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Our latest album reviews, featuring the records we've most enjoyed (or not) over the past few weeks.

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Browse our album reviews according to score: Highest (9.5/10 or more) or Lowest (2/10 or less)

Kite Party

Baseball Season
Animal Style (2012)

Kite Party reside and make music in Philadelphia, PA. They’ve released some well-received EPs over the last half-dozen years, and seem to have done a lot of live performing too. Their debut full-length, Baseball Season, was self-released in 2011, then picked up by Animal Style Records and re-released in early 2012.My initial reaction upon dropping the needle and hearing the first few minutes of opening track “Welcome to Miami” was that, overall, the record is much prettier and more shimmery and laden with overt pop sensibility than I had expected. Mayhap this has something to do with the fact that the promotional material sent along with the album claimed it was recommended listening for those who like Fugazi (which I do—quite a lot). It's a bold, yet confusing, comparison—I confess I failed to see the connection.Kite Party have a real contemporary pop/rock sound; drumming is simple, but tasteful and smart. There are some catchy, repetitive, riff-y guitar lines. All the melodies (vocals included) stay within a fairly narrow range–nothing too wild and crazy going on here, although the music is somewhat comforting in its extremely consistent production and overall vibe. Nonetheless, most tracks present interesting song structures with more going … Read more

The Ocean

Pelagial
Metal Blade (2013)

The Ocean, the German post-sludge-metal act masterminded by guitarist Robin Staps, is one of the most consistently high-quality bands in … Read more

Tesseract

Altered State
Century Media (2013)

Up until this point, TesseracT wasn't a band I held much respect for. Though a competent release, their debut album … Read more

The Psyke Project

Guillotine
Swarm Of Nails (2013)

The Psyke Project have been terrorizing the metallic hardcore scene since the mid 00s. With their albums steadily increasing in … Read more

Big Big Train

English Electric
English Electric (2013)

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a progressive rock band in possession of a good reputation must be in … Read more

Forgotten Tomb

...and Don't Deliver Us from Evil
Agonia (2012)

The Italian boys of Forgotten Tomb are certainly not new kids to the black metal scene. The band, going strong … Read more

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One from the archives

Where Fear and Weapons Meet

Control
Eulogy (2003)

When people first get into hardcore, they say it all sounds the same. This is understandable, because a lot of it sounds the same. In this case, we are subjected to music that doesn't really have it's own sound. The music reminds me of Sick Of It All and punk rock hardcore straight up with a lack of mosh breakdowns. If you are just getting into hardcore or punk, this isn't a good start. But if you are an enjoyer of punk and/or hardcore, you will be an enjoyer of this. It's not that this isn't good, it's just that there's better stuff that I would suggest checking out, such as the new Suicide File release. I also wanted to point out that the singer's vocals remind me of Scissorhands'. Read more

More album reviews

Gateway District

Old Wild Hearts
It's Alive (2013)

“We’re going to break you down this Saturday night,” sings The Gateway District in “Break You Down,” off their new LP, Old Wild Hearts. It’s as fitting a place to start as any. The band has a working for the weekend vibe to them, celebrating the good times and letting your Saturday nights roll. On their third LP, the transition … Read more

Queensrÿche

Self Titled
Century Media (2013)

An eponymously titled album is somewhat unusual this late into a bands' career and will typically signify that the band in question is, despite all excuses and comments to the contrary, simply out of any new ideas - as reflected in the lack of title along with the lack of songwriting. This could not be farther from the truth in … Read more

Koko Beware

Something About Summer
Independent (2012)

I have to be honest here. A band named after a professional wrestler, no matter what they sound like, is going to tug at my heart strings in a way that’s totally unfair to all bands that are not named after professional wrestlers. I also love summer, summer jams, and any jams that evoke some sort of summer-ness. And with … Read more

Enslaved

RIITIIR
Nuclear Blast (2012)

the black metal horde Enslaved seems to have been around forever. Unlike most bands of their genre and pedigree they have managed to add elements to their style to make themselves more their own band with each release. Each album has flirted with their Pink Floyd fascination while stripping away the unneeded kvlt aspects of the band's sound. For most … Read more

Anciients

Heart Of Oak
Season of Mist (2013)

The debut album, Heart of Oak, for the Canadian extreme/progressive metal band, Anciients, is a fascinating one. And do not think that this is going to be your standard “progressive” band, where technicality is more important than feeling or substance. This band is an extremely difficult one to categorize so the term “progressive” is used here in a very vague … Read more

October Falls

The Plague of a Coming Age
Debemur Morti Productions (2013)

Starting life as a one-man instrumental outfit by M.Lehto in 2001, October Falls soon began to incorporate other members as well as a more metallic approach to the black metal genre and in 2007 The Streams of the End signalled a huge step for the band in terms of musical stance. Their music is steeped in the history of their … Read more

Street Eaters

Self Titled
Cut the Cord That…Records (2012)

There are a few formats I almost go out of my way to avoid, namely cassettes and digital EPs. However, I’ll make an exception for certain bands and Street Eaters are one of those. Street Eaters released their debut full-length Rusty Eyes and Hydrocarbons in 2011 and it still grips me today. This self-titled digi-EP did see a 12” pressing … Read more

Iron Lung

White Glove Test
Prank (2013)

Sweet jesus did Iron Lung ever “come back” with a bang (seriously it has been six years since the band’s awesome album, Sexless // No Sex and even though they released a bunch of splits and collaborations in the interim, it still seems like they have been a bit quiet of late) with the extremely ambitious White Glove Test; with … Read more

Vultress

Distance
Independent (2013)

Don't be fooled by the naïvely inconspicuous visage; Vultress are the real deal, and their debut release Distance has emerged out of nowhere to become one of the most surprisingly proficient progressive albums this year.Actually, what's most remarkable about Distance is just how unremarkable it is. For an album that leaves an unforgettably positive impression, it's surprising to realize that … Read more

sadgiqacea

False Prism
Candlelight (2013)

After the release of an EP and two split albums, Sadgiqacea managed to land a deal with Candlelight Records under which their debut full-length album False Prism is coming out. The band from Pennsylvania is definitely one you want to check if you are into experimental heavy music, because they definitely know how to create imposing music that has the … Read more

The Dillinger Escape Plan

...One Of Us Is The Killer
Sumerian (2013)

As a disclaimer, I am not in any way an expert on bands whose primary genre tag ends in '-core'. However, I know a fantastic album when I hear it, and the Dillinger Escape Plan's latest album, 2013's One of Us is the Killer, is beyond even that.It's been clear since their 1999 debut Calculating Infinity that the Dillinger Escape … Read more

Queens of the Stone Age

Like Clockwork
Matador (2013)

"I blow my load over the status quo - here we go".A reading from the book of Homme. It has been 6 since Queens of the Stone Age released their album Era Vulgaris. An album this reviewer gave a favorable rating, but admittedly didn't fully understand at the time of reviewing for this site. I couldn't fully grasp what the … Read more

LVMRKS

Pale Fairytale
LVMRKS (2013)

For a band whose onesheet opens with the pointed “[includes former] member of …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead during that band’s peak,” one would expect a band with some fire at their core. Instead, LVMRKS are an exercise in banality. The nine songs here trudge along at the same pace without any expression from vocalist … Read more

Escape the Fate

Ungrateful
Eleven Seven (2013)

One of the many reasons historians will condemn the early 21st century is the rise of glametalcore. Purveyed by groups such as Steel Panther and Asking Alexandria, this sound blends the abrasive vocals and breakdowns of metalcore with the flamboyance and catchiness of glam metal. Escape The Fate have been torchbearers of the sub-genre ever since they ditched Ronnie Radke … Read more

Reviews by score
Browse our album reviews according to score: Highest (9.5/10 or more) or Lowest (2/10 or less)