I will admit, it wasn’t until The Ghost Inside released their album, 2014’s Dear Youth, that I started to come around to them. Not long after that, the band was involved in quite a bus accident that left the future of the band up in the air. Now after a very lengthy hiatus and tons of physical therapy, The Ghost Inside have released their first new song “Aftermath.” This song is pretty damn killer. It’s good to see them back out there and picking up where they left off.
A couple weeks back, the very great O’Brother released a new track called “Killing Spree” off their upcoming and very anticipated album, You and I. Well, now they’ve released another new song “Halogen Eye” and this one is quite the killer track as well. This track also features Biffy Clyro vocalist and guitarist Simon Neil. “Halogen Eye” is definitely an O’Brother song but, this one has a little something extra to it. You and I is definitely going to be a diverse album from what I can tell and that has me excited. O’Brother has always been a band to push themselves to make the best music possible. Their previous album, 2016’s Endless Light proved that and this one is carrying that on.
Over the last few months, a friend of mine has raved about a band and with all this “downtime” I’ve finally taken the time to really check them out and, I really dig them. Silent Planet, is the band I’m talking about. Combining metalcore, prog rock, and bits of post metal along with introspective lyrics, they’ve carved out a nice little niche for themselves amongst their peers. One of the things that I was drawn to about this band was vocalist Garrett Russell and his very honest approach to his lyrics. It’s always refreshing to hear someone be so vulnerable and let it all out there. It’s very cathartic but, it’s also welcoming to those that listen to be able to connect in that way. The music that accompanies those words take on a life of its own, while the lyrics breath a different element into the arrangements and how the songs plays out. The heavy parts and more delicate moments, play off certain words in a masterful way. For example, on their song “Trilogy” you can definitely hear so many different ways the band uses their influences and inspirations to deliver a song that has depth. To date they have recorded two EPs and three full-length albums. And with each release, Silent Planet has definitely become a band to look out for.
I don’t know how I wind up listening to things at times. The other day while I was working, somehow I wound up listening to the band Garbage. I still have no clue what brought that up but, I’m glad it did. I spent the rest of the day and most of the next delving back into their catalog and history. Garbage really have some pretty great songs and albums. Their newer albums too are pretty damn good. While listening to their debut album, I had a flashback to the first time I heard the band and their song “Vow.” I remember listening to the radio and being totally taken aback by the voice I heard. Shirley Manson really left a mark on me and the music the backed her up on that song was just as grabbing. Some interesting history on the song, Garbage had not initially planned to release “Vow” as their first single, as a single at all, or even include it on their self titled debut. According to the band, they felt that “Vow” was not representative of the album’s genre-hopping body of work, although they later came to appreciate the situation that led to the song becoming their debut. Manson declared that “now we can do whatever and people won’t know what to expect”, but if the band had instead settled for “of the more clubby tunes” as a single, “we would have been pigeonholed as a dance band and that’s a hard tag to shake.” Either way, I’m glad it was released and on their debut. It wouldn’t be the same if it wasn’t.
A couple weeks back, a new band was unveiled in the form of Umbra Vitae which features Jacob Bannon of Converge, Mike McKenzie of The Red Chord, Sean Martin of Twitching Tongues, ex Hatebreed, Greg Weeks of The Red Chord and Jon Rice of Uncle Acid, ex Job For A Cowboy. The first song they released, “Return To Zero” was one hell of a track out of the gates but, this new one, “Mantra Of Madness,” is a whole other level of killer. The title is quite fitting for the times we live in at the moment too. Their debut album Shadow of Life, comes out May 1st on Deathwish. So, with all that in mind, check this out!!!
It’s always exciting when bands you really enjoy but, haven’t heard from in a while release new music. Especially when the new music that is released is THIS good. Glaare have released “Mirrors” the first song and video from their very anticipated forthcoming album, Your Hellbound Heart. This darkwave, dream pop and goth-rock band from Los Angeles has been leaving quite a mark since their inception and their 2017 album, To Deaf and Day, is one of the best albums in the genre in the last decade. So, it comes as no surprise here that, on this new track, Glaare picks up where they left off but have added more compelling elements to really drive home their style and sound.
After 4 long years, Youth Code have finally released a new track in the form of “Puzzle.” This hard charging banger of a song is one they’ve played live on their last couple tours. This track is everything you’d expect from Youth Code. If this is any indication as to what their upcoming new album will be like, we are definitely in for one hell of a beast.
Back in February, before the whole world became quarantined, I saw a couple bands that rocked one hell of a small stage. Spirit In The Room was one of the bands I saw that evening (and you should MOST DEFINITELY be checking them out if you haven’t already) but, the band that played before them left a lasting impression on me. That band was Elephant Rifle. As I mentioned in my live review of the show, these guys have a really cool, psychedelic approach to their shoegazy Black Sabbath riffs along a good helping of noisy punk to make something that is enticing and provocative. I stand by that description but, I’d also like to add that they have this really cool and soulful/artsy side to them that shines through in a fun interesting way. I’m very intrigued to see what’s next for this band and where they go musically. Elephant Rifle should definitely be on your radar and when we can go back to going to shows, you should go see them.
I was talking to a friend the other day who is doing one of those post an album cover without explanation things on social media. One of the ones he posted was an album cover by The Donnas. It’s been so long since I’ve listened to them that it sent me on a little bit of a dig back through their catalog. While doing so, I remembered they did a pretty awesome and fun cover of the Kiss song “Strutter” for the soundtrack to Detroit Rock City. So for the fun of it, here’s that cover for you to enjoy.
This isn’t necessarily a “collaboration” but, it did happen and it was pretty magical. A couple years ago, The Smashing Pumpkins did a few shows to celebrate them being a band for 30 years. They invited a few people to come join them on stage, Chino Moreno of Deftones fame being one of them. They performed two classic Pumpkins songs that evening, “Bodies” from Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness and “Snail” from “Gish.” It’s almost like Chino was meant to sing “Bodies” and “Snail”when you listen to him sing them. I’d love to hear the soundboard audio of these songs but, these versions are pretty good.
