Well this week has proved to be very satisfying musically; if rather different from what was planned. As will happen, my Bon Jovi tickets were pulled and I did not attend the gig. However I was able to catch a cracking show by two of the newest acts on the BoDog label. The front mat has been rather full as of late as well. Let's get cracking shall we.

Concert Reviews

The Vincent Black Shadow & Britt Black

Monday night at The Luminaire I saw a showcase gig by two female fronted acts from the BoDog stable. Unlike the dire Bif Naked both bands tonight were in cracking form. First up we had a set from the frankly awesome The Vincent Black Shadow with their diminutive front woman Cassandra, who as far as I can tell has one giant set of lungs.

She can belt em' out like you would not believe. They performed tracks for their excellent new album Fears in the Water with all the tightness of a band that has been around for a decade. It was really nice to see a band deliver at a showcase gig with such talent and quality. This lot from Vancouver deserves to be huge.

Britt Black, on the other hand, had a similar vibe to Bif. Not surprising since she used to be the guitarist in Bif Naked's band. However where they differ is the sheer quality of delivery and showmanship. None of the crappy onstage rants; just head down heavy rock with oodles of attitude and cracking tunes. As is it was a showcase they played tracks from their album; one of the highlights was a cracking version of The Cults "Sanctuary." Go see this lot live before they get big.

While I prefer Vincent Black Shadow as they sound genuinely fresh; both proved there are young female fronted bands out there that don't rely on whingeing or record company scams. Support these two and be rewarded in droves.

DVD Reviews

Bruce Dickinson: Anthology

This is a comprehensive collection of Bruce's solo work with 2 discs full of gigs, one of all his videos, a track by track breakdown of his latest album Tyranny of Souls, and an interview about and showing of the infamous Samson (Bruce's first major band) short Biceps of Steel. In the interview Bruce explains the saga of the short and it's most amusing.

The three live shows chart his solo career from the frankly daft at times "Balls to Picasso" era through his ill-judged grunge band Skunkworks to his metal renaissance post "Accident of Birth." The Skunkwork tracks really do not stand up live. Because the quality of the performances on this DVD is so high, it easy to judge which of these periods saw Bruce at his heights.

The final gig of '99 filmed in Brazil clearly shows a Bruce who is happy with his past and his present. It is no surprise that not long after this he rejoined Iron Maiden taking with him Adrian Smith, his erstwhile Iron Maiden colleague and end of solo career band-mate. This is truly an Anthology of one of the greatest frontmen in heavy metal and rock. If you are a fan it is essential and if you love your metal it comes damn near close. Everything about this DVD set oozes class, but then again are we surprised?