Bands That Defeat the Sophomore Slump

A few weeks ago, I was driving along in my car, and I was scrolling through my MP3 player (not an iPod, but rather a Creative Zen X-fi2, as I did not want to buy into the iPod marketing campaign), and I decided upon Hellacious Acres by Dangerous Toys...which was an awesome choice. Listening to this album got me thinking about how, in my opinion, Dangerous Toys totally overcame the "sophomore slump" that many bands suffer when they put out their second album. The theory is that most bands have years to craft the 10 - 14 songs that make up their first album, so they put forth their best possible effort on that album, and then the follow-up album (the "sophomore" album) is lackluster compared to the first, as it is rushed and the band just does not have the material. Hellacious Acres is just an amazing rock album, and I think is actually a better effort than the self-titled debut.

Unfortunately, Dangerous Toys never reached the level of popularity with any of their follow-up albums than they did with their debut, so the tragedy is that many fans of the first album are probably not aware of how great the second album was. So this got me thinking of how many great sophomore albums are out there that I am not aware of. Two more that I can think of, off the top of my head, are Sixes, Sevens & Nines by Junkyard and Freakshow by the BulletBoys.

So what else is out there that I may be missing? What overlooked sophomore albums are out there that actually blow away the debut album, but never got the recognition they deserve? I have a long drive back and forth to work, so any new suggestions are definitely appreciated!

Mike Portnoy Leaves Dream Theater

Have you heard? Mike Portnoy quit Dream Theater! I have to admit being stunned by this one. The drummer released the statement last night:

"I am about to write something I never imagined I'd ever write.

After 25 years, I have decided to leave Dream Theater... the band I founded, led and truly loved for a quarter of a century.

To many people this will come as a complete shock, and will also likely be misunderstood by some, but please believe me that it is not a hasty decision...it is something I have struggled with for the last year or so...

After having had such amazing experiences playing with HAIL!, Transatlantic and Avenged Sevenfold this past year, I have sadly come to the conclusion that I have recently had more fun and better personal relations with these other projects than I have for a while now in Dream Theater."

I could tell Portnoy was having a great time drumming for A7X at the Columbus stop of the Uproar Festival...but good night! I wonder if this means an A7X announcement is forthcoming? After all, Avenged Sevenfold continually thanked Mike Portnoy for his help on the new album Nightmare and for drumming with them live...but he was never billed as an official member of the band. Methinks that is about to change. So, Dream Theater fans, what do you think about all this? I bet you're shocked like me.

So You're Metal. Now What?

If you're reading this website, you like metal. Actually, you probably love it and consider yourself a metalhead. Not a closet metalhead, either. The kind of metalhead that wears the distinction proudly. All your family and friends know that they can give you a Motley Crue T-shirt for your birthday and you'll be happy. Great.

Now what?

How much does metal define you and your life? Recently I realized that maybe metal - the 80s variety of course - was all anyone really knew about me. No, I don't mean like my parents or my husband. They know what really defines me - where I came from and where I'm going.

I wonder if we - as "super fans" - use our music as a shield.

I'm not a shy person, but I'm quiet. I don't easily interject myself into conversations and I don't just walk up to musicians and start talking. I leave that to other people. Still, when I'm in a social situation - and it usually revolves around music - having this website to mention doesn't hurt. But what are we missing?

I wonder if my friends - the people I consider some of my best friends - really know anything about me? Oh sure, Heather knows just about everything about me. But we worked together. We saw or talked to each other every day of the year for over three years in a row. When we weren't at work we were either at a show or shopping. That was life. But the rest? I don't know anymore.

I started a new job at the end of May. I love this job, by the way. But anyway, I was immediately defined as the young rocker. I mean, I didn't do anything to deter this definition - I suppose it fits - but sometimes I feel like I've lost my real identity. Maybe I'm having a pre-mid life crisis or something. The other day, one of my coworkers was talking about Shakespeare. Everyone was stunned when I threw out some facts and it was as if no one believed that Shakespeare was my focus of study when I was an undergrad. I mean, it's not like you can get a degree in Glam metal. Of course, if you could...I guess I could teach a course on it or something. That might be kind of cool. I digress.

Ever feel unfairly defined as a metal fan? Then again, you can't be who you're not. Respect, walk and all that I guess.

How Did You Do?

With Labor Day behind us, festival season is basically over in America. This sort of means concert season is over, too -- not that I don't attend shows in the winter -- it's just that there are less tours to enjoy.

So how did you do? Did you attend a lot of fun shows this summer or did you skip because of insanely high ticket prices? I had a very productive concert season and that's probably why I'm so bummed right now. I get depressed when the cold weather hits Ohio, anyway. That hasn't happened yet, but I know the snow is just around the corner. In the summer, I always have a show planned. In the winter, not so much.

Before the snow hits, I've got a couple concerts planned including Skid Row in Dayton and Nickelback in Kentucky (I even won free tickets!) Then of course I've got Shiprocked in November. Still, when I'm coming off something like seven festivals - I'm blue. I'm trying to shake the sads, but I'm having trouble doing that on this post-holiday back-at-work Tuesday.

What shows do you have coming up?

'I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)' and Other Hits

It's not all Metal in my world.

I'm thinking Hall & Oates might be the epitome of all things 80s rock and yet we never talk about them here. The songs are insanely catchy and the videos are hysterical. I just happened to hear "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" in a store over the weekend and I just had to watch the video.

The video is like a Saturday Night Live skit. While Hall & Oates are definitely pop rock, the very fact that they churned out videos like champs all through the 80s earns them a spot here on this website. Oh and my mom listened to "Private Eyes" nonstop when I was a kid, so I'm pretty sure Hall & Oates are in my DNA. Too bad I can't ever remember which one is Hall and which is Oates.

Enjoy your Labor Day, fellow Americans! While I continue to work on my house this long weekend, I'll be jamming to - you guessed it - Hall & Oates. Some of my favorites are below.

"I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)"

"Private Eyes"

"She's Gone"

Fact: this is one of the most played songs on my iPod. I have no idea why.

Did you know that Hanoi Rocks covered Hall & Oates? They did. Here's "Winged Bull"

Acey Slade and the Dark Party Announce Tour

I'm a big Acey Slade fan - you should be too! If you live in Europe, you can see him and his band The Dark Party our tour. Here's a release:

This month sees the long awaited return to European shores for ACEY SLADE & THE DARK PARTY. This will be the bands first full tour in support of their debut album The Dark Party which was released earlier this year on TrashPit Records to endless rave reviews all over the world and also sees the band on first time visits to Ireland, Germany and the Czech Republic.

The Reptile House Tour 2010 will give the band's hordes of fans the chance to hear new material in it's raw, live format and promises to build on last years successful live shows which won the band an award at the prestigious Pure Rawk Awards in London.

"The Dark Party album seems to be the perfect soundtrack for late night decadence" explains Acey, whose band mates include Andee (Guitar), Per C (Bass & Keyboards) and new drummer Matt Kepler. "Matt really is bringing the band together as players and people" reveals the front man.

With the promise of a totally new set list including songs from Acey's past, never before performed album tracks and even brand new material, The Reptile House Tour is something European Fans do not want to miss.

"The UK is ALWAYS the best, and playing Ireland for the first time only makes it better. I'm looking forward to seeing if Germany and The Czech Republic can keep up!"

Prior to their overseas trip the band have revealed they will be appearing at the Triton Festival in New York City on Sunday, September 5th and Acey has also contributed to the soon to be infamous new book 'Sex Tips From Rockstars' by Paul Miles which will be on sale at the live shows!

The Reptile House European Tour 2010

September 21st - The Fleece, Bristol
September 22nd - Joiners, Southampton
September 23rd - Purple Turtle, London
September 24th - Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes
September 25th - The Central, Nottingham *TRASHSTOCK Headliners*
September 26th - The Asylum, Birmingham
September 27th - Corporation, Sheffield
September 29th - Baker's Bar, Limerick
September 30th - Filthy McNastys, Belfast
October 1st - Stereo, York
October 2nd - New Gasworks, Bradford
October 3rd - Yardbirds, Grimsby
October 5th - The Sugarmill, Stoke
October 6th - Moho, Manchester
October 7th - K-17, Berlin
October 8th - Kaiserkeller/Grosse Freiheit 36, Hamburg
October 9th - TBA, Germany
October 10th - Matrix, Prague CZ

Click for more information.



I Guess Red Siren Were Rock...

Truth: I have no knowledge of the band Red Siren. I saw them pop up on YouTube and was curious. The song "All is Forgiven" is bad pop but the video is very traditional "glam" and the band has a Heavy Harmonies page, so...

Do you remember this band? I believe they were (are?) also known as Siren. The band's debut All is Forgiven came out on Mercury/Polygram around 1990. I just thought this was an odd find and wanted to pass along...you probably know more about Red Siren than me, so if that's the case, fill me in via the comments section.