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Reviews by Kevin

266 total search results — Page 5 of 14

Malignancy – Inhuman Grotesqueries

Review — October 31, 2007

a) "Neglected Rejection" b) "Benign Reabsorption" c) "Predicated Malformations" d) "Embryological Teratomas" Okay, here's how it works - you guess which ones are actual titles of songs by the band Malignancy, and which songs were created by me, inebriated after a night of Jäger-bombs using a thesaurus opened randomly to …

Nebelhexë – Essensual

Review — November 5, 2007

For those who find Evanescence's Amy Lee too goth and Sarah Brightman not quite goth enough, we have Norway's Andrea Haugen a.k.a. Nebelhexë. Now, "Neb," as we'll call her, is, according to her bio, "a warrior with never-fading energy and she fights with passion for individual and spiritual freedom; animal …

Qui – Love's Miracle

Review — November 13, 2007

Paul Christensen. Matt Cronk. David Yow. The former two names you have not heard before. The latter name you probably have. The latter name is a legend, in fact. The former two, not so much. David Yow was a member of two legendary bands - Scratch Acid and The Jesus …

A Second from the Surface – The Streets Have Eyes

Review — November 15, 2007

There's been a lot of words used to describe Minneapolis' A Second from the Surface: metalcore, grindcore, crustcore. All of them are very specific genres, but not one of them is accurate. A Second from the Surface are hardcore, plain and simple. More on the old school side than the …

Fueled by Fire – Spread the Fire

Review — November 18, 2007

Let's not beat around the bush. Despite a valiant effort at bringing thrash back to the masses, Fueled by Fire just aren't the ones to do the job. It's a tall order - there'll always be the diehards (mostly in their late thirties) that will buy pretty much anything remotely …

Ramones – It's Alive 1974-1996

Review — November 20, 2007

The Ramones are finished. Over. Unlike their peers from the 1970's, there will be no reunion tours. Joey, Johnny and Dee Dee have passed on. That's three out of the four original members. Tommy's playing with Uncle Monk, a bluegrass duo bringing full-circle the original mission statement of CBGB's. Marky's …

The Hives – The Black and White Album

Review — November 27, 2007

You either like The Hives or you don't. Yes, it's that simple. The whole shtick, the outfits, the ego, be it embellished or not, the band formation at the behest of never-seen oft-mentioned mysterious "Randy Fitzsimmons." And, oh yeah, the music. It's all part and parcel of The Hives experience, …

Eastern Blok – Folk Tales

Review — November 29, 2007

World music is a funny thing. It begins with the purest of intentions: to invite the listener to explore the country of its origin by providing an aural guide to its history, its peoples, its struggles and its victories. The thing is, almost the entire genre has been co-opted by …

Radiohead – In Rainbows

Review — December 4, 2007

What Radiohead have done with the release of In Rainbows will be talked about for years to come. At best, and only time will tell, it will be looked at as changing the industry as we know it, giving the consumer more power than ever before. At worst, it will …

Chosen – Promo 2007

Review — December 11, 2007

HEY YOU! Metal Blade! Century Media! Lifeforce! Earache! All you record labels down with the metal: LISTEN UP! Chosen is an independent metal band hailing from Ireland and I can say with all sincerity that the fact that none of you have stepped up and signed these guys is …

Nirvana – Unplugged in New York

Review — December 13, 2007

At the risk of sounding like a filthy hippie droning on about the sixties and how you had to be there to understand it, the same could pretty much be said for the early nineties. The eighties were discovered to be an insanely vacuous era that by the turn of …

Eskimo Joe – Black Fingernails, Red Wine

Review — December 16, 2007

"No one in our band is in it for their ego. It's all about the songs" The above is a quote from guitarist Stuart MacLeod and it summarizes Eskimo Joe in a nutshell. No pretension. No bullshit. No ridiculous grandiose prose-filled promo sheet. Just an album that that lets the …

Tangorodrim – Justus Ex Fide Vivit

Review — December 26, 2007

So what are we to think of this "pure, unholy black metal from Israel"? Well for starters, taking into consideration their country of origin doesn't mean a whole lot. Whether you're from Israel, South Africa, New Zealand or Paraguay, if you're black metal, you'll probably still sound Norwegian. Originality, you …

Marillion – Happiness is the Road Volume 1: The Essence

Review — December 30, 2008

In their twenty-six-year or so history, Marillion have never released a shitty album. Think of other bands that have been around; can they make the same claim? I think not. Sure, there's been albums that are less memorable, but actually bad? Not a one. Writer's block has never been …

Northern State – Can I Keep This Pen?

Review — January 4, 2008

Can I Keep This Pen? is Northern State's third full-length album and it proves that any and all naysayers dismissing the group as a novelty act can just get in that boat and float right to Camden. I admit, I was once one of those aforementioned naysayers. I mean . …

Imani Coppola – The Black and White Album

Review — January 8, 2008

The lights, the sounds, the excitement If you've ever been to New York City, you know what I'm talking about. Regardless of the borough, walking around the city is exhilarating, bordering on overwhelming, keeping you hyper-vigilant for fear of missing something really, really cool. Imani Coppola sounds like New York. …

The Absence – Riders of the Plague

Review — January 29, 2008

The Absence hails from Tampa, Florida. Anyone with a sense of history knows that in the late eighties this meant something. Death, Obituary, Deicide, and Morbid Angel all hailed from Florida and significantly helped mold the clay into what we now know as death metal. The Absence are fully aware …

Creature Feature – The Greatest Show Unearthed

Review — February 6, 2008

When reviewing an album, it can be difficult to summarize thoughts and feeling elicited from the music you're listening to, to organize these thoughts and feelings in written prose succinctly, honestly, and, above all, professionally. Using these guidelines as my template, I can say with all sincerity, fuck me running, …

U.S.S.A. – The Spoils

Review — February 11, 2008

U.S.S.A. is a relatively new project consisting of Ministry's Paul Barker, Tomahawk's Duane Denison and two other guys. Two out of four guys that have had some level of fame does not make a "supergroup," a word seemingly thrown around any time a dude from one known band happens to …

Souvenir's Young America – An Ocean Without Water

Review — February 11, 2008

From the reviewer's initial notes made upon first hearing the album: Quiet + Loud + Quiet + Harmonica = Souvenir's Young America What a sad, lazy reviewer I am. And, as always, lazy reviewing makes for lazy reading, so if the above equation says it all for you, Godspeed …