Recent reviews

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)

Dinosaur Jr.

Farm
Jagjaguwar (2009)

This may be going out on a limb here, but Dinosaur Jr.'s reunion album in 2007, Beyond was one of the best albums of said year, if not one of the best reunion albums ever. Bands reuniting is always seen as a lame cash-in attempt by artists going bankrupt, but with Beyond it felt more like Dinosaur Jr. were making a serious attempt at creating a great album, which they did. Some may call me crazy, but I felt that they sounded just as good as they did in their peak years in the late 80's. Now what about the follow up album? Is it just as good as it's predecessor? Absolutely. In fact, it's even better. What exactly are we to expect from Dinosaur Jr.'s latest offering? For the most part, it's their signature style of alternative rock backed by that signature "fuzzy" guitar tone, J Mascis' crooning vocals and tons of solos. Dinosaur Jr. have been comfortable playing this style for years and they proved they can still sound just as good as they did in the old days with Beyond, and it's the same case with Farm, only they do take a few steps outside the box. … Read more

Sabertooth Zombie

…And Your Fathers are Dead in the Ground
Twelve Gauge (2009)

California's most intriguing current hardcore outfit, Sabertooth Zombie, returns with their latest full-length effort. Since they've last released Midnight Venom … Read more

Junior Battles

Hotel Bibles
Black Pint (2009)

Ah, summer in full swing. For those of you attempting to battle high temperatures, I empathize as I sit in … Read more

Shook Ones

The Unquotable A.M.H.
Paper + Plastick (2009)

Now on their third album, Shook Ones already have a pretty solid reputation. After the melodic hardcore masterpiece that was … Read more

Oceans

Nothing Collapses
Copper Lung (2009)

Chicago natives Oceans offer up nine tracks with sixty minutes worth of music on their debut effort. The five-piece maintain … Read more

Phoenix

Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Glass Note (2009)

Phoenix has always been successful at lifting spirits and making people dance. Based out of Versailles, Phoenix has been going … Read more

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One from the archives

The Brokedowns

Sick of Space
Red Scare Industries (2018)

When I stop and look at the discogs, The Brokedowns have been doing what they do for a long time now. What is that, exactly? Well, it’s Midwestern punk that’s angry, funny, heavy, and harmonic. There are contradictions in plain sight in that description, and that diversity in sound is what makes the band so interesting. They seamlessly pull it all together in 2-minute blasts that, to pull straight from the label’s description “is a little weirder, a little smarter, and a little heavier-sounding than your average punk band.”It’s pretty on point. The band has a strong Dillinger Four influence and, at times, singer Jon Balun even sounds a bit like Paddy. While that influence rears its head, such as in the brilliantly titled “Mommy, Can I Go Out and … Read more

More album reviews

Anchor Down

Steel to Dust
Solidarity (2009)

It's always great to find all of these new breeds of punk bands coming about lately. There have been so many that I've found out about the last couple of years. And the funny thing is, nearly all of them have stuck with me. I still listen to all of these bands on a pretty frequent basis. Another band to … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Outbreak

Work to Death
Think Fast! (2009)

I'll be honest here. I was never a huge Outbreak fan. You Make Us Sick was fairly decent, but I was never really sold on the group. I have a lot of friends that swear by that record and the subsequent release of Failure. but I'm just not one of them. Anyway, Work to Death is a new 7" single … Read more

200 Words Or Less

The Reed Sea

No Help
Independent (2009)

Hailing from Oregon, this four-piece outfit has brought forth a four-song EP titled No Help. The title of the EP is fitting as the band has recorded and packaged the entire release themselves. Granted, it's limited to screen printed cardboard sleeves, but that's still cool. I appreciate the DIY effort. "Holy Pigs" is the lead song and immediately you're greeted … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Man Overboard

Hung Up on Nothing
Independent (2008)

Man Overboard is the latest bubble-gum pop-punk band to come around, joining the existing one hundred thousand others. This four-piece hails from New Jersey, and like so many others they take influence from groups like Blink 182. I'm not blaming Man Overboard by any means, but I'm starting to get sick of these kinds of bands By the way, if … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Outrage

Savior
Panic (2008)

Here we have a decent seven-song slab of 90's hardcore with some newer influences. Outrage sounds like they take the best riffs from the New Age catalog of 1995, speed it up and toss some impassioned vocals on top of it. I can see anyone into Outspoken to Defeater enjoying this band. I found it to be an enjoyable listen … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Tim Easton

Porcupine
New West (2009)

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 … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Steve Kilbey

Painkiller
Second Motion (2009)

The first solo record from The Church frontman in seven years, Kilbey handles all the instruments here except drums. Thankfully it does not sound like a Paul McCartney record. Tim Powles, drummer from The Church covers the sticks and production duties. But there's still a strong guitar presence on this one. "Outbound" features a flowing bassline, while 'Wolfe" seems to … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Bulldozer

The Hammers
Motherbox (2008)

Sadly this is not a album by recently reformed Italian thrashers Bulldozer but a disc made by a New York band playing bog-standard punk rock with melodic and shouty sing-along choruses. It's hard to get wet and excited over another punk band that has flashes of rock'n roll and sounds like they came straight from the practice room - especially … Read more

Disappearer

The Clearing
Magic Bullet (2009)

Massachusetts-based Disappearer returns with their long-awaited second release. The Clearing marks the band's first full-length effort, which follows up the band's 2006's self-titled EP release (which is actually the group's 2004 demo reworked). So it has been, in a way, five years since we've gotten fresh material from Disappearer. For the super-fans, I am aware of last year's Steven Brodsky … Read more

We're All Broken

Blacktop Cry
Devildance (2009)

We're All Broken's name may sound familiar to you because they've opened for a lot of big names like Thursday, Minus the Bear, and The Gaslight Anthem over the years. This five-piece have just undergone a bit of a change in style with their new EP, Blacktop Cry. Their former post-hardcore stylings have been abandoned in favor of a more … Read more

Alexisonfire

Old Crows/Young Cardinals
Vagrant (2009)

I've always considered Alexisonfire one of the "better bands" in the whole "post-hardcore" scene or whatever you want to call it. However, their last album, Crisis received a lot of mixed reactions among fans with a lot of them believing that the band had lost their fire and were aiming for a more "commercial appealing" album. While that may be … Read more

Wrnlrd

Oneiromantical War
FSS (2008)

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

Paint It Black

Amnesia
Bridge Nine (2009)

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

Geisha

Die Verbrechen der Liebe
Crucial Blast (2008)

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

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