Baby Teeth
For The Heathers
Lujo (2006)
Baby Teeth made For The Heathers on a dare, with each of the three members of the band working in isolation from home. Sequestered with only imagination as a barrier, the dramatic differences between each member's effort is both a shock and a pleasant surprise to the listener that can only be understood as separate entities with only the name … Read more
Bad Astronaut
Twelve Small Steps, One Giant Disappointment
Fat Wreck Chords (2006)
Before the release of Twelve Small Steps, One Giant Disappointment, frontman Joey Cape willingly admitted that the record does not measure up to what it should have been, and not many bands would ever publicly admit something like that, but not many bands have experienced the tragedy that befell Bad Astronaut. The band's co-creator, drummer, and one of Cape's best … Read more
Banner Pilot
Pass the Poison
Arsenic Records (2006)
For anyone who is not from the Upper Midwest, the first thing they will think about when it comes to the climate is how freaking cold it gets in the Winter. This is especially true when it comes to the frozen tundra of my home state of Minnesota. Hell, even Minneapolis won a Weather Channel countdown as the coldest city … Read more
Ben Kweller
Ben Kweller
ATO (2006)
The refreshing thing about Ben Kweller is that every album he comes out with has a different sound that doesn't alienate any of his fans. His mixture of classic rock and alternative rock keeps fans old and young listening. At first, Ben Kweller's third full-length, a self-titled effort, sounds feebler than his previous works. And it's true, Ben Kweller doesn't … Read more
Betrayed
Substance
Equal Vision (2006)
I just finished watching the trailer for the book-to-film documentary American Hardcore and it got me thinking. Anyone that claims to be a fan of hardcore/punk is bound by an unwritten law to have read that book, as well as Get in the Van. Many - mostly the older blokes - feel that those times documented in those books were … Read more
Between the Buried and Me
The Anatomy of
Victory (2006)
I like Between the Buried and Me, a lot. But The Anatomy of is a perfect example of a covers album gone bad. I really like the idea of paying homage to the bands that inspired you to play in the first place, but there is a productive way to go about doing that and there is also a filler-creating … Read more
Big City Rock
Big City Rock
Atlantic (2006)
As the saying goes, honesty is the best policy. Honestly, if Big City Rock continues to produce albums like their self-titled debut, they better stick to their day jobs. Lead vocalist Nate Bott must have been a Bon Jovi fan because he sounds like his reincarnate, adding a dramatic "uh" to the end of every line with a low, raspy … Read more
Bigwig
Reclamation
Fearless (2006)
"Bigwig is still around?" That was a question a healthy number of casual fans asked when news on the band's upcoming record started to surface. The band last left us with the fantastic Invitation to Tragedy way back in 2001. Reclamation is the band's third full-length and second for Fearless. The first being 1997's Unmerry Melodies with their second album, … Read more
Bitter End
Mind in Chains
Malfunction (2006)
Bitter End is a five piece hardcore band from Helotes, Texas of all places. Helotes is a smaller city that is just northeast of San Antonio. Right now, this is the farthest place I can think of that I would find a band playing NYHC in the vein of Leeway and Killing Time. Okay, I know there are other bands … Read more
Black Elk
Black Elk
Crucial Blast (2006)
Am I the only one who doesn't hear the comparisons to The Jesus Lizard that Black Elk has received from a handful of reviewers? I'm not saying that makes it a bad album, but besides a few isolated pieces of songs here and there, saying that this sounds like The Jesus Lizard is kind of a stretch. What I do … Read more
Black Hell
Deformers of the Universe
Hater of God (2006)
I'm from Arizona, so I'm not jumping at the chance to describe Black Hell as "crawling out of the sandblasted wastes" or any such thing; it's not as exotic for me. But they do in fact come from my beautiful and notoriously dry home state, hitting hard with their debut Deformers of the Universe on the always-reliable label Hater of … Read more
Black SS / Raining Bricks
Split
Organized Crime (2006)
I was relieved to find out that Black SS stands for Black Sheep Squadron, and not some Nazi organization, upon receiving this record. The cover art for one side of the split featured a fearsome black widow spider, so for all I knew, I was about to hear some intense hate anthems. Instead, what I got was some intense hardcore … Read more
Bloodlined Calligraphy
Ypsilanti
Facedown (2006)
You, the Scene Point Blank readers, are probably tired of reading about how awful metalcore is these days. But as stagnant and formulaic as the genre is, bands just keep putting out albums and apparently there is fanbase that keeps eating this shit up. But somebody has to review them, so here we are. When SPB writers, including myself, review … Read more
Bomb the Music Industry!
Goodbye Cool World
Quote Unquote (2006)
A couple months ago I was sitting next to a window at Inn-N-Out, pissed about my cheeseburger (they put nothing I wanted on it and everything I didn't.) My friend James is telling me a story about his band, Guns of Autumn, playing a show with the Arrogant Sons of Bitches. I'd never heard Arrogant Songs of Bitches and I … Read more
Bombshell
To Hell with Motives
Indianola (2006)
It's never really a good sign when the first thing that pops into my head when I listen to To Hell with Motives is "ugh." The CD starts off earnestly enough with a noise-laden track that actually had me hoping Deadguy Part Deux. Sadly that never happened as the end of the intro ends with some kid (I believe his … Read more
Boris
Pink
Southern Lord (2006)
Initially released late last year on Japanese label Diwphalanx, Pink now finds a worldwide release through Southern Lord. It also see's the band at their scuzzy rock best. Similar in sound in many ways to their 2005 Southern Lord release, Akuma No Uta, but upping the ante considerably with tighter more memorable songs. Tracks like "Regardless it is not Separable" … Read more
Born from Pain
War
Metal Blade (2006)
Born from Pain's fourth full-length, War, is the next logical step for the Dutch masters of hardcore. The music still draws heavily from the 90's New York hardcore scene as well as hints of late 80's thrash metal. But in addition to what you'd expect from Born from Pain, the band has thrown in a few surprises to spice up … Read more
Botch
Unifying Themes Redux / American Nervoso / We are the Romans (Reissues)
Hydra Head (2006)
How does one measure the influence and impact of a band on music? Sure, you could look at album sales, which in the case of The Beatles is a corollary that works, but then you could see how many albums a band like Godsmack or someone like Kenny Chesney has sold and just throw that idea out the window. Truly, … Read more
