Envy
Recitation
Temporary Residence (2010)
Knowing full well this album was dropping this year (it was on my albums to look forward to in 2010 list last year), I was surprised by its release and caught unaware that it had finally dropped to the public; and this definitely affected the way that Recitation hit me for some strange reason. I sit here and say, “You … Read more
Envy
The Fallen Crimson
Temporary Residence (2020)
I doubt that many musicians would claim to not be slightly jealous of Envy's career trajectory. From humbler beginnings as a hardcore band singing in a non-native tongue, to issuing splits with the likes of Thursday and Jesu, releasing albums through Stuart Braithwaite's Rock Action, and palling around with Steve Aoki, they've been met with almost universal acclaim and success … Read more
Envy / Jesu
Split
Hydra Head / Daymare (2008)
Slipping under one's nose is not something an Envy or Jesu release tends to do, but somehow, this split between the two is not receiving the same amount of press as Envy's other split with Thursday. Thursday might be a "bigger" band, but considering the amount of press that Jesu usually gets on a release and the admiration that Envy … Read more
Ephel Duath
On Death And Cosmos
Agonia (2012)
Releasing new material for the first time since 2009, Italian avant-garde/progressive/jazz/black metal group Ephel Duath cast aside their woes and channel their frustrations into On Death and Cosmos. Having been incredibly prolific before the sudden enforced hiatus after 2009s Through My Dog’s Eyes, Ephel Duath return with a refreshed group of musicians, a three track EP and a new outlook. … Read more
Epic Problem
All Broken
Pirates Press (2013)
I wasn’t expecting this one to hit like it does. It’s raw, forceful, and honest; personal but socially conscious, and it blends street punk energy and repetition with so-called “beard punk sensibility.” In many ways, it reminds of American Steel’s self-titled debut, putting a rough persona atop more emotionally-driven content.Starting with the gruff vocal tradeoffs of “Choke,” there’s an immediate … Read more
Era Bleak
Demo 2018
Dirt Cult (2018)
Dirt Cult is one of the labels where I’ll check out a band based solely on the label’s history of releasing quality stuff that’s in my wheelhouse. I don’t know a lot about Era Bleak, and they’re a hair outside of the style I generally associate with the label. That said, they’re also blowing me away with the release of … Read more
Era Bleak
Era Bleak
Dirt Cult (2020)
It’s really tough for me to review this full-length. Why? Because I loved the band’s demo tape and it’s really hard to separate the two releases. The self-titled official debut here has several of the same songs and, probably due to familiarity, they jump out as favorites from the get-go.But I’ll do what I can to go all tabula rasa … Read more
Erase Errata
Nightlife
Kill Rock Stars (2006)
I fear it may happen one day; someone will slip up, let the cat out of the bag, and give the game away. Someone may, one day, tell Erase Errata that it isn't 1981 any longer. Basquiat is dead, Sonic Youth isn't so youthful anymore and John Hinckley Jr. was a rubbish shot. Step forward, Ladies, 2006 has much to … Read more
Eric Angelo Bessel
Visitation
Lore City Music (2023)
Visitation is the debut solo album from visual artist and musician, Eric Angelo Bessel. One half of experimental, gothic, post rock duo Lore City based in Portland, Oregon. In terms of pace and feeling Visitation is a stunning collaboration of serenity and calm laced with highly emotive inflections of darkness and foreboding. The eight instrumental tales take you on a … Read more
Error
Error
Epitaph (2004)
It wasn't that long ago that a band released an album entitled The Shape of Punk to Come. While many ignored its principles, others took the manifesto that Refused declared with that album to heart. By combining elements of electronica, industrial, and punk, Error have done their best to realize the objectives that were intended to "start a revolution." With … Read more
Esben and the Witch
Older Terrors
Season of Mist (2016)
Taking their name from a well-known Danish fairytale, the trio from Brighton entered with confidence the alternative rock world. A series of EPs and three full-length records, with Violet Cries and Wash The Sins Not Only the Face especially standing out, has led the band down an interesting road, as their alternative rock style took on elements from indie rock … Read more
ESC Life
Born To Be Mild
PDV Records/Last Exit Music/Ill In The Head Records/Bartolini Records (2019)
When I received the promo for Born To Be Mild the first thing that struck me was the artwork. It matched with the (previously discussed) EP, but not at all with their previous, debut album, Access All Areas. What I like about the artwork of Access All Areas is the dreamy, relaxed atmosphere that oozes from the picture. The artwork … Read more
Escape the Fate
There's No Sympathy for the Dead
Epitaph (2006)
Brett Gurewitz clearly smells money like band mate Greg Graffin smells fat teen pussy from Wisconsin, and it gets him just as hard. By his own admission Gurewitz has never "come across a new group with more potential to be huge" than Escape the Fate. The dollar signs must be spinning in his eyes as the Myspace friend requests grow … Read more
Escape the Fate
Ungrateful
Eleven Seven (2013)
One of the many reasons historians will condemn the early 21st century is the rise of glametalcore. Purveyed by groups such as Steel Panther and Asking Alexandria, this sound blends the abrasive vocals and breakdowns of metalcore with the flamboyance and catchiness of glam metal. Escape The Fate have been torchbearers of the sub-genre ever since they ditched Ronnie Radke … Read more
Escape the Floodwater Jug Band
Whiskey Will Fix It
Super Amigos (2006)
A half a century ago, when America was a more wholesome place than its current manifestation, a man by the name of Kerouac wrote the great American novel of its time. In the novel, On the Road, Kerouac recounts the adventures had when crisscrossing the newly developed highway system. Kerouac himself often romanticized of an even earlier America still: a … Read more
Escape the Floodwater Jug Band
Wrong Doings and Done Wrongs
Whiskey For Breakfast (2008)
With the recent surge of former and current punk rockers playing folk, roots rock, bluegrass, etc. of course there is going to be some interest in other related genres. However, I was quite shocked to receive a CD by a jug band for review. My exposure to jug band music is somewhat limited. I grew up with a mother who … Read more
Eskimo Joe
Black Fingernails, Red Wine
Rykodisc (2007)
"No one in our band is in it for their ego. It's all about the songs" The above is a quote from guitarist Stuart MacLeod and it summarizes Eskimo Joe in a nutshell. No pretension. No bullshit. No ridiculous grandiose prose-filled promo sheet. Just an album that that lets the music do the talking and speaks volumes in the process. … Read more
Estatic Sunshine
Way
Cardboard (2008)
What if an album isn't an album? What if it falls into absurdity while no one is listening? Does it make a series of obnoxious sounds? I'm probably coming off like some Bacharach-rocking philistine, but I really really like songs. Failing that, riffs. Failing that, music. The album Way by Ecstatic Sunshine fills somewhere between zero and three of those … Read more
