and now… the final Short Ride post. i.e. until they release a new album (DO IT). this is an EP from 2009. it has significantly lower volume than the other Short Ride stuff I’ve put up here, but the recording quality is thankfully just as nice. so there’s more crisp and fast guitars, shouting and heavy drumming, oh and a great mini-breakdown on “Cool It (Before I Lose It)”. this is four songs, roughly six and a half minutes long and freaking awesome. there’s something about this band that almost make me lose my breath when I put them on. they are such attention thieves, with their crushingly hard hitting hammering (aka melodies). if you haven’t picked up this band yet, do it now! download this! then download everything else! then wait for the LP to be pressed and sold on their MySpace, then buy it! this is great. so get it.
archive for January, 2010
Short Ride – Hopeless
Thursday, January 28th, 2010Short Ride – Five Fits
Thursday, January 28th, 2010I hope the Short Ride posts have made you just as hungry for more as they made me, because here is more! an EP from late 2008. I think introductions are made unnecessary by the previous two posts. you know what you’re downloading people. fast, thrashing and devastating hardcore punk that will make you a diligent user of the repeat button. get it!
Short Ride – Demo
Tuesday, January 26th, 2010did you like that Short Ride album? well then I’ve got good news for you. I’m posting their entire discography! starting with their very first demo from 2008. this is punk/hardcore at its very rawest. thrashy riffs, shouting and fast drumming with a filthy production. it goes by really fast (less than three minutes), but i can has repeat button, so it’s okay. there’s two songs in here (an earlier version of the demo had three). so go get them! if you liked the full length posted below, you will like this as well.
Cadre – These Restless Heads
Monday, January 25th, 2010Cadre’s music sounds every bit as ambitious as their name. I wonder if anyone in this band listens to Funeral Diner? (see what I did thur? I made a joke about how obvious it is that they listen to Funeral Diner. lulz. not hating though. I like Funeral Diner as well.) but seriously, I honestly think this demo showcases an extremely promising band. the songs are crafted in an ambitious manner like none other. this band seems to aim at bringing back a bit of that grandiosity of Funeral Diner’s music and Orchid’s lyrics. so it’s a bit like Ampere and Wolves. especially in the “all hell breaks loose” bits, which are used wisely sparsely throughout the demo, often after a powerfully constructed build up that essentially sounds like very melodic drone somewhat sped up into a dissonant and distant harmony. unfortunately, the recording quality of this demo is questionable at best. it ruins a great portion of the experience – at least for me. I’ve got nothing against the tactic of lo-fi recordings, but this recording is just poor. so here’s to hoping this band re-records these songs and maybe records a few new ones as well? because I want more.
Short Ride – Can’t Keep Us Out
Monday, January 25th, 2010as you’ve probably guessed from the artist and album name – this is a hardcore band. this is their first full length record. it isn’t out for sale yet because they haven’t found a label to press it. and that is ludicrous. because this is insanely good. the vocals essentially shout clever wordplays with spot on delivery of highly relevant and deliberate lyrics that are filled with rhymes that would put damn near any MC to shame. the lyrics are somewhat abstract and metaphorical at times, but not without direction, meaning or substance and furthermore not battling with Poe for pomposity. the music could easily be called typical, when it comes to modern hardcore. but you could say the same thing about Last Lights – another modern hardcore band which Short Ride remind me of every now and then – so it’s not a bad thing. it’s just hardcore. it’s *supposed* to be hardcore. so it’s not a bad thing at all. especially not when a band does it so extremely well as Short Ride does it. they’ve pumped this album full with diversity and creativity, which leads to an album without any dull points, and an album which – thankfully – avoids repetitiveness altogether. this album is a 23 minute burst of energy, passion and intensity. the chord progressions and overall compositions are every bit as clever as the beforehand-mentioned wordplays. the flawless intro and outro wraps in a hellfire of an album that I truly believe you shouldn’t go without hearing. get it! then periodically look to Short Ride’s MySpace for updates concerning the vinyl press of this glorious piece of music.
run,Walk! – EP
Thursday, January 21st, 2010an exciting independent scrappy rock band that’s been in the works for quite a while now are run,Walk! from London (I think. this is their first EP. it was released in 2007, and has since gone OOP, and most of their other stuff is also OOP, as far as I know. you can however purchase a split with New Roars on the Block on their MySpace, so check that out. anyway, this is a weird release to be honest. the band consists of a drummer and a bassist, which is no doubt a bit different. the music that comes out of this drum ‘n’ bass duo somewhat shares a bit with emo like rest of my life, but at the same time it’s probably way more appropriate to compare them to other English alternative bands like Bromheads Jacket, Milburn and The Paddingtons. this is an odd one, but a good one. everyone should definitely check it out if you’re up for catchy and poppy alternative with the occasional emo twinkle from England.
The Loneliest Cowgirls – I Shall Be Free
Thursday, January 21st, 2010on the second album by The Loneliest Cowgirls, Ethan goes a little back to his roots (The Sky Looks Pissed). it’s not as loud and upset as the début – and far less lo-fi-oriented. on this album the recordings don’t rely on the charm of the lo-fi distortion and noise, thus the guitar needs to be impeccable – and thankfully, it is. the gentle strumming is done with passion yet with care. gone are most of the shouting, thus he needs to have a pleasant voice – and thankfully, he has. can you believe it? I guess you’ll have to download this to find out. and that’s something I can get behind. because everyone needs to experience this guy and his songs. some of these tracks even reach Paul Baribeau heights, with memorable chord progressions and clever lyrics. (some of which you might recognise from The Sky Looks Pissed.)
New Year’s Revolution – Demo!!
Monday, January 18th, 2010this is a folk punk group from Conneticut that just recently signed to BirthQuake Records, for whom they are working on a split 7″ with Wood Spider and a split cassette with Sidewalk Dave. their line-up on this demo consists of an acoustic guitar, a ‘cello and vocals. the ‘cello adds an unusual amount of warmth and depth to the usual folk punk formula of angry though catchy acoustic guitar and passionate shouting. this band is cosy and warm like Greenland is Melting, yet upset and eager like Grapefruit or The Mega Games Two. so download this twenty minute folk explosion and give it the listen it thoroughly deserves.
Rechtum Immortalis – …Finnes det en død etter livet?…
Sunday, January 17th, 2010Rechtum Immortalis was a punk band from Norway. though primarily a ’90s band, they did have a short reunion in the late ’00s. these recordings are as far as I know all from the ’90s though. what took them so long to release them? I don’t know. but finally it is available to us all via the wonderful Interwebz. to my knowledge, this contains pretty much all of their studio recordings. and it’s good. it’s obvious ’90s hardcore that thankfully sounds more nostalgic than dated. add the avant-garde influences from bands like Captain Beefheart, Butthole Surfers, and Norway’s own Kjøtt to the mix, and you have a sort of extravagant and experimental punk band with lots of flair. there’s raspy, dark extroverted vocals, spacey drumming, metallic ’90s hardcore guitars that are slightly slower than most ’90s hardcore – and as a result prone to throw in more detailed riffs – and an overall progressive and psychedelic feel to the compositions. also worth mentioning – the guitars sometimes sound like the DOOM soundtrack. that’s just awesome.
Henry Bemis is a Superhero – The Jessica Tape
Sunday, January 17th, 2010Henry Bemis is a Superhero doesn’t waste time. a second album already? yes indeed. and it screams from the very first second to the last. it screams hello this is me, this is who I am and this is how I feel. does shouting make music more honest? I don’t know. but it definitely helps. these tunes are great. screaming and catchy (acoustic guitar) chord progressions recorded in a charming lo-fi quality. folk punk with emo lyrics and vocals straight from the heart. this is well worth a download and a listen, so download and listen!