After about one full year of suffering and sacrifice, during which Vaux had to change record label, getting the rights for their own songs back, and find a new home, I am quite sure that with the release of the new album “Beyond Virtue, Beyond Vice” on August 1st, the Denver based band will gain some joy. But let’s leave the past behind. Vaux is back in full action. The new album, which had to come out for major label Lava/Atlantic, was recorded in England with Garrett “Jacknife” Lee (U2, Snow Patrol) in the same manor where The Smiths and Radiohead laid down classic tracks. And Vaux changed a little bit too: while on their past album “There Must Be Some Way To Stop Them”, the band sounded loaded, strong and with a post hardcore attitude, on the new release, the sixest is able to stress Quentin Smith’s vocals at their finest, with the ability to create unique atmospheres, fusing pop elements and dark guitar riffs. Songs like “Identity Theft” and “Cocaine James” have got the intensity of hardcore in their choruses, while “Need To Get By” and “The Last Report From…” have got those sleepy moods where the dark side of Vaux take its best. The disc also has a lot of electronic experimentation ( as on the track “The Rope, The Pistol, The Candlestick”), but the band is always able to create catchy pop as on the album’s first single, “Are You With Me”, which is so addictive it may hurts. “Beyond Virtue, Beyond Vice” is a disc made for every music lover, where you will find soft melodies as well as intricate hardcore guitar riffs, from Radiohead’s passion for intimate harmonies, to At The Drive-In’s fury and energy. I hope this disc won’t be ignored by the masses, because it is a real rock masterpiece everyone should listen to.
After the amazing rock’n'rolling “Hot Damn!”, Buffalo’s Every Time I Die is back in action with a brand new release, “Gutter Phenomenon”, a term that was used in the 1950s to describe rock ‘n’ roll music. It was society’s reaction, at the time, to a style of music it considered “sinful”. Rock music was actually viewed as a discredit to American society. The people at the time believed that rock music would lead to people’s downfall. They thought it would never last. The band’s third full lenght album is filled with the evolution of ETID’s sound and mark a new era for the quartet: not just a line up change, from a five piece to a four piece, but more specifically, a disc where they play the best rocking anthems heard in the last years. Songs like “Bored Stiff”, “Guitarred and Feathered” and “Champing At The Bit” ( featuring guest vocals by GLASSJAW / HEAD AUTOMATICA frontman Daryl Palumbo ) are totally sick: they have strong, hard and heavy guitar riffs, with screamed vocals and dual screams. Plus, a tune like “Apocalypse Now And Then” has got the handclapping beats and danceable rhythms, while the first single “Kill The Music” has got the angry fist that will keep you stick to listen to the music. “Gutter Phenomenon” makes Every Time I Die stands above the average pigen holed underground “screamo” or “hardcore” bands, as this LP is a sign of a group that musically grew up a lot and could also be made more accessible to people who likes rocknroll. The reissue is complete with a 30 minute DVD cut from their upcoming full length ’shit happens’ DVD release (in stores in the Fall). Doug from Highroller has the misfortune of spending weeks on the road with ETID in the last few months. Get up close and personal with Every Time I Die. The cd is wrapped is bright-ass pink shrink wrap, which makes the CD/DVD looks amazing.
After the success received last year with “Illinois” (acclaimed by a lot of music critics as the “Best Album of 2005″), folk singer Sufjan Stevens comes back with the release of the second part of “Illinois”, which was initially intended to be a double disc, but then was cut into one single disc. “The Avalanche” had to be the main song of that album (the second of a series of album dedicated to the United States), but it is now the first track on this compilation, made of outtakes, extras and various versions of “Illinois” songs. The album, made of 21 unreleased songs for more than 70 minutes of music, features various tunes that deal with different themes: from the electronic “Dear Mr. Supercomputer” to the danceable pop of “The Henney Buggy Band”, to the three new versions of “Chicago”. You can hear the “acoustic version”, which is the best one according to me, the “adult contemporary easy listening version” and the totally crazy “Multiple Personality Disorder version”, which is awesome and eclectic. “The Avalanche” is the perfect album to finish enjoying the previous Stevens’ release “Illinois”, and if you discovered that album not too long ago, I will guarantee that it is going to be a wild experience to hear both records in a row.
Daryl Palombo’s Head Automatica is back with the sophomore album “Popaganda”. While on the band’s first disc “Decadence”, Head Automatica tried to fuse electronic dance elements with rock, on this new disc, it is all about pop rock. Catchy, anthemic and irresistible power pop rock. From the first four tunes it is impossible to resist: “Graduation Day”, the first album single, is a dynamic and catchy rock song, with powerful hooks and melodic lines. “Laughing At You” is a strong pop punk song about the music industry, where the guitars get fused with the incredible vocals of Daryl. “Lying Through You Teeth” and “Nowhere Fast” have got the right pop/electronic rip that will make you shake your head. The rest of the record lives an unique progression, with punk songs like “God” or electronic tunes like “Egyptian Musk” and “Cannibal Girl” that show how Head Automatica wants to have fun with experimentation. The album is closed by the remix of “Beating Heart Baby”, quite possibly the best song ever written by the band. “Popaganda” is a fresh, dancing and powerful power pop album that will make your summer.
Angel City Outcases combines classic punk, hardcore, country, rockabilly, and hard rock, creating a unique sound which they loosely refer to as Street-Punk-Rock&Roll. Fans of Buckcherry would appreciate their incredible sound. Their music is loud and up beat. ACO infuses a pinch of punk with lyrical storytelling in the likes of Johnny Cash. Behind the lyrics, heavy rock-n-roll guitar riffs wail in the vein of bands like Guns’N'Roses.
ACO formed in 2002 in Los Angeles, and have since played with such bands as The Adolescents, Dead Kennedys, US Bombs, The Kings of Nuthin’, Flogging Molly, and Youth Brigade.
Sunset Sultan is one of my favorites. ACO sings: “King of my time, when life was not a crime.” Man, ain’t that the truth! Each song tells a story, in the country music way, with thrashing vocals and fast guitars.
This new album is a powerful hard hitter, like something out of a western movie! Take a ride on your Harley this summer and listen to ACO’s own style of punk infused Rock-n-Roll.
Out of Sweeden, Bombshell Rocks have been hitting the punk scene hard for over a decade with their infectious blend of classic punk rock. With inspiration from The Clash, Bad Religion, Stiff Little Fingers, and Operation Ivy, this band has created a sound that blends the sounds of those bands together into a style all their own.
The band has toured the U.S. with bands such as Dropkick Murphys, U.S. Bombs, and Blood for Blood. With multiple releases on Epitaph Records, the band has now joined the Sailor’s Grave roster to unleash “The Conclusion”.
With a video for this album playing on M2, Fuse, and Much Music, this album is not to be missed this summer! Track 3, Bloodbrothers, is incredible–with lyrics chanting: “I got your back, and you got mine, this friendship equals quality, and heart combined…someone to put your trust in, in these worried times.” This album reminded me of Minor Threat mixed with US Bombs. It’s packed with energy, great sing-a-longs, and lyrics that mean something. The title track “My Conclusion” talks about the current world mentality, “War TV, primetime executions, thank you media, a fine contribution.” The song further exposes how “the rich keep earning, the poor keep loosing.”
Bombshell rocks touches on many issues in this album, no songs are the same. If you’re looking for an old skool raw punk rock sound, this sweedish band is one to check out.
Bombshell rocks is: Richard Andersson: vox/guitar Crippe Maatta: vox/guitar Mathias Lindh: bass/vox Thomas Falk: drums/energy
official website: www.bomshellrocks.com booking manager: kallelundgren@theagencygroup.com
Undefined by genres–straddling the line between hardcore, punk and metal–Death by Stereo comes out strong once again with Death for Life. Death For Life crosses over completely into full-blown metal, with ballads in-between, leaving room for introspection. “Forever and a Day,” vocalist Efrem Schultz states, “is about friendship and always being there through the best and the worst, the dark and the light.”
Their album kicks off first with their fast and furious riot “Binge/Purge,” which features expressively tenacious guitar lines by Death by Stereo’s Dan Palmer and Tito. “It’s a song that deals with the world and all the bullshit that is constantly shoved down our throats,” says Shultz. “Everyone feeds off of this violence, apathy and ignorance. We want to purge it all out.”
In whole, this album is incredibly recorded with lyrical craftsmanship. The songs are relentless in their refusal to settle for nothing less than absolutely quenching our thirst for metal masterwork.
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