sorry man i can’t hang with the Undertale carnival music T_T the musical hooks can be really catchy too but i just cannot deal with the Nickelodeon vibes

wherever you are, the light will reach.

for playing aloud at high volumes, maybe dancin around to. doing a little jig, or even a big one

The transition from 1960’s jaunty post-punk to the contrasts in Helluva is a major highlight. The first five songs of this album feels stronger than the back half, but it’s all a worthwhile exploration into gazier and rockier songwriting than their noisy early work. MASS remains a winner in my book :)

tried listening to this on a recent long drive but it kinda sounds like the same song 20 times in a row? am i being utterly unfair or is the instrumentation and singing not just barely discernible between tracks?

Wry delivery of boring lyrics. Repetitive, painfully unsubtle sloganeering of admittedly inarguable politics. But is that what you want to listen to? Is that the music you want to make? The aspects of the music that hold interest aren't breaking new ground in the genre. Steer clear, and if dig the sound but want a more artful execution of this contemporary arty, danceable post-punk, listen to Gustaf instead.

This constitutes my first exposure to Papir. The slowest moments of tracks like "7.1" verge on ambient, as guitar strings are plucked intermittently over droning effects pedals. I think the term "jam band" is a little dismissive for how intentional these tracks sound. "7.2" is calming and relaxing, propelled by a drum beat that keeps a quick eighth-note clip while respecting the surfy sound of the guitars and soaring synth pads. There are moments I felt the ... read more

The punk quartet's debut LP after forming in 2009 (!) and releasing two 7"s and a split cassette. They break from straightforward (if noisey) punk rock to get into no wavey, art post-punky sounds in tracks like "Deviation," with its squealing riff forming a center toward which the verses spiral. Listening to tracks like "Unleash" and "Rigged," it's hard not to imagine how much fun it would be to mosh at a Nicfits show. Consider the ways vocalist Hiromi trades ... read more

These vocals are wild, but sometimes the depth of these growls really turn me off. I wish, as a whole, the album were more symphonic? Like, the strings are mixed awfully far back on some of these tracks. The elegies have some pretty slick moments of guitar soloing. Overall I am not given a very strong impression after listening to this album. Perhaps with more attention, I'll get a greater appreciation for some of these songs. For now, not feeling particularly warm to it. But there is no doubt ... read more

Crisply produced yet crusty blackened hardcore, grindy and noisey and delicious. "Abortive Flower" is the high point. I enjoy the atmosphere and texture lent by the introduction and the latter end of "Psycho Eyes" before the band explodes into "Toxic" for 20 seconds of madness. At just a hair over 17 minutes, this release is over in a jif but makes a strong impression on first listen.

Chamber midwest screamo reflecting on the lingering traumatic consequences of a childhood spent neglected and misunderstood. A narrator who struggles for having adopted obsequience in lieu of respectful refusal and productive conflict in their youth. Lyrics like these — sung and screamed over piano, violin and glockenspiel in addition to the usual coterie of rock-quartet instrumentation — constitute as genuine an expression of the anguish of an internal life extinguished to a ... read more

It OK. The frontwoman's vocals are genuinely great, but are severely sandbagged by pretty boring, tropey nu metal instrumentation and songwriting/composition that I found hard to listen to. Or finish listening to, sometimes! Sorta tragic.

This is cute, there are some pleasant funky-groovy tracks in here, it's about 33% longer than it should be (in terms of songs left in and the length of each song) and does not leave a particularly strong impression. But for something a little psychedelic and funky, I'm digging it.

It's been a really long time since I've sought out melodic death metal with earnestly sung, clean vocals like this, but it's kind of a triumphant return to the genre for me. I don't have any prior experience with Wilderun but this makes me want to seek more from them out sometime.

Acoustic guitar and folky instrumentation bloom into the chugging and soaring you expect from the genre, but not in an oppressive or dark way; there's an uplifting note throughout, even when we're being offered ... read more

sure yes i'll take another one of these every eight years, sign me up please

amyl & the sniffers? pee-ew!

Most of these tracks are kinda annoying. And it's unchanging, totally even in its pacing and production throughout — like, the same noises coming at you at every angle, inescapable, 0 to 60 for the whole album — which is terrible for balls-to-the-wall janked up electronic like this.... Is this dubstep? Is hyperpop just dubstep?

Hats off to Gupi for using his voice in some of these tracks though, he is open on Twitter about being pretty averse to singing. That's commendable!

This is really boring, sounds super bland, feels uninspired and — maybe I'm just a hater, maybe it's because I don't know this group's music or their context really at all whatsoever — but it's pretty rare for me to be actively deterred from wanting to find out anything about music I've listened to. This is an instance where I will forget that I've listened to this, that I've rated it, even that I wrote a review on it.

Notes from my first two listens:

These sounds are soothing, calming. The piano and strings throughout "Spirit of Love" are gorgeous. There is also a frivolity and carefree attitude in the pluckiness of "Spirit of Love" that suggests childhood or adventure — exploration for sure.

There is a softness in "Ether." And the final, title track's use of birdsong and cascades of insect nose is lovely. The cicadas in particular make for a nice callback to the ... read more

This is fun, this is music I imagine putting on in the background while doing something that warrants intense yet non-distracting background music. I could run to this, or play a competitive videogame with this on the background.

But there isn't a lot of "there" there, at least on first listen. Good, not great; I'm not feeling the "I felt like I was on DRUGS!" takes about it I'm reading online. Nor do I think this is particularly groundbreaking or genre-bending.

But I ... read more