JUSTIN’S METAL REVIEWS W/C 20/7/09

CHICKENFOOT / CHICKENFOOTu

They do say that a name is everything, this band proves them wrong, Chickenfoot sounds like some nasty pedicure disease when in fact is in actuality a very fine Heavy Metal band in the Classic sense of the word and a supergroup featuring a lot of talent, to wit Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony and Chad Smith,

Musically they are as tight as the proverbial ducks rear end but from such seasoned musicians one would expect nothing less, Sammy Hagar has a distinctive voice and therefore dominates the bands sound vocally but that’s not a problem as I have been a fan of the guy since he was in Montrose, (damn that was a long time ago) and with Joe letting out some killer riffs the band just cant go wrong. Despite two of the guys being ex Van Halen the style is more akin to Sammy’s heavier solo stuff, like the best bits from Street Machine and Danger Zone and Joe is just the icing on the cake and with a tight drummer in the from of Chad from the Chilli Peppers its not surprising that “My Kinda Girl”, “Oh Yeah”, “Get It Up”, “Down The Drain” and “Sexy Little Thing” are gracing the airwaves on Rock shows across the world.

This is a very fine album and proves wrong the old adage “They don’t write them like that anymore” totally wrong, if you love your Classic Hard Rock you cant fail to be impressed by this excellent CD, I do hope this is not just a one off, it would be a shame as the guys really have something special here.

WEBSITE http://www.chickenfoot.us/

TOTAL PLAYING TIME = 58 + 11 TRACK

DIVINE HERESY / BRINGER OF PLAGUES

I have to confess that I was not over enamoured with the bands debut, it seemed to be lacking something vital, however this follow up is a totally different ball game, everything that the first lacked “Bringer Of Plagues” has in abundance and then some.

Musically speaking their sound leans more towards the Hardcore end of the spectrum with heavy Fear Factory influences, which sets the band apart form the competition, the music and rhythms are digitally tight and if I had to compare it with a Fear Factory album it would probably be Demanufacture, just check out the first track “Facebreaker”, full on in your face metal with attitude a plenty and some nice melodic touches in the chorus to keep the interest up and this track is not alone. The title track is just as good and keeps the power coming with a vengeance, “Redefine” is quite a prophetic title and that’s just what the band have done on this fantastic CD and “Anarchaos” is as fine a modern Metal track a you would fine on any current album.

Put aside any preconceptions that the bands debut CD left you with and don’t miss out on a very fine album that deserves to be heard, listen out for: the blackness of “Darkness Embedded”, the pure aggression of “Enemy Kill” and “The End Begins”, a killer album that proves the band cant be written off yet, the fact that this is the first album to feature new guys, Travis Neal (Vocals) and Joe Payne (Guitars) is more than coincidence, KILLER album of the week.

WEBSITE http://www.myspace.com/divineheresyband

TOTAL PLAYING TIME = 46 mins + 12 STUNNING TRACKS