Submit your Record Store to the worldwide BraveWords Record Store list

Have you ever had the experience of walking into a record store? Posters all over the walls. Music blaring. Racks of vinyl and CDs. You are on the hunt for a new release or looking for that lost treasure. 

There is always something new or strange to discover. Taking vinyl albums, Compact Discs, Music Cassettes, VHS tapes or DVD's into your own hands gives a first look and feel for a release. It's very different compared to looking music up online. Just turn around a actual record and you know what I'm talking about. Share the experience with a friend and you can start talking about releases quickly.

Often there is a chance of having a listen to new releases through headphones directly at the store and if you purchase something free magazines or other goodies maybe added by the shopkeeper.   

Record stores are a rare breed these days. BraveWords.com wants to help fans around the worldwide find record stores. 

Keep the spirit of Record Stores alive by submitting them to the Record Store list.

Do you own or work at a record store that sells rock and metal albums? BraveWords.com is assembling a list of record stores around the world for fans to use. They will put this list online for all fans.

Note: Only store name, address and URL will posted. Phone number, email address and contact name will not be shared online.

To take part, find the BraveWords Record Store Submission Form here:     

https://forms.gle/Gnm3JkxCAR9bgx4J7

Please take the chance to help Record Stores survive in these hard times.

CD Review: Inner Siege - Fury Of Ages (Power Metal,2021)

Had a good time on most of the album also some tracks shine brighter than others.  

Colored vinyl and a printed jacket should please collectors.

The grand opening "Calling For Violence" surprised me quite well. Giving a midtempo punch it let's you come in slowly to the bands sound. The refrain calls for some scream along in live situations and it woke my interest to hear more of the "Fury Of Ages" album.

Happily "Reborn" track number two continues the good start. In contrast to the opener it changes more often throughout it's duration. The song keeps a constant riffing as a base but adds slight moments of excitement in. High screams and well placed guitar intermezzos shine.

"Firewind" speeds it all up. I'm glad to hear the cranking up doesn't ruin the sound. It's kept straight foward and the joy-factor intact. Keep the volume adjustment low, this feels great on moderate level.

Some guitar wizardy is shown on the short intermezzo "Virtuos Iniquity" before "Echoes Into Eternity" let's a high scream out. Being a good riff shooter this let's us headbang further and mixes some midtempo stop-overs into it's passages - something I love to hear.

"World Of Darkness" is a solid track but didn't resonate so well than the previous songs. Same goes for "Power.Metal.Glory" also sure it has a great refrain with it.

I love to hear the band from the United States keeps the sound on a more clear tone most of the time also on some moments I'd like to have less high tones in the sound. "Iron Lotus" is a negative example for that. I got on my nerves with the many solo sections on it.  

On "Stronghold" parallels to the great band Hammerfall come to my mind. It has a more narrative way of speaking to the audience and the refrain rushes into my heart quickly. Some high screams are placed well. 

The album becomes more direct and on-point soundwise when the album comes towards the end. The tenth track "Hero" and the closing riffer "World on fire" are such tracks. The vocals are variable and you feel they have been painfully worked on many times but the result should make all headbangers out there happy.

The album is available as a CD as well as colored vinyl with lyrics-printed jacket. Please check out one song below and consider a purchase to increase touring chances for these guys.

EP Review. Incursion - The Hunter (2020, Trad Metal)

A traditional metal release that reminds me of classic Judas Priest days (Screaming for vengeance) with slight thrash metal riffs every here and there.

This one goes in straight, grooves out a lot. It's not too hard soundwise so the listening is more of joy than having to fight through rough notes. Yet in all the riff-blasting there are breaks every here and there that bring in some fresh wind into the direct sound. It's mostly guitar-driven with a slighty edge on playing the six strings. "Warrior of Destruction" is a good example for this.

"Guiding Faith" shows the band's ability to go for more epic songwriting. The opening riff is already bolder and the song changes far more in it's duration. But don't worry the next track "Fade to black" already pumps in more heavyness and goes in straighter with more speed. It's high vocal screams are outstanding! 

"Kingdom of the dead" is a riff-hacker and speed-run. This spreads out a lot of fun and feels like a reminder to thrash days. It doesn't fiddle around and that's what I love so much. Sounds great!  
 
All in all this feels like a journey that has many stations in it. A travel through a rich landescape of metal riffs.

Metal lovers need to have this - but make sure to be a friend of the high notes. They occur often so you need to feel fine with them. It's available on Bandcamp as download, CD and vinyl (sadly the orange one is already sold out).

CD Review: AlogiA - Semendria (Symphonic Power Metal, 2020)

Finally after some time a brand new AlogiA album see's the light of day. What happened in the four years since the last release?

The cover creates a positive feeling in me.

I think a lot of work and re-thinking has gone into the creation of "Semendria". First of all the sound underwent changes. This time around it's far more compact and dry. It's not that pumped and blown-up anymore. This makes the tunes lighter to enjoy. The new tunes are compact in duration. A eye was held on a limited tme frame so the tracks come to the point.   

New sound meets tradition

Most of the songs are sourced of traditional symphonic power metal sounds. This lays down a classic foundation to the sound. This impression continues with the vocals that add more high screams than ever before.  

But "Semendria" is far from being a "standard" or one of the many albums out there. This becomes evident on clearer moments that shine through. Just listen to the verses of "The Calling" - they slowly build from softer to faster/harder each verse-round.

The title-track is a good example for the evolution. While lyrically and in the basics a classic track it's the fine elements like the flute or the acoustic guitars that give it a special touch.

Refrains like the one on "Visantia" are outworked with a finetuned melody - leave your ears open and you'll recognize.
Finally piano passages make "From East to West" stand out of all of the tracks. A nice way to end the record in a softer style.
 
All in all I'd like to point out the newest output of AlogiA to your attention. It has more to offer than ever before. It has got a lot of variation in it that is a welcomed aspect. Listening becomes a joy. The shorter way to present the music prevents boring lengths and also gives the music a chance if you're cut short on time.   

Also guest performances of Tim "Ripper" Owens, Mark Boals and the fantastic organ of Fabio Leone make it a even bigger highlight than it already is.

CD and Vinyl available
Make sure to pick a phystical CD copy of the album directly of the online shop. Currently a limited vinyl edition of the record is up for pre-order through Elevate Records at a lower price (20 Euro, will be 24 Euro later. Both prices plus shipping and handling.

M.U.S.I.C.Records offers discount on services for musicians

When it comes to creating music every cent counts. Sadly making music is not free and all steps to finish a full fledged product are expensive.

So I was all ears when I got the info that until March 31, 2020, Rock Metal Market and Music-Records offer a discount of 10 percent on all products including services (Recording studio, CD pressing, Media promotions, ...).

Simply enter the Promo code: mars2020 on https://www.rockmetalmarket.com/

Pick the flyer as a reminder to this special offer.

This code also goes for all who like to order music (CDs, Vinyl, Shirts etc. ) on the shop's website. They deliver everywhere in France and internationally. Shipping costs are free for all orders of 99 € in total. With each order, a gift is offered to you.

What can this be useful for? For instance you can order the upcoming Trash Heaven record "4 Heads for a Crown"  (set for release in April 2020) this way for less bucks. The first full song already promises a blasting old school thrash package.

Another special offer is the 3 CD Box. Choose from the following list 3 CDs for 20 Euro plus shipping and handling. From all of what I've heard so far I can say that a lot of quality can be found in there. (Lebowskii reminded me of Grip Inc., Eyestral got many influence of Death and U-Bilam dares to mix many different styles to a exciting own mixture).

Make sure to order together with your friends. That way you can save a lot of mony if you use things the clever way. Listen to songs on the YouTube channel of M.U.S.I.C Records.

MEZCLA « Metalmorfosis » – Death Flamenco
VOICE OF WINTER « Childhood of Evil » – Progressive Death
ASHES TO FIRE « Still Waters » – Metalcore/Djent
OVER NEMESIS « Wink » – Sludge Metal
PSYCHOID « Thrash Impact » – Thrash Metal
EYESTRAL « Beyond » – Progressive Thrash
U-BILAM « Evolutions of Mind » – Urban core
LEBOWSKII « Liquidators » – Thrash Metal
BLACK JUJU INC. « Crosses and Crossroads » – Cold Wave Metal
HELLIXXIR « A Dull Light Around » – Thrash Black
TORMENTOR BESTIAL « Supplicium Plus Quam Bestia » – Heavy Thrash

100 remastered vinyl copies of Corners Of Sanctuary's Galloping Hordes available

Some opportunity's only come once your way in life... This experience from real life may also count for the vinyl album offer of Old School metal revivalists Corners Of Sanctuary.

This is how the originally intended cover artwork looks like

Currently 100 copies are up for pre-order as a crowdfunding campaign the band set up on Qrates.com. If you decide to pick up a copy for 17.98 Dollar plus shipping and handling you'll be rewarded with remastered sound, optimised for vinyl by Bill Metoyer. A bonus track plus a alternative cover round out the package.

It is available until 30th June 2019. You can stream the whole record on the Qrates page if you're not sure about the album yet. Or stream the title track right here.

In other news the band is working on a new album plus further singles and will continue to play shows in the upcoming months. This band is for sure all about taking chances.

April 26 - Threatpoint Benefit - Wilkes-Barres, PA
April 29 - McStew’s - Levittown, PA
(supporting Blaze Bayley formerly of Iron Maiden)
May 4 - TBA
May 17-18 - Finger Lakes Metal Fest 2019 - Clyde, NY
June 6 – Cherry Street Station - Wallingford, CT
June 7 – Trish Stock – Oswego, NY
June 8 – 33 Golden Street – New London, CT
June 28 - TBA
June 29 - Basement Transmissions - Erie, PA
July 27 - Vinyl Closet Records Metal Fest - Norristown, PA
August 30 - Border Bar - Wilkes-barres, PA
September 11 - Skinny’s – North Hollywood, CA
September 12 - TBA
September 13 - Whiskey – West Hollywood, CA (supporting The Iron Maidens)
September 14 - Malone’s House of Metal – Santa Ana, CA

Amoriello (feat. Vinny Appice) honour Ronnie James Dio

Ronnie James Dio passed away already eight years ago. So far I've not heard a tribute track honoring his work and passion for music properly. Until these days I learned that Amoriello put out one that fits with it's bold performance, finetuned melody and strong lyrics. This band features former members of Black Sabbath, Dio, Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force, Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Quiet Riot, TNT, Loudness, Dokken, Impellitteri and Cacophony.

Besides the impressive list of band's those musicians have played in it comes with one member I'd like to point out. I'm speaking of longtime Dio drummer Vinny Appice who also contributed something special to this song. He performs a thunderous drum solo for 16 bars and provides his typical grooves to this track which alone remind me a lot of the time he used to play in Dio. He always puts out a signature with his playing technique and that can be heard on "Battle Song" very well.

"Battle Song" is part of the second AMORIELLO release from H42 Records on 12inch vinyl. The album is announced to be released on December 2018 (vinyl / digital). You can find more details on the release formats on the website of the label. (pre-order starts on 29th October 2018). Or connect with Facebook to be notified further.

The cover of the upcoming Amoriello album.

The exact member list for the album goes like this:

Guitar – Thomas Amoriello
Vocals – Nick Z Marino (Yngwie Malmsteen), Mark Boals (Ex Yngwie Malmsteen), Mike Vescera (Ex-Yngwie Malmsteen)
Bass - James Amelio Pulli (Impellitteri), Neil Murray (Ex Whitesnake), Phil Soussan (Ex-Ozzy Osbourne), Bjorn Englen (Ex Quiet Riot)
Drums – Vinny Appice (Ex-Dio), Kenny Stavropoulos (Ex-Le Mans), Shane Gaalaas (Ex-MSG), John Macaluso (Yngwie Malmsteen), Atma Anur (Ex-Cacophony)
Keys – Michael Troy (Ex Yngwie Malmsteen)

Black JuJu Inc. offer new album on green vinyl

There are still wonders happening in this digital age... The coldwave metal band Black JuJu Inc. is currently taking pre-orders for a limited run of their album "Crosses and Crossroads" on green vinyl!

This fits perfectly to the optic of the album cover. The vinyl on demand service Diggers Factory gives the band the chance to release this edition. You can order here. Only if 100 pre-orders are reached the vinyl can be produced, otherwise you will be re-funded. There's a time frame ending in 29 days for the chance of placing your pre-order.

A look on the pre-order website for the green vinyl edition of "Crosses and Crossroads"

The vinyl will be numbered. Compared to the tracklist of the album, there is a song that changes on the vinyl. The song "Don’t Fear" will be in the tracklist of the vinyl and will replace the song "Rude Awakening". So you'll get a song that's not to be heard on the standard edition of the record if you decide to pick this rare item up!

If you've not heard the band before here's a track to check out. It has a cool riff and rhythm with it also the atmosphere remains tight with the ongoing guitarwork. The vocals give it a roasty note rounding out the package perfectly. It's for fans of Alice in Chains & Prong.


You can listen to more songs of the album on the vinyl pre-order campaign page.
Also check out the Facebook page of the band.