Even months before its release, it seemed as if everyone had already assumed that the latest record from The Flaming Lips would effectively mark the end of the band's run as alternative rock's quirky reigning champions. When the first single from At War With the Mystics hit the airwaves, I was almost inclined to believe that it was indeed over. "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" was cute and playful enough to hold my attention, but in no way reassured me of the band's ability to create yet another masterpiece. Fortunately, "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" is merely the welcoming gateway to a truly engaging experience. With At War With the Mystics, The Flaming Lips have taken the original mold used by late 60's psychedelic pop pioneers, smashed it to pieces, and rebuilt it again using only the best of modern technology. This album unabashedly begs for your undivided attention. At its best, At War With the Mystics is both sentimentally beautiful and unapologetically silly. Aside from "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" and "Mr. Ambulance Driver" (which was previously released on the soundtrack to Wedding Crashers), At War With the Mystics is essentially a wandering collection of ideas that most likely … Read more
Disappearer is the latest creative outlet for the majority of the short lived band, There Were Wires (which also includes … Read more
If "The Champ" has not, by the time of publication, been mass produced onto 12" record and shipped to every … Read more
In the year 2002, hardcore/metal outfit Sworn Vengeance was on the brink of blowing up. The band had finished recording … Read more
So Tom DeLonge finally got his way. Apparently sick of the scatological humor of Blink 182 and ill-received attempts at … Read more
I'm a huge Less Than Jake fan. Hello Rockview is one of my favorite albums ever recorded, so when I … Read more
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Having left a suitable amount of time since it's release in June this year, I thought it was about time I wrote down my thoughts on album number seven from duck loving, pirate metal drunkards Alestorm. I'm sure everyone has picked up on the Iron Maiden reference and maybe the haters have rolled their eyes before even listening to it but I'm sure others appreciate the tribute. Not only is a nod to the British metal legends and the naming of their seventh album but can I just say again that this is album number seven... from a band that amazed everyone (even themselves) when they had enough material to get to album three!! My reason for leaving several months before writing my review was not intentional. I wanted to … Read more
There's been a trend as of late among American bands to become popular by sounding British, most notably The Killers, The Bravery and Interpol. This isn't always a bad thing - it started out almost clever and cute, like in the 60's when all these American groups were trying to cash in on The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. But … Read more
The Lovely Lads score some major points with me right away by using Pulp Fiction themed artwork in their layout for The Best You've Got. Sure it isn't the most original idea ever in the history of recorded music or even in punk rock and hardcore, but it beats seeing CD cover after cover of Jacob Bannon wannabe skull and … Read more
In 2001 Boy Sets Fire recorded an album that many consider to be the band's finest hour, After the Eulogy, for Victory Records. The band was becoming bigger and bigger, and were ultimately snatched up by major label Wind-Up Records in 2002. The following year brought an EP, Live for Today, a teaser for an upcoming full length. Later that … Read more
Elphaba is a noisy band that at times is reminiscent of the sound of The Blood Brothers mixed with No Kill No Beep Beep-era Q and Not U. Upon first listen, their album, Any Land But This, is a very difficult record to digest. But, repeated listening showed the album to have several interesting qualities. "Long Decay Slow Delay" not … Read more
Discography releases are a great thing, when they are deserved, that is. When a band has only released material on vinyl or defunct labels and it has long since gone out of print, a discography release on CD is great. On the other hand, if a band has only been around a short while and their releases (vinyl or CD) … Read more
Adam Green was half of the ardour and madness that was Moldy Peaches, half of what was behind the animal suits and make up. And you know, whoever would have thought that behind all of that craziness was a songwriter of such quality and grace? Jacket Full of Danger is Adam's fourth solo album in five years. It sees a … Read more
Does this band honestly need any kind of introduction? Seriously, Sick of it All is an institution in the punk and hardcore scene. Having been active for over twenty years at this point, the band has truly hit on a creative renaissance of late with their last album Life on the Ropes being a return to some of the heaviest … Read more
Hi Red Center hail from Brooklyn, New York and Architectural Failures is their debut record, initially recorded in 2004 but finding a home the following year at Pangaea Recordings, home of Capillary Action. The band mixes a wide variety of influences to creature the fairly unique offering which is presently spinning around in my stereo. Opener "Red/Green" is an Apple … Read more
Anton LaVey, Richard Ramirez, and Phil Knight. Three famous individuals who, despite being all about the evil and doing their part to ensure eternal damnation, they still don't hold a black candle to three young boys from the north of England, who've done more for Satan's public relations than anyone ever could. Conrad Lant, Jeff Dunn, and Tony Bray, otherwise … Read more
Tides have undergone a number of changes since we last heard from them on 2005's Resurface. Most notably, the band has added a second guitar player in Tim Fickeisen and they've picked up and moved from rural upstate New York for the metropolis of Boston. And even with those dramatic changes, Tides remain a focused rock outfit playing airy instrumental … Read more
I feel sorry for emo kids these days. Rather than being a certain clique that listens to a certain type of music they have become an entire entity within themselves. What we have in 2006 are a bunch of mopey teenagers with Livejournal accounts, bad haircuts and their mother's cheapest strands of pearls. Instead of being a community of kids … Read more
Like some ever-present albatross around the neck of the rock scene, the Red Hot Chili Peppers continue to linger, 23 years after their LA inception; a different band. Battling through drug-related deaths, personal differences, drug abuse, inter-band squabbling, drug abuse, motorcycle accidents and drug abuse, it's something of a surprise that the band are still kicking it in 2006, now … Read more
A Reflection: The Death of Belief "We drove a few hours to get there. And when I got there, everybody in the band was in different places. I think David was probably talking on the phone to Vic. And Dennis was hanging out with Mike Fight. Angry. And you were all scowling, and, you knowââ¬Â¦ Not getting along with each … Read more
Okay, Path of Resistance was a more hardcore project of Earth Crisis and their friends that convened the first time while certain members of Earth Crisis allowed injuries brought on by a tour accident to heal. Their last album, Who Daresââ¬Â¦Wins came out almost ten years ago. It was panned by many hardcore purists, but for some was more loved … Read more
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