CROSSFIRE

Crossfire, Turkish semi prog thrash metal band, was formed by guitarist Kaya Sevinc in 1999. It took them 3 years to finally form their original line up and unique sound. Ever since they have been one of the most popular bands in the Turkish Heavy Metal scene. Crossfire honed their sound by combining power and thrash metal with the classical metal approach. Their "Decisions of Hate" (2002) demo was an underground favorite that lead them to hit the road for a massive tour including 2003 Metal Bash Festival in Hamburg, Germany... more

BRYAN BELLER (Steve Vai, Mike Keneally, Dethklok)

Bryan Beller has maintained a frenetic, multi-faceted career as a bassist, composer, writer and clinician for over fourteen years. On his own, Beller released his debut solo album, the jazz/rock-flavored VIEW, in late 2003. His second album "Thanks In Advance", a deeply personal narrative set to advanced jazz/rock compositional confidence, came out a few weeks ago. more

New Grass Revival / On The Boulevard

New Grass Revival are one of the pioneers of progressive bluegrass. Formed in 1971 by Sam Bush (mandolin/vocals), Curtis Burch (guitar), Ebo Walker (bass) and Courtney Johnson (banjo), they immediately got the attention from the industry both in a good and bad way. First of all, they were often told that their music was not bluegrass, and they knew it wasn’t “bluegrass” in its traditional sense, and it wasn’t what they were trying to achieve anyways. They were blending rock, soul and blues rhythms with the traditional bluegrass music. They were not wearing suites, but instead they had a more casual style along with long hair... more

THE CONSPIRATORS

ONE SURE THING/TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER

The Band:

The Conspirators is a brand new band from Bedale, North Yorkshire, UK. The members got together in late 2006 and in a little over a year, they were ready to release their debut single on March 3rd 2008 (Transcend Records). It has 2 songs on the A side and one on the B side. You are probably wondering why we say A side, B side… Well, because this single will not only be released on CD and online for downloads, but also on limited edition (500 copies all autographed) vinyl.

The Conspirators worked with a legendary name on this project: Judy Dyble (Fairport Convention / Trader Horne / Giles, Giles, Fripp, McDonald and Dyble). She has an angelic voice and shares vocals with Genevieve Parker on “One Sure Thing” which was originally a Fairport Convention tune that was released on their first album. Judy added the extra verse to the song that they left out back then and The Conspirators made a brand new arrangement which is faster than the original version with more electric guitar sound, but still with the folk rock spirit. In fact the guitar work and the drums in some parts reminded me of Fleetwood Mac’s early Lindsey Buckingham era in the mid 70‘s. Their drummer Laura Goodacre (yes, a female) is doing a great job especially on this song.

The band’s music in general can be described as The Clash meets Blondie. “Take Me To Your Leader” is a good example of that, with Genevieve on lead vocals this time and Dyble accompanying her on background vocals. I have to admit their voices harmonize pretty good. Genevieve’s vocals have a Deborah Harry feel to them but in a more folksy tone which makes you want to listen more and more.

The B side is “Connected” with John Gillies on lead vocals and Genevieve on background vocals. This one stands alone from the first two with its new wave/trance sound, very much like a modern twist to an 80’s flashback. I encourage you go to their myspace page where you will find two more songs: “Turning Green” and “Robots” (www.myspace.com/theconspiratorsuk). You can read more about them and get the latest news on their website (the conspirators.co.uk).

They are not prog, but I wanted to write this review anyway. The Conspirators deserve attention with the fresh sound they bring to the music scene. They have great guitar riffs and vocals, the bass is in perfect harmony with the rest of the instruments (Nathan Reeve has a flawless style with a punk-rock approach except on “Connected”) and they have a really awesome female drummer.

HANDE BURDG