Proving the universality of music, Austrian band Electric Ray and The Shockers has released a slice of punky surf rock that sounds like it was hewn from San Diego’s Sunset Cliffs. California Torpedo is funky and irreverent enough to stand out in a familiar genre. Check out their video for “T.R.O.U.B.L.E.”: If the balloon-bathroom-acid-trip doesn’t sell… Continue reading Album Review: Electric Ray and The Shockers’ California Torpedo
EP Review: Downward Spiral
My buddy Marco G has been sending Alternative Control albums to review for a couple years, and Downward Spiral’s self-titled debut EP is my favorite so far. It builds on the musical ideas from his previous group Stikpin and the production is radio-ready. Marco plays guitar in the current incarnation, joined by Stikpin vocalist Chris… Continue reading EP Review: Downward Spiral
Album Review: Phat Astronaut Live
In a world that’s recorded to a click track and run through autotune… Where the sound of instruments is replaced with electronic imitations of the sound of instruments… One local band had the courage…. To release… A LIVE ALBUM… Recorded… At their FIRST SHOW. Okay, end movie trailer voice. Seriously though, who does that? Great… Continue reading Album Review: Phat Astronaut Live
Baldwin’s Choice: Moonsorrow
Glowing praise needs to be stated for a band who never seems to be confused about their musical direction. I’m not talking merely on an album to album basis, but song by epic song. For a band who defines themselves on ambitious pieces of Viking metal of exceeding song length, Moonsorrow’s track record is almost… Continue reading Baldwin’s Choice: Moonsorrow
An Interview with Manuel Gagneux, the Artist Behind Zeal & Ardor
From the first notes of eponymous opening track “Devil is Fine” — harmonized call and response vocals punctuated by the clink of chains — you know that Zeal & Ardor is a different kind of metal. The brainchild of Swiss-American musician Manuel Gagneux, this project melds Delta blues and black metal in a way that Robert… Continue reading An Interview with Manuel Gagneux, the Artist Behind Zeal & Ardor
Bair Witness: Wrecking Ball Legursky is Literally Larger Than Life
The hometown hero can be one of the most inspiring figures in all of literature and reality. A competitor or combatant that we can all relate to or identify with, because we know where they’ve been; hell, we are where they’ve been. We feel like we are a part of the journey to where they… Continue reading Bair Witness: Wrecking Ball Legursky is Literally Larger Than Life
Bair Grills… Civil Lividity by Continuum
Continuum, n: “A continuous sequence in which adjacent elements are not perceptibly different from each other, although the extremes are quite distinct.” Before reviewing this recent release from one of Connecticut’s most prominent local metal bands, I looked up the definition of “continuum” for shits and giggles. What I found was an entire article… Continue reading Bair Grills… Civil Lividity by Continuum