Things are finally hotting up in the world of rock and metal and this week sees two giants collide in the shape of German thrash metal masters Kreator and ex-Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland. Check out tomorrow’s best releases today – right here every Sunday on rushonrock.

Scott Weiland – “Happy” In Galoshes (Softdrive Records) 

No sooner had the growling face of Velvet Revolver quit one of the biggest rock supergoups in the world than he was found putting the finishing touches to an ambitious solo project. But was it worth the effort?

Whether the Weiland you know and love is the frenzied frontman of Stone Temple Pilots or the raucous performer jostling for top billing in Revolver at least both of those key players had an identity. You knew what you were going to get.

On Happy… the problem is Weiland pitches himself here, there and everywhere and tackles too many roles with too little conviction. It’s brave, bordering on the foolhardy. There are some stunning highlights – most notably on the opening three tracks of the first CD which jump from straight ahead rock, to Beatles-esque pop and echoes of US indie funksters Jellyfish – but it will be difficult for Weiland to find his audience.

If you’re an STP nut this isn’t edgy enough. If you’re a Velvets devotee this lacks the bombastic production and classic licks. However, Weiland’s voice never dips below brilliant (no surprise there) and the emotional depth on tracks like She Sold Her System suggests there’s more to this flamboyant but troubled artist than meets the eye – if that were possible.

There’s a single disc and a two-CD version of this chameleon-like album available. If you’ve got time on your hands and you love solving mysteries then by all means plump for the latter. But if you’re a Weiland fan and simply curious, the single disc should do the job.

rushonrock rated: 6/10 Weiling Away The Time

Kreator – Hordes Of Chaos (SPV/Steamhammer)

A monstrous return to form by Sabina Classen’s Holy Moses last year reignited rushonrock‘s interest in that often overlooked and frequently mocked sub-genre: German thrash metal.

Since then we’ve been recalling some of the finer moments from the 1980s and at the same time wondering whether the glory days would ever return. Of course they’ve never been away if you watch your rock in sweaty Bavarian bierkellers and thanks to bands like Kreator they could roll on for years to come.

Opening track Hordes Of Chaos (A Necrologue For The Elite) almost pleads to have the piss ripped out of it with a title straight from a Spinal tap out-takes reel. In fact it’s a sonic tour de force which sets the tone for one of the wildest and most wonderful thrash attacks you’ll have heard in years.

Frontman Mike Petrozza knows his strengths and the bloke is getting stronger. Pounding his way through 10 unrelenting slabs of testosterone-fuelled Teutonic angst, the singer (if that’s what you want to call him) screams Destroy What Destroys You, Radical Resistance and Corpses Of Liberty like he really, really means it. We’re convinced he does.

This won’t be everybody’s cup of tea, or even litre of Jagermeister, but Hordes Of Chaos does what it says on the tin. If you do buy it book the next day off work. This is one shiny little hangover.

rushonrock rated: 7/10 Kreated In Hell