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Black SS / Raining Bricks

Split
Organized Crime (2006)

I was relieved to find out that Black SS stands for Black Sheep Squadron, and not some Nazi organization, upon receiving this record. The cover art for one side of the split featured a fearsome black widow spider, so for all I knew, I was about to hear some intense hate anthems. Instead, what I got was some intense hardcore … Read more

Radical Attack

Priority
Ghost Town (2006)

There are a lot of hardcore bands out there who claim to be old-school, but the truth of the matter is that an insane amount of metal has infiltrated the scene. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it sure does make it harder to find a speedy, non-metallic, non-chugga-chugga hardcore band when you're in the mood for it. You … Read more

Hatebreed

Supremacy
Roadrunner (2006)

To me, Hatebreed mark the pinnacle, as well as the end of an era for Victory Records. Satisfaction is the Death of Desire was the epitome of mid-90's hardcore: mosh heavy, distrusting, and pissed. Since then, Hatebreed as well as Victory Records have not necessarily become less credible (Victory had none anyways), but definitely watered down and weaker than their … Read more

Set it Straight

Live Your Heart and Never Follow
Twelve Gauge (2006)

Set it Straight is a band that truly deserves notoriety. Unfortunately, they really haven't gotten much attention outside of the Westcoast, which is both a shock and a shame. Last year the band released their debut full-length, My Favorite Words, an extremely promising LP, as well as a split EP with the now defunct Where Eagles Dare. On both of … Read more

Raise the Red Lantern

Thunderfuck
Witch Trial (2006)

It's hard to say if stoner rock on a whole tries to be "epic" in a way that other instrumental oriented metals do. Mostly they try to get as heavy and slow as possible while still rocking out. Raise the Red Lantern eschews that…mostly, and makes a pretty epic EP. Now when I say epic EP I don't mean it's … Read more

The Black Angels

Passover
Light in the Attic (2006)

In retrospect, the sixties were a time of incredible music. While many aspects of the sound have influenced, been watered down, and filtered to fit the mainstream's acute taste of accessible blankness, some of the most important aspects of this era were quickly passed over. Bands like 13th Floor Elevators, Jefferson Airplane and Velvet Underground have been sucked dry in … Read more

Brian Simpson

Postcard from L.A.
Independent (2006)

Brian Simpson plays that sort of music that you feel like you've heard before but can't really remember when or who else plays that sort of music. It carries all the influences of Bob Dylan and The Allman Brothers and ends up sounding something like what Van Morrison has been doing for the past decade or so and where Brian … Read more

Cinemechanica

The Martial Arts
Hello Sir (2006)

Cinemechanica are a math-rock quartet from Athens, Georgia. They are responsible for one of the most aurally exciting albums of the year. The Martial Arts is an exercise in both energy and audacity. While their sound is very reminiscent of early Q and Not U or Drive Like Jehu, Cinemechanica exceed these comparisons with an organically post-modern interpretation of a … Read more

The Distance

The Rise, the Fall, and Everything in Between
Abacus (2006)

I like to look at pretty girls. It's easy for me; I live near a college and work at a gas station right next door to a gym called Lifetime Fitness of all things. So I get an eyeful of babes day in and day out. It's nice. I'm not trying to come off as a pervy old guy but … Read more

Young Widows

Settle Down City
Jade Tree (2006)

You could see this coming. You could see it from miles away if you listened closely and or fanatically collected the 7"s and albums from Young Widows previous incarnation as the unapologetically loud and noisy Breather Resist. The last 7" that they released, Full of Tongues, showcased a noisier but less loud sound to go along with their lock tight … Read more

The Great Crusades

Four Thirty
Innocent Words (2006)

According to the press blurb provided with Four Thirty, Midwestern natives The Great Crusades approached the songwriting process for their latest album in a way thus far unique to the band: the lyrics were written after the music, created to fit around the existing song structure. While I'm sure that some artists may be able to pull this off, the … Read more

The Ergs!

Jersey's Best Prancers
Don Giovanni (2006)

Anyone who's been paying attention can see the writing on the wall: like Cock Sparrer in 1982, pop punk's coming back. Of course, it never really left; it's just seen a variety of mutations since the halcyon days of "Locket Love": The Descendents' heartsick catharsis, The Lillingtons' television city dreaming, and the thrift store angst of Saves the Day are … Read more

Janez Detd

Like Cold Rain Kills a Summer Day...
I Scream (2006)

Archetypal scene dude: So yeah these guys are like super huge in Europe; I am sure they are going to hit it big over here. But I saw them like three years ago in like a port-a-potty with no electricity and they had a generator going to plug in their instruments. But you know they are socially conscious, so it … Read more

Keene Brothers

Blues and Boogie Shoes
Fading Captain (2006)

Everybody's got a little something to say about Robert Pollard these days. Drunk, father, master singer-vocalist. Many years ago, long before the advent of the Internet a close friend remarked how Pollard could basically do no wrong as he has the gift of having the voice of a bell. True enough. Once again, it's all here on display in Blues … Read more

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