I’ll start by saying I have a love/hate relationship with folk-punk. Done right, it’s one of the most authentic styles out there. But it has a lot of genre tropes that annoy me too. Fortunately, She/Her/Hers plays it right, because the genre is also a great fit for the theme of this record. She/Her/Hers began as a solo project from Emma Grrl, first capturing a minimalist, acoustic journal-style take of her experience coming out as a transgender woman. Grrl released a couple EPs in this format, leading up to this self-titled debut LP, which takes those older songs but adds new perspective, accompanied by a full band and wider range of sounds. In other words, this starts as a very personal, intimate experience about a defining experience and it grew into something more outward. The final product is undeniably folk-punk, but with a lot of variety from song to song. Sure, there are old school Against Me! moments, but also big poppy choruses, sincere ballads, and tinges of metal and cabaret. It’s a very diverse record, yet it’s intensely Grrl’s personal story, with ups and downs along the journey. A few songs are big singalong, peppy jams (that contrast with … Read more
The Devil's Song is the accompanying book to Boogeyman's self titled debut album; you can check out the album review … Read more
Four piece horror themed punk band Won't Stay Dead from Chicago, Illinois formed in 2017. After independently releasing two five-track … Read more
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The archival hunt for the "missing links" of first-wave California punk usually leads through a trail of grainy handbill Xeroxes and tape traders' overdubbed copies. But with The Flyboys, the story has always been a bit more elegant—and a lot more colourful. Long before they were swept into the gravity of the Hollywood scene, frontman John Curry was already performing the role of a rock star. Sporting day-glo threads and a bleached-blonde pompadour, Curry was a deliberate artistic construction in a scene of accidentalists, famously encouraged by a circle of friends who treated him like a legend before he even had a band. With the release of The Complete Flyboys 1978-1980, Frontier Records isn't just reissuing its inaugural catalogue entry; it’s providing a much-needed autopsia cadaverum of a band that … Read more
You know how every band is a skate punk band? Every band now, right now in 2022, is a skate punk band. Maybe not every band, fine, but most of them. 30-40 year old men with disposable income who can’t fend off the ghost of 90s nostalgia, singing about a simpler time when they didn’t have responsibilities like recycling their … Read more
KEN Mode have always favored a dark and oppressive path for their extreme music aspirations. From their early days up to the release of the seminal Entrench, the act from Winnipeg, Canada has not held anything back. In 2013 it would be difficult to imagine how KEN Mode could surpass their seminal works. The release of Success in 2015 felt … Read more
Dead Cross consists of only four members. Vocalist Mike Patton, bassist Justin Pearson, guitarist Michael Crain and drummer Dave Lombardo. Between these four gentlemen, I could list the other bands they currently play in and meet my word count quota in less than five minutes. Suffice to say, these are not guys to rest on their laurels and the literal … Read more
Fields Of Regret is the brainchild of musician Filip Van Lysebeth, a producer based in Belgium. This self titled five track EP, released through Bassick Records on November 18th 2022, unveils Fields Of Regret's blend of horror fuelled gothic and industrial metal crossed with punk rock and a carnival style theme. In a statement from Bassick Records the EP is … Read more
I mostly enjoy acoustic albums during my cruising time to work by bike. I can't explain what makes the acoustic sounds special when you listen to it in the morning. Maybe I'm a typical kind of guy who is slow to wake up and acoustic tunes are perfect to build up my mood. Graduation Speech is a moniker project initiated … Read more
Robby Bloodshed is a musician from New Jersey and has been recording since 2010. With five EP's, seven albums and a number of singles to his name, Dripping Red is his eighth album to date. The digital and CD release has seven tracks which include covers of "The Crystal Ship" by The Doors and "Growing Up and I'm Fine" by … Read more
First of all, I can’t believe Dr. Acula is back! When I saw the promo from Silent Pendulum that there’s a new album on the way, I had to triple check and listen to the single a couple of times. It still took a while for the reality to sink in and I’m not going to lie, I had some … Read more
My first thought on seeing that Drakulas cover The Jim Carroll Band on this was, “Huh, that’s a weird choice.” But about 10-seconds in, everything clicks. You see, Drakulas is a concept band, set in a dystopian, Warriors-esque world of broken streetlights, shenanigans, violence and smut. And, well, let’s just say that 1970s New York inspired a lot of that … Read more
I was thrown the first time I listened to this. I came in blind, expecting “the Dirtnap sound.” But what matters isn’t the brand, it’s if the music is good, so it’s a silly bias to begin with. It also took me a few listens before I realized that the files I was sent weren’t tagged right, so I was … Read more
Four piece doom/sludge/death metal outfit VoidOath crawled their way up from the nether realms of San Jose, Costa Rica in 2018. In May 2020 they released a three track EP entitled Illumination Through Necromancy, a 30 minute taster preparing us for the abysmal horror doom of this debut full length album Ascension Beyond Kokytus. Kokytus translates (by the power of … Read more
I've been sitting on this record since it came out, and I wasn't sure exactly where I was with it until now. I really wanted to love this record, but my musical taste is that of a 47 yr old guy who has listened to so much music and been in so many bands, that I was afraid the review … Read more
I was introduced to Night Jobs with The Shape of Bummers To Come tape. I liked it overall, but I did feel there was room from growth. I mean, there always is…but I digress. The band is back in 2022 with the new 7”, Never Happener, featuring four new songs. And I do hear that “growth.” Sure, Night Jobs play … Read more
Oh, Canada! Hailing from Geneva and now back and forth between Toronto and the beautiful city of Montreal, Greg Laraigne weaves well-crafted stories into a tapestry of lore and social commentary. The album apparently was ten years in the making while he also perfected his trade as a well-respected man in the field of tattooing. Easy comparisons are made to … Read more
I can’t help but internally groan when a group is described as a ‘live band’. The phrase is pinned onto many a few semi-famous local bands who are known more for their on stage antics than their musical chops. A ‘live band’ stands in direct opposition of an ‘album band’ who do asinine things like practice and tune their instruments. … Read more
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