As we near Christmas and Hanukkah, people are looking for gift ideas and possibly some that involve music. I hope this week's selection of reviews will give you some ideas on what to buy your favorite rocker.

Burning Point: Burned Down the Enemy

Finnish power symphonic metallers are always welcome in this household and this lot is no exception. They have some nice riffing and keyboard lines while retaining that power drive in the back. There is some serious quality musicianship here. Think Saga gone all metal on you. All the tracks have that wonderful galloping quality that makes the genre so much fun.

Metal Heaven were pretty clever to pick them up as they exude an unknown quality that lets 'em rise above the power metal horde. "Dawn of the Ancient War" is a rather good track, with vocals not unlike Iced Earth with a line in the chorus of "no retreat, no surrender". It's all good and puts a smile on my face. So, what is not to like?

Even Nine: Feed

This is a four song EP from an upcoming British band. Even Nine. However like many bands they differ greatly live than on their CD. I saw them do a rather good job of opening for Thunder last week with their Velvet Revolver-esque rock. What a difference to this CD. That's not say it's bad, but it does seem to have been mixed so it sounds like the indie-tinged rock that is prevalent on the UK charts.

While in concert, the lead singer is a mix of Eddie Veder and Jon Bon Jovi. On here, he just sings (or is mixed) like bog-standard MOR rock. Any hint of passion is gone. At least that's the way it is on the first three tracks. The final song, the title track, has a hint of the quality rock this band produces live. It's catchy and well performed, hinting at the potential that exists in this band. Not there yet but certainly a band to keep an eye on.

Nightwish: Highest Hopes

Now all of you know that I rather like Nighwish and fear for their future now that they have parted with their lead singer, Tara. This "best of" is a fitting tribute to the end of the era of a great symphonic goth power metal band with songs from all phases of their career. There is even a cover on here of Gary Moore's "Over the Hills and Far Away" that I would argue is better than the original recording from the '80s.