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200 Words Or Less

Signs of Hope

Choices Made
Detonate (2008)

I thoroughly enjoyed CT's Signs of Hope full-length First and Foremost and was pleased as punch to see their new EP in my mailbox. If you aren't familiar with Signs of Hope, they play fast hardcore that sounds like everyone else but it doesn't matter since Signs of Hope does it so well. Choices Made ventures into the ground of … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Stay Sharp

Four Songs
Monkey Wrench (2008)

I remember lurking various bands Myspaces and coming across this Philadelphia band. I remember liking it, I also remember saying something about how Stay Sharp sounded like Lifetime. What's not to love? Well now this four-song EP is rocking in my boombox and now Stay Sharp remind of Holding On's Question What You Live For album. Yes, it's more fast … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Cold Snap

Didn't Your Mother Warn You About Creatures in the Night
Independent (2008)

A three-song demo of slow droning somewhat melodic hardcore named after a Suicide File song. Cold Snap tries to recall the heydays of Boston hardcore when American Nightmare and Panic ruled the roost, but come nowhere close to the emotional outpouring of either band. The vocals are highly annoying in their screeched running out of breath quality. The songs themselves … Read more

Young Widows

Old Wounds
Temporary Residence (2008)

So, Young Widows makes the jump to a new label and to be perfectly honest, this change of scenery for the band seems much like a new beginning rather than an update on an old sound. While the band's previous album, Settle Down City, is a continuation of the work which the group were pursuing as Breather Resist (Young Widows' … Read more

GZA

Pro Tools
Babygrande (2008)

Wu-Tang Clan member GZA - aka The Genius - is back with his first solo offering since 2002's Legend of the Liquid Sword. But it's not like GZA hasn't been busy. The six-year span has seen a collaborative effort with Muggs of Cypress Hill, a new Wu-Tang Clan album last year, and, in-between, collaborations too numerous to count. Pro Tools … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Population Reduction

Each Birth a New Crime
Tankcrimes (2008)

Like weed? What about beer? Okay, here's the clincher: what about loud as shit cynicism rammed into your sloping skull at diarrhea speed? Yeah? Check out Each Birth a New Disaster, the first album by Population Reduction, a two man grind band from San Francisco that drills your eardrums with blast beats, the blackest of thrash riffs, and death metal … Read more

200 Words Or Less

They and the Children

Home
Kill Normal (2008)

What if Deathreat cited Pink Floyd as an influence? Or Isis listened to more d-beat? The result would be spacey and sludgy, ambient while devastating. While these seem like polar opposites in the world of dense music, Connecticut's They and the Children blend these styles with near perfection on their final release, Home . The ebb and flow of this … Read more

200 Words Or Less

My Heart to Joy at the Same Tone

Virgin Sails
Triumph of Life (2008)

I'm not too sure about the band's namesake, but you can't always judge a book by its cover. So, I went into the new 7" from My Heart to Joy at the Same Tone, Virgin Sails, blind. This Connecticut four-piece offer up three songs on their newest EP. Their sound is a mash up of punk, indie rock, emo, and … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Brainworms / Tubers

Split
Dead Tank (2008)

Brainworms continue their progression with each release. With numerous recordings under their belts by now, the band has finally come to a point where they're finding their own identity. The band offers up "Jay's Big Date," equal parts punk ethos and indie rock, comparable at times to that of Minus the Bear's work on Menos el Oso. They follow it … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Inert

Inert
Our Pride (2008)

Inert is an ex-members of band from Los Angeles. This 7" is the band's debut offering and boasts six tracks of metallic, groove-laden hardcore. Musically this reminds me of No Warning and Cold World but not as good, and I don't even like either of those bands. If that's what you're into, then you'll probably enjoy what these guys have … Read more

Pygmy Lush

Mount Hope
Lovitt (2008)

The metamorphosis is complete. Where Bitter River combined harsh and acoustic tracks, Mount Hope excludes the 'harsh.' In this way, one can view Pygmy Lush's roots, the seminal Pg. 99 and City of Caterpillar, as the larva, or caterpillar, if you will. Pygmy Lush's first release, Bitter River, then serves as the cocoon transition between musicians' prior work into the … Read more

Ratatat

LP3
XL Recordings (2008)

Even if you haven't heard of Ratatat, you've heard them. They boast an impressive list of their songs featured in endless commercials and movies. Ratatat is everywhere. Beginning in 2004 as simply a guitar and synth, they recorded their entire debut album on a laptop. With their fortunate connections they released Ratatat in the U.S. and the U.K., and quickly … Read more

Skin Like Iron

Skin Like Iron
Independent (2008)

I can't help but wonder what the music world would be like without experimentation. Sure, the first to try something different is often shunned, but their willingness to try something different is what makes them so great. While perhaps not a genre-defining move, the direction that Skin Like Iron have taken with their music is one breath of fresh air … Read more

Trees

Lights Bane
Crucial Blast (2008)

A monolithic drone keeps you on guard. You're waiting for whatever is coming, but you don't know that "what" is. The artwork of Trees' Lights Bane hints at something intense, but there's an ambiguity that accompanies it. The album, the Portland quartet's debut, has only two tracks listed, and each of them are over twelve minutes in length. Lights Bane... … Read more

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