Berlin Wall: A Piece of History?

Posted on May 3, 2025 by platinumal

Tat or treasure? That’s what we’re investigating in this edition of the Tat section, here at Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub. We have an item that could be a genuine piece of history, or it could just be pure junk.

The item in question is a piece of the Berlin Wall. Or at least, it claims to be.

Sometime in October 1990, I was on a school trip to Berlin. The wall separating East and West Germany had come down the year before, a momentous event that heralded the end of the Cold War and huge changes in Europe. Studying the Rise of Fascism in Europe as part of my History A Level, a trip to the once and future German capital was an appropriate field trip.

Most of that visit involved my friends and I drinking lots of German beer rather than any serious historical study, but whatever.

Of course, on trips like these, it was customary to take souvenirs home. And what better souvenir than an actual piece of the Berlin wall? At a stall near the Reichstag building and mere feet away from the wall, I bought the small, plastic box shown here, containing brightly coloured fragments of the infamous construct.

I’ve heard since that visit, that the only way to be sure of owning an actual piece of the wall was to hack some of it off yourself. Pick axes were available to hire at the site for that purpose, and indeed some of my friends tried that approach (with little luck).

So the question remains: although bought at the site, is this an actual piece of Berlin wall – or did some unscrupulous Capitalist scumbag spray some random concrete in lurid colours and pass it off to me as the genuine article?

What do you think?

Singles Night at the Virtual Hot Tub #36

Posted on March 31, 2025 by platinumal

It’s that time again – Singles Night! Yes, the night at my Virtual Hot Tub where we play a variety of 7 inch singles and have a few beverages. A record listening party, if you will, but only involving 45 rpm discs.

There’s a huge stack of unplayed singles lurking round the Hot Tub. Some old, some new, some that have been given to me as a gift. They’ve collected together over time from all manner of different sources, and they need to be played.

So play them I will, A side first then flip ’em over for the B side – playing through the stack for the sheer fun of it.

Pour yourself a drink and join me, who knows what we’ll hear?

Here’s the playlist:

Chafed GBI – “The Regulator”
Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind – “Get Down Get With It” / “Ace of Spades”
Elvis Presley – “Are You Lonesome Tonight? (The Laughing Version)” / “From a Jack to a King”
Bad Company – “Feel Like Makin’ Love” / “Wild Fire Woman”
The Alarm – “Absolute Reality” / “Blaze of Glory”
INXS – “Need You Tonight” / “Move On”
Vapors – “News at Ten” / “Wasted” / “Talk Talk”
Lita Ford – “Kiss Me Deadly” / “Broken Dreams”
Depeche Mode – “Just Can’t Get Enough” / “Any Second Now”
Shakin’ Stevens – “Green Door” / “Don’t Turn Your Back”
Simple Minds – “Ghostdancing” / “Jungleland”
Duran Duran – “The Reflex” / “Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me”
The Motors – “Forget About You” / “Picturama”
Chic – “I Want Your Love” / “(Funny) Bone”
Slade – “Know Who You Are” / “Dapple Rose”
Thin Lizzy – “Killer On The Loose” / “Don’t Play Around”
Roxy Music – “Over You” / “Manifesto”
Madonna – “Material Girl” / “Pretender”
AC/DC – “Heatseeker” / “Go Zone”
David Bowie – “Fashion” / “Scream Like a Baby”
The Alarm – “Rescue Me” / “The Hurricane Sessions (My Land Your Land)”
ABBA – “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme” / “The King Has Lost His Crown”

Twenty two songs this week, and some real beauties in that session. From great classic rock (Bad Company, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC) to 80’s pop (Depeche Mode, Madonna, ABBA) to punk/new wave (Vapors, The Motors) there’s a wide spread of awesome songs.

Some notes:

Chafed GBI is a “supergroup” comprising Scott Ian and Charlie Benante of Anthrax, with Dave Grohl on drums. It’s a single sided, colour vinyl 7 inch of the classic Bad Brains song released for Record Store Day.

The Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind single is on coloured vinyl. While it does contain a cover of the Slade song on the A-side (though that was a cover of an earlier tune), the B-side is not the song made famous by Motorhead! Still great though.

An amazing night of vinyl spinning. More soon!

Sergeant Thunderhoof – The Ghost of Badon Hill Album Review

Posted on March 6, 2025 by platinumal

Sergeant Thunderhoof – The Ghost of Badon Hill

Pale Wizard Records

Release date: 15/11/2024

Running time: 45 minutes

Review by: Alun Jones

9.5/10

Two years ago, the album “This Sceptred Veil” by Sergeant Thunderhoof made such an impression on me that it topped my end of year Top 10 for Ever Metal. So this latest release has some pretty big boots to fill. The pressure is on, for the band and also for your friendly scribe: I’m gonna need some new adjectives in my arsenal to do this work justice.

A mellow guitar and whistle intro brings the listener into the world of “The Ghost of Badon Hill”. First track ‘Badon’ opens with an almost Folky feel, and in true Thunderhoof style, takes it’s time to grow and breathe. We’re nearly halfway through before the delicate, introspective section explodes into something epic, and the hairs on the back of your neck reach for the sky.

‘Blood Moon’ tricks the listener with a melodic intro, before a truly classic mega-riff gets the heart pounding. The guitars of Mark Sayer and new member Josh Gallup (who also recorded the album with the band) are multi textured throughout the album, expertly ranging from the mighty to the fragile. A pseudo-Blues introduces ‘The Orb of Octavia’, before settling on a melancholy, gentle feel. Augmented by Daniel Flitcroft’s soaring vocals (surely amongst the best in the UK), it’s not long before the heavy is unleashed.

‘Salvation for the Soul’ is the most immediate and Stoner/Doom related of this collection, and it quickly became a personal favourite. “For tonight, we ride!” – trust me, kids: THAT is a chorus!

I’ve favourably compared Sergeant Thunderhoof to Soundgarden previously – which holds true with ‘Sentinel’ – and there’s also a strong Floydian feel here too. The changes of pace on all the tracks ably demonstrate the expertise of the rhythm section, Jim Camp on bass and Darren Ashman on drums. Both are confident and play with finesse. All good things come to an end though, and our final song here, ‘Beyond the Hill’, is a ten-minute plus opus that builds through several stages on a monumental journey.

One element of this recording that’s obvious from the start, is the length of the album. The band made a conscious decision to lay down some boundaries and write a record that would fit on a single, rather than double, vinyl album. Whereas I could lament the shorter running time, it does make sense to condense what the band do best. And there’s still a cornucopia of sonic delights to enjoy regardless. I mean, I haven’t even discussed the lyric content of the record yet! There’s plenty enough folklore, legend and mystery to keep the audience engaged and coming back for more and more.

“The Ghost of Badon Hill” is mission accomplished for Sergeant Thunderhoof. A great new album, reigned in a little timewise, but sonically still delivering a cerebral and visceral punch. Another Top 10 contender, no problem.

Check out Sergeant Thunderhoof on their website, Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.

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

Platinum Al’s Top 10 Rock & Metal Albums of 2024

Posted on January 21, 2025 by platinumal

2024 was a fantastic year for new music. As previous, I was asked to compile my Top 10 of the year for Ever Metal, which wasn’t easy. That list has already been published on the EM website, but I’ve replicated it here for anyone who missed it…

Every year, it’s a struggle to whittle down tons of superb albums to just ten. This year has been just as difficult (if not more so) and I’ve had to leave off a few great releases that just didn’t make the cut, for one reason or another. I’m sure I’ll regret leaving a few of those off the final 2024 list, even if it’s just because they’re still very new I’ve not had chance to grow into them yet.

Anyway, here’s the best of 2024 as it feels right now:

10. Goat Major – Ritual

Released in March, this debut from Welsh Occult Doom Metal band Goat Major announced a formidable new talent to the scene. Building on their love of the classic bands that defined the genre, Goat Major add plenty of their own character to a magnificent album.

9. Crobot – Obsidian

Crobot’s latest release certainly has a darker, heavier atmosphere than previous albums, but the unmistakeable groovy riffs are well in place and ready to unleash the Hard Rock mayhem.

8. Acid Mammoth – Supersonic Megafauna Collision

Greek Doom-mongers Acid Mammoth delivered another heavy weight slab of fuzzy Stoner Metal, with a variety of moods and hefty groove. Neolithic Rock with a touch of the ethereal.

7. Duel – Breakfast with Death

Amazing album title. Fantastic cover artwork to compliment said title. And guess what? This latest release by Texan Stoner Metal gang Duel is even better than first impressions would suggest: Doomy Stoner Biker Rock from hell!

6. The Obsessed – Gilded Sorrow

Wino’s legendary Doom Metal crew returned in early 2024, to remind everyone how it should be done. Infectious, groovy riffs, heavy as shittery songcraft and head spinning melody collide in a perfect meltdown.

5. Orange Goblin – Science, Not Fiction

The definitive Orange Goblin album? Could be. This latest OG album demonstrates all of their strengths, welding together the various sounds and genres they’ve mastered over the years. Bursting with energy and invention.

4. Torso – Brain Cells

More exhilarating chainsaw Garage Metal from Torso, this lo-fi masterpiece arrived with all the subtlety of a brick to the forehead. Less John Carpenter this time, but definitely slasher-splatter death-mosh a go go!

3. Zombina and the Skeletones – The Call of Zombina

They’re back! One of the most wonderful live bands I’ve ever witnessed, Zombina and crew finally returned with a non-stop Horror Punk party, just in time for Halloween. Long may they continue!

2. Fu Manchu – The Return of Tomorrow

The only downside of a new Fu album is waiting for it to be released! Their first new album in six years was everything I hoped for, a double album split between a first half of fuzzy rockers and a second of slower tempo groovers. RAD!

1 Sergeant Thunderhoof – The Ghost of Badon Hill

The ‘Hoofs last album was number 1 in my 2022 Top Ten – and whaddya know, they’ve done it again! Slightly less bombastic then their previous, but even more engrossing, “The Ghost of Badon Hill” is a mature and thrilling record to get lost in.

So that’s ten. Honourable mentions go out to Melvins, Lucifer, Black Tusk, Alunah and Barbarian Hermit amongst many others.

Here’s hoping 2025 can match this…

Keep coming back to Ever Metal and Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub for all the best rock and metal reviews!

Platinum Al’s Instagram Top 9 2024

Posted on January 14, 2025 by platinumal

Continuing the January 2025 review of the previous year, let’s take a look at the Top 9 photos I posted on Instagram. This time last year I posted the 2023 version, so why not keep the tradition up?

It’s a simple process to get your most liked photos from Insta as a grid of nine images. This snapshot shows the most liked (top left) to least (bottom right) of the year’s best performers.

Here’s a breakdown of what the images were:

Here’s me at Star Tours in Disneyland Paris, complete with X-Wing Pilot t-shirt.
A Christmas porttrait.
The Bad Brains album “Quickness” on vinyl.
A bottle of Higson’s Bitter Ale.
An album by the band Budgie, “Never Turn Your Back on a Friend”, on vinyl.
Vinyl copy of the classic “Home Invasion” album by Ice-T.
Last year’s 2023 Top 9!
Pinball machines I found in a Whitby arcade.
Ancient burial sites in Anglesey, North Wales.

That’s quite a diverse range of photos, and also fairly typical of what I post on Instagram: vinyl and beer.

Thanks for sharing these moments with me. If you like, you can follow me on Instagram: platinum_al.official.

The Best of 2024

Posted on January 7, 2025 by platinumal

Happy New Year, loyal friends and followers of Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub! We’re now striding into 2025 with confidence and glee, but as is customary, our first post of the year is a round up of the previous year’s successes.

So here are the Top Ten most read posts from 2024 – the ones that grabbed your attention, and briefly lit up the internet with enthusiasm.

10. New Skateboard 2024 – Death Blinky

The most read posts on this blog relate to skateboarding, you may be surprised to know. But they’re usually slow burners, attracting attention year after year, rather than big hitters. So it was nice to see this update about my latest skate set up make it into the Top 10 list. Nice photos may have helped.

9. Platinum Al’s Top 10 Rock & Metal Albums of 2023

My pick of the best in Rock and Metal albums for 2023 was published by Ever Metal, and I then posted it on my blog, too. Nice to know that you guys must trust my judgement. The 2024 Top 10 will follow soon.

8. UK Subs – Gig Review

I went to quite a few amazing gigs in 2024, the UK Subs in Wrexham being one of them. This was a great gig and I finally got to see this classic band live.

7. Anti Racism Poem

Anything my daughter Eloise contributes to my blog is always well received, and this school poem was no exception. A great piece of work and wonderful sentiment.

6. GBH – Gig Review

Another legendary punk band live review in the 2024 Top 10! This concert by punk legends GBH was fantastic, good to see the review proved popular.

5. Liverpool Comic Con

Comic conventions always perform well on the blog, and this experience from May was no exception. I also paid a visit to Liverpool Comic Con in November too, but sadly the photos from that have evaporated and the blog is redundant.

4. Whitby Road Trip – On the Trail of Dracula

In February 2024, we went on a family road trip to the beautiful seaside town of Whitby. It wasn’t just tourism travel though, we were on the trail of Count Dracula, himself. Our vampire hunt made it to number 7 on the list.

3. UK Subs – Jet Age Review

One of my Ever Metal album reviews proved a big success: this review of the 5 CD set of UK Subs albums from Cherry Red Records.

2. Comic Con Mania – Chester

Another Comic Convention in the Top 10! Chester was good fun, and great to see it back after it first looked like it wouldn’t happen at all.

And so we reach the top of the pile, the cream of the crop! Drum roll, please, as I reveal the most popular blog post of 2024…

Wales Comic Con

Wales Comic Con made a return to Wrexham, and Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub was there for it. This event was a scaled down affair, and sadly turned out to be a bit of a fraud. The organisers still owe us money for celeb autographs we booked but never got – and it looks like we’ll never get that cash back.

Every cloud and all that, though: Wrexham’s Wales Comic Con is under new management and hopefully will regain the heights of previous years. Let’s see…

2024 was a reassuringly successful year for the Virtual Hot Tub. Fifty posts were published, reaching the highest number of views per year since 2018.

Thanks to all of my readers for helping create this magnificent achievement – I really appreciate everyone who reads, likes and shares this content. All the best to you and your families for 2025 – I hope the year ahead brings you health and happiness.

Stay tuned to Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub, folks – there’s no stopping us now!

Rock’n’Roll Drink Time: Jack Daniel’s

Posted on December 30, 2024 by platinumal

That’s right, it’s not Cocktail Time at the Virtual Hot Tub this week. Instead, it’s just a straight forward tribute to an all time classic, the legendary Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey. It’s party time right now, so let’s keep this blog short and sweet to commemorate a true favourite.

You know the name, you recognise the brand style, I’m sure you’ve tried the drink. Jack Daniel’s is most commonly mixed with some kind of cola: Tad sang about it with Pepsi, my good buddy Lemmy drank his with Coke (I can verify this from first hand experience).

Also enjoyed straight, over ice or with any number of other mixers, Jack Daniel’s whiskey is a true classic and a must have for any liquor cabinet.

Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub urges you to drink responsibly.

Soundtrack: “Jack Pepsi” by Tad of any Motorhead track.

Cocktail Time: The Steamboat

Posted on December 17, 2024 by platinumal

Party season is in full swing – and if you need a refreshing alcoholic beverage to sip on your night out, don’t worry: Platinum Al’s got you covered! The Steamboat is a mix of sweet and tangy citrus flavours, you can’t go wrong.

I’ve seen some recipes for a Steamboat cocktail use whiskey, but at the Virtual Tiki Bar, we make this drink using Southern Comfort, lime juice and lemonade. Here’s the info:

Steamboat

Southern Comfort
Lime juice
Lemonade
Ice

Simply add a small amount of lime juice to the glass (I use a lime cordial) and carefully add some ice. Pour in two measures of Southern Comfort, then top up with lemonade (full fat works best). Garnish however you feel, a slice of lime works well.

There you go: a classic drink I never get bored of.

Again, I’m not on commission for this drink, I just want to share the appreciation with my discerning readers. Enjoy and drink responsibly.

Soundtrack: Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Anti Racism Poem

Posted on July 18, 2024 by platinumal

My daughter, Eloise, is nearly 14 years old. I like to feature some of her writing on my blog whenever I can, because I think she’s a very talented writer. And others seem to agree: when I post something she’s written, it’s far more popular than one of my own compostions.

Recently, Eloise was given homework to write a poem about racism. You can read the result below. Yet again, I think she’s done a fine job.

Anti-racism poem

As the praying people look up, the moon looks down. Nothing said but a silent frown.

Companies advertising equality encouraging people constantly.

Genuine people keep the smile alight – while unfortunately others feel the need to cause spite.

Souls with such impacting power, sometimes kept quiet to the size of a flower.

What everyone should learn after all, is that nobody should feel so small.

No matter religion or race, our thoughts shouldn’t be kept apart.

Because the best people have empowered hearts.

Eloise Jones aged 13.

June 2024.

Platinum Al’s Instagram Top 9 2023

Posted on January 8, 2024 by platinumal

Yes, I’m on Instagram too. And I did that thing where you can get a snapshot of your most “liked” Insta posts of the year. To be honest, my engagement on that social media platform is plummeting, but I still decided to check out the stats. It’s a bit of a trend for me, this year, looking into the numbers.

Usually my Instagram posts are pics of vinyl from my collection, or beer (I’ve got a massive backlog of beer photos I haven’t posted yet). Other than that, you might get to see some skateboards, Star Wars toys or other action figures, comics and so on.

In the image below you’ll see the Top 9 images.

For your information, here’s a breakdown of what those images are. Top left is most popular, bottom right is least.

Glamour model and Page 3 Legend, Tracey Coleman, in a bunny girl outfit. I posted this at Easter. It was the most popular photo (though I didn’t take it, obviously).
Racquel Welch: posted after she sadly passed away in 2023. One of my idols.
Cliff Burton Reaction Figure: action figure of the legendary Metallica bass player.
Bryn Celli Ddu: a photo of this awe inspiring, ancient burial site on Anglesey, Wales.
Spud: our new cat, Spud.
Me in a Barbie box, pretending to be a doll.
My latest tattoo: the tiger head.
Robinson’s Trooper Beer, in an appropriate glass, with a copy of Iron Maiden’s “The Number of the Beast” LP on viinyl.
Headgirl 10″ picture disc: Record Store Day reissue of the classic Motorhead/Girlschool collaboration.

I posted dozens of other images in 2023, but those ones were the most popular from the thirty or so people who bother to interact with me on there.