NEW BOYZ: MORE THAN YOUR AVERAGE “JERK” While there is arguably nothing new under the sun, there are times when the recycled past takes on new relevance and meaning within a different context. Enter the New Boyz and their revamping of “the Jerk,” a regional phenomena of the 90’s perpetuated by L.A. street culture and house-party connoisseurs alike. Armed with a minimalist beat and a hip(ster)-hop fashion sense, the summer-ready…
Fairly formulaic punk in the vein of early Green Day or Less Than Jake, and the band has seemed to tame their entire sound down from “Henry Rollins is No Fun†and “Best Hung Carrot in The Fridgeâ€. The copious amounts of dope that the band consumed and smoked before this disc makes for some of the most tepid and boring music to come out (even in the over-filled pop-punk…
Brian O’Shea aka Brian Keith Born in Port-Glasgow, Scotland. Brian began his musical career as a trombonist while in high school performing in local Jazz bands, he then immigrated to Canada and joined the Royal Canadian Guards as a bandsman and ended his stint as a sergeant. http://www.oshea-keith.com/ After returning to London he toured as an opening act for Junior Walker & The All Stars, The Four Tops, The Temptations,…
Cherry Suede play a brand of radio hair rock that blends together the sound of Loverboy, Def Leppard, and Bon Jovi. This means that the choruses that the band creates for this album are immediately catchy, and could be sung alike by young and old. “Not A Day Goes By†is the first track, and the band steps up confidently to the microphone even at the early reaches of the…
Being part of a hip-hop crew comes with benefits – never get lonely on the road, never run out of song ideas, the more the merrier, right? Sure, right up until show money and royalty checks need to get split. So Sandpeople, a 10-member hip-hop collective repping Portland, Oregon, have a lot of mouths to feed, and just like Wu needed C.R.E.A.M. back in ’93, in 2009, Sandpeople are in…
Due to Derrick Ramirez’s (ex-Dragonlord/ex-Testament) hectic schedule, Terry Butler (Six Feet Under/ex-Death/ex-Massacre) will join the ranks of OBLITERHATE and has recently laid down all the bass tracks at Redneck Studios (owned by John and Donald Tardy of Obituary) for upcoming debut, Blessing In Disgust. Comments Terry Butler: “It’s a great honor to be part of something with musicians of this caliber. I would like to thank Calvin for offering me…
Chicago, Illinois; Local hip-hop artist Seryiouz has just released his second LP Electric Liquid, under Chaodic Records. It is his follow up to the 2005 underground gem Rise from the Wreckage. Electric Liquid is a fusion of electro, funk, soul, with afro-cuban and urban rhythms. Seryiouz holds his own lyrically over strong production with street wise anthems, party joints, and political commentary. Featuring the first-ever cast of producers from all…
“One More Autumn†starts out with Cheron using a vocal inflection that sounds a lot like Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi†than anything that has came out in the last thirty years. There isn’t much in the way of extra instrumentation to “Goodnight Amelia†besides a guitar and a bass. Of course, the focal point of this track has to be Cheron’s voice, which is something that is never challenged…
Critical Praise for Finale: “Finale’s latest… shows his perseverance paying creative dividends. Grand Finale.” – Chairman’s Choice Feature, XXL “Abrasive, impassioned, and heartfelt” and: “A Pipe Dream And A Promise is a solid first effort not to be denied. Motor music indeed.” – URB.com “Finale’s debut album may be the rap fan’s rap scene fan’s rap record: really, really unflashy, and really, really good.” – CokeMachineGlow.com “Finale’s mic presence channels…
The question “Where in the World is Hawk Nelson?” would be appropriate for the band that has been coast to coast this year playing in front of more than 350,000 fans with the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular (Jan.-March), REVOLVE tour (Jan.-Feb.), and finished up the Rock and Worship Roadshow in April. Despite this insane touring schedule, fans will be pleased to know that these road warriors have found time to…
A certain amount old, seventies-influenced rock starts off “Gang’s All Hereâ€; replete with the guitar fuzz present on all those old albums, the vocals really cut through the noise and provide for rock in the old style. This is not diminished during “Girl’s Roomâ€; if anything, the guitars assume the fuzz present on many a punk song while the vocals take on a Danzig/Jim Morrison type of feel. The drums…
Lo Recordings and Welsh psych-illustrator Pete Fowler are offering a free mp3 download from Brazilian DJs/producers Monsters at Work aka Dinho and Renata Poletto for “Magic Morning,” off Fowler’s forthcoming release, A Psychedelic Guide To Monsterism Island. Well-known for designing the artwork for the Super Furry Animals, Fowler’s A Psychedelic Guide to… surrounds his animated Monsterism Island series and contains original compositions, ranging from monstrous rock fry ups to electronic…
Believe, Polish progressive rock band, is in the final stage of their work on their third studio album entitled “This Bread Is Mineâ€. It will be the band’s first release with Karol Wróblewski as the vocalist. The new material is currently mixed with the help of a very experienced producer WÅ‚odek Kowalczyk. Apart from the title, the band revealed also the artwork: “This Bread Is Mine†will be released by…
Metal Mind Productions presents one of Norway’s most acclaimed metal acts – Susperia. The band emerged on the scene in the year 2000, bringing a powerful mixture of black and thrash metal, which instantly won the hearts of thousands of metalheads worldwide. In the following years the band’s style has developed and improved – their music became a true melting pot of various genres, connected together with the same heaviness…
Political Punk a la Rage Against The Machine funneled through a pop machine. This band is a mix of RATM with pop-punk (The Donnas), and when I say the Donnas, I mean a strong female presence at the vocals. The politics of the band are truly worn on their sleeve, showcasing them as direct action, anarchists, and as people that don’t force their listeners to believe in a specific dogma.…
The first song was a Christmas song. I was six and probably directly ripped off A Charlie Brown Christmas, but it was a start. After a music degree I had a detour into other careers, but with a few songwriting awards, a song on a label release, and a new CD -Road Tunes and Regrets, I’m finally getting the music first, the way it’s suppose to be. Road Tunes and…
In 2005, Boris Skalsky, fresh from the break-up of his prior band Phaser, began writing music under the moniker Dead Heart Bloom. He released two records, a 2006 self-titled debut album and 2007’s Chelsea Diaries. In 2008, Boris felt himself being drawn again to the group dynamic, and Dead Heart Bloom began morphing from a solo project to a full collaborative endeavor, finally developing into a four-piece band. In this…
Before 2005, I had never reviewed much in the way of non-punk world music. This year seems to be the year of world music, as both Raza and Cheb i Sabbah cutting albums. This time, we have a more restrained sound, allowing for more traditional song structures even as more-Eastern styles dominate. “La Kahena†is a light album, with the majority of instruments found on the disc creating a tinny…
To coincide with the premiere of their brand new studio album, Danish thrash metal legend Artillery set up their new official website: http://www.artillery.dk/. If you are interested in updates on the band there is no better place to go on the internet! As previously announced, Artillery, one of the best thrash metal bands around, returns with a brand new studio album. New material entitled “When Death Comes†will be their…
Metal Mind Productions presents the exclusive re-releases of two albums by The Abyss, one of the most fascinating projects ever to emerge on the Scandinavian black metal scene. Brought to life by the musical mastermind Peter Tägtgren and two members of the lethal death metal act Hypocrisy, this diabolical group took all the best elements of old-school black metal and combined them into a filthy, obscure creation of pure blasphemy.…