Diarrhea Planet
Turn To Gold
Infinity Cat (2016)
I recently saw Weiner, a documentary about Anthony Weiner, the New York politician who completely obliterated his career with a sexting scandal, including a dick pic that made international news. Even though Anthony Weiner seemed like a genuine politician with good ideas for the middle class, he never could make a comeback: the media could never past that dick pic, … Read more
Diarrhea Planet
Yama-Uba EP (Reissue)
Infinity Cat (2014)
Showing up a few years after the group’s 2009 debut Aloha, Diarrhea Planet’s 2011 three-track EP Yama-Uba is a more consistent release, with a sound that’s similar to that of 1990s pop-punk group The Queers. Infusing singalong vocal harmonies, intricate guitar work, and soaring solo lines into familiar, old-time rock song formulas, opening tracks “Hot Spit” and “Mutt-Feast” show that … Read more
DIÄT
Positive Disintegration
Iron Lung (2019)
Positive Disintegration is an ideal name for this album, the follow-up to Positive Energy, which DIÄT released in 2015. The record is dreary post-punk with a lot of repetition and monotone vocals that carry a beaten-down-by-the-world-but-the-show-must-go-on vibe. “We,” starts things on this path, but as the record progresses that exasperation turns to a call for action at times.The very next … Read more
Die Young
Graven Images
Eulogy (2007)
Each year, like so many other music-obsessed individuals, I make a list of my most anticipated albums. In doing so, I am setting myself up for the possibility of total disappointment. Die Young (TX) was one of the bands on said list, but this album is not a disappointment. On the contrary, not only did Die Young (TX)'s - it … Read more
Die Young
Survival Instinct
Immigrant Sun (2005)
Some people consider hardcore music to be quite contrived. And if you look at it from their point of view, they have a compelling argument. The music isn't technically difficult and the song structures are fairly basic when compared to other styles of music. Where hardcore has made its mark is in its lyrics. Hardcore defines itself on voicing one's … Read more
Die Young
The Message
Immigrant Sun (2004)
Back in the mid 1990's, there was one place to turn to for hardcore, and that was the thriving mecca of New York City. There was a plethora of talented and hard working bands coming from the NYHC scene. Today that work ethic can be rivaled by very few. Die Young are the latest export from Texas, the great state … Read more
Die Young
Through the Valleys in Between
Still Life (2008)
I can't exactly recall my first exposure to Die Young, but I do know the band's 90's inspired hardcore punk sound and intense lyrical messages had me hooked from the get-go. Die Young - now Die Young (TX) - has persevered through the years and compiled quite a back catalog, surprisingly, since they seem to be constantly touring the world. … Read more
Die! Die! Die!
Die! Die! Die!
S.A.F. (2007)
I don't know why, but there is something really unsubtle about naming a band Die! Die! Die!. It's like using a nuke to kill a mouse, just a bit too over the top to really ever be needed. It also means that the band has got to do an awful lot to live up to the name, so you can … Read more
Died
Less Life
Independent (2020)
Does Died’s debut LP Less Life see the band growing up, or is it just them getting old? It’s an odd question to ask of a group who are in the midst of pushing out what should be their first (and best impression) to the world, but hardcore bands tend to operate on different rules. For instance, a band's early … Read more
Digital Leather
Modern Problems
FDH (2012)
It’s been three years since Shawn Foree’s one man synth-punk project Digital Leather released the critically acclaimed album Warm Brother. In that time he’s seen the untimely passing of his friend-turned-manager Jay Reatard, and—after one-off stints on Goner and Fat Possum—has returned to the smaller label he was with before that, FDH. The latest outing, Modern Problems, was recorded to … Read more
DIIV
Oshin
Captured Tracks (2012)
Before reading any further, know that DIIV are anything but overwrought. The NYC band’s debut, Oshin, reflects the sort of open air, free-flowing rhythms and harmonics fluent in the thriving genre of dream pop. Naturally, the music isn’t about following along or thinking too hard about it. Everything here is predictable and minimalist. That’s what makes it so enjoyable.Oshin is … Read more
Dikembe
Muck
Skeletal Lightning (2020)
Gainesville, FL’s Dikembe have been playing around the scene for quite a few years but I’ve never actually checked out their recorded material. I saw them back at Pre-Fest 6 and enjoyed it live but their brand of emo isn’t really my bag. It’s the kind of music that I find really impressive live but rarely moves me when listening … Read more
Dillinger Four
C I V I L W A R
Fat Wreck Chords (2008)
Being from the same state as well a fan of tuneful catchy pop-punk one would think that I would be really into Dillinger Four. Yes, one would think that. The fact of the matter is that I've always been a casual fan of this rambunctious often inebriated foursome. I've actually only seen them once in the last fifteen years and … Read more
Dillinger Four
C I V I L W A R
Fat Wreck Chords (2008)
As my age teeters closer to thirty than twenty, I continually ask myself three important questions: Am I still punk? Was I ever? Does it matter? Sure my love of punk music grows exponentially with every year I age, but is it just a label for me to wear on my shirt, or is it truly a way of life? … Read more
Dilly Dally
Sore
Partisan Records (2015)
Dilly Dally is a four-piece rock band from Toronto who describes themselves as “#softgrunge” on their Facebook page - I'm not sure how serious it is, but it seems to be relatively accurate (and in a good way, believe it or not!) Their debut Sore gives me two things I’ve been looking for in modern-day rock: (1) more girl rock … Read more
Dimmu Borgir
Eonian
Nuclear Blast (2018)
For Dimmu Borgir, who haven’t released a full length album in over seven years, Eonian marks a shift for a band that have kind of been the butt of many black metal jokes for the best part of a decade. Dimmu Borgir make no apologies for their bombastic sound and on Eonian they fully embrace their theatrical side. Still, the … Read more
Dimmu Borgir
Forces of The Northern Night
Nuclear Blast (2017)
There’s no denying that Dimmu Borgir come from a solid black metal background but what these Norwegian’s have done in the (nearly) twenty five years that they’ve been active is turn their version of black metal into a massive spectacle, one that involves orchestras and a full scale choir. Not many black metal acts could get away with such grand … Read more
Dinosaur Eyelids
Left Turn on Red
Independent (2017)
Dinosaur Eyelids may have an bizarre moniker (where did they come up with it?) but their music is far from mysterious. Garage rock may have had its heyday long ago but the influences are still keenly felt through many projects kicking around today, Dinosaur Eyelids being one of them. Stating their main inspirations as Kyuss, Soundgarden, Fu Manchu and a … Read more
