This new release finds Easton actually fronting a band after many years of mainly playing solo acoustic. Electric guitar leads are abound, and the music is powered by the drumming of Sam Brown. But don't worry kids, the ace songwriting is still in full force. "Broke My Heart" is great pop song, but more heady subjects are also addressed. "7th Wheel" offers a nice acoustic interlude in between the rockers. "Baltimore" is about a city that Easton admits he has never actually hung out in! But I'm sure "Goodbye Amsterdam" was written for the complete opposite reason. But this is another superb release that should catapult Easton into the upper stratosphere of great writers like John Doe, Peter Case, and Bill Janovitz. Time will tell. Read more
The first solo record from The Church frontman in seven years, Kilbey handles all the instruments here except drums. Thankfully … Read more
Massachusetts-based Disappearer returns with their long-awaited second release. The Clearing marks the band's first full-length effort, which follows up the … Read more
We're All Broken's name may sound familiar to you because they've opened for a lot of big names like Thursday, … Read more
I've always considered Alexisonfire one of the "better bands" in the whole "post-hardcore" scene or whatever you want to call … Read more
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"To speak of money and music in the same sentence is a fucking travesty. I'd rather keep losing money, rather keep scraping by than be a part of a scene constantly talks about sales, guarantees, and marketing prowess... Because this is how simple it should be; music is inside you, boiling, and it needs to get out because it's your way to express yourself and communicate with others...it's spiritual survival." These words, written by Marianne from Cease Upon the Capitol, sum up the basic ideals of the punk scene to me: to play music with emotion and passion, and to do so with a DIY ethic, without the support of a major label and their money. To try and make the world a better place, socially and politically, and to … Read more
Wrnlrd drops a dense black metal album on listeners with this limited LP and digital album, Oneiromantical War - which I believe is the sixth album from the outfit. Now, in my growing education in black metal, this is my introduction to Wrnlrd, and it certainly provides me intrigue as the record mastering is the work of Bob Weston of … Read more
I hate to be that guy, but I got to admit that it's getting more and more difficult to find an impressive hardcore album these days. I'm not talking about that record you listen to several times, really rock out to during the first week, rag on your friends for having never heard of it, and then retire it to … Read more
What a weird mix (sound wise this is really thin sounding without much bottom end) for the opening track to a record because I really was hoping to be immediately crushed by Geisha's Die Verbrechen der Liebe, and instead, "Prelude to Amber Pays the Rent" is a bit of thin riffage being pushed through a thick haze of white noise, … Read more
It takes a lot for me to completely lose faith in some of my favorite bands, and I came pretty close to completely giving up on Anti-Flag after the disaster that was The Bright Lights of America. My faith was then restored a bit after hearing that they left RCA Records and joined the ever growing roster at Side One … Read more
I like to refer to Foundation's self-titled record as campfire punk. It takes basic punk songs (often from the Ann Beretta catalog) and strips them down to the acoustic basics. In the process, Rob Huddleston doesn't run them through the genre-grinder and spit out new alt-country or folk versions of old songs so much as he creates Ann Beretta Unplugged … Read more
Pulling Teeth continues to be an extremely active and productive group - touring the world and releasing three full-lengths and several singles since their inception. Paranoid Delusions | Paradise Illusions marks the band's third full-length effort, though I use that term loosely as the length of this recording is a bit on the short end for a "long player" (though … Read more
The reviewer of the following album would like to invite his readers to participate in the following drinking game: grab a shot glass, grab a bottle of whatever alcoholic beverage you wish to imbibe (for those in AA or under 21 years of age, feel free to use whatever is handy - remember, thumb off the carb) and take a … Read more
Yes, a new Coliseum record! Although they are not as prolific as they used to be, Coliseum continues to give listeners new music at least semi regularly. And even though we are still quite a ways away from hearing a new full-length from this touring machine, they still drop this single in an attempt to tide us all over. Although … Read more
My review of the Mongoloids last full-length, Time Trials, was probably one of the worst reviews I have ever written. I had the vinyl version of the album and for some reason my record player wasn't working and everything sounded sloppy and off time. Don't ever buy record players from Target. Anyhow, I found a copy of Time Trials on … Read more
Just as a clock comes full circle, so does the music world. Every couple of years the music cycle rotates back around from a previous time as it highlights a specific style, sound, or message of influence. Transit is part of the new wave of melodic punk bands that draw heavily from the 90's emo scene. Imagine tidbits pulled from … Read more
Austria, the home of some of my ancestors and one of my favorite finds of the year, Empty Promise. This four-piece melodic punk band definitely took me by surprise and are sure to do the same to more listeners. Already having an impressive demo EP on their resume, Empty Promise continue to come out strong with their debut album, Start … Read more
As much as I may or may not be completely objective when attempting record reviews, I must admit that this is probably not capable of happening when it comes to Coalesce's new album, Ox. Quite literally ten years in the making, Ox is the band's first new album since 0:12: Revolution in Just Listening and the subject of much anxiety … Read more
I could write a thousand words on Rancid here if I wanted. I spent the better part of the 90's defending them amongst the punx, though my enthusiasm for the band has waned markedly as the current decade has passed. It's been a few years since their last release: Tim Armstrong's divorce is history, The Transplants experiment is over, and … Read more
Rancid changed my life when I was twelve years old. Yes, Nirvana and Green Day had me going in the right direction, but Rancid absolutely changed me with their shocking mohawks, messy tattoos, and irresistibly catchy punk rock tunes. Once I bought ...And Out Come the Wolves I knew I had to be in a band and play music forever. … Read more
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