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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)

Bell Witch

Four Phantoms
Profound Lore (2015)

Getting it right when it comes to extreme doom/death is a very tricky business. It is quite a misconception that as long as a band is able to play really, really slow and have heavy riffs, they can be considered successful and good at what they do. Bell Witch know better. The duo from Seattle is relatively new to the field, its origin being traced back to 2010, but they sure sounded like veterans even from their early days. Their self-titled demo was enough to grab the attention of the extreme metal scene, and their debut full-length Longing, solidified their presence in the genre. Listening to the music of Bell Witch you do not get the predominant feeling of destruction and catastrophe. Even though these elements are there, the music itself has more in terms of despair and melancholy, highlighted greatly by the aura that their songs attain. “Suffocation, A Burial” kicks off with such a tone, as the more melancholic quality of the music awakens and starts crawling towards you. There seems to be a transition in Four Phantoms, as the songs succeed one another, something that also falls within the concept of Bell Witch for the album, granting … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Sick/Tired

Dissolution
A389 (2014)

Sick/Tired don’t mess about. They’re angry, and they want you to know about it and they do so via the … Read more

S/V\R

Deluge
Union Finale (2015)

It was not that far ago that I was listening to the previous S/V\R album, Sur Les Femmes and I … Read more

The Splits

II
Dirtnap (2015)

I really like Dirtnap Records, but they can’t all be winners. The Splits start off II with a really positive … Read more

Friend Roulette

I See You. Your Eyes Are Red.
Good Night (2015)

As far as indie-rock goes, Friend Roulette’s sophomore album I See You. Your Eyes Are Red. is pretty gothic. I … Read more

Steve Von Till

A Life Unto Itself
Neurot Recordings (2015)

I had always found it amazing how both Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till were able to separate the different … Read more

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One from the archives

The Melvins

Nude With Boots
Ipecac (2008)

Rogers and Hammerstein, Salieri and Mozart, DeNiro and Scorcese. What makes a great partnership? Is it differences in opinion that compliment the end result as a whole? Is it a common interest in achieving the same goal? Is it true artistic collaboration and respect of each others' ideas and vision? The partnership between The Melvins and Ipecac Recordings would seem to indicate the latter. Nude With Boots is The Melvins' fourteenth release with the label (not including the 7" series comprising of tracks from Hostile Ambient Takeover). With its release number being IPC-105, that makes roughly 15% of the label's entire catalog attributed to The Melvins. That's commitment and loyalty that's just not found in this day and age, particularly in an era of downloading that have made things from … Read more

More album reviews

Lagwagon

Hang
Fat Wreck Chords (2014)

Punk rock veterans, Lagwagon, had been missing from the scene for quite some time. Sure, they had a tour here and there as well as reissues of their 90s classics, but it's been years since we've heard some fresh new music from the band. They released an EP in 2008, but most of that material had previously already been featured … Read more

Algiers

Algiers
Matador (2015)

I feel like I’ve seen a lot of bands forcing genres together - black metal and shoegaze (Deafheaven), indie rock and hip-hop (Why?), jazz fusion and rap (Flying Lotus’ You’re Dead) - and I could go on and on. Often genre mashing can be a bit gimmicky, but if it’s done right, it can be a recipe for some of … Read more

Menace Beach

Ratworld
Memphis Industries (2015)

Though many people – even those who weren’t around when the system was - could probably rattle off several of the more popular NES titles of the 8-bit era, there was a whole world of games existing outside the realm of the familiar gray plastic cartridge. Developed by independent publishers, unlicensed NES games appeared in misshapen, strangely colored plastic housing … Read more

Warhorse

As Heaven Turns To Ash...
Southern Lord (2015)

As much as I like the “what if?” scenarios, at the same time I hate them. It is always nice to theorize about what could have happened if x has taken place instead of y. In the case of Warhorse that is a big “what if?” and at the same time an unavoidable one. The band from Massachusetts started off … Read more

Rei Rea

Food For The Worms
Union Finale Records (2015)

Christian Dubé’s project has certainly blossomed over the years. Originating back in 2000, Rei Rea started off as a software-based musical outlet based in Dubé’s basement (that must be one fucking dark basement), releasing a number of split collaborations throughout the years as well as standalone albums, such as Hate Hand And Hate and Slug Launching Stinction. As time progressed, … Read more

Mishka Shubaly

Coward’s Path
In Music We Trust Records (2015)

If Nic Cage from Leaving Las Vegas had cut an album, it might sound something like Mishka Shubaly’s Coward’s Path. Dealing with such upbeat subjects as alcoholism, death, alcohol, loneliness, drugs, failure, and alcohol, these tunes were originally written in 2008 during a particularly out-of-control patch in the author’s life, and it doesn’t take a listener long to realize just … Read more

Underground Railroad To Candyland

The People Are Home
Recess (2015)

I wasn’t sure what to make of Underground Railroad to Candyland when I first saw them. They were a very new band, but the style was off-kilter and different than what I expected of a Todd Congelliere (Toys That Kill,F.Y.P) band. But along the way it’s clicked, both for me and the band. Where they first seemed slogany and weird, … Read more

Prurient

Frozen Niagara Falls
Profound Lore (2015)

There is not much one can say about Prurient, the project of Dominick Fernow. Throughout the years Prurient have produced an extensive discography that sees them creating a cartography of the dark ambient and noise genres with their own experimental mindset. The project has been going on for about twenty years now, but it seems that the focus that Fernow … Read more

Red Dons & TV Smith

A Vote For the Unknown
Deranged (2014)

Red Dons are a band I’ve meant to check out for some time. As a reviewer, perhaps I’m supposed to go check out the whole back catalog, but I often find it equally useful to approach a band tabula rasa, as that gives a better view of where this specific record is at. Past accomplishments, be damned, it’s the A … Read more

Lightning Bolt

Fantasy Empire
Thrill Jockey (2015)

This noise rock duo has been terrifying the music scene for close to two decades now with their unconventional sound and experimental attitude. Throughout their career Lightning Bolt have stuck with the same recipe that seems to be working so marvelously for them: chaotic patterns, schizoid riffs, intense songs and with a fucking razor sharp edge to them. Fantasy Empire … Read more

Multiple Authors

Lightning Bolt

Fantasy Empire
Thrill Jockey (2015)

Though much attention relating to 2015’s Austin Psych Fest (a.k.a. Levitation) was directed towards the reunion of the legendary 13th Floor Elevators, one of the biggest surprises in the lineup for me was the appearance of Rhode Island’s Lightning Bolt. I guess I never really thought of this aggressive and abrasive noise duo (made up of Brian Gibson who plays … Read more

Blind Idiot God

Before Ever After
Indivisible (2015)

Coming back from an extended break seems to be always tricky, for any band. Back in the late '80s and early '90s, Blind Idiot God were releasing great record after great record. Their refreshing style and no boundaries approach to mixing different genres under their unique kaleidoscope resulted in three excellent albums. The band officially went in hiatus in 1996 … Read more

Priscilla Ford

The Blackout Club
Basement (2015)

Priscilla Ford's debut EP, The Blackout Club, is a raging punk rock'n'roll album. It careens with a controlled abandon, much like the Reno, Nevada murder spree after which the band is named. The band is composed of veteran musicians from a variety of punk rock subgenres, but The Blackout Club is a concise and directed effort. The band appears to … Read more

Birthday Suits

Adult Party: Spin the Bottle
Recess (2015)

Birthday Suits always surprise me on record. Live, it’s fierce and reckless; sweaty mayhem and cathartic rock ‘n’ roll. On record, it’s more calculated, with the vocals coming stronger in place of the guitar/drum overload that powers the live show.The Minneapolis two-piece play something in the vein of garage rock, but with a ballsy and crafty “serious” musicianship that’s as … 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)