Month: June 2024

Unpacking OK Computer: Radiohead’s Sonic Revolution

Unpacking OK Computer: Radiohead’s Sonic Revolution

Neil Johnson 24 June 2024

Introduction In the annals of music history, few albums have had as profound an impact as Radiohead’s...

New Jersey: Bon Jovi’s Unmatched Rock Legacy

New Jersey: Bon Jovi’s Unmatched Rock Legacy

Neil Johnson 10 June 2024

Introduction When Bon Jovi released New Jersey in September 1988, they were not just following up a...

From Rebellion to Radio Hits: The Making of Skid Row’s Debut

0982e79b6c4143a43b32e0959a33d677.1000x1000x1

From Rebellion to Radio Hits: The Making of Skid Row’s Debut

Neil Johnson 3 June 2024

Introduction Some albums don’t just mark a year; they define an era. Skid Row’s self-titled debut, released...

Podcast Episodes

Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums Podcast

Welcome to Riffology, where a GenX and a Millennial talk about the albums from their youth. It’s more fun than it sounds…

Sepultura’s Beneath the Remains gets the full Riffology treatment: the leap from Schizophrenia to something lean, hostile and oddly elegant. We dig into why the first half feels near-bulletproof (“Beneath the Remains,” “Inner Self,” “Stronger Than Hate,” “Mass Hypnosis”), how those nocturnal sessions at Nas Nuvens bled into the record’s raw edge, and where Scott Burns helped sharpen the attack. It’s the grim middle ground between thrash and death—menace over flash, breakdowns that earn their keep, and riffs that chug without ever getting comfortable.

We wander through the artwork lore too—Michael Whelan’s “Nightmare in Red,” the Obituary swap, teenage-bedroom posters, and the strange orderliness of tape-trading that forced you to live with whole albums rather than skip buttons. Max and Igor’s engine, Andreas’ knife-point melodies, Paulo holding the line; a band stepping forward, already pointing at Arise while still covered in the dust.

Then the end happens—again the funniest stretch—featuring an unscheduled James Hetfield cameo, a perfectly serious argument about whether the evening meal is “tea” or “dinner,” and a sign-off that devolves into an apology cascade capped with “Sorry, mum.” Dry, accidental, very on-brand.