Music Discovery Monday – 11/30/15

Hard Rock Daddy presents Music Discovery Monday – 11/30/15.

Each week, the HRD team shares songs that fly below radio’s radar, ranging from lesser-known artists to deeper cuts from both up-and-coming and established artists.

In addition to exposing the Hard Rock Daddy audience to new music that isn’t getting the attention that it deserves from radio, Music Discovery Monday also features a segment called “Hard Rock Music Time Machine,” which showcases older songs (from the ’70s to today) that hard rock music fans may have missed at the time of release.

In addition to appearing on the embedded YouTube playlists beneath each section, all songs featured on Music Discovery Monday can be listened to by clicking on the hyper-linked song titles.

 

 

 ADAM WALDMAN – (Publisher, Hard Rock Daddy)

IRON MAIDEN – “Tears Of A Clown”

With the exception of a five-year hiatus from the mid to late ‘90s, Bruce Dickinson has been the voice of Iron Maiden since 1981.  Although Dickinson is the voice, the band’s lyrics are mostly derived from the mind of Steve Harris.

Though he has tackled serious subjects before with his lyrics, Harris generally focuses on the bigger picture.  It has been revealed by Dickinson in recent weeks that “Tears Of A Clown” was written specifically about Robin Williams, his depression and ultimate suicide.

Not only do the lyrics have a different tenor than most Maiden songs, but the music does as well.  “Tears Of A Clown” eschews Maiden’s signature galloping rhythm for more groove-oriented pacing, which makes it stand out as unique for the band.  Dickinson brings the lyrics to life with his vocals, an impressive feat considering that their most recent release (The Book Of Souls) was recorded as he was battling tongue and throat cancer.

 

SLASH ft. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS – “30 Years To Life”

A recent trend with some of the more established hard rock bands these days is to release overlapping singles.  Slash ft Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators certainly falls within the category of established bands, so you would have expected numerous singles from World On Fire, an album that is 17 tracks long with no filler.  Inexplicably, the only singles ever released from the album were the title track and “Bent To Fly.”  Aside from already having new material written for the next album, rumors continue to swirl that Slash will be a part of a Guns N’ Roses reunion, so the chances of further singles being released is non-existent.  It’s too bad.  The album had the potential for numerous singles, including “30 Years To Life,” which I’ve heard Myles Kennedy refer to as his favorite track on the album.  This song could have easily been a huge GNR hit back in the day.  It features the best of everything that Slash and Kennedy have to offer…great riffs, infectious melodies, soaring vocals and intriguing lyrics.  Album tracks like these are tailor-made for Music Discovery Monday, filling in the huge voids that exist on radio.

 

 

 

 JON LOVELESS – HRD Music Scout

INGLORIOUS – “Breakaway”

One of the more promising new artists of the year comes from the U.K., with a heavy dose of ‘70s and ‘80s attitude on full display.  Led by vocalist Nathan James (a veteran of the reality show circuit and more recently of Trans-Siberian Orchestra), the band brings some of the best of artists like Deep Purple and Whitesnake to the table, while showing signs of creating a style that’s all their own.

 

STILLWELL – “Mess I Made”

Nearly a decade after their formation, and some four years after their debut release, there’s a new album from this “street metal” supergroup that features members of Korn and P.O.D.  The presence of Fieldy and Wuv certainly doesn’t hurt the band in terms of name recognition, but the total package stands quite well on its own.  The rap-rock blend isn’t to everyone’s taste, but for those who enjoy it, this album should stand as one of the highlights of 2015.

 

 

 

ROB DELL’AQUILA – HRD Music Scout

NAKED – “Leaving You Tonight”

Songwriter and rhythm guitarist Mats Stattin founded the precursor of this melodic hard rock band way back in 2000, and after some changes and a long journey, they are finally releasing their debut album, End Game.  It was worth the wait.  Peter Sundvall contributes some clean, yearnful vocals on this newly-released ballad from the album.

 

KATANA – “Mark Of The Beast”

This Swedish metal band released their debut album three years ago to some acclaim, and followed it up last week with their sophomore release, The Greatest Victory.  Twin guitars and pounding drums and bass create a classic metal sound, with a recurring Japanese warrior theme appropriate for a band named for a samurai sword.

 

 

 

   CHRIS HERZEGOVITCH – HRD Music Scout

MAGNUS KARLSSON’S FREE FALL – “I Am Coming For You”

“I Am Coming For You” is bright and energetic, with deft technique, a driving rhythm and great harmony.  Aside from the top notch musicianship, Magnus Karlsson does a great job on lead vocals.  This is notable, considering the vocal star power featured on the Kingdom of Rock album: Jorn Lande, Tony Martin, Joe Lynn Turner, David Readman & Tony Harnell.

 

SIGNUM REGIS – “My Guide In The Night”

Slovakia’s Signum Regis breaks out quickly on “My Guide In The Night” and keeps up the hard-driving pace throughout the track.  First-rate music and vocal talent outshine the rather routine lyrics, which are standard, inspirational, Christian Metal-themed.
 

 

SUBMISSIONS

To be considered for Music Discovery Monday, please e-mail a link to the song being submitted on YouTube and an artist bio to – submissions@MusicDiscoveryMonday.com

 

 

HARD ROCK MUSIC TIME MACHINE

 ADAM WALDMAN

FASTWAY – “Say What You Will” (1983)
Back in 1983, when Fastway was making its debut, arena shows were commonplace in hard rock and heavy metal.  The band, which was started by Fast Eddie Clark (Motorhead) and Pete Way (UFO), landed the opening slot on Iron Maiden’s Piece Of Mind tour.  Due to contract issues, Way never performed with the band (though it is partially named after him).  Even without one of their founders, Fastway was a force to be reckoned with, and their live show was something to behold.  They are one of the few bands that I discovered as an arena opener and then went on to purchase the album.  While many arena openers aren’t really given a chance to shine, Fastway played their entire album in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the Nassau Coliseum (no easy task considering that the crowd was there for the headliner).  Through the years, Fastway has gone through numerous lineup changes, and have never really reached the level that was expected when they made their debut.  “Say What You Will” – a kick-ass single, with an incredible riff and impressive vocals – helped launch the band back in 1983.

 

RUSH – “Afterimage” (1984)

Whereas Fastway played their entire album as the opener for Iron Maiden, Rush played nearly the entire Grace Under Pressure album in the same arena the following year.  The one song from the album that was left out of the set – “Afterimage.”  With a catalog as expansive as Rush’s, every fan is likely to be a bit disappointed at not hearing one of their favorite songs at any given show.  It’s doubtful that many were as disappointed as I was that they didn’t play yet another new song, but “Afterimage” was (and still is) my favorite song off of their 1984 release.  The heavy keyboards of that era of Rush were featured on the song, but beyond the keys lies a driving rhythm and edgy guitars with a cool vibe.

 

 

 

JON LOVELESS

PAPA ROACH – “Not That Beautiful” (2012)

From their 2012 album, The Connection, “Not That Beautiful” could have provided a fifth hit single easily enough.  This is a good example of the evolution in sound that the band managed on the album.  It is also a good example of what we try to do with the Hard Rock Music Time Machine segment – bring attention to tracks that weren’t necessarily radio hits, but are still worth a listen (especially for fans of an artist’s better-known work).

 

BURN HALO – “Dirty Little Girl” (2009)

With the recent release of this California band’s third album (Wolves Of War), it seems like a good time to revisit where they began.  Formed after the breakup of vocalist James Hart’s previous band, Burn Halo’s debut album was recorded with studio musicians prior to forming a final touring lineup.  They then suffered from all-too-familiar record label drama before finally hitting the street.  What finally emerged was a competent and competitive record that stood up well next to a lot of their contemporaries.

 

 

 

  ROB DELL’AQUILA

SOLNA – “Blinded By The Rain” (2009)

Solna was the project of drummer/songwriter Zane Petersen that drew many fine musicians from the European metal scene.  On “Blinded By The Rain,” the vocals are handled stunningly by Pamela Moore, better known in these parts as Suite Sister Mary of Operation: Mindcrime fame.

 

JAVELIN – “Healing” (2013)

This German power/progressive metal band has been on the scene since the early ‘80s, but released their first full-length album just two years ago.  Slow and profound, but not quite a ballad, “Healing” was one of the album’s highlights.

 

 

 

 CHRIS HERZEGOVITCH

RACER X – “Mad At The World” (2000)

Paul Gilbert’s mastery on the guitar leads the way for Racer X on “Mad at the World.”  This is a great track off of their Superheroes album from back in 2000.  It features the same chord progressions that he used on Mr. Big’s “My Kinda Woman” in 1991. Jeff Martin’s vocals (no relation to Mr. Big’s Eric Martin) are excellent.

 

MEAN STREAK – “Into The Night” (2013)

Here’s some great power metal from the not-too-distant past by Sweden’s Mean Streak.  “Into the Night” is a hard-driving, inspirational track about making a comeback from adversity.  Clean and tightly executed with a notable vocals from Andy La Guerin and guitar work from David Andersson.