Code Orange
Forever
Roadrunner (2017)
Code Orange are really hardcore. Not the genre, the noun. As a descriptive and an ethos, they wear it well. Forever is the band's first album with Roadrunner Records and it's gargantuan, throwing down the gauntlet for the next generation of heavy music.It's probably no coincidence that the band hail from Pittsburgh, because there's a strong working-class sound and attitude … 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
Dragonforce
The Power Within
Roadrunner (2012)
Okay, I'll just come out and say it--I like DragonForce.I know, I know; just saying 'DragonForce' is a one-liner joke in of itself. Whether its the plague of terrible performances that prevailed during the Inhuman Rampage tour, or the observation that the band can only play at two speeds: metal and ballad, or simply the fact that fantasy-based power metal … Read more
Dream Theater
A Dramatic Turn Of Events
Roadrunner (2011)
A dramatic turn of events, indeed. Anyone who's been following the soap opera that has been Dream Theater's existence over the past year would believe that to be an understatement. It began with founding drummer Mike Portnoy's agreeing to work with Avenged Sevenfold after the sudden passing of their drummer, The Rev. Sometime afterwards, Portnoy (OSI, Liquid Tension Experiment, Neal … Read more
Gojira
L'Enfant Sauvage
Roadrunner (2012)
If there's any band that defies easy description, it has to be French progressive metal band Gojira. Featuring influences and techniques from a variety of complex metal genres, incredibly technically talented band members, and an environmental fixation only a few degrees short of an actual whale fetish, these guys are anything but your standard death metallers. Add on a quartet … Read more
Gojira
Magma
Roadrunner (2016)
Gojira are an anomaly. Not because they're form France, though French metal is somewhat of a rarity - but Gojira are one of the few bands that have long held the respect of fans, peers and critics alike. This will not change with Magma, the band's sixth album. If anything, their ascension in this regard is most likely assured with … Read more
Hatebreed
Supremacy
Roadrunner (2006)
To me, Hatebreed mark the pinnacle, as well as the end of an era for Victory Records. Satisfaction is the Death of Desire was the epitome of mid-90's hardcore: mosh heavy, distrusting, and pissed. Since then, Hatebreed as well as Victory Records have not necessarily become less credible (Victory had none anyways), but definitely watered down and weaker than their … Read more
Killswitch Engage
As Daylight Dies
Roadrunner (2006)
Complain all you want about the state of modern music. Yes, we have to deal with fake soul like Maroon 5, fake screamo like The Used, and fake men like Panic! At the Disco. But it's still a remarkable thing that heavy music with abrasive screaming has become at least partially mainstream. You won't usually hear it on radio, sometimes … Read more
Mutiny Within
Mutiny Within II: Synchronicity
Roadrunner (2013)
After releasing their striking eponymous debut in 2010, Mutiny Within were subsequently driven to disbandment by drastically lower than expected sales. Oddly enough, this wasn't due to a lack of musical proficiency but, rather confusingly, seemingly because of it; vocalist Chris Clancy maintains that the album was downloaded illegaly around ten times as often for every copy sold, making it … Read more
New York Dolls
One Day it Will Please Us to Remember Even This
Roadrunner (2006)
Okay, let's run down the list, shall we? Billy Murcia (1951 - November 6, 1972) Johnny Thunders (July 16, 1952 - April 23, 1991) Jerry Nolan (May 7, 1946 - January 14, 1992) Arthur "Killer" Kane (February 3, 1949 - July 13, 2004) For you young'uns out there bear in mind - those dates signify deaths, not roster changes. For … Read more
Rush
Clockwork Angels
Roadrunner (2012)
On some days, when I'm really brutally honest with myself, I can safely admit that all of my favourite old rock bands from the 1970s have gone completely past the point of no return; they'll never release an album of the same calibre as those from their heyday, they'll never sell out huge stadiums and get the attention they used … Read more
Storm Corrosion
Self Titled
Roadrunner (2012)
Steven Wilson and Mikael Åkerfeldt are both two musicians I hold in incredibly high esteem. Wilson’s flabbergasting diversity of styles covered with Porcupine Tree or his various solo projects and Åkerfeldt’s amazingly thoughtful and moving compositions with Opeth both continue to astound me no matter how often I listen to them. It should go without saying they are both gifted … Read more
The Dresden Dolls
Yes, Virginia
Roadrunner (2006)
Disclaimer: Any use of the term "gay" in the following review is, in this context a derogatory term to denote a substandard listening experience and in no way reflects the author's views on homosexuality. The author will not go on record as stating that some of his best friends are gay, as he has, in fact no friends, gay or … Read more
Turnstile
Glow On
Roadrunner (2021)
It has only been a couple of months since I use a music app (other than Bandcamp). At first I was mad with it, as it was suggesting music I should like which was either total crap or so much unlike my taste that I thought someone else might be using my account. Anyway, one day this app suggested I … Read more
