Carl Begai

By Carl Begai

I recently caught up with one of my favourite interview victims, Rhapsody Of Fire guitarist Luca Turilli. To be totally honest I was never a huge fan of the band’s Dungeons & Dragons approach, but Turilli won me over back in 1997 with his insane enthusiasm for his music and the work that came with it. Try talking to a guy with a heavy Italian accent as he barrels along telling you about the things that inspire him, his grandiose tour plans, and the stories he wants to tell with his music. Screw those Berlitz language courses; Turilli will have you talking just as fast and waving your arms about in true Italian articulatory fashion in no time. Love the guy.

I also have to admit, the new album is a keeper in spite of the nut-busting title: The Frozen Tears Of Angels. Never thought I’d say that about a Rhapsody record, but I’m on board for this one at any rate: (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

German bashers Gamma Ray have a new album out called To The Metal! and I recently caught up with long time bassist Dirk Schlächter to talk about it. The main point of discussion was the lack of trademark speed and shred on the record in comparison to their previous outing, Land Of The Free II. Then there’s the even more pronounced than usual use of the tricks Judas Priest and Iron Maiden ever taught them. Read on…

Schlächter: “Yeah, there are some Priest-ish riffs in there and of course some Maiden-ish riffs, but things will always be like that with us. People criticize us for that but it’s just not possible to play this kind of music in E without being reminded of Iron Maiden. We’re tuned down to D now, which makes things sound a bit different, but if you play the chords E, D, and C – which they use in all combinations 10 times on every album – it will always remind you of part of a Maiden song. It’s not that we’re ripping something off from those bands, it’s just the shape of the music.” (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

Following is the second part of my recent interview with Ana Kefr frontman and co-founder Rhiis D. Lopez. Part 1 (found here) focused on the band’s music, the piece below covers Rhiis’ views on society which invariably act as a foundation for Ana Kefr’s songs. Consider the song titles ‘The Day That Guilt Turned White’, ‘T.ruthless’, ‘Defiant We Stand’ and ‘Feed A PETA Member To A Starving Child In Africa’ and you get an idea of where this is going…

A sad reality of the current day-to-day is that people or organizations perceived to be of Middle Eastern origin are given a critical eye by a large cross section of people. The name Ana Kefr being tossed about in the States is the sort of thing US guilty-until-proven-innocent “security” departments could potentially have a field day with. Look no further than your average American airport for proof as the country’s own citizens get the screws put to them, all in the name of anti-terrorism.

“Referring to simple-minded Americans figuring that anything ethnic-sounding is evil actually reminds me of the song ‘Die Eier Von Satan’ (translated: ‘Satan’s Balls’) from Tool’s Aenima record. This song sounded very political rally-esque, a man shouting in German with the masses cheering him on. The words of the track are actually a recipe for hash cookies, but people threw a fit and alleged that Tool are Nazis. There’s a pretty big difference between a German and a Nazi, as well as an Arab and a Muslim, but people make a lot of ignorant and arrogant assumptions and think they know even more about my band than I do. (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

Meguro Live Station, Tokyo – March 26th, 2010

As first impressions go bassist Taiji Sawada and his new band, Taiji With Heaven’s, made it clear with their live debut that they mean business. Dubbed The Birthday Eve – with a tip of the hat to Loudness – what could have come off as a desperate attempt to cash in on Sawada’s past turned out to be an intimate introduction to a band with the ability to dominate on the merit of its own work.

On the strength of their self-titled debut EP and the expectation of a surprise or two based on Sawada’s 25 year career – his past with X, Loudness, D.T.R. and Cloud Nine offering a wealth of extras to choose from – Taiji With Heaven’s played host to a full house of only 250 diehard fans. I would have hedged bets on a larger venue given Sawada rose to fame with X back in the ‘80s – a band that racked up album sales of over 20 million – and remains a revered musician in Japan, but this new outing has been very low key from the outset. The show, on the other hand, was anything but quiet… (continue reading…)

I first heard rumblings about e-books back in 1994 or so. The concept of having books converted to digital format to be read on a portable screen sounded like something yanked straight out of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and as a sci-fi fan it most certainly piqued my interest. Right up until the gung-ho folks in the publishing world and avid readers started running off at the collective mouth about how e-books were going to change the way we think about reading and revolutionize the literary industry. Blah fricking blah. As cool as the technology sounded I thought they were being ridiculous. Good old fashioned hardcover and softcover books had been around for hundreds and hundreds of years, so to my mind there was no bloody way enhanced videogame technology was going to do away with them just like that… (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

If Tim Burton were to direct a stage production of Cats it would end up being an Emilie Autumn show.

The bottom line is that until you’ve seen her perform you can’t truly understand or appreciate the hype that Emilie’s beloved Plague Rat followers dish out on a daily basis. And perform she does. With the help of four of her closest f(r)iends – affectionately known as The Bloody Crumpets – and a diehard fanbase that hangs on every note, word, raised eyebrow, spilled teacup and adjusted-just-so body part, Emilie brings her music to kicking and screaming life with often stunning results. The show is a first class stage production with the potential to appeal to theatre-goers from all walks of life, yet it takes place more often than not in venues that normally host unwashed metal bands and their beer swilling supporters. From a personal perspective I was reminded of Evil Dead: The Musical, an independent Toronto-born theatre production launched in the back room of a seedy club in 2003 that has since exploded, receiving worldwide acclaim. While her music and show are a world apart from the Evil Dead, Emilie Autumn likewise has the audience wrapped around her finger from the moment the curtain goes up.

No question, she’s come a long, long way from her days as a mere stage prop for Courtney Love. (continue reading…)

Yeah, yeah, I know the title of this bit is stolen from Danko Jones, but given the man is a HUGE music fan I don’t think he’ll mind. Besides, if an online search for Danko leads people to this page they can always click here to find him

Anyway, this is just a heads up for a dear friend by the name of Anna Phoebe. Folks might know her as the violin wielding maniac that sets fire to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra stage every year for three months. Or as a member of the must-see UK folk troupe Oi Va Voi. Or as a touring member of Jethro Tull. Or as the brain and center-stage-violin brawn behind an album called Rise Of The Warrior. Any way you slice it the lady is busy, particularly since she’s getting her solo artist tour mojo on for 2010, but that hasn’t stopped her from adding a few more activities to her not-enough-to-do list. That said, I urge folks to check out her new Classic Rock column under the banner Vixen Of The Violin. It’s essentially a weekly blog summing up recent or past adventures, offering thoughts and opinions, and even doing a bit of brain training. An excerpt is available below. For current and future installments click the image in the right hand column with her name on it. Same as the one you see directly above. You can’t miss it… (continue reading…)

Hails!

Just a brief update on what’s been floating my Canadian-made boat as of late, to be applauded or dismissed by anyone taking the time to read this. But, since I don’t generally write about crap unless conned into doing so or I feel the need to make fun of somebody (myself included; see Retro Fit) chances are pretty good my opinions are actually of worth (says the diva… ).

First off, the new self-titled Annihilator record is a killer. Guitarist / founder Jeff Waters shreds up a storm and nobody can take away Dave Padden’s rightful position as the band’s singer. It’s a grower though, and it wasn’t until the fourth or fifth time through that I actually began hearing this album for the shredfest it is. Very ugly and mean just like the cover art, but that’s a good thing. As much as I like the previous record, Metal, I have to admit there’s an energy level and a lack of polish on the new one that makes it sit better between my ears. Been playing the hell out of it much the same way I did when Carnival Diablo came out all those year ago.

I recently spoke to Waters about the album; the interview will be online soon. Check out the album details here. Release date is May 17th… (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

Normally I shy away from doing live / event reviews simply because I suck at them. Kind of ironic given that’s how I got my start in this business. Fact is I find it almost impossible to express how good I think a show was in print without boring myself to tears. You can only use and re-word the terms “kick ass” and “awesome” so many times until you begin to sound like that idiot hack who shows up for two songs and a shot of Jack, then heads home to compose a glowing review before bed of what he didn’t see. Between bouts of World Of Warcraft and Spongebob.

All that said, I was invited by singer Amanda Somerville to attend a video shoot for the song ‘If I Had A Wish’, taken from the forthcoming Kiske / Somerville album featuring herself and ex-Helloween vocalist Michael Kiske. Also on board for the shoot were bassist Mat Sinner (Primal Fear / Sinner), guitarist Sander Gommans (ex-After Forever / HDK) and drummer Rami Ali. Amanda and I have known each other a long time (yes, I namedropped; sue me ) and Mat has been a long time friend and supporter of BW&BK, so I was more than happy to come down and play a game of hurry-up-and-wait with them.

Besides, it was a good excuse to see if Sander was the metalhead he claims to be. I wasn’t disappointed; the ‘Painkiller’ footage was priceless (a story for another day).

In the meantime, a new video report from Amanda is available here. Below are a few highlights from the experience (continue reading…)