Review / 200 Words Or Less
By Night
A Shape of New Desperation

Lifeforce (2007) Kevin Fitzpatrick

By Night – A Shape of New Desperation cover artwork
By Night – A Shape of New Desperation — Lifeforce, 2007

Where to begin, where to begin... For starters they're Swedish, which would normally be a plus, but in this case it is not because they opt to sound like every other 'Mercan scream-core band you've ever heard and that's really about it. Do you like Lamb of God? Do you like every band like this that tries to sound like Lamb of God? Then you need to get out more, my friend because Lamb of God ain't that good.

But they're popular. They have their finger on the pulse of today's youth and lemme tell ya, that's a hard thing to do what with all the studded wristbands and whatnot. By Night is another cookie-cutter band with cookie-cutter songs and cookie-cutter lyrics that for the most part aren't even memorable accidentally. Buy something else. I told you they're Swedish. I told you they're lame. You need to know nothing more than that.

By Night – A Shape of New Desperation cover artwork
By Night – A Shape of New Desperation — Lifeforce, 2007

Related news

Recently-posted album reviews

The Remote Controls

Too Tough
Fail Harmonic Records, Mom’s Basement Records (2025)

There’s a certain kind of punk band that doesn’t overthink things. No reinvention, no genre-bending manifesto, just fast songs, big hooks, and enough attitude to carry it all. Indianapolis’ The Remote Controls lean hard into that tradition on Too Tough, a record that feels less like a statement and more like a well-earned victory lap. Built on a steady diet … Read more

Sahan Jayasuriya

Don’t Say Please: The Oral History of Die Kreuzen
Feral House (2026)

For those of us who spent the mid-to-late 1980s navigating basement community halls, churches, and loveable, armpit-smelling dive bars, the name Die Kreuzen was a permanent fixture on the punk rock radar. They were the sound of the Midwest underground --too fast for the goths to do their spooky Bela Lugosi "shoo the bats away" interpretive dance, too technical for … Read more

Sewer Urchin

Global Urination
Independent (2025)

There’s a fine line between crossover thrash that feels dangerous and crossover thrash that just feels like a party. Global Urination doesn’t bother choosing because it does both loudly and without apology. St. Louis’ Sewer Urchin have been grinding since 2019, and on their latest full length they double down on everything that makes the genre work. They give us … Read more