AlunaGeorge - Body Music (Album Review)

It can be hard to get excited about new music when a lot of it has already been done to death. AlunaGeorge, then, are a welcome surprise.

Written by: Emma Dodds | Date: Monday, 12 August 2013

James LaBrie - Impermanent Resonance (Album Review)

As vocalist of prog-metal giants Dream Theater, James Labrie has often been a source of conflict for fans. A quick glance at YouTube clips of the band's live performances reveals numerous threads of debate over his style and position as the band’s frontman.

Written by: Jonathan Lin | Date: Friday, 09 August 2013

Yellowcard - Ocean Avenue Acoustic (Album Review)

"On July 22, 2003 our lives were changed forever. We didn't know what 'Ocean Avenue' would become, but it is a chapter in our story that we will never forget." Yellowcard are now 10 years on from the release of their most important record, and have opted to commemorate the date with an acoustic rendition of the collection.

Written by: Heather McDaid | Date: Friday, 09 August 2013

Ministry - Enjoy The Quiet: Live At Wacken (Album Review)

For a man who's been pronounced dead three times over, Al Jourgensen seems to be doing alright. Since resurrecting his industrial hellchild Ministry in 2011, he has spent the majority of his time touring in support of the ravenous 'Relapse' record. A stop at Wacken 2012 served as one of the final shows of the trek. The gig, captured here in glorious high-definition and 5:1 stereo sound, also proved to be one of guitarist Mike Scaccia's last with the band before his tragic death.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Thursday, 08 August 2013

Dan Vapid And The Cheats - Two (Album Review)

If you know who Dan Vapid is, then you know what to expect from 'Two', his sophomore effort with the Cheats. Whether as a member of Screeching Weasel, the Riverdales or the Methadones, Vapid has always been a reliable purveyor of high-quality, super catchy pop-punk.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 07 August 2013

The Dangerous Summer - Golden Record (Album Review)

Perception is a major part of modern music. Perhaps it shouldn't be, but it is. Unfortunately for the Dangerous Summer, they're an easy target for music fans fond of labels. Named after an Ernest Hemingway novel, not always the most endearing social media presence...you get the the picture.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 06 August 2013

Midnight Juggernauts - Uncanny Valley (Album Review)

‘Uncanny Valley’ - named after a hypothesis by roboticist Masahiro Mori - was never going to be dull. Midnight Juggernauts have never been so, having previously produced three albums of genre-bending glitter music.This latest release comes after a successful tour with fellow Australian psychedelic rockers Tame Impala, and they have again come up with a unique, challenging record.

Written by: Charlie Hurt | Date: Monday, 05 August 2013

The Defiled - Daggers (Album Review)

The next big thing. The future of British music. Saviours of rock 'n' roll. How many times have those words been said about bands who don't deserve brown-nosing on such a preposterous level?

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Thursday, 01 August 2013

The Crimea - Square Moon (Album Review)

If sorry seems to be the hardest word, then goodbye must be a close second. Unless you're the Crimea, that is. With 'Square Moon', the sprawling double album that will serve as the band's swan song, they've crafted a beautiful, bittersweet farewell.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 01 August 2013

Arthur Beatrice - Carter (EP Review)

One of the word-of-mouth bands of the moment, Arthur Beatrice, have finally harnessed some of the hype they have gathered with the release the four-track ‘Carter' EP.

Written by: Ryan Crittenden | Date: Wednesday, 31 July 2013

Dusty Springfield - Live At The Royal Albert Hall (Album Review)

Live records can be hit and miss, it’s always been that way, but for many fans they remain intriguing time capsules. Dusty Springfield's 'Live at the Royal Albert Hall' - a CD and DVD combo - was recorded almost 35 years ago and is exciting for just that reason; it captures a moment in time that many weren't around to see.

Written by: Heather McDaid | Date: Tuesday, 30 July 2013

Gentleman's Dub Club - Give It Away (Single Review)

With festival season well and truly upon us, it seems the right time for Gentleman's Dub Club to release their latest single. 'Give It Away' is another taste of the band's forthcoming debut album, 'Forty Four', which is due out this autumn. 

Written by: Charlie Hurt | Date: Tuesday, 30 July 2013

Karnivool - Asymmetry (Album Review)

It is truly heartening to see a band like Karnivool top the album charts in their home country, especially when the record in question is as suffocating and challenging as ‘Asymmetry’. While the UK continues its love affair with faceless post-punk, Australia has quietly developed an alternative rock scene that not only blows it out of the water, but actually commands a sizable market.

Written by: Jonathan Rimmer | Date: Monday, 29 July 2013

The Legendary Pink Dots - The Gethsemane Option (Album Review)

There’s something unquantifiably intriguing about the Legendary Pink Dots. It partly surrounds their enormous back catalogue, which includes 32 studio albums in 33 years, but the real appeal of the band is their wilful disregard for standardised musical forms. They have navigated the nether regions of avant-garde, without being afraid to dabble in the world of pop.

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Friday, 26 July 2013

The Whigs - Enjoy The Company (Album Review)

Losing a founding member to MGMT’s touring band after the release of your first record is hard, and equally, making it through to the other side is an accomplishment. Hats off, then, to the Whigs. Their fourth album ‘Enjoy the Company’, reveals a new-found confidence in what they do best.

Written by: Yasmin La Ronde | Date: Wednesday, 24 July 2013

Gogol Bordello - Pura Vida Conspiracy (Album Review)

Can you have too much of a good thing? In the case of Gogol Bordello, maybe not. The kings of Gypsy punk are back with their sixth studio album, 'Pura Vida Conspiracy', and it's emphatically more of the same: street punk, accordion flourishes and incisive lyrics from Eugene Hütz.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 23 July 2013

Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals - Walk Through Exits Only (Album Review)

Have you ever been smacked across the face with a sack full of spanners? Probably not, but that's the only way to describe 'Walk Through Exits Only' upon first listen. 

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Monday, 22 July 2013

Grumbling Fur - Glynnaestra (Album Review)

What can one say about Grumbling Fur? Daniel O’Sullivan and Alexander Tucker are one of the most idiosyncratic pairings to have graced the world of experimental music in many a year, but that shouldn’t be a surprise. Both have explored more musical forms in their careers to date than are conceivable in the minds of most, with experience in fields as diverse as pastoral psych folk and the ultimate in drone doom, yet ‘Glynnaestra’, remarkably, ends up sounding little like a follow-up to their previous works.

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Friday, 19 July 2013

Swim Deep - Where The Heaven Are We (Album Review)

Birmingham has produced some of the most iconic bands in the history of popular music, yet from the outside it seems that the second city has faded into the background in recent years. That is starting to change again, and a steady stream of like-minded indie bands have begun to appear from a fertile scene.

Written by: Lee Johnston | Date: Wednesday, 17 July 2013

The Icarus Line - Slave Vows (Album Review)

The Icarus Line aren't the band you once knew. Joe Cardamone stands front and centre still, but all the same he's receded into the shadows. 'Slave Vows' is a pitch black record, a soundtrack to dark corners in dangerous bars, and it's the band's best in years.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Tuesday, 16 July 2013