Andrew W.K. – Close Calls With Brick Walls

Andrew W.K.: Close Calls With Brick Walls

Andrew W.K. has harnessed his frantic energy and actually produced a good album. The songs all rock, but aren’t about partying. Shocking! Rather they seem to be partially drug fueled metaphors about his experiences in the music business. Fun and catchy this music shows off Andrew’s musical abilities well. He has managed to mix his love of the piano well into these guitar anthems. A shame it was only a limited release in the US.

The Kickdrums – Just A Game

The Kickdrums Just A Game (2009)

These guys have pulled of what RJD2 could not. They have gone from awesome producers to awesome indie singers. Where as RJD2 dropped any sounds of his previous efforts, The Kickdrums have incorporated their previous sound and melded it perfectly with their singing. This change isn’t a surprise since they have always made beats that were more melancholy than menacing. The songs here would fit in perfectly on any hipster’s iPod or even on the radio. It’s all catchy and the singing fits the music perfectly. A wonderful album to listen to with the significant other on a lazy Sunday.

Church of Misery – House Of The Unholy

Church of Misery House of The Unholy (2009)

Awesome Japanese doom metal that’s about murders. Alright, a little more would be that these guys put to shame like 98% of all doom bands not named Electric Wizard. They deliver fuzzed out riffs that stay stuck in your head for days at a time, while the vocals are ballsy shouts that Lemmy Kilmister would be proud of. Also these guys are able to change tempos in the middle of songs and not have disrupt the groove, rather enhance it. If you dig heavy rock or metal you can’t go wrong with this album.

Horrific – Your Worst Nightmare

Horrific Your Worst Nightmare:

It’s unusual to have the words catchy and death metal put next to each other, but this is exactly what we’re dealing with. Slasher Dave, of Acid Witch fame, has decided to make the soundtrack to a non-existent 80s horror movie. And like a pack of zombies, this cd just shreds. While the bass and drums are competent this cd is all about the riffs and solos. All of them are catchy and make yo just bob your head. The vocals are a combination of death metal gurgles and shrieks, but it fits the music. Plus the lyrics are hilariously tongue-in-rotting-cheek.. This is for any metal head or horror movie fan.

Big Business – Mind The Drift

Big Business Mind The Drift:

Big Business are back and rocking as ever. It seems that they learned a bit while being in the Melvins. Previous Big Business albums had been good, but became repetitive as they went on. Here the tracks all vary enough to keep the listener engaged. The drumming and riffing are top-notch as always. The vocal have improved, with them being able to create great vocal melodies. One of the best rock albums to be put out this year and also the strongest Big Business release yet.

Rick Ross – Deeper Than Rap

Rick Ross Deeper Than Rap:

Rick Ross is the rap cliché of going on about money, drugs, and bitches. He is the embodiment of what your parents think rap is. Yet Ross does this shtick well. His rhymes are passable and has some enjoyable wordplay. Plus he has charisma which keeps the fourteen tracks from becoming boring. Also helping are the numerous quest stars like T-Pain, Kayne West, Lil Wayne (not shocking since this blog could probably get Wayne to write a few reviews if we offered him some crushed up Vicodin.), and Nas. Ross was smart and bought some of the best beats he could, which help hide his weaknesses as an MC. Not a classic for the genre, but an enjoyable listen.

mewithoutyou – It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All A Dream! It’s Alright!

mewithoutyou It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All A Dream! It’s Alright:

Mewithoutyou are back with another honest album. What it’s honest about is a little hard to tell. Aaron Weiss’s lyrics have become more obscure, but also remain meaningful. While they all seem to have a religious overtone, one can read more than in each song. Aaron’s voice is powerful and his singing has improved greatly. The band has never sounded tighter nor have they been so musically experimental; dabbling in straight-up indie rock, zydeco music, and other unexpected genres of music. Tubas, xylophones, and even baptist revivalist choirs are heard sprinkled through the album. While on paper this sounds like a mess, but Michael Weiss and the rest of the band are more than capable of pulling this off and making it catchy. This is the best that mewithoutyou has released so far and that’s saying something considering their string of good releases.

the pAper chAse – Someday This Could All Be Yours prt 1

The pAper chAse Someday This Could All Be Yours prt 1:

Austin Texas’ the pAper chAse are back with the first in a two part follow up to 2006’s Now You Are One of Us. As expected the black humor flows as freely as the blood and gore the lyrics, sometimes sounding like lines from one of the Zodiac Killer’s letters, hint at. Frontman/producer John Congelton’s production work has never sound better, managing to merge the band’s noisy, avant-guard side with it’s catchy indie rock side into a wonderful union. If you’re a fan of indie rock or interesting music then this should be on “albums to buy” list.

Anaal Nathrakh – Hell Is Empty And All The Devils Are Here

Anaal Nathrakh Hell Is Empty And All The Devils Are Here

When a album has such a good title, it usually does not deliver. This is a rare case where the music fits the title to a T. It sounds exactly like hell on earth. The songs are angry and noisy almost to the point of just collapsing into a gigantic mess. But there is song structure here, enough to move songs along. Songs tend veer between thrashy Black metal and Industrial ala GodFlesh’s Streetsweeper. While the album does a great job of being evil, it also sounds repetitive. Most tracks blend into each other causing the album to drone on. The other glaring flaw is the clean singing voice. It sounds like some Power Metal album was turned on in the background accidentally when they were recording. Needless to say, it distracts from the whole vibe. Luckily it doesn’t show up that much. Defiantly a good album thats marred by a few problems.

Sworn In – Self Titled

Sworn In Self Titled:

This album sounds exactly like American Nightmare/Give Up The Ghost. Not just sort of sounds like them, but you could play this album for A.N. Fans and they wouldn’t notice the difference. That’s not a bad thing. It’s good Hardcore that has some interesting guitars and decent melody. But there’s nothing really original here. It’s tough to praise this album since it’s just a blatant copying. This sounds more like a tribute album than one of original material. But if you really need a Give Up The Ghost fix, this band is doing the best of any other imitators out there right now.