• New Music Reviews
• |
• Archives
• |
• News
• |
• Submissions
• |
• About
• |
• 
• |
• 

May 2025

• The Flower Kings: Love
• Maestrick : Espresso Della Vita: Lunare

March 2025

• W.E.T.: Apex
• Alliance: Before Our Eyes
• Ginevra: Beyond Tomorrow
• Phil X & The Drills:
  Pow! Right In The Kisser
• IQ: Dominion
• Heart Line: Falling Heaven
• Gotthard: Stereo Crush
• Defender: Dying To Live
• Streetlight: Night Vision

February 2025

• Robin McAuley: Soulbound
• Perfect Plan: Heart Of A Lion
• Craig Brooks: Desolation Freeway
• Mantric Momentum: Alienized
• Pattern-Seeking Animals: Friend Of All Creatures
• Crazy Lixx: Thrill Of The Bite
• Ginger Evil: The Way It Burns
• Dream Theater: Parasomnia
• Tyran: Tyran's Oath
• Saber: Lost In Flames

January 2025

• Wildness: Avenger
• The Ferrymen: Iron Will
• Labyrinth: In The Vanishing Echoes Of Goodbye
• Bonfire: Higher Ground
• The Big Deal: Electrified
• Landfall: Wide Open Sky

December 2024

• After Lapse: Pathways
• Illusion Force: Halfana
• Powell-Payne: Voilá

November 2024

• Sunstorm: Restless Fight
• Storace: Crossfire
• Voodoo Circle: Hail To The King
• Lionville: Supernatural
• Starchaser: Into The Great Unkown
• Empires Of Eden: Guardians Of Time
• Lonerider: Down In The Dust
• Seventh Crystal: Entity
• Neal Morse & The Resonance: No Hill For A Climber
• Beardfish: Songs For Beating Hearts
• Impellitteri: War Machine
• Brothers Of Metal: Fimbulvinter

[ More Music Reviews ]

Ross The Boss: Born Of Fire

Power Thrash Metal

3.0/5.0

Website Facebook Twitter Instagram
AFM Records
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 11.03.2020 | Released: 06.03.2020

Almost two years to the month, guitar legend Ross Friedman (The Dictators, Manowar, Death Dealer, et al) returns with his namesake metal band, Ross The Boss, for his fourth studio album, Born Of Fire. The album features drummer Steve Bolognese, Ross's compatriot from Death Dealer.

Ross The Boss (r) & Band

I'm going to keep this review short, and to the point. Which saves both of us some time. Honestly, there's nothing new or novel here within Born Of Fire. Actually, there's an amazing amount of consistent redundancy across the songs (which, sometimes, can be a very fine thing, but not in this case). Whether you start with the first song, listen to the last song, and then pick one in the middle, everything sounds the same. Mostly, every song is made up of power metal to punkish speed, viciously abrasive riffs, Marc Lopez's raw, assertive, and scalding vocals, and then with all things leading to a Boss guitar solo, which are frisky. The combination of abrasive raw riffs with the generally quick pacing is why the designation, power thrash metal. That's pretty much it, and all I have to say. Frankly, I think Friedman is either in a creative musical rut or simply resting on his laurels by rotating his heavy metal tires. But you may hear things differently.

Harem Scarem: Change The World

Melodic Hard Rock/AOR

4.5/5.0

Whoa. Thirty years. That's how long Canada's Harem Scarem has been in the melodic hard rock game. Well, that's excepting a small name change in Canada to ... [ Read More ]

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

There's nothing new within Born Of Fire. Actually, there's an amazing amount of consistent redundancy across the songs. Whether you start with the first song, listen to the last song, and then pick one in the middle, everything sounds the same.

Alphabetical Index

Here's a fun fact about Swiss legends, Gotthard: their last 16 releases, excepting their debut album, went to number one in their home country, making them one of Switzerland's most successful acts and ... [ Read More ]