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Cayetana

New Kind Of Normal
Plum Records (2017)

Normally when I hear obvious shades of the 1990s, my first thought is straight from an ad campaign of the era: been there, done that. It’s an oversimplification, but you get the point. The real problem is mimicry instead of taking influence. Cayetana have some clear influences from the alt rock of my formative years, but they’re ultimately set in … Read more

Crystal Fairy

Crystal Fairy
Ipecac (2017)

Buzz Osbourne has nothing left to prove. His band, Melvins have sustained the ravages of time and, perhaps even more impressively, the ravages of the music industry. Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of Melvins' first album and within that time frame there has been few artists as prolific as Osbourne, whether it's with Melvins, or Venemous Concept, or … Read more

Nothington

In the End
Red Scare Industries (2017)

Few things are stable in this topsy-turvy world. One constant has been Nothington. With the release of In the End, the San Francisco band’s fifth full-length, they’ve continued down the road they started with All In. It’s classic chord-driven punk with a working class, heart on its sleeve aesthetic. Early reviews compared them to Social Distortion, which isn’t horribly inaccurate … Read more

Jason Isbell

The Nashville Sound
Southeastern Records (2017)

Had Jason Isbell stopped making music after his run with the Drive-By Truckers, his output would have already been legendary enough. “Outfit,” and “Goddamn Lonely Love,” alone are inches away from being modern standards. After a few promising records in the midst of a drugs-and-booze phase, Isbell got clean and released Southeastern in 2013, a stunning record of recovery and … Read more

The War on Peace

Automated People EP
Independent (2017)

Imagine if the last few minutes of your life on a doomed Earth were spent dancing in a nightclub, as the sound of buzzing synthesisers whirred into a thick crescendo that battled the looming darkness outside. This is the atmosphere that Chicago three-piece The War on Peace have created on their newest EP, Automated People. The band, who sound like … Read more

Jessica Moss

Pools of Light
Constellation (2017)

Jessica Moss is a prominent member of the Canadian experimental scene, most known for her participation in the Thee Silver Mt. Zion Orchestra & Tra-La-La-Band collective, as well as being a founding member of Black Ox Orkestar. A performer known for her versatility, she has also appeared as a guest for Frankie Sparo, Broken Social Scene and Arcade Fire. In … Read more

Arcadea

Arcadea
Relapse (2017)

Remember that movie from the 80's where that little rocker kid got sucked into the video game and found himself on that desert planet, where he had to throw jewels into a volcano while battling flying lions that had lasers shooting out of their eyes?No?That's probably because that movie was never made. But if it had been, Arcadea would be … Read more

Rammstein

Paris – the special edition
Universal (2017)

Ah, Rammstein. Härte. Neue deutsche. Grinding metal guitars, brute masculinity, pyromania, double entendres, operatic sub-sonic vocals, wordplays galore and taboo subjects. In a live context, they burn – literally, being one of the few bands whose singer eventually deemed it necessary to become qualified as a licensed pyrotechnician and with fans on occasion having been carried out of concerts suffering … Read more

Do Make Say Think

Stubborn Persistent Illusions
Constellation (2017)

Do Make Say Think have left their stamp on the post-rock scene, starting from their debut, self-titled album, released in 1998, to the excellent Other Truths in 2009. It was with Other Truths that the band decided to take a break, never officially breaking up, but rather the individual members taking some time to pursue different projects. Thankfully, this came … Read more

Biosphere

The Petrified Forest
Biophon (2017)

How do you keep the creative juices flowing that allow for composition or creation of any kind of artistic work, and where do you find the drive to continue to push your own voice out amongst the screaming throngs? For some that drive comes from within and others from without, but when you are staring down the barrel of a … Read more

IIVII

Invasion
Consouling Sounds (2017)

Josh Graham has become something of a Renaissance man here in the past 10 years or so. As founder of Red Sparowes, and A Storm of Light, Graham has taken rock music and gave it an ambient / drone twist. His solo project IIVII, and new record Invasion, has taken Graham’s love of ambient music that much further with haunting … Read more

Thalassa

Bonds of Prosperity
Sige (2017)

Formless and endless. When dealing with drone music, these are two elements you need to take into consideration. With a deep understanding and experience of the genre and experimental music, Aaron Turner, of SUMAC and a myriad other projects, and William Fowler Collins collaborate in the avant-drone project Thalassa. Taking influence from the Greek mythology, and the primordial personification of … Read more

Naïve Sense

Self Titled EP (2017)
Independent (2017)

“If I am unable to transform you into a Naïve Sense fan, then I have not done my job.”So begins “Win a Trip to Vegas: Heavy Metal Bikini Contest/Men’s Support Group,” in a sound clip before the EP’s second to last track. It’s a bold proclamation for a bold EP that recalls the best elements of Refused but with a … Read more

Gold

Optimist
Van Records (2017)

GOLD is the brainchild of Thomas Sciarone, known from his work with occult doom act The Devil's Blood. Having released two very good albums so far, in Interbellum and No Image, they are now carrying down on the same dark path with Optimist. GOLD is a notoriously difficult band to pinpoint sonically. Sure, they exist within a rock setting, but … Read more

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