Hexis - XI

Procella by Hexis

Post-Hardcore with even vague Black Metal influences hardly goes down this smooth. Hexis (facebook) is a metallic Hardcore band that takes an approach to their Metal influences not unlike both Celeste and The Secret did before them, layered in feedback, sometimes dissonant sometimes melodic tremollo picking and a compromise between epic and complex structures. When looking at the continuity in quality of their songs, it’s obvious this band is tapping from a wide array of influences, mixing them to a cocktail that could very well deliver (at least equally) amazing songs for a looong time to come.
Last Fm tags as post-metal, post-hardcore, black metal, chaotic hardcore, hardcore

click the image above to buy stuff directly from the band

I Am A Curse - Prequel for an Unforgiving Wreckage : Barren Lands

The Wreck by I Am A Curse

epic hardcore band I Am A Curse (website) needs only 5 songs to make a release that comes across as perfectly fulfilling. Nearly continuously playing their style of of heartfelt yet dissonant down-tempo punk rock music, the band builds momentum to the point of near oversaturation, only to break it down again. Dark and eerie music of exponentially epic proportions, reminding of Down Tempo Post-Hardcore bands from their respective country of origin. As well as hints of dark Hardcore Punk (not unlike Birds In Row, unless that’s a biased assumption).
Last Fm tags as screamo, crust, hardcore, le mans, french

you can find an online copy for sale by clicking the image above, or contacting the band at http://www.iamacurse.com/ink.html

out Of The Box On Sunday XXXIII

Two Years by Tancred

Tancred (blog) is Now Now's Jess' solo music. This project sounds as sweet and precious as her band's music, only the minimalism of little more than her voice and an acoustic guitar creates an amazing cozy atmosphere. As always, the voice sounds angelic and moving, hovering over not too fancy-recorded acoustic guitars, to give it a hint of a lo-fi kind of sound.

Last fm tags as acoustic, indie, alternative, female vocalists,midwest

be sure to buy the record by clicking the image above!

Social Amputees Forever zine #1

the first week of 2012 saw the release of my zine!

it features articles, reviews and  and interviews with bands. 

check it out by clicking the images above!

Iskra/Doom Siren Split

Privileged Morality by Iskra

Gun Drone by Doom Siren

Crusts do it better. Doom Siren (myspace) is a death metal band I just can’t imagine not slam dancing to, and Iskra (website) bring some of the most awesome blackened tremolo-picking riffs that graced your ears. The latter have recorded their finest work to date, for this split, and on the other side of it Doom Siren brings you amazing, yet simplistic and old school yet melodic metal.
Last fm tags as crust, blackened crust, black metal, hardcore,anarchist black metal, grindcore, crust, crustcore, punk, hardcore 

click the image above to be redirected to the label that released this record, and email them here to order it!

Maths - Descent

To Be Frozen by Maths

Another contender for screamo release of the year, and judging the other bands and releases that’s gotta count for something. Especially if you consider what a name the other ones have long made for themselves. Maths (facebook) has always been a tribute to the most antique of screamo bands, taking hints from both the typical American as well as European bands, from the tremolo post-rocking to the violent, up-tempo and weeping guitars. Forging into a combo that makes them compare to other current hardcore bands like a Megazord compares to that whimpy blue Power Ranger. Epic. I could never decide which song is best, on this release.
Last fm tags as screamo, hardcore, british, real screamo, post-hardcore

click the image above for your opportunity to buy this record directly from its label

birthday post

so since today is my birthday, I'll post about whatever I want.
my top posts of albums released in 2011:

1. Thou - The Archer And The Owle
2. Wu Lyf - Go Tell Fire To The Mountain
3. Ampere – Like Shadows
4. Matt Bauer - The Jessamine County Book Of The Living
5. Circle Takes The Square - Decompositions Vol I. Chapter 1. Rites of Initiation
6. Football, Etc - The Draft
7. Birds In Row - Cottbus
8. Pulling Teeth – Funerary
9. Beau Navire - Hours
10. We Had A Deal - Three Songs
11. Kerouac/The Long Haul split
12. Light Bearer - Lapsus
13. Weekend Nachos - Worthless
14. Ghostlimb – Infrastructure
15. Young And In The Way – V. Eternal Depression
16. Momentum - Whetting Occam's Razor
17. Former Thieves - The Language That We Speak
18. Accept The Change - Escapism Is A Dying Art
19. Take Courage - Winter Sessions
20. Neige Morte - Neige Morte
21. Hessian - Hessian
22. Engineer - Crooked Voices
23. Heathens - II
24. Hourvari – 2011 EP
25. Lich/Resurrectionists split

out Of The Box On Sunday XXXII

Belgian math-rock with some post-hardcore, Terraformer (facebook) is a heavy-hitting complexely-structured instrumental band. Start/stop, tapping, dissonant and tremolo riffing with occasional hardcore breakdowns and punk rock or power chords desperately being tamed by erratic drumming, while the bass guitar loosely jams, both often in polyrythms.
Last fm tags as math rock, post-rock, instrumental,experimental, post-metal

Deathrats - S/T 7" + Give Up

Girl Style by Deathrats

Deathrats (blog) brings poorly/DIY recorded lightning-speed hardcore punk music. that double the awesomeness already! their pissed off powerviolence often focuses about the vocalists very personal frustrations, her feminist opinions like body policing and people's bullshit, hysterically screaming out about them from the top of her lungs. +1. the messy bass and guitar and the drum with that tin-like sound trash and pummel through mosh-parts as well as parts too fast to dance anything but spastically to. but upon listening, dance you will. it's just not optional. they will be playing their last show ever in the middle of January, on some show of which the flyer said something in the trend of "Wimps and posers leave the hall" which seems really obnoxious, but oh well.

Last fm tags as  hardcore punk, hardcore, punk, crust punk, female vocals 

get Give Up directly from it's distributer, right here

The Love And Terror Cult - We Are You On Fire

◻ by The Love And Terror Cult

The Love And Terror Cult (facebook) was a chaotic hardcore band that seem to have taken even more cues from The Jesus Lizard's style of noise rock music, than Daughter's later records. only with a more hardcore approach than either band, without losing any of the structural madness. the female vocals sound like the person behind the mic has long been driven far over the edge of insanity, adding to the psychological tormented atmosphere of this record. it's hard to wrap your head around the chaos of start/stop elements, guitar feedback and haunting ambience of the songs in their entirity, as well as the individual elements, but if you let it slide, sit back and try not to lose your mind, the overall product of their music almost seems harmonic in an entirely different way.

Last fm tags as chaotic hardcore, mathcore, canadian, female vocalist, hardcore