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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)

Blut Aus Nord

Hallucinogen
Debemur Morti Productions (2019)

Having a twenty-five year long career is an achievement in itself, yet crafting works that can stand as a whole and as a part of each other is another level of talent that many try their hardest to reach, and many fail to achieve. France’s Blut Aus Nord find no problems with reinventing their sound and creating compositions that ring true for their approach yet carry threads of different texture throughout. The Memoria Vetusta trilogy, the 777 trilogy, the three part EP series of What Once Was...Liber, plus many other full-lengths and splits - each has their own distinct tones and ideas contained in their walls of sound and somehow cohesion is woven through all to give the music a definitive Blut Aus Nord aura.This approach endures on Hallucinogen, now their thirteenth full-length record, which seemingly dispenses of most “black metal” sounds to create a new world, one of growth and of warmth. This is black metal at its most radiant - there are new paths of brightness to be found during Hallucinogen and opening track “Nomos Nebuleam” pulses with that light. Guitars are lifted into the realms of the heavens while keyboards push the sound into new dimensions and … Read more

Prince Daddy & The Hyena

Cosmic Thrill Seekers
Counter Intuitive Records (2019)

When pop punk and emo reached their commercial peaks in the mid 00’s, many believed the subgenres had lost their … Read more

Idle Hands

Mana
Eisenwald (2019)

The metal scene is one that moves in cycles, with sub-genres becoming the flavour of the month before the hot … Read more

Petty Larcenists

Stolen Chords and Lifted Riffs
Rad Girlfriend Records (2019)

You’ve heard of no depression music? I’m coining a new term here: depression punk.Opening song “Loud and Ugly” might be … Read more

Cult of Luna

A Dawn to Fear
Metal Blade (2019)

There is something incredibly special about Cult of Luna - no other band can touch their ability to meld weight … Read more

Malvina

Hybrid Wars
Morning Wood Records (2019)

Hybrid warfare is a strategy that combines political -, conventional -, irregular - and cyber warfare. Thank you, Wikipedia, for … Read more

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One from the archives

Mrs. Magician

High Resolution b/w Dead Alive
Swami (2026)

Mrs. Magician is back! For those unfamiliar, Mrs. Magician is a garage punk band based in San Diego, CA. They formed in 2010 and between then and 2016, they managed to release 6 singles, 2 albums and 1 B-sides collection. Both of their full lengths were released on Swami Records, the label helmed by legendary San Diego guitar slasher/voice crasher, John Reis (Rocket From The Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes, etc.) Mrs. Magician had been inactive the last 8 or so years, as lead magician Jacob Turnbloom released 2 solo albums between 2019-2022. His solo work is very much worth seeking out as well. 2026 now sees the return of Turnbloom to his Mrs. Magician vehicle with a revamped lineup that includes drummer Andrew Montoya and bassist Mark Rivera. … Read more

More album reviews

Crypt Sermon

The Ruins of Fading Light
Dark Descent Records (2019)

The evolution of a band is something that most of us can comprehend through their musical output and live appearances and where most bands evolve quite publicly, there are some that build on their creations behind the scenes and the fruits of their labour are only heard when new music is released. Crypt Sermon are one such band, who came … Read more

CJ Ramone

The Holy Spell
Fat Wreck Chords (2019)

As of August 6th, it’s been 23 long, languid year’s since The Ramones played their final show. Since then, all the original members - Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee and Tommy have been called home. Richie and Marky continue to carry the flag, but it’s CJ that’s been keeping the Ramones spirit alive and well through the past two decades. Whether … Read more

New Dialogue

Teach Me How to Feel EP
RED Music (2019)

New Dialogue's Facebook bio states that the Los Angeles-based quintet "speaks for the moment", and with their band name they "assume an important responsibility" -- bold claims from a band who only recently released their debut EP, but it shows that there is no shortage of confidence or ambition among the band members. Ela Kitapci and Taylor Morrow share vocals … Read more

Drunktank

Return Of The Infamous Four
Morning Wood Records (2019)

It has been nine years since their début album, The Infamous Four. That’s a long time. Long enough to call this a come-back, I would say. I assume the band thinks so too, calling this second album Return Of The Infamous Four. Even though it has been almost ten years the characters on the cover have not aged one bit. … Read more

Kira Jari

Spooky Freaky EP
Dirt Cult (2019)

Spooky Freaky is a good debut from an intriguing new-ish band from Texas. Even if the EP name makes me think of “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah” each time I read it.The band is similar in sound to a lot of bands I enjoy: Tiltwheel and Leatherface, for example — which is why it bugs me a little to say that one … Read more

Ink Bomb

Fiction
Independent (2019)

What I like about loads of European bands is that they sing in their native tongue. Sure, you’ll find bands everywhere that write at least part of their lyrics in English, but there are so many bands that write and sing in their mother tongue. I usually prefer that over English lyrics by non-native speakers. The quality of the lyrics … Read more

Aseethe

Throes
Thrill Jockey (2019)

Aseethe’s sludgy doom as kept them a part of the underground for over a decade and for the Iowa-based trio, that scene is one that allows them to burn brightly and produce music that is as thoughtful as it is crushingly heavy. The political climate of the last few years in America is one that has given many musicians the … Read more

Billy Liar

Some Legacy
Red Scare Industries (2019)

I don’t know much about Billy Liar, but Red Scare has rarely turned out a bad release so I picked Some Legacy out of the pile with some hope -- and it delivers. Liar is a Scottish musician who has been playing under the moniker since 2006. Sometimes he tours solo, sometimes with a band.On Some Legacy there are shades … Read more

Reunions

Winter Heart, Summer Skin
Independent (2019)

I must have slowed down over the years. At least I hope my recent interest in bands like Reunions or Nightmarathons reflects my now 40 years-old perspective more than it reflects of some kind of nostalgia bender. Because I’m truly enjoying these mid-tempo rising tide records, including this new self-released Winter Heart, Summer Skin that’s heavy on the hardcore-inspired emocore … Read more

Various Artists

Moloch/Groak - split EP
Dry Cough (2019)

Sometimes, no matter how much you like a band, they just fall off your radar. Not because of you being uninterested. Sometimes it just happens. Moloch is such a band for me. After discovering them way back when I lost sight of what they were doing. Upon rediscovering them I tracked down what I could find of their discography only … Read more

Charger

Charger
Pirates Press (2019)

The debut from Charger finds that gray area between punk and metal that’s hard to pigeonhole to a specific genre. You’ll see more than one Motorhead reference in this review, which is both a good place to start and a pretty good complement.Motorhead is really what comes to mind on a play-through of this ripper: just 7 songs over 19 … Read more

Drei Affen

Seguimos Ciegxs
PIFIA RECORDS/THROUGH LOVE REC/LEFT HAND LABEL/ZEGEMA BEACH (2019)

Some bands really know how to unite. Drei Affen is one of those bands. They make a sport out of uniting labels on their releases. No less than 17 labels came together to release their debut self-titled EP and 12 labels were involved with the split with Coma Regalia. With only four labels involved in the release of second EP … Read more

BIG|BRAVE

A Gaze Among Them
Southern Lord (2019)

Big | Brave set out on a sonic journey influenced and inspired by diverse forces. For the band, on the one hand there was the elusive pull of their native Montreal post-rock scene, but on the other side there was the inclination towards the heavier post-metal and drone trajectories. It was this dichotomy that fuelled two excellent works in Au … Read more

Evening Standards

World’s End
Lets Pretend (2019)

It’s a dramatic understatement to say that music has changed since I first discovered DIY in the 1990s. But in many ways, one of the first things I discovered about real people making music, is that contacting a label you like usually leads to good things. While you can sample music online nowadays and there are ample bot-driven “recommended if … Read more

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