UXO — UXO
✦✦✧✧ A lo-fi adventure in screechy hostility with a marred execution. You can definitely hear the Unsane pedigree in this supergroup, but in a decidedly retro way. See the rest here
Author Archives: arse
Toothgrinder — Noctural Masquerade
✦✦✦✧ This is a pleasantly unusual and self-assured album that claims metalcore roots, but this music is as likely to remind you of Periphery or Symphony X or American Head Charge as it will of Killswitch Engage. In particular, the band do a masterful job of melding melodic sensibilities with wall-of-noise mayhem. See the rest here
Trying something new
In my continuing efforts to make The Arsies the best imaginary metal tournament on the planet, I’ve started work on a new scoring system, which feeds into the First Listens. Now, instead of coming up with an arbitrary rating (0 to 4 stars), I’m scoring an album on multiple criteria. This adds up to a star rating, which hopefully will influence the battles come next January. See the rest here
Dream Theater — The Astonishing
✦✦✧✧ This feels like DT’s take on Pink Floyd – The Wall… but doesn’t work nearly as well. The band repeatedly make bad trades by subduing their collective virtuosity in exchange for limp and forgettable songwriting. Also, these songs have a bad habit of going from Shred to Meh’d and back again, undercutting any hope of momentum. See the rest here
Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time
Now that the Arsies are over, I can get back to the work of listening to as much new metal in 2016. To that end, I’ve set up a TIDAL playlist of all the albums and long-enough EPs that I’m giving a first listen to. I work hard so you don’t have to! See the rest here
Megadeth — Dystopia
✦✦✧✧ This isn’t the worst thing that Megadeth have done (that honor still stays with Super Collider). Also, the shredding here is satisfyingly sharp, and the production is crisp and heavy. I’ll remind you here that Chris Adler is playing drums on this, because otherwise you’d never know it from listening to the album. See the rest here
Agoraphobic Nosebleed — Arc
✦✦✦✧ This is as tasty and heavy a slab of noise as you’d expect from the grindcore supergroup helmed by Scott Hull. It’s also a bit of a curveball, if you’re expecting just another helping of Pig Destroyer, as this is decidedly more sludgey than that. But it’s just as earnest and convincing in this form, due in no small part to Katherine Katz’s gutwrenching vocals. See the rest here
Re: Before the Arsies Begin…
That’s some excellent analysis, JaPaBo. I can’t argue with the math!
What I can say, however, is that I don’t intentionally go against the grain per se. If anything, I try to avoid groupthink and keep an open mind about albums I’m going to listen to. The payoff comes in those moments when I find myself saying, “You know, this new Winger album is pretty good!” See the rest here
Kamelot — Haven
★★★☆ Sure, power metal may not be the most admired genre in the business, but given that… this album is pretty much flawless. It feels like a more energetic Soilwork, cross-bred with some Symphony X for good measure. Everything you’d look for is here in spades: tasty guitar work, pounding drums, a healthy bottom line, lush keys and strings, and very strong vocals (which is surprisingly rare in this field). See the rest here
Turnstile — Nonstop Feeling
★★★☆ Prong meets Sick Of It All meets Slayer meets 311 meets Helmet. And yet it works! The album’s twelve tracks (27 minutes total!) each hold surprises for the listener, and every twist and turn feels surprising and fresh and youthful and fun. You do get the sense that this is an early record, to be supplanted in the near future with bigger and better; likely, the band’s embrace of nostalgic production values contributes in no small part to this feeling. See the rest here
