• Manic Street Preachers – Rewind The Film

    September 20, 2013 - By 

    This must be said as a precursor to this whole review. I love the Manic Street Preachers. I love almost everything that they have done; I’m the type of fan who thinks that Lifeblood isn’t a catastrophic  failure and who has literally spent 11 straight hours listening to their entire discography. Needless to say that I am somewhat bias toward the Welsh trio. But even with this level bias in favour of the band, I say with the utmost integrity and honest that their eleventh and latest release, Rewind The Film, is undeniably one of the best albums the band has ever produced and ranks as…

  • Insidious: Chapter 2

    September 20, 2013 - By 

    “So that’s what that was about.” When a film contains a piece of dialogue that’s as offensively condescending to its audience as that, it’s going to be hard to take seriously. But perhaps Insidious: Chapter 2 isn’t meant to be. While most of the film stays true to its shock-horror roots, things jumping out of closets and screeching violins intending to jolt the viewer, the film is dotted with moments of comedy. Some of these are intentional and, unfortunately, ultimately jarring while serving no purpose other than to remove all of the tension from many, many otherwise great moments. Inversely,…

  • Blue Whale – Blue Whale EP

    September 20, 2013 - By 

    Having released three wonderfully wayward “in the studio” live tracks last year Belfast-based four-piece Blue Whale are steadily earning their stripes as one of the country’s most thoroughly forward-thinking bands of a generation. Almost exclusively instrumental in nature, their wonderfully unorthodox brand of hook-filled jazz-punk betrays a collective mentality to stretch the confines of standard deviation, with fun (and having it) unmistakably at that mentality’s root. The question remains, however: how accurately does their four-track self-titled debut EP capture the sheer energy and ingenuity of their live shows? Opening on teasing lead single ‘Was’, there is an immediate sense of transition…

  • The Last Generation – Torann EP

    September 20, 2013 - By 

    The first thing that pops into your writer’s head when hearing Torann’s opening gambit, ‘Chromosome’, is how properly likeable it all is. Sabbath-esque riffing married to a short and sharp alternative package that, while obviously verging on nostalgia for some, such is its proximity in places to the nineties alt-rock influences it proudly wears on its sleeve, its rawness and sheer drive and verve lift it above the usual yarling and wordplay. Post-hardcore and math influences subtly make themselves known, and go surprisingly well with the double-bass assault that peppers the song’s undercarriage, before the whole thing goes into a…

  • Julianna Barwick – Nepenthe

    September 19, 2013 - By 

    Early morning. Almost dawn. A ghostly figure emerges from an old country house. She passes across the landscape humming to herself. Rivers. Mountains. Forests. She seems to glide above them all, integrating their songs and sounds into her own. Broken branches. Animal cries. The whispering wind. At points, the early light of dawn can be seen crashing through the trees with tremendous force. The light casts shadows upon her face. It is during these moments that the beauty of her song radiates the most. But all things move towards their end and she ceases progressing before eventually turning silent. The…

  • Soundgarden @ 02, Dublin

    September 19, 2013 - By 

    Three years and one surprisingly decent album into one of the lesser ill-advised “iconic” reunions of recent times, the return of Seattle four-piece Soundgarden has been met with a largely positive response from critics and fans alike. Where many legendary, genre-defining acts have faltered in the disparate gleam of contemporary life – where every action made, word said and note played is scrutinised no end by the hyper-mythologising masses – the Chris Cornell-fronted band have fared admirably. The question remains: how will their long-awaited return to Irish shores play out on the ninth date of a heady European tour? Following a crowd-winning…

  • Saints Row IV (Deep Silver, Multiplatform)

    September 18, 2013 - By 

    “With great power comes great irresponsibility” should be the motto of Saints Row IV, which escalates mischief-making to ridiculous levels in a series of increasingly over the top missions. The central mechanics should be familiar to anyone who has invested even a few minutes in a “sandbox” title: you are presented with a fully accessible city packed with challenges such as timed races, shooting galleries and escort quests. However, you will more likely spend your time running riot by blowing stuff up, gesticulating rudely at pedestrians and generally acting the jackass. Saints Row IV stretches this idea like silly putty…

  • Arctic Monkeys – AM

    September 17, 2013 - By 

    You have to hand it to the Arctic Monkeys. Most artists who have achieved accelerated success at such a tender age remain gobby guttersnipes with an admirable desire to grind axes but a significant lack of axes to grind. They rarely make it beyond the second album, confined instead to an occasional mention in a question on Never Mind The Buzzcocks. Not so with the ever prolific Alex Turner et al., who have now released five full-lengths, several EPs, a live record, a soundtrack and a wealth of b-sides which could be justifiably included on a mainstream release. Further, the quality control is…

  • Factory Floor – Factory Floor

    September 16, 2013 - By 

    For a band that has been on the scene since 2008, Factory Floor don’t exactly have the extensive back catalogue that one would normally associate with an act so experimental and cutting-edge; dare I utter that old chestnut. Be that as it may, what they have perhaps lacked in frequency of output has been solidly countered by the consistent quality of their music. Factory Floor are an outfit that own their sound, and as such, it’s not really surprising that their latest self-titled full-length comes courtesy of DFA; the brain child of James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem) and friends, and the label responsible for The Rapture,…

  • Nine Inch Nails – Hesitation Marks

    September 11, 2013 - By 

    Hesitation Marks is the furthest Trent Reznor has pushed the aural parameters of Nine Inch Nails since the bands’ inception. Whilst previous releases have varied in degrees, several constants have always remained: dark and nihilistic themes, recurring musical motifs, and tracks that build dozens of layers into a towering climax – most of these traits have been eschewed in favour of a new approach here. The new record Hesitation Marks – their eighth full length –  is an exercise in minimalism, in honesty, in peeling back the skin; both in terms of song writing and tone. Reznor is creating music with new goals…