Grab a Stack of Rock / LeBrain Train

The Battle of ’84: Iron Maiden – Powerslave vs. Judas Priest – Defenders of the Faith

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 62: The Battle of ’84: Iron Maiden – Powerslave vs. Judas Priest – Defenders of the Faith

It is finally time:  the Battle of ’84 has arrived!  40 years ago, two metal monsters released crucial albums:

  • Judas Priest – Defenders of the Faith – 13 January 1984 – peaked at #18 in the US and went platinum.
  • Iron Maiden – Powerslave – 3 Sept 1984 – peaked at #21 in the US and went platinum.

But which album, track for track, is better?

Tonight, Peter Jones and I will attempt to answer that question.  After appearing once with Pete on a favourite episode of Rock Daydream Nation, he finally joins Grab A Stack of Rock.  Peter is a musician, who understands the vocabulary of drums and will explain it all tonight.  (Check out his latest Contrarians episode with Martin Popoff!)  Will the drumming colour his impressions of these two landmark albums of the 80s?  We shall see tonight.

We shall dissect each and every track, including the bonus tracks & B-sides.  Who shall reign?  Find out tonight…live!

 

 

Friday June 7 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

This is likely the last evening show of the summer of 2024.  Afternoon shows occur at 3:00 PM on Fridays, when I have an available co-host.  Thanks for watching, and stay tuned…

The next show is an interview with author Angie Moon, regarding her debut music/true time book, Crime of the Century, June 21 on Grab A Stack of Rock!

Rock Daydream Nation: Deep Purple – Stormbringer – Did this album push Blackmore to leave Purple?

I need to remember for fortunate I am.  Some time in 2023, I was approached by an Australian man named Peter Kerr to do a show on the Vinnie Vincent Invasion for his channel, Rock Daydream Nation.  He had seen me around on social media, and we hit it off immediately.  Meeting Peter has led to some of the best shows I’ve done, including a couple on Grab A Stack of Rock.  This week on Rock Daydream Nation, Peter and I went back to one of our core deep love bands:  the Purples.  Deep Purple Mk III in fact, and the sometimes maligned Stormbringer LP.

As per the deep dive format, we begin with first impressions.  Mine begin with a cheap cassette copy bought at Encore Records in Kitchener Ontario.  We then go track by track through the whole album, side A and side B.  By the time we offer our final thoughts, it is plenty obvious that we love Stormbringer.  Blackmore may have disliked the funk, but we like when he plays funky.  We touch on Rainbow,  Whitesnake and much more.

We drive into some Deep Purple history here, so grab a coffee and enjoy this deep dive!

That’s a Wrap: Top Five Albums After a Long Gap, with Metal Roger and John Clauser plus the Mad Metal Man!

A big thank you to Metal Roger for the topic, and thanks to John Clauser for an awesome show!  The topic tonight was Roger’s:  Top five albums after a long gap between.  There was no crossover on any of our lists.  I went mostly mainstream with my bands.  Clauser surprised us with a lot of bands I didn’t know, but were popular in the comments.  A nice Steve Augeri band too! Metal Roger did industrial, metal, and beardliness.

My list is below, and included two Japanese imports and a couple of special editions with DVDs.

At the end of the day, the mighty Harrison Kopp the Mad Metal Man himself turned up with a list of his own, which surprisingly lacked any Blaze Bayley.  A huge thanks to Harrison for coming on last night.

Tune in next week for the Battle of ’84 with Pete Jones:  Defenders of the Faith vs. Powerslave!

I cheated.

TIE

KISS – Sonic Boom (2009) – 11 year gap from 1998’s Psycho-Circus

Van Halen – A Different Kind of Truth (2012) – 14 year gap from 1998’s Van Halen III (8 year gap from 2004’s Best of Both Worlds)

Faith No More – Sol Invictus (2015) – 18 year gap from 1997’s Album of the Year

Deep Purple – Perfect Strangers (1984) – 9 year gap from 1975’s Come Taste the Band

Styx – The Mission (2018) – 15 year gap from 2003’s Cyclorama (13 year gap from 2005’s Big Bang Theory)

Extreme – Six (2023) – 15 year gap from 2008’s Saudades de Rock

Top Five Albums After a Long Gap, with Metal Roger and John Clauser

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 61: Top Five Albums After a Long Gap, with Metal Roger and John Clauser

‘Twas Metal Roger who suggested this week’s topic.  What are our Top Five Albums after a Long Gap?  Well, Chinese Democracy is an obvious example, but there are many more, ecpecially from the last decade or two.  It took 24 years for The Who to release a new album (Endless Wire) and then another 13 years to release the followup Who.  For the sake of this exercise, we are arbitrarily saying at minimum, at least a five year wait to qualify an album for this list.

Joining us will be Johnny Clauser from My Music Corner, which is doubly good since Roger has no physical product to show off for his picks!  (Come on, Roger!)  I have eight picks and have to narrow it down to five, which I will probably do at the last minute.

This will also be John and Roger’s first shows at the cottage.  We hope for clear weather and chipmunks!  Join us live in the comments.  We love to talk to the audience!

 

Friday May 31 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

#1129: Summer’s Here and the Time Is Right

Last summer was different.  I felt like I had something to prove.  I lost the co-host that was responsible for the lion’s share of my views, and I wanted to pivot back to music.  Grab A Stack of Rock was envisioned as an “easy” show, where I didn’t have to do any prep or homework.  I was ready to work hard again and I think we did that.  We brought back lists and deep dives and the show was so much better for it.

This year is a little different in another way, which is my old co-hosts are occupied.  Harrison is busy focusing on his health.  Other co-hosts have their own shows now.  Others still are focusing on family.  I can’t blame them for that.  In a way, my show has been a bit like the Alice Cooper backing band.  Just as he launched the careers of Kip Winger and many more, my show has launched others into the Youtube-sphere.  That show out of Thunder Bay Ontario wouldn’t exist without my rocket boosters.  With that in mind, I think this summer will be something of a slowdown.

This week we’re back at the cottage with John Clauser and Metal Roger.  It’ll be their first cottage show.

What will the summer bring?  Fewer shows perhaps, but Grab A Stack of Rock will still continue, perhaps with a few different faces that we didn’t have last summer.  Some familiar ones as well.  Grant from the Rock Warehaus wants to hang out on the front porch again this summer.  I’m also thinking of doing a midnight outdoors show.  We’ll see what the summer has in store, but one thing I don’t need to do is prove anything to anyone.  We did that last year and we’re better off for it.

Grant’s Rock Warehaus: Skid Row – A Career Retrospective [VIDEO]

Park Avenue leads to…SKID ROW!  But Skid Row leads to Grant’s Rock Warehaus!

This week on Grant’s Rock Warehaus, we talk about a band that Grant has been digging seriously for the last several weeks, ever since seeing former singer Sebastian Bach on an 80’s cruise.  We don’t talk just Bach.  We tackle the Johnny Solinger years, the unfortunate tale of Erik Grönwall’s short stint, and of course, current lead singer Lzzy Hale.  Take a look at my Skid Row collection, including The Atlantic Years box set (unboxing!), my original 1991 vinyl of Slave to the Grind, my Japanese Best of Skid Row, and a rare promo single from 1995.

Grant and I tried to cover as much ground as possible.  Album artwork is discussed, and a few underdog records are praised.  I tried to highlight what I think are some incredible and underrated ballads that might be forgotten in the shadow of “I Remember You”.  We shone a light on the talent of all the members, and questioned what they could have done differently through their career.  Leading to the present day, we have some suggestions for Skid Row about their future and reissues we want to see happen.

It’s all here, on Grant’s Rock Warehaus with your host, Grant Arthur!

The Most Comprehensive Arkells Deep Dive on the ‘Net! With a Harrison Kopp cameo, a D’Arcy Briggs list, and the great Nurse Kat

Thank you once again Nurse Kat for coming on Grab A Stack of Rock to talk about a band we both love:  Hamilton Ontario’s Arkells.  It isn’t her first time, as last year we did a show focusing largely on her 13 concert experiences (now 20).  Check out Nurse Kat’s first show by clicking here!

This time, we did a deep dive.  We went album by album, from Jackson Square to today:  the brand new release, Disco Loadout Volume One.  If I do say so myself, I think this is the most comprehensive Arkells deep dive you will find.

My friend D’Arcy Briggs was unable to attend the show, but he provided ample notes and we presented his views on each album in the form of short videos.  Additionally, we ran excerpts with commentary of three Arkells music videos:  “Oh, the Boss is Coming”, “All Roads”, and “Past Life”, which allow us to view the evolution of the band.

Show highlights:

  • Concert stories with Kat, including a brilliant one about a port-a-potty in a rainstorm whilst the band played “A Little Rain”.
  • Favourite songs from each and every album.
  • A discussion on the music, artwork, and lyrics of the Arkells.
  • What is a “Michigan Left”?
  • First impressions on Disco Loadout.
  • A heartwarming Kopp cameo.

That’s right.  The Mad Metal Man himself, who also ordered Disco Loadout, made a brief cameo at the end of our show, and we love him for it.  I missed my Mad Metal Man.

Thank yous:

  • Nurse Kat for spending your time with us instead of Bob’s Burgers.
  • Harrison Kopp for saying hello.
  • Chris and Mark at Encore Records for saving the day and getting me the new album when Canada Post lost it.

Next week is a re-run of Top Five Bald Artists.  Speaking of which, I may look a little different this week.  Spot the change!

 

 

My notes:

 

Jackson Square – 2008

  • Deadlines – heaviest tune?
  • Oh the Boss is Coing!
  • Ballad of Hugo Chavez – “Night of the sun”
  • Heart of the City – anthemic
  • The Blueprint – sounds awesome a-capella

Michigan Left – 2011

  • Book Club
  • Michigan Left
  • Coffee
  • Bloodlines
  • Whistleblower

High Noon – 2014

  • Too many good songs to mention, but has the best first three song opening of any Arkells album.  Add in Leather Jacket and we have a winner

Morning Report – 2016

  • Too many good songs!  Knocking at the Door, Hung Up, Making Due, My Heart’s Always Yours, Savannah, Passenger Seat, A Little Rain, And Then Some

Rally Cry – 2018 – sudden change in cover art style, more political than personal lyrics

  • Hand Me Downs, but the version with Frank Turner is even better
  • American Screams

Campfire Chords – 2020

  • Three new songs:  Years In The Making, Quitting You, A Little More

Blink Once – 2021

  • All Roads
  • Strong
  • Nobody Gets Me Like You Do
  • Years In The Making
  • Arm In Arm

Blink Twice – 2022

  • Past Life (Cold War Kids)
  • Teenage Tears (Tegan & Sara)
  • Nowhere To Go w/ Wesley Schultz (Lumineers) & Jake Clemons

Laundry Pile – 2023

  • Life
  • Skin

Disco Loadout Vol. 1 – 2024

  • Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight)

Disco Loadout! The Arkells Discography ranked on Grab A Stack of Rock with Nurse Kat

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 60: Disco Loadout! The Arkells Discography Ranked!

Please welcome back superfan Nurse Kat, returning to discuss the Arkells one more time!  Last time she was on, she talked about seeing the band 13 times in an 18 month span.  Now, a year later, I wonder how many more times she’s caught the band live?

The occasion?  Today’s release of the new covers album Disco Loadout Vol. 1, featuring songs by Hall & Oates, Peter Gabriel, Abba, Bruce Springsteen and Whitney Houston among others!  The Arkells have always had a knack for covers, and today they put their money where their mouths are with their first full-on covers album.  Our copy is pre-ordered and we hope to have it in hand to show tonight.

Kat and I will be talking favourite songs, from album to album, and then I will attempt to rank all 10.  A daunting task; I will not be relying on my written reviews for this job.  I will listen to them all with fresh ears and try to figure out a ranking.  We will even be running clips from our favourite videos.

Tune in tonight for the epic of Arkells appreciation!

 

Friday May 17 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 5:00 P.M. Pacific.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

The Best Music Videos, and a Stack of Nostalgia with Dr. Kathryn and Jex Russell

And the Oscar for Best Music Video Re-enactment goes to:  JEX RUSSELL!

Folks, Jex could not make it to the show live tonight, but he prepared his list in advance and appeared by video.  And folks…Jex knocked it out of the park this week.  That’s all I’m going to say.  Jex also provided physical product in the shape of vinyl for his picks.

Between Jex, Dr. Kathryn and I, we ended up covering some of the best music videos for:

  • Canadian content
  • Impact and influence
  • Cool factor
  • Mid-80s metal icons
  • Pop classics
  • Obscure gems

What we didn’t cover, the comments section did!  Thank you for watching and commenting on this show.  On a personal note, this was a technical challenge this week as I had to manage 21 individual video files for presentation, but fortunately it went off with very few glitches!

If you watch only one thing today, watch Jex Russell’s #1 pick.

See you next week with D’Arcy Briggs and Nurse Kat as we celebrate the release of the new Arkells album Disco Loadout!

 

Top Five Music Videos From Our Childhoods, with Dr. K and a list from Jex

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man

Episode 59: Top Five Music Videos From Our Childhoods

This show is a little different, and has been in the planning stages since February.  Tonight on Grab A Stack of Rock, we present to you our Top Five Music Videos from our childhoods!  Dr. K will be in the special panel tonight, with Jex Russell providing his list but unavailable to go live.  This particular grouping is interesting, because Dr. K and I grew up during the dawn of MuchMusic, but Jex Russell is a little younger and grew up with a completely different set of music videos.  

Either way:  nostalgia on tap tonight!

Here’s the new twist:  Normally we show off physical product on our show.  It is called “grab a stack of rock”, after all.  This time, the stacks of rock will be in the form of short video clips from each of our picks, that we will show and comment over tonight!  I have personally edited these clips myself, and if all goes well, this should be a lot of fun.  We are all psyched to see how this works.

Wish us luck tonight as we try something new!  Either way, you can expect lots of laughs, some music history, and some cool music videos!  Tonight on Grab A Stack of Rock!

 

Friday May 10 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!