This five song EP complete smacks the crap out of whatever else is prematurely being labeled as metalcore these days. Although only 14 minutes in length, THE BLINDING LIGHT deliver the necessary chops to deliver the knockout blow – strictly in the vein of SLAYER and DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, but with gravelly vocals evoking that [...]

Unlike figuring out what equals ‘stupid hardcore,” finding an intelligent, creative band in the genre takes a good deal of leg-work. Fortunately BOTCH makes that task just a bit easier. Although this is a post-mortem release, being that it was recorded in March, and the band broke up in mid summer, “An Anthology of Dead [...]

I have to give credit to Fearless Records, once again taking a chance with a band with a unique sound – not having something that can be easily positioned to a set crowd. BRAZIL mesh some indie rock with a post-punk sound that goes anywhere from sounding remotely like AT THE DRIVE-IN to THE JAM, [...]

This disc was pretty surprising – well, ok, it wasn’t all that surprising, but for a band playing some inspired, high-energy pop-punk, it seemed to leave a deeper impression than most of the lot that comes my way in this genre. While not straying too far from that pop, with hardcore breakdowns a la NEW [...]

This is the long-awaited full length from this Joey Cape et. al side project, and their follow up to their debut release, “Acrophobe.” Out of the sheer uniqueness of the entity that forms BAD ASTRONAUT, which is now seven members strong, and featuring some pretty big names (Angus Cooke, Marko 72, Derrick Ploudre), “Houston: We [...]

It has been an entirely too long wait for new material from BOY SETS FIRE, since their soon to be legendary hardcore classic, “After The Eulogy.” Without a doubt, not only is BOY SETS FIRE one of the most respected names in hardcore, their level of songwriting talent is probably close to topping the list. [...]

As the rift between emo and metalcore seems to divide even further as both genres get titled to their respective extremes, BOYS NIGHT OUT slice right into the gut of each and sound remarkably like GRADE. This release is a six song MCD, clocking in around 20 minutes, and it’s actually close to a perfect [...]

There’s a good deal of buzz with this band, especially since Ross Robinson is producing their next release (KORN, GLASSJAW), but unless their live show is of epic proportions, I’m missing “the catch.” “March on Electric Children” contains nine songs that blast by in a shade over 24 minutes, creating a haze of musical mayhem [...]