Warsaw’s own punk’n’roll powerhouse Poison Heart are back and louder than ever with their new album, ‘Love, Lies and Hard Times’, Now I have to admit I’m not up to speed with the punk’n’roll scene in Poland, but if this is the quality on offe,r then maybe I should remedy that asap.
In 2018, Poison Heart released their Scandi-styled, high-energy punk & roll, maybe polski styled should be the way forward. It’s taken them a while to follow it up, but on the evidence I have before me it was time well spent.
Equal parts punk and hard rock they were obviously paying attention to the likes of Turbonegro, The Hellacopters, Gluecifer, and MC5, delivered with a twin-guitar, street punk vocals,
‘Love, Lies and Hard Times’, the band’s 4th long-player, features 10 brand-new tracks that balance fierce melodies with unflinching honesty. The themes might be well well-trodden paths of broken relationships, sleepless nights, and inner battles. The album has universal appeal for sure, but I admire the bravery of featuring three songs sung in Polish, which sound really good to be fair, and doesn’t take anything away from the flow of the record, even though I haven’t got a clue what they are about. All power to them for doing it.
I’d imagine what you hear is exactly what you get live from the band: a ton of energy and a passion for the style they deliver. Fans of The Almighty and The Cult and such like will find a lot to enjoy here from the opening brooding ‘Precedens’ and the Thin Lizzy delivery of the twin guitars a theme they lean on for sure.
‘Warsaw Blues’ is convincing and has a great driving rhythm, especially when the volume is up. The songs are kept lean with nothing overstaying its welcome, and some great tub thumping on ‘Saturday Night’ before ‘Mirror’ offers a change of pace as its brooding intro builds into an 80s feel of alt rock. Check ’em out if greasy rock n roll is your thing, you might just love some ‘Love Lies And Hard Times’.
Holy fuck, I have to start by saying that my first spin was on ear-bleeding volumes, and as the title track burst through the ether, I felt quite emotional. The melody is exquisite and those gang vocals haven’t been heard since Turbonegro hit their zenith. Throughout the album trilogy ’Misanthropical House’, ’Algorithm and Blues’, and ’Research and Destroy’, were well above average, in fact, over ti.m,e I’d go so far as to say at times exceptional but his ‘November Boys’ is shaping up to be something else that blasts off into the red hot sun. The Good The Bad and The Zugly have limped their way through midlife crises and pubescent antics to release one mother fucker of a record from the opening pop sensible melodic bastards that ore the first two to ‘Norweigans Abroad’ which is a thrashing mother fucker of a track that is tight and raging and turning into everythinng you want it to sound like – turn it up please.
They might well be mediocre underachievers on the unglamorous Scandirock path to valhalla but fair play this eclipses everything they’ve done until here and maybe now people will take these slackers seriously and they will be championed for saving gumbo punk rock n roll single-handedly.
‘Dig A Ditch’ sounds like a heavy diet of UFO records and bad drugs for the length of the intro alone but man this record is making bad life choices seem like good ideas that have brought us to this point in life otherwise we’d have passed these nut jobs by and given them a wide birth, thankfully I’m not that sensible.
The bands press release is like it was lifted from a twin peaks script after some bad acid and too much vodka but the tunes will always be their saving grace when they’re this good. ‘Dig A Ditch’ could and should be a crossover radio hit anywhere and everywhere.
A snippet from the press kit reads as follows: “The fact remains: we have always been left behind ever since kindergarten (for those of us lucky enough to experience such a well-regulated institution). In sports, we were always picked last. Our finest effort was put into keeping the bench warm for all the tough and slick January boys whenever they got tired of scoring goals—and chicks. Our academic performances measured at impressively low standards. Lacking any ability to concentrate, our educational path was a fast track to the headmaster’s office and, eventually, special ed classes. Today, they would have stuffed us full of pills in no time.” Confused? Don’t be, join us and rejoice that we’ve got the best tunes just take the melody on ‘A Blazer In The Northern Sky’ and dance like nobody is watching and sing like nobody can hear you. It’s blissful, trust me.
‘Scandinavian CRISPR Brat’ is like their irresponsible hate anthem, but with a sweet melody and a riff to die for GBZ are on FIRE! The fact that there are only ten songs here fills me with sadness. I wish it were a double album with twenty tracks, such is the quality on offer, but he,y ten is fine and dandy. ‘FOMO’ is bone-crushing riff-a-rama as we’re almost at the finish line, it’s a burst on as we dash for the finish through a thrashingly good ‘Hadeland Hardcore’. The Stooges one-finger piano tonk on ‘All My Friends Are Dead Inside’ rings around my head before we sign off with the wonderful ‘New Kids on the Blockchain’ and we’re done. I’m going back in for more and might just play it on my headphones and see if I can just run as fast as I can for as long as I can to see if this album makes me go mental. What a fuckin monster of a record. Congrats GBZ, you have achieved a goal of writing and recording one hell of a record that is as good from the opening track to the closing track, and everything in between is pure fuckin fire (as the kids would say). Melodies to die for, riffs that are on point and life-affirming. The November Boys are here, and the summer isn’t even done yet. Buy this album; it might just be the best thing you hear all year.
The latest band hitting our collective ear drums on the Venn roster are Club Brat and what a punch to the ear drum they are. Joining the impressive Aerial Salad, High Viz, Split Dogs and Bob Vylan to name a few Club Brat have a pop sensibility about them but they wrap it in a velvet glove inside a boxing glove holding a sledge hammer.
’25 Cameras’ opens up this rapid four-track EP, and it’s everything you want to hear. Cool lyrics wrapped inside a hard-hitting, sharp guitar-driven song, is it indie post punk? Who knows who cares, it’s full of energy and packs a punch, that’s all you need to know, and once it’s in your ear, it’ll take something special to dislodge it.
A rich bass-heavy thump and volatile rhythmic urgency is the MO here. ‘Goodbye Pop Culture’ has the warm, rich Bass thump and those angular guitars chopping away through a twitching, crowded backdrop, excellent stuff and very accessible. Originally from Peterborough and now split between Bristol and London, the five-piece formed in 2023 and quickly earned a reputation for unpredictable live shows and a relentless DIY ethos, while still working with some of underground music’s most respected engineers. Club Brat has a statement EP, no question about it, now to follow it up with more live shows and then the album. On this evidence, they have nothing to worry about. ‘In It For The Money’ might not be what they’re about, but it’s like if Jane’s Addiction were from inner city UK and not Hollywood, California. It has the energy and drive, and most importantly, it has the tunes. The final cut is the rapid barking dog of a track, ‘Watch’ it’s heavy, fast but you can dance to it. Go pick up a copy and find out for yourself.
Coming on like The Monkees for the 90’s, Californian Power Pop legends Redd Kross brought colour, quirkiness and most of all, FUN to a Grunge-filled music world. There was a period when all I listened to was ‘Third Eye’, ‘Phaseshifter’ and the two Jellyfish albums.
Their performance of ‘Visionary’ on The Word could be the best live performance of any band in a TV studio, and it was then I realised I had to see them live…yet it never happened. For one reason or another, the stars never aligned for me and Redd Kross…until now.
Following the release of last year’s excellent self-titled double album, the band are over here with The Melvins and they have a few shows of their own. One happens to be a 25-minute walk from my house; there is no way I am missing this!
Dressed in matching paint-splattered white outfits, like a walking & talking (well, singing) art piece on their way to an Indian wedding, Redd Kross walk on and fire straight into ‘Huge Wonder’. I never realised how tall Jeff McDonald is; the singer towers over guitarist Jason Shapiro. To his left, bassist and brother Steven gyrates his body like he’s being electrocuted. The man with the straightest hair in rock knows how to work a crowd, and his between-song Paul Stanley-esque raps are comedy gold that keeps the crowd up for a rock n’ roll party.
‘Stay Away From Downtown’ is up next, a killer garage rock riff from Jeff’s guitar and a sublime hook makes it an early highlight, damn I forgot how good that tune is. ‘Stunt Queen’ is the first of 5 tracks from the latest album. What a tune live, it has the attitude and the punk energy of classic Redd Kross, and I love it.
Just watching the brothers trade vocals, constantly smiling and moving, giving their all in the moment, it’s just magical to me. ‘Lady In The Front Row’ is the first sublime moment that gets the crowd singing every word. How could you not? It’s ridiculously catchy. A red album double dose follows: the singles ‘Candy Coloured Catastrophe’ and the Steven-led ‘I’ll Take Your Word For It’ fit the bill nicely. There’s only one track from the ‘Third Eye’ album on this tour, which might seem criminal to a die hard, but if you play one song from arguably your best album, then it must be ‘Annie’s Gone’, right? I’m mesmerised as the frontman ditches his guitar, covers his face with a scarf and sings through it for the entire song. An ethereal, bizarre and truly emotive 3 and a half minutes of Power Pop perfection.
Elsewhere, we get a high-energy one-two of ‘Switchblade Sister’ and Jimmy’s Fantasy’, with catchy riffs and hooks aplenty, plus a killer cover of The Beatles ‘It Won’t Be Long’ with Jeff shakin’ that tambourine like it’s the last thing he’s ever going to do. A song they truly make their own.
They return to jam out some oldies before bringing the whole room to a rock n’ roll party climax with a killer ‘Deuce’, complete with Paul & Gene classic 70’s stage moves thrown in for good measure.
Ok, so it’s been a long time coming, and I may be biased here, but Redd Kross truly blew me away tonight. I’ve seen a lot of great gigs already this year but tonight was truly special. Redd Kross are a band who are at the top of their game both live and creatively.
Someone was shouting for then to play ‘Zira (Call Out My Name)’ tonight, and after a few bars that ended in Jeff laughing and saying he doesn’t remember it, Steven says they’ll come back next year and play the whole gaddamn album! Now that would be truly something.
NEW TRACK“RABBIT RUN”FEATURES INDARREN ARONOFSKY’SUPCOMING FILM‘CAUGHT STEALING’
ONE OF FOUR ORIGINAL IDLES SONGS TO FEATURE IN THE FILM THE BAND ALSO PERFORM ITS SCORE, COMPOSED BY ROB SIMONSEN ‘CAUGHT STEALING’ SOUNDTRACK TO BE RELEASED DIGITALLY Later this week.
IDLES’ ‘TANGK’ era has been a triumph as the band achieved their second UK #1 album, earned three Grammy Award nominations (Best Rock Album, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance), and earned international, across-the-board acclaim. They’ve excelled on the road too, with a phenomenal Other Stage headline set at Glastonbury, which saw NME’s five-star review state that they made “a claim to headline the Pyramid in the future.” Elsewhere they headlined Truck and End of the Road, and completed a UK headline tour that saw them perform to 20,000 people in London alone over two nights at Alexandra Palace – and there’s still this weekend’s Bristol Block Party shows left to come.
Yet as that era draws to a close, it’s still opening up remarkable creativity opportunities for the band. Drawing inspiration from the gritty energy of the 1990s New York punk scene that permeates Academy Award nominee Darren Aronofsky’s upcoming crime caper ‘Caught Stealing’, IDLES have contributed four original tracks to the project’s soundtrack as well as having recorded the full film score composed by Rob Simonsen (‘The Whale’, ‘Deadpool’, ‘Wolverine’). Also included is a striking cover of the Junior Marvin-penned ‘Police and Thieves’, a song famously covered by The Clash on their 1977 self-titled debut album.
‘Caught Stealing’ which will be released theatrically by Sony Pictures on August 29th, and its accompanying soundtrack album will be issued that same day via Partisan Records.
IDLES and Darren Aronofsky (‘Requiem for a Dream’, ‘The Wrestler’, ‘Black Swan’) quickly formed a creative kinship, united by a deep mutual respect for each other’s work. When Aronofsky began developing ‘Caught Stealing’ he turned to his favourite band to shape the film’s sonic identity.
New LP AD ASTRA LP // 3 OCTOBER [featuring Graham Coxon]
UK & IRELAND TOUR DATES // ON SALE NOW
To coincide with the release of their forthcoming ninth studio album Ad Astra via Fierce Panda Records on 3 October, ASH have unveiled details of seven intimate Instore and Outstore shows. Tickets available here: https://ash-official.com/pages/shows
Containing eleven brand new tracks, including their raucous take on surprise single and Beetlejuice staple Jump In The Line and the most recent single Give Me Back My World, the Ad Astra album sees Graham Coxon appear on two particularly sassy songs and catches the perennial power pop kings in typically rocket-fueled form.
INSTORES & OUTSTORES // OCTOBER
Fri 03 BRIGHTON Resident Records (Instore)
Sat 04 LONDON Rough Trade East Records (Instore)
Sun 05 LEICESTER 2 Funky Café (Truck Records Outstore)
Tue 07 NOTTINGHAM Rough Trade Records (Instore)
Wed 08 KINGSTON Circuit (Banquet Records Outstore)
Thu 09 LIVERPOOL Baltic Jacaranda Records (Instore)
Fri 10 EDINBURGH Liquid Rooms (Assai Records Outstore)
Ad Astra follows hot on the heels of Race The Night – the band’s highest charting album for 20 years – and is being released two years and one month later, which is no coincidence. Always a band that lives for live music, Ash vowed that the fierce pandemic-induced five-year chasm between 2018’s Islands and 2023’s Race The Night would never happen again.
By focusing on the endless horizon of galaxies far, far away and staring into an endless black hole Ash have somehow ended up creating a cohesive whole. There is classic Ash power-pop rocking action with the blistering purity of Hallion, the crunchy chuggings of Keep Dreaming and the furious sonic lunges of Dehumanised. But equally you can’t fail to succumb to the glorious swooping jangles on Which One Do You Want? – a whirl from Marr’s canon for sure; My Favourite Ghost and its acoustic elegance, floating on strings of desire; and Fun People (feat Graham Coxon) is quite simply one of the maddest, punchiest songs they have ever recorded.
As if creating this lovingly optimistic opus wasn’t enough to be getting on with, they’ve kept themselves busy elsewhere. Since Race The Night came out, they’ve run riot at SXSW in Austin, played Belfast for Steve Lamacq during Independent Venue Week, headlined the 100 Club in London for BRITS week and toured Australia. Already this year, they’ve amassed the masses at Glastonbury for the eighth time – equaling the multi performance record of Van Morrison – and toured the UK with The Darkness.
In short, three decades into a career peppered with timeless indie-punk nuggets and wildly inventive gigging and releasing concepts, the trio shows no sign of slowing down. To infinity and beyond indeed. Or as Rick McMurray gently muses …
“The title Ad Astra, the worst kept secret of the last month, points to ideas that became a big identifier back in 1995, but they’re updated with 30 years life experience. I’ll leave you to compare the differences, and with the thought that while the optimistic innocence of 1995 might have been tempered by those 30 years, if you look to the stars, you might still feel a glimmer. Of hope.”
And for those of you wondering, Ad Astra is Latin for “to the stars”, the words that came out of a teenaged Tim Wheeler’s mouth in the summer of 1995, setting up the classic chorus to the band’s first Top 20 hit Girl From Mars.
To celebrate the album release of Ad Astra, Ash embark on a huge touring schedule from this autumn into the early part of next year as follows:
AFI announce new album Silver Bleeds the Black Sun…
Out October 3rd via Run For Cover Records
AFI announce their new album Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… due October 3rd via Run For Cover Records, today. Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… marks the twelfth album from AFI and will include the lead single ‘Behind the Clock,’ which ushers in the bold new era for the iconic band. Alongside the new single, AFI share a music video directed by Gilbert Trejo.
Speaking about the ‘Behind the Clock’ video, director Trejo offers, “We wanted the video to feel like you’re seeing something you shouldn’t. In effect you are, because that’s how Davey writes lyrics. He’s expressing himself so openly, that you’re let behind this curtain. It’s a world that most artists don’t cut to, marrow deep.”
Sharing the experience working with Trejo, vocalist Davey Havok shares, “Gilbert’s video has sublimated the essence of ‘Behind the Clock.’ His vision and expertise is inspiring. Working with him was a privilege and utter joy. He is an artist of the purest form.”
For more than three decades, AFI has been in a nearly constant state of reinvention. The band have made it a point to evolve with every album – sometimes dramatically so – never allowing themselves to become too comfortable in one genre or rest on any of their impressive career laurels. It’s an approach that has grown their audience but also challenged it with a sonic identity that can shift in wild, unexpected directions. Now with Silver Bleeds the Black Sun…, AFI are once again at the start of an exciting new chapter, only this time they’ve even managed to surprise themselves.
The goal of Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… was to make an album with a singular mood, something dreamy and ethereal, and the band members found themselves diving headfirst into influences that had always been deeply embedded in AFI’s musical core, but now were being brought to the forefront. The result is an album that feels out of time, at once familiar and fresh, drawing on classic sounds and reinterpreting them through a modern lens. Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… is dark and otherworldly, but also grandiose and stately, biting and beautiful in equal measure—in other words, it’s very AFI, yet not quite like any version of the band you’ve ever heard before.
It’s this combination of endless creative daring, deftly wielded influences, and above all else, an unshakeable sense of self that’s allowed AFI to stay relevant for more than 30 years, often leading the way through emerging musical moments. From their scrappy roots as a high school hardcore band in the early ‘90s (Answer That and Stay Fashionable, Very Proud of Ya and Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes), to their dark melodic punk reinvention at the turn of the century (Black Sails in the Sunset and The Art of Drowning), to their crossover into mainstream stardom in the early 2000s (Sing the Sorrow and Decemberunderground) and their years as shapeshifting alternative rock journeymen (Crash Love, Burials, The Blood Album, and Bodies), the band has survived and thrived by staunchly being themselves—no matter what that is.
This fall, AFI will embark on their headline North American tour with special guests TR/ST to celebrate the release of Silver Bleeds The Black Sun… The 24-date run will begin on September 30th in Madison, WI with stops in Chicago, Brooklyn, Boston, Atlanta, Dallas, and Denver, before wrapping November 5th in San Diego, CA. The tour marks AFI’s first full-scale outing since their celebrated 2021 release Bodies, and will offer fans the chance to experience songs from across their extensive catalogue, delivered with the band’s signature electrifying performance. Tickets available HERE.
Exclusive world premiere of the title track – Album out October 3rd
What was already a standout moment of this year’s Wacken Open Air, the world’s largest metal festival, turned into something even bigger when Michael Schenker pulled a surprise no one saw coming. After delivering a fierce My Years With UFO set to tens of thousands of attendees on Thursday night, the architect of hard rock used the world’s loudest stage to announce a brand-new Michael Schenker Group studio album: Don’t Sell Your Soul will be released on October 3rd via earMUSIC.To mark the occasion, Schenker and his band closed the show with a world-exclusive live premiere of the new album’s title track – a powerful encore that took the Wacken crowd by surprise and was met with instant enthusiasm on the muddy festival fields.PRE-SAVE THE SINGLE HERE!
Earlier in the set, the Wacken faithful had already been treated to a once-in-a-lifetime moment: Slash walked on stage as a surprise guest, joining Schenker on the UFO classic “Mother Mary”. Two of rock’s most iconic guitarists side by side – a scene few will forget.Don’t Sell Your Soul is the latest studio album by the Michael Schenker Group and the second part of an album trilogy that began with 2024’s My Years With UFO.The album was produced by Michael Schenker and Michael Voss, and recorded with Schenker’s longtime allies: Bodo Schopf (drums), Barend Courbois (bass), and Steve Mann (guitar, keys). On vocals: the impeccable Erik Grönwall – undoubtedly one of the finest rock voices of his generation. Guest appearances on vocals by Robin McAuley, Dimitri “Lia” Liapakis, and Michael Voss round out the cast.Don’t Sell Your Soul will be available on CD, LP, and limited transparent red vinyl.
Getting old provides some interesting context when it comes to listening to music. ‘Keeper of the 7 Keys Part One’ became my gateway into the world of Helloween almost 40 years ago. I had seen an ad for the album in Hit Parader (more specifically on the back page) and decided I needed to search out this cassette. As a young teenager, it never dawned on me that bands I loved would stop making music or that I would still be listening to them in my 50s. I worked backwards at the time and picked up ‘Walls of Jericho.’ When ‘Keeper… Part Two’ was released, I was waiting for them to put the cassettes out on release day to get the album. I had also previously picked up the cassette single for ‘Save Us’, which contained some awesome B-sides. After a mini live album, things then went pear-shaped (pumpkin shaped?) in Helloween world. Kai Hansen left the band and started Gamma Ray. Label issues would stall Helloween’s next album, which would not be released in the States so I tracked down ‘Pink Bubbles Go Ape’ on import. The album didn’t grab me like their first three did, which seemed to be a common consensus around the world. As Hansen released albums with Gamma Ray, Helloween struggled to find their footing with ‘Chameleon’ sounding like each of the songwriters made their own four-song EP with a focus on non-Helloween style music. I enjoy parts of ‘Chameleon’ but don’t really think of it as a Helloween album. At this point, the pumpkins were starting to fester, and the future didn’t look promising.
‘Master of the Rings’ reinvigorated Helloween with Andi Deris taking over on vocals. New and old fans celebrated this and subsequent releases with, of course, lots of debate if the new albums matched the excellence of the ‘Keeper..’ albums or ‘Walls of Jericho.’ For me, ‘Better Than Raw’ became a firm favourite while others were partial to ‘The Dark Ride.’ Band members continued to have some changes over the years, but there was consistency with Deris, Michael Weikath (guitar), and Markus Grosskopf (bass) forming the core of the band. Not every studio album was brilliant for me, but the band continued to release many more hits than misses. Ten years ago, the band released ‘My God-Given Right’ which I would say is an album that probably sits in the middle of their discography for me. Kiske had released some solo albums over the years and returned to the metal world with his Unisonic project. Hansen continued to release Gamma Ray albums, and I really enjoy those albums as well, even with some of them also not fully connecting with me.
Pumpkins United brought Kiske and Hansen back into Helloween without any members leaving. The plan at the time was a new studio song and a tour to celebrate Helloween’s history and present. Four years ago, we received something I never thought I would see in my lifetime- a new Helloween album with Kiske and Hansen. Neither one of them had left the band on great terms way back when, but bridges had been mended over the years. Even better, that self-titled album contained a plethora of great songs with it appearing on many best of 2021 year-end lists, including mine. That brings us to the current with the band releasing the second album to feature the extended band line-up. I would argue this one goes beyond the previous album because they do not shy away from different members contributing to another’s song. The self-titled album at times felt like there were still some lines in the sand where you could tell who wrote which song. The chemistry in the band appears to be at an all-time high right now. I have seen reports the band wrote 30 songs for this record, which makes me wonder if the sequel to this will arrive quicker than the four years between this and the self-titled album.
‘Giants on the Run’ kicks off the album with a great example of the members blending their songwriting together. The beginning and end of the song provide a prime example of Helloween, where there is a lot of space in the verses and some tasteful guitar work. The song then segways into a section that has Hansen’s touch all over it, from the musical approach to his vocals. Part of me wanted to say it has a Gamma Ray feel as it makes me think of ‘Land of the Free’, but also has hints of ‘Walls of Jericho’ to it. It doesn’t feel recycled though. It fits perfectly within the song and highlights the diversity the band has in their writing while also complementing each other’s different styles. One of the areas where this album diverges from its predecessors is the number of instantly catchy songs on the album. Kiske gets solo lead vocals on ‘Saviour of the World’ where the band bring an aggressive musical attack and combine it with a hugely melodic chorus that begs for audience participation. The phrasing in the chorus reminds me of the ’Keeper Part 2’ album. I read a recent interview where a member said they did not want to just rewrite what they have done in the past, and don’t think they have done it on this album. I think there are always going to be things that are just part of the band’s DNA. If they were adding nu-metal or hip-hop features to their song, we would all complain that it is not who they are. Next up, ‘A Little is a Little Too Much’ showcases a commercial and catchy song with some great keyboards for added effect. The dual lead vocals from Kiske and Deris work extremely well together. This is poppier than anything off the last album and again makes a great sing-along song. My favourite moment from it though, may be the last few seconds of the keyboard being isolated at the end of the song.
‘We Can Be Gods’ turns up the tempo to closer to a thrash level that again recalls the ‘Keeper’ era and maybe ‘Better Than Raw’ days. Each of the three singers contributes to the song. There are some keyboard touches here as well, but they are mostly subtle and get a cool space in the chorus of the song. The guitar work is excellent, and really that’s where I hear the ‘Keeper’ era on this one, with some great harmony work and then excellent solo work. This has been one of the initial favourites on the album. The first half of the album closes with the piano-based ballad ‘Into the Sun’ whose melody reminds me of something Queen would do. The back and forth between Kiske and Deris serves the song perfectly. The band keep the song on the shorter side at under four minutes. This song is one of the bonus tracks, with Kiske and Deris each doing solo versions.
Side Two, if you will, gets started with a Deris straightforward rock song and the first single ‘This is Tokyo.’ It has a huge chorus and will get the audience singing with Deris and Kiske blending lead vocals perfectly again here. I wonder if the break in this song will lead into a drum solo in the live setting before the band comes back for the guitar solo. The second song we heard from this album follows in ‘Universe (Gravity for Hearts)’ where all the lead vocals are handled by Kiske. Over eight minutes long, it assumes the role of one of the epic tracks on the album. Helloween show off where some of the roots of power metal and the band originated with a huge chorus set to the rapid-fire beat. If you recorded the ‘Walls of Jericho’ album today with Kiske on vocals, I think this could sit comfortably on the album. The guitar work by Weikath, Hansen, and Sascha Gerstner shines across the entire album with each of them delivering killer solos and also having those great moments where they play in harmony. After this multifaceted gem, ‘Hands of God’ could have easily paled in comparison if it had felt like a standard song. This one showcases just Deris on lead vocals. The midtempo approach here feels different than everything else on the album where the chorus has a strong hook, but the riff also keeps getting stuck in my head. It will be interesting to see if this one gets played live, as I think it would be a bit of a curveball in their set.
We then transition into ‘Under the Moonlight’ where I am reminded of the likes of ‘Dr. Stein’ or ‘Rise and Fall.’ Kiske’s vocals shine here, and I like having a song in this style back on an album. It adds some fun and quirkiness into the album. The band then closes the album with the epic ‘Majestic.’ The intro into the main riff and first verse is awesome. Each of the three vocalists gets their spots here as well. Fists in the air and heads banging will be compulsory during the chorus in the live setting. This one was another instant favourite on the album, and I think it works better at eight minutes than it would have if they had tried to stretch it out to ‘Halloween’ or ‘Keeper of the Seven Keys’ type length. There are still twists and turns that do not feel too short or undeveloped.
After listening to the band for almost 40 years, I love that I still get a rush waiting for a new album and hearing it for the first time. I have been able to play this quite a few times now to review it. The band has changed their approach a little bit since the last album, but this is still quite clearly a Helloween album that draws from their history while also adding in new wrinkles to the sound. Utilising all three vocalists to their strengths has been done very effectively here. I imagine there will be some grumbles out there about the album, but each person’s preferences, of course, will vary. For me, I love how the album gives us a few epic songs, some straight-up catchy songs, some metal classics, and a great ballad. Initial impressions for me, this one will find its place securely in the top half of my discography, but it is too early to say how high it might climb.
Senser make a powerful return with ‘Ryot Pump’, their first new single in over a decade, released via Imprint Music. This is Senser at their rawest and most direct: no middlemen, no compromise—just 100% unfiltered Senser.
The in your face ‘Ryot Pump’ is the first taste of the band’s forthcoming studio album, ‘Sonic Dissidence’ released on 17th October—a project that’s self-funded, self-produced, and fiercely uncompromised.
“Ryot pump is the most direct and unambiguous call to action we’ve ever written. It’s an extremely lean song with the kinetic bounce of a pump action being loaded. It starts from the point of view of riot police, excited and amped up. Often bussed in from provinces and ready use state sponsored violence to protect corporate interests. It shifts perspective denounces fascism in all its current insidious forms. It finally breaks the fourth wall demanding the listener’s response.” – Senser
To celebrate the release of ‘Ryot Pump’ and their upcoming album, Senser will hit the road this autumn, kicking off with a show at The Exchange, Bristol on September 12th and wrapping up at The Garage, London on October 25th.
“Senser has been in a period of intense focus creating the new album and the energy of the band is at full pressure. The gigs will be an explosion, delivering anthems like ‘Eject ‘and ‘Age of Panic’ alongside a whole new wave of songs that hit hard—challenging fear-based control systems, illuminating the dissonance of modern life – delivered with a seismic intensity that shakes you to your core.”
Senser emerged from the UK’s underground scene with an explosion that still echoes to this day. Fusing hip-hop, metal, electronica, and sharp-edged protest, the band quickly gained notoriety for their high-voltage shows and a sound that refused to be contained. Their 1994 debut album Stacked Up smashed into the UK charts at number 4, sparking a global wave of press, radio, TV and tours,—building a dedicated cult following along the way.
With a string of powerful album releases—including Asylum (1997), SCHEMAtic (2003), How To Do Battle (2009), and To The Capsules (2013)—Senser have continually evolved while keeping their revolutionary spirit alive. Collaborations with producers like Arthur Baker (Afrika Bambaataa), Neil McLellan (The Prodigy), and Scott Harding (New Kingdom, Wu-Tang Clan) have only sharpened their edge.
After the pandemic’s global pause, Senser roared back into action in 2023, selling out London’s iconic 100 Club. The gig marked a triumphant return, giving fans a first taste of new material destined for their upcoming album. The response was overwhelming—proof that Senser’s relevance and power remain as fierce as ever.
With a new album locked in for later this year, fans are fired up and counting down the days. Live shows are selling out fast as Senser fans rally behind a band that has always stood for something louder than just their sound.
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