Kings Cross were another act that competed with the recently mentioned Surrender for the honour of having released the very first genuine metal release to come out of my birth city of Sydney. There's very little known about the timing of the two records though so I've had to take a guess as to which may have come earlier & have generally leant towards Surrender as their self-titled album was far more significant than Kings Cross' three-song effort. It was also miles more enjoyable too as the "Gimme" E.P. is a lacklustre affair that places all of its hopes & dreams on the back of brothers Darren "Jed" McCormack & Matt "Big Bird" McCormack whose virtuosic lead guitar skills are pretty incredible when compared with the overall package. They'd clearly been spending years kneeling at the altar of the late, great Randy Rhoads as there are some striking similarities in style. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to save "Gimme" from the second-hand store racks though as two of the three songs are completely disposable (read: garbage) with closer "Love Machine" being one of the worst metal tunes I can remember hearing, thanks largely to the completely out of key vocal effort of front man Mark White.

Kings Cross began life as New England in 1983 before changing their name shortly afterwards. The "Gimme" E.P. would be their only metal release with their 1988 debut album "Psychedelic World" coming after they'd relocated to Los Angeles in search of international acclaim & seeing them dropping the metal component in favour of a more psychedelic glam/hard rock approach. Kings Cross were built around the three McCormack brothers who would later go on to form seminal Sydney thrash metal band Massive Appendage with Jed & Shawn also ending up in Fester Fanatics later on. The early Kings Cross sound sits right in the middle between the LA glam metal one that was so big at the time & a more muscular heavy metal one. They tended to sound closest to Skid Row due to White's similarities in tone with Skid Row's legendary Sebastian Bach in my opinion. Unfortunately, his skill set is not even close to being able to match Bach's though & his failings are the main detractor from me being able to enjoy this release. I do quite like the glammiest of the three tracks in the catchy "Back Street Theatre" but it's sadly not enough to balance out the dire nature of the song-writing on the other two inclusions so I can't in good conscience encourage any of you to actively seek out "Gimme" which should reside solely in the annuls of Australian metal history for all eternity.

For fans of Twisted Sister, Skid Row & Motley Crue.

I have been a casual fan of Khemmis since first coming across their sophomore "Hunted" back in 2016 shortly after its release. Consequently I checked out the debut and, at that time, I wasn't particularly knocked-out by it I must admit. So, a decade later and with a new album on the shelves, I figured time was ripe for a revisit.

Firstly it must be mentioned that this is much more doom metal oriented than their later material, with Pallbearer most often being justifiably cited as a touchstone. "Absolution" maintains a significant percentage of traditional heavy metal in its doom metal DNA, pushing it into epic doom metal territiory. The production and guitar sound is very much in the doom metal milieu however, with a deep and resonant fuzziness that is typical of traditional doom metal and with a certain bluesy feeling to the riffs. The guitar solos sound cleaner and clearer than the riffs and are enthusiastically deployed with an exuberant relish that hints that this is where the guitarists Ben Hutcherson and Phil Pendergast really get their kicks, giving off a Brian Robertson / Scott Gorham, Thin Lizzy vibe. The two also share vocal duties and this is probably the album's weakest point as they alternate between reasonable cleans and frankly unconvincing deathly growling bellows. The rhythm section of bassist Daniel Beiers and drummer Zach Coleman are solid enough, although they seem to be playing well within themselves and keeping it pretty simple.

I must admit that I found myself enjoying this better this time around than I did back then, although I still have reservations. Sometimes the soloing sounds divorced from the meat of the track itself and too often feels shoehorned in whilst I feel the clean vocals are strong enough to carry the material without resorting to the unnecessary and unconvincing death growls. The riffs are generally pretty cool though and when the guitarists do hit a sweet spot between riffs and solos, such as on "Burden of Sin" it is pretty engaging stuff. They saved the best until last and close the album out with the longest and best track, "The Bereaved", which is where the previously mentioned Pallbearer comparison is most apparent. Ukltimately this is a solid but flawed debut, but the band would get better next time around.

The sophomore album from Denver's Stormkeep is a bit of a double-edged sword. On one hand, you can tell that Stormkeep have learned their lesson from the debut, Tales of Othertime, that they are not very good progressive songwriters. As such, the song structures found on The Nocturnes of Iswylm are more streamlined with more recognizable melodic hooks, shorter runtimes and more aggression. The downside is that much of what made Stormkeep's debut so memorable has been lost; the symphonic backgrounds and dungeon synth passages have been kneecapped in favour of more traditional melodic black metal. Because of this omission, the fundamental black metal music is now lacking in that kick to push it over-the-top. This isn't like an Emperor album where the symphonic accompaniment is actively contributing to the songs/albums progression. Stormkeep used to do this with their debut, but now they have been so muted or omitted altogether that The Nocturnes of Iswylm becomes a record that just lingers without momentum. It's a shame because these guys showed enough potential years ago to potentially be the next modern Emperor or Summoning. 

Best Songs: The Taste of Immortal Blood, The Black Dragons of Iswylm, Echoes in the Vasts of Sequestration

For Fans Of: Summoning, Caladan Brood, Vargrav

I have never made any secret of the fact that Warning's masterpiece, "Watching From A Distance" is my all-time favourite album, so I can probably be forgiven for going into "Rituals of Shame" with inflated expectations, although I must add that those expectations were tempered by equal parts trepidation that the band may drop the ball and turn in an album that sees them just going through the motions like so many acts returning after a long period away and so sullying their legacy. So now I have the beautiful oxblood red vinyl platter on my turntable the obvious first question must be, "do I think it is as good as WFAD?" Well, the answer to that is not so simple because it is impossible to compare an album that has been so meaningful to me for two decades with one that has been out mere days. So am I at all disappointed with this third Warning full-length then? Absolutely not and while it hasn't initially hit me on as deeply an emotional and personal level as its predecessor this is still an amazing piece of doom metal melancholy. Patrick Walker just 'gets' doom metal in a way that few others are able to. It isn't just about leaden pacing and towering riffs, Walker doesn't merely write songs that are sad and sorrowful, but also dig deeply into his emotional vulnerability, laying bare his soul in a way which will either resonate with the listener or it won't. If it does then a connection with the material is possible that transcends mere grooves on a plastic disc and if it doesn't it may be dismissed as overly sentimental.

The most striking thing about "Rituals of Shame" is that it doesn't at all feel like an album released two decades after its illustrious predecessor by a band that had been on hiatus for most of the intervening years whilst Patrick Walker concentrated on his 40 Watt Sun project. There is such a remarkable consistency of material between the two albums that you would be forgiven for thinking that it had been recorded in 2010 and only just seen the light of day. In fact the debut "Strength To Dream" is further removed artistically from "Watching From A Distance" than "Rituals of Shame" is, despite there only being a third as much time between the two. The really great thing, though, is that the latest isn't merely a lazy rehash of the former. Despite the similarities, "Rituals of Shame" isn't merely WFAD part two, it has its own character and feeling. Inevitably such a monumental album will cast a long shadow over its younger sibling, but I am convinced that in time it will emerge from that shadow and stand tall in its own right.

WFAD had an indefinably wistful quality despite the huge, doom-laden chords and foundational stolidity of the rhythm section, whereas RoS feels a little less ethereally affecting. This is partly down to the heavier-handed production and increased compression, but it is also due to the inclusion of second guitarist Wayne Taylor who has played live shows with the band since 2016, appearing on the 2021 Roadburn Live album, whose second guitar adds depth and rounds out the sound, making it feel more down-to-earth. Of course, the absolute core of Warning is Patrick Walker's vocal performances and this is where "Rituals of Shame" may even outdo its predecessor because, as I alluded to when reviewing the "WFAD Live at Roadburn" album, Patrick's voice seems to have got even better with time. His vocals sound more varied and expressive now in middle-age than they did as a young twenty-something and his ability to wring genuine emotion from the receptive listener with a mere twist of his voice is undiminished.

I have to say that I am more than happy with this new offering and it has rarely been off my turntable since it arrived. Whilst it is consistent with its predecessor it is undeniably an evolution rather than a rehash and in time I think it may take on a life of its own maybe being a new generation of doomheads' introduction to the band and becoming as significant to them as WFAD has been to me. So whilst "Rituals of Shame" has not deposed "Watching From A Distance" at the pinnacle of my top albums of all-time list, it has certainly pushed a large number of worthy contenders down another slot and has livened up a year that wasn't appearing too great on the doom metal front prior to its release.

Vreid are a long running Nordic Black & Roll band and The Skies Turn Black is the bands tenth(!) studio album. Now, going into this album, my experience with Black & Roll has been decidedly minimal. I think I reviewed an early Kvelertak album many years ago and left my exploration of the genre at that, thinking that it was cool in concept, but maybe not so much in execution (the language barrier may have also played a crucial role). Well I would never have guessed this group, unbeknownst to me and, surprisingly, most of Metal Academy's regulars, made something of this quality two decades into their career.

What I enjoy most about The Skies Turn Black is the heavy Ghost influence. Now I know in many metal circles, admitting you like Ghost is worthy of excommunication, but I stopped giving a shit what the metalcore kids think is cool a long time ago and I think Ghost is awesome, and it seems like Vreid think Ghost are awesome too! The guitar riffs sound taken straight out from a record like Meliora. The heavier touches are added tastefully as to not entirely squash the catchy riffs. And the vocals have a touch of intensity to them that could never be replicated by Tobias Forge in the AOR sphere. The Skies Turn Black adds enough texture from the complimentary instruments (strings, synthesizers, etc.) to give it something closer to gothic rock. And the guest vocals from Djerv on "Loving the Dead" are such a beacon of light around the heavier "A Second Death" and "Build & Destroy" (although I personally think the the promotional single version of "Loving the Dead" is much better).

As Ghost moves further away from the heaviest sounds on Opus Eponymous and Meliora, and more towards the headliner stage, it left a void in my heart for heavy textures, with that arena rock appeal. Vreid hit the mark well on The Skies Turn Black.

Best Songs: The Skies Turn Black, Loving the Dead, Chaos, The Earth Rumbles

For Fans Of: early Ghost, Enslaved, Mork