Released: July 1, 1986 The list of records that I love that a lot of people hate is probably not all that short, but the one that always comes to mind first is Discharge’s 1986 LP, Grave New World. Some treat it as a departure or even a sellout (the worst of all punk rock sins) by the godfathers of… Read more »
Recher Theatre, Towson, Maryland June 26, 2010 When I last saw Thrice in 2002, they were touring for The Illusion of Safety, a young band with promise that was, at that point, unfulfilled. They played with heart and daring, but not all of their ideas worked. Over the course of the next eight years, perhaps no band has grown so… Read more »
Label: Pitfall Records Released: Summer 2009 Some bands can get by on simply having big, open, honest hearts to fuel their music. They don’t have to be particularly creative as their appeal lies more in soul than songwriting. Latin For Truth is like that…except, despite having more than enough in their hearts to make just about anything compelling, they don’t… Read more »
Label: Jump Start Records Released: February 16, 2009 Hardcore has struggled on and off for years with the concept of melody. When bands in late 70s and early 80s first decided to abandon traditional songwriting and simply go for broke at near light speed, a lot was lost despite the opening of a new avenue. Over time, bands began to… Read more »
Label: Temporary Residence Limited Released: November 4, 2008 Few albums start off with the level of frantic energy of Thursday’s “As He Climbed the Dark Mountain.” There are songs with fireworks and there are songs that are like the fireworks factory exploding and this is clearly the latter. Thursday’s dense layering walks the fine line between noisy and melodic, without… Read more »
Strike First Records is pleased to announce the signing of Southern California’s Earth From Above. These guys have been tearing up SoCal for a while now and will be recording their debut full length in January with engineer Chris Eck (Impending Doom, Mirrors of Dead Faces, Oblige) for a spring 09 release. You can hear The Antidote, a brand new… Read more »
From Facedown Records: The soundtrack of a hopeful youth shimmers inside the unassuming three piece that is My Epic; and today marks the release of their Dreamt Music/Facedown Records debut full-length I Am Undone. My Epic have become the unforeseen antidote to apathy with song after song evoking raw emotion wrapped in a palpable tenderness. Soaring refrains and dynamic vocals… Read more »
Label: Bridge Nine Released: April 29, 2008 This release finds the latest EP from pop-punks New Found Glory and a full-length from NFG side-project International Superheroes of Hardcore. Without a doubt, NFG are a band that could use a fresh start and a return to writing meaningful songs rather than the sap that made up their major label years. ISHC… Read more »
Label: Facedown Records Released: July 22, 2008 Over the past decade or so, the old notion that Christian rock was just a watered-down attempt to infiltrate youth culture has been dispelled by a new breed of Christian band. Not one that’s trying to evangelize by tapping into the latest thing, but one who’s intensity is the very expression of their… Read more »
Label: Black Numbers Released: September 9, 2008 Back in the early 80s, Minor Threat discovered something about hardcore: Melody and intensity aren’t mutually exclusive. As seminal as MacKaye and company were, that’s still a lesson that’s been lost on a lot of bands. But not Static Radio NJ. An Evening of Bad Decisions finds Static Radio NJ progressing from solid,… Read more »