Black Friday Additions to My Collection 11-23-12

Time once again for another exciting installment of Everything METAL! Brace yourselves for a load of new additions to my collections

Testament - "The Legacy" The amazing debut from the bay area thrash maters! It has that classic old school sound I love and plenty of solid riffs. Now my Testament collection is pretty extensive. I'm only missing "The New Order" and once I get that I'll have every cd up to "The Ritual". I will probably wind up getting all their releases eventually, but all in good time.

                                                                           
Sepultura - "Arise" YAYHOO! Finally Max Sepultura! This is actually really good! Now I want "Beneath the Remains" and "Chaos A.D." even more now.
                   "Against" I only picked this up because it was two bucks. I haven't even listened to it yet.

                                                                         
Obituary - "Frozen in Time" Yes, I am aware that this isn't an amazing release like "Cause of Death" or "Slowly We Rot" but this was the only one they had and I really wanted some more old school Death metal."

God Forbid - "Gone Forbid" I've been looking for this album ever since I heard "Antihero" I the bonus sampler disc that came with Shadows Fall's "War Within" record. Finally, I have it and I like it a lot!

Pantera - "Reinventing the Steel" The last album and no where near their best but still a decent effort. It's Pantera so it's going to be better than a majority of what's out there but its not up to par with their better albums. Now the only cd I'm missing is "Far Beyond Driven". I've been contemplating picking up a package where I get all their cds for $20. I would most likely give the ones I already have to my buddy who only listens to crapcore in hopes of getting him into some better stuff. Or I might just keep them for myself because it can't hurt to have an extra copy of some of my favorite cds.

Dethklok - "Dethalbum II" Honestly I was kinda disappointed. I had heard a few song by these guys and even bought season 4 of their show. I think the hype over the show makes them out to be better than they really are.

Dio - "Master of the Moon" If it's Dio then it must be good! I thought that very thing as I picked it out to purchase. Words can not describe how wrong I was. I think this came out in 2004 and you can tell Dio was getting old. The songs and vocals aren't bad but the whole record is just boring. I Love "Holy Diver", "Last in Line" and all those classics but this album sounds like he was tired and I don't blame him since he was getting up there in age.  Cool album cover though.

                                                                          
Battlelore - "Sword's Song" I saw a few youtube videos of this band and they were okay. So I took a chance and I'm not sure how to feel about this record yet. (Probably because I haven't listened to it all yet.) The vocals seem to be drowned out by the symphonic elements and other instruments.

Children of Bodom - "Blooddrunk" When I first heard this I was kinda turned off by the weird implementation of the keyboard. However, after another listen I really liked this cd. It's like a freight train from start to finish. I'm glad I took a chance on it. If they would have had "Are You Dead Yet?" I totally would have picked that one up instead because that's the one I'm searching to find. Oh and this is the special edition of "Blooddrunk" with a dvd that has two different recording styles of the album, the music video for "Blooddrunk" and the making of that video.

                                                                       
Fear Factory - "Demanufacture/Remanufacture" The Fear Factory record everybody seems to love. I was lucky enough to find it with a bonus disc of "Remanufacture" which is nothing more than "Demanufacture" track's remixed. All in all it is a Fear Factory release and it has that awesome 90's feel to it when I listen to it.

                                                                           
Dream Theater - "Awake"
                          "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence"
                          I'm so happy I found these! Now I'm only missing "Octravarium" then my collection will be complete! "Awake" is the 1994 release that came after "Images and Words". These albums share the same sound but "Awake" has heavier sections. Which one is better you ask? I've listened to "Images" so many times its unfair to compare "Awake" to it with only one listen. "Six Degrees" is the 2002 release that came out after their breakthrough album "Metropolis pt 2: Scenes from a Memory". What special about "Six Degrees" is that it has two discs! The first disc has 5 songs, each very lengthy and quality DT material. The Second disc is one entire song lasting about 42 minutes, the title track. Here's a little thing I noticed; upon listening to the 42 min track I noticed that the ending fade out is also the beginning of "As I Am", the opening track on their next record "Train of Thought." I just thought it was a neat little thing I noticed and felt the need to share with the internet.

                                                                                       
                                                                               
That was a lot and most likely the last purchase of 2012 for me. I know it's a sad thing, but Christmas has yet to come and I know I'll be getting some more then and not to mention gift cards to amazon so I get all those hard to find expensive albums I want. Don't forget I'm still working on that best of 2012 list but I probably won't put that out until after the new year. So until next time...keep it METAL \m/

Part 4 of My Collection O-W THE END!

It's been awhile since I added a posted about my collection that doesn't have to do with adding to it. I'm nearly finished so let's see how far we get today.

O
 Once Dead- "Visions of Hell" This is a Christian thrash band that hardly anyone knows about. They have some pretty impressive riffs and put me in mind of Slayer.

                                                                 
Onward to Olympas - "This World is Not My Home"
                                   "War Within Us" Yet another Christian Metalcore band but these guys are actually half decent. Their firts album is their best but I haven't listened to their newest release yet.

Opeth - "Ghost Reveries" Now since I've already told you about all the other Opeth I purchased in my other "Additions to my Collection" posts I'll just put my favorite one here. "Ghost Reveries" is my favorite and out of the ones I've heard their best.  It's perfectly balanced with hard songs and easy softer songs. I enjoy this record from front to back every time I play through it.
                                                     I even bought a shirt with that pic on it!

                                                                       
Overkill - "Wrecking Your Neck LIVE"
               "Immortalis" Classic East coast thrash for the win! These guys were around before Metallica and way better if you ask me. They definitely deserve to be in the big 4. "Immortalis" is so under rated but so amazing. I know I don't have any of their classic stuff from the 80's but those cd are so hard to find. But from what I've heard these guys don't deviate from their sound so it's safe to say what they create today is comparable to what came out in the 80's.

                                                                           
P
 P.O.D - "Fundamental Elements of South A Town"

Pantera - "Cowboys from Hell" Their best effort!
               "Vulgar Display of Power"
                "Great Southern Trend Kill"
               "Far Beyond the Southern Cowboys Vulgar Hits"
               If you want something that sounds different than all those other groove/thrash bands then this is exactly what you want.  "Cowboys" is so fresh and new even still today! The production was so much cleaner than anything else they did after that record. RIP Dimebag.

                                                                               
Prong - "Cleansing" Awesome chunky heavy material, check it out right now!

Q
 Queen - "Greatest Hits"
               "Classic Queen"

Queensryche - "Operation: Mindcrime" One of the best concept albums you'll ever listen to. Like Bruce from Iron Maiden says, " 'Mindcrime' is the proper way to make a concept album." It lives up to the hype.

                                                                               
R
 Rammstein - "Sehnsucht" It has the song "Du Hast" and a bunch of other good ones.

RED - "End of Silence"
           "Innocence and Instinct"
           "Until We have Faces"
           My favorite was the first album but every release after it has been right on spot with the one before it. They are a Christian band that sorta sounds like Linkin Park when they were good.

Rush - "2112"
           "A Farewell to Kings"
           "Hemispheres"
           "Moving Pictures"
           "Clock Work Angles"
           Yep, gotta have some of that awesome prog in you collection to even have a collection worth having. There isn't really much to say about this band because they speak for themselves. But in my personal opinion I think "A Farewell to Kings" is my favorite, but it's so hard to decide!

                                                                     
S
 Sacred Reich - "Independent"  Good newer thrash with a unique sounding vocalist.

Scar Symmetry - "Holographic Universe" Here's band that is turning out solid material! This album is so amazing and the guitar work is mind blowing! Christian (however you spell his last name and I'm not even gonna try here) the ex vocalist is one of my fav singers. He can hit those high notes then drop down to a deep guttural grow. This type of music really puts you in mind of space metal. If such a things exists.

                                                               
Sepultura - "Blood Rooted"
                  "Dante XXI" I lack any of the Max era Sepultura unless you consider "Blood Rooted" is but it's only a collections of rare besides and crap like that. However, "Dante XXI" is a pretty good album and has a really good sound. If I can find these cds cheap enough I'll buy just about whatever they put out and I don't know why. I mean they are ok but nothing mind blowing. Maybe one day I'll figure that out.

                                                                   
Sevendust - "Home"
                   "Animosity"
                   "Seasons"
                    Meh, decent nu-metal but "Home" is their best and only one worth having.

Shadows Fall - "Somber Eyes tot eh Sky"
                        "The War Within" My first cd I ever bought and one of my favorites.
                        "Fallout From the War"
                        "Seeking the Way: Greatest Hits"
                        "Threads of Life"
                        "Retribution"
                        Shadows Fall was originally fronted by All that remains singer Philip Lebonte. (or whatever his last name is.) He was on "Somber" and that album had a more death metal vibe. This band makes pretty good albums and used to be my favorite band when I was a lot younger. The reason they aren't my favorite anymore doesn't mean they got worse but because my taste matured and I found better things. I still love these guys and "War Within" is still an amazing album, one of the best! There is not a bad song on that record. To prove that they are still at the top of their game their new cd, "Fire from the Sky", is in the running for my album of 2012. Yeah it's that good.

                                                                   
The Showdown - "Back Breaker"
                            "Blood in the Gears" Good solid grove metal.

Slipknot - "Vol. 3: Subliminal Verses" This about the only album I like by this band. I has "Before I Forget", "Pulse of the Maggots", and "Duality".

Soundgarden - "Superunkown" A really surprisingly good grunge album.

Stratovarius - "Destiny"
                      "Elements part 1" This is actually a pretty good power metal band. Every album I pick up by them I enjoy.

Symphony X - "Iconoclast" If there is one album you must listen to before you die it is this one. If this came out in 2012 it would take 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. It's by far one of the best things I've ever heard! I would own more of their material but I can't find them anywhere. Go out now and get this album before it disappears like their other releases!

                                                                             
T
  Testament - "The Ritual" when I first went through all my cds, sometime at the beginning of 2012, I only had this record. I'm glad to say my Testament collection has grown significantly! This album is the last with Alex Skolinick before he came back in 2008 to record "Formation for Damnation.", at least I think it was in 2008.  Over all this is a boring record, but I got it for $2 at Halfprice Books so I'm not complaining.

Theocracy - "Mirror of Souls"
                   "As the World Bleeds" One of my top bands right here. Freaking EPIC Christian power metal! The musicianship exhibited here is phenomenal! A must for any power metal fan!

                                                                        
Tourniquet - "Where Rust and Moth Destroy"
                    "Anti-septic Bloodbath" Tourniquet is a Christian thrash band that uses lots of technicality. Although the vocals aren't the best they aren't that difficult to get used to. People are making a fuss about Necrophagist or Wintersun taking so long to release their next album; well those people wouldn't have lasted if they knew about Tourniquet. "Where Rust and Moth Destroy" came out in 2001 I believe and the next release just came out this year. Yeah over a decade to wait and all I can say is that it was worth it.

                                                                     
Trivium - "Shogun" Three words, GO BUY IT! This album a masterpiece if you ask me. I love it and I'm afraid to get "In Waves because I'm afraid I'll be disappointed. How do you follow up an album like this. It would be like Machine Head trying to follow up the "Blackening", nearly impossible.
                                                                        SHOGUN

     
W
  War of Ages - "Fire from the Tomb"
                         "Pride of the Wicked"
                         "Arise and Conquer"
                         "Eternal"
                        Yet another Christian Metalcore band. These guys stand out from the pack because of the melodic and intricate guitar sections and solos. They do have a lot of good break downs which can be entertaining if you're in the right mood.

                                                                     

PHEW! That's all of my cd collection! Now you can read it any time you get bored enough. Now I'm going to make another post about a ton of new cds I just bought, gotta love black Friday deals!

Until next time....keep it METAL \m/
                                                                    

Promised Land PSA

If you read some of my other posts you'll notice I did not care for Queensryche's "Promised Land" album. When I first listened to the record I didn't really like it because it was nothing like "Operation: Mindcrime", it was more like a Pink Floyd-ish album. Upon listening to it with a more open mind I've come to really enjoy this album. Just about every song is a good tune and enjoyable to listen to. So please disregard my first opinion on this album for it is an album that gets better with each listen.

                                                                            

Additions to my collection 09-30-12 through 11-17-12

 I return once again to bring you the new cds I bought. It's a rather lengthy list so let's not beat around the bush.

09-30-12

 

Trivium - "The Crusade" This is the album that came before their master piece "Shogun". I heard this one was more thrashier so I thought I'd try it out. It is more of a hardcore/thrash style record. It an ok album but "Shogun is way better. The title track is an 8 minute instrumental and my favorite off the album.

                                                                              

Tool - "Laterus" It's about time I get a freakin tool album. This is an album you have to listen a few times before you understand what the heck is going on here. It's very progy and confusing listening to it the first time but after a few listens it gets better and I'm enjoying it now. 

10-15-12

For a graduation gift I received a $50 amazon gift card, so while I was searching for DT cds I saw a jewel I HAD to have. For $45 ($47.23 shipping included) I found the "Dark Clouds and Silver Linings" special edition deluxe box set. This originally came out in 2009 (and was $120 I think?) and it was still unopened! If you read my earlier posts you'll notice I already have this album, but I don't have the box set and all the goodies that come with it. It has:

 The album (DUH!)

 A covers cd with covers of Iron Maiden, Rainbow, Queen, Camel, King Crimson, Dixie Dreggs, and others.

 And all instrumental of the entire album

 The whole album on two records (Giant black cds in case you were wondering)

 Expanded art work

 A dvd of producer mixes of each instrument and vocals by themselves for every single track.

 A mouse pad with the album cover 

  And it all comes in a lovely felt box

 So, was it worth $45? (Actually none of my money because of my gift card) I think you know the answer to that.

                                        In the background is only part of my 250 plus collection

                                                                                       

10-27-12

Black Sabbath - "Black Sabbath" Here it is, the album that helped start it all. There isn't much to say about it, I mean its Sabbath so its automatically good.

Black Sabbath - "Paranoid" Now this is a flawless album from the War Pigs to the Fairies Wear Boots. I absolutely love this album. No wonder everybody likes this album, it's so groovy and simple! Every metal head should own this album! I was wasting my time before I bought it. This IS metal!

                                                                            

Between the Buried and Me - "Colors" With a band name like that you'd expect another run of the mill crapcore bands but this is actually good! It's like good metalcore with lots of prog elements. I didn't think progressive metalcore existed but I have been proven wrong once again. This is said to be their best effort but I haven't heard any of their other albums so I can't confirm that speculation, but it is pretty entertaining to listen to.

Iced Earth - "Something Wicked Comes this Way" What can I say I'm loving Iced Earth more and more with every cd I buy of theirs. Awesome heavy metal, enough said.

Immolation - "Majesty and Decay" Some awesome melodic death metal band. They aren't super fast and technical which is a nice change from the other death metal bands I listen too (NILE!). The song "Glorious Epoch" off this album is frikin EPIC! I'm glad I finally picked this up.

Testament - "Souls of Black" Good thrash that sounds like it was recorded in a warehouse. However, the production value does not decide how instrumentation will sound and that is proven on this album. The riffs are pretty crushing, especial on the title track. I have come to appreciate the unique sound (horrid production) Testament has on this and other albums. It would be nice if they re-recorded this album so it sounded newer and beefier because beefier is always better when it comes to thrash! Just ask Gary Holt.

Testament - "First Strike is Still Deadly" The album title says it all. This collection of songs off their fist two cds ("Legacy" and "New World Order") re-recorded in 2001 really shows how good Testament is once you can hear all the instruments! I love this cd because of the sound, its so chunky and groovy.

11-11-12

Megadeth - "United Abominations" This album is pretty good except for the fact that Dave talks a lot. I agree with most of what he says but I don't want to hear him talk over the awesome fret work! Release a solo preaching album where you can speak your mind freely, I know I'd buy it. Other than that its a Megadeth album what more do you need me to say?

Iced Earth - "Horror Show" Here they did an album about horror story characters. It's pretty interesting. But the golden part was opening it and finding it had 2 discs! The second disc and a killer cover of Iron Maiden's "Transylvania" plus an interview with John Schaffer about Iced Earth. I heard that some copies of horror show came with the bonus disc but I didn't think I'd get as lucky to actually get one of the special ones! 

                                                                     

Rush - "Caress of Steel" The album that came before "2112". It's Rush so you should know it's good. I think it's definitely in my top three Rush albums (Other two being "2112" and "A Farewell to Kings"). "The Necromancer" has a nifty riff I enjoy immensely.

Lamb of god - "Resolution" I feel like Randy was turned up WAY too loud on this album. The instrumentation was buried underneath his vocals and I was disappointed. I wish they'd make another album like "Ashes of the Wake".

11-17-12  

Pink Floyd - "Dark Side of the Moon" I finally found this album for less than $30. Since I'm posting this on the day of these purchased these I have not listened to them in their entirety. In fact I haven't even listened to this at all yet, but everyone says its good so I hope they are right.

Between the Buried and Me - "The Parallax II: Future Sequence" Yes, I had to pick up their new one to see if it was worth the hype. I know your on the edge of your seat waiting for my opinion.......it .....is..........not as  good as "Colors". I know what you're thinking, "What?! You listened to this before Floyd? What is wrong with you, you, you musical barbarian!". Well, I just was in the mood for "The Parallax II" ( I seriously have know idea what that even means). While it's not as good as "Colors" is still a good album. I've only listened to it once so maybe it'll get better with another go around. Plus I listened to it on my pc (while I was typing this) without my noise canceling head phones ( I listened to "Colors" with my head phones) so you have to factor that in as well. While it's a better release of this year I still think Shadows Fall's new cd is better along with Fear Factory's and Nile's.

                                                         

Demons and Wizards - "Demons and Wizards" This is a collaboration of Iced Earth's John Schaffer and Blind Guardian's vocalist. I heard about it on the interview on the bonus disc of "Horror Show". It sounds like Iced Earth but with Blind Guardian vocals. Not much really to add.

Voivod - "Infini" I was interested in Voivod because I heard they were a pretty good thrash band in the 80s so I thought I'd try them out. Well, my first mistake was purchasing an album released in 2009. I was smacked in the face when I heard the first track and found out that this was NOT thrash at all! It's like stoner doom metal but really bad stoner doom metal. If you ever see this in the store run, run far away unlike me. I wasted my hard earned cash on this ugly lump of dung. I'm just glad it was only $7. I'm just gonna add a fun fact and let you think about it, Jason Newstead is in this band.

Yngwie Malmsteen - "Marching Out" Neo-classical goodness. I now have "I Am A Viking" stuck in my head. Amon Amarth should totally cover that song but death metal it up a bit. I got this for free because it was part of a buy three get the 4th  free deal (that's why I took a chance on Crapvod because I need one more used cd). 

Well that's it for this time. I'm thinking about doing a post about top albums of this year and one of all my metal shirts and magazines I recently purchased. Oh I also forgot to mention that I am now a reviewer for the sight www.metal-temple.com . I was lucky enough to review Death's "Spiritual Healing" reissue. Reviewing it was the first time I heard it and it is amazing like all Death material. I'm also planning on traveling to a giant FYE in a city far away and making a colossal purchase of cds and vinyl, sort of a last hoora before the new year and tax increases because of the wonderful obama care (I used HIGH levels of sarcasm on that last phrase.)   

Until next time....keep it METAL \m/ 

       

Purchases from 08-01-12 through 09-15-12

It's been too long so let's get on with this colossal list.

08-01-12

Epica- "Divine Conspiracy" (Didn't like Simmone Simmon's voice the first time I heard her sing but the second time something changed and I really like it now. Good symphonic/gothic metal. I think it's better than Nightwish, if you were to compare these two bands.)

Epica- "Design Your Universe"  (Another good epic album.)
                                                                         

Finally got Nile's new cd "At the Gates of Sethu". It's right up there with their previous releases but not better than my favorite "Annihilation of the Wicked"

Anthrax- "Among the Living" (Classic thrash that I'm glad to finally own. It's not my favorite but still pretty good.)

Anthrax- "Spreading the Disease" (Another good Anthrax cd. Most of the songs on here are pretty good.)

Grave Digger- "The Clans will Rise" (German power metal that sings about Irish highlands. They've been around forever and I thought I was about time I give them a listen. This cd has some memorable riffs that I like. Other than that it's so-so.)

Hammerfall- "Glory to the Brave" (More cheesy power metal. Give it a listen if you like fantasy inspired lyrics like me. A little fact for ya, the drummer was Jasper Stromblad before he left to form In Flames, a totally different sounding band.)

Hammerfall- "Legacy of Kings"

Testament- "Dark Roots of Earth"- (Well it's finally here. That's pretty much all I have to say about it I'm sad to put. It's not bad at all just mediocre. I really don't know why people keep saying this album could be album of the year. Nothing on this cd really hits me in the face as something amazing. I got the special edition with bonus cover tracks of a Queen, Scorpion, and Iron Maiden songs. The Maiden track, "Powerslave", was the best track on the disc.)

08-18-12

Iron Maiden- "Ed Hunter" (Here's a jewel for ya. Found this used and had to get it! It's two cds of Maiden's greatest hits up till 1998 plus a computer game called "Ed Hunter". Now because this game is so old my fancy computer can't run it but I'm just happy to have something like that in my collection.)  

Black Sabbath- "Heaven and Hell" (Ever since I got this cd I haven't been able to stop listening to it! The sound is so soft and smooth sounding. Dio's voice makes it sound even better. In my humble opinion I think this is the best Sabbath record. I cannot say enough good about this album. Just go buy it and you'll understand.)

                                                             

Exciter- "Violence and Force"- (Just some good old under produced thrash! This album has a very different sound to it and I think I'll leave it at that.)

Megadeth- "So Far, So Good...So What?" (The album before "Rust" and after "Peace". Whenever I think about the Megadeth discography I seem to skip over this one. It's got Dave's handiwork on it so of course it's good it just wasn't very memorable for me.)

Assaulter- "Salvation like Destruction" (F.Y.E. was running a special, buy 2 get the 3rd free. I couldn't find a used cd I wanted so I took a chance and picked this one. I thought I couldn't hurt because it's free. I get home to find out its black/thrash metal. As soon as I heard the opening I just knew that it was black metal. After 30 seconds into the first track I stopped ripping it to my pc and put it on my shelf. Haha I'll probably never get it out again. In case you're wondering, I can't stand black metal, the vocal style is what turns me off.)

08-31-12

Arch Enemy- "Rise of a Tyrant" (Holy crap this band has the manliest singer ever! Haha I really dig the dual Iron Maiden-esc guitars as they accompany Angela's viscous vocal assault. I still find it hard to believe that voice comes from her. It's so terrifying. I usually don't like it when girls scream/growl, but she knows how to pull it off and sound manly about it. Looking forward to picking up some of their other stuff.)

Anthrax- "We've Come for You All" (I purely picked this album up because it was $21 on amazon and $7 at F.Y.E. Luckily it's good! Nothing like their older stuff but still just as good.)

Epica- "Requiem for the Indifferent" (Just had to finish getting all the newest releases from this awesome band. This 2011 release is no disappointment, although at some spots the songs feel like they were just being made to fill in this record. If you really like this type of music of course you'll like it but if you're half heatedly into it I'd say pass.)

Rhapsody of Fire- "The Frozen Tears of Angels" ( Freaking epic fantasy inspired power metal. It's a conception album, I believe, complete with actors from Lord of the Rings lending their voices to add to the atmosphere. This album and "Nightfall in Middle Earth" really create a picture you can visualize and an experience that not very many other albums can replicate. To add this guitar work is incredible. I will be on the look out for more of this bands cds.)

                                                                              

Iced Earth- "Festivals of the Wicked" dvd (Just a nice collection of live performances with Tim "Ripper" Owens on vocals then Matt Barlow. It really would be interesting to have a poll and see which Iced Earth vocalist everybody thinks is the best. For me it's Stu Block their new vocalist but I haven't heard any singer before Owens so my view is limited.)

09-08-12

Necrophagist- "Onset of Putrefaction" (NO, I don't know when his new album is coming out. Sorry just had to say that. Anyways its Necrophagist, what more do I need to say? Brutal, technical, brutal, technical, I think you get the point. I'm just happy I found this. It's been awhile since I picked up a death metal cd and this day made up for that.)

Origin- "Antitheses" (Another cd I'm glad I finally found. Another extremely brutally technically technical band. I sure do love my technicality.)

Dream Theater- "Change of Seasons" (First DT I've bought in awhile. Its a collection  of covers besides the 23 min opening track. I like it but then again I'll buy anything Dream Theater puts out.)

Queensryche- "Operation: Mindcrime 1 and 2" dvd (I like Queensryche musically. That being said I disagree with their political standing which was made evident with the opening of this performance. After the first two songs I put the dvd away and got out my Iced Earth dvd and watched some more patriotic metal.)

Opeth- "Deliverance" (Nice amazing progressive death metal.)

Opeth- "Damnation" (Very different, almost like "Heritage". These songs have a more somber mood. This entire album lacks any rough vocals, but it's still very Opeth-y. I like to call these songs "rainy day songs" if you know what I mean. After I bought these cds I realized how much Opeth I have. 5 to be exact, these two, "Ghost Reveries", "Watershed", and "Heritage", GR being my favorite. I hit me that I must really like Opeth, and the more I thought about it the more I agreed with myself, Opeth is an amazing band. They create brutal music but in such a beautiful way. The amount of sophistication they put in their music is amazing. When you get an Opeth record you can put it on and let it play in the background or, as I prefer, sit down and listen to the music and think about what you just heard. Opeth is band that has so much to offer if you take the time to appreciate them and the art they create.)

                                                                                  

09-15-12

Queensryche- "Q2K" (You're probably thinking, "Why are you supporting this band if you don't agree with them?" Well if it's used my money doesn't go back to the band now does it? haha It's a grungier album for them, but still Queensryche. After I listen to it a few more times I'm sure I'll get into it.)

Opeth- "Live in Concert at Royal Albert Hall" (Yes to feed my Opeth addiction I got 3 live cds and 2 dvds. I'm listening to the live recordings now and I am blown away at how crisp they sound live. Such a broad sound they capture. I'm looking forward to watching the dvds to see what they look like jammin' out.)

Phew that was a lot, from Necrophagist to Epica. I really do love all types of metal, besides black metal. Until next next time.....keep it METAL \m/ 

Purchases from 06-07-12 through 07-14-12

It's been awhile, over a month but I'm still alive and head banging as always. I've just been busy with college. work and then I lost electricity for a few days but now I'm back and ready to bring you all up to date on the stack of cds I bought.

I have so many to record that I'm just going to list the titles and not go into much detail as I do on my other posts.

06-07-12
Iron Maiden- Iron Maiden (Well of course I had to pick up the first Maiden just to hear what Di'anno sounds like. I have to say that I like this record better than Killers. )

                                                                           
Iron Maiden- Killers (Pretty good album, after all it is a Maiden cd. For those of you who haven't heard these two albums pre-Bruce, the sound is way different. I'd say it's more punky but nothing like Green Day or Pennywise.)

Iron Maiden- The Final Frontier (Listening to the two Di'anno albums then this one, their latest, it's awesome to hear how far they have come and that decades later they are still fantastic.)

Fear Factory- The Industrialist (Pretty good but I still prefer "Mechanize" over this one. Funny thing is that I couldn't find the special edition of this cd the day it came out so I got the lame normal version. A month later I found the special edition with a short story and 3 bonus tracks and I had to buy it. So now I have two copies of this cd. haha)

06-22-12
Kreator- Pulse at the Kapitulation DVD (I enjoy Kreator and this two dvd set was only 12 bucks so I thought what the heck why not. Plus I don't think this is something you'll find everyday at the store. It has a neat documentary of the underground metal scene around the time of the fall of the Berlin wall. It was interesting to see how Communism affected the scene and how it exploded when it fell. Just goes to show that Communism is good for nothing!)

                                                                         
Testament- Practice What You Preach (YES! I finally have decent Testament! It's good all the way through! FYI I already pre-ordered their "Dark Roots of Earth" coming the end of July. And yes, I pre-ordered the special edtion that comes with a dvd.)

 06-25-12
Burn the Priest- Burn the Priest (Before Lamb of god was called Lamb of god they were called Burn the Priest. It was $5 so I wondered what it would sound like. Oh boy it's pretty bad. I'm glad it was only five bucks, but I like to collect weird stuff like that.)

07-09-12
Opeth- Heritage (Yes, I was fully aware that this cd was nothing like anything they ever created. I was still interested in hearing what it sounded like because I like all sorts of metal.....if you consider this metal. There are no screaming/growling vocals what-so-ever on this cd. It's very wierd and far out music if you know what I mean. I got the special edition with the making of dvd and the band talked about how they knew it was going to be something totally different but that's what they wanted to do. I have to give them thumbs up for not caring what people were going to think about this record. I guess you could consider this cd the "Black" album for Opeth in the aspect that they changed the way they sound. I enjoy it and the whole somber tone it creates. It's beautiful music I can sit down and close my eyes and get lost in.)

Opeth- Watershed (This came right before "Heritage" and it's what you'd expect from Opeth. Good clean death metal growls and heavy music.)

Transatlantic- More is Never Enough (This is Mike Portnoy's super prog group. It has a psychedelic 70 prog feel to it if you were to ask me. this 5 disc set is all live stuff from their 2010 world tour. It has 3 cd and 2 dvds. I'd say only get this if you really like progressive music. I enjoy like it but I like weird stuff like this.)

Exodus- Tempo of the Damned (So far my least favorite Exodus album. Listening to it just made me wanna take a shower if that makes any sense. The songs are not pleasant at all,  lyrical content that is. A song title is "Shroud of Urine". Mmmm boy, that sounds like a goodie for sure...not. I'd say skip it. I should have gotten Anthrax's "We've Come for You all Instead". Oh well I hope it's still there next time I go.)

Chimaria- Chimaria (Been looking for this cd for a while now, and it just so happened to be a 2 disc special limited edition. The second disc was live performances.)

For Today- Immortal (Haven't listened to this yet but I know it's going to be awesome!)

I, the Breather- Truth and Purpose (Their second release and I've only listened to it once so maybe that's why I like "These are My Sins" better.)

Get Thrashed DVD (Best $8 I've spent yet! It's a documentary on the how history of thrash Metal, from it's inception to where it is now. I love it and recommend it to every metal head out there! After Watching it I wanted to go out and buy all the thrash I could get my hands on.)

                                                                             
07-14-12
Slayer- Hell Awaits (I'm not a huge fan of them but how could I resist when it was half off. The booklet was just a piece of paper with the album cover copied on it. I guess that's what I get for always buying used. Luckily this doesn't happen often.)

Slayer- Still Reigning dvd (I know I said I'm not a big Slayer fan then I went out anf bought a Slayer cd and a dvd. I'm actually searching for a USED copy of "Reign in Blood". This dvd is the closest thing I've found so far. It's the band preforming the album from front to back.)

Testament- Live in London (This dvd has the original line up and they play all the classics)

Forbidden- Omega Wave (Spurred by the "Get Thrashed" dvd I searched for this bands first record "Forbidden Evil" because from what I heard on youtube it was pretty kickin thrash. Omega Wave however is not their first cd, nor is it their second. No, this is their 2010 release and it's pretty blah material.)

Destruction- Release from Agony (One of the German "Big 3", it's good to have some of their older stuff. Haven't really listened to it yet. I know, I'm slackin.)

Savatage- Hall of the Mountain King (Throw up the horns for this cd! It's classic 1987 HEAVY METAL all the way! Just awesome, chunky, rockin, stuff. Neat artwork too.)

                                                                                             

Death Angel- Act 3 (Another purchase inspired by that thrash dvd. It's ok stuff, although I need to listen to it more.)

Flotsam and Jetsam- Dooms Day for the Deceiver (I got this cd and the next one because of that dvd as well. It's good high pitched vocal thrash metal.)

Flotsam and Jetsam- No Place for Disgrace (Their second release. I haven't listened to it all yet but from what I've heard so far I like it)

Now you are up to speed on everything I've purchased over the last month. I have not gotten Nile's new cd but it's on the way to my mail box along with an Epica cd as well, so look forward to me talking about those when they come in and I get the time to listen to them. Until next time..... keep it METAL \m/
                                                                                                                                                 

Collection as of 06-07-12 part 3 K-N

I had a few extra minutes so I thought I might as well add some more of my collection.

K
Killswitch Engage- "End of Heartache" (First album with Howard and pretty sensational album all around)
                             "As Daylight Dies" (My favorite KsE album. I have the special edition and it has a nice cover of "Holy Diver". I highly recommend this cd)

        and I have "Killswitch Engage" the 2009 release with Howard on vocals. (Do not get this cd it's pretty stinky for KsE)

Kingdom of Sorrow- "Kingdom of Sorrow" (Talk about sorrow, this album really makes u feel full of sorrow and hopelessness. I don't listen to it that much because of the fact. If i had the choice I'd get my money back. I got the album because I liked the song "Buried in Black" so I took a chance on the whole thing. It's like doom metal but with hardcore vocals, not really my cup of tea.)

Krig- "Narcissistic Mechanism" (BRUTAL Christian Death Metal from Brazil. It seems anything that come from Brazil is good, take Sepultura for example. Krig hold up the Brazilian metal par. The bass (which is played by a girl) really stands out, more so than Steve Harris's. I also enjoy the guttural vocals on this record. If you're looking for a good underground death metal band Krig is for you.

                                                                           
Kreator- Coma of Souls (Great German Thrash)
              Hordes of Chaos (Great German Thrash)
L
Lamb of god- "Ashes of the Wake" (perfection! You must listen to this album before you die. I've listened to this album front to back well over 200 times and I've played the open track "Laid to Rest" over 300 times. This is real metal. The fret work is so groovy and the breakdowns are timed perfectly! Randy Blythe's vocals ARE metal, he has the metal voice. This cd even has a guest appearance from the the legendary Alex Skolnick. Everything Log puts out I measure it up to this album, and so far the ones I've heard are right on par with "Ashes of the Wake". It is one of my favorites. You must own this album!

                                                                        
and I own "Sacrament" (I haven't listened to it as much as "Ashes" because I can't stop listening to "Ashes" and I got that album  a few years ago, that's how good it is.)
                  "Wrath" (An equal to "Ashes" but it does not pass it. It would be wise to own all three of these albums)

Led Zeppelin- "II"
                       "III"
                       "IV" (probably my favorite and I'm 100% sure just about everyone will agree with me)

Living Color- "Vivid"

Living Sacrifice- "In Memoriam" (a good starter for someone who's interested in finding out what LS is all about. It's a best of kind of thing.)
                        "The Infinite Order" (Such a metal name! It's good, really good thrash/death metal. It's aggressive and in you're face which is always good!)

                                                                   
Lucid- "Lucid" (think of it as Pantera but it was recorded in a garage.)                                      

                                                               
M
Machine Head- Burn My Eyes (Good for a debut)
                         "The Blackening" (I love all the long songs on this cd. It's a shame I just got this record when I could have been headbanging to it long ago. The riffs are nice to listen to and fun to play on the guitar. The only down side is that half this album is explicit. Other than that it's a pure metal ride from start to finish.)

                                                                             
                         "Unto the Locust" (It tires to measure up to the Blackening but it just falls short. Not that this is a bad album but It could have been better I think.)

Megadeth- "Peace Sells....but Who's Buying" (aw yes, the record that put Megadeth on the map. It's a good classic thrash album with a few good songs on it but I prefer my next Megadeth cd)
                  "Rust in Peace" (THE BEST! This was my first real metal album I ever listened to. From start to finish its a thrash onslaught with plenty of technicality thanks to mr. Friedman. I only listen to this cd all the way through. I've listened to it over and over and over again and I cannot get tired of listeing to it. Oh it's so good! When you see this cd in the store you should automatically pick it up and buy it. I love it so much I even got a "Rust in Peace" shirt. I cannot say enough good things about this cd. It is certainly in my top five albums of all time. Stop reading this and go buy it!

                                                                       
                            "Count Down to Extinction" (A worthy follow up to "Rust" but not as good. It is a must for any metal fan.)

Meshuggah- "obZen" (very progressive and lots of time changes which is good. the vocals can get annoying after awhile though.)

                    "Koloss" (its a so-so album for me. It has some good songs but thats about it.)

Metal Church- "Metal Church" (These guys deserve way more credit than they get. This is an excellent thrash album, a classic. The cover of "Highway Star" is pretty sweet as well.)

                                                       
Here we go, Metallica- "Kill 'em All" (good)
                                   "Ride the Lighting" (great)
                                    "Master of the Puppets" (Awesome)
                                    "Garage Inc." (good cover album)
                                   "...And Justice for All" (My favorite. There is just about zero bass on this record. It was a kind of a way to stick it to the new guy Jason. That being said I love the sound of "Justice". This album is right up there with "Rust". This was the last real album Metallica put out.)

                                                                 
                                   "Black" (Now they are no longer thrash but main stream. Its good but not what real Metallica fans wanted.)
                                    "Load" (what?)
                                    "Reload" (What, again?)
                                    "Garage Days Revisited" (Great cover album)
                                    "Death Magnetic" (Somewhat good. It looks like they are trying to go back to thrash.)
                                 
Mortification- "Live Planetarium" (An awesome live album. The production is really good and I might go as far to say Mortification is better live than on cd.)
                      "Best of Five Years" (The title says it all.)

Motley Crue- "Moltey Crue" (If they would have kept the down turned guitars and dark atmosphere for the rest of their albums I probably would have really gotten into them. But they had to go back to pop metal.)

Mystic Prophecy- "Never Ending" (If you like Iron Maiden but you wish they had some more chunky riffs then this band is for you.)
                            "Satanic Curses" (Now I'm not sure if they are satanic or if they just sing about Satan. I can't really tell for sure. I find it hard to believe that a Swedish power metal band would be satanic, it just wouldn't make sense.)

                                                                 
N
 Narnia- "Course of a Generation" (Great Christian Power Metal. Too bad these guys broke up. If you can find this album get it, its really good.)

                                                                                       
Nile- "Annihilation of the Wicked" (Extreme crushing technical death! The drummer, George Kollias, is a freakin' master on the set. He has the fastest double bass ever! I watched some of his videos on youtube and  when it sounds like he's using both pedals he's actually only using one. It's only on the blinding fast, face melting, gut busting, double bass sections that he actually use two. Everybody knows how much I love Mike Portnoy's drumming and I'm sure you're wonder who I like more. I think George is the only drummer that can match Mike's drumming. Nile has some pretty long songs so I'm sure George could handle Dream Theater no problem. Anyways, "Annihilation" is my favorite Nile cd so far. The fact that they are a death metal band and that they sing about Egyptian mythology makes them even better!)

                                                           
          "Ithyphallic" (Right on par with "Annihilation")
          "Those Whom the Gods Detest" (This is where they start writing about religion and crap like that. I like this album and it's another furious record but they strayed from the Egyptian mythology path a little. Im anxious to see what their new cd will be like.)

I think that's a pretty good size post and I got through a lot of good bands. I hope you enjoy. Until next time....keep it METAL \m/

New Purchases 06-01-12

I've picked up a few more cds and haven't had time to write about them because I've been on vacation. Without further delay let's get into it.

Half Priced Books has got to be the best place to pick up cheap cds. They have rarities you won't find anywhere else. I highly recommend it if you're looking for different albums.

First off I got Extol's "The Blue Print Dives". I heard the song "Pearl" before I bought it and that's why I got this cd. Other than that one song I haven't really listened to the rest of it.

                                                                       
I couldn't pass up Judas Priest's "British Steel" especial for only $6. I'm not a huge Priest fan but I can stand to listen to it. I can finally say I own a classic Priest album. I went home to see how much the cd was worth and it's well over $20! I'll probably never sell it but it's nice to know I have something that's actually worth something.

                                       
I then found a must for me, Machine Head's "Burn My Eyes". It's there first and besides the vocals (which aren't terrible) it's a pretty good album. Lot's of Pantera influence which I LOVE! Really good for a debut album. Defiantly get it if you're a fan of anything else they've done.

                                                                                 
 Queensryche was next and I got one of the many cds they had. I picked the cheapest one being "Promised Land" and it really left something to be desired. I loved "Mindmcrime" and this is nothing like it. I don't mean that it's not a concept album but I mean that it's not good. "Mindcrime" rocked, story aside. Half of the songs were slow and boring. I like slow songs but these were so lack luster. Maybe it'll grow on me if I listen to it more but I have no want to listen to it again. I wasn't expecting this to be "Operation: Mindcrime 2" (They made that one already and I would have picked it up instead but it wasn't there.) but I was expecting the song writing to be on the same level as "Mindcrime". I'm glad it was only $5.

                                                                                     

A couple days later I went to a different F.Y.E. and marveled at all the cds they had in stock. More than the one I usually visit. Of course they had just about every cd I wanted but I'm trying to cut back my spending so I had to control myself.  I did get a few gems which I'm enjoying. The first being Believe's "Gabriel". Very technical thrash, and I love technicality in my thrash! Plus, I think they're Christian so that makes it even better. This cd has a bunch of 6 minute and plus songs so that makes it even better! If you can find it get it.

                                                                       
I couldn't pass up Fear Factory's first cd "Soul of a New Machine" since it was only $8. I got it primarily for that you can only find it on ebay or amazon and for a lot more than 8 bucks. It's okay but I prefer newer FF and yes I will be getting their newest cd "The Industrialist" as soon as I make a trip to the store. "Mechanize" was a crushingly brutal album that I listen to often. I really like the low sounding guitar and blinding double bass pedal and I only hope "The Industrialist" lives up to the previous release.

                                                                         
Me being just exposed to Iced Earth with "Dystopia" I was anxious to get some more IE. When I saw the Box of Wick for $40 I had to get it. If I was willing to drop $40 on a band I didn't know much about the offer had to be good. Let me explain what the Box of Wicked it. It contains 5 cds, a poster and a booklet with notes about the band and it comes in a nice box which looks good in my collection. The 5 cds were "Framing Armageddon"(awesome), "The Crucible of Man"(awesome), "Overture of the Wicked" (a collection of 5 b-side songs I'm guessing, although I'm not sure), "I Walk Among You" (more b-sides?), and a bonus cd of unreleased material. I can say that this was defiantly worth the $40. The music and the art work are awesome! The only bad thing is that every album has a different singer. The vocalists aren't bad but, maybe it's just me, I like hearing the same vocalists from album to album. I identify the bands with their vocalists and when the front man changes from album to album it makes it nearly impossible to do that. But at least the musicianship doesn't suffer. All the vocalists are good I just wish one would stay with IE

                                                                    
Turns out the store was running a special deal where if you buy 2 used you get the third free! Since Believer and Fear Factory's albums were used I got Sepultura's newest "Kairos" It good thrash, what more can I say? We all know Max left the Brazilian thrash along time ago and Derek took over the vocals. I haven't heard much of what Max did but I can say I'm liking what Derek has done. His voice has the same roughness as Max's and I think that's why he fits so well. The musicianship is right on par with the Sepultura I heard so far. It still has the low 7 string guitar which I adore so much. It's really good for a free cd.

                                                         
That's it for now until next time..... keep it METAL \m/