OTHERWISE - TRUE LOVE NEVER DIES (Album Review)
Having caught their recent video for 'Soldiers,' Las Vegas band OTHERWISE wasn't exactly at the top of my 'must-listen' list. But, after a special request came in for me to give their new album TRUE LOVE NEVER DIES a spin, I figured it couldn't hurt. The problem is, that uncanny feeling of 'Haven't I heard this before?'
MINISTRY - RELAPSE (Advance Album Review)
It's been nearly four years since MINISTRY performed what were then touted as their ''final'' live shows. Always a skeptic when it comes to bands calling it a day, I was one of those with the mindset of ''they'll be back,'' and while I was disappointed to have missed their three-night run here in Chicago, it's 2012 and the opportunity has presented itself once more. Indeed, Al Jourgensen is back with a familiar band of ''experienced wingmen'' for what is undoubtedly one of the best MINISTRY offerings to come along in quite some time.
UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING (Soundtrack Review)
As a big fan of Vampires and Werewolves, I've long held the UNDERWORLD films as franchise that serves as a hearty slap in the face to fans of both. In fact, I hated the first one so much, that it partially inspired me to write DEATH WALKS THE STREETS in 2004. From all angles, I thought that both UNDERWORLD and it's sequel, UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION, were poorly-directed by Len Wiseman and poorly conceived by writer Kevin Grevioux. I even hated the icy ''blue'' look of the films. By the time 2009's UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS came around, I'd already tuned out. Now, with the 2012 UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING, the franchise is back on my radar - but only for the one thing I'd actually like about it: The Soundtracks.
BLACK TAXI - WE DON'T KNOW ANY BETTER (Album Review)
Bursting with both familiarity and freshness, WE DON'T KNOW ANY BETTER (out Jan. 14) marks the second full-length offering from Brooklyn quartet BLACK TAXI. There's a solid rock band at the core, but the multi-faceted instrumentation - executed with perfection - is where the band excels, pushing well beyond the stage and out onto the dancefloor.
Grandiose Delusions: A Virtual Smack for the Arrogant Wannabe 'Journalist' or 'Photographer'
I'm not sure what they're teaching at colleges these days, but it seems there's a major disconnect happening when it comes to recent graduates from the media programs out there. They're clueless.
WHITE ZOMBIE: LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE (Box Set Review)
I was first exposed to the music of WHITE ZOMBIE through a blind buy of their 1989 Caroline Records release MAKE THEM DIE SLOWLY (the spine of the CD oddly says “Let Them Die Slowly”). At the time, I didn’t really enjoy it, and I later went on to trade in the disc at a local record store in favor of something a little more “metal.”