Features

The story of Dog Fashion Disco infuriates me. Like many, I initially wrote off the band due to its goofy name and consistently awful album artwork. However, when I heard Adultery (on Rotten), I was blown away. Here was a band that was basically Mr. Bungle in its diversity and quirkiness, but with songs one […]

Each year, one hardcore record really grabs me, heart and soul. This year, that record was Betrayed’s Substance. Featuring members of Champion and Carry On, Betrayed wasn’t around for long, putting out the Addiction EP on Bridge Nine, a split with Champion, and a full-length, Substance (on Equal Vision), before breaking up this year. Betrayed’s […]

For the last week of 2006, I’ll highlight some bands that called it quits this year. I know my obsession with dead bands verges on the morbid, and if your band shows up in my blog, it’s probably dead, starting out, or underperforming marketwise. But success ain’t a meritocracy, and I’d rather give space to […]

Speaking of Anaal Nathrakh, Mick Kenney and Dave Hunt are also in filth grind outfit Mistress. Kenney and Mistress bassist Dirty Von Donovan are in rocka rolla band Exploder. Napalm Death’s Shane Embury played on the last Anaal Nathrakh album. Embury and Kenney run Feto Records, who put out Exploder’s debut. Kenney does artwork for […]

Over time, Anaal Nathrakh’s sound hasn’t changed that much. The template now is much the same as before – relentless industrial black metal with occasional electronics, wall-of-sound production, ridiculous song titles, and an obsession with the apocalypse (“eschaton” means “end times” or “last things”). However, this album (on Season of Mist) brings out melodic elements […]

It’s a minor miracle that I’m writing about this demo. I picked it up at an Animosity show in SF earlier this year. The CD was free off a spindle, with no sleeve or case. All it said was “Remorseless Demo 2006.” No track names, no contact info, not the best first impression. I listened […]

Drumcorps is Aaron Spectre, an artist in Berlin who makes what could loosely be called breakcore. Now, I’m generally not a fan of breakcore. To me, it seems like the worst result of letting white people near black music. Breakbeats lose their funk, grooves lose their soul, and sounds bunch up at unpleasant frequencies. But […]

Also on Cock Rock Disco is Next Life, who sound like if Zombi and Fantomas got together to score Zelda. With this Norwegian duo, you get the cinematic synths of the former and the ADD of the latter. Songs burst into bloom with proggy odd meters and power chords, only to jump cut to the […]

For picking up girls, Lecherous Nocturne isn’t the best band name. It does have a selling point, though – Nile guitarist Dallas Toler-Wade played drums on debut album Adoration of the Blade (on Deepsend). Toler-Wade recently left to concentrate full-time on Nile, and current Nile touring bassist Joe Payne did time in the band as […]

My review of the new Black Elk is up at Stylus. It’s a hot, nasty slice of noise rock straight from the ’90s. Over at Metal Injection, I’ve reviewed the new Jotunspor, A.C.T., and Kylesa. Norwegian black metal/dark ambient, Swedish prog rock, and Southern sludge metal – all good stuff. Enjoy!