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 the lovechild of The Fray and Editors, already have three EPs and an album to their name. Automated People offers a glimpse of lead singer and lyricist Steven Burkholder's penchant for forming an engrossing narrative delivered with commanding vocals. Opener "Fear of Loss" sets the scene for a dystopian city where the world is crumbling to pieces, with cries of "And the Earth began to move/ And I knew that we were doomed" offering illumination among the grey skies the songs evokes. The prevailing sound of the drums reflects the urgency of people accepting their fate, while simultaneously steering clear of the cloying sentimentality that can be the downfall of songs of this ilk. "The 80s" is a synth-heavy track that jumps between leaping with pulsing synths and lying static. "Armageddon Disco" is a rallying cry that sees Burkholder singing: … Read more
Jessica Moss is a prominent member of the Canadian experimental scene, most known for her participation in the Thee Silver … Read more
Do Make Say Think have left their stamp on the post-rock scene, starting from their debut, self-titled album, released in … Read more
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Das Oath - or The Oath as they are often referred - put out records with shemale pornography in the liner notes, prompting record stores to stock their albums behind the counter like brown paper bag contraband. They've sold dildos with their name on them. They've released four self-titled records in the last seven years. The Oath consists of former members of bands like Charles Bronson (who tastemakers have soured on despite the fact that their microburst songs were better than 90% of their contemporaries) and Devoid of Faith (all I really remember is that they sounded like Bastard; sorry). These are the things that matter in hardcore: controversies, ex-members of, and records you can collect and trade with your friends. Okay, that last part is an exaggeration; that's not … Read more
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
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
“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 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
To get a label's attention in this age is hard. Especially trying to do so through the traditional email approach. But for Demen, that method worked, and the folks over at Kranky were taken aback by the solo project of Irna Orm. Not much is known about Orm, other than she is behind the solo project Demen, and that she … Read more
It’s only been four months since I was struggling to determine what Blessed was doing on their first EP. I have come back to that record often. After four months it intrigues me as much as it did when I first heard it. Truth be told: I don’t have many records that can keep my attention that long. You can … Read more
Art Sex Music is more than a memoir. It is Cosey’s way of setting the record straight and clear up misconceptions about her and her roles in the creative projects she was a protagonist and often sidelined in. Cosey’s story is one of individuality, challenges, breaking down self-imposed and outer barriers, social norms and creating your own life, while dealing … Read more
Generally speaking, I’ve spent a lot of time the past half-decade (or maybe decade) listening to two subsets of DIY punk: gruff melodic three-chord arrangements, and pop-punk with soaring melodic layers. I won’t say I limit myself to that by a long shot, but it’s sort of what I gravitate toward. Caves are a UK band that fall somewhere on … Read more
Harvestman is Steve Von Till's musical bridge. Through his main band, Neurosis, he explores the experimental side of heavy music, while with his solo project, under his own name, he regresses back to the folk origin. Harvestman connects the two, firmly standing on folk ground, but also with an adventurous mindset, wondering into more diverse areas. Historically, Harvestman presented a … Read more
Ever since The Jesus and Mary Chain came on the scene in the Mid-80’s with their tapestry of sound Psychocandy, and onto their 90’s fame recording with Hope Sandoval, the band has always reminded me of a couple of stoned uncles. You know, the ones your mom doesn’t think to highly of, but they are the coolest thing around because … Read more
One of the reasons I gravitate toward the pop-end of the punk spectrum is because it lacks pretention. The structures are straightforward and honest, often predictable to such a fault that it’s become cliché. That’s why an album like Developing A Theory of Integrity is so refreshing. The overall sound is gruff pop-punk with a verse-chorus-verse foundation and a lot … Read more
There is always this feeling of being amid a quiet storm when one experiences an album by The Necks. The experimental jazz band from Australia has proven record after record how their long form compositions can invoke serenity and chaos at the same time. This free flowing quality by which the trio can unravel its music, highlights an eccentric craftsmanship, … Read more
A master of dark ambient, Christopher Walton became first known through his time as one-half of Endvra. The duo released a series of excellent albums, with The Great God Pan standing out, infusing neo-classical perspectives and tribal rhythms into their dark ambient core. Since the end of Endvra, Walton has focused on his solo project TenHornedBeast, which takes a dystopian … Read more
It’s been a while since Ohio’s The Dopamines released a new record –2012 by the looks of things, and I honestly missed that one, so my most recent reference is 2010’s Expect the Worst. I know they’ve become parents or grown up or something along those lines, leading to more time between records. Does that also bleed into their music … Read more
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