RUSHONROCK.COM|CLASSIC ROCK * METAL * THRASH * PROG * GLAM * SLEAZE – IF IT ROCKS IT RUSHONROCKS!

They’re one of the hottest new British bands around and April sees The Crave release their much anticipated debut album Breaking The Silence.

Part melodic, part sleaze and part good time rock and roll the lads will tour the UK with fellow UK trailblazers Heaven’s Basement and Dear Superstar on what promises to be a raucous triple bill this month.

And to celebrate what’s set to be a breakthrough year for the Brighton band we caught up with frontman Ryan Burnett for an exclusive chat. Read the rest of this entry »

They’re the bright new kids on the British metal block and this month Fury UK add to their glowing reputation with a support slot on the Michael Schenker Group tour.

Ahead of an exclusive interview with founder Chris Appleton next week we find out what tempers the singer songwriter’s fury.

And don’t forget to check out the band before MSG in Dudley (tonight), Belfast, Bristol, Milton Keynes, Newcastle and Oxford. Read the rest of this entry »

There’s a truly mixed bag of rock to review this week as veterans Uriah Heep go head to head with hardcore metal kings Converge and hard rocking heroes Atreyu.

And for those of you looking out for the latest Saviours record don’t worry – the release date’s been put back a week and we’ll rate it right here next Sunday.

Plus we’ll be reviewing the rocktastic soundtracks of the new Twilight film, New Moon, and Jennifer’s Body later this week so watch this space. Read the rest of this entry »

Spawned from the industrial wastelands of late 70s North East England, Venom pooled their collective frustration with the NWOBHM and life in general to create a lasting legacy for metal fans the world over.

As Black Metal – the album and the genre – is celebrated in September we caught up with founder member Cronos and if you’re an easily unsettled reader then look away now. (Even his phone number included the numbers 666 in sequence…). Read the rest of this entry »

House Of Lords are looking at touring the UK this autumn according to sources close to the band – with their new album Cartesian Dreams due for release via Frontiers Records in September.

The US melodic rock stars have already inked in dates across Europe in late September and throughout October. And the Lords are understood to be keen to take the tour across the English Channel following a date in Normandy on October 31.

Cartesian Dreams follows hot on the heels of 2008’s critically acclaimed Come To My Kingdom and singer James Christian admitted: “This new CD was truly a labour of love. I was so fortunate to be able to work once again with my writing partner and friend Mark Baker. The last time Mark and I worked together was to write and record Demons Down.  We have a great chemistry when it comes to writing songs. Read the rest of this entry »

They’re 40 years old and still producing top notch classic rock – no wonder rushonrock’s resident columnist Self Made Man can’t get enough of UFO.

In the first part of an exclusive chat with drummer Andy Parker, our man talks Strangers In The Night, setlists and the changing demographic of an audience sure to flock to Newcastle’s Academy next month. Read the rest of this entry »

@ Newcastle o2 Academy, March 21 2009

If you are a young, upcoming British rock band then be warned. The bar has suddenly been raised. Lifted high above the standard previously set for live shows in this country and close to the ceiling of top quality, well crafted and cunningly catchy music.

They call themselves Gods and on this evidence four frenzied dudes with razor sharps hooks really do hail from rock heaven. Read the rest of this entry »

Now trying to name an American/Greek female fronted rock band is going to tax the most avid fans of this fledgling site and until today we couldn’t do it.

But then a bluesy, ballsy, breezy little album landed on the rushonrock decks and suddenly we’re humming along to tracks crafted in Athens, polished in new York and ready to rip up live stages across the UK this spring. It’s called No More Sins and it’s by the potentially brilliant 4Bitten. Read the rest of this entry »

Band names. Don’t you just love ‘em? Or hate ‘em. Or even find them frankly ridiculous?

It’s an issue which has come to the fore in the week rushonrock rather dubiously  highlighted the latest sleaze and cheese opus by Italian hair metal (don’t ask) heroes S.E.X. Department. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s that time of the week when we dust off an old classic from our fave late 80s/early 90s era and match it up to the latest release from a red hot artist. And today we go all widdly diddly in search of air guitar heaven…

Now 2008: Perpetual Flame (Rising Force Records) is the return of axe maestro Yngwie Malmsteen and his ever-changing Rising Force roster.

These days Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens is the man behind the mic and he’s actually pretty impressive as he fights for a profile in amongst crazy classical licks and self-centered solos. More of a metal singer than some of the melodic Rising Force crooners from the past, the former Judas Priest man successfully manages to stamp his mark on a rather good record.

It’s fair to say the boy Malmsteen has been in steady decline since his career-defining Odyssey record but in Live To Fight (Another Day) and Priest Of The Unholy there is enough evidence to suggest the fret-burning Swede is back.

If those of you who saw Yngwie on his recent UK tour remain unconvinced then check out Perpetual Flame and it’s possible you’ll fall back in love with everybody’s favourite showman.

So the Rising Force are never going to recreate the Joe Lynn Turner glory days but that was a feisty relationship never meant to last. But if Owens can stay the course longer than his predecessors then this could be the start of a new golden era for malmsteen fans everywhere.

rushonrock rated: 7/10 Force Rises Again

…And Then 1988: Odyssey (Polydor) is the best thing Yngwie ever produced. And he’s spent the last 20 years running away from the fact that he should never have parted company with the singer who complemented his talents better than most.

In former Deep Purple vocalist Joe Lynn Turner, the multi-talented Malmsteen unearthed a singer whose deep melodic tones proved a perfect match for some serious fret-burning action. Heaven Tonight was one of the hair metal anthems of 1988 but there was pure class stamped right across this definitive record.

Dreaming (Tell Me), Deja Vu and Crystal Ball are all outstanding compositions, mixing Turner’s addictive tones with some incredibly technical musicianship. This was a marriage made in rock heaven and Malmsteen was far too quick to walk away when his cohort became disillusioned.

The mind boggles at what this dynamic duo could have produced had they patched things up. As things stand this truly outstanding album remains a monument to a hair metal dream team cruelly ripped apart by creative differences.

rushonrock rated: 10/10 Just Malmazing