The Collection: Ep. 11 – Wrap-Up April 2024

I can’t believe it is time for another monthly wrap-up of what we added to The Collection. This time around, it is April 2024 and we added a ton of stuff. Somethings we added were actually in their own episode like the Record Store Day purchases and some Kiss Bootlegs. The rest of what we added are on here.

We hit up the local record stores here in Charlotte and even down in Wilmington, North Carolina when we were on our Spring Break trip. We picked up stuff from Discogs, eBay and even from Amazon as well. It is a lot of stuff and so much in fact, there are things still unopened and haven’t been listened to yet. I think that is a sign I bought too much. But like traffic signs, I’m ignoring it too!!

So go check it out as it is live now on April 29, 2024 at 8pm. Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.

And for those that wanted the BIG picture we used to put at the bottom of the post with everything in it, here you go…it is back as requested…

My Sunday Song – “No Prayer For the Dying” By Iron Maiden

For My Sunday Song #410, we are tackling another Iron Maiden song thanks to Harrison Kopp. His final choice is “No Prayer to the Dying” which is the title song for the album of the same name. The album was their 8th studio album and the first one without Adrian Smith as he left he band due to creative differences. This particular song was not a single and was solely written by Steve Harris. 

The song seems to be very introspective as the protagonist sits alone by a window watching it rain. He starts to question what life is all about and wondering why he was there. He sounds a little depressed and very lonely. He starts to plead to God for answers as he feels his prayers were never answered. He might be dying and therefore feels that because of that, there are no more prayers left to be answered. The strange thing about the lyrics are that they never say the title, “No Prayer for the Dying”. Not mentioned once.

Musically, the song is just over 4 minutes which I think is short for a Maiden song. In fact, there are no 6 minute or more songs on the album which I believe is a first. The song starts off slow and fairly quiet. The music is almost as thoughtful and introspective as the meaning behind the lyrics. Bruce Dickinson’s vocals are emotive and almost smooth but still a little grit. The verses are really soft and in between the verses the music picks up. I don’t think there is actually a chorus. The instrumental pieces between the verses is the chorus as it is a great melody. There is some great depth in the bass lines and the rhythm section entirely. About midway through the song the music cranks it up a notch, the bass lines are fast and powerful, but the guitars are shredding and they are frenzied and it is all fantastic. There a drum barrages and it is all wild and crazy. It really changes the dynamics of the song and makes it really interesting. Bruce comes back in screaming now as he pleads with God to answer his prayers. It slows back down to the gentleness of the beginning and then ends. A really cool track.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “No Prayer For the Dying” By Iron Maiden”

My Sunday Song – “Lord of Light” by Iron Maiden

For My Sunday Song #405, we have Harrison’s next pick of “Lord of Light” by Iron Maiden. The song is off their 2006 album, ‘A Matter of Life and Death’. The song was not a single, but after listening to it, it easily could’ve been despite it’s over 7 minutes in length. The song was written by Adrian Smith, Steve Harris and Bruce Dickinson. The album itself, went to #9 in the U.S. Billboard Chart and #4 in the UK and #1 in Germany and several other countries. 

The song has a very dark, disturbing view point…at least disturbing to me. Bruce Dickinson had this to say about it…

Just imagine there was a whole range of places between Heaven and Hell and that you got to pick, and that Lucifer is, in fact, the ‘lord of light’ downstairs, which is kind of what his name means. And all this stuff about the vengeful, eternal God wagging his finger and punishing you is all just a load of PR nonsense.” – Bruce Dickinson

It is an interesting viewpoint to take and one that would make you think really hard about it especially on a Sunday. The lyrics lead me to believe that is truly what the song is about as there is talk of Lucifer by name and hell and demons. If you could pick where you go, why would you ever pick hell, but I guess there are a lot of evil people out there.

The song itself, starts of slow with an acoustic guitar and it is all dark and a little eerie. Bruce, softly speaks the lyrics and it makes it quite haunting. Then the guitars come screaming followed by Bruce at full voice. He does have one of the best metal voices out there. Nicko McBrain’s drums are pounding with an electric intensity. It goes soft again, almost gentle as Bruce softens his tone again. It builds and then the explodes out with a guitar solo that will leave you holding on for fear life. It is a wild ride of riffs and shredding with a barrage of gun fire drumming. Then it is full on solo with fiery fingers flying over the frets. You are out of breath when it finally ends. A killer song even if it is something I don’t want to think about.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “Lord of Light” by Iron Maiden”

The Collection: Episode 2 – February 2024 Wrap-Up

We are doing something different this time around and going to do the wrap-up in video form. So, if you want to see everything and hear a little more discussion on the items, go check out the video. It will air tonight at 7pm on Youtube.

You’ll get some of the usual suspects like Kiss, Aerosmith, Needtobreathe, AC/DC and so much more. And I think I hit almost every format this month with vinyl, CD, Cassettes and even an 8-Track. No reel-to-reels though so not every format.

Ok, I won’t leave you empty handed in…here is everything in one shot…almost everything as the big box of Needtobreathe collectibles I bought we covered in Episode 1 so didn’t want to repeat anything…

Please check out the shot at 7pm tonight, Tuesday, February 27, 2024. Thanks for stopping by!!

My Sunday Song – “Return Of The King” by Bruce Dickinson

For My Sunday Song #394, we see Mike continue his Japanese Edition Bonus Tracks with “Return of the King” by Bruce Dickinson. The song is off his 1998 album ‘The Chemical Wedding’. The song was written by Bruce Dickinson and his Iron Maiden bandmate Adrian Smith. Now, don’t think you can only get this on a Japanese Edition as that is not the case anymore. It is on the Expanded Edition of the album and you can stream it on Apple Music and probably any streaming service and you should.

The song is partially about Stonehenge or maybe the Beltany Stone Circle as referenced by the Beltane Fires. It talks about how long it took to build and the mysteries behind it. It also talks about Uther Pendragon the legendary King of the Britons and father to King Arthur. This is one reason I’ve never listened to Bruce or Maiden as it makes you think and learn history. I just want to rock out.

However, the song does kick ass. Bruce’s vocals are really incredible as they soar to amazing heights and are perfectly suited fo heavy metal. He is one of the best in the business. The song to me feels more like Iron Maiden then I expected, to be honest. I figured this was a solo album, it would be his own thing, but I guess with Adrian also in on the writing, the Maiden connection makes sense. It is a is rocking track and some great guitar work and the drums are immense and powerful. A really cool song I will admit.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “Return Of The King” by Bruce Dickinson”

Friday New Releases – September 3, 2021

We are already in to September and being a Holiday Weekend here in the States, it seems to be a lighter week than what we have seen the past and what is coming in the future. There is one Massive release for a lot of my friends and I will give it a listen, but otherwise there is nothing I am looking forward to this week. There are a few big releases outside of the Massive one and maybe they will be what you want to hear. My choice is highlighted in Blue. Let me know what you want to hear and what I may have missed as that does happen. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I know I will as it is a long weekend for me.

  • 91I6X06DZmS._SS500_  Iron Maiden – Senjutsu – (Iron Maiden / Sanctuary Records / BMG): Iron Maiden is back with another release and there are a lot of readers excited by this one. I have never gotten in to them, but I will give it a listen so I am not completely left out of the conversation when it begins. This is the band’s 17th Studio album which is why I haven’t tried to get in to them as that is a lot of albums to buy plus the million of live albums they have it is quite daunting. But if you like Metal, this should be up your alley.

And that is it for me. Hopefully one of these albums will strike your fancy and you’ll give them a spin…

  • 916XKCZuPhS._SX522_  Imagine Dragons – Mercury: Act 1 – (KidinaKorner / Interscope)
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – September 3, 2021”

You Pick It! – Which Album to Review in September? (Updated)

NOTE: I had to make a change to the New Release – KK’s Priest was moved to October 1st as release date so would now not be out in time to review for September. Sorry for the last minute change. I think Iron Maiden is a suitable replacement.

You, my reader, are going to pick an album for me to review each month.  It is really simple…first, I will give you 5 albums to choose from and second, you will tell me which one of those you would like to see reviewed on the site.  See…simple!

There are a few simple rules I have put in to place in my selections.  They are…

  • One has to be a new release (within the last month)
  • One has to be one I have never heard before (new releases don’t count for this one)
  • One has to be from a genre I don’t normally listen to at all or very often
  • And the last two are choices from my collection that I haven’t reviewed before

What are the 5 albums you ask?  Funny you should ask because I have those right here…

  New Release – Iron Maiden – “Senjutsu”

  Never Heard Before – Captain Beefheart – ‘Trout Mask Replica’

  Not My Normal Genre – Dr. John, ‘GRIS-Gris’

  From My Collection – Neal Schon – ‘Late Nite’

  From My Collection – U2 – ‘The Joshua Tree’

Let me know which one you would like to see and sometime in September, I will post a review of the album that gets the most votes. You have one week to decide and from there I will start listening to the album and do a review.

Thanks for participating!!

March 2021 Purchases – Vinyl & Cds

Spring has sprung (not completely temperature wise, but calendar wise) and I couldn’t be happier to get past the gloomy winter months. To celebrate, let’s look over what purchases were made at 2 Loud 2 Old Music this month. And we cover the spectrum with Vinyl, CDs, 7″ Single and even Tour Books. Yes, I did not discriminate on a particular product this month. I spread the wealth.

I hadn’t been out to a record store in a long while, so I hit up two of my favorite haunts, Hardy Boy Records and Noble Records and like normal, I found some cool items. First up are a couple of Tour Books from the 1970’s. They are both for Alice Cooper and yes, we will go through them in detail in the next couple months. They are for the Welcome to My Nightmare Tour and the Guilty Tour.

I also find a 7″ Single from Cheap Trick for the Top Gun Song, “Mighty Wings”…love that song…

Continue reading “March 2021 Purchases – Vinyl & Cds”

Friday New Releases – November 20, 2020

Another week of a ton of new releases as everyone tries to get their albums out in time for the Christmas rush. And there are quite a few that interest me and one that interests a ton of my fellow blogging friends which is why it is #1 on the list. For those of us in the U.S., this coming week is Thanksgiving and with a year like we’ve had, we do have a lot to be thankful for and now more than ever we should make sure we let everyone know how special they are in our life and what they mean to us. But before we do that, why don’t you check out the releases this week and let me know which ones you want to hear or what I may have missed as everyone needs to know. Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend! Oh yeah, my choices are in Blue!!

  • 81EapgdgF4L._SX522_  Iron Maiden – Nights of the Dead, Legacy of the Beast: Live in Mexico City – (Sanctuary Records): I am not a huge Iron Maiden fan, but that doesn’t stop me from listing this as the #1 release of the week. My first thought is that this is yet another live album as Maiden has millions of them it seems. But a friend told me that this one is cool as the track list is so different the last album and there are songs they haven’t done in awhile. I would agree that would make this one worth getting. What are those songs? I don’t remember, but if you are real fan, you will know when you see the track listing. I hope you all enjoy. And yes, I will give it a spin.
  • A1+JpbHIlSL._SS500_  The Wild Feathers – Medium Rarities – (The Wild Feathers): This is my top choice. An album of rare tracks from The Wild Feathers and since I have everything they have done and for the fact that I love rare tracks, demos any thing new by a band, this has been ordered and on its way. Oh yeah, and it will be signed by the band!!! Cool stuff. And if you want to know, they are a little country, a little folk, a little southern rock and a whole lot of awesome.
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – November 20, 2020”

‘Masters of Metal’ – Various Artists – Album Review

I was digging for records while on vacation down in St. Augustine, Florida and at one of the stores, I came across a vinyl that brought back so many memories.  I had this on cassette and I remember loving it and listening to it constantly.  I had to get it and at only $5, it was a no brainer.

The album is not something I normally buy and that is because it is a compilation album mixed with numerous artists.  The album was K-Tel’s “Master of Metal”!  Now, don’t let the name confuse you because it isn’t really that heavy or metal, but it was full of songs that I loved from bands that sometimes do much heavier stuff.  The album is from 1984 and had hit songs from some of the biggest bands at that time.

There were so many bands on here that had connections with each other.  Such as Black Sabbath is on it with Ian Gillan on vocals, Dio is on here and Ronnie James Dio used to sing with Black Sabbath, Rainbow is on here with Joe Lynn Turner and Dio sang with them as well.  Kiss is on here and so is Rush who opened for Kiss.  All pretty cool, but back in 1984, I had no idea about these connections.

IMG_2413 2 Continue reading “‘Masters of Metal’ – Various Artists – Album Review”