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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)

108

18:61
Deathwish Inc. (2010)

Excellent! 108 is dropping their second post reunion LP (a feat that I think further proves their honest intentions of just creating and playing music), and dear lord this record is a long time coming (it took more than a year following recording to see the light of day); such waits can do funny things to a band that can have impacts on their dynamic, and 108 certainly did not escape some turmoil with the release of 18:61. Still, this band has always been wrapped in turmoil of sorts, and such adversity has seemingly informed the music that the band has created from day one; personally and from a completely selfish place, I would not have their method or circumstances change because their music has always been filled with a righteous fury that is matched by few bands or musicians.I can whole heartedly assure you that 18:61 is a raging, frantic slab of hardcore punk done the way that only these guys can lay down the punk rock; squealing guitars, riffs so angular the earth could fall off its access, and some of the angriest vocals that grace wax all wait in store on this album. The band shifts stylistically … Read more

Iggy & The Stooges

Raw Power (Re-Issue)
Sony (2010)

"Raw Power’s got a son named rock n’ roll" Leave it to Iggy Pop to both boast about this record … Read more

Killola

Let's Get Associated
Independent (2010)

Killola, a four-piece American So Cal alt-rock group, consists of Lisa Rieffel (lead vocals), Mike Ball, (guitar), Dan Grody (drums) … Read more

Young Livers

Of Misery & Toil
No Idea Records (2010)

With three years since their last full-length, Young Livers have returned in top form. Of Misery & Toil walks the … Read more

Tigers Jaw

Two Worlds
Run for Cover (2010)

Tigers Jaw are an indie rock band with heavy emo influences based out of Pennsylvania. Think early Weezer meets The … Read more

Killing the Dream

Lucky Me
Deathwish Inc. (2010)

Lucky Me is easily my most anticipated release of 2010. When I first started listening to hardcore, Killing The Dream … Read more

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One from the archives

Team Sleep

Team Sleep
Maverick (2005)

When I was 15, I remember thinking Korn was the greatest band on the face of the earth. I was angry. I was rebellious. I felt alienated just like Jonathan Davis. But in all fairness, Limp Bizkit was a close second. And while bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit refused to change their nu-metal riffs, and their "Are you ready?" and "Get the fuck up!" lyrics, the Deftones completely revamped themselves in 2000 when they released White Pony. Not so angry, not so rebellious, but completely beautiful, charming, and original. What was so magnificent about White Pony was the Deftones' fearless venture into soft, spacey electronica. This completely new side to the band was so powerful and inspiring, that singer Chino Moreno announced his new side project to the public … Read more

More album reviews

Rorcal

Heliogabalus
Cal Of Ror (2010)

Rorcal, from Switzerland, present Heliogabalus , a near-perfect doom/drone album. This record is so dark that the cover can’t even be seen on a computer. Hell, the music is so dark that some may not even be able to listen it. It takes a valiant effort to listen to a 1 song album that clocks in at 70 minutes, especially … Read more

The Sass Dragons

New Kids On The Bong
Johans Face (2010)

It would be hard to take the Sass Dragons seriously, were it not for the quality of their recorded material. On stage, the fuck-all Chicago band comes across as a snotty, obnoxious, and somewhat sloppy band with more than a hint of frontman posturing. Of course, when reviewing a record called New Kids on the Bong, maybe one shouldn’t be … Read more

Less Than Jake

TV EP
Sleep It Off (2010)

In theory, Less Than Jake covering catchy theme songs and product jingles sounds like a good idea. It seemed to work in the past. However, Less Than Jake’s TV/EP will fall short of your expectations.It’s hard to be too critical of an EP that was meant to be a fun project. The problem is, this project doesn’t have much replay … Read more

Cipher

The Joyous Collapse
Uprising (2010)

Cipher is one of those bands that if you were to describe their unique sound to someone, they would undoubtedly be left scratching their heads and asking, “what is it that makes this band good again?” I always put up with quite an internal and external struggle when describing the band to people that have never heard them before. However, … Read more

The Dopamines

Expect The Worst
Paper + Plastick (2010)

The Dopamines first caught my attention when they released a 7” that pays homage to the Big Black Songs About Fucking cover. Sure, they sound nothing like the seminal Chicago band, but anyone who gives props to that record ends up on my radar in some form. Moving forward to 2010, the Cincinnati band has signed with Paper & Plastick … Read more

Bring Out Your Dead

Just Stay Asleep...
Detonate (2010)

Bring Out Your Dead features members of Scraps and Heart Attacks for anyone else out there that gives a hoot. I liked Scraps and Heart Attacks so I was excited hear this EP. What we have here is a metal band that plays fast and has some nice melodic picking parts and some decent early 2000's type mosh to it. … Read more

Ultima Victima

La Batalla Sera Enterna
Detonate (2010)

If there's nothing that I hate more is moshcore bands that feel it necessary for their mosh parts to have mosh parts over mosh parts. Ulitma Victima are from Mexico and sing (well bark) in Spanish. The last time I took a Spanish class was in the 10th grade so I have no clue what's going on here. I can … Read more

Have a Nice Life

Voids
Music Ruins Lives (2010)

Maybe, just maybe, the internet is the reason that some ideas or feats of intellectual wizardry become tangible objects. This could be due to some radical phenomenon, or it could even (gasp) be due to the quality of the work on display. This little theory works in several ways for the duo who are Have A Nice Life. And, if … Read more

Gholas

Загадка
Self Released (2010)

Post Metal is a pretty loaded genre tag. Most people (myself included) find it misleading. The idea relies on the idea that more effects on your guitars and a sense of dynamics and ambience equal being less than metal. Gholas are a band that seem to fit in this general idea of a genre. They play with a sense of … Read more

Trap Them

Filth Rations
Southern Lord (2010)

What a seriously excellent release, regardless of its aural brevity, from Trap Them (whom are quickly becoming a stalwart outfit in the independent punk / hardcore / metal genres). Relentless touring, passion, and good records will do that for bands sometimes. Particularly if they do so in same furious manner this band has. Filth Rations, though, is different from other … Read more

Terror

Keepers Of The Faith
Century Media (2010)

Some of my most unforgettable moments in hardcore involve Terror. I first saw them headline a show after I trudged through a harsh January blizzard, where a 20 minute drive turned into almost an hour-long commute thanks to Pittsburgh’s signature winter weather. They played direct support when I saw one of my favorite bands, Earth Crisis, for the first time. … Read more

Best Coast

Crazy For You
Mexican Summer (2010)

Right off the bat you can’t help but feel Best Coast’s full-length debut, Crazy for You, is going to be an album you listen to every summer to come. This indie-pop group has a sound that goes hand-in-hand with enjoying the sun while lying on the beach. However, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. On the surface, Crazy For You … Read more

Caitlin Rose

Own Side Now
Theory 8 (2010)

Forget Taylor Swift and the rest of her incorrigible ilk, according to the recent accolades, the future of country music belongs in the hands of Caitlin Rose, a twenty-three year old Nashville native whose looks are only surpassed by her voice. Though this might seem like an outlandish statement, in the last year, in one EP and this, her debut … Read more

War From A Harlots Mouth

MMX
Lifeforce (2010)

War from a Harlots Mouth is definitely not new to the metal core or death core scene. They’ve been around a while, done tours, essentially put in their time. But, how has this experience shaped them when it comes to writing and recording? The blunt answer seems to be that it hasn’t in a big way.What we get is well-played … Read more

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