I'm Glad It's You

I'm Glad It's You are are a four-piece emo/indie/punk band from Redlands, California that have been around since 2014. They play an energetic yet melancholic brand of emo that most likely takes some Braid and Hey Mercedes influence, with a modern midwestern tinge. Fans of bands like Dowsing, Dikembe, Sport and Spraynard will eat this up. Their songwriting is superb, and their vocals/lyrics are of particularly worthy note. To date their discography is fairly small, with only one EP and one LP out (both of which are highly recommended). Daydreamers is a cassette only release that features three alternate versions of songs, and one exclusive track. Enjoy.

June (2014)

1. Curbside

2. Anything But Blue

3. June

4. Minor Acts Of Cannibalism

5. Part Of The Act

Daydreams (2015)

1. Daydreams

2. Minor Acts Of Cannibalism

3. June

4. A Long December

The Things I Never Say (2016)

1. The Things We Say

2. The Things We Never Lose

3. Parking Tickets

4. Keepsake

5. Curbside

6. Small Talk

7. Communion

8. Revival

9. Time Capsule

10. Daydreams

Every Sun, Every Moon (2020)

1. Desert Days

2. Big Sound

3. Ordinary Pain

4. Lost My Voice

5. The Things I Never Said

6. Death Is Close

7. Silent Ceremony

8. Lazarus

9. The Silver Cord

10. Myths

11. Every Sun, Every Moon

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6131

Amanda Woodward

Amanda Woodward were a five-piece screamo/post-hardcore band from Caen, France that formed in 2000 and broke up in 2007. They played an energetic brand of screamo that will build and break in the vein of City of Caterpillar, but with the sonic complexities of other French bands, such as Sed Non Satiata and Mihai Edrisch (both of whom Amanda Woodward were most likely influences on). Fans of European (or obviously more specifically, French) screamo know this band as an absolute classic, with their sole LP La Decadence De La Decadence being held as an absolute essential. Members of this band went on to form another incredible band, Aussitôt Mort. Enjoy.

Pleine De Grâce (2003)

1. Pleine De Grâce

2. Ecarté Du Lucre

3. La Malade Maquerelle

La Décadence De La Décadence (2004)

1. La Décadence De La Décadence

2. Binaire Et Lisible

3. "On" Est Un Con

4. Le Temps Du Deuil

5. Sous Le Feu Nourri

6. Dans Le Cas Où Les Flammes

7. Mise À Sac

8. Massacre À La Poinçonneuse

Amanda Woodward/1905 (2004)

1. Amanda Woodward - A Fond De Cale

2. 1905 - Lingua Franca

Amanda Woodward Collection 2000-2002 (2005)

1. A L'Assault

2. Sans Vie.Com

3. La Prospérité

4. On Les Aura Bien Plombé Les Yéyés

5. Amanda Woodward

6. Un Autre Con

7. Bomber Le Show-Bizz

8. Trop De Gens Qu'On Mal A Mon Crâne

9. Mange-Ton-Disque

10. Il Nous Reste les Caillaisses

11. La Perte

12. La Poussière Et La Cendre

13. L'air Du Temps

14. Ultramort

Note: Compilation of their first two EP's and one compilation track

Meurt La Soif / Un Peu D'Etoffe (2006)

1. Meurt La Soif

2. Un Peu D'Etoffe

Cassus - Separation Anxiety REVIEW

Cassus stand as one of the most dynamic and diverse screamo bands in the genre, with a litany of vocal stylings, a blend of melody and chaos, and the ability to craft unique songs that aren't afraid to defy genre archetypes. This makes for an incredible album listening experience. They are back with their 2nd full-length, Separation Anxiety, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2015's seminal This Is Dead Art; This Is Dead Time But We May Still Live Yet. You can check out my previous post on this band/album here. You can read a brief bio of them below before getting into the review, and LISTEN TO THIS ALBUM.

BIO

"Cassus - from Norwich, UK - released their first LP "This Is Dead Art; This Is Dead Time; But We May Still Live Yet" in November 2015 (following two self-released split EPs in 2012 and 2013) with the record labels React With Protest (Germany), Framecode Records (Malaysia), Samegrey Records (Ukraine), Structures//Agony (US), and Don't Care Records (UK) to critical acclaim from blogs such as Circling The Drain and Sophie's Floorboard. The record also holds a 4.57/5 average rating on Discogs. The band have toured extensively around Europe and played festivals: Cry Me A River in 2016 and 2017, Fiducia Fest in 2015 and 2017, and Fluff Fest in 2017 (headlining CMAR 2017, Fiducia 2017 and the tent stage of Fluff 2017)."

"Their second LP "Separation Anxiety" releases April 27, 2018 on the labels Dog Knights Production, IFB Records, and React With Protest. The band are planning further tours in 2018 which will include appearances at Miss The Stars festival in May and Cry Me A River in June."

REVIEW

The opener "Getting Older Younger" hits the ground running with a sonic assault of high energy, and starts the album off with a definite highlight. "Automate Me" opens with some shouted vocals and sharp rhythmic work before devolving into total chaos in the latter half. Next up is "Curriculum", which hits hard at some break-neck speeds. It enters into a chant-like interlude in the center of the song, which is accented by the gong of a distorted bass.

"Ceaseless Tumult" begins with a wash of cymbals and gentle arpeggios, before rocketing into blast beat dissonance. The band brings a sense of melody back later in the track with a stop-and-start bridge. "Being Sick on a Merry-Go-Round" lays a bass riff down as its backbone, whilst the vocals are primarily sung and the track slowly builds momentum.

"Be a Man" features one of my favourite moments on the record, where about one-third in the vocals spit very intensely, and the band holds down a menacing rhythm, all the while a somber guitar arpeggio is heard in the background. The track closes out with some of the harshest vocals on the record, paired with one of the quietest instrumental bits. Lyrically, it's a biting critique of "masculinity" told through its stereotypical rules. A definite personal highlight.

"Boundless Torpor" launches back into their signature gut-punch, but inevitably takes the road less travelled by breaking into some angelic vocals in its rolling outro.  "Have You Considered a Balanced Diet?" is rhythmically throttling, making for one of the most chaotic tracks in the listing, but a superb song nonetheless. "Tired of Being Tired of Being Tired" has a title that harkens back to their debut LP. This song features some heavy riffage, and guttural vocals. This one never ceases for a breather like its counterpart does.

Separation Anxiety closes with what could be considered the greatest track on here. It acts as the perfect culmination of all the ideas previously explored. It goes down so many avenues, with every vocal styling on display here, and its off-kilter, dissonant rhythms, rolling drum patterns, and heavy build-ups dominating the first half. The scene cuts to black before the spotlight hits some solitary, serene guitar work and echoing, sung vocals. "Reduced Possibility; Endangered Determinism" is the perfect end to this perfect album. It's a rare occurrence to hear a band push the envelope on a genre already mastercrafted by so many incredible acts, but Cassus take the plunge into the unique and experimental, making them a definite talking point for screamo fans. They've done their incredible debut justice with this follow-up, which will definitely be leaving wakes in its path throughout the remainder of 2018.

Separation Anxiety is out today (April 27th). You can buy a copy on their Bandcamp (or iTunes) today, with two tracks available for streaming here. The vinyl (with incredible artwork and a beautiful pressing) can be ordered from Dog Knights Productions below, as well as IFB Records and React with Protest soon. You can stream the album in full below. Enjoy!

CASSUS

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DOG KNIGHTS PRODUCTIONS

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IFB RECORDS

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REACT WITH PROTEST

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Cave In

As is now tradition, every 100 posts on this blog are marked with a "milestone" of sorts, which is usually in the form of posting a highly-requested band or major artist. We are now at post 700, and I cannot say it enough: thank you for keeping this blog alive, even after it almost died last year. It's still bewildering to see the amount of people continuing to utilize it. Today not only marks post 700, but it was also this exact date (April 23) that I started this blog 6 years ago. To think about all that has happened in that time, and the fact that this fucking thing is still going is beyond amazing, and I'm just as happy to continue doing it. Once again, thank you, and that's enough of my personal rambling.

Cave In have been one of the few bands that have left a crater on this blog due to their absence, especially considering their importance and influence on so many other bands. Unfortunately, they were tinged with a bout of unimaginable sadness recently with the unexpected passing of long-time member Caleb Scofield (RIP). He was nothing short of an amazing musician whose legacy will be felt for a long time, with this band and his many others. Before going any further, I just wanted to quickly share this fund set up to help his wife and two young children through a pain I cannot even begin to fathom. You can donate or share at the link below:

Caleb Scofield Memorial Fund

Cave In formed in 1995, in Metheun, Massachusetts. The band includes guitarist/vocalist Stephen Brodsky, guitarist Adam McGrath, and drummer JR Conners, who were all founding members. Bassist/vocalist Caleb Scofield joined soon after in 1998. Their earliest material was released across a a 7" and a few splits. This material was compiled on Beyond Hypothermia. These early recordings hit the ground running with the sound they are now heralded as pioneers of, which is metalcore. The metallic guitars, heavy riffs, odd time signatures, and linear song structures have all become staples of the genre, which owes a debt of gratitude to Cave In. This is especially true for their proper debut full-length, Until Your Heart Stops. This featured their solidified line-up, was produced by Kurt Ballou and released by Hydra Head. Some of the heaviest, most off-the-wall riffage is found right here. Without a doubt, this is an absolute classic and staple of the genre. It's breathed in the same breath as something like We Are The Romans as a contender for greatest metalcore album ever.

They followed up their debut with an EP released in 1999, titled Creative Eclipses. This was a major departure from their metal roots. They began experimenting with "space rock", with vocals that were primarily sung, the use of synths, and a focus on atmosphere over riffs. They even included a folk-y acoustic track on this EP. What was thought to be an experimental detour by fans turned out to be the band's next sonic stage, since the release of their sophomore album Jupiter carried on this progressive sound. This proved to be a commercial success, which caught the attention of major labels.

The band signed to RCA Records, a move rarely done by bands of their origin. The result was Antenna, a full-fledged alternative rock record, which can be best summed up as their "Dear You" record. Their original fans turned their back on the band for their commercialized sound, the album did not prove to be the success the label hoped it would be, and it did not spawn a major hit (only a minor one with "Anchor"). Cave In also toured with Foo Fighters, just like Jawbreaker did before they broke up, though by now the Foo Fighters were a much bigger band. Though Antenna was initially a disappointment to long-time fans, just like Dear You, it took a few years for people to appreciate the solid record that it really is.

Frustrated by their major label, Cave In began working on the follow-up to Antenna. They returned to an aggressive, metal-based sound, more in common with their roots than their last two albums. Once RCA heard the demos for this new album, they were dropped by the label, and subsequently returned to Hydra Head. The result was Perfect Pitch Black, released in 2005. Though a return to form in many ways, the band do not try and recreate the early sound they had on Until Your Heart Stops. It's a matured approach to metalcore through the lens of  their years of progressive experimentation, where the riffs and guttural vocals do come back, but with a stronger sense of melody and at a less frenzied pace. Following this album, the band went on hiatus in 2006.

Cave In didn't disappear for long, since they regrouped in 2009 for more shows and the release of a new EP, Planets Of Old. This was followed up with their first new full-length in 6 years, which was 2011's White Silence. This record displayed an eclectic mix of what Cave In do, with some experimental slow burners ("Heartbreaks, Earthquakes", "Reanimations", "Iron Decibels") and some hard-hitters ("Vicious Cycles", "Serpents"). It's an incredible amalgamation of what the band had been working on for over a decade.

Shortly after White Silence, the band remained somewhat inactive, only playing sporadic shows here and there. Unfortunately, just as it appeared they were gearing back up, they were struck by the previously mentioned tragedy. The loss of integral member Caleb Scofield is incredibly unfortunate, though he has left behind a ton of amazing music that will live on for decades to come. Below is just a sliver of that output. Cave In members were known for being active in many other projects. Most notably, Caleb was also a member of Old Man Gloom (highly recommended) and Zozobra. Stephen Brodsky was briefly a member of Converge (he played bass on When Forever Comes Crashing), as well as Mutoid Man, Pet Genius, New Idea Society, and Kid Kilowatt, along with Kurt Ballou (Converge) and Adam McGrath (also of Cave In). Adam and drummer JR Conners are also members of Nomad Stones. Across numerous projects, and particularly in the case of Cave In, its members have crafted some of the best music in recent history. Regardless of the band's future, what they have achieved thus far is more than most do in a lifetime, and they have cemented a legacy that nobody will soon forget. Enjoy.

Beyond Hypothermia (1998)

1. Crossbearer

2. Chameleon

3. Capsize

4. Stoic

5. Programmed Behind

6. Flypaper

7. Mitigate

8. Pivotal

9. Ritual Famine

10. Crambone

Until Your Heart Stops (1998)

1. Moral Eclipse

2. Total Deity

3. Juggernaut

4. The End Of Our Rope Is A Noise

5. Segue 1

6. Until Your Heart Stops

7. Halo Of Flies

8. Bottom Feeder

9. Ebola

10. Controlled Mayhem Then Erupts

Creative Eclipses (1999)

1. Luminance

2. Sonata McGrath

3. Magnified

4. Burning Down The Billboards

5. Sonata Brodsky

Jupiter (2000)

1. Jupiter

2. In The Stream of Commerce

3. Big Riff

4. Innuendo And Out The Other

5. Brain Candle

6. Requiem

7. Decay Of The Delay

8. New Moon

Moons Of Jupiter (2000)

1. Jupiter (Remix)

2. Big Riff (Piano Version)

3. Innuendo And Out The Other (Piano Version)

4. New Moon (Piano Version)

The Sacrifice Poles (2001)

1. Guitarmegeddon

2. God Is On The Telephone

3. Silence (omitted)

4. Chewable Robots

5. Chow Foon The Moon

6. Audio Warfare

7. Upsetting Dream

8. Neon Glow

9. Feline Macabre

10. Brain Candle Waltz

11. Head Extensions

12. Low Rumble Waltz

13. Dead City Sunbeam

Tides Of Tomorrow (2002)

1. Come Into Your Own

2. Dark Driving

3. The Calypso

4. Tides Of Tomorrow

5. The Callus

6. Everest

Antenna (2003)

1. Stained Silver

2. Inspire

3. Joy Opposites

4. Anchor

5. Beautiful Son

6. Seafrost

7. Rubber And Glue

8. Youth Overrided

9. Breath Of Water

10. Loss In The Air

11. Penny Racer

12. Woodwork

Live Airwaves (2004)

1. Inspire

2. Anchor

3. Joy Opposites

4. Seafrost

5. Youth Overrided

6. Beautiful Son

7. Jupiter

8. Innuendo And Other The Other

Perfect Pitch Black (2005)

1. Perfect Pitch Black

2. The World Is Our Way

3. Off To Ruin

4. Trepanning

5. Paranormal

6. Down The Drain

7. Droned

8. Ataxaria

9. Tension In The Ranks

10. Screaming In Your Sleep

Planets Of Old (2009)

1. Cayman Tongue

2. Retina Sees Rewind

3. The Red Trail

4. Air Escapes

Anomalies, Vol. 1 (2010)

1. Mr. Co-Dexterity

2. Inflatable Dream

3. I Luv I Jah (Bad Brains cover)

4. Plainsong (The Cure cover)

5. N.I.B. (Black Sabbath cover)

6. Innuendo And The Other (Demo)

7. Cave-In (Codeine cover)

White Silence (2011)

1. White Silence

2. Serpents

3. Sing My Loves

4. Vicious Cycles

5. Centered

6. Summit Fever

7. Heartbreaks, Earthquakes

8. Iron Decibels

9. Reanimation

Whatever Nevermind (2015)

4. Breed (Nirvana cover)

Note: Full comp here

Final Transmission (2019)

1. Final Transmission

2. All Illusion

3. Shake My Blood

4. Night Crawler

5. Lunar Day

6. Winter Window

7. Lanterna

8. Strange Reflection

9. Led To The Wolves

Heavy Pendulum (2022)

1. New Reality

2. Blood Spiller

3. Floating Skulls

4. Heavy Pendulum

5. Pendulambient

6. Careless Offering

7. Blinded By A Blaze

8. Amaranthine

9. Searches Of Hell

10. Nightmare Eyes

11. Days Of Nothing

12. Waiting For Love

13. Reckoning

14. Wavering Angel

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Disembarked

Disembarked are a five-piece screamo/hardcore band from Stockholm, Sweden that formed in 2011. They play a painstakingly emotional style of hardcore that incorporates elements of post-rock sounds and vocals on the brink of breaking. Their sound will appeal to fans of bands such as Pianos Become The Teeth, Touché Amoré, State Faults, More Than Life, and Envy. Their last release was their sole full-length, which was put out by Dog Knights Production in 2014. Though the band is still technically together, they have not been active in quite some time. Hopefully some new material will surface in the future, but until then, their current discography is just as killer. Enjoy.

Reverie (2011)

1. Reverie

Disembarked EP (2012)

1. •

2. Pulled Apart

3. Disease

4. Deckhouse

5. Mist

I Do Nothing But Regret The Fact That I Left (2013)

1. Abscond

2. Unwanted But Chosen Pt.I

3. Pillars Pt.II

4. Bewildered

5. Flags Of Our Fathers

Nothing's Wrong Here (2014)

1. Body Of A Ghost, Arms Of A Man

2. Sudden Veer

3. Nothing's Wrong Here

4. Postponed

5. Absent Mother

6. I Gave It Away

7. Caesura

8. Friends, Are You Still There?

9. Grethe

10. Saunter

11. Hindsight

12. Weekend Chaser

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Listener

Listener is an indie rock/spoken word project from Fayetteville, Arkansas that began in 2002. The project is based around lyricist/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Dan Smith, who initially used the name as a moniker for his early hip-hop based work. As his career progressed, he retained the name as it evolved into a full-fledged rock band. He has worked with a number of musicians since, all under the band name Listener. After incorporating live instrumentation behind him, Listener evolved from a hip-hop project into their now-signature sound. Their songs are structured around Dan Smith reciting (not singing) his spoken word pieces, with an instrumental background that builds and falls with the song as needed. They've crafted a unique sound for themselves, which has been quite influential in the past few years.

Below is only a partial discography, since it is quite hard to track down all their releases (especially their earliest work, pre-spoken word jam band). So, if you have anything that's missing from below (their first three albums, in particular) please send it my way! Thanks so much to Juan for sending them to me! Enjoy.

Whispermoon (2003)

1. The Moon Cries Out

2. FYI

3. You're So Underground

4. Emotional

5. Winter Life

6. Train Song

7. Decadence

8. I'm Beginning To Hear Whispers

9. Ways Of The Wind

10. You Will Be My Music

11. Behind These Doors

12. Wundering

13. Crystal Methods

14. It's A Lonely World

15. Untitled

Ozark Empire (2005)

1. Backwoods Preacher Man

2. Ozark Empire

3. I've Been Waiting For This Moment For All My Life, Hold On

4. In The Woods You Know Where Your Enemies Are

5. You're So Special Because You're So Unique

6. I'd Like To Offer You My Dearest Apologies

7. When No One Else Will Be Your Friend I Will Do The Job

8. The Music That The Angels Do

9. It's Time For Drastic Measures They're Not Taking You Seriously

10. What Would You Do If I'm Not What I'm Supposed To Be

11. They Always Say Your Life Will Never Dull Or Your Money Back

12. Officer You Have The Wrong Man I Am Not That Man

Just In Time For Christmas (2005)

1. Its Christmas Time Again, So Come On Home To The Fire

2. You Know He Knows? Well, He Knows Regardless

3. Do You See What I See? I Hope So

4. Hey, Those Herald Angels Are Singing Again. Listen

5. Born In Bethlehem, And He Shall Send Them One By One

6. Don't Touch The Drums Boy

7. Silent Night, Holy Night. All Is Bright, All Is Bright

8. The Leaf Sure Is Heavy, But You Have To Turn It Over feat. Manchild

Talk Music (2006)

1. We March To A Whole Different Drum (Live)

2. Ozark Empire, Or Snake Oil Salesman

3. Stick This In Your Ear (Live)

4. Your Life Will Never Dull Or Your Money Back

5. The Music That The Angels Do (Live)

6. Train Song (Live)

7. I Have Nothing But Attention When I Scream

8. Deepspace5 Songs (Live)

9. Mourning In The Morning

10. That's It

11. Life Is

12. Older Than I Was Before

13. ABC News Tour Of Homes Desk Banter

14. What Would You Do If I'm Not What I'm Supposed To Be (Live)

15. All Of This With Words

Not Waving, Drowning (2007)

1. You Have Never Lived Because You Have Never Died

2. Falling In Love With Glaciers

3. Seatbelt Hands

4. Failing Is Not Just For Failures

5. You Were A House On Fire

6. Save Up Your Hopes Friends

7. Maybe We Are All Beautiful

8. I'd Like To Offer You My Dearest Apologies

9. Death By Shotgun

10. Put Another Rock In My Hand

11. Stick This In Your Ear

12. The Music That The Angels Do

13. This Is It

Train Songs (2009)

1. Train Song (fienix)

2. Train Song (live)

3. Train Song (dust)

4. Train Song (spoken)

5. Train Song (original)

Return To Struggleville (2009)

1. Death By Shotgun

2. A Song From A Knife Salesman To His Wife On Their Wedding Day

3. It's Time For Drastic Measures They're Not Taking You Seriously

4. The Music That The Angels Do

5. My Five Year Plan

6. What Would You Do If I'm Not What I'm Supposed To Be

7. I Have Nothing But Attention When I Scream

8. Ozark Empire, Or A Snake Oil Salesman Comes To Your Town

9. Your Life Will Never Dull Or Your Money Back

10. When No One Else Will Be Your Friend I Will Do The Job

11. Officer You Have The Wrong Man, I Am Not That Man

Wooden Heart (2010)

1. You Have Never Lived Because You Have Never Died

2. I Don't Want to Live Forever

3. Most Roads Lead to Home

4. Wooden Heart

5. Falling In Love With Glaciers

6. Failing Is Not Just For Failures

7. Building Better Bridges

8. Seatbelt Hands

9. These Hands Weren't Meant For Us

10. You Were A House On Fire

11. Save Up Your Hopes Friends

Time Is A Machine (2013)

1. Eyes To The Ground For Change

2. Good News First

3. Not Today

4. Tornadoes

5. I Think It's Called Survival

6. Everything Sleeps

7. There Are Wrecking Balls Inside Us

8. It Will All Happen The Way It Should

Being Empty : Being Filled (2018)

1. Pent Up Genes

2. Little Folded Fingers

3. There's Money In The Walls

4. Add Blue

5. Bloodshot/New Love

6. Shock And Value

7. Window To The World

8. A Love Letter To Detroit

9. Manhattan Projects

10. Plague Doctor