Cementing The Seams

Baton Rouge is dudes from French screamo band Daitro doing a more subdued emo/posthardcore thing.  I never got all that into Daitro despite all the praise that their latest album recieved.  I like this a lot better and am pretty excited about the record, which is out right now on Pure Pain Sugar.  So if you live in Europe pick it up from those dudes.  Bakery Oulet from Florida is handling a stateside release soon to come.  This whole thing reminds of the Violent Breakfast/Chambers thing I posted about a while ago, and I still fucking love that Chambers LP.  Happy 2011!

Check it out at their website.

More great stuff from the inbox.  Sirs are a band from New York who do the up-tempo emo revival thing.  Poppy hooks, gang vocals, twiddly guitars.  It's nothing new but you have to admire bands that do this sort of thing as well as Sirs.  I don't know if this is available on a physical format,  but if it was I would suggest that you buy it.  If it isn't though, they are soon releasing a split 7" with Chalk Talk, a band with whom they have a lot in common and that my girlfriend loves.  So I imagine I'll be hearing a lot of these dudes in the future, which doesn't bother me a bit.  If you are into bands like Algernon Cadwallader or others of that ilk, then definitely give Sirs a shot.

For fans of:  Cap'n Jazz, Monument, Chalk Talk

Stream and Download at Bandcamp

Today I got the only piece of musical mail I'm expecting to recieve this month, and it's probably the only one I'll need.  In the package was a copy of Ex Wife's demo CD and a copy of their first album "Everything Was Beautiful".  I had high expectations for Ex Wife's newest release and they have pretty much cemented their place as my new favorite band.  Blending emo, pop-punk and hardcore is something it seems like a lot of people are attempting to do nowaday's, but nobody nails it quite as well as these New Jersey dudes.  There is a subdued catchiness to their simple but highly infectious means of songwriting.  I haven't wanted to jump around and sing songs at the top of my lungs in a long time, but it's precisely what I want to do when I listen to "Everything Was Beautiful".  The record flows from song to song really well, although I could anticipate somebody arguing that it's because all the songs sound sort of the same (because they sort of do), but when they rule this hard, it's not really a complaint.  Evidently, Ex Wife has added a bassist and wrote some new songs. So expect more awesomeness in the future.  Thrilling.

Anyway, I implore you to buy this, it's only 5 bucks plus a couple to ship.  Send them an email at:
exwifenj [AT] gmail [DOT] com
and they will hook you up proper.

For fans of:  Algernon Cadwallader, Monument, Drive Like Jehu

Ex Wife on Myspace

Get it.

This is fantastic.  Somebody recommended this record to me the other day and the way they described it was irresistable (more on this later).  So I did some looking around and found a copy to listen to.  This is totally the type of thing I hope for when somebody recommends me an album.  Future Adventures are a short lived side project of members of UK emo band Spy vs. Spy.  I was told that they sounded like "Kidcrash meeting Traindodge" and that description needs no refining.  It has the thumping bass and power of midwestern math-rock (you know, Traindodge) and the flowing guitar work of modern emo (a la Kidcrash), all worked into long, multi-structural songs.  They also occasionally bust in to some excellent atonal post-hardcore stuff reminiscent of At The Drive-In and Kerosene 454.  I think all the name dropping here suffices for a review right?

The person who recommended this runs a blog here.  I can't read Danish, but it doesn't really matter because the music posted is all great.  Check it out!

For fans of: Kidcrash, Traindodge, At The Drive-In, Bear Vs. Shark

Get it.

I said I'd post this so here it is.  Another entry in the "1998 was the best year ever" campaign.  Anyway, I've been really into this band lately (and actually the reason I started spinning that Sense Field record is because Compound Red's first LP reminded me to) and this release is a pretty essential part of my music collection.  It sounds more polished than the rest of their releases.  If you listened to that 7" I posted a while back you'll definitely see what I mean.  The guitars are a little less crunchy and the vocals come through a lot better.  Whether or not that is a good thing remains to be said.  Still, "Always A Pleasure" has some of the best fucking emo/math-rock riffery ever (see "Return", "Cancel The Sound").  All in all Compound Red's swan song is the cherry on top of an excellent discography and an underexposed career.  If you're a fan of emo, you must hear this.

For fans of: Vitreous Humor, Castor, The Promise Ring

Compound Red on Myspace

Get it.

Sense Field were formed in 1991 after the split of 80's hardcore punk (y'know, the zine-making kind) band Reason To Believe.  "Killed For Less" is their second album and was released by Revelation Records (who released a zillion amazing hardcore records and were wont to trade discography items for Star Wars merchandise).  They were one of those bands bands that pretty much cemented the 90's post-hardcore sound along with Jawbox, Sunny Day Real Estate and others.  Also like those groups, later on in their career they brushed shoulders with major labels and found a small amount of commercial success.  Probably their most well-recieved record, "Building", came out just after "Killed For Less", so you might check that out as well.  But I have a special place for this record.  I think I bought the LP for $4.

For fans of: Jawbox, Sunny Day Real Estate, Texas Is The Reason, Castor 

Sense Field on Myspace

Get it. **now in better quality**

 I posted a blurb about this band a while back and I finally came across mp3's of their demo, released last year.  Then when I checked their myspace I noticed that their new CDep was finally available.  So that's coming in the mail, and when it gets here I'll be sure to post that too.  Anyhow, if you don't care to read that other post, Ex Wife are a New Jersey twosome who play a raw, bare-bones style of roots emocore.  The demo is good and the songs available for listening on their next release promise a step in a very exciting direction.

For fans of: Algernon Cadwallader, Monument, Drive Like Jehu

Ex Wife on Myspace

Get it.

Of all DeSoto's releases, this 7" and subsequent LP by Compound Red were definitely the closest to emo that the label ever got.  Compound Red are an emo/math-rock band from Milwaukee, WI, and existed in relative obscurity for nearly a decade.  Why they never achieved a higher level of notoriety (especially being from Milwaukee) I'll never know, because they were one of the most distinctive emo bands I can think of.  To quote a friend (who was talking about this band):  "There is so much good shit out there that nobody cares about".  And that's what Compound Red feels like.  It's criminal they aren't a bigger deal honestly.

Anyway, this 7" is kindof weird because both of the songs appear on "Always A Pleasure" their second and final full length released by DeSoto.  Only, when the songs made the jump, the names, lyrics and vocal themes on both tracks were changed.  It's really fascinating actually, how unique the two versions of each are, even though they have nearly identical music.

I'll probably post "Always A Pleasure" sometime soon.

For fans of: Vitreous Humor, Castor, The Promise Ring

Compound Red on Myspace

Get it.

I had to write about this record again for two reasons. ONE: When I posted it the first time I had listened to it exactly once, so I didn’t really have much of an opinion. I should have waited, because TWO: “Snacks” is the best album of 2009. Actually, I wrote about so quickly for kind of a bizarre reason. It was so good that I was AFRAID TO LISTEN TO IT. Let me admit something weird. Sometimes, when I listen to an album and immediately recognize that it’s great I start to get worried. What if it really isn’t all that good? What if I’ve fooled myself into thinking this is something it isn’t? What if it’s so good it can’t possibly be real? I think these things to myself and consciously leave the record alone so I can gain perspective. Usually when this happens it turns out that I’m just being irrational and the record actually is that good. Still, it’s a pretty rare occurrence, so believe me “Snacks” is in good company.

Anyhow, I suppose I pretty much summed this album up in the last post, but I’d just like to say that when I finally gave “Snacks” a thorough listen I thought to myself: “This is what I’ve been waiting to hear”.


It's brilliance I think is in nuance, and probably the best guitar riffage I've heard this year.  The dueling guitars (something I normally am pretty intolerant of) compliment each other so well throughout the entire record because neither is overbearing. I suppose what I'm saying is that they generally work together so well that I mostly forget that there at least two guys playing guitars at all times.  It helps that "Snacks" is impeccably engineered/mastered as well. 
     At first "Snacks" did seem a little overwhelming to be honest.  Kidcrash cram a lot of ideas into each of their songs but never get lost in them (something I waited for them do to when listening to this album the first few times).  Every song has a ton of structural elements but they are well focused and don't meander (now that I'm thinking about it, "Snacks" almost teeters of the math-rock line with this release).  So, I suppose what I mean to say is that this album could have gone wrong in a lot of ways but didn't.  "Snacks" is the best album of the year because in all ways it is fully realized (read: pretty much perfect).


For fans of:  Loma Prieta, L'Antietam, Dominic


Kidcrash on Myspace 


Get it (again). 


Copies still available at Init (for US folks) and Denovali (for Euros)

Sunny Day Real Estate performing "Seven" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon 9/29/09

The Run-down: It's Sunny Day Real Estate...

Why this video is awesome: See above. Actually this one sort of defies convention. Rather than being a home recording like the rest its obviously taken from television, so the production is obviously top notch. Anyway, its still a pretty excellent performance, even though Fallon is mostly intolerable

I listened to this album one time today and already know it's brilliant. Kidcrash are an emo/screamo band from Portland, Oregon who have released material with bands like Mexico's Arse Moreira (who have a way with being attached to split EPs that never come out) and fellow emo revivalists L'anietam, with whom they share a high pedestal in the realm of blending the twiddly midwestern emo of the 90's with innovative screamy hardcore. I really hope this record holds up under repeated listenings because it was one of the freshest things I've heard recently in a genre that I'm honestly pretty burned out on right now. "Snacks" is an emo ray of hope.

Bonus Content: Kidcrash gives away all of their previous recordings for free at German label Denovali. Denovali also offers releases from a ton of excellent bands (namely Dominic who just released a new album)

For fans of: L'antietam, Loma Prieta, Kaddish

Kidcrash on Myspace

Get it.

Pre-Order from Init Records (for us North Americans) and Denovali (for lucky Euros)

You dudes like emo? Listen to this.

Ex Wife are a New Jersey two-piece and they evidently are selling a demo CD at shows and are recording some sort of album which I am extremely excited about. That is all I know, other than that they are quite excellent.



For fans of: Algernon Cadwallader, Monument, Drive Like Jehu

Ex Wife on Myspace

- First Aid Kit are a Connecticut band that was together for the early part of this decade.

- "Forgot ID" is the 3-song follow up to their debut LP "Frights and Shivers" which I still can't form a clear opinion on. It is also the last thing they recorded.

- When people use the word "angular" when describing East Coast post-hardcore this is what they're talking about

- The second track, "Sidewalk Antics", is among the better songs in existence

For fans of: Q And Not U, Pilot To Gunner, Medications

Get it.

It’s probably no secret that I am a little bit preoccupied with DC post-hardcore. I’m not trying to hide it after all (e.g. a quick google search should shed some light on the name of the site). Fairweather, though, are a DC band that I suppose, at least semantically, belong in the genre but don’t really typify the style. “Lusitania”, the band’s swan song could easily be confused for what the cool kids are calling emo now (or like 3 years ago). I liked this record the first time I heard it. After buying it on somewhat of a freak impulse, I put it into my stereo so that the alarm function would play it when I woke up. I thought to myself in a sleepy daze: “this pretty much sounds like music I generally hate, except that it is really fucking good”. Thinking about it now, that is probably the best compliment I can give this album. I wanted to hate it, but I couldn’t. Once (if) you get past the aspects that made me think like this, you can appreciate what makes “Lusitania” stand out. A noticeable change from their first, more pop-punk leaning LP “If They Move… Kill Them”, Fairweather’s final record is a deeper and much heavier venture. Immense guitar riffs on nearly every track are the backbone of a moody, emotional record that contains some of the best tension building and release I can think of. The opening track “Derivative Opener” is a bit of a bait and hook (and a pretty deep piece of irony for reasons I don’t feel like elucidating) in that it prepares you to hear a new version of Fairweather, just not as new as it seems. Borrowing vocal stylings from big time 90’s emo groups and the production talents of J. Robbins (the), Fairweather crafted a deep album with a great mix of catchy sing-songing, tight guitar lines and just plain good tunes.

For fans of: The Casket Lottery, Saves The Day, Get Up Kids

Fairweather on Myspace

Get it.

Alright, so between finishing up my last couple of weeks of college and preparing to move 2000 miles away I've been a little busy. Too busy to write and too busy to listen to new music with any sort of regularity. Luckily, I wasn't too busy to take time off of work to go see My Heart To Joy play a set a local winery. I'd read about, heard about and listened to their new record "Seasons In Verse" for about 2 months before the show and I couldn't have been more pleased when the band pretty much nailed it.

Anyway, "Seasons In Verse" is a guitar driven punk/emo powerhouse. Like a lot of the shit I post on here it's got a pretty strong 90's vibe. A lot of band's are writing stuff like this lately but "Seasons In Verse" certainly holds it's own by comparison.

For fans of: Braid, Bridge & Tunnel, Kinsellas and their progeny

My Heart To Joy on Myspace

Get it. Then buy it.

Short albums deserve short reviews. Actually that isn’t true but this Put Your Heart Into This is getting one. A bullet review as it were.

- Above Them are an indie rock group from some place called Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK.
- Their debut EP “Put Your Heart Into This” is a throwback to late 90’s emo records (the band would probably disagree with this though).
- It pretty much sounds like Static Prevails. But it has Frame & Canvas moments.
- It is really good because I eat that shit up. If you do too, listen to this.

For Fans of: The Promise Ring, Jimmy Eat World, Blueline Medic, Scream Hello

Above Them on Myspace

Let me preface this post by saying that a post at Last Train To Cool covers this topic much more deftly and in more detail than I am about to. So check it out here.




Richmond, VA bands Malady and Verse En Coma have a lot of things in common. Mostly though, they include members of earlier, much better recognized Richmond emotional hardcore bands Pg. 99 and City of Caterpillar. Spawn of the Richmond hardcore scene, Malady, whose singular self-titled release appeared in 2004 was a departure from the chaos of Pg. 99 and the wandering screamo epics of City of Caterpillar. Malady took elements of each group and mixed them together in musical soup of slower riff-heavy post-harcore while conforming more to the emo sentiment of City of Caterpillar. Fast forward 4 years and roughly the same group of guys release "Rialto" under the name Verse En Coma. Verse En Coma is the next logical step the Pg. 99, CoC, Malady sequence. Rialto moves more in the direction of indie rock but maintains all of the original elements that Malady preserved. Though neither band has recieved the notoriety of Pg. 99 or City of Caterpillar, members of the Richmond cornerstones have gone on to make some of the most poignant post-harcore records since.

For fans of: Pg. 99, City of Caterpillar, A Day In Black And White

Malady on Mypsace

Verse En Coma on Myspace

Because you are reading this right now I am willing to assume that you are already extremely well-informed. Both in respect to music and the capacity that makes you a decent, upstanding, contributing member of whichever society you may belong to. That being said, it still isn't ok for you to misuse the term "emo".

Read this, it's in 4 parts so don't skip any. It's truly awesome.

Be sure to thank Eric at Can You See The Sunset... for broadening your horizons.