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)

Lords of the North

Lords of the North
Radio Optik (2008)

Ah, the sludge. The slow and heavy beats that make you want to grow out your hair just to make head-banging that much better. One of most recent additions that can fall under this category is Seattle's Lords of the North. Dripping in epic imagery and determined to bring blues sensibilities to a metal sound, Lords of the North catches your eyes and ears. As soon as you put on their self-titled debut, you feel like you should be in a large stadium with lots of lights and everyone around you is slowly head-banging, throwing up devil horns with one hand and holding a beer in the other. Lords of the North essentially play a modern version of Black Sabbath. Their self-titled debut opens with "Souls Come Rising," a simple slow, heavy jam that gets stuck in your head a little too easily. Once the vocals come in, you really think you've gone back in time. The harmonizing high and low vocals combined with the fuzzy guitar and bass tones are a perfect throwback to this era of heavy metal. The solo towards the end adds to this effect even more. The next track, "Follow the Falcon," follows almost the … Read more

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Inhuman

Last Rites
I Scream (2007)

Inhuman have been around since the dawn of time. Well okay, fifteen years. They are always pegged as "The Most … Read more

200 Words Or Less

History

Ghosts in the City
24-Hour Service Station (2007)

I hate being lied too. I remember wanting this CD for review because the one-sheet was all about this Orlando, … Read more

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Ocrilim

ANNWN
Hydra Head (2008)

Metal is constantly making relatives with classical and orchestra. Sometimes though, you have to remember why they are separate. Mick … Read more

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Ability

Expired
Fineprint (2008)

Ability is a five-piece hardcore band from the Northern outskirts of Los Angeles. Expired is their debut effort and the … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Police & Thieves

Amor Y Guerra
Youngblood (2008)

It must have been two or three years ago now that I received Police & Thieves demo in the mail. … Read more

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One from the archives

Deathcycle

Prelude to Tyranny
Lifeline (2008)

Deathcycle brings hardcore laden with throwback influence and metal finishes. They're young, angry lads who have, within the past month, announced their breakup before I even got around to Prelude to Tyranny. The first thing to strike me upon listening is Ron Grimaldi's voice. It's especially powerful and carries well above the abrasive music. Normally, he is singing over the music at a pace that makes you wonder if he ever needs to stop and breathe, but when he does slow things down (just a little bit) it sort of reminds me of Tom Araya. Not Araya's "Angel of Death" screams, mind you, but there's still something that make me think of him with footstomping, shaved head, tough guy look instead of the long, curly metal locks. I'll be the … Read more

More album reviews

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Coptic Times

Temptation
Youngblood (2008)

Coptic Times is the latest output from the Texas hardcore scene, but after repeated listens to Temptation that might be one of the last places you'd think they were from. Featuring members of Iron Age and Drop Out, Coptic Times doesn't really fit in with their Texan peers. Rather, the sounds of these fives tracks would be better suited to … Read more

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Pitfall

Another Day at the Zoo
Neutral Territory (2008)

Massachusetts is always churning out quality hardcore and Pitfall is no exception. Another Day at the Zoo is the band's first official release following a promising demo. The band delivers punishing and relentless hardcore that draws similarities to Outbreak and Think I Care. The band sums things up best on the track "Edge of the World" with the lines, "These … Read more

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Counting the Days / Hollywood

Split
State of Mind (2008)

Counting the Days is back with two new tracks following an LP release in 2006. These songs are very much in line with their previous ventures. They mix melodic hardcore of Champion and Reach the Sky with the faster style of American Nightmare. "Tonight" is the better of the two tracks. The songs should provide a holdover until the band's … Read more

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Braindead / Blackbirds

Split
Burn Bridges (2007)

The split effort from Burn Bridges teams up two underrated bands that definitely deserve more attention. Pennsylvania's Braindead and Michigan's Blackbirds each deliver original songs as well as covering classic The Stooges songs. Braindead offers up three originals of melodic hardcore that draw influence from the likes of Turning Point and Kid Dynamite. In between the two "songs" is an … Read more

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Pressure

Beasts
Burn Bridges/High Fidelity (2006)

So we normally stick to reviewing albums that have been released within the last six months, but sometimes we make exceptions. I don't know why we didn't cover Pressure's Beasts already, but we haven't. So I apologize. This LA outfit pretty much destroys all on this six-song 7". Over the course of the record the band unleashes an off kilter … Read more

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Triac

Blue Room
Forcefield/Reptilian (2008)

Grindcore is a genre that you either fanatical about, or you just don't seem to care. I can't say that I'm all that jazzed about the genre. I don't really find grindcore bands to be that entertaining, for the most part. Triac hail from Baltimore, Maryland and they have somehow found a way to keep me interested! These guys mix … Read more

Multiple Authors

Playing Enemy

My Life as the Villain
Hex (2008)

To say I was dismayed at the inevitable collapse of Playing Enemy is to understate it. I felt a pretty genuine sense of loss knowing that they would never come back through Arizona (and I would never be the only person at their show again) or that I would never get another plaintive song - but wait! I did! And, … Read more

Multiple Authors

Playing Enemy

My Life as the Villain
Hex (2008)

When Playing Enemy announced their recent demise not long after James Brown shuffled forth this mortal coil, the announcement fell on mostly deaf ears to the majority of underground/ independent music, which is almost as unfortunate (maybe more so) than the band actually calling it a day. Besides the continuation of an impressive lineage of like minded, noise mongering bands … Read more

The Old Haunts

Poisonous Times
Kill Rock Stars (2008)

What is it with bands changing drummers so often? I know it's not uncommon to change a member in a group but it seems like the drummers are slightly over-represented in these statistics. Research into this band from Olympia, Washington shows that for each one of their releases they have introduced a new drummer to the fold. For Poisonous Times … Read more

Century

Black Ocean
Prosthetic (2008)

Thanks to the ever increasing popularity of whack bands like Bullet for My Valentine, Trivium, etc. among the metallically-naïve listeners out there, it seems that metalcore has taken the place of nu-metal as the classification that bands most want to avoid - although deathcore is aggressively seeking the title, as well. Century is one band that can carry the metalcore … Read more

A Caesar Holiday

A Caesar Holiday
Independent (2008)

The five-piece A Caesar Holiday offer up six tracks totaling forty-five minutes on their self-titled debut release. Featuring the combined instrumentation of violin, dual guitars, bass, drums, and accordion the Indianapolis group offer moody and mostly instrumental music falling somewhere between prog and post-rock. The album is at its strongest in the tracks featuring the violin work of Eison, most … Read more

The T4 Project

Story-Based Concept Album
Mental (2008)

Before this monstrosity hit my mailbox the only concept album that I own was Hüsker Dü's Zen Arcade. Even that double album by those St. Paul hardcore pioneers isn't even that good for a concept album as it ends up being all a dream. I thought that trick only worked on 80's prime time sitcoms. I really don't like concept … Read more

Aussitôt Mort

6 Songs
Level Plane (2007)

Aussitôt Mort means "immediately dead" in the French language. Their name, as well as their sound, is marked by powerful intensity. The four musicians who make up the French group - some of whom are also in the French band Amanda Woodward - have released 6 Songs as a way for fans to get their hands on previously released vinyl-only … Read more

Atmosphere

When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold
Rhymesayers (2008)

While When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold brings Ant and Slug closer to full-blown mainstream success, it's an album that's not really about either of them. Rather, it's about those that possibly buy their albums, those that struggle to make it through the day, no real future in sight given their conditions. While Ant brings to … Read more

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