Perennial formed in 2015 in Connecticut by Chad Jewett (electric guitar and vocals), Chelsey Hahn (electric organ and vocals), and Ceej Wolf (drums).
On their brand new song, released today, the band says: “What’s New On The Beat Scene” was really fun because we went in with this very sharp Booker T. & The MGs / Rubber Soul groove and this big hooky chorus and then just started adding and subtracting to see what might fit. We wanted a tight, swinging pop song, but we also wanted to see how psychedelic we could make it — fuzz bass, mellotron, Vox organ through a wah pedal: you name it.
The song is pure fun, with a quirky arrangement, lively pace, infectious energy, and the perfect production for its genre. I love the rhythm section and the overall mood: fast, energetic, and straight to the point. “What’s New On The Beat Scene” is a very cool track worth checking out; hit play on the Spotify player below and follow Perennial if you enjoy it.
In wake of upcoming full-length release Toxic Noxious Undeath, set to hit the streets August 13 on Xtreem Music, death metal unit Megascavenger now stream the second single in advance titled “Shallow Grave Overflow”. Read more…
After seven years of existence, German formation Hexenbrett has decided to disband. In this period, the band released two full-lengths (2020 and 2024) and two EPs (2019 and 2021). Read more…
Hi and welcome to this interview. Tell us about your latest release, Lisergicana.
– Hello everybody! Lisergicana is our first EP, it was born from the desire to make noise with only bass and drums. We would like to join our words to a very heavy sound and pressing rhythms. There are 5 fast songs that don’t wash over you but they shake the listener inside.
How would you describe your sound?
– A raw sound composed by a simple drum and a fuzz bass, all united by the voice which does exactly what you don’t expect.
What do you write about?
– In our Ep we talk about every single human feeling, from anger to pain, going through torment and ending with carefreeness.
What do you listen to when you are home?
– The real question is what you don’t listen! If you share some time with us you may listen to Grace, Du hast, Go with the flow, Breed or Bloody Mary in less than half an hour!
Your favourite live performance so far?
– The most beautiful live was playing only one song for a charity event which included different performances. Before us there was a child singing his favourite song and after us a quartet playing ’60s music. Very different performances united for something good was very inspiring.
Tell us a funny story that happened in studio or on stage
– During our last live the bass was connected through bypass for a mistake, the result? Half set list without distortion, so panic, breathe, connect all in the right way and then start over again. Memorandum for the future: check everything twice before start.
Your favourite albums?
– Samanta: Is very difficult chose only one album overall: at this time “Trust” of Never Obey Again is my soundtrack.
– Gabriel: One Dimensional Man – You kill me.
A musician you would like to meet for a beer?
– Gabriel: I think Paul McCartney has a lot of xxxxxxx to tell!
– Samanta: Surely Dave Grohl.
What would you ask for backstage, if you were the most important band on earth?
-Gabriel: I’d like a giant screen to watch “Fight Club” and end our concert like the last scene. Samanta: maybe a big party or maybe a chill night with a horror movie.
What are your plans for the near future?
– We hope we’ll be very soon at the recording studio for our next EP to share our music with as many people as possible!
Texas-based Polyphia have recently unveiled a full touring plan across North America as well as Europe for the second half of this year. Confirmed dates, venues and support acts can be viewed via flyer below. Read more…
The award-winning singer-songwriter Connor Selby has announced a UK tour for September, which will begin on 2nd September in Nottingham (Peggy’s Skylight) and call through Glasgow (Hug and Pint), York (Rise), Worthing (The Factory), Sittingbourne (Swale Assembly), Milton Keynes (Stables 2), Buxton (Pavilion Arts), Barnoldswick (Music and Arts), Birkenhead (Future Yard), Barnard Castle (The Witham), […]
In 1990, Savatage were at the peak of their powers. What some still call the definitive line-up of the band was making what are now considered their classic albums, and touring the hell out of them. And this is the time (Sava-pun intended) when this live album was recorded, in Hollywood, on their Rulin’ Gutter tour, meant to celebrate their then-new record, Gutter Ballet.
The band, led by brothers Jon and the late Criss Oliva, on lead vocals/keyboards and lead guitar respectively, were joined by latest recruit Chris Caffery on guitar, Johnny Lee Middleton on bass, and Steve ‘Doc’ Wacholz on drums.
They were making, as the press release rightly notes, evolution over limitation. Their native Florida was the home turf for Death Metal at the time, but Savatage were writing anthemic Power/Heavy Metal, with lots of piano and classical influences.
It is what has made them such a special band to this day.
Savatage – Madness Reigns From The Gutter (1990). Photo: Frank White
Because, in case you have been living under a rock, Savatage have been back for a couple of years now, with a different line-up, but just as incredible. Check out the review of their London show last year as evidence.
They are also playing all over Europe this summer, and there might even be new music on the cards.
But back to the matter at hand. Despite being recorded in 1990 for a radio broadcast, this album has never seen the light of day until now. And, having given it quite a few listens, I can only say that it is a shame it has taken this long.
This is a phenomenal time capsule of a band firing on all cylinders, coming out on 26 June as both a double CD and triple LP, plus streaming, so you can enjoy it however you prefer to listen to your music.
What you get is an amazing-sounding recording of a full gig, billed as the first-ever Savatage live album, according to what Jon Oliva announces at the start. The band relentlessly go through tracks from their albums to that date, with a generous helping from Hall Of The Mountain King, as well as Gutter Ballet (half of each played).
Of course, all the important tracks from Sirens, The Dungeons Are Calling, and Power Of The Night are also present.
Savatage – Madness Reigns From The Gutter (1990) – Out 26 June 2026 via earMusic
This is a collection so good that it is difficult to even find favourites. It is one of those recordings that work perfectly when played in their entirety, as it simply flows, taking you along for the story of that night.
Madness Reigns From The Gutter is testimony to how phenomenal a guitar player Criss Oliva, unfairly taken away a few years after this, was.
And despite Chris Caffery having joined before the tour and not having played on the Gutter Ballet record, their collaboration here is simply seamless. That dual Savatage guitar attack and Criss Oliva’s leads are simply something to behold.
Tracks like the phenomenal 24 Hrs. show that to the fullest, not that the rest does not. Everything is sitting on that booming groove of the rhythm section of Middleton and Wacholz.
It is phenomenal stuff throughout, with catchier moments like Strange Wings (in the set last year as well), interspersed with more emotional moments, like the beautiful piano-led When The Crowds Are Gone, with its intro Temptation Revelation.
This is one of the most phenomenal vocal performances on the album, despite the strong competition from pretty much all the other tracks. Jon Oliva has that raw brutality and melody that only he is capable of. It is also a definitive Criss Oliva guitar moment.
What is even better is that this is no radio recording thrown onto a CD to make a buck. This is a recording that is carefully restored. It sounds impeccable and can stand up to anything released today.
Most of what is on Madness Reigns From The Gutter comes to prove what a band this iteration of Savatage has been and why this should not be absent from your collection.
Following the triumphant release of their critically acclaimed album ‘Wilderness of Mirrors‘, Tunisian‑French progressive metal visionaries Myrath continue their extraordinary journey with the release of a powerful new post‑album single: ‘Through The Seasons‘, accompanied by an official video capturing the band’s electrifying first leg of their European tour. Since its release, ‘Wilderness of Mirrors‘ has […]
