Review: The Leaving – Ultimate Buzz

Following in the footsteps of fellow CHVRCHES band member Lauren Mayberry, who released a solo record called Vicious Creature during the band’s hiatus, Martin Doherty and longtime drummer of CHVRCHES Jonny Scott have created their own project known as The Leaving. Ultimate Buzz lives up to its name in more ways than one on The Leaving’s debut, as it creates a ton of hype around this project that quietly stormed onto the music scene with the singles of “Pray” and “Saved.” Fans of the main project of CHVRCHES will be immediately enamored with what Doherty and Scott have crafted with The Leaving on Ultimate Buzz. It’s an album that features thrilling and uplifting vocals, great professional production, and the incorporation of non-programmed drums gives the record a nice punch to it. Doherty leans on his extensive experience as a key contributor and co-vocalist in CHVRCHES to make an incredible artistic statement with The Leaving’s Ultimate Buzz.

Adam Grundy 1 month ago

At a time when it’s easy to feel angry about the state of the world, Scarboro have returned with their sophomore album, called Hate Season, that encapsulates these feelings into a cohesive package of punk rock. The set was produced by Brian DiMeglio and Scarboro, and was mastered by Will Yip. The NYC-based band is Jack (bass/vocals), Shi (guitar/vocals), and Radhika (drums), and their tight-knit musicianship is reminiscent of other punk bands like The Explosion, early-Bad Religion, and The Casualties. Sprawling 14 songs and clocking in at just over 27 minutes, Hate Season is a blast of punk rock energy that rarely lets up on its attack.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

The fifth studio album from Broadside, called Nowhere, At Last, is a great mix of styles that the band has tinkered with over the past few efforts. Into The Raging Sea marked a dramatic, and darker turn in the band’s sound, while Broadside’s previous album of Hotel Bleu found them painting with broad and colorful strokes. Nowhere, At Last seems most comfortable brooding in the darkness, as marked by the color aesthetic used in the album cover art and their recent music videos. The music itself found on this record is vibrant, and it blends great guitar parts over electronic elements to keep things at their most engaging and interesting. Lead vocalist Oliver Baxxter continues to improve his vocal performance all over this LP that is brimming with great thematic elements, thoughtful lyrics, and impressive songwriting.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

Grief can come in many forms and affect people in a multitude of ways. Some are able to channel this feeling into a form of a therapy that they incorporate into their art, while others become crippled by the weight of the tragedy. I Am The Avalanche frontman Vinnie Caruana shared the inspiration behind the band’s new studio album The Horror Show by explaining, “Experiencing ultimate loss will change you on a cellular level. About 75% of the lyrics were written after my best friend passed away suddenly and unexpectedly.” I Am The Avalanche are able to rally around their frontman’s deeply personal loss in his life with an album built on friendship, loss, grief, and with love and appreciation for their music and the legacy they’ve built for themselves as a band. Caruana continued, “This record can become a lifelong companion for those who let it in. The message is simple: You are stronger than you think you are and you are not alone.” Nearly 22 years into their career as a band, I Am The Avalanche have made another strong and memorable statement with The Horror Show.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

Coming off of the success of their self-titled era, The Maine have returned with their “green era” at a time when interest in the band is at a fever pitch. The band sought out to create a full artistic statement of an album for their 10th studio album to date, and was written and recorded in the same sequencing as the final tracklisting found on Joy Next Door. “I suppose it’s only fitting that our tenth album has been one of the toughest to make to date,” lead vocalist John O’Callaghan says of Joy Next Door. “Most of the personal friction I’ve felt during the making of this record has derived from having to face my own struggle with feeling like I have everything I could have ever dreamed of, yet I can’t seem to allow myself to be fully present and appreciate the weight of a very fortunate life.” Some of the growing pains that both O’Callaghan and The Maine go through on this record bleed into the overall listening experience of Joy Next Door, but it’s an album that’s worthy of the legacy that the band has created for themselves.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

The latest album from math rock/emo band, Palette Knife, is a windows-down blast of punk rock energy fit for the soundtrack of your summer. Keyframe features plenty of nerdy math rock elements, paired with great guitar breakdowns, and soaring melodies that get back to the early 00’s heyday of when pop-punk was king. The three-piece band from Ohio is Alec Licata (lead vocals/guitar), Chris McGrath (bass/vocals), and Aaron Queener (drums/vocals), and they highlight their growth as a band here. Palette Knife continue to “sharpen their blade” and have made their most immediately gratifying work to date on Keyframe.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

Coming off of the success of their debut, self-titled EP, Clarion have returned with Blue Fairy, a follow-up EP that expands upon the sound the East LA noise-rock/shoegaze band set out to create when they first formed in 2023. Their initial breakthrough single of “Hello Juliet” has since been streamed over 20 million times across all platforms, and Clarion appear poised to breakout in a big way on Blue Fairy. Clarion is Saya Oliva (vocals/bass), Joseph Quezada (drums), and Anthony Sanchez (guitar), and they’re built for sustained success on this vibrant new record brimming with unlimited potential for the band.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

”I need something new,” sings Safari Room vocalist/songwriter Alec Koukol on “The Wheel”, the opening song on the project’s fourth studio album called How To Keep A Fire Burning. It’s a relatable feeling many of us are experiencing these days with the constant barrage of bad news and the hope for better days ahead. Koukol shared that the new album is “about burnout, survival, and the quiet decision to keep going despite the world around us telling us to quit.” Koukol’s vocals don’t waver at all, even if the lyrics dive headfirst into the emotions of burnout and being on the cusp of giving up. How To Keep A Fire Burning ultimately tells the listener to forge on, even when the odds appear to be stacked against us. Safari Room make a wonderful and complete artistic statement on this lush new record.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

The first new music from The Academy Is… in nearly 18 years has arrived today. Guitarist Mike Carden shared, “William and I made the first record at nineteen and walked away at twenty-eight. Almost There is really about everything that’s happened in the space between.” Almost There finds the band at a comfortable place in their lives, having lived a rich life, building families, and ultimately reconnecting the pieces that made this band so special in the first place. This record is a bit subdued, vibey, and more on the relaxed side as far as the general feel. Front-man William Beckett shared some additional context surrounding the similar title of the new album to their debut by saying, ““Almost Here was about leaving home. This album is about finding your way back. It’s the other end of the spectrum.” By looking inward at their past/youth while trying to understand it all, The Academy Is… have made another album worthy of the legacy they created.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

The third studio album from Snail Mail, called Ricochet, is a stunning collection of 11 songs that reflect on Lindsey Jordan’s past few years, while having a focus on themes like mortality and the uncertainty of what happens to our souls in the afterlife. The set was produced by Momma bassist Aron Kobayashi Ritch, and this album has a similar feel to the latest effort from that band, while still staying authentic to the overall songwriting approach from Jordan. While her previous record (Valentine) dealt more with matters from their heart and relationships, Ricochet takes a more spiritual approach. “Misery feels safe to write about because I am good at it,” Jordan says, “but I’m not bathing in my own agony anymore.” By putting her most confident step forward in her artistic self-discovery to date, Ricochet is a strong contender for this year’s best album.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

Coming hot off the re-recorded version of Chroma, Cartel have officially dropped the first taste of new music from their yet to be announced new album, with this single of “Oxy Moron.” The blast of pop-punk energy comes through the speakers in the early-going and rarely lets up. The first few verses find front-man Will Pugh at his most self-deprecating as he sings, “Maybe I’m a loser / Maybe not / Maybe I’m a loner / That hangs out a lot.” The combined, full-sounding guitars from Pugh and Joseph Pepper bounce off of the speakers warmly as Cartel get their sea legs back in the crowded and resurgent pop-punk scene.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

Nearly a decade after their breakthrough single of “Atlantis”, which has since been streamed more than a billion times, Seafret are back with a great collection of tunes on Fear Of Emotion. Seafret is the duo of Jack Sedman and Harry Draper and they follow up their last record of Wonderland with laser-focused songwriting, soaring melodies, and great instrumentation found on this latest record. Seafret continue to expand upon their humble beginnings as a “mostly-acoustic” project with a full-sounding approach on Fear of Emotion that captivates the imagination of where they can take their sound. Sedman shared, “These last years have just made us more hungry for it again. We’ve put so much work into this new record – we’ve put the time in and we’ve not cut a single corner. It really feels like it’s a fresh new Seafret and we’re ready to go.” With slick production and a sound that strays somewhere between the adult pop of The Fray and X Ambassadors, Seafret have arrived on their vulnerable yet fully-realized vision on Fear of Emotion.

Adam Grundy 2 months ago

If you’re looking for a new band that reminds you of The Gaslight Anthem and The Menzingers, Red Arrow Highway are here to complete your search. Their sophomore album, Be Someone Better, tackles relatable themes of friendship, the ups and downs of living in a world filled with despair, while still looking for the silver lining in it all to keep ourselves afloat. Originally started as a two-piece band with founding members of Nate Johnivan and Justin Saurez, Red Arrow Highway have rounded out their musical attack with an additional four musicians to make for a full-sounding record. The West Michigan band remind us on Be Someone Better of the importance of keeping friendships top of mind while rocking out with some commendable tunes.

Adam Grundy 3 months ago

Not everyone is cut out for the “life of the hustle”, but Chris Wrenn certainly was. The founder and owner of Bridge Nine Records recalls his early days of hustling sales of stickers and buttons donned with the simple, but effective, slogan of “Yankees Suck!” to trigger the right emotions of the Boston Red Sox faithful. This tale of Wrenn’s unique way of creating entrepreneurial revenue through unique means, led to him funneling this cash into some of the earliest releases of what would become Bridge Nine Records, a respected indie label in the punk/hardcore scene. Wrenn’s author voice comes through the pages as genuine, warm, and authentic as he recalls the circumstances that led to him wanting to start his own record label. Fenway Punk is equal parts biography as much as it is a story of how fellow prospective business owners and/or record labels could learn key lessons from Wrenn’s experiences in their own endeavors.

Adam Grundy 3 months ago

If Saves The Day were still pumping out tunes regularly with a vocalist this confident, paired with the musicianship of The Early November and Thrice, you’d find the sound of Kiss The Scientist. On their debut EP, called Better In My Head, the Los Angeles emo band showcase why they are already making waves in the revived emo/punk scene. The band is a four-piece unit comprised of Maxwell Tomack-Villalobos, Devin Rodriguez, Nick Anoci, and Kevin Middleton, and their great chemistry is on display over these slick six songs that make up their debut EP. With a classic pop-punk/emo sound rich in the lore of the AbsolutePunk days of old, Kiss The Scientist carry the torch for the next wave of emo bands today.

Review: The Leaving – Ultimate Buzz

Review: Scarboro – Hate Season

Review: Broadside – Nowhere, At Last

Review: I Am The Avalanche – The Horror Show

Review: The Maine – Joy Next Door

Review: Palette Knife – Keyframe

Review: Clarion – Blue Fairy

Review: Safari Room – How To Keep A Fire Burning

Review: The Academy Is… – Almost There

Review: Snail Mail – Ricochet

Review: Cartel – “Oxy Moron”

Review: Seafret – Fear Of Emotion

Review: Red Arrow Highway – Be Someone Better

Review: Fenway Punk – Chris Wrenn

Review: Kiss The Scientist – Better In My Head