Skid Row – Rise Of The Damnation Army – United World Rebellion: Chapter Two [EP] (2014)

Skid Row - Rise Of The Damnation Army - United World Rebellion Chapter Two [EP] (2014)

Skid Row - Rise Of The Damnation Army - United World Rebellion Chapter Two [EP] (2014) Skid Row are back again. And “We Are The Damned” it’s a kick-ass rock’n’roll anthem, one of the best Skid Row songs they ever delivered. It’s irresistible and unstoppable. As rock music should be. The rest of the EP it’s composed of 3 more rocking heavy metal flavored songs, a quite forgettable balled and 2 solid rock covers: Queens’s “Sheer Heart Attack”, and the Aerosmith’s classic “Rats In The Cellar”. Except the 2 covers, the build-up of this EP it’s similar with the last year released “Chapter One” EP.
This is a solid, enjoyable, American heavy metal release, but I’m not sure if it’s good enough to bring back Skid Row to where they belong, at the top of the rock. If back in ’96 opening for Kiss felt to Rachel Bolan unacceptable and finally lead to fire Sebastian Bach, the guys now opening in Europe for Saxon, a good, but mediocre British heavy metal band.
Solinger it’s for 15 years now the lead singer of Skid Row and he’s doing a really fine job, no use to wait for Bach to come back, but enjoy this fine piece of American rock release. Read more Skid Row – Rise Of The Damnation Army – United World Rebellion: Chapter Two [EP] (2014)

’68 – In Humor And Sadness (2014)

'68 - In Humor And Sadness (2014)

'68 - In Humor And Sadness (2014) I admit, I was afraid this will be another noiscore/crossover post-hardcore whatever album, but fortunately I was wrong. If you miss the raw energy and fury of the Bleach era Kurt Cobain, but you’re even more hardcore and garage punk oriented, it’s very possible that “In Humor And Sadness” might be your next very best friend. It’s neat, it’s wild, it’s in your face, still quite musical and hitting instantly, getting under your skin quickly and for good.
’68 was formed in 2013 by guitarist and vocalist Josh Scogin formerly of Norma Jean and The Chariot and drummer Michael McClellan. They released same year a self-released EP titled “Midnight” including two tracks: “Three is a Crowd” and “Third Time is a Charm”. The initial pressing of Midnight sold out in less than one day, and the indie label No Sleep Records re-released it with new artwork on April 1, 2014.
In May 2014, ’68 announced they signing to Good Fight Music and eOne Music for the release of their debut album, “In Humor and Sadness”, due to be released on July 8, 2014. To promote the album, ’68 released a pair of YouTube videos, which had to be played in unison in order to hear “Track Two: E”. Such a wild idea, isn’t it??! The song “Track One: R” was also available for online streaming ahead of the album’s release. Read more ’68 – In Humor And Sadness (2014)

Massive – Full Throttle (2014)

Massive - Full Throttle (2014)

Massive - Full Throttle (2014) While AC/DC is about retirement, Australia seems to find – finally – their new rock’n’roll Gods. In a world of hybrid and alternative musics, a world of fakes and imitations, a world of consume and (tasteless) products, it’s both eccentric and refreshing to hear some good old fashioned guitar riffs and neat, but goddamn exciting rock’n’roll grooves, screams and pounding drums.
And this is what Massive it’s all about. High-octane, rock’n’roll flavored hard rock. A little bit of AC/DC, some powerful Led Zeppelin riffs, the energy of Guns’N’Roses with the true blood hard rock melodies of Darkness, and the result it’s explosive and deadly. “One by One” will raise the dead and it will ringing in your ears for days once it gets into your system. This is truly infectious! Maybe they didn’t re-invent the rock, but they do it right!
Probably since “Appetite for Destruction” we didn’t have something so ferocious and irresistible. So, ladies and gentlemen, let’s go to the motherf*ckin’ dancefloor!! Read more Massive – Full Throttle (2014)

(hed) p.e. – Evolution (2014)

(hed) p.e. - Evolution (2014)

(hed) p.e. - Evolution (2014) I had falling in love with (hed) p.e. a lifetime ago when drunk in a bar I heard for the first time their song “Bartender”. I write about that when they released in 2009 the killer album entitled “New World Orphans” and mention it again, one year later when they delivered “Truth Rising”, their eighth studio album.
Four years might feels like another lifetime, but Jared Gomes is back and he is furious, maybe even more determined then ever. Those wicked riffs, those dub and reggae flavored grooves and hardcore rooted intensity are always refreshing, although sometimes some of them are sound quite familiar.
Hed PE, also known as (hed) Planet Earth and stylized as (həd) p.e. was formed by Vocalist Jared Gomes, also known as “M.C.U.D.” (MC Underdog), and guitarist Wes Geer in 1994 and released the self-financed extended play, “Church of Realities” only one year later.
They signed with Jive Records, releasing their self-titled debut album in 1997. Unfortunately, due to the label’s contractual terms and the disappointing sales of the album, the band found themselves unable to repay the cash advances given to them by Jive. Gomes is quoted as saying “We had these romantic visions of the music industry, and we thought it would be cool to be a punk band on a rap label. So we fulfilled that dream, but it was also probably the worst thing that could have happened. We’ve had offers from Sony and others that we can’t take because we owe Jive so much money.” Read more (hed) p.e. – Evolution (2014)

Dog Fashion Disco – Sweet Nothings (2014)

Dog Fashion Disco - Sweet Nothings (2014)

Dog Fashion Disco - Sweet Nothings (2014) Originally named Hug The Retard, Dog Fashion Disco was formed in 1995 by Todd Smith, Greg Combs, and John Ensminger in Rockville, Maryland. Tod, Greg and John were high school colleagues. Combining many different music styles from the 70’s psychedelic, through jazz to heavy metal and circus music, Dog Fashion Disco was categorized as avant-garde metal band being heavily influenced by Mike Patton’s Mr. Bungle. The band’s lyrical content is often highly esoteric and satirical, with constant tongue-in-cheek references to the occult, drug use, and other oddities.
Their first two albums were self released and low budget products. The first – “Erotic Massage” (1997) – was funded by a loan taken out by drummer John Ensminger. The second self-released album was titled “Experiments In Alchemy” and released in 1998. While the first album was Read more Dog Fashion Disco – Sweet Nothings (2014)

Body Count – Manslaughter (2014)

Body Count – Manslaughter (2014)

Body Count – Manslaughter (2014) It was five years before “Three Dollar Bill, Yall” and 16 years before “Swan Songs”, the debut Hollywood Undead album. One year after the controversial self titled debut album, the soundtrack of the film “Judgement Night” bought together several rock and rap/hip hop artists and set a new trend in mixing opposite musical genres. Body Count, the rock/metal band of the (in)famous rapper Ice-T it’s definitively one of the reference points of crossover. Although, they might be inspired by artists such as Bad Brains, Living Colour, Mordred, Suicidal Tendencies, Faith No More, etc they inspired and bought to life a generation to follow.
The debut album was originally set to be distributed under the title Cop Killer, named for the song of the same name, which criticizes police brutality and after the release the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas launched a campaign to force Warner Bros. Records to withdraw the album finally entitled Body Count and released on March 10, 1992 – just months before the L.A. riots. “Body Count” it’s a flawless album where punk, rap, rock, hip hop and thrash metal are melting into one.
It was followed by “Born Dead” in 1994, “Violent Demise: The Last Days” in 1997, with a considerable gap “Murder 4 Hire” in 2006 and now we’ve got chapter 5, “Manslaughter” (smart reference back to “Body Count”) released on June 10, 2014 by Sumerian Records and produced by Will Putney (credited for working with artists such as Asking Alexandria, Poison The Well, Thy Art Is Murder, Miss May I, Came As Romans, etc). Read more Body Count – Manslaughter (2014)

OK Go – Upside Out, EP (2014)

OK Go – Upside Out (2014)

OK Go – Upside Out (2014) “Hungry Ghosts”, the first new OK Go studio album in four years, drops in October, but the waiting it’s almost over and till the new album, we’ve got a 4 track EP to hang on to. It were quite long 4 years, OK Go and their fabulous third album, “Of the Blue Colour of the Sky” made me re-evaluate the indie/alternative rock scene and it’s still one of my all time favorites albums. I just can not delete it from my mp3 player. It’s like Led Zeppelin “III”.
Anyway, if you’re anxious, you can contribute to their Pledge campaign of fund raising for the production of the new album.
Meanwhile we had a cute Extra Nice Edition on double CD, a live album (180/365, 2011), The Compleat 12 Months of (Rare, Unreleased) OK Go and a few killer videos. And while I just mentioned their incredible videos, they delivered a new one: “The Writing’s On the Wall”, so, let’s take a look! Read more OK Go – Upside Out, EP (2014)

Kasabian – 48:13 (2014)

Kasabian – 48 13 (2014)

Kasabian – 48 13 (2014) Formed in Leicester, England, in 1997, Kasabian won several awards and recognition in the media, including a Brit Award in 2010 for Best British Group and their live performances are generally well appreciated by the media and the audience. Their music has been described as a mix between The Stone Roses and Primal Scream with the swagger of Oasis. They have released five studio albums so far: Kasabian (2004), Empire (2006), West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum (2009), Velociraptor! (2011), and this current, brand new album, 48:13 (2014).
48 minutes and 13 seconds, ten songs, three interludes (Shiva, Mortis, Levitation), “48:13” it’s a fair, straight up, electronic-tinged Brit indie-rock album with a few good and groovy moments and some memorable melodies.
This time they tried a little bit harder to sound like themselves rather than trying to be somebody else (obsessively, obviously or eventually Oasis) and – definitively – this is a win win situation both for them and for us, respectively their audience. Read more Kasabian – 48:13 (2014)

Trophy Scars – Holy Vacants (2014)

Trophy Scars – Holy Vacants (2014)

Trophy Scars – Holy Vacants (2014) Four years ago Trophy Scars and their fabulous “Darkness, Oh Hell” rocked my world. Literally. That hypnotic mixture of punk fueled post-hardcore, indie-psychedelic rock, jazz, blues and funk was fresh and powerful, totally addictive.
Meanwhile they lost a little bit their punk edge, but not their intensity and “Holy Vacants” it’s an excicting and charming, throughout enjoyable album. Actually they know how to get slowly under your skin and once you get “infected”, you can’t get rid of them anymore. Must mention this, they released an album entitled “Never Born, Never Dead” in 2011, but somehow I missed that.
“Holy Vacants” is Trophy Scars’ fourth album and was two years in the making. It was also intended as their last, not because of any cataclysmic upset in the band, but because the four – Jerry Jones (vocals), John Ferrara (guitarist), Andy Farrel (bass player), Brian Ferrara (drummer) and Gray Reinhard (keys, vocals) – felt that after eight years, it had run its course. Read more Trophy Scars – Holy Vacants (2014)

John Frusciante – Enclosure (2014)

John Frusciante - Enclosure (2014)

John Frusciante - Enclosure (2014) If Syd Barrett would still be around and doing records, probably he would play the things John Frusciante play. A brilliant, but sometimes disturbing game of motions and emotions beyond the horizon we generally dare to explore. Sometimes there is no line between madness and genius.
Drum’n’bass inspired drums, unleashed guitar solos and an always changing ambiance of space-rock and indie electronic music it’s the world that Frusciante build up and share with us.
“Enclosure, upon its completion, was the record which represented the achievement of all the musical goals I had been aiming at for the previous 5 years. It was recorded simultaneously with Black Knights’ Medieval Chamber, and as different as the two albums appear to be, they represent one investigative creative thought process. What I learned from one fed directly into the other. Enclosure is presently my last word on the musical statement which began with PBX” – said Frusciante. Read more John Frusciante – Enclosure (2014)