We often talk about certain albums as being of a particular ‘time and place’; the sonic equivalent of a “You had to be there” moment. Unless you were the victim of a very special set of circumstances, privy to the emotional access and vantage point of a particular era and location, then things just won’t quite ‘click’ for you.

Substack

Weekly Roundup: March 15th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. After their searing lead single "ALL FUTURES," art-punk noise collective The Armed have ushered forth another sample from their upcoming album, ULTRAPOP (out April 16th through Sargent House).

New Noise Magazine

03/12/2021

Review: Enforced - Kill Grid

Whether it's through the political savagery of Havok, Warbringer's progressive darkness, the hardcore punk flirtations of Red Death, Iron Reagan's raucous party ethos, the speedy Kreator-worship of Forseen, or the 'Texan Takeover' spearheaded by the unholy trio of Power Trip, Iron Age, and Skeleton-the last decade has been a total boon for twentieth-first century thrashers.

Substack

03/11/2021

Byte Size: 2010s Sci-Fi God Tier List

Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I make no secret about being a massive nerd. My house is full of film posters, books, and graphic novels, and I have a not-so inconsequential collection of media-related tattoos permanently jabbed into my skin. For me, science fiction has always been about two things: potential and escapism.

New Noise Magazine

03/11/2021

Interview: Will Wagstaff and Knox Colby of Enforced on Debut LP, 'Kill Grid'

It's hard to talk about music in 2021 and not have the discussion reflect the glaring shitshow situation of the last twelve months. Yes, there was (and is) a global pandemic. Yes, there was (and is) growing signs of social and political unrest.

New Noise Magazine

03/10/2021

Review: Eyehategod - A History of Nomadic Behavior

On A History of Nomadic Behavior, NOLA luminaires Eyehategod have lost none of the magic that defined the 90s ascendancy of seminal sludge metal artifacts such as Take as Needed for Pain (1993) and Dopesick (1996).

Substack

03/08/2021

Weekly Roundup: March 8th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. I hadn't heard of UK quintet Squid before last week when a copy of Bright Green Fields, their upcoming LP (out May 7 on Warp Records), suddenly dropped into my inbox.

Substack

03/04/2021

The Nu-Normal #04: Phoebe Bridgers, SNL, and 'The Smashening'

Last month, on a recent episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Dan Levy of Schitt's Creek fame, indie rock artist Phoebe Bridgers stepped up to perform the closing track from her spectacular 2020 album , the near-six-minute opus " I Know The End."

New Noise Magazine

03/03/2021

Review: The Spill Canvas - Conduit

With only a few sequencing missteps on the back end, 'Conduit' is a beautiful bridge between the old and new for The Spill Canvas. Long-time fans will find much to love about this release, with just enough emo heyday nostalgia to prop up the band's newer sonic explorations.

Substack

03/01/2021

Weekly Roundup: March 1st

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. The Brisbane boys are back in town! Deadlights have been hard at work on their new LP, The Uncanny Valley (out May 21 via Greyscale Records)-the follow-up to their 2017 debut, Mesma- and pre-release single "Born of a Lie" is the perfect introduction (or reintroduction) to the band.

New Noise Magazine

02/27/2021

Yesterday's Jukebox #02: Architects

Welcome to Yesterday's Jukebox! We'll be taking a retrospective gaze through a wide selection of disparate genres and artist discographies, with a keen eye for the deep cuts, hidden gems, and certified bangers. This month, we're taking a look at the career of Brighton metalcore exports Architects.

Substack

02/25/2021

Wayback Machine: Best Hip Hop of the 2010s

When I was a youth, I only listened to 'heavy' music, and foolishly, I wore that narrowmindedness as a badge of pride. Eventually, I grew out of that shit and I was starved for new sounds and experiences. In the 2010s, I made a concerted effort to listen to more hip hop.

New Noise Magazine

02/23/2021

Review: Gravesend - Methods of Human Disposal

'Methods of Human Disposal' is not a feel-good album-and that's entirely by design. On their debut LP, Gravesend have taken to squatting in the hallowed halls of death metal, power-violence, hardcore, and grind, kicking in the walls, burning out the floorboards, and pissing on the ashes.

Substack

02/22/2021

Weekly Roundup: February 22nd

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. French metallers Gojira have been one of the most consistent and forward-thinking bands on the planet for over a decade. Hyper-focused and extremely tight, everything the quartet put their talented hands to comes out golden.

New Noise Magazine

02/19/2021

Review: Architects - For Those Who Wish To Exist

With fifteen tracks and an hour of music on offer, 'For Those Who Wish To Exist' is an album best consumed and digested in movements, with discrete groupings that ebb and flow and resonate with the album's grander purpose. It's a record that's sure to alienate some Architects fans but will hopefully inspire others.

Substack

02/18/2021

Deep Cuts #02: Sparta - 'Wiretap Scars'

Before we dive in to this record, first an anecdote. (And please, bear with me here—I promise I’m going somewhere with this.) During the spectacular period of alternative music history known as the early 00s, I had tickets to see pop-punk luminaries Blink-182 perform on their 2004 worldwide Untitled Album stadium tour. As a kid from rural Australia who’d only recently moved to the ‘big smoke’ for the final years of high school, my radar for “cool” music was already somewhat restricted.

Substack

02/15/2021

Weekly Roundup: February 15th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Gary, Indiana-based MC Freddie Gibbs returns with another hood banger in "Gang Signs." With a smooth Pilgrim and FaxOnly-produced beat and a collaboration feature from ScHoolboy Q, the track is our first taste for Gibbs' upcoming ESGN 2 project.

Substack

02/11/2021

Ecstatic Ephemera: Be Mine, Valentine

Valentine's Day is a cultural enigma. It's a holiday invented by capitalism, purely to take advantage of people's romantic sentiments, relationship obligations, and surplus cash. If you have a significant other, they might claim to hate Valentine's Day. But can you really afford not to get them anything?

Hysteria Magazine

02/09/2021

COG // Back To The Nu-Normal

When we get Luke Gower on the phone on a cruisy Wednesday afternoon, he's in the middle of domestic bliss, hard at work in the kitchen. The bassist and backing vocalist for Sydney progressive rock outfit Cog is knee-deep in mashed potatoes and steak sandwiches, clearly enjoying some time at home with the family as the rest of the country slowly ramps up from quarantine-induced stasis.

Substack

02/08/2021

Weekly Roundup: February 8th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. I love seeing bands go for fun over fashion. "The Level" certainly sounds like something Victorians Slowly Slowly would put out-warm, melodic, emo-inflected alt-rock-but the track's video is patched in from another dimension, oozing charm and personality.

New Noise Magazine

02/05/2021

Review: Teenage Wrist - Earth Is A Black Hole

For L.A. alt-rockers Teenage Wrist, their second LP drops in a time of chaos and crisis. And it's this pervasive sense of existential malaise that makes an album title like 'Earth Is A Black Hole' feel less like artistic metaphor and more of an accurate assessment of collective mood.

Substack

02/04/2021

The Nu-Normal #03: Is Rock No Longer Fun?

Yesterday I sat down and watched Downfall's High -yes, in full, all forty-nine, glorious, cringe-worthy minutes of it. For those not in the know, Downfall's High is Colson Baker's (aka Machine Gun Kelly's) latest celebrity endeavour: a feature-length musical that strings together all fifteen tracks from his fifth album, Tickets to My Downfall.

New Noise Magazine

02/04/2021

Yesterday's Jukebox #01: Lucero

In Yesterday's Jukebox, we take a retrospective gaze through a wide selection of disparate genres and artist discographies, with a keen eye for the deep cuts, hidden gems, and certified bangers. To kick things off, we're starting with alt-country rockers Lucero.

Substack

02/01/2021

Weekly Roundup: February 1st

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Brighton metalcore exports Architects are back with their ninth (!) full-length album, For Those Who Wish To Exist (out Feb 26th through Epitaph Records). Newest single "Dead Butterflies" might just be the UK quintet's most polarising preview track yet, with vocalist Sam Carter's stadium-rock cleans complemented by mid-tempo grooves and atmospheric string sections.

Substack

01/28/2021

Deep Cuts #01: Lucero – 'Women & Work'

In 2012 I was quickly approaching the twilight of my mid-twenties and the long-rumoured mid-midlife crisis. Thankfully, I managed to stave off the worst of it and keep my shit (mostly) together. However, this was also a period in time when my musical tastes were yearning for new, unexplored horizons.

Killyourstereo.com

01/26/2021

Review: WOWOD – 'Yarost' I Proshchenie'

Y'know, I don't know how I initially came across WOWOD, but I'm glad I did. Thanks to the generosity of the Almighty Algorithm, the relatively unknown and self-described 'blackened band' from Saint Petersburg somehow slid into my YouTube recommendation DMs, and that was all it took.

Substack

01/25/2021

Weekly Roundup: January 25th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Metalcore masters August Burns Red have returned to the fold with another crushing yet catchy banger, titled "Standing In The Storm." The track acts as the follow-up to last year's well-received Guardians album, so expect plenty of intricate riffage, soaring melodies, and pneumatic beatdown moments.

New Noise Magazine

01/24/2021

Review: Harakiri For The Sky - Maere

When was the last time you sat down and listened to music for 90 minutes straight? Maybe it was on a long, lonely drive? Or at the gym? Or sitting alone in your room, contemplating the profound emptiness of human existence? (No? Just me then...)

FilmBunker

01/23/2021

Review: Occupation: Rainfall

In his review of the alien invasion classic Independence Day (1996), Roger Ebert describes getting lost in plot minutiae and the complexities of extra-terrestrial motivations: " Independence Day is a timid movie when it comes to imagination. The aliens, when we finally see them, are a serious disappointment; couldn't they think of anything more interesting than octopus men?

Substack

01/21/2021

Byte Size: Cringeless Australian Cinema

For the longest time, I've had a bone to pick with Australian cinema. Sure, we have our classics, our regional canon: The Castle; The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert; Romper Stomper; Muriel's Wedding; Wolf Creek; Chopper; The Dish; and many others.

New Noise Magazine

01/21/2021

Review: Portrayal of Guilt - We Are Always Alone

Produced, recorded, and mixed by Phillip Odom at Cacophony Recorders, with mastering by Will Yip, it's clear that 'We Are Always Alone' captures Portrayal of Guilt at their purest. The album is an uncompromising statement of intent, with dense layers of sound that endlessly shift and transform the listening experience.

Substack

01/18/2021

Weekly Roundup: January 18th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Neo-grunge rockers Citizen have dropped their newest single "I Want to Kill You" from their upcoming fourth LP, Life In Your Glass World (out March 26 via Run For Cover Records).

New Noise Magazine

01/15/2021

Review: Asphyx - Necroceros

I think it's fair to say that Dutch metallers Asphyx have a morbid fascination with death. Look, I know that's probably a stretch, but hear me out. Firstly, the Overijssel quartet has been steadily perfecting their crunchy, metallic approach to headbang-worthy death-doom for over three decades now.

Substack

01/14/2021

The Nu-Normal #02: Don't Cross the (Live)Streams

A few days ago, I came across a Variety headline that reads as follows: "Dr. Fauci Says Concert Venues, Theaters Could Reopen in the Fall, 'If Everything Goes Right.'" Curious, I thought to myself, that's a hell of a big IF.

Exclaim

01/12/2021

'Drunk Tank Pink' Showcases Shame's Talent for Vivid Storytelling

In the world of Shame's Drunk Tank Pink, perception is everything. Opener "Alphabet" kicks off with rattling snare and lurching rhythms from drummer Charlie Forbes and bassist Josh Finerty. Guitarists Sean Coyle-Smith and Eddie Green pepper the empty space with scattershot sustain and siren wail leads.

Substack

01/11/2021

Weekly Roundup: January 11th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Following up their acclaimed debut, 2018's My Mind Makes Noises, UK outfit Pale Waves are back with more sugar sweet, mall goth-tinged pop and this time around, they've thrown in a neo-grunge aesthetic for good measure.

New Noise Magazine

01/09/2021

Review: Frank Iero and The Future Violents - Heaven is a Place, This is a Place

'Heaven is a Place, This is a Place' shows that Frank Iero & Co are capable of chameleonic acts of songwriting prowess. After all, the stage (or studio) is also just a place, and in it, The Future Violents sound right at home.

Substack

01/04/2021

Weekly Roundup: January 4th

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Griselda-adjacent Buffalo crew Black Soprano Family have kicked off the new year in style with the release of "Conversation Cost".

Substack

12/31/2020

In Review: Top 10 Albums of 2020

Despite the unending cavalcade of disappointments this year continued to serve up, week in and week out, 2020 was actually a great year for music. It turns out that forced isolation and quarantine is a boon for artistic focus, creativity and ingenuity. I mean, I did more writing this year than I have in the last few combined.

New Noise Magazine

12/29/2020

Review: Fire Man - Overcoming the Cycle of Sun Collapse

While he retains a small yet supportive online fanbase by crafting criticisms with a heavy dose of eclectic levity, Brentar's approach to Fire Man, Overcoming the Cycle of Sun Collapse, and the legacy of punk rock remains thoughtful and engaging.

Substack

12/28/2020

Weekly Roundup: December 28th, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. It's been a banner year for Griselda Records and the release of Conway The Machine's debut solo record, From A King to A God, was one of the many highlights.

Substack

12/24/2020

Byte Size: The Worst Films I Watched in 2020

Here's a stocking stuffer for you. A little Letterboxd listicle, just in time for this coveted week of end-of-year lists and Year In Review profiles. But see, here's the thing: 2020 sucked for cinema (much like everything else).

Substack

12/21/2020

Weekly Roundup: December 21, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. There must be something in the water in Texas. Sounding like if Bolt Thrower were reanimated in their prime after being thawed out from some dark cryogenic tomb, Fort Worth bruisers Frozen Soul are doing the Lonestar State proud.

Substack

12/17/2020

Ecstatic Ephemera: Alt Xmas Covers to Piss Off Your Relatives

Well, what could possibly make 2020 any more insufferable? Christmas, of course. The silly season. The time for giving, travel, and those uncomfortable conversations with estranged relatives you deliberately avoid until familial obligations draw you inexorably into their orbit once more. At least we can all agree that Christmas music is peak trash.

Medium

12/17/2020

Happy Media Round-up: Top 10 Records of 2020

Editor's Note: Here @The Pitch of Discontent, we spend most of our free-time diving headfirst into the bountiful world of real-time media consumption. As you've likely already surmised, the world is still batshit crazy, so we're all about finding distractions in any shape or form.

Substack

12/14/2020

Weekly Roundup: December 14, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Fresh off the triumph of their snarling third album, Ultra Mono, English punks IDLES have released their latest single, "Kill Them With Kindness," where frontman Joe Talbot waxes lyrical about the need for collective empathy in the face of resurgent fascism: "If you wanna beat the machine, keep your teeth clean."

Substack

12/10/2020

The Nu-Normal #01: We Need to Talk About Spotify

Like most millennials with a passive-aggressive relationship to the Internet, I have mixed feelings about Spotify. Admittedly, I was a late bloomer to the platform. I'm the guy who only plunged into the depths of the streaming dark side a few years ago when I realised that Chapo Trap House podcasts and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and Punk-O-Rama playlists were a really good way to kill time as a maligned corporate wage-slave.

Substack

12/07/2020

Weekly Roundup: December 07, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. When you see words like 'ethereal' or 'majestic' in a lengthy music promo, it's usually just a writer throwing in gratuitous superlatives for the sake of an overblown puff piece.

Substack

12/03/2020

Wayback Machine: Best of the 2010s (2018-19)

Well, here it is at last. The final chapter in my Best of the 2010s list. 10 years, 100 records, and a 1000 potential sub-genres (just kidding). It's been a big undertaking, but it's also thoroughly rewarding to track my musical evolution over this formative time period.

Exclaim

12/02/2020

Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2020

This was a year of solitude and introspection, whether we wanted it or not. It was a year that forced everyone to confront their deepest, darkest feelings and push forward despite a categorical lack of support and diminishing capacities to cope.

Substack

11/30/2020

Weekly Roundup: November 30, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Ontario rockers The Dirty Nil are not ones for subtlety. If there was ever any doubt about this fact, then acknowledging that the Canadian trio have titled their upcoming third full-length album Fuck Art (out January 2021) should erase any lingering scepticism.

New Noise Magazine

11/27/2020

Review: Soilwork - A Whisp of the Atlantic

As they round out a quarter-century of existence, Swedish outfit Soilwork continue to find ways to innovate. A Whisp of the Atlantic proves that they can do so with style and grace, adding to their highly acclaimed discography rather than subtracting from it.

Substack

11/26/2020

Wayback Machine: Best of the 2010s (2016-17)

Well, here's a bunch of records from one of the best and one of the worst years of my life. Glorious stuff. I've had highs and lows with every album in this list, but they all got me through to today, so there's always a silver lining, folks. Dig in.

FilmBunker

11/25/2020

Review: Let Him Go

It's a tale as old as time. Old man and woman lose an adult son. Woman grieves and projects loss onto the surviving grandchild. Lonely widow eventually remarries and leaves. Man and woman now lose a grandchild. Man and woman embark on a cross-country search to recover their last shred of family.

Substack

11/23/2020

Weekly Roundup: November 23, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. As a songwriter and hitmaker for the likes of Taylor Swift, Kevin Abstract, and Lana Del Rey, Jack Antonoff aka Bleachers knows his way around a quality tune.

New Noise Magazine

11/21/2020

Review: Hatebreed - Weight of the False Self

In terms of musical quality, Weight of the False Self is heavier than a bag of anvils and is sure to rip in a live setting (whenever that may be). Twenty-five years into their career, no one is questioning Hatebreed's ability to keep things heavy.

Substack

11/19/2020

Wayback Machine: Best of the 2010s (2014-15)

Well, this is where things get really interesting. Hypnagogic synthwave up against Québecois death metal? Sure. Norwegian post-hardcore next to Australian atmospheric black metal? Yeah, why not? Two albums featuring an Indiana-based MC rubbing shoulders with a British rock powerhouse? Abso-fucking-lutely. Enjoy.

Substack

11/16/2020

Weekly Roundup: November 16, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Proving that all facets of Aussie life can be mined endlessly for punk credentials, Sunny Coast hooligans and Dave Grohl's best mates The Chats have dropped a catchy new single paying tribute to our Patron Saints of Rock.

Substack

11/12/2020

Wayback Machine: Best of the 2010s (2012-13)

More lists, you say? Who doesn't love lists? (Yeah look, I know I have a problem.) This is the second instalment of my Best of the 2010s album list, as we move on to 2012 and 2013. Hell yeah, dude.

Substack

11/09/2020

Weekly Roundup: November 09, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. Synth-wave exports Gunship have unrevealed a new while-you-wait teaser in place of their upcoming third LP. A cover of The Beatles classic "Eleanor Rigby," the British duo turn out a neon-soaked re-imagining of the original track's vision of depression and desolation.

Killyourstereo.com

11/08/2020

Review: Shackles - Hatred’s Reservoir

As a writer, lover, and all-encompassing consumer of music, it’s nice when artists find a way to succinctly summarise their musical output into a neat statement of purpose. Case in point, Byron Bay outfit Shackles have this handy little bio sitting on their Bandcamp profile: “Nearly 10 years exploring the dead space situated somewhere in the triad of Power-Violence, Grind, and Death Metal.”

Substack

11/05/2020

Wayback Machine: Best of the 2010s (2010-11)

For me, the 2010s are synonymous with fucking up and figuring stuff out. You know the deal: failed relationships, dead-end jobs, the crushing weight of corporate wage-slavery, burgeoning intellectual curiosity, embracing empathy and kindness- real adult shit. Musically, however, I managed to blow my horizons wide open, consuming all things weird and wonderful.

New Noise Magazine

11/05/2020

Interview: A Track By-Track Rundown of 'Dependent, Reliant' with You Will Always

Channelling melodic hardcore energy through emo vibes and alt-rock soundscapes, Hamilton, Ontario outfit You Will Always are all too happy to take listeners on a personal journey to rock bottom and back again.

Substack

11/02/2020

Weekly Roundup: November 02, 2020

A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to. This year of constant turmoil brings us a new album from the Connecticut metal elders. And, wouldn't you know it, it sounds exactly like Hatebreed: empowering, pissed off, and heavier than a bag of bricks.

New Noise Magazine

10/29/2020

Review: You Will Always - Dependent, Reliant

Despite its obvious flaws, emo is nothing if not earnest. Sometimes painfully so. Songs alternate between the pretty and the powerful with the emotional restraint of a hormone-laden teenager. Twinkly leads, driving chords, softly spoken words, pained screams, weird tunings, shifting tempos-it's all up for grabs in the restless hands of forlorn twenty-to-thirty-something adults.

Hysteria Magazine

10/28/2020

Interview: Greg Puciato // Fear Is The Mind-Killer

When we get former The Dillinger Escape Plan frontman and multi-instrumentalist Greg Puciato on the phone to talk about the release of his debut solo album, the conversation quickly turns to the state of global affairs in 2020.

Medium

10/24/2020

"If Not Us, Then Who?": The Enduring Thrash Philosophy of Power Trip's Riley Gale

This week marks two months since the passing of Riley Gale (1986-2020), beloved frontman of Dallas thrash metal outfit Power Trip, who died unexpectedly at the age of 34.

New Noise Magazine

10/13/2020

Review: Pallbearer - Forgotten Days

Pallbearer have always been more than just a doom band. Across their critically acclaimed back catalogue, the quartet have already tackled the crushing and commercial, the soaring and sentimental, the melodic and melancholy. Forgotten Days masterfully achieves all these things and more.

New Noise Magazine

10/10/2020

Review: Greg Puciato - Child Soldier: Creator of God

One of the perks of reviewing things for a living is having the privilege to hear new music well in advance of a scheduled release date. There's a certain thrill that comes with seeing an album that you've already pre-ordered, that you've been anxiously anticipating and waiting to devour, suddenly drop right into your inbox.

FilmBunker

10/09/2020

Review: Irresistible

In the opening scene of Irresistible, writer, director, and producer Jon Stewart-best known as the much-loved host of satirical political comedy program The Daily Show for over fifteen years-takes us to the 'spin room' following one of the volatile 2016 U.S. presidential debates.

New Noise Magazine

10/07/2020

Review: Eighteen Visions - Inferno

One of the most interesting aspects of Inferno, the latest release from Cali metalcore luminaries Eighteen Visions, is the absolute dearth of information surrounding it. Last month, a SoundCloud link to lead single and EP opener "Sink" surfaced online.

Medium

10/02/2020

"It Is What It Is": Donald Trump, Moral Apathy and the Cult of Crisis

By far the most salient takeaway from Tuesday’s televised U.S. presidential debate — the first of three to be held in the coming weeks between Republican party nominee and incumbent Donald Trump, and Democratic nominee and former vice president Joe Biden — is that it was, in the words of one particularly frank CNN pundit, a complete and utter “shit show”: a farcical, deeply embarrassing, shit-slinging spectacle entirely devoid of substance or merit.

Exclaim

09/23/2020

'Lovecraft Country' Brings Cosmic Horror Down to Earth with All-Too-Human Monsters

Developed by Misha Green, and executive produced by J.J. Abrams and Jordan Peele, Lovecraft Country acts as a sincere love letter to the pulpy sci-fi/fantasy magazines that flourished in the 1950s, bringing cosmic horror back down to earth to focus on the all-too-human monsters of sexism, racism and bigotry.

New Noise Magazine

09/22/2020

Review: Death Bells - New Signs of Life

For LA-based Australian post-punk outfit Death Bells, their sophomore album New Signs of Life represents both an act of rebirth and a reaffirmation of purpose. Three years on from their well-received debut LP, the internal dynamic of the band has changed in stark and contrasting ways.

Exclaim

09/22/2020

Amazon Prime's 'Utopia' Fails to Recapture the Magic of the British Original

After watching the first seven episodes made available for review, it's clear that Flynn's Utopia is vastly inferior to Kelly's subversive original in almost every conceivable way. What Amazon's adaptation might share in general story beats, character names and core mythology, it squanders in terms of lasting visual impact, performer chemistry, rich storytelling and overall thematic resonance.

New Noise Magazine

09/21/2020

Review: Svalbard - When I Die, Will I Get Better?

Svalbard have always been a band that wears their hearts on their collective sleeves. Running at a lean 39-minutes, When I Die, Will I Get Better? (which takes its title from an obscure children's book about death and grief) presents listeners with a long list of album highlights.

New Noise Magazine

09/08/2020

Review: Skeletal Remains - The Entombment of Chaos

It's no secret that Skeletal Remains worship at the throne of death metal's elder gods. Overall, The Entombment of Chaos is a genuinely lethal death metal record, one that is entirely aggressive by design, profoundly brutal in execution, and it might be their best yet.

Medium

09/03/2020

Teasing Dune: Building Anticipation for Denis Villeneuve's Sci-Fi Epic

With the announcement of the highly-anticipated trailer for director Denis Villeneuve's forthcoming sci-fi epic Dune, the Internet has since been flooded with exclusive images, on-set photos, and other tantalising tidbits. And while we have to wait until September 9th for Warner Bros. to finally release the full trailer for Villeneuve's Dune ...

Exclaim

08/31/2020

Nas's 'King's Disease' Is Uneven - but Still His Most Satisfying Project in Years

There's no denying that Nasir "Nas" Jones is a cultural force unto himself. Across a career spanning three decades, the Queensbridge, NY-bred rapper has a pedigree of records and hits that most MC's would outright kill for - not to mention Grammy wins, frequent slots on G.O.A.T. lists, and an accumulation of wealth and success.

Medium

08/30/2020

What It Is To Be

Does identity matter? As a metaphysical dilemma this question relates to the existence of objects over time. How does a single object or entity persist through change? Exactly what constitutes the 'nature' of a person? When - or, perhaps more specifically, under what conditions - does a person come in to and out of existence?

New Noise Magazine

08/24/2020

Review: Necrot - Mortal

While not reinventing the OSDM wheel by any stretch of the imagination, Mortal sticks to what Necrot do best by honoring the established, meat-and-potatoes death metal template while also including just enough stylistic flair to satiate their modern, bloodthirsty audience.

FilmBunker

08/22/2020

Review: Tenet

Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s newest big-budget blockbuster, is the director’s most overt foray yet into the exploration of time as a narrative agent unto itself. But what is time exactly? Is it the ticking of a clock? The sequence of events stretching from the past to the present and indefinitely into the future? Is it a physical component of our corporeal reality? Or, as some leading theorists now suggest, is it merely an illusion altogether?

New Noise Magazine

08/20/2020

Review: Ball of Light - S/T

After the release of their debut full-length Flux last year, Cincinnati bruisers Ball of Light have returned to the fold to grace us with a new, self-titled two-track offering , tailor made for these uncertain times and certain to quell those pesky pandemic blues.

Exclaim

08/11/2020

Primitive Man's 'Immersion' Is the Nihilistic Sound of Civilization's Downfall

Existentially speaking, music allows us to reflect and share our perceptions of reality. With the current state of the world being one of unyielding misery and discontent, one would be forgiven for throwing their hands up, revelling in the "doomer" memes and embracing a thoroughly existential soundtrack for these end times.

New Noise Magazine

08/11/2020

Review: Only Sibling - Get Well Soon

If Only Sibling were at all concerned about potential charges of 'imposter syndrome' as self-confessed "loser rock" aficionados, then they sure don't sound like it. While it's still early days for the young quartet, Get Well Soon indicates that there's plenty of promise here.

Exclaim

08/07/2020

Terminal Nation Remind Us That Humanity Is Screwed with 'Holocene Extinction'

On the provocatively titled Holocene Extinction, Arkansas bruisers Terminal Nation make two things abundantly clear: they're not here to mince words, and things are pretty much fucked. Every day individuals are forced to face down the ills of political corruption, the devastating effects of anthropogenic climate change, corporate greed, civil unrest, the ongoing threat of a deadly global pandemic, and cultural stagnation.

Exclaim

07/31/2020

Hockey Dad Slowly Start Growing Up on 'Brain Candy'

For much of the last decade, Australian duo Hockey Dad have spent their time turning a sense of wistful, care-free nostalgia into a unique brand of catchy surf rock escapism. However, much like the iconic '90s cartoon that supplied their tongue-in-cheek namesake, there's an upper limit to how far that nostalgic turn can take you.

New Noise Magazine

07/30/2020

Review: Misery Signals - Ultraviolet

Ultraviolet is a record that turns firmly towards the light, successfully avoiding the pitfalls of relaxed nostalgia by charging confidently into a new, brighter future. It's a hopeful record, one imbued with a renewed sense of purpose, impelled by an inner momentum of growth and relentless celestial optimism.

New Noise Magazine

07/30/2020

Interview: A track-by-track rundown of 'Ultraviolet' with Misery Signals

For the better part of two decades, Misery Signals have been one of the most influential and innovative acts in progressive metalcore. On their forthcoming album, Ultraviolet, the Canadian-American outfit are entering a new era with the return of their original founding line-up.

New Noise Magazine

07/28/2020

Review: Creeper - Sex, Death & the Infinite Void

For all its macabre imagery and gloomy post-punk aesthetics, the biggest fault on Sex, Death & the Infinite Void is that Creeper can't seem to hide-or, for that matter, reinterpret-their influences all too well, with admirable performances that ultimately fall victim to their sources of derivation.

Exclaim

07/27/2020

'The Umbrella Academy' Season 2 Proves That Even the Apocalypse Is Doomed to Repeat Itself

At the start of season 2 of Netflix's The Umbrella Academy, it's clear that not a whole lot has changed. After skipping back in time during the season 1 finale to stave off their last run-in with Doomsday, it's business as usual for the Hargreeves clan who now find themselves scattered through time and space across various iterations of 1960s Dallas.

New Noise Magazine

07/23/2020

Review: The Acacia Strain - Slow Decay

It's definitely been a busy twelve months for Massachusetts metalcore outfit The Acacia Strain. While the advent of a full-blown global pandemic has certainly put the prospect of touring plans on the backburner for the foreseeable future, it's done very little to slow their consistently crushing musical output.

FilmBunker

07/22/2020

Review: Babyteeth

As anyone who made it through the awkwardness of adolescence knows all too well, the trials and tribulation of early life are situational and relative. For years, you might fret and constantly sweat the small stuff-school, holidays, friends, hobbies-only to arrive at the rude awakening of adulthood by stumbling through the haze of trying to be an uncertain twenty-something before comfortably landing on the outright cynicism and diminishing returns of your thirties.

New Noise Magazine

07/22/2020

Review: Ecostrike - A Truth We Still Believe

It's hard to think of an idea or concept that's more controversial right now than truth. At almost any level of civil discourse (or otherwise), we see the conflation of facts and meaning with the prevalence of opinion and belief.

FilmBunker

07/18/2020

Review: The Burnt Orange Heresy

It's only fitting that in this post-(perhaps mid?)-COVID reality that we all find ourselves helplessly and inextricably trapped within, a truly strange year like 2020 would yield truly strange films. Such is the epiphanic realisation I had when watching The Burnt Orange Heresy, and it all starts with the deliberate ambiguity of the film's promotional poster.

New Noise Magazine

07/14/2020

Review: Entry - Detriment

Everything about Entry's debut full-length Detriment will be at once familiar and recognisable to anyone who's been a part of a punk/hardcore/metal basement show. Songs that sting like spits of venom and vitriol. A raised middle finger declaring the excoriation of power in all its forms.

FilmBunker

07/14/2020

Review: The King of Staten Island

When we're first introduced to The King of Staten Island's titular sovereign, Scott Carlin (played affably by SNL's Pete Davidson), he's alone in his car and midway through a game of blind chicken with highway traffic. As an opening scene, it's a little disorienting, and there are certainly easier ways to commit suicide (and ones that involve far less collateral damage).

New Noise Magazine

07/13/2020

Review: Skeleton - S/T

Blitzing through 11 tracks in a dizzying 28 minutes, Skeleton deal exclusively in a muscular, head-bang worthy blend of speedy thrash, frosty black metal, and pummelling d-beat. It’s aggressive, loud, and a whole lot of fun. The type of music one expects to find blaring at ear-piercing volume inside a raging house party at 3AM, complete with substance-fuelled debauchery, front-lawn windmills, open flames, and an excess of acid-wash denim.

New Noise Magazine

07/10/2020

Review: Sharptooth - Transitional Forms

Within the alternative music scene, it's rare to find a band that faithfully embodies a relatable sense of humour. Some groups-both old and new-like Horse the Band, Iwrestledabearonce, Don Broco, and Eskimo Callboy immediately spring to mind.

Exclaim

07/09/2020

The Midnight's Nostalgic 'Monsters' Is Tailor-Made for Boomboxes Held Overhead

There's a moment during "Last Train," the closing track to Monsters - the third full-length album from synthwave duo and online sensation the Midnight - where Atlanta singer Tyler Lyle sings wistfully of the potential for shifting perspectives.

Medium

07/08/2020

We Need to Talk About The Last of Us

Last week, my partner and I completed our playthrough of The Last of Us Part II, the highly anticipated sequel to the 2013 smash hit survival horror game.

Medium

06/30/2020

Routine Bites Hard: Joy Division and the Dangers of Solitude

Forty years ago, Ian Kevin Curtis - the English singer-songwriter, musician, and enigmatic frontman for post-punk luminaries Joy Division - committed suicide.

Exclaim

06/26/2020

Will Ferrell's Wacky ''Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga' Reaches for the High...

In the first moments of Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, we're shown a gathering of rugged Icelanders watching ABBA's performance of "Waterloo" at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest, which went on to become a global hit and launched ABBA's international career.

New Noise Magazine

06/25/2020

Review: Thirty Nights Of Violence - You'll See Me Up There

It's no surprise that as we pass through the twentieth anniversary of White Pony, the seminal record from alt-metal luminaries Deftones, the band's signature sound continues to worm its way into the heavy music lexicon as a crucial, formative influence.

New Noise Magazine

06/25/2020

Interview: Erik Paulson of Remo Drive on 'A Portrait of An Ugly Man'

With a large portion of the world having been locked up in quarantine for weeks and months at a time, musicians and creative artists would be hard-pressed not to draw some inspiration from recent events. However, for Bloomington, Minnesota indie-rock outfit Remo Drive, work on the group's upcoming third LP started long before the world faced a global pandemic and the prospect of extended self-isolation.

New Noise Magazine

06/25/2020

Review: Remo Drive - A Portrait of An Ugly Man

If you believe everything you read on the Internet (and let's be clear, you probably shouldn't), then the sophomore album from Bloomington, Minnesota indie-rock outfit Remo Drive, 2019's Natural, Everyday Degradation, was a colossal creative misfire.

New Noise Magazine

06/25/2020

Interview: Thirty Nights Of Violence on their New EP and Diverse Musical Influences

Listening to You'll See Me Up There, the newest six-track offering from Nashville bruisers Thirty Nights Of Violence, it's clear that the Tennessee quintet has a strong desire for off-beat experimentation. Catching up with the band over Zoom, we dive into the creative process behind their new EP, along with their diverse range of musical influences.

Killyourstereo.com

06/24/2020

Kvelertak's Self-titled Debut Album Turns Ten. And It Still Rules.

Now, to tell the truth, I can't quite remember exactly how I procured my copy of 'Kvelertak,' but what I do distinctly recall is that I had no real idea who they were or what to expect. Listening to this particular album, in this particular moment, was purely to have 'background music'.

New Noise Magazine

06/18/2020

Review: Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher

As one of the world's foremost millennial sirens, Phoebe Bridgers straddles a fine line between curiosity and carelessness. Her impressive 2017 debut Stranger in the Alps was anchored by intimate moments and earnest reflections, detailing the well-worn battlefields of break-ups, loneliness, and personal loss.

Medium

06/16/2020

"The Monster Is Never the Monster": Gothic Monstrosity and Otherness

What truly makes a monster? This profound and somewhat unsettling question lays at the heart of the literary tradition surrounding the nineteenth-century Gothic novel. In many ways, literature itself may be perceived as "a monstrous or mutant discourse, a humanism that is also inhuman, alien," where the entire project of the Western...

Killyourstereo.com

06/14/2020

Review: Xibalba - 'Años en Infierno'

In the discussion surrounding my review for Xibalba's 2017 EP ' Diablo, Con Amor... Adios,' I said the following: " It's definitely a solid EP, but I wasn't a massive fan of [2015's] 'Tierra y Libertad,' and I want to hear them do some different shit on their next record.

New Noise Magazine

06/11/2020

Review: Justice For The Damned - Pain Is Power

Justice For The Damned have always approached their unique brand of HM-2 inspired destruction with a well-developed sense of moral righteousness. Abusers are called out, liars exposed, and wrongdoers will inevitably have their past misdeeds brought into the unforgiving light of retribution.

Exclaim

06/08/2020

10 Emerging Canadian Artists You Need to Hear This June

As the first half of 2020 wraps up, it's time for another crop of rising musical acts from different corners of the country that bridge genres, scenes and languages. Here are 10 emerging Canadian artists you need to hear in June, including members of hard rock and metal's new wave, Queb rap's next bilingual superstar, and plenty of boundary-pushing pop.

Medium

06/07/2020

The Character of Evil: Part IV

In the final instalment of this series, we use our previous reflections on the character of evil, to address an overarching question: What should we classify as an evil action, and what should we do about them? This piece will attempt to discuss the correlation between acts of evil and violence by speaking to current events, many of which are distressing, confronting, continually unfolding, and unprecedented in scope and severity.

New Noise Magazine

06/04/2020

Review: Make Them Suffer - How To Survive a Funeral

It's no surprise that on LP #4, Perth metallers Make Them Suffer seem bound and determined to shed those pesky genre tags and put stylistic pigeonholes to bed. Well, a 'dirt nap' that is-their newest record is called How To Survive a Funeral for a reason, folks.

Exclaim

06/03/2020

The Ghost Inside Rise from the Ashes of Tragedy on Triumphant Self-Titled Album

Much has already been said about the tragic events in 2015 that led to the Ghost Inside taking a four-year hiatus. However, it's been more than just an uphill battle to arrive at the release of the Californian metalcore outfit's eponymous fifth album, as members of the band continue to wrestle with the death of close friends, an ongoing series of surgeries, hours of physical therapy and adjusting to life with severe chronic injuries.

Killyourstereo.com

06/02/2020

Review: END - 'Splinters From an Ever-Changing Face'

Normally, this would be the part where I'd kick off my review by talking about how crazy it is to have all these super groups doing really cool stuff in hardcore, punk, and metal right now. You know, like 'this band'. Or 'that band'. Blah blah, etc. etc.

Medium

05/28/2020

"Remake the Skies": The Relentless Celestial Optimism of Misery Signals' 'The Tempest'

As the song cascades with poly-rhythmic heaviness and bright melodic passages, the experiential feeling is one of profound optimism and unyielding possibility, of finding the darkness and the light in every moment.

Exclaim

05/28/2020

Died Harness Fear to Make Profoundly Universal Statements on 'Less Life'

For many people, fear is the brain's short circuit. As an emotional response, it operates through a sinister circular logic, manifesting as a crippling sense of anxiety and indecision which, in turn, only serves to heighten and produce more fear.

New Noise Magazine

05/27/2020

Bandcamp of the Day: R U N

Our Bandcamp of the Day features Australian metal collective R U N, who have been steadily releasing a slew of new tracks from their forthcoming debut record. Built out of decades of toil and experience within the Australian heavy music scene, R U N is a new collaborative project comprised of vocalist Lochlan Watt (former live member of Thy Art Is Murder/Psycroptic) and guitarist Mike Deslandes (YLVA/High Tension).

FilmBunker

05/24/2020

Editorial: MCU Rewatch - Phase 3.5

Well, here it is, folks: the End(game) of the line. The culmination of the Infinity Saga, all three Phases of the MCU, and the last stretch of our twenty-three (!) film long Rewatch-a-thon.

Exclaim

05/20/2020

The Airborne Toxic Event Build a Narrative World on 'Hollywood Park'

At the heart of it, Mikel Jollett is a storyteller. As a published author and editor, Jollett understands how crafting a narrative is crucial to shaping our perception of reality and the world around us.

FilmBunker

05/17/2020

Editorial: MCU Rewatch - Phase 3

The country is reopening and everyone seems to be poised on a razor's edge between hesitant and hedonistic for the wide expanse of the great outdoors. And sure, social interaction is nice. But hopefully we can both have nice things and follow the rules.

New Noise Magazine

05/19/2020

Review: Asking Alexandria - Like a House on Fire

There's a lyric on the track "Here's To Starting Over," which reads: "I'd rather fail as me than succeed as someone else." Coming out of the dulcet pipes of frontman and lead vocalist Danny Worsnop, it's a line that represents a clear mission statement for British rock outfit Asking Alexandria.

Medium

05/13/2020

Freedom in Transit: Jean-Luc Godard and Subverting the Movement-image

Godard’s theory of cinema is one that values raw emotion over mindless entertainment, provoking thought over rigid adherence to theory; a philosophical exercise that’s more concerned with intellectual and affective resonance than wider commercial appeal.

FilmBunker

05/10/2020

Editorial: MCU Rewatch - Phase 2

Well, isolation still sucks. Thankfully, it seems things may be finally changing on that front. This week's Rewatch brings us to Phase 2 of the MCU, where we see the characters and heroes of Phase 1 turn to new challenges, link up with new comrades, face down new villains, and begin to uncover a cosmic conspiracy of galactic proportions.

New Noise Magazine

05/08/2020

Review: Gleemer - Down Through

In these times of isolation and constant solitude, introspection can help us expose the hidden dualities of feeling: meditation and melancholy, determination and despair, anxiety and anger. On their newest LP, the slow-burning Down Through, Colorado outfit Gleemer set out to give voice to their inner self.

Exclaim

05/07/2020

White Denim's 'World as a Waiting Room' Finds Ambition from Quarantine

Listening to World as a Waiting Room, it's hardly what one expects to result from a period of global crisis and uncertainty. The newest nine-track LP from prolific Texan rock outfit White Denim is the purest manifestation of those isolation-shaming memes circling the drain of social media feeds everywhere.

Killyourstereo.com

05/06/2020

Review: Umbra Vitae - 'Shadow of Life'

Here's the thing about supergroups: sometimes, the sum is not necessarily guaranteed to be greater than its parts. Some combinations of disparate band members are bonafide hits, while others end up a haphazard 'swing n' miss': The Damned Things and Prophets of Rage ; Run The Jewels and Giraffe Tongue Orchestra ; Boygenius and Fake Names .

Medium

05/06/2020

The Character of Evil: Part III

In the third instalment of this ongoing series, we continue our reflections on the character of evil, asking: What exactly do we mean by 'evil'? What is the difference between something being genuinely evil, or just plain wrong? What should we classify as an evil action, and what should we do about them?

Killyourstereo.com

05/05/2020

Review: PISSPOOR - 'You Were Born To Die A Sinful Lamb'

As a 'critic' of music (and I use that term as loosely and as self-derogatory as possible), my email inbox is typically full of all sorts of promotional streams and album premieres. Some good, some bad; others just your run-of-the-mill, " I've hacked your shit, give me some Bitcoin or else " emails.

FilmBunker

05/03/2020

Editorial: MCU Rewatch - Phase 1

Isolation sucks. We know it, you know it; it's a fact. We miss our friends. We miss the pub. We miss that geriatric old guy on public transport who stares disapprovingly at the cool young kids with their skateboards and chewing gum and 8-track players.

New Noise Magazine

05/01/2020

Review: Shatter Brain - Pitchfork Justice

With a title as suggestive as Pitchfork Justice, it's all-too-easy for the mind to conjure up images of punishment and divine retribution. One can almost picture the scene in their mind's eye: the sky ablaze with a rain of fire and brimstone, clashes of tempered steel and righteous fury, weapons wielded by an angry, bloodthirsty mob, on the prowl and ready to make war.

Medium

04/27/2020

Deflating Expectations: Enter Shikari's 'T.I.N.A.' and the Spectre of Possibility

Margaret Thatcher - former stateswoman, conservative prime minister of the United Kingdom (1979-1990), notorious 80s icon, and the infamous 'Iron Lady' of British politics - is dead. And yet, even after her passing in 2013, Thatcher's political legacy continues to exert incredible influence both inside and outside the sphere of European politics.

Medium

04/23/2020

The Character of Evil: Part II

In the second instalment of this ongoing series, we continue our reflections on the character of evil, asking: What exactly do we mean by 'evil'? What is the difference between something being genuinely evil, or just plain wrong? What should we classify as an evil action, and what should we do about them?

FilmBunker

04/23/2020

DEEP/DIVE - Clash of the Titans (2010)

Greetings all and welcome to DEEP/DIVE: Film Bunker 's newest (and greatest) editorial series! Join us for a somewhat regular column, where we will skewer, dissect and gleefully over-analyse a wide selection of fine films without any real need for doing so, because 'The Internet'.

Medium

04/23/2020

"Swallowing the Rabbit Whole": Code Orange and the Radical Immanence of the Gothic Flatline

It begins with a body aflame, a person poised in darkness and silhouette. Skin cracks and bubbles, roiling with pathos and discontent. The body falls and is extinguished. The camera suddenly frames a haunted gaze reflected in an eerie pool of black.

Medium

04/16/2020

Happy Media Round-up: Volume I

Editor's Note: Here @The Pitch of Discontent, we spend most of our free-time diving head first into the bountiful world of real-time media consumption. As you've likely already surmised, the world is a little batshit crazy right now, so we're also welcoming distractions of any form and medium.

Hysteria Magazine

04/03/2020

Violent Soho // Rock In The Time Of The 'Rona

In this, the Year of Our Lord 2020, amid the fallout of the Great Dunny Roll Riots, you'd be hard-pressed to find an album title more ironically prescient than Everything Is A-OK.

Medium

04/03/2020

The Character of Evil: Part I

It's hard not to look at the world around us right now and characterise specific actions as 'good' or 'evil'. Whether we use those words in theological, secular or moralistic terms, it does little to strip them of them contextual and descriptive power.

FilmBunker

03/30/2020

DEEP/DIVE - High Fidelity (2000)

Greetings all and welcome to DEEP/DIVE: FilmBunker 's newest (and greatest) editorial series! Join us for a somewhat regular column, where we will skewer, dissect and gleefully over-analyse a wide selection of fine films without any real need for doing so, because 'The Internet'.

Hysteria Magazine

03/30/2020

Review: Violent Soho // Everything Is A-OK

There's a line in Vacation Forever-one of the pre-release singles for Violent Soho's long-awaited fifth album, Everything Is A-OK-that's become infamous: "There's a baby boomer across the street, and it won't stop staring at me."

Medium

03/28/2020

Generation Lost: The Rousing Millennial Woe of Spanish Love Songs' 'Losers'

"It gets harder, doesn't it?" It's difficult not to look at our current moment and think 'Well, I guess everything is pretty much fucked.' And sure, that's a genuinely dire sentiment, but also one that brings to mind catastrophist philosophy, bleak nihilism and doomsday prepper I-told-you-so's.

Medium

03/21/2020

"Our Tomorrows Are Running Out": Liberal Democracy and the Problem of Scale

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to attend a guest lecture presented by The University of Queensland's School of Political Science and International Studies. The lead speaker was Dr Klaus Schüler, who served as Federal Managing Director of the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) in Germany from 2007 to 2019.

Medium

03/16/2020

"Sheer Fucking Hubris": Star Trek, Profanity, and the Blue Language of the Future

There's a moment during the second act of "Maps and Legends" - the second episode of Star Trek: Picard, the latest web series in the long-running franchise available for streaming through CBS All Access - where things get a little blue.

Medium

03/12/2020

Dark Days Ahead: Resisting the Language of Good and Evil in the Face of Terror

In the face of horrific human suffering, our faculty of language often escapes us. Trying to earnestly convey a sense of grief, of pain, and, most importantly, of empathy, can too often be lost in the use of language between common people.

Medium

03/08/2020

On Beauty & Circles: Appreciating Caspian's 'Flowers of Light'

During a train ride to work some weeks ago, I had a strange moment of self-reflection. As I get older and life becomes increasingly fast-paced (read: exhausting), treasuring these often quiet moments of solitude in the morning and afternoon becomes more important.

Medium

03/05/2020

"Would You Like to Know More?": Satire, American Stiob and Starship Troopers

Paul Verhoeven's Starship Troopers (1997), written by Edward Neumeier and based on the 1959 science fiction novel of the same name by Robert A. Heinlein, had its twentieth anniversary in 2017. And surprisingly, it still holds up, which is more than can be said for other films rounding out two decades worth of existence.

Medium

03/01/2020

Words Are Things: The Pejorative Use of "Trumpian" in the Post-postmodern Era

"We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."―Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Mother Night What's in a word? As a primarily human invention, there's no doubt that formal language is an enormously powerful tool. We use words every single day.

Killyourstereo.com

02/25/2020

Celebrating A Decade Of Counterparts' Debut Album, 'Prophets'

For metalcore fans, the 2000s were a wild ride. Swept up in the wide-ranging, turn-of-the-millennium cultural transformation propelled along by the proliferation of the Internet as a musical conduit, demographic shifts, and the inevitable rise of social media, the often-maligned sub-genre rose from veritable obscurity within existing hardcore and metal communities throughout the decade to become a worldwide juggernaut.

FilmBunker

02/17/2020

DEEP/DIVE - Pitch Black (2000)

Greetings all and welcome to DEEP/DIVE: FilmBunker 's newest (and greatest) editorial series! Join us for a somewhat regular column, where we will skewer, dissect and gleefully over-analyse a wide selection of fine films without any real need for doing so, because 'The Internet'.

Killyourstereo.com

02/16/2020

Review: Kvelertak - 'Splid'

The last time Scandinavian north stars Kvelertak released an album, Donald J. Trump wasn't President of the United States of America. Let that sink in a little bit. Four years feels like a lifetime.

FilmBunker

02/08/2020

Review: Birds of Prey

If there was an Academy Award for 'Best Unnecessarily Verbose Film Title,' I'm fairly confident that Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) would be an absolute shoo-in.

FilmBunker

01/27/2020

Review: Underwater

Here's a fun fact: thalassophobia is an intense and persistent fear of bodies of water that appear vast, dark, deep, and dangerous. And here's another one: atychiphobia refers to experiencing a relentless fear of failure and disappointment. What do these two particular phobias have in common, you may ask?

Hysteria Magazine

01/21/2020

Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes // Acceptance Through Suffering

We're in a quiet, empty café underneath a Brisbane hotel, sitting across from Frank Carter and Dean Richardson-one half of UK rock outfit The Rattlenakes, as they get ready to begin their 2020 headline tour of Australia (their fourth in as little five years).

FilmBunker

01/22/2020

Review: Midway

Midway, the newest film from director Roland Emmerich is an American war film focusing on the famous World War II-era Battle of Midway conducted in the aftermath of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

FilmBunker

01/01/2020

DEEP/DIVE - Best Films of the 2010s

Hysteria Magazine

Say what you want about where they sit in the grand scheme of metal, or how ‘cliché’ putting ominous riffs over chug-parts might be; there’s simply no denying the group’s technical prowess. When it comes to mixing enjoyable death metal passages with well-timed, blunt-force-trauma breakdowns, Thy Art pull it off with the ruthless efficiency of deadly weaponry.

Hysteria Magazine

08/07/2017

Justice For The Damned // Dragged Through The Dirt

If you enjoy any variety of heavy things, then what JFTD have crafted here should leave you positively elated. For a debut album, Dragged Through The Dirt is less a bold statement than the sound of five young men dropping an anvil on everyone’s expectations.

Killyourstereo.com

08/06/2017

Live Review: Minus The Bear

As we saunter into Max Watt’s with the kind of confidence that only a moderately well-funded Saturday night can offer, the doors have been open for the better part of an hour already, yet the room is only sparsely occupied. Bad omens aside, we hope Brisbane pulls its collective fingers out and turns up for Seattle indie/math-rock stalwarts Minus The Bear this evening.

Writer and Copyeditor