I’ve been a big fan of American rock band Hydrogyn for many years and was curious to see what path they’d take with their latest album “Redemption” which was released via HighVol Music on 10th March. The husband and wife team of Jeff and Julie Westlake have parted ways and Julie has been replaced on vocals by Erica Parrott. There is undoubtedly a change to the Hydrogyn sound, with Erica bringing a heavier edge to things and the band raising the volume a few clicks! They can still do the slower tunes too though, as evidenced by the track “Jenny”. It’s a different Hydrogyn, but definitely worth checking out! I played the track “My Redemption” on the Friday NI Rocks Show on 10th February.
“Endure and Survive” is the latest album from Blaze Bayley and it is the second part of a sci-fi trilogy that commenced with “Infinite Entanglement” in 2016. The new album was released on 3rd March via Blaze Bayley Recording. I recorded a 40 minute interview with the former Iron Maiden singer in February and we chatted in depth about the new album and much more. This interview can be heard on the Friday NI Rocks Show dated 3rd March along with 3 tracks from the new album. The Show is available via the On Demand Player or can be read online - http://www.rockradioni.co.uk/interviews/3074-ni-rocks-interview-with-blaze-bayley.html.
Read more: NI ROCKS Recommends "Endure And Survive" by BLAZE BAYLEY
Maps to the Hollywood Scars is a project that features former American Idol contestant James Durbin and Quiet Riot guitarist Alex Grossi. They released an EP simply entitled “Volume One” on 17th February, just a matter of weeks before it was revealed that Durbin would be taking over the lead vocalist position in Quiet Riot. I played the track “Till Death” on the Friday NI Rocks Show on 24th February.
Read more: NI ROCKS Recommends "Volume 1" by MAPS TO THE HOLLYWOOD SCARS
Early on the morning of St Patrick’s Day, I found myself on Skype talking to someone in Australia who I’d previously only ever seen on a stage in Belfast over 28 years ago; when his band were supporting Kiss. Jeff Hoad, the former front-man of Kings of the Sun has returned with new music from The Rich and Famous – the band he and his brother Clifford had originally formed after the demise of the Kings of the Sun.
The interview with Jeff was originally broadcast on the Friday NI Rocks Show on 24th March and that Show can now be heard on our MixCloud site - https://www.mixcloud.com/NIRocks/interviews-with-jeff-hoad-and-james-durbin-on-the-friday-ni-rocks-show-on-24th-march/
The interview has been transcribed and posted below.
Our second guest on the Show is former American Idol contestant James Durbin who was recently revealed as the new Quiet Riot vocalist.
Read more: NI ROCKS Interview with JEFF HOAD from THE RICH AND FAMOUS