It’s not often you feel short-changed by one of the best records of the year. But on first listen, ‘Hygiene’, the fourth Drug Church album, goes by in a blur. The New York outfit rattle through 10 songs in 26 minutes here, and some seem to stop dead just as they should go supernova. That feeling never really goes away […]
Read moreRolo Tomassi are a revelation. Almost 20 years into a career that has seen them go from playing hyperactive, neon-tinged hardcore to dense, complex, cutting-edge cross-genre sounds, they now feel like an increasingly unique proposition with a rapidly decreasing list of peers. No matter what happens from here, the now-transatlantic outfit should go down as one of the finest heavy bands of this century. The revelation didn’t begin […]
Read moreThe debut EP from Kyiv’s Milktuth is a satisfying buzzy ball of diverse alt-rock sounds that feels like it could have been released any time in the last 30 years. In less than 25 minutes here, the quartet touch on indie riffs, dreamy pop, shoegaze, a touch of almost-acoustic punk, and more. The title track keeps things relatively simple- combining […]
Read moreSpice are so damn good. Their debut album was identifiably punk- powered along by driving drums, catchy riffs, and the sneer of erstwhile Ceremony frontman Ross Farrar- but it was much more than that. There was a rough, ready, improvised vibe. There was a total, brilliant disregard for genre conventions. There was violin! This new two-song EP doubles down on […]
Read moreEvery Time I Die defy. The boys from Buffalo have been riffing rebellious and beating the odds since 1998 of course, but ‘Radical’ is something else. They haven’t picked that album title for nothing. Every Time I Die continue to defy their lifespan. This is their ninth album in 20 years. Those are unprecedented numbers for a band that play […]
Read moreSunstinger say they want to sound “as loud as possible” here, on their debut EP. And I get it, conventional wisdom suggests the shoegazey sound they’re going for works best at speaker-busting volume, and with every sonic space filled with noise. But the Fife four-piece have a knack for a hook that they shouldn’t ignore, and actually sound most compelling […]
Read moreIf Blanket’s last album was inspired by rays of light and feelings of hope, ‘Modern Escapism’ is, well, it seems like it’s the opposite. This is a dark, intense, and, at times, unforgiving record full of songs inspired by parasitical people, toxic social media, and a city falling into the sea. There is one bright spark though- all the bad […]
Read moreNo one is ready for this. Not us sinners, not anyone else. Those who fell under the spell of Lingua Ignota’s previous album might recognise small parts of ‘SINNER GET READY’, but even they’re not really ready. Because while there’s some sonic connective tissue to what came before- Kristin Hayter’s powerful voice remains up close and in sharp focus. And there’s […]
Read moreIf the last Turnstile album was a small but highly concentrated ball of energy, a hadouken of hardcore, this is the mushroom cloud left over when that energy finally reaches critical mass. This is the audio equivalent of one of those videos showing someone slice open a cone of yarn– what was tightly packed, pops open, what was inside, is […]
Read moreTayne’s debut album was like a poorly thought-out mixtape. It was full of great bits and pieces, and packed with exciting potential, but it was a clashing stylistic smorgasbord. Thankfully, the band (led by the do-it-all Matthew Sutton) have streamlined their approach for this new EP, and ‘Coherent’ thoroughly lives up to its name. Sutton still has a varied taste, […]
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