All customer reviews by Graham R.
Posted on: 1 Jul 2015
Storming Single From Scotland's Blackest Brigands' Second Album.
This CD-EP has four tracks. "Leviathan" and "Wolves And Sea" are on their second album, "Black Sails At Midnight". Any fans of Alestorm's unique brand of "Pirate Metal" should get this EP for the two bonus tracks which are not available elsewhere. The first of these is "Wein Und Weiber" (loosely translated as "Wine & Wenches" -not "mead", which would be "met" in German), which does exactly what it says on the tin. Not being a German speaker, I couldn't tell you what they actually sing about but it's fairly predictable: "Drink the wine and kiss the wenches" (maybe later: "Drink the wenches and kiss the wine"!!!) The second bonus track is "Heavy Metal Pirates", which is apparently one of the earliest songs written by the band, from which they got the idea to follow the "pirate metal" groove, so this is their "pirate treasure map", if you will! All in all, this is a cracking little EP which EMP have at a good price too so, whether you want a taster of Alestorm before taking the plunge (walking the plank?) and buying a whole album, or you are already a fan and just want everything they have ever committed to plastic, this is a must-have. Avast, me hearties and buy this EP and we'll send you a dead man's chest full of ham! Or don't and we'll keelhaul you and your parrot! You decide. My vote: yes please!
Posted on: 19 Jun 2015
Metal Gods Still Flying
First of all, it's Judas Priest! Yeah!!! The Metal Gods!!!!! Secondly, it's the cover design from their classic second album -the one with "Victim Of Changes" and "Ripper" on it! As if that wasn't enough, they've tweaked the design to make it even cooler. The band's logo (which is the first logo, used only for this album and for its follow-up, "Sin After Sin", not the one we all know so well, which was only used for the first time on "Stained Class") has been made much bigger. The rest of the design (the "falling angel" which represents man and his destiny to fall from grace) has been bleached out and the whole picture has been made to look "distressed" to give the t-shirt a "vintage" feel. This sort of thing doesn't always work (like when you see someone wearing a t-shirt saying that they were at a Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin or Rolling Stones gig that took place before they were born!) but, in this case, it just suits the whole feel of the artwork and the album so well. So full marks to Rob Halford and the boys for this classy little number and full marks to EMP for getting it to me in time for the Priest's show on 1st July in Bucharest! I shall have the coolest t-shirt at the gig for sure and it's no pose 'cos I've had and loved this album (on vinyl, of course) since I was 12 years old.
Posted on: 18 Jun 2015
Positively Digging the Grave Digger!
This is an excellent official Grave Digger t-shirt with a top quality print front and back on a top quality t-shirt. I bought this t-shirt recently for my wife and she's very happy with it. It has a standard size print front and back, the front in full colour, the back in a ghastly green. We positively dig Grave Digger in my house and we dig this groovy t-shirt too!
Posted on: 11 May 2015
Join The Backstage Club? It's A No-Brainer!
I've waited over a year before writing this review, during which time, Backstage Club membership has saved me many times what it cost me. Let's be honest here: we're all 'net-savvy shoppers who calculate shipping costs when we're shopping around, so getting free shipping is the main advantage to Backstage Club membership. It's also worth noting that you can order as many times as you like, so instead of waiting until you've chosen a few items to spread the postage costs, you can just go ahead and order a single item if you wish -this means that you don't have to worry about something selling out or the promotion ending before you fill your basket. Some of the free items aren't bad either: we've had some ace compilation CD's of tracks from new and upcoming releases, which is a pretty good taster before you buy (these CD's are only otherwise available with the German magazine), loads of cute button badges with the EMP "horns ablaze" logo and some very cool free t-shirts with exclusive designs(particularly the Christmas ones with a skull in a Santa hat). The exclusive competitions have some absolutely awesome prizes: autographed guitars, trips to festivals, trunks full of albums and merch and even the chance to drive a tank and crush a car (yes, really!) OK, so I haven't won anything yet but I'll keep hoping... The exclusive discounts generally get you an extra 10-15% off selected items (which means that with these discounts alone, you can recoup the cost of your membership over a year pretty easily). I'm not going to any of the festivals where they have special "Backstage Club" areas this year so I can't comment on that particular perk but it seems like a good idea and I hope EMP will go on adding things like that as they get them arranged (some "meet'n'greet" arrangements with bands would always be appreciated). Finally, the welcome package of tin, key-ring, lanyard and wristband is kind of neat too, especially if you are getting someone else a membership as a gift (my missus immediately claimed it as her own). The tin is big enough for quite a lot of tobacco, papers, etc. for smokers, or lots of plectrums, strings, etc. for guitarists, you decide. I use my tin for my collection of guitar plectrums from gigs (so far, I've got 4 from Lemmy, various from Skalmold, Enslaved, Sabaton, Egypt and Wartime and -trophy of trophies- one from Tony Iommi!) So, if you are a regular EMP shopper, joining the Backstage Club is a real no-brainer!
Posted on: 11 May 2015
A Beautiful Token Of Love
I bought this as a Christmas present for my better half and she loves it. This is an officially licensed product (as you would expect from EMP) and therefore of good quality manufacture. The chain and the gift box are nice inclusions too. Beware the cheaper, unlicensed imitations elsewhere on the internet -they are mainly of inferior quality. All in all, this is pretty good value for an official and well made piece and it makes a beautiful gift item for that special someone.
Posted on: 8 May 2015
All The Best From Saxon In One Bargain-Priced Box
Six classic studio albums from Barnsley's finest, from 1979's eponymous debut up until "Crusader" in 1984, plus the live album "The Eagle Has Landed" (and they took that literally back then, with a rather plump silver metallic eagle lighting rig descending from the ceiling). As if that isn't enough, there's a host of b-sides, remixes and live recordings shoehorned into the mix. All this is packed onto four discs which comes with a booklet with various interviews with band members about the highs and lows of their early 80's glory years, pictures and recording details. For how much you get, the price is a bargain and Backstage Club members get free shipping too!
Posted on: 6 May 2015
Not Got Money To Burn? Get Karma To Burn!
This cute little package is a fantastic deal. There's an awful lot of bang-for-your-very-little-buck here: over three hours of live footage plus two studio tracks (audio only) that were new at the time of its release and the promo video clip for one of those tracks. Some of the tracks are repeated -inevitably as there's footage here shot at several different live shows and from both their 2009 reunion tour and their early years (1997-99). Also, some of the earlier recordings have pretty ropey sound and image -but then they are included as bonus footage and the release is upfront about them being fan-filmed "bootlegs" so there's nothing to complain about. I came to this DVD as pretty much knowing nothing about Karma To Burn, attracted by their name, the cover art and (best of all) the absolute bargain bucket nature of EMP's price for this little beauty. I am now a fully-formed convert to Karma To Burn's unique brand of (largely) instrumental riff mongery and find it hypnotic, cathartic and just downright groovy. This is rock music stripped to its bare bones of the unholy trinity of guitar, bass and drums, riff and rhythm, melody and mesmerism, with no solos, no vocals, no lyrics, no fancy pants imagery and no compromise. From these basic blocks of sound, Karma To Burn construct towering and awe-inspiring edifices of rock power and transport the listener to a pure, primeval place of inner peace through joyful dance. Live is clearly their best medium and this DVD showcases their considerable talent to the full and does a pretty good job of capturing some of the atmosphere of the shows too. Best of all, did I mention how ridiculously cheap the lovely people at EMP are selling it for? Jump in at the deep end -I did and I'm loving every minute of it!
Posted on: 2 Apr 2015
Slightly Unplugged & Stringing Us Along?
I love Saxon and have done since I was a kid; "Wheels Of Steel" was one of the first albums I ever bought and, for me anyway, at least their first four albums remain classics from start to finish. This collection is interesting and is particularly recommended to someone who might not have all their material. Die hard fans who already have all their albums will probably be disappointed, however. Of the 14 tracks that make up this album, only four of them are "acoustic" and five of them are "orchestral" and none of them are new; the other five include one re-mix, two re-recorded songs and two left as they are. Frankly, these songs have the feel of "filler" and don't add anything to the album. As a concept, it's a good idea and I remember being excited when I heard about it coming out but really it's just a good compilation with a bit of a twist. In this limited edition 2-disc format, it comes in a triple gatefold digi-pack with a 16-page booklet. The booklet has 12 pages of pretty pictures, a double page centrespread of the band and two pages with the bare minimum of recording information and sponsors logos. It would have been nicer if it had had lyrics, information about the original releases and maybe some thoughts from the band on re-visiting old favourites. The bonus disc is the previously released live album, "Heavy Metal Thunder" -nice if you don't already have it, otherwise, no big deal. Yes, Saxon are great live but they have released too many live albums and DVD's over the years. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would have loved a whole disc of re-recorded acoustic versions and a whole disc of re-recorded symphonic versions -that really would have been something, particularly if they had included songs like "Judgement Day", "Suzy Hold On" and "Princess Of The Night". I could go on -Saxon are a band who have always had songs of such emotion or epic scope that so many of their classics would lend themselves wonderfully to either acoustic or orchestral interpretations (in many cases, both would work!) So, much as I would love to give this release five stars because it's still an excellent compilation from a fantastic band (plus EMP are currently offering the 2-disc set at an absolute bargain price!) I'm going to deduct one star because it's nowhere near as good as it could have been. Still, at this price, it was irresistible so thank you, EMP, as ever.
Posted on: 23 Mar 2015
Their Best Yet? Definitely! Truly Super Awesome Exclusive T-Shirt Too!
This is quite possibly Ensiferum's best album yet. No doubt there will be some who prefer their earlier material and bemoan the changes in their sound occasioned by changes in their line-up. This is ancient history now so not worth discussing here. Others may not like this album for the very reasons that I love it: its maturity, diversity, adventurousness and occasional humour. OK, maybe they've lost some of their rawness but I personally think that this is the album they have been striving towards for years. Everyone will have different opinions, different favourites, etc. In the meantime, EMP have again brought us an incredible package deal. For one great price, we get "One Man Army" in the limited edition 2-CD digi-book format AND a gobsmackingly awesome t-shirt / girlie with an exclusive design. The "digi-book" has an outsized digi-pack in the form of a hardback book containing both CD's and a 20 page booklet with lyrics, credits, photos and some amazing artwork. The bonus CD contains four extra tracks, including a blistering version of "Rawhide" and the hilarious "Bonus Song" (yes, it's actually called that!) The t-shirt or girlie (available as either) has the Ensiferum logo in white above a silhouette of a raven with wings outstretched. It's an absolute corker and only available to who buys this exclusive package through EMP. The price is pretty sweet too. I took advantage of both a discount voucher and the free shipping available to me as a Backstage Club member to get them even cheaper. We are now enjoying the album and the bonus tracks, looking forward to seeing the band at a festival this summer and my girlfriend totally loves her really cool t-shirt. Once again, EMP have come up with another exclusive design and this time it's part of a fantastic package deal too. What are you waiting for? Get them before they're gone!
Posted on: 20 Mar 2015
Another Fantastic EMP Exclusive!
Available as either a regular t-shirt or a "girlie" fit t-shirt, this awesome design is exclusive to EMP. Beneath the iconic Ensiferum logo is a screaming undead skull on top of crossed swords. Of course! Be the first on your block to scare little kids and old ladies with this cool t-shirt. Better still, join the Backstage Club and get it even cheaper plus free shipping. How cool is that? (Answer: Very Cool!)