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Review: Pinkshift – Love Me Forever

Adam Grundy

Music is a powerful tool, and sometimes you can pinpoint the exact moment when a band is poised for big things. I found out about Baltimore punk band, Pinkshift, in a similar way as most of us who visit this site on a frequent basis: by an insightful recommendation. Jason wrote about Pinkshift in a Liner Notes newsletter, and it piqued my interest in this band. Pinkshift does a really great job of combining anthemic punk rock with hardcore elements, paired with the pop sensibilities to add in flavorful hooks into the mix to keep the listener engaged and wanting to hear more from this sonically interesting artist whose music appears to spreading like a wildfire in the music community. Comprised of vocalist Ashrita Kumar, guitarist Paul Vallejo, drummer Myron Houngbedji, and bassist Erich Weinroth, Pinkshift are able to catch lightning in a bottle with the aggressive Love Me Forever that has the same potential for breakout success much like the early days of My Chemical Romance.

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Review: A Place To Bury Strangers – Exploding Head

Adam Grundy

The sophomore record from A Place To Bury Strangers called Exploding Head has received a vinyl reissue with nearly a full second album’s worth of bonus tracks tacked on to the end for your enjoyment. This “noise rock” band sounds crisp and full on the vinyl version that I’m listening to, and features some extensive packaging and other treats in this 13th anniversary deluxe set. When the album was released in 2009, it garnered mostly positive reviews, and it’s easy to see why. A Place To Bury Strangers channel the deepest, darkest parts of industrial rock in a sound that fans of NIN, My Bloody Valentine, and AFI would certainly enjoy.

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Interview: Chris Lewis and Scott Russo of Unwritten Law

Unwritten Law
Adam Grundy

Recently I was able to schedule a Zoom call with Chris Lewis (lead guitarist) and Scott Russo (lead vocalist) of Unwritten Law to discuss the band’s latest album, The Hum. In this interview, we chatted about the 20th anniversary of Elva, the legacy of Unwritten Law, as well as the songs they are most excited to play live during their upcoming headlining tour of the United States.

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Review: Between The Echoes – Awake While Dreaming

Adam Grundy

When I last sat down to write about Between the Echoes, it was for their single “Phantom Limb” that featured Anberlin’s Stephen Christian on guest vocals. The band has since released their debut full-length record called Awake While Dreaming. The album features several twists and turns, much like navigating your way out of a labyrinth, and their ability to tell a story from beginning to end is rarely seen this vividly on a first album. Over the 14-track LP, that also includes three interludes to break up the sections of the album, Between the Echoes take the listener on a cryptic journey of self-discovery that is filled with plenty of youthful exuberance.

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Review: Trampled By Turtles – Alpenglow

Adam Grundy

Very few bands can last long enough to record five studio albums, let alone ten, in the brutal music business. The indie folk rock band known as Trampled By Turtles are circling the wagons on their victory lap for Alpenglow, their 10th studio album to date. This set was produced by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy with the majority of the 11 songs being written by lead singer Dave Simonett. This latest LP would be a great fit for fans of the quirky indie folk by The Decemberists, the working-man approach to songwriting by Jason Isbell, and the picturesque storytelling of Bob Dylan. Alpenglow is a stunning achievement for a band who continues to push the envelope of their creativity in new and interesting ways.

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Review: My Chemical Romance – Conventional Weapons

My Chemical Romance - Conventional Weapons
Adam Grundy

The circumstances that led to My Chemical Romance releasing a collection of scrapped album material, known now as Conventional Weapons, could’ve come under happier situations. However, shortly after the release of the album, that was spread out over five 7-inch records (called Number One, etc.) the band would shock their rabid fanbase and music fans alike by announcing their breakup on March 22nd, 2013. I vividly remember being cautiously excited when Conventional Weapons was first announced, because I’ve seen this formula all too well when bands suddenly release all of their previously scrapped material or extended B-sides before going their separate ways. MCR unfortunately would follow down this unfortunate path, and would not reunite until their announcement was made on October 31, 2019.

Conventional Weapons being observed as a compilation of B-sides, or scrapped material, is a bit unfair since this material flows well in the 10-song sequencing and many fans still consider this to be a “fifth” studio album from My Chemical Romance. The band has even continued to incorporate many of these songs into their setlist on their US tour, so one could argue that the band still believes strongly in these tracks as well. From the aggressive opening sequence of “Boy Division” to the closing bars of “Burn Bright,” MCR made sure their legacy was left intact on this record that has started to get more notoriety over time.

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Review: Chase Tremaine – My Heart Settled In The Middle

Adam Grundy

Sometimes you hear a great new single, and it makes you immediately clamor for hearing more from that artist. This is exactly what happened to me when singer-songwriter Chase Tremaine sent me over his new single called “Middle Of My Words.” The track features everything you’d want in a great-sounding alternative rock song: lush guitar riffs, smooth vocals, as well as few “studio tricks” to keep things moving on the right trajectory for an artist. Tremaine shared on Bandcamp about what inspired this latest EP: “Ironically, these three tracks are also taken directly from the middle stretch of my upcoming third studio album, Accidental Days. I decided to put this EP together after realizing that I would not be able to release Accidental Days in 2022 as originally planned. The full album is now due in early 2023, and I think this EP makes a fitting standalone project as I ask you, my friends, to wait a few extra months before getting to hear the full thing.” By crafting a three-song EP filled with so much promise and poise, Chase Tremaine is able to re-ignite excitement for fans of his music, while still teasing all of the new possibilities of what is to come on his third full-length record next year.

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Review: Amarionette – Gemini

Adam Grundy

On the latest full-length effort from funk rockers, Amarionette, they are able to hone in on their strengths and deliver another solid album entitled Gemini. They last made a worthwhile appearance on 2020’s Sunset On This Generation which was a nice mix of frenetic punk rock paired with slick pop-based hooks. Amarionette continue to explore a similar path on Gemini, while still leaving room for some experimentation. The Las Vegas-based band do their best to keep things interesting on this collection of 12 cohesive songs that are sure to make you believers in their brand of rock.

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Review: The 1975 – Being Funny In a Foreign Language

Adam Grundy

The fifth studio album from The 1975 is a brilliant opus of endless musical possibilities. When the band set out to record this album, entitled Being Funny in a Foreign Language, in the height of the pandemic with veteran producer Jack Antonoff, the pressure couldn’t be higher on this English rock band to deliver the goods. While Notes on a Conditional Form was a mixed bag of stellar material, paired with some odd song sequencing, and a little too much filler, this album comes in and blows the door off the hinges with its ability to convey a wide range of emotions in an 11-song, concise artistic statement that never overstays its welcome. While listening to the record, you get the feeling that The 1975 were able to hone in on the best parts of their stylistic songwriting and bring forth the best version of themselves. Being Funny in a Foreign Language has all the makings of an album of the year, while still adding plenty of deep references for longtime fans of The 1975.

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Interview: Cody Votolato of J.R. SLAYER

J.R. SLAYER
Adam Grundy

Recently I was able to schedule a Zoom interview with Cody Votolato (The Blood Brothers) to discuss his latest musical offering called J.R. SLAYER. In this interview we discussed his new EP called Not Rotten as well as the new single of the same name. Additionally, we discussed what keeps him motivated as an artist, the bands he’s influenced by, as well as much more. You can purchase Not Rotten here.

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Review: The Promise Ring – Nothing Feels Good

Adam Grundy

The sophomore album by The Promise Ring, called Nothing Feels Good, is largely credited for its influence in starting a wave of movement in the emo genre. The record has now turned 25 years old, so I thought it would be a great idea to revisit just what made this album so damn special. The album was produced by J. Robbins, and the cover art features a shot of Trimper’s Rides in the heart of the boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland. The album title also inspired author Andy Greenwald to use it for his great, comprehensive guide of emo music called Nothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo that I thoroughly enjoyed reading when it was released. What made The Promise Ring so endearing was their mix of power pop chords paired with a heart on their sleeves approach to their lyrics that led to several quotable moments within their songs. Nothing Feels Good is an endearing collection of 12 slick emo anthems that deservedly earned their time in the spotlight today.

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Review: The Wonder Years – The Hum Goes On Forever

Adam Grundy

Has there ever been a more emo opening on an album than on The Wonder Years “Doors I Painted Shut” as lead vocalist Dan Campbell croons, “I don’t wanna die / At least not without you / Alone here in the August heat / In the shadows of the afternoon”? The Wonder Years’ latest studio album, entitled The Hum Goes On Forever, may be their best record to date and features several unique callbacks to the sound they have perfected over their collective careers. The set was produced by Steve Evetts and veteran hit-maker Will Yip, and the album sounds like a million bucks. The Hum Goes On Forever also features two outside collaborators/writers on “Wyatt’s Song (Your Name)” (Mark Hoppus) and “Oldest Daughter” (Ace Enders), and showcases a band blossoming gracefully in the later stages of their career.

After the cautious opening song, the album explodes into “Wyatt’s Song (Your Name),” the third single released, and possibly one of my favorite songs that the band has ever crafted to date. I found the verse of “I found glass in the garden / Dug it up with my thumb / I won’t let you cut your feet / When you learn to run / But you learned to say, “Moon” / So, we waved from your room / He called to you like it might come to you,” to be particularly well-written since it reminded me a bit of the relationship I have with my kids and wanting to protect them from the worst situations.

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Interview: Caracara

Caracara
Adam Grundy

Recently I was able to catch up on the road with the ultra-talented band, Caracara, for an in-depth interview about the process they took while recording their latest record New Preoccupations. I asked the band about specific songs like “My Thousand Eyes,” “Colorglut” and more as well as what went into deciding the final tracklisting for the album. Be sure to catch Caracara on their current US tour with Sad Park and Heart To Gold.

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