The Men - Tomorrow's Hits (Album Review)

The Men are a hard band to pin down. ‘Tomorrow’s Hits’ is the Brooklyn troupe’s fifth record in five years and finds them continuing their love affair with classic American rock, a relationship that’s flourishing following the paring back of many of their hardcore influences on ‘Open Your Heart’.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Tuesday, 04 March 2014

Exit_International - Our Science Is Golden (Album Review)

Noise rock miscreants Exit_International first wowed this lover of raucous scuzziness with their ‘Sex W/ Strangers’ EP in 2010. A sharp set of shots to the temple, it was followed by a slightly more ambitious, and even more entertaining, full-length album, ‘Black Junk’ a year or so later.

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Tuesday, 04 March 2014

Bigelf - Into The Maelstrom (Album Review)

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a maelstrom is 'a situation of confused movement or violent turmoil'. It’s a term that describes this existential explosion of bludgeoning metal, woozy melodic pop, unhinged prog and cinematic grandeur to a T. 

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 03 March 2014

The Crimson ProjeKCt - Live In Tokyo (Album Review)

King Crimson are back, for real. This year will see the group’s maverick leader Robert Fripp unveil new music from his near 50-year-old project for the first time in over a decade. ‘Live In Tokyo’ isn’t it. In fact, technically speaking, this isn’t even King Crimson.

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Friday, 28 February 2014

Beck - Morning Phase (Album Review)

Beck Hansen, as we’re all well aware, is no one trick pony. Having leapt from the mangled folk of his breakthrough record, ‘Mellow Gold’, to the oddly eclectic, strangely appealing ‘Odelay’ - experimental funk and electro textures included - almost two decades ago, he has continued to allow his mind to wander.

Written by: Brian Thompson | Date: Thursday, 27 February 2014

St. Vincent - St. Vincent (Album Review)

On ‘St. Vincent’, Annie Clark has performed a neat sidestep onto pop’s crowded dancefloor, brushing aside multi-purpose beats and callow melodies to offer something altogether more interesting: a record to engage hips and head in equal measure.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 26 February 2014

Band Of Horses - Acoustic At The Ryman (Album Review)

“Thanks y’all,” has never sounded as wholesome as it does when uttered by Band Of Horses’ Ben Bridwell at the start of ‘Acoustic At The Ryman’, their first live album.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 25 February 2014

Dan Bettridge - Darker Days EP (Album Review)

With his debut EP, 'Hunter’s Heart', attracting its fair share of attention - thanks in part to radio play from BBC 6 Music and Radio 2 and sets at Green Man and Swn - Dan Bettridge finished 2013 high on the list of ones to watch in the coming year. Fortunately, 'Darker Days', his follow-up collection, has developed that potential further.

Written by: Dave Ball | Date: Monday, 24 February 2014

The Hotelier - Home, Like Noplace Is There (Album Review)

With ‘Home, Like Noplace Is There’, the Hotelier have hit the post-hardcore mother lode, turning in a record that is both emotionally resonant and truly anthemic.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Friday, 21 February 2014

We Are The In Crowd - Weird Kids (Album Review)

‘Weird Kids’ is the second full-length from We Are The In Crowd, a band teetering on the brink of being, in the words of one immaculately coiffured broadcaster, kind of a big deal.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Friday, 21 February 2014

Heart - Fanatic Live (Album Review)

Although unfairly remembered chiefly for their MTV-humping power ballads, Heart are actually a terrific rock band in the vein of Led Zeppelin - all mammoth riffs and folky acoustic tales delivered with bewitching sensuality by Ann and Nancy Wilson.  

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Thursday, 20 February 2014

Skaters - Manhattan (Album Review)

If the title of their debut record isn’t enough of a hint, Skaters are all about New York. Whether it’s their self-professed love for the city’s grimy ‘70s punk scene, the snatches of conversation that litter the spaces between their songs or the obvious debt owed to the Strokes and their ilk, the city’s influence is printed right across ‘Manhattan’.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 19 February 2014

Nina Persson - Animal Heart (Album Review)

‘Animal Heart’, the first solo release by Nina Persson, is a record that emerged from the enjoyable clutter and time-consuming nature of family life.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 18 February 2014

H.E.A.T - A Shot At Redemption EP

Forget Reckless Love and their pretty boy hair-metal. If you're looking for a hot young band belting out classy ‘80s hard-rock with passion, balls and chops to burn, then this Swedish quintet are currently head and shoulders above the rest.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 17 February 2014

The Family Rain - Under The Volcano (Album Review)

'Under The Volcano' is the debut LP from the Family Rain, also known as the Walter brothers, Will, Ollie and Tim, and its objectives are clear from the first note: this is a British blues rock album.

Written by: Ryan Crittenden | Date: Monday, 17 February 2014

Speedy Ortiz - Real Hair EP

The follow-up to ‘Major Arcana’, Speedy Ortiz’s enjoyably sludgy, ‘90s-indebted full-band debut LP, the ‘Real Hair’ EP continues to build on those foundations while introducing a couple of twists that hint at an exciting flexibility in the band’s sound.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 17 February 2014

Lamb Of God - As The Palaces Burn

Music is more than just entertainment. For many people it is a form of expression, it is a way to escape, and it is a lifestyle. Don Argott's As The Palaces Burn documentary was initially due to explore this idea, following die-hard Lamb Of God fans all over the globe.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Friday, 14 February 2014

Fanfarlo - Let's Go Extinct (Album Review)

No band should ever be admonished for aiming big. But, doing so brings its own set of risks. ‘Let’s Go Extinct’, Fanfarlo’s third album, isn’t a huge musical undertaking in the way that Arcade Fire’s ‘Reflektor’ was, but it’s thematically ambitious to a fault.

Written by: Sam Jones | Date: Thursday, 13 February 2014

Temples - Sun Structures (Album Review)

Arriving with the Noel Gallagher seal of approval - equal parts help and hindrance, if we’re being honest - Temples’ debut album, ‘Sun Structures’ is frequently evocative and diverting, without ever really going anywhere.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Wednesday, 12 February 2014

Crosses (†††) - ††† (Album Review)

As diversions go, †††’ self-titled debut is one that leads to some pretty dark, dangerous territory. The band, Deftones’ Chino Moreno, Shaun Lopez of Far and Chuck Doom, have mixed a heavy cocktail of Depeche Mode synths, bleak imagery and occult leanings, albeit one that is addictive and wonderfully melodic.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Tuesday, 11 February 2014