Music
Battle of the Bands @ Velour 06.15
I arrived at Velour about 30 minutes before show time on Saturday night. A week earlier, the venue’s Number Two, the lovely Kaneischa Johnson, had asked me to help out with judging the competition. Kaneischa briefed us, the esteemed judges, on the judging criteria and what she expected from us. I looked at the paper with the criteria that she had given us all, appended to a clipboard: Musicianship, Songwriting, Crowd Response, Stage Presence and Vocal Performance, all out of 10. … read more
Miss May I, Killswitch Engage, Darkest Hour, The Word Alive,...
I love shows at Saltair. Even the drive, which would normally be an inconvenience, can be a wonderful relaxation if you take the right route. So it was Friday evening as my friends and I piled into a few cars and chased the sun out to the Great Salt Lake, ready to have our earholes sweetly penetrated by Killswitch Engage and their tour brethren Miss May I, Darkest Hour, The Word Alive and Affiance. My last show out here was the Coheed and Cambria tour, and memories of that show and its massive swarm of humanity were still fresh. The night was warm, the lake wasn’t stinking too much, and in between sets, you could enjoy a beer on the back porch and watch the sun set. Only a heartless fool wouldn’t have enjoyed himself here. … read more
Review: Shannon And The Clams – Dreams In The Rat...
When Sleep Talk came out two years ago, it managed to blend forced nostalgia with something fresh. … read more
Review: Rise Against – RPM10
Rise Against is a staple of modern punk rock, and it’s unlikely that anybody has survived this long without hearing them mentioned somewhere. … read more
Review: Radiation City – Animals In The Median
As the first track, “Zombies” began, my imagination pranced to a breezy field of poppy blossoms in the Pacific Northwest. … read more
Review: Of Feather And Bone – False Healer
There is heavy music, and then there’s heavy music that makes you want to put your fist through a wall. Of Feather and Bone’s False Healer is one of them. … read more
Review: Night Birds – Maimed For The Masses
These New Jersey punks nailed the snotty sound of early ‘80s hardcore punk. … read more
Review: MS MR – Secondhand Rapture
It is something of a small miracle that the New York based duo of Lizzy Plapinger (she being the ‘ms’) and Max Hershenow (and he the ‘mr’) have made a rarity in today’s music world— a consistently solid debut record. … read more
Review: Mierdaster – La Furia
Four albums in, and this Chilean metal-core (more of the latter than the former) demolition unit have started to find their moshing feet. … read more
Review: Lust For Youth – Perfect View
Swede Hannes Norrvide’s third Lust for Youth album is more accessible and more confidently produced than anything that’s come before it. It’s no small wonder that this group is at the fore of the current dark wave of Northern European synth-punk bands. … read more
Review: Louis Matteo – Patchwork Pattern
Louis Matteo = Tired Pony + Brand New – Say Anything
… read more
