Every 2-3 years, there comes a time when an article in VISIONS interests me so much that I can't help but buy an issue. Generally, however, I find the alternative rock heroes in the issues to be so unimportant (if I even know them) that I save the €6.90. The 1-2 CDs that come with the magazine don't help either.
In the November 2018 issue, it was the New York Hardcore legend SICK OF IT ALL, including the history of the genre, that practically forced me to buy this issue. Of course, there are also other "nice" bands and musicians on the 164 pages, but without SOIA, this issue would have remained in the magazine stand.
Among the "nice" bands and musicians of No. 308, who typically get a page (sometimes including a half-page photo, making the text correspondingly shorter), are WAYNE KRAMER from MC5, who became famous in the 70s (!!!!), and TOUCHÉ AMORÉ, about whom I first read something in the then VISIONS about 5 years ago.
The "nice" bands also include MUFF POTTER, who have never played a significant role in my life. The 14-page report/interview (net, it's 7 pages; the rest are photos and explanations) and the 12 rare songs on the accompanying CD won't change that. By the way, the second accompanying CD skips in two out of three CD players I have, but that doesn't affect the music; you just hear the CD "skipping" or "rattling" between songs. Ironically, in my oldest and most robust DVD/CD player (which is probably already 15 years old from Philips), the CD runs flawlessly. Flawless is also the music from SOIA on the CD, as expected; even HANK VON HELL's song was to be expected, while the THE PRODIGY song sounded like old reheated coffee. The other 7 bands are completely unknown to me, mostly from Germany, and fit quite well into the indie-alternative rock scene of this magazine. All quite nice, sometimes more, sometimes less... If I had to highlight one band, it would be TRUCKS, musically great, but unfortunately also the only band from the accompanying CD that didn't get a story in the current VISIONS (it will appear in No. 309). But back to HANK VON HELL, the old TURBONEGRO singer; the 4 pages in the magazine could have been spared, unfortunately :-(
The 3 pages about TENACIOUS D are much more informative and entertaining. They are only topped by the interview or report from TOM MORELLO, the guitarist of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. He also had his finger in AUDIOSLAVE, but honestly, I didn't know much more about him. And now he has released his 16th (!) album under the name THE ATLAS UNDERGROUND with a dozen guest musicians. The 3-page report (well, actually it's only 1½ pages) is really great, and I learned about a new (?) music style or read for the first time about EDM! Not EBM, EDM! Dance instead of body, there's so much out there! ;-) The 4-page MUSE report/interview is also very good, and the 3 pages about THE PRODIGY and their new album confirm my statement about the song on the accompanying CD, old coffee in new cups....
The 12 pages (with many photos) of the SICK OF IT ALL top story deliver what I hoped for in advance. Around the East Coast hardcore scene, which took place almost exclusively in New York and attracted outside bands like the great BAD BRAINS, a lot can be read in VISIONS from the birth of the genre to the NYHC peak in the mid-90s, much of which was unknown to me at least. A great story, yet still too short... Of the 25 best NYHC albums, I know/have about 2/3, which I think is a good value for a village punk.
Additionally, there are two major reports on GRETA VAN FLEET (never heard of them) and PINK FLOYD (!) in this issue, well.... And countless half- or third-page stories about smaller bands that mean nothing to me and were mostly just "skimmed".
Surprisingly, there is also a retrospective of VISIONS cover stories from 20 years ago, featuring Turbonegro, System Of A Down, Marilyn Manson, Queens Of The Stone Age, Placebo, and Refused (to name just the better half); it feels like such a long time ago, do these bands still exist, oh man oh man.....
Countless reviews and a November soundcheck list follow; interestingly, there is only one 11 (the maximum score is 12) and three 10s out of a total of 261 ratings. Musically, this month seems quite weak in new releases... An average score of 7.0 (out of 12) for all reviews is just sufficient...
With some film and DVD reviews, as well as concert reports and announcements, No. 308 comes to an end.
Without the top theme SICK OF IT ALL and New York Hardcore, this issue would not have been worth it for me again, but as it is......
This article was automatically translated by AI.
