Pig Destroyer
Pig Destroyer Phantom Limb [3/5] Led by producer/mastering wizard/human riff machine Scott Hull (also of Agoraphobic Nosebleed fame), this bass-free Virginian grind trifecta are already living legends in the high-velocity game, and their near-surgical precision cuts closer to the bone with every new release. On Phantom Limb, the band’s fourth proper full-length, Pig Destroyer’s patience...
Irepress
Irepress Samus Octology [4/5] It may be a just a little weird to know that this Boston-area band have been given a stamp of approval of sorts by folks ranging from Masta Killa, Hatebreed and Inspectah Deck to Gym Class Heroes, Kayo Dot and Shadows Fall. This bizarre cross-section of artists are all bands Irepress...
Bad Brains
Bad Brains Build A Nation [3.5/5] Given the band’s erratic history and the utter failure that was fellow punk legends the Stooges’ recent reunion LP, one might think a new Bad Brains album in 2007-produced by the Beastie Boys’ Adam Yauch, no less-would be a complete Rastafarian abortion. And yet, despite the fact that H.R.’s...
Hopesfall
Hopesfall Magnetic North [3.5/5] Having grown from high-ceilinged hardcore heartthrobs to borderline grunge revivalists over the course of just two albums, Hopesfall advance their evolution again on Magnetic North. After years of lineup overhaul, only drummer Jason Trabue is new on this album, allowing the band’s existing chemistry and unabashed rock qualities, first flexed on...
Career Suicide
Career Suicide Attempted Suicide [4/5] Career Suicide celebrate the last 25 years of hardcore punk by completely ignoring the changes and trends the genre’s gone through, and it’s absolutely glorious. Attempted Suicide is packed to the brim with purely early-’80s hardcore played with a snotty authority at blistering speeds and an authentic, raw coating unlikely...
Black Light Burns
Black Light Burns Cruel Melody [3.5/5] From catchy opening track “Mesopotamia” to ambient instrumental finale “Iodine Sky,” Cruel Melody epitomizes everything Wes Borland has always been as an artist: unpredictable. Venturing behind the microphone and backed by a studio supergroup including Nine Inch Nails’ Danny Lohner and A Perfect Circle’s Josh Freese, Borland and Black...