Hot Water Music – Exister
Like so many other fans, when I first heard that Hot Water Music was making a new album I was extremely excited. With a legacy like theirs and a still-rabid fan base, Hot Water Music could have simply gone through the motions or just farted into a microphone and people would have still loved it. (Read more…)
Castevet – The Echo & The Light
Earlier this year my friends from the amazing Tiny Engines label released the gorgeous vinyl version of Castevet’s newest record The Echo & The Light. It’s the second record from this Chicago group that I’ve had the pleasure of hearing. It’s not totally (or really at all) dissimilar from last year’s Summer Fences and still (Read more…)
Hostage Calm – Hostage Calm
As someone who is completely unfamiliar with pre-Hostage Calm Hostage Calm, this is my singular opinion of this Connecticut-based band’s self-titled full-length. Before ever listening to a note of the record, I just casually and carelessly assumed this was a hardcore record. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Hostage Calm is a record that covers (Read more…)
Young Livers – Of Misery And Toil
Of Misery And Toil is the second full-length from the Gainesville, Florida based group Young Livers and it’s an album that’s right up there with the best of the No Idea Records catalog. It’s gruff but melodic, and dense as shit while retaining clarity. It’s actually quite an achievement to make a record sound like (Read more…)
Esprit De Corps – Under Constant Influence EP
On their self-released EP, Under Constant Influence, from 2009 Denver, Colorado’s Esprit De Corps throttles through five songs of abrasive rock that sounds like a cross between The Bronx and fellow Denver natives Planes Mistaken For Stars and Only Thunder). The vocals are generally gruff and shouted but with a hint of melody, the rhythms (Read more…)
Sleep Bellum Sonno – Judge Us By How We Lived Our Lives, Not By How We Made Our Living
Sleep Bellum Sonno is from Long Island and their sophomore album, Judge Us By How We Lived Our Lives, Not By How We Made Our Living, is a complex and ambitious collection of songs that is as well executed as it is carefully composed. As far as concept albums go, this one is a doozy. (Read more…)
Daylight – Sinking EP
The 5 song Sinking EP from the Pennsylvania based Daylight is a must hear if you are a fan of melodic punk/post-hardcore. A lot like Nothington without the rootsy undertones, a little Like Polar Bear Club but less plodding, and sorta like Title Fight but more gruff and less poppy, this is highly recommended for (Read more…)
Passenger Action – Passenger Action
Passenger Action’s self-titled full-length is full of driving, emotive, and technical rock music that has the base of something unabashedly catchy a la Taking Back Sunday or even Saves The Day as well as something more dynamic like Knapsack or Static Prevails-era Jimmy Eat World. There are good vocal harmonies, there is solid fretwork, and (Read more…)
Pianos Become The Teeth – Old Pride
On Old Pride Baltimore, Maryland’s Pianos Become The Teeth puts an interesting and refreshing spin on screamo by fleshing out their chaotic bursts and screamed vocals with atmospheric post-rock and what could almost be called straightforward hardcore (or at least post-hardcore) with moments that even remind me of what you might hear on early 90’s (Read more…)
