Mastodon: The Hunter

"All the love I've shown

Given to the ones I've known

All the love I make

Is equal to the love I take

All the life I've known

Given to the live I've known

Along the way"

Label(s): Reprise, Roadrunner, Warner Bros.

Genre(s): Progressive Metal, Sludge Metal

Year: 2011

Track List:

1. Black Tongue

2. Curl of the Burl

3. Blasteroid

4. Stargasm

5. Octopus Has No Friends

6. All the Heavy Lifting

7. The Hunter

8. Dry Bone Valley

9.Thickening

10. Creature Lives

11. Spectrelight

12. Bedazzled Fingernails

13. The Sparrow

I can honestly say that I have never listened to Mastodon, so this is a first for me and at first I was excited to see what was to be come. For the most part, the album was interesting in the music sense. I stopped trying to pay attention to the lyrics and just listened to the music.

And I'm glad I did it that way.

After going back and finding the lyrics online, needless to say, I felt they made little to no sense. So in the music department, it was interesting and held my attention. In the lyrics department, I could care less.

Much like my last post, I don't really have a lot to say. I've never listened to Mastodon, so I have nothing to compare it to for older stuff. But I might go back and check some of it out just to get a better feel for the band.

As for the score, I give this album a 4.5/10. The music was interesting, but samey. The lyrics made no sense and I lost interest in them rather quickly. But check it out if want something a little different.

Let's just say I don't foresee this finding it's way into my collection any time soon...

Oh...and I almost forgot....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nightwish: Imaginaerum

"I am the voice of Never-Never-Land

The innocence, the dreams of every man

I am the empty crib of Peter Pan

A silent kite against the blue, blue sky

Every chimney, every moonlight sight

I am the story that will read you real

Every memory that you hold dear"

Genre(s): Symphonic Power Metal, Symphonic Gothic Metal, Folk Metal, Orchestral

Label: Nuclear Blast, Roadrunner Records

Year: 2011

Track List:

1. Taikatalvi

2. Storytime

3. Ghost River

4. Slow, Love, Slow

5. I Want My Tears Back

6. Scaretale

7. Arabesque

8. Turn Loose The Mermaids

9. Rest Calm

10. The Crow, the Owl and the Dove

11. Last Ride of the Day

12. Song of Myself

13. Imaginaerum

Imaginaerum, the predecessor of Dark Passion Play, is the newest album released by Gothic Metal band Nightwish. At first listen of this album, I'll be honest, I vegged out on it. I stopped paying attention to and just used it as background music. This bugged me. I didn't give this album the chance that I give all the other albums. So, I went back and listened to it again, giving it all my attention. As much as I wanted to, I didn't do anything else but listen to this album.

After giving it a second chance, I stand by my first thought of it.

I was disappointed in this record. I was hoping that they would do as good, if not better then Dark Passion Play, which is my second favorite record by the group, with the 2007 album Once being my favorite. It was catchy at some point, but for the most part it seemed like a drag to me. I can't really say much more about this album. I was disappointed.

So I guess I should score it, seeing that I have nothing else so say...

7/10. While I thought it wasn't all that great, I did enjoy it for background music. It's interesting playing Minecraft with this album playing in the background. While it did have some good stuff, overall it wasn't that great.

Stay tuned for my "Top Albums of 2011" list, which should be coming very soon!

Metallica: Beyond Magnetic

"And hate is a train

A beast awakened by your call

And hate is a train

A beast that never slows at all"

Genre(s): Thrash Metal, Heavy Metal

Label: Warner Bros.

Year: 2011

Track List

1. Hate Train

2. Just a Bullet Away

3. Hell and Back

4. Rebel of Babylon

Before the review, I just want to say thanks to my friend Kyle for recommending that I check this out.

Beyond Magnetic is the newest extended play record by the world renown American Thrash Metal band Metallica who boast having two of the most influential people in the Metal Universe today, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. The band also boast some of the most recognizable and memorable songs such as Enter Sandman, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Fade to Black, Master of Puppets and Sad but True just to list of a few. As far as favorite piece of work goes for me, with Metallica it has to be the 1991 release Metallica aka  The Black Album. This album holds most of my favorites songs, two of which I mentioned above.

Honestly, I haven't been too impressed with Metallica's work as of late. I thought that Death Magnetic was bad, only to be beaten by the album previous, St. Anger. Hate if you want, but remember, this is just my opinion. If you like the albums, more power to you! Just because I don't like them, doesn't mean you can't enjoy them if you so chose.

Then I heard Lulu.....If you can make St. Anger and Death Magnetic look good, your not even trying anymore. And others would agree with me. Rolling Stones gave it a 3/5, Metal Hammer Germany gave it a 4/7 and Sputnikmusic gave it a 1.5/5. Needless to say, Lulu didn't break Metallica's bank account.

But back to the record at hand. Beyond Magnetic is a album that consist of four songs that where recorded, but never released on, Death Magnetic. It was also released to coincide with the bands anniversary shows, of which they released a new song on all four nights of the show. The album has done well so far, with releasing around 36,000 copies in the first week alone and landed in the number 32 spot in the Billboard 200.

Now that we have a little back story, I suppose I should tell you how I feel about it. After all, you didn't come here just to read my rants and information you already knew, did you?

If I had to say how I feel about this album in one word, it would be "eh". I've heard a lot worse, but I've also heard much MUCH better. At first it had me interested, but as time went on I became less interested. And seeing as I rate on a scale of one to ten, well....I would have to say that this particular EP gets a 3/10, my worst score yet. I will say that it had potential, but I fear that Metallica has been on a steady decline in producing good, quality stuff over the last few years. And it disappoints me because The Black Album is what actually got me interested in these guys in the first place. And ever since then they have been putting out things that are less than interesting in my opinion.

Hopefully they'll get back on the ball and start making good records again. But maybe that's just me.....and Rolling Stones magazine....and a few other people....eh, maybe I'm not alone in this. Oh well. I give these guys a 3/10.

Before the Dawn: Deathstar Rising

"One by one in pitch black sky
No stars to reflect the sun
After all light become undone
Darkness has come to blacken fires of the night
Deathstar rising"

Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal, Gothic Metal
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Year: 2011


Track List:
1. The First Snow
2. Winter Within
3. Deathstar
4. Remembrance
5. Unbroken
6. Judgment
7. The Wake
8. Sanctuary
9. Butterfly Effect
10. Wreith



Before The Dawn comes to us from Finland, lead by the talented Tuomas Saukkonen. With six albums, one demo, one DVD and three EP's, Before The Dawn is making it's mark in the metal world. While still not very well known (at least from what I've gathered), Before The Dawn is a preference for me. I find myself throwing these guys into my regular rotation of music almost on a consistent basis.

Their newest record, Deathstar Rising, released through Nuclear Blast Records who holds big shots such as Accept, Belphegor and Dimmu Borgir, just to name a few, is the bands best work to date. Black Dawn off of their 2006 album The Ghost is what brought BTD to my attention and has since remained my favorite track by the group. And Deathstar Rising surpasses their 2008 album Soundscape of Silence in a big way, which is still my favorite record by these guys. But Deathstar Rising is close second.

9/10 is the score for this record. It's good, but its not perfect. Their really isn't anything wrong with it, just my disliking for slow metal songs with a band like this. All in all though, it's a good listen. Check it out if you haven't already.

Black Stone Cherry: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

"Like big love, black love, white love, your love

Here we go!

Sit back, hold up, open up, just enjoy the show

Like ice cream, whip cream, nasty dream

Do you know? Can you feel what I mean?

Say Hey eh eh eh eh eh eh eh eh

Oh oh oh oh 

Say Hey eh eh eh eh eh eh eh eh"

Genre(s): Hard Rock, Southern Rock, Post-Grunge

 Label: Roadrunner

Year: 2011


Track List:
1. White Trash Millionaire
2. Killing Floor
3. In My Blood
4. Such a Shame
5. Won't Let Go
6. Blame It on the Boom Boom
7. Like I Roll
8. Can't You See
9. Let Me See You Shake
10. Stay
11. Change
12. All I'm Dreamin' Of

Black Stone Cherry. What can be said about them? Well, they are one of my favorite Southern Rock groups of today, and I first heard them through the video game WWE: Smackdown! VS. RAW 2007, with the song "Lonely Train from their self-titled debut record.

Anyway, I'm going to keep this short and sweet as I am getting ready to leave for Christmas break, so I'll get to the good stuff and stop rambling so I can finish getting ready.

Overall, I give it an 8/10. It was interesting, kept my attention for the whole thing, but I think they could have done a little better. But then again, that's just me being nit-picky.

As always, I am your host, M. Watts.