Woof woof! Very good! On its fifth studio record, Alestorm offers another ten anthemic, humorous an uplifting songs about pirates and the sea. While the band doesn't try out anything new, No Grave But the Sea is among the quintet's most consistent efforts so far. The record doesn't include any cover songs, unnecessary instrumentals or other fillers and convinces from start to finish. The band sounds authentic, free-spirited and powerful because it doesn't take itself too serious and delivers what it knows to do best. The limited edition of this album underlines this healthy attitude as it includes the entire record in instrumental form with Christopher Bowes' raw vocals being replaced by barking dogs. Even though this amusing project might sound a little bit redundant throughout ten tracks and a running time above forty-five minutes, the idea is pure comedy gold and works very well if digested in small portions. If you're looking for entertainment and fun, you have the right address. If you want old-fashioned pirate metal with a more serious tone, go bore yourself to death with the last few Running Wild records that nobody needs.

Alestorm offers a great mixture between short party anthems like ''Mexico'' with its vintage video game sound in the cool introduction or the definite band anthem ''Alestorm'' with its vivid folk instrumentation that meets some gripping metalcore elements and more cinematic and elaborate epics like the atmospheric and dramatic ''To the End of the World'' or the ambitious album closer ''Treasure Island'' that ends with a relaxed acoustic guitar section after seven minutes of upbeat madness. Some songs are also memorable because of their hilarious lyrics such as ''Fucked with an Anchor'' where smooth folk melodies meet explicit lyrics with plenty of swear words. Alestorm's mixture somewhere between Dropkick Murphys, Korpiklaani, The Real McKenzies, Running Wild and Turisas still works as well as it did a decade ago.

There isn't much else to say about Alestorm's No Grave But the Sea. Those who always liked the band will adore the new record. Those who always thought the band was silly won't change their minds because of this output. Those who never heard of the band must have lived under a rock for the past nine years or more. If that's your case, welcome back to reality, throw a party and go check this record out! Bow-wow bow-wow! Over and out!

Final rating: 80%

Forces of the Northern Night is Dimmu Borgir's first regular release in seven years and a live album featuring the Norwegian Radio Orchestra or alternatively the Czech National Symphony Orchestra as well as the so-called Schola Cantorum Choir. Most versions of this release feature a concert recorded in Oslo six years ago and some versions additionally include an almost identical version of that concert recorded one year later at Wacken Open Air. At this point, one has to question whether this release still makes any sense. The concerts happened many years ago, live shots of good quality have been accessible on the internet since then and any fan of the band has probably already listened to or watched parts of both concerts. Whenever such a release comes around, I like to give a positive example of how to do things correctly by mentioning Red Hot Chili Peppers' Live in Hyde Park, an energetic, energizing, generous, phenomenal and unpolished release featuring performances recorded in late June 2004 which were physically released with a detailed booklet in early August 2014. If it took the producers of said band less than one month and a half to release one of the best rock live albums with a running time of over two hours, why did it take those who are responsible for Dimmu Borgir's releases almost seven years to release a show of a running time below one and a half hours? Why do we need two shows with the very same set lists? Why do only some versions include a short documentary and why couldn't the label come up with some more extras after such a horribly long wait time? Why was this late effort released in seven different versions? Honestly, those who are responsible for this release should be fired.

Let's discuss the music on this release now. First of all, the set list clearly isn't a perfect choice. The concert's length is still acceptable but the band mostly focused on reinterpreting songs from its last studio album Abrahadabra which received lukewarm critics at best and which was already heavily orchestrated which means that the original versions aren't that different from the live cuts. It would have been more challenging and interesting to reinterpret more songs from the band's early years and replace the artificial keyboard sounds of yore with real orchestrations. In addition to this, the concerts feature a handful of songs where only the orchestra performs and the band isn't even involved. Instead of getting one hour and a half of Dimmu Borgir supported by the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and Choir, we rather get a Norwegian Radio Orchestra and Choir performance inspired by Dimmu Borgir's music with a few appearances by the band.

If one has to wait six years for a live release, one should expect an outstanding production. This live record isn't as perfect as one could have expected but it delivers at least an above average mastering. Both the epic orchestrations and the metal instruments are audible and complement each other rather well. Some passages are though slightly overloaded in my opinion which was already the case on the last studio record. A more balanced and smooth production could have added more dynamics to the sound in my opinion. There are only few but energizing communications between the band and the audience. The cheers of the fans sound surprisingly loud in the few calmer moments of the show and have probably been increased in volume during the mastering process. This procedure is somewhat artificial but it works rather well on the final result. The few moments where one can hear the crowd are actually quite intense.

Concerning the performances, the band, the orchestra, the choir and some guests all deliver the goods. The classically trained musicians and singers deliver an expert job while the band is really into the show and playing with all its passion. The atmospheric visual aspect of the show completes the perfect entertainment. The fans have also clearly enjoyed attending the show as one can both hear and see.

In the end, Forces of the Northern Night convinces with epic settings, an above average production and stunning performances. On the other side, the set list is rather unbalanced, the release comes several years too late and the content could have been a little bit more diversified after such a long wait time. This means that positive and negative aspects of this release are equally balanced. I would suggest purchasing this record if you are a die-hard fan and collector or if you haven't purchased any of the band's records yet and want to get a first idea of what this band has been doing over the past few years. Personally, I would purchase the record for a reduced price but clearly not buy one of the fancy overpriced box sets or limited packages. Let's hope Dimmu Borgir comes back in full strength with a new studio album by the end of this year.

Final rating: 50%

That's what I'd call a winning streak! 

Stay tuned for more Twin Peaks reviews on my blog!

Second episode: The stars turn and a time presents itself / The Return, Part II

Content: Bill Hastings struggles with his predicament. When his wife Phyllis visits him he attempts to confide in her about a dream he had in which he was in the victim's apartment, but Phyllis quickly turns on him, accusing him of carrying out an affair with her. It is also revealed that Phyllis herself had been having an affair with Bill's lawyer George. Bill returns to his cell, and a ghostly entity is seen sitting two cells away from him. Phyllis is shortly murdered in her home by the dark Cooper. In Las Vegas, a businessman tells one of his employees that a woman has received a job opportunity and that he is forced to do cruel things because someone terrible has entered his life. Attempting to obtain information through Darya, Ray, and another associate named Jack, Dark Cooper quickly perceives that his associates have turned on him. He toys with and murders both Jack and Darya, learning that Ray was apparently arrested and the three of them were hired to kill him. He also reveals that he is due to return to the Black Lodge soon, but has a plan to avoid this. The Cooper in the Black Lodge encounters both Laura and Leland Palmer, as well as an evolved form of the Man from Another Place, now manifesting as a skeletal tree topped with a flesh pod for a face. He is tasked with returning to the real world and returning his evil doppelgänger to the Lodge. The patterned floor of the Black Lodge gives way under Cooper, and he falls into the glass box in New York, manifesting seemingly moments before the young couple was killed. Cooper is then plunged into space. Meanwhile in Twin Peaks, Hawk continues his investigation into the Log Lady's cryptic words, and James Hurley shares a nostalgic moment with Shelly Johnson at the Bang Bang Bar..

Analysis: If we analyze Dale Cooper's comment and his appearance in South Dakota, it's probable that Phyllis is an evil doppelganger of a person from the Black Lodge and that she managed to control her husband and make him commit the murders of Ruth and the unknown man. Dale Cooper might kill her to buy some time. Maybe killing other doppelgänger makes him more powerful and could make him stay longer outside the Black Lodge than just twenty-five years. It's also possible that the evil Dale Cooper controls the businessman from Las Vegas that could recruit people to commit crimes for the evil Dale Cooper. The good doppelgänger from the Black Lodge seem to encourage the good Dale Cooper to get back to the real world in order to track down and find his evil doppelgänger and stop his killing spree. The person that hired the three associates of the evil Dale Cooper could be an entity that tries to become the most powerful one in the Black Lodge. Maybe this entity wants to gain the negative energy of the evil Dale Cooper to become the ultimate form of the devil. My guess would be that this entity is also behind the murders in New York and South Dakota in the first episode and that it somehow forces the businessman from Las Vegas to collaborate. Even though Dale Cooper's doppelgänger is truly evil, he might actually be the only one who could stop that other entity from becoming hell on earth. Maybe the fact that Dale Cooper's doppelgänger doesn't want someone else to become more dangerous than him is what pushes him not to return to the Black Lodge. He needs to face that other evil entity and exterminate it. This means that Dale Cooper's doppelgänger has to face several enemies: his three associates, the good Dale Cooper, the evil entity, the FBI and even several members of the Black Lodge who want him to come back.

Description: The second episode is much more surreal than the first one. It's also much darker even though ''only'' three people are getting killed in this episode. Especially the scenes in the Black Lodge with the tree are absolutely memorable. The talking tree and its doppelgänger make me think of the deformed baby in David Lynch's Eraserhead, representing something haunting and undesirable. In the real world, Kyle MacLachlan really convinces as sinister criminal without morality. His speech to his three associates about the fact that he doesn't do things because he needs them but rather because he wants them, is very dark, deviant and impressive.

Favorite scene: The second episode contains numerous memorable scenes but the conversation between the good Dale Cooper, the One-Armed Man and the plant in the Black Lodge is pure gold and could actually become a first cult scene of the strong third season.

Rating: 9/10

Ladies and gentlemen,

My favorite television series of all times is back and I have just watched the first four episodes. I will briefly describe and analyze each of these episodes and hope to get you interested in the most innovative television series ever created. Enjoy!

First episode: My log has a message for you / The Return, Part I

Content: Twenty-five years after the events of "Beyond Life and Death", Agent Cooper remains trapped in the Black Lodge. In Twin Peaks, Dr. Jacoby receives a shipment of shovels. At the Great Northern, Ben Horne introduces his brother Jerry to his new secretary, Beverly, and chastises him for consuming too much of the marijuana the brothers now traffic legally. Deputy Chief Hawk gets a call from the Log Lady, Margaret, who cryptically tells him something is missing, which relates to Dale Cooper, and the key to finding it has something to do with Hawk's heritage. In New York City, Sam Colby, a young man, has a peculiar job to pay for college, sitting in a large warehouse watching a glass box at the center, periodically changing SD cards in the cameras monitoring the box as well. His girlfriend Tracey visits him with coffee. Though he is not allowed to let visitors into the room, the security guard is absent during Tracey's second visit. The young couple have sex in front of the glass box, when a faceless, translucent entity finally materializes inside of it, breaking out and mauling them to death. In South Dakota, the physical form of Dale Cooper—now a sinister, long-haired man with black irises—retrieves two associates named Ray and Darya for an unspecified task. Police find a local librarian in the South Dakota town of Buckhorn, Ruth Davenport, murdered with her decapitated head placed on the headless body of an unknown man. The fingerprints of the local school principal, Bill Hastings, are found all over the scene and he is promptly arrested. Bill denies any guilt but fumbles his alibi, casting further suspicion on him.

Analysis: I believe that the good Dale Cooper from the Black Lodge will try to face his evil doppelganger and that the Log Lady's message is a way to try to help the good Special Agent Dale Cooper to prepare his return safely. I think Bill Hastings is possessed by a smiliar entity as BOB and committed the two crimes without actually remembering them. Sam and Tracy must have been killed by an entity from the Black Lodge that has been provoked by their sexual intercourse. The evil Dale Cooper seems to plan a way to avoid going back to the Black Lodge and might try to use Darya and Ray for his plans. Only one of the two Dale Coopers might survive and they will probably try to exterminate each other or to fusion in a most schizophrenic way. This means that one might have to deal with at least three antagonists: the evil Dale Cooper, the possessed Bill Hastings and a violent entity from the Black Lodge. The main protagonists seem to be Dale Cooper, The Log Lady and Tommy "Hawk" Hill so far.

Description: Even though twenty-six years have passed since the last episode of the second season, the first episode of the groundbreaking television series picks the audience up where it was left such a long time ago. The episode even starts with a flashback of a conversation between Dale Cooper and Laura Palmer in the Black Lodge that took place in the previous episode twenty-six years earlier. Several mysteries from the past are resolved while the series obviously introduces plenty of new questions. The most important element is that Dale Cooper is still caught in the Black Lodge while his evil doppelganger has been on a killing spree. The first episode introduces new and mysterious characters like Darya and Ray who help Dale Cooper's evil twin. It also shows what has happened to several characters from the first two seasons such as the Giant and the One-Armed Man in the Black Lodge but also the Log Lady and Deputy Hawk in the real world who are still investigating the mysteries in and around Twin Peaks. The first episode also introduces us to strange events happening in the states of New York and South Dakota. A total of four characters are getting or are found murdered in the first episode. The tone is as sinister as it has always been. The images are gloomy, the camera work is hypnotizing and the soundtrack is numbing. The acting performances are memorable. Among the new characters, I liked Melissa Bailey's quirky character and among the older characters, a thoughtful Deputy Hawk has much more screen time than in the first two seasons. This opening episode isn't as memorable as the opening episodes of the previous two seasons but it comes quite close.

Favorite scene: There were many great scenes but seeing a terribly worried and very sick Log Lady calling Deputy Hawk sent shivers right down my spine. 

Rating: 8/10