The Viking in the Wilderness - reviews and news

(36:03; Fastball Music) Track list: 1. Moon 3:45 2. Bastards 3:24 3. Another Reality 3:41 4. You N' Me 3:58 5. Queen of Decadence 3:23 6. Message 4:18 7. Fight Together 3:05 8. No No No 2:43 9. Forbidden Fruit 4:42 10. I'm Standing 3:04 Line-up: Ekaterina Koukharets - vocals Pascal Sauty - guitars Garrincha Maillard - bass Gilles Di Domenico - drums Swiss band Dirty Velvet started out back in 2019, and since then they have made a name for themselves as a fine live band in the Swiss live circuit. This spring they released their debut album "Far Beyond the Moon" through German label Fastball Music. This is a band that stands rather firmly inside of a hard rock tradition, and this is one of the bands that draw in impulses from quite a few different directions. The label description of this band being in the alternative category thus seems rather appropriate. Quite a few of the songs come with indirect nods in the direction of the old masters Black Sabbath, with the guita

(76:26; Big Wolf Records) Track list: 1. Heaven's Got the Blues 3:50 2. Done Wrong by You 4:06 3. I Don't Love You 4:10 4. Looking in Your Eyes 3:54 5. Love That Hurts 3:37 6. Better Man 3:33 7. Walk in My Shoes 3:44 8. If I Ever Loved Another Woman 7:05 9. Just Can't Find You 9:30 10. Never That Easy 4:06 11. Roling with Thunder 3:35 12. Get Out 3:58 13. Love Isn't Free 4:32 14. Darkest of My Days 6:40 Line-up: Jonathan Earp - vocals, guitars Mick Jeynes - bass Justin Johnson - guitars, vocals Tim Jones - drums Robin Fox - keyboards UK outfit Big Wolf Band have been a going entity in the UK music scene for the better part of a decade, with two studio albums to their name and what I suspect is a decent number of live performances to boot. This latter aspect of the band's repertoire has now been captured with the release of the album "Live & Howlin", which was self released in the spring of 2023. Big Wolf Band is a unit that is all about blues rock. It