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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)

Senmuth

Hagwalah
Independent (2012)

Russian rocker Senmuth is known for his very overt fetish for all things Near Eastern. All you have to do is look at his website, and you'll see it's filled to the brim with pictures of him in Egypt, as well as the vast quantities of music and artwork that interest has inspired. But then, amongst all of that, there is his recent release, Hagwalah, which sticks out from the rest of his collective works like an elephant in the room.And maybe that's one of the reasons this album is so effective--standing in contrast to his other works, which are overtly adorned with ancient Egyptian imagery, the cover for Hagwalah is a stark, candid photo of a titular drifter going out of control, shooting a rifle into the air, and the accident that unavoidably results from his actions. The sand thrown upward, the doors flying open--all of this is unexpected, and hence even more incredibly powerful, imagery.The music is also uncharacteristically ferocious for Senmuth, hitting harder and heavier than the rest of his vast discography. Imagine the weight and power of Geheimatite coupled with the ambient flavours of Path to Satiam and you'll have a vague idea. And that's no … Read more

Big Black Delta

IFUCKINGLOVEYOU
Master Of Bates (2012)

Jonathan Bates, aka Big Black Delta, made me entirely rethink what pop music could be last year with the release … Read more

Rehashed

Code Black
Power It Up (2011)

Rehashed out of Saskatoon are working at carrying the crossover torch into the next decade. While there are a few … Read more

Two Gallants

The Bloom And The Blight
ATO (2012)

2012 sees Two Gallants coming back from a 5-year hiatus with their new release The Bloom and the Blight. How … Read more

Homewrecker

Worms & Dirt
A389 (2012)

Ohio's Homewrecker have only been a band for a relatively short time, but in that time they have bridged the … Read more

Nü Sensae

Sundowning
Suicide Squeeze (2012)

Whether it is rap music, hardcore or pop punk, it seems the ‘90s are forcing their way back into our … Read more

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200 Words Or Less

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One from the archives

Josh Ritter

The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
Sony (2007)

200 Words Or Less

Awarding Josh Ritter the title of "the next Bob Dylan" seems audacious, but repeated listens to The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter proves it a worthy statement to make. The opening track, "To the Dogs or Whoever," exhibits Dylan-esque vocals and rhythm, reminding me of '65 when Dylan tried to innovate folk music by plugging in. Ritter, too, attempts to elevate the genre. Does he succeed? The purists and anti-folk enthusiasts might argue Ritter's bastardizing the whole thing, but as Dylan said, "the times they are a-changin," and Josh Ritter shows that maybe it's for the better. Using traditional folk as a point of departure he creates lush soundscapes, embracing a cornucopia of styles including gasp - pop. The end result: songs with the most unique attributes. The lyrics, including … Read more

More album reviews

Katatonia

Dead End Kings
Peaceville (2012)

Sweden’s Katatonia have been a constant presence in the realm of blackened doom/death metal since the bands inception way back in the very early 90s, and whilst a modicum of that era is still present in the group’s sound of today, Katatonia are now a fully fledged depressive rock entity. Whilst this depressive tendency ebbs and flows throughout much of … Read more

The Gaslight Anthem

Handwritten
Mercury (2012)

Depending on your perspective, The Gaslight Anthem are either a Bruce Springsteen cover band or one of the more exciting mainstream bands still producing music. On their fourth album, the New Jersey punks have found themselves in a curious position: whilst they have continued to grow in popularity, the critical acclaim that moved them into the public’s general awareness, has … Read more

T.O.M.B.

UAG
Crucial Blast (2012)

T.O.M.B. or Total Occultic Mechanical Blasphemy has managed to up the stakes of what can qualify as black noise for over 10 years. The group sounds like distorted occultist activities that are taking place within a tomb. So now that we know how truly appropriate their name is one may question how well this record carries said reputation. The record … Read more

Young Guv & the Scuzz

A Love Too Strong
Southpaw (2012)

Young Guv, aka Ben Cook, has been keeping himself busy. Besides his full-time gig with the mammoth hardcore band Fucked Up, he’s released 11 singles and 2 previous EPs as Young Guv. Along comes EP#2 in the form of Young Guv & The Scuzz’s A Love Too Strong. This time along, he’s entered a proper studio and gathered a backing … Read more

The Riverboat Gamblers

The Wolf You Feed
Volcom (2012)

The Riverboat Gamblers are an established band. So much so that it surprised me to see that The Wolf You Feed is just their fifth full-length, following last year’s Smash/Grab EP. With that history, they’ve jumped styles and labels, going unfettered rock to slick anthems, and successfully straddling the lines between punk, hard rock, and garage. The Wolf You Feed … Read more

Tesseract

Perspective
Century Media (2012)

TesseracT made quite a splash in the djent scene with their debut last year, the aptly titled One. Though the album itself wasn't particularly impressive, it still struck a chord with a lot of listeners and garnered the band quite a following. It's no surprise they've rushed to produce something to follow it up, and that follow up is 2012's … Read more

Deathmøle

Meade's Army
Independent (2012)

Jeph Jacques may be primarily a cartoonist, but he's somehow managed to turn that profession into an outlet for his musical passions as well, crafting a virtual band from his own fictional characters and recording real music for them. The result is his one-man post-metal project, the flippantly named Deathmøle, which has turned out a steady stream of albums since … Read more

Multiple Authors

Swans

The Seer
Young God (2012)

This is the third review of this that I am writing and the first two were these rather objective and staid ruminations on the music that The Seer contains, but both of those were completely false and void of any possible feeling, making the words empty and worthless to anyone who would read either one in anyway; I threw them … Read more

Multiple Authors

Swans

The Seer
Young God (2012)

Approaching Swans, and in particular attempting to “review” a Swans record is much like approaching a rock face you know is almost unscaleable. There is a way up and over, but it seems so very far away that at the beginning you spend at least an hour staring at a blank page willing something to happen – and other people … Read more

Aesop Rock

Skelethon
Rhymesayers (2012)

The big complaint since Aesop Rock’s breakthrough, Labor Days, seems to be that he hasn’t had the memorable singles. At this point, it should be clear that Aesop Rock writes albums, not hits. Skelethon is his sixth release, and first with powerhouse label Rhymesayers Entertainment. While None Shall Pass (2007) had its moments, I’ve long felt Aesop Rock’s best work … Read more

Mission Of Burma

Unsound
Fire (2012)

In the early eighties when the Boston post-punk band Mission of Burma announced their decision to stop playing and recording due to guitarist Roger Millers tinnitus issues it seemed like the end of an era. The band enjoyed notoriety, not on the charts, but among music lovers/fans in general who were in love with the pure ferocity, quirky melodies, and … Read more

Elway

Hence My Optimism
Red Scare Industries (2012)

Following a name change from the audibly slick 10-4 Eleanor and absurd legal debacles with John Elway of the Denver Broncos comes the follow-up EP from the Colorado 4-piece’s Red Scare debut. Hence My Optimism shows little progression from Elway’s previous efforts but proves there’s little merit in fixing what isn’t broken. Packing enough energy and rambunctious attitude to rival … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Balance and Composure

Acoustic
No Sleep (2012)

From Doylestown, PA, Balance and Composure has created a lot of buzz in the past few years for their melodic and emotional contributions to the ever-changing underground scene. They’ve released two EPs, a split with Tiger’s Jaw, and a full-length called Separation, all on No Sleep Records. Again teaming up with No Sleep, we have an acoustic 7-inch in which … Read more

New Bruises

Chock Full of Misery
Kiss of Death (2012)

Chock Full of Misery as a title sets a bleak tone for a group best labeled as pop-punk. Yet, New Bruises don’t let the downer subject matter override their energetic and singalong anthems. In song titles past and present, the group has namedropped both Kurt Vonnegut and Johnny Cash—and both are apt examples for New Bruises common tone of frustration, … Read more

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