Know the Score
All Guts, No Glory
Goodbye Blue Skies (2005)
Some might say that hardcore has gone soft. Those that feel this way have a distorted view of the genre. Hardcore is as explosive and assertive as it has been since its very inception. Florida hardcore outfit Know the Score is a prime example of this. With their debut release, All Guts, No Glory, the band serves up eleven tracks … Read more
Know the Score
All Guts, Still No Glory
Eulogy (2008)
We don't care about your labels and your fucking trends / We only care about the music and hanging out with our friends / So stand to the side and don't get in our way / Kids like you drop out of hardcore every single day. This quote from "Pep Talk" sums up what Know the Score is about. Playing … Read more
Know the Score
All Time Low
Eulogy (2006)
A lot of bands get labeled as "angry" or "pissed off" as a result of their lyrical content, and I'm sure you could apply those same adjectives to Know the Score. However, I feel that doing so would be doing a great disservice to them, not to mention those descriptions are rather played out. I feel a better way to … Read more
Kodaline
In A Perfect World
RCA (2013)
Mohill is a rural Irish village in county Leitrim, it's nice, quaint and generally doesn't divide opinion. To use an Irishism: sure it's grand. It's also where the majority of the songs on Kodaline's debut album In A Perfect World were written. In effect what Kodaline have done is written a powerful, evocative album, that has them on the precipice … Read more
Kodiak
Self Titled (Collection)
Denovali (2011)
Even in this so-called digital age of information where anyone can have anything delivered right to their mobile phones in the blink of an eye, there are still moments where items, music, movies from outside of your physical domain slip by completely unnoticed; and, quite frankly, this whole circumstance is proof to me that there is still some mystery left … Read more
Koko Beware
Something About Summer
Independent (2012)
I have to be honest here. A band named after a professional wrestler, no matter what they sound like, is going to tug at my heart strings in a way that’s totally unfair to all bands that are not named after professional wrestlers. I also love summer, summer jams, and any jams that evoke some sort of summer-ness. And with … Read more
Kollegah
Monument
Alpha Music Empire / Warner Music (2018)
The last few years have seen a good amount of great German hip-hop albums, however, now there is Monument. Kollegah’s previous emissions are outstanding, but the way he bookended the rollercoaster ride that the year 2018 proved to be for him is the evolutionary apex of an artist who has honed and refined his craft over the last fourteen years, … Read more
Kongh
Sole Creation
Agonia (2013)
As I begin writing this review, we have barely scratched the surface of the new year. Still, I somehow find myself compelled to proclaim that I have already heard the best album of 2013. In 2009, Kongh released Shadows of the Shapeless. The album was an impressive example of the band’s epic take on doom metal. Now, the Swedish trio … Read more
Korova
Another Happy Customer
Victimized (2009)
Korova are a DIY hardcore band from Alabama. They wear their influences on their sleeve, with latter-day Black Flag being the predominant one throughout Another Happy Customer, though other 80s bands pop through their discordant surface. The minimal, noisy tracks separate the band from a number of their crustcore peers, but they definitely developed their songwriting from 80s thrash and … Read more
Korperschwache
Evil Walks
Crucial Blast (2011)
Korperschwache may seem like a new band. In many ways this is true. This being their first widely available album after years of putting out limited run cds. This band hails from Texas and there is very little to connect their sound with any worldly surroundings. The band play a mix of heavy industrial, black metal and sludge to create … Read more
Koufax
Strugglers
Doghouse (2008)
My preconceptions about Koufax are somewhat idealized. I put them in the better, earlier days of Vagrant Records, before Dashboard blew up beyond belief and before they started signing bands like Senses Fail. I remember first hearing "Younger Body," from their second full-length Social Life, on a compilation and being inexplicably drawn to the melodies and simplicity of Koufax. They … Read more
Kovlo
Hey Mom, Where's Timbuktu?
On The Camper (2011)
Swiss post-rockers Kovlo have quietly released two albums over their career, beginning with their debut A new position for the second degree burn in 2005 and followed up with I’m so happy on this boat in 2007. For a band that has (rather unfortunately) seen as little notice on the world stage as they have, they’ve actually done a very … Read more
Kowloon Walled City
Grievances
Neurot Recordings (2015)
Named after one of the most dense places in the history of the planet, Kowloon Walled City have been undergoing a transformative process. The band's origin lies within the sludge domain, with the release of Gambling On The Richter Scale revealing the heavy, filled with dirt foundation of the band. Through their debut album there is a sense of demolition … Read more
Krakow
Minus
Karisma Records (2018)
What is this? Metal? Sure, but how and what do I classify it? Krakow combines a few eclectic styles to overtake metal and spin it into a unique sound—something that takes time to digest. It has distorted guitars, yes, rough vocals, yes, screaming, yes. When metal stops being so self-conscious hiding in a mask of distortion, dials it back 30 … Read more
Krallice
Ygg Huur
Avantgarde Music (2015)
Krallice was a band that was working like a Swiss clock watch. They were very punctual with their releases, putting out album after album, with just about one year gaps between each release. That was the case at least until and including the release of Years Past Matter. That was also the first time that the band did not release … Read more
Krang
Broken Waves
Profane Existence (2013)
In what amounts as no surprise whatsoever, the Profane Existence Single Series just keeps on delivering the goods.Broken Waves is the sixth P.E.S.S. release now and comes via Midwestern eardrum assassins Krang.A few years ago I saw these guys at a sports bar in Wisconsin. At the start of their set the singer spewed something undecipherable about “ancient religions,” then … Read more
Kreiviskai
Motinai
Infinite Fog Productions (2025)
Kreiviskai's origins are deeply rooted in the neofolk sound and ethos. Their debut record, Zemmis : supnãi, focuses on the musical lineage of Tver, embracing the traditional instrumentation to produce a somber and moving piece. Their follow-up record, Nonregnum expands outward, focusing on various historical events and introducing further influences. The pull of neo-classical is palpable, while the abrasive industrial … Read more
Kris Racer
Has a Banner Year
Two Thumbs Down (2007)
I don't want to pigeonhole this record; Kris Racer lacks the pink hair and Hawaiian shirts of a Chris Conley or the weird Ricky Martin-esque bravado of a Chris Carrabba. Racer, (or Narunatvanich, his actual name) is a Midwesterner, hailing from the prairie state, Illinois. And though his geographic location doesn't quite converge with the majority of "pop punkers gone … Read more
