Articles by Mick Burgess

About Mick Burgess

Mick is a reviewer and photographer here at Metal Express Radio, based in the North-East of England. He first fell in love with music after hearing Jeff Wayne’s spectacular The War of the Worlds in the cold winter of 1978. Then in the summer of ’79 he discovered a copy of Kiss Alive II amongst his sister’s record collection, which literally blew him away! He then quickly found Van Halen I and Rainbow’s Down To Earth, and he was well on the way to being rescued from Top 40 radio hell!

Over the ensuing years, he’s enjoyed the Classic Rock music of Rush, Blue Oyster Cult, and Deep Purple; the AOR of Journey and Foreigner; the Pomp of Styx and Kansas; the Progressive Metal of Dream Theater, Queensrÿche, and Symphony X; the Goth Metal of Nightwish, Within Temptation, and Epica, and a whole host of other great bands that are too numerous to mention. When he’s not listening to music, he watches Sunderland lose more football (soccer) matches than they win, and occasionally, if he has to, he goes to work as a property lawyer.

ROBIN ZANDER (Cheap Trick): “A lot of people think Rock is dead but it’s not, we’re just raising the flag up as much as we can”

April 9, 2021 Mick Burgess 0

Having been delayed by Covid, Cheap Trick’s 20th studio album, In Another World, is finally getting released. Mick Burgess called up lead singer Robin Zander, to talk about the new record as well as looking …READ MORE

TONY LEVIN (LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT): “[“Rhapsody In Blue”] is the gateway drug to use to slowly draw people into the band”

April 1, 2021 Mick Burgess 0

As member of King Crimson for almost 40 years and as part of Peter Gabriel’s band since the ’70s not to mention a session resume that has encompassed working with the likes of Alice Cooper, …READ MORE

STEVIE SALAS: “I didn’t want to tell a story about victims, I wanted to tell one about heroes”

March 15, 2021 Mick Burgess 0

Having cut his teeth with Funkadelic legend George Clinton, guitarist Stevie Salas went on the tour the world with Rod Stewart and play with such artists as Mick Jagger and Was (Not Was). His own …READ MORE

DAMON JOHNSON: “This a Hard Rock record and certainly the hardest Rock record I’ve made as a solo artist”

February 12, 2021 Mick Burgess 0

Having recorded and toured with an incredible array of artists from Alice Cooper, Thin Lizzy, Black Star Riders and Brother Cane as well as writing songs for Stevie Nicks and Santana, Damon Johnson is back …READ MORE

EDENTHORN – Matter of Opinion / 1993

December 24, 2020 Mick Burgess 0

It’s been a couple of years since Durham Rockers, Edenthorn’s last album Exist, an album that showed great maturity and promise beyond their years. With Covid-19 scuppering just about everyone’s plans, dreams and hopes Edenthorn …READ MORE

BRIAN JAMES (The Damned/Lords of the New Church): “Royalties from the Guns N’ Roses cover of “New Rose” bought me a house in France”

December 14, 2020 Mick Burgess 0

45 years on from writing the iconic riff to “New Rose” that heralded the start of the UK Punk scene, guitarist Brian James has returned to The Damned for a special reunion of the original …READ MORE

PETER FRAMPTON: “I am itching to get on the stage and nothing would please me more than if we hear the all clear sirens”

November 20, 2020 Mick Burgess 0

52 years after he released his debut record with The Herd, guitarist Peter Frampton has written his first book looking back at his life and career that has encompassed Humble Pie with Steve Marriott as …READ MORE

TYLER BRYANT (TYLER BRYANT AND THE SHAKEDOWN): “We have over 1000 finished demos just hanging out”

November 14, 2020 Mick Burgess 0

While the lockdown has brought the music industry to a grinding halt Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown have put their downtime to positive use, writing and recording their latest album, Pressure, in a mere 20 …READ MORE

BUCK DHARMA (BLUE ÖYSTER CULT): “We couldn’t have done this record without Richie. As far as introducing Richie as a feature player in Blue Öyster Cult, I feel a little like Obi Wan Kenobi”

November 1, 2020 Mick Burgess 1

It’s been almost 19 years since their last studio album but now Blue Öyster Cult have returned to lift the Covid induced gloom with The Symbol Remains, an album that can stand proudly alongside their …READ MORE

ALBERT BOUCHARD (Ex-Blue Öyster Cult): “For “Astronomy” what we wanted to hear was a group of nuns from the convent standing on the beach singing in harmony and clapping”

October 22, 2020 Mick Burgess 1

The Imaginos tale had its origins back in the late ’60s and a few of the songs, including “Astronomy”, made their way onto Blue Oyster Cult albums over the years. Originally conceived as drummer, Albert …READ MORE