Album Review: Powerman 5000 - "The Noble Rot"

 
How many different bands has Powerman 5000 been now?  The band that recorded “True Force” and “Mega!! Kung-Fu Radio” (or “The Blood Splat Rating System,” if you prefer,) was not, thematically, the same band that had an impactful landing with “Tonight the Stars Revolt!” and then was star-crossed with the non-release of “Anyone For Doomsday?”  Which is turn was a different band than gave the world “Transform” and “Destroy What You Enjoy.”  Which, again, was not the band that composed the re-birthing album “Builders of the Future” and the follow up “New Wave.”  

It’s been a continual journey of reinvention spanning nearly thirty years for PM5K, which is reflected most obviously in the changing music, but also in the shifting landscape of the band’s membership since the release of their hallmark effort in 1999.  The one curse of having released a platinum album is that there are fans who will hold a band to that standard for the duration of their natural lives, and thus Powerman 5000’s (and really, frontman Spider’s) musical journey to find new sounds comes as anathema to those who have never matured past “When Worlds Collide.”

Yet, none of us are the same people we were in 1999 (and there’s probably a fair percentage of those reading this who were not even born then,) and who are we to judge an artist’s attempt to grow and change and evolve?

With that as the backdrop, we come now to Powerman’s new effort, “The Noble Rot.”  In America, we struggle mightily with the concept that any public person can be two things at the same time.  Russell Crowe can be a great actor and a difficult personality.  Michael Jordan can be a sublime talent, an antagonist to his teammates and possibly a sociopath.  These things are not mutually exclusive.  Which fits into the conversation of “The Noble Rot” because there are inalienable truths of this record – this is another reinvention of Powerman 5000, and is it a fun album that can stand on its own merit.

Many moons ago, we had occasion to interview Spider, and he confessed to the fact that some of his critics are spot on – he has absolutely been trying to tap into the sound of popular music, and infuse that into his own style.  He is fascinated by the structure of pop songs and is aware of just how difficult it is to write something that appeals to a large base.  He views this (or did at the time,) as a sort of grand life-quest, which has come home to roost for “The Noble Rot.”  PM5K had been trending toward beat-based electronics for years – each album cycle saw the band pivot ever so much closer to the target, shedding the cocoon of metal and industrial and trying to grow the gossamer wings of something more.

And you needn’t get far to see the effect.  “Cannibal Killers That Kill Everyone,” leads the album and is most emblematic of the Powerman of old.  It’s the most infectious song that the band has written since the haunting lilt of “I Can’t Fucking Hear You,” and repeats a simple but effective chorus until it is destined to become a crowd chant.

The album acts though, as if it wants to get that out of the way, for the experience never returns to the same idiom, and what we get from that point forward is varying degrees of an electronic pop album that possesses certain metal aspects.  “Brave New World,” the album’s second track, kicks off what can only be described as an album-long tribute to new wave, Billy Idol and David Bowie.  Almost all of the proceedings sound like a blend of those elements, combined with “Pretty Hate Machine” and oh, some Powerman 5000 to flavor the mix.

The album’s first single is “Black Lipstick,” which comes with a fun video, but musically is one of the record’s weaker offerings.  For all that Spider wants to tap into his love for dark wave, this romp about a fleeting love affair is too melodramatic and too far out of bounds for the band’s style, even in the wake of their current re-invention.  The 69 Eyes have written this same song a hundred times and have done it better at least half that.  “Black Lipstick” also has the strange fate of making it sound like Spider and Peter Steele may have had encounters with the same woman.

Other than that and the utterly flat “VHS,” though, the album bounces along with enough retro goth charm to evoke a smile from the listener. Spider has not spent his years of toil and study idly; to some degree he’s found the working formula, and it’s all to the credit of “The Noble Rot.” 

When the band released “New Wave,” one of the more common themes of the reviews of it was that it was fun, but lacked real substance or staying power.  This is not true for “The Noble Rot,” which stands strong with memorable tracks like “Play God or Play Dead.”

Twice, we see the possibilities of real synthesis between the ‘old’ Powerman and the ‘new.”  Both “Special Effects” and “Movie Blood,” stick to the game plan of heavy-handed synthetic beats, but bring some teeth with loud, brash choruses and snapped off vocals that ring true to the ear of the Powerman purist.

To that end, tip of the cap all around to the production team.  The bass is deep and resounding, the riffs, for what they are, cut effectively, and Spider sounds convincing and brazen in his intonations.  It’s rare in the digital music age to be wowed by the mere production of a record, but “The Noble Rot” positively bristles with rich sounds and deep experiences.

This new album sees Powerman 5000 in a new space, but, it is a space in which Spider and company appear to feel very comfortable.  The songs are punchy and catchy, which is exactly the kind of thing Spider has been building toward for more than ten years now.  Powerman 5000 is dead; long live Powerman 5000.

Album Review: Arctic Rain - The One

                                   

I've said repeatedly that I don't quite understand the obsession with the 80s. Both politically and musically, it was a time that doesn't have a whole lot I think carries over to today. When it comes to rock, we're talking about the days of hair metal. Do we really have that many people clamoring for the return of that sound? Does anyone still believe Poison was a good band? Someone must, because Arctic Rain is yet another young band made up of people who probably weren't alive when that style of music was actually popular, yet that's what they have chosen to make for themselves. Even though I was born in the 80s, I would rather not go back to that time.

Still, I can look at the music in a mostly objective way, despite it not being my preferred sound to listen to right now. Arctic Rain are going for the straight-up 80s stadium rock sound, and not the softer style The Night Flight Orchestra has made popular once again. They are trying to write another "Livin' On A Prayer", not another Hall & Oates classic. At least they have that going for them.

The reason I struggle with 80s revivalism is that we're talking about a time when rock was popular, but hadn't yet invited in pop melodies. 80s rock was about gang chants and simple refrains, which I find wear thin the more you hear them, even when they're written well. Arctic Rain, whether intentionally or not, avoids that style of writing across much of this record. Their songs have that sound, but the hooks are sturdier than the layers of vocals holding them up. A song like "Lost" would have absolutely been a radio staple in 1984. We've been hearing "Round & Round" on tv in those Geico commercials lately, and the shortcomings of 80s rock are made clear even in those fifteen or thirty seconds.

By the time we're halfway through the album, I'm not fully bought-in to the nostalgia show, but I have put aside my feelings and can fully enjoy what Arctic Rain is giving us. The songs are delivering energy and fun better than most of the 80s revivalists, and even a skeptic will come around to this record having charm to it. They actually show that Steel Panther could have a real career if they weren't intent on demeaning women at every turn for the sake of 'humor', because well written rock of this style does jump out when compared to the dour stuff that populates the mainstream right now.

Traditionalists will love what Arctic Rain is doing on this album, and even those of us who look at it with a sideways glance will eventually admit our skepticism wasn't needed this time. "The One" is a lot of fun, and makes a stronger case for the 1980s than most of the bands from that era who are still out there on the scene. I've had the misfortune of hearing the recent RATT, Quiet Riot, and LA Guns albums, and Arctic Rain puts all of them to shame.

Album Review: Black Rose Maze - Black Rose Maze

I've talked before about how many of us have gotten to the point of laughing at 'reality' tv, and singing competitions in particular. It's easy to do, given how phony some of them can come across, but we have to take a step back and remember that there is real talent you can find on those shows, people who are just looking for a break to get their foot in the door. Heck, sometimes it turns out that person you see on a cheesy show turns out to become a great artist, and you would feel like an idiot if you missed out because of a prejudice regarding how they started out. And so, Black Rose Maze comes to us as the vehicle for Rosa Laricchiuta, a former contestant on the Quebec version of "The Voice". She has also been on stage with Trans-Siberian Orchestra, so let's not write her off before we start.

Before the first chorus of "In The Dark" hits, I can already hear why she did so well on the tv show. Rosa has a voice that's perfect for melodic rock, sweet and smooth with just a hint of grit. She would be perfectly at home singing some of the classic 80s Heart power ballads (I'll just say this; those are the Heart songs I love most). She is clearly a talented vocalist with enough charisma to come through on record. She more than holds her own on the duet with Jeff Scott Soto, "Laws Of Attraction". I could hear them putting together one of those popular duets albums, given how their voices sound together.

But even great voices need great songs if they want to create fans. There are a lot of talented singers out there who fly under the radar because they don't have songs people want to listen to. That problem has popped up a few ties recently with artists sharing the same label as Rosa. Thankfully, Rosa's writing and her choices in outside compositions are better than average. She's assembled an album of fairly heavy melodic rock featuring hooky choruses you can easily and quickly sing along with. You need something memorable to make a lasting impression, and this record does a solid job of that.

My favorite moment of the entire record is the beginning of "Look At Me Now", where Rosa is singing with passion over a soft guitar accompaniment. She sounds remarkably like Lzzy Hale in that moment, who just so happens to be the best rock singer of her generation. That comparison is high praise.

There is one thing I have to address; I don't know if it was just the quality of the stream I received, but what I heard was a bit rough and brittle, with drums that sounded like they were clipping every time a cymbol was hit. Both Rosa and the songs are good enough to deserve a better sound than that. It isn't enough to ruin things, but it was noticeable enough for me to be distracted at certain points.

Sometimes you don't need to say a lot about a record to get the point across. I feel that way with this one. Black Rose Maze is giving us some really good, heavy melodic rock. It hits the sweet spot where all four quadrants meet, and should hold appeal for fans of every stripe of hooky hard rock. "Black Rose Maze" is one of the better melodic rock albums I've heard this year, and Rosa is one of the best new singers to pop up recently. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Album Review: Taylor Swift - Folklore

In some ways, "1989" was both the best and worst thing that ever happened to Taylor Swift. It was the record that cemented her as a pop star, and one with massive hits no less, but it also defined her as a pop star. What's the problem with that? Taylor Swift never was a pop star. She was always the songwriter who came up in the country scene, but who had an ear for pop melodies. She was never comfortable being what a pop star is expected to be, personally or professionally, and the pressure of having to live up to that image is what led "Reputation" to be such a bloody mess of a record.

She tried to rebound with "Lover", but the effort of being Taylor Swift was still there. From the cookie-cutter Ryan Tedder production, to the hackneyed "there ain't no I in team, but there is a me" lyrics, it was all a veneer of trying way too hard. For the last two records, the moments Taylor Swift was most effective were the quiet songs she never intended to get any radio play. That's what makes "Folklore" so obvious.

Taylor Swift goes indie-rock doesn't sound like a headline you would expect, but it makes perfect sense. Taylor is at her best when she's in a genre where her ear for melody is better than everyone else's. She was a country star who wrote catchier songs. She tackled 80s synth-pop with stronger hooks. And now she's going into somber indie with better songs than the usual bleak fare. She's back in her wheelhouse, making herself look better by comparison.

It helps that in addition to being smarter this time around, Taylor has a great set of songs to work with. The muted tones and quieter mood fit her vocal range, and let her hooks sparkle against the grey backdrops. The more organic sound of the record works to convince us Taylor is telling us truths, even when she says the songs aren't all about her. Then again, maybe a layer of separation is just what we needed. Is "The Last Great American Dynasty" really about Rebekah Harkness, or is it about Taylor herself? Not being sure lets us believe what we want to about Taylor. It might be hard to create sympathy about someone who owns a multi-million dollar beach house, but she pulls that off. Imagine that.

"Cardigan" should rightly surpass Weezer's "Undone" as the best song ever written comparing yourself to a sweater, while "My Tears Ricochet" is a masterful line that plays into the perceptions of Taylor, and how most people would bat aside her sadness without any care.

Taylor is still trying too hard, though, if I'm being honest. The record doesn't need sixteen songs and an entire hour of running time. Especially with the subdued nature of the music, she overstays her welcome a little bit, which dulls the impact the best songs here make. Moreover, does Taylor Swift really need to start singing "fuck" and "shit" in her songs? She's a good enough writer to not rely on those crutches, but I don't think they are crutches here. It sounds to me like she's trying everything she can to fit into this indie scene, much like she did the pop scene before. I don't think anyone truly knows the real Taylor, but those instances feel inauthentic to the person she has let us believe she is. At least as an artist.

The gloss might be different, but the bones of this record get back to Taylor Swift's roots, and it's a reminder that sometimes we need to embrace who we are and what we're good at. Taylor is great at writing lyrical songs that elevate the pop sensibilities of genres that don't have much of that. She is not a 'pop star', even though she is a pop star. This record proves that, and provides us with one of the most 2020 albums of 2020.

Album Review: Warkings - Revenge

I'm going to ask you for a little patience right now, because I'm not sure how much I'm actually going to talk about the music on this record. I had an issue with the first Warkings album, and the reality of the current moment have made that even more unbearable. Philosophically, this record is entirely questionable, and rather difficult for me to accept.

War is the worst human invention. The mass-scale death, violence, and horror that war has created is not something we should celebrate. War is the truest form of evil we have perpetrated. That isn't to say wars have not been necessary at times, nor that the costs could not be morally justifiable, but let's not deny reality. War is an evil, and being good at war is not praise-worthy. Having proficiency at killing your fellow human beings is not a talent. It might be a fact, but there is no positive connotation to it.

Warkings is a project that writes songs dedicated to war and the heroes war has created, both real and mythological. I'm sorry, but as we are living in a moment where people are finally rising up and demanding an end to the violence and discrimination that 'warrior culture' has created in our society, it feels completely tone-deaf to be lionizing that very attitude. When you hold up the worst of us as something to celebrate, it's a rather revealing statement of your own beliefs. Not a flattering one, either.

So I find myself asking what I'm supposed to think about this album. Can any level of songwriting overcome the glorification of violence contained therein? I don't know the answer to that, and it's not something I want to spend a lot of time thinking about. I found the first album rather bland, but this one is quite obviously bouncier, catchier, and far more fun. From a purely surface level view, this is a pretty darn good power metal record. But we aren't here just to look at what's on the surface.

When I reviewed Serenity's album early in the year, I mentioned how no matter how good the record was (and it is, truly), I find it hard to make much of an attachment to songs written about knights and battles. That same feeling applies to this album, but is amplified by the more explicit focus on war. Even if I wasn't put off by this subject matter at this moment in time, what emotional connection am I supposed to make with songs written about warriors and mythological gods? Music stands with us because it becomes the soundtrack to moments in our lives, and this music will never be able to do that.

The other issue I have with this album is the band using the gimmick of anonymity, branding themselves as 'The Tribune', 'The Crusader', 'The Spartan', and 'The Viking'. The voice powering these songs is so unique and identifiable that trying to put on the air of mystery is worthless. When Ghost started out, few people knew who Tobias Forge was, so he was able to get away with the schtick for a little while. I'm not super plugged-in to the power metal scene anymore, but it's damn obvious to me who he is.

So that's a lot of words to say this; "Revenge" is an album that succeeds on one front, but fails miserably on another. It's fun to listen to, but horrifying to think about. It makes a good first impression, but leaves a bitter taste in your mouth. If the band had decided to write about nearly anything else, I would be giving this a hearty thumbs-up. However, since they have chosen the route of cheerleading stories of violence, I'm not going to recommend the album. You can follow your own conscience, but mine is telling me to put this one aside.

Album Review: High Spirits - Hard To Stop

Certain approaches to music are a double-edged sword. If you are a band like High Spirits, who follow many of the traditions of early heavy metal as it transitioned away from hard rock, doing so means two things. First, you have a built-in audience who will like what you're doing. Second, you are putting yourself in comparison with every band over the last fifty years that have played the same style. By taking on a sound that is so well established and populated, the bar is set higher than if you were doing something that only you could be known for. Familiarity breeds comfort, but it also breeds contempt.

When the record opens with "Since You've Been Gone", we're immediately hit by the band's high energy sound and classic 70s rock meets 80s metal aesthetic. They make fun music that has simple hooks to pump your first along with. That title is rather revealing, though, since the song does have a little bit in common with Rainbow's classic of the same name, and that very style is exactly the comparison High Spirits both wants and wants to avoid.

The post-Dio version of Rainbow is the sweet spot High Spirits is aiming for. The guitars aren't as classical as Blackmore would sometimes get, but they have the same growl that makes the anthemic choruses sound powerful. And given that Rainbow quickly fell from their heights once they started down this road, High Spirits maintaining their quality is a win in my book. We get some music that sounds classic, but doesn't come with the disappointment attached to it that those latter-day Rainbow records carried.

Over the course of nine songs, the band delivers us the kind of experience Slough Feg has always been trying to, but always fails to achieve. This music is simple, fun, and a good time. I know how that sounds, but I mean it as a compliment. There's nothing wrong with wanting to have some fun and entertain people. Not everything needs to be high art, nor challenging conventions. High Spirits is supposed to be a good time band, and they deliver on that promise time and time again.

There isn't a lot more to say than that, even though it's my job to do so. You know what this kind of music sounds like, and you know whether or not you like it. The only question is whether High Spirits is doing it well enough to justify giving this album a listen. I can answer that unequivocally; yes. If you're a fan of old hard rock and early heavy metal, this is absolutely a record you're going to like. High Spirits is the right kind of throwback.

Album Review: Creeper - Sex, Death, & The Infinite Void

The story of Peter Pan is not a fairy tale, it's a tragedy. There is nothing romantic about the idea of being trapped as a boy for eternity, unable to grow up, unable to develop the emotions and experiences that come with age. Peter can never know love, or loss, nothing of what makes the human experience what it is. He lives trapped in amber, existing without living, which is about as sad a thought as there could be. Creeper referenced him on their breakthrough album, but they understood the truth about him, which is why they have killed themselves to undergo a transformation on this new record.

Creeper as they were couldn't continue on, they couldn't just make more records that sounded the same and accomplished the same task. They needed to grow, learn, develop into more fully realized people. The result of that process is "Sex, Death, & The Infinite Void", an album that is still Creeper, but is a more evolved take on their brooding emo/punk sound. If "Eternity, In Your Arms" was a soundtrack for coming of age, this album catalogs the complicated feelings once you have gotten there.

The initial single to the record, "Born Cold", quickly established this was a new chapter in Creeper's story, and the subsequent releases showed us the band was spreading their wings in every direction. The eyeliner might remain, but instead of emo tears, they are there for old-school glam. Creeper has brightened their sound, pulling from sounds and eras that have echoed through time because they could survive in both sun and moonlight. Creeper is stepping out of the shadows, and daring us to look.

"Anabelle" is a perfect embodiment of this new attitude, as it's a song that could not have exited in Creeper's previous incarnation. The synths and jangling guitars set up an almost joyous tone, which becomes reverential when the song's chorus turns into a revival-tent hymn singing "God can't save us." You can imagine Will Gould dressed as a faith-healing preacher, only instead of being a fraud taking advantage of the desperate and meek, he is being an honest messenger and telling them there's nothing that can be done. The God that created this mess isn't going to be the one to clean it up. Like Nietzsche's famous declaration that "God is dead, and we have killed him", Creeper is delving into the darkest of possibilities. It's a startlingly deep and mature take on what could have been done with all the nuance of a chainsaw.

In a way, this record serves as a soundtrack to a film noir no one has yet put on celluloid. We can hear the beats of the story and how it builds in "Be My End", how it falls away on the emotional climax of "All My Friends", and the cathartic B-story of "Cyanide". That particular thought was driven home in my mind during the spoken word section in "Anabelle", where the vocal cadence and the drum beat sounds quite similar to a part in Brian Setzer's imaginary film soundtrack album "Songs From Lonely Avenue" (I am by no means accusing the band of anything - I don't think hardly anyone has ever heard that album other than me).

On "Paradise", the guitars take on the tremolo of vintage surf music, but this time sounding deeper, and more like the soundtrack that would come as you are gripped by the undertow, your brain shutting down as you run out of breath. The paradise is the image you create to fill the black void, and the sinister guitar notes are there to keep you from forgetting it's all in your imagination. When the horns kick in near the end, Creeper is taking on the guise of The E Street Band, if they were transformed by the moonlight.

"Thorns Of Love" is a bizarre mashup of almost Motown soul with the epic madness of Jim Steinman. The song goes from the soft stabs of guitar and a shuffling rhythm to a chorus rivaling anything Meat Loaf sang, which is made all the more obvious when the spoken word section is pure Steinman, and the following guitar solo, complete with bells,  is right out of "Bat Out Of Hell". This stuff plays right into the cracks of my heart, and I ate it up.

Creeper takes us on a trip through many chapters in olden music history, and what's amazing is how they do it so well. We saw Lordi try this same sort of thing, with a far more obvious gimmick behind it, and the results were disastrous. Creeper, however, are able to convince me they are Peter Pan, they have been around through all these episodes and eras, and that's why they can inhabit the various sounds and make them feel natural. It's quite the accomplishment to reinvent yourself not just once, but several times across the same album. I haven't heard it often, and maybe never as well as Creeper has done it here.

The story of Creeper is the one I most enjoy writing. A band I heard promise from on "The Stranger" blossomed into a great band on "Eternity, In Your Arms", and now they have shattered expectations and emerged as grayscale butterflies shimmering the moonlight off their iridescent wings on "Sex, Death, & The Infinite Void". Those wings are fully stretched, and they span as wide as I can see. Creeper has make a remarkable record here, whether or not it winds up being the best of the year, it very well might be the most impressive.

Bloody Good News: Manowar Still Sucks, And So Does Absu

It seems like I could write a column practically every week about musicians being horrible human beings. Here's this week's entries:

Our Top Story: Former(?) Manowar guitarist Karl Logan has admitted in court to possessing child pornography, and now faces up to twenty-five years in prison. This does not put an end to the story, however, as there is another angle besides justice being done in the legal system. I wrote an angry missive against Manowar and their handling of this issue, and I stand by everything I said then. With this new development, it reinforces everything I thought at the time, and makes the band's position even more untenable.

I checked their online presence for any sort of statement regarding Logan, and found absolutely nothing, which means their previous statement last year stands as the last comments they made on the subject. That statement, if you remember, raised many questions of morality, because it never said Logan was officially removed from Manowar, only that he would no longer be performing with the band. The issues I had at the time, mostly that the band was trying to sell new music without revealing if any of the money would be profiting Logan, still remain. Manowar has had a year to address this, and has failed to do so. Instead, Manowar is busy touting the new console they installed at their recording studio.

With a former member of the band now admitting to being a sex offender, how is it that Manowar can feel comfortable staying silent? I don't mean how the lousy people in the band can continue to be lousy people, I want to know how the music press hasn't latched onto this story and demanded an explanation from Manowar. How have we let them get away with this?

I find this especially puzzling in light of recent circumstances, where women are coming forward and telling their stories, and Burger Records now shutting down in light of their role in the perpetuation of sexual abuse. We have seen the pop and indie worlds reckoning with the despicable people in their midst, but metal is lagging behind. Manowar harbored a man we can probably call a pedophile, who we can definitely call an abettor of child sex abuse, and the band never has to address what they knew or what they did about it. That is indefensible not just of them, but of us.

In the years I've been writing about music, I think this story is the most disheartening, because this is an indictment of everyone. I get that bad people are going to do horrible things, but it's the job of good people to call them out and hold them to account.

Where are the good people?

In Other News: Texas underground 'legends' Absu have broken up, and it apparently stems from band leader 'Proscriptor' McGovern's anti-trans beliefs. The band's latest guitarist, Melissa Moore, came out as transgender, and soon thereafter the band broke up, with McGovern starting a new group to be called 'Proscriptor McGovern's Apsu". He is rebranding himself in an effort to avoid playing with Moore, but why?

According to her, after she made her transition, McGovern told her she ruined the band, and that "there is no place for a woman in this band".

I cannot understand what kind of small-minded 'men' hold these beliefs. How does it matter to the music whether it is being played by a woman or not? Does he think the audience can hear the lack of testosterone bleeding through the guitar pickups?

Someone more interested in psychology, and crossing dangerous lines, might be inclined to ask how the most aggressive and chest-puffing of men can only stand to be in the company of other men. That might be a telling attitude. I'm not going to go there, though. I'll let you do that for yourself.

I think McGovern has more than exposed himself for the small, weak, pathetic, and insecure excuse for a man that he is. I don't need to say anything more. His intolerance speaks for itself.

Album Review: Primal Fear - Metal Commando

Primal Fear is an institution. They've been around for decades, released album after album that their fans have loved, and for a while filled a void that metal needed. That window sort of closed when Judas Priest returned to their old form, but do you think such trifles are going to stop Primal Fear from soldiering on? Just looking at the title of this one, that pun should make things rather obvious. Despite the small window of time where the band tried to do something a bit different, they have reliably been providing the world with all the Judas Priest we didn't know we still wanted. Their dedication to being so traditional can get in their way sometimes, but it's also why they are as big as they are.

Speaking of big, that's how the record sounds. The production of "Metal Commando" is massive, with thick guitars and immense drums. Unfortunately, the production can't do anything to make Ralf Scheepers' shrieking sound any less painful. The guy can sing, and sing well, yet he continues to mar so many of their songs with his high-pitched caterwauling. In fact, on "Along Came The Devil" it's either his voice breaking as he tries to hit those shrieks, or the recording is so hot it's audibly distorting. Either way, it sounds horrible.

The record is exactly what you would expect from Primal Fear. They settled into a groove a long time ago, and we get another album full of songs that try to punch you in the face with simple, snarling metal tracks. If you think about 'meat and potatoes' heavy metal, you wind up with Primal Fear. That's not a criticism, per se, but at this point the band has given us so much music that sounds just like this it's a bit played out. The only way for a record so in line with everything they've ever done is for it to be so sharply-written that it's unquestionably the best thing they've ever released. That's not this record.

These guys are old pros, so they know what they're doing. "Metal Commando" is a good record, but it makes some of the same mistakes Primal Fear has been making for ages. The shrieking is one of them, but not the only one. They also get so focused on sounding heavy and proving their metal credentials that some of the songs never develop the melodies and hooks that are necessary if you're ever going to have songs stick around. "The Lost & The Forgotten" is a perfect example of that. It has one of the band's heaviest riffs, and it actually plays with dynamics in the verse, but then the chorus is a barren wasteland of melody, where Scheepers and the others chant a simple line that falls completely flat. The balloon doesn't deflate so much as disintegrate.

Metal traditionalists will love a lot of the material on this record, but that's not who I am. Just having something heavy isn't enough for me, and Primal Fear's songwriting on this album once again feels like it's on auto-pilot. I know they can do better, because I've heard it from them. They have all the pieces to make a great album, including songwriters, and yet they continue to put out these records that are completely boilerplate and done to death. I may not be a big Judas Priest fan, but even I can say this record and "Firepower" are doing exactly the same thing, which is the problem. Why would I listen to this when Judas Priest's album is better?

Primal Fear is obviously happy doing what they're doing, and their fans are happy with it to. But for myself, it's not enough to win me over. I keep expecting something more, and I feel disappointed every time when it doesn't come through. "Metal Commando" is fine, but not for me.

Singles Roundup: Elvis Costello, Creeper, Amaranthe, & Yours Truly

Elvis Costello – No Flag/Hetty O'Hara Confidential

Artists flit in and out of our own mindsets, and Elvis is now on a different side of the world from me. Despite how much of his music I have loved, these new songs follow a lengthy period of time where he hasn't interested me, and do nothing to buck the trend. Recorded by himself, Elvis is back in exprimental mode, which means he's trying to tell stories in his songs over a mess of noises. These songs lack his flair for melody, and his formerly sharp wordplay. It's so watered-down from what he's capable of that I don't even know what I'm supposed to feel; anger, disappointment, or outright sadness.

Creeper – Be My End

The last(?) single before the record drops, "Be My End" continues to fill in the picture of what the greater work is going to be like. In a way, it is the anchor point everything else will revolve around, taking their previous sound and dialing down the emo just a hair. That leaves us with a song that is half pop/punk and half classic rock, a perfect blend for a rollicking hook that has just the right amount of 'camp' to it. A review of the album is coming soon.

Amaranthe – Viral

After "Helix", Amaranthe was clearly established as the best of all the hyper-modern pop metal bands. There have been several trying to do the same thing, but none have done it as well, and this first single for their upcoming album shows the gap hasn't narrowed. Amaranthe write the slickest earworms in all of metal right now, and they have the vocal prowess few could hope to match. Their blend of voices, along with the sharp writing, create unforgettable songs that burrow into your head. At least with this song, they are still the standard.

Yours Truly - Together

With Creeper's album close enough at hand, there is nothing I'm looking forward to more in the second half of 2020 than Yours Truly's first full-length. Their "Afterglow" EP was the best EP of last year, and the two songs they've released for this album continue marching to the top of the mountain. Yours Truly are everything I think pop music should be, and this song embodies that with its heavy enough guitars, bouncing energy, and sticky chorus. Mikaela can sell a hook with her bright vocal tone, and the production makes this sound arena-ready. If this is an indicator, we might be looking at an Album Of The Year contender. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to share my thoughts on the full record in September.