EP REVIEW: Scowl – Psychic Dance Routine


 

Negative Approach meets The Breeders” is the description offered by the members of Scowl of this their latest release the Psychic Dance Routine EP (Flatspot Records) – if that’s not a tagline that grabs your attention outright I don’t know what is and what help there is out there for you! Said EP is the follow-up to the 2021 How Flowers Grow debut full-length.

Continue reading


MxPx To Headline Furnace Fest 2023 with Turnstile, Bane, and Pennywise


 

MxPx is gearing up for a busy 2023! Today, the band announced they will be headlining Furnace Fest in Birmingham, AL this Fall, closing the first night on September 22, 2023. Other headliners on the fest include Turnstile, Bane, and Pennywise. With new music on the way, the band plans to be making more appearances this year, including the highly raved-about When We Were Young Festival in 2023 alongside Blink-182 and Green Day (now with an additional day).

Continue reading


This Is Hardcore 2016: Part 1: Live At Union Transfer And Electric Factory


Youth Of Today, by Anne Spina Photography

Youth Of Today, by Anne Spina Photography

 

 

There’s always that one destination festival people call home. For metal heads it’s Wacken Open Air in Germany. For cruise enthusiasts it’s 70,000 Tons Of Metal. For hardcore it’s This Is Hardcore. Many people I’ve talked to love this festival and call it like a place they can get together with friends and see bands they love.Continue reading


This Is Hardcore 2016: Part 1: Live At Various Venues


Youth Of Today, by Anne Spina Photography

Youth Of Today, by Anne Spina Photography

 

There’s always that one destination festival people call home. For metal heads it’s Wacken Open Air in Germany. For cruise enthusiasts it’s 70,000 Tons Of Metal. For hardcore it’s This Is Hardcore. Many people I’ve talked to love this festival and call it like a place they can get together with friends and see bands they love.

Continue reading


World Be Free – The Anti-Circle


REV162CD

World Be Free occupies a very particular space in the in today’s musical landscape. A sort of hardcore supergroup featuring members of Terror (vocalist Scott Vogel), Judge (drummer Sammy Siegler), Strife (guitarist Andrew Kline) and Gorilla Biscuits (bassist Arthur Smilios), World Be Free is not the sum of its parts or a reflection of hardcore in 2016. Full length début, The Ant-Circle (Revelation), is more of a simulacrum of the New York and DC hardcore sounds of yesteryear with the occasional dash of pop-punk hooks.

And as an homage to those reverential 1980s bands, The Anti-Circle seems to check all the boxes. There’s an economical approach as 14 tracks come and go in less than half an hour and with only one clocking in at over three minutes. ‘Shake the Ghost’ and ‘Never Slip’ are fantastic examples of making the most with just the necessary musical ingredients.

However, while World Be Free’s riffs and lyrics were designed with the intention of channeling the vitality of their musical heroes, The Anti-Circle feels likes its spinning wheels. When Vogel bellows “You’ll never be a part of my world,” or “The times have changed” it doesn’t come across as empowering or intriguing as it isn’t saying anything Black Flag didn’t already say in 1981 (albeit in a much more satirical tone). And since its treading such familiar creative waters it, songs like ‘World Be Free,’ ‘All These Colors’ and ‘Breakout or Busted’ fail to distinguish themselves from one another.

That’s not to say that there aren’t successful moments of musical reverence to be found on The Anti-Circle. While probably the most tuneful song of the bunch, ‘Empty Things’ impresses with Kline’s melodic guitar lines. Also when World Be Free decides to shift gears and speed up they can generate some worthy slam dancing like in ‘I’m Done.’

World_Be_Free_-_2016_(717-463)

World Be Free has a great album within them. It’s all a matter of them addressing the line between impression and homage.

6.0/10

HANSEL LOPEZ

[amazon asin=B01A02X0OK&template=iframe image]


Wrecking Ball: Day 2 – The Masquerade, Atlanta GA


 

wrecking ball atl

Day 2 of Wrecking Ball didn’t start until after 1 PM, so people had ample chance to recover in spite of the after parties. The early day belonged to bands on the outdoor Music Park Stage and the Heaven Stage. Early bands such as Yuck, and and Basement woke kids out of their stupors. Fans who showed up early got a treat seeing Mutoid Man’s Stephen Brodsky pull double duty later on with legends Cave In. Another highly anticipated group was the return of Glassjaw in only their second show back in action. They really brought it back with their set chock full of hits. Other early bands of note included Girlpool, the excellent Appleseed Cast, and screamo legends Thrice. Later on Desparecidos and American Nightmare brought the swelling crowds at witnessing their respective sets to their knees. American Nightmare in particular has been killing it live and tonight was no exception. Finally Coheed And Cambria closed the night in epic fashion. Wrecking Ball, we are already looking forward to next year. Thanks again to Boston Chuck Photograpy for the great shots from a packed photo pit!

Basement, by Boston Chuck Photography

Basement, by Boston Chuck Photography

Mutoid Man, by Boston Chuck Photography

Mutoid Man, by Boston Chuck Photography

Foundation, by Boston Chuck Photography

Foundation, by Boston Chuck Photography

 

Glassjaw, by Boston Chuck Photography

Glassjaw, by Boston Chuck Photography

Thrice, by Boston Chuck Photography

Thrice, by Boston Chuck Photography

Coheed And Cambria, by Boston Chuck Photography

Coheed And Cambria, by Boston Chuck Photography

Coheed And Cambria, by Boston Chuck Photography

Coheed And Cambria, by Boston Chuck Photography

[slideshow_deploy id=’31367′]


Wrecking Ball: Day 1- The Masquerade, Atlanta, GA


wrecking ball atl

The crowd outside Wrecking Ball, by Boston Chuck Photography

The crowd outside Wrecking Ball, by Boston Chuck Photography

With destination concert events being the next big thing, every city is trying to come up with an even to put them on the map. Atlanta has pulled off an impressive start with the first annual Wrecking Ball at the venerable Masquerade venue. Judging by the success with the lineup and the response from the crowd, we have every reason to believe this fest will be a round for years to come. Even though if you Google the fests name, you still get that silly girl Miley and her video, the fest unironically had their own wrecking ball too, with people doing the Miley pose in jest. And the bands on day one wrecked the stage and had fans from all over wrecking their bodies in the Atlanta summer heat to the mostly punk rock extravaganza. Descendents may be long time veterans of the scene, but they performed with more energy than most bands half their age. Judge brought the old-school beatdown sensability. The heady minds in Failure were an anomaly on the bill, but a welcome one that added to the diversity of it. Their new album The Heart Is A Monster (InResidence) is killer. Back to the punk side of things Modern Life is War, The Get Up Kids, TheMovieLife, SamIAm, and Title Fight all brought it big time. Pianos Become The Teeth is another band that had their own crowd on hand for this show. The outdoor stage added a real specialness to this event, and those bands seemed to really relish the true fest feels. Shot here for Ghost Cult by Boston Chuck Photography, day one of Wrecking Ball more than set the tone for the rest of the weekend. Day 2 coverage coming soon!

 

Descendents, by Boston Chuck Photography

Descendents, by Boston Chuck Photography

Failure, by Boston Chuck Photography

Failure, by Boston Chuck Photography

Judge, by Boston Chuck Photography

Judge, by Boston Chuck Photography

Modern Life Is War, by Boston Chuck Photography

Modern Life Is War, by Boston Chuck Photography

Pianos Become The Teeth, by Boston Chuck Photography

Pianos Become The Teeth, by Boston Chuck Photography

TheMovieLife, by Boston Chuck Photography

TheMovieLife, by Boston Chuck Photography

[slideshow_deploy id=’31364′]


Coheed and Cambria, Thrice, Descendents, Glassjaw On Wrecking Ball ATL


wrecking ball atl

The Wrecking Ball ATL has announced their lineup, taking place on August 8-9, 2015 at The Masquerade in Atlanta, GA.

Coheed And Cambria
Descendents
Thrice
Desaparecidos
Glassjaw
The Get Up Kids
American Nightmare
The Lawrence Arms
The Movielife
Title Fight
Judge
Basement
Samiam
Braid
Yuck
The Appleseed Cast
Modern Life Is War
Cave In
Knapsack
Blacklisted
Pianos Become The Teeth
Frankie Cosmos
The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die
Small Brown Bike
Their/They’re/There
You Blew It!
Foundation
Girlpool
Old Gray
The Coathangers
Make Do And Mend
Beach Slang
Cayetana
Brick + Mortar
Criminal Instict
Superheaven
Pet Symmetry
Somos
Mutoid Man
Sorority Noise
Bellows
Adventures
Microwave
Big Jesus
The Weaks
Told Sland
Spraynard
Petal
Slingshot Dakota
Free Throw
Blis.
Halfling
West Point
Northbound

The Wrecking Ball ATL on Facebook
The Wrecking Ball ATL on Twitter
The Wrecking Ball ATL on Instagram

Welcome to The Wrecking Ball. Join us in celebrating The Masquerade’s 25th anniversary on August 8th and 9th at the…

Posted by The Wrecking Ball ATL on Wednesday, April 1, 2015


Judge, Breakdown, Terror Confirmed For United Blood Fest 2015


united blood festival 2015

The 2015 edition of United Blood Fest lineup is now set for March 27-28, 2015 at The Canal Club in Richmond, VA and will feature:

Judge
Breakdown
Terror
Cold World
Down To Nothing
Code Orange
Crown Of Thornz
Rotting Out
Harms Way
Bracewar
Criminal Instinct
Give
Stick Together
Barge
Blistered
Broken Teeth
Break Away
Forced Order
Freedom
God’s Hate
Hardstripes
Heavy Chains
Malice At The Palace
Malfunction
Mizery
Snails Pace


Dew-Scented – Insurgent


Dew-Scented-InsurgentIt is hard to believe German modern thrashers Dew-Scented have been issuing music for over two decades, and have built quite the underground following over the years. Their latest release Insurgent is a collection of three new songs, seven live tracks and cover versions of various favorites of the band.Continue reading