Hidden Disturbances – mini-CD (Independent Release) review

Hidden Disturbances – mini-CD (Independent Release)

Neoclassical Metal on steroids? Well, yes, you could say so!! On the other hand, someone can describe this mini-CD as the Instrumental sensation of the year! Yes, you read well- these crazy Italians, with their “Shred N’ Roll” style as they love to call it totally amazed me. Imagine Depp Purple decide to take Yngwie on guitars and record an instrumental jam under the influence, he, he! Yes, the debut effort from Hidden Disturbances is a fine example “proggy” Neo-classical Metal/Shred/Fusion with the usage at times of the always sweet sounding Hammond (I am DYING for Hammond sound!) and it is highly recommended for all the fans of virtuoso and intelligent music. Yes, this quintet from Italy created a really provocative release and I am pretty sure that if they continue this way, then the world will soon appreciate their enormous talent. Credits must also be given to the great guitarist Saverio Tarantini, who is the brainchild behind the bands by composing the tracks and delivering also some six string guitar wizardry! He won the 5th and 6th edition of the International Music Contest in the city of Atri (Italy), a competition which gathers artists from all over the world. He played also at The Human Rights Day, an event held in the theaters of Loreto Aprutino and Città Sant’Angelo, two nice cities in the Italian Region of Abruzzo. Another important experience in his curriculum is the opening of the great drummer Greg Bissonette concerts in 2005. He has already written his first guitar method, addressed to all who want to play in his original style. I don’t think that I need to write more. The band accepts Paypal, so it is quite easy and affordable for you to buy this wonderful piece of art and support them by any means! Hidden Disturbances recently included singer Fabrizio Avantaggiato in their marks, so there are working for their first full-length album. Band’s mySpace: http://www.myspace.com/hiddendisturbances .

Dimitris Starakis

Giuseppe Silvestri – La Rosa Del Deserto CD (Secret Port Records) Cd review

Giuseppe Silvestri – La Rosa Del Deserto CD (Secret Port Records)

This is the second CD from 34-year-old guitarist Giuseppe who recently singed a contract with Secret Port Records and he definitely carries the tradition of the great Italian scene! I really enjoy instrumental albums, especially when the composer strongly focuses on his inspirational melodies and riffs, without having in top priority his demonstration in various techniques. The style of the album ranges from my favorite Neo-classical songs (“Inferno”, “Coral Castle”, “Portrait of Isabel”, “Les Fleur Du Mal”), to Eastern-influenced tracks (“Gates Of Passion”), mid-tempo pompous compositions (“Eternity”) and quite sentimental moments (“La Rosa Del Deserto”, “Daisy”) so there’s plenty of variety for the listener to choose which songs fits his taste best. Giuseppe is totally enjoyable when he performs the songs: he uses catchy phrases which never produce a dull moment and I think that this is the great advantage of his second effort. Allow me also to express my admiration to the song named “Portrait Of Isabel” since I think that in this particular song Giuseppe proves his advanced skills as a composer! Support independent releases like this and send your encouraging comment to Giuseppe. Visit his mySpace profile (unfortunately it is written in Italian only): www.myspace.com/silvestrigius. Order his CD through Secret Port Records: http://www.truemetal.org/secretport. His first self-titled CD is also available from: http://cdbaby.com/cd/gsilvestri

Dimitris Starakis

Orest 'Hawk' Dziatyk's musical past and present revealed in current Snakepit magazine!

Laurent Ramadier from the always amazing Snakepit Magazine (http://www.truemetal.org/snakepit) did a wonderful research regarding Illinoi's Metal scene and included an interview with guitarist Orest 'Hawk' Dziatyk. In order to spread the word about Hawk and his always great musical steps, we encourage you to download the following interview here . Don't forget also to order your copy of Snakepit!!!

P.S.: Check also Septer's releases in CD Baby for a possible purchase: http://cdbaby.com/cd/septermetal

Ashen Reign – Immortality CD review

Ashen Reign – Immortality CD (Independent Release)

This is an one-man project, found by Brent McDaniel and with the help of Vance McCumber formed and forged ahead. Brent McDaniel actually did all the drums, guitars, vocals, harmonies, keyboards, bass, recording and mixing. The melodic Heavy / Power Metal songs that “Immortality” includes are overpowered by the wonderful, solid and skillful guitar playing, by unleashing great riffs and pretty noticeable solos. I believe that Brent will try to find an appropriate singer for his next album, in order to send his songs to the next level. “The Fire Within” “Immortality” “Running Away” and other songs as well will be handled much better if they were sang by a better singer, so I am pretty sure that Brent will definitely search for a singer in his follow-up. Many congratulations to this “lonely hero” for his passion to release an album and I am sure that the fans will support him in order to give him the necessary courage to continue his “Metallic Quest”. "Immortality" is available through CDBaby (http://cdbaby.com/cd/ashenreign), but you can also find more info here: http://www.ashenreign.com/ashenshop.cfm
Dimitris Starakis

Christos Nikolaou (Mythodea) – Ultimate Pain song (featuring John West) review

Christos Nikolaou (Mythodea) – Ultimate Pain song (featuring John West)

I never remember myself having written a full review for a single…song! My good friend Christos Nikolaou, a great guitarist who is completing the Mythodea project, is working for a disc that will definitely features some bright names of the scene like Jonathan Marshall, the always amazing Vitalij Kuprij on keyboards and of course the one and only John West! Let me clear something first: I am a HUGE fan of John West’s vocal abilities and I can never stop enjoying his solo works, his Artension albums, his amazing work on Royal Hunt etc. I must also admit that I don’t like his latest project, Ten Man Push, since John’s voice is destined for more “sentimental” situations. Well, the song “Ultimate Pain” is clearly the best song West has sang after his departure from Royal Hunt! Even Emir Hot doesn’t have such an inspiring song in “Sevdah Metal” (ok, let me exclude “Stand And Fight” from the sentence, he, he!). The song is truly fabulous and it is written for John’s warm, passionate voice, so you can expect some vocal wizardry from one of the most important singers of our scene. Christos made the perfect choice for “Ultimate Pain” and I really want to encourage him to feature John West in more tracks of his forthcoming CD! This is the John West as we love to worship!!!! Check the song for yourselves: http://www.myspace.com/christosnikolaou

Dimitris Starakis