This column reviews albums & singles released worldwide (i.e. not in a particular country). If your company wants an album reviewed on these pages, then you should read this. If you are in an unsigned band & you'd like your demo tape or CD reviewed, you should go here instead.

The energetic, fun, and frivolous bad boys of Warrant are back with a greatest hits remix on Deadline/Cleopatra Records entitled Greatest & Latest. Composed of their "monster ballads" and matured bubblegum rock, the cd boasts nine rerecorded favorites including the tongue-in-cheek "Cherry Pie", MTV Viewers Choice nominee "Uncle Tom's Cabin", and a plethora of the characteristic heart-warming ballads that made lead vocalist Jani Lane and Co. a hot commodity in the late '80s/early '90s. Three brand new tunes- pop social commentary "The Jones", bayou blues "Southern Comfort", and bass-driven, hard-rocking "Bad Tattoo"- prove that Lane and bandmates Erik Turner, Jerry Dixon, Rick Steier, and Danny Wagner are a hot commodity for the new millennium, as well.

"We looked at this as an opportunity to get into the studio and show people what the band sounds like now," says Lane. "We incorporated changes that we'd been doing live over the years. I don't know if we've gotten heavier or we just capture it better on record."

Captured on the CD as an extra bonus to fill your palate with even more delectable sounds are four techno-enhanced remixes of some of Warrant's earliest tunes- including debut single "Down Boys"- by some of today's leading electronic artists; a latest twinge, for a greatest collection.

Founded in 1984, Warrant were riding high as top contenders on the seedy Los Angeles music scene within a matter of years, releasing their debut album, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich in February 1989. Sparked by a gold single for radio hit "Heaven" and tours with Paul Stanley, Queensryche, Poison, and Motley Crue, by the time the band finished touring in 1990, DRFSR was double platinum, and Cherry Pie was following its lead straight up the charts and into heavy MTV rotation.

The band's third album, 1993's Dog Eat Dog, went gold in a time of grunge rock and flannel-dominated charts, though the next two years would be earthshaking for the band. Lineup changes, the death of the band's manager, and the loss of its record deal with Columbia proved definite set backs for Lane and the remaining originals, Turner and Dixon. By fall '94, however, Warrant had a new contract with CMC International. The band would release twos albums for the label- Ultraphobic in 1995, Belly To Belly, Vol.1 in 1996- before parting ways with the label to forge a musical path of their own.

Proud of the fact that Warrant has created music that has stood the test of time, Lane adds, "The songs were memorable enough that people can still hum them as they're dissing them," able to joke about the band's reputation as pure bubblegum. "We're one of the few bands that have been lucky enough to be able to keep fans over a long period of time," he says. "We have a core audience that has been with us for over a decade now and I'm very proud of that."

Ready to rock, giving you more than your fair share of the pie, it's Warrant.

"Greatest & Latest" is in-stores October 5 through Deadline, with a subsequent tour currently underway in the Midwest. A prolific musician and songwriter, Lane is also audible on the Aerosmith tribute, "Not The Same Old Song and Dance", also on Cleopatra.

AURICH SCHLACHTHOF HISTORY SAMPLER - VARIOUS ARTISTS

A very interesting sampler containing 49 bands which consist of a history of German punk bands (for the most part) that have come out of Aurich in Germany for the last 15 or so years & it's a bit of a good listen at times & very interesting for those who like o discover music outside the regular borders they live in.

There are a few odd tracks that truly ring of the original punk spirit that was around during the time of bands like Sex Pistols, the production ethic on the odd few tracks like Teenage Riot's "Cooking At You" & "T.G.T.'s "Memory Care" indicate that punk has suffered the same funding problems the world over, many labels unable to grasp the grass roots nature of it's fanbase.

Other bands have gotten their sound sorted out very well, including a band I've already reviewed previously, Eternal Rest, whose "You Suck" inclusion is one of the standouts along the 2 CD length of this release. Also very impressive for me were Subway Surfers with "Tomorrow Is Another Day", who deserve a lot more exposure, plus Popgun's "Wintertime", both tracks having a heavy melodic feel.

Also here is a band I've only just come across, Sunflower Sickness & another, Mildred Pierce, a female vocalled band who present "Tell Me", which is another brilliantly put together melody piece. All up, this is an excellent compilation, my only couple of faults being a couple of poor quality audio tracks, most likely a problem with bad masters & the liner notes being in German, rendering them useless for information on the bands. Still, it's the music that will draw you to this release.

For more information, write to flatblack lounge, c/o Deedee Molnick, PO Box 50002, Henderson, Nevada 89016, USA or deedee@flatblack.net

BIG IN IOWA - TWISTED

A 5 piece from the US, Big In Iowa have already put in the hard yards, with this release being the band's second release, the style following some well trodden paths, but injected with the band's own styles, much of the music reminding me of a cross between Steve Earle's music & The Rolling Stones, which are both fairly good reference points for new listeners to the band.

A big helping of slow riffing & some very competent percussion helps make the band's sound quite 'large', with my pick track being the closing number "Nobody's Fool", this particular song to me sounding the most like the aforementioned Rolling Stones than anything else here.

Other tracks like "Southbound Train", "Sunrise" & opener "Is This Love?" have elements of blues influences, as well as excellent vocal performances, which put the band's stamp firmly on the album. Definitely a band to watch out for in the future & it should be interesting to see what the band turn up with on their next album, which they are recording as I write this.

For more information, write to Immigrant Music, Richard Waring, 358 Amazon Ave, Cincinatti, OH 45220 or immigrantb@aol.com

GOOSEFLESH - CHEMICAL GARDEN

Formed in 1996, Swedish 4 piece mnetal outfit Gooseflesh from Sweden, have come up with a blistering piece of work that fans of bands like Metallica & Megadeth will go nuts for, with 12 tracks of stunning hard rock / metal that's going to attract more than it's fair share of attention with listeners around the world.

Driven mostly by a highly charged set of riffs & an aggressive set of vocals from Kristian Lampila, the tracks are universally energetic & while there's definitely a trace of the band's European heritage, the music here is definitely appealing to any rock fan.

Seemingly a problem with the end production of the album has seen the track listing on the album alter from that of the liner notes & we open up with "Burning Soul" rather than "Wraith" as listed, which ends up at about track 4 or 5. The percussion on both these tracks is outstanding.

Pick track for me & one I think is a contender for release as a single is the angrily performed "Thin Skinned Jesus", which is as close as the band get to a pop / rock number, huge walls of riffs, bass to die for & the best vocal performances of all. This is most certainly an album that any self respecting metal fan ought to check out, so as to get in before the charge.

For more information, write to PO Box 16, SE 461 21 Trollhattan, Sweden or phantom@swipnet.se or gooseflesh@death-star.com

INDY HITS AUGUST 1999 SAMPLER - VARIOUS ARTISTS

Once again the crew at Indy Hits have come up with an excellent selection of bands with a surprisingly varied amount of styles & sounds on their latest sampler, a couple of great gems again surfacing on this collection. For those of you who haven't come across Indy Hits before, they basically support indie music through projhects such as this.

Opening up this time is one superb piece of music, coming from Karl Townsend, called "How Do We Feel", which features a fairly heavy bass percussion section & has something of a menacing feel to it. Equally interesting is the second track, from a band called Trip, their track called "Tell Me", which is a more traditional rock number.

Further on is a song called "Pumpin'", which is from a band called Yummy, this track reminding me more than a little of the sound of Presidents Of The USA. My pick though is a sublime number called "Body", from Strobe 7, a band who have obviously been listening to bands like Radiohead or Suede, such is the sound of both the music & the vocals, this band one to definitely check out at your earliest convenience.

For more information, write to info@indyhits.com

JIANNIS & LAMBERT - TIMELESS VISION

I first came across Lambert's music a while back when he forwarded his last release for review. This is his latest release, which is actually a collective effort along with an artist called Jiannis, taken from a live performance the pair gave way back in 1988, this performance now inlcuding a couple of bonus tracks.

As with his previous release I've heard, the electronic influences of artists like Vangelis ring loud & clear, though theirs a lot more improvisation than I'd expected, perhaps due to the live performance setting of this recording.

The best tracks for my liking are those which run around the 5 or 6 minute mark, with "Secrets Of The Night" my favourite, closely followed by "Piano" & the closing track "Walking In The Sun". If you're interested in electronic music, then here's anther artist working on a different track than the regular pop influenced stuff that's the current trend.

For more information, write to Spheric Music, Messings Garten 7, D-45147, Essen, Germany or lambert@sphericmusic.de

SUNFLOWER SICKNESS - SICK BEE INFECTING FLOWER

An interesting release from a band I'd not heard of prior to listening to this album & it makes it increasingly obvious to me that there is a vast depth of talent in the music scene outside what most peole ever get to hear, the US, British, Canadian or Australian charts, with a smaller selection of countries such as New Zealand also getting the occasional look in.

Sunflower Sickness should win over a lot of fans because of their honest, no frills aproach to their music, preferring to let their performances stand alone rather than adding all sorts of overdubs & other electrical trickery that a lot of the very big bands seem to need to get their sound happening on record these days.

Opening up is one of the finest songs here, witha very heartfelt vocal performance & a raw, slow rock beat. Equally impressive, though not quite such an emotional impact, are "Holding", "Live Today" & "Happy Man", though closer "Both But You" is notable as a perfect bookend to the album. Certainly a band waiting to be discovered by the music buying public.

For more information, write to flatblack lounge, c/o Deedee Molnick, PO Box 50002, Henderson, Nevada 89016, USA or deedee@flatblack.net

TALES - MARCO POLO, A LIFE FOR A DREAM

This, I think, is the 3rd or 4th release from Tales, basically a solo project for Frenchman Jean-Luc Herve Berthelot, an artist who has consistently produced the highest quality trance-like electronic compositions which reflect influences from other electronic artists like Vangelis, who seems to be a sort of staple for this kind of music.

This album, as with the Pictures Of Asia album, embarks on an aural landscape that portrays a definite eastern theme, as you'd most likely have guessed from the title of the album. There's a sort of historical footnote in the liner notes, telling us a little about Marco Polo & his adventures as well, making for a good background on the music here.

Tracks like "Infinite Steppes" seem to point to the landscape of the Mongolian area, where much of ths album seems to be centred, while others like the closing number "Dreams Of Venezia" impart a more trancey quality. In between, you're treated to a sound that will again, as with past Tales releases, take you travelling to places you may never see for real.

For more information, write to Arizona Universoty Recordings & Publications, The Pine Grove Studios, 10750 E Prince Rd, Tucson, Arizona 85749, USA or AURec@AURec.com