Dead Meadow
Feathers
Matador (2005)
Dead Meadow, hailing from the D.C. area, formed out of The Impossible Five when they broke up in 1999. Jason Simon (guitar/vocals) Steve Kille (bass) and Mark Laughlin (Drums) went on to form Dead Meadow. Laughlin quit the group in '02, and Steve McCarty joined the group for Shivering King and Others and their newest addition, Cory Shane a few … Read more
Death By Stereo
Death for Life
Epitaph (2005)
Fearlessly naming their new record Death for Life is an instant indication that Death By Stereo aren't about to back down despite the lawsuits and legal issues surrounding the band after a death at one of their shows in 2003. Just in case you didn't pick up on the name, the record begins with some gang vocals chanting the words, … Read more
Death Cab For Cutie
Plans
Atlantic (2005)
With their fifth full-length, indie music darlings Death Cab for Cutie make the jump from 'the little engine that could,' Barsuk Records, to the big-time of Atlantic Records. But don't pick up that rock just yet. Death Cab isn't deserving of the bludgeoning reserved for traitors. With their latest release, Plans Death Cab stick to what they do best as … Read more
Death is Not Glamorous
Demo
Independent (2005)
Death is Not Glamorous comes at you from the swamps of...Oslo, Norway? Yes, that's right, Norway. The country most well-known for producing myriad Black Metal bands has given us one of the best up and coming melodic hardcore/punk bands currently going. Having released this demo in late 2005, the band has since gained quite a following here in the United … Read more
Deathspell Omega
Kénôse
Norma Evangelium Diaboli (2005)
One of the things I love about reviewing is that sometimes I come across bands that are real gems that I would never have known about otherwise. Deathspell Omega is one of those bands. These mysterious Frenchmen stay true to the spirit of traditional, raw black metal, but at the same time manage to put their own genuine spin on … Read more
Depeche Mode
Playing the Angel
Reprise (2005)
I broke a fingernail tearing the shrink wrap off Playing the Angel - that's how excited I was to get into it. After the confusion caused by Exciter, and the months of consolation I indulged in with the two Singles collections, I was desperate for Martin Gore, Dave Gahan and that other guy who's name I had to look up … 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
Donnybrook
Lions in this Game
Hand of Hope (2005)
Donnybrook take their namesake from a famous festival in Ireland that is notorious for its brawls. So taking that into account, it isn't a surprise that the California outfit plays a variation of tough-guy hardcore. However, on the band's debut full-length, Lions in this Game, Donnybrook attempt to break the stigma that there is nothing more to a tough-guy hardcore … Read more
Doomriders
Black Thunder
Deathwish Inc. (2005)
Throughout the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Nazgul have their own musical score. The music that was written for them is dark and operatic; when you hear it, you anticipate awful things to happen. And yet, I feel the choice that was made just wasn't dramatic enough so I took it upon myself to choose new music for … Read more
Down to Nothing
Splitting Headache
Thorp (2005)
With their debut, Save it for the Birds, the Richmond, Virginia straightedge outfit turned quite a few heads with their high-octane approach to hardcore. The furious noise assault was teamed with vocalist David Wood's straight-to-the-point lyrical approach - I recall the episode of The Simpson's where everyone 'tells it like it is.' With a combination like that, the recipe for … Read more
Dragonland
Starfall
Cleopatra (2005)
I'll be honest. I expected certain things when I attended Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force show at the Hammersmith Apollo this past spring. I was prepared for all the aging rock couples of London, with their teased hair and blue eyeliner, and for the teenaged spotty hoards in Children of Bodom shirts; the ancient and loyal, mixing with the curious and … Read more
Drowningman
Don't Push us When We're Hot
Thorp (2005)
I'll admit, when I first heard of Drowningman back in the day, I had a whole lot of preconceived notions. It was in a magazine, Revolver or Tiger Beat, that featured an interview. After looking at the photo, I was ready to dismiss them as Warped Tour rejects that play the excruciatingly banal bullshit that I'd come to expect from … Read more
Earth
Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method
Southern Lord (2005)
Opening with a sound not unlike some kind of spaghetti western death knell, Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method, the comeback album of noise mongers Earth, shocks the old time listeners of the band. Anyone who has heard Earth 2 or Sunn Amps and Smashed Guitars will tell you that. But, the mastermind behind Earth, Dylan Carlson, is known … Read more
Ed Gein
Judas Goats and Dieseleaters
Black Market Activities (2005)
Dear Lord, this album is a mess. It is tough to get a handle on what is going on initially, partially because Ed Gein had been described to me in two ways: as a grindcore band, and a tech metal band. After hearing Judas Goats and Dieseleaters, I full on disagree with both descriptions. Ed Gein's sound contains elements of … Read more
Edie Sedgwick
Her Love is Real...
Desoto (2005)
Taking his moniker from the notorious Andy Warhol actress and one time girlfriend of Bob Dylan, Justin Moyer of El Guapo/ Supersystem has created for himself a whole new persona. Dragged up, transvestite sheik is Moyer's game, like a revamped Ziggy Stardust for the post- LCD Soundsystem generation. His aim? To derail celebrity worship, or perhaps just to make you … Read more
Elliott
Photorecording
Revelation (2005)
This is not a re-release. Photorecording is Elliott's last testament. Allow me to regress a few years. I had always dismissed them as overrated. US Songs was okay, but it just seemed like it was missing that little extra something. When False Cathedrals came out, I gave them another chance; it was their statement, an almost perfect 10 in my … Read more
Eluvium
Talk Amongst the Trees
Temporary Residence (2005)
1:49 a.m. I'm tired. Not tired enough to pass out, but tired enough to browse the internet and listen to music. So I put on Eluvium's Talk Amongst the Trees. Perfect. The first song, "New Animals from the Air," whispers from my speakers. As if the effects of my Sleepy Time Tea weren't enough, I can feel my subconscious beckoning … Read more
Ennio Morricone
Crime and Dissonance
Ipecac (2005)
This is a biased review. Fuck you, you don't know me. I refuse to review this on the same bell curve as your lame little emo band. Genius is genius, period. And now, the review...... There are few living composers spoken of with more reverence than Ennio Morricone. Arguably (don't argue) the most famous film composer since the birth of … Read more
