Heavy Metal Resource Reviews-Seventh Crystal, Pop Evil, The Banishment, Theory Of A Deadman, & Demons Down

Index

Seventh Crystal is one of the more recent Frontiers bands that I have taken a serious liking to. I was a big fan of 'Delirium' and feel the band have started off with this album where they left off with the that one. Good melodic hard rock with a slight modern edge to it. Sweden really has been a hotbed for great rock artists in recent years. I remember when it was like that in the States, but unfortunately our scene is a bit of a mess. The good news though is that if you like that type of music, there is plenty of it around the world and a lot of it is really good. This band was suppose to be a solo project of vocalist Kristian Fyhr, but he decided to evolve that into a full blown band. Two albums later, the fans are benefiting greatly by that decision. I think this band being paired up on a tour with Creye would be excellent. Another must have release!

Release Date: March 10, 2023

As they always seem to, Pop Evil continue to evolve with each album while retaining their sound at it's core. The band's last album 'Versatile' got a lot of play time. It was definitely a bit more uneven in feel, but it worked for me. This new album is much more uniform with most of the songs having a decent sonic edge to it and showing why they are one of the better more mainstream modern hard rock acts of our day. I had heard the single 'Eye Of The Storm' some months back and it reminded me of the heavier moments from 'Versatile' like 'Let The Chaos Reign' and this album overall leans more that direction. I also think the album has a consistency to it in terms of good songwriting. I really like what the band have offered here. I am not worried about them experimenting from time to time because they give us stuff like this. Gonna get a lot of play time!

Release Date: March 17, 2023

I'll get this out of the way first. I have a pretty wide ranging taste in the rock and metal genre and was a pretty big fan of industrial rock and metal back when it hit the scene. George Lynch has been known to be experimental at times and I really don't have issues with that. I like the genre, so I'm in. It also helps to have two of my favorite singers guest with Tommy Victor of Prong and Richard Patrick of Filter adding their goodness to the mix. Lynch is joined by Devix Szell as the main vocalist, Joe Haze handling programming, synth, etc. Also, not to be forgotten is Jason Charles Miller who some will remember from his Godhead days. The music definitely has an industrial edge to it. At times it's slightly less that direction, but the overall feel of the music is Industrial in nature. I thought songs were enjoyable and performances were great!

Release Date: March 10, 2023

One of the things I always liked about Theory Of A Deadman was the attitude. The earlier albums, especially 'The Truth Is' delivered that in spades. I'll be honest, I kind of got lost with this band with the last 2 albums. Didn't partake in 'Say Nothing' at all. I did however catch the two new singles from 'Dinosaur' and was immediately interested again. Definitely a return on these songs to their more rock oriented roots. I think the album is a step in the right direction if you want to get the hard rock fans back. The album still has plenty of more melodic areas, but we need this attitude and rock sound. I will definitely go forward paying attention and hoping that the band continue to go this direction. Obviously, a band will do what they want and release music the way they want to, but this fan hopes the trend is more this direction. Decent return!

Release Date: March 17, 2023

The album 'Demons Down' was probably my favorite House of Lords album and with the name of this band, I found it to be no surprise that a few of the members have made rounds in House of Lords. Ken Mary, Chuck Wright, and Jimi Bell are joined by Sinner's Blood vocalist James Robledo and Francesco Savino of False Memories. You will be familiar with the latter two if you follow Frontiers and their artist roster. Musically, this band isn't all that different than House of Lords and fits into a mid tempo melodic metal sound with an emphasis on the melodic part. Songs are quite good and consistency is here with the listen being quite uniform. I really dig the more melodic 'On My Way To You'. Thought it had a great 80's feel to it in ways. Overall, a banger of an album with a very impressive roster. Easy recommend!

Release Date: March 10, 2023