How Dare You
How Dare You Comfort Road [3.5/5]
How dare anyone try to tackle this type of anthemic/upbeat/melodic/gruff post-hardcore punk rock, considering Polar Bear Club already perfected it on last year’s Sometimes Things Just Disappear. All right, sorry, How Dare You-you make an admittedly enjoyable stab at it. If Comfort Road’s odd pop vibes could be attributed...
Dälek
Gutter Tactics [4/5]
A decade into their existence, New Jersey hip-hop duo Dälek continue to spin subtle variations on their unique approach. Because it’s such a powerful, effective M.O., there’s really no good reason to tinker with it. Gutter Tactics repeatedly drops verbal and sonic bombs, much like previous Dälek discs Abandoned Language, Absence, From...
Napalm Death
Napalm Death Time Waits For No Slave [4/5]
Napalm Death’s early work inspired either exhilaration or terror: Those brutal, spontaneous detonations left no room for alternate interpretations. As the group’s current members evolved together, they expanded their repertoire, discovering emotional nuance in the process. These days, the band not only set complex moods but also...
Jeff Caudill
Jeff Caudill Try To Be Here [4/5]
We’re just gonna say it right here, right now: Try To Be Here is the best album featuring The Brady Bunch‘s Cousin Oliver (aka former child actor Robbie Rist) on drums. Rist has matured into a talented multi-instrumentalist and producer, co-producing this disc-which continues ex-Gameface pop-punker Jeff Caudill’s...
Ben Kweller
Ben Kweller Changing Horses [4/5]
Whoever said that you can never ever go home again obviously hasn’t listened to Ben Kweller’s Changing Horses. Last year, the Greenville, Texas, native moved his family from Brooklyn to Austin, Texas, and his dusted-off roots more than shine through now. Lap steel, saloon-ready piano and crisp acoustic guitar tie...
Fake Problems
Fake Problems It’s Great To Be Alive [4/5]
On their first release for SideOneDummy, Naples, Florida’s Fake Problems continue to grow their carnival of Southern-fried indie rock. Or is it Gypsy-styled alt-country? Chamber music with disco parts? Whatever the classification, It’s Great To Be Alive is a textured, wistful amalgam of influences that reveals a...
Alesana plan September tour with the Bled, Enter Shikari
North Carolina screamo sextet Alesana have announced a month-long headlining tour that will criss-cross the U.S. this September. Supporting them on the whole tour are the Bled, Asking Alexandria and Broadway. U.K. sensation Enter Shikari will be on the tour from Sept. 4-23, before relinquishing their spot on the bill to Madina Lake. Expect to...
P.O.S.
P.O.S. Never Better [4/5]
If you thought P.O.S.’ lyrics were heavy, Never Better makes his previous work seem positively fluffy. On his third disc, the Minneapolis-based rapper/producer uses his art as therapy for a variety of emotions bottling up in the three years since his previous effort, Audition. He heads straight for politics, most notably...
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Lonely Road [3/5]
With a Gold-selling debut under their belts (2007’s Don’t You Fake It), it seems the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus set out to write the prototypical gigantic arena-rock record-the kind that is inevitably made whenever young bands suddenly have the time-and cash-to go bananas in the studio. It’s of no...