End of Level Boss - Inside the Difference Engine (2007)

While waiting for the new album, here is the 2007

release from End of Level Boss.

This is Stoner but with a metallic throb and the

vibe of (dare I mention a dirty word?) grunge.

Lots of discordant guitars with a heavy psychedelic

feel to the solos. Not sticking to one generic style,

there are also welcome hints of doom and a big

dirty, fuzzed out head nodding feel to all the tunes.

The tight riffs compliment the innovative song

structures but never get bogged down in technical

trickery which so many bands seem to think means

clever song writing.

Band Info

Cream - Blues Addict (1967)

Recorded live at the Grande Ballroom, Detroit on

Oct 15th 1967, this captures the band raw and sweaty

at their best, giving the psychedelic blues sound a

new and rockier workout.

I have always felt that in the studio, Cream came across

as too polished and in some cases, almost tame but on

this album - full of the classic tracks you would want to

hear - the legend of the band becomes fully justified.

I should post more of this stuff more often than I do but

would recommend Trippy Jam for the blog to visit if you

need more.

Ten Volt Shock - 78 hours (2010)

Some fantastic post-hardcore on show here.

On guitar and vocals is Frank Otto from the

German band "Kurt", so you kinda know the fine

sounds you are gonna hear.

This has the best rumbling bass sound since early

Motorhead crossed with JJ Burnel and the drumming

hits harder than a drunken step-father beating up his

ginger haired teenage son.

Plenty of inventive riffing going on, giving each song

a noise-rock template from which the vocals can go

into full David Yow frenzy.

In fact, if you like Jesus Lizard, give this a listen.

Band Info

Big thanks to Elementary Revolt for turning me onto

this band.

Troubled Coast - Letters (2011)

Coming across like the bastard son of La Dispute

and Touche Amore, Troubled Coast play a thrilling

mixture of post-rock and modern post-hardcore.

Shouted vocals and clean singing/spoken parts

convey real emotion and the thick, distorted guitars

have hooklines and riffs that stick in your brain.

Melodic hardcore sometimes gets bogged down with

cut'n'paste tunes but these songs have a deft structure

that makes each tune sound fresh and original.

Troubled Coast have a great feel for atmospherics

within the song passages and I have a feeling that

this album will creep into my list of the years

best albums. Hugely recommended!

Band Info

Bandcamp

Crass - Christ The Album (1982)

Another album from the year that would be called

in some music press reviews "UK82".

Lots of back to basics punk came out and this was

probably the most commercial from Crass so far.

Of course, it is still very basic anarcho/crust but

a lot more time was spent than normal in the

recording process, giving the guitars a thicker feel

and the drums come across more as pounding rather

than the "tin can" sound they had previously suffered

from. This also comes with a bonus CD of live tracks.

Band Info

GBH - City Baby Attacked by Rats (1982)

GBH, along with Discharge, came exploding out

of the streets with an unholy mix of punk, hardcore,

metal and hard rock.

Generations of people take this sound for granted

but in '82 it seemed to be so new and fresh, uniting

punks and rockers in a way not seen since Motorhead

in '77/'78.

All these songs are 3 minutes bursts of aggression,

with the guitars crunching through the riffs, like a

chainsaw with a Gibson.

This album was the band recording their live set at

the time with no frills or major overdubs, giving it

a raw feel.

Band Info

Discharge - Never Again

Ever since the death of Seth Putnam, I have been

listening to early abrasive punk - this will probably

be the theme of posts this week.

This Discharge album is a collection of singles and

EPs and gives a pretty good indication of their sound.

If I need to give a description, you are probably on

this blog by mistake.

Band Info

Take A Worm For A Walk Week - T.A.W.F.A.W.W. (2011)

This is a mixture of Math and Noise Rock which

sounds like it is falling into chaos but is very

structured and controlled.

Post-Hardcore barrages stop and start suddenly,

with pianos and trumpets wailing in the background.

Guitar lines are distorted, switching between riffs

and chords riding on top of the tight-as fuck-rhythm

section.

This is thrilling, inventive music with a progressive

feel to it. The last band to do this so well were the sadly

missed These Arms Are Snakes.

The Scottish accents come through on the vocals .... nice to

hear a regional voice not toned down!

Buy from Bandcamp

Band Info

The Stranglers - Compilation

This is a compilation of Stranglers tracks from

the 1st 3 albums.

As always, if you do not like my selection, do

your own one and sent to me so I can post.

Track Listing:

Toiler on The Sea

I Feel Like a Wog

London Lady

Nice'n Sleazy

Tank

School Mam

No More Heroes

Sometimes

Dagenham Dave

Bring on the Nubiles

Sweden (All Quiet on The Eastern Front)

Walk on By

Ugly

Down in The Sewer

dead link.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Yanqui U.X.O (2002)

This is a more restrained album that their other

releases. The dynamic tension that would normally

explode into shards of noise is used as a template

to produce harmonic structures that pulse and throb

with their own rhythms, giving a dark dreamscape

that had been hinted at before but never fully realised.

These are long tracks giving the guitars, keyboards

and string sections room to evolve within their own

melodic passages. Vocals are kept to a ghostly whisper

which add to the brooding feel.

Don't be fooled into thinking that this is backgound

music ...... play this loud and proud, let the whole

experience wash over you.

Band Info

Blakfish - Champions (2009)

Sounding highly pissed off, Blakfish were a math

rock band with strong vocals, explosive drumming

and jerky guitar.

Twin vocalists switched between clear and shouted

passages - which can sometimes be very jarring -

but here works well.

Sounding chaotic and messy on the first listen,

repeated plays reveal just how tight and intricate

the music is.

Melodic interplay weaves in and out of the songs

but do not get worried ....... there are plenty of

heavier workouts to counter balance everything.

If reading reviews tires you out - give this a listen

if you like Fall of Troys quieter moments.

Band Info

Electric Frankenstein - Action High (1998)

A greasy slab of high octane punk rock'n'roll.

AC/DC meet the Ramones - play it loud this

weekend!

Narrows - New Distances (2009)

With a collection of seasoned performers including

members of Botch and These Arms Are Snakes,

you just knew this was going to be an album of

rumbling bass, tight intricate drumming, bile filled

vocals and weaving, savage guitar.

Touching on post-punk and early hardcore, Narrows

have created a juggernaut of an album.

Full of chaotic aggression, they also know when to

let the tunes breathe as moments of calmness appear

before the sonic assault starts afresh.

This went into my top 10 albums of 2009.

Band Info

X25X - Distortion of Life (2010)

Abrasive, dirty - this has all the hallmarks of an

early AmRep release.

These French boys have a thick, heavy sound and

know their way around riffs that stick in your head.

Rumbling bass propel the songs with distorted guitar

coming in to provide chunky but sparse lead.

I have read some Hammerhead comparisons -

they are not simply ripping them off though but

are similar with the song structure and dropping

down to the bare bones of the track, which let's

face it, is pretty much a trademark of Scratch Acid

or Jesus Lizard and makes for mighty fine listening.

Being very generous guys, it is available from their

website as a free download here - http://www.acid25.com/