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Our latest album reviews, featuring the records we've most enjoyed (or not) over the past few weeks.

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Browse our album reviews according to score: Highest (9.5/10 or more) or Lowest (2/10 or less)

Witch-Lord

Atomized In The Black Solarian
A389 (2011)

All hail the Cult of the Seven Crowns! Witch-Lord is one of a number of destructive musical forces that is just one head of the hydra meant to smash the world into oblivion, and the difference between those other groups (Gehenna, Gravehill, and others) is massive and due in no small part to the monolithic doom purveyed on display on Atomized In The Black Solarian. Now, I know what you might be thinking, “Wait a minute though… can the same maniacs responsible for the dirty hardcore punk cum metal of those other groups really drop a basement dwelling soul crushing riff fest that makes doom pretenders hide in shame, or is Witch-Lord one of those dabbling groups of people?” This would be a completely fair question to ask seeing as there is more and more diluted doom (you know, bands playing ripoffs of ripoffs of ripoffs type deals) rearing its ugly head now than there ever was prior to some god forsaken doom apocalypse that I seem to have missed the memo on happening. Thankfully, Witch-Lord takes a track not so dissimilar from some of the earliest doom purveyors (see Cathedral’s amazing Forest Of Equilibrium for an idea of what … Read more

Dead To A Dying World

Self Titled
Tofu Carnage (2011)

I went into this review fully intending to give this band the middle finger. I can't exactly explain my thoughts … Read more

Des Ark

Don't Rock The Boat, Sink The Fucker
Lovitt (2011)

So far, 2011 is proving to be a great year for music, and a great year for Indie-Rock. Des Ark's … Read more

Full Of Hell

Roots Of Earth Are Consuming My Home
A389 (2011)

Over the past year or so A389 Records has put out a staggering amount of releases that sit just barely … Read more

Gehenna

Land Of Sodom II/Upon The Gravehill
A389 (2011)

Before we get into this, there is always the question that you have to ask yourself; and, with Gehenna, it … Read more

Bangers

Small Pleasures
Kiss of Death (2011)

Small Pleasures is the first proper full-length from Cornwall, England trio Bangers. To shortcut straight to the point, it’s fitting … Read more

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One from the archives

The Locust

Plague Soundscapes
Anti (2003)

The Locust has been shunned for their recent works. Their split with Melt Banana was not taken well by critics. People want The Locust to sound more like their Self-titled or Flight of the Wounded Locust, not like some band that changes. These people, however, don't understand that The Locust is all about change; whether they're wearing locust-like spandex outfits or playing nude, they're not going to play everyone's favorite songs. They like to change (or be post-modern, as they are). Plague Soundscapes is no exception to The Locust's desire to change. Unlike their previous works, this album has more breakdowns with complete changes in rhythm and speed and less electronics; more melody and less chaotic madness at one hundred miles per hour. These characteristics make The Locust sound more … Read more

More album reviews

Sutekh Hexen

Ordo Adversarial
Wands (2011)

Sutekh Hexen, the name alone has an undeniable air of mystery and darkness that while you may not know exactly what they sound like at this minute but whatever that sound is, you feel in the darkest recesses of your subconscious something telling you to stay away from it; and that little voice in your head might be a smart … Read more

Various Artists

Clinging To The Trees Of A Forest Fire/Nesseria - Split
Throatruiner (2011)

Clinging To The Tress Of A Forest Fire (hereafter referred to as CTTTOAFF for ease) hail from Denver, Colorado and deal in heavy as hell grind in all it's misanthropic glory. Coming to my attention only recently (sorry, I completely missed the boat on this band initially), they just released this split with French group Nesseria on Throatruiner Records. About … Read more

Diarrhea Planet

Aloha!
Evil Weevil (2011)

Diarrhea Planet are a garage punk band simple as that. The band make a raucous noise that fits neatly into that basic genre with hints of pop in its structures. Everything is overdriven and sounds like it is on the verge of falling apart any second. The guitars are catchy but nowhere close to clean sounding. The vocals are snotty … Read more

How Do We Jump This High?

Funny/Not Funny
Answer Key (2011)

Answer Key Records, the new record label formed by Bridge & Tunnel's, Jeff Cunningham, chose How Do We Jump This High's, Funny/Not Funny, for the label's first release--a quartet comprised of members of the short lived Get Bent and Frame. Together, they blend their sound into one melodic-punk explosion. Funny/Not Funny picks up where the band's first EP, Deep Stationary, … Read more

Ancient Wisdom

A Godlike Inferno
Shine Box (2011)

Evil can come in many forms. Everyone can explain the evil in any number of things man can perceive. More rare than that is a true embodiment of evil within a musical context. Many times this gets narrowed to various types of metal. While bands like Slayer seem evil on the outside a look below the surface makes it clear … Read more

Night Birds

The Other Side Of Darkness
Grave Mistake (2011)

The hype had been building for Night Birds’ debut. They’ve released three 7”s and the band, feature ex-members of The Ergs!, Hunchback, and Psyched to Die, and put on a great show at Fest 9 in Gainesville. When that much hype builds, often it comes tumbling back to earth when the actual product is released. Not so for The Other … Read more

Red Hot Chili Peppers

I'm With You
Warner Bros. (2011)

After a quiet five years of whispers, rumors, questions, confirming of rumors and, at last, the revealing of exactly what the fuck The Red Hot Chili Peppers have been up to, they finally release an album. Featuring a new guitarist. And a fly mounting a pill capsule as cover art. Let there be no doubt; the four chili peppers have … Read more

Crone

Endless Night
Translation Loss (2011)

I lost part of my virginity to Jeff Caxide.No, not that virginity. Go get a dictionary, you sleaze. I meant that listening to Oceanic for the first time took just a bit of my naïve concepts of musical perception away. Though I had been a fan of metal albums long before then, that was the first I wanted to describe … Read more

Livimorket & Sequences

Voidness
Sunyata (2011)

Do you know why I find collaborative efforts so appealing in musical and other such sonic arenas (besides that they signal more work by artists that I follow / collect / obsess over)? There is an element of wonder and anticipation surrounding what exactly the final work will sound like once either collaborators or sets of collaborators work their respective … Read more

Palehorse

Soft As Butter, Hard As Ice
Eyes Of Sound (2011)

London's Palehorse, a band so loud that after seeing them live recently my ears would not stop ringing for approximately two days. Was it worth it ? Completely.Palehorse take all that they established on previous full length, Gee, Ain't That Swell released way back in 2003 and firmly thrust it into the present. A line up change here, an addition … Read more

The Cars

Move Like This
Hear Music (2011)

I'd like to take a moment to quote Ric Ocasek, circa 1997, on the subject of The Cars reuniting at some point in the future:"I'm saying never, and you can count on that."I guess that makes him the Brett Favre of rock music, because one spinoff project and 23 years after their breakup, here I sit, holding a copy of … Read more

Winterus

In Carbon Mysticism
Lifeforce (2011)

The band Winterus formerly known as The Ancient are a Michigan band that seems to be wishing it was from the coldest regions of Norway. That is to say they traffic in a cleaned up version of what tends to be called blackened death metal. The band does not rely on keyboards to make their songs interesting which is a … Read more

Voytek

Self Titled
Big Action (2011)

Voytek are a Minneapolis punk band currently taking things to the next level. Whether that level is up or down is in the eye of the beholder, but it will start with reviewing this 2 song 7”—or should I say: this 6 song digital EP? With the bonus material outweighing the physical form, it’s tough to gauge just what type … Read more

Battles

Gloss Drop
Warp (2011)

Okay, I'm going to be honest about my credentials here. For as long as Battles have been on my radar, and despite the amount of praise I have heard thrown at them, I still have not listened to Mirrored. It surprises me even today that I haven't gotten around to listening to an album nearly everyone (yes, even Pitchfork) describes … Read more

Reviews by score
Browse our album reviews according to score: Highest (9.5/10 or more) or Lowest (2/10 or less)