Blackfield
Welcome To My DNA
Kscope (2011)
Steven Wilson is a man of many talents--and more than three dozen of them are just different ways of making music. Though he's known mostly for his more complex work, his progressive conquests all take a side seat for a moment as he again sits down with Aviv Geffen on the third album from his pop rock project Blackfield, titled … Read more
Blacklist Royals
Semper Liberi
Paper + Plastick (2010)
Paper + Plastick seem to release new albums by fairly new bands at a pretty regular clip. Blacklist Royals are just the newest in that line. The band plays what has become a very popular style of punk rock at this point. Punk bands playing rock and roll is definitely not a new thing. Gaslight Anthem has shown that it … Read more
Blacklisted
...The Beat Goes On
Deathwish Inc. (2005)
Despair, anger, and doubt are all located on the polar opposite side of happiness and are never a joy to experience in one's life. These feelings do, however, make for great hardcore albums. ...The Beat Goes On is one of the best examples of negative energy being used to create one thick, menacing, evil piece of human desperation and ruin. … Read more
Blacklisted
Heavier than Heaven, Lonelier than God
Deathwish Inc. (2008)
Let's be honest, the vast majority of hardcore music is similar sounding. There is only so many ways in which you can arrange music that falls under the umbrella of hardcore. Sure, there are small variations in style and sound, but the moment a band redefines what hardcore is and becomes the next big thing there is a fleet of … Read more
Blacklisted
No One Deserves to be Here More Than Me
Deathwish Inc. (2009)
There probably hasn't been a record in recent months that has garnered any more whoopla than Blacklisted's No One Deserves to be Here More Than Me. My word, once people started getting in their pre-orders there was numerous threads and Facebook statuses either for or against this album. If anything, Blacklisted created probably the most talked about album of 2009. … Read more
Blacklisted
Our Youth is Wasted
Stillborn (2004)
Philadelphia has had a long and varied history of producing great punk/hardcore bands. After all, it is this birthplace of Ink and Dagger, Shark Attack, Kid Dynamite, Horror Show and countless others. In that same Philly tradition of quality come Blacklisted, a fairly new band to the Philadelphia hardcore scene. On their debut EP for Stillborn Records, Blacklisted take a … Read more
Blacklisted
Peace on Earth, War on Stage
Deathwish Inc. (2007)
All true hardcore has always abided by one rule: keep it short and sweet. With their newest seven inch, Peace on Earth, War on Stage, Philadelphia's Blacklisted dutifully abides. Totaling just about six minutes this record is an all out assault on anyone accusing the band of being just another set of guppies in a sea of thug bands. The … Read more
Blackrat
Whiskey and Blasphemy
Xnihilo Records (2013)
Whiskey and Blasphemy (Xnihilo Records), the 11-song debut album from Canadian trio Blackrat, is a grittily produced 28 minutes of totes gnarly extreme metal. Like holy metalheads Aura Noir and Sodom, Blackrat combines the Satanic themes and rawness of black metal with the speedy guitars of thrash metal, resulting in some good ol’ black/thrash crossover.The blast-beats, violent vocal screams, and … Read more
Blaqk Audio
Material
BLQNOIS/Kobalt (2016)
Davey Havok and Jade Puget (you may recognize them from AFI) are back this year with a new Blaqk Audio album. Because the duo is constantly putting out music through multiple outlets, you wouldn't believe it's been 4 years since the last one, but here we are. Material is the Electro-duo's third album, and it may be their most accessible … Read more
Bleached
Welcome the Worms
Dead Oceans (2016)
Fuelled by intense introspection and the adopting of a more polished sound, Welcome the Worms marries punk rock sensibilities with the radiant bubblegum pop of Southern California. Produced by Joe Chiccarelli (Morrissey, The Strokes, Minus The Bear), Bleached's second album is radio friendly rock with a serrated edge, channelling the likes of Black Flag alongside The Go-Gos. The album's title … Read more
Bleaklow
The Sunless Country
Independent (2011)
Though a lot of post-anything music can, using a single theme, reach past the 10 minute mark without necessarily becoming repetitive or stale, there is still a point where too much is too much. You can only listen to embellishment and variation on one theme for so long before you start to go mad and beg for some variety. I'll … Read more
Bleeding Rainbow
Interrupt
Kanine (2014)
Bleeding Rainbow is a hard-working band. They don't live solely off of their music as evidenced by singer/bassist Sarah Everton's Twitter missives about pulling shifts at a coffee shop in Philadelphia. Catch the band on tour, and more than likely you'll find them in a basement or at a venue where the beers cost less than $3. They also don't … Read more
Blessed
Blessed EP
Coin Toss Records/Kingfisher Blues (2016)
Don't you just love how you know what you're going to get from just the name of a band? Just think of all those verb-the-noun bands out there. Not so with simple band names. The name Blessed does not give much to work with. The cover art is a good second hint of what you're getting yourself into. With an … Read more
Blessed
II (LP)
Coin Toss Records (2017)
It’s only been four months since I was struggling to determine what Blessed was doing on their first EP. I have come back to that record often. After four months it intrigues me as much as it did when I first heard it. Truth be told: I don’t have many records that can keep my attention that long. You can … Read more
Bliksem
Face The Evil
Alone (2013)
In the 80’s and early 90’s, many underground metal bands gained popularity though tape trading. This method of distribution was fueled by numerous fans mailing copies of demo recordings to other like-minded metalheads. As a result, fans would often end up receiving a copy of a copy of the original demo. Needless to say, many fans most likely became familiar … Read more
Blind Idiot God
Before Ever After
Indivisible (2015)
Coming back from an extended break seems to be always tricky, for any band. Back in the late '80s and early '90s, Blind Idiot God were releasing great record after great record. Their refreshing style and no boundaries approach to mixing different genres under their unique kaleidoscope resulted in three excellent albums. The band officially went in hiatus in 1996 … Read more
Blitzen Trapper
Wild Mountain Nation
LidKerCow Ltd. (2007)
When I'm on a road trip, I get this undeniable urge to listen to All-American music. We're talking CCR and we're talking Skynyrd and Tom Petty, and we're talking Violent Femmes and Pavement and Modest Mouse. Something about that western scenery. Just like you can hear the British in an Ozzy or Kinks' record, you can hear the American in … Read more
Bloc Party
A Weekend in the City
Vice (2007)
Being a favorite of my friends and I during our Friday/Saturday night pre-pub dance parties, I had a certain set of expectations for what the new Bloc Party would sound like. While 2005's Silent Alarm carried a handful of mellower tracks, making up the bulk of the filler on the album, it was pushed to popularity by its killer single … Read more
