When did hardcore stop being fun? Not to start this review with a sweeping generalization, but it feels like the mainstream music press has been fawning over a wave of “edgy, “unique” hardcore for the sake of celebrating something different. I’m all about infusing adventurous songwriting into the hardcore and…
“So let me ruin my guts tonight” sings Dylan Slocum as Spanish Love Songs’ latest full-length, Brave Faces Everyone, kicks into gear on album opener, “Routine Pain”. The preamble is filled with self-effacing lyrics that see how much “lower (he) can go” as it sets the tone for a set…
It’s an election year in the United States, arguably the most divisive election year in the country’s history, if not ever. I (and many others) predicted we’d see a glut of politically motivated punk rock after the results of the 2016 election in the States and true to form that’s…
One of the things I’ve come to appreciate about my musical tastes as I go through life is that everything tends to have its own niche often attached to specific feelings and moments. Sometimes those moments, in hindsight, prove acutely painful yet still reveal things I have learned from. One…
Good thrash metal is a lot of things. It’s aggressive and combative. It’s in your face with the attitude. The music is bombastic and often extremely fun music to listen to. The best thrash should make you want to stand up for your rights, flip police cars, and take on…
Thanks to the spoiler-obsessed tendencies of the internet, you probably already saw that Converge are releasing a “surprise” EP today. The legendary metalcore quartet’s latest release drops less than a year after their acclaimed ninth album The Dusk In Us, which landed sixth among our Top 25 Albums of 2017. And honestly, there’s not much more to say than that; the declaration of “new Converge” will prompt fans and detractors to act accordingly, just like they always do when the band drops new material. But if you count yourself a member of the “fan” group, then Beautiful Ruin is a four-track treat of the band doing what they do best: scorching, multifaceted metalcore that’s as engaging as it is punishing.
Foo Fighters aren’t the type of band you associate with breaking boundaries, but their career has seen them unleash eight studio albums that most of us will agree are pretty solid, with a couple that ascends to levels of greatness. Also, as far as modern rock acts go, they don’t come much bigger. Their prolific career has seen them rise to meteoric heights through the release of popular singles, hilarious music videos and a reputation for being some of the nicest dudes in the biz. We don’t just want to support these guys because they know how to appeal to our stadium-sized sensibilities with almighty, but easily digestible, melodic rock, but they’re genuinely likable and good poster boys for music in general. It’s also a testament to their talent that they were able to break out of the shadow of Nirvana and establish themselves as a huge deal in their own right, and at this point in time, you could argue that their legacy is just as magnificent.
