Five albums into their career, the fact Pallbearer was once a Doom Metal band has faded into the haze of the atmosphere that dominates Mind Burns Alive (Nuclear Blast Records). Of all the metal sub-genres, fans of doom metal are the most forgiving when it comes to a band outgrowing the confines of the genre. Perhaps this is just Brett Campbell’s beautiful singing voice distracting you from the lyrics, which are as equally as bleak as those on the previous album. There might be a marginally more optimistic tone to “Where the Light Fades.” These depressive expressions are a thread of continuity tethering this bands’ entire body of work. Continue reading
Tag Archives: emo
ALBUM REVIEW: Grumpster – Grumpster
Contrary to popular belief, Pop Punk and Emo are far from dead and buried. There are tons of true-school cool pocket scenes all over with great bands and fans supporting the hell out of them. One of best bands that have come from the underground recently to earn props is Grumpster from Oakland. Always a legendary place for Punk (thank you East Bay scene, 924 Gilman Street), but has had more than a few killer bands of late too. Continue reading
CONCERT REVIEW: Alkaline Trio – Drug Church – The Worriers Live at The Masonic
Don’t ever go to an Emo Punk show with a broken heart. This is not based on any empirical evidence, just advice from my own experience with this show. Maybe I went to my first long-term romantic post-break-up show 15 years ago, but it was Slapshot and Sam Black Church, so different vibes that night. But take my word for it, it’ll wreck you if you do. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Sons of Alpha Centauri – Pull
Once upon a time, there was a band called Far. Far would be one of the best bands to come out of the late nineties. Yet they were so honest and original that they fell through the cracks since they did not neatly fit into the popular genres at the time. They were too melodic and introspective for nu-metal kids and too pounding and cathartic for the emo kids. Continue reading
CONCERT REVIEW: Crosses – Crook One Live at The Fox Theater
I could not have picked a better night to go out to Oakland to see the headline tour from Crosses. I remember seeing their debut tour over a decade ago when I lived in Boston, at the Paradise Rock Club. That night, the venue was packed to the gills, and I distinctly remember being by the soundboard and seeing the separate rack settings and notes for Chino Moreno’s microphone and effects. It was a pretty cool glimpse inside the live sound of the guy who I have followed since the mid-nineties with Deftones. But much like Maynard James Keenan and Puscifer, it does seem like Crosses is his favorite child and passion. Along with his partner Shawn Lopez, formerly of the awesome and now defunct Sacramento band Far. They make for a sick team of creatives. Continue reading
Spanish Love Songs Add a Second Intimate Show Playing “Brave Faces Everyone” in Full
Spanish Love Songs, a band that has been at the forefront of the emotive punk scene and alternative scene has announced a second intimate show on 8th July, playing their album Brave Faces Everyone in its entirety. Coming off a raucous sellout at Electric Ballroom London, the band announced this special event and which sold out before the night’s end, and have now added another due to demand. The band will also perform at 2000Trees Festival. The band’s acclaimed album No Joy, on the list of Ghost Cult Albums of the Year 2023, is out now!Continue reading
Alkaline Trio Books a Headline Tour of The UK and Europe – New Album Incoming
Alkaline Trio has booked a headline tour of The UK and Europe to support their upcoming new album Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs, out January 26 on Rise Records. This is in addition to previously announced dates for the USA. Ticket links and album pre-orders are live at the links below!Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Dreamwell – In My Saddest Dreams, I Am Beside You
With their debut album, Modern Grotesque, Dreamwell certainly hit the ground running, full of cathartic, screamo energy that most bands several years into their career wish they could muster. It was enough that the band even got picked up by Prosthetic Records, looking at Dreamwell to capture lightning in a bottle twice with their sophomore effort, In My Saddest Dreams, I Am Beside You.
ALBUM REVIEW: The Gaslight Anthem – History Books
Almost a decade has passed since The Gaslight Anthem sadly went on their indefinite hiatus as a band with Brian Fallon discovering a new side to his music under his solo project. Finally though, after all this time, the band are finally reunited with a brand new set of music to bring into what looks like a very busy 2024 for the act. For so many bands reuniting over the years, fanbases have become apprehensive on whether to expect a quick cash-grab or if the bands are back for real.
ALBUM REVIEW: The Menzingers – Some Of It Was True
When a band captures a perfect creative moment like The Menzingers did with their sixth album 2019’s Hello Exile, they find themselves in a position of having to measure up to it. While Hello Exile was a creative high mark met with deserved praise from music critics such as myself, its success in terms of dollars and cents was relative as it hit 89 on the Billboard Top 200 Charts.