Friendly Fires are a trio that laid the foundations of my music taste several years ago, and they still hold up very well today. I'm surprised I haven't checked out their EPs sooner, because their debut EP, 'Photobooth', contains some deep cuts that are nothing short of amazing. The title track, Photobooth, was put onto their debut album and it's easy to see why. It's infectiously catchy, punchy, and sleazy. Shoutout to the bass guitar on this track! I think the ... read more

I'll cut some slack to Adrian since this is one of his earliest releases, but 'Bloodsexy' is a mixed bag. It's easy to tell that this EP is really rough around the edges with the poor production. Some tracks fall short of being long enough to be memorable or to be replayed, but even with these issues, it laid a good foundation for his future works. The horny, hilarious lyricism, buzzing synths, and his abrasive bursts of energy are all here. His sound works the best on ... read more

From the AI cover to the cringe song titles, I knew I wasn't going to like it. It's hardly even worth giving it a score. But it's worse than I anticipated. Everything about 'GAG!' is laughably terrible, the tracks go from generic EDM that's been done to death, repetitive Soundcloud trap put together by an 8th grader, to landfill pop I'd hear in the middle of Khols. The mix makes the instruments sound like they're trying to overpower each other by playing ... read more

'Raise the Alarm' has been on my radar for a while, but I never actually got to listening to what this band has to offer other than the unbelievably catchy 'Commercial Breakdown'. While that single is one of best representations of their sound, and their post-punky, danceable sound has been done to death during and after the release of this album, I can't say I'm not pleased with this album. Instrumentally, the album is very catchy, and when they lower the ... read more

Test Icicles with their clever and incredible name deliver great results on their debut. They're noisy and aggressive, with thrashy, distorted riffs and screamed vocals, but they also want to party at the same time. It's a really good concept, and they took pretty good advantage of it. The mix and the production is a little lackluster, but Test Icicles are one of those bands that don't really need a good mix. Just about anything works on these guys. James Ellis Ford took the spot ... read more

Most say Klaxons invented New Rave, but these guys have been doing it long before anyone else. "Blank-Wave Arcade" is an album with a sound that may be dated by today's standards, but you can really tell how this album was ahead of it's time back then. The electroclash influence is very clear; from the heavy emphasis on blaring synths, punchy baselines, and what's electroclash without making a third of the songs about sex? Mix that with electric guitars and danceable ... read more

you smoke WHAT now?

Band name aside, WSF was a short lived trio from the New Rave scene in London, with an electropunk attitude. The two tracks on this single sound of it's time, and they haven't aged well unlike most songs from the New Rave scene. Better mixing could've made these songs even better, but they're solid nonetheless. Non-stop hi-tats, punky guitars, catchy synths, both songs are great representations of the band's potential, and if they had released an ... read more

Out of curiosity, I decided to check ¡FR!'s sophomore record after having positive reactions to their debut. Maybe I got my hopes up too high, or they decided to miss more than they hit with this record. They decided to emphasize their post-hardcore influences and gain a math rocky attitude, whilst making their dance-punk/PPR influences less obvious. Which is real unfortunate, because that was the best part about the debut! They were at their best when they were full of energy, and ... read more

I've heard 'Twelve' before listening to this album in full, it's a really addicting and danceable PPR track. I was curious to hear more, and after a full listen, there's no doubt their sound is addicting. It's explosive, noisy, danceable, energetic, and somber. The calmer moments on the album suddenly explode with energy, and vice versa. They're combining Bloc Party-esque guitars, groovy dance-punk drum rhythms, and an attitude tutored by At The Drive-In. ... read more

Before The 1975, there was Drive Like I Do, and this compilation is essentially a collection of their early material recorded between 2005-2007(08?). Their sound was stuck in a weird spot in indie; they didn't follow the trends of the new rave/dance-punk scene, nor did they get classified as landfill indie, it was something different and refreshing, but very accessible and straightforward. Some elements of their sound, such as their anthemic "big music" choruses they presented on ... read more

That Armand Van Helden remix reminds me of that 'Welcome To The Black Parade' remix Steve Aoki did a few years back. Turning a ballad with thought-provoking and deeply personal lyrics into some generic, forgettable club tune. Everything that made 'Signs' what it was is gone here. Actually, forget the Armand remix even happened, because the Pantha du Prince Remix single handedly saved my score from being a 0. This is the remix that SHOULD'VE been on the album. I love the ... read more

I've always been intrigued by the idea of remix albums, It's always exciting hearing my favorite albums re-imagined by various remixers. Not sure what went wrong in the process, but these remixers completely butchered up most of the tracks on here. There were moments where I couldn't help but cry from how badly they fucked these songs up. These songs lose most if not all of their original charm and character, which is really unfortunate considering how their last remix album, ... read more

Mirrors For Princes. An electropunk band from Berlin that seems like no one has heard of, which is really unfortunate considering how unique this album is. To put it simply; they took all of their influences and chopped out the parts they like. They blend all of those chopped parts together to create their own unique sound, and they made all the right choices with doing this. This well crafted sound consists of abrasive guitar sections, danceable rhythms, the poppiness obtained from radio hits, ... read more

Sex is easily one of the best The 1975 tracks, as well as being one of the most popular tracks from them. The entire track sounds anthemic and powerful, and the production is just amazing. What I get from the lyrics is the narrator wants to build a strong relationship with this girl, but she's only in it for the sex. The lyrics "We've got one thing in common it's this tongue of mine" and "All we seem to do is talk about sex" backs this up. On the last verse, ... read more

One of the earlier examples of New Rave, Van She's debut EP is full of catchy songwriting, anthemic choruses, and fantastic singing from bassist & vocalist Matt. The Australian group have produced a consistent sound that makes the song lineup strong; except for that random reprise, which this EP could've survived without.

They all execute their ideas very well. The opener and 'Kelly' is a great presentation of that execution. They do a great job as serving as the ... read more

Trash Fashion's debut features their aggressive post-hardcore influenced dance-punk sound, with a couple dashes of electronica. The band themselves describe this sound as "Guntronic Disco Warehouse Rock", and despite being new rave, it sounds like this album should've been released 7 years earlier. Having a dated sound is one thing, and it can be difficult to execute. (Spoilers! They don't execute it very well here.)

Since they're a dance-punk band, you'd ... read more

Neon Plastix have always been one of my favorite New Rave bands of all time. Their chemistry is batshit crazy; Patrick's frantic and energetic vocals fit extremely well with their sound, Danny's drumming give each track an explosive and uncontrollable energy unmatched when compared to other New Rave bands, Phil and Kate's fantastic guitar riffs and hooks are catchy and slick, and the synths are the cherry on top that complete their sound. This entire album is undoubtedly loads of ... read more

This EP lies between Radio 4's 'Gotham!' and their debut. The three back to back bangers on this EP has some of the band's best material to date. The title track is just a funky and groovy dance-punk classic. However, the tracks that come after are even better. 'Sink So Low''s non-stop hi-tats give the track uncontrollable amounts of energy. The synths on 'Caroline' add such a great touch to the song which makes it a personal favorite of mine. The ... read more

Radio 4 is a band that's rarely well received by critics. Ever since 'Gotham!', they seem to have lost their footing, and there isn't much that's saved them since then. Their fourth and final album, 'Enemies Like This' is a solid effort, it's just too bad the studio product isn’t more engaging. The title track, '(Always A) Target', and 'Packing Things Up', are fantastic Radio 4 tracks. They're full of energy, catchy hooks, ... read more

The debut from the indietronica three piece from the Manchester scene that fell off the radar just as fast as they saw fame contains slick alt-dance grooves, Friendly Fires-esque dance-punk, euphoric and atmospheric structures, and a wide sound pallet. All of these influences and ideas add to the uniqueness of their sound and makes 'Acolyte' a standout record. Tracks like 'This Momentary' and 'Red Lights' are great presentations of their successful experiments. The ... read more