Let’s just set this out from the start. Some of the views of Emmure front man Frankie Palmeri are something I could never get on board with. However, that doesn’t mean we should ignore his musical output. I am personally of the opinion that Dave Mustaine spouts an incredible amount of shit and yet I love Megadeth. I wanted to set that out so I could make it clear that my views on this album are by no mean affected by the fact that Palmeri is a massive cunt.
OFF! – Wasted Years
When it comes to musical pedigree not many are going to compete with OFF! Boasting former members of Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Redd Kross, Rocket From the Crypt and Burning Brides they are a band that know their way around the music business and in particular the punk scene. Their latest album Wasted Years was released earlier this year and despite being 16 tracks long manages to come in at just over 23 minutes.
Godzilla
Godzilla has an unusual place in movie history. Originally a Japanese creation, all attempts by the West to transfer it to their own have been a disaster, with the 1998 Roland Emmerich version being the prime example. Despite this it’s fame appears to have only grown, with the Internet playing a major part in that, along with help from institutions like the BFI, which in 2005 released the original uncut Japanese version to a British audience for the first time. Therefore it was surely only a matter of time before the big lizard got another attempt to hit your cinema screens, however few might have predicted that the director put in charge of such a vision would be Gareth Edward’s, whose only previous movie was a monster movie, but was made for around $500,000 compared to the $160 million that Warner supplied for Godzilla.
Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican
Pointing out that Zakk Wylde is a good guitarist is the equivalent of stating the sky is blue or that James Hetfield is cooler than you, it’s just too obvious to require stating. Taking that into account I’m going to attempt to review the latest Black Label Society album without ever feeling the need to express that opinion, because quite frankly if you need me to tell you Zakk can play guitar, you’re probably reading the wrong site.
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Wilko Johnson w/ Roger Daltrey – Going Back Home
The story of Wilko Johnson’s last year is an incredible one. Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January 2013, he was told he would have around nine or tenths month left to live. Rather than fight it with chemotherapy Johnson elected to go on a farewell tour of the UK and record one last album with The Who’s Roger Daltrey. Over a year later Johnson is still with us and recently underwent surgery to have the pancreatic tumour removed and in fact there is still a chance he may survive. In that time he did record with Daltrey and Going Back Home is the product of that labour and hit number 3 in the UK album chart.
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Combichrist – We Love You
“Please don’t forget we love you, but now you have to die.” We Love You is an album that doesn’t take long to establish it’s themes. Whether you want to call it aggrotech or electronic death metal, Combichrist are a band that are at home in an angry world full of jagged electronic sounds that are designed to have fans flipping tables.
Frank
It takes a lot of balls to take one of the acting’s fastest rising stars and put him under a mask for an entire film. Yet that’s exactly what Lenny Abrahamson has done with Michael Fassbender in his latest feature film Frank. Written by Jon Ronson the film is based on Chris Sievey and his comic alter-ego Frank Sidebottom, who’s band Ronson spent time playing keyboard in. Although in reality the only concrete link between the two characters is the giant mask that covers Fassbender’s face for the duration of the movie. The character itself takes not just from Sievey, but troubled musical souls like Daniel Johnston and Captain Beefheart.
Nine Inch Nails at The Hydro, 20/5/2014
Some bands are made to play small dingy clubs, others are meant to fill arenas. While I’m sure Nine Inch Nails would destroy your average club, their set at the Glasgow Hydro shows that they are very much in the later camp. It was hardly a surprise to see Trent Reznor return to the Nine Inch Nails model, after taking several years out on hiatus during which he won an Oscar, but the return of the band that made the man was still greeted with joy by fans. Nine Inch Nails are a band that transcend genres, being as equally loved by fans of Joy Division and Depeche Mode as they are fans of Slayer and Black Flag.
Animals as Leaders – The Joy Of Motion
Some albums defy reviewing, you can say what you want about them but at the end of the day what you get and what you find within it is a completely personal experience. This is more true amongst instrumental music than anything else and Animals as Leaders are the perfect example of it. Now on their third album, this American instrumental prog-metal band create music that is as difficult to place as it is to review, in saying all that we are about to give it a go.
Next Goal Wins
Football at the highest level is a bloated, corrupt and quite frankly horrible sport. Overpaid pre-Madonna’s prance around earning hundreds of thousands of pounds a week in teams assembled by Russian billionaires with little thought towards the fans. Yet we all still love it. We all come back week after week to buy the overpriced pies and worship at the altar of teams that quite often do not give a shit. Why? Well because of stories like that told in Next Goal Wins. Continue reading “Next Goal Wins”
Ramblings About Wrestling 