The opening track in “Exits and Trails” shows how intense Hot Cross can really be. The style of music that they play cannot be easily categorized. Of course, there are hints of Rise Against and Bauhaus present, but there are also hints of hardcore and metal that are strewn throughout tracks like the aforementioned “Exits and Trails”. The thing that Hot Cross first introduces to their listeners on “TRisk Revival”…
Adie’s “Just You & Me” is one of the first Christian albums that we have had the chance to review for a few months, and our time away from reviewing the genre really acts as a cleanser to our collective palette. For those that had a similar hiatus from Christian music, Adie was part of The Benjamin Gate, and is married to similarly-famous singer-songwriter Jeremy Camp. “Where Could I Go”…
Aside from the annoying vocal, non-lyrical noises made by Patricia throughout the first track on “Bring It On!”, the Horrorpops make a strong case for the first major derivation from the too-similar sound achieved by all the upright-bass bands (Nekromantix, Tiger Army). There are still a number of similiarites that the Horrorpops have with the other two bands, especially since Kim Nekroman is doing eir part with the guitars on…
“O’Immaculate” is a dense and nuanced track that showcases the band as tremendously capable to make a cogent narrative while working on the instrumental side of things. When the vocals finally kick in, the track is given a completely different bent. The rich, indie pop that the band crafts during this and subsequent tracks is honest and will ensure that the band snags additional listeners. “Little Gene” further allows the…
“Little Games” is the first track on “October”, and from the onset of “October”, the members of Duc’n It Easy are confident. So confident, in fact, that this introduction to the band is well over seven minutes. The interplay between the lead and rhythm guitar drives this track to a pinnacle that few bands can achieve, while the drums fill in at the right places to keep things innovative. Little…
The chaos that Hopewell throws in from the onset of “ Hopewell & The Birds of Paradise”, including a number of middle-eastern sounding instruments, horns, and dreamy-pop vocals really is enough to make listeners’ ears perk up. “Calcutta” comes to the plate with a much more traditional and coherent assault on Hopewell’s listeners, but does not completely abandon the Bacchic nature of the first track. The ropey bass present on…
Honeyhander – Woolly Mannerisms / 2005 S.A.F. / 5 Tracks / http://www.honeyhander.com / http://www.safrecords.com / Reviewed 29 September 2005 The distended vocals of Marilyn Manson hide themselves behind an eighties-influenced, synthesizer-heavy sound for “Wear Our Your Muscles Maryâ€. The track is a little repetitious, as the disotortion on the vocals renders everything into a mush from no words can escape. This mixture is decidedly low-key, and really smacks more of…
Honeycreeper – Freakqualizer / 2005 Planet A / 11 Tracks / http://www.honeycreeper.net / Reviewed 15 October 2006 At first blush, I thought Honeycreeper was going to come with a very jam band type of sound. “Your Voice†is the first track on the disc, and the female vocals are different enough that individuals will largely ignore the rest of the instrumentation on the track. This is not to say that…
The Honorary Title – Anything Else But The Truth / 2004 Doghouse Records / 12 Tracks / http://www.thehonorarytitle.com / http://www.doghouserecords.com / Reviewed 18 September 2004 The Honorary Title play a style of college-rock that is reminiscent of Lucero, Weezer and early Goo Goo Dolls, back before the latter had completely turned into the adult contemporary juggernaut they are currently. The rich mastering of “Anything Else But The Truth” allows for…
It’s hard to imagine Fairmont front man Neil Sabatino was once a punk rocker. His work with New Jersey’s Fairmont is more likely to bring up descriptions like “lush” and “atmospheric”. On the band latest effort, the six-song EP “The Meadow At Dusk,” indie rockers Fairmont stuck to the same style (thankfully) that made 2008’s “Transcendence” such an enjoyable record, but have added in an extra vocalist.
The Holy Mountain – Bloodstains Across Your Face in Decline / 2004 No Idea / 16 Tracks / http://www.noidearecords.com / http://www.noidearecords.com/bands/releases/holymountain_blood.html / Reviewed 28 January 2005 The pedigree on The Holy Mountain is impressive, taking members from Combatwoundedveteran and The Blackout Terror, but is “Bloodstains Across Your Face…†any good? Well, the music contained on this disc is beyond brutal, reminiscent of eighties-style hardcore with more than a little metal…
Hollow Ground – Cold Reality / 2006 Organized Crime Records / 6 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/hollowground / http://www.organizedcrimerecords.com / Reviewed 26 April 2006 The rough opening that “Cold Reality†has is not a result by any lack of maturity or talent on Hollow Ground’s part, but rather a desire to keep step for step with established bands like Hatebreed. The screamed-out vocals that first assault listeners during songs like “Ill Fate 
Jolie Holland – Springtime Can Kill You / 2006 Anti / 12 Tracks / http://www.jolieholland.com / http://www.anti.com / Reviewed 07 June 2006 To say that Holland’s vocals are not bizarre is to lie to one’s self. There is an interesting way that Holland chews eir vocals during “Crush in the Ghettoâ€. Most of the vocals are unaffected, but at the end of each line there seems to be this curiosity.…
“Awake Now†begins “Heads We Winâ€, and it skillfully ties together rock music from the seventies (Foghat, AC/DC, Boston), alternative music from the nineties (Weezer, Black Crowes) and current efforts (Buckcherry) into something that is hard-hitting while catchy to a large fan base. “Song About Revenge†starts out with crunchy guitars, splashy drums, and takes no prisoners in the band’s creation of timeless rock that will remind listeners of leather-enrobed…
Italian Japanese is a very atmospheric band that uses silence just as much as instrumental compositions to craft “The Lush, Romantic Weirdnessâ€. Despite the track only running a hair under four minutes, “Jeremiah†is an epic track. There is little more here than vocals, guitars, and very slight amounts of drums, yet there is a fullness here that requires that listeners go through the track numerous times to hear what…
Very few albums are able to keep listeners compelled and actively interacting with a band or individual throughout every single cut. Even albums seen by many to be nigh-perfect, like the Smashing Pumpkins’ “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness†or the Mothers of Invention’s “Freak Out!â€, have a few tracks that fail to deliver. Sonarpilot’s Mothership is one of the few double albums cut in the last five or ten…
The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday / 2005 Frenchkiss / 11 Tracks / http://www.theholdsteady.com / Reviewed 26 April 2005 The Hold Steady start off “Separation Sunday†with a very confusing style that really mixes a Tim Armstrong-style of vocal and ska-influenced guitar riffs with a Talking Heads-like structure. In what seems to be an ode to a more pissed off Conor Oberst, Hold Sunday’s “â€Cattle and the Creeping Thing†uses…
Hit The Switch – Domestic Tranquility & Social Justice / 2006 Nitro / 12 Tracks / http://www.hittheswitch.net / http://www.nitrorecords.com / Reviewed 08 August 2006 Hit The Switch sounds a lot like Anti-Flag when it comes down to it. Of course, the vocalist does not sound exactly like Justin Sane, but there is enough in common with both bands to make an extended comparison. It is especially present (during tracks like…
Hi Red Center – Architectural Failures / 2006 Pangea / 10 Tracks / http://www.hiredcenter.com / http://www.pangaearecordings.com / Reviewed 26 April 2006 Hi Red Center start off their “Architectural Failures†in a way that I’ve never heard a band start a disc. A high amount of electronic fuzz mixes with a lo-fi type of sound, only to have that amalgamation take on a much more noise-influenced sound. What results is something…
Zach Hill and Mick Barr – Shred Earthship / 2006 5RC / 19 Tracks / http://www.killrockstars.com / Reviewed 22 May 2006 The eclecticism in which “Shred Earthship†starts shows that Hella and Octis are both live and well in this new release. There is no need for vocals during the disc as the composition has a vocal component already present; the guitar work present during tracks like “Desert Glass Bubble