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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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Jun Mon, 2015 in Black Metal, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Rock, Punk, Thrash, Upcoming Shows
It’s no secret that I’m a summer girl. June is when one is almost overwhelmed by the sheer volume of wicked concerts and other events. Here’s what’s popping in my neck of the woods: What better way to kick off the best month of the year than with this brutal show? The mighty Phobia headlines with support from La Fin Absolut Du Monde, plus local favorites Torn Between Worlds and Dysphotic. Remember that The … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on May Wed, 2015 in Concert Review, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Rock, Technical
Like a sailor enchanted by a siren’s song, I will always be drawn to The Underground At Evangelo’s. This three band concert on a Tuesday night hit the bullseye, and delivered a show to remember. This is what happened: Distances opened up the show, and they fucking slayed it. The downtempo ambient parts appease the math/prog fan in me, while the heavy parts are pure metal and get my blood boiling. The contrasting brutality and … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on May Thu, 2015 in Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Rock, Thrash, Upcoming Shows
Winter was well spent in solitude, snow, and ungodly amounts of Swedish and Norwegian black metal. But now the ice is thawing, and it’s time to break out the skateboards and prepare for festival season. Here are some concerts to get us warmed up: An all-ages show at The Armory. Bring $8 and some extra for merch. This show is happening in two days! Primal Panic presents Snewfest at Sneakerz. Scars Blue, Skull Theory, … read...
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Posted by Cheryl Lynn on Apr Mon, 2015 in Concert Review, Death Metal, Grind, Hardcore, Technical, Thrash
Goddamn, I love The Cave. Just when I think their shows can’t get any better, I am pleasantly surprised with killer line ups and brutal bands. When I heard that The Body would be performing there, I instantly knew that I had to go. Shame was a good choice to open the show. They were heavy and dark, sacrificing melody and catchy riffs for a dissonant, evil sound. I liked it, but they need to … read...
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