By BRENDAN TENAN
Staff Writer
It’s time for another edition of “Bang Your Head with Brendan.” This week, I’ll be covering a couple surprising returns, an influential album’s anniversary, and an all-star tribute to one of metal’s greats. Without any further delay, let’s get right into it.
The Black Keys, “Fever” (single): It’s been roughly two and a half years since indie favorites The Black Keys released the highly acclaimed El Camino album. For a band as prolific as The Black Keys, this has been their longest break between albums ever. While most didn’t know when to expect a new album from them, many fans assumed that there would likely be some sort of official press release to announce the new album’s arrival. It therefore came as quite a surprise when the band announced the name of their upcoming album, Turn Blue, on the official Twitter page of former boxing champion Mike Tyson. Tyson’s tweet included a YouTube link to the first single off their latest album, “Fever.”
An additional surprise about the song is its departure in sound from what those familiar with The Black Keys may typically expect. Instead of the blues-based brand of garage rock that they’ve become known for, guitarist/vocalist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney have gone for a decidedly more psychedelic sound on “Fever.” Despite the noticeable shift in tone and musical style, the song still has the same type of infectious groove that The Black Keys have been known for their entire career. The combination of a synthesizer, Auerbach’s fuzzed out guitar distortion, and Carney riding heavily on his drum kit’s floor tom helps drive the song’s tempo in a creative and almost hypnotic way.
“Fever” may mark the beginning of a dramatic shift in The Black Keys’ musical style on this upcoming album, or it could be a quirky outlier that stands out from the rest of the tracks. We’ll be able to find out the answer when Turn Blue is released on May 13. Based on what I heard with “Fever,” I for one am looking forward to this latest album from The Black Keys.
Rating: 9/10
Wolfmother, New Crown: Perhaps an even bigger surprise than the unexpected announcement of the latest single from The Black Keys was the latest full-length album release from Australian rockers Wolfmother. The trio, fronted by lead singer and guitarist Andrew Stockdale, was last heard in 2009 with Cosmic Egg. Stockdale had said shortly after wrapping up touring in support of the album that he would not release another Wolfmother album without the other two original members, and announced last year that the band had officially broken up.
Since Cosmic Egg’s release, the band has largely been out of the spotlight (and, frankly, out of most people’s minds) for close to five years. Now, Stockdale has released a brand-new, full-length album under the Wolfmother banner without the original band members. There was no announcement or press release; no apparent teaser or clue to fans. Instead, the album, titled New Crown, was quietly put up on Wolfmother’s Bandcamp page.
While it may not be the original lineup, the band still rocks and grooves just as well as the previous iterations of Wolfmother. Joined by bassist/keyboard player Ian Peres and drummer Vin Steele, Stockdale has created a tight, hard rocking, and trippy album full of heavy classic rock style riffs, wailing falsetto vocals, and Jimi Hendrix-inspired solos. The band sets the tone early with “How Many Times” and doesn’t let up through closer “Radio.”
While I did like the departure in sound and style from The Black Keys on “Fever,” I enjoyed New Crown for the exact opposite reason. There wasn’t a significant change in style, tempo, or timbre. I got out of New Crown exactly what I would expect to get out of a new Wolfmother album. In this instance, predictability is a good thing.
Rating: 8.5/10
Pantera, Far Beyond Driven (Deluxe 20th Anniversary Edition): In a genre as segmented and divisive as heavy metal has become, it’s quite the accomplishment when a band receives nearly universal acclaim and adoration. Some of the genre’s biggest names are either loved or hated, with very little middle ground.
Having said that, there are a few bands that seem to have transcended their specific styles and have attained widespread acclaim from fans, journalists, and critics. One such band is the legendary Pantera. This year marks two significant milestones in the band’s career: the 20th anniversary of their seminal album Far Beyond Driven, and the tenth anniversary of the shocking and tragic murder of guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott.
The original release of Far Beyond Driven was a huge moment for metal as a whole. The album debuted in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard charts and produced classic hit singles like “I’m Broken,” “Becoming,” and “Five Minutes Alone.” There are some who feel that this was the first real heavy metal album to take the top spot on the Billboard 200 (no disrespect intended to Metallica’s Black Album), and it is likely the most extreme album to ever claim the top spot. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of its release, the band has released a remastered version of Far Beyond Driven.
There isn’t a significant difference that I could notice in terms of audio quality regarding the production, mixing, or remastering of the album. The only thing I really noticed was the low end was clearer and more present, especially the crisp double kick drums from drummer Vinnie Paul.
Everything else sounded remarkably similar to the original release. It’s still a very good album, but there isn’t really enough of a discernible difference that will make most fans want to purchase the latest edition of Far Beyond Driven. Perhaps the major selling point for fans of Pantera is the bonus disc that comes with the Deluxe 20th Anniversary Edition: a previously unreleased live performance from the 1994 Donington festival, titled Far Beyond Bootleg: Live from Donington ‘94. This live album does a great job capturing the energy, excitement, and ferociousness of a Pantera concert. While only nine songs in length, the live album is loaded with classic Pantera tracks like “Walk,” “This Love,” “Mouth For War,” and “Cowboys From Hell.”
Rating: 9/10
Various artists, Ronnie James Dio – This Is Your Life (tribute album): Of all the significant losses rock and metal fans have had to endure in recent years, the 2010 passing of singer Ronnie James Dio is still one of the most difficult to deal with.
After an amazing career spanning more than four decades in bands like Rainbow, Black Sabbath, and his eponymous band Dio, Ronnie lost his battle with stomach cancer at the age of 67. His soaring vocals and vivid lyrical imagery has been a major influence on countless artists. Most importantly, Dio is responsible for introducing the “devil horns” to rock and metal, a gesture that is almost universally used today by both musicians and fans. Needless to say, the fact that this man has yet to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is preposterous.
To show how much he meant to musicians and fans alike, Ronnie’s widow Wendy assembled an all-star list of rock and metal’s most respected and popular names to lend their talents to a tribute album in his memory. All of the proceeds made from album sales will benefit the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund. The result of this passion project, Ronnie James Dio – This Is Your Life, is a fantastic celebration of his influential career and shows how much he meant to both rockers from his era as well as some of the biggest stars today.
The album opens strong with Anthrax covering “Neon Knights,” and continues with Tenacious D delivering a passionate and soulful rendition of “The Last in Line,” reminding us all that, comedic schtick aside, Jack Black has some serious pipes.
Other highlights from this album include Slipknot and Stone Sour singer Corey Taylor matching Dio’s power, if not quite his range, on “Rainbow in the Dark”; Halestorm capturing a new level of ferocity on “Straight Through the Heart”; the Howard Jones-era Killswitch Engage lineup paying homage with their own twist on Dio’s signature song “Holy Diver”; and Metallica covering a medley of four Rainbow songs (“A Light in the Black,” “Tarot Woman,” “Stargazer,” and “Kill The King”).
As I mentioned earlier, this tribute album also features some of the biggest names in rock and metal from Dio’s heyday, the mid 70s to early 80s. Legendary performers like former Deep Purple singer Glenn Hughes, Saxon’s Biff Byford, Motorhead, and the metal god himself, Rob Halford, all show their respect and admiration for Dio with terrific covers that Ronnie himself would be proud of.
Rating: 10/10
That’s all for this week’s column. Until next time, crank those speakers up to 11 and get that mosh pit going.
