album review: 'boy thursday' by KNIVES

So as I've mentioned a number of times, I didn't go through an angry white boy phase in my teens - I jumped pretty much from mainstream pop and hip-hop radio to power and symphonic metal, and that meant I pretty much skipped modern rock radio. And a big consequences of that is that I came to the nu-metal rap rock scene much later in my early twenties in comparison to many others - it was not a formative part of my musical evolution. And I'm kind of grateful for that, because upon revisitation with rare exception, a lot of rap rock tended to be really bad, especially in the late 90s the closer it crept to the gut-churning angst of nu-metal or the overblown and frequently disgusting machismo of acts like Limp Bizkit. This was music that rarely bothered to be tuneful or driven by consistent grooves or strong musicality, and that's before we get to the often atrocious lyrics. Now that's not saying I didn't find stuff I liked: I've always been a big fan of the Beastie Boys, and when you follow it with solid work from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, and Rage Against The Machine, there is a subset of this music I like, especially leaning towards more of the punk side.

And there's a part of me that feels this genre could sustain a comeback, potentially even driven from hip-hop instead of rock. Acts like Doomtree and Run The Jewels are only getting production that is more aggressive and abrasive, and that's before you touch on mainstream acts like Eminem, who I'd put money on pursuing more of a rap rock direction if he drops a record in a year or so, especially if he goes more political. And so into that vein comes KNIVES, a new band fronted by L.A. rapper J. Medeiros, who you might know from his association with Rawkus Records or his work with The Procussions in the early 2000s. Medeiros has actually been active since the late 90s - and pretty damn prolific at that, so in addition to a planned debut from his electronic/hip-hop project AllttA later this year, he's been pushing a rap rock band inspired by punk and post-hardcore called KNIVES. They have a debut record, and in the aftermath of covering P.O.S and not getting the political material for which I hoping, I thought this would be a good step - was I right?

video review: 'WORRY.' by jeff rosenstock

Yes, I know I'm late to the party with this one, but my god, I'm so happy I got to it regardless, so smart and well-written, I just wish I dug the hardcore parts more.

Eh, whatever, and now following it with another great record... well, stay tuned!

album review: 'WORRY.' by jeff rosenstock

So I've mentioned a number of times throughout the three years I've done this series that I'm not the biggest fan of nihilistic artwork - not because I find the themes morally repugnant so much as they just get tedious after a while. You can wallow in your own depravity and debauched hedonism all you want, but at least switch it up once and a while or try to say something interesting about your condition - looking at you, Future.

But that's not to say music with dark or depressing themes doesn't work for me, especially if the writing or instrumentation twists in interesting directions. Enter Jeff Rosenstock, a name you're probably most familiar with from the New York punk and ska scene, namely as the frontman of Arrogant Sons of Bitches, the DIY ska-punk collective Bomb The Music Industry!, and the indie rock group Kudrow. But where I started to take more notice was his solo work, and when I say that I mean that my notice was driven by a bunch of music critics I otherwise respect telling me insistently that I need to hear this guy. And sure enough, they were right, because Jeff Rosenstock's music was right up my alley. A punk smart enough to temper his anthems in the sort of overwritten but self-deprecating material to temper the bite, with a frankly astonishing level of detail to paint the pictures, both instrumentally and lyrically, his music reminded me a bit of Frank Turner in a weird way in the maturity of their punk mindset and a commitment to ridiculously catchy music. But I think Rosenstock squeezed more instrumental styles and tones into his first two solo records, aptly titled I Look Like Shit and We Cool?, grabbing from ska and garage rock and lo-fi and even synthpunk to form a raucous, utterly unpredictable sound that really stuck with me, I really dug those records. As such, while again it has been a long time coming, I really wanted to check out his newest release this year WORRY. - did it hold up to the hype?

video review: 'paradise' by white lung

About time I got to this one. Pretty damn solid album, definitely happy with it, and yeah, it really should be sparking more conversation than it is.

After this, I'm thinking Anohni and Vektor, but first we've got Billboard BREAKDOWN, so stay tuned!

album review: 'paradise' by white lung

So I don't review a lot of punk.

I mean, I will on occasion - if there's something really jumps out at me with sharp hooks or particularly nuanced lyrics, I'll get all over it - but I think it's fair to say that of the punk scene that's left, there's not a lot that really works for me. And it's not saying I dislike the genre or don't have my own personal favourites from both the 70s and 90s waves - I certainly do. But maybe it's just a factor of overexposure and looking for acts that are saying and doing something a little different - punk by definition went back to the basics, and when you have nearly forty years of the 'basics', you need to do something to stand out.

As such, I've been a little reticent to talk about White Lung, a Canadian punk act from Vancouver known for blisteringly fast hardcore riffing and frontwoman Mish Way's raw, explosively feminist lyrics. Up till now they've released three records that might generously have just over an hour of material, but they've managed to capture a lot of potent content that updates the riot grrl ethos for the modern era. And while I won't always say I loved their albums - I'm not the biggest hardcore fan - I've liked what I've heard in terms of their progression, towards a fuller sound and stronger hooks, and the lyrics have always been well-framed as well as explosively raw in a Perfect Pussy sort of way.

So I was definitely curious to check out their newest album Paradise, which wasn't just their longest album to date - nearly a half hour! - but also featured new production from Lars Stalfors, most well-known for his association with The Mars Volta, the Cold War Kids, and - sigh - Matt And Kim. At the very least this promised to be a prettier affair than previous records, but if that meant a shift towards more defined melodic hooks, that could be a really good thing, at least for me. So I picked up Paradise - what did I find?

video review: 'PAX AM days' by fall out boy

Probably the fastest review I ever made, and it turned out pretty damn good, so that's good too.

Was going to talk about Scotty McCreery next or the Avett Brothers, but it turns out Katy Perry finally dropped Prism... oh, this'll be fun.

album review: 'PAX AM days' by fall out boy

Earlier this year, the legendarily maligned pop punk band Fall Out Boy came back from a five year break to release their newest album Save Rock And Roll, an album that I have rather complicated feelings about. Basically it's an album that works better in pieces that it does as a whole (with a couple of songs that I actually do really like, namely 'The Phoenix' and 'Young Volcanoes'), and the overloaded arrogance and venom towards their neglected fanbase kind of got my nerves more than once. What I did gloss over in my earlier review, however, was that there was something of a sonic shift on the album towards a more electronic-rock sound in the cacophony of the mix. It didn't really bother me - Fall Out Boy always stuck close to a sound that was popular in the pop scene - but it did bother the fans, who were violently split on this album (despite critics mostly being positive to it).

Apparently, though, bassist and primary songwriter Pete Wentz heard it and decided to release a surprise album this year (one that flew so far under the radar I only heard about it fairly recently, and I keep an ear to the ground when it comes to this sort of thing). Recruiting producer Ryan Adams and recording the EP over two days, Pete Wentz stressed that this was something the band for fun, allowing them 'to get some demons out', inspired by Black Flag and hardcore punk from the late 80s and early 90s. 

And here's where I have to confess some of my own ignorance here: I don't know a lot of hardcore punk. I don't mind it - I listen to Black Flag and Fugazi, but I honestly don't have as wide of a frame of reference to the genre. I'm more of a post-punk and anarcho-punk sort of guy, personally, and I'm not the biggest fan of how some of the 'hardcore genres' have evolved over the past few years. That being said, Fall Out Boy returning to a genre they were last close to about ten years ago and being primarily a pop punk band... well, it'd probably be more accessible than jumping straight into hardcore, so why not? How does Fall Out Boy's PAX AM Days turn out?