Jay Wud – Transitions


While a career in music, in general, seems to be predicated on a fickle game of risk and reward, for my money no genre has it worse than Hard Rock (Metal, Punk or otherwise). You push too far into a musical extreme and you’re considered a niche product at best. Streamline the sound and introduce a melody, and pockets of fans are deriding you as sellouts before the first check is cleared. Dubai’s Jay Wud attempts to control the chaos down the middle with their new release, Transitions (self-released).Continue reading


Darkest Hour – Godless Prophets & the Migrant Flora


Darkest Hour may just have found their stride again with latest and ninth overall LP, Godless Prophets & the Migrant Flora (Southern Lord). Even from a pre-production standpoint, it seemed like these amply seasoned scene veterans wanted total control on the final product. For instance Godless Prophets… was a crowdfunded effort (in a very successful campaign, I might add) that enlisted the services and recording studio of uber-producer Kurt Ballou.Continue reading