Album review
In the Court of the Dragon
Trivium
The orchestral introduction to In the Court of the Dragon makes a promise that the rest of the album can support. Trivium follows that opening with music that is physically fo…
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Reviews
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Album review
Effloresce
Oceansize
Effloresce makes three guitars feel like several different instruments. Oceansize can use them to create a thin, suspended texture, a tightly wound rhythmic pattern or a wall …
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Album review
Does This Look Infected?
Sum 41
A little extra weight does Sum 41 a lot of good on Does This Look Infected?. The guitars have a sharper attack, the solos are more prominent, and the band move between pop-pun…
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Album review
Fleshwork
Pupil Slicer
Fleshwork brings Pupil Slicer’s strange ideas into a more direct attack. The London trio keep the abrupt rhythms, harsh vocals and uncomfortable textures of their earlier work…
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Album review
In Verses
Karnivool
Karnivool have taken thirteen years to follow up Asymmetry. That's a serious amount of waiting for ten songs. In Verses gives you plenty to work with, though: big bass lines, …
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Album review
Powerslave
Iron Maiden
Powerslave starts in the air and finishes at sea, with Iron Maiden sounding comfortable at both extremes. Its strongest songs combine immediate excitement with the patience to…
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Album review
The Science of Things
Bush
The electronic pulse in The Chemicals Between Us suits Bush surprisingly well. It gives the familiar guitars a firmer outline and makes Gavin Rossdale's vocal sound part of th…
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Album review
Proper Dose
The Story So Far
Parker Cannon gives himself more than one way to sound troubled on Proper Dose. His voice still carries the force associated with The Story So Far, but softer melodies and mor…
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Album review
The Clearing
Wolf Alice
Wolf Alice have softened the edges on The Clearing. The guitars still matter, but piano, strings and large vocal arrangements take up more of the room. It is an attractive sou…
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Album review
From Zero
Linkin Park
From Zero works best when its two singers sound involved in the same struggle. Mike Shinoda's measured delivery gives Emily Armstrong's rougher voice something to push against…
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Album review
Weathered
Creed
Bullets is a forceful way to start a Creed album. The guitar attack is harder, the rhythm has more bite and Scott Stapp sounds less interested in a gradual introduction than i…
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Album review
The Used
The Used
Bert McCracken gives The Used's debut a voice that rarely seems comfortable inside one kind of song. He can scream with considerable force, then move into a clear melody witho…
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Album review
Immutable
Meshuggah
The restrained opening of Broken Cog makes Immutable feel unsettling before it becomes forceful. A slow drum pattern, an extended guitar line and a low, breathy vocal create t…
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Album review
Being Funny in a Foreign Language
The 1975
Happiness is a useful reminder of how well The 1975 can play together. The bass moves easily, the guitar adds bright details and the saxophone gives the chorus an extra lift. …
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Album review
AB III
Alter Bridge
Slip to the Void begins with room to spare. Myles Kennedy sings quietly over an uneasy setting, then the heavier instruments arrive as a genuine change in pressure. AB III use…
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Album review
Queen of the Murder Scene
The Warning
A rock album can tell a story without making every song sound like a scene from a musical. The Warning mostly achieve that balance on Queen of the Murder Scene. Its tale of ob…
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Album review
The Way of All Flesh
Gojira
Death is the central concern of The Way of All Flesh, but Gojira approach it through movement rather than stillness. The guitars and drums form tightly connected patterns that…
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Album review
Megadeth
Megadeth
Calling your final album Megadeth is a fairly clear way of setting expectations. Dave Mustaine and company have a lot of history behind that name, and this record makes room f…
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Album review
Neon Ballroom
Silverchair
Emotion Sickness is a striking way for Silverchair to open an album. The piano sounds unsettled, the strings keep changing the scale and Daniel Johns sings as though the arran…
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Album review
This Is Why
Paramore
This Is Why runs on nervous energy. Paramore use clipped guitars, active bass lines and tightly controlled drums to make ordinary discomfort feel physical. Hayley Williams can…
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Album review
Eternal Blue
Spiritbox
Courtney LaPlante's voice gives Eternal Blue its widest range, but the arrangements make that range useful. Spiritbox can move from a close, restrained melody to a severe scre…
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Album review
The Painful Truth
Skunk Anansie
An Artist Is an Artist is a good way to announce your return. Skunk Anansie open The Painful Truth with a tense, impatient song about being judged and written off. Skin gives …
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Album review
Anno Domini High Definition
Riverside
Five songs are enough for Riverside to create a remarkably active record. Anno Domini High Definition is concerned with the pressure to keep moving, and its playing makes that…
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Album review
Ashes of the Wake
Lamb of God
A Lamb of God riff rarely travels in a straight line on Ashes of the Wake. The guitars turn sharply around the beat, then lock into a groove that makes those complicated movem…
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