Senior Citizens Who ROCK!

It's been a while since my last post and I don't even know what I'll write. My years-long writing block continues. Why were there no blogs when I was in college?! I was so prolific back then! Oh well. Work has been sucking as of late, and I just seem to not be able to get anything done in general.

So, let's see... what's new in my music world since I last left you, my loyal reader (namely ME!)? 3 Inches Of Blood released their new album Fire Up The Blades, so let's start with that. I'll spare you a song-by-song review and give you my general impression. It's a really good album with what we've come to expect from Pipes, Hopper and company (which happens to be a brand-new band). I assume they had a bigger budget since they brought in some nu-metal producer who's apparently well known... Gordy somethingorother. In some spots we can hear an old-fashioned keyboard, and also cowbell, but it's still a great album to listen to and get all pumped up. For me, it is a good driving album. I managed to get an autographed copy!

OK, let's see... Oh! Beatallica finally released a CD!! The original songs are no longer available on their site (although I'm sure they are widely available if one looks for them). I love this band and was an active participant in their message board a while back. I ordered a t-shirt from their site when they became first available (the design is no longer available... is it a collectors' item I wonder?) and corresponded for a short while with founder member KRK. There was a whole legal thing going on with Sony (Beatles) and Lars Ulrich coming to their aid too. Anyway, now they have their own CD although writing is credited to McCartney, Harrison and Lennon. I URGE you to buy it. Do it through the link in their website, or look for it in your record store (I've seen it in the bins). KRK left the band (he played everything in the original recordings), and the songs in the CD were recorded by the current touring band. Guys, do a West Coast jaunt. You've been to Europe for crying out loud! For the unitiated, Beatallica play mostly Beatles tunes in the classic (Cliff era) style of Metallica. It's really awesome, especially if you like Cliff era Metallica and The Beatles (like me). I ordered the "fan-pack", although I don't know if it's still available.

What else? Oh yeah, Rush came out with a new studio album called Snakes & Arrows. The music is really good, after all, it's Rush. I like it better than Vapor Trails. The sound is a lot better than Vapor Trails. I really don't like jumping in the "remasters-are-too-loud" bandwagon, and although Vapor Trails is not a remaster, I agree with those who say it was mixed loud! Snakes & Arrows sounds really good. The album also had a MVI (Music Video Interactive) release, which is some kind if DVD, super-douper audio with multimedia thing. I got it, put it in the DVD player and it sounds even better! So, yeah, get that too. I don't know of any other MVI releases, but I could definitely get into them. Apparently the MVI disc of Snakes & Arrows is a limited edition of 25,000, so get yours. Here's the sad story. Rush came into town and for the first time since the Presto Tour, I didn't go see them. :( I did manage to get some great recordings from the current tour though, and hopefully there will be a DVD release. I wonder if they'll do a second leg.

Speaking of DVD releases! The Appice-Butler-Dio-Iommi (yeah! Vinny should go first sometimes!) line-up of Black Sabbath is touring as Heaven & Hell. They came into town and again, did not go. I usually wait to get tickets on the day of the show since many times they release unused comp tickets on that day, but opted not to go because I was simply not in the mood. I had a job interview that did not go to well in my opinion, so I just went home. pretty dumb, huh? Anyway, they've been kicking major bouteé, which is remarkable because Dio is 65 years old! There have been many good quality recordings floating around, but the Radio City Music Hall performance was officially released on CD and DVD. So far, this is hands down one of the best live videos ever. Maiden should take notice in case they release another DVD and realize that several camera cuts per second does not necessarily make an exciting video. The CD and DVD are out now, but Rhino Handmade is going to release a limited edition deluxe set sometime in October. I've pre-ordered mine, but have seen the DVD and it is awesome.

Well, quick and dirty, that's what comes to mind right now. Iced Earth comes out with their new album today. Somehow, I've had the songs from the new album for a few days now, and although I'll wait to make my comments until after I buy it, I'll say now that it's really, really good. Ripper has an amazing voice, but I've been hearing a lot of overdubbed choruses like Blind Guardian and that's not necessarily a good thing for my ears.

Anyway, check back because I'll publish this bare bones, but my intent is to come back and add some pictures and links. Oh! The last post was silly and it's a shame that it was at the top for so long. I just thought the picture of Fernando Von Arb is priceless, and the reason I left the entry there is because someone who was kind enough to respond to my BX3 post, putn the comment in the Von Arb post by mistake. I do not get the whole smashing-your-instrument thing though.