The Extra Glenns “Martial Arts Weekend” (Absolutely Kosher Records) From the minute I heard the first notes I knew these guys were something special; special ed that is. The Extra Glenns is an ingenious mixture of quasi-acoustical rock with a…
The Reign of Terror “Sacred Ground” (Limb Music) Typically a review should start, one would think, with a description of the music or a simple statement indicating the band’s genre. In this case the genre is clearly spelled out for…
The Smashing Pumpkins “Rotten Apples: “Greatest Hits / Judas O”) (Virgin Records) For the Smashing Pumpkins fan, 12 previously unreleased songs. A bit arrogant for a ‘Greatest Hits’ album that boasts a 34 track total. (Billy Corrigan, Arrogant? Say it…
Vader “Revelations” (Metal Blade) Vader has been on the blasting doomified death metal scene for many long years but somehow their particular death metal path and mine had never crossed until the day of this fateful death metal album review…
Sinch “Something More” (Roadrunner Records) One of those ‘some of this and some of that’ bands. Every element here is unoriginal and pulled directly from what I consider the current flavor of marketable heavy bands. Despite seeming to shoot for…
Sinners & Saints “The Sky Is Falling” (Bridge Nine) If I told you this was a band created by founding members of Blood for Blood, the Ducky Boys and In My Eyes, I guarantee you would not believe me. This…
Smackin’ Isiah “The Champagne of Bands” (Fork in Hand Records) I don’t know what happened. I do remember picking up the CD, almost a bit hesitant because of my past experience with this very album; yet i stuck it in…
Over Kill “Wrecking Everything – Live” (Spitfire) Recorded live in New Jersey in late March of this year, this album catches Over Kill raw, powerful, tight and energetically on. To use the cliché, well-oiled machine, wouldn’t be wrong to describe…
Piebald ““We Are The Only Friends We Have”” (Big Wheel Recreation) Can you say indie rock? Do you want to know what indie rock is? What indie rock stands for? Your questions can be put to rest if you just…
Pitch Black “Self-Titled” (Revelation Records) An album’s worth of dark and mysterious punk from Northern Oakland that bears a striking resemblance to modern Bay Area legends, AFI. How far is Northern Oakland from the Bay Area? Maybe they’re just unaware…