Monthly Archives: June 2026

Warlockhunt – Prey Album Review

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Warlockhunt – Prey 

Pyrrhic Defeat Records 

Release date: 14/11/2025 

Running time: 

Review by: Alun Jones 

9/10 

Autumn in the UK seems like the ideal time of year for a new release from Warlockhunt.  The days are getting shorter and cooler, the leaves turning to orange and yellow and falling to the ground.  The veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest, and the dark melancholy of nature can be best observed. 

Warlockhunt is a three-piece band, consisting of Chris on drums, and two bass players: Mark and Lorraine (who also handles vocals).  This choice of instrumentation allows Warlockhunt to exist as something very different from the rest of the Doom Metal crowd.  The absence of crunching guitar allows the music to explore a more atmospheric, though no less heavy, landscape.   

The album begins with a lengthy intro of synthesised bass, which thaws out the beginning of ‘Turn Away’.  Slowly, a pulsing bass emerges, punctuated with stark, precise drumming.   The dreamlike female vocals blossom and float alongside the melody, rather than dominating it.  ‘Diary of Hate’ has a more direct but no less minimal approach, with a simple bass sound and thumping percussion creating a hypnotic ground for the vocals, till the pace increases for a frenzied finale.          

‘Mourn’ has an almost folky, medieval character, still prevalent when the drums crash in with a marching rhythm.  The tribal drumbeats have a Post Punk crispness that are as much a feature as that moody bass – see ‘Fake’ as a prime example.  On the title track, those drums reach Killing Joke-like intensity, leading the dark revelry as much as underpinning it.  And over all of that are the vocals, both sombre and enchanting.   

Warlockhunt have been called Doom Pop in the past (most notably by me, haha!) and the description still stands.  This is less the onslaught of Cathedral or Trouble, and more like Joy Division creating a soundtrack for a folk horror movie – with Nancy Sinatra singing.  “Prey” is an exercise in climate, in ambience – though still heavy with the air of dark melancholy.  Watch the sun go down and enjoy the darkness.  

Check out Warlockhunt on Facebook and Bandcamp.

This review is brought to you by Platinum Al in association with Ever Metal.

STYLE Update: The Aquabats Outfit part 2

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STYLE is never ending.  It never stops.  Like the relentless tick tock of time itself, STYLE marches on.

Regular readers will recall my recent STYLE post, focusing on my Aquabats outfit.  I said then that this was an ongoing quest, and I have now reached another milestone.

Thanks to their online store, Gloopy, my mission to become a fully uniformed, intergalactic, crime fighting Aquabat was able to progress.

I have now acquired an official Aquabats rash vest!  Worn with my previously purchased Anti-Negativity helmet and goggles, the look is coming together nicely.

This photograph had been previously published here, but as it accomplished the job so well, there’s no shame in reusing it. 

Now I’m just missing an official belt, but as this doesn’t appear to be available anywhere at the moment, I’ll just have to improvise.

My thanks to Gloopy for excellent service, and the awesome Aquabats t-shirt (not shown) I also got.

STYLE: it pays to be SUPER RAD.

Welsh Mountain Zoo

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Back in late February this year, we had a family day trip out to the Welsh Mountain Zoo, nestled high above Colwyn Bay in North Wales. Despite the time of year, it was a mild day and no rain – so not too bad being out doors. We were keen to explore somewhere different – all of us had been to this zoo before, but not for a good few years.

We climbed up through the back roads of Colwyn Bay to reach the zoo. The site is spread out across the heights with a grand view of the mountains on one side, and the coast on the other. Pretty spectacular.

There were plenty of other visitors on the day, but due to the time of year it wasn’t too crowded. Ideal to get a good view of some of the wonderful species to be seen here. There’s a wide variety of animals to see – including some pretty spectacular favourites – so no need to worry that we wouldn’t be entertained.

The sea lions were the first creatures we found, looking sleek as they zoomed around doing laps in their pool. There were also flamingos, penguins, red pandas, otters and of course, the ever popular meerkats. I particularly liked seeing the otters, we had to wait patiently for them to make an appearance but it was worth it.

The chimpanzees are always a favourite, and there were several other primates as well: tamarins, lemurs and gibbons for a start.

The big cats were the absolute top tier sight of the day though. The snow leopards looked beautiful as they prowled around. The tigers were amazing and my favourite, without a doubt: it was incredible seeing these magnificent creatures in real life. Sadly, I couldn’t get a decent photo, but just seeing them was thrilling enough.

Along with a camel and whole bunch of reptiles and amphibians, there was plenty for us to do before the inevitable trip to the gift shop. The Welsh Mountain Zoo was an excellent day out, it was fun and educational, learning about the impressive conservation work they’re involved in. We’ll visit again. In the meantime, this report and a few photos will commemorate our adventure nicely.

Visit he Welsh Mountain Zoo here.

Zombina & The Skeletones – Album Review

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Zombina and the Skeletones – In Sinistereo

9×9 Records

Release date: 31/10/2025

Running time: 42 mins approx

Review by: Alun Jones

9/10

Yes, they’re back! Liverpool’s finest Rock’n’Roll revenants, Zombina and the Skeletones, have returned – the stake has been removed, and their hellbound hearts beat once more! But you probably already knew that, right? Their spellbinding comeback, “The Call of Zombina”, was released last year – and made Top 3 in my Ever Metal end of year favourites for 2024, as I’m sure you’ll recall…

So what’s going on here, then? Well, the songs on “In Sinistereo” were originally released as four separate EPs some ten years ago, as a digital only deal. But they’re not just being re-released here: the songs have been remixed and remastered, sure – but many are also enhanced with additional keyboards, horns and vocals that were previously absent. Songs have been edited longer or shorter, meaning that we have a whole new creature, reimagined Frankenstein-like from its previous form.

Lend a pointed ear, and the listener will also find a cauldron-full of the signature ZATS sound: a bubbling mixture of Punk, Rock’n’Roll, Psychobilly and glorious pop that revels in a B-movie graveyard of monsters, ghouls, murderers and broken hearts. With the sweet yet deadly voice of Zombina masterminding the whole crazy shindig along with partner in crime Doc Horror on vocals and guitar, this party never stops.

Opening song ‘(All I Wanna Do Is) Decompose (With You)’ is a fast paced Punk rocker and an ideal way to wake the dead. Chugging guitar and circus keys devolve into a spooky, theremin laced outro. ‘Phantom with the X-Ray Mind’ adds some skronky keyboards to a Devo/B-52s style mash up, whilst the jangly guitar of ‘Witch Mountain’ evokes early 80’s Damned.

The Skeletones add touches of 60’s girl groups with ‘Haunted House of Love’ and ‘Whatever You Do, Don’t Fall in Love’. Elsewhere they bring in a cheeky, Madness-does-The Addams Family-with-horns style stomper with ‘The Stakeout’. ‘Kill!!!!’ adds a synth pop sheen and is the least convincing track here, but don’t worry, there’s plenty of raucous tracks like ‘Ramon’, ‘The Wild’ and ‘You Swallow Spiders in Your Sleep’ to keep you bouncing like the Devil’s on your tail!

The production is warm and clean, with all of the musical parts seeping through perfectly. ‘In Sinistereo’ is rejuvenated as a vibrant and varied experience, a Tim Burton movie-like album with the songs dancing their way out of the crypt. Zombina and the Skeletones are without doubt the perfect band for Halloween. Trust me, this is all treat, no trick.

Check out Zombina and the Skeletones on Faceboo, Instagrot, ChewTube, Spookify and Badcamp.

This review is brought to you by Platinum Al in association with Ever Metal.