In addition to sharing stories that I hope make you laugh, I also like to share my knowledge from over a decade of Record Store experience. As a manager, I knew customer service was king. It was easy for some stores to beat us on pricing. It was also a given that one or two stores had better stock. Because of location and client base, some stores simply got in cooler used music. These are things you have limited control over. What you can control is your own customer service.
Rule #1: Ask everybody* (in a non-intrusive, non-annoying way) if they need help finding anything.
The reason for this is really simple. People are shy. They’re less likely to ask you for help than they are to leave if they can’t find what they are looking for. If you don’t scare the customer off by being overbearing, you have at bare minimum indicated that you are available for questions if they have any at any time. This invitation can make the difference between a sale and a not-sale.
I have had experiences when I approached people, and it immediately made a difference. I walked up to a guy and asked if he needed help, and he simply responded, “No, thank you.” Then, 30 seconds later, he had a question for me about a CD. A lot of people say “no” immediately as a knee-jerk reaction. Their shields are up and they don’t want to be “sold” anything. But now that they think about it, they can ask you that question about the CD in their hands.
Rule #2: Don’t double up!!
I was out shopping today. I went to two stores: Reebok, and ECS Coffee. I went to both stores having a good idea of what I was looking for. Customer service was pleasant at ECS, not pushy, but a little much for my taste. What I always tried to avoid doing was “doubling up” on a customer. That means, if Suzy asks the customer if they need help, then James should not ask the same customer 5 minutes later. I ran into this at ECS, but they were very pleasant and it was easy to forgive.
Reebok were more aggressive, and I was actually tripled up there, not including the greeter who informed us of their 40% off sale. Sales people were everywhere. At the record store, I really tried to avoid this. Usually we’d have two staff members on duty, so you could easily double up on customers. What I tried to do was co-ordinate it a little better. I’d communicate who I had spoken to. “The guy in the blue there? I’ve already asked him for help, but his buddy in the red I have not.” If I saw a staff member making their way to a customer I’d already asked, I’d try to get their attention before they asked again. I think it worked out pretty well. We reduced the doubling up factor pretty successfully.
Try these tips out in your own stores. Let me know how it works out for you!
* We were allowed to make exceptions in cases such asThe Lady in Red.
Yesterday we examined Judas Priest’s British Steel, the original album and first CD of this three disc set. Today we’ll look at the live stuff and packaging. If you missedyesterday’s installment, click here.
JUDAS PRIEST – British Steel (30th Anniversary Edition, 2010 Sony)
You could buy the British Steel 30th Anniversary Edition in several configurations:
A CD/DVD set with the album and a live DVD of British Steel played live in 2009,
A 2 CD/DVD set with the live 2009 concert duplicated on CD (minus one song),
iTunes download with all the music from both CDs plus the missing song (“Prophecy”).
The 2 CD/DVD edition is beautifully housed in digipack, with lots of photos in a nice booklet with essay. The photos are all from their recent tour; none are vintage, which disappointed me. I would have loved some fly-on-the-wall photos of them recording this album at Ringo Starr’s house, Tittenhurst Park. Maybe no such photos exist?
The second CD, only available in this edition, is packed to the brim. “Prophecy” wouldn’t have fit or the CD would have run over 80 minutes. Otherwise, it is a straight stereo mix of the same content on the DVD. With audio being my primary medium to enjoy, I obviously needed the version that came with the live CD. The iTunes bonus track was available for separate purchase, so that was easy to add to my files, once ripped.
The third disc of course is the DVD. Backed by a British Steel backdrop, Priest played the album in sequence remarkably well considering their ages! Only drummer Scott Travis wasn’t around for the original album, but he plays the drum parts pretty straight to the original, minus Dave Holland’s robotic coldness.
The main question people have when discussing Priest live is, “What was Halford’s voice like?” It is true that he is an older man today and has to restrain himself and change arrangements in order to sing the songs. This is no exception, but man, when he screams, he still has it! He just screams less, which makes sense. The vocal melodies of some songs have been re-arranged, which may or may not be to your taste. Surely, the vocal melody is such an important part of each song. Halford sings what sounds like harmony parts to the original melodies in order to sneak around certain high parts. It is what it is. And, as per many concerts, the audience sings some choruses on their own when it comes to the big hits.
I was pretty impressed with the live stuff after British Steel. This is surely one of the best live versions of “Victim of Changes”. Halford nails that angry end scream perfectly, I thought his head would explode. “Hell Patrol” was a nice touch. “Freewheel Burning” stumbles a bit. “Prophecy” was excellent, and I’m glad a Nostradamus track was included. Halford seems to relish spitting out the words. Satisfyingly, “Diamonds and Rust” is done in its electric version. An excellent surprise. The album ends, predictably, with Halford’s “audience participation” thing, and “Another Thing Coming” which I could probably do without at this point.
One thing I’m starting to notice, is that Priest are sort of nerdy live. From Rob’s audience participation thing (“Yeah, yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah YEAH yeah!”), to the stage moves, to Scott Travis’ weird drum stick thing on “United”, this is the concert equivalent of a Star Trek convention in some ways. But Priest have never been trendy, and they’ve always seemed oblivious to it. I guess that’s what makes them cool.
The DVD is rounded out by 30 minutes of interviews with Rob, KK, Glenn and Ian (no Scott). This is the kind of thing most people would probably only watch once, especially when the Classic Albums series already released a full DVD of the making of British Steel.
Now to the British Steel 30th Anniversary set as whole: As good a package as this is, I wish there was less emphasis on the “today” portion and more attention paid to the 30th anniversary of the original album. There is at least one unofficial full concert CD from the 1980 tour out there (live in Denver), released unofficially. Surely Priest could have included some vintage live recordings as well?.
4/5 stars. Despite my beefs, this is a great collection for your collection!
Part one of two. Today we’ll be looking at Judas Priest’s landmark album British Steel. Tomorrow, the second and third discs of the 30th Anniversary Edition: British Steel live!
JUDAS PRIEST – British Steel (30th Anniversary Edition, 2010 Sony)
Man, does this make me feel old. Back in my highschool days when I first got serious collecting music, British Steel was a must-have. It was considered the quintessential Priest platter, and even back then when it was only in the recent past, it still had all the makings of a classic. Then, on its 30th (!) anniversary in 2010, it was given the treatment it deserves, perhaps not the exact treatment we dreamed of, but it is certainly satisfying enough.
I’ve bought British Steel five times now. First was my original cassette back in highschool. Then I picked up a used vinyl, probably from a co-worker named Chris that was purging all his metal (for shame, but I got a lot of Priest from him). I bought the remastered CD (with bonus tracks) when it came out in 2001, then a 180 gram vinyl reissue a couple years ago. Let’s just say I’ll be really pissed off if Priest decide to do a 35th anniversary edition.
Disc one appears to be the same audio as the 2001 remaster. The credits are not clear, but that would be logical since the CD is identical down to the two included bonus tracks. These are a live version of “Grinder” from an unknown tour, and the completely unrelated “Red, White & Blue”. This song has no place on the album as it was written and recorded for the Turbo/Ram It Down sessions in the late 80’s. I’m not sure why it was retained for this 30th anniversary edition; it seems sloppy to leave it.
My original cassette edition of British Steel had a different track order. “Breaking the Law” commenced the set, so it is still shocking to me to hear British Steel open with “Rapid Fire”. Beginning with your heaviest guns can be a big gamble. “Rapid Fire” was borderline thrash metal, before that term had really been coined. The brutal lyrics are among Halford’s most enjoyable to listen to due to clever internal rhymes:
“Wielding the axe comes the one culmination That’s always seemed certain to bring down the curtain on greed Sifting the good from the bad it’s the age for the rage Of the dogs which must fall to the just and be free.”
Unfortunately “Rapid Fire” also introduces the big problem with British Steel and every Judas Priest album for the next decade: The robotic combination of producer Tom Allom and new drummer Dave Holland (ex-Trapeze). Where Priest had enjoyed the lyrical swing from great drummers such as Simon Phillips and Les Binks, they had chosen Holland to usher in the 1980’s. Coming from a funk rock band such as Trapeze, I’m still not sure how Priest arrived at Holland. His style is certainly not to my taste. While he is known for some simple but tasty fills from time to time, as far as I’m concerned a drum machine could have done the same job.
The second track is the classic “Metal Gods”, complete with the banging of silverware on Ringo Starr’s kitchen countertops to simulate the marching of a robot army. On a track like this, Holland’s robotic rhythm works perfectly. “Breaking the Law”, made immortal by Beavis and Butthead, is a song every metal fan should know. Though heavy, it was simpler and more accessible than much of the music Priest had recorded before.
Some of Priest’s worst lyrics can be found on “Grinder”. It’s too bad because “Grinder” has a cool relentless beat. But I just can’t sing along to “Grinder, looking for meat. Grinder, wants you to eat.” On the other hand, I do love lines like, “Got no use for routine, I shiver at the thought. Open skies are my scene, this boy won’t get caught.”
“United” is a cool slow anthem, marked by Dave Holland’s echoey drums. I always considered it a brother song to “Take On All the World” from Killing Machine. It has a similar vibe and direction. On the original LP, it appropriately closed side one.
Side two was introduced by “You Don’t Have To Be Old To Be Wise”. You gotta love that title. This is a pretty standard hard rocker, catchy and strong. It also fits with the more accessible direction of British Steel in general. Following it is the ultimate Priest single “Living After Midnight”. I still enjoy this song. I enjoyed it when I was a kid, and it was the theme song for the WWF tag team, the Mightnight Rockers (later The Rockers: Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty)! It’s one of those songs that everybody knows.
“The Rage” was estimated by bassist Ian Hill as one of only two bass intros he got to play. It’s a slow groove, angry musically and lyrically. The guitar solos absolutely complete this song as the classic that it is. From slow to fast, “Steeler” is next, the final song of the original nine. KK and Glen throw down some serious guitars on top of this scorcher. Lyrically, the title seems to be quite blunt as to what this song is about. Sounds like Priest are pissed off about being robbed, as so many bands were:
“Check for decoys, stay sharp edged, Double crossers get your head, Carpet baggers bluff and strike, Kiss of Judas, spider like.”
What a statement to end an album like British Steel on, as it crashes to a close on one final power chord.
…Only to be followed by “Red, White & Blue” which sounds absolutely silly and out of place by comparison. I don’t think it would have been a good song if it were included on Turbo or Ram It Down where it belonged, and it’s definitely not a good song on British Steel. I don’t know how to describe it but to say it’s definitely of outtake quality.
Then from Long Beach, California comes “Grinder” live. This is probably from 1984, Defenders of the Faith tour. It’s interesting to compare the live versions on discs one and two, since it’s so many years later. There is no question Rob’s voice has changed, but that’s stating the obvious.
Tomorrow we’ll look at the live portion of this 30th anniversary set. Be sure to come back then, or better yet subscribe! As for British Steel?
4/5 stars
1. “Rapid Fire”
2. “Metal Gods”
3. “Breaking the Law”
4. “Grinder”
5. “United”
6. “You Don’t Have to Be Old to Be Wise”
7. “Living After Midnight”
8. “The Rage”
9. “Steeler” 2001 bonus tracks
10. “Red, White & Blue”
11. “Grinder”
DEF LEPPARD – Songs From the Sparkle Lounge (2008 Deluxe edition, Japanese version)
Could it be? The band who I once wrote off with the Euphoria album, followed by the dismalX, actually came back with something approximating a rock album! And not a bad rock album at that!
The band say that doing the covers album Yeah! revitalized them. Maybe. Personally I thought the covers album sucked, and that the dozen or so bonus tracks available elsewhere were way better than the actual album they released. Whatever. That was then and this is now, inside the Sparkle Lounge.
Terrible title, although I liked the single-disc cover art quite a lot. We know Def Leppard are more of a glam band than a metal band. The problem is, they were such a great metal band! High ‘n’ Dry is a masterpiece of riff-rock. Anyway, if you can forget High ‘n’ Dry, On Through The Night, or even Pyromania, you can get into Sparkle Lounge for what it is: A strong ballad-free return for one of the most beloved rock acts of the last two decades. Even Joe Elliot decided to show up this time, and sing to the best of his ability.
Very few weak tracks, lots of strong ones. “Go”, “Love”, “Hallucinate”, “Tomorrow”, “Only The Good Die Young”, “Bad Actress”…there is some serious fire happening here on these tracks! But the band saved the best new song for last. “Gotta Let It Go” has a riff and melody that fit right in with Def Leppard’s earlier sound. Only the occassional drum programs betray the thunder.
One song that I would call a weak track is the single “C’Mon C’Mon”. In my review from the 12″ vinyl single, I called it a “crap song”. It’s a shameless T-Rex rip-off, and also a Def Leppard rip off. Next!
Japanese bonus tracks are disappointing in the sense that they are not different songs, just different mixes. “Nine Lives” appears without Tim McGraw (this is my preferred version as nu-country is like kryptonite to me and would probably kill me if I was overexposed). “Love” appears as a powerful piano version, in some ways superior to the original, but turning it into a ballad dilutes the purpose of this album.
I have no comments as to the SHM-CD. It sounded the same to me. I guess these things are supposed to last longer? The DVD includes the music video for “Nine Lives” (yuck), an album commentary and a “behind the scenes” feature. For me, the all-region NTSC DVD contents and the lacklustre packaging don’t really justify the existence of a “deluxe edition”.
So, whatever went right, this is the best Def Leppard album since the criminally underrated Slang in 1996. It could be the heaviest album since Pyromania. It’s far from perfect, but the good news is you can play it in the car with the windows down and nobody will laugh at you.
Perhaps the two most legendary customers in the entire history of the record store were Glen and Gord. With their long coifed locks and rocker hair, the Brothers wore their musical tastes on their sleeves. Rock! All rock, nothing but! It was hard to miss them, as the Brothers are both over six feet tall. Add the hair in and I lose track.
You could never miss them at a concert. I remember seeing Alice Cooper in 2006. I was in the second row. Before the show I turned around and saw the Brothers halfway across the theater. Besides their height and hair, one reason you’d never miss the Brothers at a concert is that they attended pretty much every one. If there was a decent rock band in town, the Brothers were there. You could count on it.
I believe it was T-Rev who first encountered Gord, in his store. Gord had spent some time in Europe, and was selling off some really rare rock CDs he got there. One such CD is still in my personal collection – the single for “Stand” by Poison, featuring a rare bonus track called “Whip Comes Down”. This being Poison with Richie Kotzen rather than the original band, this song is valuable to collectors. By the sounds of it, aspects of the song were used in “Stay Alive”, which did make it onto the album Native Tongue.
Seeing that the Brothers and I had similar taste in music, sometimes we clashed. For example, one of my customers sold me three W.A.S.P. remasters in beautiful digipacks, which I still have. Gord saw them on my “hold” pile and begged me for them; I refused to budge. He still remembers that to this day:
“Of course Mike…You were THE guy I went to go see when you worked at the [record store]. You knew your music and we would always have these lengthy discussions. It was cool…except when you cut me off because I forgot to pick up my orders I had on hold or had ordered in!”
Ahh yes. Cutting him off. I remember that. It wasn’t my call, personally, but I did have to enforce it. Gord had ordered in a bunch of discs, but hadn’t picked them in weeks. We allowed two weeks for pickups. One important thing to know is, I didn’t make any money off these special orders. When we ordered in a used CD for a customer from another location, that location was credited for the sale. For my sales margins, I had to send the discs back if they weren’t picked up. According to Gord:
“That was not nice, you jerk! But you finally reinstated the privilege. Its all good, I forgave you.”
I am glad I have his forgiveness! I’d hate to have a guy of Gord’s size hold a grudge!
I keep finding these old concert reviews that I forgot to post here! Enjoy this one from former HELIX guitarist Brent Doerner. This was written the day of the show. Photos from an old crap Motorola phone.
BRENT DOERNER’S DECIBEL – March 10 2007, Edelweiss Tavern, Kitchener ON
It was only an hour ago, but it is already a blur.
Just after 9:30 pm, Brent Doerner’s DECIBEL hit the stage at the Edelweiss with earthshaking volume. The three Gibsons of Shane Schedler, Ralph “Chick” Schumilas, and Brent himself were crystal clear and gelling beautifully. I can’t even remember what song they opened with, but it might have been “Taking The Colour Out Of The Blues”, one of the best tracks from their debut CD. This was only their second “real” show, and the new lineup (featuring bassist Hilliard Walter and Brent’s twin brother Brian Doerner, fresh off a Saga tour) sounded hot. Most importantly, the pressures of playing to a hometown crowd didn’t phase them at all, and they looked like they were having an awesome time.
Brent Doerner has evolved from Helix’s lead gunslinger to a frontman in his own right. I suppose if one is in a band for a decade and a half with a guy like Brian Vollmer, you’re bound to learn something about being a frontman. Yet Brent has his own style. He points to the crowd, he interacts with them, he slings his guitar to the side and sings to them. He hoists his guitar like a shotgun for emphasis, and does it all as if it’s second nature. The guy is a natural, no doubts there.
All the best tunes from the CD were played, in effective order, along with four new ones. And let me tell ya, folks, these weary heavy-metal eardrums of mine rarely hear a song as good as “Maybe Love”. The song has only been played twice, and they band are still working out the kinks, but could you tell? No, this song smoked, as more than one person in the audience noticed. As my fiancée noted on the way out, “that song was the single.” And yes, indeed, if Decibel were to suddenly press up a slab of 7” vinyl, that would be the song to put on the A-side.
Video for “Maybe Love”, after some lineup changes and a name switch to My Wicked Twin
The show was not without technical problems, but the band overcame with lots of comedy courtesy of Brian Doerner, and a wicked impromptu drum solo from the rock god. In the dark. He couldn’t have even seen what he was doing, but did that solo ever smoke. While some bands would view a blackout as a disaster, Decibel turned it into a rare chance to see a drum solo by one of Canada’s most underrated percussionists. And he made sure that lots of people got complimentary sticks, too, which was really cool.
One of the many highlights of the show was Shane Schedler’s vocal turn on “Never Turn Your Back”. Not to be outdone, however, Hills Walter kicked out the jams on his vocal “Dancin’ Frogs” featuring not a dancing frog, but a dancing blonde in a top hat, fishnets and Decibel panties. Sweet!
Such was the reaction from the crowd that Decibel were unexpectedly forced to retake the stage after they had already said goodnight. Having nothing else to play, they played “Taking The Colour” one more time, this time with even more excitement. The crowd ate it up, every last morsel, and left very very satisfied.
You simply must see the band live. If you care about rock and roll, if you care about local artists, then you must see this band live. If you don’t, you are the only one missing out.
Good show boys. See you next time, front row center.
I found this concert review on a hard drive and realized I had never posted it to mikeladano.com. OVERSIGHT!
This was a special experience. Read on.
video by John Hockley
HELIX – The Power Of Rock And Roll – CD Release Party Report – East Side Bar & Grill, London Ontario, 2007/08/19
Today Jen & I headed down to London to check out Helix playing, and to celebrate the release of their new CD, The Power of Rock and Roll, on EMI. We threw on some Helix for the drive down, and met John Hockley (Helix MySpace guru) and his family at noon. John has quite an impressive autograph collection, as anyone who’s got him added on Facebook can attest to.
Stocking up on coffee and Timbits, John and I trekked over to Brian and Linda Vollmer’s house to drop off some salad for their after-show BBQ and to say hello. It was my first time at their place and I was blown away by Brian’s cool collection of rock and roll stuff! My favourite thing of his was his prop from the fourth season of Trailer Park Boys, “Ricky’s Dope Map”. Very cool to see it up close and personal.
Brian was gracious enough to take a photo with me, and Linda told me how everyone loved my [now deleted] YouTube video “Why I Prefer Helix To Rush”. That was very cool; I told her that if I had known that anyone would actually watch it that I would have worked harder on it! Maybe next time….
From there, we headed over to the venue to see Helix play. Milled around the crowd, ran into Brent Doerner and said hello.
John introduced me to Randy, the merchandise guy, who had also seen my YouTube video. He sold me some rare Helix stuff, including the CD Never Trust Anyone Over 30 which I thought I would never be able to find! Then I got it signed by Rainer Wiechmann who played guitar and engineered a lot of the later Helix stuff on it. Rainer was cool, and thank you John for introducing me.
We found a table, and sat with a very nice couple, Diane and Mark from Kitchener. Wouldn’t you know it…Diane used to be Greg “Fritz” Hinz bookeeper, and asked him to come over and sign my CD for me! I told Fritz that my very first concert was Helix at the Center In The Square in 1987. […where he mooned the crowd.]
Then the band hit the stage. This was our second time seeing the current live lineup of Helix. [Brian Vollmer – lead vocals, Rik VanDyk – guitars, Jim Lawson – guitars, Paul Fonseca – bass, and Brent “Ned” Niemi – drums.] Nine months after seeing this version play for the first time, I think they were even tighter, and definitely heavier. I have never seen Helix play so fast and heavy before. Blew me away. Still played a couple of slower tunes as well, but even they had more energy.
The full and complete set list:
1. No Rest For The Wicked / Band intro and solos
2. Boomerang Lover
3. Get Up!
4. Wild In The Streets
5. Dirty Dog
6. Eat My Dust
7. Running Wild In The 21st Century
8. The Kids Are All Shakin’
9. Heavy Metal Love
10. Rick Van Dyk guitar solo / segue into Metallica’s Creeping Death riff
11. When The Hammer Falls
12. Deep Cuts The Knife
13. Good To The Last Drop
14. Baby Likes To Ride
15. Gimme Gimme Good Lovin’
16. The Power Of Rock And Roll
17. Animal House
18. Rock You
ENCORES
19. (Make Me Do) Anything You Want
20. Fill Your Head With Rock
Packed house, great show, the band played & sang great. Thanks Helix for an amazing afternoon!
What is with those rapper kids who have one pant leg rolled up?
The first time I ever saw this fashion statement, I was working the record store. I saw this kid with his left leg rolled up, he wasn’t riding a bike. He was in just on foot with his buddies. Goofy shoes, one pant leg rolled up, ass all but hanging out the back. Headphones on.
I was working with Matty K, who was a hip-hop fan.
“Look at this guy!” I said.
“Shh,” Matty shushed me. “That means he’s ganged up.”
“What?” I whispered? “In Kitchener? That’s stupid. What is he, the River Road Posse? Westside K-Town?”
Over the years I have heard different explanations. One leg up means you’re with one gang, the other leg means another gang. I’ve also heard it means you have drugs for sale. I’ve never happened across a definitive answer. All I know is that however stupid you may look, all you have to do is roll up one pant leg to max out at uber-stupid.
15 albums in, Anvil still perseveres. I was saddened by the sudden departure of former bassist Glenn Five (no relation to John 5). His song “This Ride” was a personal favourite on Juggernaut of Justice. Still, Anvil bounced back incredibly swiftly with Sal Italiano, adding an American member to the otherwise Canadian trio. The change is seamless; Sal Italiano is an apt replacement and has no trouble at all keeping up with Robb Reiner (drums).
If you’re an Anvil fan, Hope In Hell is more of what you have grown to expect. Solid riffs, incredible drumming, lots of heavy metal with a little bit of humour in the lyrics. The title track starts the album on a slower groove, but that’s only a warning shot. “Eat Your Words” storms the stage amidst machine gun drums and chugging riffage. This kind of song is Anvil at their best; just playing their faces off at top speed. Add in those tasty trademark Lips guitar solos and we’re off to the races.
Unfortunately, all this momentum comes to a screeching halt on track #3: “Through With You”. The main riff and drum part of the song is a direct rip off from “Smoke On the Water”. The really unfortunate part is that the rest of the song is great! I’m quite surprised it made the album, just because of its similarity to the Deep Purple classic. Lyrically, it might be a jab at Glenn Five. Who knows?
“The Fight Is Never Won” is much better, back with the thunderous artillery and smoking guitars. By the chorus, it mutates into something more like classic metal. “Pay the Toll” too is red-hot. Anvil excel at fast rockers, and Lips’ solos fit like a glove. For lyrical hilarity, check out “Flying”. This ode to touring has my favourite lyric in all Anvil history:
“Tel Aviv to Turkey then down through Greece, Back home to Canada to see our famous geese.”
As silly as that is, it actually exemplifies something I admire about Anvil: their earnest joy that they get to play heavy metal music for thousands of people. It is quite obvious that Anvil would not have carried on this long if they did not love what they do. It bleeds out of the music and lyrics.
The album continues, steadily rocking more excellent riffs. The songs are not all memorable, but all boast memorable parts. “Bad Ass Rock N Roll” for example has a cool chorus, but the song itself sounds much like the rest of the album. One issue that has always plagued Anvil is a certain sameness to their songs. However, much like AC/DC, Anvil try to play this as a strength with mixed results.
The final song (of the standard edition) finally gets us back to magnificent Anvil metal: “Shut the Fuck Up”. The sheer velocity of this short firecracker is a joy. It’s definitely one of the most indelible tracks. Plus it’s fun to sing along, I admit.
Then there are the bonus track. Europe got two: “Hard Wired” and “Fire At Will”. (The Japanese edition, which I want, has a live version of “Hope In Hell”.) I like “Hard Wired” better than a couple songs on the album proper. “Fire At Will” is not particularly special.
Hope In Hell is a good album, no more, no less. Anvil will continue. I believe that much. There is nothing anyone can do to stop Anvil now. I thought Juggernaut of Justice was a really excellent record. Hope In Hell is missing…something. It entertains for most of its duration, but it is uneven. Anvil can do better, and I hope they will do better, next time.
KA-PLA! (Qapla’ – Klingon for “success”!) The Mother’s Day MINDS IN MOTION KW Walking Classic is complete! Jen and I did 5km and it felt great
I raised $375 to buy shoes for mental health patients in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. Physical activity is so important to your mention health, but some don’t even have a good enough pair of shoes to walk in. Hopefully today we made a difference.
A big thank-you to:
Zach, Sarca, Joe, Geoff, and Scott the Scot! You didn’t have to but you did!
More big thanks to:
Erin, Michelle, Scott the not-Scot, Peter, Kathryn, my mom, Aunt Lynda, Nicole, Chris, Willy, and Alex.
I hope I didn’t forget anyone! Lastly thanks to Jen’s mom for taking part with us.
We were supposed to have shirts, but all they had left in men’s was 2XL. I’m a large. The 2XL looks like a tent, so I wore my Thunder Buddies shirt since it’s the same colour.
mikeladano.com 