I, Awake (self-released) is the 5th album from UK-based outfit Updownc. Their first as a three-piece, this self-released monster is easily one of the most satisfying instrumental records of 2017.Continue reading
Category Archives: Reviews
Stone Temple Pilots ‘Core’ Album Turns 25 Today
Released on the same day in 1992 as Alice In Chains’ Dirt, Stone Temple Pilots burst on the scene with Core (Atlantic), an album that immediately vaulted the band from a virtual unknown to a buzz band. Although there had been a bidding war to sign the band in their pre-Core days, a name change from Mighty Joe Young had kept the band off of some critics radar, but not the fans. Once they heard the first strains of this great new hard rock band, they would be hard to resist. With the untimely deaths of original singer Scott Weiland, and more recently Chester Bennington in the rearview, but keeping this important band in our hearts, let’s look back at this iconic early 90s album and band. Continue reading
CLASSIC ALBUMS REVISITED: Alice In Chains’ Masterpiece “Dirt” Turns 25
With the exception of Metallica, Pearl Jam, and Nirvana, no other band helped shape the tenor of mainstream 1990s rock and metal in terms of influence than Alice In Chains. Twenty-five years ago today the landmark album, Dirt was born via Columbia Records. Not only was it the bands commercial breakthrough, but it was their creative zenith in many ways, establishing them as a leader in the genre. Ghost Cult Magazine takes a look back at the album on the anniversary of its release.Continue reading
Grave Pleasures – Motherblood
One short drumfill. That’s all it takes to bring you back into the Death Rocking world of Mat McNerney (aka Khvost) before Motherblood (Century Media) launches into an uptempo angular, jangly Joy Division-inspired shuffle, and the smile spreads across the lips.Continue reading
Act Of Defiance – Old Scars, New Wounds
Featuring former Scar The Martyr frontman Henry Derek Bonner on vocals, Shadows Fall guitarist Matt Bachand on bass, plus former Megadeth members Shawn Drover (drums) and Chris Broderick (guitar), Los Angeles based super-group Act of Defiance return with the follow-up to their 2015 debut, Birth and the Burial (Metal Blade).Continue reading
Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Luciferian Towers
In a modern-day climate ever shrouded in chaos, with the evils of the world seemingly ever rife and constant and a political landscape that spells doom and hardship; it seems only fitting that Godspeed You! Black Emperor, a band that has always prided and showcased their alternative, anti-capitalist political outlook, return with a new album after a long five years. One of the most adventurous and near abrasive yet beautiful components in post-rock, and a genuinely captivating and forward thinking outfit throughout their existence, a new release is very unlikely to disappoint; and Luciferian Towers (Constellation), a name that eerily matches the recent Grenfell Tower news in London, is a suitably matched soundtrack to today’s ever harrowing timeline.Continue reading
36 Crazyfists – Lanterns
Nostalgia for the good old days’ post-hardcore of the 1990s and the early aughts is at an all-time high in 2017. However, few bands made the impact on the scene the way that 36 Crazyfists did, coming on in the middle of that golden decade and reigning hard for years over several acclaimed, and a few other solid releases. Unlike some of their peers, they never really broken up, as much as the hype died down and they settled into veteran band status. Except for a brief lag before their last album, Time and Trauma (Spinefarm) ,they have been consistent,and always supported by their die-hard fan base. New album Lanterns (also Spinefarm) shows these guys are not slipping.Continue reading
The Pineapple Thief – Where We Stood (Live/DVD)
In their long and storied career, The Pineapple Thief have simultaneously proven to offer a consistently excellent catalogue and yet have maintained a mostly, near cult status of being under the radar. Having garnered critical acclaim since their inception in 1999 but never truly hitting commercial peaks of some of their peers, 2016 seemed to be a major step forward for them. The addition of guitarist Darran Charles and iconic drummer Gavin Harrison also seemed to light a greater fire in the band and in part led to career highlight album Your Wilderness (Kscope) and a resulting tour which included their biggest headline show to date at London’s Islington Assembly Hall. Recorded on that very night, Where We Stood shows one of Britain’s premier alternative/progressive bands in their strongest and most vibrant form to date.Continue reading
Usnea – Portals Into Futility
Portland’s Usnea is not one of your proto-typical Doom bands, and there is so much more on offer than just down-tuned, droning noise, so coming to their new record, Portals Into Futility (Relapse) with an open mind is an absolute requirement as not only will it writhe and wrap itself around your very being, it will also frustrate and at times make you long for the next song.Continue reading
Cursed Earth – Cycles Of Grief, Volume II: Decay
Cursed Earth are not fucking around. Following scorching hot on the heels of Volume I: Grief comes second EP in two months Cycles Of Grief, Volume II: Decay (UNFD). Like the album, instant and violent, it was announced and released on the same day; a feral, violent and spitting wild animal flailing out six songs in fourteen minutes, yet covering more ground than a jaguar in pursuit of its fleeing prey. Continue reading