Year: 2014
Review: Apocalyptica – Wagner Reloaded – Live in Leipzig
Whether wallowing in themes cut and pasted from Beethoven, maudlin lullabies (with sampled baby prattle) or the most domesticated of Phrygian exoticism, the album consistently eschews any of the rapturous chromatism Wagner used to drown and annihilate the bourgeois ego. … read more
Review: Anal Blasphemy/Forbidden Eye – The Perverse Worship of Satanic...
I’m not quite sure what the fascination is with metal bands starting their band names with that oh-so familiar, feces-producing body part—maybe just the fact that it’s dirty and sounds gross. … read more
Review: Annihilator – Feast
“Feast” is an appropriate title for this special edition release, and SLUG HQ was lucky enough to get a fancy copy of it. The digibook two CD and DVD package has the goods of the full-length, Feast, which follows in what Annihilator has been doing for the last decade. … read more
Review: Amen Dunes – Love
Love is songwriter Damon McMahon’s latest release as Amen Dunes on Sacred Bones Records. … read more
Review: Andrew Jackson Jihad – Christmas Island
Like their previous albums, Andrew Jackson Jihad has created a disturbed eulogy to a candy-coated world view. … read more
Review: Anti-Nowhere League/Damn Garrison – Split EP
Anti-Nowhere League/Damn Garrison Split EP Nowhere Records Street: 07.15 Anti-Nowhere League = UK Subs + Subhumans + The Damned Damn Garrison = Sham 69 + Murphy’s Law As soon as I hear a blistering “Shut the fuck up!” breaking out of Animal’s distinctive vocal chords, I knew I was in for some nitty-gritty, down-n-dirty, English
Review: Anathema – Distant Satellites
Anathema = Antimatter + Alternative 4 + Katatonia … read more
Review: Anti-Flag – A Document of Dissent
For 20 years, these angry, young and poor boys from Pittsburgh, Pa. have become a staple in the political punk rock movement throughout the ’90s and into the 21st Century, and we are blessed with their best moments accumulated on one compact disc. … read more
Review: Alarms and Controls – Clovis Points
The vocals sound nerdy and a little more chatty than melodic in most places—it’s a little off-kilter, and pop hooks definitely aren’t their strong suits. That being said, they are great musicians—think of them as graduates from the “Omar Rodriguez-López School for Stoned Musicians.” … read more
Review: Alcest – Shelter
With drummer Winterhalter, Neige has left all ties to black metal behind with this release. From honey-laced harmonies on “Opale,” to meandering compositions on “Voix Sereines,” to the Halstead sung, Souvlaki-esque ballad “Away,” the album is filled with lush musical contemplations and triumphant melodies start-to-finish. … read more