Accept’s “Blood of the Nations” voted Metal Album of the Year by many

“Let’s make the Metal Heart beat again,” promised bassist Peter Baltes at the end of 2009.

To echo his statements, “Blood Of The Nations” has been voted the “Metal and Hard Rock Album of the Year 2010″ by music media around the world:

GERMANY:

ROCK HARD: Album Of The Year; Reader Charts Nr. 1

METAL HAMMER: Heavy Album Of The Year # 1, Album Of The Year: # 3; Soundcheck Top: # 3;

ROCK IT: Album Of The Year; Video Of The Year

IMUSIC 1 TV: Comeback Album Of The Year

SWEDEN

ROCKMUSICSTAR: Album Of The Year

CLOSE UP MAGAZINE: The best Accept album since 1993…”

NORWAY

IMHOTEP: Album Of The Year

NRK RADIO (PYRO): #4 Album Of The Year

POLAND

METAL HAMMER: Album Of The Month

HARDROCKER: Album Of The Year, Album Of The Month

ITALY

ROCK HARD: Power Rock Album Of The Year; Comeback Album Of The Year

SLOVENIA

ROCK HARD: Album Of The Month

GREECE

METAL HAMMER: Top 3 Album Of The Year

ROCKWAY: Album Of The Year; Reader Charts # 3 Album of the Year

CANADA

BRAVEWORDS: Album Of The Year

HELLHOUND: Album Of The Year (Allen Grusie`s)

USA

That METAL SHOW: Best Metal Album 2010

GOLDMINE US: Best Metal Album 2010

SLEAZEROCK: Best Album Of The Year 2010

METAL SUCKS: Best Metal Album 2010

METAL RULES: Best Metal Album 2010

INFERNAL MASQUERADE: Best Metal Album 2010

HARDROCK HAVEN: Best Album 2010

METAL ASYLUM: Best CONCERT OF 2010; #3 Album Of The Year

HM ABOUT: #2 Album Of The Year

HM ADDICTION: Best Metal Album 2010

METAL CALLOUT: #3 Album Of The Year

ANGRY METAL GUY: Album Of The Year

JOURNALIST & MUSICIAN LISTS:

#1 – Nailer’s Runner-Up for Album of the Year for MaximumMetal

#1 – Sinnercorp’s “Best of 2010” list for MaximumMetal.com

#3 – Rich Cantino’s Top Albums of 2010 for MetalAsylum.net

#3 – Metal Tim Henderson’s Top 20 of 2010 for BraveWords.com

#4 – Daniel Hinds’ Top 10 List of 2010 for Outburn Staff Writers

#4 – Francesco Ferorelli’s Staff Picks of 2010 for InvisibleOranges.com

#4 – Gruesome Greg’s Top 10 Albums of 2010 for Hellbound.ca

#4 – Carl Begai’s Top 20 of 2010 for BraveWords.com

#4 – Rob Kachluba’s Top 10 Albums of 2010 for Hellbound.ca

#5 – Dom Lawson’s Top 20 of 2010 for BraveWords.com

#5 – MetalGeorge’s Top 10 Albums of 2010 for Hellbound.ca

#5 – Fred Phillip’s Staff Picks of 2010 for TeethoftheDivine.com

#5 – MetalGeorge’s Top 10 List of 2010 for Outburn Staff Writers

#5 – MetalGeorge’s Top 10 Albums of 2010 for Metal-Army.com

#5 – Grim Gaijin’s Top 5 Albums of 2010 for MaximumMetal.com

#5 – MetalGeorge’s Top 5 Metal CDs for 2010 for About.com

#6 – Greg Pratt’s Top 20 of 2010 for BraveWords.com

#6 – Ed Warby (HAIL OF BULLETS, GOREFEST)’s Metal Albums of 2010

#7 – Cam Pipes’ (3 INCHES OF BLOOD) Best Metal Albums of 2010

#7 – Kevin Alba’s Top Albums of 2010 for MetalAsylum.net

#8 – Hellbound.ca’s Top 20 Albums of 2010

#8 – Martin Popoff’s Top 20 of 2010 for BraveWords.com

#9 – Gus G. (OZZY OSBOURNE)’s Best Metal Albums of 2010

#9 – Leyla Ford’s Top 10 Metal Albums of 2010

#12 – Snagon’s Top 25 Metal Albums of 2010 for

#14 – Scott Alisoglu’s Top 20 of 2010 list for TeethoftheDivine.com

#15 – Classic Rock Magazine’s Critics’ Choice 50 Best Albums of theYear

#16 – “2010: Best Of” list by journalist Kevin Stewart-Panko

#17 – John Strednansky’s Album of the Year (Skull Sessions, Shockwaves)

Best Comeback– Chad Bowar’s 2010 Heavy Metal Awards List

Interview with Serenity Posted on POWERLINE A.D. Site

POWERLINE A.D.’s Marc Garrison interviews Georg Neuhauser, vocalist of Austrian Power metal group Serenity.

www.powerlinead.com/metal

James Neal, Once the Vocalist of Malice, Remembers 80s Metal as “an arena of metal gladiators trying to take each other out.”

James Neal was by far one of the best heavy metal vocalists during the 80s. His work with the L.A. metal band Malice was proof of this.

Metal blog Leslie’s Metal caught up with him recently and discussed a lot about the metal scene 25 years past. Neal comes across as a very down-to-earth guy, remembering more of the musical creativity than the metal scene itself.

“The 80′s seemed to became an arena of metal gladiators trying to take each other out. All I wanted to do was write, record and play.”

Leslie conducts a really informative, deep interview… knowing so much about the history of Malice. The most interesting part of the interview, for me, was the constant mention of the Malice demos. Neal didn’t seem to understand the importance of the demos. However, the Malice demos were better than the Malice albums, IMHO. They were some of the best metal music recorded during the early 80s. The deal with Atlantic Records that followed slicked the band up too much. The major labels, at that time, had no idea what gave heavy metal its charm. I believe they destroyed bands like Malice. Atlantic Records, in particular, was possibly the worst of the bunch. If anyone took Malice “out” (a word Neal uses in his quote above) it was Atlantic.

Anyway, James Neal has ventured onto a different path than the one he was once on with Malice. He now creates a more folksy brand of rock and roll. To check out Neal’s new music, go to www.jameseneal.com

Sacred Oath Brings Back the Good Old Days of Heavy Metal

Sacred Oath is no stranger to us here at Powerline. Their strong brand of power metal goes back to the mid-80s.

Now they are about to release some of their best stuff yet. Coming in February, will be the release of a self-titled CD, 14 Power Metal tracks that are a mixture of class and sharp-toothed force… and, IMHO, the way metal is meant to be played.

Rob Thorne’s vocals are as amazing as ever, and pay tribute to when metal vocals were screamed high and brilliant, when singers tried to emulate the pre-1980 Rob Halford range, when the metal underground was filled with such style of singers — bands such as Malice, Sortilege, Savage Grace, LiegeLord, to name a few. This was my turf back then and I loved it. Now it’s all growling and grumbling. I like some of that, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t love it. It’s not like the old stuff.  The good old days of Heavy Metal. That’s where Sacred Oath is coming from and hopefully they can have that style of Metal make a great resurgence.

Sacred Oath is making an unmastered mp3 of the song “Blood Storm,” from their brand new album, freely available at www.sacredoath.net . To hear the whole pre-master version of the new song  join their mailing list by clicking here.

In the meantime, watch a Sacred Oath video (below),“Words Upon the Stone,”  from their 2007 CD, Darkness Visible and get psyched for the new material.

Helstar is Back .. and Better!

Classic Power Metal never sounded so good.

The Texas metal merchants known as Helstar started in the early 80s but have now brought back the nucleus of the original line-up to release the new disc The King of Hell. This album will not be released in the States for a couple months but new tracks can be sampled at the Helstar Website. And fans of classic power metal will not be disappointed. Trust me. The musicians look a lot older but their music has matured to a higher level.

This was the type of thrashy, beefy-riffed, screaming-vocals, headbanging that made heavy metal so intense and enjoyable back in the 80s. This was before hair metal and glam metal exploded like a cherry bomb and maimed the genre; before growling and gurgling vocals became cliche and commonplace in metal’s resurrection.

If you loved what Rob Halford did with his solo projects, believe it or not, this is along the same lines and even better.

My only complaint is that the album art is so ridiculously cliche and stupid (see below). Not the quality of the artist. It is the subject matter: Satan sitting on top of a throne as the earth crumbles in the background. I always hated this bullshit. Not only because it is certainly Spinaltap but maybe it is the non-religious person I generally am (on the other side of the coin, Stryper, for instance, creates the same negative effect on me). I don’t want to be hearing shit about demons, angels, or any of that nonsense. It’s fantasy garbage 101. There’s so much other subjects to tackle as far as lyrics or imagery. Dig deeper, Helstar. In fact, this reminds me of all the cheesey album covers Metal Blade Records put out throughout the years. Metal Blade owner, Brian Slagel, was a visionary as far as good metal music was concerned. But he had no sense when it came to artwork and imagery. Metal Blade Records put out some of the most hideous artwork of our time. Some of it just plain awful (for example, look at the first Slayer LP, Show No Mercy)

But I digress. Ignore that and listen to the most important part: the music. It is classic power metal at its best. For those of you who have been waiting for that kind of metal to dominate again, here is your savior.

www.helstar.com

A Liege Lord Surprise

I just happened to be searching around the website Encyclopedia Metallum and came across the listing for Liege Lord. Now, growing up with Liege Lord, I experienced the real history of the band. But there are only two facts that you need to know:

Fact 1: Tony Truglio (guitars) and Matt Vinci (bass) were the heart and soul of the band.

Fast 2: The band officially broke up in 1990. There is NO BAND AFTER 1990!!!

So, who is this Carlo Moscardini listed? Really, who the hell is Carlo Moscardini????!!!!!

I know a bogus “reunion” show was performed at Wacken in 2000 with ex-members Paul Nelson (guitar) and Joe Comeau (vocals). Did Carlo perform in that… along with fill-ins Sebastian Marino (Overkill (US), ex-Ramrod, ex-Anvil) and Rob Mount (ex-Ramrod)? And, let’s face it, a jam of two later members of the group does not make a reunion. That’s a tribute band. Paul Nelson has dedicated his time to continue the image and legacy of the band with a website — I’ll give him that — but it seems unfair to do all this without the contribution of the main ingredients: The Founders. Or, let me put it this way; ANY of the founding members of the band!!!!!

This leads me back to my original question: who is Carlo Moscardini? And when was he a “member” of the band? Hell, if he was a member of the band, then screw it… I, too, was a member. Anyone else out there members, too?