It could very well be factually correct that I found myself within the 12% of people Monday night at the Sleep show who wasn’t smoking weed. It could also be factually correct that I was within the 12% of people who got a contact high, but I cannot be sure since I’ve never really experienced [...]

Kvelertak are about as Norwegian black metal as Refused was Swedish straight edge hardcore, which is to say only slightly. When listening to Kvelertak’s self-titled debut and Refused’s Shape of Punk to Come it’s obvious that they both came from their motherland’s prominant music scenes, Refused were once a typical Swedish SXE band and Kvelertak [...]

“The South will rise again.” A phrase I heard kicked around by borderline racists, good ol’ southern boys and those who just didn’t know any better all throughout my childhood in southern Virginia (and while we can argue about whether Virginia is really the South, but it really makes no difference to the person who [...]

To any given carpenter, nails are good for one thing: getting hammered on. Southern California’s hardcore grind outfit Nails aren’t your typical stainless steel variety because they hammer right back. Nails are a band that knows how dish out abuse and they don’t mess around. Unsilent Death‘s 10 songs have only three that clock in [...]

“We are the old graves digging the new.” The lyrical conclusion of the third song from Trap Them’s latest musical assault, the 12″ EP Filth Rations is an apt insight to Trap Them’s overall sound: Swedish death metal, Manchester grind, Cross-over thrash, pissed-off punk and abrasive hardcore. Trap Them are a summation of old styles [...]

So I got my first writing gig last month. It’s contributing writer position at a free local music and culture magazine called Eleven. It’s a volunteer position which means I do not get paid, but the magazine is distributed all over town and it’s actually pretty good. Also, it’s work I like to do. My [...]

Metal tends to be serious. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; in fact, one of the reasons metal is so powerful is because the artists are screaming their deepest held beliefs. Metal bands in the past have attempted to insert levity into their music, but have been a novelty at best and cartoonish at worst. [...]

We’ve all heard it said. Almost without fail any time an established band releases a new album, especially a new album that is well received and adds to the band new fans, someone (or some many) will say “Ehhh, I like their old stuff better.” Reasons for liking a band’s earlier work are as diverse [...]

As most of us who seriously enjoy and pursue listening to music have realized over the years (brief aside: the computer I am using to write this review’s language is set to British English and the red squiggly is telling me I spelt “realised” like a sodding twat) is that: Bands change. People quit. They [...]

today i will be listening to new to me music & tweeting quick reviews with the hashtag #nwms (for new music) hope you enjoy M83 “Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts” 3.5/5 A synth heavy spacewalk that soars more often than bores. Mars rover as drum machine #nwms Om “Pilgrimage” 3/5 Transcendental stoner metal, [...]