Seattle artist Rocky Votolato has been a busy man of late. His debut record for Barsuk, Makers, has already seen … Read more
Ok, so it's no secret that I really like A Wilhelm Scream. Like, a lot. I gave their most recent … Read more
Whether a record is really good or really bad, it can be very inspiring to write about. You can either … Read more
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The initial suggestions of United Nations falling under the grindcore, powerviolence, and traditional screamo umbrellas may have created unrealistic expectations for some music lovers. However, one can't really fault the band members of United Nations for attempting to distance themselves from the stereotypes of their main projects with these descriptions of what to expect from the band. To many screamo is still that MTV2 pop-glazed-punk that bands like Taking Back Sunday and The Used put on plastic. Unfortunately, in an effort to distinguish themselves the members of United Nations might have taken things a tad too far. So yes, this is not a grindcore or powerviolence project in the classic sense per se, but the influence from bands of those genres can be heard. Plus it is also not going … Read more
Rising from the wreckage of a failed record label and the departure of their drummer, The Appleseed Cast makes their return with Peregrine. This record marks their first with Casket Lottery drummer, Nathan "Nate Jr." Richardson. This band has many expectations to live up to on this record, especially considering the mixed reactions that their last album, Two Conversations, received. … Read more
Despite the obviously hippie-drawn, almost Narnian cover art, and a band name perhaps more likely to evoke visions of reggae or, even worse, Christian rock, Lion of Judah sound much more interested in the likes of Bad Brains and Fugazi than Bob Marley or Creed. Putting the DC back in hardcore - rightfully making it "harDCore" once again - Lion … Read more
Somewhere in the Swamps of Jersey is a two-disc set of everything Lifetime released besides Hello Bastards and Jerseys Best Dancers. It's awesome to have the song "Somewhere in the Swamps of Jersey" on a CD. The re-mastered versions of the Seveninchesare a great listen, especially for newer fans that wanted to hear exactly when Lifetime perfected the precise mixture … Read more
In wake of the hurricane of hype that followed the landing of The Strokes, I did my best knee jerk reaction in 2002 and flat out dismissed the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. In fact, anything with a pair of ripped jeans and a NYC zip code got the preverbal Ricky Lake hand for a while. 2003 rolled around though and the … Read more
Before we begin, allow me to digress and give a bit of background on the monstrosity that is Spitfire, because I want to get some things out of the way immediately. On their first album, The Dead Next Door, the band was vastly different from the current incarnation. This was 1999 or so; the record was recorded with Steve Evetts … Read more
Demos can be funny sometimes. They are called a demo for a reason; it's by no means a finished product. And yet many times these demos end up becoming just that. Ambitions will see No Limits mass-produced in both 7" and CD format in the near future, but with good reason. Over the course of these four songs, Ambitions have … Read more
It's taken more than a year, but finally, Inara George's All Rise opus has been given a UK release. Readily available on import at no extra cost, the necessity for it is questionable. But with a new album on the way, featuring songs co-written by Idlewild's Rod Jones, and a performance with the very same coming up in London, the … Read more
Biting through the flesh of the unwilling. Fingering eye sockets and spilling vast volumes of blood. Some want to smash the system; others want to skull fuck it with barbed wired bats, like Sabertooth Zombie, who just self-released an EP titled, The Only Good Politician is a Dead Politician. We are treated to six songs of fucked up punk/hardcore with … Read more
Minima Moralia is ambient artist Chihei Hatakeyama's debut solo album, with his prior musical output coming via his electro-acoustic duo Opitope and the improv group Copa del Papa. Additionally he co-runs the Kualauk Table record label and helps organize the "continuous live performance event" (i.e. "music festival") Kuala Mute Geek. All of this means absolutely nothing to me. If it … Read more
Auburn is a tranquil town in upstate New York sitting about fifteen minutes outside of the city of Syracuse. You may not be a geography major, but this is relevant. Why, you ask? Because Auburn is the same town that spawned metal masters Manowar and Syracuse is the city that gave birth to hardcore legends Earth Crisis. It is likely … Read more
If there's a band out there that knows how to create a solid record on top of having a damn good time, it's Turbonegro. In the past decade (and then some), this band has released more influential and ground-breaking records than any other Scandinavian band - besides perhaps, uhââ¬Â¦every black metal band. Albums like Ass Cobra and Apocalypse Dudes are … Read more
Sometimes I make mistakes. When I was in kindergarten I crossed in the middle of the street and was promptly hit by car. In the fifth grade I decided to ride my brakeless bike down the steepest hill in my home town. I made it about halfway down. When I was a senior I skipped my girlfriend's piano recital to … Read more
In metal circles, In Flames need little introduction, if any at all. The once vaunted band was at the forefront of the "New Wave of Swedish Death Metal" invasion that produced masterpieces like Jester's Race, Whoracle, and Colony. The band has been on somewhat of a decline over the last several albums, culminating in the critically panned, ill received nu-metal … Read more
What does it mean to have over 407,000 plays on Purevolume, over 170,000 plays and over 10,000 friends on Myspace? After listening to Dear Whoever's EP, Sound the Trumpet, I have found the answer to these questions, among others. Such as, what happens when you mix teenage angst with Christian metal? And the ever popular, would you rather listen to … Read more
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