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Pears

Green Star
Fat Wreck Chords (2016)

It’s been a while since I thought about the Fat Wreck effect, where a band signs to the San Francisco label and then releases a notably “Fat styled” album. Propagandhi’s How to Clean Everything is the biggest example to come to mind, but it was a thing people talked about in the ‘90s. You know, besides talking about baggy pants, … Read more

Andrew Paley

Sirens
Paper + Plastick/Make My Day (2016)

Perhaps best known as the frontman of Vermont post-punk band The Static Age, Andrew Paley has never been shy about his penchant for playing solo acoustic songs. Where The Static Age's sound is sound is distantly confrontational and awash with the vivid colours of late nights, Paley's solo work has mostly been more reflective and vulnerable, like the sounds of … Read more

Enmeshed

The Egesal
Independent (2016)

There is very little information available about who Enmeshed is, other than that they are a four piece band, releasing their debut album The Egesal. With an interesting setup, including electroacoustic guitar, drums (alongside drum machines) and tenor electric guitar, they like to blend diverse sounds, within an overall experimental extreme doom setting. Their vision for The Egesal is quite … Read more

Bad Sports

Living with Secrets
Dirtnap (2016)

Bad Sports are coming into their own. They’ve always been a solid Denton, TX hyphen-rock band but on their new EP, Dirtnap’s Living With Secrets, the nuances are starting to pull together a little more and the “influenced by” is harder to decipher. The first third or so of the record takes the commodified Denton garage-punk sound in a new … Read more

Video/DVD Review

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

One More Time With Feeling
Independent (2016)

There is no pain so great as the memory of joy in present grief - that is how ancient Greek tragedians put it. Grief and beauty. Parallels between the literate wisdom, apocalyptic imagery, emotional and romantic density and weight in Cave’s oeuvre and the emissions of the ancient Greek are manifold. The expression of love that no pain can erode.One … Read more

NOFX

First Ditch Effort
Fat Wreck Chords (2016)

It’s probably been a decade (maybe two) since anyone reviewed a NOFX record without starting out by talking about “knowing what to expect.” The band has their sound down pat and I’ll spare them the skatepunk adjectives except to say that new LP First Ditch Effort doesn’t change it up. The only shift here, if it is one, is that … Read more

The Melvins

Basses Loaded
Ipecac (2016)

The Melvins are becoming one of the most prolific bands of any in recent memory. One could speculate on the reasons for this, but ultimately it could probably be chalked up to the lack of constraints on their music.The Melvins can pretty much do whatever the fuck they want and Basses Loaded is no exception. Taking their revolving roster to … Read more

Mark Sultan

BBQ
In The Red (2016)

Mark Sultan has long gone by two stage names: his own, and BBQ (of King Khan & The BBQ Show). Most solo work has been truly solo: just Sultan, his guitar and his drums. That’s right: he’s a one-man band instead of a “singer-songwriter.” On BBQ, Sultan merges both names and both worlds.While I’m familiar with his work, for the … Read more

Hannahband

Quitting Will Improve Your Health
Blackwire Records/Lesstalk Records (2016)

If you asked me how I feel about two-piece bands, I’d say I’m not really a fan. But there’s some disconnect as I find myself listening to quite a few of them, really. A lot of the time I praise the arrangement for their ability to find a full sound in limited instrumentation. With Hannahband it’s something different, an ability … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Bloody Hammers

Lovely Sort of Death
Napalm (2016)

Bloody Hammers hail from North Carolina and specialize in doom. The band was founded by Anders Manga, who remains the main songwriter and performer - recruiting others only for tours. Manga's partner-in-dirge is keyboardist, Devalia and while she has been with Manga since the beginning, it would seem she is poised to assume a larger role with the band's music.Providing … Read more

Gojira

Magma
Roadrunner (2016)

Gojira are an anomaly. Not because they're form France, though French metal is somewhat of a rarity - but Gojira are one of the few bands that have long held the respect of fans, peers and critics alike. This will not change with Magma, the band's sixth album. If anything, their ascension in this regard is most likely assured with … Read more

Pixies

Head Carrier
Pixies Music (2016)

When the Pixies released 2014's Indie Cindy, it was their first release in the band's history to not include Bassist/Vocalist Kim Deal. It was evident, very evident that without her, it was going to be an uphill climb. Deal's immediate replacement came in the form of Kim Shattuck, formerly of The Muffs. While a very capable musician and vocalist, it … Read more

Hakan

Hakan II
Drunken Sailor (2016)

Hakan is an Italian garage-punk band in the vein of The Marked Men. Like, really in the vein of The Marked Men—MM’s Jeff Burke (also of Radioactivity) even recorded the record and it fits the aforementioned band’s style perfectly.At thirteen songs in twenty-two minutes, Hakan’s II fits the expectation of short, fast and to-the-point. Meanwhile the guitars are hyper fast … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Tricky

Skilled Mechanics
K7 (2016)

When I think think of one word to describe Tricky, it isn't trip-hop, because that's two words, silly. No, the one that always comes to mind, is 'experimental'. Now, that isn't meant in a music critic lazy-label kind of way. It's meant as a true compliment. Tricky is a mad scientist. And like any true scientist working away in the … Read more

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