Every music fan has that band they adored when they were young; puberty was just around the next turn or already amidst your daily troubles. You were easily influenced, grabbing for something to attach to. For me, these days involved Limp Bizkit, Eminem, System of a Down ‘Toxicity’ era, bouts of Donkey Kong on the Game Boy Color, and maybe a little surface punk rock. … Continue reading The Offspring ‘Days Go By’ Review

I once considered Trent Reznor to be the defining artist of the 90′s. Unfortunately, many disagree, and Kurt Cobain’s death embattles my argument pretty heavily. But Reznor seems to be in a constant state of remaining relevant and sustaining the impression that he could not care less. And with that he has built a notable army of High Schooler’s who grew up with Nine Inch … Continue reading Nine Inch Nails “Hesitation Marks” Review

I apologize in advance to long time fans of Jack Johnson. He just seems so airheaded. Life is all about roses and pretty colors, man. You get the impression that all Jack Johnson thinks about is love, his wife, pretty walks through the woods, and surfing. This is all fine and super, but it is not exactly what we call reality. In reality, pain is present. … Continue reading Jack Johnson “From Here to Now to You” Review

Metal Machine Music would be the worst album ever made if it was actually a conscious sincere attempt to make music. Interestingly, it hardly classifies as music. Considering music is, by definition, organized sounds, Metal Machine Music’s hour long industrial soundscape of noise, abrasion, brutal tedium, and feedback, made for one of the most alarming, distressing, and terrible musical experiences in history. As far as … Continue reading Lou Reed “Metal Machine Music” Review

Panic! at the Disco seem to have been all over the place musically over three albums and six years. Their debut album, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, was danceable and likable- sweet and sugary with the pop sensibilities of the best “emo” acts in the scene. It was flamboyantly awkward lyrically, but had enough charm to appease the times. And just a few years later, … Continue reading Panic at the Disco “Vices and Virtues” Review

Nickelback never seize to amaze me. Their music has been so universally disliked, and so representative of a larger, more sinister beast (the mainstream music listener) that I find their longevity shocking but also oddly acceptable. There are a lot of bands like Nickelback that could be pinpointed, but Nickelback insist on continuing to make music, so why they sort of asked for it. I tried … Continue reading Nickelback “Here and Now” Review

Back when Vampire Weekend broke in 2008 with their eponymous self-titled debut, I was charmed by their inane sense of a hook. But what were they saying? I could not possibly relate to this waspy-whimsical contour waves of jangly rich-kid pop. But the hooks! They were so irresistible, despite my overall impression that they really didn’t have anything to say that wasn’t swashed in counter-intuitive bucklings of irony. But … Continue reading Vampire Weekend “Vampires in the City” Review

Yawn. I’m sorry. That was a poor opening. I am a bit tired from bearing through The Killers latest album Battle Born for the fifth time. Not fifth time consecutively. I would kill myself. I’m just a little sleepy here…Hum. Um. Ok. Well, Battle Born isn’t some sleepytime album. It is a far cry from Radiohead’s Kid A or some post-rock balladry or something, not that it … Continue reading The Killers “Battle Born” Review

Leonard Cohen is an enigma. His raspy low-register voice has been ever-present since he debuted in the late 60′s with a batch of seedy cellar ballads about sex, doom, and meeting strangers that are lost and scared. So nearly 50 years later, and Cohen engages that dark synergy in all of us. That moment where mortality becomes more than just an afterthought but a serious … Continue reading Leonard Cohen “Popular Problems” Review

I am a huge fan of the Ramones, so it seems about time I grace one of the most popular and widely accepted  albums the group ever put out. Trying not to recycle the same thing that people have said for decades now, The Ramones ended up being a lot more influential than anyone ever gave them credit for. Rocket to Russia seemingly exists in this perfect 5 trifecta- … Continue reading The Ramones ‘Rocket to Russia” Review

Matt Bellamy is filled with cheese. His brain, his heart, every orifice is spewing little drips of Kraft cheese that replace typical human organs. This is the only logical reason for why Muse’s new album The 2nd Law is as infuriatingly and excessively cheesy as it is. The trio of Muse- Matt Bellamy, Christopher Wolstenholme, and Dominic Howard- imbue cheese over every little synth hook, every vocal … Continue reading Muse “The 2nd Law” Review

Linkin Park has always carved their own path in music. Ever since their debut release about 15 years ago, the band championed nu-metal while simultaneously burning it to the ground. Those albums still somehow sound non-dated, a testament to their craft of universal appeal and brilliantly approachable songwriting. The Hunting Party finds this band seemingly reinvigorated with a heavier release than anything they have done since their mainstream opus, … Continue reading Linkin Park “The Hunting Party” Review

It really surprises me that Tenacious D is still a “thing.” For one, their last greatest achievement was with their 2001 self-titled album, which deliberately created egotistical rock power ballads and acoustic ditties, mixed among some hysterical back-crunching dialogue that was both brilliantly composed and written and oddly offensive. Yet since that record, they have dabbled in mediocrity, watered down riffs, and borderline self parody. The Pick of … Continue reading Tenacious D “Rize of the Fenix” Review