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Yob

Clearing the Path to Ascend
Neurot Recordings (2014)

YOB has been a constant force in the doom metal field. Since their first release, Elaborations of Carbon, they have not ever really disappointed me. Releasing records year after year, they took over the doom/sludge/stoner genre by storm, having excellent moments with Catharsis, The Illusion of Motion and The Unreal Never Lived. Even when they took a break, Mike Scheidt … Read more

Death From Above 1979

The Physical World
Last Gang / Warner Bros. (2014)

For a time in the mid- to late-2000s, it seemed as if Canadian drum and bass duo Death from Above 1979 might go the way of Neutral Milk Hotel and disappear right at the height of their popularity. Coming off their exhilarating and slightly raunchy 2004 album You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine which seemed to pop up at just … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Replica

Beast
Prank (2014)

Beast is the latest 7” vinyl release from Oakland’s hardcore punk band Replica. It's the first I’ve heard of them since their 2012 demo cassette, which I was big fan of. Likewise I’ve been spinning this one pretty regularly since it arrived this past summer via Prank Records. Replica were just here in Minneapolis earlier this fall (10/4) for Extreme … Read more

Jimi Goodwin

Odludek
Heavenly Recordings (2014)

After a career spanning more than ten years and 4 critically acclaimed albums as the frontman of Manchester 3-piece Doves, Jimi Goodwin has been waiting quite a while before indulging in his first solo release. Taking direction from mix tapes that used to circulate between Goodwin and his friends, Odludek is a fiery and unpredictable album that embraces the eclectic … Read more

Pallbearer

Foundations of Burden
Profound Lore (2014)

When Pallbearer released their debut album, Sorrow and Extinction, I was stunned. No matter how good their 2010 demo was, there was no way you could be prepared for an album of the caliber of Sorrow and Extinction. And of course the expectations for the sophomore album of the doom metal act are now much higher, but they are still … Read more

Empty Yard Experiment

Kallisti
Independent (2014)

Music is wonderful and is one of the few things that echoes across the world and can bring people together in unity. Of course, that’s putting the most simplistic of slants on it but when bands are forged in countries that we may not expect to hear music from, it’s difficult to not appreciate the power of sound. Empty Yard … Read more

Needles//Pins

Shamebirds
Dirt Cult (2014)

Needles//Pins are something different in the punk rock realm. Well, that’s not true. They’re entirely familiar and warm, yet they have that pizzazz—that’s what the kids are calling it these days, if you didn’t know. They play familiar-ish DIY punk with some pop sensibility, but there’s a little more attitude, a touch of that first person rock star swagger that … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Vow

Make Me Yours EP
The Native Sound (2014)

Easily the aural equivalent of the light and fluffy clouds that pepper your daydreams, LA duo Vow's second EP Make Me Yours finds them producing a more definitive sound couched in an ethereal sweetness. Opener "Miles Away" embraces an industrial aesthetic with vocalist Julia Blake's lithe, sugar-sweet singing acting as a curveball amongst the heavy, morose synths. It sounds like … Read more

United Nations

The Next Four Years
Temporary Residence (2014)

United Nations have been locked away for a few years now. Members have come and gone and we aren't even exactly sure which ones. In those four years though, they created music, and that music is finally available to the masses in the form of The Next Four Years. While it's being released as a new full length, it's fair … Read more

Cara Neir

Portals to a Better, Dead World
Broken Limbs Recordings (2013)

Cara Neir have made a name for themselves by playing a suffocating blend of grind and black metal. while this may not seem like a particularly novel mix how the band does it and/or makes it work lends them enough credence to deserve a listen. From the discordant riffing of opener "Peridot" the band makes it's mark on the listener … Read more

Electric Wizard

Time To Die
Spinefarm Records (2014)

Somewhere along the way (and it's hard to say when exactly), but somewhere along the way Electric Wizard became more than a band. They became an idea. They became an attitude. A state of mind. Words like "titans" and "legends" began to accompany the band any time they were mentioned in print or online. People who didn't before identify as … Read more

The Proselyte

Our Vessel's in Need
Gypsyblood (2014)

Proselyte return with their newest EP, Our Vessel’s In Need, which also marks the first release for Gypsyblood records ( the label of Stavros Giannopoulos of The Atlas Moth) and they really nail it. The insane trio from Boston throw everything they got in this EP, putting together their admiration for bands such as The Melvins alongside acts like Cave … Read more

Teenage Bottlerocket

American Deutsch Bag
Fat Wreck Chords (2014)

I never learned German in high school, but Teenage Bottlerocket must have because their latest 7’’ is a nod to the punk side of the German language. It's been nearly a year and this is still the most currently release from Teenage Bottlerocket. People didn’t seem to expect much from it, and still don’t, unless you’re one of those middle-aged … Read more

City States

Geography
Safety Records (2014)

They say that good things come to those that wait and for City States and their main member Joel Ebner, it's certainly true. Ebner has spent many years creating and perfecting his debut - Geography - and after forming in 2008, City States first record finally saw the light of day earlier this year. Geography is a lovely little record, … Read more

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