Here are three of the four new tracks in case you just can't wait.
JAZZBRUNCH - "An Invitation to an Enormous Disappointment"
SNAG - "Colony Collapse"
ELLE - "All Bets Are Off"
Wednesday, 31 July 2019
ZAMPLER #13 - It's An Ugly Planet, A Bug Planet
Monday, 29 July 2019
***PODCAST #35 w/Sean Warkentine + Adrian Sutherland (Touching God)***
In July of 2018 I had my first podcast with friend Sean Warkentine when he came through on the An Ant And An Atom tour with his friend in Alder & Ash. It was a swell time, so when he came through in mid-2019 with his two-piece rock/punk/noise outfit TOUCHING GOD doing podcast #2 was a no-brainer. The other half of TOUCHING GOD is Adrian Sutherland who was an absolute sweetheart and the duo released an EP just a few months back titled 'Profane' that is well worth your time. In addition to our podcast I also captured a song live in Nanaimo when they played here. The podcast is just shy of an hour and thirty minutes and broken up into three parts, all of which are available to stream and/or download for free via this link.1
UNIFORM - "The Light at the End (Cause)" (Sean/Adrian)
REFUSED - "The Refused Party Programme" (Dave)
2
THE BODY - "Nothing Stirs" (Sean/Adrian)
SENZA - "Born of Dirt" (Dave)
DEBBIE FRIDAY - "Stay Up" (Sean/Adrian)
3
DIE PRINCESS DIE - "The Shakes" (Dave)
BRANIAC - "I'm a Cracked Machine" (Sean/Adrian)
SNACK TRUCK - "Terrier of the Moon" (Dave)
MELT BANANA - "Shield for Your Eyes and Beast in the Well on Your Hand" (Sean/Adrian)
~Dave
____________________________________________________________________
PODCAST #35 linked here
____________________________________________________________________
PODCAST #35 linked here
____________________________________________________________________
Sunday, 21 July 2019
***AMYGDALA w/Emma Goldman + Friolento + Nicodxmvs live show review***
AMYGDALA / FRIOLENTO / EMMA GOLDMAN / NICODXMVS
@Black Lab on June 12th, 2019
Live Show Review
Live Show Review
Less than two weeks after ZBR Fest 2019 I returned to the mainland to see a very stacked show which did not disappoint.
EMMA GOLDMAN
This three-piece from Vancouver are fucking amazing. Without a doubt the most "screamo" band in Western Canada and the bestern one to boot (ha). Playing three unreleased songs and few old ones, the primarily ex-members of Dad Thighs (+ Pavel <3) got me outright giddy for their next set of recordings.
FRIOLENTO
Another band fresh off of playing ZBR Fest 2019, the local three-piece brought a mixture of poetic spoken word in between bursts of blazing post-hardcore.
\/
(2019) FRIOLENTO "2"
For fans of: (early) Touche Amore and Pianos Become The Teeth
^\/`~~~~---------------00oOo00---------------~~~~'\/^
NICODXMVS
Admittedly, I don't listen to noise/drone/ambient music, but I did enjoy this set and found it to be both mesmerizing and haunting simultaneously. Very cool stuff.
\/
(2019) NICODXMVSNICODXMVS - 1
For fans of: trippy, drum/bass-heavy noise/drone
^\/`~~~~---------------00oOo00---------------~~~~'\/^
AMYGDALA
I hadn't seen this west coast band in years, and it was heart-warming to quickly engage in friendly conversation with them, including new drummer/former member of Ruptures and Led Astray. They may still be the same in the fact that they are super nice, but their live show has changed dramatically, and I mean that in the best possible way. Bianca's vocals are top-fucking notch and are enough to perforate anyone's eardrum that makes the grave mistake of not wearing earplugs. The instrumentals are driving as hell and help lead those anguished, shrieky screams that take it all to the next level. That shit was devastating, holy smokes.
ADDITIONAL LINKS & WHATNOT
Friday, 19 July 2019
GAMENESS
Band: GAMENESS
Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Post-Hardcore / Emo / Screamo / Skramz / Metalcore
Related artists: Brume Retina, Call Us As You Wish !, Ride That Sexy Horse, Seekers Of The Truth, You Will Never Appear On TV With Such A Face, Revok, Do You Compute, Dysfunctional By Choice, Reipas, Seanews, Tom Fool and The Sons Of Saturn.
Country: Yvelines / Seine-et-Marne FRANCE
Years Active: 1996-2005
Song: "Low Waves"
Album: "Gameness"
Year: 2003
For fans of: Dip Leg, Yarmulke, Cougar Den, Orchid, 49 Morphines, The Death Of Anna Karina, Killed By Malaise, Emma Goldman, Terry Green, Daïtro, Mihai Edrisch, Dodewaard, Amanda Woodward, (early) Poison The Well, (early) Nine Eleven, Mališa Bahat, Loftus, Evylock, Dominic, Yage, The Third Memory and Kill Sadie.
Related artists: Brume Retina, Call Us As You Wish !, Ride That Sexy Horse, Seekers Of The Truth, You Will Never Appear On TV With Such A Face, Revok, Do You Compute, Dysfunctional By Choice, Reipas, Seanews, Tom Fool and The Sons Of Saturn.
Country: Yvelines / Seine-et-Marne FRANCE
Years Active: 1996-2005
Song: "Low Waves"
Album: "Gameness"
Year: 2003
For fans of: Dip Leg, Yarmulke, Cougar Den, Orchid, 49 Morphines, The Death Of Anna Karina, Killed By Malaise, Emma Goldman, Terry Green, Daïtro, Mihai Edrisch, Dodewaard, Amanda Woodward, (early) Poison The Well, (early) Nine Eleven, Mališa Bahat, Loftus, Evylock, Dominic, Yage, The Third Memory and Kill Sadie.
Label(s): Self Released / Only 1 Crew / Recap Records / Impure Muzik / Heart On Fire Records
I was told to check out GAMENESS by my good friend Jesse Mowery way back when we went on the first MRTEX tour...and about five year later I finally came to my senses (or maybe it was that I finally had time) and skimmed the surface. After hearing "Low Waves" I pretty much lost my shit and fully immersed myself in the amazingness from France that was GAMENESS.
The earliest recordings that I've stumbled across are the tunes on 'A Gift to the Victims' LP from 1999, which came out three years after the band's inception. It's pretty metalcore and not my thing. Same goes for 2001's 'No Unusual Reaction', but this one has some slight transitionary sounds, most notably early Poison The Well and perhaps a hint of screamo.
2003 was a breakout year for the killer sound that I associate with GAMENESS. Their four-song EP 'The All Seeing Eye' breaks away from metalcore and into sassy, screamy hardcore not unlike The Death Of Anna Karina and Killed By Malaise. The delivery of the vocals is all over the place, as the sassy spoken word is reminiscent of later Orchid but the higher pitched, harrowing screams lend an ear to Croatia's Mališa Bahat. It's that self titled LP 'Gameness' that takes the cake as the ultimate release and is this reviewer's favourite by far. Things get screamy and precise right from the first track "Crève la Fin", including a semi-experimental second half. "Émergence" long and epic (6:54) and is slightly reminiscent of Terry Green and Cougar Den. "Il Ne Reste Rien" has strong ties to French screamo such as Daïtro, Mihai Edrisch, Dodewaard and Amanda Woodward and even dips into Japanese-esque screamo by the end. "Another Part Of Decadent Organisation" is a catchy fuckin' tune and calls back again to The Death Of Anna Karina, especially with the sass and screaming combination that always has me dancing around by the end. The conglomerate, instrumental hook that is "It's Difficult to Smoke With Bo" sits in the middle of the album, giving the listener a slight breather before the behemoth "Present Day Present Time" kicks in for 5:20, complete with an additional string/orchestra section. "Low Waves" is next and is fucking ridiculous. It is the hardest, fastest and most aggressive song the band ever produced and it's like Orchid on speed, aka Loftus. Mmmmm, so tasty. "Réthorique de Destabilisation" is next and is another dense banger with a substantial breakdown 50 seconds in that was no doubt inspired by Amanda Woodward while closer "Sinous Passenger" is a trippy, mostly instrumental goddamned nightmare.
The band's final output came in the form of two songs on a should-be legendary split with 'AmenRa, Vuur & Gantz' and is a fitting conclusion to one helluva band. "Ressucite Et Remeur" is six minutes of massive movements with multiple, driving supernovas along the way, while "Immobile Destinee" is almost half of the time of packs no less of a punch. I really wish there were more songs here but alas they disbanded shortly thereafter, but three members continued on in Brume Retina so hit up Jesse's review of that here.
What's the moral of this story? Always listen to Jesse Mowery.
This post's artist is from the May 2019 Mix. This is track #3.
I was told to check out GAMENESS by my good friend Jesse Mowery way back when we went on the first MRTEX tour...and about five year later I finally came to my senses (or maybe it was that I finally had time) and skimmed the surface. After hearing "Low Waves" I pretty much lost my shit and fully immersed myself in the amazingness from France that was GAMENESS.
The earliest recordings that I've stumbled across are the tunes on 'A Gift to the Victims' LP from 1999, which came out three years after the band's inception. It's pretty metalcore and not my thing. Same goes for 2001's 'No Unusual Reaction', but this one has some slight transitionary sounds, most notably early Poison The Well and perhaps a hint of screamo.
2003 was a breakout year for the killer sound that I associate with GAMENESS. Their four-song EP 'The All Seeing Eye' breaks away from metalcore and into sassy, screamy hardcore not unlike The Death Of Anna Karina and Killed By Malaise. The delivery of the vocals is all over the place, as the sassy spoken word is reminiscent of later Orchid but the higher pitched, harrowing screams lend an ear to Croatia's Mališa Bahat. It's that self titled LP 'Gameness' that takes the cake as the ultimate release and is this reviewer's favourite by far. Things get screamy and precise right from the first track "Crève la Fin", including a semi-experimental second half. "Émergence" long and epic (6:54) and is slightly reminiscent of Terry Green and Cougar Den. "Il Ne Reste Rien" has strong ties to French screamo such as Daïtro, Mihai Edrisch, Dodewaard and Amanda Woodward and even dips into Japanese-esque screamo by the end. "Another Part Of Decadent Organisation" is a catchy fuckin' tune and calls back again to The Death Of Anna Karina, especially with the sass and screaming combination that always has me dancing around by the end. The conglomerate, instrumental hook that is "It's Difficult to Smoke With Bo" sits in the middle of the album, giving the listener a slight breather before the behemoth "Present Day Present Time" kicks in for 5:20, complete with an additional string/orchestra section. "Low Waves" is next and is fucking ridiculous. It is the hardest, fastest and most aggressive song the band ever produced and it's like Orchid on speed, aka Loftus. Mmmmm, so tasty. "Réthorique de Destabilisation" is next and is another dense banger with a substantial breakdown 50 seconds in that was no doubt inspired by Amanda Woodward while closer "Sinous Passenger" is a trippy, mostly instrumental goddamned nightmare.The band's final output came in the form of two songs on a should-be legendary split with 'AmenRa, Vuur & Gantz' and is a fitting conclusion to one helluva band. "Ressucite Et Remeur" is six minutes of massive movements with multiple, driving supernovas along the way, while "Immobile Destinee" is almost half of the time of packs no less of a punch. I really wish there were more songs here but alas they disbanded shortly thereafter, but three members continued on in Brume Retina so hit up Jesse's review of that here.
What's the moral of this story? Always listen to Jesse Mowery.
________________________________________
1999 - A Gift to the Victims minicdLP (I couldn't find this...anyone have it?)
2001 - No Unusual Reaction... cdEP
2001 - Gameness Meet Boog-Ïa split cd
2003 - The All Seeing Eye cdrEP
2003 - Gameness cd/cassetteLP
2004 - 4-Way split (w/AmenRa, Gantz, Vuur) cd
2004 - Trampoline dvd (live video compilation)
(2004) GAMENESS - "Ressucite Et Remeur" (from '4-Way' split)
(2003) GAMENESS - "Low Waves" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Réthorique de Destabilisation" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Another Part of Decadent Organisation" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Misconduction" (from 'The All Seeing Eye')
(2001) GAMENESS - "Honor" (from 'Boog-Ïa' split)
(2001) GAMENESS - "Crisis" (from 'No Unusual Reaction...')
2003 - The All Seeing Eye cdrEP
2003 - Gameness cd/cassetteLP
2004 - 4-Way split (w/AmenRa, Gantz, Vuur) cd
2004 - Trampoline dvd (live video compilation)
________________________________________
(2004) GAMENESS - "Ressucite Et Remeur" (from '4-Way' split)
(2003) GAMENESS - "Low Waves" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Réthorique de Destabilisation" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Another Part of Decadent Organisation" (from 'Gameness')
(2003) GAMENESS - "Misconduction" (from 'The All Seeing Eye')
(2001) GAMENESS - "Honor" (from 'Boog-Ïa' split)
(2001) GAMENESS - "Crisis" (from 'No Unusual Reaction...')
________________________________________
GAMENESS out of print mp3 discography download
________________________________________
Wednesday, 17 July 2019
FLUORIDE
Band: FLUORIDE
Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Grindcore / Noise / Crust
Related artists: ?.
Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S.A.
Years Active: 2017-present
Song: "hoax"
Album: "Disentanglement"
Year: 2019
For fans of: Aureole Of Ash, Nuvolascura, Converge, Guidelines, Tentacles, Closet Witch, Drei Affen, Alpinist, Ape War, Arsen, Acme, Blind Girls, Resurrectionists, Never Better and Amygdala.
Related artists: ?.
Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S.A.
Years Active: 2017-present
Song: "hoax"
Album: "Disentanglement"
Year: 2019
For fans of: Aureole Of Ash, Nuvolascura, Converge, Guidelines, Tentacles, Closet Witch, Drei Affen, Alpinist, Ape War, Arsen, Acme, Blind Girls, Resurrectionists, Never Better and Amygdala.
Label(s): To Live A Lie Records / React With Protest / Nerve Altar Records
FLUORIDE are a devastatingly caustic hardcore/grind band from Philadelphia. I saw a plethora of friends say how good this was so I checked it out and was immediately blown away by the sheer ferocity of both the instrumentals and vocals. Their 2019 LP 'Disentanglement' is a mighty fine lesson in catharsis, as those destroyed vocals overlap with the blown-out and crusty guitars and somehow line them up with outrageously pummeling drum blasts. The LP was preceded by their self titled cassette 'Fluoride' in 2017. The EP is quite similar to the LP, just a tad less refined and punishing, but it'll still turn you into mush.
'Disentanglement' opens with "degrade", a relatively long song for the band at 2:30 in length. After the feedback subsides (around 34 seconds in) the listener is met with a gargantuan riff that immediately brought Tentacles to mind, as does the subsequent explosion at 1:15. Tracks "neglect" and "thought reform" follow a similar trajectory, while songs such as "alienate", "chipped away", "regenerate" and "unconditional" are the equivalent of black lightning and will put anyone's ears through a rusty wood chipper. Perhaps my favourite song, "hoax" delivers an absolute deathblow at track 11 with some ripping, dark and evil shit.
Ooooo baby see you at New Friends Fest in Toronto as well as my year end list!
This post's artist is from the May 2019 Mix. This is track #4.
FLUORIDE are a devastatingly caustic hardcore/grind band from Philadelphia. I saw a plethora of friends say how good this was so I checked it out and was immediately blown away by the sheer ferocity of both the instrumentals and vocals. Their 2019 LP 'Disentanglement' is a mighty fine lesson in catharsis, as those destroyed vocals overlap with the blown-out and crusty guitars and somehow line them up with outrageously pummeling drum blasts. The LP was preceded by their self titled cassette 'Fluoride' in 2017. The EP is quite similar to the LP, just a tad less refined and punishing, but it'll still turn you into mush.
'Disentanglement' opens with "degrade", a relatively long song for the band at 2:30 in length. After the feedback subsides (around 34 seconds in) the listener is met with a gargantuan riff that immediately brought Tentacles to mind, as does the subsequent explosion at 1:15. Tracks "neglect" and "thought reform" follow a similar trajectory, while songs such as "alienate", "chipped away", "regenerate" and "unconditional" are the equivalent of black lightning and will put anyone's ears through a rusty wood chipper. Perhaps my favourite song, "hoax" delivers an absolute deathblow at track 11 with some ripping, dark and evil shit.
Ooooo baby see you at New Friends Fest in Toronto as well as my year end list!
Upcoming tour dates:
-7/17: brooklyn
-7/28: baltimore
-7/29: pittsburgh
-7/30: columbus
-7/31: chicago
-8/1: detroit
-8/2: toronto
-10/19: brooklyn
________________________________________
DISCOGRAPHY
2017 - Fluoride cassetteEP (stream/donate/download here)
2019 - Disentanglement cassette/12"LP (stream/donate/download here)
________________________________________
(2019) FLUORIDE - "hoax" (from 'Disentanglement')
(2019) FLUORIDE - "unconditional" (from 'Disentanglement')
(2019) FLUORIDE - "thought reform" (from 'Disentanglement')
(2017) FLUORIDE - "death sentence" (from 'Fluoride')
(2017) FLUORIDE - "due process" (from 'Fluoride')
________________________________________
FLUORIDE additional links
________________________________________
Monday, 15 July 2019
IN LOVING MEMORY
Band: IN LOVING MEMORY
Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Emo / Screamo / Skramz / Emo-violence
Related artists: Dispensing Of False Halos, Rue Morgue, Across Tundras, Brightstar, Eclipse Of Eden, Examination Of The..., The Spirit Of Versailles and Transpire.
Country: Des Moines, Iowa U.S.A.
Years Active: 1999-2001
Song: "Who You Enthrall"
Album: "2000"
Year: As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds
For fans of: Senza, The Spirit Of Versailles, Off Minor, Gas Up Yr Hearse!, Saetia, Fall On Deaf Ears, Welcome The Plague Year and Cady.
Related artists: Dispensing Of False Halos, Rue Morgue, Across Tundras, Brightstar, Eclipse Of Eden, Examination Of The..., The Spirit Of Versailles and Transpire.
Country: Des Moines, Iowa U.S.A.
Years Active: 1999-2001
Song: "Who You Enthrall"
Album: "2000"
Year: As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds
For fans of: Senza, The Spirit Of Versailles, Off Minor, Gas Up Yr Hearse!, Saetia, Fall On Deaf Ears, Welcome The Plague Year and Cady.
Label(s): Self Released / Init Records / 605 Recordings
IN LOVING MEMORY somehow escaped me for nearly two decades, which I find utterly devastating as the band shared their time amongst other amazing, local, screamo bands such as Back When, Eyes Of Verotika, Caught In The Fall, The Spirit Of Versailles, Robots Don't Cry, Examination Of The..., and even shared members with many of those bands.This band focused primarily on intensely shrieked, dual-vocals and the classic "clean and jazzy/heavy and distorted" personality shifts. They released four demo songs on the 2000 'Black Market Fetus split' tape, two of which showed up again on the 2001 'Examination Of The... split' 7" and then their quintessential 2000 LP 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds' (also known as the 'In Loving Memory' LP).
The demo songs show the obvious potential of the band and are revised to perfection on the LP, so I'll just whip through those songs quick. 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds' begins with "This is Ours", a chaotic romp through early Saetia territory with little to no space to breath. This is followed by "You Who Enthrall" which builds a gorgeous atmosphere with slow, Off Minor-esque instrumentals overlapped by both vocalists shrieking like banshees. At 50 seconds the songs hits hyperdrive and slows to a menacing halt at 1:04 before detonating completely. Completing the trifecta of perfection is track three, as "Moments Like These" balances aggression and sadness beautifully, creating a dense fog of cathartic screamo/emo-violence. I'm sure "Open the Door for Me" tugs at a lot of emo listeners, as the whiny singing during the intro is very You And I (there's even a hint of My Chemical Romance at one point), but the song lacks the punch I love about the preceding three. There's an incredible section that starts about 25 seconds into "The Choice Has Always Been Yours" that is epic as fuck, and I'd hate to neglect the anthemic nature of "There's So Much to Say". "I'd Burn it Down" has a preposterously groovy midsection that'll have you bobbing your head along in no time.
This post's artist is from the May 2019 Mix. This is track #2.
IN LOVING MEMORY somehow escaped me for nearly two decades, which I find utterly devastating as the band shared their time amongst other amazing, local, screamo bands such as Back When, Eyes Of Verotika, Caught In The Fall, The Spirit Of Versailles, Robots Don't Cry, Examination Of The..., and even shared members with many of those bands.This band focused primarily on intensely shrieked, dual-vocals and the classic "clean and jazzy/heavy and distorted" personality shifts. They released four demo songs on the 2000 'Black Market Fetus split' tape, two of which showed up again on the 2001 'Examination Of The... split' 7" and then their quintessential 2000 LP 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds' (also known as the 'In Loving Memory' LP).
The demo songs show the obvious potential of the band and are revised to perfection on the LP, so I'll just whip through those songs quick. 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds' begins with "This is Ours", a chaotic romp through early Saetia territory with little to no space to breath. This is followed by "You Who Enthrall" which builds a gorgeous atmosphere with slow, Off Minor-esque instrumentals overlapped by both vocalists shrieking like banshees. At 50 seconds the songs hits hyperdrive and slows to a menacing halt at 1:04 before detonating completely. Completing the trifecta of perfection is track three, as "Moments Like These" balances aggression and sadness beautifully, creating a dense fog of cathartic screamo/emo-violence. I'm sure "Open the Door for Me" tugs at a lot of emo listeners, as the whiny singing during the intro is very You And I (there's even a hint of My Chemical Romance at one point), but the song lacks the punch I love about the preceding three. There's an incredible section that starts about 25 seconds into "The Choice Has Always Been Yours" that is epic as fuck, and I'd hate to neglect the anthemic nature of "There's So Much to Say". "I'd Burn it Down" has a preposterously groovy midsection that'll have you bobbing your head along in no time.
________________________________________
2000 - Black Market Fetus split cassetteEP
2000 - As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds cdr/mini cdrLP
2001 - Examination Of The... split 7"
2012 - A Discography 12"LP (stream/buy from INIT RECORDS here)
________________________________________
(2000) IN LOVING MEMORY - "Who You Enthrall" (from 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds')
(2000) IN LOVING MEMORY - "This is Ours" (from 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds')
(2000) IN LOVING MEMORY - "Remember (from 'As Years Pass And Feel Like Seconds')
(2000) IN LOVING MEMORY - "Song #1" (from 'Black Market Fetus' split)
(2001) IN LOVING MEMORY - "Yeah I Burned All Our Old Pictures" (from 'Examination Of The...' split)
________________________________________
IN LOVING MEMORY out of print mp3 discography download
________________________________________