On their second album, Sweden’s Holograms spearhead a new wave of post punk revivalism with an album that’s a more focused affair then the still equally brilliant Holograms. Forever drops barely a year after their debut made waves and unlike most expedited sophomore albums, this one doesn’t suffer from the “Quick! We have to get a new album out” syndrome. There is absolutely no other band making music like this today. If you combined the gothic overtones of The Cure’s […]
Author Archive
Will Work For Comics: Week 1 (9.4.13)
Welcome to another new column I will attempt to write on a weekly basis (If you’re keeping count, that makes three total!). I have been into comics longer than I’ve been into music (Going on 30 years now) so this is a no-brainer for me. Going forward, we’ll have some chats about the latest comic news and maybe a review or two on singles issues (like today) or hot trade paperbacks. Maybe I’ll rant about my hatred of the Spider-Man […]
Metal Monday Volume 139 (9.2.13)
Ontario’s Deathpoint is a new (er) metal outfit that you should definitely pay attention to. On their latest (And first to feature former Odium vocalist Tom Emmans), Sinister, Deathpoint avoid the sophomore slump with an album that is worth the wait (Their debut landed in 2010) and well thought out. Opener “Between The Lines” is a hard rocker for sure but just barely scratches the surface of what the rest of Sinister has to offer. Second track “For Your Eyes […]
Vista Chino, Peace: Album Review
This is the album everyone will be talking about this fall. The first recorded work from Kyuss Lives (Now known as Vista Chino) is an undeniable return to the desert sound they helped create and then pioneer with a modern touch. Taking cues from …And The Circus Leaves Town and heading full force into Blues For The Red Sun territory at times, Peace stands on its own as a triumph to the legacy of Kyuss. Speaking of Blues…, listening to […]
Nine Inch Nails, Hesitation Marks: Album Review
The beautiful thing about Hesitation Marks, the latest offering from Trent Reznor, is that it is a Nine Inch Nails album without any expectations because it literally appeared out of thin air about 2 months ago. Being a completely unexpected album means it can be NIN’s most experimental yet. They could go pop (“Everything”), industrial (“Came Back Haunted”), electronica (“Disappointed”)….hell, they could even do dubstep if Reznor willed it (Thankfully they didn’t go that route). Like Reznor says during the […]
Ministry, “PermaWar”: The Viewfinder Review
As we learned from Uncle Al’s biography (Reviewed by us here ), Master Jourgensen tends to do everything ass backwards. It should come as no surprise then that first single “PermaWar”, off of Ministry’s upcoming final album From Beer To Eternity, is a slab of nostalgia-fueled heaviness that at times hearkens back to the band’s early goth days (Especially the chorus). In the vein of Relapse but a little more in tune with “Lieslieslies” and the more political Rio Grande Blood […]
New Release Report 8/27/13
The last week of August brings forth a trio of releases from some artists that I either a) Never cared about, b) Used to love but don’t care about now, and c) Kinda sort of like but don’t care about anymore. As for a): There is something about Avenged Sevenfold that I vehemently hate. Is it that they’re headlining over deftones and Ghost on their upcoming tour or is it because, frankly, their music is awful? Regardless of my opinion, […]
Metal Monday Volume 137 (8.26.13)
As far as essential metal albums of 2013 goes, A Storm Of Light’s masterful Nations To Flames easily sits at the top of that list. On their latest the “metal alchemists” continue what began with 2008’s And We Wept the Black Ocean Within but go for shorter song structures but a no less dense soundscape overall. From the Ministry meets Sepultura thunder of opener “Fall” through to the ethereal chaos of “The Year Is One” which closes out the album, A […]
BLACK TAXI, Chiaroscuro: EP Review
Move over September 10th music releases, a new contender just entered the fray for album of the week. My favorite Brooklyn band, BLACK TAXI, is back with the first of a planned series of EP’s entitled Chiaroscuro and it is guaranteed to astound and stupefy. Chiaroscuro begins with a banger much like BLACK TAXI’s debut did and similarly both “The Runner” off this EP and “Shoeshine” off Things Of That Nature begin with a scorching Bill Mayo guitar lick until Krisana […]
Grandfather, In Human Form: Album Review
Like this weird mix of The Melvins, Fudge Tunnel, and Undertow-era Tool, Brooklyn’s Grandfather tow the ’90’s alt-metal line really well on their latest release, In Human Form. Produced by Fudge Tunnel’s Alex Newport (There’s your connection!), IHF is quite possibly Grandfather’s most solid effort to date. “Spun” begins Grandfather’s sophomore album and is instantly an intriguing mix of cacophonous guitars and pulsating drums. “Organ Thief” furthers the descent and is madness incarnate. Like the sound of your mind unraveling […]
Edgar Wright! Simon Pegg! Nick Frost! The Pop!Blerd Interview!
“A bitter Frost has just descended on Boston” is the headline that director Edgar Wright gives a group of Boston critics late in July after a lengthy conversation about what it was like working behind-the-scenes on his latest film, The World’s End, when a throwaway comment from Nick Frost (“I fuckin’ hate Edgar!” says Frost after Simon Pegg jokingly calls him bitter when talking about being mates and still not seeing each other on set due to the busy workload) […]
The World’s End: Film Review
In the beginning there was Shaun of the Dead which single handedly reignited the zombie flick and introduced audiences not already familiar with the UK’s Spaced to Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Edgar Wright. Then came Hot Fuzz which presented a hyperactive take on the buddy cop genre. Now the boys from across the pond tackle aliens, addiction, and social politics?!?! It’s true! Pegg, Frost, and Wright reunite for the explosive finale to what has been dubbed “Three Flavours Cornetto […]
