Music Reviews of Hardcore, Crust, Post-Hardcore, Metalcore
Band Spotlight
Chiodos
Perhaps no one can explain the sheer ferocity and timid quietness it is better than when vocalist Craig Owens says “we don’t want to let the kids down” when discussing the group’s intense vocals live at shows. Well they never let a single kid down with their vicious assault on the ears and grip on the jugular...
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03.09.2007 by J-Sin
Music Reviews of Hardcore, Crust, Post-Hardcore, Metalcore
Farewell to Twilight — From the Aral Sea to the Western Wall Buy it at Amazon
Only having been together for four years, Farewell to Twilight amazingly turns heads with their latest release. Stretching the line between post-punk, hardcore, and metal for a sound that a lot of bands try to grasp but fail miserably at. When they sing more melodically it’s certainly more of the crusty punk vein of melody than the standard non-nasal version. But that’s not a complaint more of an observation. Their songs are crafted with no intent on pleasing all audiences subscribing more to the Dillinger school of thought quite often. Wisconsin will never be the same.
- J-Sin
Stereotyperider — Prolonging the Inevitable Buy it at Amazon
Stereotyperider builds on the success of their cover album, “Under the Influence Vol. 1”, which found them covering a wide array of great bands including The Pixes, Seaweed, The Cure, and Fugazi. And take those influences to heart kids, because this is a band that used all the great things those bands did to forge their own unique smelting of sound. At time purely post-hardcore and then switching tracks for a more melodic indie rock sound, Stereotyperider might not be a band that everyone is talking about—yet. It’s only a matter of time before this band really overtakes the entire scene and thrusts the whole damn thing on the back of their shoulders busting through the gates like a wild man in search of civility.
- J-Sin
Hoods / Freya — Split Buy it at Amazon
We’ve discussed both bands on Smother.Net plenty of time and have even interviewed Hoods a few years ago. Here both bands contribute towards a great split CD out now on Victory Records. Freya who features Karl Buechner of Earth Crisis fame are less preachy with their lyrics and discuss more emotive issues than sXe vegan issues. Now that hardcore has really hit heavily into the mainstream it’s great to go back to the days when it wasn’t all haircuts and style or even who was more sXe, Hoods and Freya both represent that. Wicked.
- J-Sin
Glory Of This — Adoration Buy it at Amazon
Ball up your fist and start swinging wildly in those funky hardcore dances because this is gonna light your balls on fire. It’s fiercely heavy but then is able to switch on a dime towards more melodic vocal singing without it sounding generic or forced. Aggressive yet staggeringly harmonic, “Adoration” is one of those albums that will propel other bands to start recording similar sounding albums. You know those stories of things coming full circle? Well the formation of Glory of This happened with a chance meeting at a Warped Tour stop in ’03 only to find the band one year latter selected by Alternative Press as one of four winners to join the Warped Tour. But don’t worry there will be plenty of other interesting stories coming from the Glory of This camp soon.
- J-Sin
The Reason — Ravenna Buy it at Amazon
This is The Reason’s first full-length album and storms through the barrage of screamo, metallic-punk, and melodic hardcore bands out there to stake their own claim. This quintet from Ontario, Canada are hoping to put Canada on the map in the heavy music scene and “Raverna” is poised to do just that. After touring and putting in their dues with the likes of Hopesfall, Alexisonfire, Moneen, Murphy’s Law, and Blue Skies at War, they’re certainly a force to be reckoned with. Metaphorically speaking the album is a reference to the ancient Roman empire’s move of the capitol from Rome to Ravenna. Great pick-up the next time you’re at the record store.
- J-Sin
With Resistance / Twenty Inch Burial — Split Buy it at Amazon
Slamming your head against a brick wall is the physical identical twin to this hardcore and metal odyssey known simply as With Resistance. Striking out somewhere between Atreyu and some of the older Tooth and Nail hardcore/scream bands. Twenty Inch Burial from Portugal is just as abrasive and always hits below the belt (though they’re nice about it), though they add a much more melodic element to the vocals. Each band gets three songs on the album but at the end you’re literally throwing things about (which is dangerous if you’re driving) and your guts are wrenched about yearning more. This is one addiction that’s hazardous to your body’s health—you’ll be swinging about in crazy postures not seen since Sick of It All’s training video on hardcore dancing.
- J-Sin
Devilinside — Volume One Buy it at Amazon
On “Volume One”, Devilinside reminds us all what a tremendous band Disembodied was. Their enigmatic metalcore tunes are refined in such a damning way that we all know we can never go back to the days where metal was easy to describe. As cold and foreboding as their home in Minneapolis, “Volume One” is a testament to everything that goes bump in the night and then gets hacked to pieces with a blunt dagger. As a whole this is a massive leap up from their “Prelude” EP, which we heaved praise previously here on Smother.Net. If you like your metal brutal and unforgiving, than Devilinside’s “Volume One” is the perfect abrasion to add to your bruises.
- J-Sin
Sunrise — Traces to Nowhere Buy it at Amazon
Don’t forget about Poland! Poland’s Sunrise is here with their sought after full length “Traces to Nowhere” just released on Lifeforce Records. Armed with massive riffage and screeches yelled as vocals, Sunrise let the sun set on crappy metal albums from Europe. Metal-edged hardcore hasn’t sounded this fucking good in a long time.
- J-Sin
Bars — Introducing... Buy it at Amazon
A quartet from Idaho, the potato countryside, Bone Daddy might not be what you’d expect. No this is not your standard upfront in-your-face hard rock band; incredibly they’re one part adult contemporary and one slightly bigger part rock-n-roll. All of it is smoothed over with a sultry underlying groove. Bone Daddy even weighs in on the cover song space with a great cover of Timmy Thomas’ “Why Can’t We Live Together” with a plea reminiscent of Rodney King.
- J-Sin
Fax Arcana / The Disease — We, the Bankrupt Split Buy it at Amazon
Fax Arcana and The Disease join forces to record a split CD that’s a perfect introduction for either band if you’ve never been exposed to either. Fax Arcana self-dubbed “rustbelt-blues-core” has that kind of Midwest disillusionment that Alone Records is getting known for. Weighing in on the post-hardcore train, they’ve assembled an ambitious four song set that refuses to sit still for one moment. The Disease meanwhile rips through the curtains of metal-edged hardcore by stabbing it with some healthy dose of electronica. If maniacs in a maximum-security mental asylum could be given music instruments these four songs might be the result.
- J-Sin
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