First off, let’s not sugar-coat this: this isn’t for everybody. I guarantee that the first (and only) reaction a lot of people will experience when they hear Emmure’s Slave to the Game is going to be to twitch uncontrollably…
Back when I was first introduced to hardcore, one of the most crucial elements of the scene — one of the things that most set it apart from what felt like a big, muddy puddle of emotionless, purposeless rock or punk — was the focus on making things better…
Normally, metalcore-ish stuff like this gives me a freaking headache and has me reaching for the “Stop” button after barely two tracks; there’s only so much I can take of pummeling, detuned guitars and unintelligibly bellowed vocals, y’know?…
Back when Oxnard-based metalcore dudes The Warriors released their last album, Genuine Sense Of Outrage, I listened and mostly gave a shrug, pushing it off to the side as yet more hardcore-tinged metal pit filler…
In a world where every punk rock fan can safely emote themselves into outer space by way of special effects and a synthesizer, Driver Side Impact reigns as kings of the world with their release The Very Air We Breathe…
Do you like bone-crushing double-kick bass drums? Do you like finger-blistering guitar solos? Then you’re going to love Darkest Hour. They’ve just sewn up a new album…
In 1999, when up-and-coming group The Autumn Offering was formed in Daytona, FL, most of the local music scene was apparently nothing but radio-friendly pop-rock crap. Thankfully, The Autumn Offering was about to change that repetitive scene…
Murder and death never sounded so sweet! But don’t let Arise and Ruin fool you — this isn’t your average, everyday, run-of-the-mill metal band…
Inside the liner notes for the promo copy of Arrivals and Departures reads the line, “Many great bands have broken new musical ground over the years, SILVERSTEIN is ready to do the same right now with ‘ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES’.” Well, they’d better hurry, because the malls are closing…
I guess in this age of everything-anytime, I shouldn’t be real surprised that a band from deep-rural Georgia (Acworth, according to the Myspace) sounds so, well, urban. Moros Eros’s Jealous Me Was Killed By Curiousity betrays only a teeny-tiny hint…
On Genuine Sense of Outrage, Oxnard, California’s The Warriors have let the Rage Against The Machine-isms drop (for the most part; there’re occasional throwbacks, like “Life Grows Cold”) by the wayside and have instead focused on straight-ahead metalcore a la Snapcase…
Back when I first heard Seattle quintet Aiden’s much-lauded debut, Our Gang’s Dark Oath, I had pretty high hopes. “Finally,” I thought, “maybe somebody can convincingly combine all that emo-modern-rock stuff with the kind of old-school gothiness the four ‘subversive’ kids who went to my high school…
Back in the day, I can remember waging fierce debates over what was and wasn’t metal. Each of my friends had their favorites, naturally, and we all went back and forth over tempos, vocal styles, guitars, songwriting, the whole mess, and classifying some bands as being “real” metal…
Teenaged-boy angst is nothing new; heck, it’s been sung about for as long as there’ve been instruments, I’m sure. With Goodbye To The Gallows, though, it sure feels like Emmure’s put somewhat of a new spin on the idea. For one thing, I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard songs of bitter recrimination and youthful agony…
Don’t you just hate Fallout Boy? The way they prance around like they started a scene or something. Their overproduced music, their annoying fan base, their god-awful music videos. Fallout Boy is the sad product of dying trends and a mix-up of poorly-made emo slop…
Okay, so I know damn well The Pogues didn’t invent Irish folk, but they sure as hell dragged it kicking and screaming into the 20th century. Because of that, I find that I have a very hard time not holding up any band that plays Celtic-style folk mixed with rock…
Dammit, I’m stumped. I’ve been wracking my brain to try to come up with what possibly could’ve been so big about 1997 the year that it would cause 1997 the band to name itself after it. And I’ve got no freakin’ idea. What, was it that Deng Xiaoping died?…
I hate to damn with faint praise, but after repeated listens to the reissue of The Sleeping’s 2004 album Believe What We Tell You, I’m afraid I have to — I’ve got to confess that while the album’s okay, I’m not sure it really merited reissuing…
It seemed for a while that Victory Records was shifting its focus to more melodic bands, like Spitalfield and Bayside and eschewing the hardcore days of yore. Not the case, it seems. Comeback Kid’s Broadcasting pretty much proves…
Straight up, I’m not really a huge Bayside fan. I had heard of the band before but never really heard much from them up until now. Obviously, I therefore have no real idea how The Walking Wounded stacks up against their previous output…
I’ve mentioned a couple of times in these pages that it seems like Victory is moving away from the hardcore types of music that established the label, in favor of more accessible, poppier fare. I guess The Forecast further proves that point. In all actuality, though, I think Victory is just broadening its roster…
