Review: Alice In Chains – Dirt

Adam Grundy

Dirt was the second studio album from grunge heavyweight hitters Alice In Chains, and ended up being the band’s best-selling record to date, selling over five million units in the US alone. It would end up being the last record with all four original band members in the group, as their bassist Mike Starr was fired shortly after the touring support of the album. The songs found on Dirt are brutally honest, heartfelt, and deal with the themes of addiction, depression, and the fragility of relationships. The majority of the album was written by lead guitarist Jerry Cantrell, with the exception coming from two solo songs from Layne Staley in “Hate to Feel” and “Angry Chair.” The album would peak at #6 on the Billboard 200 and make Alice In Chains a household name in the crowded Alt Rock and grunge scenes in general.

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J. Graves – “Fortress of Fun” (Album Stream)

J. Graves
Adam Grundy

Today is a great day to share the brand new album from post-punk trio, J. Graves, a day early called Fortress of Fun. The band would be perfect for fans of artists like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Sleater-Kinney, and Interpol. The band is clearly excited for everyone to hear what they cooked up:

Say it: “Fortress of Fun is here.” Fortress of Fun is here – it’s surreal, unreal, and a little hard to believe. Maybe it’s just another dimension of our story, a different choice, and somewhere I’m actually still chanting “Fortress of Fun is coming!” This time last year J. Graves and our amazing, talented family of artists, film makers, musicians, stunt people, and loved ones were at the Oregon coast filming the music videos that would make FOF’s choose your own adventure visuals. It was this time last year we all donned the cursed chain-mail, faced our deepest fears, only to break its nefarious spell with love, acceptance, and a whole lot of help from our friends. And FOF has been just that – support from our loved ones and from the talented folks who played integral parts in bringing this adventure to life. Fortress of Fun IS here, and we couldn’t be more excited to share it with you.

If you’re enjoying the early album stream, please consider purchasing the album starting tomorrow.

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Fujiya & Miyagi – “New Body Language” (Video Premiere)

Fujiya & Miyagi
Adam Grundy

Today is the perfect day to share the latest single and music video from Brighton popstars, Fujiya & Miyahgi, with their great new track called “New Body Language.” On this latest single the band shared, “‘New Body Language’ is probably the most instant and accessible song on the record. We took a lot of our current listening habits and put them in a blender till it turned out like us.” The song comes from their new LP called Slight Variations, available tomorrow here.

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Paramore Talk With Guardian

Jason Tate

Paramore sat down with The Guardian:

Much of the new album draws from the trio’s conversations from that period to look back at the environments they came from. They discussed growing up in the Bible belt. Williams moved from Mississippi to Tennessee when her mum fled her second husband. She met Farro through a homeschool programme, and he knew York. Early on, Paramore talked openly about being a Christian band, but now they are all at different stages of unravelling their relationship to faith, says Williams. “You’re brought up being told something is ultimate, you unpack that and then find out that it’s tangled up with some other random shit over here.” She sighs: “Zac and Taylor are the most gentle and kind about it, whereas I feel like my teeth are knives and I’m spewing fire, trying to throw all of it over the side of a cliff. It’s good to be challenged – like Taylor reminds me all the time, you can’t generalise. I can be very dualistic when it comes to good people and bad people, and a lot of the record talks about what it means that people aren’t just that.”

Review: PHNTMS – “Rather Be Lonely”

Adam Grundy

The latest single from pop rockers, PHNTMS, is a cool blast of rock energy that pulsates along in the best way possible. The track features some cool synths, 80’s-esque guitar tones, all paired with their powerhouse of a vocalist in Alyssa Gambino who commands the song from the opening notes. The lyrical material discusses the pitfalls of being stuck on social media, watching the world go by, and the dangers of losing that personal connection with the people around us. The band does a nice job of never letting the heavier lyrical material bog down the overall pop sheen of the single.

Guitarist Adam Jessamine and bassist Mikal Smith each have their own standout moments on “Rather Be Lonely” that allows the song to expand upon what the band was going for on their previous singles of “Body Language” and “Paper Flowers.” While the song doesn’t explode into each chorus the way I was expecting on my first few listens, the band’s ability to reel things in at times pays off in the long run as they continue to craft out material that showcases the depth to their songwriting.

Eva Rose – “Final Girl” (Song Premiere)

Eva Rose
Adam Grundy

Today I’m thrilled to share the new single from talented singer-songwriter Eva Rose called “Final Girl.” The singer likens the theme of the song to the horror genre with pleasing results. As Rose mentioned:

Even though the story line of the song is fictional (I’m lucky to have never been involved with an actual serial killer), the song has a thread of reality in it. I think many people have experienced a similar emotional arc of being naive in the beginning of a relationship, believing the other person will spare you of their bad behavior if you can prove you’re ‘different’ from the rest. Then eventually after enough red flags have presented themselves, the rose colored glasses fall and you see the person for who they really are.

If you’ve been looking for that next great pop artist that makes you feel you’re a part of something bigger, Eva Rose is delivering the goods.

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