ALBUM REVIEW: Big Scenic Nowhere – The Waydown


Ranging from members of Fu Manchu to Mos Generator to Yawning Man in their lineup, prolific Stoner Rock overlords Big Scenic Nowhere have left an everlasting legacy through their works for the past years. Now they are back with their third studio release, namely The Waydown– released via Heavy Psych Sounds. Consisting of seven tracks, the album presents the purest form of desert-styled riffs while also fusing them with jazz fusion-inspired elements. It’s fairly off-kilter to combine Desert/Stoner Rock with Jazz Fusion elements, so this has been a unique, newfound take, but of course in the finest way possible.Continue reading


INTERVIEW: From Goth Legends to a New Album: Lol Tolhurst and Budgie Share Their Journey


Ghost Cult caught up with  Lol Tolhurst (founding drummer of The Cure ) & Budgie (ex  Siouxsie And The Banshees, The Slits) legends of Goth and alternative Rock last fall for a chat. Lol released his book “GOTH: A History,” via Hachette Books last fall and it is a personal and deep account Goth music and the greater culture. Budgie wrote the forward of the book and both gents shared their knowledge about the scene and history! They also released a collab album last last year as Lol Tolhurst x Budgie x Jacknife Lee debut album “Los Angeles,” which we also discussed as well.

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FESTIVAL REVIEW: Riot Fest 2023 Live at Douglas Park


 

After many years of covering Riot Fest at Ghost Cult, your intrepid chief of editor got to experience it for himself. The lineup was too good to be true, even the competition from the many Punk and Metal festivals all happening around the same time in the USA. Having personally covered one other festival in Chicago in the past, (RIP Chicago Open Air), I was excited to spend some time here. 

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ALBUM REVIEW: Crosses – Goodnight, God Bless, I Love U, Delete 


 

Chino Moreno has never been shy at exploring his mellower side away from Deftones, and over the years has dipped into the Post-Rock, Shoegaze and Trip-Hop genres providing us with some highly refined music by way of projects such as Team Sleep and Palms, his collaboration with three former members of Post-Metal kings IsisContinue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Fearing – Destroyer


 

Do you like to dress in black? Do you prefer a solitary pint of cider in the back of a smoky bar? (the smoky part might be hard to fashion in this day and age) Do you favour wearing a trenchcoat? Do you feel in a state of perpetual ennui? Maybe you are a Berliner! Or perhaps you’re a member of a Darkwave band… maybe both! 

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Riot Fest 2023 Announces its Daily Lineups with Foo Fighters, The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie, The Cure, Queens of the Stone Age and more


 

Riot Fest 2023 has previously announced their stellar lineup with Foo Fighters, The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie, The Cure, Queens of the Stone Age, Turnstile, with The Mars Volta, Mr. Bungle, Tegan and Sara, 100 Gecs, The Gaslight Anthem, AFI, Death Grips, The Used, The Dresden Dolls, Say Anything, 070 Shake, The Breeders, Kim Gordon, Viagra Boys, Pup, Sleep Token, The Interrupters, Flogging Molly, Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls, Pennywise, Bayside, Ani DiFranco, Finch, Silverstein, Insane Clown Posse, Head Automatica, Parliament Funkadelic Ft. George Clinton, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, L.S. Dunes, Gorilla Biscuits, Ride, Cults, Nothing Nowhere., Code Orange, White Reaper, Balance and Composure, Fake Names, Eshu Tune, Quicksand, Enter Shikari, The Wrecks, Thursday, Hawthorne Heights, Bowling For Soup, Braid, H20, Spitafield, Jehnny Beth, Drain, Snapcase, The Bronx, Microwave, Oso Oso, Origami Angel, The Exploited, Plosivs, Steve Ignorant Band / Crass, Black Angels, Yard Act, Warpaint, Nothing, Screaming Females, High Vis, Rival Schools, Caroline Rose, Sludgeworth, Free Throw, Just Mustard, Hotline TNT, Quasi, Corey Feldman, Just Friends, Bearings, Pinkshift, Olivia Jean, Calva Louise, The Aquadolls, Enola Gay, Earth Crisis, Empire State Bastard, Cassyette, FEA, Fleshwater, The Bobby Lees, Pool Kids, Young Culture, Fade ‘Em All, CK Vassi, and Total Chaos. Tickets are on sale now and the fest just announced their daily schedule!

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ALBUM REVIEW: Restraining Order – Locked In Time


 

Ah, another month, another Hardcore record, and this time it’s the turn of West Springfield, Massachusetts crew Restraining Order

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ALBUM REVIEW: Sleep Token – Take Me Back to Eden


 

I don’t want to speak too early or jinx anything, but this Heavy Metal idea has been in a resurgence as of late. Bear in mind that a lot of the old promotional tools have been inactive for years. MTV lost its ass and stopped using the first letter of its acronym long ago and whatever is left of commercial rock radio is perfectly content to spin the same Stone Temple Pilots singles until the sun or Clear Channel finally burn out. Yet here we are in the age of streaming and shortened attention spans with several young acts making headway. Continue reading


Riot Fest 2023 Books Foo Fighters, The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie, The Cure, Queens of the Stone Age


 

Riot Fest 2023 has announced their lineup and it’s a banger, easily the heaviest and most throwback lineup to 1990s and 2000s bands in recent memory. Headliners include, Foo Fighters, The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie, The Cure, Queens of the Stone Age, Turnstile, with The Mars Volta, Mr. Bungle, Tegan and Sara, 100 Gecs, The Gaslight Anthem, AFI, Death Grips, The Used, The Dresden Dolls, Say Anything, 070 Shake, The Breeders, Kim Gordon, Viagra Boys, Pup, Sleep Token, The Interrupters, Flogging Molly, Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls, Pennywise, Bayside, Ani DiFranco, Finch, Silverstein, Insane Clown Posse, Head Automatica, Parliament Funkadelic Ft. George Clinton, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, L.S. Dunes, Gorilla Biscuits, Ride, Cults, Nothing Nowhere., Code Orange, White Reaper, Balance and Composure, Fake Names, Eshu Tune, Quicksand, Enter Shikari, The Wrecks, Thursday, Hawthorne Heights, Bowling For Soup, Braid, H20, Spitafield, Jehnny Beth, Drain, Snapcase, The Bronx, Microwave, Oso Oso, Origami Angel, The Exploited, Plosivs, Steve Ignorant Band / Crass, Black Angels, Yard Act, Warpaint, Nothing, Screaming Females, High Vis, Rival Schools, Caroline Rose, Sludgeworth, Free Throw, Just Mustard, Hotline TNT, Quasi, Corey Feldman, Just Friends, Bearings, Pinkshift, Olivia Jean, Calva Louise, The Aquadolls, Enola Gay, Earth Crisis, Empire State Bastard, Cassyette, FEA, Fleshwater, The Bobby Lees, Pool Kids, Young Culture, Fade ‘Em All, CK Vassi, and Total Chaos. Tickets are on sale now! 

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ALBUM REVIEW: The Nightmares – Séance


 

Hailing from Newport, Wales, noir pop and alternative rock quartet The Nightmares reveal their bleak yet breezy souls with their debut album, Séance, via Venn and Equal Vision Records. The record’s themes of death were inspired by the COVID pandemic putting a hold on the band’s touring plans, leading to experiments with seances during the writing process. As one could imagine, the mental and spiritual outcomes of this paid a great contribution to the music’s morbid concepts and haunting execution. 

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