Ever wondered what it would sound like if Off With Their Heads and Iron Chic had a baby? Well, even if you haven't, you need to check out Western Settings. With the help of Chicken (Dead to Me), they've produced a release that builds off the melodic punk rock they premiered last year with their LP, Yes It Is. They're back with the follow-up EP, Old Pain, and they've really outdone themselves. Western Settings have been described as sounding like one of those bands that "put their hearts on their sleeve." Once you give Old Pain a listen, you'll completely understand. Opener "Wondeful Multiple Episodes" is rife with desperation that's backed with energy and emotion. The lead riffs wax and wane on tracks like "Champion Schizo" and the instrumental, "Swells." Yet, they still find the time to pack a punch with closer "Duncan" on this short 6-song EP. Old Pain is one of the best EPs released this year and stacks up with some of 2016's best Punk-Rock full lengths. You'll find yourself singing along and feeling every bit of sentimentality that oozes from these songs. Don't sleep on it. Read more
Sun Worship made a grand, and quite unexpected, appearance in the black metal scene with their debut full-length, Elder Giants. … Read more
James Kent, known as Perturbator, has been meticulously constructing whole worlds with his dark synthwave music, one album at a … Read more
The Uncanny Valley pulses in high concept waves and the mastermind behind it all, Perturbator (composer James Kent), creates visual … Read more
Davey Havok and Jade Puget (you may recognize them from AFI) are back this year with a new Blaqk Audio … Read more
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People make it a point to search far and wide for new music. I'm not against this by any means; I've found many quality bands from the other continents besides mine. But oftentimes there is little to no effort needed when searching as there is quality music being produced right under ones nose. A perfect example of this is Minute of Arc. This four-piece outfit hails from my hometown of Cleveland and has been working together for a number of years now, fine-tuning their craft, and finally releasing their debut offering, Future Forests. It's not surprising to hear that Minute of Arc have found their niche within the space-rock circle given the applications of their namesake - a unit of measurement that is closely associated with the field of astronomy. … Read more
Dalek has long been a group for outsiders. Embracing noise, industrial and ambient genres while still holding a tenuous grip on their New York hip hop roots. There is something strangely prescient about their mix of these genres being their own thing while fully embracing a structured sound that embodies the new york aesthetic at the same time. So after … Read more
The Dandy Warhols new release Distortland is a trippy foray into pop that should not only garner new fans but also satisfy their long term fans as well. The band has been putting out great records for 22 years now and this is their ninth release. The band continues to hone their sound and have put out some of their … Read more
Marissa Nadler has been releasing albums since 2004, and her meticulous constructions of dream states has been astonishing since the first notes of “Fifty Five Falls.” Through the years, Nadler has shown her aptitude in songwriting, not solely by awakening an emotional response with her music, but also with a sense of certainty that became more and more apparent in … Read more
Music Band, along with JEFF the Brotherhood and Diarrhea Planet, forms the Infinity Cat triad, the latest representatives of the Nashville indie punk scene. I’ll readily admit to being a big DP fan - I’ve seen them four times, once with JEFF and once with Music Band. I knew these were DP’s buds, so I had high expectations. JEFF was … Read more
It’s been five years since Texas post-rock outfit Explosions in the Sky released Take Care, Take Care, Take Care, which makes this the longest between-album gap for the band. Not that they’ve been sitting on their hands: They’ve been reliving their Friday Night Lights claim-to-fame years, writing three soundtracks for movies you’d probably only watch because Explosions scored them. There’s … Read more
Five song ripper from this quartet out of Maine. If the cover art is any indication these guys wear a lot of Nike. A cartoonish drawing of a baldy wearing both a Nike tee shirt and Nike sneakers adorns the J-card. Anybody who’s seen my recent drawings knows I can get down with that. The artists name is Chris X, … Read more
Line-up changes are a scary thought. When it was first announced that vocalist Charlie Fell and guitarist Ken Sorceron were leaving Lord Mantis, it indeed felt like a devastating blow for the band. And the timing was just so depressing, just a little while after the band had released its most complete work in Death Mask? However, Lord Mantis seamlessly … Read more
The Falcon are a curious band: a collection of rogue Chicagoans (now with Dave Hause as well), lead vocalist Brendan Kelly (The Lawrence Arms) seems to get the most attention but teammates Dan Andriano (Alkaline Trio), Neil Hennessy (also The Lawrence Arms), and now Hause carry some impressive resumes on their own. It’s a loaded band, one that rips out … Read more
Coming out of Miami, Wrong rose from the ashes of hardcore/punk band Capsule, who released a couple of great albums, including their self-titled record and Blue, before calling it quits. Well, Eric Hernandez (guitars and vocals) bounced back brilliantly, forming the new band, with the inclusion of Ryan Haft (previously of Torche) on guitars, Andres Ascanio on bass and Brian … Read more
The future looked very dark for Cobalt, following the release of 2009's Gin. Wunder and McSorley seemed to have perfected their recipe for the black metal outfit, following the release of their debut album, War Metal, and especially their sophomore full-length, Eater of Birds. The band seized activities, and time went by. McSorley left the band, re-joined and left again, … Read more
Since 2001 Tim Hecker has been exploring the more adventurous sides of electronic music. The experimental scope of the artist has moved through dark territories, taking on elements of drone, noise, power electronics, constructing unique soundscapes of immense beauty. Haunt Me, Haunt Me Do It Again, Ravedeath, 1972 and 2013's Virgins are just some of the essential work of Hecker, … Read more
In a past life – OK, like eight years ago - I found myself working at a furniture factory in small town Pennsylvania. While I've found worse methods of employment from time to time, this job was, to put it mildly, not an ideal use of my time and talents, revolving around strenuous manual labor and a generally mind-numbing work … Read more
Endless Mike and the Beagle Club are from Johnstown, PA (about an hour outside of my second home, Pittsburgh), and their album St. Paul (produced by Anti-Flag's Chris Baker, adding some Pittsburgh history) embodies the DIY PA punk aesthetic that I’ve come to love over the years. Around since 2003, the band is more or less lead-singer Mike Miller’s solo … Read more
Even after a decade, Ignite still managed to put out a record that was the logical step forward from Our Darkest Days. While it's not a "reunion" album, it certainly feels like it. Up until the last couple years, Ignite have pretty much been on and off when it came to performing. Front-man, Zoli Teglas, went on to join Pennywise … Read more
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