Right, not much going on this week, so time to look a little ahead and see what’s gonna being grabbing your attention – for good, or the other – in the early part of 2010.

Words: Malcolm Dome

Delain bring a touch of individuality to the symphonic metal tableaux with April Rain (no, not April Wine!). Released by Roadrunner in late January, it’s actually got balls and moves very pleasantly along. By no means a facsimile of Within Temptation, this lot provide a whole cloudburst of good tunes.

The Lostprophets enter the new year with The Betrayed (Visible Noise), showing distinct signs of quality and – ulp! – maturity. Perhaps this lot might survive the post-emo cull after all.

As we all await the new Airbourne album – which is supposedly a real stonker – Sweden’s Bonafide provide yet more evidence that it is possible to emulate AC/DC without sounding like a lame copy. If Something’s Dripping (Black Lodge) isn’t exactly spectacular, then it gets a real groove on, and thrusts those groinal riffs right out there.

Bruce Kulick has a very credible history, from Grand Funk Railroad to Kiss via Meat Loaf. Not to mention Blackjack (anyone recall them?). The guitarist is out on his own with BK3 (Frontiers), although he does call on old pals Gene Simmons, Eric Singer, John Corabi, Steve Lukather and Doug Fieger (of The Knack). No, he isn’t hiding a lack of good ideas behind celeb guests, because this record truly does rock, but with a touch of class. Reflecting the man himself, the album is tidy, unfussy but very creative.

If this is to be the year of The Big Four (we’re talking thrash, not Premier League, by the way), then the timing is rather damn good for the reissue of Anthrax’s quite stunning 1987album Among The Living (Island). Now expanded will all sorts of bells and whistles added on, in reality it’s just good to hear all those moshpit marvels again.

Finally, watch out for Panic Room’s second album Satellite (Firefly Music) is a lush, flowing prog rock exposition.  Not an immediate sensation, but successive listens prove very rewarding. A world class release from a band who’ve the potential to do great things in 2010.

That’s it – a half-dozen examples of why the next 12 months could be even better than the last lot. And we haven’t even mentioned White Wizzard, Scorpions, FM, Brian Howe, Ihsahn, Foreigner and Ozzy. Well, we have mentioned them now, but you know what we mean!

Happy New Year!