Nazareth-The Fool Circle (1981)

Nazareth's twelfth studio album is one of their most abrasive yet eclectic works. On "The Fool Circle", the British band continues to blend their diverse influences with their signature hard rock sound. This time around, the group comprised of Dan McCafferty (vocals), Manny Charlton (guitars), Pete Agnew (bass), and Darrell Sweet (drums) along with guest appearances by Zal Cleminson (guitars), John Locke (keyboards), and Jeff Baxter (synthesizers and production), incorporates addictive 80s commercial sounds like reggae, which permeate several of the album's tracks. Songs like the lively rock "Dressed To Kill", the peculiar reggae "Let Me Be Your Leader", the pop rock "Little Part Of You", the catchy "Victoria", the refined ballad "Moonlight Eyes", the AOR "Another Year" or a reggae version of the classic song "Cocaine" by J.J. Cale performed live, make up one of their most harmonious albums, but at the same time it is unfairly one of the most underrated in their entire discography, despite achieving great acceptance in many European countries and in Canada.

The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band-How I Go (2011)

Kenny Wayne Shepherd is one of the youngest bluesmen on the current scene. Born in the late seventies, his solo career began when he was just eighteen, releasing his first full-length album, "Ledbetter Heights" (1995). However, at only thirteen, he participated in several events alongside bluesman Bryan Lee, a fact that caught the attention of talent scouts who waited until he came of age to sign him to a record deal. From that moment on, Kenny Wayne Shepherd was in demand by many bluesmen of the era, playing with artists such as B.B. King, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, and Jonny Lang, among many others, and opening for Aerosmith, The Eagles, Bob Dylan, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and The Rolling Stones. A five-time Grammy nominee, he has won several of the most prestigious awards in the blues music industry. "How I Go", released in 2011, is his sixth album, steeped in the dusty sounds of the American South. On tracks like "Cold", Wayne demonstrates that he has little to envy in his contemporary blues guitarists, showcasing an enviable technique on the six strings. In his version of the classic "Oh, Pretty Woman", the guitarist delivers a track brimming with blues passion, and on other songs like the rocking "Come On Over" or the blues-rock "Never Lookin' Back", Wayne also makes it clear that he knows how to rock like few others. The more serene blues ballads are present in the radiant "Show Me The Way Back Home", "Anywhere The Wind Blows", and "Who's Gonna Catch You Now", where singer Noah Hunt also shines.

Gamma Ray-Land Of The Free (1995)

Taking inspiration from the iconic 1970s German progressive rock song Birth Control, guitarist and composer Kai Hansen formed Gamma Ray, a band that followed the same musical principles as his previous band, Helloween. After three albums of tremendous power metal, in 1995 they released one of the cornerstones of epic and grandiose metal with "Land of the Free." On this album, Hansen himself took over vocals from former vocalist Ralf Scheepers, while the rest of the lineup consisted of Dirk Schlächter (guitar), Jan Rubach (bass), Thomas Nack (drums), and Sascha Paeth (keyboards), in addition to a guest appearance by his former Helloween bandmate, Michael Kiske. Composed of a series of extensive compositions full of dynamism, power and epicness, here are cuts such as the thrilling "Rebellion In Dreamland", the incisive "Man on A Mission", the emotional "Farewell" or the brilliant "Time To Break Free", resulting in an essential album within the epic heavy metal of the nineties.

Second Movement-Blind Man´s Mirror (1976)

Second Movement were one of those strange and obscure cult bands of the early 70s who refused to completely abandon the psychedelia of the 60s and the hard rock of the early 70s, but who were always influenced by the pompous and complex sound of baroque keyboards and symphonic structures. Their beginnings, dating back to 1971 in Coburg, Germany, are often labeled as Krautrock. The music of their first mini-LP is characterized by a distinct symphonic style in its two songs, "Fool's Dance" and "Rainbow". This was followed by a full album, which they attribute to the progressive genre, titled "Blind Man's Mirror", with a repertoire of tracks exceeding nine minutes in length. The backbone of the band is formed by the excellent keyboardist Siggi Zeidler and the singer Harald Kesselhack, whose vocal timbre is reminiscent of Greg Lake (with a lower register). And last but not least, Thomas Möck's brilliant acoustic guitar solos create mystical atmospheres and flamenco flashbacks interwoven with frenetic, distorted electric guitar passages all of them simply exceptional musicians. “Blind Man’s Mirrors” opens with “Strange Shore”, a stunning introduction where Manni Greiner (bass) and Matthias Helk (drums) take the lead, with a lush development of guitar solos and passages of jazz and ambient sounds a perfect blend of genres, styles, and moods. The following track, “Blind Man’s Mirror”, is a 12-minute mini-epic that begins with the entire band playing a fluid musical section featuring lush keyboards, frenetic percussion, and acoustic guitar 12 minutes of pure prog rock with clear symphonic tendencies. “Shanghai” is a festival of sounds with heavy guitars combined with lush keyboard passages clearly inspired by Rick Wakeman. “Back in Town” is another long song (9.05 minutes), but for the first time they fully embrace a pure symphonic style. This extraordinary album closes with the mysterious “Different Autumn”, the icing on the cake, which ranges from medieval folk sections to vibrant and heavy passages, all enhanced by a baroque organ that keeps them firmly in symphonic territory. It's worth noting that only 700 copies of this album were pressed, and it was followed in 1981 by their second album, “Movements”, which represented a subtle stylistic shift, shedding the symphonic progressive elements to adopt a more conventional 80s prog sound, but with equally brilliant results.

Hogjaw-Sons Of The Western Skies (2012)

Another of those devastating albums of Southern rock and 21st-century American rock is the one released by Hogjaw in 2012, a band formed in 2006 in Arizona. On this release, aptly titled "Sons of the Western Skies," this group comprised of Jon Boat Jones (vocals and guitar), Craig Self (lead guitar), Elvis DD (bass), and J. Kowalski (drums) delivers everything from pure Southern bangers like "Midnight Run to Cleator", "Dirty Woman", "Spoonfed", "Hells Half Home of Mine", and "Road of Fools", to bluesy tracks like "Mainstream Trucker" and "The Sun of All Things", and swampy cuts like "Everyone's Goin' Fishin' ". Without being entirely original, Hogjaw retain their own personality, rescuing with their music and their southern spirit, the enormous legacy left by the great bands of the golden age of American roots rock.

Syd Arthur-Sound Mirror (2014)

Founded at the beginning of this century, Syd Arthur is a British progressive and psychedelic rock band from Canterbury. The band consists of Liam and Joel Magill (guitar and bass, respectively), drummer Fred Rother, and keyboardist Raven Bush. With their debut album, released in 2006, the band showcased their immense potential with a work that draws on a wide range of influences, from jazz and rock to blues and folk. Evoking the sounds of the great bands of the seventies (Camel, Jethro Tull, Genesis, and King Crimson), this quartet continued to evolve, producing another superb, dynamic, and versatile album in 2014. Psychedelic tracks ("Chariots"), progressive folk ("Backward Stepping"), intricate pieces of progressive rock ("Singularity"), mainstream rock ("Hometown Blues"), and relaxed, accessible tracks ("All And Everything"), combine to create an elegant and enjoyable album of contemporary progressive rock.

Grand Funk Railroad-On Time (1969)

Grand Funk Railroad rose from the ashes of a local band in Flint, Michigan, called Terry Knight & The Pack, which included guitarist Mark Farner, drummer Donald Brewer, and singer Terry Knight. In 1968, Farner and Brewer recruited bassist Mel Schacher, thus forming the first lineup of this power trio, while Terry Knight took on the role of manager. Knight himself secured the band a performance at the prestigious Atlanta Pop Festival in mid-1969, achieving overwhelming success that earned them a contract with Capitol Records. Shortly after, they made their recording debut with their first album, "On Time", in which they superbly showcased their credentials with a vigorous and powerful style of hard rock with hints of blues and soul. Composed of ten songs, some featuring extensive instrumental passages like "Into the Sun", "Heartbreaker", and "T.N.U.C.", melodic and dynamic hard rock tracks like "Are You Ready?", intense blues rock like "Time Machine", and forays into the psychedelia prevalent at the time with the frenetic "Anybody's Answer" and "High on a Horse". A top ten hit on the Billboard charts and over a million copies sold made it one of the best debut albums in late 1960s rock music.

Walter Trout-Unspoiled by Progress: 20 Years of Hardcore Blues (2009)

Walter Trout is one of the most dedicated disciples of John Mayall, the father of British blues, who invited him to join his Bluesbreakers in the mid-1980s. However, prior to that, Walter Trout already had an extensive career as a blues guitarist, collaborating with artists such as John Lee Hooker, Percy Mayfield, and Canned Heat. In the late 1980s, Trout began his solo career, releasing his first album, "Life In The Jungle" (1989). Since then, he has released around thirty albums, both solo and with his various bands: Walter Trout Band, Walter Trout and The Free Radicals, and Walter Trout and The Radicals. "Unspoiled by Progress: 20 Years of Hardcore Blues" is an essential historical document that captures a significant part of his career, featuring fourteen tracks, some of them previously unreleased, that perfectly define his trajectory, showcasing some of his intense blues and his immense feeling and talent on the six strings.