album review: 'the peace and the panic' by neck deep

Yes, I know I'm late to talking about this one. I also know that if I wanted to I could have voted to cover this record earlier, and I didn't - it got to the top of the schedule organically, and that's fine. And if any of this sounds like I'm not looking forward to covering this, I wouldn't quite say that's accurate - more that I've got a swathe of records that attracted a lot more interest, and... okay, might as well deal with this now: I don't review a lot of pop punk, as you probably all know at this point. I don't mind the genre fusion, it's definitely catchy and can bring a certain verve and energy to spice up my schedule, but it's not something I actively seek out the same way I will indie country or indie rock or black metal or certain strains of hip-hop. Most of this is because while pop punk at its best captures the electricity and firepower of both its component genres, there's a whole lot of material that I just find okay without being truly interesting. And yes, a big part of this is songwriting, which can feel near-permanently adolescent, but another factor is that when the band does get older or wants to experiment towards power pop or indie rock or emo or just plain punk rock, the sound often gets more diverse and interesting - I've heard a lot of pop punk, don't get me wrong, but a factor of that is a lot of the mid-tier bands really start to run together for me.

So what about Neck Deep, a Welsh group that broke out in the 2010s with some reasonably well-received EPs before signing to Hopeless for two albums? Well, I'd probably classify them as a prime example of what I'm talking about: a decent enough band that occasionally took some chances in composition, but the writing never really grabbed me beyond isolated moments of cleverness and they definitely wore their influences strongly, like Blink-182 and especially A Day To Remember - which makes sense, given the frontman of that group produced their 2015 album. But shortly after that album was released their founding guitarist Lloyd Roberts left the band on ugly terms - replaced by Sam Bowden, a hardcore guitarist formerly of Blood Youth - and they connected with producer Mike Green, who you might recognize from behind All Time Low, Pierce The Veil, and a few of the poppier-leaning bands in this genre. Not a bad thing, and the band took a little more time to iron out the kinks, so this could be worthwhile, so what did I get from The Peace And The Panic?

video review: 'concrete and gold' by foo fighters

I'm surprised the response to this review hasn't been more negative... huh, interesting.

But let's handle some old business here first...

album review: 'concrete and gold' by foo fighters

So there was an article written by veteran music journalist Steven Hyden I was reading that encompassed a lot of my feelings about the Foo Fighters quite aptly, in that they were a band that became spokesmen for modern rock radio... despite not really putting out critically acclaimed rock records. It's actually a little bit alarming, when you think about it: this is a band where it's been twenty years since they released what many would consider their best record The Color And The Shape, and ever since then? Yeah, some dependable singles but beyond that most people don't celebrate Foo Fighters records as album statements in the same way they would in rock's heyday. And you can make all sorts of wild extrapolations as to whether the decline of rock in mainstream culture is linked to its most recognizable act only being pretty good instead of exceptional, but at the end of the day, while I might enjoy parts of a Foo Fighters record, odds are I won't remember much of it beyond a few choice cuts.

And all the buzz coming out of Concrete and Gold wasn't exactly helping my fears here. Their touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee was finally upgraded to full band status, but with rumors suggesting that this was going to be a poppier record with producer Greg Kurstin didn't exactly raise my confidence, especially when the reviews were suggesting that they weren't pushing the boundaries as much as they had with Sonic Highways - and even that, that was a pretty reserved record in terms of experimentation. And when you are nine records into a career that's spanned multiple decades with an established fanbase, especially with rock radio continuing to feel irrelevant to modern pop culture, they had nothing to lose by coloring outside the lines, especially as Dave Grohl was always going to ensure the Foo Fighters didn't lose their trademark sound and intensity. But okay, does Concrete And Gold deliver?

billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - september 30, 2017 (VIDEO)

Overall not a bad week, and I have to say, it's going to be interesting in the days ahead here, especially given all the coming shakeups.

But on the topic of one of those shakeups not quite going according to plan... well, stay tuned!

billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - september 30, 2017

This is one of those weeks where I'm increasingly unsure where the hell the Billboard Hot 100 is going, and not just because we've got a few albums bombs in the making that are going to be dropping over the next few weeks for further destabilize things. And while part of it is also linked to the headlong race for what'll make the year-end lists, the larger point is that as a whole, songs that you'd expect to not seem fragile feel increasingly perilous, especially when you take a look at the top ten.

video review: 'brick body kids still daydream' by open mike eagle

Whoo boy, this was a bleak, but potent as hell listen. I really can't recommend this highly enough, it is something special...

But up next, we've got Foo Fighters and Billboard BREAKDOWN - which will be first? Stay tuned!

album review: 'brick body kids still daydream' by open mike eagle

Okay, it's been a tagline across many of my hip-hop reviews this year that hip-hop hasn't really had a strong 2017... and yeah, I think that's mostly true, but I don't want to focus on that this time around, because like it or not, there has been good to even great rap music that's been released. I've already talked plenty of times at length about Run The Jewels who started off the year, but between the mainstream dominance of Kendrick, the stronger-than-expected returns from Jay-Z and Tyler, The Creator, a solid sophomore follow-up from Joey Bada$$, and potent underground success from Uncommon Nasa, Quelle Chris and Milo, there have been albums worth talking about.

And yet this is one that I was most excited about, falling in the last category of underground heavyweights aiming to drop the cerebral and experimental project that gets all the hip-hop heads talking... although what I've found amusing is not only is Open Mike Eagle affiliated with all of the underground acts I just mentioned, he's also building a pretty impressive bit of traction himself off of well-deserved critical acclaim and a cult following. I may have missed A Special Episode Of as an EP, but I loved Dark Comedy in 2014 and his collaboration with producer Paul White - who later went on to unleash madness with Danny Brown on Atrocity Exhibition - with Hella Personal Film Festival is just as remarkable to this day. But Brick Body Kids Still Daydream was looking to be different: a concept record exploring the Robert Taylor Homes, a housing project in the south side of Chicago that was torn down in the faceless rush of gentrification and yet was never rebuilt. Immediately my mind went to The Hope Six Demolition Project, a potent if slightly directionless project from PJ Harvey last year that touched on similar themes, but given Open Mike Eagle's penchant for storytelling and empathy, this seemed like it would cut far deeper. In other words, you can bet this was a top priority for me to review, so what did I find on Brick Body Kids Still Daydream?

movie review: 'it' (2017) (VIDEO)

Yeah, pretty easy review to assemble, and I have to admit, the jump scare fake was fun. Great movie, and again, I'm no horror fan.

But on the topic of greatness that might as well be horror... well stay tuned!

video review: 'sleep well beast' by the national

You know, I don't mind bucking the critical consensus... but this one is exasperating, considering how much I wanted to love this. Eh, it happens.

But on the contrary...

album review: 'sleep well beast' by the national

So I've talked about The National before, the long-running indie rock project that outside of Spoon might be one of the most consistent critically acclaimed rock bands working today, beginning in alternative country before building its middle-to-upper class depression, melancholy, and vicious commentary on it all to impressive, occasionally thunderous, post-punk tinged heights. And while thematically they fell in very similar territory to LCD Soundsystem - at least in terms of obvious appeal to critics - the devil was in the details, the lived-in stories that didn't even pretend to build a veneer of cool in their weary trudging vulnerability, leading to an unsurprising populist streak that has consistently pulled me in. Their 2013 record Trouble Will Find Me hit my top five albums of that year, and yet even with that I'd still say it's not their best - probably going to Boxer there, although I will say High Violet probably had more immediately striking moments when it didn't get lost in the opulence.

But by now some of you might have seen the hidden catch: for as much as The National made music that by some definitions could be called 'middle-aged', there was a certain understated reserve of composure that did have its own distinct brand of ego and pomposity, more subtext than text but definitely visible if you were paying attention. And here's the funny thing: frontman Matt Berninger noticed it too, so he teamed up with Brent Knopf of Menomena to vivisect it as part of EL VY and their debut Return To The Moon - which made my year end list in 2015 for righteously taking down how such a world-weary sensitive indie rocker could also be an insufferable, condescending, pretentious twit, including an impressive downer ending where he only barely learns a lesson by not getting the girl. And make no mistake, Return To The Moon only gets better with every listen, but it had me worried about Sleep Well Beast and how well it'd resonate, knowing that Berninger had skewered this very persona two years earlier. But that wasn't going to stop me from listening to what could be my most anticipated indie rock record of 2017, so what did we get on Sleep Well Beast?

video review: 'antisocialites' by alvvays

Okay, from a technical standpoint, not one of my best reviews... but given my most popular video is arguably my worst-edited, I've got no clear metric how to judge this thing.

Anyway, next up is The National, and man, I'm excited for this one - stay tuned!

album review: 'antisocialities' by alvvays

I'm not sure anybody was expecting Alvvays' self-titled debut to blow up the way it did - including the band themselves.

Granted, there's context required here: it was critically well-received, some of this was inevitably skewed by them being a Canadian band and we tend to over-promote Canadian acts, and they had a crossover single in 'Marry Me, Archie'. But considering I wouldn't even describe that as one of the better songs from the record, it's still a little bit amazing to me that an act I picked on a whim from Pitchfork turned out to be one of the most textured and layered and yet ridiculously tight indie acts to break out of the 2010s. I'm not kidding about that, either: amazingly sharp melodic hooks, writing that was emotionally balanced and yet colourful and witty enough to back up its storytelling, and a wonderfully expressive frontwoman in Molly Rankin, it led to that debut making my year end list of the best records of 2014 - and if anything, it's only gotten better in my eyes.

That said, there was pause for concern surrounding their upcoming sophomore record Antisocialities, mostly as buzz was suggesting it was pivoting in more of a dream pop direction. Now there were hints of this on the debut, but I was never a fan of the band's choice of synths and if they chose to neglect some of the tighter, guitar-driven melodic grooves this could lead to a serious misstep. And the inclusion of John Congleton on production didn't exactly raise my spirits - he's a smart enough producer to get out of the way when necessary, but I wasn't sure how the shift from Chad VanGaalen would connect in capturing that atmosphere. That said, it's not like Temples suffered by a pop-leaning pivot on their second record three years after their first, so maybe Alvvays would stick the landing?

billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - september 23, 2017 (VIDEO)

I really need to find an automated way to mass-post these... eh, anyway, pretty decent short week, got some good stuff coming, stay tuned!

billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - september 23, 2017

So comedown weeks are weird. Sometimes they lead to a massive chart rebalance that drives an entire paradigm shift as the album smash leaves a few scattered recoveries and a whole lot of damage. Other weeks... well, they're like this, where we get a few recoveries, a couple new arrivals peeking through, but overall a quiet week where the fallout seems to be slowly ebbing back rather than outright falling away... and given that said album bombs were from Lil Uzi Vert and XXXTENTACION, I think I might have preferred the former case.

video review: 'broken machine' by nothing but thieves

Ooh, I know I'm not going to make any fans for this one, especially after a particularly bad day of subscriber growth...

Eh, hopefully things will recover with Alvvays and The National hopefully coming up soon, but first, Billboard BREAKDOWN! Stay tuned!

album review: 'broken machine' by nothing but thieves

Of all of the albums that have landed on my schedule this year, this is among the more perplexing additions. And the funny thing is that you wouldn't think that if you knew anything about the group, but I'm perplexed all the same... mostly surrounding why anyone would want me to cover this. Let's get real here, I may have gone off on a rant on Twitter how modern hard rock frustrates me with its embrace of distorted blocky tuneless masses instead of actual melodic hooks, but the truth is that all of modern rock radio frustrates me these days, because on the flipside of the breakdown-obsessed chunks of riff we have the sleeper hold of reverb-soaked indie rock with lyrics that in a better era would be laughed off stage. And while of course there are exceptions - hell, I can't stop listening to that last Deaf Havana album which in retrospect defied entirely too many expectations and deserves a lot more attention - the rule is that once we tread into what's now defined by major labels as 'alternative rock', I have a hard time staying awake, especially if I spot the acts who obviously inspired them.

Enter Nothing But Thieves, another British alt-rock group that has toured with your trendy staples on rock radio that are hard to describe as rock, like AWOLNATION and twenty one pilots. Yes, they toured with Muse - their most blatant inspiration, especially for frontman Conor Mason - but they are a poor man's Muse at best, with nowhere near the progressive compositional chops and a penchant for theatricality that didn't always stick the landing. I don't think they're a bad group - good guitar and bass interplay can redeem a lot, and in terms of ballads they stuck the landing - but that self-titled debut in 2015 just didn't resonate much with me - not bad but not particularly remarkable. But apparently their sophomore album is a lot better and is even picking up a bit of critical acclaim, and my Patreon supporters wanted me to cover this before The National or Alvvays - indie rock groups I was very much interested in exploring - so what the hell: how is Broken Machine?

movie review: 'detroit' (2017) (VIDEO)

Man, I wish I dug this more. I mean, I get the intent, but it was the sort of flick where you wonder why it was made and it just doesn't turn out well. Meh...

And on that note...

video review: 'perfection is' by brazy da bo$$

You know, it's not all the way there yet... but man, he's getting close, and that's really encouraging.

And now for things significantly LESS encouraging...

album review: 'perfection is' by brazy da bo$$

I found myself a bit surprised how much I was looking forward to covering this record.

And I say that because I've been watching Brazy Da Bo$$'s artistic evolution for a couple years now, from 2015 where I covered two of his projects to 2017 with an album that looked to be more experimental than ever before. For those of you who don't know, he's a Baltimore rapper that has a fine enough ear for beats but occasionally could struggle technically with content and delivery, although not to the point where I was going to outright ignore a project. What caught more of my attention was that in the era of mixtape culture he had taken his time to refine a new full-length record and from lead-off singles looked to have pushed both his flow and production into very different territory than the spacier bangers that he used to favour. Granted, I wasn't exactly crazy about his singing voice which he looked to be employing a little more, but again, I approve of experimentation and I wanted to see what he could pull together. So what did I find on Perfection Is?

video review: 'bravado' by kirin j. callinan

And there we go, something I probably should have covered months ago, but overall turned out really fun, definitely recommended.

Okay, Brazy Da Bo$$ next, and then... hmm, this could be interesting... stay tuned!