Reviews

Here Lies Man Here Lies Man FILE UNDER: Afro-Latin Acid Funk ROCKS LIKE: Brownout, Antibalas, Funkadelic WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Guitarist/vocalist Marcos Garcia (of Brooklyn-based Afrobeat ensemble Antibalas) is exploring heavy acid funk with this new project. Fuzzed-out guitar and organ riffs thick as a mud-coated shag carpet lay on top of complex polyrhythms that’ll readjust your […]

Wear Your Wounds WYW FILE UNDER: Depressive Art-Rock ROCKS LIKE: Neurosis, Swans, Pink Floyd WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Wear Your Wounds is Converge frontman Jake Bannon’s new project. The songs started out as lo-fi home recordings, but have been filled out by Converge’s Kurt Ballou, the Red Chord’s Mike McKenzie, Trap Them’s Chris Maggio and Hatebreed’s F. […]

K.Flay Every Where Is Some Where FILE UNDER: Pop, politics, power ROCKS LIKE: Santigold, MC Lars, Lizzo WHAT'S DIFFERENT: In our Spotified world, the hard-to-classify genre-bending that used to bedevil artists like K. Flay (aka Kristine Flaherty) has now become an asset. Every Where Is Some Where is a suitably expansive title for an album […]

Falling In Reverse Coming Home FILE UNDER: Turning Over A New Leaf ROCKS LIKE: Blink-182, Dangerkids, Anberlin WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Falling In Reverse’s previous records have travelled every corner of the music map. With Coming Home, the band seem to have calmed down and centered themselves a bit more. This record is heartfelt and genuine, compared […]

Whips The Ride ROCKS LIKE: Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the Dead Weather, Whore Paint WHAT’S DIFFERENT: It’s the second record of dirty rock ’n’ roll from the Milwaukee outfit starring vocalist Ashley Smith (Red Knife Lottery), drummer Andy Mrotek (The Academy Is…), bassist Tyler Chicorel (Call Me Lightning) and guitarist Christian Hansen (Hot Coffin). WHY YOU […]

The Smith Street Band More Scared Of You Than You Are Of Me FILE UNDER: Modern melodic punk ROCKS LIKE: Against Me!, Billy Bragg, the Flatliners WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Not much, honestly, but it doesn’t matter. Though they’ve rubbed shoulders with rambling, modern emo wordsmiths (cf. the Front Bottoms, Modern Baseball), the Smith Street Band ride […]

The Maine Lovely, Little, Lonely OUR PICK: “How Do You Feel?” After five albums and nearly twice as many EPs full of left turns sharp enough to keep the band’s reverent fans on the edges of their seats without shaking them loose, Lovely, Little, Lonely marks the point where everything comes together for the Maine. […]

Wire Silver/Lead FILE UNDER: Post-punk promise made manifest ROCKS LIKE: Beach House, Interpol, the Chameleons WHAT’S DIFFERENT: The creative hot streak that these post-punk pioneers have been on since reuniting in the new millennium continues. With 2012 addition Matthew Simms now comfortably ensconced in the lineup as lead guitarist, Wire feel free to stretch out […]

Mastodon Emperor Of Sand FILE UNDER: Trailblazing Prog-metal ROCKS LIKE: Atheist, the Mars Volta, ZZ Top WHAT'S DIFFERENT: There is only one band who can go from extreme metal to classic rock and somehow make it sound seamless and that band is Mastodon. On “Steambreather,” they show a wildly increased confidence exploring their classic-rock sensibilities […]

HalfNoise The Velvet Face EP If you’re looking for a throwback that feels fresh, then HalfNoise have you covered with their latest EP full of groovy vibes you’d expect from a band thriving in the ‘60s. The creative vehicle for Paramore drummer Zac Farro, HalfNoise’s first few releases (2012’s self-titled EP and 2014’s Volcano Crowe) […]

Creeper Eternity, In Your Arms ROCKS LIKE: My Chemical Romance, NOFX, Alkaline Trio WHAT'S DIFFERENT: How many punk bands out there loosely base their releases around Peter Pan? This quirky and imaginative aspect of the band is what makes Creeper stand tall as perhaps the greatest punk band in recent years. Their first two EPs, […]

Sorority Noise You’re Not As _____ As You Think… FILE UNDER: End of the world blues ROCKS LIKE: Manchester Orchestra, Modest Mouse, Death Cab For Cutie WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Sorority Noise have really looked to expand their sound with this follow-up to 2015’s acclaimed second album Joy, Departed. Like that record, this one traverses the dark […]

The Obsessives The Obsessives FILE UNDER: Best-Bud Power Pop ROCKS LIKE: Pavement, Modern Baseball, Weezer WHAT'S DIFFERENT: The Obsessives were born out of friendship: BFFs Nick Bairatchnyi and Jackson Mansfield were two 15-year-olds attempting to craft complicated blues-rock. Two years later, they found a comfortable home in emo, releasing their 2015 debut Heck No, Nancy, […]

Obituary Obituary FILE UNDER: Swamp Death ROCKS LIKE: Cannibal Corpse, Bolt Thrower, Autopsy WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Obituary’s doomy, swamp-water-logged brand of death metal has always been as much about groove as grind. John Tardy’s unhinged vocals and his brother Donald’s thunderous, jackhammer drumming are bolstered by face-punching guitars and deep, gut-churning bass. There’s plenty of down-tuned […]

Spoon Hot Thoughts FILE UNDER: Future pop, Veteran rockers ROCKS LIKE: Franz Ferdinand, Animal Collective, Destroyer WHAT’S DIFFERENT: Britt Daniel and co. move further beyond their jagged indie rock roots with flashes of disco-pop flair, nimble production from Dave Fridmann (Thursday, Flaming Lips) and a lot of synthesized accompaniment. WHY YOU SHOULD CARE: The band’s […]

Me First And The Gimme Gimmes Rake It In: The Greatest Hits FILE UNDER: The greatest of greatest hits ROCKS LIKE: NOFX, Lagwagon, Swingin’ Utters WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Being a culling of selections from the vast library of covers the Gimmes have under their (garter) belts, nothing’s really different. Though, if you’ve never heard the good […]

Can’t Swim Fail You Again FILE UNDER: Post-hardcore of Jersey past ROCKS LIKE: Thursday, Armor For Sleep, Engine Down WHAT'S DIFFERENT: A rousing “Hey, Hey, Hey!” straight from the punk playbook is one of Can't Swim's new looks (“What's Your Big Idea”). Likewise, the pop-pimping “We Won't Sleep” and its cheery, crowd-sung chorus leaves their […]

Mallory Knox Wired FILE UNDER: Anthemic rock ROCKS LIKE: Paramore / Twin Atlantic / Jimmy Eat World WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Having established themselves with two solid full-lengths, this time out Mallory Knox get in your face—and stay there. With an edgier, more urgent feel predominating the album, the swaggering “Better Off Without You” fits perfectly alongside […]

Cameron Avery Ripe Dreams, Pipe Dreams FILE UNDER: Alt-Rock Storytelling ROCKS LIKE: Hozier, James Bay, Florence + The Machine WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Gear up your time machine, because Cameron Avery is about to take you on a journey. This impressive solo debut evokes a sense of traveling back to the ’50s or ’60s, where he would […]

Western Addiction Tremulous FILE UNDER: Hardcore punk ROCKS LIKE: New Mexican Disaster Squad, Black Flag, Only Crime WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Bay Area hardcore punkers Western Addiction haven’t actually changed much since their 2005 full-length debut, Cognicide, but they’ve aged gracefully. There is a greater variety of tempos than usual, plus subtle musical differences, from the Descendents-esque […]