metalcore sound and front man, Oli Sykes began singing more than he did on past releases. This album recieved raving reviews from long time fans, and brought in new ones! All the talk about it for months after its release got Immortal Music to give in and listen to it. We instantly saw what all the hype was about. From the first track, "Can You Feel My Heart" to the last one, "Hospital For Souls", you see right into Oli Sykes soul. He speaks of depression, and religion (or lack there of), and so much more. For us, there'a lot that stands out but the favorite tracks are "Antivist", "Go To Hell For Heaven Sakes" and "Can You Feel My Heart." There's so many very powerful lyrics through out the entire album, but a few from those songs specifically stand out so much. At this point almost everyone has heard quotes from them all. Perhaps this one rings a bell. "I'm scared to get close, I hate being alone. I long for that feeling to not feel at all. The higher I get, the lower I sink. I can't drown my demons, they know how to swim." That lyric is from "Can You Feel My Heart" and brings a lot of life to inner battles and turmoils. Then there's "Antivist", which flat out says, "I'm sick to death of swallowing every single thing I'm fed." What he means is he would rather think and speak for himself, not just give into the herd mentality. The song encourages others to do just the same in a very catchy, awesome way that we imagine would be a lot of fun live. Speaking of Bring Me The Horizion live, they're keeping extremely busy this year. They're going to be playing all over Europe, several festivals around the US, and in Chile, Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil this spring! The fun begins March 1! For further information, please visit Bring Me The Horizon's official website. The festivals they will be appearing at through out the US and Europe are Welcome To Rockville, Fort Rock, Carolina Rebellion, Northern Invasion, Rock On The Range, Rock Am Ring, Greenfield Festival, Hellfest, Amnesia Rockfest, Roskilde Festival, Bråvalla Festival, Provinssi Rock Festival, Rock Werchter, Resurrection Fest, Slottsfjell 2016, and Sziget Fest. Feel free to visit the respective websites for more information and get excited! We're sure BMTH is very excited for all the adventures they are about to embark on. Way back in June 2008, Shinedown released their incredible Sound Of Madness album. This album is what put them on the map and is still to this day their most successful album, even though all of their work is quite wonderful. This album sparked so much for Shinedown. A world of sucess, the Carnival Of Madness tour that happens semi annually, a mulit-platinum single, and a gold one as well. Most people at this point know one of the album's singles, "Second Chance" even if they are unaware that it is by Shinedown. We have loved this album since its release, and our personal favorites are "If You Only Knew", "Call Me", "The Crow & The Butterfly", "Sin With A Grin" and "Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide." The album coveres so many different topics. Some are very sweet, some not so much. Some are actually rather heart breaking. Surely, at this point you probably know what we mean, and if you don't, well, we don't want to ruin it. Go listen to it, you will definitely be very impressed. They've had a very successful career since then, that is still going on today. In fact, they just released their fifth studio album, Threat To Survival back in September, and will be playing several big festivals around the US. These specials include Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Northern Invasion, Rock On The Range, andRock'n Derby. For further information, head on over to theShinedown website or the websites for each festival. The incredible Floridian rock band, Shinedown released their second album, Us And Them on October 4, 2005 and Immortal Music goes way back with this album! A couple of the songs off this album were what introduced us to Shinedown, and they still remain one of our favorite bands today. We discovered them just before their third album Sound Of Madness came out, because their song, "I Dare You" came up as a related video on YouTube. Because of that, we look back fondly on this album.
This album is awesome, and it starts off with a minute long intro of a little girl and she recites a poem and informs everyone that they are listening to a dream. To this day, we're not entire certain what that means, but it sounded good and started the album off very nicely. Our favorites from this album are, "I Dare You", "Save Me", "Some Day" and "Fake." Its incredibly impressive to hear the stories "I Dare You" and "Save Me" tell you. "I Dare You" introduces you to the voices in his head, and you go through the madness he's experiencing in a very beautiful, powerful way. "Save Me" appears to be referencing a drug addiction, which singer Brent Smith did have at some point from what we've heard. Its a cry for help and flat out says, "Someone save me if you will, and take away all these pills." Its done wonderfully, and we just love it. "Some Day", is going through the thought process of figuring out how exactly you feel about someone. You and this other person don't quite see eye to eye anymore, but you still want them around. Problem is, it may not be the exact same way as before, but you can't quite figure it out. Its just all about trying to work that out, and its done in a beautiful way that many could relate to. Finally, there's "Fake", its all about being yourself in a world that's always trying to be something its not. You see the struggle, but you also see the acceptance that you just have to be yourself, even if that's ridiculed and misunderstood. This entire album is one of those albums everyone must hear at some point, if they haven't already. It may be an old album now, but its still wonderful. Shinedown is still incredibly active today, as they just released Threat To Surivival back in September 2015, and will be touring nearly consistently through this June. They will be performing all over the UK, and US. The US tour ends with basically all the big festivals happening in the US, such as Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Northern Invasion, Rock On The Range, and Rock'n Derby. For further information, head on over to the Shinedown website or the websites for each festival. A Day To Remember's For Those Who Have Heart album is turning 9 years old this month! They released For Those Who Have Heart on January 22, 2007 and this is ADTR's second album. This album is kind of thought of as the album that put ADTR in the attention of the public's eye. The album charted at number 17 on the Heatseekers Album Chart in the US, and "The Plot to Bomb The Panhandle" always comes to mind when you mention early A Day To Remember.
For us though, another comes to mind. Its actually a cover of Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone", which was featured on the re-release of the album that came in February 2008. That was actually the first song we ever heard by A Day To Remember, and we have very fond memories of finding them. That one lead us to the rest of the album, and the Homesick album, which came out in 2009. Obviously we also really enjoy, "The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle", as well. Other favorites include, "The Danger In Starting A Fire", and "Monument." This is a very good album, though we honestly think A Day To Remember has only gotten better from here. With each album, they just grow in their talents, and we think its wonderful. If you're an A Day To Remember fan and would like to see them live, fear not! They will be playing all the big festivals in the US coming up soon. This includes the Self Help Festival, Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Carolina Rebellion, Northern Invasion, and Rock On The Range For further information, please visit the respective festival websites. On November 19, 2013, Five Finger Death Punch released their fifth studio album, which was the second part to the Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side of Hell. You could call this one the Righteous Side of Hell, because its the second part, but that is not the official name. Both albums are called Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side of Hell, but there's one part and part two. Part One came out in July 2013, and you can read all about that here.
This one actually tied records of the first part, and debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 in the US. Singles for this album included, "Battle Born" and a Folk Traditional cover, "House Of The Rising Sun." If we're perfectly honest, out of the two albums, we prefered part one of Wrong Side Of Heaven, but this one is good too. It is worth the time of others, but honestly, not that much stood out to us personally. The thing that stood out the most actually was the music video for "Battle Born." It shows the fans, and the band's journey on tour. You get to see things from their point of view and the excitment they got to experience while on the road. Its something that's always incredible to witness, and we can only imagine how Five Finger Death Punch must have felt watching all teh footage back. It comes with so many moments and memories, and then you get that 'montage effect'. Its honestly just a magical thing to see. As for the actual songs on the album, if pressed to choose one, we would have to say "Weight Beneath My Sin" or "Wrecking Ball", as stand out tracks. "Weight Beneath My Sin", is another track about moving on, and getting away from someone that's bringing you down. Then "Wrecking Ball", sort of seems to speak of a war, where you're going to stand up and win. Both are very great in meaning and while we may not regularly turn on the album, we can respect that greatly and do recommend listening to it at least once, if you have yet to do so. Be sure to check out Five Finger Death Punch's music on iTunes, or wherever music is sold and remember you can see them at many festivals all over the world very soon. Five Finger Death Punch will be performing at Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Carolina Rebellion, Rock On The Range and Rock'n Derby. They also will be playing Shiprocked at the end of January and are doing a tour around Australia this April. For more information, please visit Five Finger Death's official website or the respective festival websites. Want more information about 5FDP? We wrote a bio for them in preparation for Fort Rock, and have reviewed not only the first part of this album but also their newest album, Got Your Six. Please check those out and share your thoughts on Five Finger Death Punch! On July 30, 2013, Five Finger Death Punch released their fourth studio album, Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell. This was actually part one, of a two part album. The album debuted at #2 on the US Billboard 200, with 113,000 just at its debut alone.
The first single, "Lift Me Up", came in May 2013, right about when they announced that there would be a two part album. For us, some stand out tracks included, "Burn MF," and "I.M.Sin," which features Max Cavalera who has been part of several bands such as Sepultura, and Soulfly. "Lift Me Up", speaks of being done with the crap people put you through. Sometimes, enough is enough, and this song speaks of liberating yourself very, very well. One of our favorite lyrics from it is "I'm gonna change history, enlighten the world. Teach them how two see through my eyes." Show the world what you've got, and maybe have it come out better in the end. "Burn MF" is similar in that matter. You've had the world on your shoulders, and can't take much more. This song is pretty much the perfect way of saying, "Fuck you, I'm done." While "Lift Me Up" expresses the liberating side of moving on. Then there's "I.M.Sin", which we honestly just enjoy. This album may be slightly old now, but its still great and we highly recommend you check it out. Remember that you can see Five Finger Death Punch at all the big festivals happening in the US this spring, such as Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Carolina Rebellion, Rock On The Range and Rock'n Derby. They also will be playing Shiprocked at the end of January and are doing a tour around Australia this April. For more information, please visit Five Finger Death's official website or the respective festival websites. Way back in August of 1998, the first Rob Zombie album was released. Although Rob had been very active in the music scene for quite some time, Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International was the start of his career as the world knows it today.
The album is legendary in and of itself, and expresses Rob's love of classic horror films through the lyrics and music. It has sold over three million copies world wide, with two million of those coming out of the US alone. All three of the singles from the albums reached the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks, and "Superbeast" was nominated for the Best Metal Performance Grammy Award in 2000. It lost to Black Sabboth's "Iron Man", but just to be nominated alone is incredible. Rob Zombie, at this point is a household name, and many people know, "Dragula" and "Living Dead Girl" without even realizing it. While the entire album is amazing,the singles are very clearly going down in history. They're iconic, and stand out on their own. We personally would also like to throw in, "Demonoid Phenomenon." Its extremely catchy, and something that you can really get into. That one is definitely a stand out track to us, along with the hit singles. This album has started Rob Zombie on quite the career, and if you are looking to get into Rob Zombie for the first time, we recommend you start from the beginning. That's exactly what we did, and were rather impressed. You can catch Rob Zombie at basically all the big festivals around the US happening this year. There's Fort Rock, Welcome To Rockville, Carolina Rebellion, Rockfest 2016, Northern Invasion, and Rock On The Range. For Further information, head on over to Rob Zombie's official website, or the respective festival websites. While you're at it, be sure to check out this album and many, many more by Rob Zombie on iTunes or wherever music is sold. |
InformationAll reviews have the date they were written, the album title, and the band's name, with the exception of Life Starts Now by Three Days Grace and Dear Agony by Breaking Benjamin. Those dates were guessed at, as they were written well before the website began. Archives
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