This thing never settles, and I mean that in the best possible way. Fizzy, fun and full of variety, the first full-length (although four of these songs are re-recorded cuts from a debut EP) from Michigan trio Brave Bird is Kinsella-esque emo done with some style. ‘Too Late Now’ is a fast-starting slice of sparkly, starry-eyed almost-pop punk, the title […]
Read moreThere’s a chance you’ve heard more about the music of Crosses than you’ve actually heard the music of Crosses. You’ve perhaps heard that this is a side-project of Deftones frontman Chino Moreno. You’ve possibly have heard that it also includes his old friend and former Far guitarist Shaun Lopez, and the fantastically named Chuck Doom, in the ranks. And you’ve almost certainly […]
Read moreJesu change. Since 2004 the band’s mastermind, former Napalm Death and Godflesh member Justin Broadrick, has gradually, granularly, slowly but surely distorted his post metal sound to incorporate elements of electronica, shoegaze, and, whisper it, melody. It makes sense. Even the project’s earliest output favoured texture, mood and feeling, over any real definition. This time though, something is different. There […]
Read moreIt feels almost sacrilegious to say, but this, the combined effort of members of Deftones and Isis is… fine. Sure, some three minutes into opener ‘Future Warrior’, as Chino Moreno applies his unique croon to the post-rock rumble of bassist Jeff Caxide, drummer Aaron Harris, and guitarist Cliff Meyer, you get a taste of what might have been. But ultimately, […]
Read moreThis shouldn’t have any impact. Shai Hulud’s influence now extends so far that bands are ripping off bands that already ripped off the New York outfit and they don’t even know it. Seriously, had Shai Hulud not recorded their scene-starting debut ‘Hearts Once Nourished with Hope and Compassion’, names like Counterparts, The Ghost Inside (whose frontman guests here), and Hundredth […]
Read moreThis almost didn’t happen. Oxford’s TTNG (the artists formerly known as This Town Needs Guns) have been through some stresses and strains since their last album and the shifting line-up here shows it. A guitarist and singer are out and former Pennines frontman Henry Tremain is in. Oh, and the whole shebang could have been shut down by the Mayan […]
Read more‘Bushcraft’ is alive, it breathes, but only the blackest breaths, and it swells and heaves with sick imagery and sicker sounds. Hissing venom, squealing feedback, the barks of mad dogs and the bellows of madder men all echo through the first full-length from Vancouver quartet Baptists, and the violence threatens to bubble over, flood into your lap at any second. […]
Read moreThere’s a reason why this featured in exactly zero album-of-the-year lists. In the near-decade since Parkway Drive exploded into the metal scene with ‘Killing with a Smile’, the Australian outfit have consistently struggled to replicate the sizzling intensity of that superb debut. Sure, they’ve played better and better live shows at bigger and way bigger venues but on disc, they’ve […]
Read moreIt still ain’t broke. It still doesn’t need fixing. The Acacia Strain’s unstoppable groove machine might sound stuck on repeat for some, but if the band have ever scratched your itch for apocalyptic metal, ‘Death Is The Only Mortal’ should continue to satisfy. This is another soundtrack to the end of days. Any fear that the Massachusetts outfit might have […]
Read moreSingle serving metal, this. Expect one potent, effective, but ultimately small, punch and you won’t be disappointed. Originally a side project for members of It Prevails, this Oregon four-piece have gone full-time and full-bore for album number three. There is nothing new in the squealing feedback, chunky riffs, pounding rhythms or feral roars of these 12 tracks, and they take […]
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