Ottawa-native Joel Martin is back with his twelfth album entitled The Tipping Point. For someone who has spent the majority of his career experimenting with sound and innovative ways and techniques to strike his audience, it’s safe to say he has succeeded in showcasing his creativity and talent with this interesting collection of songs which best represent him as an artist.The album starts off with the single entitled “Discount Sugar Daddy,” Martin’s favorite song off the album which immediately captivates the audience with the light-hearted and mellow sounds of an acoustic guitar, followed by soothing vocals. The unique collaboration of lyrics makes it a great choice as an introduction to the album. As the song progresses, you can hear the sounds of interestingly composed guitar riffs and power chords that give off a John Mayer vibe, one of Martin’s biggest inspirations for the sounds on this album.“Discount Sugar Daddy” along with “My Boss” and “The Notebook Song” are a few examples in which Martin incorporates a comedic tone; putting a paradox on the conventional sappiness of acoustic songs which were inspired by his acoustic cover of “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-A-Lot on Canadian Idol in 2007. The melodies are … Read more
If you haven’t heard of The Slow Death by now, you probably aren’t as depressed as the majority of us. … Read more
If there's anyone who can make the mundane interesting, it'd have to be progressive rockers The Tangent. As evidence, I … Read more
On Happy B-Day Mike, the latest self-release from math rockin’ boys What’s Fluffy, the Bloomfield, NJ quartet fires out six … Read more
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Before Lullabies to Paralyze could even be committed to tape, frontman Josh Homme was faced with several important choices. And none was going to be more crucial than his decision to fire close friend and bassist Nick Oliveri. Was it the appropriate decision to make? I don't think we'll ever know. All we can really do is take the music that is Lullabies to Paralyze and compare it to all previous Queens of the Stone Age material. If my opinion were to be based solely on the album's opening song, "Medication," then I would say that I have very few concerns. But while the grooving riffs and vocal harmonies are catchy, the drumming skills appear a little sub par in my opinion. But that's what happens when you go from … Read more
Do you love tossing on a record that is just crushing from start to finish? I mean regardless of dynamics where even the quiet parts make you feel that the heaviness could simply collapse in around your ear drums while the record spins because Bloodlands is definitely one of those records, and with it, Ash Borer is certainly staking their … Read more
When you go travelling for a while (be it physically or mentally), sometimes there is this ache or longing to return to more familiar surroundings where the memories of comfort and solace both act as a salve and additional salt for the wound of being away; and in the midst of such feelings perhaps more work from Justin K. Broadrick’s … Read more
With one fell swoop Highness manage to confirm suspicions and completely avoid them. When a band made up of more than a few well known underground acts get together there is bound to be a few ideas as to what they should or will sound like when the finished product is available. When your band consists of members of such … Read more
Motörhead have the blues. Sure, they've worn their influences on their sleeves for the entirety of their 40 year career. But on Aftershock, the band's 21st studio release, the ghosts of Chuck Berry, Robert Johnson and Little Richard come home to roost like never before.This doesn't mean that they've slowed down, of course. From beginning to end, Aftershock is an … Read more
Existing on the outer realms of the galaxies, where space and time collide, Seidr return with their sophomore release,Ginnungagap. Led by A. Lunn, also of Agnosis, Kolga, Throndt and most importantly of Panopticon, the band is here to build further upon the impact that their debut album, For Winter Fire, caused.Even though the band is at its core a doom … Read more
When I first caught The Silks playing in a friends living room I was amazed at the raw energy these guys bring to a live show and as we have learned time and again, one of the hardest things to pull off as a record producer is to capture that sound and feel in the studio. Well I'm happy to … Read more
Mohill is a rural Irish village in county Leitrim, it's nice, quaint and generally doesn't divide opinion. To use an Irishism: sure it's grand. It's also where the majority of the songs on Kodaline's debut album In A Perfect World were written. In effect what Kodaline have done is written a powerful, evocative album, that has them on the precipice … Read more
Released on 86’d Records, I came to Rations with a blank slate. Thirty seconds of research tells me the band is a four-piece from Long Island and includes, among others, 86’d Records’ own Wells as a member. Trivia aside, most folks don’t buy a piece of vinyl based on any of that info above. They buy it because it’s good … Read more
Nobody and I mean NOBODY involved with or familiar with the Seattle scene back in 1991 would have guessed that Pearl Jam would be, with the exception of Puget Sound stalwarts Mudhoney, the last band standing. They were the upstarts, the Johnny-Come-Latelys that took a long time to gain the respect from their peers. After almost all of their peers … Read more
There's an untold amount of new bands just waiting to be discovered. Some will be discovered and just as quickly forgotten. Some will be discovered, appreciated for a brief time and then forgotten. The very lucky few will be discovered, loved and will continue to be loved by a few, who will spread the word to a few and, higher … Read more
Goddamn, these are some brutally hoarse vocals. Like the kind that makes my voice hurt just thinking about singing along, and I mean that in the best possible way.Galactic Cannibal are a Milwaukee punk band comprised of brothers Nick Woods (Direct Hit!) and Peter J Woods (noise artist). Throw those comparisons out the window, though, as this slams the pedal … Read more
Deadly Reign is a three-piece punk unit based in Austin, TX. They are a fairly new band (not to be confused with the ‘80s Cali band of the same name) but play with the skill and poise of a veteran group. And not surprisingly so, as they are comprised of members of crust luminaries like World Burns to Death, Scarred … Read more
Karl Jungbluth was a German communist involved with various resistance groups that stood up against National Socialism and the Nazis. Expectedly enough, he got arrested twice in a decade and the second time turned out to be fatal. He was executed along with fellow resistance fighters on January 12, 1945.Alpinist was a four-piece crust/hardcore punk band from Münster, Germany formed … Read more
For those who recall, the first time that Stone Temple Pilots got tired of waiting around for Scott Weiland to turn his shit around was in 1997. The DeLeo brothers and drummer Eric Kretz recruited singer Dave Coutts and Talk Show was born. I saw them play live on the second leg of Foo Fighters' Colour and the Shape tour. … Read more
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