review

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 […]

Emmure Look At Yourself FILE UNDER: Born Again Deathcore ROCKS LIKE: The Acacia Strain, Glass Cloud, Knocked Loose WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Somehow, Emmure's polarizing, windbreaker-clad frontman Frankie Palmeri isn't shot on album seven. His pure paranoia and vitriol conjure the studio walls closing in on him. The last few years of his life have clearly given […]

Minus The Bear VOIDS FILE UNDER: The Northwest comes of age ROCKS LIKE: Death Cab For Cutie, Silversun Pickups, Patrick Stump WHAT’S DIFFERENT: A return to the label that nurtured them and the addition of new drummer Kiefer Matthias find this venerable Seattle outfit both moving forward and stepping back, resulting in a propulsive, mature […]

A Will Away Here Again FILE UNDER: Alternative Rock ROCKS LIKE: Microwave, Moose Blood, Have Mercy WHAT'S DIFFERENT: A Will Away are hitting the ground running with their debut LP, and it’s proving to be their most diverse, calculated release yet. While singer Matt Carlson describes their esteemed previous release Bliss as an “impulse record,” it’s […]

Senses Fail In Your Absence FILE UNDER: Acoustic Punk for Love and Death ROCKS LIKE: As It Is, Silverstein, Man Overboard WHAT'S DIFFERENT: With six full-length albums since their inception 15 years ago, Senses Fail have perfected their equation. The band typically opt for theatrics, from the melodic mortality of their first two albums to the reverberating bone-chill […]

Acceptance Colliding By Design FILE UNDER: Something Different Returns ROCKS LIKE: OneRepublic, Anberlin, Bad Suns WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Acceptance know it’s been a dozen years since their beloved 2005 LP, Phantoms, and that times have changed. Colliding By Design evolves the band’s sound significantly, upgrading with radio-ready production while honoring what made the band special previously. Added electronic elements thrust Jason Vena’s […]

Ryan Adams Prisoner FILE UNDER: Ryan Adams-core ROCKS LIKE: Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Ryan Adams WHAT'S DIFFERENT: His dalliance with the Taylor Swift oeuvre complete, Ryan Adams returns to the business of Being Ryan Adams on his 16th studio album. He stretches his range at times, with moments that play with Springsteen-esque world building and lax Petty jangle. WHY YOU […]

Nothington In The End FILE UNDER: Melodic gruff punk ROCKS LIKE: Red City Radio, Iron Chic, I Am The Avalanche WHAT'S DIFFERENT: For a start, they’re back. The San Francisco band have been on hiatus for the last five or so years since 2011’s Borrowed Time. While before they perhaps wore their influences on their sleeves a little too […]

Eisley I’m Only Dreaming FILE UNDER: Whimsical Indie Pop ROCKS LIKE: Copeland, the Hush Sound, Lydia WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Eisley underwent changes in 2015 when founding members chose to stick to the studio and sit out touring (drummer Weston DuPree) or depart to focus on family and other musical endeavors (keyboardist/vocalist Stacy King and guitarist Chauntelle DuPree D’Agostino). As […]

Carousel Kings Charm City FILE UNDER: Gritty Pop Punk ROCKS LIKE: New Found Glory, Handguns, A Day To Remember WHAT'S DIFFERENT: After parting ways with CI Records last year, Carousel Kings make a solid Victory Records debut, having sharpened their skills in an unconventional way: Frontman David Alexander convinced his bandmates to get creative juices flowing through flotation […]

Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness Zombies On Broadway Andrew McMahon's music has always had strong ties to California, in the form of vibrant characters (the pot-selling lesbians in Jack's Mannequin's “Holiday From Real”) or locales (the alluring-but-disorienting Topanga Canyon depicted in “Canyon Moon”). That hasn’t changed on Zombies On Broadway, the pianist's second album as Andrew McMahon […]

The Menzingers After The Party FILE UNDER: Nostalgic, romantic and melodic punk After The Party THE MENZINGERS 2/3 // Epitaph **** ROCKS LIKE: The Gaslight Anthem, the Lawrence Arms, Against Me! WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Not much, honestly—besides the Menzingers further cementing themselves as modern kings of heartfelt and nostalgic melodic punk, with that signature splash of alternative rock accessibility. […]

Matt Pryor Memento Mori FILE UNDER: Heartfelt, stripped-down folk-rock ROCKS LIKE: David Bazan, Josh Berwanger, Aaron West And The Roaring Twenties WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Unlike Pryor's last proper solo studio album (2013's Wrist Slitter), Memento Mori eschews electric guitars and aggressive tempos. Instead, the record is full of stripped-down meditations on life and death, based around antique-sounding piano (“Stay,” “Is This Home?”), […]

Less Than Jake Sound The Alarm FILE UNDER: Ska-punk veterans defy the LP format ROCKS LIKE: Snuff, Streetlight Manifesto, Reel Big Fish WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Not only is the lion’s share of these seven songs focused on the guitar-driven, punk half of the band’s descriptive dyad, but these Florida greybeards excellently interweave an alt-rock sensibility into the bleating horns […]

Dave Hause Bury Me In Philly FILE UNDER: Biting and bright singer-songwriter fare ROCKS LIKE: Frank Turner, Brian Fallon, Ryan Adams WHAT'S DIFFERENT: Bury Me In Philly doesn’t really overhaul the former Loved Ones frontman’s M.O., but it showcases a wise and occasionally raw Hause sharpening his veteran punk chops into rousing and often smoothly melodic fare. It’s a […]