Calling The Black Queen’s debut album Fever Daydream a masterpiece is not an act of taint-tonguing, banus-licking sycophancy. It’s merely a statement of plain and simple fact. It’s been more than two years since key tracks The End Where We Start, Ice To Never, Secret Scream, and That Death Cannot Touch saw the light of day, and those converted by Read more…
Very few bands make it through three and a half decades – but over the course of multiple lineup adjustments, creative direction changes, tragedies and triumphs, Voivod have kept the dream alive since the early 80s. Whether laying down 17-minute songs or covering the Batman theme, Voivod keep pushing their boundaries and stretching Read more…
Working under the Beartooth banner, Caleb Shomo has always been up for a fight. His opponent comes cloaked in shadow, has no concrete physical form, and has claimed far too many victims. Its name is depression, the Disease referred to by Read more…
Some bands are born special. I first came across Black Peaks (then known collectively as Shrine) back in 2014, within a year or so of their initial formation, and it was obvious even then that these guys would go on to achieve big things. Fast-forward past their Closer To The Sun EP, 2016’s beautifully batshit debut album Statues, massive amounts of touring, and more than a few Read more…
Since 2014, Monuments have managed to stay near the top of the tech-metal pile on the back of The Amanuensis, which happens to be one of the greatest albums to ever emerge from that particular scene Read more…
After a decade of slogging away as one of the most hated pop-punk bands of all time, Good Charlotte went on hiatus and returned with 2016’s Youth Authority. It was a decent effort, and recognised as such, a promising sign of lessons learnt and extra miles run while sweating blood in the name of self-improvement. At their best, Good Charlotte stood up for the world’s downtrodden misfits – and that positive stance is likely why Read more…
Thrice have always thrived on diverse creative approaches. Their on-record history has already taken in a set of post-hardcore classics (The Artist In The Ambulance), experimental compositional sorcery (Vheissu), and the all-encompassing masterwork The Alchemy Index. Since the latter epic saw the light of day, Thrice have never quite managed to Read more…
Here in the UK, two underground festivals stand far above the rest. Every July, 2000 Trees hosts a wealth of alternative bands whose music collectively tends towards the more commercial end of the non-mainstream spectrum, while a month or so later, ArcTanGent ushers about 5,000 people into its grounds for three days of niche acts – especially those fond of Read more…
In 2018, humility has increasingly become a core value embraced and emphasised by guitar-based bands. Cool, calm, and collected confidence reigns supreme over arrogance and obnoxiousness, while mature self-assurance gets prioritised over forceful attempts to prove one’s worth. The Dirty Nil refuse to conform to that particular trend – and while nonconformity is obviously one of rock and roll’s most fundamental values, and they’re far from the first set of rockers to Read more…
Mike Vennart has a reputation for turning musical messes and chaos into moving, engrossing, living and breathing songs. With To Cure A Blizzard Upon A Plastic Sea, he’s at it once again. This album can be chalked up as another success, awarded the latest approving check mark on a list of long-playing releases that date back to his work with Oceansize and Read more…