Search For Purpose –
Eternal Emotion (Plead Your Case)
This is the first full length by this up and coming melodic
hardcore outfit from North Carolina who features members of several current
hardcore bands from the area; Magnitude, Ecostrike etc. Search For Purpose
combine the sounds and feelings of bands like Turning Point and Stretch Arm
Strong with the energy and passion of Battery to create a very solid piece of
modern melodic hardcore. They are still a young band who hasn’t quite reached
their songwriting prime in my opinion but this debut full length is definitely
several steps up from demos. I’ve always been a sucker for melodic
hardcore and with the current resurgence of that style I find Search For
Purpose to be one of the best out there at the moment. If you’re looking for a
break from the metalcore throwback or the beatdown riffs that are currently
dominating the scene at the moment throw this on for a nice change of pace but
make sure to X up and throw on your best stage diving shoes first.
Camp Cope – How To
Socialise & Make Friends (Run For Cover)
If you enjoy indie rock that focuses on the bass, has entire
songs that are a sing-a-long part and sounds like it could be playing in a
coffee shop circa 1994 (which I mean in the most sincere way possible) you need
this record in your life. Camp Cope manage to deliver intense feelings about
their experiences as musicians in the male dominated music world through
well-crafted melodic rock songs that you can singalong to from start to finish.
Vocally their singer Georgia McDonald has a voice that will make you want to
get lost in repeated listens on your bedroom floor. At times the band seethes
anger and frustration but do so in a way that makes you tap your toe and bob
your head and sing every word. I find their sound to be incredibly authentic
and refreshing and can’t compare it to anything overt. These are memorable
songs written by young and energized individuals who are forcing their way into
the musical landscape whether people like it or not.
Mindforce – Excalibur (Triple B)
EXCALIBUR!!! The debut full length from the Hudson Valley’s
Mindforce was highly anticipated by this hardcore lover and boy does it bring
the groove back to the ‘core. Throughout this past year I’ve become quite fond
of this band and could not wait for them to drop a full length. While there are
more current hardcore bands that have my ear than there have been in many years
I feel as though many of them are still finding their sound on the songwriting
front. Mindforce are a band I feel the complete opposite about. From their demo
to their 7” to their split with Dead Heat it has been clear that this band
knows who they are, what they’re going for and has the chops to write killer
hardcore songs that could fill an LP with ease and that is testament to the
many years the collective members of Mindforce have been giving their musical
talents to hardcore. Perhaps the best thing about this album is that it is not
one thing, which can be so easy to fall into especially in hardcore. At times
there’s parts that would appeal to fans of thrash metal and crossover. Other
points offer technical guitar work and melodic leads. And then there’s the
groove mosh that should straight up abolish the idea of mosh retirement.
Innovative songs with a level of creativity and nuance that I feel has been
missing from hardcore for a little while, clear and direct vocals that are easy
to singalong to and unmatched energy and groove in the music. I can’t say
enough good things about this band.
WRONG – Feel Great (Relapse)
Loud. Crunchy. Noisy
Drug Church – CHEER (Pure Noise)
If Weezer didn’t became the lamest parody of themselves and
enlisted Seaweed to play their songs you’d get Drug Church. They continue to
produce some of the best rock music of the day that does their influences
justice without sounding derivative. I eat up everything they put out and while
past albums have all had standout tracks CHEER is easily comprised of single
worthy tracks for at least half the record. CHEER has everything you’ve come to
know and love from Drug Church, biting lyrical wit that doesn’t take itself too
seriously, vocal hooks using the most absurd words anyone has ever sang along
to and riffs, riffs, riffs. This time around they’ve added some clean guitars
and more melody in the vocals as well as tighter song structures that add a
really nice layer to their already solid foundation of well written rock songs.
Red Hare – Little
Acts of Destruction (Dischord/Hellfire)
The current generation of hardcore seems to have little to
no interest in the bands of yesteryear and simply like what’s going on right now.
There’s many arguments for and against that school of thought and considering
the formula of “old guys from the 80’s/90’s have a new band” usually produces
less than lackluster results I don’t blame anyone for not blinking an eye when
another new band surfaces under those pretenses. The case with Red Hare and
their latest album, Little Acts of Destruction, 100% proves that theory wrong.
This is a band of individuals who not only curated a very specific blend of
harDCore but have continued to expand upon and refine it through their various
bands over the years and with Red Hare they are collectively producing some of
the best material of their musical careers. This does not sound dated to me in
the slightest. It is clearly of a very specific region and with that comes a
particular sound and influence. DC Hardcore is the name of the game here and
each member sounds fresh and energized. This is one “old guy band” to not
overlook.
Turnstile – Time &
Space (Roadrunner)
The Turnstile record for the listener that thought Turnstile
wasn’t for them. Throw out your preconceived notions of what this band is cuz
they straight up annihilated everyone’s assumptions and expectations with this
one. While this is a “rock” record classifying Time & Space as one thing or
another really misses the point of what this record offers and that is simply,
a good ass time.
Culture Abuse – Bay Dream (Epitaph)
This is music for going to the beach and taking life as it
comes. At first I was not feeling this record. I really loved their debut,
Peach, and found Bay Dream to be basically devoid of its grunge-influence and
heavy but poppy sound. After a few listens however it was clear that just about
every song on here was memorable in one way or another. I kept finding myself
saying, “oh yeah track one is really good, track two has that part I really like
and then track three has a great melody” and that momentum just keeps going
throughout the record. For all there was to frown about in 2018 Culture Abuse
gave us a reason to smile with Bay Dream.
Fiddlehead –
Springtime and Blind (Run For Cover)
I don’t think I know anyone who’s heard this record and
doesn’t love it. When their 7” dropped a few years ago I welcomed the change in
sound for Pat Flynn as a vocalist and thought he did a great job in a much more
melodic band than he’s been known for. Those that know me know that I am a huge
fan of just about everything he does and he continues to prove both his lyrical
and vocal prowess have not gone anywhere with time in his delivery on
Springtime and Blind. I admittedly have a difficult time listening to this
album however due to the subject matter which deals with how Pat and his family
have dealt with the loss of their father. As someone who has a complicated
relationship with their father it is nearly impossible for me to not listen to
this album through the filter of my own family and not feel disappointed,
guilty and apathetic. All that aside, the music is very good and the lyrics honest,
heartfelt and emotional. Having a singer who’s known for hardcore front a band
that is playing post-punk/90’s emo really adds a great dynamic of energy to
their songs and especially their live show. Fiddlehead don’t play hardcore but
in their delivery you can tell that the songs are put together with hardcore
song structures in mind. This album is made for crowd participation. It’s made
for you to connect with it. It’s made to make you feel and for better or worse
that can often be a rare thing in music. Pretty Please – Fur Model (Self-Released)
I discovered this album from my friend Ryan “HEX” Canavan’s
blog where he reviews records throughout the year as they’re released. His
judgment is the only “music press” that I trust although I’m sure he’d roll his
eyes a few times over at the thought of considering himself music press. We have
a lot of similar tastes and he does a great job of finding killer new bands to
listen to, a lot of which are not on my radar. Fur Model is a perfect
representation of 90’s grunge and hard rock influence done well. This album is
perfect for the moodiness and complacency of life. Everything sucks so why not
turn up the volume and listen to some guys who are just as over it all as you. 
GEM – New High (Self-Released)
Boy do I love this. Call it college rock, call it power pop,
call it alt rock, it really doesn’t matter what you call it this is a
fantastically catchy record with solid instrumentation to supplement the vocal
hooks. The singer of Fury plays bass here for those that are interested in that
stuff but don’t expect any hardcore to creep through. To me this is what the
band in a 90’s teen rom com sounds like. If that’s a positive for you then seek
this out.
Superchunk – What A Time To Be Alive (Merge)
I adore this band and got very into them over the last few
years so my excitement for a new album was high and Superchunk proved that they
can still write a great punk record. Inspired by the state of the nation
Superchunk have given us a perfect collection of songs that overflow with
frustration, sarcasm and disgust played through the catchiest hooks and
melodies. This is their fastest, most pissed off material in a very long time
and it still sounds fresh which is testament to their ability to write great songs.
Failure – In the
Future Your Body Will Be the Furthest Thing From Your Mind (Self-Released)
I don’t love this as much as their last album, The Heart Is
A Monster, and if it was anyone else I may have written it off for that reason
but the simple fact of the matter is that this is a Failure record and that
makes it better than just about everything else by default. This is my favorite
rock band. I can’t say enough good things about each individual component of
this band and the way they put songs together. Failure have a way of combining
styles that I typically don’t care much for (psych rock, classic rock) but when
they filter them through their sound what comes out always sounds good to me.
They did a few different things on this album, namely the opening track which
has an electronic dance feel. It’s a cool song but ultimately not a Failure
song and certainly not a proper album opener in my opinion. From there just
about every track has me saying “yeah this is the song” and you can’t ask for
more than that in a record. This theme has been repeated throughout my favorite
albums of this year but nowhere is it truer than with this new Failure record;
if you love rock music you simply need this. Extra Arms – Headacher (Self-Released)
Local boys Extra Arms hail from Ferndale, MI, where I happen
to live, which gets bonus points from me. This has been a solo project of
singer/guitarist Ryan Allen for several years now. The band used to go under
the moniker Ryan Allen & His Extra Arms but for Headacher they have a solid
band now and have shortened their name. I’m not familiar with their earlier work
but this one is a phenomenal power-pop record. The songs are just great
pop/rock songs that do a really good job of consolidating influences to the point
where they’re recognizable as reference points but don’t make the bands sound
obvious and derivative. I don’t love the use of synths on the album and most of
the backing vocals are un-necessary in my opinion. Beyond that this shit rocks
and I’m so proud to say that they live in the same city as me.
EP’s
Taken - With Regard To
Sunstroke – Second
Floor/SEVEN
Rule Them All – An
Alignment Of Polarity
SUPER THIEF – eating
alone in my car
Motor City Madness –
Hardcore Madness
Moonkisser – S/T
Coming Down – S/T
Godcollider – S/T
Truth Cult – S/T
Way Out – Arc Of Descent
True Love – The Pact
7”s
Mil-Spec – Changes
Blacklisted – Slow
Moments b/w I Should Have Been A Murderer
Line Of Sight – Dissent
Modern Life Is War –
Tribulation Worksongs Vol’s 1 & 2
Envision – A World
Unseen
Ex Youth – Oakland
Intervention
DRK BLU – What It Is
Demos
Antagonize
Envision
Ekulu
Honorable Mentions
Winds Of Promise – S/T
Remission – Enemy Of
Silence
Pianos Become the Teeth – Wait For Love
Teenage Wrist – Chrome Neon Jesus
Hot Snakes – Jericho Sirens
Gouge Away – Burnt Sugar
By the Grace of God – Above Fear
War On Women – Capture
the Flag
Joyce Manor – Million Dollars To Kill Me
Tile – Come On Home, Stranger
Waste Management – Tried and True
Hundreds Of Au – Communications Link
Re-Established
Self Defense Family – Have You Considered Punk
Music?
King Nine – Death Rattle
Warfare – Declaration
Graf Orlock – An Examination Of Violent Cinema,
Volume 1
Screaming Females – All At Once
Daughters – You Don’t Get What You Want
Pig Destroyer – Head Cage
Sloan – 12
Terror – Total Retaliation
Shook Ones – Body Feel
Shame – Songs of Praise
Looking
Forward To in 2019
Fury – TBA LP
Abuse Of Power – What On Earth Can We Do?
One Step Closer – From Me To You EP
Wolf Whistle – Private Hell or the Afternoon
Blueness From A Windowsill in Acushnet
Bob Mould – Sunshine Rock
Deftones – TBA LP
Magnitude – TBA LP
La Dispute – Panorama
Swervedriver – Future Ruins
Tool – TBA LP
Torche – TBA LP
Misery Signals – TBA LP
Antagonize – TBA LP
Clear – Youth To Youth?
Supertouch – Guide To the Stars?
