Mick Birchall Reviews

M: Your new album, Total Obscurity , is out on Friday, 7th November, and I've been listening to it pretty much all week. Could you describe what lessons you took from your previous album, Darkness In My Home , when going into this new record? J: I think we stopped thinking in the box. Like, we wanted to defy expectations. We did away with the mentality that “it needs to have a specific structure, or maybe this is too simple, or maybe that's too complicated”. So, we kinda dropped all of that, and we just went in with what we wanted to play and what felt right at the time. You'll see that most of the songs are not that long, like previous albums. We just wanted to play the songs naturally, and after we felt that it was ready and we liked it, we just stopped. We didn't have to put extra effort to make it more interesting or whatever, you know. It just felt right. M: Would you say that it was like restricting yourself that made this a bit more of an open record? J: Yeah, it...

Still Dusk have been gaining a lot of traction lately as they burn up the Greek underground rock scene. After COVID, the band have been pushing forward with full steam. Following their debut EP, Graden , they've been hard at work on the full debut album. With the release of the single "Insidious" and their album, Chronicles of Dystopia , set to release in June, I had the opportunity to ask their bassist and vocalist, Konstantinos Stavrou , some questions to gain insight into the workings of one of Greece's fastest-rising stars. What are some of the lessons you took from working your EP, Garden, that you’re taking into the album Chronicles of Dystopia? -Well, this time we were well prepared. We spent some time in preproduction, so we could see if any ideas didn't sound well and fix everything before hitting the studio. There were also no distractions this time. Besides David Prudent, the owner of Made in Hell studio, there was only the person recording in the roo...

In March, I reviewed the debut album, Morus, from the Greek black metal band Euphrosyne. I found it to be a deeply emotional experience. I’ve been working my way through the Greek underground metal world, and I think Euphrosyne could be well on their way to becoming a mainstay fixture of the black metal world. Over the weekend, I got the opportunity to sit down and chat with Vocalist, Efi Eva and guitarist, Alex Despotidis, about the new album and the Greek metal world. This was a fun conversation as the pair talked about the connection with their fans, their influences and the hardships of being a band in 2025. Mick: So, yeah, the album, Morus, came out at the end of March. How have you felt like the fan reaction to the new album has been? Efi: Well, I think it's been great. Actually, it was more positive than we thought that it could be and we're very happy about that. Maybe the whole concept of the album isn't so cheerful, but I think the fans accepted that. Mick: Yeah,...

Ever since I first heard the incredible talent of Wille and The Bandits , I have been completely captivated by their music. I am particularly interested in their unique songwriting style and their remarkable ability to hold the audience’s attention throughout their performances. As they prepare for their massive headline tour and a short run of opening dates for Beth Hart , I had the opportunity to sit down with frontman and bands namesake, Wille Edwards . In this candid interview, we discuss their approach to live performances, their major musical influences, their fans, and Wille’s deep appreciation for music. Mick: You've got a pretty lengthy tour upcoming, so what's involved in your preparation for touring? Wille: Funny you should say that actually, because it's exactly what I've been doing running around. Just working out what guitars I'm going to take out, working the setlist. We always record our rehearsals, listen back to them and try and sculpt the set in a...

Björn Strid is an icon of the rock and metal world. His work in metal bands like Soilwork and Act Of Denial is incredible. However, he also fronts the AOR band, The Night Flight Orchestra . On the day of the release of their new album, Give Us The Moon , I sat down with Björn. We discussed this new record, the first album recorded and released since the passing of guitarist, David Andersson and the challenges in making a new record without him. He also tells stories that inspired songs for the new record and more. Mick: The new album, Give Us The Moon , is out today and I've already published my review . I think it's great. Could you tell us a bit about the production and the mentality going into this album? Björn: Yeah, I mean, a lot of things happened. We had to go through the grieving of the passing of our guitarist, David Andersson . So we needed time to grieve and then, you know, regroup and try to find the joy in the music again try to turn that into something empowerin...

This year has been incredibly eventful for the Italian heavy metal band  Virtual Symmetry . After countless miles travelled on tour and the much-anticipated release of their latest album, Veils of Illumination , they are now taking a well-deserved breather as 2024 draws to a close. I  had the pleasure of sitting down with the charismatic frontman, Marco Pastorino , who shared insights about the creative process behind the new record, the exhilarating yet challenging life experience on the road, and how he juggles his myriad of diverse projects while maintaining his passion for music. Okay, so you've been on the road with this new record, Veils of illumination . How do you feel the general audience response has been to the new songs? The feedback so far has been great. I mean, we just released the album a couple of weeks ago, but since the tour at the beginning of November the couple of tracks from the new album we have played have been received well. We’ve started to sell the ...

The stand-out band of this year for me has been a small independent southern-rock band from North Carolina called Old Heavy Hands . I found their album Small Fires and instantly fell in love with their sound and it’s been in my rotation a lot this year. Their distinct style drawn from many influences made for a fantastic listening experience. I went back and listened to their first two records and I loved them even more. I wanted to get to know them and take a look under the hood of one of my favourite records of 2024. ( read my full review here ) In this blog, I got to sit down with one half of the dual vocalists, Nate Hall , and talk to him about the new album, his influences, the band's origins and learning to find balance in a busy life. MB: So, this year we had the release of your third album Small Fires , which I completely fell in love with. So, what was the thought process going into this one after Mercy ? NH: Well, we had the time to just write and focus on the songs. So,...