Post Rock bands either rule or suck ass. There's no middle ground. I think the reason for this is that There's a very fine line between being boring as shit and being entertaining when it comes to the minimalistic nature of the genre (it becomes immediately apparent when a band is unoriginal in post rock), as well as the general copycat nature of new post rock bands. Godspeed You! Black Emperor is an example of a band that does not bore. Here's a group that is well known for its 20+ minute-long tracks filled with ambiance and dark string arrangements, yet despite the extended passages of silence or ambient noises the music is never boring and always gripping. The atmosphere and mood created by the Montreal 9-piece is such that it draws the listener in without lulling them into a deep slumber.

Too often is the opposite true. Bands such as If These Trees Could Talk, Canyonsofstatic, This Will Destroy You and Russian Circles perpetuate the idea held by many that post rock is the most boring genre of music imaginable, or at least that it is degenerating into said boredom. The reason the genre is essentially turning to shit is because there is very little innovation left, new bands preferring to copy the styles of Sigur Ros or Explosions In The Sky or whatever instead of creating something faintly original.

So boring is most post rock, that bands such as Mono are considered gods of the genre just for keeping one awake whilst listening to their music. This pisses me off. Mono are good, don't get me wrong, but anyone who thinks that their latest album is a classic of the genre needs to listen to more music.

In this post, I've included three albums, all amazing, all interesting, all post rock. Download links are the album names.



Do Make Say Think - Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn

This album is fantastic. It has a jazzy, rustic feel to it and doesn't swear by the old "quietly played theme progressing to earth shatteringly loud version of original theme" unwritten law followed religiously by most bands of the genre. Instead, Do Make Say Think prefer to add layers and textures to the sound, not just increase volume and distortion levels. I cannot recommend this enough.



God Is An Astronaut - All Is Violent, All Is Bright

An Irish post rock band focusing more on catchy piano and guitar melodies than buildups and climaxes. That's not to say that there are no typical post rock elements in their music, but they're going for a much more accessible, catchy feel than Godspeed or Tortoise. The music has this icy cold quality to it which manages to sound alternately eerie and extraordinarily groovy. For instant satisfaction this is essential. Oh yeah and it never gets old, did I mention that? Get it now.




Talk Talk - Laughing Stock

One of the first (if not the first) post rock records. Jazzy and ambient, with vocals, this is nothing like Sigur Ros or Mogwai. The transition between "Ascension Day" and "After the Flood" is breathtaking.

| 2 comments

Did you know every time a black metal band plays a bad song, god kills a kitten (or a puppy, if you're partial to them)? Well, that's not exactly true; if it was, there would be no cats, puppies, or tragic inter-breeds left all throughout the world. Black metal is so famous for being consistently bad it's actually SURPRISING when someone does it right. Of course, doing it "right" is, in every sense of the term, purely subjective, which is a long, nonsensical and inevitably pointless debate that I won't get into here. Suffice to say, it is much easier to define what should NOT be done rather than what SHOULD.

For instance, if your vocalist sounds like someone is choking a frog and then recording it...
Please, please, find a new vocalist.
If your vocalist sounds like Jerry the mouse being shin-cracked, you're Cradle of Filth and you know what you did you filthy (get it?), dirty whore (credit goes to my alter-ego-self on Sputnik for that comparison).

Then there's keyboards, which I touched on earlier. Symphonics and metal aren't inherently bad chemistry, but it would not be exaggerating to say almost no one gets that business correct. Guys, you've got to understand, if you're trying to sound evil, juxtaposing your tremolo picked riffs with a purple-ass keyboard is pretty much the first thing on a list of crap you could do to make your record sound less evil.

Other black metal problems include redundancy and repetitiveness, which is to say, every goddamn song sounding exactly the same. Curiously enough, I discovered a band the other day by looking at some side projects of the most repetitive black metal band I've ever heard, Asmodeus. That band sounds like someone recorded one song and then changed the verse length 9 times (the drummer is incredibly talented, however, and deserves a better band). Sometimes black metal bands have the tendency to "rely", you could say, on atmosphere; that is, they play slow, plodding, fuzzy black metal that is, quite boring. Now, you might wonder why it ook a 700 word segue to get here, but as it is, Schattenheer has an extremely excellent atmosphere, complete without retarded keyboards. Once that first riff hits, you know you're in for a ride. 41 minutes of non-stop evil black metal. So, what's the catch?

Well.. the vocalist is only okay. I mean, he does not sound terrible, per se. There's this strange interlude on song one where he alters his voice with an electronic effect and it's kind of out of place (you'll know what I'm talking about). After track 1, though, his voice goes back to normal and you're ready to enjoy some toe-tappingly (irony points) good black metal. If you can look past that, you're in for a grand old time. Get it here, folks: right here click me plz.

...


Seriously, LOOK AT THIS FUCKING CLOWN. STOP IT.

| 4 comments

Now it's time to relax and listen to the beautiful and iconic "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" by brilliant Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto

| 2 comments

This is a split release by American one man project Panopticon and relative unknowns Lake of Blood. Seriously this is worth it just for the Panopticon side of the split. I mean Lake of Blood is a pretty good band; they're not atmospheric like Panopticon and play a pretty melodic brand of black metal, but their side pales in comparison to their split-mate's. You know what's awesome about Panopticon? He DOESN'T SUCK. Happy Joey? You better fucking be.

I prefer the other split Panopticon is involved with (the It's Later Than You Think split with Wheels Within Wheels), but if you're hankering for some quality black metal then this is, my friend, is your answer.

Fuck Wolves in the Throne Room, this guy is the best ABM around right now. You don't believe me? Listen to this or I'll take a dump on your chest, Cleveland Steamer style.

| 2 comments

I hate to make another general post about music, but I'm afraid there's a problem with the black metal of today, too: it sucks. It sounds like a bunch of pussies wanking on their guitars, making themselves feel special inside because, LOOK MOMMA, I can play a tremolo picked riff REALLY FAST.

Good for you.

For the rest of us, it takes more than hyperspeed riffs and "epic" keyboard "compositions" to satiate our man-sized balls (take that any way you want to). To be honest, most of the times I hear a keyboard in music, it makes me want to punch a piano. Fortunately for my hand and for pianos everywhere, I don't own a piano, so I usually just punch a pianist. Either way, every once in awhile, I hear music where the keyboards aren't the most aggrivating thing I've ever heard; those rare records where the keyboards aren't an "element", they're a factor. They play a part in the greater whole and don't COMPLETELY, ANNOYINGLY DETRACT from it. If you've ever heard Nokturnal Mortum, and since we're talking about real men, I'm assuming you have, they are pretty much the best symphonic black metal band ever. Some of you might be screaming at your keyboards, going NO NO NO EMPEROR IS THE BEST.

Nah.

Nokturnal Mortum, aside from kicking ass and taking names and taking kick-ass names, looked at keyboards, and went "you know what, we need TWO of those". Then, as no one else has ever done successfully before or after them, they made it work.

Now, not every band can do two keyboards; Germany's Dies Ater is such a band, with just one keyboardist. But you know why Dies Ater kick ass? Because they rock. Odium's Spring is their latest release, and with the soon-to-be-official crumbling of the band, it will also be their last. On it, however, they are a metal band to the bone; they're not trying to be epic (okay, they are a little bit, but forgive them; they're german, like me; we don't take shit lightly), they are just playing balls-to-the-wall black metal, heavy as hell and absolutely uncomprising. And those keyboards? They're in the background, where they belong, adding to the atmosphere but never detracting from or overpowering it. Not to mention the band are incredibly talented at their instruments and, thank everything holy or unholy or whatever shit you believe in, that the singer is NOT fucking terrible, another problem with black metal today (every little dickwad thinks he can do a black metal scream; I'm looking at you Xasthur). He screams in the native tongue of angry, crazy people, a people I'm proud to be part of: the germans. There isn't an angrier language, and it translates perfectly to the music.

So go on, hit this shit up. If you inherently hate keyboards in music, even more so than me, then you probably won't like this. If you do, however, like heavy, brutal black metal, then go on and try some of what Germany has to offer; you won't be disappointed.

| 2 comments

Death metal is awesome, aint it?
Well... Not really. MOST death metal is terrible, derivative trash, just like most music. Awesome death metal is awesome. Semantics, I know, but as it happens, I can tell you two main reasons death metal of today sucks:

Technicality = Quality
Nope. No it doesn't.
Brutality = Quality
Nope. No it doesn't. Fuck off.

Those are often cited by people; I have generalized them and paraphrased them, of course, but their strength is undeniable. I would like to add one more reason, however, that the death metal of today sucks, and it's not metalcore. No, it's production. Because, for some reason, today's generation seems to think that:
More Low End = Heavier = Quality
NO. NO IT DOESN'T.

With that in mind, try to listen to 7th Nemesis knowing that somehow, somewhere, they had this knowledge and decided to squander, crush, torture and execute it. Their debut LP, Violentia Imperatrix Mundi, is a solid serving of slightly progressive modern death metal with a somewhat technical edge. It's mixed pretty well with a chunky low-end that gives it more of a huge sound than an earache. It was released in 2006, and has almost everything you could ask for from death metal: headbangable groovy sections, furious drum-work, solid technical fretwork that is refined and restrained and a heavy-as-fuck breakdown or two (spread amongst 9 songs, there's only two of them).

So why the big rant at the start? Well, 7th Nemesis decided to RErecord Violentia and rename it some bullshit name I don't feel like remembering correctly, something like Archetype of Violent Shitty Production. Yeah. That was probably it. Either way, they decided, fuck the deep end, they are going to take that low-end and drill for the center of the earth. It's loud, it's obnoxious, and it sounds fucking awful.

Stop it death metal. More gain does not equal more fun.

Get the original solid slab of death metal right here: not-shittily-produced-death-metal

| 0 comments

What's that, boys and girls? You want your faces crushed? Well, step right up, it's time to make a pancake out of that abortion you call a visage (for those of you who are now offended, please click the back button on your browser to a place more suitable for pansies). I can hear you now; quiveringly, you would plead:
"but why, Mr. Phones, why did you crush my face so hard?"

Well it's my job, and since I pride myself on doing my job well, I present this monolith of existence ending, earth-moving sludge/grind. Clocking in at my favorite album of 2007, Time To Burn's Sludgeariffic release Is.Land is one of the heaviest things you will ever hear. I could stop there and tell you to get the fucking album, but to do so would be a great disservice to this band. The vocalist sounds like he is ready to punch the microphone with his face, which makes no sense but does anyway, the guitars sound like dropping a train on your ear and the bass is ever-present and has a muddy mind of its own. A dark, brooding atmosphere is peppered with moments of unimaginable heaviness and clean, tranquil ambient and acoustic sections, just to keep you on your feet. GET IT NOW.

| 0 comments

These guys rule seriously. This release is more accessible than Cacophony. A fantastic listen for those who enjoyed Cacophony or for those who found it a little too weird. In fact just get it. I dare you. Whether you listen to Wu-Tang, Opeth, Converge or Black Flag you need this.

Get

| 1 comments

Another delicious offering from the dirty south's Clipse, a rap duo from Virginia Beach. Theirs is an accessible yet substantial offering of southern hip hop, with interesting beats, brilliant flow and superb (but not necessarily intricate) lyrics. If you like hip hop then get this. It's pretty simple.

Get

| 0 comments

Some punk is awesome. In fact, most punk is awesome. There are very few types of punk, sub-genres of punk, that are not, in fact, awesome. Do you know these genres? They are third-wave hardcore, a wave I just invented. Third-wave hardcore is DWEEDLE-JUN breakdown repeated 4 times a song. This one time, I was at a concert, and this local "hardcore" band played 13 breakdowns in 3 songs. I almost cried.

Thankfully, other genres of punk make up for this kind of ridiculous derivative pussy bullshit. Crust is just one of those genres, actually sharing more with metal than with punk itself, but still forming out of hardcore and thus identifying with punk. With Cursed's Chris Colohan and members of other infamous 90s hardcore bands (including a member of Left For Dead), you'd be pretty safe assuming this slays the fuck out of the girly sing-breakdown-scream crap they put out today. Well, you'd be right; this release is 8 songs of unstoppable brutality and then a (decently) disturbing outro track which is more or less skippable after the first time you hear it. Either way, get it right now because, just like Cursed, it destroys. Hard.

| 0 comments

Pretty sweet Atmospheric Black Metal from Tacoma, Washington along the lines of Drudkh, Ash Borer and Hate Forest. Short quarter hour of music. Definitely something to watch.

Watch it here. and by watch I mean listen.

| 0 comments

I've been on a Post-Rock Screamo kick lately. Bands like Envy, Mesa Verde, City of Caterpillar etc have dominated my ears for months. It's time for a change of scene, albeit slightly. I mean I still want my skramz. Don't worry, I have a solution.

Eucalypt was a brilliant screamo band from New South Wales, Australia. They were one of the most emotionally charged groups I've ever heard; they played extraordinarily fast music with incredibly passionate vocals. One feature that distinguishes Eucalypt from many other bands in the genre is the guitarists' tendency to play without distortion. It really works and gives the music a more cutting, edgy feel, especially if you've been listening to distortion and atmosphere for ages (such as moi). This release is pretty rare but is a hard hitting 17 minutes of incredible music.

Get

| 0 comments

So, you got some of the grimmest metal around (You did, didn't you? What? You didn't? Get the fuck out of here). For those of you left, you might want a soothing, ambient piece with which you can reflect on the metal you just indulged upon. Enter Helios (most likely named after the Greek representation of the sun by the same name), an ambient, nature influenced band from Portland, Oregon. Focusing less on post-rock tension building and release and more on enveloping, soothing soundscapes, Eingya's sound also focuses more on electronic sounds and city-like white-noise ambience. A slight electronic edge, strangely, does nothing to deprive the record of a completely organic feel. Eingya is a fantastic release that will get you in the mood for sitting around and doing nothing. In this hectic world, sometimes there's just nothing better than sloth-like relaxation, and Eingya is a perfect, moving piece that stands as a testament to that idea. Get it here.

| 0 comments

Drudkh are, without question, some of the best black metal being made today. With albums like Autumn Aurora and their latest Microcosmos, their nature inspired take on atmospheric black metal is both alluring and consistently satisfying. Saying they're some of the best isn't hyperbole; it's just fact. If you take that band apart, however, what do you get?

Well, as it turns out, you get some of the grimmest, heaviest, evilest black metal you can find. With a hilariously ridiculous name and a sound to match, Hate Forest give bands like Anaal Nathrakh a run for their money in intensity. There's just one catch: this band isn't some grindy bullshit, just straight-up, balls to the wall black metal. The vocals might not be for everybody, but the people they're not for are pussies. Get your blacker than black metal right here and enjoy another classy treat from the boys in Ukraine.

| 1 comments

we're going ultra elite bitches

| 0 comments

This is a weird album. Wonderfully weird in fact. Cacophony is a deathrock/post punk album that is immensely atmospheric and contains strange spoken word passages, many of them (from what I can work out, some are sped up or altered in some way to the point of being indecipherable) excerpts from Lovecraft works. Though very atmospheric, the album does contain many very catchy riffs. The and lyrics are very strong and effective, and as I noted before, pertain to the writing of H.P. Lovecraft. The gloomy, tortured and chaotic nature of the music really does strengthen the subject matter brilliantly. The vocals range from a tortured sneer to screams and yells, and are extremely well done. The album artwork was drawn in pen-and-ink by frontman Nick Blinko. This is an album that is not to be missed. Mindblowingly good.

Get

| 0 comments

I'm a little slow in my listening, but this is one of the best instrumental records I've heard this year. It kicks Mono's ass and might even give Do Make Say Think a run for their money. The music is alternately aggressive riffs, beautiful piano passages, glitchy drum machine driven electronica and noodly guitar ostinatos. It is an album that is immediately accessible but does not wear off. You will find yourself listening to this much more than you had anticipated because it is just so addictive. If you don't get anything else from 2009 I don't care, as long as you get this.

Get

| 0 comments

So I've been listening to a lot of artsy stuff lately, predominantly Pink Floyd (which is one of the best bands ever), Queen (which is THE best band ever) and The Who (who just rule hard).

Here is some awesome shit for you to sink your teeth into:

Pink Floyd - Meddle



My favourite Floyd album. I love how every transition between each track is quirky yet fits so well. This was the first of their "big" albums: the start of that glorious run of amazing record after amazing record. This was the "hardest" and most edgy of these. Plus it has "Echoes", which has to be one of the best prog epics ever recorded. Only Animals rivals this as their best album.

Get

Queen - A Night At The Opera


The bombastic, the flamboyant, the catchy, and the musically impeccable Queen has been my favourite band for ages. This album is widely regarded as the apex of their creative output. I agree. This album is fun and catchy as hell but in a good way; a way you don't get bored of. Ever. Plus it has "Bohemian Rhapsody", which has to be one of the best rock epics ever recorded.

Get

The Who - Who's Next


So yeah these guys were just awesome. They made hard, heavy, loud, anthemic rock tunes that KILLED. Daltrey's voice suited the music like no one else's voice could. The rhythm section was unbelievably brilliant, and the songwriting superb. I don't think there has ever been a better pop-rock band (and that is what they essentially were.)
Plus it has "Baba O'Riley", which is the best use of power chords ever recorded.

Get

| 0 comments

Yknow what, since no one listens to GOOD Isis, I thought I'd put this up too so they can hear some more.

this is less post rockish than Mosquito Control, and I actually think I prefer it. See what you think.

Here

| 0 comments

Now I don't really like Isis much. Their sound is boring and contrived because all they're doing is making the same album over and over again. I really could not stand their latest release except for the gem "Ghost Key." This has been going on for 3 albums (since Panopticon). Their last good album was Oceanic, but there was an EP before it that a lot of people haven't heard. Mosquito Control.
If you prefer raw, less pretentious Isis, then this is for you. If you don't, and prefer Panopticon and all that shiznit...then you're probably one of those people who thinks Tarantino was the start of good cinema.

Get

| 0 comments

Can you think of any artist who hasn't ever released a bad song? I can: Elliott Smith. This guy was a breathtakingly talented acoustic artist who took his influences from The Beatles and the Beach Boys. His music isn't as cheerful as that though. I mean the guy killed himself so yeah. I have yet to find someone who dislikes Elliott Smith's music. Don't be that guy.
These are widely considered his two best albums.

Elliott Smith - Either/Or
Elliott Smith - XO

| 0 comments

I haven’t yet listened to any Australian post-rock that I haven’t liked. Whether it be Because of Ghosts’ haunting The Tomorrow We Were Promised Yesterday, any release by the earthy, organic and beautiful Dirty Three, or math/post/something-rock heroes Pivot, every release has intrigued and entertained me to some degree. Storyboard, the 2005 release by Victoria’s This Is Your Captain Speaking, continues Australian post-rock’s impressive track record.

A storyboard is a graphic organizer such as a series of illustrations or images displayed in a sequence for the sake of pre-visualizing a large-scale visual project such as a motion picture or animation. By this definition, This Is Your Captain Speaking could not have picked a better name for their debut. Each song does not really tell an individual story or convey an individual idea so to speak, but each contributes to the skeleton of a possible story. These aren't fully fleshed out postulations, rather each song is like a different image on a storyboard. I’d like to think that a large part of what separates good post-rock bands from mediocre ones is their ability to tell a story with instruments rather than lyrics. It is a technique that I really do value in this stagnating genre.

And these guys are really good at it.

One of the major strengths in this release is the interesting production. The entire album was recorded live in a school library, and every now and then one will hear sounds typically associated with school life, such as a child laughing, a game in the schoolyard, or the footsteps of a teacher. It is quite astonishing how much depth these sounds can add to the album. Not only does it add to the overall atmosphere of the album sonically, but it also gives one an idea of where these guys are coming from. For example, at the end “A Wave to Bridget Fondly,” overbearing and dark sounding guitar and percussion fades, making way for a melody played by a glockenspiel. This intertwines with a very similar melody played on none other than a mandolin a few intervals lower. The song ends with the sound of children squealing and laughing outside.
What really impressed me about the ending to this song is how the timbre of the two instruments as well as the way the melody is constructed actually do sound very “childish,” for want of a better word, and the samples of children playing cement this “childishness” in the listener’s mind. Was the band trying to tell a story in this song? I don’t think so. Were they trying to convey an idea or thought? Definitely.

The idea that the band is intending to personify different thoughts sonically is expressed in every song. A strong example of this is “6 pm” which opens with an interesting percussive line that sounds like a cash register, punctuated by glockenspiel notes. Another good example, “Angels,” is much more atmospheric than any of the other tracks on the album, with liberal use of bowed guitar giving it an ethereal sound. The band even manages to sound like Do Make Say Think on the sparse, earthy sounding “Weathered.”

The highlight of the record is undoubtedly the opener, the 18-minute epic “Gathering Pieces.” It starts off with a tentative guitar line played with the odd accent here and there, lending a sporadic feel to the music. It is joined by another guitar played as a counterpoint. The opening really does sound like there are little fragments being drawn together. The first time I listened to “Gathering Pieces,” I pictured little orbs of light coming together to form a larger orb. The addition of a glockenspiel adds to this feel. 18 minutes is a long time, but the song never feels drawn out. The band manages to vary the melody and textures enough over time to keep the music interesting. There are no huge buildups with a massive climax at the end a la Godspeed You! Black Emperor, where the end is usually a louder and denser version of the original theme. “Gathering Pieces” is brilliant because the melodies are beautiful and captivating, and at the same time encapsulate what pieces coming together could sound like and manages to sound epic without the traditional (and much overused) epic climax. In the storyboard that This Is Your Captain Speaking is trying to capture with their music, they have crafted a beautiful, visceral and captivating opening scene.

There is only one problem with this album, and that is that some parts will sound like they have been done before. Certain guitar melodies or arpeggios and the occasional overuse of tremolo picking may strike up a feeling of déja vu in some cases. The percussion section could have also been a little more inventive, but these are pretty minor gripes.

I could go into detail about every song on Storyboard, but it would take ages and, quite frankly, bore the hell out of anyone reading, but simply put, this album is a great listen. It draws you in from the opening guitar line and takes you through seven different ideas, starting with a gathering, going through the early morning and expressing childishness that comes out of darkness. Weariness follows, but then something happens that elevates one out of the lethargy, continuing the journey that ends hauntingly, with the music fading away.

This review was written originally for Sputnikmusic.com

Get the album HERE

| 3 comments

The Blue Letter is an awesome fucking band that plays an awesome fucking combo of screamo and post rock. It's really delicious. The only problem is that once you listen to it most other bands of this nature seem superfluous. If you like Funeral Diner, City of Caterpillar or Mesa Verde, this is for you.

Listenordie

| 0 comments

One of the best albums of all time. Horn lines are spot on and catchy, and the lyrics are really something special. Frontman Tomas Kalnoky is an extremely gifted storyteller and has an extraordinarily passionate vocal delivery. Get this album now. This is the album even ska haters like.

GET IT

| 0 comments

fun. is an indie pop band formed by former The Format frontman Nate Ruess. This is a much more flamboyant and...well...(at the risk of sounding cliched) fun effort that combines Queen-style harmonies and lush orchestral arrangements. Seriously Benson Hedges might be one of my favourite songs of the year.

DANCEDANCEDANCE

| 1 comments

Oceansize is a band from Manchester that combines progressive rock with post rock and shoegaze to form monstrous, atmospheric and intricate tracks. No other band has such an apt name. They're one of my favourite bands of all time and if you haven't heard them before just check them out.

Their best releases are Effloresce and Frames, but Everyone Into Position is the easiest to get into. I would start with either Effloresce or Everyone Into Position


Effloresce



Everyone Into Position Part 1
Everyone Into Position Part 2



Frames

| 0 comments

Boris is a Japanese drone/stoner/psychadelic group that FUCKING RULES. Seriously overbearing, crushing stuff. Feedbacker is their best release in my opinion.


Feedbacker

You know what, have Pink too. More accessible.



Pink

| 1 comments

The only "real" impressionist composer. Beautiful music. Billowing, floaty and moving. Suite Bergmasque is probably his most well known work.

Suite Bergmasque

| 0 comments

More awesome post rock from Australia. These guys, Dirty Three and This Is Your Captain Speaking are my favourites.


Get

| 0 comments

The release of this album in 1994 saw the birth of the phrase "post rock." The end track is one of the best things ever. For the sake of understanding the canon of post rock you should try this out.

Hex

| 0 comments

Another Swedish old school death metal band. awesome. If you like Repugnant or Necrovation or Funebrarum just listen to it.

get

| 0 comments

Old School Death Metal from Florida. Sonic equivalent to having your balls run over by Michael Moore on a skateboard. except hes breathing fire not complaining.

die

| 0 comments

The Candyland Carcrash was a fantastic emo/screamo band from the 90s. only released two things, a split with Seraphim and a self titled 7" totaling four songs, but my god they're good.

I have included both because I'm such a nice guy.

Self-Titled 7"

Split with Seraphim

| 1 comments

This is some old school shit right here. Swedish band. This EP will rip your face off then fuck its mouth.
Rip it off

| 0 comments

Kayo Dot is a brilliant avant garde metal thingy band. Frontman Toby Driver calls it the "continuation of the direction in which maudlin of the Well (Driver's band before Kayo Dot) had been progressing."

Here's two rare releases since I can't be bothered putting up their actual LPs. maybe I'll do that later. These releases are:

1. Live Recording from Portsmouth, NH

2. Split with Bloody Panda

| 0 comments

You cunts with your P.O.S. and cLOUDDEAD and your Deltron and your Dr Octagon need to chill out and listen to some of the most awesome, unpretentious and well done rap that the South has to offer. Undeground Kingz (UGK) were a rap duo from Texas comprised of Pimp C and Bun B. This is their best achievement.

not that i don't like any of the aforementioned artists. but seriously you need this. "One Day" might just be the best rap song of all time behind "It Ain't Hard to Tell"

"Man if you got kids show em you love em cuz God jus might call em home
Cuz one day they here and baby the next day they gone"

Get

| 0 comments

Ok so I've decided these guys rule. Atmospheric/depressive black metal and shoegaze and post rock all in one tasty package. vocals are great. exactly the right volume in the mix and really affect you. This is their full length.

Sehnsucht

the EP i posted earlier

| 1 comments

Violin-based post rock trio from Australia. Violinist is the guy from Nick Cave's band, the Bad Seeds. Very raw sound, but extraordinarily wrenching and hypnotic. You find yourself immersed in the music very quickly.

Cinder is their most accessible release, and Ocean Songs is their best.

| 0 comments

This is a recording of a live performance by one of the greatest post rock bands. It's an especially chilling one. If you're a fan of post rock or Godspeed, this is an amazing listen

L'Olympic 2003-05-14

| 2 comments

One of my favourite composers. Francis Poulenc was born in Paris in 1899. He's composed choral works, ballet, orchestral, art song etc.

This is a small choral work called Quatre petites prieres de St. Francis d' Assise, which is comprised of four a capella movements. Hauntingly beautiful.

btw doesnt he look like the newspaper guy from Spiderman?

get it

| 0 comments

A good way to tell a group's credibility is to observe how they stand in their epic "in front of a ruin or some other badass thing" pictures. And these guys know how to stand. look at them. Yeah I wouldn't fuck with them.

Bolt Thrower are a death metal group from England that have the catchiest, awesomest riffs and song titles like "Anti-Tank (Dead Armour) and "Remembrance." Yeah they're war themed. Makes them even more badass and over the top. If you want good dm then here you go. I suggest starting with Those Once Loyal.

War Master
IVth Crusade
Those Once Loyal
For Victory

| 1 comments

Awesome Arkansas-ian Sludge group. music is so good. crushing yet light. hard yet soft. feminine yet masculine. black yet white. etc.

RAWWWWRRWAKE

| 0 comments

...Who Calls So Loud are an amazing reincarnation (sorta) of Funeral Diner by the guitarist and the drummer. This is their debut. If you like screamo this is an essential. Actually just get it man, get it now. You'll like it.

linkylink

| 0 comments

Felt like adding a random good band. Band is fucking incredible. Kinda Black Metal but not really but fuck you just get it

it

| 0 comments