Album review
Etemen Ænka
DVNE
DVNE build Etemen Ænka around the movement between heavy riffs and quieter, more open passages. The Edinburgh band combine progressive metal with sludge, but the appeal goes b…
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Album review
Solace
REZN
Solace brings a calm, melodic quality to REZN's heavy psychedelic music. Slow guitars and deep bass give the songs their weight, while flute, keyboards and saxophone open up t…
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Album review
Good to Go-Go
Spyro Gyra
Good to Go-Go shows how much energy Spyro Gyra can put inside an accessible melody. The band move between jazz, funk, reggae and Latin rhythms, keeping the tunes clear while g…
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Album review
Dot
Karmakanic
DOT puts most of its ambition into one extended progressive rock composition, then uses shorter songs to change the scale. Karmakanic bring together strong singing, active bas…
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Album review
O’ Be Joyful
Shovels & Rope
O' Be Joyful gives country, blues and folk a rougher edge without losing their direct emotional appeal. Shovels & Rope make a small instrumental setup feel lively through the …
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Album review
Warpaint
The Black Crowes
Warpaint gives the Black Crowes' blues-rock a settled, confident character. The band draw from familiar roots, with Luther Dickinson's slide guitar adding a strong presence al…
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Album review
Moroccan Roll
Brand X
Moroccan Roll expands Brand X's jazz-rock through softer textures, extra percussion and more open arrangements. The music is still demanding, but it does not rely on a constan…
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Album review
Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic
The Ocean
Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic makes heaviness feel carefully arranged rather than constant. The Ocean combine thick guitar riffs, forceful drums and harsh singing with piano, stri…
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Album review
The Melody and the Energetic Nature of Volume
Evans Blue
Evans Blue make familiar hard rock feel personal through Kevin Matisyn's voice. The Melody and the Energetic Nature of Volume surrounds his restless singing with smooth produc…
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Album review
The Demon Joke
Vennart
The Demon Joke gives Mike Vennart's detailed guitar writing a clear melodic centre. His first solo album still has the shifting rhythms and layered sound associated with Ocean…
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Album review
Moving Backwards
Wheel
Moving Backwards builds its songs around rhythm and pressure. Wheel combine heavy guitar, prominent bass and detailed percussion with a vocal approach that can be melodic or r…
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The Shape Of Fluidity
Dool
The Shape Of Fluidity balances dark atmosphere with a strong sense of melody. Dool use heavy guitars, spacious arrangements and Raven van Dorst's distinctive voice to create s…
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Album review
Something More Than Free
Jason Isbell
Something More Than Free finds Jason Isbell looking closely at ordinary responsibilities. Work, family and the consequences of past choices give the songs their subjects, whil…
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The Greatest of All Lost Arts
Lower Definition
The Greatest of All Lost Arts makes its strongest impression through the playing. Lower Definition combine melodic singing, sudden screams and detailed guitar work with a rhyt…
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Album review
Welcome to the Neighbourhood
Boston Manor
Welcome to the Neighbourhood moves Boston Manor into a darker kind of rock. Synths sit beside the guitars, and Henry Cox shifts between an airy melodic voice and a rougher del…
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Album review
Unfold the God Man
Psychonaut
Unfold the God Man gives Psychonaut plenty of room to show what they can do. The Belgian trio move between heavy post-metal, progressive guitar writing and quieter psychedelic…
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Album review
Dancing in the Face of Danger
Exploring Birdsong
Exploring Birdsong get a surprising amount of weight from piano, bass and drums. Dancing in the Face of Danger adds strings and synthesizers to that foundation, but the appeal…
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Album review
Souvlaki
Slowdive
Souvlaki finds Slowdive shaping their atmospheric guitar music into clearer, more memorable songs. The sound remains spacious and richly layered, but the melodies have a stron…
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Album review
A Day at the Beach
Airbag
A Day at the Beach does not hurry towards its biggest moments. Airbag let keyboards, guitar and restrained rhythms build a mood before opening the arrangements up. The Norwegi…
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Album review
The Inner Mounting Flame
Mahavishnu Orchestra
The Inner Mounting Flame treats jazz and heavy rock as parts of the same language. John McLaughlin's guitar has a sharp, distorted edge, while Jerry Goodman's violin adds anot…
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Album review
The Last Hero
Alter Bridge
The Last Hero finds Alter Bridge making their familiar melodic hard rock on a large scale. Myles Kennedy's singing rises above substantial guitars, and the instrumental playin…
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Album review
Mutants
Mutoid Man
Mutants is the sound of three experienced musicians making room for a good time. Mutoid Man bring together Stephen Brodsky on guitar and vocals, Ben Koller on drums and Jeff M…
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Album review
Fearless
Crown Lands
Fearless asks for attention from its opening minutes. Crown Lands begin with an eighteen-minute piece, filling the space with shifting rhythms, large guitar parts and bright s…
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Album review
Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray
Seether
Seether's heavier instincts remain audible on Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray, but melody increasingly sets the direction. Shaun Morgan spends more time shaping clean…
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