Album Of The Week
Album Of The Week - 28/02/2026
Legend - Clannad
A change of direction this week as we
look at the second of my 11 albums from Irish Celtic folk act Clannad, with their
1984 soundtrack release Legend.
Back in the late 1980’s Clannad
were my first tentative steps in the world of folk music when a passing
interest led to me buying their Pastpresent compilation album, a collection
that focussed on their commercially successful releases during the eighties.
By the time my interest was sparked
in the band they had moved on from their more trad folk roots into a more
atmospheric world music influenced style using synths to compliment the acoustic
folk instrumentation.
What really captivated me though
was the ethereal beauty of the vocals from Moya Brennan. At the time when the
charts were dominated by singers such a Whitney Houston, Madonna and the scores
of pop power ballad and soul singers who seemed to be all about volume it was
the considered, delicate Gaelic voice of Brennan drew me in. Accompanied by
these often haunting songs sometimes delivered in the Irish Gaelic language they
caught my attention and garnered my interest.
The music on Legend was written to
accompany the UK television series, Robin of Sherwood that ran over 3 series
from 1984 to 1986 and from what I remember seemed to be very popular at the
time.
True to their sound of the time the
album is heavy on atmosphere with the synths adding layers alongside the acoustic
guitars and whistles topped of with the trademark beautiful vocals of Moya
Brennan.
Regardless of the fact that Legend
is a soundtrack it sits very well within the Clannad discography of studio albums
and I actually picked this up as part of 5 album box set.
At just over 32 minutes this is a
short album and I would have liked to have seen some the pieces expanded but overall
it a decent Clannad album with some very good moments.
Commercially the album performed well
and it peaked at number 15 in the UK album charts while 2 singles were lifted
from the release including the title track and main theme.
It is also worth noting that
Clannad’s big commercial breakthrough in the UK came as the result of a song written
for television when in 1982 their single, Theme from Harry’s Game reached
number 5 in the UK singles chart.
My first selection is the album
opener, Robin (The Hooded Man) the main theme for the series and also the lead
single released from the album.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026 - Track 6
The final selection from this weeks album could be a case of leaving the best until last.
When The Wild Wind Blows is taken from The Final Frontier album of 2010 and is an 11 minute epic fit to close any Iron Maiden album.
The song is based on the graphic novel and animated novel When The Wind Blows which tells the story of an elderly English couple dealing the aftermath of a nuclear attack. In this version though the ending has been altered to give it a level of Shakespearean tragedy.
For me, this song encapsulates everything I love about Iron Maiden, the narrative storytelling coupled with the complex yet melodic and powerful delivery from the band, the perfect song to wrap up this excellent compilation.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026 - Track 5
My penultimate selection from this excellent Iron Maiden compilation is the song No More Lies.
Taken from the Dance Of Death album from 2003 this song is again the band moving into their epic style with a song that doesnt let up from its opening bars.
The song's central character is facing his imminent death but is convinced that this life is not the end and that he is coming back.
This is a recurring theme with Iron Maiden but with this particular song, Steve Harris described this song as possibly being about the last supper of Christ knowing that his death was close to hand.
If someone was ever to ask me what my favourite Iron Maiden is then No More Lies would well be a contender.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026 - Track 4
The next track I have selected from this week's album is one of the shorter, more direct songs on From Here To Eternity.
Holy Smoke, initially from the 1990 album No Prayer For The Dying the song takes a well aimed swipe at televison evangelists and those who use faith as a money making exercise.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026 - Track 3
The third track I have selected From Fear To Eternity is the song The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Bree.
Taken from the 2006 album A Matter Of Life And Death, the song was the lead single from the album. At over 7 minutes this may have seemed a strange choice but the album only featured one song under 5 minutes and Bree is an incredibly strong track.
To stoke interest the band created a website with a backstory about the fctional character of Benjamin Bree.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026 - Track 2
My second selection from Fear To Eternity is the track El Dorado, a song that first appeared on The Final Frontier album from 2010.
This one of the more direct songs on the album but runs for almost 7 minutes and is based around the greed and shady dealings of bankers and investors that led to the financial crash of 2008.
Album Of The Week - 21/02/2026
From Fear To
Eternity (The Best Of 1990-2010) – Iron Maiden
For the second time in 3 weeks we
find ourselves back in my Iron Maiden collection with their 2011 release, From
Fear To Eternity.
This album covers 8 studio albums released
during the 20 year period as described in the album title which includes Brave
New World as featured as my album of week only two weeks ago. In total there
are 23 songs in a double album format covering a very productive period for the
band including plenty of 6 minute plus epics.
What I find very interesting about
the collection is how it documents the progression of the band over this key 20
period and the incorporation of more progressive elements into their music alongside
their trademark traditional heavy metal offerings.
The period of this compilation has
selections from No Prayer For The Dying from 1990 and Fear Of The Dark from
1992, the last 2 albums with Bruce Dickinson on vocals before he left the band
only to return to 7 years later which was marked with the Brave New World album.
It is from Brave New World
especially that we have seen Iron Maiden adopting a more progressive approach
with longer and more complex songs and this development is seen with the
selections from A Matter Of Life And Death from 2006 and The Final Frontier
from 2010. As also mentioned in my review of Brave New World, this album saw
Iron Maiden go to a 6 piece line-up with the return of Adrian Smith giving the
band a unique 3 guitar section.
The period of this compilation also
covers the Dance Of Death album which has a special place in my collection as I
saw them live on the accompanying Death Of The Road tour and its album that
contains some of the favourite Iron Maiden songs.
During Bruce Dickinson’s absence
from the band there were 2 albums released which featured former Wolfsbane
frontman Blaze Bayley on vocals. His
debut effort, The X Factor, is in my opinion an excellent album although this
album and its successor, Virtual XI have been seen as the weakest Maiden albums
and both were the least commercially successful in the bands history and remain
so until now. Was this purely down to the vocalist or was the band spark
somehow weakened with Dickinson’s absence as a contributor to song writing as
well as vocals?
It is an interesting point that the
tracks from those albums are represented here with live versions with the vocals
by Dickinson and not the studio versions from Bayley.
Whatever the nuances of the compilation
this release is a superb collection and showcases a period of time when their
output was everything as good, if not better than the “classic” releases of the
1980’s.
My first selection is Sign Of The
Cross, a song that originally appeared on The X Factor album and this live recording
was captured on the 2002 Rock In Rio album.
This 10 minute masterpiece ranks as
one of favourite Iron Maiden songs and as per numerous Maiden tracks it was
inspired by a work of literature.
Album Of The Week - 14/02/2026 - Track 5
Bringing Last Of The Wild to a close is the final track on the album, the excellent song Headstrong.
A song about roots and home but also breaking away, its a strong song to close the very accomplished album from the Noble Jack.
For me, I love the way the songs builds from its slow, pensive beginning to a foot stomping folk rock anthem to bring Last Of The Wild to a conclussion.
Album Of The Week - 14/02/2026 - Track 4
My penultimate selection is a perfect example of Noble Jacks delving into their Americana influences.
Late Night Train has a wonderful singalong melody with its plaintive harmonica and catchy chorus this song has elements of the Levellers for me.
.
Album Of The Week - 14/02/2026 - Track 3
My latest selection from Last Of The Wild is the song How Long.
A slower paced track which allows the fiddle to come to the fore and lead the melody of this beautifully emotive song.
Album Of The Week - 14/02/2026 - Track 2
My second selection from Last Of The Wild is the title track from the album.
Another of the more folk rock songs from the album again where the fiddle provides a strong melody for the lyric which warns of us of enviromental uncertainty for mankind.
Album Of The Week - 14/02/2026
Last Of The Wild –
Noble Jacks
We have a change of direction this
week as we look at the most recent release from folk/Americana/rock band Noble
Jacks with their 2022 album Last Of The Wild.
Julie and I first encountered the
band in 2018 at the Phoenix Art Centre in Exeter where they were performing as
a support act (for Wildwood Kin I think) and we were immediately struck by
their energy and excellent melodic fiddle driven folk rock. I came home that
night with their debut album, What The Hammer, and we have been following their
progress ever since.
Hailing from Brighton, it was
interesting to see that their debut album was recorded at the Metway Studios
which are owned by the renowned folk/punk band the Levellers who are also based
in Brighton. With their high energy yet immotive brand of folk and country
based rock this was a collaboration that worked perfectly to produce a very
accomplished debut recording.
This type of music though really
comes to life in the live setting and Noble Jacks have shown this is where they
truly shine and they have played across many festivals and alongside numerous
folk contemporaries.
To date, Noble Jacks have released
3 albums and Last Of The Wild, released in 2022 is their most recent and so
far, their most polished and professional offering with it being successful and
performing well in the folk and Americana charts. For their 2023 tour on the back of the Call Of The Wild
album they were named as “live act of the year” from one of the leading voices
in Americana music in the UK.
The album carries on the same folk/country
drive from the previous 2 albums with a mix of the up tempo tracks perfect for
the live setting while mixed with the more laid back considered songs.
There are moments where the country
influences are quite strong and although this is not a genre I am keen on these
moments add balance, flavour and depth to the album.
Last Of The Wild peaked at number 29
in the official UK Americana charts, a good showing for what it is a worthy
addition to their catalogue.
My first selection is the opening
track, Never Been Here Before, a lovely melodic song to kick off the album.
Album Of The Week - 07/02/2026 - Track 5
My final selection from Brave New World is the closing track, Thin Line Between Love And Hate.
Its a powerful end to what is an incredibly strong Iron Maiden album, a song and album that is not afraid to take its time and move between atmospheres and textures. At over 8 minutes this is an excellent song that looks at the human capacity for both good and evil, a subject that the band often touch upon in various scenarios.
Album Of The Week - 07/02/2026 - Track 4
My penultimate selection from Brave New World is the track Blood Brothers. Arguably one of the strongest songs on the album and one that stood out for me on first listen.
Musically, it takes on a progressive feel with the mood and tempo changes which at times feel folk influenced while lyrically it challenges themes of mankinds cruelty and destructiveness.
A real highlight on an album packed with great songs.
Album Of The Week - 07/02/2026 - Track 3
My third selection from Brave New World is The Nomad, at just over 9 minutes this is the longest song on the album.
The track takes Iron Maiden into more progressive realms with its Eastern shades but its typical Maiden with its vivid lyrics and immersive instrumentation.
Album Of The Week - 07/02/2026 - Track 2
My second selection from Brave New World is the title track from the album.
Like some of the best Iron Maiden songs, its based on a classic work of literture, in this case the novel of the same name by Aldous Huxley.
The song itself is classic Maiden with a quiet, vocal opening which then unleashes into the killer anthemic metal song that Iron Maiden deliver so well.
I would have to say this song would easily feature in top 10 favourite Maiden songs.
Album Of The Week - 07/02/2026
Brave New World –
Iron Maiden
We remain within my metal collection this week with the second Iron Maiden to be selected as my album of the week and the first studio album to be drawn.
Brave New World is Iron Maidens twelfth
studio album, released in 2000 and marked the return of guitarist Adrian Smith
and vocalist Bruce Dickenson to the Maiden camp.
Prior to my delving more in metal
almost 30 years ago, Iron Maiden were of the few metal bands in my collection pre-1996
when I bought their Best Of The Beast compilation and decided to explore the
genre a bit more.
I didn’t take much notice of Iron
Maiden until 1988 when I heard the singles released from their Seventh Son Of A
Seventh Son album and very much against my punk and post-punk leanings I bought
the album. I was instantly hooked by the quality and depth of the music but
even I didn’t become an avid, dedicated follower although I did pick up a few
of their other albums along the way.
By the time I really started to get
immersed in their music, iconic vocalist, Bruce Dickenson had left the band and
the two albums recorded without him did not seem to be held with the same fondness,
although in the defence of replacement, Blaze Bailey, I loved the X Factor
album that came out in 1995 although vocally he is not in the same league as
Dickenson.
In 1999 discussions took place
between the band and Bruce Dickinson which resulted in him rejoining Iron
Maiden along with Adrian Smith who had left in 1990. This took the band to a 6
piece line-up with 3 guitarists, as Smiths replacement, Janick Gers remained in
the band.
After a very successful reunion
tour, the turn of millennium saw the first release with this new 6 piece line
up and I remember at the time there being a lot of attention and anticipation
regarding the immanent release of Brand New World.
Prior to the album release, the
opening track, The Wicker Man, was put out as the lead single with it reaching
number 9 in the UK album charts, further driving the excitement for the
forthcoming album. I have to admit, that I was fuelled by this enthusiasm for
the album and for the first time I bought an Iron Maiden album on the day of
release and rushed home from work to play it.
The intervening 26 years have passed
very quickly and as I now look back on this album I still rate it an outstanding
Iron Maiden release and a landmark record in their impressive catalogue. Although
the two albums released prior to this were certainly worthy releases, with Dickinson
back on lead there is a feel that Brave New World is classic Maiden and a
return to form.
What I really like about this album
is the progression of the sound while staying completely true to the intrinsic
Maiden feel. I am very much in favour of the incorporation keyboards which at
one time would have filled the fanbase with horror. The atmospheres and
textures gives a progressive element which is fitting giving the influences
that have been cited by the band members. The word “progressive” can often
cause alarm but there is no indulgence here even with the longer songs but what
we have is shades and subtleties to balance the power that comes with Iron
Maiden.
With 10 songs featured on Brave New
World, named after the novel by Aldous Huxley, the album runs for 66 minutes with
7 of the songs over 6 minutes but as I said above, there is no lingering indulgence
and certainly no padding out making it a fully engaging album throughout. We
have the traditional lead guitar breaks, the interplay with the 3 guitarists
working perfectly alongside Steve Harris’s trademark rampaging bass.
Commercially the album performed
well, reaching number 7 in the UK album charts with the two singles released
both hitting the higher reaches of the UK singles chart.
My first selection is the album opener
and lead single, The Wicker Man. Although named after the 1970’s cult film the
lyrics are not a direct reference to the film plot itself.
Album Of The Week - 31/01/2026 - Track 5
My final selection from Leaves Of Yesteryear is the third of the 3 new, original songs on the album.
Hounds is a 10 minute that starts with a quiet acoustic section, laced with synths and builds into a superb, melodic rock song with an introspective lyric typical of the album.
Album Of The Week - 31/01/2026 - Track 4
Going a little out of order with today's selection from Leaves Of Yesteryear, with the closing song on the album.
The track, Solitude, is a cover of a Black Sabbath song originally released on their 1971 album, Master Of Reality.
This Green Carnation version stays true to the Sabbath original with its sorrowful, atmospheric portrayal envoking a sense of loss and despair.
Album Of The Week - 31/01/2026 - Track 3
The third selection from Leaves Of Yesteryear is the longest song on the album, My Dark Reflections Of Life And Death.
This 15 minute epic is a reworking of a song by the same name that appeared on the debut Green Carnation album, Journey To The End Of The Night.
I must say that I much prefer this new, more polished version but its a superb song full of melancholic, introspective lyrics looking at the passing and loss of life.
Album Of The Week - 31/01/2026 - Track 2
The second selection from Leaves Of Yesteryear is one of the shorter and more direct songs on the album.
Sentinals is a more standard rock song with a well crafted lyric which talks of chaos and deception and features a mix of vocal styles.
Album Of The Week - 31/01/2026
Leaves Of Yesteryear
– Green Carnation
This week we remain within my metal collection and again in music with its roots in the Scandinavian / Nordic reaches of Europe, this time with Leaves Of Yesteryear from Norwegian progressive metal band, Green Carnation.
I first became aware of the band
back in 2005 when I found myself exploring the gothic and doom sub-genres of
metal and came across their album, The Quiet Offspring. It was one of those albums
that captured me instantly with its melodic gothic tinged progressive metal.
Green Carnation go all the way back
to 1990 but their first album did not see the light of the day for about 10
years and by the time their second album came out in 2001, the acclaimed Light
Of Day, Day Of Darkness the band had seen a major line-up overhaul.
Remaining from the original band line-up
was guitarist Terje Vik Schei (Tchort) who was a member of the seminal and
infamous black metal band Emperor and he was joined by Stein Roger Sordal on bass
and vocalist Kjetil Nordhus and despite regular line up changes these 3 remain
at the core of Green Carnation.
It is the presence of Kjetil Nordhus
that has interested me as he was an integral part of the band Tristania for
many years and I really enjoy his vocal style.
Following the release of The Quiet
Offspring the band released The Acoustic Verses in 2006 and from there they went
into a 7 year break as all the band members had other musical projects.
From 2014, the band reunited for various
live performances and re-releases but the next album did not see the light of
day until 2020, a full 15 years since their last rock/metal album, and it has
to be said that the album, The Leaves Of Yesteryear, was a wonderful return.
Containing 5 songs, two of which
are over 10 minutes, this an album packed with melody and power and shows the
maturity and progression within the band over the years.
The album is generally mid-paced,
not quite slow enough to dip into the realms of doom and the vocals are
generally clean with just a few bursts of the death growls.
The album is packed with atmosphere
changes, quiet piano and string refrains intermixed with guitars and keyboards.
For me, generally, the term progressive
puts me off a band as I think back to the to indulgent bands of the 1970’s, the
bands that punk provided the antidote for but with Green Carnation I find their
music completely engaging. Maybe this is more of a sign of my developing music
tastes over the years or the fact that term progressive is now more about the
music than the individual musical virtuosity of the players.
Anyway, my first selection from the
album is the opening and title track, Leaves Of Yesteryear, an 8 minute opus on
the passing of the years.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026 - Extra
The second part of Human: II Nature is a 30 minute classical work entitled All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World.
Written by Toumas Holopainen and performed by the Pale Blue Orchestra and the Metro Voices choir this orchestra piece is bold, beautiful and completely captivating.
Toumas has stated he gets a lot of inspiration from film scores and this work certainly pulls on that but there is a folk flavour to the compostion which also seems to pull on the Auri project that he is a key member of.
This an essential companion to the first disc of rock and metal and together they make a complete work and a true masterpiece from Nightwish.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026 - Track 5
The final selection from the first disc of the Human: II Nature album is the closing track, Endlessness.
This is a epic Nightwish song and features vocals from Marco Hietala, the last song he recorded before his departure from the band.
The song explore the themes of universal forces that flow through all life and is excellent song to close the "metal" side of the album.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026 - Track 4
My penultimate selection from Human: II Nature is the track Shoemaker.
The actual song is about the American geologist Eugene Shoemaker, who I nothing about before the album but what grabbed me about this one is the fantastic orchestral and choral section at the end of the song.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026 - Track 3
My latest selection from Human: II Nature is the track Tribal.
This one of the shorter tracks on the album and has a real punchy delivery aided by vocals from Marco Hietala.
The song itself looks at the tribal behaviour of mankind and that tribalism is portrayed with the emphatic drumming on this excellent track.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026 - Track 2
The second selection from Human: II Nature is the lead and only single taken from the album.
The song, Noise, is a commentary on how the proliferation of technology and especially social media as come to dominate and in some cases take over people lives creating a Utopian illusion.
The release is accompanied by a lavish, tongue in cheek video.
Album Of The Week - 24/01/2026
Human: II Nature -
Nightwish
This week we are featuring the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish with their 9th studio album, Human: II Nature, the fourth of my 18 Nightwish albums to be selected as an album of the week.
As I have quoted before, Nightwish
were one of the bands that got me more interested in metal around 1997 as up to
then it was a genre I had generally spurned with just a few exceptions.
Since the release of Oceanborn, the
second album from Nightwish, I have been avidly following their output including
through all of their line-up changes and style shifts.
As far as heavy metal goes,
Nightwish are certainly on the more accessible side but that could be said of the
symphonic metal subgenre in general but unlike some of their contemporaries ,
there is no cheesiness with Nightwish that can occasionally creep in, where style
takes over from content.
Nightwish, creatively, are driven
by keyboardist, songwriter and founding member Tuomas Holopainen but the
dynamic and quality of his vision could not be met so effectively without being
part of such a good band. Despite various line-up changes, including 3 lead singers
that mix of power and beauty that defines Nightwish has never been lost, and that
is what leads us into Human: II Nature.
Holopainen has stated over the
years that his creativity is often inspired by film music and since the release
of Dark Passion Play in 2007 there has been a greater incorporation of
orchestral elements into the Nightwish sound. We saw this orchestral theme
expanded with their film score to accompany the Imaginaerum cinematic project
that built on the concept of their album of the same name in 2011.
With Human: II Nature we have a
double album that comprises of 9 songs of standard symphonic metal and 10th
track on disc 2 which is purely orchestral music running for 30 minutes broken
down into 8 chapters, the collective title being All The Works Of Nature Which
Adorn The World. This piece sits perfectly as an expansion and continuation of
the themes explored on their previous album, Endless Forms Most Beautiful.
Although thematically, the album
follows closely on from their previous release, an album that looked and mans interaction
with nature and creation theories Human: II Nature is not a concept album as other
subjects and personal interests are covered.
As is often the case in metal,
especially the symphonic realm, the music is grand, diverse and compelling with
sweeping choral and symphonic arrangements to accompany the guitars. It is this
mix of elements that drew me to Nightwish and the genre in general although
like all realms of music some excel while others prove to be poor copyists.
Human: II Nature is the last album to
feature bassist and male vocalist Marco Hietala who left the band shortly after
the release of the album due to health problems. His contribution to Nightwish
cannot be understated and his presence was certainly felt on their most recent
album, but more of that at a future date.
This is also the second album to
feature the outstanding Floor Jansen on lead female vocals and this is also the
first album to see Kai Hahto as the permanent drummer who replaced Jukka
Nevalainen again due to health issues.
Human: II Nature received generally
good reviews within the metal press and commercially carried on a run of 8 consecutive
number 1 studio albums in their home nation of Finland as well as reaching number
28 in the UK album charts.
Such is the success of Nightwish in
Finland they are now the 3rd highest selling act of all time in the
country but their reach has been felt worldwide especially in mainland Europe
which seems to embrace this type of music maybe more than the UK.
My first selection from the album
is the opener, Music, the longest song on the album which looks at the history of
music.
Album Of The Week - 17/01/2026 - Track 5
The final selection from Second Still is the closing track, Judgment.
This one of the more uptempo songs on the album and at just under 5 minutes, it's a persistant track with a predominantly spoken lyric and is a strong end to this very enjoyable debut album.
Album Of The Week - 17/01/2026 - Track 4
My penultimate selection from Second Still is the short and punchy song, You Two So Alike.
The quirky melody of the song took me back to some of early offerings from XTC.
At just over 2 minutes this is the shortest track on the album.
Album Of The Week - 17/01/2026 - Track 3
My third selection from Second Still is the track Try Not To Hide.
As well as the typical driving bass there is a some very enjoyable lead guitar which reminds me of early Killing Joke, one of the stronger tracks from the album.
Album Of The Week - 17/01/2026 - Track 2
The second selection from Second Still is the longest song on this 32 minute album.
A just under 5 minutes, the track Sleep is a richly atmospheric, post-punk song lavished with an hypnotic bass melody running through it.
Album Of The Week - 17/01/2026
Second Still –
Second Still
This week we delve into the realms of goth rock with an American band I came across via the Out Ov The Coffin podcast.
Second Still are a 3 piece gothic
rock/darkwave outfit who combine synths, atmospheric guitars, moody and driving
bass topped with some superb low range female vocals.
Second Still, released in 2017, is the
self-titled debut album from the band and I was very impressed with the release
after being introduced to the band by the above mentioned
Overall, its very melodic over its
8 tracks with lots of dark, gothic melodies with the mix of bass and synths
giving the definition and drive to the album. The style of the album is rooted
in the atmospheric giving a darkwave electronic feel and has it influences very
much from the 80’s British goth rock and shoegaze bands. The vocal style would
draw obvious comparisons to that of Siouxsie and the Banshees whose charismatic
singer Siouxsie Sioux very much set the template 80’s post-punk and goth rock.
Despite this strong offering, to
date they have only released one more album, 2019’s Violet Phase and there has
been no social media updates since 2020 which would indicate they are no longer
active.
There is also very little information
about them online and I assume that the 3 band members have either moved onto
other projects or are not involved in music anymore.
My first selection from the album is
opening track, Recover.
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