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Celtic Frost

Monotheist
Century Media (2006)

There are few bands that had as much of an impact on my youth as Celtic Frost. Rising from the ashes of Hellhammer, Thomas Gabriel Fischer and Martin Eric Ain released the seminal album Morbid Tales. The year was 1984 and to say this album fascinated me was an understatement. Even though I had been listening to the heavier side … Read more

Crime Desire

Id Music to Combat the Superego
Life Is A Rape (2006)

When no one's chomping at the bit, hardcore can easily turn into comfort food. Sing-alongs, breakdowns and carefully placed "go!"s can become a security blanket. This has its place, but hardcore is often best when bands eschew the easy outs of well-worn forms and stake out fresh ground. Bands like Crime Desire are what keep the wheels turning by breaking … Read more

Last Minute Fix

Revenge of the Syringe
Wormhole (2006)

The cover of Last Minute Fix's debut effort, Revenge of the Syringe, depicts a bald eagle sitting in an alley totally strung out. Sitting next to the eagle is a pile of pills, there are syringes stuck into each wing, a cigar (or possibly a joint) in its beak, and a noose around its neck. If one were to guess … Read more

Rise Against

The Sufferer and the Witness
Geffen (2006)

It's always nice when a band that exhibited incredible promise coming up through indie labels continues to show evolution without distancing themselves from their roots once they've hit major label status. Rise Against continues to prove that a major label doesn't mean shit when it comes to writing their music, which is one of the small reasons I like them … Read more

Good Riddance

My Republic
Fat Wreck Chords (2006)

The opening of My Republic could easily be mistaken for the opening to just about any guitar based album from the past 30 years, with quietly plucked single notes pushing along for a moment or two. It is only as "Out of Mind" explodes into the best Bad Religion song since Mr. Brett left the band for the first time … Read more

Invade

Invade
Independent (2006)

My roommate likes to call early 90's hardcore "The Dark Ages of Hardcore" with its metal influences, all the way to the left neo-hippie politics, poetic non-sense, and mosh parts. In many way he's right, but the beginning part of the 90's wasn't all bad and we got some great bands like Undertow, Unbroken, Integrity, Indecision, and others that start … Read more

Tragedy

Nerve Damage
Tragedy (2006)

Honestly, Tragedy has to be considered one of the best punk bands going right now. Their music is super tight and just awesome. Their lyrics are poignant. The vocals are down right devastating to hear (coming from both of the vocalists). A few weeks ago, I was commenting how it had been too long of a gap between their last … Read more

Defiance, Ohio

The Great Depression
No Idea (2006)

In 2004, Defiance, Ohio released Share What Ya' Got. While I really enjoyed the record, I often found that the production quality was very weak and it definitely hampered the appeal of the record for many more potential fans. Two years later, the bands' latest effort and second full-length, The Great Depression, seems to have erased the slight complaints I … Read more

Multiple Authors

Sinking Ships

Disconnecting
Revelation (2006)

This is a pleasant surprise. This is a hardcore record, a good hardcore record. The vocals are just the right fit for the music. I heard these guys before on the Generations record that Revelation released semi recently. These guys have a good hardcore sound with dashes of melody that makes Disconnecting so distinct. "Give Up" leads off Disconnecting with … Read more

Multiple Authors

Sinking Ships

Disconnecting
Revelation (2006)

The Northwest hardcore scene recently lost an undeniable force with the breakup of fan favorite Champion. Fortunately there is a wake of other amazing bands ready to claim their crown as the kings of hardcore from that region. One of the more promising of those bands is Sinking Ships, a five-piece outfit from the Seattle area. And with Disconnecting, their … Read more

Mass Movement of the Moth

Outerspace
Exotic Fever (2006)

Mass Movement of the Moth is a band doing it the right way. Playing together for years and making a name for themselves in the DC hardcore scene and to some extent the whole Northeast, the band's first official release came just last year. Once the releases started, they didn't stop, and the hardcore world as a whole was introduced … Read more

Escape the Fate

There's No Sympathy for the Dead
Epitaph (2006)

Brett Gurewitz clearly smells money like band mate Greg Graffin smells fat teen pussy from Wisconsin, and it gets him just as hard. By his own admission Gurewitz has never "come across a new group with more potential to be huge" than Escape the Fate. The dollar signs must be spinning in his eyes as the Myspace friend requests grow … Read more

Men's Recovery Project

The Very Best of Men's Recovery Project
5 Rue Christine (2005)

The idea of releasing a "Greatest Hits" package for a band like Men's Recovery Project seems laughable on the surface. Emerging out of the scorched carcass of Born Against, Men's Recovery Project left an embarrassing stain on the face of mid-'90s hardcore, offering messy, aberrant punk fueled by primitive, farting electronics and a defiant sense of weirdness. This isn't the … Read more

Multiple Authors

The Killer

Better Judged by Twelve than Carried by Six (Reissue)
Organized Crime (2006)

If there is one hardcore band in Chicago that truly defines the conventions of "Chicago Hardcore," it is The Killer. The various musical backgrounds of each member leads to an interesting fusion of the heavier metalcore bands as well as Southern Rock, and even a bit of doom metal. Everything about this album is solid from the production to the … Read more

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