A quieter but still pretty stacked week of new albums for us to check out!
HARDY: COUNTRY! COUNTRY!
The third album we’ve checked out from the (shock) country star, and thank god it’s at least better than his last one! I was so obsessed with Mockingbird and the Crow, so Quiet! felt like a bit of a letdown in comparison.
This release very much does a good job of getting him back on track. There’s a LOT of fantastic stuff on here, from the opener through ‘Luckiest Man Alive’ and ‘Girl With a Gun’ to the likes of ‘Who Don’t’, ‘Gun to my Head’ and the wonderfully tongue-in-cheek ‘Y’all Need Jesus’ (though I did get called out by a line in it too, lol). And honestly, having named a bunch, I still wouldn’t say any of the other tracks are in any way bad! For an album that’s 20 tracks and 69 (nice) minutes long, that’s a pretty fantastic achievement! Don’t get me wrong, that is too damn long, and it definitely could have done with some of the fat trimmed, but that’s more of an issue with country in general still, so I’ll let off one of the most prevalent songwriters in the genre the last decade plus. And that hour was still a damn easy listen and went by in a flash!
I think he leant too much into the rock side of things with his last release, while now he’s managed to find that perfect balance between that and country, like he had with THE CROW. As I said, while not as groundbreaking as that release, it’s still a damn good album, and one I’d recommend to anyone who’s a fan of his, or into country or rock at all! HARDY is back with a vengeance, y’all, and I couldn’t be happier! I’ll be spinning it a lot for the rest of the year, I’m sure. 8.5/10, though it may grow on me even more with more listens!
Amorphis: Boarderland
I remember checking out the bands last studio album a few years ago and LOVING IT, so my hype heading into this was pretty high already. Safe to say it didn’t disappoint! Right from the offset ‘The Circle’ is an epic prog metal banger. That’s swiftly followed by the heavier melodeath single ‘Bones’, and tracks like the grandiose ‘The Strange’ and ‘Light and Shadow’ are also massive personal highlights. However, the whole album is excellent, there really isn’t a bad song on it! It’s a great continuation of the band’s discography, fitting in perfectly next to Halo. The band are incredible songwriters and musicians, and that is very much on full display throughout this release. If you are at all into prog, power or death metal, this is well worth checking out! 8/10
Foreign Affairs: Brothers
We’ve already checked out this album. Check out our full review of it here.
Beyond Extinction: Where They Gather
The debut album from the Essex death metal band goes hard throughout. The first thing I noticed was the amazing production, the release sounding and feeling MASSIVE. It somehow makes it seem even heavier too, in the best way possible! I haven’t actually checked the band out much since we saw them a few years back, but they have grown into a force to be reckoned with on record. From the brutal opener to ‘Seven Spears’ to ‘Earthmurk’, there’s a lot of awesomeness. And that’s not even mentioning the two amazing tracks featuring guests. Both Alex Teyen and Josh Davis kill it on their tracks, making both ‘Tyranny’ and ‘Apache’ (respectively) huge highlights, too. If you’re into the heavier end of metal I cannot recommend this enough! It’s easily one of the best death metal releases of the year, and will definitely be one I revisit when I need a heavy fix. The band are destined for big things sooner rather than later thanks to this album, and it gets an easy 8.5/10 from us!
Colbie Caillat: This Time Around
The eighth album from the folk-pop-rock singer-songwriter feels like it takes a bit of a country twang to it this time round. That’s hardly a complaint, I saw her at more of a country festival last year and she fit in there perfectly. This style is very much what she was made to release, as this is an incredible album, honestly! It maybe helps that it’s packed full of massive and awesome country guests, with every track feating someone, but that shouldn’t take away from Colbie’s immense writing and vocal talents. But yeah, the guests are great too, even Walker Hayes! Of course a lot of the songs are tracks that she’s released previously, but the guests add a great new twist to it all and leave it feeling still fresh! ‘Bubbly’ is always a great song, but Amos Lee makes it somehow even better! Between that, the opener, ‘Lucky’ and ‘I Never Told You’, there are plenty of amazing songs on this album. However, every song is pretty great, and makes for a fantastic 40+ minutes of chilled out country-folk pop! Plus, her cover of Posty’s ‘Circles’ is excellent! If you’re into more of a pop-country sound, or like Colbie’s music in general, I’d definitely recommend giving this a spin. It’s a great reimagining of her hits, and the original songs are definitely up there alongside them! It’s a fantastic duets album, and I’m shocked she’s never done one sooner! 8/10
Revocation: New Gods, New Masters
Album 10 from the tech death band, following up 2022’s massive Netherheaven. I remember checking it out but somehow didn’t write about it, so I’m glad I finally get to do that with this release. Especially when it’s an absolutely fantastic album like this is. It’s 44-minutes of heaviness and brutality and utter brilliance and some of the best drumming and guitaring I’ve heard all year. It’s honestly impossible to pick highlights as the whole thing is as amazing as it is similar, piecing together perfectly.
It certainly isn’t going to be for everyone reading this, but if you are at all curious it’s well worth spinning at least once in full! The band are all working their asses off throughout and have crafted something truly special with this release! The multiple guests also once again add so much to the release, with Travis Ryan of Cattle Decapitation being a particularly awesome guest! I loved this, and will definitely be listening to at least the individual tracks a lot moving forward. 8.5/10
Rage: A New World Rising
We’ve also checked this one out previously, aren’t you lucky?! Check it out here.
Sloan: Based on the Best Seller
The second album we’ve checked out from the alt rock/punk-pop band after 2022’s Steady. Honestly, I can’t remember anything about that album, but apparently I rather enjoyed it! This release is no exception, a fun, easy-to-listen-to old-school rock album. From the opener to ‘Baxter’ to ‘So Far Down’ to ‘Here We Go Again’, there is plenty to love on this release. While it’s not typically my sort of thing, I really enjoyed not only these tracks, but the album as a whole, it being another fantastic release to just sit back and chill out with. It’s easy to hear why they’re such a big band in their native country, and I would certainly make the case that they are somehow only getting better with age, as I enjoyed this more than their last release. If you like more bluesy, poppy rock, this is certainly the album for you! 7.5/10
An absolutely massive week for new music this week, with some of the biggest bands across the board releasing new albums. Let’s dive in!
Biffy Clyro: Futique
The first studio album from the Scottish alt-rock powerhouse since the 2020/2021 duo of releases, and it’s a bit of a doozy! Somehow the first two tracks, the lead two singles, are so very Biffy in two completely different ways. ‘A Little Love’ is the big catchy radio hit, while ‘Hunting Season’ is the heavier, darker (and arguably funner) one. Then you have tracks like the anthemic ‘True Believer’, ‘Friendshipping’, the quirky ‘Dearest Amygdala’ and the epic closer that are also big highlights. Really thought, there isn’t a bad track on this! It’s a very easy 44-minute listen.
However, not much of it really stands out on its own for me, sadly. Aside for ‘Hunting Season’ and ‘Two People in Love’, it all feels like the modern Biffy wall of noise; not bad but also nothing hugely special. It may grow on me more with more listens, but for now it feels like a full-album listen as opposed to specific songs I want to hear. It’s certainly better than The Myth of the Happily Ever After, but I wouldn’t say it’s quite as good as Celebration of Endings, at least on a first listen! The band are very talented players and songwriters and have crafted some great radio rock here, but for a band with such a fantastic back catalogue, this is slightly middling for them. A good album, but maybe not necessarily a good Biffy album. Mon the Biff and all, but I can’t give it any higher than 7/10.
The third album from the indie-folk/Americana artist dropped to a LOT of hype and anticipation last Friday. We absolutely lovedhis last one just last year, and had the pleasure of seeing some of that and some of this the other week at The Long Road, so have been incredibly excited for this!
Well, it doesn’t disappoint, that’s for sure! Having heard the singles off this already, stuff like ‘Long Road’, the title track and ‘Better Off Lonely’, it was already set up to be great. However, album tracks like ‘Call You Back’, ‘Lose a Friend’ and the tear-jerking ‘It’s a Home’ are up there with any of those in terms of quality. Plus, closer ‘Wander’ feels so very massive and epic, that outro being AMAZING. The whole album is phenomenal, honestly; every track being amazing. The sheer emotion in Evan’s writing and vocal performance knocks me on my ass each time, making me fully invested in whatever story he’s weaving. I honestly cannot gush over him enough, he’s become one of my favourite artists over the last couple of years, and anyone who checks this out will completely understand why.
While it’s not immediately quite as good as Fighting For, but that’s an INCREDIBLY high bar. The two albums are rather different in execution, and this one will definitely be getting spun plenty over the coming weeks and months, it may very well get somehow even better. The boy can do no wrong, and this is a must-listen for absolutely anyone reading this. I’m obsessed already, and it gets an incredibly solid 9.5/10
I Prevail: Violent Nature
The first album from the US metalcore titans since the unceremonious departure of vocalist Brian Burkheiser is a rather make or break release for the band. There has been a fair bit of sour taste in the mouths of fans since the announcement back in May, so they kinda need a home run with this release to make people forget.
Honestly, sadly, it’s barely even a mixed bag. Tracks like the title one, ‘NWO’ and ‘God’ go HARD. The rest is slow and forgettable. It honestly feels like losing Brian de-fanged them, as well as losing the more rappy part of their earlier sound. Now they are just like every other modern metalcore band, putting out slow, introspective, bland, synth-led nothingness, aside for the two or three actual metal tracks scattered throughout. Their last albumgrew on me the more I listened, but they have fallen off hard with this release, and one of the most promising bands to be MASSIVE sooner rather than later face a major setback here. There may be people who love this, but for me.. meh. I’ve never gotten into the ballad-heavy modern metalcore of Wage War, Bad Omens or BMTH, and this didn’t win me over. I’ll stick with the the three tracks I mentioned, but the rest of the album I’ll probably not resist. 4.5/10
P.S. ending the album on a stop dead is weird.
Paradise Lost: Ascension
Somehow the first album we’ve covered here from the British death-doom/prog/goth metal titans, as it’s the bands first studio album in five years. Honestly, it’s fantastic to have them back, as this is an awesome album! Honestly I wasn’t sure at first too as I wasn’t hugely into the opening track, but everything after that is incredible. From the more gothic doom elements to straight up death metal and the proggy arrangements, it’s all awesome, and show that the band haven’t lost a step in their nearly 40-year careers. It’s bang on an hour of epic metal, and recommend highly for anyone even slightly interested. It’s impossible to even pick highlights, as everything after that first six minutes is amazing, and even that opener has grown on me more after another listen and within the context of the full album. They are one of the most underrated bands still around from the 80s, and are real pioneers in the sounds they do due to their sheer massive talent. From the incredible riffing and drumming to the brutal screams and awesome low singing to even more of a Matt Heafy harsher sing, it’s all so fucking good! I’ll definitely be spinning this a lot moving forward, and it gets a very solid 9/10
Chase Rice: ELDORA
This is the third album we’ve covered from the country-Americana artist, and I think it’s the one that may have to grow on me the most. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad album by any stretch, but it doesn’t immediately slap me in the face and demand my attention like Go Down Singin’or I Hate Cowboys. It’s slower abd a little more stripped back and more introspective. Having said that, tracks like the emotion-filled ‘Circa 1943’, ‘Cottonmouth’ and the beautiful ‘One Drink Long’ are big personal highlights, as are all three tracks that feature other artists (anything Elvie Shanedoes is gold!). However, a lot of it is more stripped-back numbers built around Chase’s vocals and acoustic guitar. None of them are bad, but it’s a lot of similar stuff. It’s the perfect album to chill to, but hasn’t quite produced the couple of more memorable radio hits that his previous works have done. As I said, it may be a grower, and it certainly isn’t a bad release, but for now it’s a solid 7.5/10 from us!
Motion City Soundtrack: The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World
The seventh studio album from the alt rock band is their first in a full decade, and first since their 2019 reunion. For fans of the band it’s been a long time coming. I personally never got into them too much, and this didn’t do a great deal to change that. Don’t get me wrong, tracks like the vaguely Weezer ‘She is Afraid’, ‘Your Days are Numbered’ and ‘Downer’ are pretty good and fun. However, I always felt like there were plenty of other bands that did this style better back then, and still now to this day. If you’re really into the early 2000s emo/scene scene, or are already a fan of the band, this is probably worth a try, but if you’re not, I don’t think it would win you over. It’s not bad by any stretch, it’s a fun, easy 35-minute listen, but it’s slightly dated radio pop-rock that did little to grab my attention. It may grow on me, but for now a fairly average 6.5/10
Newton Faulkner: OCTOPUS
One of the artists of my childhood returned last week with his eighth studio album. Hand Built By Robots is still one of my GOATed albums, but I have to admit I’ve not checked out his newer stuff for a solid decade or so at this point. So, imagine my surprise when the album opens on a banging funk rock track featuring Bloom Twins. Yes please, more of this! Sadly the wins aren’t on the rest of the album, but it by no means makes it bad. ‘What Took You So Long’ shows off his insane guitar talent while also being an 80s synth rock track with a Faulkner twist. ‘Honest to God’ is a great old-school Newton track, while tracks like ‘Better for Me’ and the almost blues ‘Hunting Season’ (feat. Love Bitchos) are also massive highlights. The whole album is great though, and worth throwing on and chilling out to, for sure! He’s evolved a lot from his debut album, but there are still enjoy hints of Robots to give me a nostalgia hit as well as it just being generally a good folk-rock-pop album. It’s won’t be for everyone reading this, but I had a good time listening to this, and will definitely be doing so again soon. 8/10
Igorrr: Amen
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Check out the full review of it here.
Steady Habits: Deviate
The debut album from the alt-country band is an incredible half-hour of catchy hooks, powerful vocals and fantastic lyrics. I hadn’t heard of them before The Long Road and fell in love with them, eagerly anticipating this release since. It didn’t disappoint even slightly. ‘Edge of Changes’ sets the tone of the album perfectly, while single ‘Archer Street’ has been a firm favourite since I first heard it. Then you have tracks like ‘Half’, ‘Garden State’ and ‘Mess of it All’ that are also massive personal highlights. However, the whole album is incredibly solid, without a bad song on it. It harkens back to the late 90s/early 2000s alt country-rock radio sound, like a Pinegrove or Hootie and the Blowfish, and is a sound I’m so glad is still going and starting to come back! The band have really come into their own the last year or two, and this album perfectly caps off that journey. They have a BIG future ahead of them, and I cannot wait to watch them grow more and more. But, for now, I’m happy to keep spinning this. It’s an awesome release, and one I’d wholly recommend to anyone curious! 8.5/10
Airborn: Lizard Secrets, Pt. 3 – Utopia
The highly anticipated third part of the Lizard Secrets series comes nearly five full years after part two. The Italian power metal band haven’t lost a step in that time then, or the 25 years prior, as this is an awesome release that more than lives up to the previous two. It’s nearly an hour of epic, heavy and melodic awesomeness. Tracks like ‘In Utopia’, ‘Futuremaker’ and the epic ‘Soldiers of Misfortune’ are all personal highlights, but there really isn’t a bad track on the album! Honestly, the rockiest one is the opener, once past that the rest of it slaps! It’s like the perfect blend of power metal, NWOBHM and AOR, like Iron Maiden, Helloween, Queensryche and H.E.A.T. all rolled into one. It’s not a short release, but is a surprisingly easy listen due to its fantastic concept, musicianship and writing. If you are into a more AOR-edged power metal sound, I cannot recommend this release enough. It’s so good to hear the band back, and it has immediately made me want to go and listen to all three parts together. 7.5/10
Esoterica: Ether Metal
Album number five from the proggy hard rock-metal Londoners is their most hyped release yet, and for good reason. This is fucking awesome! From the awesome riffing to the (pun very much intended) ethereal vocal delivery and mixing and the odd scream throughout, all of it works together perfectly and makes for a truly awe-inspiring listen. While every track is awesome and flows together perfectly, songs like ‘I Am Just One’, ‘Firefly’ and ‘Paper Skull’ are personal favourites. It’s like the perfect mix of Tool/Chevelle but with more of both an industrial and a modern metal edge to it, so if you’re into any of that check this out immediately! Plus, some of the lyrics are fantastic, hitting home perfectly and being very relevant today! It’s insane to me that the band aren’t bigger at this point, but either way everything about this album is awesome, from the writing to the playing, composition to the mixing. It’s their most well rounded album to date, and after another listen or two I may even say their best! Check this out if you’re into more of the alt metal side of things, you certainly won’t be disappointed! 8/10
Castle Rat: The Bestiary
The sophomore album from the medieval fantasy doom metal band has a lot of hype to live up to after the band exploded onto the scene just last year with their debut. Honestly, after a full listen through, I’m still not sure what to think of it. The riffing throughout is amazing, and the Stevie Nicks-esque vocals grew on me more throughout. Tracks like ‘WIZARD’, ‘CRYSTAL CAVE’ and ‘DRAGON’ are all personal highlights. But I don’t know, something about it just didn’t feel like my sort of bag. It was suitably epic and everyone involved is working their asses off, it’s easy to see why they have exploded onto the scene. But it’s sadly not something I’d revisit much. Still, the heavy folk elements were certainly cool, and I’d still recommend it to anyone curious. Another solid 6.5/10
Another massive week of new albums for us to check out today, from rock to metal to country! Let’s dive right in!
Twenty One Pilots: Breach
It’s becoming no secret my feelings towards this band. I once loved them and thought they were so interesting and unique, putting their own spin on rock and hip-hop for a relatively radio-friendly audience. Blurryface is one of the best albums of the century, blending heaviness, flow and some actual emotion-filled lyricism all perfectly. Everything after that… meh.
That is… sadly still the case. I really wanted to like this album, just like I really wanted to like Clancy and Trench. Much like those releases, there are elements here that I did enjoy, but they barely combine together to make full great songs, let alone an album of them. The closest I got to highlight tracks were ‘Drum Show’, ‘Downstairs’ and the slightly heavier ‘Days Lie Dormant’. However, I still found myself wanting a little more from all of them, sadly. And, while they were never poetic geniuses, some of the lyrics here are diabolically on the nose in the worst way. It’s starting to get to the point where I’m failing to even grasp the appeal of the band any more. This is the at least third time we’ve had an album from them that sounds like this, and it was pretty bland the first time. As Tyler says in a rather Eminem-style way in ‘Center Mass’, “a little softer than I used to be”. That line alone kinda sums up the whole album for me. Still better than Scaled and Icy, but it’s up there with their other two post-Blurryface releases for me. 3.5/10. Fans, please be kind to me!
Lorna Shore: I Feel the Everblack Festering Within Me
The second album of the Ramos era of the band has a LOT of hype to live up to, given the bands meteoric rise since his joining and the release of Pain Remains. We fucking loved that album, so I’m curious to see/hear where this one takes us. From the incredible opener through tracks like ‘In Darkness’, ‘Glenwood’ and the grandiose closer, there is so much to love. It’s all so epic, somehow the perfect blend of European power and blackened deathcore. Will’s vocals are as utterly insane as ever, while the breakdowns are still a massive highlight throughout, as we’re just the epic soundscapes the band now craft with ease. My only slight issue is with the length. Over an hour of similar music is a lot for any genre, even stuff as fantastic and epic as this. I don’t think I’d revisit the album as a whole very often, but almost every song is awesome and I’ll be spinning them plenty in the coming weeks and months. While not quite up there with Pain Remains, it’s still an incredibly solid deathcore release and well worth checking out if you’re a fan of the band or the genre. 9/10
Spinal Tap: The End Continues
The return of the best parody band of all time has been a rather massive, pleasant surprise in 2025. Having not watched the movie yet, obviously, I was curious to hear if the album would still translate well just in audio, given that I have never really listened to the music from the original movie in isolation, either.
While I do think the tracks would work better within the context of the movie, they are still pretty great in their own right. The perfect encapsulation of 60s-80s rock, from Jethro Tull to Elton to Bowie to the likes of Priest and Sabbath. And while the tracks featuring legends like Sir Elton and Paul McCartney are quirky, crazy goodness, it’s when the band embrace their inner Alice Cooper that the album hits its high. Songs like ‘Brighton Rock’, ‘I Kissed a Girl’ and ‘Blood to Let’ are undoubtedly album highlights. The rest aren’t bad, but feel more like soundtrack songs as opposed to music to revisit on its own. Still, it’s made me more excited to watch the movie, and I’ll certainly be listening to the tree aforementioned tracks plenty moving forward. It’s a fun release if you like the band or the styles they’re parodying, and is a solid 7/10
First Time Flyers: Bound to Break
We’ve already checked out this album! Read our full review of it here.
Between the Buried and Me: The Blue Nowhere
This is quirky, Mr Bungle-like awesomeness. Right from the epic, proggy opener, the band show that 20+ years into their careers, they are still one of the most creative and interesting bands in the game, and still pull no punches. And that’s just one of the 10 awesome tracks on this thing! There really isn’t a bad song on this thing and, even at firmly over an hour in length, it still begs to be listened to in full. It’s like early Gojira meets Tool, but with a heavy splash of experimental stuff like Protest the Hero and Haken, with of course a healthy splash of metalcore mixed in for good measure. The bands talent for playing and songwriting is off the charts throughout, but if you’re going to dip your toe in anything, let it be the truly incredible ‘Absent Thereafter’; it has a bit of everything the band is about packed into 10 awesome minutes. Heck, there’s even a Southern rock/country riff tucked away in the middle with a SICK solo over it, as well as some jazzy, death’n’roll stuff towards the end. Like, mind BLOWN. But that shouldn’t take take away from the rest of the album, as it’s all just as amazing!
It’s the first time I’ve been able to actually review one of their albums, or check them out aside a fleeting song or two, and I am now fully obsessed. This is an incredible release, and one I’d recommend to anyone into music; regardless of the genres you like, you’re bound to find something to at least appreciate here. I was blown away from start to finish, and it gets a very easy 10/10!
The Rasmus: Weirdo
The 11th album from the Finnish alt rockers comes fresh off the heels of their return album back in 2022, featuring the Eurovusion hit ‘Jezebel’. Having a fair amount of momentum and hype around them, this album continues it all rather perfectly. Single/opener ‘Creatures of Chaos’ kicks things off on a surprisingly heavy note, a modern metal riff running through it and it overall having a Planet Zero feel to it. Meanwhile tracks like the lead single ‘Rest in Pieces’ and ‘Banksy’ are classic Rasmus in the best ways. However, most of this album is incredible, with tracks like ‘Love is a Bitch’ and ‘Dead Ringer’ being also huge album highlights (though not sure why he calls out Miss Finland in the latter?). I was not expecting a Rasmus album to go quite this hard in 2025, but the band are really back on top form and firing on all cylinders. It’s everything I wish Him was, musically, the perfect blend between them and the likes of Smash Into Pieces. This is definitely an album I’ll be revisiting again soon, and I’d recommend it to anyone into that early 2000s alt sound! 9/10
Fruit Bats: Baby Man
You are either going to love or hate this album. I think I somehow did both through its runtime. I remember seeing them at Long Road a few years back and loved it, as well as checked out their last studio work and enjoyed that too. But I have to admit, I struggled a little with this. It’s so very stripped-back; the whole thing might as well be an Eric D. Johnson solo project instead of an ‘indie rock band”s release. It’s just Eric’s vocals over piano, guitar or other strings throughout its nearly half-hour runtime. I get that it’s his baby and he’s the only sole member, but I kept shouting at my phone/iPad for the album to “just do something!”. The composition and lyrics are beautiful, with ‘Two Thousand Four’ and the title track being firm personal favourites. But even with them, some light band backing towards the end, something to build to, would have been nice. I know there are going to be plenty of fans of this out there, and I’m not saying I’m not one of them, but I did find myself getting pretty bored fairly quickly. A good album to sit back and chill out to, as well as dig into some emotion-filled lyrics, but little more. 6.5/10
Dance Gavin Dance: Pantheon
The return of one of the world’s most on-and-off-again problematic bands after 2022’s Jackpot Juicer is… fine. No, that’s harsh. It’s probably better than fine, but compared to their best stuff or their last release, it’s not up there. Still, the technicality is great, and tracks like ‘Midnight at McGruffy’s’, ‘The Conqueror Worm’ and ‘A Shoulder to Cry On’ are personal highlights. I just feel like it’s not quite as fun as I kinda hoped it would be. It lacks elements of the previous album that I can’t quite place my finger on, so while it’s good I just didn’t enjoy it as much. It’s closer to emo than the prog or experimental stuff. Still, if you are a fan of the band, you will most likely at least enjoy this, and it probably worth a listen. But yeah, for me it’s hard to give it much more than 6.5/10. Sorry guys!
Silverstein: Pink Moon
Just seven months after their last album, the band released a fantastic sister album in this. Like, to the point where this blows Antibloom out of the water. While said release has grown on me with another listen or two, this album leans into a modern metalcore sound in a big way, keeping their usual emotion-filled emo vibe but adding in some of the tastiest breakdowns of the year, even being up there alongside Lorna above. It’s short and sweet, in and out in 23 minutes, and the six middle tracks are utterly phenomenal. The closer is your typical post-hardcore closing ballad, and my only slight issue resides with the soft piano opener. A great idea in theory, but it transitions jarringly into the utterly brilliant ‘Negative Spaces’, some build to it may have worked better. Still, it’s a damn good album that makes me want so much more of this from the band. And incredibly easy 8.5/10 which would have been higher with a better intro and a longer release overall.
Booze & Glory: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
Six years after their last studio release, the streetpunk Londoners are finally back, and with a vengeance! It’s no secret I love music like this, from Rancidto Dropkicks to Social Distortion, and this was very much no exception. From the fantastic opener to single ‘Mad World’, ‘Family isn’t Always Blood’ to the anthemic ‘Legends’, there is plenty to love on this album. However, there really isn’t a bad song on it, and it’s a fantastic near-40-minutes of punk rock. Some of the lyrics are fantastically/devastatingly poignant to today’s climate, which is what punk is really all about! If you are at all into the genre it’s well worth taking a listen. The band are clearly talented songwriters and players, and it’s so great to hear them to make a return in a big way! It’s a very easy 8/10 from us!
A typically stacked week of New Music Mondays for us to dive into, with everything from metal to country. Let’s dive right in!
Glenn Hughes: Chosen
The former Deep Purple frontman (amongst plenty else) released his first studio solo album in nearly a decade last week. I’m always a little hit and miss when it comes to Glenn’s music, but I actually rather enjoyed this! I went in with no expectations and came out liking the album! ‘Voice in my Head’ is a great opener, while tracks like ‘Heal’, the Sabbath-y ‘The Lost Parade’ and ‘Black Cat Moon’. The riffing is the real highlight of the album but Glenn’s vocals fit perfectly over the top of it, making me not even mind them for once. It’s a really solid heavy blues album by a real legend in the genre. If you are at all into his previous stuff, or more sludgy rock in general, this is well worth checking out! I probably won’t listen to the album in full much, but the odd track will definitely be in heavy rotation moving forward! 8/10
Blessthefall: GALLOWS
Returning after a four year hiatus, the US metalcore quartet are taking no prisoners with their seventh album. It goes HARD and heavy, but also has plenty of big, melodic choruses and moments. The opener sets the pace for the album perfectly, but tracks like ‘Wake the Dead’ and ‘Y.S.A.B.’ that perfect the formula. Then there’s the three awesome guest-feature tracks. Caskets, Alpha Wolf and Story of the Year all bring different sounds to their collabs, and really help break up the album perfectly. My favourite is the insanely aggressive Alpha Wolf one, but that’s not a surprise given how much Iliked their last album! Then there’s the metalcore ballad ‘Light the Flame’ that somehow fits exceptionally well around the rest of the heavier stuff. And for once we don’t have a modern US metalcore album close on a slow soppy track, ‘This Ends with Us’ going just as hard as everything else!
The whole album is just sick, honestly! I have to admit I was familiar with the bands name and style, but not particularly with their music. With their last release coming seven years ago, it was before I majorly got into the modern metal sound. So, as a first real jumping off point, this is incredible, and definitely makes me want to check out more of their older stuff! Whether you’re a newb like me or a long-time fan, this album is worth checking out if you are at all into the heavier end of metal! 8.5/10
Lanie Gardner: Faded Polaroids
The sophomore EP from the pop country/Americana singer-songwriter has been a rather anticipated release for us here at Overtone! We checked out her debut album less than a year ago and had a great time with it. She also put out an EP back in only June that somehow topped it again. While said EP is integrated into this release, they are far from the only highlights of the release. Don’t get me wrong, ‘Takin’ The Slow Ride’ is still my favourite track she’s put out, but there are tonnes of highlights on this. Whether it’s other EP highlights like ‘Boys like You’ or ‘Buzzkill’ to new songs like ‘Boot Down’ or ‘Rattle and the Devil’s Whip’, there’s plenty to fall in love with here! It’s a modern sound, drawing comparisons to everything from Megan Moroney to Alana Springsteen to Lindsay Ell. Hell, the girls in country are killing it right now, and Lanie is quickly working her way up to join those other names! Her vocals are fantastic, and it’s clear she has a big hand in writing it as you can heat her emotion throughout!
Shockingly, the length barely bothered me here, too. Every song is excellent, and there wasn’t one I’d think of cutting, damn impressive on an 18-track album! It does loose a bit of momentum somewhere in the middle, but is broken up rather well with a couple of higher energy tracks. In yet another year jam-packed with awesome country releases, this is a definite standout. She is somehow getting better and better with each release, and I can’t give this any less than 9/10!
Tallah: Primeval: Obsession // Detatchment
The third studio album from the new-nu-metalers has a lot of hype to live up to! I loved their last release, as well as their debut, and feel they are one of the most underrated bands in metal today.
It’s certainly another interesting release! They seem to have gone even more quirky and proggy than their previous stuff, lean more into Mr Bungle Tool or (unsurprisingly) Dream Theater at times. Heck, there’s even just a touch of Alien Ant Farm at times, though that may be more Justin’s vocal delivery. Speaking of Justin, another INCREDIBLE vocal performance from front to back, being easily one of the best vocalists in the business today. However, that shouldn’t take away from the rest of the band, as they are working their asses off throughout. From some awesome riffing to expectedly excellent drumming to some awesome extra bits in record scratching and strings, it’s all incredible and fits so well.
As for the songs themselves, they’re fucking awesome. Whether it’s the opener, the Tooly ‘A primeval obsession’ into the perfect double-up of ‘_la|cuna_’ into ‘A primeval detatchment’, and then the final three full tracks being amazing heaviness, there is so much to love. And heck, any of the tracks I haven’t mentioned are also fantastic. 42 minutes goes by in a flash, and the release is a surprisingly easy listen throughout. I honestly thought at the start this would be a bit of a grower, and it still may be, but by the end of the first listen I already love it. None do it quite like Tallah, blending together so many different late 90s/early 2000s sounds but making them wholly unique to them, and it’s an album I’d recommend any metalhead out there listen to! Another 9/10
Fury: Interceptor
The fifth studio album from the hard rock/heavy metal Brits finally dropped to much hype on Friday, and honestly it deserved every bit of it! It feels a little lighter and blusier overall than their other stuff, but I think it may work in their favour. The band are all such talented musicians and their songwriting prowess is on full display throughout this release to match it. It’s also almost impossible to pick highlights, as the whole thing is awesome! It’s like the perfect combination of Metallica, Iron Maiden, H.E.A.T. and even a healthy hint of Battle Beast. Heck, then you have the almost country/Southern metal ‘Walk Away’, and there is plenty of variety throughout! The band have been building momentum for years now, yet still remain somehow one of the most underrated acts around. I have already spun this a couple of times through this weekend, and have no intention of slowing down any time soon! If you are at all into rock or metal, I cannot recommend this enough! 9.5/10
La Dispute: No One Was Driving the Car
The first album from the emo/post-hardcore band in six years, it’s clear they haven’t lost that special something that brought them to the dance. From the fantastic lyrics to Jordan Dreyer’s emotion-filled delivery to some awesome guitar work and proggy arrangements, this is definitely a La Dispute album. And hell, it’s a good one, at that! Anyone who’s checked them out prior knows that they are an acquired taste and certainly not for everyone, but their fans will surely love this just like I do. Don’t get me wrong, it’s long, even I was tapping out at times during its 75-minute runtime, especially when a lot of it is similar. However, the poetry of the lyrics and the constant shift in focus between the different vocal styles and big riffs kept me hooked over and over again. Tracks like the opener, ‘The Field’, the title track to the wonderfully prog epic ‘Environmental Catastrophe Film’, there are plenty of highlights. However, there isn’t a bad track on this thing! Don’t get me wrong, I do sometimes get the odd hint of a Kyle Gordon vibe at times, but if anything it just adds to the enjoyment!
If you are at all curious, check this out, you may like it as much as I did! While I wouldn’t recommend maybe if you’re full-on depressed/struggling, just turning this on in a dark room with some headphones on and really getting lost in it and feel it is quite the experience. A very solid 8.5/10 from us!
Liam St. John: Man of the North
The debut studio album from the blues-rock/Americana man and his band dropped last Friday, and is utterly fantastic! I somehow wasn’t familiar with him until I checked him out ahead of Long Road this year, and after seeing him I was pretty hyped for this album. It lives up to said hype in a great way, being a bourbon-and-sex drenched nearly-hour of blues-Americana. It’s a style that is already right up my street, and St. John performs it to near perfection! Taking clear inspiration from the modern titans in the genre like Gary Clark Jr, Jack White or even early Highly Suspect, while giving it his own twist and sound thanks to his Nashville roots. From the likes of ‘forefathers’ and ‘Off the Rails’ to ‘Everything I Had’ and ‘Landslide Over the Highway’, there are so many massive highlights. But, once again, there really isn’t a bad track on here! It’s a big collection, but definitely worth a full listen at least once if you get the chance!
My only ever so slight note is that ‘If I Were my Father’ was a rather subdued opener and a bit of an odd choice; something more up-beat may have made it even better! Still, hardly a big complaint, as the album is still incredible! If you’re into any of the styles or bands mentioned above, I cannot recommend this alvum enough! I’ll definitely be spinning this a fair bit in the weeks and months to come, and it gets a very easy 9/10 from us!
Leonie Jakobi: What Are the People Gonna Say?
The debut album from the German singer-songwriter rocker is honestly a fantastic release! It’s got a great up-beat, old-school punk-pop vibe that is sure to get you up and dancing! From the opener to the beautiful ‘What Happened to Us’, the rockin’ ‘Don’t Mind Me’ and ‘I Deserve to Shine’, there are plenty of massive highlights throughout. However, there isn’t bad track throughout! It’s impossible not to have a good time listening to this, and it went by in a flash. She’s building a solid hype around her with her touring the last couple of years, and this album will surely help that to push her to new heights! Her vocals are incredible, emphasised perfectly by the great mix throughout, and it all adds even more weight to the already fantastic lyric writing. If you like the lighter side of rock, this is definitely one for you! 8/10
FM: Brotherhood
The British hard/AOR rockers returned with their fifteenth album this last Friday. Honestly, I’ve never been hugely into the band in the past, but I did enjoy listening to them! Maybe it’s more live that I’m not hugely into them, because I had a blast with this from front to back! How I missed their last two albums is beyond me too, will definitely have to revisit Old Habits and Thirteen if they sound close to this. The first four tracks are AOR perfection, while songs like ‘Don’t Call it Love’ and ‘Because of You’ are also massive highlights. Yes, it is all a little samey, so 52-minutes is maybe a little overkill, but it’d be hard to cut any of the tracks as they’re all damn good! I’ve definitely become more of a fan of the band, and will be listening to this again pretty regularly for the rest of the year. It’s another feel-good release, and if you’re into more softer rock, check this out ASAP. Another very solid 9/10 in a great week!
Syncolima: Move Mountains
The third album from the British stoner metal band is maybe the best they’ve ever released! The band’s talent was never in question, but is once again on full display throughout this whole 40-minutes. They feel like they’ve really come into their own here, confidently blasting out amazing riffs and some great vocal hooks over and over. Tracks like ‘Mistakes Were Made’, the title track and the perfectly titled ‘Kill All the Billionares’ are all personal highlights, but the whole album is awesome! Plus, the production is top notch, definitely a step up from their other stuff. It’s not wonder the band are gathering some serious momentum, and this release will surely only add to that! 8/10
Swollen Teeth: Ask Nothing
The debut album from the masked metal collective is dark, heavy and quirky, all in equal measure. It’s definitely got the nu metal and brutality of early Slipknot, but a bit more of hardcore punk edge to it too, almost Turnstille-esque. Tracks like ‘Money and Greed’, the ‘Purity’-like ‘Foster’ and the hardcore ‘Ask’ are all personal highlights, but every track on here is a bit of a banger! They’re just so interesting, fitting right in alongside Tallah above as an exciting new twist on nu-ish metal. It’s an incredible release from a band that are already making waves, and it immediately makes me want to hear more of what is to come. Check this out if you are at all into this side of metal. 8.5/10, good stuff!
Jonah Kagen: Sunflowers and Leather
Somehow a massive name in country/folk that I hadn’t heard of until this weekend, Jonah has instantly made me a new fan of his work! Straight off the bat, yes, it’s another nearly hour-long, 16-track release, and it certainly has times where it drags. However, his vocals are captivating, especially when the harmonies come in behind, and his lyric writing is truly phenomenal. It’s like a combination of Evan Honer, James Bay and Mumford and Sons, it’s awesome! The one-two-punch of the opener into the title track is incredible, as are tracks like ‘Black Lung’, ‘The Reeper’ and ‘Burn Me’. He’s done a fantastic job of picking the albums singles and, while there are some slight lulls, these six tracks and others more than make up for that.
He fits in rather perfectly in with the currently indie-Americana rising scene alongside the likes of Wyatt Flores or Crowe Boys, but also very much does things his own way. This is fucking amazing, and well worth checking out regardless of what you are into. He has a huge new fan in me, and it’s yet another big 9/10! Heck, it may even get higher with more listens, too!
We had to go on two pages, the article was getting too long!
P.S. we ran out of time to do the new Sabrina album, but it’s pretty great and she’s punk AF atm. 9/10, you go girl!
The Hives: The Hives Forever Forever the Hives
The garage rock Swedes are back with album number seven, and bring just as much energy here as they did in their early work! It’s balls-to-the-wall for 13 tracks, and is in and out in just over 30 minutes. It’s fucking awesome! It’s just a fun time listen from front to back, and is so hard to pick out select highlights from as it’s all great and flows surprisingly well! The bands punk edge is right at the forefront with this album, and I’m all for it. From the opener to ‘O.C.D.O.D.’, there’s plenty of Black Flag/Dead Kennedys energy! I remember us enjoying their last album, but I’d argue this is even better than that one! That one felt like they put it out because they hadn’t released music in a while so felt obligated, while this feels more inspired and wanted. If you are into the band, or genres like garage, indie or punk rock, I’d highly recommend this release, it very much feels like a much awaited return to form! 8/10
Zach Top: Ain’t in it For my Health
We’ve also checked out this awesome album! Check out the review here!
Vicious Rumours: The Devil’s Asylum
Some rare US power metal this week, even if it’s a bit more thrash/speed metal infused than their description lead on. The first album the band have released in half a decade (14th overall) is still pretty fantastic! The band are insanely good musicians and songwriters, and that shines through a lot here. Songs like ‘Dogs of War’, ‘Butchers Block’ and ‘Better Than Me’ are all big personal highlights. My only slight surprise/complaint is that there isn’t a slower, ballady song, it’s pretty balls to the wall throughout. It’s very Accept of them, and it doesn’t make any the tracks any worse by any stretch, but a change of pace in the back half somewhere might have made the album even more interesting, and I’d be curious to hear how the band would handle it! Still, if you’re into any of the bands that I’ve named already, or any sort of 80s power/thrash/speed metal, this is well worth checking out! A solid 7.5/10 from us, and one we will definitely revisit again!
Hunx and His Punx: Walk Out on This World
The Californian punk outfit put out their first studio album in a whopping 12 years a couple of weeks back, and somehow only their third overall. It’s a throwback sound, giving off X and Ramones vibes; awesome for a generally younger band. It’s another album that it is almost impossible not to have a good time listening to. It’s a fun, feel-good sound, even if the lyrics are sometimes a little darker. Tracks like the opening two, ‘Top of the Punks’ and ‘Bad Thoughts’ are all big highlights, but there honestly isn’t a bad track on here. My only vague complaint is that it’s yet another album that slows down for a few tracks in the middle; spreading them out may have helped more! Still, it’s an incredibly easy 35-minute listen, and if you’re into more of an old-school punk sound, it’s way worth giving a spin! 7/10
Ivy Gardens: Death of Don Valley
The sophomore album from the sludgy, doomy , hardcorey Canadians is an awesome, heavy release from start to finish. It’s a really fantastic combination of genres that still feels fairly fresh and unique, as well as being done to perfection on this release. The riffs are amazing and heavy throughout, and there is a surprising amount of catchiness and melody across the album too, be it awesome instrumentation ones or cleaner vocal choruses. There truly isn’t a bad track on the release either, even the mostly instrumental tracks held my attention in the palm of their hand throughout. It’s a fascinating listen, and is a heavy musicians dream listen for nearly 45-minutes. The band have a BIG new fan in me, and it’s insane to me that they aren’t bigger given the bands sheer massive talent. I’d urge you to check this out immediately, and I can’t give it any less than 9/10!
Connor Selby: The Truth Comes Out Eventually
Shockingly not hailing from the whiskey-soaked streets of New Orleans, Connor is one of the shining lights of the UK blues scene, and it’s easy to see why when he’s putting out such incredible work like this! 10 incredible songs that highlight his talent not only as an exceptional guitarist but as a songwriter too, packed full of great riffing and soloing, lyrics from the heart and enough organ and horns to make me fall in love with it! Even if it’s not everyone’s thing, there is no denying his talent, as even if vocals on this are stellar throughout. Tracks like the opener, ‘(I Am) Who I Am’ and ‘It Hurts to be in Love’ are all massive highlights for me, but every song on this is pretty incredible! I’m honestly shocked I haven’t heard of him before now, as I love this sort of music, and he certainly has a new fan in me! It’s something I’d love to see live, I imagine it’d somehow be even better than on track. But still, the tracks are awesome, and I’ll certainly be spinning this more in the coming weeks and months. I’m loving this revival of the older jazzy-blues sound, especially here in the UK with the likes of Cardinal Blacktoo! Check this out if you are at all curious. 8.5/10
After last week off due to being at The Long Road, we return this week with a massive two week edition of New Music Mondays! With so many awesome albums out in that span, let’s check them all out!
Deftones: Private Music
So, I’ve made little secret to it over the years that, outside of a couple of tracks, I don’t ‘get’ Deftones. I’m going to preface this by saying that this is better than Ohms. I remember reviewing that at my old place and hating it. However, that isn’t saying much. It’s weird too, as I like a lot of the elements on their own. The guitar tone is incredible and some of the riffs are great. The drumming is solid. There are even times I don’t mind Chino’s breathy, whining vocals. But put it all together, and it just feels so incredibly dull to me. Very little stands out from not only each other, but the rest of Deftones’ discography. It makes it feel monotonous, and for me it’s only really good for ambient music in the background. So, I thought it would be easier for me to list the parts I liked than keep being negative: the Soft Play-esque ‘locked club’ was alright. The riff from ‘infinite source’ was good. ‘Milk of the Madonna’ is the most Deftonesy track I’ve ever heard and was probably the best song on the album… and that’s it.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine. There are a lot of people who will surely love this. I just don’t quite get how they’re this massive, arena-filling band when they put out the same boring thing over and over. If you like this, awesome, but it sadly isn’t for me, no matter how hard I try to get into it. I can’t give it any more than 5/10; completely average and unremarkable.
Russel Dickerson: Famous Back Home
We’ve already checked out this album! Check out our full review of it here.
Bryan Adams: Roll with the Punches
The Canadian arena rock legend continues to be one of the most underrated studio performers in the world this late in his career. This is a 35-minute masterclass of 80s sleaze-drenched, arena-filling rock that honestly holds up against any of his younger peers. Heck, I’d argue album opener ‘Rolling with the Punches’ stands up there among his extensive greatest hits catalogue. Then you have songs like the blusey ‘A Little More Understanding’ and ‘How’s That Workin’ for Ya” that are also big highlights. However, the album is pretty damn short and packed full of highlights. We enjoyed his last release, but this somehow feels like it’s on another level again. He has no right still putting out music this good when he’s going on 70, but I’m so glad he is because I loved this and am such a big fan of his entire catalogue. If you are at all a fan of the guy, I cannot recommend this enough! A very solid 8.5/10 from us!
Dinosaur Pile-up: I’ve Felt Better
The return album of the British alt-rockers has been a long time coming. Matt Bigland struggled extensively over the last few years with a chronic illness (which he explained in length on their socials), so not only is this him returning to the music landscape after that, but a lot of it details his feelings surrounding it over the last few years. A lot has changed for him and the band, but one thing is for certain: DINOSAUR PILE-UP ARE BACK. Heck, we checked out and reacted totheir debut single, so knew it back then, but the whole album is a true testament to not only their talent, but resilience. The title track is a great punk track. ‘My Way’ is back to the bands classic sound in the best way. ‘Big Dogs’ is silly heaviness in the best ways. ‘Quasimodo Melonheart’ is a ridiculous love song, and definitely the name of my next dog.
There are so many highlights, but there really isn’t a bad song on the album! The 40 minutes went by in a flash every time I’ve spun it, and it somehow keeps growing on me. It somehow feels both nostalgic, but completely fresh, like only Dinosaur Pile-Up can do. It’s the perfect area of a heavier, punkier Foo Fighters, but with some hip-hop influence thrown in for good measure. If you’re a fan of the band, or any of that sounds good to you, I cannot recommend this album enough! I’m so glad they’re back, and it’s an easy 9/10 from us!
Helloween: Giants & Monsters
Album 17 from the German power metal legends is just as awesome as one would expect. It’s that early power metal sound that is rather removed from its modern counterpart, sounding somewhere between Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and H.E.A.T.. Still, they have plenty of similar contemporaries now, and have stayed on the same great trajectory as bands like Accept and Hammerfall. This is a fantastic album, and goes to show why they are regarded as one of the best in their scene. From the opener to ‘We Can be Gods’ to ‘This is Tokyo’, there is so much awesomeness on this release! However, there really isn’t a bad track on it. It’s 10 tracks and almost an hour in length, but a must listen to for any metalhead out there. The band are insanely talented and the sheer fact that they’ve got such a killer discography that keeps growing in size and quality speaks for itself. In a time where power metal is arguably stronger than ever, Helloween have still set themselves apart here and put out something different and great! 8/10
Three Days Grace: Alienation
The first studio release from the TDGX2 era is somehow still exactly what you’d expect from the band, thirty years into their album-releasing careers. Somehow Adam and Matt’s vocals, while just about distinguishable, are so similar that it doesn’t really feel like the two singers thing was needed at all. So, while it’s a novel idea for an alt/dad rock band to have two leads like they’re a European power metal band, it doesn’t make a whole lot of difference to their sound. They could have put this out with either Adam or Matt and it would have been the exact same. Tracks like ‘Mayday’ and ‘Deathwish’ are still good songs, and up there alongside some of the bands more recent hits, but as someone who’s not a huge fan of them as is, it’s nothing that’s made me want to listen to them any more than I already do. I remember checking out their last album with just Matt and, honestly, they’re about on the same level. It’s another solid but slightly forgettable 7/10
Old Dominion: Barbara
When I first checked this album out on the way to Long Road, I have to say I wasn’t hugely into it. I think it may be because I loved their last release a lot. And, while this one isn’t a huge step away, there are certainly differences. It feels a little more mature in terms of writing; it feels less trying to get a radio hit and more chilled-out and old-school/Americana based. Having said that, there are still some amazingly catchy choruses, even if they don’t feel as big. But there are also slower, more introspective tracks like ‘Man or the Song’ (my favourite lyrics on the album) that I feel we didn’t get as much of on their last record. So, while I don’t think it’s quite as good as Memory Lane, it has grown on me a lot on a second and third listen. From the opener to ‘Talk Country’ to ‘Sip in the Right Direction’, there are plenty of massive highlights on here. None of the tracks are bad though, the album is just different and needed a little adjusting. Matthew Ramsey’s vocals sound better than ever, and the instrumentation throughout is great! I’d recommend it to any fan of the band or country in general, as it’s still a solid release. It may grow on me more still, but for now it gets a solid 8/10
We Came as Romans: ALL IS BEAUTIFUL… BECAUSE WE’RE DOOMED
The seventh album from the US metalcore titans is a pretty damn solid modern release. It’s very Bad Omens or BMTH and honestly… meh. I completely get that I am in the minority here, the band has so many massive fans, but from the basic dropped riffing, heavy synth-focus and weird screams, it’s just not my thing. Tracks like ‘lake of fire’, ‘Red Smoke’ and ‘no rest for the dreamer’ are pretty good and definite highlights. However, it just feels a tad… bland? Why would I listen to this when I could be listening to something a bit more interesting like Architects or Electric Callboy or (pre-controversy) I Prevail? Everything on this album has been done before and arguably better by other bands. And that isn’t inherently an issue, as I said at the start it’s still a solid modern metalcore album. It’s just not for me, and not one that I’d hurry to listen back to. I’m just trying to justify the score so I don’t get too many angry WCAR fans in the comments… 7/10
Nova Twins: Parasites & Butterflies
The third album from the alt rock duo dropped this last Friday. It’s no secret I’m not really a fan of the girls’ work. So who knows, maybe I’m in a good mood this weekend… but I actually quite liked this! The opener was meh but ‘Piranha’ is a fantastic alt rock track, packed with catchy hooks and heavy riffing. It sets up a run of mostly pretty enjoyable songs for the next half an hour. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all great, but stuff like ‘Soprano’, ‘Sandman’ and ‘Hide & Seek’ are all pretty damn good tracks! I’m not sure if I need to go back and revisit their previous releases or if this is actually a marked jump in quality, but either way I wouldn’t be opposed to listening to a good half of this again, and a fair bit of it made it onto our playlist. It’s still not fully my sort of thing, but I certainly get the hype around the band a little more now. If the album was a little more consisted for me, it would get higher, but for now a solid 7/10. It may grow on me with more listens, too!
Pendulum: Inertia
The electro-rock masters are back with somehow their first studio album in 15 years. We’ve had a couple of EPs to fill the gaps, but it’s nice to finally have a nearly hour-long release to sink our teeth into! If you know the band you know exactly what to expect, and they don’t at all deviate from that. It’s both a good thing and a bad thing, I’d say. The tracks without guests are your standard drum-and-bass Pendulum affair; not bad but would be far better live than on track. Having said that, the heavier ‘Save the Cat’ is pretty sick. The real greatness comes from them working with guests, as it arguably always has. From Wargasm to Scarlxrd to Bullet for my Valentine, their collabs are all pretty awesome. However, the latter reminded me that I’d heard it before, and when I did some research it did put a slight sour taste in my mouth. Half of this album is their previous two EPs. It’s a long album so isn’t a huge issue, but does feel slightly unnecessary. Especially when said tracks are some of the best on the release. On top of that, we’ve had four new singles pre-release, so actually out of 16 tracks, we’ve only gotten four new ones. I know that in this tiny attention span day and age, singles are sadly king, but I find it hard to get hyped about listening to a new album when I’ve heard a lot of it before.
As I said, it isn’t a bad release, and fans of the band will most likely love it. But at this point I’d have happily taken another EP with some of the decent new songs, over an album that just mushes everything from their reunion together. It’s not bad and well worth a listen, but as someone who much prefers this style live to on track, it doesn’t do a great deal for me. 6/10
Feurzchwanz: Knightclub
Another album we’ve already reviewed in full, aren’t you lucky?! Read it here.
Margo Price: Hard Headed Woman
An album I’ve been pretty hyped for since I heard of its release due to how much I loved her 2023 output, the outlaw country/Americana once again knocks it out of the park here! It’s 40-minutes of amazing neo-traditional country music, written and delivered perfectly by Margo. From the opening couple of tracks to things like ‘Losing Streak’, ‘Wild at Heart’ and ‘Kissing You Goodbye’ there is so much awesome, high energy and tempo country-Americana. Also, her duet with Tyler Childers is amazing, their voices and styles meshing perfectly together! From all of that, it does make it sound like there is a bit of a lull in the middle, which isn’t untrue. There’s a couple of slower ones together which, while are both excellent songs, do grind the album’s pace to a halt when paired together. Still, it barely affected my enjoyment of the album at all; it’s an enjoyable listen throughout! If you are at all into Margo’s music or just country in general, I cannot recommend this release enough! She’s one of the most criminally overlooked artists in the genre, and I’m so glad she’s back with more awesome new music! 8.5/10
Walker Hayes: 17 Problems
Four years on from his massive breakout hit ‘Fancy Like’, I’m still not sure if Walker is an industry plant or not. Firstly, did bro country not die out with Florida Georgia Line? And plus, what makes the pretty cringy lyrics even worse is that the guy is going on 50 now, but still writing/singing like a teenager. What’s worse is that there is actually probably all the elements of a great country-pop album in here, just hidden under all the rubbish. There are flashes of Old Dominion at times, which y’all know I love already, but the pop and vague hip-hop elements ruined all of that. There is clearly a big market for this kind of country still, but it’s not even particularly well-done bro country. Like if it was new FGL I may have fucked with it, but this really was a struggle to listen through, especially for 17 tracks. The opener was probably the best track on it, and that was kinda just passable for me. If you like it more power to you, but I can’t give it any more than 4/10. In hindsight, me giving his last album7/10 was rather generous, but it’s at least less cringy than this!
Hot Mulligan: The Sound a Body Makes When it’s Still
This is a real mixed bag for me. I remember checking them out in the lead-up to Slam Dunkthis year and enjoying them, so was at least a little hyped for this album. However, yeah, it’s kinda just there at times. It combines some of my least favourite elements of the genres it draws from; Midwest emo, punk and indie. Heck, there are some awesome math rock guitar licks… in 4/4. However, having said that, as an album as a whole I found myself having a good time listening, even if at times I was surprised by that fact. It starts a little rocky, but tracks like ‘Island in the Sun’ (not that one (woop woop)), ‘Monica Lawinskibidi’, ‘Cream of Wheat of Feet Naw Cream of (feat.)’, ‘Carbon Monoxide Hotel’ and the beautiful, bittersweet ‘Slumdog Scungillionare’ all big personal highlights. I also love that at least bands like this are carrying on the trend of absolutely wild, nonsense and hilarious song titles.
Despite my complaints, the more I listen the more I enjoy this album. It’s not completely my bag, and it is a touch long at 16 tracks. However, I had a good time listening to most of this once I settled into it. It’s certainly not bad, and the band are clearly talented. I probably wouldn’t spin this often aside a random track every so often, but if I was in the mood I’d probably still chuck this on and just get lost in it. It may grow on me even more, but for now it gets a pretty decent 7.5/10
Wolf Alice: The Clearing
The alt/indie rock Brits have become a force to be reckoned with in the scene in the decade that they’ve been releasing music, and this album really demonstrates their size and the reason they are at that point. It’s a massive, sweeping, ambitious release that honestly tops their previous ones with relative ease. This is coming from a guy that didn’t really consider himself a fan of the band either, so the fact that they’ve impressed me this much shows the quality of this release. It just feels BIG, from the production to the quirky writing to the impeccable use of the instrumentation. And Ellie Rowsell’s vocals here… DAMN. Talk about an underrated vocalist! She may be what has drawn me into this album the most, honestly. As I said, everything about it is technically great, but Ellie’s vocal range, power and delivery, coupled with a star power that shines bright through the music, had me hooked. From the absolutely incredible opener to the folky ‘Passenger Seat’ to the heavier ‘White Horses’, there’s plenty to love here!
Is it perfect? Not for me personally. However, they’re another band that I very much ‘get’ now, and had a good time sitting back and appreciating everything this had to offer. It’s another album that does have a significant lull in the middle, but I think it’s less egregious with a band like this that are a little more both chilled-out and experimental. I’d definitely recommend this album, and will definitely be spinning the tracks I’ve named previous, if not the whole album, a good few times over the coming weeks and months. A very solid 7.5/10 from us, and clearly I need to give the bands back catalogue another try!
Another pretty big week of great rock, country and metal releases for us to check out. Let’s dive right in!
Rise Against: Ricochet
Between being one of my favourite bands of my youth, and one of the first reviews we did here at Overtone with their last album, it’s safe to say anticipation was pretty high on my end for this release. Especially when I saw them at Download earlier this year and they still sounded as great and as pissed off as ever. So, when I say that not only was a little disappointed by this, but it actively didn’t make me feel anything, know it sadly comes from a genuine place. Like, is it bad? No. But it is hardly up there with their previous albums. And a lot of that can actually be put on the shoulders of the production. The mix and effect on Tim’s vocals are horrible, and the main reason for the sour taste left in my mouth from this album. It feels like an MJK ‘my voice is another instrument’ type idea as it’s so far back in the mix, but it really just makes it hard to hear and focus on the lyrics properly, a real highlight of their music, usually. Honestly, it makes it sound like a demo, not a final recording, making the album feel rushed despite there being a four year gap between releases. Songs like ‘I Want it All’, ‘Us Against the World’ and ‘State of Emergency’ are all still good, but don’t quite hold a candle to a lot of their back catalogue.
I’d love to hear them live to see if I ‘get’ it a little more. I’m hoping that after a few more listens the style will grow on me, as it’s clearly a conscious decision to go in this direction. It gives off slight Genesis vibes, but that isn’t what I really want from my punk. It’s worth checking out, but for those who are fans of the band already, brace yourselves, it’s different. As I said, not bad, but certainly not up there with their previous release or their best. I don’t want this to be fully negative though, as it’s still asolid 7.5/10! There are plenty of elements of classic Rise Against in here, just wrapped up in a weird-ass bow.
Chevelle: Bright as Blasphemy
YES. It’s no secretthat I’ve been impatiently waiting for this album, and now that it’s finally here it is everything I wanted it to be. It very much fondles my eardrums in all the best ways. I absolutely loved NIRATIAS and this feels like the perfect follow-up to that album. This would normally be the point in the review where I talk about which tracks are highlights, but this whole 40-minutes is fucking incredible and one big highlight of rock in of itself. From the awesome opener to the incredible, proggy two-part ‘Cowards’, followed up by a slower, Tooly reflective song, only to slap you in the face with all the riffs in ‘Wolves’… and that’s just the first half of the album! The final half of the album is just as spectacular, with ‘Blood Out in the Fields’ being so simple yet effective, giving me goosebumps. I could gush about this album all day, but it really needs to be heard to fully appreciate it, so stop reading this and check it out immediately! They’re like a more alt, consistent Tool and I love every second of it. Their last album, as fantastic as it was, grew on me a little after that first listen, but I don’t even need that with this. A very easy 10/10. They are maybe the most underrated band on the face of the planet, and it’ll certainly end up very high on our top albums list come December!
Jordan Davis: Learn the Hard Way
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read the full review here.
Black Honey: Soak
The fourth album from the British indie rockers is a solid release in their genre. While it’s not wholly my sort of thing, I completely get the appeal, and it’s incredibly unique and well written. I remember checking out their sophomore album way back in the day and enjoying it, but missed their last one. Despite that, it’s easy to hear their progression to here, and this is a clearly good addition to their growing discography. Tracks like ‘Dead’, the dark, gothic ‘Carroll Avenue’ and ‘To the Grave’ are all big highlights, but the whole album is good and had a great flow, the nearly 40-minutes going by in a flash. It gives off big Mother Mother vibes, and y’all know how much I love that band. If you’re into chilled out, fun indie rock, this is definitely the album for you, and I enjoyed it more than I expected to! It’s a solid 7/10, and this won’t be the last time I listen to some of these tracks!
Heartkiller: Üdv A Világomban
The much anticipated debut album from the Hungarian melodeath band finally dropped this last Friday, and it’s pretty good! It’s packed full of technical riffing and drumming, heavy screams and some massive, melodic clean choruses. I have no idea what they’re singing about, but they’re passionate in their delivery, too! Tracks like ‘Életre Ítélve’, ‘F.e.a.r.’ and the title track are all personal highlights, but there isn’t a bad track on here! I completely get the thrash comparisons too, as it feels as much like Testament as it does In Flames, which is awesome. Honestly, there isn’t a great deal to say about the album, other than if you like melodic death metal, thrash or a more European metal sound, this is well worth checking out! A solid 7.5/10 from us!
Cass McCombs: Interior Live Oak
The psychedelic folk singer-songwriter is back with his 13th studio album. I remember checking out his previous album last year but sadly ran out of time to review it, so it’s nice to have a quieter week to sit and really jam with this. It’s an incredibly chilled-out release, very much fitting that relaxed Americana-folk mould, but certainly doing it in his own way. It’s again not fully my sort of thing, but I fully see the appeal of this. I had it on in the background while I cooked and it was great! As such, I don’t really have any tracks that stand out over others; it was all a similar sort of vibe and energy. However, as a whole it’s a great release and experience to listen to, and I’d recommend to anyone into the more chilled side of music! There is no denying his talent, as some of his riffs, arrangements and lyrics are incredible. It did get a little samey for me, especially at the insane 75-minute runtime, but I still enjoyed it and know a lot will love it. 6.5/10
Baest: Colossal
This things combines hard/classic rock and stoner/doom riffing with straight up death metal, to pretty fantastic results! And while I certainly wouldn’t say it ‘took some getting into’, by the time ‘In Loathe and Love’ came on I was hooked and jammed the whole rest of the thing in one sitting, loving every track. The band are so hugely talented; the instrumentation being phenomenal throughout while the screams are somehow both brutal and catchy in equal measure. Heck, whether it was Simon Olsen’s vocals or the generally not-depressing guitar and drum work, it made the screams feel less heavy at times, definitely lending itself towards an almost death’n’roll sound on occasion. It’s another album that’s impossible to pick highlights from as every song is as good as the last. It’s insane to me that it’s taken me four albums to finally hear about them to check them out, but they have a huge new fan in me! If you are at all into the heavy side of metal, check this out ASAP. I’m already desperate to see it live, too! An incredibly easy 9/10 from us!
Luke Marzec: Something Good Out of Nothing
Another debut album, this time from the Devon-based jazz/blues/soul rising star. It’s easy to see why he’s a fast-rising star too, as this is an incredible release. The opener is an amazing track, and it’s easy to see why it’s blown up as a single, as well as setting the tone for the album well. Then you have the (old-school) Randy Neuman-esque ‘Red Boletes’, the fantastically jazz-pop ‘Broken Promises’ and ‘Enough of Single Measures” that are all also awesome. However, if you’re into this sort of thing, you’ll enjoy the whole album! It reminds me of a less rocky Cardinal Black, and I love that this kind of sound is taking off in the UK again! His voice is incredible and his songwriting is amazing, blending together so many styles effortlessly and doing so while still making it relatively accessible. If you are at all curious, give this a spin, you won’t be disappointed! A very solid 7.5/10
A MASSIVE week for new albums this week, with so many huge bands and artists dropping new music this weekend. Let’s dive right in!
Halestorm: Everest
The sixth studio album from the hard rock quartet dropped last Friday with a lot of hype surrounding it. I’d somehow managed to miss the singles so far, so was shielded from how dark, weird and ultimately SLOW this release is. It’s wild to me that they open the album on maybe the heaviest, fastest and best riff they’ve ever done, and then the chorus utterly ruins the energy and song. At times it’s hard to believe this is the same band that wrote ‘Love Bites’ and ‘Uncomfortable’. All attitude, swagger and actual rock feels stripped away, and it feels like a band just trying to write big arena choruses for maximum radio play. It really is ballad after ballad. I never thought I’d say this but I actually miss hyper-sexual Lzzy, this constantly love song version isn’t the one. A lot of it feels disjointed, and honestly the only song I felt was a highlight was ‘Rain Your Blood On Me’. I really want to like this, and it’s not exactly bad, but not at all what I want from my Halestorm, unfortunately. It all seemed forgettable; blurring together and nothing really sticking with me. If you like it, that’s amazing, and I’m sure a good few people will, but this isn’t for me. 5/10
Charlotte: As a longtime Halestorm fan, I could instantly see the shift in the band’s direction with their new release ‘Everest’. There’s something about the album as a whole that stands out amongst the rest – it’s the dramatic extreme between melodic and heavy grit, both instrumentally and vocally. One second I’m hearing soft and soothing, the next I’m hearing anthemic and electric. And whilst this isn’t irregular of Halestorm, to hear and feel five different moods in one song is.
One thing is for sure, Everest feels more dark. It’s eerie. It’s mournful. It’s raw. It’s broody. It’s apocalyptic. It’s almost purposely unsettling – is that their point? To take us on a literal rollercoaster journey? Are Halestorm fighting against the need to have a “vibe” for the album like many artists do? It’s unfamiliar and unexpected to us all. After the success of ‘Back From The Dead’ I was anticipating a similar heavy album. And the album artwork for ‘Everest’ only developed this feeling further.
Halestorm are fearless and will always be unapologetically themselves. ‘Everest’ is a bold, captivating album that takes you through twists and turns of emotions – never letting you feel settled for long. It’s ferocious and shapeshifts before your eyes, or ears, I should say. It might take some time for fans to get their head around a change in direction for this album, but I wouldn’t be surprised to hear arenas chant the lyrics to Rain Your Blood On Me this winter. 8/10
Good Charlotte: Motel Du Cap
The first album from the generational pop-punkers in seven years has a lot of hype and build to live up to. I have to say I don’t think I’ve ever listened to a full album (never ‘got it’ as a child, I’m sorry!), just the big three or four hits that Kerrang! had on all the time. So, I have no point in comparison when it comes to the overall quality of the album. And, having said that, this is… fine? It’s exactly what I’d expect from a Good Charlotte album, which is both good and bad for their eighth release. Singing the same cringy emo vocals when you’re pushing 50 is a bit much, and not evolving your sound after 30 years of a band is rather wild. But, having said that, with me not being hugely familiar with their work, it’s still good Good Charlotte. Songs like ‘Stepper’, ‘Mean’ and ‘Bodies’ are all great. Plus, there are a good few tracks featuring guest artists, all of which knock it out of the park and fit the sound perfectly, definitely leaning more towards the pop side of their genre. Luke Borchelt’s powerful, soulful vocals on ‘Deserve You’ in particular are another big album highlight.
So, for my first full Good Charlotte album, it’s not bad. It’s slow overall, but surprisingly beautiful, and it made the rockier songs hit harder as a result. If you’re a fan of the band, you’ll probably love this. While I won’t necessarily revisit the release as a whole often, there are certainly some tracks that I’ll be spinning a lot for the rest of summer. 7/10
Charley Crockett: Dollar a Day
One of the hardest working men in country is back with his second album of the year, and 15th overall. And, while we still enjoyed Lonesome Drifter, this one sadly didn’t do a great deal for me. Songs like ‘Ain’t That Right’ and ‘Tennessee Quick Cash’ are great. However, there is a lot that sounds pretty similar, and have definitely been done before, not just by Charley but for the last 70+ years. It’s not bad by any stretch, and is nice nostalgia still for the ‘good old days’ of country. He’s a fantastic true neo-traditional country/Americana artist, but it’s sadly nothing new, I’ve heard it all before, and better. If you like the style I’m sure you’ll enjoy this, and it’s certainly not bad, but it’s not something I’ll be coming back to often! I sadly think I’m getting a touch bored of his style, as neither this or his last live up to $10 Cowboy. I can’t give it any more than a 6/10, I’m afraid.
BABYMETAL: METAL FORTH
The collab-heavy fifth studio album from the J-metal trio is an interesting one, for sure. 7/10 tracks feature some of the biggest names in modern metal (and Tom Morello) and, while cool, it does feel a touch cheep. While cool, it feels more like a way to get more eyes on the release and more streams, as opposed to having fun with their friends and peers. It arguably would have come across more genuine if it was all collab tracks. Heck, ‘Song 3’ came out on both this and Slaughter to Prevail’s album within weeks of each other, which is super weird.
Having said that, it’s still a pretty decent album. ‘RATATATA’ is one of the biggest and best songs in metal the last few years, and any album with Tim Henson playing is automatically better. And I have to applaud BABYMETAL for their ability to shift their sound; every track featuring someone sounds more like that artist than them. But that might also be why the album feels disjointed. It doesn’t feel like a BABYMETAL album, and makes the three tracks that are just them stick out like a sore thumb, and makes them instantly album-tracks. It’s a shame too, as ‘KxAxWxAxIxI’ is actually a really interesting electro-infused track and a big highlight of the album. The other two are pretty good too, and I’d arguably rather have taken a full album of that style over some songs that have been floating around for a couple of years, now.
As I’ve said, it’s certainly not a bad album. There are so many great songs on here. However, it feels more like a disc you’d get out of a magazine back in the day than an actual BABYMETAL album. It’s good and a lot of fun, but not quite the truly amazing album I genuinely think the band have in them to truly take them up to the top. It may grow on me more with more listens, but for now it gets an 8/10
Dropout Kings: Yokai
This is a bittersweet one. The rap metal Arazonans lost their vocalist to suicide back in May, after having already completed his parts of the album, so it was released in his memory. It is, at least, a fantastic album, though. ‘Black Sheep’ is an amazing, attitude-filled opener, while tracks like the cleverly written ‘F.T.W.’, ‘Devil Fruit’ and the trappy title track are also huge highlights. However, this whole album is pretty excellent, from front to back! It’s just over half an hour of great rap/nu metal, packed full of some great, angry lyrics and delivery, as well as some pretty catchy melodies, and of course the brutal riffing at times to tie it all together! It’s another album that isn’t for everyone, and will surely piss off most traditional metalheads. However, I really enjoyed it, giving off big vibes of FEVER 333 and Stray From the Path. This is an awesome album that I’ll definitely be spinning again a good few times in the next few months. A solid 8/10
Ashley Monroe: Tennessee Lightening
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read our review of it here.
Attack Attack!: Attack Attack! II
The crabcore legends are back with their first new album in 13 years, and a sequel to their 2010 breakout release. The band have been putting out pretty regularly EPs since their reunion, but this is the first full length release from them since then, so the hype is rather large. I never quite ‘got’ it the first time round, but have since been able to go back and appreciate those three albums a lot, especially for a product of their time and how they influenced the scene. So, to finally have a full 30+ minute release from the band is awesome, and the fact that it’s also pretty decent just adds to that! It’s still silly, chug-heavy goodness, and honestly feels like they never left. And the breakdowns are still great now, despite them being much more the norm than they were back in 2010. The album certainly puts its best feet forward with the opener, insanely heavy, Ramos-featuring ‘Dance!’ and Electric Callboy-esque ‘Chainless’ all being incredible highlights. However, there really isn’t a bad song on the album. Heck, ‘i complain on r/metalcore’ is maybe the best song title of the year.
I think the overall perception of this sort of music has gotten a lot more positive in recent years, in large thanks to EC mentioned above, and this release really has the potential to be a massive, fantastic one this year. Heck, I didn’t come in with very high expectations, but came out having a LOT of fun listening to it, and will definitely be doing so a lot moving forward. It’s certainly silly, certainly heavy, and also catchy as anything and has some actual genuine emotional moments too. I can’t recommend this enough, especially those to have written them off for years. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but 9/10, this is awesome!
Bailey Zimmerman: Different Night Same Rodeo
The sophomore album from apparently one of the biggest names in country currently dropped on Friday. I know the name but honestly haven’t been really exposed to his music before now, so I’m curious to see what all the fuss is about! Strap yourselves in too, we’re going for the full 18-track, hour-long ride.
I get it. It is damn good! ‘Comin’ in Cold’ didn’t go where I expected but was still good, a neo-traditional/Americana-infused country banger with one hell of a chorus and fiddle solo. I also don’t know what a Diplo is, but his song ‘Ashes’ after the opener is good! Everything from ‘Lost’ through to ‘Everything But Up’ was also incredible. If we’d have had those 12 tracks, this album would be honestly perfect. However, the back end, those last four(!) songs, are a bit of a slog, mainly due to them all being slower when other tracks on the release have done it better. They aren’t bad per say, as aren’t tracks three and four, but there is definitely a little bit of filler alongside all the killer, and when the album would be a decent length without them, it really isn’t needed.
Overall though, this is a damn good country album! There’s some great pop ballads and some equally amazing boot stompin’ rocky numbers, with Bailey’s writing and incredible vocals fitting both perfectly. It’s easy to see why he’s a massive name, and this second album surely cements him as a mainstay at the top of the country world. He has a massive new fan in me, and I can’t give this any less than 9/10. A must for any country fan!
Lord of the Lost: OPVS NOIR Vol. 1
The goth metallers return with their first new album in nearly two years, an uncharacteristically long gap for the band in recent times. However, this is part one of an at least double-header, with the second volume expected to also drop by the end of the year, so we’ll let them off a little, at least! It also helps that it’s a damn awesome album, too! I know their last fully original one, Blood and Glitter, did amazingly well thanks to the title track being part of Eurovision, and we enjoyed it too, but this one hits different, and is arguably higher quality. It’s a little darker and heavier, the riffing being a surprisingly large highlight. It doesn’t quite have as massive a chorus/hit as the Eurovision banger, but there are so many highlight tracks through this, with there not being a bad song throughout. Also, while it has a lot of guest features like the BABYMETAL album, but they feel more like LotL tracks than equal-collaboration singles, and from Within Temptation to our friendsFeuerschwanz, they’re all so good! If you are at all into the band, the genre or just the European metal style in general, I’d definitely recommend this album! It’s my favourite album from the band since Thornstar, and it’s made me very hyped for volume 2 already. It’s yet another damn solid 9/10 from me, and a pretty unexpected one at that!
Shape of Water: Petrichor
The Manchester art rock band have been gathering quite the momentum in the underground UK rock scene, and a lot of us have been impatiently waiting for the follow-up to 2022’s incredibly Amor Fati. It finally dropped this Friday and is everything I was hoping it would be! It’s completely different to anything else coming out, reminding me of a mix between Muse, Nine Inch Nails and Pulp, as well as plenty else I can’t put my finger on. Tracks like ‘Last Goodbye’, ‘NAKED’, ‘Letting You Go’ and ‘She Never Sleeps Alone’ are all massive personal highlights, but there really isn’t a bad song on the release! It has a really fantastic flow to it, too, 40 minutes going by in a flash. The band are insanely talented, especially for a 2/3 piece! They’re another band that won’t be for everyone, but if you are at all curious they are well worth checking out, and this is everything as good as their previous release! 8.5/10
Jonas Brothers: Greetings From Your Hometown
While definitely not something we’d typically cover here at Overtone, my partner is a big fan of the trio and, having listened to the pre-release singles, they are kinda bangers. Hell, they were on Camp ROCK back in the day, so they count, right? It’s 45-minutes of great, catchy synth-pop-rock, just enough alternative to the very mainstream stuff to keep it interesting. It’s like middle part of Fall Out Boy’s career meets just a touch of Bruce Springsteen and a healthy dose of the likes of BOYS LIKE GIRLS. The brother’s vocals have always been a big highlight of their music, their harmonies being incredible. Songs like ‘Love Me to Heaven’, ‘Tables’ and ‘Waste No Time’ are all great and big personal highlights. Don’t get me wrong, it very much isn’t going to be for everyone here, and generally the album was a touch slow in the middle, but if you’re curious there’s enough here to have fun with! An easy 7/10!
As December Falls: Everything’s On Fire But I’m Fine
One of the biggest bands to come out of our local area in a while, the emo/alt rockers’ fourth album dropped to much hype today! Said hype is more than warranted too, this thing is fucking awesome! Right from the opener/title track to singles ‘Bathroom Floor’ and ‘Therapy’ to the incredible closer, it’s all amazing. And it’s essentially an EP, being only 19 minutes across seven songs. It does, however, mean that it’s all killer and absolutely no filler. It’s a fantastic modern sound and if anyone’s into pop-punk, alt rock or mid 2000s emo, I can’t recommend checking this out enough! It’s very Hot Milk, early Paramore, Avril Lavigne and All Time Low, in the best way! They are on the quick up-and-up anyway, and this release definitely continues their momentum in the best way possible. I’m gonna be listening to this a lot moving forward, and it’s up there with some of their best stuff, for sure! Another incredibly solid 9/10
A wild week of new releases for us to check out this week, featuring some huge names in country, metal and rock. Let’s dive right in!
Chris Janson: Wild Horses
So, any long-time readers of this site will know how much I loved and ravedover Chris’ last album, even when commercially it didn’t do incredibly. So, I was pretty hyped for this release heading into it. Honestly, I’m not quite sure what to feel about it after a first listen. It’s slower than I was hoping for, more of a Tim McGraw or Kenny Chesney over the more rocky, swagger-dripping sound of his last release. There are certainly good songs on here, like ‘Me & a Beer’, ‘Up to You’, ‘What I’m For’ and ‘Hung Up On’. However, this thing is 15-tracks long and there is a lot of slower songs that all have a similar vibe to them. The slower tracks aren’t bad at all either, but there is so much out there at the minute doing the slow, radio-bait McGraw thing, and Outlaw Side of Me felt like a breath of fresh air in the mainstream country scene. I miss the southern rock for a lot of this, and while it’s a damn solid country release, it has disappointed me a little. For that, it gets a 7.5/10. The good songs are GREAT, but I don’t see myself revisiting the album as a whole much at all.
Fit for a King: Lonely God
Another release where we loved the last oneand feel like it doesn’t get nearly enough love; the Texan metalcore collective are back with album number eight. Having checked out the singles beforehand, this feels like a safer bet of something I’d love and will live up to the hype. And yes, it does in fact live up to said hype. It’s a very modern sound, the production being massive and there being plenty of synth filling out the sound. It very much feels like the next step of evolution to the ground-breaking Sempiternal, yet a step down a different path to the likes of Spiritbox. And while the cleaner bits are good, the high points of the album for me are where it goes heavier, and especially the breakdowns. The contrast between both parts honestly make both better, too. Songs like ‘The Temple’, ‘Extinction’ and the title track are all awesome and great examples of what I was on about. Plus, we also have not one, but three incredible guests that also make for massive highlight tracks. From Alpha Wolf (their closest neighbouring band) to The Plot in You to Chris Motionless, they all add so much to already fantastic songs!
So yeah, safe to say I loved this! I would say there were a couple of tracks that felt a touch weaker than others, but there are so many incredible standout songs that it’s still a very solid album overall. While I wasn’t quite as blown away by this as The Hell we Create, I think it’s more to do with heading in with that expectation over it being a quality issue. There is so much to love here, and I’d put a lot of it with some of the bands very best songs. If anyone is even passingly into metalcore, check this out immediately! A very solid 9/10 from us!
Luke Morley: Walking on Water
The sophomore solo album from the Thunder guitarist is a fun, varied listen that goes by in a flash. Combining elements of blues, soft rock and even stuff like Brit-pop and country at times, each song feels different yet still distinctly fits together. It feels like it’s a cross between Thunder, Enuff Z’Nuff, Quireboys and Dead Daisies, in the best way possible! Songs like the opener, ‘Texas’, ‘Always a Saturday Night’ and ‘Bullets’ are all person highlights, but there really isn’t a bad song on the whole thing! It fits in pretty perfectly with the current NWOCR and rock revival scene in the UK, and is a real awesome entry in Luke’s already fantastic discography. If you’re into rock in any capacity, this is well worth checking out! It’s simple but a lot of fun, and is a very solid 8/10 I’d say!
Harvested: Dysthymia
The debut album from the Canadian death metal group follows up their 2022 self-titled EP pretty perfectly. It’s brutal, technical death metal at its very best, and immediately this band needs to be bigger than they are! From the bands title track as an opener through ‘Unending Madness’ and ‘Voices of the Void’ to the huge closer, it’s just over half an hour of brutal heaviness and insane pace. It’s certainly not going to be for everyone, but if you’re into the heavy stuff it is well worth a listen. The band are all incredibly talented and I have no doubt this album is going to push them to the next level. It’s straight up classic death metal, but with a great modern-production edge. A solid 7/10
Eli Young Band: Strange Hours
The first new studio album from the Texan country band in three years , and it’s a bit of a banger! Not that I ever thought it wouldn’t be, but it’s nice to have such a strong release from a band over two decades into their career. It’s 43-minutes of southern rock-infused country awesomeness, and is so hard to pick highlights as it’s all so good! The band have been on a hot streak over their last few releases, and this very much continues that in the best way. From slower ballad tracks to more boot-stompin’ numbers, this release has it all and is arranged rather perfectly. If you are in any way a country fan, check this out immediately! I’ve been a fan of them for years at this point and this very much lived up to my hype for it, being up there with one of their best releases. It gets a very easy 9/10, and is going to be something I’ll be spinning for months to come!
Lloren: It’s Always Sunny in LA
Though not the sort of stuff we normally cover here, this is an incredible slice of pop rock! It’s stadium-filling, infectiously catchy, precisely written and highly produced pop music, but has enough edge and alternative-ness to it to keep it fun and interesting. It gives off vague modern Taylor Swift vibes, yet is also more varied and interesting than that. In that vein, there is a slight country feel to it, at least in terms of the tracks’ arrangements and vibe. Songs like the opener, ‘Like This’, ‘Like I Need’ and ‘Lonely Hearts Club’ are all personal highlights. It’s definitely not going to appeal to every reader here, and is certainly pretty slow for the most part. However, there are some good tracks on here, and overall it’s a very easy release to listen to, even just in the background! It’s very Taylor, very Chapel Roan, very Jonas Brothers, but also something else in there rather unique and individual that hooked me in when I very first listened and wanted to write about it. A solid 7/10 from us!
The Armed: THE FUTURE IS HERE AND EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE DESTROYED
So, firstly, in regards to the title the title… mood.
The fifth album from the hardcore punk collective goes expectedly hard, though isn’t really my sort of thing. I get that the whole point is the messy, abrasive nature, but when even the ‘catchy’ melodies can also grate a little, and the heaviness is more of a wall of sound over any sort of major riff or breakdown, none of it really appeals to me. There are sections of vocals that I think are choruses in stuff like ‘Purity Drag’ or ‘Gave Up’ that are almost melodic and enjoyable, but something around it stops my enjoyment. The closest thing to a “good” track for me was ‘Broken Mirror’, and I feel like a lot of that is due to a guest artists called ‘Prostitute’. ‘I Steal What I Want’ was okay too, but still isn’t something I’d optionally choose to listen to often. I completely get the sentiment and the attitude and feeling behind this, but I will never get the actual sound. I never thought I’d get into black metal more than the more hardcore side of things! If you like this then that’s fantastic. They clearly have a pretty solid fanbase. However, though I feel like an old person just typing this… it’s just a lot of loud, angry noise! 3.5/10, I’m sorry!
Ashes of the Sun: Gods With Machines
The debut solo album from the Freya and The Last Season bassist was done completely by him, from the instrumentation to the artwork. The only thing that he had some help on was the mixing and mastering, done by Jason Randle. It’s an insanely impressive achievement, especially when the album itself is damn good, too! The descriptor of Metallica and Megadeth meets Alice in Chains and Shinedown is a very accurate one, and makes for a pretty interesting listen! ‘Sophisticated Clowns’ has a great intro and sets the tone for the rest of the album perfectly. Then you have tracks like ‘Save the World’, ‘A New Way to Die’ and ‘The Lost Ones’ that are all big other highlights of the release. It’s easy to see why these tracks didn’t make it onto his other bands’ works, they wouldn’t quite fit in, but I’m so glad they’ve finally gotten to see the light of day and given the chance to shine! Ethan is clearly an insanely talented musician, and has crafted something that I’d recommend any old-school metal-fan check out! It’s heavy and got elements of everything from doom to thrash to grunge, and definitely feels pretty unique. It gets a solid 7.5/10 from us!
La Nouvelle Musique: Self-Titled
The second album from the husband and wife psych-folk duo just this year, the band have not hesitated to make an immediate stamp on their niche side of the music scene. It’s quirky and not typically my sort of thing, but there’s something about the way that it’s written and arranged that really hooked me in and kept me interested. It’s dark at times, but also has an early punk/new wave edge to it, too. Songs like ‘New Blood’, the epic ‘Spirit Level’ and ‘Still Life’ are all personal highlights. The pair are clearly very talented songwriters and musicians. It’s not something I’d revisit often, but it’s a damn solid release and I very much see the appeal of it for others! If you’re into either psychedelic or folk music, this is certainly worth at least checking out! It feels rude giving it a 6.5/10, but honestly if I liked this genre it’d definitely be a lot higher, trust me!
Zandi Holup: Wildflower
The debut album from the rising country star is really a tale of emotion; be it from her powerful, interesting vocal delivery to her absolutely phenomenal lyric writing. It’s all pretty slow and stripped-back, very much a neo-traditional release. But whether it’s empowering tracks like ‘Go Find Less’ and ‘Dirty Wings’ to heartbreak songs like ‘Doing the Time’ and ‘Cowgirls Don’t Cry’ there is so much goosebump-enducing emotion throughout this entire release. And it’s hardly those four songs to rave about either. Nearly every track on this thing is a highlight in their own right! It’s somehow familiar while also feeling rather fresh, and a lot of it is down to her instantly recognisable vocals. It’s an incredible debut release, especially when before now it’s just been singles leading up to this album. She’s going to be a big name in the country scene sooner rather than later, and I already can’t wait to hear where she goes from here! For now though, it’s an easy 8.5/10!
Vertebra: The Same
The brand new album from the thrash/death metal band is about exactly what you’d expect from the genre. It’s very old-school in its influences, definitely reminding me of early Exodus and Death. The talent of the members is off the charts, everyone working their asses off and having their own times to shine plenty throughout. And the mix, while a little harsh, is very well done, with everything being heard on every track; it’s fittingly agressive-sounding. Tracks like ‘Humanity’, the epic ‘Overcoming the Void’ and the closer are all personal highlights, but there isn’t a bad song on the whole release! Heck, the bass on ‘Blessed Are the Forgetful’ is that good it actively makes me feel like I should never touch mine again! If you are an 80s thrash/death fan, I can’t recommend this album enough. It’s a fun, heavy, balls-to-the-wall 45-minutes, and well worth a listen as I’ll certainly be revisiting it again in the weeks and months to come! It gets a very easy 8/10 from me!
Another stacked week of New Music Mondays for us to check out, with massive, great albums in the rock, metal and country scenes. Let’s dive in!
Alice Cooper: The Revenge of Alice Cooper
This is the first Alice Cooper band, not solo release, in over half a century. An absolutely WILD thought that I also never thought would happen, so it certainly has a fair bit of hype around it! Four of the original members getting back together is an exciting prospect, and this marks Alice’s 30th studio album, with 22 of them being his solo work. I have now run out of insane facts, so let’s get into the album…
It certainly feels like old-school Alice Cooper, and in the best way possible! It’s dark, gritty, swaggering blues with a horror edge, and is fucking awesome! I’ve loved his previous solo albums, but this just has something about it that I love; the cheesiness of the horror-aura adds so much to his music that does feel relatively lacking in some of his newer stuff. Songs like single ‘Wild Ones’, ‘One Night Stand’, the more light-hearted ‘Crap that Gets in the Way of your Dreams’ and ‘Intergalactic Vagabond Blues’ are all personal highlights. And, even with this thing being 14 tracks and nearly an hour long, it goes by in a flash and is a very easy, fun listen! I’d argue it’s honestly up there with some of their best work, and it’s so nice to hear the quartet working together again after all these years. It’s insane that pushing 60 years into their careers, they are still putting out music this good! I’d recommend to anyone who’s a fan of Alice’s work, and it’s a solid 8.5/10!
Cody Jinks: In My Blood
The fastest turnover Cody has had for studio albums in a while now, it comes just over a year removed from Change the Game. It’s very clear that I’m a big fan of the guy, and have been excitedly anticipating this since he first announced it. It didn’t disappoint either, as this is nearly 50 minutes of awesome emotion-filled, neo-traditional country music. Crazily, my favourite tracks seemed to be the alternate ones, too. Don’t get me wrong, every track is great, but from literally ‘Lost Highway’ onwards, every alternate song stood out to me and hooked me in. That’s a lot of huge highlights on an 11-track album! His vocals are just as good as ever, and his lyric writing at times is up there with some of the best modern artists; the amount of emotion and vulnerability is insane. While I don’t think there is a single song on this as strong as ‘Change the Game’, I do believe as an album as a whole, I do prefer it, and it’s growing on me more still with each listen! A must for any country or even blues-infused rock fan reading this, and another incredibly easy 8.5/10 from us!
Tim Minchin: Time Machine
One of my favourite comedians of all time put out his second solo studio album this last Friday, following up 2020’s Apart Together. It begins as another release on the more serious side, as he has been gravitating towards in recent years. It’s very much on the soft rock side, a lot of acoustic guitar and piano, but is full of emotion, typically fantastic lyrics and some really epic arrangements. And what’s nice was that we got some older songs finally recorded in the studio, like personal favourites ‘Darkside’ and ‘Rock n Roll Nerd’.
That was when I looked into the album and realised the whole thing is songs Tim wrote just before he broke out two decades ago. That explains the mixed bag of emotions, as well as some slightly dated ideas. The classic comedy-set tracks are amazing as ever, and awesome to hear studio versions of. ‘Song of the Masochist’ is also a great addition which makes you wonder why it was never released before now. Plus, slower stuff like the opener and the jazzy ‘Moment of Bliss’ (mainly for the soloing) are also amazing songs in their own right, and fit well on this release. However, others, ‘Ruby’ and ‘Pop Song’ spring to mind, that feel off; like they’re performed so straight-faced and seriously, not letting his keen wit and huge personality shine through them.
And that’s where my issues with this release lie. It’s not a bad album, by any stretch, but Tim is so adamant on not being labeled as a ‘comedian’ any more (I get it, it can get to novelty act teritory) that it has resulted in this whole release feeling overly serious and neutered, even in its more light-hearty moments. There is no denying the sheer force or nature that is Tim’s talent, but the songs we’ve heard before pale in comparison to their more fun live counterparts, and for a large part the new stuff is forgettable, aside for ‘…Masochist’. As I said, not a bad album, and it may grow on me more with another listen or two, but not what I’d hoped for after five years of no new releases. 7/10
Tyler Childers: Snipe Hunter
The seventh studio album from the modern country megastar is a fun, rock-infused nearly hour of awesomeness. There’s a slight 2000s indie rock edge to it too which was a nice addition; Tyler having a pretty unique sound for sure. It’s like Neo-traditional mixed with Hootie and the Blowfish, which is awesome! I was somehow not too familiar with him, having missed his last album or two that released since we started Overtone, but I enjoyed a lot of this! From the opener to ‘Bitin’ List’ to ‘Down Under’ to the title track, there are plenty of high points! Yeah, it’s a little on the long side and there were probably a couple of tracks that I would have cut personally, but Tyler’s vocals have so much weight and emotion to every type of song he delivers, it’s hard not to get wrapped up in it all. It’s very traditional, but definitely in a good way. If you’re into your old-school country, this is well worth a listen, and I’ll certainly be spinning it again over the summer! 8/10
Shadecrown: 0
We’ve already checked out this awesome album! Read the full review here.
The Dirty Nil: The Lash
The Canadian alt rockers follow up Free Rein to Passions with yet another amazing studio release! ‘Gallop of the Hounds’ is a phenomenal, perfect opening track, setting the tone for other bangers like ‘Do You Still Want Me?’ and ‘Hero Narrative’. The bands unique blend of alt rock, punk and Midwest emo is amazing, and this album makes me remember why I fell in love with their previous album after not listening to it in so long. It’s a short, sweet album that doesn’t overstay its welcome and certainly leaves me wanting more. It’s a lot of fun to listen to but is still packed full of emotion, as well as some killer riffs. It’s not going to be for everyone, but I love this sort of thing and it gets another very easy 8/10 from me!
Roulette: GO!
The Swedish AOR legends put out their highly anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Now! the other day, and added another awesome chapter to their legacy. As a big fan of this style of music, of course I loved this, and Roulette do it better than almost anyone in 2025. From the incredible opener to ‘Strangers’ to ‘Don’t Be Sorry’, there is plenty to love here, and there really isn’t a bad song on the release. It’s 35 minutes of old-school, melodic rock goodness, and should be checked out by any rock fan out there! The band have been going a while but didn’t release much studio stuff until recently, but are quickly gaining a global following and it’s easy to see why! They’re hugely talented songwriters and players, and the album is produced perfectly. They have a huge new fan in me, and this gets a very easy 8.5/10
Patty Griffin: Crown of Roses
The folk/Americana legend put out her 12th studio album this last Friday, and once again gave us a fantastic, chilled release. It’s slow, for sure, but is another short release at only eight songs, and each is great in its own right. The strings swelling on ‘The End’ in particular gave me goosebumps, especially with the emotional lyrics on top of that. Patty has always been an acquired taste and, while it’s not an album I’d revisit all too often, I completely get the appeal and the talent on display. It’s exactly what her fans would expect from a release, and is another great addition to her discography. A very solid 7/10!
Enuff Z’Nuff: Xtra Cherries
The whopping 18th studio album from the glammy hard rockers is about what you’d expect from this at this point in their careers. Firstly, massive props for being so insanely hard working; very few bands have this consistent an output across five different decades. Having said that, you’d think a band having been going so long would think a piano ballad to open one of their albums is a bad idea. ‘Heartbeat’ starts things off on an odd note here, but ‘No Cold Feelings’ gets everything on track again pretty quick! Songs like ‘Heavy Metal’, ‘Take it or Leave It’ and ‘Star Star’ are all big personal highlights, too. It’s a fun, light, sleazy hard rock album. I also enjoyed it far more than their previous album, clearly the time off between releases helped! If you’re into anything from Quireboys to Oasis, check this out, it’s a fun listen! A pretty solid 7.5/10 from us!
Paul Weller: Find El Dorado
The legendary Jam guitarist is back with yet another solo album, following up last year’s 66. I really thought I’d reviewed said album as I remember the artwork and listening to it, but clearly I didn’t type it up. I wasn’t hugely into his last release, but for whatever reason I got into this one more. It’s yet another slow acoustic folk/soft rock release this week, but it’s well written and performed, and was nice and chilled to throw on in the background! It’s definitely too long at 55 minutes, but tracks like ‘El Dorado’ and ‘Pinball’ are still great. It could have easily been a pretty great EP for me, but like with Patty Grffin, I fully appreciate why this will have a lot of love as a whole as it’s very well written and played. It all just blurred into one for me pretty quickly. Not something I’ll be revisiting personally, but it isn’t bad by any stretch and I didn’t have a bad time listening. 6.5/10
No Shelter: Remission/Resolve
This is a pretty interesting release! The third album from the German band combines hardcore with death/black metal in a way I haven’t actually heard before. It’s dark but still has that edge of anger and dangerousness that comes with hardcore. It results in some truly awesome riffing and breakdowns throughout, and the screams fit it all perfectly. It’s another short and sweet release, being the perfect 30-minute assault to the senses, and while there isn’t a bad song on it, personal highlights for me included ‘Voice of Madness’ and ‘Doomed’. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it heading in as the production and mixing felt a little grating, but by the end it felt like even that was a fitting design choice that only added to the album. While it won’t even be for all fans of heavy out there, if you’re at all curious I’d highly recommend checking this out, you might love it as much as I do! One of the most surprising 8.5/10’s I’ve ever given, good stuff!
Julia DiGrazia: All In
The debut album from the young and fast-rising country star is honestly amazing. Opener ‘Rollercoaster’ sets the tone and pace of the album perfectly, and is a huge highlight in its own right. It’s a rock-infused banger, just like ‘With You’ is. Then you have more bluegrass stuff like ‘Leave You Behind’ and the Americana duet of ‘Two Truths and a Liar’. Heck, ‘Life’s Been Good Lately’ is almost a 2000s, early Taylor Swift country-pop banger. It’s all centered around the country sound at her core, but Julia keeps it consistently interesting and fun. It’s a true testament to Julia’s fantastic songwriting ability, even at such a young age and newness to the scene. Heck, I’ve named a solid half of this album by name and they are by far the only good tracks on the release; every song is incredible. I went into this album completely blind and was absolutely blown away from start to finish. An absolute must for anyone into country or its adjacent genres. Julia has a huge new fan in me and I’m definitely going to be spinning this a lot in the coming weeks and months. A very easy 9.5/10, she’s going to be a HUGE name sooner rather than later!
