Ramleh is a cornerstone of the UK industrial and noise underground. Staring out in the early '80s, they are one of the pioneers of noise and power electronics alongside the likes of Whitehouse and Sutcliffe Jügend. But, beneath the havoc and the sonic debris, Ramleh always carried an emotional pulse. It is what separates their finest moment, Hole In The Heart, and it shows how it has influenced modern interpretations, such as Prurient or Pharmakon, to tap into a wider array of feelings and emotions. What is very interesting about Ramleh is their transformation following the release of Hole In The Heart. Gradually, they shifted their focus, moving away from their pure noise abstractions and stepping into a noise rock form, taking on psychedelic elements and post-punk motifs. It is a mode that continues to this very day, and it arguably reaches a peak with their new record Hyper Vigilance. The one constant for Ramleh has been their emotional core, and that is immediately audible from the start of "Thunberg II." Here, the noise applications are traded for a psychedelic pull, the slow-moving progression casting a mesmerizing net. The arrangement is impressive and the instrumentation vast, as new components subtly … Read more
Crippling Alcoholism have always navigated a delicate balance between musical depth and immediacy. A blend that few bands attempt, let … Read more
Is The Eradicator a joke that's been going for 10 years (the band), or for 35 (the skit)? Does it … Read more
Standing between genres can act as a vantage point. For Prayer Group, sitting at the intersection between noise rock and … Read more
For experimental rock artists torn between noise-rock abrasion and torturous drone immersion, one side usually wins. It is either a … Read more
Choose a year to view reviews of albums released in that year.
750 reviews
42 reviews
25 reviews
300 reviews
4956 reviews
19 reviews
Ah, Dwid, where have you been hiding your mischievous and malevolent musical vehicle Integrity for the last five years? Ever since 2003's To Die For, Integrity's absence hangs over the hardcore scene like a looming spectre waiting to strike down pretenders and infidels alike. Sure the usual re-issues of Integrity's back catalog and singles as well as live records continue to stream out and taunt people at somewhat erratic intervals, but many still clamor for new material. Well, Walpurgisnacht is a teaser single that may or may not foretell what can be expected of the next Integrity album (The Blackest Curse is due sometime on Deathwish Inc); the two songs on this 7" are wickedly grinning appetite whetters that only heighten anticipation for the next album from Dwid and his … Read more
I believe the first I heard of this album was when Wild Honey released the limited edition It’s All About The Music concept 7” EP back in July. Exclusively released for the Punk Rock Raduno festival, IAATM is a three song 7” but only sort of? The concept: one garage-rock anthem, three versions- one is slowed down, one is regular … Read more
Formed around the tight-knit chemistry of brothers Xavier and Vincent Morency with drummer John Muggianu, Canada’s Second Harbour are that rare modern post-hardcore band that sound equally comfortable bleeding and building. Their new four-song EP, Coalesce, marks both their SharpTone Records debut and their clearest creative statement yet. The title isn’t just poetic, it’s literal. This is where the band’s … Read more
Hailing from Wichita, Kansas, Stay The Course brings their brand of pop-punk/easycore onto the scene. This is the band’s second album and is being released courtesy of Punkerton Records out of Ohio. What started out as a 5-song EP, developed into a 10 song LP. The band re-recorded some of the material from their back catalog and added some new … Read more
Straight out of Boise’s unforgiving hardcore pipeline, the band Witness Chamber returns with Bronze Gates, their most suffocating and sharpened release yet. Seven tracks with zero breathing room. If you’ve followed the band since 2021’s Paradise Awaits EP or the 2023’s True Delusion, you already know they’ve never been subtle. However, this time the punishment feels sacramental. It’s straight edge … Read more
There's a song on Watch It Die called "Dancing With Anxiety," a title that wraps up Home Front's style quite well. Because I like to beat metaphors to a pulp, maybe also consider "Between The Waves" as another title that captures how they straddle the punk and new wave worlds. Home Front plays street punk with a lot of synth … Read more
Formed in the mid-2000s, PitchBlack have always been one of Danish metal’s most overlooked heavy hitters. A band is sitting between old-school melodeath grit and European thrash aggression, building a reputation on intensity instead of trends. They debuted with Designed to Dislike in 2007, followed it with The Devilty in 2011 (which landed them spots at Copenhell and Download UK), … Read more
If you haven’t hopped on the SPEED train when they broke through, now is the time. The band formed in Sydney and blew past “local band” status the second the world caught up to what Australia already knew. BIPOC-fronted, community-driven, and fueled by the belief that hardcore is supposed to mean something. They went from DIY shows to global festivals … Read more
One of the most distinct voices of the current generation, Anna von Hausswolff's sound is wide and far-reaching. From dark ambient atmospherics and organ music fixation, to noise rock momentum and neo-classical arrangements, her music always balances a primordial ritualism and contemporary applications. It is an ongoing process, one that Anna has been refining over the years. In 2018, the … Read more
"When I've had enough of modern life, I go back to my analog ways." It's a simple quote, yet it captures so much about Radioactivity. It's been 10 years since the band released Silent Kill, and this time around the Jeff Burke-led group shows clear growth and change, while still capturing the same vibe as the previous two records. In … Read more
I went to a birthday party for my wife and six or seven other friends and acquaintances last night. I guess people liked having sex in January in the late 70s-early 80s? In Canada at least, that’s how we keep warm in the winter! Anyway, I was foraging at the smorgasbord with a couple former co-workers talking about my recent … Read more
Often Wrong is an emo/grunge/screamo hybrid born out of the DIY scene. It was built through the kind of friendships that start in basements, not boardrooms. The band formed in 2024 and quickly started carving out their own lane. They are blending fragile, journal-entry emo with blown-out guitars and throat-shredding catharsis. They’re signed to Far From Home Records, a label … Read more
Armor For Sleep return with an album that treats memory like a weapon. It’s delicate, devastating, and impossible to disarm. For those who may not be as old as me and missed their emergence into the emo/indie scene, the Teaneck, New Jersey band started in 2001. Led by frontman Ben Jorgensen, they dropped gems like Dream to Make Believe (2003) … Read more
Back in or around 2007 my buddy Jake invited me to a show, I’m not even sure he told me who was playing or if he did I hadn’t heard of them yet anyway. Turns out it was Toronto’s Career Suicide who were on tour with Regulations from Sweden. Both bands fucking ripped and I still remember being pretty blown … Read more
Formed in 1995, Imperial Domain cut their teeth in the Swedish death metal underground with early demos before dropping In the Ashes of the Fallen (1998) and The Ordeal (2003). After the 2014 death of original vocalist, Tobias Heideman, Imperial Domain could’ve folded into the past like so many of their era. Instead, they came back swinging. The band returned … Read more
Looking for the SPB logo? You can download it in a range of styles and colours here:
Click anywhere outside this dialog to close it, or press escape.