Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Nov Mon, 2015 in Album Review, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, New Releases
This EP is a collaboration between San Jose’s Cyanic and Oakland’s Infinite Waste. Both bands from the California coast have a propensity for coarse, ball-busting dissonance with distorted guitars and beastly vocals. Here is a track-by-track review of this split: Cyanic have blasting soundwalls of sinuous counterpointed rhythms, which intertwine with complexity. The vocals are good, even though the sound quality itself is somewhat choppy. The drums, bass, and guitar each play their own thing, … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Oct Sat, 2015 in Concert Review, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Progressive Rock, Punk, Stoner Metal
This is Déjà Vu all over again. Didn’t The Cave host a nearly identical line-up a few months ago? However, this show was cut off halfway through the double-set of Thou and The Body (Yar didn’t even get to perform at all). Regardless, this was a worthy concert. Here’s what you missed: Bathhouse were coarse, blunt, and louder than hell. The guitars and vocals were agitated, noisy, and distorted. Although the music was extremely chaotic, … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Oct Tue, 2015 in Album Review, Cult Classics, Hardcore, Metalcore, New Releases, Punk
Monuments is a fitting title for the 20014 release by October File, a colossal jewel which captures the band at their zenith. This chimerical beast is a culmination of hardcore, post punk, and industrial influences, making a musical juggernaut of monstrous proportions. Although they are a relatively obscure band, they have withstood the test of time thus far and have remained a thematic powerhouse for over a decade. October File have the boastful confidence, and … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Oct Sun, 2015 in Black Metal, Blues, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Folk Metal, Hardcore
Launchpad hosts The Albuqurque Battle Of The Bands, but I would be more excited if there was more information about which bands will be performing. New Years Day headlines this show, with their creepy fellow rockers Get Scared, Eyes Set To Kill, and more. Tickets are $12. Fister will be performing at Burt’s Tiki Lounge in Albuqurque on the 9th, with NM bands Hollow Tongue, Econarchy, and Dysphotic. Now that’s what I’m talking about! … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Sep Tue, 2015 in Album Review, Cult Classics, Death Metal, Deathcore, Grind, Hardcore, New Releases, Technical
Garroter has a choppy, chunky sound reflecting the bloody bits and pieces on the album artwork. Palm muted chords ad nauseum, layered over an obscene amount of guitars and double pedal drums, creates immense walls of polyphonic discordance. These colossal soundwalls persist at a sludgy pace, but frequent interruptions by blast beats and breakdowns keep them from being overwhelming. Despite the cacophonous music and coarse production quality, I Am The Shotgun have a cleancut aftertaste. … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Sep Sat, 2015 in Death Metal, Hardcore, Punk, Thrash, Upcoming Shows
Kronos Creative presents La Fin Absolut Du Monde at The Underground, with support from Colossal Swan Dive and Marsupious. On September 18th, The Jamspot will be hosting Vanlade, with support from local bands Destroy To Recreate, Friend 2 Foe, and In The End. This show is damning evidence that the DIY scene is still alive and kicking. The madness goes down on September 18th at 7 pm, located at “The Sunshine Terrorist” (1817 … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Sep Sat, 2015 in Album Review, Death Metal, Deathcore, Hardcore, New Releases
This self-titled album is a hefty slab of deathcore, with a thudding pulse of bass and percussion as a backbeat to crunchy breakdowns and dynamic leads. The guitar had some cool pitch harmonics and intricate solos, otherwise falling in lock-step with the rhythmic sections. All hell breaks loose when two or more rhythms syncopate, such as in the track This Mic Smells Like Beer, in which the chugging bass lines and machine gun drumming are … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Jul Wed, 2015 in Concert Review, Hardcore, Melodic Death Metal, Power Metal, Punk, Thrash
As fantastic as New Mexico is for the local metal scene, I’ll admit that its punk scene has been in critical condition for a long time. This concert helped restore the vital signs into our beloved music. Here’s how: Almost A Lie sounded just like they did at Warehouse 21 a few years back. Their style of punk isn’t exactly hardcore, but it’s a far cry from pop punk nonsense like Blink 182 or Sum … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Jul Tue, 2015 in Album Review, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, New Releases
Colossal Swan Dive is a band that is hard to define by subgenre: Their distorted, aggressive sound embodies a metal style that is timeless. Nick Marez plays the triple role of lyricist, vocalist, and guitarist, accompanied by David Goldstone on bass and Gabe Archuleta on drums. This self-titled debut is fairly minimalist, by metal standards. Musically, the trio play straightforward and to the point. Being skilled musicians, they don’t need to dazzle audiences with outlandish … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Jun Sat, 2015 in Concert Review, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Progressive Rock, Stoner Metal, Thrash
Metal is loud, The Cave is cool, something something skateboards, you know the drill. The opening band was Torn Between Worlds, who have new material in the works. One track in particular, so new that it is still untitled, fucked my shit up. The aggravated, distorted guitars and intense gutterals were the epitome of power and fury. There are some songs with a beat so fast and syncopated that you shouldn’t even try … read...
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