Moonsorrow, one of the more creative bands in the folk metal spectrum, took a big risk and put out an album made entirely of two half-hour epics.  Already on a hot streak of one critical hit every two years, this would be the fourth and last album in a string of iconic entries influencing black, folk and viking metal.  And while it's not their strongest, it's a fun end to an era.  Sure, they'd have another album four years later, but this basically Moonsorrow's hayday just as Tarzan's the swansong to the Disney Renaissance, or the Black Album is to Metallica's hayday.  Because of the length, there's less of the folksy weirdness than in previous releases, making it more accessible.  But boy is this fucker epic.  Starting out wioth an even slow pace, it starts out like a careful epic intro, and the album just keeps it up without going right into the cinematics, allowing for a folksy yet dark and brooding metal experience that's well worth ever second.  If you just wanna relax with some blackened folk metal and let your mind be lead through the mountains for a good hike, this is what you're looking for.

Released in 1991, ‘As Ugly As They Wanna Be’ is the debut EP by funk rockers Ugly Kid Joe. Featuring just six tracks and clocking in at 26 minutes, it’s a brief, yet enjoyable CD, highlighting the bands energetic, riff-laden 90’s alternative style.

The first four tracks are all solid rockers, featuring great guitar riffs and some pretty charismatic vocals by frontman Whitfield Crane. The band would get early mainstream recognition with the song ‘Everything About You’, which no doubt helped elevate their name. And tracks like ‘Madman’, ‘Too Bad’ and ‘Whiplash Liquor’ all demonstrate a band who were ready in fill in that gap between rock, metal and grunge that the early 90’s desperately needed. 

The last two tracks, a Black Sabbath cover, and a humorous 26-second track, titled Heavy Metal’ don’t really add anything to the EP, but by this point, if you’re not already hooked from the previous four tracks, then there’s no hope for you at all.  

Very strong album over all, my favorites were I Drink Alone, Requiem Germania, and Steel Apocalypse!

Now here's a relatively unknown band from the UK that has had some history in their over a decade of activity, Eden's Curse. Originally formed with vocalist Michael Eden, he left the band after their first 3 albums and formed his own US incarnation. The original UK band would carry on with a different vocalist, Marco Sandron, who was the lead vocalist for Fairyland in their album Score to a New Beginning. However, he only made one song with Eden's Curse then left. And then came this album Symphony of Sin, their first album with new vocalist Nikola Mijic (Alogia). Also joining was Steve Williams, keyboardist of Power Quest, his spin-off band from DragonHeart (later DragonForce).

OK, before anything else, I would like to say this is way more than just the hard rock that people have described this album to be. I say it has more AOR-infused melodic heavy metal, taking some cues from Power Quest and Balance of Power. And it's not highly symphonic, despite the album title and that cover artwork with the cello girl (nude with leaf pasties, basically if Eve played cello).

The title opener is the one track to actually have symphonics, mostly in the intro. Other than that, it's a long 7 and a half minute epic that perfectly represents the band's sound. I'm already hearing Steve Williams' keys have that blended vibe of AOR and power metal. Nikola Mijic has a similar tone to Tobias Sammet (Avantasia, Edguy) which definitely sets the band away from those hard rock comparisons. I mean, his vocals don't have too much strength, though it can surpass how other classic hard rock/metal bands' vocalists do in their songs. A fantastic start! "Break the Silence" is more of a rock-on banger, but it's metal enough to sound similar to the catchier songs by Seventh Wonder and Heavenly. "Evil & Divine" pushes the power metal aspects further in the bass and drum kicks, despite being more mid-paced. Sadly, "Unbreakable" is not aptly named as similarly titled songs from other bands. While the melody is enjoyable, it's too cheesy and predictable, sounding too 80s for modern production.

"Fallen from Grace" is aptly titled in the sense that the song does fall from grace, yet it doesn't sound too far off from some of Vision Divine's ballads. And "Losing My Faith" has also made me lose some faith in this band. Then when we get to the next track "Rock Bottom", they've pretty much hit rock bottom. The hard rock side is more blatant and tiresome than they could ever get, not to mention formulaic. It was around this time when I was thinking this could be mainly a hard rock album after all. Luckily, the following track "Great Unknown" blends that part of their sound with the upbeat metal of their first 3 tracks, bringing back some hope in me enjoying this album and counting it as metal. "Turn the Page" switches back to mid-tempo rock, only this time it's more anthemic. That track and the previous one have given the album more strength.

"Sign of the Cross" has more of those catchy Avantasia and Heavenly vibes, though it's a little tiring at this point. Same with "Wings to Fly", though it has some progressive melody that can be heard from Threshold. "Devil in Disguise" has the best of that band can do in this offering. If I were to pick a song that summarizes the album other than the title track, it would be that one. And finally, "Where is the Love?" More like WHERE IS THE METAL?!?! I mean it still has some heaviness, but it's more of a hard rock tune than anything! Can we at least please have some symphonics and female vocals to make this sound like Delain? Such a disappointing ending for this album...

All in all, Eden's Curse's 4th album Symphony of Sin is a pretty good one. As much I enjoy it though, it is a little long and contains several flawed tracks. I've actually just listened to their sole single with Marco Sandron, "Time to Breathe", and let me tell you, that could've been a far better, more logical closing track than "Where is the Love?" There's definitely some potential in this hard rock/heavy metal band, and I would recommend Symphony of Sin to fans of that style. If they can get past the inconsistency....

Favorites: "Symphony of Sin", "Break the Silence", "Evil & Divine", "Great Unknown", "Turn the Page", "Devil in Disguise"

Black metal is a genre which may be problematic for the more conservative listeners due to its anti-religious satanic lyrical themes. However, if any open-minded metalhead can give it a try, they're bound to get some rewards from the music. Dimmu Borgir is known to some as the go-to band for starting their black metal journey.

I've barely had any experience with Dimmu Borgir, and I didn't dare to because... well, black metal. They've always have been. More specifically symphonic black metal. Upon listening to their new album Grand Serpent Rising, I gotta say, it's very strong! And the emphasis on symphonics and a bit of classic heavy metal elements almost makes it Guardians-worthy. When the symphonic are blended with the guitars and drums, it's more than just symphonic black metal. It's an amazing cinematic experience!

"Tridentium" is the 4-minute intro. Despite being a little long for an intro, the dramatic orchestration leading into the metal instrumentation should get you pumped. The furious "Ascent" is a killer start to the symphonic black metal action. The raspy harsh vocals are accompanied by fast guitars and drums, even having some shredtastic soloing. Variation can be heard in the different moods and pacing. Very well done! The different elements each have their own standing point in the 7-minute "As Seen in the Unseen". Then "The Qryptfarer" has some early black metal from Celtic Frost, blended with the deathly progressiveness of later Job for a Cowboy, plus more symphonics.

When I first heard "Ulvgjeld & Blodsodel", i thought it started underwhelming, though it gets better as it goes on. "Repository of Divine Transmutation" is another highlight that builds up throughout all the way to the climax. Another special track, "Slik Minnes en Alkymist" has a hard rock-sounding intro that then paves the way for dark epicness, especially in the chorus and bridge. The song's lyrics are all in Norwegian. That and its heavier yet atmospheric sound may have some think of their first two albums that were entirely in Norwegian. Incredible symphonics, never too overpowering! "Phantom of the Nemesis" cranks up the dark symphonics expected in Guardians bands like Nightwish and Powerwolf. "The Exonerated" punches through with a more straight sound.

Then comes "Recognizant" which may just be the best song of the album. The blend of aggression and epicness is on point, and that's what I've heard this band has in albums like Death Cult Armageddon, which I should check out later. In saying that, choirs don't appear much, which I'm OK with, since too much of that would've ruined the broth. The tempo is sometimes lower to counterbalance with the speed, and there's also atmospheric piano, memorable guitarwork, and eerie vocals that are sometimes spoken. Everything's rightly balanced in that majestic song. "At the Precipice of Convergence" is a little more deathly with the symphonics of Starkill and the progressiveness of Obscura. "Shadows of a Thousand Perceptions" also has some deathly progressiveness from Pestilence, but their symphonic black metal sound is still around. The band ends this part of their journey with the 4-minute outro, "Gjoll". It's one of the best instrumentals I've heard in this genre, and well-deserving of a highlight.

Symphonic black metal is best executed when majesty is blended equally with aggression, with some bits of heavy/death/progressive metal here and there. I might just be up to checking out Dimmu Borgir earlier material at some point to give more justice to their legacy. Give this album a spin and be rewarded just like I have!

Favorites: "Ascent", "As Seen in the Unseen", "Repository of Divine Transmutation", "Slik Minnes en Alkymist", "Phantom of the Nemesis", "Recognizant", "Gjoll"