Rock Daydream Nation

🅻🅸🆅🅴 What’s In Our Bag? New Record Store Purchases – Australian Takeover!

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

Episode 114: Australian Takeover with Harrison Kopp, Ashley Geisler and Peter Kerr

This special episode was originally scheduled a month ago, but the sad and unexpected departure of Ozzy Osbourne put that show on hold.  Tonight, the Australian Contingent reunite to show and discuss new music and new purchases, on Grab A Stack of Rock.

This will be Harrison’s first full hosting experience without Jex Russell.  Mike will not be there tonight, as he still needs some time off.  He does, however, have a cool guest video to show tonight, of a Super 7 “Ultimates” figure of a certain ghoulish frontman from a charismatic rock band.  This is Mike’s very first Super 7 Ultimates figure and it will be your first look at its unboxing and accessories.

Joining the Mad Metal Man will be Ash Geisler from Ash’s Concerts and Videos.  Ash has been saving up some new arrivals for this show, and we cannot wait to see what he has in store.  He usually has some obscure Australian releases.  And, of course, Peter Kerr from Rock Daydream Nation will be on hand with some musical surprises to share.  Who knows what this trio of Southern Hemisphere Musical Maniacs will have in store!?

It all goes down, LIVE, tonight!  Don’t miss it!

 

 

Friday August 29 at 7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube or Facebook.

 

Rock Daydream Nation: Why I Prefer 80s Rush – Signals & Hold Your Fire

Join Peter Kerr and myself, two self-confessed fans of 80s Rush, as we discuss Signals and Hold Your Fire.  This fun and insightful episode of Rock Daydream Nation shines an admiring light upon two albums that bookend an era of keyboard-oriented Rush records.

This era of Rush has sometimes been criticized for highlighting synth and keyboards over riffs.  While there is always some truth to this, does that mean a decline in quality?  Not necessarily.  It might just mean bands are becoming interested in different kinds of rock music.

Peter and I pick a number of songs to highlight, and play music clips to illustrate our examples.  Check out the show!

50 Years of IRON MAIDEN episode 11: Somewhere In Time with Peter Kerr

50 Years of IRON MAIDEN episode 11:  Somewhere In Time

With special guest Peter Kerr

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK #101

Exit Pharaohs…enter synth!?

Please welcome Peter Kerr from Rock Daydream Nation to this epic episode of 50 Years of Iron Maiden.  Now that we are done with the 100th Episode festivities, we can get back to celebrating the 50th anniversary of Iron Maiden.  After the lengthy Powerslave tour and resultant live album Live After Death, one member of Iron Maiden was completely burned out.  The new album would be the first since The Number of the Beast to lack a Bruce Dickinson writing credit.

Not that this major detail held anything back.  Bruce’s singing was still lung-burstingly powerful, and the band were writing amazing songs…this time with guitar and bass synthesizer.  It was a controversial decision, but our panel was not phased.  Check out what we have to say about all eight tracks, and all four B-sides.

We also take a serious deep dive into the album artwork, without any help from Wikipedia or other sources.

As usual, we close the show with Harrison’s deep dive into the tour (Somewhere On Tour) and setlists.

Scream for us, YouTube, and enjoy this comeback episode of 50 Years of Iron Maiden.

 

Airing Friday May 2 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube.

Past episodes:

Handy YouTube Playlist:

Rock Daydream Nation – Slayer: Reign In Blood – One of the greatest Metal albums of all time?

It is my honour to sit in with Peter Kerr to discuss this thrash metal classic that is outside my comfort zone.  We have had some success with similar shows before, such as the one where I became a Prince fan.  With Slayer’s Reign In Blood, I was faced with an album with unprecedented speed and intensity.  How did I fare?  As always, I immersed myself in the album with repeated plays in different settings.

Check out the show below, and face the Angel of Death on Rock Daydream Nation with Peter Kerr and I!

Youtubin’: Rock Daydream Nation – History of Vanda & Young in 10 Albums with Martin Popoff

Last week on Rock Daydream Nation, Peter Kerr and Martin Popoff broke down the history of Australian producer team Harry Vanda and George Young. You may recognize those names from the AC/DC albums in your collection. As I recently discovered, Vanda & Young were also responsible for the early Rose Tattoo records. What else have Vanda & Young brought to the music world? Watch this episode of Rock Daydream Nation and hear about their best works.

Three Australians vs. One Canadian! Lots of new rock at Grab A Stack of Rock!

Thank you to Harrison Kopp, Ashley Geisler, and Peter Kerr for joining me last night on a fun episode of Grab A Stack of Rock!

It didn’t start fun; a back injury has kept me in pain for the entire day, but some stronger painkillers kicked in mid-show and you can see the point at which I start feeling better!  What also made me feel good was spending time with three music scholars and gentlemen from the continent of Australia!

There was indeed plenty of Australian content.  I unboxed a CD by Buffalo Crows called Bovonic Empire, featuring Iron Maiden’s Paul Mario Day on lead vocals for three tracks.  We also looked at my new Rose Tattoo debut album, with eight bonus tracks.  Ash showed us some lesser known Australian bands, and Peter educated us on a few that I was unfamiliar with.   Harrison brought some Glenn Hughes, but Peter had some Trapeze without Glenn!  There was some Mel Galley education, and plenty of love for Prince.  We looked at Meat Loaf, Concrete Blonde, Elton John, Christopher Cross, Isaac Hayes, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and lots more.

For formats, we saw CDs, vinyl, DVDs, and one sealed 8-track tape!

Oh!  And of course, we finally unsealed my Queen I box set.  What a purple and gold majesty it is!

Speaking of Iron Maiden, we will be back next week with 50 Years of Iron Maiden.  See you then!

Rock Daydream Nation: Show Us Your Favourite Rock Band T-shirts!

Peter Kerr is back with Joe B, John Clauser, Melissa Nee, Tim Durling and myself for a fun topic:  Favourite rock T-shirts!  While most of the panel got their shirts from concerts, mine were a variety of store-bought and mail order!  As I mention on the show, I was always looking for shirts that no-one else at school had.

Lots of show and tell with this show.  Please enjoy!

 

Rock Daydream Nation: Mötley Crüe – Best Song, Worst Song, Every Album! – with Peter Kerr, Melissa Nee, Joe B and Mike Ladano

Whether it’s a fun and easy episode, or a challenging deep dive, I always enjoy sitting in with Peter Kerr on Rock Daydream Nation. Peter has been on a roll lately with a great viral interview with former Motley Crue singer John Corabi.  Congrats Peter on that great chat!

In this episode, we break down the best song and worst song from every Motley Crue album.  Joining us were Joe B. and Melissa Nee, with whom we also tackled Theater of Pain.  They found this episode a challenge, as they were forced to listen to a lot of albums that might have been a big of a slog.  However we all did our duties!  As we go through the songs, you also get a sense of our album ranking too, though we didn’t do an official tally.  There was some consensus, a little disagreement, and overall a sense of relief to be finished this exercise!

And yes…once again, I sing on another person’s channel.  How long before I’m blacklisted for singing?  And swearing?  And quoting bad lyrics?

I also go on a massive rant regarding the Generation Swine album that makes for good TV.

Check out the show!

All Five MAD MAX Films Ranked on Grab A Stack of Rock with Two Australians and One Canadian (Harrison Kopp, Peter Kerr & Mike Ladano)

Harrison promised us rarities, and so he gave us rarities!  From some cool Steelbook DVD, Blu-rays and 3D issues of films, to replica cars and comic books, Harrison brought the goods.  The coolest of his collection is his high-end replica Mad Max interceptor, in limited edition dirty deco, to duplicate its appearance in Mad Max 2 (#221 in a limited edition of 2000).  Harrison is clearly a passionate fan, and his Mad Max collection is quite impressive indeed.  He even had his own custom Lego version of the interceptor to show.

As for the lists:  they were not as controversial as I expected, but there were some surprises.  Peter and I had lists most in common, but what did not come as a surprise was that all three of us had the same #1 film in the Mad Max franchise.

We offered a fair share of critique, but mostly praise for George Miller’s post-apocalyptic saga.  Certain moments in films were singled out for observation and analysis.  We discussed the soundtracks, the visual effects, some controversial CG elements, and of course, the performances of the cast.

If anyone knows the deal about that weird mannequin head strapped to Angry Anderson’s backup, let me know.  I had my own theory which I shared in the show.

Thanks for watching, and if you didn’t, you can catch the show below.

Next week:  interview with ex-Helix drummer Archie Gamble!

Ranking all five MAD MAX Films on Grab A Stack of Rock with Two Australians and One Canadian (Harrison Kopp, Peter Kerr & Mike Ladano)

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 77:  Ranking the Mad Max Films

“Witness!  I am your redeemer. It is by my hand you will rise from the ashes of this world!”

Please welcome back to the show, Peter Kerr and Harrison Kopp from Rock Daydream Nation!  With two Australians and one Canadian, we hope this will be the most comprehensive (or, “Kopp-rehensive”) Mad Max list show on YouTube.

For the physical media crowd, Harrison promises RARITIES!

Tonight, we rank all five films in the Mad Max universe:  Mad Max, Mad Max 2 (“The Road Warrior“), Beyond Thunderdome, Fury Road, and Furiosa.  I have immersed myself in the Mad Max films, watching the first three twice each in preparation.  Expect a deep analysis and hearty appreciation with a fair share of critique.  If you think you know what will happen tonight…you don’t!

Will Peter Kerr escape the Wasteland intact?  Will Mike Ladano emerge from the Thunderdome as victor?  Will Harrison Kopp go rogue like Furiosa?  Find out tonight for an awesome show that will defy your assumptions.

 

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