album reviews
Reviews of albums old and new from iconic artists and up and coming musicians alike.
Within Temptation - 'The Heart of Everything'
Dutch rockers Within Temptation have to be one of the most daring groups in music today. With every album, Within Temptation add something new to their music and their fanbase increases. Following the success of Mother Earth and The Silent Force, the group released The Heart of Everything in 2007. It has a lot of similarities to their album before this one, The Silent Force, but the group upped their game. The strong use of orchestral vibes were present, but also a lot more acoustic was, as well as epic sounds that were perfect for their next live albums, Black Symphony and An Acoustic Night at the Theatre.
Chloe GilholyPublished 6 years ago in BeatPsycroptic - 'As the Kingdom Drowns'
Formed in 1999 Psycroptic is an Australian technical death metal band from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. With long time and founding members drummer Dave Haley and his brother Joe Haley on guitar who has been keeping band consistent in its style, yet somehow finding new ways to inject some new crazy jazzy styles to their sound over the years. As the Kingdom Drowns is the band's seventh release and second on their new label Prosthetic records following their 2015 self-titled album. Other albums include The Isle of Disenchantment (2001), The Scepter of the Ancients (2003),Symbols of Failure (2006),Ob (Servant) (2008) and The Inherited Repression (2012) so to say these guys are tech death vets is all but an understatement!
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in BeatFather John Misty - 'God's Favorite Customer' // Album Review
Genre - Signer-Songwriter, Contemporary Folk Release Date - June 1, 2018 Father John Misty is the pseudonym for California based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, Josh Tillman. It has been quite the interesting past couple of years for Josh artistically. It seemed as if every single time a new Father John Misty album was released, it had its own distinct style and feeling. His debut album in 2012, Fear Fun, was a series of lighthearted and often quirky songs picking fun at the entertainment industry, while his sophomore effort, 2015’s I Love You Honeybear, was a much more focused album portraying Josh’s feelings on modern love and things of that nature. Both of these albums I enjoy very much for different reasons, but Josh didn’t really blow me away until he came out with last year’s Pure Comedy. A record that shifted Josh’s focus more towards a politically charged angle without sacrificing what made him such an endearing songwriter to begin with. The songs on Pure Comedy were a lot more intricate in their design and structure, which turned some of his older fans off, which evidently is something he sings about on this new album on the track “The Songwriter.” I, however, was instantly captivated by Josh’s emotion and witty songwriting coming to light in a more serious atmosphere than what he had experimented with before. I feel like Pure Comedy is without a doubt the best written album of 2017 and a look into any of the songs on it is a clear indicator why.
Arthur WelchPublished 6 years ago in BeatChristian Rap EP Review
South London Rapper, R-Scar, recently released his new EP Diverse. The Christian artist, fearlessly expresses and embeds heavy beats into music.
Maxine HarrisonPublished 6 years ago in BeatAll That Remains - 'Victim of the New Disease'
Formed in 1998 in the booming east coast metalcore scene All That Remains is a five-piece metal-core band from Springfield, Massachusetts. Started as a more melodic death metal style side project of then Shadows Fall vocalist Phil Labonte and Guitarist Oli Herbert. The band has since evolved from its melodic death metal roots to one of the forerunners of the 2000’s wave of metal-core. With the release of their second album This Darkened Heart and the addition of now longtime guitarist (and Oli Herbert student) Mike Martin, this group really started to help form what we now know as metal-core!
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in BeatAlbum Review: State Champs - 'Living Proof'
State Champs album Living Proof has a slightly different sound than their previous releases. During my first listen, I found the new style a bit unsettling. It sounds more “produced,” and “shiny,” and contains more “open space.” Far too often, the vocals take over and the instrumentals take a back seat. This takes place during quite a few verses throughout the album, and although strong instrumentals do certainly kick in during a lot of the choruses, I just can’t help feeling that too many verses are missing something. Now, I am not saying the album lacks quality guitar because there are some great guitar parts, but the guitar just seems to be used in a different way.
Nathan RicherPublished 6 years ago in BeatThe Ocean—Phanerozoic I: Palaezoic
The Ocean (or sometimes known as The Ocean Collective) was founded in 2000 by guitarist and songwriter Robin Staps. The often referred to collective based on in their first two years as a band they went through something like forty members outside of Staps. It seems like it took the full two years to make their first established line up and dropping their first album “Islands/Tides” which was one thirty minute song which would establish themselves as a very progressive post metalish band. This was followed by an instrumental EP called fogdiver released on Make my day records but did not truly become the band you hear today until in 2005 they signed to Metal Blade records, subsequently releasing Fluxion and Aeolian.
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in BeatA Review of Joyce Manor's Fifth Studio Album
I think one of the most cop-out arguments when someone doesn’t like a band’s new record is because they say all their music sounds the same. Despite that, I’ll be honest in saying I definitely would think of Joyce Manor’s early work in that same light. Cody definitely stepped outside of that bubble and their most recent record, Million Dollars to Kill Me, followed suit.
Kacie RiordanPublished 6 years ago in BeatIt Came from BandCamp Volume 1
When doing three hundred and sixty-five albums in three hundred and sixty-five-day challenge I have heard a lot of odd things on the old Bandcamp. So I started to think, hey some of these are pretty good! But not a lot of these get much exposure, so I am starting monthly list and micro-review of a few of my favorite three or four finds from the dredges of Bandcamp!
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in BeatInto Eternity—'Sirens'
Formed in 1997 Into Eternity is a five-piece Canadian progressive metal band from Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada by Tim Roth, Scott Krall, and Jim Austin. Over their long time as an active band, they have gone through a long list of members and have released five albums in 1999’s Into Eternity, 2001’s Dead or Dreaming, 2004’s Buried in Oblivion, 2006’s The Scattering of Ashes and 2008’s The Incurable Tragedy leading up to this album Sirens. The line up for “Sirens” features the only original member Tim Roth long time members, bass player Troy Bleich, and drummer Bryan Newbury are joined by new members in guitarist Matt Cuthbertson and a lead vocalist Amanda Kiernan who started as a touring member and came on full time for this album. This album is seemingly their comeback album after nearly a decade since their last album was released, always known as a unique and interesting band from the late 2000’s how will they fair in this all but a completely new landscape of metal? Let us dig in and find out!
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in Beat'Oh Wonder' by Oh Wonder
Oh Wonder is a duo that I, personally, believe deserves more hype. Their debut and self titled album Oh Wonder is one of my top favourites.
Not In UsePublished 6 years ago in BeatHate Eternal - 'Upon Desolate Sands'
Hate Eternal is a death metal band from Saint Petersburg, Florida that was formed in 1997 by Guitarist, Vocalist and renown death metal producer Erik Rutan (formally of Morbid Angel). Upon Desolate Sands is the band's seventh album and fourth on Metal Blade following other releases on this label including Fury & Flames, Phoenix Amongst The Ashes and a follow up to the techy affair that was Infernus. On the note of techy, Upon Desolate Sands is a relentless blur of tech fury somehow contained in a space that somehow feels like you are within a sandstorm. So put on your brutal goggles as we wade into this sandstorm upon the desolate sands!
Rip MitchellPublished 6 years ago in Beat