Dartz! takes a different direction with their sound on Alnerique, a shorter record which tones down the energetic rockiness from their debut and goes for a more melancholic and sentimental vibe. Their midwest emo influences grow stronger, but their energy still shines in a couple of spots, such as the opener and the closer. The instrumental tracks are good to settle and relax with, 'Embers' feels like an American Football outtake, and 'WHtPWSSB' is the most relaxing and ... read more

I went into this album without a clue how it was going to sound. Thankfully, I was happy with my find, as I was met with some really underappreciated mathy and danceable post-punk revival tracks. It's very energetic, a couple of tracks will NOT give those hi-tats a break! With a few tinges of midwest emo and dance-punk, it almost sounds like it's combining two of the most popular sounds of that year; Emo rock, and dance-punk. They're at their best when they're having fun, ... read more

Really good instrumentally. Great production, but somewhat generic compared to past Anberlin releases. Just take a moment to imagine how great this would sound if Stephen's incredible vocals were on this.

That's quite the interesting title Matty...

The 1975 follow up their self titled debut by tweaking and adding a few ingredients in their formula. They had experimented just a little on their debut, but now they're getting serious with their experimentation. They put more emphasis on synths and electronics, compared to the rockiness heard on their debut. They also sound far poppier than they were, despite the dark and personal lyricism the upbeat instruments try to hide. Fortunately, ... read more

Really solid debut full to the brim with punchy and catchy hooks. It's a great start for them, the production and the mixing is really good, and the same goes for the execution of all of their ideas, that keep the record's overall consistency. There's definitely a moody vibe going on with the album, but it's hard to notice since it's underneath the poppy, upbeat instrumentation. There's a few slippery spots here and there, but when it hits, it hits HARD. The sound ... read more

2007 just started, and Klaxons release the "first" New Rave album that catapulted the term into the mainstream. 'Myths of the Near Future' painted the pale UK indie scene in many different colors, giving it a personality it didn't have before. Klaxons worked hard on making a sound this unique, resulting in an album full of energy, creativity, and undeniably catchy songwriting. The only thing that brings this project down is it's held together by repetitiveness. ... read more

A new leading light in the New Rave genre, The Hellp avoid sophomore slump by further exploring the sound they developed on 'Enemy', an EP they released 3 years ago. And the execution is amazing. LL is the breath of fresh air New Rave needed long after it's death. They experiment with huge arrays of sounds and synths on every track without giving the listener whiplash from each style they perform. It instrumentally lies somewhere between a mix of Crystal Castles, Максим ... read more

Never thought LCD would drop anything this year, but I'm pleased that we got some new material! X-Ray Eyes is an undeniably groovy track that sounds like something straight out of their self titled eta. This is some pretty catchy stuff that'll get stuck in my head for days.

Heard it for the first time on SiriusXM and… it’s fine. It’s a really safe song especially for a band like Linkin Park. It’s nice to hear something different from the band… but this could’ve been way better.

After 'You'll Rebel to Anything' grew on me, I thought checking out the album that came after it would help with my hunger for music that's just dumb, stupid, and dumb stupid fun. And 'If' did exactly that! Clocking in at 45 minutes, they did a good job preventing the album from dragging (and here I was, thinking this album was going to drag!)

Instrumentally, MSI's creativity shines as much as it did on their predecessor, they're still capable of putting ... read more

Bloc Party had remixes dating all the way back to their debut EP, with the Phones Disco edit of Banquet. (Phones is just an alias of Paul Epworth, the man who helped produce Silent Alarm; which is pretty cool!) The members of Bloc Party really liked remixes of their songs, as they "wanted to show that dance music was important to them as a rock quartet." Just 5 months after the release of Silent Alarm, they put all of these remixes together into one album, dubbed Silent Alarm Remixed, ... read more

This glitchy and unique project from the Ukrainian artist contains a sound unlike anything i've heard this year. Some really good ideas were put into this, and they're wonderfully executed! He's not afraid to play around with samples, as I heard quite a few here and there. From Weezer to SOULJA BOY, he's got a LOT of samples in here. It's clear that his creativity really shined with every track on this project, as most tracks have an entirely new vibe compared to the ... read more

One of The Faint's more popular songs, I'd say Agenda Suicide is about us ("drones") working our entire life to own all the stuff we want, such as working towards owning the "pretty little homes" mentioned in the song. Commit "agenda suicide" and you'll end up with nothing. These are some pretty depressing lyrics about our lives, however the instrumentals are some of the best the genre has to offer. Deep and "evil" sounding synths, punchy ... read more

The (what I assume to be) the man behind the Russian trio 'Год Таер' (english translation: God Tier) shared his project with me in my Last.fm inbox today, and I am pleased to say I enjoyed the project. I find this EP to be a collection of ideas with this hazy, lo-fi production associated with it. The ambient sections are beautiful. Especially track 4, that track needs to be longer! The glitchy noise pop sound explored on track 3 scratched an itch that hasn't been scratched ... read more

Sex Magik has some of the best instrumentation on Alpha Games, it's just too bad Kele's weak and horny lyricism brings this track down by quite a bit. It also could've be shortened just a little bit for me to enjoy it more. Really solid drumming though!

Fat Dog brings 'WOOF.' to the table for Dance-Punk Friday, an album full of aggression and uncontrollable energy. While it's not the first time New Rave and EBM have fused, the uniqueness of Fat Dog's sound makes it heavily differ from anything I've ever heard. When I say this album is aggressive, I really do mean it. The aggressiveness in lead vocalist Joe's voice is easily recognizable, and it fits extremely well with the dark and heavy drums most songs contain. ... read more

I've been familiar with indie sleaze's current poster boy for a while now. He showed a lot of potential on his debut EP, which released earlier last year. He puts some of it to great use here, with catchy hooks and amazing production, but in some situations it seems wasted. Smith's vocals get tiring after a while, and the beat drops just don't hit hard sometimes. His influences are clear right from the start, he's essentially mashing the raw energy and rockiness of The ... read more

Bloc Party's last single of 2007, Flux distances itself from the band's usual sound. From the arpeggio synth to Kele's autotune, it's the most "electronic" sounding Bloc Party song up to this point. One way to describe Flux is to consider it as the "transition" of the band's post-punk revival sound to it's indietronica sound, which was explored in their third album, Intimacy. I usually hate any usage of autotune in vocals, but Flux is a rare ... read more

'Torches' is a really solid indie pop album that brings me back to my early listening habits. It's immediately catchy with it's upbeat and energetic vibe, but those lyrics reveal a deeper and darker meaning behind those catchy hooks. It gives off a strange vibe which I find hard to describe, I'd dance to Pumped Up Kicks, until I'd remember the lyrics. However, ignoring the lyrics works, and it makes for back-to-back bangers. I wouldn't think I'd enjoy ... read more

The thought provoking and sad lyrics on SOS become more prevalent with Someone Great. They're disguised behind these upbeat and danceable electronics to those who don't pay attention to the lyricism, but once you do start paying attention, it becomes clear that there's a deeper meaning behind this song. Even though Murphy refuses to reveal who this is directed toward (perhaps due to the personal nature of the song), it's obvious the lyrics are about loss and grief. It ... read more