5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #115

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Welcome to the Family, by Avenged Sevenfold

Need something loud, thundering, and ripping that will get your week started with a real grab you by the balls kind of vibe? Look no further. From the moment this track gets going till the moment the last note fades out you're in for exactly that. This tune has some killer guitar riffs and solos for sure, but the drumming done by former Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy is absolutely top notch. This tune is dark, aggressive, and yet at the same time melodic. Everything a good A7X song should be.

2. Some Kind of Hate, by The Misfits

As I've mentioned before one of the things I always loved about The Misfits was the fact that they made some of the most raw, heavy, and dark horror punk music but at the same time made it sound like it was just louder 50's pop rock songs. It's a combination you wouldn't think would work, but in this tune especially it really does. Glenn Danzig's keen ear for melody and smooth whiskey vocals sure made for some of the best punk rock to ever be put to tape.

3. Less Talk More Rokk, by Freezepop

And now for something completely different. I know you wouldn't really consider this rock n' roll, but I always liked the melodies, harmonies, and rhythm of this tune. I remember it from Guitar Hero II waaaay back in the day. I've even figured out how to play that synth melody on a guitar over the years since then. It's definitely a fun tune to play to get a party started or kept going. Or maybe 10 years ago. What do I know about partying, after all?

4. Electric Man, by Rival Sons

And now back to our regularly scheduled genre. If you need a good stomping, electrifying rock n' roll tune to blow out your speakers, this is definitely the way to go. It will pound your ear drums out, but you'll be thankful for it. The vocals howl, the guitar crunches, and the rhythm section just BOOMS in this. This is even more fun of a song to see performed live, but if you can't make it to a show this studio version will still blow your mind.



5. Any Way You Want It, by Journey

Of course before I wrap this week's post up I have to include the token song that everyone is familiar with from the radio. Regardless I still think this is a fun song and is much better than some of Journey's wimpier soft ballad stuff meant primarily for girls in order to make them fall in love with Steve Perry and get them to spend their money on records. That said, go ahead and turn this one on and crank it up. I won't judge you. I promise.

Ozzy Osbourne and Guitarist Zakk Wylde to Reunite on Tour

Good news for long time fans of Ozzy Osbourne! Those of you who have missed the Prince of Darkness performing with his long time iconic axe man Zakk Wylde are in for a real treat. On Osbourne's upcoming tour, the two will be reuniting and sharing the stage together again for the first time in almost 10 years.

In addition to Osbourne and Wylde, the band will consist of long time members bassist Rob "Blasko" Nicholson, keyboardist Adam Wakeman, and drummer Tommy Clufetos. So far there are only four shows listed on the tour, but it will be kicking off on July 14th in Oshkosh, WI and wraps up in Cartersville, IL on August 21st, though more dates are added on in time.

In a recent press release from Osbourne, he expresses his excitement for the tour and being on the road with these four musicians again, saying:

“I’m so happy to be getting back on the road with Zakk, Blasko, Tommy and Adam. This is what I do. This is where I belong, on the road.”

 Wylde also expressed his own feelings, saying:

“I’m really looking forward to the hardcore ‘powahlifting’ training sessions with Ozzy, as well as playing music in between sets of heavy squats, benching and deadlifts,”

I'm not the biggest fan of Wylde's playing the past couple decades (ever since he started trying to copy Dimebag Darrel's style), but I am glad to see that Ozzy has one of his most iconic guitarists since Randy Rhoads back in the band. These should definitely be some good shows for new and old fans of Ozzy alike (as long as Wylde goes a bit more sparing on the pinch harmonics).

Throwback Thursday: Trying to Burn the Sun, by Elf

In 1975 a little known blues rock outfit known as Elf which featured a young Ronnie James Dio howling away on the mic released their third and final LP titled Trying to Burn the Sun. After this Dio and all of the members of Elf except guitarist Steve Edwards would form Rainbow with former Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. Before that however, they did one more album, which produced some of their finest work of all.

Trying to Burn the Sun is mostly blues rock based, centering primarily around the piano played by Mickey Lee Soule rather than the guitar like most bands usually do. It ranges from upbeat fun rock n' roll numbers like Black Swampy Water to slower, warmer ballads like When She Smiles. Overall it's pretty well rounded as an album and quite frankly the best way they could have gone out as a band, even though honestly they probably could have put out a couple more had Blackmore not taken over.

Good Time Music has to be one of my absolute favorite Elf songs of all time. The piano chord progression in some ways reminds me of a few later era Beatles tunes, but then it transitions into more of a gospel-like vibe in the chorus with a bit of honky-tonk in between. Dio's vocal melodies definitely have a great deal of soul and passion to them as well. The song gives you a rather pleasant feeling throughout your being when it's playing, so I would definitely say that it lives up to its name and then some.

Black Swampy Water as mentioned earlier is one of those tunes that really drives and gets you going. It isn't your typical fast paced radio rock n' roll tune, but it has a good pace and will lift your soul. In some ways the rhythm has a bit of this bounce to it, but it's so fast that it doesn't feel particularly poppy. The gospel-like vocals in the chorus are a welcome layer of substance to the mix for sure. This tune has more focus on the guitar than a lot of the other songs, which is good. Edwards was definitely no slouch on the axe. He knew his stuff.

Trying to Burn the Sun is definitely one of those hidden gems that you never would know about unless you were digging around through obscure stuff or were a big fan of Dio and all of the things in his catalog. Regardless, it is a gem nonetheless and is definitely worth your time to pick up and give a listen. There is bound to be at least one track you like if you're a fan of the blues, rock n' roll, and/or Dio. You might not have the easiest time finding it (unless you go online), but it's well worth it.

Trying to Burn the Sun, by Elf receives 3.75 out of 5 stars.

Track List:

1. Black Swampy Water
2. Prentice Wood
3. When She Smiles
4. Good Time Music
5. Liberty Road
6. Shotgun
7. Wonderworld
8. Streetwalker

Buy the album on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Trying-Burn-Sun-RONNIE-JAMES/dp/B01LZ8U71G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493363866&sr=8-1&keywords=Trying+to+Burn+the+Sun

Deep Purple's Ian Paice: "No Point to Ritchie Blackmore Reunion"

 

 

Over the years many Deep Purple fans have fantasized over the idea of original guitarist/band co-founder Ritchie Blackmore rejoining the band or at least doing some form of reunion with them. However, drummer/co-founder Ian Paice feels that although there is always the possibility of a reunion, at this point it would be pointless.

In an interview with Blabbermouth Paice discusses his feelings toward Blackmore and the idea of a reunion with him, saying:

 

“Of course, the answers to both of those are ‘possibly.’ But when Ritchie left, nobody fired him, nobody said, ‘You have to go.’ It was his choice. And so the band continued, the band moved on. Ritchie started doing his thing, which is great. He was obviously happy doing it, and we’ve been happy doing what we’ve been doing for the last 23, 24 years, ’cause that’s how long ago it is.

 

Quite honestly, there’s no point for us to consider that. We have a wonderful feeling within the band, everybody’s very friendly, and all we have to do is go onstage and make the music; there’s no other considerations to worry about. I think Ritchie’s life doesn’t work like that. I think it’s a little more complex. And at this stage of my life, I don’t need cloudy areas. I like it to be clear and crystal and know that it’s gonna be fun. I love Ritchie to death, but I can’t guarantee every day with him is gonna be fun.”

Paice also went into detail discussing Blackmore's replacement and current guitarist Steve Morse, who has played with the band for the past two dozen decades, saying:

 

“The thing they have in common is they’re both brilliant guitarists, but they are different, and that’s the important thing with Steve. To try and replace Ritchie would have been impossible and pointless to replace him with a Ritchie clone. So if we were gonna have to bring a guitarist in, he had to be of the same level as Ritchie, but he had to have his own style. And that’s why Steve fit the bill perfectly.”

As a HUGE fan of Deep Purple myself I don't think at this point I would want a Blackmore reunion either. Ritchie is happy doing his own thing and quite frankly Morse breathes new life into the band. Blackmore would just be kind of going through the motions if he came back in any capacity. I would much rather Blackmore do a whole new Rainbow album if he is going to come back to rock on a more consistent basis. That said, I'm looking forward to hearing the two new Rainbow songs that just got recorded as singles.

Elton John Hospitalized and Cancels 8 Shows Due to Harsh Bacterial Infection

Sir Elton John seems to have been put through the mill recently health-wise, as he recently contracted an unusual and harmful bacterial infection while on tour in South America. He was in intensive care for two days until being released from the hospital where he was ordered by the doctor to rest; thus cancelling eight shows.

According to Uproxx, in a statement put out by John's representatives the situation is further explained saying:

“During his return flight home from Santiago, Chile, [John] became violently ill. Upon returning to the U.K., Elton’s doctors admitted him to hospital, where he underwent immediate treatment to remove the infection. After spending two nights in intensive care followed by an extended stay in hospital, Elton was released from hospital on Saturday, April 22, and is now comfortably resting at home per doctor’s advice.”

John himself also made a statement on the situation, saying:

“I am so fortunate to have the most incredible and loyal fans and apologize for disappointing them. I am extremely grateful to the medical team for their excellence in looking after me so well.”

 

Fortunately John is expected to make a full recovery and be back on the road by June 3rd, where he will be kicking off the tour in London according to his official website. I'm just glad he is going to be ok. Lord knows in the past year or two we have lost enough rock n' roll royalty as it is. It would be a shame to lose the man who made me want to go down the yellow brick road and not raise my kids on Mars.

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #114

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Devil on HWY 9, by Danzig

This is a pretty solid new tune by Danzig. You can tell that Glenn's voice has aged, but that doesn't stop this song from slamming you in the face and pounding out your ear drums in all the best ways imaginable. He definitely has a good guitar player on this. If the rest of his upcoming album is as good as this then I imagine it will do pretty well. It has volume, power, and all the right amounts of heavy metal evil to it.

2. Back Door Man, by The Doors

Everyone needs some Doors in their life every now and again. Anyone who says otherwise is just wrong and is a very poor unfortunate misguided soul in serious need of some rock n' roll therapy that of course only some prolonged exposure to The Doors can provide. This tune has a really groovy blues feel to it, but then again that is no real surprise considering most of what The Doors did was rooted in the blues. That said, you don't hear this one on the radio too often so you should check it out and crank it. Jim Morrison REALLY howls on it.

3. Black Water, by Timber Timbre

This is a rather trippy tune that an acquaintance of mine turned me onto recently. It's a fascinating marriage of jazz, psychedelic rock, and indie. It's definitely something to put on if you're interested in jumping down the musical rabbit hole or if you just want something new on your chill-out playlist. I advise trying it with RainyMood.com and/or headphones in the pitch black of the night. Then close your eyes. You'll thank me later.

4.  Stone Cold Crazy, by Queen

If easy listening isn't your speed, then worry not. This song in my opinion is one of the birth places of thrash metal. What? A Queen song giving birth to thrash? What kind of nonsense is this? No, really. Play it and you'll see what I mean. It's loud, heavy, and drives like you wouldn't believe. You can hear a great deal of the beginnings of the genre all the way back in 1974. Queen actually used to be a very heavy rock/borderline metal band and in my opinion this is one of the best tracks from that era.

5.  Across the Universe, by David Bowie

This is one of the few covers that could actually be considered better than the original depending on your tastes. It was apparently so good to the original writer John Lennon that he said that it was the best version of the song ever recorded when he played guitar and did backing vocals on it for Bowie in 1975. That is definitely a high compliment, especially since it is coming from a former Beatle. I definitely agree regardless that it's a rather grand rendition.

 

Danzig Premieres New Single "Devil on HWY 9"

If you have been craving some new Danzig tunes in your life, then your wish has been granted. The evil Elvis of heavy metal Glenn Danzig just put out a crunchy and shredtastic first single to his upcoming album Black Laden Crown (due out May 26, 2017) titled Devil on HWY 9 (which you can listen to by clicking the video above).

Overall it is a pretty solid track. The riffs and rhythms will pound out your ear drums till they bleed (in the best way possible, of course), the guitar solos are blistering and lightning quick, and Danzig's trademark vocal style is there to put the cherry on top of the icing.

The only thing I will nitpick about this track is that you can definitely tell that Glenn has aged. You can hear it in his voice big time. He doesn't have that smooth Jim Morrison/Elvis timbre to his voice any more. You can still tell that it's him, but I wouldn't go in expecting to hear the same voice from 30 years ago. That said, I understand that Danzig can't really help that and will cut him some slack. As I said, it's still overall a solid track and I'm interested in hearing what the rest of it will sound like.