mjballue

Been a rabid fan of the heavy stuff since age 11 in the 70's. Wrote for an underground magazine The Wild Rag back in the 80's and then with Hellride for over a decade. Much more focused on family and career nowadays, but still get so much from music that I figured it was time to contribute a little to the scene again with Ride Into Glory.
Features

Feature: Lost Doom Recovered

Being a doom metal fanatic my taste for the heavy and doomy but definitely metallic has significant elasticity. I enjoy doom metal that more discerning ears might not have the time nor inclination for. I’ll leave the lower end of my listening spectrum out of my writing but over the years the shear amount of doom I’ve leant an ear to is significant. Amidst the boulders, forests, and rubble of that mountain of doom there are some quality bands that seem to have gotten lost and left off the radar of most doom fans. These are not the very top shelf, the legends of the genre, but they are really good and considerably enjoyable. It is this article’s intent to get a few more doom fans to discover them.

By mjballue, ago
Features

Four Reasons California Metal Still Matters

True Traditional metal, while never as hugely popular as hair or thrash, has been a field in which California has yielded an embarrassing amount of riches. While often not appreciated enough back in the day (much like Cali’s doom pioneers Saint Vitus, the number of people claiming attendance at early shows for many of these bands has inflated far beyond what the actual attendance was) names like Cirith Ungol, Brocas Helm and The Lord Weird Slough Feg are now rightly hallowed and revered in the metal underground. There is still a lot of good stuff happening.

By mjballue, ago