Powerglove - Metal Kombat for the Mortal Man (2007)

Powerglove, for those of you who haven't heard of them yet, are a 4 piece Instrumental Power Metal band (that's the best way I could describe it) from Boston, Massachusetts. They consist of Alex Berkson (Guitar), Chris Marchiel (Guitar), Nick Avila (Bass), and Bassil Silver-Hajo (Drums). They are currently Unsigned.

Metal Kombat for the Mortal Man is Powerglove's first full-length release following their 2005 EP release Total Pwnage. Their album consists of 11 tracks which include "So Sexy Robotnik", "Mario Minor", "Fight On", "Vanquish the Horrible Night", "Blasting the Hornet", "The Duck Grinder", "Power, Wisdom, Courage", "Omnishred (We're Gonna Need a Bigger Sword)", "Holy Orders (Be Quick and Just Shred)", "Metal Kombat for the Mortal Man", and "Red Wings Over Baron". The album was quite interesting to say the least, I haven't really listened to a fully instrumental metal album before, so it was quite a ride. Where to begin, it just sounded awesome. Normally, I look to lyrics to tell a story, but there really isn't need for a story with this album. The guitar work is insane and really well refined, as is with the bass and the drums. It can go from slow and relaxing, to blast beats, normally I wouldn't like this, but since there aren't vocals attached to them, it flows nicely. There are technically vocals on two songs "Mario Minor" where they shout the words Super Mario, and on "Metal Kombat for the Mortal Man" where they should Mortal Kombat.

Overall, the album was really good. It flowed seamlessly and really defined the band. If you're into Malice Mizer, X Japan, Dream Theater, Blind Guardian, or Sonata Arctica, you should check out Powerglove, and in case you haven't guessed it by now, they took their name from the NES attachment of the same name. The album was released in 2007 (can't find the exact date) and is currently not available on Amazon (but it is on amazon), and is not available on iTunes.

Overall Rating: 4.8 out of 5.0

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Powerglove's Website

Born of Osiris - The New Reign (2007)

Born of Osiris, for those of you who haven't heard of them as of yet, are a 6 piece Metalcore/Deathcore/Technical Death Metal band from Palatine, Illinois. They formed in 2003 and have released 2 full length albums. They currently consist of Ronnie Canizaro (Vocals), Lee McKinney (Guitar), Jason Richardson (Guitar), Joe Buras (Keyboards & Backing Vocals), David Darocha (Bass), and Cameron Losch (Drums). They are currently signed to Sumerian Records.

The New Reign, Born of Osiris' first full length album after 4 demos, 2 singles, and 1 EP. It didn't chart on the Billboard 200, but their next full length album, 2009's A Higher Place, reached #73. The album consists of 8 tracks, those being "Rosecrance", "Empires Erased", "Open Arms To Damnation", "Abstract Art", "The New Reign", "Brace Legs", "Bow Down", "The Takeover". This album felt incredibly short, and it was (only 21:31 in length). The screams sounded like your typical metalcore screams, at times there were gang vocals, but overall it felt rather generic. The stand out track for the album, in my opinion, was the track "Bow Down", mainly for the way that it starts. Incase you haven't heard it, the track starts with four double bass blasts, a snare hit, goes silent for a split second before Ronnie Canizaro screams "Fucking Bow Down" and then the track kicks it into high gear. The other tracks I actually found hard to listen to, it just felt so generic, like I've heard this album done before by so many other bands. It was a moderate listen to say the least.

Overall, the album was decent, but not near spectacular. If you're into Veil of Maya, The Faceless, Oceano, Despised Icon, Emmure, Whitechapel, ABACABB, Texas in July, The Acacia Strain, or Hester Prynne then you should check out Born of Osiris. The album was released on October 2, 2007 and is available on amazon and iTunes.

Overall Rating: 3.4 out of 5.0

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Born of Osiris' Website

Avenged Sevenfold - Avenged Sevenfold (2007)

Avenged Sevenfold is a Heavy Metal/Metalcore (early works)/Hard Rock band from Huntington Beach, California. They formed in 1999 and consisted of M. Shadows (Vocals, real name is Matthew Sanders), Synyster Gates (Lead Guitar, real name is Brian Haner Jr.), Zacky Vengeance (Rhythm Guitar, real name is Zachary Baker), Johnny Christ (Bass, real name is Jonathan Seward), and until December 28, 2009, The Rev (Drums, real name James Sullivan). They are currently signed to Warner Brothers Records and are working on their fifth album, with Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy as their drummer, as he was The Rev's favorite drummer.

Avenged Sevenfold's fourth full length album "Avenged Sevenfold" was the last album to feature The Rev. It debuted at #4 on the U.S. Billboard 200. The album consists of ten tracks which include "Critical Acclaim", "Almost Easy", "Scream", "Afterlife", "Gunslinger", "Unbound (The Wild Ride)", "Brompton Cocktail", "Lost", "A Little Piece of Heaven", and "Dear God". The album has also had three tracks released through the game Rock Band (those being "Almost Easy" as an on disc song for Rock Band 2, and "Critical Acclaim" and "Afterlife" available as downloads). The album starts off with a heavy hitter, that being "Critical Acclaim". It starts with, of all things, and Organ solo (played by M. Shadows) before Synyster comes in with short guitar introduction before Zacky Vengance comes in and harmonizes with him. The tracks themselves vary, some are slow, others fast paced, one has M. Shadows being auto-tuned (the track "Lost"), a few have orchestra sections, others have female vocals, and some sound like a country song. The album overall was quite good, not as good as Waking the Fallen or City of Evil, but still good.

Overall, the album was good from start to finish, but some of the songs seemed out of place, and the auto-tuning of M. Shadows seemed unnecessary. If you're into Guns n Roses, Pantera, Metallica, Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Bullet for My Valentine, 36 Crazy Fists, and Atreyu, you should check the album out. The album was released on October 30, 2007 and is available on Amazon and iTunes.

Overall Rating: 4.8 out of 5.0

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Avenged Sevenfold's Website

The Devil Wears Prada - Plagues (2007)

For those of you who haven't heard of The Devil Wears Prada, they are a 6 piece Metalcore band that formed in Dayton, Ohio in 2005. They consist of Mike Hranica (Lead Vocals), Jeremy DePoyster (Rhythm Guitar & Clean Vocals), Chris Rubey (Lead Guitar), Andy Trick (Bass), Daniel Williams (Drums), and James Baney (Keyboard, Synthesizer, and Piano). They have three albums released, their first two were released on Rise Records, while their latest album was released on Ferret Music.

The album Plagues is The Devil Wears Prada's second full-length album, following their 2006 release "Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord" and precedeing their 2009 released "With Roots Above and Branches Below". It peaked at #6 on the U.S. Billboard Indipendent Albums and #57 on the U.S. Billboard top 200. The album consists of 10 tracks which include "Goats on a Boat", "Number Three, Never Forget", "HTML Rulez d00d", "Hey John, What's Your Name?", "Don't Dink and Drance", "You Can't Spell Crap Without "C"" (Featuring Craig Owens, former vocalist of Davison, Michigan Post-Hardcore band Choidos), "This Song Is Called", "Reptar, King of the Ozone", "The Scorpion Deathlock", and "Nickels is Money Too". The album, as a whole, was a decent album. At points, the album decided to get a bit redundant with the overall tone. At points it felt as though James Baney's role in the band wasn't needed as the Keyboards just hindered some of the songs. However, the guitar work was excellent throughout the album, complex solos and rhythms that held up throughout the album. TDWP also made some culture references throughout the album, "Goats on a Boat" is a play off of the movie "Snakes on a Plane", "Number Three, Never Forget" is a reference to Dale Earnhardt, "Reptar, King of the Ozone" is from an episode of Rugrats, "Nickels is Money Too" references an episode of Metalocalypse, and "The Scorpion Deathlock" is from a finishing move of the wrestler Sting.

Overall, the album had a few hiccups, but flowed decently. Check this out if you're into Choidos, Killswitch Engage, Miss May I, Underoath, Atreyu, Haste the Day, Demon Hunter, or August Burns Red. The album was released on August 21, 2007 and is available on Amazon and iTunes.

Overall Rating: 4.3 out of 5.0

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The Devil Wears Prada's Website

Maximum the Hormone - Bu-ikikaesu (2007)

For those of you who haven't heard of Maximum the Hormone, they are a 4 piece Metalcore/Nu Metal band from Hachiōji, Japan. They consist of Daisuke "Daisuke-han" Tsuda (Vocals), Ryo "Maximum the Ryo-kun" Kawakita (Guitar & Vocals), Futoshi Uehara (Bass & Backing Vocals), and Nao Kawakita (Drums & Vocals). Daisuke and Nao are the original members, Ryo was suggested to replace Sugi by his sister Nao, and Futoshi joined soon after replacing Key. They are currently signed to VAP Records. And now for the review thingy.

Maximum the Hormone's sixth full-length release, Bu-ikikaesu, reached #5 on the Oricon album charts and is certified Gold in Japan. The album consists of 13 tracks which include "Bu-ikikaesu!!", "Zetsubō Billy", "Kuso Breakin Nō Breakin Lily", "Louisiana Bob", "Policeman Benz", "Black Yen Power G-Men Spy", "Akagi", "Kyoukatsu", "Bikini Sports Ponchin", "What's Up, People?!", "Chu Chu Lovely Muni Muni Mura Mura Purin Purin Boron Nurururerorero", "Shimi", and "Koi no Mega Lover". If you're a fan of the anime "Death Note", you'll recognize "What's Up, People?!" and "Zetsubō Billy" as it's opening and closing themes for the second season. Also, if you're a fan of the anime "Akagi", the song "Akagi" is featured in that series as well. This album was one of the more unique listening experiences I've had in a while. It's a mixture of Ryo singing cleanly and really fastly, Daisuke either doing screams or scream-rapping, and the occasional occurence of Nao singing as well. Futoshi rarely sings, but can be heard in the group vocals for some of the tracks. It's brutal at points, and upbeat and happy at others. In some songs, it kind of sounds ska/reggae like with the guitars, while Nao sings peacefully, and then out of nowhere Daisuke comes in with a brutal scream at first which leads into a scream-rap. Ryo wrote and composed all of the songs for the album, and it sounds kick ass from start to finish.

Overall, the album was really good. Check them out if you're into Dir en Grey, Distrubed, System of a Down, Korn, The Fall of Troy, or even old school Slipknot. The album was released on March 14, 2007 and is available on Amazon and iTunes.

Overall Rating: 4.7 out of 5.0

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Maximum the Hormone's Website