Swamp Thing
In Shame
6131 (2009)
Rob Gordon's first lines uttered in High Fidelity are What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen … Read more
Swan Lake
Enemy Mine
Jagjaguwar (2009)
n theory, this band should be really, really fucking good - a supergroup composed of three accomplished artists already involved with various supergroups of their own. Dan Bejar (Destroyer, New Pornographers), Carey Mercer (Frog Eyes, Blackout Beach) and Spencer Krug (Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown) collaborating and throwing around their signature esoteric surrealist sounds like a aural feast. Buzz surrounding Enemy … Read more
Swans
My Father Will Guide Us Up A Rope To The Sky
Young God (2010)
Sitting here listening to the new Swans album, My Father Will Guide Us Up A Rope To The Sky, difficult thoughts ripple through my mind because of how I personally feel about this record and because of how this album is being viewed by the multitudes of people who have been waiting with baited breath to hear what many people … Read more
Swans
The Glowing Man
Young God (2016)
Bands returning after a prolonged hiatus, or re-forming after a break, are rarely able to recapture the essence and/or quality of their earlier existence. When Michael Gira announced the return of Swans it seemed that it would solely be a repeat of the band's earliest style at best. My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky came … Read more
Swans
The Seer
Young God (2012)
This is the third review of this that I am writing and the first two were these rather objective and staid ruminations on the music that The Seer contains, but both of those were completely false and void of any possible feeling, making the words empty and worthless to anyone who would read either one in anyway; I threw them … Read more
Swans
The Seer
Young God (2012)
Approaching Swans, and in particular attempting to “review” a Swans record is much like approaching a rock face you know is almost unscaleable. There is a way up and over, but it seems so very far away that at the beginning you spend at least an hour staring at a blank page willing something to happen – and other people … Read more
Swans
To Be Kind
Young God (2014)
Listen, I will fully admit that I am a hopeless Swans fan boy and might even listen to a record filled with sounds of the members defecating and giggling to each other while doing such a dirty deed; so imagine my immense surprise that not only did To Be Kind not immediately blow me away with its intense two plus … Read more
Swans
To Be Kind
Young God (2014)
Considering that many of the group’s earliest albums were sometimes described as being unlistenable, it’s odd that Swans have garnered increasing critical acclaim and notoriety some thirty years on in their history. Led by Michael Gira, the only player remaining from the group’s earlier incarnation that was declared as “dead” following 1996’s outstanding Soundtracks for the Blind (an album I … Read more
Swans
We Rose From Your Bed With The Sun In Our Heads
Young God (2012)
How do you rate bands, or maybe, how do you determine if you think a band is good or not; is it their longevity or their subjective impact on music or how their music speaks to you on emotional level, or does their live show or how they play live help make your ultimate decision? For my part, these questions … Read more
Swarm
Menyerbak Asap
Husted Youth (2022)
It is nice to see some friends actually being productive on the pandemic age and finally come up with something new on the scene, like we all know that for some person having so much free time doesn't mean a good thing for her/his productivity. And this goes up for the boys of Swarm. Swarm is a newly formed skramz … Read more
Sweat
Gotta Give It Up
Pirates Press (2022)
I’ve had a range of thoughts about this record as I’ve played it on repeat in recent weeks. At first it didn’t really hit me -- it felt too repetitive and didn’t really jump out from the pack. But that changed as I kept coming back. While circle pit hardcore is well established at this point, Sweat’s Gotta Give It … Read more
Sweat
Love Child
Vitriol (2024)
Sweat hit the ground running with their debut, working up a lather on Gotta Give It Up. Two years later, the California trio is back and they still seem plenty angry. Their second LP, Love Child may have a charming title but it has just as much fire as their debut. It follows a similar style while showing more nuance … Read more
Sweet Cobra
Forever
Hawthorne Street (2007)
Attempting to mix hardcore, d-beat, and riff heavy rock, Sweet Cobra does each with authority but sound unfocused when fusing them all at once. Credit is due though for attempting to splice genres, making a hybrid of crushing music. At times Forever sounds like a From Ashes Rises record, worthy of the crust title but still accessible enough to appeal … Read more
Sweeth Teeth
Acid Rain EP
Lövely (2021)
If I tell you some band members from bands like Disfear, Dollhouse, Year Of The Goat, Tortyr and The Dontcares started a new band together, what kind of music would you expect to come out? Now, I don’t know every band from that list, but considering the bands I do know I would probably just frown a bit, because they … Read more
Sweetthieves
Demo
Independent (2005)
This trio of sweetness comes from the Northeast and resides in a place called Providence, Rhode Island. Dave Martinka (guitar/vocals) and Jay Mayoh (drums), after playing in bands off an on in high school got together with bassist Hilary Jones, who played guitar in two previous bands. She had been a frequenting customer at a local guitar shop where she … Read more
Sweetthieves
View From a Glass Tower
Independent (2006)
Not too long ago, I was talking about a small band out of Providence, Rhode Island making references to some of my favorite bands, and telling you how this said band is full of musical talent. Well, I'm back again to reassure it, with Sweetthieves' first full length. Their demo showed some refreshing music, but it was just as taste … Read more
Swingin' Utters
Fistful of Hollow
Fat Wreck Chords (2015)
If Fistful of Hollow seemed fast, well it is. Swingin’ Utters released Poorly Formed in 2013 and Here, Under Protest in 2011. With another one in the can in late 2014, the band is showing a little more experimentation this time around.That’s not say their folky version of ’77 punk has lost a step. The best songs here are “I’m … Read more
Swingin' Utters
Hatest Grits: B-Sides and Bullshit
Fat Wreck Chords (2008)
If the name isn't clear enough for you, the Swingin' Utters' new record, Hatest Grits: B-Sides and Bullshit, does not contain new material. It also does not contain greatest hits, which is a little less clear. Instead, there are (surprise!) b-sides, demos, three Cock Sparrer songs, and other unreleased odds and ends. If you're new to the band, they've been … Read more
