Avantasia
The Mystery of Time
Nuclear Blast (2013)
Between being the vocalist for heavy metal band Edguy and the creative force for the rock opera project Avantasia, Tobias Sammet is a really busy guy. And though I've never really been able to follow the overarching structure to Avantasia's operas, apparently the last two releases (The Wicked Symphony and The Angel of Babylon, released simultaneously in 2010) wrapped up … Read more
Avenged Sevenfold
Hail To The King
Warner Bros. (2013)
Look on the interweb and you'll find love for Avenged Sevenfold and you'll find hate. A lot of hate. I understand the love, but I don't quite understand the hate. The hate brigade's consensus would maintain that they're poseurs. Wannabes. Clowns in the metal circus. This is dismissive. I've always viewed them as a group of kids who don't quite … Read more
Avichi
Catharsis Absolute
Profound Lore (2014)
Third album for Avichi, the black metal project of Aamonael (also member of Lord Mantis and previously of Nachtmystium), and if you think that another one man black metal act is something you are not interested in then you better think again. With Catharsis Absolute, Aamonael manages to take his twisted concept of US black metal a step further, going … Read more
Awake and Alert
Devil in a Lambskin Suit
Five One Inc. (2007)
Sometimes I think our beloved editor and all around swell dude, Michael, doesn't even bother giving our promo records a listen. Case in point: Awake and Alert's Devil in a Lambskin Suit. So Michael sees a plain CD with the name "Awake and Alert" and he thinks to himself, "This is probably another positive melodic straight edge hardcore band that … Read more
Azure Emote
The Gravity of Impermanence
Selfmadegod (2013)
I truly think that the word “progressive” has lost its actual meaning for quite some time now. Instead of meaning something new, innovative, and daring it is reserved for bands that are being just technical. Well Azure Emote is a true progressive death metal band, doing something quite new in the extreme side of metal. Keeping a death metal base, … Read more
Æges
The Bridge
The Mylene Sheath (2012)
Los Angeles band Æges are a beautiful combination consisting of equal parts post-hardcore and sludge metal, and you can plainly hear this on their 2012 debut The Bridge. It combines weighty and languid guitar churning with fast-paced and frenetic songwriting to create a stunningly vivid result.You can prominently hear the hardcore facet of Æges's sound on the majority of their … Read more
Ævangelist
Omen Ex Simulacra
Debemur Morti Productions (2013)
Omen Ex Simulacra is a difficult record - one that twists and forms new shapes as it progresses, one that falls into an unfathomable abyss and crawls back out again. It’s dark, overwhelming and grossly pregnant with malevolence and the base duo of Ævangelist are masters of noise control, giving their record a cacophony of sounds to work with and … Read more
Baby Guts
Gasoline
Guilt Ridden Pop (2007)
The profound influence of punk on the grunge movement should not be understated. By the time it had reached national recognition, that lineage wasn't as obvious as it was in the beginning. But my point is that when stripped down to its bare essentials, grunge is, much like 80s hardcore, loud, fast, angry, and an embodiment of youth. This brings … Read more
Baby Guts
The Kissing Disease
Guilt Ridden Pop (2008)
I have to wonder what rock critics would've done without L7 and Babes in Toyland, as it seems every writer feels compelled to make comparisons to these bands whenever a female-fronted group is being discussed. That said, Minneapolis' Baby Guts show a bit of the ol' influence themselves. This is no sludgy L7 stuff and there's no pitch-shifting Bjelland on … Read more
Baby Teeth
For The Heathers
Lujo (2006)
Baby Teeth made For The Heathers on a dare, with each of the three members of the band working in isolation from home. Sequestered with only imagination as a barrier, the dramatic differences between each member's effort is both a shock and a pleasant surprise to the listener that can only be understood as separate entities with only the name … Read more
Babyshambles
Down in Albion
Rough Trade (2005)
Pete Doherty has spent the last year in and out of tabloid magazines for many different things: drugs, Kate Moss, fighting, Kate Moss on drugs, causing everyone that is involved in the music industry (it seems) to comment on him, 'crazy' live sets and more drugs. All this comes off the back of two just above average albums with his … Read more
Back When
We Sang as Ghosts
Shock Value (2005)
Escaping cliches can be difficult. In 2005 the instrumental metal band has become its own cliche, along with their album's reviews. Being referred to as a Neurosis-rip off or an Isis-wannabe has become a formality for these bands, and sometimes it isn't even the bands fault. Reviewers are often guilty of only looking towards the genre defining or benchmark bands/albums … Read more
Bad Astronaut
Twelve Small Steps, One Giant Disappointment
Fat Wreck Chords (2006)
Before the release of Twelve Small Steps, One Giant Disappointment, frontman Joey Cape willingly admitted that the record does not measure up to what it should have been, and not many bands would ever publicly admit something like that, but not many bands have experienced the tragedy that befell Bad Astronaut. The band's co-creator, drummer, and one of Cape's best … Read more
Bad Braids
Arrow And Orb
Music Ruins Lives (2011)
Intimate little records and intimate settings will stick with people for a while if they are struck in such a way where the performance just hits them the right way when and where they need it to mark the moment as memorable; quiet whispers and frantic yelps may spark the memory later or some ghost sound that speaks the necessary … Read more
Bad Brains
Build a Nation
Megaforce (2007)
These reunions need to stop. Gorilla Biscuits? Cool. Bold? Okay. Bad Brains? No. Honestly, what was Beastie Boy Adam Yauch thinking when he was producing this pile of garbage known as Build a Nation? Truth be told, I'm relatively new to the Bad Brains catalog. Having listened to them for only a year or so, I'll admit they are a … Read more
Bad Cop Bad Cop
Lighten Up
Fat Wreck Chords, Hopeless (2025)
If you haven’t heard of the Southern Californian band Bad Cop Bad Cop, then you are truly missing out on a top tier, female punk powerhouse. They sit at the crossroads of ‘90s skate punk and modern melodic punk. The band returns louder than ever with their fourth full-length and newest album titled Lighten Up. The album offers up 10 … Read more
Bad Idols
Popstar
Say-10 (2023)
With the billion or so punk subgenres and comeback cycles, it’s interesting to me that more bands aren’t playing this style of Crimpshrine-inspired East Bay punk. Popstar by Bad Idols is crunchy yet melodic. It’s generally pop-structured but with gruff and deeply personal lyrics. Let’s just say the word “I” is prevalent throughout this 12-song record. I’ll also add that … Read more
Bad Kisser
Bate Kush
Independent (2014)
Bate Kush, the second short release from a side-project of drone and ambient musician Foie Gras known as Bad Kisser, presents the listener with a conundrum. The EP has eight extremely noisy and lo-fi tracks, only two of which last more than ninety seconds. Honestly, the brevity of the songs here isn’t really an issue nor is the very rough … Read more
