Author: Antonio Díaz
{mosimage}The Sound Ex is a new and very interesting band hailing from Newcastle in U.K.
If you like classic rock in the best English tradition, you are probably going to love The sound Ex. Good hard rock and excellent work with the instruments for a band that can remind you at some point Thin Lizzy or even Manic Street Preachers, powerful but measured.
Breathtaking intros like in the third track Loss or in the introductory Enchantment, and great vocal skills make this album a pretty nice surprise. Palomino is an accessible album that can be certainly well received by a wider audience, but at the same time it shows rock with guts and attitude. All in all, a nice exciting work to follow closely the next steps by the English guys.
Rating 4/5
{mosimage}This young Finnish band formed during this year release their first album trying to find their way into the populated Finnish rock scene.
Underground Attack is an indie rock band from the capital area of Finland that loves good classic guitar riffs in the best American sleazy tradition. Juhis, Piiska, Sasu and Arska are not afraid of crossing the Finnish boundaries, having gained experience playing in countries like Germany or Russia. What you have here is 12 tracks that compose their first album, and the result is… maybe too amateurish.
The quality of the sound in the CD could be better, and the artwork of the CD exhales the flavor of an amateur work too (although I must confess I have nothing against the pretty lady naked in the back cover). There are some hints of good quality like in the 5th track Broken Dreams and the guitars sound solid all over the album, but the vocal skills are not the best ones you can listen to lately, and some lyrics could be improved, like for example in the boring and predictable Alienation.
We are always glad to see new young bands trying to progress in the difficult rock business, but although Underground Attacks shows good manners, they still have a long way to improve in the future.
Rating 2/5.
{mosimage}Daikini, aka Lauri Kemppainen and his band offers an original mix of rap and metal in this album.
I am not specially very fond of rap-metal albums, and before listening to this Salaisuus, I must admit I did not have much expectations. But certainly Daikini has achieved quite a fresh and original sound in a style not so much exploded in Finland. The instruments sound clear and powerful and Lauri´s voice is direct like a good punch to the liver, but not without some charm (it helps if you can understand Finnish language). The combination works pretty well and the 10 tracks turn to be pretty listenable, with some very good tracks like Salaisuus, Tyttö Sinä Tapat Minun Luovuuden or Kaupallinen Itsemurha.
If you are an old-school metal fan, probably you do even want to take the effort to listen to this one, but if you are the open-minded kind of person who is always hungry to discover new musical experiences, plus you enjoy listening to acid lyrics in Finnish, this album could gladly surprise you. Not a bad effort.
Rating 3/5
{mosimage}This duel turns into a duet with the collaboration of these 2 musicians in this new extravaganza for your ears.
The notes of an organ that resembles those old Casio ones we used when were children fluidly fly away from the CD reproducer, introducing the new album of Anssi 8000 in collaboration with Maria Stereo. The guy native from a small village in Finland called Sahalahti can be catalogued of anything but mainstream. He takes care of vocals, guitar, bass and drums while Maria complements with backing vocals organ or playing cymbals.
Duel is a collection of 12 tracks with good doses of humor and irony in the lyrics, but certainly not aimed at all the publics. If you like experimental pop sounds with a twist, you will love this one, but if you are used to some more kind of mainstream pop-rock, this album will certainly sound weird. A record to be tasted slowly and carefully; probably you will need to listen to it several times to appreciate the good details here and there, but certainly after a while the sound becomes catchy.
Not an album to play at a party with friends, but a good one when you need some introspective moments alone in your room enjoying of tracks like I Feel like Surfing, Bad Moon Set or Sleeves of Jesus.
Rating 3/5.
{mosimage}A bit of blues, jazz and soul in this new cocktail served by the Finnish female singer.
Maarit offers here a collection of good tracks for the lovers of Iskelmä music. Unfortunately I am not especially fond of the style, but surely this album will find some followers, especially for the Finnish native speakers, because the album is entirely song in Finnish.
A relaxing atmosphere and the omnipresent feeling of loneliness and melancholy “made in Finland” are features present all over the 12 tracks of the album: songs easy to listen to like in Yö Saapui Pariisiin or Tikkurilan Asemalla. Maybe we could say that this is a record better aimed at a mature audience in their thirties or forties. For younger ones, this can turn to be a bit boring if you are looking for new musical experiences.
Personally, if you enjoy a nice female Finnish voice, and you prefer to understand the lyrics in English, I still go for other singers like the lovely and skilled Janita. Kun Yö Saapuu is a good album if you want to fall in the arms of Morpheus and enjoy a well deserved siesta after lunch. Otherwise, you do not miss much here.
Rating 2/5.
{mosimage}Finnish record company Spinefarm reedits the two first albums of the Finnish metal heroes. An excellent opportunity to revisit their beginnings!
More than a decade ago a young band started to sound powerfully in the Spanish metal radio stations. People were instantly hooked by their quality, nothing to envy to other classic power-metal bands like Gamma Ray or Helloween. And of course I was another one who got blown by those young followers of Stratovarius. Now, after some years, you have the opportunity to enjoy again the first album of Sonata Arctica, the metal headers from Kemi, Finland, with a new artwork and a special bonus track added: Letter to Dana. The rest is Finnish metal history: tracks of super-high quality and speed like the blowing Blank File or the already classics FullMoon or Replica.
If you already had the album when was originally released, maybe you can skip buying this remastered version, if not, this is an unique occasion to pursue it and add to your metal collection a truly modern classic!
Rating 4/5.
{mosimage}Directed by Tim Smith, here you have an unusual live DVD with the English band performing alone in their recording studio.
Usually when a new live DVD is released, you expect a crowd of fans cheering at the end of every song. In this unusual DVD, that atmosphere is replaced by a more intimate one, with the members of The Wildhearts making black jokes in the best English humor tradition at the end of every track.
The Wildhearts is a hidden pearl in the worldwide rock scene. Internal problems, the continuous change in their formation and the excessive lack of attention by mainstream media have turned them into a kind of “cult” band with a good bunch of followers in every country, but never breaking the barrier of becoming hugely recognized. What you will find here is just 10 tracks with Ginger leading the steps of the band as usual, and with more acid comments than ever. A musical style difficult to define, drinking from thrash to pop influences. As extra, 2 more videos and the making of Destroy all monsters. No more, no less. The band does not fall in the mistake of trying a therapy in front of the camera and goes to what they know how to do best: to play angrily while sweating and smoking copiously.
The Wildhearts visited recently Finland playing in Tampere during the Music and Media festival. If you had the chance to feel their power there in Klubi, now you will feel again at home sharing the studio with them!
Rating 4/5.
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Interview with Ginger:
{mosimage}Our big and angry green friend is back causing destruction wherever he walks through
Edward Norton is the one chosen to incarnate The Incredible Hulk in this new adventure of our green massive friend, and alas he makes a good job. It seems that this actor was born to carry on with roles twisted and with bi-polar personality. He is basically the best of a film with some nice touches. The beginning in the favelas of Brasil is certainly entertaining, and the cameo by Rickson Gracie slapping the face of Norton really surprised me gladly! The first half of the film is well done and directed with rhythm and keeping a great pace, although in the end it turns to be a bit predictable, and the final battle against the two monsters could have been more spectacular. Tim Roth is maybe not in his best role here, and looks a bit like a parody of himself, while Liv Tyler and William Hurt are just correct but not brilliant.
Fans of The Hulk will enjoy this, and for the other spectators who want action and not much of a twisted plot, this will work. But it left me a bitter sweet taste, because it had the ingredients to be better but the final product was just “average”. Lovers of cameos will love this film too counting with another special one unaccredited by Robert Downey Jr. near the end.
Rating 3/5
{mosimage} Robert Downey Jr. faces one of the most important roles in his life as Tony Stark.
There was a big polemic around the choice of Robert Downey Jr. for this role, but finally, after watching this Iron Man, I think most have to agree that he is the right person for the job. His personality as a fallen and reborn Hollywood star matches perfectly with Tony Stark, a rich businessman dedicated to build weapons that will turn into a super hero wrapped in a power suit. Most of us have grown up following the adventures of the Marvel super hero created by Stan Lee (who of course does his “official” cameo in the film) so there is no much need to explain who Iron man is. Director Jon Favreu takes some licenses from the original comics to identify the story with modern times, but the result is pretty plausible.
You can find together with him, a cast with luxurious names such as Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow and overall the excellent and almost unrecognizable Jeff Bridges. The interaction among the actors is certainly the best of a movie that otherwise, turns to be too much predictable. It was missed a bit of more risk in the script, which does not shine as bright as the suit of our beloved Iron Man. Just another comic adaptation with some good moments, but do not expect big surprises here, apart from the obvious big one of seeing Downey Jr. in this role.
Rating 3/5.
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Hanoi R.I.P.
{mosimage}Hanoi rocks, maybe the most legendary rock band ever born in Finland, announced this week that they will not continue together in 2009, after facing their compromises that will lead them to tour still around Europe and Japan, putting the cherry on top of the cake to their long career at the mythical Tavastia club in Helsinki. The piece of news did not seem much surprising to my eyes. Some months ago they already had some problems with their drummer, and now seems that Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy will continue again walking separated paths.
I had the pleasure to meet the members of Hanoi Rocks during an interview at Suomelinna fortress in 2007, while they were at the studio preparing their latest album. First we chatted with the Swedish Conny and A.C., having a beer in a terrace. The guys seemed surprised that we were there shooting questions at them, but after a while the conversation was pretty friendly, especially from the side of A.C. Later we entered the studio to chat with Monroe and McCoy. We met them outside, and McCoy was breathing deeply and noisily like if he would be Darth Vader himself. I must recognize I felt a bit nervous about his reactions to our questions, but they turned to be also very nice and friendly. Michael Monroe still seemed to be that naïve child who dreams about being a rock star and McCoy…he is certainly a special guy, when you think he is half slept, he can shock you with a really sharp and intelligent comment.
We had a couple of surrealistic situations while enjoying some hours with Hanoi Rocks. At some point Andy McCoy played virtuously and unexpectedly a fabulous solo at the piano that got amazed even to the rest of the band members. There were also ironic jokes about the absence of their previous drummer, a clear symptom that something was not working out well there (for remembering him, they had stitched a drawing of his face on one wall of the studio) and it was also very funny to run with the rest of the band not to miss the last ferry that was linking Suomenlinna with Helsinki harbor. We had then another excellent opportunity to take some more pics with them on the deck of the ferry, while small children were surrounding the band looking for an autograph from their idols. I certainly wanted to be journalist to experience those kind of special evenings like the one we had with these legendary rockers.
Many times we have had interviews with Finnish bands, we were a bit surprised about their lack of glamour; bands that go on stage at international events but seem too shy to share interesting stories with us and the audience. Hanoi Rocks certainly was, is and will be a case apart; certainly one of the few Finnish bands that exhale really glamour and 100% of rock spirit wherever they go. They will be missed! At least I will miss those Spinal Tap moments with them…
{mosimage}Being a nerd turns to be a pain in the ass when you start high school and somebody systematically bullies you. Owen Wilson will put a remedy to that!
I am a big fan of Owen Wilson and I had big expectations when I saw the cover of his new DVD: Drillbit Taylor. The role of a naïve homeless on charge of being the personal bodyguard of three funny losers who just started high school seemed to be tailored-size for his comedy sills. In a way Drillbit Wilson offers what you expected, no more no less. Owen Wilson is credible in his role of big child, and the teenagers perform correctly, but the script is not shiny enough. The jokes in general are not so funny and the action is pretty predictable from the beginning to the end. The best parts of the movie are maybe when Owen Wilson is acting as a fake substitute professor at the High School. But the relation among the main characters could have been more strongly built.
Not one of the best comedies recently released. Unless you are a real die-hard fan of Wilson, you will perfectly survive skipping this one.
Rating 2/5.