Thundersteel Interview

For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Ćebe:
The band started its journey three years ago as four of us got together. Idea was to play music that we all have sympathies for – classic hard rock / heavy metal. Very soon we released our first EP and shortly after gigs started to flow and we`ve got positive responses both from fans and critics here in Serbia. In time to follow we recorded our first full length album which is now available thought out the world. As for continuation we`ll see what future brings.

So far you have released a demo and a full length, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings?

Đubre:
All the musical sound that we made both on demo and album is presented in spirit of classic heavy metal from the eighties.

What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Miloš:
The inspiration I found for this album lyrics came mostly from the inside of my personality. Sometimes I'm too frustrated with the way things are going on in a modern world and usually I just pull it out from modern problems and put it on paper.

What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Thundersteel"?

Đubre:
The band was named after Riot`s legendary album Thundersteel.

What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Đubre:
Every time we go on stage we try to give our best and deliver pure energy to the crowd. We like for people to feel the vibe and really get into the show, to be a part of it. In last few months we`ve been doing lots of great show and it`s getting better after each time.

Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Ćebe:
Right now in next few months we`ll be promoting our album and we`ll be playing shows around our country. In July we will be playing on Exit festival which is one of major festivals here in south-eastern Europe. As for tour it would be out greatest wish to run one and promote album in Europe but it is still early to talk about it. The complete tour for us would be very much time and money consuming and we all have our daily jobs and obligations here so it is not so easy just to jump in for it.

The new album was released on Tmina Records, can you tell is a little bit more about this label?

Ćebe:
Tmina records is a sublabel of Grom records which is most known and long lived metal label here in Serbia. When it came to releasing our album we had no doubt for right choice.

On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of power metal?

Ćebe:
As for now things started going very nice. Every day we receive some support from people round the world that find interest in our music. We`ve been on many radio stations and some TV shows also. As we are very new band on the scene we expect this to grow much more in future.

What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part off?

Ćebe:
Miloš and I are the part of symphonic metal project called Armageddon. Recently we released a live album and we are recording new studio album for this year.

Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Miloš:
I guess we will keep it up this way but changes are something quite positive in career of any band. It all depends who will be the one that pulls the strings as each one of us is completely different. But whatever happens you won’t be disappointed.

What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Ćebe:
Well it`s hard to say it short as all four of us are completely different guys with different musical interests. While Đubre and Raša are mostly into metal music Miloš and I are progressive rock oriented. However we found ourselves somewhere in between – on classic heavy metal from eighties for which all four of us have sympathies. If I would start to number bands it would take some time as it is not simple as it looks.

What are some of your non-musical interests?

Ćebe:
Well, again on four different sides. While Đubre is always in love with his motorcycle somewhere on the road Miloš is passionate movie lover and enjoys his screen. I on the other hand collect books and comics and Raša is always present when there is time for beer and party.

Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Best wishes from us to all of you and we hope to see you soon live. Stay heavy!

CalatrilloZ/Psalms Of Zahyim/2015 CD Review

  CalatrilloZ  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  an  operatic  mixture  of  symphonic  metal  and  progressive  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  release d 2015  album  "Psalms  Of  Zahyim".

  A  very  hard  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  wit h melodic  guitar  leads  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording  as  well  as  some  symphonic  elements  and  clean  singing  vocals  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  music  also  mixes  both  classic  and  modern  metal  elements  throughout  the  recording.

  Classical  guitars  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  the  music  also  brings  in  an  operatic  feeling  at  times  and  the  music  at  times  brings  in  a  progressive  style  of  power  metal  which  they  also  mix  in  with  elements  of  prog  metal  and  a  more  mainstream  style  of  hard  rock  and  heavy  metal

  CalatrilloZ  plays  a  musical  style  that  mixes  symphonic  metal,  opera  and  progressive  rock  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  ow,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  CalatrilloZ  are  a  very  great  sounding  operatic  mixture  of  symphonic  metal  and  progressive  rock  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Lords  Of  Misery"  and  "The  psychopath".  8  out  of  10.    

Obsidian Sea/Dreams, Illusions, Obsessions/Serpent Eve Records/2015 CD Review

  Obsidian  Sea  are  a  band  from  Bulgaria  that  plays  a  traditional  form  of  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  'Dreams,  Illusions,  Obsessions"  which  was  released  by  Serpent  Eve  Records.

  A  very  dark  and  heavy  doom  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  and  the  riffs  also b ring  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  the  vocals  the  band  uses  are  all  in  a  clean  singing  direction  and  the  solos  and  leads  the  band  uses  also  remains  true  to  an  old  school  style  of  doom  metal.

  While  the  music  is  rooted  in  a  70's  and  80's  style  of  doom  metal  the  production  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  modern  day  feeling  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  psychedelic  elements  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  whole  album  sticks  to  a  very  slow,  dark  yet  heavy  musical  direction  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  Obsidian  Sea  plays  a  style  of  doom  metal  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  70's  or  80's  but  with  more  modern  equipment  and  technology,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  mythology,  doom  and  isolation  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Obsidian  Sea  are  a  very  great  sounding  traditional  doom  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album>  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Confession"  and  "The  Fatalist".  8  out  of  10.     

Naive/Altra/2015 CD Review

  Naive  are  a  band  from  France  that  plays  a  mixture  of  trip  hop,  electro  and  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  release d 2015  album  "Altra".

  Electronic  music  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  element s of  trip  hop  which  they  mix  in  with  the  heavier  guitars  a  few  seconds  later  which  also  take s the  music  into  more  of  a  modern  metal  direction  and  when  vocals  are  added  into  the  music  they  are in  a  clean  signing  direction  and  you  can  also  hear  a  touch  of  post  rock  in  their  musical  style.

  At  times  the  music  can  be  very  atmospheric  and  a  good  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  riffs  and  melodies  that  would  be  suitable  for  radio  play  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  some  of  the  heavier  riffs  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  alternative  and  nu  metal  but  done  in  a  more  modern  fashion  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  powerful  sound  to  them  and  on  the  last  rack  violins  are  added  into  the  music.

  Naive  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  a  modern  style  of  metal  which  they  mix  with  trip  hop  and  electro  music  along  with  a  touch  of  alternative  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sound s very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  real  life  and  political  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Naive  ate  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  trip  hop,  electro  and  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Elevate  Levitate"  "Monument  Size"  and  "Altra".  8  out  of  10.
 

  

Killer/Monster Of Rock/Maulsoleum Records/2015 CD Review

  Killer  are  a  band  from  Belgium  that  has  been  around  for  more  than  30  years  and  plays  a  mixture  of  heavy  and  speed  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Monster  Of  Rock"  which  will b e  released  in  May  by  Maulsoleum  Records.

  A  very  hard  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic  solos  and  leads  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording  and  when  vocals  are  added  into t he  music  they  are  very  rough  but  still  in  a  clean  singing  direction  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  80's  while  the  production  and  technology  gives  the  music  more  of  a  modern  day  feeling.

  When  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  remain  true  to  a  mid  70's  to  early  80's  style  of  hard  rock  and  heavy  metal  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  touch  of  mid  80's  to  early  90's  Judas  priest  influences  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  power  ballad  with  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  is  added  onto  the  recording  while t he  rest  of  the  album  sticks  to  a  hard  and  heavy  style  of  metal  and  rock  while  the album  does  close  with  another  power  ballad.

  Killer  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  purely  in  the  80's  direction  of  metal  but  done  with  an  updated  take  and  the  us e of  more  modern  equipment,  the  production  sound s very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  rock,  metal,  and  real  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Killer  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  heavy  and  speed  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Monsters  Of  Rock"  "Back  To  The  Roots"  "Forever  metal"  and  "Fake".  8  out  of  10.    

Gothic Fate/Illuminati/Skol Records. 2015 CD Re-Issue Review

  Gothic  Fate  where  a  band  from  Germany  that  played  an  old  school  form  of  power  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2005  album  "Illuminati"  which  was  re-issued  by  Skol  Records  in  the  year  of  2015.

  A  very  hard,  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  all  of  the  musical instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  some  clean  singing  power  metal  vocals  that  also  get  very  high  pitched  at  times  and  the  music  also  sounds  very  modern  for  the  era  it  was  recorded.

  You  can  hear  some  elements  of  80's  German  and  American  power  metal  in t he  bands  musical  style  along  with  an  influence  from  Painkiller  era  Judas  Priest  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  remain  true  to  an  old  school  style  of  power  metal  and  you  can  also  hear  some  aggressive  and  demonic  vocals  on  some  of  the  tracks  while  some  songs  also  have  a  symphonic  and  epic  feeling  at  times  as  well  as  using  a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  while  the  main  focus  remains  on  a  heavy  and  melodic  power  metal  style.

  Gothic  Fate  played  a  style  of  power  metal  that  was  very  original  but  still  sounded  very  modern for  the  time  it  was  released,  the production  sounds  very  professional  while t he  lyrics  cover  dark,  fantasy,  mythological  and  conspiracy  theory  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Gothic  Fate  where  a  very  great  sounding  power  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Enemy"  "Bleed"  "Deny  The  Gods"  and  "Pride".  8  out  of  10.

    

Thunder And Steel Down Under- A Tribute to Riot/Skol Records/2015 CD Compilation Review

  Riot  are  a  band  from  new  York  that  has  been  active  from  the  70's  up  to  modern  day  and  have  been  a  huge  influence  on  plenty of  heavy,  power  and  speed  metal  bands  and  this  is  a  review  of  a  tribute  album  to  them  called  "Thunder  And  Steel  Down  Under"  which  was  released  by  Skol  Records  and  consists  of  many  different  bands  doing  covers  of  their  songs  and  we  will  review  the  songs  one  by  one.

  1.Ferdy  Doernberg  brings  us  "Soldier"  which  starts  out  with  a  piano  piece  and  thunder  sounds  before  adding  in  a  melodic  guitar  lead  and  the  song  is  all  instrumental  

2.Alex  Rudi  Peel  brings  us  "Warrior"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  a  melodic  riff  before  going  into  a  power/speed  metal  direction  and  adding  in  clean  singing  vocals  and  this  version  has  a  German  power  metal  feeling  to  it  along  with  some  solos  and  leads  that  demonstrate  a  great  amount  of  talent  and  skill.

3.Attacker  brings  us  "Fire  Down  Under"  which  has  a  sound  that  mixes  early  80's  traditional  metal  with  an  American  style  of  power  metal  from  that  era  and  the  vocals  and  leads  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.

 4.Walpyrgus  brings  us  "Outlaw"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  a  melodic  guitar  lead  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavy  mid  70's  to  early  80's  style  of  heavy  metal  as  well  as  using  a  great  amount  of  clean  singing  vocals.

5.Savage  Master  brings  us  "Swords  And  Tequila"  a  somgs  th t also  remains  true  to  an  80's  style  of  heavy  and  power  metal  but  done  with  more  of  a  modern  production  and  female  vocals  and  back  up  gang  shouts.

6.Angelo  Perlepes  Mystery"  brings  us  "Sign  Of  The  Crimson  Storm"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  more  of  a  70's  rock  orientated  sound  before  adding  in   high  pitched  power  metal  vocals  which  also  takes  the  music  into  a  heavier  direction  while  also  having  a  psychedelic  sound  in  the  background

7.October  31  brings  us  "Loanshark"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  a  very  powerful  bass  line  and  riffs  that  border  on  thrash  metal  and  the  vocals  are  much  more  aggressive  and  brutal  than  the  previous  songs  reviewed  while  still  being  true  to  power  metal.

8.Alpha  Tiger  brings  us  "Flight  Of  the  Warrior"  which  they  take  into  a  heavier  direction  than  the  original  mixing  in  elements  of  thrash  and  speed  metal  while  still  having  the  traditional  and  power  metal  elements  of  the  original  version.

 9.Stallion  brings  us  "Rock  City"  a  song  that  displays  more  of  a  70's  hard  rock  and  heavy  metal  sound  while  also  having  an  early  speed  metal  vibe  and  the  band  updates   the song  for  more  of  a  modern  day.

10.Rocka  Rollas  brings  us  "Riot"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  a  very  melodic  power  metal  guitar  lead   along  with  some  clean  singing  and  high  pitched  screams  and  riffs  that  go  into  more  of  a  speed  metal  direction.

11.Evil  United  brings  us  "Altar  Of  The  King"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  classical  guitars  and  melodic  leads  a  few  seconds  later  before  going  for  more  of  a  70's  orientated  sound  while  the  vocals  are  a  lot  more  closer  to  power  metal.

12.Night  Demon  brings  us  "Road  Racin"  a song  that  is  very  melodic  yet  hard  and  heavy  at  the  same  time  and  while  it  sounds very  heavily  rooted  in  the  early  80's  sound  the  production  makes  the  music  sound  more modern.

13.Dexter  Ward  brings  us  "Running  From  The  Law"  a  song  that  starts  out  with  a  very  hard  and  heavy  early  80's  style  American  power  metal  sound  that  done  with  a  more  modern  musical  style  and  production.

14.Crystal  Viper  closes  the  compilation  with  "Thundersteel"  which  starts  out  wit h an  80's  style  of  power/speed  metal  along  with  some  clean  singing  vocals  and  the  riffs  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody.

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  compilation  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  Riot,  heavy,  power  and  speed  metal.  8  out  of  10.