Parquet Courts - Human Performance (Album Review)

Captive of the Sun finds Parquet Courts penned in. Its words tumble out in a manner that prevents each utterance from getting any space to breathe until they hit on “a melody abandoned in the key of New York”.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Friday, 15 April 2016

Surgical Meth Machine - Surgical Meth Machine (Album Review)

Being the creative force behind Ministry for 35 years has taken its toll on Al Jourgensen. He’s cracked. He’s checked out. The mind truly is a terrible thing to taste and this, the first Surgical Meth Machine album, represents the remnants of Jourgensen’s brain broth.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Friday, 15 April 2016

Ihsahn - Arktis. (Album Review)

BANG. Satan’s Harley-Davidson backfires. Lord Sauron burps after a feast of Hobbits and Elves. A new Ihsahn album rises from the frozen lakes of Mars.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Wednesday, 13 April 2016

All Saints - Red Flag (Album Review)

Comebacks are a tricky business. Expectations are either sky high or muted, with both sides of the equation carrying a particular set of challenges. The road to All Saints’ ‘Red Flag’, though, has been one of almost serene progress.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 13 April 2016

Skating Polly - The Big Fit (Album Review)

‘The Big Fit’ is Skating Polly’s fourth full length offering and, fittingly, their most accomplished to date. The step-sister duo, Peyton Bighorse and Kelli Mayo, have evolved since their debut, ‘Taking Over The World’, with these Kliph Scurlock-produced songs sounding bigger than ever, packaged with intricate melodies, rhythms and vocals that pack an enviable punch.

Written by: Laura Johnson | Date: Wednesday, 13 April 2016

Ben Poole - Time Has Come (Album Review)

Photo: Tony Gardener Ben Poole’s had so much praise since arriving on the British blues scene over half a decade ago that, if on the receiving end, even Kanye West might blush. Hell, even venerable grump Jeff Beck loves his playing. Although his exceptional guitar work is worthy of that huge acclaim, here it can’t disguise some significant flaws that make his latest album, ‘Time Has Come’, a frustrating listen.  

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Wednesday, 13 April 2016

Teleman - Brilliant Sanity (Album Review)

Mainstream recognition has always seemingly been just a stone’s throw away for brothers Thomas and Jonny Sanders and their long-time musical accomplice Pete Cattermoul.

Written by: Liam Turner | Date: Tuesday, 12 April 2016

Frightened Rabbit - Painting Of A Panic Attack (Album Review)

By the time ‘Pedestrian Verse’ arrived, Frightened Rabbit had become highly skilled at penning the sort of rock anthems that might fill stadiums, building on the solid foundations of frontman Scott Hutchison‘s emotional and evocative words. ‘Painting of a Panic Attack’, their fifth album, isn’t a major departure but it pushes them to a different place. Perhaps influenced by producer Aaron Dessner, of the National, this is their deepest work to date, both sonically and lyrically.

Written by: Jennifer Geddes | Date: Monday, 11 April 2016

Deftones - Gore (Album Review)

It’d be easy for Deftones to get complacent at this point in their career, almost 21 years on from their debut, ‘Adrenaline’. The fact that Googling ‘Deftones’ alongside ‘consistency’ gives you 44,000 results should give you an indication of why the band have endured for so long.

Written by: Jonathan Rimmer | Date: Friday, 08 April 2016

Tacocat - Lost Time (Album Review)

Tacocat may well be a band that you’ve never heard of, but they’re likely a band you won’t be able to be without once you have. ‘Lost Time’ is their third record, following up 2014’s ‘NVM’, and finds the Seattle quartet further investigating pop, both punk and culture.

Written by: Laura Johnson | Date: Friday, 08 April 2016

Cheap Trick - Bang, Zoom, Crazy...Hello (Album Review)

Whether the consequence of divine cosmic alignment, supreme jest or a random marketing decision, the arrival of Cheap Trick’s first new album in seven years on April Fools’ Day just seemed so right. Fun’s the name of the game here, with the nerdy godfathers of power-pop in fine fettle as they tear through a collection of catchy treats that, although not their best work, sound infinitely more energised than most new bands on the block. Or a hundred Sam Smiths.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Thursday, 07 April 2016

Bleached - Welcome The Worms (Album Review)

Photo: Nicole Anne Robbins There are a couple of strands knotted together on ‘Welcome The Worms’, Bleached’s second full length. On one side you have its disaffected drifting through a baked Los Angeles. On the other, you have a gloriously gritty take on power-pop that lands somewhere around, pardon the phrase, post-Go-Go’s.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 06 April 2016

The Last Shadow Puppets - Everything You've Come To Expect (Album Review)

Eight years is a long time. In the world of music it’s even longer. Bands come and go, chart-toppers become lost in the annals of history and new trends banish the old, leaving a trail of irrevocable destruction in their wake. Dubstep, anyone?

Written by: Liam Turner | Date: Wednesday, 06 April 2016

Weezer - Weezer (Album Review)

The sun’s out and so is Weezer’s 10th record, soon to be known by fans as ‘The White Album’. It’s not crap. Honestly.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Tuesday, 05 April 2016

Black Stone Cherry - Kentucky (Album Review)

Taking its name from their home state, ‘Kentucky’ finds southern rock’s reigning champions return with a hard-hitting fifth album that finds them going back to their roots in every sense. Dropping anchor in the studio where they recorded their debut a decade ago, the quartet have emerged with a record that feels like the natural follow up to that and their sophomore masterpiece, ‘Folklore And Superstition’.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Tuesday, 05 April 2016

Domo Genesis - Genesis (Album Review)

Photo: Carrington Scott Is finding your place in the world a case of meek acceptance or deeper understanding? Even a cursory spin of his first studio record is enough to suggest that this is a question Domo Genesis is familiar with. As a member of Odd Future he was sometimes a face in the crowd, obscured by weed smoke, the gregarious Tyler, The Creator and the collective’s reluctant headline-grabber turned introspective star, Earl Sweatshirt.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Friday, 01 April 2016

Three Trapped Tigers - Silent Earthling (Album Review)

Good reviews and a Deftones support slot notwithstanding, Three Trapped Tigers didn’t catch the attention they perhaps deserved with their 2011 debut, ‘Route One or Die’. The trio’s fusion of groove-based post-rock and IDM was more than just unique; it was an experimental, futuristic vision of electronic music that threw everything on the canvas.

Written by: Jonathan Rimmer | Date: Thursday, 31 March 2016

Zayn - Mind of Mine (Album Review)

The boyband star gone solo is an old story. It’s about expanding and/or redefining an image, keeping interest levels high and proving that your tastes and musical awareness extend beyond the restrictive world of made-to-order chart pop.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 31 March 2016

Black Mountain - IV (Album Review)

If you want to know what to expect from Canadian rockers Black Mountain’s fourth LP, then there’s a bit of a clue in the title. Whether it’s an intentional reference to Led Zeppelin’s back catalogue or not, they’ve ploughed the ‘70s rock field since they formed 12 years ago and at times ‘IV’ leaves you in little doubt as to its influences.

Written by: Graeme Marsh | Date: Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Joe Bonamassa - Blues Of Desperation (Album Review)

Photo: Rick Gould "His early stuff was better, he used to rock harder, he's too polished and predictable now..." Since Joe Bonamassa had the audacity to become successful, some fans have been quick to hurl these accusations at him. While the veracity of their claims is debatable, naysayers should be stoked by 'Blues of Desperation', a record that not only delivers the edgier thrills they've been missing, but also finds the guitarist pulling a few rabbits out of his hat.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Tuesday, 29 March 2016