January 22, 2009

I Am Ghost Those We Leave Behind [2/5] There was a time not so long ago when I Am Ghost sent more than a few listeners scrambling for black eyeliner and their best Davey Havok threads. Truth be told, IAG do the whole goth-punk/screamo mopester thing pretty well-at least as well as Aiden and Sonny...

The Girls Yes No Yes No Yes No [3.5/5] Quirky, new-wave Seattleites the Girls kick off their exciting second LP, Yes No Yes No Yes No, with two raucous electro-punk dancefests, “Where Wolves Drink” and the Turbonegro-esque “Transfer Station.” The album continues on the frenetic freak-out trip with the near-paranoid “You And A Chair” and...

Deadly Sins Selling Our Weaknesses [3.5/5] The best song from Dropkick Murphys’ 2003 album Blackout is by far "The Dirty Glass," a powerhouse of a duet between Al Barr and Stephanie Dougherty. She’s now the righteous frontwoman of Deadly Sins, a rockin’ Boston band based on Social Distortion-model punk-all power chords and songs from the...

Bayside Shudder [4/5] In no way, shape or form are Bayside cultists going to be disappointed with the sounds coming out of Long Island (via Queens) this fall. Bayside frontman Anthony Raneri applies plenty of his signature abrasive, heartfelt lyrical style to the band’s fourth proper full-length, Shudder. Taking inspiration from their earlier records but...

The Mighty Underdogs Droppin’ Science Fiction [4/5] Three of the West Coast’s best indie-rap names come together on Droppin’ Science Fiction, the first disc by the Mighty Underdogs (aka Lateef The Truth Speaker, Blackalious’ Gift Of Gab and Headnodic). Putting together a supergroup can sometimes have sloppy results, but the trio have created with a...

Trivium Shogun On their three previous albums, Trivium sounded like they were attempting to prove themselves to every hesher out there. With Shogun, the whipping boys have finally settled somewhere among vintage Metallica, latter-day Carcass and a lot of polished ’n’ updated ’80s Bay Area thrash. As the band have stopped the madness of attempting...

The Pink Spiders Sweat It Out [3/5] Like any other genre, power pop has a set of rules. Most were laid down by the Cars in the ’80s (whose Ric Ocasek produced the Pink Spiders’ Teenage Graffiti) and carried into the present by Weezer (who must have produced much of the band’s musical outlook). To...

Annuals Such Fun If you distill Modest Mouse elixir with a bit of cream of New Amsterdams and a pinch of Manchester Orchestra extract, you will concoct a rather potent Annuals moonshine. Unfortunately, toting this libation to your next social gathering is a surefire way to send your friends home counting sheep. Unless you get...

Off With Their Heads From The Bottom [3.5/5] To those who foolishly believe in a stereotypical “No Idea Records sound,” Off With Their Heads stick out like a hitchhiker’s thumb. Though as disheveled, bearded and Pabst-soaked as many bands on the Gainesville, Florida label, these Minneapolis residents opt for a classic Bay Area pop-punk approach....