Brainbombs - Cold Case

Cold Case
Brainbombs
2020

Review by Joey

Genre/s: Noise Rock, Post-Punk, Psych
For Fans Of: The Stooges, Chrome, Paul Chain, No Trend

I know, I'm late on this review (life is weird), but I have been jamming this since it dropped a couple months ago. Brainbombs is a perfect band. That's all I should have to say, but there wouldn't be much fun in that, nor would it be very informative, so I guess I'll just have to type out a real review. I saw the members post about recording this on social media last year, and thought I would die from anticipation.

A lot of people have said this is a departure for Brainbombs, but anyone who is a fan of the band and has been following them (i.e. not listening exclusively to Obey) can easily tell this is right on course. The last two LPs, Souvenirs and Inferno, both saw the band exploring a higher quantity of haunting, melodic passages, but less bombastic tracks have always been a part of Brainbombs' repertoire. Those of you looking for the total bangers fear not, because this LP features some of the most memorable and explosive tracks the band has done to date. All around, Cold Case is in line with Brainbombs' trademark "what if The Stooges kept making music like Fun House, only way more evil" sound, and is far from a disappointment.

I doubt anything else will come out in 2020 that will get me more excited than this. Sometimes the veterans really do always know how to show up the fresh up and comers, and Brainbombs are probably the best in the game.

Tracklist:
1. Cold Chase
2. I Am Cocaine
3. I Love You All
4. In Pain
5. Shadows
6. Trust
7. Return Of The Ripper
8. Lost In The Past
9. It Was Easy
10. Die, Dead, Death

DON'T FUCK WITH ME

Oil Spill - Ashlands

Ashlands
Oil Spill
2020

(Artist Submission)

Review by Joey

Genre/s: Black metal
For Fans Of: Rhinocervs, Dispirit, Cirrhus, (early) Emperor

I'm going to be honest, I definitely have not been as into black metal (and metal in general) in the past few years as I once was, but this definitely piqued my interest. The complexities employed here, which often come across as subtle, definitely drive this sucker home. Don't mess with Texas, right?

On their debut tape, Ashlands, Oil Spill brings everything I want to hear from a black metal band to the table. The riffs are spacey and chilling, the songs are winding and tortuous, and occasionally they show a punky edge and even display an ear for noise. The noise is not just tape hiss and poor production, but reminds me of bands such as Black Dice (in their early days) in the way the songs become deconstructed and swell back up, includes atonal soloing akin to Black Flag and Void, and they incorporate some fantastic horror soundscaping and samples. And then of course there are the doomy parts on here which are just crushing and oddly mosh-worthy, which I wasn't expecting, but was a welcome surprise. Really, one of the most impressive things on this is the use of dynamic, building and collapsing song structures which have a truly ominous effect and actually feel organic/not contrived. There isn't a dull or wasted moment on this tape, which is certainly refreshing in a genre that often prides itself in self-indulgence.

It's hard to shoehorn comparisons, but I think the ones I listed are pretty good reference points. We're all quarantined, so what better time to listen to black metal (to be fair, I've been listening to mostly grind, art punk, and industrial/electronics, but I might get down this hole too)?

Tracklist:
1. Great Black Pit
2. Bloodshed Obsession
3. Trepidation

Listen / Download (Bandcamp)