Conjurer shouldn’t sound this composed. Ok, so maybe composed isn’t the right word- the York five-piece thrash and gnarl at the lines between sludge, doom, and death metal like a feral bear at belly flesh. But ‘Mire’ is only the band’s debut full-length, and it constantly and consistently belies their youth and inexperience. Opener ‘Choke’ is a landslide of increasing […]
Read more‘Teeth’, the debut effort from Texas four-piece Easy Prey, is a record you would cross the street to avoid. It’s a lurching, lumbering, bastard of a thing that seems like it might spit out blood as quickly as riffs. The opening title track sounds like a rust-bucket deathtrap revving into life before thrashing itself apart, ‘Weak Knees’ is a battering […]
Read moreRolo Tomassi have been on quite the adventure. Since 2005 the Sheffield outfit have been making a brilliant racket- defying stereotypes, expectations, and genre tick boxes alike. If their early work was adrenalized, amplified youthful exuberance then their most recent album, ‘Grievances’, was a decidedly grown-up affair, laden with weight and rage and regret. In between they leapt forward and […]
Read moreIf you thought the news of Turnstile’s leap to a major label was a curveball, you ain’t heard nothing yet. The Baltimore outfit’s second record features lounge jazz licks, rippling blips of R&B, vocals from a former Lauryn Hill backing singer, and “added production” by Diplo of all people. I guess that’s what you can buy with Nickelback money! Now, […]
Read moreThese are anxious times. These are angry times. Sometimes just getting out of bed can feel like a fight. One way to soundtrack such struggle is razorwire punk rock and firebreathing hardcore. And while the spellcheck-tripping STORM{O} might hail from Northern Italy and scream their guts out in their native tongue, the terror, tension and trauma audible on ‘Ere’ is […]
Read moreI get it. At one point, in the unsettled territory between the twin peaks of nu-metal and metalcore, Glassjaw meant everything. In a flurry of activity they released two scene-defining records, even though it wasn’t clear what scene they were in, and no one else looked or sounded or performed quite like them. And then they disappeared, leaving only myth […]
Read moreNo Omega go to work. Since 2012 the Stockholm quartet have been relentlessly touring, writing and recording music. ‘Culture’, though, is the best they’ve ever sounded. It’s tough to say that the band’s sound has been crystallised because there’s nothing bright or shiny or easy to look at here but everything they do best has been brought into relentless, fearsome […]
Read moreIt feels like Converge can do no wrong. Since 2001 and the release of ‘Jane Doe’ the hardcore pioneers have been on an untouchable run of form. Their ferocity, focus, and ability to slightly alter their course to incorporate new elements without comprising quality- here noise rock, woozy ambience, and whisper it, melody- have all become legendary. One thing they […]
Read moreThis is perfectly titled. The second record from New York wife-and-husband duo Spotlights is capable of shaking the ground under your feet. From the atmospheric rush of the title track to the soaring space-rock of ‘Hang Us All’ it’s a slow-motion tidal wave of riffs, shoegaze turned all the way up to eleven. It’s not a numbing rumble though, there […]
Read moreSometimes, although sadly nowhere near as often as it should, persistence pays off. Brutality Will Prevail are proof of that. Some 12 years, 11 former members and countless tribulations since they first began, the UK mob have released their finest work, maybe even one of the hardcore albums of the year. Not that ‘In Dark Places’ is the kind of […]
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