Playlist: The Very Best of Prong CD

Playlist: The Very Best of Prong CD music Black Country Communion's self-titled debut met with so much critical and, in some markets, even commercial success that the multi-talented super-quartet wasted little time -- an almost worrisomely short amount of time, in fact -- before getting to work on this sophomore follow-up. But, thankfully, striking while the iron was hot did not equate with going through the motions on 2011's unassumingly named 2; nor, for that matter, did it entail the sort of battle between mega-egos that is so common to these superstar arrangements. Rather, while the smart money had BCC pegged as vocalist/bassist Glenn Hughes' ship to captain, BCC2 actually sounds like the baby of drummer Jason Bonham, of all people, because so many of its songs show no qualms about getting the "Led" out, if you catch the meaning. This modus operandi quickly becomes self-evident in Derek Sherinian's "Kashmir"-like keyboard orchestrations for "Man in the Middle" and "Save Me," guitarist Joe Bonamassa's Jimmy Page-inspired power riffs and knotty licks for "Smokestack Woman" and "I Can See Your Spirit," not to mention the all-purpose "Battle of Evermore" rewrite on steroids that is "The Battle for Hadrian's Wall." Far from descending into a pale imitation like, say, a Kingdom Come or late-'80s Whitesnake, however, BCC's offerings rise above and fly true thanks to the unimpeachable pedigree and recognizable musical personalities of all involved here. It's also highly entertaining to hear Hughes -- he of Deep Purple MKIII and sporadic collaborations with Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi -- getting all cozy with the third and final cornerstone of the legendary British heavy metal axis. And of course there's much more to BCC2 than pundit-sanctioned Zep worship. Urgent opener "The Outsider" delivers heavy rock so pure that its ingredients are already etched in the public domain by now; "An Ordinary Son" blends Bonamassa's blues, Hughes' soul, and Sherinian's churchy Hammond organ into a heavenly gospel rocker; and the slow-burning epic "Little Secret" (plus, to a lesser degree, the distinctly somber "Cold") stretches the expressive breadth of Hughes' voice and Bonamassa's six-string to both their most subtle and bombastic extremes, resulting in an exquisite display of pent-up tension and grateful release. As a result, BCC2 arguably tops its worthy predecessor as a balanced song set while, admittedly, lacking any singles as striking as BCC1's "One Last Soul" or even "Black Country," none of which should bother the last living album consumers out there, who obviously make up the vast majority of the band's constituents. And here's hoping Black Country Communion can keep the ball rolling into album number three.... ~ Eduardo Rivadavia Liner Note Authors: Glenn Hughes ; Kevin Shirley. Recording information: East West Studios, Hollywood, CA. Photographer: Christie Goodwin. Personnel: Joe Bonamassa (vocals, guitar); Glenn Hughes (vocals, bass guitar); Derek Sherinian (keyboards); Jason Bonham (drums). Audio Mixer: Kevin Shirley.

Playlist: The Very Best of Prong buy CD music For much of the 2000s, a revitalized Saxon catered to accepting European power metal audiences with a traditionally rooted but thoroughly modern-sounding heavy metal production; but there's something different about the veteran band's first effort of the 2010s and 19th studio album overall, 2011's Call to Arms. Simply put, it appears that the members of Saxon have intentionally revised their recent recording habits and largely stripped down their sound; perhaps doing without an extra guitar track or four which would have beefed up the mix, and scaling down the remaining instrumentation accordingly, including Biff Byford's surprisingly in-your-face vocals. As a result, the songs (with an exception or two) hark to the band's seminal New Wave of British Heavy Metal years: they are refreshingly raw and direct ("Surviving Against the Odds," "Chasing the Bullet," "Ballad of the Working Man"), recklessly urgent in a proto- but not post-thrash kind of way ("Hammer of the Gods," "Afterburner"), and, yes, even a little corny at times ("Back in `79"), but all of it qualifies as compelling vintage nostalgia, nonetheless. Even the more sophisticated exceptions hinted at earlier, such as the synth-laden title track (Rainbow and Deep Purple legend Don Airey guests) and dramatic mid-paced offerings like "Mists of Avalon" and the "Kashmir"-quoting "When Doomsday Comes" stubbornly retain their `80s hallmarks, feel, and spirit, never advancing beyond 1985's divisive Innocence Is No Excuse album in Saxon's evolutionary arc. To be clear, though, overall, the album's closest aesthetic cousin would have to be 1981's Denim & Leather. And perhaps it's in a bid to drive this point home that deluxe editions of Call to Arms feature a bonus disc containing the band's 1980 performance at the Donington Monsters of Rock Festival, which leaves little doubt of Saxon's deliberate back-to-basics strategy on this release (see also the distressed cover art for evidence). As such, it's a strategy that the band's longest-serving faithful will likely embrace, though perhaps not their new millennium converts, but you can't ever please everyone now, can you? ~ Eduardo Rivadavia 2011 studio album (their 19th) from longtime running UK rock band. 11 tracks Lyricist: Biff Byford. Personnel: Biff Byford (vocals); Doug Scarratt, Paul Quinn (guitar); Nigel Glockler (drums). Audio Mixer: Mike Plotnikoff. Recording information: Brighton Electric, Brighton; Chapel Studios, South Thoresby Lincs; Rainbow Recorders, Cambs. Photographer: Kai Swillus.