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Toronto

Under Siege
Dying Victims Productions (2020)

From the ashes of the sorely missed, contemporary but old school death merchants Morbus Chron rises an altogether different phoenix. From 80s style Death-and-Entombed death metal we get the same decade as a frame of reference, but this time we’re talking some fist-pumping New Wave of British Heavy Metal infused with speed metal and more than a smidgen of hardcore.This … Read more

Geld

Beyond the Floor
Iron Lung (2020)

When Aussie hardcore troupe Geld held a launch party for their previous album Perfect Textures two years ago they played, among other things, some cover songs from Hawkwind and Sick of it All. According to their label Iron Lung Records the band will have a digital launch of their brand new lp Beyond the Floor and cover songs this time … Read more

Pity Party

Concrete
Independent (2020)

Hello 1990s. Pity Party, from Oakland, play fuzzed out drudgy punk. While most press I read about calls the band pop-punk and even emo, I’d put them a less crisp category. DIY indie-punk, maybe? But with some harsher sounds that parlay a little more anger and anguish. Grunge doesn’t feel quite right, but close. I hate to drop the Riot … Read more

Venomous Concept

Politics vs the Erection
Season of Mist (2020)

People tell me all the time that they don't "get" politics. That they don't really understand them and try to avoid them whenever they come up. CNN contributors usually pan these types of people as "undecided voters," usually implying that lack of decisiveness in choosing a political candidate ahead of an election is due to them being too dumb, misinformed, … Read more

The Carvels NYC

Live At The Cutting Room
Die Laughing Records (2020)

2018 is the first time I heard from The Carvels NYC. The cover artwork was what drew me in that time. The music convinced me to ask for more of the same recipe. The band delivered not long after my review by releasing a second EP. I was happy with it. 2020 saw another EP. Again I was happy with … Read more

Shellshag

FUTQ
Independent (2020)

Shellshag, a duo from Brooklyn, play a unique style of fuzzy stoner punk. Live, Shell and Shag play drums and guitar, standing face-to-face and sharing a Y-shaped microphone stand (pictured on the album cover). It’s personal -- just look at the name – and feels alternately intimate, yet communal -- it has that impossible-to-define punk spirit that involves the audience … Read more

Quaker Wedding

In Transit
Salinas Records (2020)

Sometimes when you take a test drive, you know right away that it’s the car for you.Quaker Wedding, if they were a car (sorry, but I’m going to drive this metaphor as far as I can), would be the 150,000+ mile American economy vehicle I drove for a decade in the ‘90s. It’s unique and agile, but with rust spots, … Read more

Aseitas

False Peace
Translation Loss (2020)

Aseitas hail from the wilds of Portland, Oregon and while many bands from that region tend to dabble in the blackened side of the extreme metal spectrum, this group aim to create sonic dissonance via the technical aspects of death metal. Their second full-length, False Peace, is a demanding listen, not least because of three long-form tracks (all over ten … Read more

Ulver

Flowers of Evil
House of Mythology (2020)

It’s no secret that Ulver have long since moved on from their black metal past and while the Norwegians have firmly left the harsh, cold winters behind, their music still moves in less than positive circles – at least when it comes to the subject matter. The Ulver of 2020 plays in the pantheon of synth-driven pop, however, the lyrical … Read more

The Other

Haunted
Drakkar Entertainment (2020)

This new album by The Other came as a bit of surprise for me. I was thrilled no less thrilled when I saw the announcement online though. This band has been one of my favorite horrorpunk bands ever since I picked up their debut album They’re Alive somewhere back in 2004 or 2005. It has been a long and awesome … Read more

Primitive Man

Immersion
Relapse (2020)

Writing about music is a bit like being an anthropologist. The kind who immerses themselves in a culture to better understand it. Not the kind who comes up with whacked-out theories while staring blankly at the wall of the faculty lounge (or I guess now, their kitchen cupboards between Zoom classes). To really do a piece of art justice, you … Read more

Owen

The Avalanche
Polyvinyl (2020)

I struggled rather mightily on how to summate longtime fandom into a concise review for this record, a Sisyphean task that was slowly running me into the ground. I even had a dream about Owen and woke up at 5 a.m. with some revelatory connection that would be my through line, but I fell back asleep and the conclusions eluded … Read more

Biznaga

Gran Pantalla
Slovenly (2020)

Gran Pantalla is the third LP from Spain’s Biznaga. It’s predecessor, Sentido Del Espectáculo, was quite successful in Spain and numero tres comes with the lofty promise in the press material as “If Joe Strummer were actually from Granada, The Clash would have sounded something like this.” It’s also the band’s first record featuring collaborative songwriting, instead of each writer … Read more

All Hits

Men And Their Work
Iron Lung (2020)

Back in the 1980s there were some intriguing new sounds developing. Post-punk was always arty and a bit noisier, but always so serious. New Wave was danceable and synthetic, but sometimes not serious enough. The commonality between the two, tonally, was an exploration of new soundscapes with inhuman tones: finding a balance between a detached dystopian environment and the nuance … Read more

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