Category: Rock

My Sunday Song – “Hell is For Children” by Pat Benatar

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For My Sunday Song #108, I am going to discuss the song “Hell is for Children” by powerhouse singer Pat Benatar.  The song was recorded in 1980 and released on her album ‘Crimes of Passion’ which went to #2 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart.  The song itself was never released as an official single, but became a hit nonetheless.

The song was inspired by an article that Pat had read in the New York Times that told the story of child abuse.  She was so moved by the article that she started writing this song.  In a time when no one was speaking publicly about child abuse, it was really groundbreaking for an artist to tackle such an intense subject.

The lyrics capture the sadness and despair the children of abuse face each day. Just read the opening verse:

“They cry in the dark, so you can’t see their tears
They hide in the light, so you can’t see their fears
Forgive and forget, all the while
Love and pain become one and the same
In the eyes of a wounded child”

The lyrics go on to talk about the abuser telling the kids not tell mommy and to lie to everyone about what happened while they apologize for what they had done yet continue to abuse.  It doesn’t get more raw than this song, so powerful.

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Friday New Releases – September 7th

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It is the first Friday of September and there is a long list of releases.  Everyone starts putting out their new albums in the Fall and there are some big ones coming, but let us focus on today.  The ones I am looking forward to are highlighted in Blue.  Let me know what you want to listen to and which ones I might have missed on the list.  Thanks and have a great music weekend!!

  • 917OiMivKZL._SX522_  Alter Bridge – Live a the Royal Albert Hall (feat. the Parallax Orchestra) – (Napalm Records):  I am surprised by another live record after last year’s release.  That is ok.  There are some different songs in the set list and a little orchestra along with it.  I will give it a listen and then decide on buying.

  • A11xhBfgFwL._SX522_  Lenny Kravitz – Raise Vibration – (Roxie Records):  I have always loved Lenny so this is a no brainer to stream.  His last few have been so-so so again I will stream it before I buy it.  Just so you know, I don’t always do that as I do have 4 or 5 albums on pre-order without hearing a lick.  Only a few bands get that special treatment.

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Billy Raffoul – 1975 E.P. – Album Review

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Before we get into the album review, let me go into the story of how I came across Billy Raffoul.  My wife and I went to see Needtobreathe in concert on August 21st, 2018 (CLICK HERE FOR REVIEW).  Billy was the opening act of a triple bill.  When we arrived he came storming on stage before we got to our seat.  We didn’t mean to arrive then, traffic just sucked.

When I go to a show, I enjoy watching the opening acts and giving them the respect they deserve.  Hey, you never know if they will be the next big thing.  Watching Billy, I felt that he could be just that.  While I was listening to him, I turned to my wife and told her that I loved his voice.  It has this Jeff Buckley raspiness that was incredible.  Imagine my surprise when I read his bio online, it actually mentions that same Buckley feel.  Glad I wasn’t imagining things.

I can’t tell you the songs he sang as I had never heard of him before, but I do know he played Jimi Hendrix’s Fire.  Hell, he is a lefty like Jimi and has that same upside down lefty guitar.  I am sure he knows he could actually buy a left handed guitar!!

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Halestorm – Vicious – Album Review

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‘Vicious’ really sums up this album.  Halestorm come at you with full force and don’t let up the entire album.  From the first single “Uncomfortable” I knew this would be great.

In a music scene that is lacking bonafide Rock Stars, Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale fits that bill perfectly.  That voice and the fuck you attitude place her in realm most singers only wish they could achieve.  She isn’t one-dimensional either.  Her style and vocal delivery change up throughout and the album is never boring.

The band’s songs are loud, heavy, rowdy, dark and at times very sexual (“Do Not Disturb” and “Conflicted” in particular). It takes the line of Sex, Drugs & Rock & Roll and takes it up a notch. Musically, the band hits it on all cylinders with great guitar solos, nasty bass lines and explosive drumming especially on songs like “Painkiller”, “Black Vultures”, “White Dress” and “Skulls”.  On “The Silence”, Lzzy’s voice is channeling Ann Wilson (one of the greatest voices in rock).

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My Sunday Song – “Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown” by Rob Zombie

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For My Sunday Song #107 is going to take us out into a world that is so strange and bizarre you might never want to return.  We will explore the world of Rob Zombie and his song “Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown”.  The song is off his 2013 album ‘Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor’.  The song did chart at #15 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks, but that doesn’t matter for Rob Zombie.

The song is in the normal Rob Zombie industrial style music.  It is hard, heavy and slams a fist into your face.  The main draw for me is his guitar player, the guitar god himself, John 5.  John 5 is a beast of a guitarist.  The sounds and his touch are always perfection and with this one there is at times a whole Sabbath vibe with some of his tone.

The song is about the state of rock radio today.  What was once a flourishing hot bed of good music is dying off in droves.  It changed the way we listened to music, but thanks to the internet and the digital download and streaming, the art of radio is dying off.  I have to agree that radio seems to be a dying form.  The problem with radio is no variety.  They play the same songs and artists over and over and you don’t really discover new music on the radio anymore.  That is what Youtube and streaming is for now.

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Friday New Releases – August 31st

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The last Friday of August and we go out with a little bang.  Not a huge bang.  September is going to be huge so get ready for the ton of new releases coming your way.  There are a handful I am interested in this week and those will be highlighted in Blue as usual.  Let me know what you want to hear or you are going to get.  Leave me a comment because I always miss some good releases.  I hope you have a great weekend and Happy Listening!!!

  • download-3  The Veer Union – Decade II: Rock & Acoustic – (Rock Shop Entertainment):  This is a greatest hits package with a heavy side and a softer, acoustic side.  I have enjoyed Crispin Earl’s vocals (and only original member) so I will give this one spin.  I was hoping for new music, but this will do for now.  I will admit, I do like the cover of “Numb” by Linkin Park.  That might be worth it all by itself.

  • 814FHRdGWaL._SX522_  Alice Cooper – A Paranormal Evening at the Olympia Paris (Live) – (earMusic):  I am hoping to see Alice here in Charlotte in October and this will be a great way to prep for his live show.  Alice’s last studio album ‘Paranormal” was absolutely FANTASTIC!!  His band is also awesome and live, it is one helluva a show.  Can’t wait!!

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Needtobreathe – Concert Review – (August 21st, 2018 Charlotte, NC)

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I don’t get to enough Live shows each year. I wish I could get to more, but when I do get to attend it is always worth the time and money.  Seeing your favorite band is always the best thing ever.  There is nothing like hearing your favorite songs live as they are always a little different than the studio album and a good band can make them even better.  Thankfully Needtobreathe is a good band…hell…they are a great band.

If you follow my site, you know Def Leppard and Kiss are two of my favorites.  Needtobreathe is right up there with them for me.  I have every album on vinyl and I have now seen them live 3 times (which isn’t a lot, but I don’t usually see too many bands more than once).

Let’s get to the adventure of the show.  My wife decided she would attend the show with me this time as my daughter doesn’t really know the band and she had no interest.  My wife knows they are one of my favorite bands so she thought it would be a fun night and a good chance for us to have a date night…no kids!!!  She even made a playlist on her phone so she could familiarize herself with the band.

I get home from work that night and I can see something is off with my wife when I get home.  I asked her if she was okay and she lied and told me she was fine, but I knew something was off.  I gave her the opportunity to back out and that I would either go alone or drag my oldest daughter.  My wife toughed it out and went as she didn’t want to disappoint me.  It turns out she felt she was getting a kidney stone and if you have had one you know how painful that is.  I will let you know by the end of the night she was feeling fine and even started enjoying herself.

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Dee Snider – ‘For the Love of Metal’ – Album Review

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Dee Snider’s follow-up to his last solo album, ‘We Are the Ones’, was completely unexpected as Dee was done with making albums.  That was until he was challenged to do a contemporary Metal record by Jamey Jasta, leader singer of the metal band Hatebreed.

And there were some serious metal musicians on board with this album, just look at the contributors…

  • Jamey Jasta – Hatebreed
  • Howard Jones – Killswitch Engage
  • Mark Morton – Lamb of God
  • Alissa White-Gluz – Arch Enemy
  • Joel Grind – Toxic Holocaust
  • Nick Bellmore – Toxic Holocaust
  • Charlie Bellmore – Kingdom of Sorrow

I like some metal music, but I am not really familiar with any of these bands, so I was a little apprehensive at first.  These are all modern metal artists and I am stuck in the past.  Plus, Dee only contributed vocals.  He did not write any of the songs.  That alone made me nervous, but it is Dee Snider so I gave it a shot.

The first single off the album was “Become the Storm”.  It is a heavy song, but it was a little lame in my opinion.  It was too contrived and sounded like they were trying too hard to sound and be metal.  Thankfully, this might be the worst song on the album.  The rest of the album is pretty fucking great.

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My Sunday Song – “Renegade” by Styx

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For My Sunday Song #106, I bring you “Renegade” by the band Styx.  The song was released in 1978 off the album ‘Pieces of Eight’.  It did pretty well on the charts and reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The song for me is much better than that.

The song is about an outlaw (or renegade) who has been arrested for his crimes and is about to be hanged for those said crimes according to the lyrics…”Hangman is comin’ down from the gallows and I don’t have very long”.  The lyrics are basically a letter to the renegades mom telling her that he has been caught and is going to die.

There is a dark, ominous feel to the song especially in the opening verse which is just Tommy’s vocals and small kick drum in the first two lines and then a chorus of voices for the next two.  It is so eerie that it is wonderful.  And don’t forget the scream that kicks the song into overdrive. And damn, that opening line is so impactful…”Oh, Mama, I’m in fear for my life from the long arm of the law”.

What is also great about this song is the music.  Whether it is the guitar solo by James “JY” Young, the keyboards by Dennis DeYoung or John Panozzo’s drumming or a combination of all three, it just works.  Normally when Tommy write’s a song, he does the guitar solo, but he let JY do it instead and I think that was a good choice so he could focus on the vocal delivery.

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Friday New Releases – August 24th

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Happy Friday and welcome to another new release list.  And like most of August, it is not an extensive list and there is nothing I am just dying to have or listen to, but I will listen to a few.  I am hoping September comes and saves me from the lack of stellar releases this month.  The ones I am kinda interested in are highlighted in Blue, as usual.  Let me know if there is anything you are interested in or if there is something I miss.  If there isn’t much from newer artist I am sorry as I only really list things that I actually know about or have actually heard about the artists.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.

  • 51TSRAT0A9L._AC_US320_QL65_  Alice in Chains – Rainier Fog – (AIC Entertainment/BMG):  The band’s sixth album and their third since the got back together after Layne’s death.  I am not sure what to expect as I haven’t heard anything yet, but it will get a spin.  And I think I heard that Chris DeGarmo appears on 1 song so I will want to hear that for sure.

  • 513sPaJV81L._AC_US436_QL65_  Third Eye Blind – Thanks for Everything – (Mega Collider):  Third Eye Blind is back with a new E.P.  Although not a full album, I will take new music from them.  I really loved their first few albums and hope we can get a return to form with this one.  The title of the song below is interesting.

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