I don’t know when the metal kids started making industrial music, or when the rivets started headbanging. Maybe it was always so, but I swear, when I was in school, the twain never met except to fight. That is no more, and there’s no better proof than on this eponymous album: 14 tracks of nuclear metal crossed with industrial distortion and quite a few bad words, oh my! … read more
Hailing from Poland and named after a book in the Cthulu mythos, Cultes des Ghoules fall into the category of, well, “really awesome black metal.” I was extremely impressed with their previous full-length, Haxan, and blown away by their one-sided EP, Spectres Over Transylvania, and Henbane is the perfect melding of both of those releases. … read more
No Recognize jumps right into action with heavy but bright guitar (think King Tuff guitar tone) hitting rhythmic chords and hammer-ons that become the backbone of the opening track, “Where the Wild Things.” … read more
In the almost 30 years since they formed, Louisiana Music Hall of Famers Dash Rip Rock have been making rollicking swamp-rock with equal doses of punk and country and even a little metal. … read more
If You Leave starts off with a grand and bold introduction with the song, “Winter,” and that intensity remains pretty consistently throughout the 10-track LP. Lead singer Elena Tonra has a voice as haunting as Fiona Apple as her voice croons with a load of depth to her despair. … read more
I still remember pulling Ziggy Stardust from the vinyl sleeve, the phrase “TO BE PLAYED AT MAXIMUM VOLUME” challenging me from the lower corner of the back cover. Every second of “Starman” forevermore altered my musical outlook. That said, I was skeptical as hell when I heard Bowie was releasing another album. Mainly because it’s been a decade since his last release, but also because his last album, Reality, fell a little short (in my opinion). Fortunately for us all, The Next Day meets the high expectations that Bowie sets by being, well, Bowie. … read more
Right from the beginning of Random Access Memories, the tone is set through the first track, “Give Life Back to Music.” … read more
The Gothenburg Swedish melodic death metal style may be a shadow of what it originally was … read more
If you have ever heard Dead Can Dance, then it should be obvious that my “equation” does them no justice. … read more
Overall, this album surprised the hell out of me, and it seems to get better with each listen. Don’t get me wrong: There is a lot of weird shit, but Lynch, like he’s done so many times before, pulls it off. … read more
By combining heavy bass with experimental beats, Cuscino was able to create a beautifully crafted album that showcases his talent in music production. … read more
Her high-toned vocals complement the sparkly ’50s-style guitar tunes they lay on, though on tracks like “Always Forever,” they remind me of an excited girl talking to a dog (“Hi, puppy!”). … read more
