ASSEMBLAGE 23 STORM Metropolis 3.5/5 Tom Shear from Assemblage 23 is back with a release loaded with thought-provoking lyrics and melodies that spark something inside of the listener. Shear has found a niche with his talent and has been able to successfully replicate his signature sound with a fresh approach each time without becoming boring
Augie March Strange Bird Spin Art When Elbow’s vocalist Guy Garvey sings the praises of Australia’s Augie March, you can’t help but feel like he’s being narcissistic. It isn’t that Strange Bird steals from Elbow as much as it implements the same mumbled vocals over a down-tempo atmosphere that dominates Elbow’s recordings. While many might
Baptists = Skitsystem + Disfear + From Ashes Rise … read more
The amount of reverb and aggressive tension on DREAMVIOLENCE is comparable to Swans’ The Great Annihilator. However, it is impressive in the way that something can be when it hits you at all the right points, despite any familiarity. … read more
2011’s Feel It Break was essentially Katie Stelmanis’ bedroom project. For their second album, Stelmanis was inspired by touring with Austra and created Olympia in a studio setting with her bandmates. … read more
When I first started listening to Unwelcome, I was a little apprehensive—however, the album’s title and first song pulled me in. The chugging guitars, blasting double bass and high, pterodactyl-Satan vocals brought back warm fuzzy memories. … read more
To stand out as a two-piece you have to be creative. You are starting off at a disadvantage, and even if you are damn-decent, at best you will be getting compliments laced with qualifiers … read more
Did you think San Francisco death metal crew Autopsy’s comeback album, Macabre Eternal, was hot tits? Well, this new festering, putrid bag of pus-ridden tunes makes Macabre Eternal seem lackluster … read more
Does it count as having a favorite song if “favorite” describes half the songs on an album? … read more
There are depths in Alpha/Heaven that go beyond your garden-variety ambient drone record. … read more
Audacity, like any great garage rock outfit, shouldn’t be listened to in headphones. This shit is always best when blasted through a shitty PA in an under-ventilated asbestos ridden basement. … read more
Although I can’t say exactly what I was expecting from this record, I have to say, other than its oddball appeal, the jovial seasonal tunes didn’t really scratch the itch I got when I first heard about this project. … read more
