If you’ve ever asked me what I’m looking forward to in the future of metal, you’ve probably heard a lot of fanboyish rants about Kelly Shaefer and Steve Flynn working on new Atheist material, you’ve probably heard about Periphery’s seemingly endless attempt to release their debut, and you’ve probably heard about Pathogenic.  I’m particularly excited for Pathogenic’s release because it’s probably my favorite re-interpretation of the groove metal niche founded by Meshuggah thats become so popular over the last year and a half or so, and it excels where others …

Amanda Palmer – “Who Killed Amanda Palmer?”
An unspoken elephant in the room is often defined by how others present dance around it without direct recognition.  Many people sought this album out due to being fans of The Dresden Dolls, others because it’s artist would eventually use it as a medium and platform through which to buck the tradition of musical labels of yesteryear that more often than not treat their musicians as commodities rather than performers of the people.  This is work and insight into a woman whom rips open …

Behold a new feature to appear on this site on a whenever-seems-good basis.  What stems from this piece is a series of articles featuring relatively under-the-radar indie bands that deserve a good word or two put in for them, just for the hell of it.  Today we begin with a two-piece band operating out of Toronto known as Little Foot Long Foot. While often easily mistaken for a band of more regular numbers, they are simply comprised of Joan Smith whom manages guitars, vocals, and various witticisms.  Isaac Klein handles …

Ryan McKenney knows all about a little something called perseverance. “I’m not young… at least, not by punk standards,” he muses. “I’m sure people older than me that are still involved in punk would disagree with my statement, but it’s not really meant for them. It’s meant for me.”

McKenney, the vocalist and lyrical mastermind behind grind/death/punk as fuck outfit Trap Them, has a voice itching to be heard. “My body started breaking down early in my twenties. I spend these long tours in pain that I bring on myself and, to an extent, I am addicted to it. What is truly important to me, regarding this band, is to take it as far as we can. I want to continue to write records that I am truly proud of, and I want the chance to play these songs to as many people in this world as I can.”

With the recent release of of yet another video-teaser for her latest music project, a review of Melissa Auf der Maur’s work as of late may be in order.
One has to admire Melissa Auf der Maur and her work ethic.  When she released her first solo album back in 2004, she toured with it hard, proving it to be a labor of love.  It spawned a relatively fair amount of success, and helped to bolster her fan base.  Followers of her blog will even note and praise the more artistic …

Beck adds another installment into his video series of Velvet Underground covers, this time tackling “There She Goes Again”:

In addition to this is the video to Modest Mouse’s latest single off of No One’s First and You’re Next, entitled, “King Rat” (originally a B-side in fact, from We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank).  Nutty because the director, Heath Ledger (yes, THAT one you’re thinking of right now) envisioned what would result in a meeting between Earnest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson:

Beck loves to wrap himself up in restlessness and kooky behavior like a lapsed-church-goer will wrap themselves up in a thick blanket on a Sunday morning.  While the man is old-hat to generations old and new, he still remains cool beans to a huge mass of cult-like followers.  And to the followers of this man in the interesting hat that sits atop a mop of scraggly just-woke-up-hair, is satisfaction and entertainment always delivered.  Case in point is Beck’s latest project, one which has been progressing for quite some time now, …

It has been mentioned on numerous occasions that certain genres of music are dead.  Nas released an album and hit song titled “Hip Hop Is Dead”, former Misfits frontman Michale Graves did the same with punk rock, while countless other journalists and musicians have proclaimed at one point that every other genre has indeed been buried as well.  But I am going to do everyone one better.  I am going to top any claim that a specific genre has died.  I am going to go on record and tell you…Music …

The following is the first in a series of “exposes” on the stylistic differings between different genres of music and the activities of their “mosh pits.” Enjoy.

What, in truth, is a mosh pit? Is it a bunch of sweaty guys running into each other at the speed of sound, rhythmically pumelling each other to the beat of the music? Or is it a ham-fisted posture-fest where only the strong-willed and well practiced survive? Are there subgenre pits? I decided to explore the phenomenon of the pit in hardcore, metal …

Standards have been lowered. The information age and the ever expanding accessibility of technology have given the tools and materials to create art to the masses. This phenomenon has frequently inspired jubilation, revolution, and instilled a sense of hope in the artistic future where the untapped talents of millions (whose efforts may go unnoticed because of class or geographical persecutions) are able to express themselves. However, as Andrew Keen delved into this new method of artistic development with his book Cult Of The Amateur, as well as the public’s relationship …

Whether you love them or you hate them, or regardless of how badly you dance, Wavves are a unique musical experience that should not be overlooked, not merely because of their sound, but the energy and emotion that derives from their interpretation