As the Summer keeps getting hotter, I can’t say the new releases are for me. Another slow week here although there are a lot of albums, only the Buckcherry one is of any interest for me. I’ll keep diving in to the new Inglorious from last week and enjoying the Rock Candy addition of Yesterday & Today’s debut that dropped last week as well. Let me know what you want to hear this week or what we may have missed. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Buckcherry – Roar Like Thunder – (Round Hill Records)
King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard – Phantom Island – (p(doom) records)
The Cure – Mixes of a Lost World – (Polydor Records / Lost Music Ltd / Universal Music)
This episode we are going to show-off the Kiss 45th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition Box Set for their album ‘Destroyer. With talk of two new box sets this year from Kiss, I figured why not show-off the two that I have so this episode will be the first one they released. It is jammed pack with goodness. Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have been paying attention to other band’s box sets and now they know how to put one of these together and it is stellar…mostly. We walk through each CD that comes with it (there are 4), a Blu Ray, a hard back book and so much more. An album that came out March 15, 1976 when I wasn’t even 8 years old, but I remember it and still love the album today.
So go check it out as it will be live tonight right now, June 12, 2025 at 12PM (NOON). Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.
I have been doing a Kiss Bootleg Series for years. You get a review every time I add a new one to the collection. Well, after buying 38 Bootleg CDs from John Humphrey’s personal collection, I figured let’s jump right back in and do a whole lot of reviews on the Bootlegs. Oh, if you don’t know who John Humphrey is, you need to know he is a massive Kiss collector. And he is the drummer of the band Seether. John decided to sell off his entire collection…sort of…he kept all the vinyl (like 4,000 of them). He did it through an auction at Backstage Auctions and I had to have a piece of it…and I did wind up with some things.
The next one in the collection I bought is ‘Live in Australia 1980’. It isn’t really a live show per se. It is actually a Australian documentary show that talks about Kiss and interspersed between the narrator, we get live songs and tidbits from band members, Doc Mchee and even their road manager. It sounds like the show was recorded on VHS and they transferred it to be put on CD (more on that later). You get about 11 live songs from their tour in Australia that hit Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane I believe. Most songs I’ve read come from Sydney, but I hear the announcer and Paul calling out Adelaide I believe.
As I said, it is a documentary type show as there is a narrator and the dialogue written is quite comical at times. The narrator delivers it so seriously, but it is so cheesy and at times so inaccurate. Quite enjoyable for the humor of it that wasn’t intentional. It all kicks off with a TV promo that has each member introducing themselves and then Ace introducing the band’s new drummer Eric Carr. The band gets introduced and they go in to “Detroit Rock City” but it is not listed on the track listing. That song is usually a great song to kick off the show, but because this recorded on tape, the tape was rather warped or whatever because we get a lot of tape drag and Ace’s playing sounds simply atrocious. Luckily, this is the only song that is that way.
Bon Jovi have been huge in Japan since the beginning. As a result, Japan gets all the cool stuff and they did again this time as well. Bon Jovi reissued their first three albums on SHM-CDs and in a 7″ Vinyl format…but on CD. You get Bon Jovi, 7800° Fahrenheit and Slippery When Wet. We will walk through what you get with each disc and how it differs from the two recent U.S. Reissues of Bon Jovi and Slippery When Wet.
So go check it out as it will be live tonight, June 9, 2025 at 7pm. Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.
For My Sunday Song #436, we are going hard & heavy with “Justice” by Rev Theory. The song was the first single from the album of the same name. The single came out on October 25, 2010 and went to #17 on the U.S. Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks while the album went to #75 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The song is credited to the whole band which would include singer Rich Luzzi, bass player Matty McCloskey, guitarists Julien Jorgensen & Rikki Lixx and Dave Agoglia on drums. There are few others included as well as you will see at the bottom of the lyrics. The song was even licensed to be used on WWE’s Extreme Rules in 2011.
The song is a strong, powerful statement on standing up for oneself. Challenge the injustices you see in society. Everyone has faced some form of injustice and we should stand up and reclaim what is rightfully ours. It is a rebellious track with hints at fighting back and getting vindication. Right now there is so much injustice going on and I wonder how long before we all stand up and fight back against the perpetrators whether through our votes, our voice or something worst. 15 years after this song was written and I still feel is very relevant.
Musically, hold on to your hat. Not only is the message powerful, but the music is as relentless. The drums are destructive, the guitars are lethal and full of rage while the bass is the heartbeat of power driving the song forward. The guitar has a little Rage sound to it as if Morello was doing it. And Rich’s vocals are strong, loud, gritty and so serious. When he screams out the chorus, you feel he means every word he is spouting. The catchiness of that chorus reverberates in your head and it gets stuck there. There is so much rage, be careful if you listen to this song while you are driving because I can see foot to the floor speeding happening as it happened to me (no ticket thankfully).
Things are starting to heat up outside and in the Friday New Releases. I’m really excited about the new Inglorious album and I have it on order. I’ll also check out the Triumph Tribute album and maybe even spin The Doobie Brothers. What are you wanting to hear this week? Let me know and tell us what we missed as well so everyone knows. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great weekend.
Inglorious – V – (Frontiers Records)
Volbeat – God of Angels Trust – (Vertigo Berlin / Universal Music)
Triumph – Magic Power: All Star Tribute to Triumph – (Round Hill Records)
Doobie Brothers – Walk This Road – (Rhino Records)
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Personal History – (Lambent Light Records)
Brian Eno/ Beatie Wolfe – Luminal – (Verve Records)
Brian Eno/ Beatie Wolfe – Lateral – (Verve Records)
I have been doing a Kiss Bootleg Series for years. You get a review every time I add a new one to the collection. Well, after buying 38 Bootleg CDs from John Humphrey’s personal collection, I figured let’s jump right back in and do a whole lot of reviews on the Bootlegs. Oh, if you don’t know who John Humphrey is, you need to know he is a massive Kiss collector. And he is the drummer of the band Seether. John decided to sell off his entire collection…sort of…he kept all the vinyl (like 4,000 of them). He did it through an auction at Backstage Auctions and I had to have a piece of it…and I did wind up with some things.
The next one in the series is ‘Kabuki Beasts: Kyoto 1977’. It is a full show on 1 CD that was recorded Saturday, March 26, 1977 at Kyoto Kaikan Dai Ichi Hall in Kyoto, Japan. This was only their third show ever in Japan at this point. It is an audience recording and it sounds amazing considering that fact. There are a few rough patches where the sound is not crystal clear for either a vocal or a guitar part, but overall this is a superb recording. It is raw, untouched and pure Kiss at their prime. And as an added bonus, it even includes a little poster.
It is hard to believe they fit a full show on 1 CD, but they did. It has the introduction, the solos, Paul’s talks to the crowd and even ends with the crowd cheering for them to come back for another encore after doing 3 songs already. There is an energy with the band that is electric, the crowd is just as enthusiastic and you can feel it in the performances. Being 1977, this is classic Kiss and nothing more. This has one killer track after another. They kick it off with “Detroit Rock City” and straight in to “Take Me” which is one I never get to hear enough live. Gene rocks out to “Let Me Go Rock ‘N’ Roll” and then he tears it up in the “Ladies Room”. It is all loud and sensational.
Paul’s crowd interactions are all stellar, we don’t have those uncomfortable intros he did from the 80’s as those were cringeworthy. Let’s talk a little about the band’s playing. Well, they can play at this point and hadn’t lost anything. Peter’s drums are killer and he is pounding away. Ace’s playing is sloppy, but not in a bad way. It is the good way we like hearing him play. You get the freaking loud siren in “Firehouse” and with “I Want You” and “Makin’ Love” it nothing but crowd pleasing rock & roll. One of the few times the vocals weren’t as loud and clear was on “Makin’ Love”, but I didn’t care. The ‘Alive II’ version is better.
Things kick up a notch even more with “Cold Gin” as Gene tears it up vocally and Ace really shines. Ace impressions even more with his guitar solo. It is so Ace with tone and the shooting of the rockets from the guitar and all the explosions. Peter bangs it out for “Do You Love Me” as Paul struts through the vocals and then one of my favorite live songs is “Nothin’ to Lose” even if the start seems a little messed up. Peter sounds great when he does his part. Gene goes into a bass solo (if you can call it that as it is just noise to do the blood spitting) then in to “God Of Thunder” and he lets the Demon loose only to be pleasantly interrupted with a Peter drum solo only to come back with the finale of “God of Thunder”.
They wrap things up with “Rock And Roll All Nite” and although I am tired of this song, the energy throughout this show makes the song exciting again. And that is it as the crowd cheers louder and louder. The boys don’t disappoint and come back and do 3 encore songs including “Shout It Out Loud” followed by Peter doing “Beth” and the only one that sings it the way it should be sung. The end it all with another favorite of mine and that is “Black Diamond”. Damn, what a great show.
And that is it. For an audience recording, this disc is spectacular. Cranking it up as loud as you can stand only makes it better. Only a few rough patches, but they ain’t that rough and don’t detract from the listening experience. As I said before, the energy is electric both from the band and the crowd. Everyone is having a good time. Kiss were on fire that night and they seem to be really enjoying themselves still. It is a killer setlist, you get a cool poster and it all makes for a good time. As far as bootlegs go, they don’t sound much better than this one. My Overall Score is a 5.0 out of 5.0 Stars as I really enjoyed this one from beginning to end.
Mike Ladano, from Grab A Stack of Rock, and I had a chance to sit down with former Guns ‘N Roses and Great White Manager, Alan Niven to discuss his upcoming book. ‘Sound N’ Fury: Rock & Roll Stories’ will be out on June 24th so go pre-order your copy now at any fine bookstore. Appetite for Destruction! Once Bitten! Twice Shy! This is the guy who made Guns N’ Roses into superstars, and gave Great White their big second chance.
Alan talks about the great stories in his book. So many Axl Rose stories, Slash and Izzy as well as some great stories on Great White. We even talk Shakespeare, sending the cops to get a band member to a show, the art of saying yes, Def Leppard is a boy band, Bon Jovi is cliche and the fact there are only 7 songs you can write plus a whole lot more. We got to spend an hour with him, so get ready as the interview IS UP RIGHT NOW!!! (Monday, June 2, 2025 at 7PM) on Youtube. Get ready as Alan unleashes the Sound N’ Fury and it will also put everything I said above in context.
Mike Ladano, from Grab A Stack of Rock, and I had a chance to sit down with former Guns ‘N Roses and Great White Manager, Alan Niven to discuss his upcoming book. ‘Sound N’ Fury: Rock & Roll Stories’ will be out on June 24th so go pre-order your copy now at any fine bookstore. Appetite for Destruction! Once Bitten! Twice Shy! This is the guy who made Guns N’ Roses into superstars, and gave Great White their big second chance.
Alan talks about the great stories in his book. So many Axl Rose stories, Slash and Izzy as well as some great stories on Great White. We even talk Shakespeare, sending the cops to get a band member to a show, the art of saying yes, Def Leppard is a boy band, Bon Jovi is cliche and the fact there are only 7 songs you can write plus a whole lot more. We got to spend an hour with him, so get ready as the interview will be tonight Monday, June 2, 2025 at 7PM on Youtube. Get ready as Alan unleashes the Sound N’ Fury and it will also put everything I said above in context.
For My Sunday Song #435, we are going to visit a song that I only know because of my daughter. It is Nessa Barrett’s brutal song “I Hope UR Miserable Until UR Dead” off her debut E.P., ‘Pretty Poison’ released back in 2021. The song was written by a whole slew of people including Nessa herself. It also has Evan Blair, Madi Yanofsky, Samuel Mark Catalano and Tim Randolph. The song only went to #88 on the Billboard Top 100 chart, but it is #1 in my book.
Some toxic relationships end and you can either take the high road and move on and not look back or you can take the low road and be petty and bitter. This song is the latter. She is completely brutal in this song wishing this guy was miserable until he dies…that is harsh. It talks about how toxic he was and she wants to call him out for all the bad crap he’s done, but won’t. She knows that his true colors will show and his friends will end up hating him since he really is a little shit. She does let him go and moves on with her life, but still wants him to be miserable. Toxicity should not be tolerated and you should always get out of those type of relationships.
Nessa’s vocals are really awesome. This sweet sounding angel with the mouth of a sailor really shines throughout the song. I think her vocals are what make the song. What I like about the song is the rock sound with the heavy guitar riffs during the hard parts and soft acoustic guitars during the slower parts. And the drum beats are heart poundingly brutal and make you feel the anger that really lies behind those lyrics. A dark, brooding song that has such great pop sensibilities with its massive hooks and melody. A killer track.
Buckcherry – Roar Like Thunder – (Round Hill Records)
King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard – Phantom Island – (p(doom) records)
The Cure – Mixes of a Lost World – (Polydor Records / Lost Music Ltd / Universal Music)
Metallica – Load (Deluxe Box Set) – (Blackened Recordings)
Van Morrison – Remembering Now – (Exile Productions)
Neil Young & the Chrome Hearts – Talkin To The Trees – (The Other Shoe Productions / Reprise Records)
Inglorious – V – (Frontiers Records)
Volbeat – God of Angels Trust – (Vertigo Berlin / Universal Music)
Triumph – Magic Power: All Star Tribute to Triumph – (Round Hill Records)
Doobie Brothers – Walk This Road – (Rhino Records)
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Personal History – (Lambent Light Records)
Brian Eno/ Beatie Wolfe – Luminal – (Verve Records)
Brian Eno/ Beatie Wolfe – Lateral – (Verve Records)
Turnstile – Never Enough – (Roadrunner Records)
2 Loud 2 Old Music 