This week we got a brand new album from the voice behind the rock band Kansas, Steve Walsh. Some melodies from the dark side are introduced to us by the music from Winger, while the Merseybeat from Gerry and the Pacemakers takes us back to the 60's. The last release of this week is the messy punk rock from Thelonious Monster.

Steve Walsh, the former frontman of the progressive rock band Kansas, recorded 14 songs for his new album Black Butterfly. All influences from his past are brought together in the compact rock songs, varying between political messages ("Billy Carbone Dead") and the sound from his former band ("The Piper"). Jerome Mazza takes the lead vocals on three songs, while Tommy Denander was the person who worked together with Steve in the recording process. He was the lead vocalist on their well-received albums Leftoverture and Point of Know Return as well as on their single hits "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind". Black Butterfly is available as a limited edition of 1.000 individually numbered copies on solid gold vinyl.

Let's take a big step back in time to the roaring times of 60's England. The Merseybeat music dominated the UK's music scene, with the catchy tunes of the rhythm guitars. In the early days the band Gerry and the Pacemakers were one of the biggest competitors to The Beatles. The band released a dozen of song classics, which are brought together on their Best Of album. From the powerful stadium hit "You'll Never Walk Alone", their first single "How Do You Do It?" to the beautiful "Ferry Cross the Mersey". All these songs can be found on this great collection LP.

Formed in the late 80's as a band with a musical direction leaning towards the glam rock, but slowly transforming to a more aggressive and darker style, Winger is the name. With their third album Pull the sound was getting much darker. Political messages are interwoven into the different songs, bringing the album as a whole to a higher level. Lots of melodic changes can be found in the progressive sound, from the guitar driven "Down Incognito" and the groovy "Blind Revolution Mad". Their absolute masterpiece "Who's the One" is the last track and is an acoustic ballad of the best kind.

Bob Forrest led the punk-rock band Thelonious Monster, a popular live act in the underground scene of Hollywood. Their fourth full-length album Beautiful Mess includes collaborations with some well-known artists from the music industry. On the track "Adios Lounge" he sings together with Tom Waits, while David Pirner & Daniel Murphy from Soul Asylum can be heard on "Blood Is Thicker Than Water". It's the combination of self-mockery and their punk riffs which sets the tone for the music on the album.