Friday 7 August 2020

ALBUM REVIEW: DEEP PURPLE - "WHOOSH" (2020)

 

ALBUM REVIEW: DEEP PURPLE - "WHOOSH" (2020)

Here is the "Whoosh" at last. No need to relay on the spoilers and all the weird preview stuff. So how is it?

It would be rather unfair to put this album in the context of ALL of Purple's career. In that canva it's rather undistinguishable record. So let's talk it rather in the frame of the Bob Ezrin years, since the collaboration between the renowned producer (Alice Cooper, Kiss, Pink Floyd) and the band is treated as a kind of era in the band's history. It's debut of "Now WhatI?" was and is as amazing as it's been upon the release in 2013. Consistent, punchy, sparky, very little filler on it. Gems like "A Simple Song" and "Weirdistan" are still unknown to the general public. Inspired set all the way down - in no small part by the loss of the late Jon Lord, who's been cited as a spiritual influence lifting up the music and the overall level of creativity (and it's well heard in the music). "Infinite", 3 years later, held in decently well, though the consistency was slowly scrapping off. I still remember feeling somewhat puzzled after first listening. It seemingly felt OK, but left the long time Purple listener confused. Only "Time For Bedlam", "The Surprising" and "Birds Of Prey" were sure shots to end in the Purple cannon of the exciting songs, the rest being to some varying extent, debatable on quality. In 2019, in secrecy, the band recorded the new album and withheld it for almost a year from public - releasing it just today after a string of three singles announcing the record. Of which - each and every one was yet again somewhat confusing to the Purple followers.

So glad that the album starts off with the first single. "Throw My Bones" still sounds like an instant skipper - cheesily synthetized strings carry the throwaway tune through less than 4 minutes. It sounded dreadful at the initial release, and should be forgotten, right off the spot. Leaves you feeling that the rest of the material just must be superior to this. As the album unfolds, luckily the overall story gets better... Not necesarily in "Drop The Weapon", though. More decent tune than the procedessor, but still the chorus sounds so totally out of line with the track. Not much over the decency line, though. Good bridge, reasonable solos... Still, it's Deep Purple - so the bar of expectations is so much higher. "We're All The Same In The Dark" - a bit of generic sounding riff, but at long last the bite is starting to sound. Without Gillan's extended explanation for the background of it - the lyrics sound a tad iffy. Steve Morse plucks away the weird solo, phrasing almost like on a country or pop record. Hell, it's weird. At least though some muscle is appearing in the old dog. "Nothing At All" - another iffy lyrics, but the hook is almost as infective as corona is - really sits on your head after a couple of spins. Don Airey's run through the middle part - with fugue-like sounding showcase (there is, I reckon, some quotation from Bach's works in there) is at last bringing in some amazing old fashioned Purple spirit where rock meets the classic. Good Morse - Airey lick trade-off at the end. We got the first major strong point of the album, a likely favourite for many. "No Need To Shout" almost resembles the "Stormbringer / "Slow Down Sister" spirit, but I reckon, the Messers are not much aware of this... The drive is there, though the solos are debatably imaginative (wake up, Steve!), despite Don's citing a bit of Gershwin during his piano solo.

Mid-way through the album there is the first REAL mind-blow. "Step By Step". My eyes got wide and far out once I heard the cathedral like organ and fugue-ish chords. I hear bits of "Clearly Quite Absurd" finale in there, and if there was / is a baroque Purple shuffle - that's the one. Solos are well balanced and it's a perfect shot at something absolutely monumental. Could this be destroyed though? Sadly yes... Fade out at 3:25. I wish I could sit with Bob Ezrin with a beer at the table and tell him that this kind of crime desrves a death sentence by public stripping of flesh. The fade starts at the point where this pearl should start to develop - just let Don and Steve off the fucking leash! Play it on, for grief sake, take it to the 7 minute mark... Wasted chance for something absolutely legendary, damn! How... come... it's ever been allowed!! Crime! I want blood! Shame on you, Purps!

And what do w change it for? Piano boogie of "What The What"... Almost cheesily idiotic after the amazement of "Step By Step". Most ridiculous pairing of the tracks on any Purple album, this might be just it. And sadly the rock and roll quotations a' la "Speed King" in the lyrics can't salvage the feeling that it's a filler track. Out of space, out of time. Almost like eating a bad food, duh. "The Long Way Round" lifts you a bit off the floor, it has strong progressive aspirations, but the execution is not really much of convincing. Don Airey's synth solo stands out in the middle - nice, imaginative outburst of flashy fingers. Still the illusion of a driving tempo and a punch is disspersing somehwere throughout. Maybe because the bridge part sounds almost like rip off from Gillan's solo staple "Hang Me Out To Dry" from "Toolbox" 30 years back. But that's the risk in this genre - you will stumble upon the plagiarising your own self one fine day. Fine set of tools intended, this, but a miss in final execution of mounting it. More aspiration than the effect of it's result.

Time to make up for the mishaps, and "Power Of The Moon" is rather succesful in that. Haunting verses versus blasts of chorus - there's a fair dose of prog edge in this. Nice, works rather well. Solos in the middle are at last better balanced between moody (Morse) and raspy (Airey - with slight running out of imaginative use of his favourite key licks). Fade out kills the spirit again, almost making you think that the band has run out of imagination on how to develop this really good track. Shame again. "Remission Possible" - why only 1:38? Why not give it more development? Especially as it seems to have the strongest kick of all the album's tracks... Almost makes you wanna sit and weep. Best chances to build up something monumental off the best tracks are shot and cremated in fade-outs, just like if someone was puting restraints on the band over their aspiration to spread the musical wings. It's bad, it's insane, it's dreadful. Ezrin, you bastard, why? Huge amount of dissapointment in this. "Man Alive" is what we know it is. Rich in ideas, instrumentation, wide scan of sound layers, but so poorly composed, with the middle part completely destroying the monumentum. Plus the dreadful, squeaky sound of Morse's solo. I wish I could like it, but it pisses me right off. Kill the squeal Steve, forget it for one damn record, play clean, low and heavy. You can, by now, just stick to it. Good shape, bad, ill-chosen filling. Dummy in result.

"And The Address" - a very solid reendition of the track that kickstarts Deep Purple's discography. Sounds good and inspired enough to be a pleasing listen. No use comparing it to 1968 sound, but as a nod to Jon, Ritchie and the scope of band's career - it's not a bad choice and execution at all. Risk of accusation of lack of original ideas - some will bring it up. I don't mind it. "Dancing I My Sleep" is quite a punchy stomper, although falls into a generic cathegory of the mediocre tracks of the era. Gillan says - Morse's solo in the song is one of the best guitar he's ever heard in his life. Now that's a blasphemy, with the 20+ years of Blackmore's magic in the bucket. Steve sounds experimental and rough for sure, but come on, be fair in putting marks if you vote that far and wide.

A bit of odd ending to the odd album. Not as bad as the first two singles hinted it would be. In fact - it seems to be coming off better than "Infinite", more inspired and a bit more packed with shards of good ideas. If only a more thoughtful execution could follow it. Band is well olied, playing very tight - and it should be no suprise to anyone. Still, the crime of killing off it's best tracks is so painful to my ears. Cutting up the wings to fold them, just as they were about to spread and take them to fly off... Unjustified crime, this. That will be my remaining impression of the record, roots of this process I will not understand. And while it's good to have their new music, it's such a pity that these goods ended up held back.... Like butcher ripping off the eyes to reach the dying brain... A good album that could have been really big with more open, corageous approach. A dose of joy with a big shame in a bag.

Monday 18 March 2019

FAREWELL TO THE KINGS: Bernie Torme 18/3/1952 - 17/3/2019 [*]

I'm beyond gutted and distracted to learn of Bernie Torme's passing, almost weeping... I never met him or had seen him live but I always loved playing and his attitude of this punky "being-myself-whatever-the-fokk-I-choose". He never got the credit he deserved for his talent; Gillan stint was his highest shoot to the stardom and to this day it's one of my favourite areas of the Purple Tree. Still, it's not that Gillan was a smart-arse who reinvented himself to join his own raised kids in NWOBHM wave. It was Bernie, John Mc Coy and Colin Towns that got him there. And they really did some epic stuff together. "Mr Universe" alone, phew, most of it was composed before Bernie joined, but what a record it is. The tracks which he co-wrote - the title one (that became his tour de force live) and "Roller" are kick-in-the-balls high octane reapers. And the albums that followed ("Glory Road" and "Future Shock") are so much more diverse in musical taste ("On The Rocks" will remain my Top 5 favourite track of life until I myself call it a day, and "If You Believe Me" - now talk about Irish punk playing some gutsy blues in your face, come on!). Stint with Ozzy - insane. Decades in which not much big happened later on - sad. Still, he stuck o his guns and played what he wanted.

Hell, I feel lost. There was no good news from his camp for weeks so it seems it's been looming... still, what a bummer. I will cherish that one e-mail I got from him when he appeared to put his legacy in digital on Bandcamp, saving his fans from paying copious amounts of money for his long deleted solo alums never released on CD. I said to him that one of my favourite things he did was a record put out in 2000 - Gary Barden had then a project called Silver. Album was "Dream Machines" and featured (along Gary and Bernie) Don Airey on keys and Marco Minneman on drums (Doro Pesch had her hand in backing vocals too). Amazing rock album, where Bernie's full tilt mode shines... He was happy to learn my attitude and said that he wouldn't mind colaborating with Colin Towns again... He was real, he noticed those who liked his work.

I will miss these yelling notes that were his trademark sign built into his phrasing. His tone was one of a kind and instantly recognizable, though in a wider picture he'll remain one of the greatest guitar heroes completely unsung to the world.

Salute, Bernie; I miss you like hell already.

Gillan, Mr Universe - live Oxford Polytechnic, 18th Feb 1981
https://youtu.be/jI-po_zD1gs
Gillan, No Easy Way (starts at 0:57) - live Oxford Polytechnic, 18th Feb 1981. Mesmerising duel between Torme and Towns in the end. This was a hell of a live band, I always loved them.
https://youtu.be/sHgUsMXOHH4
Gillan - The BBC Tapes Vol 2 : Unchain Your Brain(1980)
https://youtu.be/7PSuZPQFo5Y
The best existing live release of Gillan with Bernie on guitar, full stop.
And "On The Rocks" - forever and ever the beast... The NWOBHM that went genius straight into progressive rock.
https://youtu.be/BvttENLjb28

Two days before Randy's anniversary... So sad. Sty safe, Bernard!

Thursday 15 November 2018

LIVE REVIEW: Michael Schenker Fest, Wytwornia, Lodz, Nov 13th, 2018

Time and again it's been a while... out (again). Won't dwell into it - I just want to share my excitement with you guys 'n galz... I had this ultimate privillege to stand in the front row at the feet of the Almighty Michael Schenker on Tuesday night. What a blessed 2,5 hours it was!

The band itself could be a subject of a bit of debate to me. Chris Glen and Ted McKenna - the classic rhythym section of the "Assault Attack" - what can I say - immensely kicking guys - both of them. I quite do not know how they pull off these shows so well at their age and with those signs of obesity they have (quite huge in case of Glen). Still, if Chris was the fattest guy on stage - still hats off to him, he was prancing and doing crazy antics to the band fellows and audience all along. Ted - the Powerhouse - so huge since the Rory Gallagher days - still sounds amazing too, no power loss at all.

And the fragile part: The Primadonnas. Four of them, witches, actually. Quite often in fact all singing at the same time in the "one lead plus three backing ones" set-up. Well, bad news, Gary Barden is a sad and very filthy joke now, he should be dumped immediately for the good of the show. Don't get me wrong - I love his singing from the 80-ties. Even on Silver project albums he sounded great. But live... It's bits, pieces and shambles. Gary, I'm sorry... You're a legend, still - get a cure or let go.

With all his incapabilities - Graham Bonnet was - in comparison to Gary John - fresh as a daisy, with only the middle range out, occasional squeaks and creeks and losing breath closer to the end of each tune. Still, animated like a Muppet on steroids, he moves around the stage with his usual antics and energy of a freak. I'm so happy I finally saw him live - and it still was a joy even with the reservation on his sound. And, of course, double Rainbow vocalists combo as a huge bonus - Dougie White is in the bag too. He did really well, nothing too splendid, but enjoyable, good voice and very solid. The real star of the divas sector was Robin McAuley. I don't know why the guy gets so much flak from everybody. Looks great (bar the shitload of tatoos) and still sings like a ringing bell - and that's really needed for Michael's music which - in the end - is damn melodic, FFS!

And the King, The Almighty, The Ruler of the Axe. I'm still in awe, gobsmacked, smashed and slashed. I know what I witnessed and I don't think I can still fully understand it. He looks like his own young him again. Really, you will not give him 63 he has and after all the roliing and tumbling he's put himself through. There is this eerie halo of the slowed-down moves denouncing the age, but his mind and his fingers haven't lost anything. A miracle of some sort, truly. He was playing his ass off, interacting with audience - and it was clear - HE IS HAVING A BLAST doing this. And his craft is totally on, dead in spot. You all know why we revere the guy so much. He's no bullshit, no fireworks. Simple setup, V-axes, a bit of Wah, echo, his mind and his fingers. And he was mindblowing, all the way through. It was such a bliss to see it from the distance of one to five meters at max. Like a dream. It was like he played almost just for me. No video could get me something as up and close and personal as this. Moments of loss in bliss were aplenty - "Attack Of The Mad Axemen", "Coast To Coast"... "Desert Song" sounded flooring and absolutely massive - it's so epic to wittness. My beloved "Only You Can Rock Me" - I almost lost it there - THIS FREAKING SOLO THAT I LOVE SO MUCH - just played right in front of my eyes... Paradise! Wish it had never ended.

The part of the show closer to the end was packed up with UFO classics, so the hall has gone just freakin' wild. It was sooo great. And the German Axeman bombed Poland to bits and pieces for the very end.

"Rock Bottom".

Lasting twenty freaking minutes total, with all the middle improv full blown on and the closing section going on for ages (complete with Ted Mc Kenna's drum work out at the very end).

Forgive me the swearing but... It was un-fucking-belieavable. I hid my phone and just watched, flown away for ten minutes - just looking at these fingers doing all this crazy stuff in the middle... And Mickey did kind of flow away... A life threatening experience. I saw Vinne Moore UFO doing it twice and loved it but... All the world can go to hell and cry it's eyes into the endless fire. It's Michael's child, he ultimately nails it, and posesses it - top to bottom, tip to toe, start to finish. Must be one of the best things guitar-wise I have ever seen in my life and I've seen plenty so far. Yes, smack me, I haven't seen Schenky live before... so it was kind a bit of like the firtst time - but just the way it should always be, for anyone. The realms of pleasure and amazement were amazing. The way he plays it... it's just him bar NO ONE. Sorry, chaps. No one. And I kind of think that is why we look up to him so much, he really is an inspiration - this sound and this phrasing is simply irreplaceble, truly one of a kind.

And I am so happy to confirm it as an eye wittness: Michael does seem reborn. Full flight, great form, finally enjoying his craft and playing for his freak-fans. There could have not been a better scenario and I am so glad for him. And happy about this close-up experience. It's almost frightening to think that I was on the brink of almost no-go due to crazy logistics... but! Veni, vidi, vici. On the day of my Mum's 70th birthday I saw one of the best guitar gigs I've ever been to. 'Appy days as Mick Box says.

If you yet haven't seen Schenker yet... go if you only have your chance, as long as he's back. There's never gonna be another one like him.

PS. Photos are all mine, done with mobile, so they are by no means state of art, but will give you a glimpse of what my eyes saw.




















Tuesday 16 October 2018

[Remember The Day] 25 years ago - Deep Purple's Last Gig In Germany with Ritchie Blackmore on board

On October 16th,  1993 The Schleyerhalle in Stuttgart was the venue for the last ever German gig of Deep Purple featuring Ritchie Blackmore. I'm not aware of very many British rock 'n' rollers who are as "pro-German" as Ritchie is ("I guess it's because I like to take side of the nation who looses" - he's reported to have said once), so counting on the fact that that it was to be his last ever gig with DP in his beloved country - he fell in the mood bright enough to close this chapter of his touring career with a truly resonating blast.

Prior to coming down to Stuttgart, Purple were pretty well oiled by the previous 12 German gigs. Their musicianship was widely "ranging from rock to roll", with couple of dready affairs but also some highlights (especially the show in Grugahalle Essen, where for the first time in their career the band hit the mark of one show longer than 130 minutes on stage), displaying an immense amount of "perfect balance between the discipline and improvisation" as Jon Lord would later on describe it to the press.

Personal aspect of the band inner condition was, however, a totally different affair. The RCA company bribed the band members of Lord, Paice and Glover to take opposite corner to Blackmore in regard of who should sing on their 25th anniversary album and tour. Reportedly a stated threat not to release what became the album "The Battle Rages On" if it's not one certain vocalist is being employed again, thwarted the opposition even in the Man In Black. The proceedings resulted in third engaging of Ian Gillan to the band and launching the band on a ride of yet another trainwrecking clash of personalities - evergoing between Gillan and Blackmore. Despite the fact of the album being received with mixed reviews from both press and fans alike, the new generation of rock fans was excited with prospect of the treat to see the legendary Mk II live on tour again. The US leg of the tour flopped and never came to fruition, but with the September on the cards the band hit the road in Europe - reaching Germany just two weeks after the tour start.

With over fifteen shows under their belt before mid-October, the pressure of the "empty hearts and icy stares" on the Blackmore - Gillan line was palpable. It's been wittnessed before however that nothing does the Purple musical camarderie as much good as the personal tension edging physical fight. The tendency to be trying to blow the enemy off the stage with unrivalled performance, combined with enthusiastic and sometimes extatic reaction of the audience - brought the bar of the top notch quality performances for Blackmore and Gillan alike, with ever reliable Lord, Glover and Paice following the vicious two seamlessly. They scored their absolute peak of their mighty abilities right there in Stuttgart, rightly 20 years ago.

The concert, that now can be wittnessed in it's entirety on official releases - finds the band in a way above and beyond anything that they had experienced prior or after to that night. The balance ofd the ripping power, energy and dexterity of playing meshed up with knobbing the intensity of the voulme, sound contrasts and space for improvisation, mood changes and simply having fun and enjoying rock 'n' roll in truly glorius proportions, is  just mesmerising.

The highlights during the set are more than aplenty. The audience mood and ability to participate in the flow of excitement is nicely tested in "Black Night" singalong right after opening the show with roaring take of "Highway Star". Prior to the audience passing it's exam in flying colours - Blackmore delivers first of the few once-in-a-lifetime solos of his for that night. Beginning with a nasty tremolo sustained phrase, he throbbles the fretboard up with fingers scratching up the strings and proceeds on to couple of bars where the sky-high melodic finds the strings almost being ripped out the neck. Before the audience takes over with singing the riff, he plays couple of ultra beatiful semi-accoustic licks sounding almost like unused riffs. This is orgasmic.

Before the Bethoveen's Ninth excercise Ritchie takes the band to the two-and-a-half minute jam combining "The Mule" riff with the BBC outtake "Grabsplatter" tempo. Both of these hasn't been played by the band since seventies. The flow of this version prompts Lord to come with a truly majestic solo spot after which "Knocking At Your Backdoor" follows, unleashing (yet and again) another tidal wave of Ritchie's genius.

After the call-response with Lord in the standard middle solo for the track - he stops the band down for an improvisation beginning with flowingly beatiful semi-accoustic solo played in electric mode. Then again he carries out again a dialogue of guitar and organ with Jon and concludes the suprise spot off with a concrete ripping closure of amazingly aggressive electric lead solo. This idea pennes the ultimate live arrangement of this song that no other set of musicians ever could replicate effectively with such an mesmerising effect.

"Child In Time" (welcomed by audience with a tidal wave of cheer) finds Blackmore introducing the solo spot with nicking the bars from Lord and having them played in beatiful mode with slide. The improvisation finds Ritchie and Jon chasing off each other for couple of minutes. Each one gets bits of a sensational show-off, they talk phrases between and over each other - ending playing improvised scapes in perfect unison together. Hard to hang on to one's head on hearing this, and there's no better example than this thing to play if you need to justify someone why the combination of Blackmore's Fender and Lord's Hammond organ is unrivalled anywhere in rock 'n' roll world.

To save Gillan's voice after the stretch of "Child In Time" the track is thought to conclude with a keyboard-guitar bridge leading in the band to tour-de-force culled of from the new album. "Anya", the last rocker of this kind of might ever penned by Purple - with it's genuine riff - here rises to monumental status. Ticking at over 12 minutes - it finds Blackmore in yet another blessing of being touched by the uncomparable heights of inspiration. The Man In Black drives the song like a director conducting the orchestra: testing the skills of guitar harmonizer at first, then bringing the band down to own the stage for another breathy semi-accoustic showcase on his very own. After tunning the notes down to the silence of pin drop tink being audible - he picks up the driving pace back to lead the Purple steamroller to the frenzy finale, after which no corpse is capable to hold it's head on. They just rip it up - in and out.

Being faithful to the Hitchcock's rule of "first let the house of block go down to rumble and then the tension should rise" - the reminder of the show is killingly electifying. "Lazy" simply dazzles with guitar bursting out and shredding to pieces anything on the way of Ritchie's fingers. Prior to the "Space Truckin' Medley" the whole band segues into a couple of minutes of node-to-Grieg cover of "The Hall Of The Mountain King". And it's not just Blackmore doodling one of his favourite tunes between his nose and the amp's surface. It's a fully throttled, uprising instrumental played by entire band, with Blackers kicking the volume and intensity up and up. Stunning.

It must have been hard for the audience to let them leave the stage. It must have been hard to imagine that the encores might bring in anything that will blow off the gig up-to-then skyscraper quality. But hey, this is Blackmore and Deep Purple clearly willing to laugh you off at your doubts.

The re-endition of "Speed King" that they deliver is simply of one-time-in-the-history-of-the-universe. Starts off with the German anthem introduction, verses go down like couple of TNT bars lit up and blasted. After that both Ritchie and Jon share another round of trading licks like two hungry werewolves on the-die-is-cast tour. When enough is enough, Blackmore tones the band down and drags Lord to follow him to another suprise improvised semi-accoustic section where they battle and share the melodic lines at the same time, fooling around the "Teddy Bear's Picnic" motive... Got a smoked-up mind already? So how about throwing in a "Burn" riff for a good measure to smash you up a bit more? Seven-half minute of a Purple wet-dream, too good to disbelieve that they did it that well.

Blackmore's idea to fool around with light and shade was already then known as a trademark of his. During this tour he developed a habit of playing astonishingly beatiful, melodic semi-accoustic guitar introduction to "Smoke On The Water"completely wrapping up audience's concentration for two-three minutes. The trick of abrupting it to open the stove to 10 and blast up the "Smoke..." riff right after this received the power of life threatenning effect, addidtionally sending the spectators to the sky high frenzy within seconds. And so they all blast the hall up here, delivering another breathaking performance - the very last of this magical night.

This show also remains iconic for being outstanding in terms of Deep Purple high standards of delivering a masterclass live on stage (one of the best in their entire career). It is also a testimony to the fact that after that tour things were never to be as magical ever again.

Not many other live shows I know of, that I love so much to listen, tell of, cheerish so heartfeltly and recommend to any happy rocker.

DEEP PURPLE [BLACKMORE-GILLAN-GLOVER-LORD-PAICE]
Live at Hans Martin Scheyer Halle, Stuttgart
16 October 1993
THE BATTLE RAGES ON - 25TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR.

Friday 2 March 2018

B' Day Today! Rory Gallagher (70) [*]

Gdyby nie choroba i nieudana operacja - Rory Gallagher być może do dziś czarowałby swoim unikalnym darem wymiatania na starym, odrapanym Fenderze Stratocasterze. Zawieszony gdzieś między rockiem, bluesem i folkiem - miał w sobie jedyny w swoim rodzaju rodzaj _ognia_ i feelingu w grze, który stawiał go w rzędzie największych i najlepszych. "Moonchild", w legendarnym składzie power trio z Gerry'm Mc Avoy'em i Ted'em Mc Kenną, doskonale pokazuje jego firepower.
 
A do tego jeszcze był szanowany przez inne legendy epoki - o jego talencie z uchyleniem czoła wypowiadali się i Jimi Hendrix, i Brian May. A Jack Bruce po prostu wyciągnął go na scenę i zmusił do wejścia w buty Erica Claptona! Co Rory na to? Z wyczuwalnym wstydem, ale grał swoje, z tym jedynym w swoim rodzaju "czujem". Może i nie znał na pamięć klasyki Cream, ale podszedł do tematu z biegu i przekuł ryzyko porażki w sukces. Legenda. Mistrz. Happy B, Rory!!!


Wednesday 17 January 2018

Over The Rainbow. DOLORES O'RIORDAN

I've never been a huge fan of The Cranberries, although I very much liked a handful of their tunes. "Promises" is standing out as my personal favorite of theirs - thanks to a great melody, gritty lyrics and scorching leading guitar riff. Still, I am deeply saddened by the late received news of Dolores' O' Riordan's passing. I liked some of the music she did and surely The Lady had a unique and very distinctive voice and loads of talent that moved her listeners.

Sad to note down also that with probability it was depression that stood behind her unfortunately early end of life. With Keith Emerson, Chris Cornell and Chester Bennington being gone just last year and succumbing to the same area of mental trouble - this is just saddening that despite the ongoing progress in medicine - the people of art can't get enough support to save their lives and deliver more fine art of theirs to the world. We're left alone to praise and miss them.

Rest in peace, Dolores, hope you're safe in the calmer dimension of the universe.