Finally, Finally, Finally

What do you do when you leave a promising metalcore band on a big indie label at the height of its' popularity after making a record with a high profile producer? If you're former It Dies Today singer Nick Brooks, you move back home to Buffalo and start a full on country punk juggernaut called Queen City Station. I was a big It Dies Today fan, so when Nick split I followed him over to a myspace page with about 12 friends on it, touting the arrival of this new band. I watched the songs develop and saw that they had started playing shows and I thought to myself "Wow, good for him. He's got some real shit going on here." I was absolutely blown away by the songs themselves. All out Lucero-esque rockers like "California" and "Carnivale" were the soundtrack to an entire summer for me. I have never loved a band so much that didn't have a record deal, or even a CD out. I mean, I became really fiery passionate about this band. It is still a complete mystery to me why they aren't not only signed, but a huge band. After a long, long wait,QCS will release their debut full length on June 16. It will undoubtedly be one of the best bodies of music you will hear all year. I'm going to give you one more chance to jump on this train before it really gets moving: go to Queen City Station's myspace and give it a serious listen (I reccoment "Glen City Falls") before this band gets big. They have not posted one second of less than amazing country fried alt rock since they formed, and I have really, really high hopes for this album. I can't say enough good things about this band. Here's to hoping they make their way to New Hampshire sometime soon. Perhaps a little show at Plymouth State? GO LISTEN TO THIS BAND IMMEDIATELY AND BUY THEIR CD ON JUNE 16th.

Don't Sleep On This One

New York's The Sleeping have always been a band that I've liked, but never a band that I've loved. I've always thought that they were a cool band anchored by Doug Robinson's unique, desperate yelp , tight drums and intricate guitar licks. Hey, they were better than most of the swill Victory Records kicks out month after month. Their last album, Questions & Answers, was a catchy, borderline forgettable slice of post-something-core that ended up on a video game soundtrack and got the band on a Warped Tour and earned them a headlining run with I Am the Avalanche and A Day to Remember (that's right kids, I saw A Day to Remember open for the Sleeping. I must be old.) and moderate national recognition. There were a few strong tracks on that album, most noticably "Don't Hold Back", "Loud & Clear" and their tribute to fallen Bayside drummer John Holohan, "Heart Beatz". Questions & Answers was good enough for me to buy and file for future reference. However, after a few members changes and couple years, I wasn't sure I still cared when I heard about What It Takes, their new album that found its' way onto store shelves on February 17. Well, I was already at the record store that day (new Thursday/new Morrissey) and I had some extra change, so I figured why not, I'll grab the new Sleeping and give it a spin. This ended up being the best impulse purchase I have made in a long time. What It Takes absolutely explodes with passion and energy, right from the guitar intro of "You'll Be A Corpse Before Your Time" and doesn't let up until the closing notes of "Deadbeast", the album's last song. This really is an unbelievable record. Lead single "Bomb the World" is easily the best song the band have ever written, and I would say "He Only Sees Where He Walks", the album's 8th track, takes second place with its' infectious chorus of "Yeah, leave that girl alone". The guitars sound crisper, the organ-esque synths sound absolutely spot on and are a perfect addition to the band's sound and most importantly, Robinson has established himself as part of the upper echelon of emo frontmen. His confident wail is at times Geoff Rickley, at times "Illusion of Safety" era Thrice, but it is always captivating and always infectious. Unlike a lot of the bands you hear walking around Warped Tour and garnering reviews on scene websites, this guy can really, really sing. Robinson and company have truly hit their stride on What It Takes, an album that roars from beginning to end with emo-funk intensity and melodic bombast. This is one of the few 10 out of 10 albums to surface so far this year so do yourself a favor and head to the store and pick this up. It's the best $13 you'll spend for a while.

In All Seriousness

When I opened my copy of this month's REVOLVER Magazine I was excited to see a brief (yet informative) blip on the progress of the new Despised Icon album. The Montreal death-metallers are scheduled to have a new album out in September! According to vocalist (the dude who doesn't pig squeal) Alex Erian the band are playing "faster and heavier without so many breakdowns. To me, it's more like modern death metal." Sad to see less breakdowns, because I think DI do them better than anyone on the planet, but it sounds good to me. Here's to hoping they can top The Ills of Modern Man, which is no easy task. Really stoked for this.

Hell's Summer

This is going to be an awesome summer. There will be a ton of sunny days, great shows and of course, Tuesdays chock full of great releases. One of my most anticipated releases of the summer comes from Brooklyn rapper Cage. Cage is an immense talent wo has garnered more attention lately due to his friendship woth Shia Labeouf than for his actual rhyming skills. Coming down the pike is Depart From Me, the Cardboard City wordsmith's follow up to his critically worshipped 2005 dark art masterpiece Hell's Winter. Cage is one of very, very few hip hop artists in the world (P.O.S., Aesop Rock and Lupe Fiasco also make this list) who I feel really treat hip hop as a legitimate form of art instead of just beats and hooks and songs about girls and drugs. Cage hurts, and you can tell he really means it when he raps. I heard 5 songs from Depart From Me this morning and I can tell you it's going to be his best work yet. I am so excited for this record, and I hope you go check out his new Shia-directed video for the single "I Never Knew You", and pick up Depart From Me on July 7th; it's going to be the hip hop release of the summer.

90's Band You Need to Know

Aaaaahhhhhh, Seaweed. These Seattle 90's Alterna-Emo Dudes just reformed last year and are supposedly hard at work on new material. Looks like it's time for you to check them out. In my opinion, their album Spanaway is their finest work. Start with "Start With" (Haha!), and work your way through the album. It's truly a wonderful record and you can hear bits and pieces of bands they influenced all through it. Go find that shit on ebay or amazon and enjoy!

Hopefully You Already Own This, But...

The Chariot have made a career or crafting chaotic metalcore praising the Good Lord, and they seem to have carved their own niche in the scene. There really doesn't seem to be any other band that sounds like the Chariot, and they continue to seperate themselves from the pack by doing weird tours (They are currently out with French death metallers Gojira) and playing insane live shows. It's quite an experience to witness the Chariot live in full force; it's not uncommon to see lead screamer Josh Scogin hanging from something suspended above the stage. The artwork of their albums is also interesting. For their newest effort, Wars and Rumors of Wars, The Chariot chose to stamp the artwork on each one of the 25,000 copies pressed. They are also hand signed and numbered (I am proud owner of copy #7547). Oh yeah, and the music is awesome too. Every single one of the 10 tracks on this album are pure, unbridled skull crushing southern metal fury. Does that sound awesome? Yeah, it does. Add something cool and personal to your collection and buy this record.

Don't Give Up Hope

Growing up in New England, hardcore has always been really special to me. Ever since the first time I heard Bane and American Nightmare I’ve been interested in this subgenre. Punk’s dirty, unkempt little brother is pretty popular where I’m from, to say the least. Just a couple hours from where I’m sitting right now is the Worcester Palladium; my favorite venue and the site of the annual Metal and Hardcore Festival: the biggest gathering of heavy music on the east coast. In recent years, hardcore has seen a major resurgence in New England, spurred by increasingly impressive rosters from Deathwish Inc. (owned by Converge frontman Jacob Bannon) and Bridge 9 Records. Two of the bands that emerged from that scene and spearheaded the aforementioned movement are Boston straight edge warriors Have Heart and Providence political dudes Verse. Verse and Have Heart collectively released 5 of the greatest hardcore albums in recent memory and toured all over the world, often times together. Unfortunately, now both of these bands have broken up and there is some talk of who will go on to carry the flag for our 6 states. Here are my candidates for the future of New England Hardcore:
I will start off in my own home state. Salem, New Hampshire's Trap Them have released 2 full lengths and one EP full of blistering sludge infused grindcore, most recently 2008's Seizures In Barren Praise. The band features former Backstabbers Inc. vocalist Ryan McKenney and former Unearth drummer Mike Justian. They are currently on tour opening for Napalm Death. For those just getting into TT, I would recommend the Seance Prime EP, out now on Deathwish.

Next up is Massachusetts' own Shipwreck A.D. The band is known around the area for their adrenaline infused live shows and their mysterious connection to Vitamin Water. These guys are like old school tough guy hardcore with thinking man's lyrics. Right now you can pick up their full length, Abyss, on Deathwish, and Shipwreck are currently hard at work looking ot bring you another full length by the end of 2009.

Cruel Hand are probably the best band to ever come out of the state of Maine. They signed to Bridge 9 last year and released their second album, Prying Eyes, on the Boston based label. Cruel Hand have been touring a lot lately so it shouldn't be too long before they come through your town. I suggest you pick up a copy of Prying Eyes and head down to the show.

Another excellent Massacusetts band on Deathwish, The Carrier, are te most enigmatic band on this list. They have released one out of print full lenght, One Year Later, and one excellent 7-inch, No Love Can Save Me, in the last year. This is a band that doesn't tour that much and I'm not sure when they're planning on getting out another record, but they are AWESOME and everyone should head over to www.myspace.com/thecarrierhc and take a listen to "Hello Uncertainty".

Last but not least, we have Defeater, Formed from the ashes of Masscore band Sluts, Defeater feature producer turned vocalist Jay Maas on the bands Bridge 9 debut, Travels. Travels is an absolute masterpiece of an album, chronicling the life of a man from birth to death. Halfway through the album there is a straight up Conor Oberst acoustic guitar ditty. No joke. Buy Travels, because Defeater are the future of hardcore. Maas knows his way around the genre: he's produced albums for Cruel Hand, Shipwreck A.D. and Verse.

Of course, New England isn't the only place in the world with cool hardcore. Check out Philadelpia's Reign Supreme and Baltimore's Ruiner, in addition to these 5 fine bands above. Hardcore still lives!

Why's Everybody Always Picking On Me?

OK, I get it. Their singer wears makeup and capitalizes random letters in his name. They have weird looking, pudgy guitarists. Their album covers are really weird. The imagery surrounding Seattle goth-punks Aiden is certainly worthy of the occassional jab, but really, why does everyone hate this band so much? I think they do a perfectly good Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge era My Chemical Romance impression, and i thoroughly enjoyed their 2005 album Nightmare Anatomy. 2007's Conviction lacked a little in the energy department, which was a dissapointment because it's energy they do so well. Last year frontman wiL Francis put out an excellent solo album under the name William Control, and that just about brings us up to speed. That brings us to Knives, released on May 12, it is Aiden's 4th full length, and in my opinion, a nice little slab of gothic horror punk that should appeal to fans of later era AFI and HIM, and maybe even some Placebo nuts. Knives carries with it all the cliches Aiden have spent the last 5 years being blasted for (bad lyrics about death and blood, mostly), but you just can't get past the fact that these are good, catchy songs. Album opener "Killing Machine" moves along at breakneck speed, with Francis crooning his heart out over jagged guitars and galloping drums. The second track, "Let the Right One In" is my favorite on the album. It's just super catchy and i really like wiL's voice. The single "Scavengers of the Damned" is also excellent. It's a shame everyone hates Aiden so much for what they look like that they won't even give their music a chance. So come on; close your eyes, forget what you know about this band and give Knives a spin. Maybe you'll even like it.

The Kings Have Returned

At midnight tonight, Blink-182 played their first show in almost 5 years in L.A. to a select crowd of friends and industry insiders. My favorite band of all time is back for good. Time to get excited, kids, it's gonna be a fun summer.

Happy Green Day Day!

Ah yes, the time has come for a new Green Day record. The new album 21st Century Breakdown hits stores today and I am anxious to pick it up. My Aunt Cassie passed me a cassette of Dookie when I was much too young to be listening to Green Day, passing on the message "Don't let your Mom hear this" and I have been a fan ever since. Here's to a band that has never faltered, never wavered in their beliefs, never balked at how popular they've gotten, never put out a bad record or even written a bad song and most importantly: done whatever the fuck they wanted since 1989. Cheers to you Green Day, I'm sure this album is another stellar addition to your impressive catalog. I'll be thinking of my Dad when I upload this to my iPod, as he and I caught the American Idiot tour a few times and we both fell head over heels for that album. Here's to another 20 years, boys. The godfathers of pop punk have returned.

I Wish You Would Take My Radio to Bathe With You...

Last week my girlfriend Cait, my friend Joe and I got a chance to catch a pretty awesome show at the Worcester Palladium. I'll give you the rundown.

First off, we were dissapointed by the absence of Death In the Park, a band formed from the ashes of unsung early 2000's emo heroes Hot Rod Circuit. Since we're all big HRC fans, we were excited to see Andy Jackson back on the stage and even mor excited to hear some songs from that excellent EP they put out last year. It was not to be however, as DItP were no shows.

After that brie disappointment, we were excited to catch Nightmare of You. NoY singer Brandon Reilly was the lead guitarist in a Long Island emo band called the Movielife, who broke up a few years ago. From the demise of the Movielife 2 great bands formed, those bands being Reilly's Nightmare of You and Movielife singer Vin Caruana's I Am the Avalanche. I enjoy both bands immensely (Although I like IATA better), so I was stoked to see NoY live. Reilly didn't speak much throughout the set, but did well to keep the crowd entertained with some reworked versions of songs that appeared on their self titled debut. Set highlights included "My Name Is Trouble", "The Days Go By Oh So Slow" and the single "I Want to Be Buried In Your Backyard". The new song, "Amsterdam" also went over quite well. Funny, I Am the Avalanche also have a new song called "Amsterdam". Anyway, aside from set closer "Heaven Runs On Oil", which ran on a little too long, Nightmare of You but on an excellent (and loud!) Cure tinged set of indie rock. We had a chance to speak to Brandon after their set as well and he was extremely gracious. Check out his brother Travis' band This Is Hell, if you haven't heard them, as they are excellent as well.

Next up was Saves the Day. Now, StD are a band that I have enjoyed since the Through Being Cool days, and needless to say I was excited to see them. However, their set felt pretty flat to me. First of all, they are pretty much The Chris Conley Band now, as the aforementioned singer remains their only original member. Joe and I debated on the way home whether or not after founding member and guitarist David Soloway departed earlier this year if Conley should have given up the band name Saves the Day. Anyway, Conley sounded very good but the band was boring to watch and their set was low on the rock and heavy on the snooze, as some of their songs tend to be. Staples like "Freakish", "Radio" and "Shoulder to the Wheel" sounded excellent, as boring as they were to watch, and brought me back to the halcyon days when I first picked up the band's CD because I had seen Mark Hoppus of Blink-182 fame sporting one of their shirts. I hate to be That Guy, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little bummed not to hear "At Your Funeral" and "Third Engine", as those were the two songs that got me into the band.

All bummer moods were soon forgotten, because shortly after Saves the Day let us, the kings returned. Alkaline Trio is a band that I have a very deep relationship with. Everyone has a few of those bands that just effect them differently from the plethora o other musicians that pass through their eardrums, and the Trio have just always struck a chord with me, especially singer/guitarist Matt Skiba. Skiba has always seemed to have the uncanny ability to write songs about my life; songs that pushed me through to the next day. I can't even begin to count how many of his lyrics I have scrawled in a notebook or sung to myself at night, when that last breakup just wouldn't leave my head. I have always held a deep admiration for him and seen him as the approachable poet with every day guy problems. Over the course of the last 6 years I have seen the band 8 times, and had yet to meet Mr. Skiba, despite waiting outside venues or untold hours. Would my luck change tonight? I'll get to that in a minute. First, the show.

Alkaline came out firing on all cylinders, opening with an old classic "My Friend Peter", which the crowd responded well to. The set was heavy on latter day material from 2005's Crimson and 2003's Good Mourning, but they were playing so well it didn't really bother me much. They threw in a couple more oldies like "Cooking Wine" and "Cringe", and only played two songs of last year's Agony & Irony. Set highlights included the fast paced "Fatally Yours" and "Donner Party", and set closer "This Could Be Love", during which Skiba implored the crowd to sing along, and they certainly did. One big, awesome surprise was the inclusion of "Sadie", Skiba's retelling of Manson Family killer Sadie Glutz's role in the Sharon Tate murder. I had never seen them play it before, but they pulled it off wonderfully and it just sounded amazing. They even kept in the recording of Sadie's testimony, which played over Derek Grant's thunderous drumming. The encore was a little short ("Every Thug Needs A Lady" and of course "Radio), but all in all it was an excellent set from an excellent band.

And did I meet Skiba? Yes, after a couple hours of waiting (Thanks Cait and Joe) I was able to procure autographs from all three members and shake Matt's hand. He was super nice, just like I'd hoped, and I think I even muttered something stupid about it being an honor to meet him. Isn't it great when your heroes don't let you down?

Let's get one thing straight. I find myself part of a generation of kids, the "iTunes Generation", if you will, that are under the impression that music is free. They grew up with Napster, Limewire, and other means of procuring music without paying for it that have sapped the kids of their will to own CD's, and the bands of their will to write consistent records. We live in the age o the single. Gone are the days of the Springsteens and the Pettys who would write an entire album that was enjoyable all the way through. These albums are rarities today. In the past few years not many front-to-back gems are brought to mind. Personally, Say Anything's debut masterpiece Is A Real Boy, Former Something Corporate frontman Andrew McMahon's first turn as Jack's Mannequin, Everything In Transit, Former Movielife frontman Vinnie Caruana's newest work I Am the Avalanche and Rhode Island political hardcore dudes Verse's Aggression come to mind. But on August 19th of last year, a true masterpiece was bestowed upon us, the listeners. New Jersey E Street punkers The Gaslight Anthem crafted a true gleaming masterpiece of jagged Telecasters and crackling microphones fit for Giants Stadium in 1975. This album is honestly the best cohesive body of music i have heard in the last 5 years, and it will surely cement itself as a true landmark in the future. This is it: the makeout record, the road trip record, the best friends record. It's for rainy days and summer days. Top down or windows up. I love it, my friends love it and my parents love it. Lead singer Brian Fallon has THE greatest voice in Rock N' Roll right now, I swear to you. If you do not own this Springsteen meets The Cure meets the Bouncing Souls, 10 out of 10 masterpiece, please go buy it. OWN it. Listen to it over and over again. "Here's Looking at You Kid" will break your heart and "Great Expectations" will sew it back otgether again. The Gaslight Anthem are trying their hardest to bring back the age of the album, so do your part and pick this up.

Greetings.

Hello. My name is Ben. I am a junior at Plymouth State University in Plymouth, New Hampshire. Music consumes the entirety of my being, and this blog will serve to accommodate some of the music related thoughts and opinions one garners along the way. I'll do some reviews, some bitching, some praise, and (fingers crossed) some interviews. Let's get started.