Review: Landing with a curbstomp the year before their debut full-length Matando Gueros, 1992's iMachetazos! served as only the second 7" EP (of what would become a lengthy discography) from drug cartel death metal outfit Brujeria. While performing with their faces covered and under gangster pseudonyms, anyone within the scene knows the collective alumni boasts (or has at one point) Fear Factory's Dino Cazares and drummer Raymond Herrera, as well as Billy Gould (Faith No More), Nicholas Barker (Cradle Of Filth Dimmu Borgir) and Jeff Walker (Carcass). Lyrically touching on tops of Satanism, torture, gang violence and drug dealing, all united through Mexican imagery and gangster aesthetic; when coupled with the band's extreme form of death metal imbued grindcore, the resulting menace is akin to waking up in a mosh pit during Sicario.
Review: Japan's Envy created one of the most respected post-rock screamo albums of all time with this third album of theirs. Originally released in 2001 on Japense punk label H.G. Fact and again as a limited released in 2003 on Dim Mak Records in the U.S., with not many physical copies printed they've been scarcely available. Thankfully, that's all about to change now that this enduring masterpiece of foreboding post rock and blisteringly powerful screams is getting repressed. Envy's strength lies in their ability to flip flop between introspective atmospheric passages and intense guttural aggression within a track and for it to be cohesive. That said, where they don't relent, like on 'Invisible Thread', the adrenaline really kicks in and it's a palpable reenactment of the atmosphere at their live shows.
Review: Popstock's latest Fall retrospective Singles Live Vol One 1978-81 captures Smith and his mighty co. in their rawest, fuzz-worthy phase. Whether it's the discordant organ furzes of 'It's The New Thing' or the snarled highway punk of '2nd Dark Age', this one's a great distillation of the Fall's sound at a select interval. Culled almost exclusively from the period spanning their Live At The Witch Trials era to the brink of the Hex Enduction Hour, the album compiles ferocious stage renditions of early singles, delivered by a revolving door of members as usual. Yet it was also born from frustration with how other Fall archival material has been handled, and how more recent lineups have been emphasised and represented as immutable over and above classic, yet more unusual suspects. Steered by ex-Fall members Paul and Steve Hanley, Marc Riley and Craig Scanlon, Popstock exists as a corrective, revisiting a pivotal moment with a twist.
Review: Seemingly unable to rest on any of their laurels for long, and already returning just a year on from 2024's noise-rock indebted sixth full-length Coagulated Bliss, ever-prolific grindcore stalwarts Full Of Hell are back with the ferocious Broken Sword, Rotten Shield EP. Featuring notably cleaner production than ever heard prior, the material pays homage to classic death metal motifs whilst eschewing the Melvins worship of their previous outing, with cataclysmic blasbeats and face-metling guitar solos underpinning vocalist Dylan Waker's inhuman shrieks and bellows. Commenting on the retro-style artwork featuring what can best be described as a "dog knight", Walker elaborates - "The dog knights represent these pure defenders against a world of darkness and the feeling of utter grief and defeat when we lose these companions. Along side that metaphor, the song also explains that in this world, all living things are rendered equal in the end, and for some that's a mighty fall."
Rawlplugs Of Yesteryear (Breaking The States) (3:36)
The Bliss Of The Hereafter (3:08)
McCalliog & His Hens (3:14)
Record Store Day (3:15)
I'm Going Out Of My Mind Trying To Get Into Yours (2:37)
No-One Likes A Polymath (3:40)
Don't Get Me Wrong Yvonne (3:38)
Birmos In The Cowshed (3:00)
Falmouth Electrics (3:48)
Jack's Been To The National (4:04)
Possible Side Effects (4:47)
Review: Wirral group Half Man Half Biscuit return with 13 tracks of clipped, deadpan commentary and characteristically sharp titles. 'Horror Clowns Are Dickheads' sets the tone early i jagged, unglamorous, and unbothered with polish. 'Goodbye Sam, Hello Samaritans' and 'Rawlplugs of Yesteryear (Breaking the States)' take similarly sideways routes through pop culture detritus and social noise. 'The Bliss of the Hereafter' and 'McCalliog and His Hens' skew slower, with more spoken delivery than structure. 'Record Store Day' lands its target without overstating the punchline. Elsewhere, 'No-One Likes A Polymath' and 'Falmouth Electrics' keep the language tight but surprisingly pointed. 'I'm Going Out of My Mind Trying to Get Into Yours' is a rare moment of emotional slippage i though only just i before the band revert to type on 'Jack's Been to the National' and 'Possible Side Effects'. Overall, they remain the only band who could deliver lines like these and still sound like they're holding something back.
Review: Originally released in July 2008, Have Heart had already been peddling their unapologetically up front hardcore punk for a good six years by this point. What would be their final statement on the matter, disbanding 12 months or so later, Songs To Scream At The Sun would continue the focus on earnest messaging for the group, who were known for dealing with issues such as social ethics to inclusivity. Never really ones for compromise, while Have Heart continued in the positive hardcore vein here, it's also worth noting that at the time the sound itself was falling out of favour, but the Massachusetts troupe doubled down instrumentally, too. When many peers were desperately looking to dilute in the hopes of crossover success, this is how you bow out with style and dignity.
Old Man (Last Words & Lessons Learned) (II) (2:31)
Song Of Shame (1:27)
To Us Fools (2:47)
Something More Than Ink (3:03)
The Machinist (1:14)
Watch Me Rise (2:14)
Review: "The defining hardcore record of the century so far" said Las Vegas Weekly. While punknews.org commented on the "undeniably earnest lyrics and blistering, relentless pace." Make no mistake, Have Heart made a big impression in 2006 with The Things That Carry, their debut full length. Following on from two very well received EPs, the record cemented the band's status as leading lights in a nascent positive hardcore movement. Screaming out of the starting blocks, the music is angry but the messaging looks to celebrate ideas such as love, inclusivity, tolerance, difference and social consciousness. The group would only put out one more official LP after this one alongside a live album after they broke up, but their energy and ideas remain as relevant and vital today as they were back then.
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