“The Moment You Realize You’re Going To Fall”, the sophmore album by the Wes Borland leaded and fronted Black Light Burns sounds sweat and dark in a quite David Bowish manner. It’s impossible to stick any label to this music, it’s impossible to squeeze it into any defined genre of style, this is post “something” without being typically finicky and selfishly obscure and pointlessly exclusivist, it’s simultaneously Rock, mainly noisy and garage taste-like, but sometimes Jazzy, and Industrial in a quite classic sense and approach, but avoiding all the cliches and mandatory conformity. It’s arty, but not abstract and it’s trippy without becoming shapeless. Wes Borland definitively founded a fascinating, very own flavored path here and delivered a pretty exciting material.
Vividly colored, changing moods and grooves, “The Moment You Realize You’re Going To Fall” it’s a bold, literally edgy cutting, modern (Industrial) Rock album, one of the finest of it’s kind.
Quitting Limp Bizkit in 2001, Read more Black Light Burns – The Moment You Realize You’re Going To Fall (2012)
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Noh Mercy – Noh Mercy (2012)
“No answering machines. No computers. No internet. No cordless phones (much less cell phones). No color Xerox. Only DayGlo colored paper for posters. Graphics meticulously cut and pasted out of magazines, newspapers, or clear plastic rub-on letters. All Super 8 movies on film or the new ‘video’ were very expensive to process and you needed to be rich or have access to a school to use the equipment. All photography was either Polaroid or else you needed to have access to a darkroom.
We communicated with posters on telephone poles, sympathetic radio stations, and word of mouth. We visited each other’s homes to draw, paint, and listen to records. We wrote and received letters sent through the mail. We discussed politics, art, music, and philosophy in person.” – confessed Esmerelda, the singer half of the band Noh Mercy.
Meanwhile we are totally alienated and disorientated. And full of Caucasian guilt. Read more Noh Mercy – Noh Mercy (2012)
EndAnd – Adventures of Fi in Space (2012)
This is Garage Rock, with one leg back to the 70’s and the other kicking into the future, merging Noise and Alternative Rock influences, blinking with an eye to Psychedelia, but adding some Punk attitude and “no future” easiness, they delivering raw, biting, but definitively tasty and smartly layered mixture of Garage/Punk Rock where gentle melodies, smoothly played chords are make an efficient pair with the overdrives and driving, energetic riffs, pounding drums and buzzing basses.
Resulting from merging two EP’s, “Adventures of Hi-Fi in Space”, and “Adventures of Lo-Fi in Space”, both released in June 2012, this LP consist of quite different recordings, from polished studio quality works to all sort of DIY style recordings, including digital 4 track, analog 4 track, live recording, and minimal pro tools editing. Still the album sounds compact, every piece fits right in. And if you are into real Underground, truly experimental Rock, edge cutting stuffs, not only on the surface, but diving deep, EndAnd worth at least a chance.
And for orientation, think of Cloud Nothings, The Ramones, Helmet, Polvo, Jay Reatard, Gang of Four, Wavves, The Pixies, Guided By Voices, The Melvins, Nirvana, etc. Read more EndAnd – Adventures of Fi in Space (2012)
Dub Pistols – Worshipping The Dollar (2012)
No sex, but dub!! Still, quite addictive and possible, contagious!
Formed and surfaced in London, in 1996, by ex-club promoter, producer, vocalist, DJ, Barry Ashworth, busted out declaring “There’s Gonna Be A Riot”. While their incendiary live show ensured a solid worldwide following through relentless touring, the records took their own path, moving swiftly on from initial Big Beat Whoopee into celebrations of two lifetimes of musical obsessions, the Reggae-Punk implications of the Dub Pistols moniker just the launch-pad. Merging melodious Pop with edge-cutting Dub and not loosing for a single second the biting tooth of Punk, Dub Pistols grown into a murderous entertaining machine bringing serious social issues to the dance floor. Read more Dub Pistols – Worshipping The Dollar (2012)
Richard Cheese – Back In Black Tie (2012)
I’m sucker for this guy!! If I have a bad day, and dam it, I have my share of bad days, Richard Cheese can make the s*it go away. He’s first four albums – “Lounge Against the Machine” (2000), “Tuxicity” (2002), “I’d Like a Virgin” (2004), and “Aperitif for Destruction” (2005) – re absolutely murderous releases, Richard (Mark Jonathan Davis, age 46) fronts Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine, a Los Angeles based cover band and comedy act, performing popular songs in a lounge/swing style reminiscent of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Tony Bennett. They are specialize in playing lounge-style arrangements of recent popular rock, metal, rap and hip hop songs, sung in a croony traditional swing vocal style, contrasting an elegant jazz treatment of the music with often profane and ribald lyrics to create a humorous dissonance. The band gained exposure after their cover of Disturbed’s “Down with the Sickness” was featured in the 2004 remake (directed by Snyder), Dawn of the Dead. They have some absolutely killer covers of some famous songs such as “Creep”, “Only Happy When It Rains”, “Nookie”, “Bullet the Blue Sky”, “Fight for Your Right”, “Smack My Bitch Up”, “She Hates Me”, “Chop Suey!”, “Material Girl”, “Me So Horny”, “People = Shit”, “Welcome to the Jungle”, “Sunday Bloody Sunday”, “Enter Sandman”, etc.
Last year I wrote about two of his latest releases, “A Lounge Supreme” and “Live At The Royal Wedding” , now it’s the turn of this most recent “Back In Black Tie”. Read more Richard Cheese – Back In Black Tie (2012)
Monks of Mellonwah – Neurogenesis, EP (2012)
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Monks of Mellonwah are a four-piece Alternative Rock band, and their latest, second, ad deadly EP, “Neurogenesis”, was released on 24th May, 2012. MoM reminds me mostly of the British band Bush, they are selling on the same dark shaded seas of Post-Grunge/Alternative Rock, building-up their unique sound by blending different elements, having strong roots back to Classic Blues & Rock, to artists such as Hendrix, Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd, but also incorporating influences from Red Hot Chili Peppers and more recently from Muse.
Their first E.P., “Stars Are Out”, has been highly praised since its release in 2010.
Thei are winner of the award for “Best Indie Rock Band” at the 2012 Artists In Music Awards and nominated for Best International Act at the LA Music Awards, the Monks of Mellonwah are entering some very exciting times. Dean Cramer of the influential blog Kings of A & R recently listed the Monks in his “Top 8 Emerging Artists”, and CMJ featured their track “Neverending Spirit” on their trendsetting mixtape series.
Blood God – No Brain, But Balls! (2012)
Huge fan of AC/DC? Blood God will knock your balls out!! 😆 This is the newborn monster of Thomas Gurrath of Debauchery. Their last year released debut album, “Germany’s Next Death Metal” made it to my list of favorite albums of 2011 with it’s explosive mixture of good old fashioned Rock grooves and Death Metal rawness. Now Thomas chose the more conventional path of AC/DC to set on fire your little headbanger parties and make the girls to take off – at least – their shirts. This is more AC/DC then AC/DC. Still, bonus for the Death Metal community, the second CD contains the whole album with „Debauchery style“ grunts, pretty strange and fun that blood spitting kind of vocals on those 101% AC/DC riffs, but taste is not an issue to discuss now. I prefer the first CD, but “No Brain, But Balls!” it’s the record you need for a murderous party, and this is the only thing which really matters! Read more Blood God – No Brain, But Balls! (2012)
Testament – The Dark Roots of Earth (2012)
Testament was formed in 1983, in Berkeley, California and they are often credited as one of the most popular bands of the 1980s Thrash Metal scene. Singer Chuck Billy replaced former singer Steve Souza – also of another Thrash legend, Exodus – in 1986, prior to the recording of their first studio album, “The Legacy”, and while guitarist Eric Peterson has been credited as the only constant member since foundation and the band had numerous lineup changes, the current line-up includes two other original members, guitarist Alex Skolnick and bassist Greg Christian, while behind the drums we’ve got Gene Hoglan (associated with artists such as Devin Townsend, Dark Angel, Death, Dethklok, Strapping Young Lad, Pitch Black Forecast, and most recently Fear Factory) who initially joined the band back in ’96 and replaced Paul Bostaph during the recording session.
To date, Testament has released nine studio albums, four live albums, six compilation albums, and six singles, and they were one of the first Thrash Metal bands to sign to a major label, to Atlantic Records, in 1986. They achieved their biggest success with their 1992 released, fifth album, “The Ritual”, which debuted at #55 on the Billboard 200 charts, the band’s highest ever chart position in the United States. The band also has two Top 40 albums and one Top 50 album to its credit in the UK. Their previous, ninth studio album, “The Formation of Damnation” (2008) entered the Top 20 in Germany at #15.
Released on July 27, 2012 in Europe, the 50 minutes of their tenth studio album, “The Dark Roots of Earth” it’s the perfect refreshment for all the true metallers and headbangers fueled by the nostalgia of the 80’s raw Thrash slaughters. Read more Testament – The Dark Roots of Earth (2012)
Jet Plane – All The Static Stars (2012)
“Disappearance At Sea” starting with the sound of breaking waves at the sea-side and the smoothly glowing instruments creates a mood which slowly suck you in, imprisoning you.
Max – guitar, Serge – guitar, Dima – drums, and Kostya -bass are from Bryansk, Russia and they formed Jet Plane back in 2009, while “All The Static Stars” it’s their third installment so far, selling on the sonar seas of bands such as Mogwai, Sigur Rós, Rain Tongue, dEUS, Sonic Youth, Malkovic, Jeniferever, Explosions In The Sky, etc. Minimalist, stripped-down to the bone sound, but filled with emotions instead of convenience, colored with soul-flare instead predictability and burning creativity instead fancy cliches, Jet Plane delivering quality (Post) Rock with gentle, but edge cutting experimental taste, focusing on expression of feelings and reveling of emotions by sound, rather then delivering 3 minute long Pop emptiness. Read more Jet Plane – All The Static Stars (2012)
Emilie Autumn – Fight Like A Girl (2012)
World-class violinist. Fashion icon. Famously bipolar. Vegetarian turned vegan. Identifies herself as asexual, freak for some, idol for others, Emilie Autumn is one artist you may love or you may hate, but definitively hard to stay indifferent. And even further, listing – and living – through “F.L.A.G.” – her third installment – you may love one song and hate the next one while this is another tumultuous journey from glossy cabaret to Industrial chaos, from burlesque to Glam Rock and back to psychotic Steampunk, while she often labels her music and style as “Victoriandustrial”.
Her vocal work has been compared to Tori Amos and Kate Bush, while her music encompasses a wide range of styles, it was labeled “new age chamber music, trip-hop baroque, and experimental space pop”, as well as “cabaret, electronic, symphonic, new age, and rock & roll”. Things did not changed with “F.L.A.G.”, Emilie cry one moment and laugh the next one and the music follows her ever changing flow of mood. Not an easy walk through a sunny park Sunday at the noon, but a dark, fractured, fever burned trip on the wild side. For real and for delusion. Read more Emilie Autumn – Fight Like A Girl (2012)
