Iron Maiden - Women In Uniform (1980)

What a friggin' catchy number the title track is! It should be a classic-rock radio staple for the middle of the afternoon when you hit that mid-work lethargic pull into indifference and sleep beckons like the sirens of old to randy old sea dogs...not that I would know anything about that, in fact I'm just assuming that the analogy is sound. That fatigue, that's basically the moment reality sets in. You stop kidding yourself, and your body and mind realize that you could be doing a million better things than be at work, and well, it's frankly depressing and depression causes stress which causes fatigue, and thus the quotidian lethargy.

I love the Paul D'ianno-era Iron Maiden and this rippin' little e.p. is exactly one of the reasons why.

Captain Beefheart - Lick My Decals Off, Baby (1970)

The sound of a band falling down the stairs as a ranting, deranged derelict recites freeform poetry. Not for the faint of heart, this ramshackle clatter starts to make some kind of transcendental sense in spite of itself if you stick with it. How else to account for its cult status? Guaranteed to kill any party in one fell swoop or to get those late night lingering guests to finally get the hell out of your apartment so you can get to sleep. I once declared it to be a work of raw, unfiltered genius. Right now it's goddamn irritating. But there you go, that's the Captain for you. Sometimes you get it, sometimes you don't.

Metallica - Jump In The Fire (1983)

I just made the most awesome mistake! Not realizing that this record plays at 45 rpm, I stuck it on and played side 2 because I don't have a lot of time, and I heard Jump In The Fire the other day when I listened to Kill 'Em All. I heard that side 2 isn't live, it's studio with live noise stuck on, so I was curious to see if it was at least a different version, take or mix or what.

Anyway, so the song Seek And Destroy was playing too slow, but hoo-wee, it's friggin' AWESOME this way!

It's heavy as fuck, especialy when they slow the riff down to the ju-juh-juh part before the verse (it's socially acceptable to say fuck, if it's used in that context, right?). And what a growl on Hetfield when he goes down low! I don't know if I can hear it any other way now. It's like Sabbath and Danzig put in a blender with metal molasses.

I saw this record in 1988 when I was a young headbanger in England on a school trip. I always regretted not forking over the cash, but I couldn't buy everything I wanted. I was like a kid in a candy store in European music stores, having grown up in the sticks.

But I gut 'er in the end, by! (CapeBretonspeak)

Hey, I wonder if this monster knows the monster from the Holy Diver cover? They were both out in 1983...but the other monster was obviously a creature of business and intent. This one's just standing around like a retard. I'm guessing they wouldn't be friends, even if they would be from the same town.

Dio - Holy Diver (1983)

So, continuing on with the metal theme, because that's just the kind of summer it's been here in the Tetrahedrodome, here we have an album of some renown, but entirely unheard by me until this very moment! (The title track was vaguely familiar.)

My buddy Vince used to extoll the virtues of this album to my deaf ears "back in the day", and it routinely appears in pretty much every countdown of the best metal albums of all time. Guitarist Vivian Campbell went on to greater fame and fortune as Steve Clarke's replacement in Def Leppard (due to Steve's being inconveniently dead. But hey, after the drummer lost his arm and went right back behind the kit, using contraptions and his feet, who knew? Zombie Clarke in an unprecedented comeback? It would have been pretty wild). But he wasn't cool like Steve Clarke, what with his curly hair and being called Vivian and everything. What a name! Jesus!...oh, and Dio is short. Just sayin'.

And like Geddy Lee, Rob Halford,Vince Neil, et al. this was a voice I didn't care for. Too dramatic. I preferred singers that had a more fun and earthy approach to music. And so I didn't care how good my pal Vince said it was.

Listening now (and having in the meantime dug the Dio-era Sabbath stuff, and recently his Rainbow stuff too), well, it's pretty good metal for the period, to be sure. Spirited performances, Dio in fine fettle as always. I've heard of the other guys..drummer Vinny Appice, bassist Jimmy Bain. But I'll never competely warm up to songs about rainbows and dragons and every woman being some kind of mysterious gypsy in the night (the man's first band was called Elf, and the next one Rainbow, gimme a break!). But if I'm in the mood for heydey metal, then sure, I can imagine liking this a fair bit over time. It does rock.

The cover is over the top but interesting. I don't really believe that this priest is going diving, though, but I could be wrong. And the creature is truly evil, what with giving the devil sign in case you had any doubts (the sign which Dio arguably "invented" - well he says he did and no one contests it). But you know, it's fun. Not only is that guy going to a watery grave in chains (and I'm guessing that he, like, totally feels like he's innocent and being victimized), but the bad monster guy even feels the need and desire to whip him with a chain right up until the last possible moment. You know he's committed to his lifestyle.

Judas Priest - Killing Machine (1978)

1978 was a good year for hard rock guitar tones (Rush's Hemispheres was enjoyed earlier today). This album is a bit more metallic sounding than the previous and quite awesome release, Stained Class, also from 1978 (bands don't do much of that anymore, releasing more than one album per year). Judas Priest were another of those bands where the vocals put me off in my younger days (Rush and Mötley Crüe are two other notable acts).

But these days I dig it. I think one day I will eventually like everything there is. Is that the day you die?

Beautiful cover art, rockin' tunes (but let's face it, Take On The World is gay as AIDS, as the wife is wont to say) and with the proper title (it's called Hell Bent for Leather in the American market), Killing Machine is a nice slice of vinyl.

Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs (1974)

I'd never heard of this guy, but Dave Mustaine wrote in his autobiography that every budding guitarist was listening to this guy in the late 70's, so I decided to look it up. Well, he sounded cool, some kind Hendrixy sort of player. He had also been in Procul Harem. So, to eBay it was. And here it is.

Amazing production values (engineered by Geoff Emerick...as in, the engineer on Beatles recordings), nice album cover, cool font, heavy, funky, blues-based material in the Free/Paul Rodgers school of rock.

Rush - Hemispheres (1978)

While vacationing in Canada, my nephew Terry showed me his album collection which was small, but tasty. (He doesn't even have a record player...says he wants to wait until he can get a proper one...I don't get it, but he's got his principles and you have to respect that.)

Among his records was Rush's Hemispheres from 1978. Well, I've recently been getting into Rush in a more serious way, and seeing that album made me realize that of course I should be buying some Rush vinyl. Interesting though gay artwork, very much in the Pink Floyd/Hipgnosis vein, though in this case by Hugh Syme (look him up!), gatefold sleeve...what's not to like?

Sounds great, good guitar tones, lots of energy jumping through the speakers. I'd heard the album before, but it sounds especially good on record. You can't argue with a stone cold classic like La Villa Strangiato.

Good vinyl choice!