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Ef

Ceremonies
And The Sound Records (2013)

Ef are an unusual band, and not just for their inexplicable fear of breaking their precious consonant-to-vowel ratio. Their take on the inexorably-expanding post-rock scene is a highly unique one, especially at a time when more and more bands are starting to sound suspiciously homogenous. And as if any more proof of their immense creativity was called for, we have … Read more

Marillion

Sounds That Can't Be Made
earMUSIC (2012)

All bands have an expiry date; some bands are just more aware of that fact than others. And when an act has been around as long as Marillion has, it's not uncommon for their age to begin to show. Whether or not that is a bad thing is uncertain--some classic rock acts have put out some of their best material … Read more

Rumspringer

Stay Afloat
Dirt Cult (2013)

Every so often bands live up to their buzz. Rumspringer popped onto my radar through the defunct Dangerous Intersections series of 4-way splits from Traffic Street Records. I had one song at home on the comp., but it never got me deeper into the band’s catalog. Here comes 2013 and the band has released Stay Afloat on Dirt Cult Records—a … Read more

The Transplants

In A Warzone
Epitaph (2013)

I grew up on Rancid and they introduced me, eventually, to a much wider world of punk rock than what I caught on late night Headbangers Ball and 120 Minutes episodes. Or, for those who didn’t get where this is going from that intro sentence: I feel that I have to qualify why I’m listening to In a Warzone, the … Read more

Kayo Dot

Hubardo
Ice Level Music (2013)

It starts off inconspicuously enough, a series of instrumental swells that set the sombre and dark mood for the rest of the album. And then the growls enter, delivered as if part of a spoken word piece, each individual syllable pronounced as if there was all the time in the world. The swells become broader and more intense, a series … Read more

Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine

White People And The Damage Done
Alternative Tentacles (2013)

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle dictates that nothing in this universe has a truly defined position or trajectory and by trying to define it, the momentum of the object becomes even more unstable and unpredictable. The lesser known certainty principle is this: there will never be a Dead Kennedys reunion with Jello Biafra at the helm. Ever. It's not going to happen. … Read more

What-A-Nights

Self Titled
Drunken Sailor (2013)

What-A-Nights are a Japanese four-piece punk group, mostly falling on the pop-punk side of the spectrum, with some tight Buzzcocks sensibility seeping in. Their self-titled full-length, first self-released in Japan and now brought to the larger masses by Drunk Sailor Records, brings ten songs of soaring melody, hooky guitar, and positive vibes.The songs, while labeled as pop-punk, utilize the guitar … Read more

A Secret Policeman's Ball

Teenage Crimewave
MVD Audio (2013)

Who needs functioning eardrums anyway? A Secret Policeman’s Ball play post-punk indie music with new wave undertones, and there is only one volume their music should be played at: LOUD. The Tennessee band have a penchant for mixing pop-filled melodies with aggressive guitars and vocals that frequently turn into screams; what initially starts off as a song with sweet vocals … Read more

Infectious Garage Disease

Self Titled
Negative Reaction / MVD Audio (2013)

The gods of weird have unearthed yet another obscure group of misfits and re-unleashed them upon those of us that zealously engross ourselves in all things loud, fast and fucked up. This is the complete discography of Northern California’s short-lived thrashing party punks, Infectious Garage Disease. There is a whopping two-plus hours of material on this double disc collection. It … Read more

Morne

Shadows
Profound Lore (2013)

Since their split with Warprayer and their debut album Untold Wait there were no illusions that the band from Boston was onto something truly great. Now, two years after the release of their sophomore full-length, Asylum, Morne strike back with their latest sonic compilation with the band’s only purpose being to drag us into the depths of sorrow and misery … Read more

Vacation

Candy Waves
Don Giovanni (2013)

Here at Scene Point Blank we don’t give titles to our work. If I titled my Vacation review, though, it would be named after track ten: “Feedback Got Me High.” Vacation are a punk band but, you know, so were Nirvana (at least on a basic level). The point is this: there’s a lot you can do with those power … Read more

Author & Punisher

Women & Children
Seventh Rule (2013)

The enigmatic figure of Tristan Shone, a mechanical engineer/metal sculptor, is the driving force behind the Author & Punisher project. By developing custom machines, controllers and speakers (named Drone/Dub Machines) in order to produce an impressive array of different sounds, merging together doom and industrial music, Tristan Shone tried and succeeded in building his own Frankenstein’s monster.The sound of the … Read more

The Enid

Invicta
Operation Seraphim (2012)

The Enid aren't your average '70s-era progressive legacy act. Far from abandoning experimentation and growth in their age as so many of their peers are wont to do, these guys seem dedicated to upholding a standard of quality that would be the envy of most. And though it's not their best album, their latest release, 2013's Invicta, nonetheless comes as … Read more

Amplifier

Echo Street
Kscope (2013)

This review is part of my coverage of the 2013 Progressive Music Awards, on 3 September. Amplifier is one of the few bands in the small but noticeably growing post-progressive scene (proving, once and for all, that "post-" can be appended to anything). It's music that firmly falls into the progressive rock camp--you won't be at a loss for extended … Read more

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