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Bootlicker

1000 Yd. Stare
Neon Taste Records, Static Shock Records (2024)

This full-length record might fit on a 7”. It’s short and fast, but still definitely a full record with 10 fully-formed tracks of stomping punk rock just over 15 minutes overall. I’ve written about the band before and this record continues their trajectory. I remember a little more barking and aggression last time, but that isn’t to say this record … Read more

Various Artists

DCxPC Live Volume 22
DCxPC Live (2024)

Volume 22 of DCxPC Live, a live album vinyl record label for punk, hardcore, ska and metal bands, features Sticky Steve, Borrowed Sparks, Jacob Danielsen-Moore and Dougie Flesh and the Slashers. This iteration leans heavy into folk punk and psychobilly sensibilities. Think Laura Jane Grace if she was obsessed with Spirit Halloween and B-horror movies. The vinyl itself didn’t seem … Read more

Swami & The Bed Of Nails

All Of This Awaits You
BMG, Swami (2024)

Some artists slow down as they get older. Who knows if that’s because of day jobs or family or something about the new creative process. It’s all case by case and speculation, and that’s not why I’m here talking about John Reis’s latest project anyway, other than to give a lengthy intro to Swami & The Bed Of Nails, which … Read more

Ulvtharm

7 Uthras
Cyclic Law (2024)

A pioneer of the extreme ambient scene, Jouni Ollila's work with Mz.412 has been instrumental in tying the dark ambient scene with a black metal perspective. In effect, Ollila has influenced an array of artists from the brutal, dungeon chaos of Abruptum to the horrifying, noise dreams of Gnaw Their Tongues. While Ollila continues to produce dark visions through Mz.412, … Read more

Mannequin Pussy

I Got Heaven
Epitaph (2024)

One of the rare instances of a band getting more raucous with time (and success), Mannequin Pussy’s third studio album I Got Heaven sets the mood with heavy drums and cutting vocals. While the sound doesn’t swing in as hard, or as messy, as previous albums, the band hits their stride with lyrics equal parts scalding and snotty. Album opener … Read more

Uboa

Impossible Light
Flenser (2024)

It comes with the territory. The harshness of noise, the unbearable coldness of industrial music, and the vastness of dark ambient naturally combine with the most visceral and dark themes. Uboa’s 2019 opus, The Origin of My Depression, weaponized these sonic arsenals to weave a story of the personal struggle of artist Xandra Metcalfe with transitioning and dealing with mental … Read more

FVRMN

Back To The Whip
Bifocal Media (2024)

This is apparently the fourth LP from FVRMN, previously known as “Fever Moon” and presumably pronounced as such. It’s not exactly a solo project, as there is a full band on Back To The Whip, but it’s definitely the brainchild of Jay Holmes (formerly of The Ladderback and also a recognized visual artist who has done design work for the … Read more

Clown Sounds

Par For The Curse
Recess (2024)

“I’m a real band!” When you write about an artist a billion times, sometimes your head goes to strange places -- leading to references that probably only make sense inside your own head. With Par For The Curse, the third album from the Todd Congelliere founded project, Clown Sounds has evolved from solo origins to a collaborative effort. The results … Read more

The Dreaded Laramie

Princess Feedback
Smartpunk Records (2024)

There are a lot of ways to find new music, from word of mouth to opening acts to algorithms. For the better part of the last 20 years, The Fest has been a way I’ve discovered new artists. One the biggest surprises for me at FEST 21 was The Dreaded Laramie. With a name that makes with think Wyoming and … Read more

Post Scriptvm

Eisstoß
Tesco Organisation (2024)

Post Scriptvum’s works are defined by their hypnagogic quality, and ability to construct a harsh dreamscape and lead the listener through. Take the start of their newest record, Eisstoß, as an example. “Frazil” unfolds slowly, the beeping sound mimicking a faraway radar trying to slowly cartograph the unknown space. This anchoring quality is vital in any noise and power electronics … Read more

No Future

Mirror
Iron Lung (2024)

No Future are unleashing their debut record, following many short-fused, chaotic EPs and demos. The hardcore punk band from down under subscribes to the genre’s noisier, most extravagant, and brutal sub-division. Mirror’s energy is outright belligerent, capable of inflicting maximum damage with its minimalistic tendencies. The electrifying effect of “Silent Morality” is explosive, with a hi-hat sound capable of literal … Read more

Carly Cosgrove

The Cleanest Of Houses Are Empty
Wax Bodega (2024)

You should never judge a band by their name alone, but it’s impossible to ignore it too. Carly Cosgrove is an emo-style band that chose a band name that sounds like a person’s name -- it seems to be a long-running tradition in the genre. I point that out because Carly Cosgrove the band has a lot of traditional elements, … Read more

Merzbow & Meat Beat Manifesto

Extinct
Cold Spring (2024)

Extinct is a meeting of giants, seeing the breakbeat-fueled leftfield industrial electronic of Meat Beat Manifesto clashing with the noise onslaught of Merzbow. As the first of the record’s two tracks, “¡FLAKKA!” settles in, it is the intricate and layered rhythmic backbone of MBM prevails, setting the tone. It is a post-club application, the staggered percussion forming complex structures and … Read more

Grumpster

Grumpster
Pure Noise (2024)

  Grumpster is just one of those bands. The first record caught my attention, the second was a “whoa” moment, and now it’s already album number three, five years later. It’s been a relatively quick progression and there’s a big jump in sound between the first and last albums, but it’s also linear and it makes sense. The band come from … Read more

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