Vancouver's very own Terrifying Girls' High School are back, with the much-anticipated release of their debut full-length, Spooky Girls' Gymnasium, which is out April 19th on Emocat Records. Following up their 2016 debut EP, the band carry on their spazzy-screamy sound, taking heavy influence from the Three One G roster and the Blood Brothers in particular. Today I'm happy to share an exclusive stream of the final two tracks from their LP, "Keira Hagai, I'll Be Your Boyfriend" and "Death and Softbois". You can check out those tracks here, as well as the full album at the sources below.
Gold Coast, Australia's finest screamo band Blind Girls are back and ready to blow minds with their upcoming LP Residue, due out November 13th. It's being released by Zegema Beach Records and the band themselves, with a physical release limited to 150 black 12"'s and 65 red cassettes. You can also catch them on their upcoming Japan tour, along with Sans Visage and Komusō (both also worth checking out). Pre-order info and tour dates can be found below. For now, I'm happy to share the second track from that album, titled "3am" today.
"3am" is a minute-long flurry of cathartic vocals, feedback squeals, and furious guitars. The band manages to pack so much into its short runtime, immediately hitting the listener with dissonant, almost mathcore-esque guitar work and powerful drumming. They briefly delve into this almost melodic, somewhat melancholic passage (you'll know it when you hear it) before jumping right back into the fray of dissonance and shrieks. The brief pause of feedback is a genius tension-builder, giving them a bit of space before rocketing into a unified, heavy riff for the latter half of the song. Blind Girls are absolutely at their top of their game here, hitting a lot of technical highs with the face of chaotic distress. The vocals, instrumentation, and even the production here are enough to indicate that this new LP is going to one of the craziest released this year. Fans of bands like Lord Snow and Loma Prieta should especially take note. You can hear two more released tracks below, with the full album stream coming out a day before its full release via Heavy Blog Is Heavy.
Today (October 13th) Komusō are back with their anticipated second EP, Luck Will Be On Your Side This Week. It's the follow-up to their debut self-titled EP that was released earlier this year, and set the bar very high for this band. They are a four-piece from Tokyo, Japan that features members from multiple notable bands, including No Omega, Careless, Det ar darfor vi bygger stader, Cape Light, and 5000. Luck Will Be On Your Side This Week features three new tracks, all of which offer up something different and make for an incredibly intense listen. You can pre-order the 7" EP from Zegema Beach Records today, with 149 records being pressed on black and 151 on clear. It's also being released by Left Hand Records, zilpzalp records, and Adabana Records. Check out the full album stream and pre-order info down below.
"Still / まだ" introduces a pulsating rhythm section with an immediately recognizable Spiderland influence. The guitar arpeggios are dissonant and off-tempo, while the vocals mutter quietly in the background. The song slowly builds tension through clashing guitars before blasting into its climatic end that recalls the final moments of "Good Morning, Captain".
Track 2, "Forgotten People / 忘れられた人々" wraps around a single arpeggio with melodic subtleties added to it, and again brings back the whisper-thin vocals. The build in this song is absolutely fantastic, and a strong indicator of Komusō's strong musicianship. It's the way they walk the fine line between melodic and dissonant, and make for entirely new emotional experiences through their very deliberate notation. Plus the guitar solo on this is an unexpected but very welcome surprise, as the underlying instrumentation begins to trip over each other to bring the track to a surprisingly pleasing end.
And finally, "Extension / 拡大". This song takes a bit of a detour from the Slint influence, and the first to bring back those insane screamed vocals from their debut EP. This is a passion-fueled scream fest, with enough dynamic depth and instrumental aptitude to not fall into total chaos. They manage to create an incredibly sad emotional palette through longing chords and an over-the-edge vocal delivery, which really hits and resonates with the listener. It's an incredible closer to this short-but-sweet EP. Overall, it's a notable progression from their already-solid debut, and a fantastic demonstration of a new band whose about to make waves in the screamo world.
Here's one that'll dent some skulls. Euclid C Finder is a one-man Baltimore, Maryland-based mathcore/grindcore project created by Mike Mehl (who was also in Egarra, Kiss The Sky Goodbye, and Neck First). It began earlier this year with the release of his debut EP, A Standard Basis For The Set Of All Discontent, which is now being followed up with this new 6-song EP (titled Euclid C Finder!). This thing is a blissfully chaotic blend of extreme music influences, with throat-shredding vocals, dissonant guitars that sound more like alarms, and rhythms so off-kilter they could cause cardiac arrest with their irregular beats. Fans of bands like Graf Orlock, .Gif From God, Daughters, and Fear Before will particularly get into this.
I'm super happy to share with you this latest EP, which you can stream in its entirety now. Its official release date is slated for October 8th, with tapes available through both the band and Zegema Beach Records. The self-titled EP is on the A-Side, while their debut EP takes up the B-Side, making for twice the gut-punch experience. Check all of that out down below.
I'm happy to bring you two of the four new tracks off this new split from two incredible bands, Vancouver, Canada's Diva Plavalaguna and Morioka, Japan's MEIAN. The other half of this split is being premiered over at Open Mind / Saturated Brain. Check out one track from each band below, then head over to OMSB to hear the rest. The split pairs an eclectic, high octane synthcore band with a crisp, Japanese screamo band, which makes for an interesting and rewarding mix. This project has been a long time coming, with one band overcoming personal hardships and the other being birthed from the ashes of a previous project, but both bands are finally here. This entire split will be released digitally and on cassette through the always-fantastic Emo Cat Records tomorrow (Sept 14th), which will be linked below and active tomorrow. Enjoy.
MEIAN's track "Move On Up" opens up the split, and it hits the ground running with all instruments in play. They utilize very bright, glossy guitars that really shine in the mix, but never sound too polished. The guitars play with these incredibly melodic lead lines, and if it hasn't been made obvious, the tone of them is something to die for. It's the rhythm section that contrasts this melodic sheen with aggressive d-beats and tom hits to drive the song, along with some incredibly visceral and emotional screamed vocals. They close out with a unified post-hardcore influenced rhythm, which leaves a lasting impression in this track's wake. Sonic comparisons could be drawn somewhere between the bright, melodic aspects of Suis La Lune and the pummelling, commanding sound of Sans Visage, or something of the sort.
Diva Plavalaguna contains members of Emo Cat alumni Terrifying Girls' High School and Black Knight Satellite. They close out this split with fourth and final track, "Diva Protocol". They utilize triple vocals, pervasive weird synth lines, pounding drums and frenzied guitars that come together in an onslaught of noise. This track hits hard with a frantic yet calculated chaos. The vocals just topple over each other with these yelping screams, while the instrumental speedily rips through the first half of the track. It takes a sudden turn with a clean, tremolo-effect laden guitar, which builds into a full gang vocal chant as the song begins to crescendo. The buzzing synth, warbling bass, and vicious blast beats leave the track off in a sense of torment, with sharp guitars and devilish vocals howling to its end. This band's got a unique sound to say the least, and this track really hits out of left-field (in the best way possible).
On a side note, Diva Plavalaguna have launched a comic series titled "Diva! Digital Desert Duchess" in collaboration with illustrator Breanna McGowan. It follows the band as the protagonists in a post-apocalyptic future, with a storyline running adjacent to their musical releases. You can check that out here, along with Breanna's other work here.
4 bands, 4 blogs, 1 amazing split. I'm incredibly happy to present the PremieRing, a project set up by four different blogs to each premiere one band from this new four-way split. To start things off, I was lucky enough to get Massa Nera, a Sophie's Floorboard favourite. You might remember them from last year's LP Los Pensamientos De Una Cara Palida, a modern screamo essential. This five-piece New Jersey band are back with a new offering of two tracks to kick off this split. You can check out the exclusive stream of these new songs below, as well as pre-order information and links to the other blogs in the PremieRing. Recording info for these tracks is as follows:
Allen Nuñez - Guitar & Vocals
Christopher Rodriguez - Guitar & Vocals
David Mocada - Bass & Vocals
John Rodriguez - Vocals
Mark Boulanger - Drums
Additional vocals on "Doing Nothing For Others Is The Undoing Of Ourselves" by Steve Roche
Tracked and Mixed by Steve Roche at Permanent Hearing Damage
Mastered by Carl Saff at Saff Mastering
The first track offered up here is "Un Mal Cola De Hadas", which kicks off with some clean, looming melodic riffing, a clear sign of the band's technical prowess. After some instrumental mingling, the vocals kick in, with some furious kit-shredding drums behind them. They utilize their many vocalists well, trading lines off each other before coming together in climatic, shouted unison. The guitars hammer out heavy dissonant chords, while the bass builds eerie lines in the back. This song blends hints of melody into angular rhythmic patterns, with every instrument getting a chance to shine amidst the cathartic chaos. As it comes to close, it breathes as it opens, giving the listener a second to recover before track 2 bludgeons again.
"Doing Nothing For Others Is The Undoing Of Ourselves" opens with an incredible rhythmic passage, with the bass and drums creating an almost dance-y vibe, intertwined with the guitar's clean arpeggios. Just when the track sounds like its about to explode, they pull back and continue at the same level when some of the most impassioned vocals in recent history find a way to yelp themselves in. The vocals only build in intensity as the instrumental winds behind them. Sure enough, the blast beat climax this track has been teasing at finally hits, and its a glorious mesh of heavy bass, snare insanity, and guitar tremolos. On the way out, after all the instruments have rung out, there's one final, lonesome scream, a perfect way to end a track that's taken the listener to a couple of different places in a relatively short span of time. This band never ceases to amaze with the material they put out, and these new splits track are no different.
Keep these on repeat for a bit, and then check out the remainder of this split over at the incredible blogs listed below. I assure you this is one you do not want to miss. Enjoy.
Today I've got another premiere for ya, this one courtesy of Infant Island, a four-piece band from Fredericksburg, Virginia. Coming off the heels of an incredible split with Small Hands put out last year, they are returning with a new self-titled album, which will be released August 2nd. I'm happy share the first taste of it, which comes in the form of the closing track on the album, "Further". Check it out below.
This track builds and winds, taking the listener on an emotional journey in its nearly 7-minute runtime. It opens with a gentle, reverb-coated fingerpicked guitar, with a looming atmosphere that slowly builds as the full instrumentation enters, with some bass swells and washy cymbal work. It then throws its punches in the form of a pounding rhythm section, desperate screams, and some continued gorgeous post-rock leaning guitar work. This doesn't last long though, since it decays back into this rolling atmospheric bit, before kicking into a fret-frenzied bass line. They don't lose momentum for a second as the vocals shriek back in for a heaven-reaching crescendo. The track closes with some haunting piano clinks and white noise, an unexpected turn, but one that fits perfectly as a sendoff for both this song and this new album.
If this track is any indication of how incredible this new record is going to be, I highly suggest marking August 2nd down. It will be available in full on all digital platforms that day, as well as on cassette August 4th, and vinyl later in the month. All pre-order info can be found below, as well as the poster for their upcoming tour.
It's the first day of spring, and with the changing of the seasons comes this split from two incredible bands. Connecticut's Foxtails and Norwich's Algae Bloom come through with 6 new tracks of material out today. This is a split release between Nothing Feels Good (US), Adorno Records (UK), and Damn Fine Tapes (EU).
Foxtails bring 2 tracks to the table, featuring their unique brand of technical screamo, with clean, dissonant instrumentation and maniacal, haunting vocals. Just listen to the throat-shrieking climax of "Cucaracho" to hear everything incredible about this band. Algae Bloom bring this split home with the final 4 tracks. They come through with a warm, fret-frenzied style of midwestern emo that teeters between melancholic and melodic. Vocally, they top it off with some hoarse screaming, giving these would-be calm songs a shot of incredible desperation. The highlight on their side would probably have to be those syncopated breaks on "Understanding In Negative", though this whole split is nothing short of awesome.
Hell yeah, I'm happy to announce another incredible premiere from another amazing band. Los Pensamientos De Una Cara Palida is the debut full-length from New Jersey's Massa Nera, an incredible band who put out this amazing album today.
This thing is seven tracks of some of the best and most dynamic screamo you will hear all year. From the teeth-clenched, steel-clanking, edge of your seat introduction to the fury that's unleashed in its wake, to the tension-wire tugging build-ups, this will surely have you hooked. It's dark, heavy, noisy, throat-shredding hardcore with flashes of melody and syncopation, giving their chaos a sense of dynamics and progression. This record is truly forward-thinking in its sound, energy, and catharsis. Fans of classic bands like Off Minor, City of Caterpillar, or Daitro will dig this, though I'd recommend it to any fan of the screamier side of hardcore. I am super stoked to share this with you guys.
You can grab a pre-order over at Zegema Beach Records (release #100, congrats!), or one of the other fantastic labels helping to get this out there:
You can check our their set from the Zegema Beach Records Fest here. They've also got some more upcoming shows in Ontario: Oct 6th in Hamilton, and Oct 7th in Toronto (at the Festival Lingua Franca).
Hey guys, I'm happy to bring you the debut single from Granite to Glass, a new project featured long-time friend of the blog Jon Kohen. He's back under a new name with his first single, "I Want To Live". This track is taken from the upcoming album "for when you need this", which is slated for release on March 10. This new album is based upon a poem of the same name, which is written out as the album cover. The poem was written by Emily Katherine Yeadon, whose memory this entire album is dedicated to.
For those of you already familiar with Jon's work, this project will surely have you excited. His distinctive whispered, airy vocals are on full display here, carefully letting out some of his best melodies yet. This new track manages to bring both a melancholic sensibility and a pop melody to the table, making for an immediate stand-out song and a good indication of what a fantastic this new album is going to be. In the past, Jon has worked with a string quartet in the past (his cover of Elliott Smith's "Between The Bars" is still breath-taking), but on this new project he has both an orchestra and a choir backing him. The lush strings and delicate backing vocals really create this massive wall of sound behind his voice and guitar, but never detract from the clear stand-out song here. This new production is a welcome addition to Jon's continually mesmerizing songwriting, and if "I Want To Live" is any indication,"for when you need this" is going to be a major album to look out for this year.
Some of you may already be familiar with Jon Kohen's work. Whether it be with his band Kismet, or his solo material, both of which have been covered on this blog, his output is always astounding. Kohen is a Lowell, MA-based musician who's new EP, Curse the Darkness, or Create a Light today. Accompanying him is the a 13-piece string ensemble, featuring some members of the Lowell String Quartet, whose gargantuan bliss of somber orchestration contrast perfectly with Jon's whisper-thin vocals and guitar. If you're looking for some incredible, beautiful-sounding indie/acoustic music, this new EP is definitely a go-to for 2016.
I've done a quick track-by-track breakdown of the EP, but really just encourage you to give a listen yourself. It's a fantastic piece of work, in both an artistic and personally touching sense. It reminds me a lot of some of amazing artists, including Elliott Smith, Iron & Wine, and Carissa's Wierd, who I can not say enough positive things about. Same goes for this EP, and all of Jon's work of course. He's been a long-time supporter of the blog, just as I've been a long-time fan of his work. Thus, I'd encourage you to give it a listen, not only for that but also because this is some truly fantastic music he's created, and it needs to be shared and heard, so please enjoy.
The first track here is "A Light", which begins as it's title would suggest, with a gentle, catchy melody backed by a fingerpicked guitar. It instantly resonates, and though the instruments and melodies sound bright, the vocals pack a looming or longing in them, giving off the shadow that all light inevitably produces, or something of the sort. The strings hang in the background until the song peaks in the middle, at which point they come in full-force, elegantly layering and building on each other. The song breathes for a moment to let Jon's melodies take over before ending in a loud, longing harmony of strings and vocals.
"Between The Bars" might sound familiar, and understandably so, since it's a cover of a classic Elliott Smith song. You can see Jon and the string section perform it below, and both the recorded and live versions are absolutely magnificent. First of all, Smith's music suits Jon's style perfectly, so the match is inevitably good. For this track, Jon manages to maintain the sober, haunting atmosphere that Elliott established, and lets the strings take the song to a new height. Whether it be the slight staccato at the beginning, or the long, flowing embellishes of the chorus, the strings really make a sad song soar.
"Dusk" closes the EP with a similar songwriting style as it began. It features quiet passages of fingerpicking for the excellent lyrics and vocals to shine through, and then give way to this monumental wave of euphoria brought on by the quartet. The dynamic here is played perfectly, with the rise and fall played throughout until the musical (and emotional) crescendo at the end, which leaves the listener floored, and brings a perfect EP to a perfect end.
This past January, Drew Thomson played a set at Blacktop Records HQ in Tillsonburg, Ontario. It's a small town about 45 minutes outside of London, which is where his band, Single Mothers, originated. Though perhaps better known for his phenomenally raucous main project, he's developed a name for himself with his softer, acoustic-based material. The intimate, personal storytelling and self-reflections are put at the forefront, and this new tape is a perfect example of that. This new live set includes songs from prior tapes put out by Secret Voice and No Sleep, as well as a series of self-released EP's. What sets Live At Apt. 2B apart is the live setting, with the funny between-song banter, the crowd singing on "Bad Catholics", and the intimacy of the recording that makes it sound as though the listener is in the room.
Live At Apt. 2B will be available on April 16th, 2016 through iTunes and Spotify, in addition to Bandcamp. It's being pressed on cassette and limited to 100 copies on transparent green tint, so I highly suggest grabbing a copy as early as possible. I know I don't normally do promotions like this, but I am sincerely a massive fan of his work, and his other tapes are already permanent residents in my glovebox, and this one will definitely be joining them soon. Plus it's a chance to give an independent Ontario (where I'm from) label some support, so definitely give their entire roster a listen.
