Heaven and Hell - The Devil You Know

2009

This plods and chugs along. It's got Dio singing and Iommi riffing. This is comparable to Black Sabbaths' 1992 release Dehumanizer. Really it's nothing like  80's Heaven and Hell or Mob Rules from 1981. Same line up. This is an above average metal album, certainly nothing great...I don't know though, anything that has Dio singing really puts it out of reach of most. I never pull this out to listen to it. If I tried harder maybe I could get into this, but it really feels like an above average album with non memorable songs. It's like I have to do the work here.

Zombi - Spirit Animal

2009

Sound like Miami Vice and Kraftwork. Don't really care for this too much.

Nightstalker - Superfreak

2009

I'm guessing these guys are pretty big fans of Monster Magnet.

Scott H. Biram - Something's Wrong / Lost Forever

2009

Mostly old school Country music with a bluesy delta influence and some punk energy. Don't forget the gospel.

Alice In Chains - Black Gives Way To Blue

I bought the first Alice In Chains record when it came out and thought it was great. Heard all the radio/MTV hits over the years and liked them all...not enough to buy another album after the first. I was pretty sure it was all about their singer. I remember hearing the Jerry Cantrell solo stuff and thinking, "Wow, he was a bigger part of the vocal sound/feel of the band than I thought." After Layne Staley died you would think, you can't really do Alice In Chains anymore. Well, they did. Surprisingly it sounds like Alice In Chains without thinking about it too much. Mostly because of how much Cantrell added to the vocal department. Music is cool. File this record under, better than I thought it would be. Goes on too long though.

Crippled Black Phoenix - The Resurrectionists

Post-Rock. Any band that gets labeled "Post-Rock" might as well be call Post Neurosis, or maybe Neurosis-Core. I'm sure each band is bringing their own thing to the mix, but you know, fuck it I'm old. You could probably add to the latest bunch, Neurosis-Floyd-core. I just don't have the patience. I'm gonna have to come back to this one.

The Hunches - Exit Dreams

Somewhere between AM/REP and the Germs Sonic Youth does a drunken pogo stomp with a saftey pin in their nose. I'm not sure if they're stupid and can't play their instruments, or if they know what they're doing and are genuies. As the album progesses I start to think the latter. It starts to sound like Pavement or Weezer being ironic. You know, it's in there somewhere as Lou Reeds stops by to raid the refridgerator. Some poppy songs that are too noisey for people who like poppy songs.

-I read on Amazon their influences include Neil Young and the homosexuals.

Nachtmystium - Doomsday Derelicts

Black Metal. It also rocks like Entombed.

Seventh Angel - The Dust Of Years

Mostly epic straight up modern day mid-tempo metal. Scary vocals sometimes with melodic backup vocals. Gloomy/sorrowful Count Dracula metal...these guys sound european to me. I don't know where they're from. Their name seems to fit the music pretty well.

Church Of Misery - Houses Of The Unholy

Big huge sabbath riffs that rock and groove. High energy hugeness of extensive rock out AND a Sir Lord Baltimore cover!

If you like Bongzilla or Sleep you will like Church Of Misery. You should check out Black Sabbath too.

Black Pyramid - Black Pyramid

2009

More than just Black Sabbath on steroids. If you like Sleep you will like this. The vocals sometimes remind me of the guy from Slough Feg.
-I'm hearing some Yob in there too. Good stuff.

Suicidal Angels - Sanctify The Darkness

2009

Keepin' the thrash flag burning in 2009! I must say these guys do an excellent job of thrashin' like it's 1989.

While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

2009

I think this is what Ingwie Malmsteens Rising Force aspired to be, but were never really any good. These guys seemed to have mastered the progressive power metal epic. This album was on manys peoples best of 2009. Not mine. Better than Queensryche. If your looking to get into melodic, classically influenced epic power metal this would be a really good place to start.

Green and Wood - Green and Wood

2009

Sounds like Sabbath with the Melvins late model dual vocal harmonies. One of my favorites from 2009. Sounds like it was recorded in 1972. The vocals seem to be few and far between all the Sabbath worship. Good good stuff.

Slough Feg - Ape Uprising

2009

I've read a lot of reviews that say Slough Feg is good, but the descriptions never make them sound very good. Slough Feg draws from early metal bands like Judas Priest, and the awesome dual leads are sure to remind you of Thin Lizzy. The songs are epic like Iron Maiden. The singer sounds like a wise man singing about something important that happened. Some really good guitar rockin' going on right here. There's also a minstrel thing going on where you may envision knights and princesses and kingdoms.

Black Market Ministry - Voices Of The Coming Plague

2009

Eyehategod type tunes with Bongzilla/Goatwhore type vocals.

Freedom Hawk - Freedom Hawk

2009

Stoner rock like Dozer. Ozzy type vocals. Not bad, but about ten years too late.

Ol Scratch - The Sunless Citadel

2009

Big heavy doom like Bongzilla with a bit more variety.

Astrosoniq -Quadrant

2009

Psychedeleic heavy rock. If you like Soundgarden you should like this quite a bit.

DeWollf - Strange Fruits And Undiscovered Plants

2009

This is very good.
60's psychedelic blues rock like Cream, Deep Purple, a bit of early Pink Floyd. Oh, yeah and Hammond Organ. Leans a bit to the mellow side of things and gets pretty soulful in a rock and roll kind of way. Very retro sounding and they do it. Sounds authentic.

DeWolff MySpace