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LATEST ARTICLES - PAGE 24

Review: Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard And Soft

Adam Grundy

Billie Eilish has had quite the run of fortune recently. Having picked up major accolades, including her second Oscar for Best Original Song for her contribution to the Barbie movie for the heart-wrenching “What Was I Made For?”, to multiple Grammy awards for her continued collaboration with her brother, Finneas, Eilish seemed poised to deliver an album that felt like the truest form of her identity. Hit Me Hard And Soft is an album that feels like the more logical successor of Eilish’s breakthrough, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? and she shines all over the record. While the “knock” on Billie Eilish has been that she “doesn’t sing, she whispers,” that all gets put to bed once in for all on this third studio album that has some of the best vocal moments in the young artist’s career to date. Having chosen to not release any singles prior to the album launch, Billie Eilish was daring her fans to embrace the album format and listen to it, traditionally, from front to back. She accomplishes that goal in more ways than one, by creating her most cohesive and daring work of art to date on Hit Me Hard And Soft.

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Review: New Found Glory – Catalyst

Adam Grundy

Flash back to the year 2004 for a bit. Several pop-punk, emo and hardcore bands have been signed to major label deals, CDs are still selling in waves, and it’s an ultra-exciting time for this scene of music. New Found Glory came in riding a major high after their most successful record, Sticks and Stones, blanketed the pop-punk scene with great singles like “My Friends Over You” and “Head On Collision” getting some airplay on MTV’s popular Total Request Live (TRL). Enter Catalyst. The record was set up for success as well with a bulletproof lead single of “All Downhill From Here” that wasn’t going to do anything to dissuade longtime fans of NFG from liking the new material. Catalyst had a harder edge to it, starting with the hardcore-esque gang vocals of “Intro” that bled into the lead single, while the guitars just felt heavier in general throughout the LP. While this album had a mix of styles and sounds that were brought forth, and musically it’s a bit all over the place, it’s hard to not admit that this is still one of the band’s strongest albums to date.

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Review: Cold Years – A Different Life

Adam Grundy

The third studio album from the Aberdeen punk band, Cold Years, called A Different Life takes a hard look at life around the band, while still maintaining a worldly view of growing up in this era. Much like their breakthrough sophomore LP, Goodbye To Misery, this album features a great blend of a sound similar to Green Day, The Gaslight Anthem, and Social Distortion. As lead singer Ross Gordon shouts along with his bandmates on “Roll With It,” “I’m dead, ’cause I want a different life!,” it’s hard to not rally around his words of wanting change. Recorded at The Barber Shop Studios in New Jersey by producer Brett Romnes (Hot Mulligan, Boston Manor, The Movielife), the mindset of capitalizing on the best/most emphatic sections of their last record, mixed with a steady eye towards the future, leads to Cold Years continuing their momentum here on A Different Life.

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Review: Be Well – “A Tap I Can’t Turn Off”

Adam Grundy

The latest two-track single from Baltimore punk/hardcore band, Be Well, is an electric-charged artistic statement that demands to be taken seriously. Led by fearless frontman Brian McTernan, “A Tap I Can’t Turn Off” and “Without A Compass” rock with an immediacy to them that put a firm focus on why this band is so dynamic. Starting with “A Tap I Can’t Turn Off,” the heavy opening riffing sets the tone for the lyrics of, “There is an overwhelming sense of doubt / That’s spent a lifetime occupying my mind / The things that I’ve done to block it out / Have corroded the rest of what’s left over time,” that showcase McTernan’s conflict within his own mind. The track explodes out of the gate with a rare sense of urgency, and ends with the pain in the lyrics of, “But I still lack confidence / And sometimes I feel like shit.”

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Review: Broadway Calls – Coming After You

Adam Grundy

Music has a funny way of finding us, doesn’t it? So when I got wind of the Oregon punk rock band, Broadway Calls, and their latest EP, Coming After You, I was taken back by just how good the music pouring out the speakers was. This slick, 4-song EP was recently pressed on a 7″ vinyl via Red Scare Industries, and is a pleasing blend of great punk rock riffing paired with sing-a-long moments that are sure to make you feel rejuvenated about the current punk scene. The set was produced by Scott Goodrich, and puts a bright spotlight on the band’s songwriting improvements. Broadway Calls are Coming After You, and you should embrace it.

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Review: Dua Lipa – Radical Optimism

Adam Grundy

The world around us is quite brutal and ugly currently, so who couldn’t use a little optimism that things can and will get better? Dua Lipa has returned to the music world with a shimmering album titled Radical Optimism. With songwriting and producer credits from Kevin Parker of Tame Impala, plus other seasoned veterans like Danny Harle, Ian Kirkpatrick, and Andrew Wyatt, Dua Lipa comes well-armed for success. The album plays out quickly over the 11-song, 37-minute play time that is filled with thrilling moments, great vocal performances from Dua Lipa, as well as plenty new tricks to her arsenal. Radical Optimism is a heat-seeking missile to the eardrums and is bound to make even the most negative person feel a little bit better about their day after spending some time with it. While the current pop scene seems to lean towards darker elements (much like the brooding pop Billie Eilish), Dua Lipa cuts through the negativity with a surgeon-like precision on this instant pop classic.

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Review: Snarls – With Love

Adam Grundy

When the time came for Snarls to begin work on the material that would become their sophomore LP, they knew they wanted to work with producer Chris Walla again. The only issue was that Walla’s U.S. based Seattle studio wasn’t an option at that time period. When Chris Walla pitched the idea of the Ohio indie rock band to come to his actual home in Norway, the offer was simply too good for the band (whom had never been overseas) to pass up. With Love gets a lot of its charm from this other-worldly opportunity for the band to hunker down and pen some of their most meaningful songs to date, albeit in another part of the globe. Indie rock’s best kept secret shines all over their second full-length record that is urgent, thoughtful, impactful, and immediately gratifying. Snarls continue to show their steady growth as musicians, and Walla can only sit back and gleefully admire this journey the young band is taking with him at the producer helm. The shimmering first chorus on the title track sets the table nicely with its lyrics of, “‘Cause I’ll always love you / I’m in your corner, too / Carry you in my heart everyday / With love.” Much like the album artwork that carefully pens the words “With Love,” in the locket, Snarls keep their music accessible, yet utterly passionate.

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Review: Greywind – Antidote

Adam Grundy

The Irish sibling duo of Steph and Paul O’Sullivan, better known as Greywind, released their debut full-length record in 2017 and have come full circle now with a renewed focus and energy on Antidote. With creative control firmly in the band’s corner, Antidote is a strong collection of songs that complement the energy that Paul (guitars) and Steph (vocals) have with each other as musicians. The set was produced by Sam Guaiana (Silverstein, Neck Deep), and showcases the band’s continued growth. With a slick-sounding mix between emo and pop-punk, Greywind sound like a blend between Paramore and The Wonder Years.

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Review: Maggie Rogers – Don’t Forget Me

Adam Grundy

The third major label studio album from Maggie Rogers, called Don’t Forget Me, showcases the singer-songwriter’s continued growth in more ways than one. While I originally saw Rogers in the same realm of pop artists like Kacey Musgraves, Phoebe Bridgers, and Julien Baker, it turns out she may just be this generation’s Joni Mitchell. With crisp production that Rogers and Ian Fitchuk co-produce on this outstanding record, Maggie Rogers quickly cements herself as one of the marquee pop acts in the world. Having recently announced a comprehensive arena tour, that is selling extremely well, Rogers takes full advantage of her time in the spotlight on this breezy collection of ten songs that blend pop, country, and captivating storytelling in her most fully-realized album to date. The artist that once had a starry-eyed vision of headlining the places she grew up attending, has come full circle and seeing her hard work come to fruition.

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Review: Hovvdy – Hovvdy

Aaron Mook

If I was in Hovvdy, I would be very tired of the word “nostalgia” by now. It’s been mentioned in countless write-ups and reviews (this one now included), singling out the band’s biggest strength — down-to-earth earnestness and relatability — and occasionally spinning it as something manufactured. Any detractors of the band are unlikely to change their minds about Hovvdy’s new self-titled double album, although fans will no doubt be pleased that the band continues to retain their carefree and approachable image, likely because it serves as such a complement to their songwriting. Even more than 2021’s True Love, Hovvdy fulfills the goal of most self-titled records, as well as the goal of many records this far into a band’s career; it is kaleidoscopic while remaining cohesive, a defining work by an artist in their prime that captures nearly every sound the band has explored over their first decade of existence.

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Review: Smallpools – Ghost Town Road (East)

Adam Grundy

There’s a magic feeling when a band you’ve been following for some time puts all the pieces together and delivers an incredible work of art. Smallpools have done just that on Ghost Town Road (East), an electric-charged EP that encapsulates everything that made me fall in love with this band’s style in the first place. This three-piece pop rock band makes all the right moves on this record that has a very 80’s new wave feel to it, while still maintaining a modern flair to it to ensure it connects with new audiences.

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Record Store Day Roundup: 2024 Edition

CD, Record Store
Adam Grundy

Another Record Store Day has come and gone. Did you snag that coveted pressing of that album you had your eye on? Hopefully your experience was as good as mine was, and you were able to grab at least something on your list either in-person or online afterwards. In this article, I’ll be recapping things I noticed about the most popular titles going first, providing feedback on the pressing numbers for this year’s collection, and ways to keep vinyl fans engaged with their local record stores throughout the year.

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Record Store Day Countdown: The 1975 – Live At Gorilla

CD, Record Store
Adam Grundy

The first week of our Record Store Day countdown series wraps up today with a look into the live set from The 1975 called Live At Gorilla. This performance of the band’s debut LP, played in full from front to back for the first time since 2013, was recorded live in Manchester on February 1, 2023 and remains faithful to the original recording. The “RSD First” double LP is limited to 7,500 copies via Interscope Records and is pressed on white vinyl. The artwork for Live At Gorilla can be found below.

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Record Store Day Countdown: Collective Soul – Dosage

CD, Record Store
Adam Grundy

The march towards Record Store Day continues today with a look at Collective Soul and their fourth studio album, Dosage. The record is celebrating a 25th anniversary this year, so the timing was perfect to reissue this LP. This “RSD First” release is limited to just 2,000 copies via Craft Recordings, and it is pressed on “translucent lemonade” vinyl. The set features the singles “Heavy,” and one of my all-time favorite ballads in “Run.”

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