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Isis

Celestial (Re-Issue)
Ipecac (2013)

I could make a career out of doing reviews of Isis reissues. But what makes reviewing Celestial so difficult is that it is already a legendary album, to the point where everything to be said about it from a critical standpoint has been said before. So instead of trying to sell you on the album itself (because really, it's just … Read more

Avenged Sevenfold

Hail To The King
Warner Bros. (2013)

Look on the interweb and you'll find love for Avenged Sevenfold and you'll find hate. A lot of hate. I understand the love, but I don't quite understand the hate. The hate brigade's consensus would maintain that they're poseurs. Wannabes. Clowns in the metal circus. This is dismissive. I've always viewed them as a group of kids who don't quite … Read more

Nails

Abandon All Life
Southern Lord (2013)

The only reason Metallica is supposedly used as a torture tactic in Guantanamo is because the C.I.A. doesn't know about Nails. I mean that to sound neither glib nor uncomplimentary - there's a cruel relentlessness to Nails that I and other fans of extreme music will most certainly appreciate, but, and I'll avoid the arrogant use of the term understanding … Read more

El-P & Killer Mike

Run The Jewels
Fools Gold (2013)

Run the Jewels could easily have been a victory parade after the momentous 2012 that Killer Mike and El-P had. Before declaring themselves an actual duo, the two artists were both lauded for albums that were released a week apart of one another. Killer Mike's R.a.p. Music, produced almost entirely by El-P, combined Producto's electronic palette with the slow draw … Read more

Ormen Lange

Black
Stayposi (2013)

Chicagoan quartet Ormen Lange (probably named after the mightiest Viking longship, not the natural gas field on the Norwegian continental shelf) are far from a unique band--how many lightly progressive sorta instrumental artists can you name off the top of your head? Probably enough to feel as disillusioned as I. But despite my admitted jadedness with the genre, I still … Read more

Sigur Rós

Kveikur
XL Recordings (2013)

I came to know Sigur Rós through their early material, all very long, dreamy recordings with just a hint of pop rock bliss to ground them. Ágætis byrjun and ( ) are the albums that made the band a household name, and it's difficult not to look back on them and feel like, in some capacity, that's what the band … Read more

Princess Music

Odobenidae
Hot Congress Records (2013)

Princess Music's members all hail from various chamber orchestras, which would lead you to believe that their debut would be a collection of classical recordings. The album cover, however, seems to suggest something else entirely--it looks like it'd be more at home on the cover of a kitschy indie rock album than that of a classical quintet. But that's exactly … Read more

Eddie Spaghetti

The Value of Nothing
Bloodshot (2013)

For Eddie Spaghetti’s third solo LP, he’s taken a moment to quiet it down and get introspective while seeking answers to life’s big questions: meaty topics such as “If Anyone’s Got the Balls” and just who is “Fuckin’ with My Head.” Or, in other words, his solo work may be a separate project from Supersuckers, but the content doesn’t stray … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Temple

On the Steps of the Temple
Independent (2012)

There is one readily surprising thing about Arizonan post-metallers Temple: despite the loud ensemble sound projected in their music, the entire album is the result of the work of just two musicians. Unfortunately, that's just about the only surprise to be found on their otherwise unremarkable 2012 debut, On the Steps of the Temple.The issue is that, for all of … Read more

Bell X1

Chop Chop
Belly Up (2013)

Before delving into the intricacies of Bell X1's latest release Chop Chop, it is important to note that they have written what is arguably one of the best songs to come out of the Irish indie music scene in recent years. "In Every Sunflower", from 2007's Music in Mouth, is the kind of song that if you're not on the … Read more

S/V\R

Sur Les Femmes I & II
Union Finale Records (2013)

S/V\R is the project of S. de la Moth of Menace Ruine and audio explorer/percussionist Chanoine V. The band’s earlier release entitled Celebration Noire, released through Handmade Birds, was excellent and now, after some time spent on meditation and soul searching the noise/industrial duo strikes back with their latest offering, Sur Les Femmes I & II. Split into two parts, … Read more

Ef

Ceremonies
And The Sound Records (2013)

Ef are an unusual band, and not just for their inexplicable fear of breaking their precious consonant-to-vowel ratio. Their take on the inexorably-expanding post-rock scene is a highly unique one, especially at a time when more and more bands are starting to sound suspiciously homogenous. And as if any more proof of their immense creativity was called for, we have … Read more

Marillion

Sounds That Can't Be Made
earMUSIC (2012)

All bands have an expiry date; some bands are just more aware of that fact than others. And when an act has been around as long as Marillion has, it's not uncommon for their age to begin to show. Whether or not that is a bad thing is uncertain--some classic rock acts have put out some of their best material … Read more

Rumspringer

Stay Afloat
Dirt Cult (2013)

Every so often bands live up to their buzz. Rumspringer popped onto my radar through the defunct Dangerous Intersections series of 4-way splits from Traffic Street Records. I had one song at home on the comp., but it never got me deeper into the band’s catalog. Here comes 2013 and the band has released Stay Afloat on Dirt Cult Records—a … Read more

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