Author Archives: Odyssey

About Odyssey

I have had a life-long love of music, but from the first time I heard Kiss and Black Sabbath with my landlord's son in Nicholasville, KY in the mid 70's, I have been hooked on Hard Rock and Metal. While my tastes in music have done nothing but expand since then, Metal remains closest to my heart. In addition, I have played bass, still play guitar and have literally 1000's of CDs/MP3s, so my knowledge is long steeped and honest. I don't buy the whole splintered, sub-genres thing and choose to like bands and music based solely on individual merits. Obviously, this is always colored by my mood, what I need at any given point and time and what is generally pleasing to my ear. I also don't like to rip any music or band, instead having an open mind and ear for it all because I have a passion for it all. It is completely subjective and in a constant state of flux. Consider me a music "nerd" not a music "snob". As an extension of this love, I hope to share this passion with everyone here and learn from your passion as well! - Odyssey -

Interview And Exclusive New Single Release Of “Leap Of Faith” With Angels On The Battlefield

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Angels on the Battlefield is:

JD McGibney – guitar, composer

Angels on the Battlefield has been on my band list for a while now.  I have listened to their EP countless times (you can download it FREE on Angels on the Battlefield); always finding some nuance that I had missed before or changing color based on my mood and/or situation.  Three songs that I just cannot seem to wear out or get out of my head.  This is definitely my kind of music!  Intelligent, melodic and unique.  Once I started work on the article and doing research, I was offered an interview with one of the best instrumental bands out there by their manager Alex Rodrigues and jumped at the chance.  Hell yeah!  Who wouldn’t like to interview someone you have so much respect for, right?  I absolutely love the music, and after working with them, I am an even bigger fan than before.  As a special treat, we have also been honored with the exclusive introduction of their new single “Leap of Faith” which continues their streak of fierce virtuosity.  So, sit back and read what the brainchild of Angels on the Battlefield, JD McGibney has to say about his bad-ass music and listen to the new single below.  Rock the f*ck out!  Cheers!

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State of the Art: Invasive

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*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*

This month’s State is Washington!

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Very cool the way the Metal family works. I have stated before, that Metalheadz know no strangers. We all share a bond in the music, the bands, the musicians and for one another. What’s especially cool is when that camaraderie is perpetuated from band to band as well; not as competition, but as influences, friends and fans instead. Such is the case with my next SOTA band who was suggested to us by BloodRedRose’s band Homewrkr earlier this month and shared the stage with a number of my bands including Mechanism and Elephant Gun Riot. Let me introduce you to Invasive.

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Meshuggah Releases New Lyric Video For ‘Born In Dissonance’

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Cover art Keerych Luminokaya

With the October 7th release of their eighth LP, The Violent Sleep of Reason on the Nuclear Blast record label looming on the horizon, Sweden’s Meshuggah has put out a brand new lyric video for their latest single entitled “Born In Dissonance”. Dressed in doomed, End of Days garb, this new track gives us a taste of what to expect from the widely regarded beasts of the most extreme end of the Progressive Metal spectrum. If this is the teaser, the whole work is sure to be among Meshuggah’s best and heaviest releases to date. Lyrics were written by drummer Tomas Haake and were intended to conjure images of the Biblical apocalypse, as stated to Rolling Stone. It definitely has that dark, oppressive feel of getting your soul stomped to dust by the Four Horsemen of the Apocolypse or being dragged through a Giger nightmare. The new album was not, however inspired by a Giger painting, but by Francisco Goya’s “The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters” (1799) and was rehearsed for over two months before heading to the studio assuring us that these known perfectionists have everything covered to their ear-splitting and bone-crushing signature sound. I, for one, cannot wait for The Violent Sleep of Reason. Hell, I’m not even tired any of their older releases yet!

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Francisco Goya’s “The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters” (1799)

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Review Of Sabaton’s Masterpiece: ‘The Last Stand’

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Sabaton is:

Joakim Brodén: vocals and keyboards

Pär Sundström: bass and backing vocals

Chris Rörland: guitar and backing vocals

Thobbe Englund: guitar and backing vocals (recently replaced by Tommy Johansson )

Hannes van Dahl: drums

Rob Halford: guest vocals on “All Guns Blazing“

Recorded April – May 2016, Abyss Studios, Sweden

Peter Tägtgren: Producer

Sabaton’s eighth album “The Last Stand” was recently released on the Nuclear Blast record label and sets a new standard for Progressive Power Metal. This is another of Sabaton’s signature, history based concept albums and does not disappoint. Intelligent, well thought out and brilliantly written, “The Last Stand” is a formidable album following the critic and fan acclaimed “Heroes” in 2014. This is growth in a very positive direction.

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Review Of Medevil’s Killer Debut ‘Conductor Of Storms”

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Conductor of Storms

Medevil. Chilliwack, British Columbia’s favored Metal sons and top six finalist in the 2015 Wacken Metal Battle Canada are about to drop their debut release of Conductor of Storms. We recently got our grubby paws on this beast and it has impressed a number of us here on the MN staff. Never heard of them? Let’s start with introductions…

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State of the Art: Lust for Glory

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*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*

This month’s State is Washington!

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Just about everyone likes Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, The Eagles, old Aerosmith, Blue Oyster Cult and other late sixties/early seventies Hard Rock favorites. If you like Rock in any form, you are not likely to find friends with similar tastes saying they hate these bands, right? Heavy riffs, bluesy, heavy hitting solos, blasting drums and booming bass lines were the foundations for everything that we listen to today, much of it having direct underpinnings paying homage to these gods. As good as the music has always been, the live shows were where all of the glory was, however. Festivals that lasted weeks in a time of free love, fun Rock ‘n Roll and overt illicit drug use are pillars on which today’s Metal grounds itself. Such is the case with my SOTA band this week. Lust for Glory flies in the face of just about everything modern in favor of their Lo-Fi take on what music should be.

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A Killer Interview With Houston’s Love N War

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Love N War is a killer, Hard Rock/Heavy Metal outfit based out of Houston, TX that has been packing venues for years. Very popular, with a very cool, vintage Metal vibe, they are poised to explode onto the world stage. I recently was able to catch up with these vintage Metal monsters to get their perspective on the band, their music and where they are going. Enjoy what they had to say in our interview with this up and coming band.

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Psychoprism Sets The Power Metal Standard Outside The Stratosphere

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Bands form for a lot of reasons and have limitless paths to success. Growing up surrounded by musicians and naturally forming a band, churches or other like groups that need music, studio players or substitute band members that are taken on tours with bands they have recorded with and kept for one extenuating circumstance or another; the list goes on and on. Sometimes a band’s story is as good as their music. Such is the case with a completely sick band called Psychoprism out of New York/New Jersey.

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Progressive Metal At Its Very Best – The Arbitrary

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If you are like me, you think “The Big Easy”, Mardi Gras, Cajun food, Tulane or Katrina when New Orleans is mentioned, right? Well, it is also considered the birthplace of Jazz, in all of its wonderful variants. Horns, tubas, upright bass, snare drums, accordions; often played in the streets as part of a festival or parade. Sue me. I love it all (mostly traditional Bop and Hard Bop). You get my point. But, you ask yourself, this is a Metal site, correct? This is where things go a little sideways, because there is a new name in Progressive Metal that was born and bred in this same city at the end of the Mississippi River. Hold on tight because, The Arbitrary is about to change your perception of New Orleans music.

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The Beautifully Rough Edges Of Layden And The Lion

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Being involved with music and musicians is a real blessing. I have gotten to meet and speak to long time heroes that have kept me sane for as long as I can remember as well as discover new music by just showing up at a show just because I need a break from my life for a couple of hours. These are also the shows that I have met and gained so many new friends that I am grateful to be surrounded by today. I don’t mind driving a few hours to see bands coming through that I have reviewed because, as you know, our staff only covers what we like (we are a diverse group, so most music is going to be liked by at least one of us). Such was the case when I was recently on vacation in Louisiana. I have worked extensively with Chelle Nelson of Rawk Promotions out of Dallas so when presented the opportunity to hit a show with her and her husband, I took it. Turns out, it is a small world because I got to see and meet Space Ape, who Dragon had already reviewed (Space Ape) and a new band out of Lafayette, LA/Santa Rosa Beach, FL called Layden and the Lion, who I think deserves some serious attention. Continue reading →