Tag Archives: journey

Features, PiercingMetal Says

PiercingMetal’s “Best Of” 2009: The Books and Videos

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I know what you are thinking, gee Ken you guys sure did like a lot of stuff over the course of 2009 and you are not kidding. This will be my last installment from the “Best Of” rundowns and we will not only cover the videos and books that we enjoyed the most but also will line out a bunch of the things that disappointed us here at the Metal Media Command HQ. DVD releases continued to impress and amaze as not only were new and exciting videos being released but also a number of cool historical archives had finally come to see the light of day. We reviewed quite a bit of them this year and still have a number of them to go but the list below focuses on some of our favorites which we made sure to line out first to be a part of this list. Let’s take a look.

The Best DVD’s of 2009:

Iron Maiden “Flight 666” (Universal Music): Maiden’s documentary about their “Somewhere Back In Time” World Tour that discussed how the band flew their own airplane to dozens of countries to deliver the Metal to the faithful believers has to be seen to be believed. Filmed by the famous Sam Dunn of “Headbanger’s Journey” fame.

Anvil: “The Story Of Anvil” (VH1 Classic Records): Anvil finally gets their due and some proper attention based on this fine documentary film by Sasha Gervasi.

Journey “Live In Manila” (Wal-Mart): If you didn’t get enough of Arnel Pineda when Journey delivered us “Generations” then wait till you get a load of him doing his thing in his home country, the Philippines. This show rocks and the crowd was going crazy for their countryman as he led this legendary band into the future.

Rick Wakeman “The Six Wives Of Henry XIII” (Eagle Vision): Former Yes keyboard wizard gets to fulfill a dream performance and we are members of the audience thanks to this special DVD release. A companion CD was also offered and this is a must for the legends fans.

ZZ Top “Double Down Live” (Eagle Vision): This DVD presented not one, but two performances from ZZ Top and while one comes from recently, it is the vintage show from 1980 that is the one to appreciate most. There isn’t a lot of footage of the band that’s been made public, so this was something that many classic rock and blues rock fans can appreciate quite a bit.
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Features, PiercingMetal Says

PiercingMetal’s “Best Of” 2008: The Music

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If you have been observing the releases that came upon us during 2008 then you will agree that this was a tremendous year for Metal. We’ve noted in our editorial that it felt like the year of the comeback as much as it delivered new bands that we hope will shine far into the future. The multi-faceted genre that makes up our Metal not only delivered quality music releases but also DVD’s, Books and Concerts that left you sore and with that in mind we are lining out some of the best stuff that we felt was delivered. In this installment I will only be giving the tip of the hat to the best albums for 2008 since I liked a lot of them. Doing it like this lets us all keep a proper focus. Here we go.

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The Best Albums Of 2008:

Eluveitie “Slania” (Nuclear Blast Records): Pagan/Folk Metal of resounding proportions. I loved this one and played it quite a bit.

Meshuggah “Obzen” (Nuclear Blast Records) – Reminding us with every groove and spine crushing riff that they are one of the most powerful Metal bands on the planet. If this is news to you, then get with the program.

Journey “Revelation”(Columbia Records): New singer, new album, new versions of classic material & a DVD concert all in one package? Truly this is a standout release from the Rock legends.

Whitesnake “Good To Be Bad” (SPV Records): It’s as if no time had passed by and this CD came out after the juggernaut self-titled album from the eighties. Great work guys.

Def Leppard “Songs From The Sparkle Lounge” (Universal Music): I haven’t liked a Def Leppard album in years and was set on giving them up entirely until this one came out and showed us that they still had it in them.
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Events, Reviews

Journey @ Bethel Woods Center for the Arts (8/30/2008)

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Artist: Journey
Venue: Bethel Woods Center for the Arts (Bethel Woods, NY)
Opener: Cheap Trick & Heart
Date: 8/30/2008
Label: Columbia Records

While it’s true that I make sure to attend and review a lot of concerts that come through the Big Apple for the sake of the Metal and Hard Rock fans for the web readers at large, it is not too often that I allow myself the luxury of focusing on the Classic Rock greats that got me interested in music in the first place. It’s also rather difficult to get outside of the NYC region when one considers just how many great bands manage to roll through town on a regular basis. Despite this being the case I actually needed to do this when I realized that I had missed the chance to see the one and only Journey perform at one of my favorite outdoor venues – the PNC Bank Arts Center. The band was not only celebrating a stunning new album, but also introducing their new singer and to up the ante on this tour they were bringing Cheap Trick and Heart along as well. My only option was to head up North about 90 miles to the site of the original Woodstock Festival of 1969, the beautiful Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. I was excited about this particular Rock and Roll journey because I had never been to the venue or the Woodstock grounds ever before and considering the historic nature of the property had to admit that this was going to be a whole lot of fun. My friends and I snared a parking space about a half miles walk from the venue and all around us were folks enjoying the warm summer day by cooking, playing music and indulging in the ever present pre-game beer drinking. The grounds are beautiful and its one of those places that on a clear day seems like the perfect cure for the 9-5 weekday blues. The venue is not too far from the original site and some markers and signs have been set up to commemorate the event and sadly I had not arrived early enough to absorb this spot or the onsite museum that the Center offers its visitors. Here is how the concert went.
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Music, Reviews

“Revelation” by Journey

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Artist: Journey
Title: “Revelation”
Label: Columbia Records
Release Date: 6/3/2008
Genre: Rock
Rating: 4/5

If you haven’t been keeping track of this kind of stuff, let me begin by saying that the new Journey release “Revelation” finds the band stronger than ever with their new and fourth singer. Yes, I did say fourth, as Steve Perry left for good after the brief touring for “Trial By Fire” and was replaced by Steve Augeri. He would record two albums with the band before blowing out his voice and finding himself replaced by former Yngwie Malmsteen front man Jeff Scott Soto, who after the cited “musical differences” was replaced by newcomer Arnel Pineda. Are you still with me? Good, let’s continue along then. According to press, Arnel was found on YouTube.com singing Journey covers with his band and the voice he demonstrated having made the bands hierarchy decide that he was the perfect person for the role. The new album would be a colossal effort that was sure to impress even the most doubting of fans who wonder how the group can continue in good conscious without Perry or even Augeri. To those people I have to say when you get an earful of how Arnel sings you will be impressed enough to give the guy a chance. With “Revelation” the band has chosen to not only give you a full album of new music, but also an additional CD of re-recorded, or “re-visited” classic numbers as done by the bands roster of 2008 and a full length concert DVD that covers both worlds. Given the scope of the release I have broken it down into a few sections to make more sense of it.
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Music, Reviews

“Greatest Hits” (remaster) by Journey

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Artist: Journey
Title: “Greatest Hits”
Label: Columbia/Legacy
Release Date: 8/1/2006
Genre: Rock
Rating: 5/5

Originally released in 1988, the Greatest Hits of Journey would see sales well into the millions causing the disk to achieve 14 times Platinum status. If you listened to a radio during the years of 1977 through 1986 then there it is very strong chance that most of the songs on this CD will come back to you and perhaps even have you recall a specific period of time. The band was formed by members of Santana (Schon and Rolie) and they built a solid Rock outfit that was borderline Progressive at first but never short on melody when it came down to it. When singer Steve Perry joined the group for the album “Infinity” a new direction was beginning for them musically and would lead to blockbuster levels of success as hit after hit made it to the airwaves. A few songs on the first Perry albums found radio acclaim like “Lights” and “Anyway You Want It” but when “Escape” and “Frontiers” were released the result did so well that they show units of over 43 million being sold when their catalog is reviewed. The CD finds its strongest representation from these two releases and sales numbers are growing more and more as time passes by. While in 2006 the band has found some membership changes over the years their die hard supporters have never let go of their love for the music. This is the kind of Greatest Hits package that I prefer because it does not feature a batch of new tunes that are often an unwelcome presence on a compilation like this. Too often we find bands giving fans a new song that was leftover, and sadly usually for a good reason. It takes away from the inclusion of an additional hit for the release and I really find them forgettable. This is a high recommendation and the perfect CD for your music player or collection in general.
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