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Our latest album reviews, featuring the records we've most enjoyed (or not) over the past few weeks.

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Browse our album reviews according to score: Highest (9.5/10 or more) or Lowest (2/10 or less)

Swingin' Utters

Poorly Formed
Fat Wreck Chords (2013)

First things first, Poorly Formed packs some nice verbiage. With word drops like “crumb bums” and “rigmarole” the Swingin’ Utters have incorporated some lively language into their 8th studio album. It follows 2011’s decent but underwhelming Here, Under Protest and, with the new one they seem to be back in the swing of things. Poorly Formed is far more interesting and lively than its predecessor.The new record sees the Utters maintaining their blend of ’77 punk, Celtic and acoustic influence, and occasional bluegrass. The growth on this one comes in the group harmonies and song structures that incorporate a modern indie element to the songwriting. No, it’s still classic Swingin’ Utters punk, but the song structures show more variance and the guitars play off one another more, utilizing fewer chords to drive the songs. Case in point, the guitar lines in the title track sound like The Pixies. For any doubters after reading that last bit, songs like “Stuck in a Circle,” “Pour Beans,” and “Greener Grass” deliver singalong streetpunk without any sacrifice, fitting with their established ability to pull from new influences without losing the heart of their style. While Five Lessons Learned threw some listeners for a loop, … Read more

Portal

Vexovoid
Profound Lore (2013)

The only thing that would make sense of how this album came to be is the following scenario: Portal managed … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Crypt of Kerberos

World of Myths (2012 reissue)
Pulverized (2012)

Ever heard of Crypt of Kerberos? No? Well get ready to be schooled in one of the greatest forgotten relics … Read more

Atoms For Peace

Amok
XL Recordings (2013)

Every so often an unusual group of veteran musicians gather to form what was coined in the late ‘60s as … Read more

Johnny Marr

The Messenger
Warner Bros. (2013)

The '80s are memorable for many wonderful things, like Pac-Man and Bill & Ted, but perhaps most importantly it was … Read more

Bliksem

Face The Evil
Alone (2013)

In the 80’s and early 90’s, many underground metal bands gained popularity though tape trading. This method of distribution was … Read more

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One from the archives

The Futureheads

News and Tributes
Vagrant (2006)

In late 2004, The Futureheads punctured the mope-heavy indie rock bubble with the delivery of their hyperactive post-punk debut album. The harmony laden, adrenaline fueled romp immediately caught my attention and remained in my CD player well into the next year. Now, it appears that the cycle has started anew with the release of the bands sophomore effort, News and Tributes. This time around, The Futureheads have decided to slow things down a bit. The frantic speed and brevity of the first record have been replaced by a more seasoned and mature direction. The band confidently holds back and the music is allowed some much needed breathing room. The result is a collection of songs in which the biggest departures are actually the most pleasing. The title track is the … Read more

More album reviews

Ragnarok

Malediction
Agonia (2012)

Norway's Ragnarok have made their name playing traditional Black Metal for nearly 2 decades now. On this, their 7th, full length they remain steadfast in style and attitude. Much can be said for consistency especially when it comes to genre whose fans can be as fickle as Black Metal. The record itself starts with a cold atmospheric piece before breaking … Read more

Red Room Cinema

Apsis
New Grenada (2012)

You know what makes me feel really good about myself? Post-rock. I'm not talking about the overwrought, nihilistic, dreary stuff (though I do like that too!), but the kind that just brings you up so much that it's quite literally impossible to feel bad about anything while listening to it, the kind of music that forces you to feel happy … Read more

Mudhoney

Vanishing Point
Sub Pop (2013)

25 years later, Mudhoney still know how to kick out the jams. Drummer Dan Peters gets the festivities started with a drum-roll, no less and is shortly joined by bassist Guy Maddison and guitarist Steve Turner for "Slipping Away" - a burner of an opener and the perfect song to remind us just how cool these cats are. Let's talk … Read more

CZARFACE (INSPECTAH DECK + 7L & ESOTERIC)

Self Titled
Brick (2013)

Revisiting a collaboration that first appeared on the title track of Speaking Real Words, the debut EP by 7L & Esoteric, the Beantown duo has teamed up with Wu-Tang Clan’s Inspectah Deck again. Some 14 years later the three veterans come together with a full-length superhero project titled Czarface. Taking into account the back catalogue of the parties involved, it … Read more

Various Artists

Northless / Light Bearer - Split LP
Halo of Flies (2012)

Lightbearer and Northless are two bands that tend to resemble parallel curved lines. They share bits and pieces stylistically but never quite touch. Where Lightbearer create atmosphere and spice in some brutality within their artistic and literate story-songs, Northless avoid pretense by creating brutally lurching pieces. So when you bring these two bands together it may be hard to see … Read more

Various Artists

So Cow/Squarehead - Out of Season
Inflated Records (2012)

Out of Season is a two-band split 12” from Inflated Records that presents two Irish Groups, So Cow on Side A and Squarehead on Side B. It pairs two up-and-comers, delivering successful and enjoyable mid-tempo power-pop for the most part.So Cow is a three-piece (previously one-man band) who plays 1960s influenced poppy stuff with a bit of modern quirk and … Read more

Nadja

Corrasion (Reissue)
The Miskatonic Sound Lab (2012)

Being an acquired taste is a blessing for some bands as they get to be as adventurous as they could ever want to be and their “fan” base usually will go along with them, and Nadja is most definitely one such band that truly benefits from such an underground status or descriptor (what have you). In any case, listening to … Read more

The Capitalist Kids

Lessons on Love, Sharing, and Hygiene
Toxic Pop (2012)

Holy Lookout Records! The Capitalist Kids’ Lessons on Love, Sharing, and Hygiene bears some stark similarities to the output of seminal 1980s-1990s East Bay pop-punk label. With an ear for clean melodies and crisp chords, the songs are quick, catchy, and witty in similar fashion to early-era Green Day, Mr. T Experience, or Screeching Weasel. It’s a sound that is … Read more

Intronaut

Habitual Levitations (Instilling Words With Tones)
Century Media (2013)

The mighty Intronaut is back! The band returns with their fourth full length, still following the same path they first set with the release of their monumental debut Void. You know when a record is great when you cannot really start pinpointing it in one specific genre, and this is the case here with Inronaut’s last album Habitual Levitations (Instilling … Read more

Despise

Desolate/Inebriated
Profane Existence (2013)

The second transmission of the Profane Existence Limited Edition Single Series—a subscription service that delivers seven inches of brand new vinyl to your doorstep every month—is from the latest Minneapolis-based troupe of metallic crust punkers, Despise. The band features former members of a handful of Midwestern crust acts—most notably Minneapolis legends, Destroy—and is fronted by Hannah, previously of Chicago’s Securicor … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Swallow The Sun

Emerald Forest & The Blackbird
Spinefarm Records (2012)

Swallow the Sun may have gotten into the death-doom metal craze a good decade after its peak, but even thirteen years on, they are still going strong, evidenced by their latest release, 2012's Emerald Forest and the Blackbird.At the core of the album are its meandering trips through doom metal, with hints of gothic metal and melodeath supplied liberally. The … Read more

Rorcal

Vilagvege
Cal Of Ror (2013)

My favorite thing about reviewing albums, aside from occasionally offending overly sensitive music fans or band members, is being unexpectedly surprised by an album that I otherwise may have missed. The description for Vilagvege on Rorcal’s website includes a line that initially peaked my interest. “When Doom turns into Black, you can't expect anything but chaos.” While it is a … Read more

Various Artists

Sound City - Reel To Reel
RCA/Roswell (2013)

Sound City Studios was a recording studio located in the industrial heart of the Van Nuys district of Los Angeles and was the recent subject of a love letter of a documentary produced and directed by by rock deity (and apparent expert multi-tasker) Dave Grohl. The documentary covers the history of the studio and more specifically, the custom Neve 8028 … Read more

Isis

Temporal
Ipecac (2012)

I absolutely love Isis--I can't get enough of that perfectly executed ambient/sludge mix that they've come to be known for. And for someone like me who loves them enough to delve into the deepest corners of their catalogue, their 2012 rarities compilation Temporal came as a welcome entry to their discography.Disc one begins with your standard assortment of demo material. … Read more

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