Broadway Calls
Sad in the City
Red Scare Industries (2020)
Sad in the City doesn’t mince words. Opening with the lines of “If my country collapses/ can I crash on your couch…” in “Never Take Us Alive.” The band play super melodic pop-punk that focuses more on singalong harmonies than kick, punch and bite, but the lyrics give a little more attitude than you might guess just listening to the beat … Read more
Butcher
666 Goats Carry My Chariot
Osmose productions (2020)
Bütcher takes you on an epic journey to a parallel universe. A universe that is very similar to ours. A universe where cars are referred to as chariots. A universe where we do not mention horsepower, but talk about goatpower. And Bütcher is here to introduce their new ride! Sorry, was that too corny? I know, I can’t help myself. … Read more
Chain Whip
14 Lashes
Drunken Sailor (2020)
This is the kind of hardcore that makes my throat hurt just listening. It’s also the kind of hardcore where I can’t sit still while listening, even when tethered to headphones at work. It’s high energy, relentless and, somehow, it just never lets up. To keep coining silly phrases, this is sweaty, gasp-for-air hardcore. As each of the songs fade … Read more
Charlie Continental
Be Much Better
Snappy Little Numbers Quality Audio Recordings (2020)
I dunno. Maybe reviewing a flexi is a weird idea as it’s a standalone thing. I still don’t get them: They wear out really fast; they’re vulnerable to damage and they don’t sound very good. They’re a novelty item and, in an era with fewer physical releases, somehow the most disposable format is on the rise?Anyway, I wanted to cover … Read more
Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah
Axiom
Ropeadope Records (2020)
I believe Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah requires practically no other introduction than his name – especially for people savvy within the realm of jazz. The award-winning musician along with his band has managed to throw together a marvelous collection of songs as his third live album, titled succinctly, Axiom. This all went down across four days during March last year and … Read more
City of Industry
False Flowers
Amerikan Aesthetics (2020)
City of Industry is a hardcore band with their toes in a lot of corners of the scene. False Flowers is the third full-length from the Seattle band and the press sheet says it’s for fans of artists as diverse as “Ceremony, Dystopia, His Hero Is Gone, Converge, [and] Pixies.” That seems about right. This is heavy, but with mixed tempos and emotion. The name forecasts … Read more
Clown Core
Van
Independent (2020)
Who are Clown Core? Long story short – no idea and no one really knows. There’s a lot of speculation online regarding the fact that the duo may actually be drummer Louis Cole and saxophonist Sam Gendel. Although, both have denied being part of the band. As Clown Core continue to skillfully keep their identities a mystery, we can only continue to speculate. … Read more
Code Orange
Underneath
Roadrunner (2020)
What is it that even makes a good album, good? Good is a slippery concept of course, and your definition is going to be shaped and tinted by your life experience, environment, and even physiology (some people naturally just have more acute hearing than others). Tomes could, and have been written, about what combination of sounds constitutes an "objective," scientific … Read more
Conway the Machine & The Alchemist
LULU
ALC Records / Griselda Records (2020)
A few short months ago, I was sitting in a dark bar with some friends on a late Friday afternoon, and we started chatting up another group of equally-inebriated compatriots. We went through the standard cycle of introductory conversation topics and one guy mentioned that he was from Buffalo. I asked if he listened to Griselda, the exponentially-rising rap trio … Read more
Cro-Mags
In the Beginning
Mission Two Entertainment (2020)
New York hardcore legends Cro-Mags's waste no time getting started on their new album In the Beginning. Opener "Don't Give In" kicks in the front door and immediately begins stalking the grounds looking for revenge, relief and solace, with deep growly, cross-over guitars leading the way like a pack of rottweilers hot on a guilty man's scent. When the tempo picks up … Read more
Cry Babe
Fell In Love With A Spirit 7”
Drunk Dial Records (2020)
When I was assigned this 7” from Drunk Dial Records, the name of the label caused me to assume it would be a skatepunk album. Why? I’m not totally sure. I couldn’t have been more wrong, though, and was surprised upon listening to Drunk Dial #5, the Fell in Love With A Spirit 7” by the band Cry Babe.This dream punk trio … Read more
Dave Hause
Paddy EP
Independent (2020)
There’s a lot to unpack in this new Dave Hause EP, released in conjunction with the Patty EP. While there’s a lot in these five songs, it’s also somewhat on the surface: Hause has released two new covers EP paying tribute to songwriters he admires. Paddy contains five songs written by Patrick Costello aka Paddy of Dillinger Four. To paraphrase, Hause’s goal with this EP … Read more
Dave Hause
Patty EP
Independent (2020)
I reviewed Hause’s Paddy EP before this. The two came out the same day and, as name implies, somewhat work together. The concept for each is similar: highlighting the work of some of his favorite songwriters, albeit from different directions.I’m also coming at the Patty EP from a new perspective. With Paddy I was well versed in Dillinger Four. This EP covers five tunes penned by Patty Griffin and … Read more
Daydream
Mystic Operative
Dirt Cult (2020)
It’s refreshing when a band is hard to describe. As a review writer it’s certainly a challenge but sometimes it feels a little too easy to slap a hyphenated label on a record to describe the sound. Daydream’s second album, Mystic Operative, isn’t reinventing rock ‘n’ roll, but it’s also not so easy to pin down to a single scene either.The … Read more
Days N Daze
Show Me The Blueprint
Fat Wreck Chords (2020)
I love it when music takes me to places. In my mind there’s two ways a record can do that. First is the kind that is linked to certain events in my life. Sometimes as simple as a book I read at the time of listening. There are albums that transport me to the fantasy worlds I read about when … Read more
Debt Neglector
Bad Faith EP
Smartpunk Records (2020)
Debt Neglector put this new digital EP into the world in late 2020, in part to help raise funds for Fair Fight before the Georgia runoff elections. It has five songs, ending on an Elvis Costello cover.That intro is relevant because the songs on Bad Faith are highly political in nature, so it gives an added dimension. The EP also came into being from … Read more
DFMK
DFMK
La Escalera Records/ A-F Records/Rad Girlfriend Records/Tiny Dragon Music (2020)
DFMK formed 10 years ago but didn’t release their first full-length until now. The band has been active –- with five EPs to their name and many, many live shows and tours –- but no long-players. At 15 tracks, DFMK shows they took this release seriously.I’m happy to say that their self-titled debut delivers. When a band has such an … Read more
Died
Less Life
Independent (2020)
Does Died’s debut LP Less Life see the band growing up, or is it just them getting old? It’s an odd question to ask of a group who are in the midst of pushing out what should be their first (and best impression) to the world, but hardcore bands tend to operate on different rules. For instance, a band's early 7”s and EPs … Read more
