Recent reviews

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

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

The Locust

New Erections
Anti (2007)

The Locust is an extremely polarizing group. On one hand, people take them as a complete joke. On the other, people take them extremely seriously. I fall somewhere in the middle and find them to be wholly entertaining with some substance hiding beneath the cacophony that they unleash on listeners. On this new album, New Erections, we find The Locust actually expanding a bit on their sound, incorporating a more devastating vocal style on a couple of tracks has actually added a level of crushing sound that the band never achieved before now. Not that New Erections is guaranteed to change people's opinions, it will however, make the band some new fans. New Erections blasts out of the gates in standard Locust fare, until the vocals come crushing down on you. "AOTKPTA" showcases a new voice to the noisy mix. It brings a whole new element to the proceedings that only add a dimension that did not exist on previous outings by The Locust. The song itself carries out like a slow descent into a long avoided madness. The new voice is present again on "The Unwilling…Led by the Unqualified…Doing the Unnecessary." It definitely creates a different level of grinding … Read more

Skin Like Iron

Demo
Independent (2007)

Most demos you hear today can be put into two categories. The first is a bunch of fifteen year old … Read more

The Hold Steady

Live at Fingerprints
Vagrant (2007)

The Hold Steady is a rock and roll band. With this title come certain expectations with loud electric guitars topping … Read more

Low

Drums and Guns
Sub Pop (2007)

Low are known as pioneers of the slow-core genre, or what I like to call "intense sleepy-time music." They reached … Read more

Rwake

Voices of Omens
Relapse (2007)

Progressive sludge? That sounds like an oxymoron. When I think of progressive in terms of music I think of Rush … Read more

Consular

Don't Cross the Swine
Makeshift Origami/Abort the World (2006)

South Florida is usually known for being the breeding ground for such bands as A New Found Glory and Dashboard … Read more

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One from the archives

Wilco

Sky Blue Sky
Nonesuch (2007)

Although Sky Blue Sky is their sixth full-length studio record, it wasn't long ago that I hadn't actually heard of Wilco, and thus their stellar reputation was something I hadn't quite expected. The album's superbly striking artwork told me to expect some frosty post-rock atmospherics, but I was pleasantly underwhelmed by the clear-headed (but not quite sunny) alt-rock that didn't seem to contradict the name of the record. Within about five seconds of opening track "Either Way" it became quite clear what type of album this was going to be: an indie movie soundtrack. When the electric organ reared its head, it was almost necessary to check that this wasn't actually taken from Napoleon Dynamite. Unbeknownst to me however, Wilco simply seem to be rather saucy when it comes to … Read more

More album reviews

Smoke or Fire

This Sinking Ship
Fat Wreck Chords (2007)

Sophomore slumps are a bitch. Smoke or Fire's debut full-length, Above the City, was a nice, short, potent shot of melodic punk with introspective lyrics that felt honest and kept it simple, but This Sinking Ship sounds more like the band is trying too hard to prove that they're relevant. This Sinking Ship is overflowing with political rants, tales of … Read more

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

Some Loud Thunder
Wichita Recordings (2007)

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah had a lot of pressure on them for their second album, mainly due to them being the most hyped up band of 2005. Their story was one told over and over ever since their first album came out: five indie rockers out of Brooklyn that released and distributed their debut album themselves. By great reviews … Read more

Multiple Authors

Hot Cross

Risk Revival
Equal Vision/Hope Division (2007)

If you consider yourself a fan of traditional screamo, you're already familiar with Hot Cross's roots. If not, no big deal. Just click your way over to Wikipedia and do a bit of research (it's worth knowing a band's origins). Risk Revival is the perfect album name for a band that lost one of its guitarists and avoided a break-up. … Read more

Multiple Authors

Hot Cross

Risk Revival
Equal Vision/Hope Division (2007)

Contemporary hardcore is beginning to swing toward a repetitive joke. If drop-d jun jun's and massive amounts of double bass explosions followed by 2-step drum beats sounds familiar, then you know what I mean. Hardcore is not about the breakdown, well not in the common sense of the word anyway. Hardcore is about aggressiveness and honesty. Unfortunately, many upcoming artists … Read more

Justice

Escapades
Reflections/Youngblood (2007)

A band of Belgian hardcore enthusiasts who, in the summer of 2003, had only one goal: to stir, shake and move the hardcore/punk scene. Justice, is their name and their latest album Escapades can only be described as powerful. If they were out to change the genre, they definitely succeeded with Escapades. Labeled as a hardcore band, I personally consider … Read more

Hoods

Ghetto Blaster
Eulogy (2007)

In the event of a worldwide nuclear war, I have come to the conclusion that only one thing will survive. And no, it is not the cockroach; it's Hoods. The Sacramento-based hardcore band has survived it all, including constant line-up battles, DIY tours across the globe, and a brief tenure with Victory Records that didn't go so well - see … Read more

Marillion

Somewhere Else
Intact (2007)

Throughout their over twenty-five year history, Marillion and their music have maintained what many thought impossible: prog without pretension. This has been a key component to their rabidly loyal fan base. It would appear that nobody jumped ship after the band's loss of their original frontman, Fish, way back in 1988. What would have signaled the death of many a … Read more

LCD Soundsystem

Sound of Silver
DFA (2007)

This is the LCD Soundsystem experience; the more you test it and the more you take a sip, the more you become engulfed in it. Suddenly you realize you're singing LCD at your school, in your dorm, in your bathroom. Suddenly your shower is the best party you have ever been to. Your life turns over like an overdone pancake … Read more

Champion

Different Directions | The Last Show
Bridge Nine (2007)

I'm not going to lie; I was never the hugest fan of Champion. Actually, I think Champion's greatest achievement lies nine seconds within "Harrison and Broadway" where the music stops suddenly and Timm McIntosh does that little guitar squeak. I don't know why I think this is so splendid but I love it every time I hear it. Throughout Champion's … Read more

Multiple Authors

Arctic Monkeys

Favourite Worst Nightmare
Domino (2007)

Not many albums open with a song like "Brianstorm." I'm talking Dick Dale on angel dust. I'm talking a sentient '68 Ford Mustang playing a sentient '68 Fender Mustang. Seriously, surfboards in the seventh dimension. The future of rock and roll, so retro it makes me want to dance like a Pulp Fiction character. Actually, Pulp Fiction came to mind … Read more

Multiple Authors

Arctic Monkeys

Favourite Worst Nightmare
Domino (2007)

If I am to believe Wikipedia.org, this album is one of the greatest albums ever released. If I have to believe Wikipedia.org, this band is one of the greatest ever to spawn from the United Kingdom. If I have to believe the professors at my school, Wikipedia.org should never be trusted - and damn, they're absolutely right. Favourite Worst Nightmare … Read more

Volt

Rorhat
Exile on Mainstream/Southern (2006)

There are a lot of bands out there that sound like nothing more than the sum of their influences, without adding anything particularly interesting to the mix. But then there is a rare breed of band whose influences are obvious, yet at the same time, manages to produce something compelling in its own right. Volts, a three-piece hailing from Chemnitz, … Read more

Trash Talk

Walking Disease
Rumble (2007)

Some bands are like wine; they only get better with age. Trash Talk's new "full-length" effort is a great example of just that. Trash Talk has been playing shows since late 2005, with a demo, seven inch, and split with Bay Area friends Steel Trap put out in just over a year. But this is what we've really been waiting … Read more

The Dustheads

Tall Tales I & II
Don Giovanni (2007)

Peanut butter and chocolate; Hall and Oates; French fries and nacho cheese. Some things were meant to be together, but punk and stoner metal? That's kind of like touching two jumper cables together. Explosive! Tall Tales I serves as a nice introduction to what this New York City band is all about. Side A boasts the track "Save Our Souls," … Read more

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