Charli XCX : "Music, Fashion, Film"

She is wise not to take her Brat Girl Summer head-on. She eluded it on the "Wuthering Heights" soundtrack. Now she knows it's time to step up and see where it goes. Of course there have to be guitars on a song called " Rock Music". It feels like she is pivoting from hyper-pop and has an eye on what Oliva Rodrigo is doing. She knows what she is doing, and the stakes could not be higher for her. The first two songs have not been a Brat-sized banger, but are solid songs, more of a bop, as the kids would say. Then things get weird.

Weird in the best way for "Card Declined," that comes across like some oddball indie rock from the late 90s. This album is really well produced, but it is not big and in your face like her last two. There is more of an indie rock strum to "Camera' that works off a jangle that is remixed. These are good songs; they are just not going to be what you expect or knew you wanted from her. It feels like a change she had to make to not recycle herself creatively. '2007" is another weird one that grows on me, with its danced-out jangle.

"I'm Afraid" and "Yeah" feel like companion pieces, working off the energy in a subtle way that underlines the genius of this album. "Wink Wink" feels like a more organic 90s inspired version of what you might expect from her. "Persona" has an overdriven bass line and woozy shoegaze-like guitars. It's got more pop hooks than the bulk of the record. "Magic Metal Montana" is experimental but works in the context presented well. It is fitting that David Croenberg's voice is used on the last song, as this sums up what kind of pop album this is. If it is a pop album, you could just as easily call this one an indie rock album. I hope Taylor Swift doesn't try to release an album this year, as it's hard to compete with this. 

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Mimi Banks : "Dreamstate of Fear"

This artist claims she created "doom trap". Which is weird to say nu-metal, but ok. Perhaps she is not making such claims today; while she is effective at what she is doing here, there is not a great difference between what she and Poppy do upon occasion.  The well-produced vocal hooks in the chorus of the opening track sit her on the more nu-metal side of the equation. I am not sure what is doom about this or would make someone try parallels, but that is why I do what I do to clarify these kinds of glaring errors. 

I guess if you were a pop singer who grew up on a steady diet of Slipknot, something like "Jericho" is the next logical place to go. "Power dutch Verrat" finds the German working almost better for her, as it creates a more original vibe. 'Butterfly In Chains' is almost too clsoe to mainstream radio rock for me. The sung vocals come across as happy in places. The rapped parts break up enough to work. 

The outros and the interlude on this album I am not counting for the sake of this review. Overall, this was way better than I expected. While it is not my thing, I think it does a great deal that kids who are into this sort of thing will love, and can recognize the effort that went into the songwriting and production; only one song leans in the filler direction o I will give it a 9 

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Patriarchy : "Appendices EP"

 I loved their last album, so when I opened my email today and found this surprise waiting, I could not wait ti jump into it. The first single, "Lilylicker" approaches what they did on the last album from a different angle, less industiral more electro-trash. It also makes less of an attempt to find its place in today's pop landscape and instead goes back to a place that reminds me more of Lords of Acid. Things get darker on "Bite Marks". The vibe is still sex forward, as this song is more of a rough sex anthem. There is some dynamic ebb and flow to it, and the produiction is both dirty and more refined at the same time.

"Serville" features Witch Club Satan who I assume is adding the guitars to the equation or the gang vocals. It's dynamic , but this more whispered approach that seems to be dominant in this song and carrying over into "Ode" makes me think of Madonna's "Justify My Love". In many ways, that is the vibe of the album, as it's on brand for them.  After listening to the album all the way through, I had to listen to the last three songs again to gather my thoughts.

The second time around, "Serville" clicked for me. The second time around, "Ode" hit me more with the lyrics. It is not as sexual a song, and it's more like Lords of Acid. Then there is a weird disco hook in it. "Hate Fuck" is the odd ball out after the second listen. It almost sounds more like something Yolandi Visser would do if she were making a ballad with Grimes. I will give this one a 9.5 and see how it grows on me, less industrial and more in the electronic slant for sure. Out August 7th.

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Inkubus Sukkubus : "Eternal Monsters"

 

This band is legit. They have been around since 1989. The challenge for them will not be whether they are goth enough, but whether they are keeping things fresh and relevant. Not sure how updated the drum machines are, but they have a great deal of layers to their sound, and this sounds like it could have come from the 90s. "Fall to Darkness" is a power ballad which seems a little early in the album, but oh well. "Give to Me the Fire of the Night"  seems to indicate this album is moving in a direction that feels like a rock version of the Cowboy Junkies. The plus side of this is that things sound more organic. 

Of course, even if by lyrical default things get more goth for "Vampires of the Sea". Things continue to move in a more rock direction, the lyrics being the darkest thing about the music. The title track is marginally darker; perhaps some of the problem lies in the production; it could use more ambiance. They try harder on "She Has Fallen"; the guitar sits further back, and the synths come up in the mix. They build things up with these synths, then go into something that could be 10000 Maniacs."Harvest Time" is a ballad; I don't think this album needs to gain momentum. 

"Dragged Away by Vampires of the Night" is obviously more goth, though they still retain some of the organic rock feel. It is hard not to assume "In the Field of the Living Dead" won't be as well. To this, they say Hold our beer, and pull out acoustic guitars. "Lovers & Monsters" rights this wrong.In fact, it might be the album's most goth song. The close things out with a synth outro piece.Not the corner of the 90s I was expecting this album to come from but fans who have stuck with this band should find it rewarding I will give it an 8.  

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Magic Knives : "s/t"

 

Here is a band that might not be Halloween-ready, but they do darker post-punk in a very organic manner that marries Concrete Blonde to Siouxsie without being too over about the latter, setting them apart from the competition. There is a 60s garage rock flavor that reminds me of earlier Death Valley Girls. There is a haunting quality to what they do rather than an overt darkness, but as a song like "The Runner" proves, they are not afraid to rock out and throw guitar solos in. "Sanctum" is rather hypnotic, though the main vocals are more of a chant. 

In many ways, this album is for goths who smoke a good deal of pot. The psychedelic elements in goth have always been a thing since the Doors were a big influence on the genre." Me vs You" has a more rambling riff that unfolds gracefully. Her smoky alto floats easily over this one with some great vocal hooks that might make this the album's best song. They pick up the pace for "Andromeda" / "A Haunting," which unfolds pretty gracefully, but carries a stormy, more intense dynamic that unfurls. 

There is a more indie rock shuffle to "The Obelisk," and her stark alot approach lays out similar vocal passages to set the atmosphere again. While there are different guitar sounds, the vocals are center here and do something we have heard before on this album, though it is not a deal breaker. "Some Night" is more of a creepy psychedelic jam. That grows on me with additional listens. "Infernal" closes the album, though there are two remixes on the album but I am not counting them for the purpose of this review. It's almost a surf rock instrumental but the vocals hold a textural place in the background, I will give this album a 9.5, it impressed me with it's organic flow and touched on sounds I like while doing their own thing. 

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Dance With the Dead : "Molombra:

 

2022's Drive to  Madness scored a 9, which found this project holding fast in the upper tier of the synthwave genre, evne though they do not have the more mainstream aspirations as acts like Gunship. They are paying attention to the kind of aggression Perturbator channels into their synths, as it has a very riff-oriented feel. The variations of this sort of thing are becoming a formula, and it feels like this form of instrumental music is going to have a hard time refreshing album after album without expanding the songwriting approach. Here they are changing the shade by a few degrees here and there with synth melodies nad accents, but not a huge dynamic shift. 

This is why by the time it rolls around to 'Chao Theory," only three songs in everything are beginning to sound the same. They do take a shift from them by going in a heavier rock direction for the syncopated groove of "The Burial".They seem to alternate between bouncier upbeat songs that sound like they could be on the soundtrack to a modern anime vs the more aggressive riff-oriented songs where the synths are emulating what a guitar would be doing.  'Ghost Party" is more melodic and feels like an 80s anthem. 

The last three songs kind of run together, sometimes taking on more drive, but largely working within the framw work that we are now familiar with, not just when it comes to these guys but the genre as a whole. When you leave this album just playing in the background, it runs together. While some songs are more defined. It certainly maintains the sound that you might be into if you are already a fan of this projet as it delivers what they do, but in a manner that maintains that rather than allows it to grow. For that reason, I will round this down to an 8.5, meaning it is well done and better than most, just nothing new

9.4

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the Blind Philosopher : "Innergazer"

 

This album came recommended by Dead Air at the Pulpit, who is already calling this their album of the year. A pretty bold statement. Given the tastes of that site, I am expecting this to be crusty, but it sounds more like old Mastodon. Proggy but sludgey in its grooving take on melodic death metal that has no shortage of guitar solos. The coarse howls of the vocal another element of sludge in play. The production is not as raw as I would expect from this either. There are some catchy riffs, and they are good at what they do. A tension comes out of the ambiance used to introduce  "As the Sirens Sing", while this is well-done atmospheric death metal, I am not convinced this is an album of the year quality quality when it comes to the songwriting. Descending into blast beats is not helping that argument. Though to their credit, they find riffs with purpose on this one as well. 

"Burn" feels like an extension of the previous song as it builds into furious double bass. But is it better than what we heard Neurosis crank out earlier this year? You will now hear the cries of saying music is not a competition, but this is not true; it is competing for your time, and what you give your time to is what you value most. There are only twenty-four hours in a day, and you are going to sleep at the very least for four of them, six of them in my case, so that leaves 20- to 18 waking hours a day to listen to music. So, prioritizing that time is a battle. "Downpour" continues the sludgey drone that hsi driven by impressive drumming, but when it comes to the songwriting, you have three songs in a row working off a similar sound and mood. 

"Sand of Seas' thankfully breaks this up. But it is an interlude rather than a song. Once again, the drummer takes the spotlight going into " Into the Redness of the Sun," which is a rather frantic assualt that ebbs back down. I can see where someone might be impressed by this and a bit blinded by how similar the riffs on this album are.  Some more Mastodon-like tricks creep in here. The eight-minute title track closes the album. There is a Meshuggah-like tone to the guitar that rumbles up from the beginning. It carries a more deliberate stomp. The drummer is impressive, and they have created an album that sounds great, but I am going to give this album an 8.5, as it's not the most original thing I've heard and they tend to be a bit of a one-trick pony when it comes to their brand of throbbing death sludge, but perhaps that is what you want if so they are good at it, but this is far from album of the year material when you take into consideration the more daring albums delivered by the likes of Portrayal of Guilt, Deathgrave, Show Me the Body and Neurosis alreaddy this year. 

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