I remember the day my friend Adam told me about this band he was really into. The way he described them to me made them quite intriguing and then he played me the song “Polarizer” and from there I was completely in. The band that we are talking about here is The Armed and they are one hell of a band. The Armed are a sonically bombastic entity that with sheer volume will essentially polarize you in a total good way. Today, they have released “Everything’s Glitter” a new song from their upcoming album, Perfect Saviors (out 8.25.23 via Sargent House). This new song finds the band further expanding their sonic sensibilities with a melodic and anthemic element. The Armed still have a wildly chaotic sound but, have been able to over the course of the last couple releases, harness that chaos into controlled chaos with the end result becoming more grandiose and catchy.
We are a little past the halfway point of 2023 so, why not put together a list of a bunch of my favorite releases of the year… so far!
*This List Is In No Particular Order EXCEPT For Number 1
01) Iress- Solace EP 02) Loma Prieta- Last 03) Will Haven- VII 04) Better Lovers- God Made Me An Animal EP 05) The Ocean- Holocene 06) Metallica- 72 Seasons 07) Turbid North- The Decline 08) Deathgrave- It’s Only Midnight 09) Unearth- The Wretched / The Ruinous 10) Dave Lombardo- Rites Of Percussion 11) Rancid- Tomorrow Never Comes 12) Creeping Death- Boundless Domain 13) Queens Of The Stone Age- In Times New Roman 14) Tunic- Wrong Dream 15) Common Wounds- Common Wounds EP 16) Jerome’s Dream- The Gray In Between 17) Vanishment- No More Torture 18) The Smashing Pumpkins- ATUM 19) Year Of The Knife- Dust To Dust 20) Thrice- The Artist and The Ambulance (2023 Version)
Ever since they announced their new album, Stone, I’ve been on a pretty big Baroness kick. Lucky for me and you, today they’ve released another single, “Beneath The Rose” from their upcoming new album. This new song is pretty damn rockin’! One of my favorite things about Baroness, is their eagerness to experiment and try new things and on this song, they have definitely added some extra elements and textures to their repitoire. The roots of this song also go back to the bands previous album, Gold & Grey. Speaking about that vocalist/guitarist John Baizley said “This song is kind of a cool one because, when we were writing our last record, Gold & Grey, I had the outline for this song ready to go, but it didn’t quite work. We couldn’t figure out how to turn it into a full song at the time, so it was nice to dust off the bones of the song and breathe new life into it for STONE. It’s always nice to go back to a song that you’ve always felt had a potential, but you never saw through. It’s loosely based lyrically on a poem by George Eliot.” Stone comes out on September 15! In the meantime dig into this!
I’m already beyond stoked about the new Mutoid Man album, Mutants, coming out on July 28. One of the things I really enjoy about Mutoid Man is the fun aspect to what they do. Don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely a serious factor to what they do but, they really have this playful sensibility that gives you a little smirk as you listen. And live, it’s even better. The new song they have released “Demons” is a banger and then some. The roots of the song go all the way back to 2018 with singer/guitarist Stephen Brodsky commenting on it “We played PsychoVegas in 2018 and to celebrate the occasion, we thought it’d be fitting to open with a cover of ‘Psycho‘ by the Sonics. We learned the song about 20 minutes before our set, and had such a blast playing it that we decided to write our own little psycho jam. And with that, we present to you ‘Demons‘ — enjoy!” And Enjoy you shall!
There’s definitely something going on in the ether to bring these forces together. Intensity, aggression, and ferociousness are just some of the words that come to mind when describing the onslaught that Better Lovers have delivered with their debut EP, God Made Me An Animal. When it was first announced that Greg Puciato would be joining Jordan Buckley, Steve Micciche, Clayton “Goose” Holyoak and Will Putney in a new band, the chills that ran through me were astounding. The thoughts of what this new band is capable of is off the charts. The first taste of their offering with “30 Under 13” definitely left you wanting more. Then out of left field comes the raging brush fire that is their debut EP, God Made Me An Animal. The chaotic and frantically controlled 15 minutes of length that their EP runs is one hell of a journey that leaves you with the want for more but, also a sense that what’s coming next is going to smash your face in.
“Sacrificial Participant” sets the tone and pace of the release. It wastes no time as the riffs flow, rhythms pummel and vocals rip your throat right out. Then it goes right into “30 Under 13” which is an absolute ripper. “Become So Small” is a track with a sense of urgency to it with the way it grabs you and twists and turns you. This is one of those songs that live will for sure get the pit in a frenzy. Closing out the EP is the title track, “God Made Me An Animal.” This is my favorite track on this release. It’s a track that shows off different facets of what this band is capable of. The aggressive nature of the song is ripe throughout and the melodic sensibility gives it another element to chew on.
There is a relentless energy that is found throughout this EP that is similar to the bands that the members come from. Better Lovers expands upon some interesting ground that each band delved into and brings it more to the forefront. This is only a taste of what this band is and will become. As much as I would love to have The Dillinger Escape Plan and Every Time I Die back, Better Lovers is a solid step in the evolution of the members as a whole. Each person brings something interesting to the table and with enough time, I have a feeling that this band will take things to a whole other level.
The other day I was having a conversation with a friend and we got to talking about how fast time has gone by. While in this discussion, it somehow evolved into how old certain albums are now. One of the ones that got brought up was A Perfect Circle’s debut album, Mer De Noms, which is now 23 years old. Crazy! I still remember the day it came out and spending hours upon hours listening to it. So much so that it became my go to album in the summer of 2000. Naturally, this made me go put the album on later and it’s still as good as it was the first listen through. One of the songs I’ve always loved on that album is the opening track, “The Hollow.” It’s a damn good song and one of my all time favorite track one’s. It’s got such a great impact to start the album off and all the little nuances about the song make it all the more intriguing each time you listen. Also something that many don’t know is that this is the only song on the album that Josh Fresse doesn’t play drums on. Instead Tim Alexander from Primus is the drummer on this song. Also, “The Hollow” was the third and final single released from their debut album.
This is actually pretty funny in my own mind. For years I’ve been talking about how Placebo should do a cover of a Tears For Fears song (my go to for the longest time when discussing this idea was “Everybody Wants To Rule The World). Then a few months back this idea actually came to fruition in that Placebo did cover a Tears For Fears song and they chose “Shout,” and it’s actually really good. I love that not only Brian Molko sings on it but Stefan Olsdal does as well and his voice is the one that sounds best on the track. No to take away from what Brian does but, getting to hear Stefan out in the forefront is awesome. Also, if you haven’t heard Placebo’s latest album, Never Let Me Go, you should check that out too. It’s quite good and reminds me a bit of Sleeping With Ghosts meets Loud Like Love.
10 Years is back with a new single “I Remember.” The band are hard at work on the follow up to their last album, Violent Allies. I’ve always considered 10 Years to be one of the more consistent bands out. They have quite the catalog of albums and songs now that really hold up quite well. I find myself going back to a few of their albums like The Autumn Effect, Minus The Machine and How To Live As Ghosts quite a lot. This new single is a great representation of the melodic heavy rock they’ve been releasing for going on 20 plus years now. Speaking on the new single guitarist Brian Vodinh said “I Remember‘ is about looking back at our youth and remembering how it felt like we had our entire lives in front of us. How we were full of hope and ambition and kind of clueless to how harsh the real world is. It’s about remembering how we used to always look at the bright side and weren’t so beaten up by life.” I for one am looking forward to what this new 10 Years album brings.
Extreme music is extreme for a reason. When you listen to a band within this genre, there always seems to be a bit more of an expression whether it’s in the heaviness of the music, lyrical content, all around delivery or even melding of other sub-genres to make something that is a bit unsettling while at the same time strikes a chord with an audience. Recently I was introduced to a band that encapsulates all that into their debut album and it absolutely takes zero prisoners. Allow me to get you acquainted with Agriculture. This Los Angeles based 4 piece combined their collective influences to create what they like to call “Ecstatic Black Metal.” Not only is Black Metal a strong constant throughout their music the more you listen, you pick up on all sorts of different artistic elements. The use of improvisational experimentation and a sense of catharsis makes for quite the listening experience.
Agriculture’s self titled debut full length is a sonic assault that sets you on quite the start to finish path. Through the use of heavy music in an extreme fashion, there is a sense of urgency found throughout the album. The well crafted intense guitars and harmonies, along with passionate vocals, atmospheric pathways and intriguing experiments, makes Agriculture’s album one that blooms with grace and a punch to the face. Agriculture’s album will arrive on July 21st via The Flesner and on that day, the fruits of their labor be a statement to both the esoteric and physical world.
Filth Is Eternal are one of my favorite bands that I’ve had the pleasure to write about. They are a powerhouse band that is raw and unapologetic through and through. Their new single “Crawl Space” from their upcoming album, Find Out (out 9.29.23 via MNRK HEAVY) is an anthemic track that hits you in all sorts of ways with interesting melodies and pummeling riffs and rhythms all in a matter of a minute and a half. Filth Is Eternal are quite the force of nature. Their immediacy/urgency in their music is impactful right from the start. And live, this band is on a whole other level of ferociousness. Take a moment and dig into what Filth Is Eternal is cooking and soon, you’ll Find Out what else they have in store for you!
