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Review: X Ambassadors – VHS (X)

Adam Grundy

In all of (the recently-engaged) Taylor Swift’s wisdom and cultural impact, arguably the biggest shake-up in the music industry was the idea of re-recording music to take back ownership of the songs that an artist has written. Never being strangers to hopping onto a great idea, X Ambassadors are gearing up for the release of VHS (X) this Friday, a faithful re-record of their debut LP that features a plethora of re-imagined versions of their biggest hits. VHS, I thought, was a bit bogged down/packed with too many interludes and voice memos that broke up the overall flow of their debut, but VHS (X) trims the fat, and focuses on what X Ambassadors are capable of creating today. Given the band’s 10+ years experience that have come from touring the world since their original version of VHS graced the world in the summer of 2015, this re-record does much more than just claiming back ownership of the songs that Sam Harris, Casey Harris, and Adam Levin created on their debut, it accentuates X Ambassadors core strengths as a unit moving forward.

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Review: Foreign Air – Such That I May Glow

Foreign Air - Such That I May Glow
Adam Grundy

Foreign Air are onto something truly great and moving on Such That I May Glow, their third full-length album to date, and ultimately their most complete artistic statement to date. The band first gained viral success from their debut single that was featured in several prominent ads, called “Free Animal,” that brilliantly showcased what Foreign Air were capable of creating when the duo of Jesse Clasen (lead vocals/guitar) and Jacob Michael (guitar/bass/synths/programming/backing vocals) came together. The band seemed to have gained a certain confidence and swagger that comes through well on this album that is brimming with unlimited potential for where Foreign Air can go from here. The band is somewhere in the same artistic realm as Sir Sly, JR JR, and The Naked And Famous, with a slick self-produced sound on Such That I May Glow, that is quickly becoming one of my favorite releases of not only the synth-wave genre, but also for this entire year.

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Review: Hayley Williams – Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party

Adam Grundy

After the surprise drop of 17 new singles that mysteriously appeared in late-July on the official website of Hayley Williams, the singles got an official streaming release on August 1st. Williams’ move set the record industry a bit aghast, as these songs live without a true “home” (as of this writing) of a standard album, no official tracklisting, and a litany of interpretations from longtime fans of the Paramore front-woman. Simply dubbed as Ego, these new songs are brimming with unlimited potential and purpose. 2020’s Petals for Armor highlighted what Williams could do on her own with her vibrant and infectious personality, and paired it with the long-documented trauma of her past divorce, while the 2021 sophomore follow-up of Flowers for Vases / Descansos backed up my feelings that Hayley Williams was more than capable of letting her star shine brightest without the umbrella of Paramore. Ego, while not officially dubbed as the third album from Williams, still plays out with a clear vision and bating heart behind these 17 tracks that accentuate her ability to convey a wide range of emotions in her vibrant music. Not one for conforming to the norms of the music industry, Ego re-imagines the possibilities of what music is and can be about as Hayley Williams re-cements herself in the singer-songwriter genre with a brilliant artistic statement.

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Review: Filter – Short Bus

Filter - Short Bus
Adam Grundy

The story of Filter began when lead singer/band founder, Richard Patrick, mentioned in past interviews that when he was chatting with his touring bandmate of NIN singer (Trent Reznor), he suggested that Patrick make his own record while Nine Inch Nails went off to record their now-classic of The Downward Spiral. The tunes that Richard Patrick crafted on Short Bus were heavily influenced by his time in touring with NIN, yet they feature a lot more guitar parts in them to set Filter on a different artistic course than the aforementioned other touring project. Short Bus was released on April 25th, 1995, and has sold over a million copies in the U.S., spearheaded by the breakthrough success of Filter’s debut single of “Hey Man Nice Shot.” The set was co-produced by Richard Patrick and his musician friend, Brian Liesegang, who conceived the idea of Filter in the early 90’s. During the recording sessions, Patrick acted as the primary songwriter/bassist/vocalist, while Liesegang primarily handled production duties and programming the drum machine they used on Short Bus, and the duo split the guitar duties. While the band’s sophomore record, Title of Record, would blast Filter into the Alt Rock mainstream with the soft rock hit of “Take A Picture,” Short Bus is ultimately the album that longtime Filter fans point to as the key moment in time when Richard Patrick and Brian Liesegang were at their creative peak.

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Review: Bad Suns – Accelerator

Bad Suns - Accelerator
Adam Grundy

Bad Suns are on the right trajectory on their fifth studio album, Accelerator, that leans heavily into lead vocalist/guitarist Christo Bowman’s personal life. Bowman has a lot to be thankful for: a beautiful wife and growing family that now includes a child, and it becomes increasingly evident on this new LP that he is also truly coming into his own as a gifted songwriter with a clear vision for the music he’s making. Accelerator is Bad Suns’ first full-length studio album in three years, while the last time we heard music from the band was in the form of a 2023 EP, named Infinite Joy, that gave clues as to where the band could and would take their music in the future. The overall flow of Accelerator is well-organized, meaningful and brimming with excitement from start to finish. Through Bowman’s lens of how he sees the world, musically, Bad Suns have simultaneously made their most personal and best record to date.

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Review: Hayes Carll – We’re Only Human

Adam Grundy

Hayes Carll feels like a man on a mission on his latest record, We’re Only Human. This country singer-songwriter shimmers and sways all over this ten-track LP that is brimming with great lyrical undertones, vivid imagery and storytelling, paired with ultra-solid musicianship. We’re Only Human is Hayes Carll’s ninth studio album to date, and he wastes little time getting to what’s on his mind lately on this latest effort that is worthy of your time. With key singles like “High”, the upbeat romp of “Progress of Man (Bitcoin & Cattle)” and the opening title track that explains, “We’re only human / That is all / Just walking the rope between fear and hope / And knowing we’re gonna fall / ‘Cause we’re only human,” Hayes Carll weaves a tangled web of intricate melodies on this record that fits somewhere in the realm of Zach Bryan, Jason Isbell and Bob Dylan.

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Review: Good Charlotte – Motel Du Cap

Adam Grundy

Good Charlotte have returned with their first studio album in seven years, called Motel Du Cap, and it is an exploration of the band’s humble beginnings, while still offering a few new musical elements to further the artistic direction of GC. The music landscape has changed quite a bit since Good Charlotte last released Generation Rx. Country artists are predominantly taking the top spots on the Billboard 200, while rock/punk music has offered some really cool emerging artists in the scene such as Turnstile, Pinkshift and Moving Mountains, just to name a few. So where does Good Charlotte fit in? The answer can be found by checking in to Motel Du Cap and hearing the Madden brothers’ unique perspective on how far they’ve come together, their past trauma, and overall outlook on life. The set was produced by Johan Carlsson, Zakk Cervini, Jordan Fish, Andrew Goldstein, and Charlie Puth, and is armed with 13 songs in total. Four of the tracks include guest artist spots, and Good Charlotte do a commendable job of not only paying homage to their past legacy as a band, but showcasing their staying power in our scene.

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Review: Blindside – The Great Depression

Blindside - The Great Depression
Adam Grundy

The twentieth anniversary of the fifth studio album by Blindside is coming up this weekend, so it’s time to revisit The Great Depression. The album was largely influenced by a trip to Africa that their lead singer, Christian Lindskog, which left the singer “unsettled” by his experience and the things he saw vastly influenced the direction of the record. The LP also found Blindside going with an independent label, after the moderate commercial success of Silence and About a Burning Fire, and deciding to work with a different producer as well in Lasse Mårtén. While I felt the pairing of the previous two records with veteran producer, Howard Benson, was a match made in music heaven for Blindside, The Great Depression is truly an “artist’s record” in that the band was beginning to see the world through a much different lens. The set would spawn two singles in “Fell In Love With The Game” and the reflective “When I Remember,” but had trouble gaining traction commercially. The album is still adored by many Blindside fans to this day, and it’s easy to see why after a fresh listen. The Great Depression marked a significant shift in Blindside’s artistic direction, and left hints as to where they would take their sound on subsequent releases.

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Review: The Haunt – New Addiction

The Haunt - New Addiction
Adam Grundy

I’d love to introduce everyone to South Florida hard rock band, The Haunt, who are led by a sister and brother duo, Anastasia (vocals) and Maxamillion Haunt (guitar/production). On their latest record, called New Addiction, The Haunt quickly re-solidify themselves as major players in the Alternative/Hard Rock scene with this album that was produced by Kevin Thrasher (Escape the Fate, Jelly Roll). The set includes The Haunt’s breakthrough single of “Masochistic Lovers,” that features Craig Mabbitt (Dead Rabbitts/Escape the Fate), that showcases the band’s knack for writing big hooks with plenty of emo-laced substance. The Haunt are a great mix of scene nostalgia, paired with powerhouse female vocals, and slick production in the same vein as Greywind, Paramore, and Evanescence. New Addiction lives up its name, because you will likely be obsessed and charmed by The Haunt.

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Review: Red Scare Across Canada: 2025

Red Scare Across Canada: 2025
Adam Grundy

We need more punk music in this world, especially today, and Red Scare Records are supplying the goods to our demand with the recently released compilation of Red Scare Across Canada: 2025. The comp features a new single from four great artists in Brendan Kelly and the Wandering Birds, Guerilla Poubelle, Sam Russo, and In The Meantime. Red Scare Records is basically just showing off the depth of their dynamic punk rock roster on this compilation that plays out speedily, but is ultra-rewarding to the listener on repeat spins.

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Review: Lord Huron – The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1

Lord Huron - The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1
Adam Grundy

Lord Huron, the project of LA-based singer-songwriter, and visual artist, Ben Schneider, has released his fifth album that was written and co-produced by Schneider. Rounding out Lord Huron’s band are musicians Tom Renaud, Mark Barry and Miguel Briseño, and there is also two cameos to be found on The Cosmic Selector from actress Kristen Stewart (on “Who Laughs Last”) and Blonde Redhead’s Kazu Makino (on “Fire Eternal”). Lord Huron gets into a comfortable groove on this 12-track LP that seems like the logical follow-up from the band’s excellent 2018 record of Vide Noir, paired with the crisp songwriting that was most recently found all over the 2021 effort called Long Lost. One of the key tracks that helps set the tone for the entirety of the record is found on “Nothing I Need” as Schneider croons, “I feel in deep when you fell in love with me / Now I got everything I want, and I got nothing that I need / If I believe, will you fall back in love with me? / Now I got everything I want, and I got nothing that I need.” These lyrics act as a mantra for Lord Huron as he once again explores the cosmos on The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1, an album that is rich with the themes of love, loneliness, and finding out the meaning of this thing we call life.

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Review: The All-American Rejects – Move Along

All American Rejects - Move Along
Adam Grundy

”When all you got to keep is strong / Move along, move along like I know ya do / And even when your hope is gone / Move along, move along just to make it through.” Simple lyrics, but immediately impactful from The All-American Rejects on their sophomore smash of a record called Move Along. The band found an immediate spark in their songwriting under the careful tutelage of veteran producer Howard Benson, recorded by Mike Plotnikoff, and mixed by a “living legend” in Chris Lord-Alge, AAR struck gold…rather platinum (x3). This was the first album to feature guitarist Mike Kennerty and drummer Chris Gaylor, while the band’s self-titled debut was a two-piece effort between Tyson Ritter (vocals/bass) and Nick Wheeler (guitars/keyboards/programming). Looking back today on the record that changed The All-American Rejects commercial prospects for the foreseeable future is a fun task. The album spawned three singles in the infectious guitar pop of “Dirty Little Secret”, the timeless title track, and the piano-laced ballad of “It Ends Tonight.” The band has found an entirely new shelf life to Move Along, and their entire discography, by self-promoting impromptu house parties to begin the next phase of the band.

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Review: World’s First Cinema – Something Of Wonder

Adam Grundy

On their Fearless Records debut, World’s First Cinema expand upon their starry-eyed vision for the movies and theater that they first tinkered with on their EP (2023’s Palm Reader) with the newly-released Something Of Wonder. The band’s first taste of the new direction they took on this record came with the lead single of “Hold My Own,” a sprawling, riff-heavy track that is in the same realm as bands like American Authors and Panic! At the Disco. World’s First Cinema is the duo of John Sinclair (piano/violin/arrangements) and Fil Thorpe (former vocalist of Neck Deep). On the “Hold My Own,” the band shared, “This song came together after a stretch of touring, where we found ourselves drawn to the high-energy moments in our set. We wanted to capture that feeling in a fresh way, and this track was the result. It felt like the perfect opener for the album—almost like a red herring for what’s to come. It makes a bold statement: we can make music that sounds like this, but we choose to take the album in a direction that’s less expected and, for us, way more exciting.” By adding that dramatic flair to their music, Something Of Wonder lives up to its name in more ways than one.

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Review: Wet Leg – moisturizer

Adam Grundy

There’s so much to love when a talented young band quickly figures out their sound and takes their music in the directions you were hoping they would. There is no “sophomore slump” to be found on moisturizer, the second LP by indie rockers, Wet Leg. After an astounding self-titled debut record garnered the band some Grammy wins and a moment of, “Holy shit, we’ve arrived” in the chart-topping singles of “Chaise Longue” and “Wet Dream”, Wet Leg appeared to solidify their status as much more than a one-trick pony on moisturizer. The set was once-again produced by Dan Carey (Civil Twilight, Foals) and this continued relationship truly pays off here. Wet Leg was founded by Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, and the two songwriters are joined here by Ellis Durand, Henry Holmes, and Joshua Mobaraki to round out their attack found on this blistering record that is filled with brash guitars, hooks for days, and improved songwriting.

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Review: Ben Folds – Live With The National Symphony Orchestra

Adam Grundy

There’s a certain magic behind Ben Folds and his unique brand of quirky, piano-based pop rock. It’s hard to put your finger on why it’s so impactful and meaningful when you listen to his music, but it’s undeniably there. This “magic” is on full display in the surprise-release of Live With The National Symphony Orchestra, that was recorded at Washington, DC’s Kennedy Center before the current administration took over the day-to-day operations and artistic direction. I’m so glad this recording exists, since Ben Folds has always had a knack for writing insightful music directly from the heart. The vinyl version of the recording features ten songs, while the digital version includes an additional four bonus tracks. For eight years, Folds served as National Symphony Orchestra’s first-ever Artistic Advisor at the Kennedy Center before he resigned, and yet this album does an incredible job of playing homage to this wonderful legacy Ben Folds and The National Symphony Orchestra have each established at our Nation’s capital’s most historic venues for the arts.

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