 |
You know Blaze Bayley, don't you? Or at least you think you do. He fronted Tamworth terrors 'Wolfsbane', releasing four albums of unrelenting raw energy and attitude, between 1989 and '93, before getting the call to replace Bruce Dickinson in one of the world's greatest bands, Iron Maiden. Blaze was the lead singer with Iron Maiden for five years, during which time, he cut the 'X-Factor' (1995) and 'Virtual XI' ('98). ). Since parting company with Iron Maiden in early 1999, Blaze has been busy putting a band together and writing and recording his new album, fronting a band simply called Blaze. |
|
With the imminent release of their debut album 'Silicon Messiah' on SPV, the man is calling on all his past experience to set a firm course towards a very bright future. Bayley is joined in this new venture by four hungry young British musicians, who share his enterprise and vision, namely guitarists Steve Wray and John Slater, bassist Rob Naylor and drummer Jeff Singer. "When people found out that I was putting together a new band, I got loads of tapes from all over the world. But what I wanted were musicians with an edge, and a desire that matched my own, not people who had had some |
|
success and maybe lacked that crucial spark," says Blaze. The album, produced by Andy Sneap (one of the hottest names around – Machine Head, Stuck MoJo, Skin Lab among others) at Backstage Studios and mixed at Parr Street Studios (Liverpool), proves Blaze's point to the full. This is an album that certainly nods respectfully towards Bayley's past, but it is definitely not stuck in reverse gear. The album gets right to the cutting edge of contemporary metal. Loud and proud it might be, but the record also has welcome moments of subtlety,
more |
