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By Dewinged
Wednesday September 27, 2023
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Here’s a list of major new releases for the week of September 29th, 2023. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: September 29, 2023 –
’68: Yes, And…
Genre: Noise Rock
Label: Pure Noise
Animal Collective: Isn’t It Now?
Genre: Alternative
Label: Domino Recording Co.
Beverley Knight: The Fifth Chapter
Genre: r&b
Label: BMG
Blackbriar: A Dark Euphony
Genre: Symphonic Metal
Label: Season of Mist
Black Stone Cherry: Screamin’ at the Sky
Genre: Hard Rock
Label: Mascot Label Group
Blonde Redhead: Sit Down For Dinner
Genre: Indie Rock
Label: Section 1
Blood Command: World Domination
Genre: Punk Rock
Label: Hassle
Caged: From Roving About the Earth
Genre: Death Doom
Label: Translation Loss
Cherry Glazerr: I Don’t Want You Anymore
Genre: Indie Rock
Label: Secretly Canadian
Code Orange: The Above
Genre: Metalcore
Label: Blue Grape Music
Ed Sheeran: Autumn Variations
Genre: Singer Songwriter
Label: Gingerbread Man
…
Who doesn’t like a good documentary? Me personally, I’m a stickler for watching anything so long as the production values are there and the editing and pacing is done well. For me, I know of Justin Pearson and his label Three One G, as well as some of his most recent projects (the excellent Deaf Club and Satanic Planet being a couple of them), but I’d only ever heard of The Locust in passing. The point I’m making here is that, Don’t Fall in Love with Yourself is one of those excellently put together documentaries where you don’t have to be a fan to enjoy the movie. For any The Locust fan or Justin Pearson follower out there however, you’re in for a real treat. Don’t Fall in Love with Yourself is a 90-minute documentary that follows Justin’s life and career – from his turbulent upbringing, right through to his bands and how he came to establish the record label Three One G. The film delves into the social landscape during his formative years in San Diego, and where he saw potential in an under-utilised music scene; the impetus for The Locust and how they came to be, following the band through Europe, Japan and the UK on their crazy shows; and all the surprising bits in between, like voice acting for cartoons and acting in movies. There’s extensive archive footage that follows all of this, but the meat of the film follows The Locust on their tours and the crazy stuff that happened…
An interview with BaselineOOO
Music has had a bad year. Sputnik has had a bad year. Awful things have happened, and the jury is still out on who to blame — silly jury! They should spend less time pointing their fingers and more time clapping their hands at the one user who can save us. After a randomised selection of noble volunteers, it was determined by fated that this user would none other than the site’s longtime dismantler of philosophies, distorter of diets, shredder of manchildren, encourager of all the most unlikely and profane interests, BaselineOOO! Here she is! There will be no images: hush and look at Baseline’s words.
* * * * *
jotW: Greetings BaselineOOO, lucky winner of the Sputnik Interview Raffle. You have appeared before us today to save Sputnik. How does this feel?
BaselineOOO: Hello, Sputnik! Baseline at your service, or should I say, at your rescue? Honestly, I’m resonating with this whole “saviour” thing, my messianic syndrome is tingling. It feels like finding a glitch in reality and riding it. Saving Sputnik? Don’t I do that every day with my succulent comments? Should be like just another day at the office for me!
jotW: Let me explain the rules: I will write in italics and you will not write in italics, otherwise the interview will break and you can’t save Sputnik. I will ask you questions and you will try to answer them. You may ask me questions in response and…
Hail the Sun-Divine Inner Tension
Swancore has become a rather hot topic over the years, either met with thunderous applause or with largely exasperated groans. The one group that has stayed strong and avoided fan burnout is Hail the Sun. Their 2021 effort was met with critical acclaim, and their latest endeavor might somehow be even better. Divine Inner Tension is a showcase of divine (haha, like the album title!) power and energy that only they seem to be able to achieve anymore. With every technically driven lead and riff, there comes a beautiful transition to a much-needed respite of calm textures and melodies straight from the mouth of their virtuoso Donovan Melero. This group has had a long time to craft and perfect their sound, which they may have just accomplished. Hail the Sun have not only become veterans of a scene they once adored, they’ve grabbed their rightful seat on the throne.
-SteakByrnes
Here’s a list of major new releases for the week of September 22nd, 2023. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: September 22nd, 2023 –
3teeth: Endex
Genre: Industrial Metal / Alternative
Label: Century Media
Annisokay: Abyss Pt. 1
Genre: Metalcore
Label: Arising Empire
Bakar: Halo
Genre: Indie / Hip Hop / Electronic
Label: Black Butter Limited
Cannibal Corpse: Chaos Horrific
Genre: Death Metal
Label: Metal Blade Records
Chappell Roan: The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
Genre: Pop
Label: Independent
Dayshell: Pegasus
Genre: Post Hardcore / Alternative
Label: Independent
Doja Cat: Scarlet
Genre: Hip Hop / Pop
Label: RCA Records
Dominique Fils-Aime: Our Roots Run Deep
Genre: Soul / R&B / Dream Pop
Label: Ensoul Records
Emily Kinney: Swimteam
Genre: Pop / Folk
Label: Julian Records
Follakzoid: V
Genre: Psychedelic / Ambient
Label: Sacred Bones Records
Grails: Anches en Maat
Genre: Psychedelic / Post Rock / Experimental
Label: Temporary Residence
Grrl Gang: Spunky!
Genre: Indie Rock / Indie Pop
Label: Green Island Records
K. Michelle: I’m the Problem
Genre: R&B / Pop
Label: Atlantic
…
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By Sowing
Monday September 11, 2023
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Here’s a list of prominent new releases for the week of September 15th, 2023. Genres/labels are best guesses based on cursory Googling. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: September 15th, 2023 –
30 Seconds to Mars: It’s the End of the World
Genre: Alt/Pop-Rock
Label: Concord Records
Alkaloid: Numen
Genre: Death/Progressive Metal
Label: Season of Mist
Baroness: Stone
Genre: Sludge/Progressive Metal/Stoner Rock
Label: Abraxan Hymns
The Beaches: Blame My Ex
Genre: Alternative Rock
Label: AWAL Recordings
Chilly Gonzales: French Kiss
Genre: Experimental / Hip Hop
Label: Gentle Threat
Corey Taylor: CMF2
Genre: Hard Rock
Label: BMG
Corinne Bailey Rae: Black Rainbows
Genre: Pop/R&B/Soul
Label: Thirty Tigers
Danko Jones: Electric Sounds
Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal
Label: AFM
Demi Lovato: Revamped
Genre: Pop/Rock
Label: DLG Recordings
Explosions in the Sky: End
Genre: Post-Rock/Indie-Rock
Label: Temporary Residence
Gridlink: Coronet Juniper
Genre: Grind/Metal
Label: Willowtip
K.Flay: Mono
Genre: Pop-Rock/Hip-Hop
Label: Giant Music
Kid Cudi: INSANO
Genre: Hip-Hop/Alt-Rock
Label: Wicked Awesome Records
Previous Diagnoses:
Paradise Lost|Primus|Faith No More|Paramore
Good day denizens of Sputnik, and welcome to the fifth instalment of Dr. Gonzo’s “Diagnosis Series”. Today’s issue will be on L.A. trio HEALTH; looking through their mainline LPs, with a couple of recommended supplements for you to check out, just because they’re too good to pass up. So let me put on my gloves and let’s check out what this band is all about.
Band/Artist: HEALTH
Origins: Los Angeles, California U.S.
Founded: 2005
Current Members:
Jake Duzsik: (vocals, guitar)
John Famiglietti: (bass, pedals, electronics)
BJ Miller: (drums)
Previous members:
Jupiter Keyes (guitar, synths)
Studio albums: 4
Active: Yes
Health (2007)
The Doctor’s rating: 4/5
Analysis: HEALTH’s 2007 debut is in stark contrast to what the band is producing these days, but in spite of the stylistic differences, the band’s first album is still incredibly enjoyable and displays their promising potential for the future. Since the band’s genesis was founded in the underbelly of the L.A. noise rock scene, their sound here is vastly experimental, albeit, never to the point of being obtuse. The album largely lends its sonic influences from bands like Ex Models’ Zoo Psychology or a mid-noughties Liars album, like They Were Wrong, So We Drowned, but the distinction between these examples and this is that Health…
Slowdive: A Sputnik Guide
This feature is part of a newly-rebooted series aimed at exploring the discographies of interesting and/or important bands whose wider body of work is often overlooked on this site. There will be lots of words and a few pictures, but the main deal is that if a band features here, they are good and you should listen to them! And if you already jam them, hit up the comments and explain where and why I went wrong! Get going!
Previously covered discographies:
Stereolab・Sweet Trip・Blonde Redhead
Everyone loves Slowdive! One of the rare bands to come out of shoegaze and dream pop playing both genres their own while playing them to the best of their potential, their value has gone up and up and up over the last decade, and neither the past decade’s outpouring of soppy bedroom artists through every pore of the internet nor shoegaze’s TikTok resurgence aren’t entirely to blame for it. Let’s all love Slowdive!
With Souvlaki‘s 30th anniversary back in June and Just for a Day’s 32nd just last week (along with a new LP, Everything is Alive), it is time to remember this greatest of it is time to dive once into the shoe, to gaze once more at the slow. I’m going to cover every individual release here (no comps!), and I ended up doing it so quickly that I entirely forgot that Frippertronics actually made his own version of this list in 2017 until I was 75% of the way through. Six years and…
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By staff
Tuesday September 5, 2023
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Here’s a list of prominent new releases for the week of September 8th, 2023. Genres/labels are best guesses based on cursory Googling. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors. Or don’t, whatever. I’m not your mom.
– List of Releases: September 8th, 2023 –
(G)I-DLE – HEAT (EP)
Genre: K-Pop
Label: Cube Entertainment
Allison Russell – The Returner
Genre: Contemporary Folk
Label: Fantasy
Anjimile – The King
Genre: Avant-Folk / Art Pop
Label: 4AD
Ashley McBryde – The Devil I Know
Genre: Contemporary Country
Label: Warner Nashville
The Chemical Brothers – For That Beautiful Feeling
Genre: Alternative Dance / Progressive House
Label: Virgin EMI
Courtney Barnett – End Of The Day
(Music from the film Anonymous Club)
Genre: Ambient
Label: Milk!, Mom+Pop
Cryptopsy – As Gomorrah Burns
Genre: Technical Death Metal
Label: Nuclear Blast
Cyanotic – The After Effect
Genre: Industrial
Label: Glitch Mode
Dying Fetus – Make Them Beg for Death
Genre: Technical Death Metal
Label: Relapse
Finsterforst – Jenseits (EP)
Genre: Viking Metal / Folk Metal
Label: AOP
The Flower Kings – Look at You Now
Genre:…
Here’s a list of major new releases for the week of September 1st, 2023. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: September 1, 2023 –
Aviations: Luminaria
Genre: Math Rock / Emo
Label: The AV Collective
Eclipse: Megalomanium
Genre: Hard Rock
Label: Frontiers
Empire State Bastard: Rivers of Heresy
Genre: Grindcore / Alt Rock
Label: Roadrunner
Frankie and the Witch Fingers: Data Doom
Genre: Rock / Funk / Prog
Label: The Reverberation Appreciation Society
Hey Colossus: In Blood
Genre: Post Punk / Post Rock
Label: Wrong Speed
Icona Pop: Club Romantech
Genre: Pop
Label: Record Company Ten
Imperial Crystalline Entombment: Ancient Glacial Resurgence
Genre: Black Metal
Label: Debemur Morti
Jeff Rosenstock: Hellmode
Genre: Punk
Label: Polyvinyl
Jessika: World Ain’t Ready
Genre: Pop
Label: BMG
Marduk: Memento Mori
Genre: Black Metal
Label: Century Media
The Natvral: Summer Of No Light
Genre: Folk
Label: Dirty Being
Outergods:…
Previous Diagnoses:
Paradise Lost|Primus|Faith No More
Good day denizens of Sputnik and welcome to the fourth instalment of Dr. Gonzo’s “Diagnosis Series”. Today I will be looking at Paramore, the Franklin, Tennessee outfit that captured the hearts and minds of an entire generation back in the mid-noughties, with their own brand of pop-punk. So, get out of the waiting room chair and observe the doctor, as I go through all six of their studio albums and conclude if they’re worth half a damn or not.
Band/Artist: Paramore
Origins: Franklin, Tennessee, U.S.
Founded: 2004
Current Members:
Hayley Williams: (vocals, keyboards)
Zac Farro: (drums, keyboards)
Taylor York: (guitar, keyboards)
Previous members:
Josh Farro (guitar)
Jeremy Davis: (bass)
Jason Bynum: (guitar)
John Hembree: (bass)
Hunter Lamb: (guitar)
Studio albums: 6
Active: Yes
All We Know is Falling (2005)
The Doctor’s rating: 3/5
Analysis: For me, All We Know is Falling is fine. It’s a decent first album that lays down the groundwork for future records. Hayley delivers some great performances on the likes of “Pressure”, “Emergency” and “Conspiracy”, and the music does a decent job of toeing the pop-punk line with some energetic drum work and infectious guitar melodies. Other than that, there’s not much else to say here.…
Previous Diagnoses:
Paradise Lost|Primus
Hello music enthusiasts and welcome to the third instalment of Dr.Gonzo’s ‘Diagnosis Series’, where I go through a band or artist’s studio recordings and find their strengths and weaknesses, recommending a few things along the way. Today we’ll be looking at San Francisco’s venerable legends Faith No More to unpack their capricious career, which ultimately led to a sublime streak of near-perfect albums, as well as the iffy ones. So grab Bjork’s fish and prepare to gasp in excitement or terror.
Band/Artist: Faith No More
Origins: San Francisco, California, U.S.
Founded: 1979
Current Members:
Mike Bordin (drums)
Billy Gould (bass)
Roddy Bottum (keyboards, rhythm guitar)
Mike Patton (vocals)
Jon Hudson (lead guitar)
Previous members:
Mike Morris (guitar, vocals)
Wade Worthington (keyboards)
Courtney Love (vocals)
Mark Bowen (guitar)
Chuck Mosley (vocals)
Jim Martin (guitar)
Trey Spruance (guitar)
Dean Menta (guitar)
Studio albums: 7
Active: Hiatus(?)
We Care a Lot (1985)
The Doctor’s rating: 2/5
Analysis: I feel like Faith No More’s trajectory was very similar to how Iron Maiden started out their career. Like Iron Maiden, FNM started out with a very different sounding vocalist for their first two albums, and although Di’Anno and Mosley both bring…
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By Sowing
Monday August 21, 2023
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Here’s a list of major new releases for the week of August 25th, 2023. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: August 25th, 2023 –
Alice Cooper: Road
Genre: Hard Rock/Metal
Label: earMUSIC
The Armed: Perfect Saviors
Genre: Hardcore/Noise Rock
Label: Sargent House
Ashnikko: Weedkiller
Genre: Hip-Hop/Pop
Label: Parlophone
Asking Alexandria: Where Do We Go From Here?
Genre: Metalcore/Post-Hardcore
Label: Better Noise Music
Blut Aus Nord: Disharmonium
Genre: Black Metal
Label: Debemur Morti Productions
Camille: Magie
Genre: Art Pop
Label: MOSTIKO
Candlebox: The Long Goodbye
Genre: Alt-Rock/Grunge
Label: Round Hill Records
Charlotte Cardin: 99 Nights
Genre: Pop
Label: Atlantic
Cinnamon Babe: Fatherless
Genre: Nu Metal
Label: N/A
Concrete Castles: Brand New Me
Genre: Alt-Rock/Pop-Rock
Label: Velocity
Dethklok: Dethalbum IV
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Label: Turner Music Publishing
Filter: The Algorithm
Genre: Industrial/Alt-Rock/Metal
Label: Golden Robot Records
Heirloom: Romanticize
Genre: Math Rock/Indie-Folk
Label: Judge and Jury Records
…
Previous Diagnoses: Paradise Lost
Hello music enthusiast, and welcome to the second edition of Dr.Gonzo’s ‘Diagnosis Series’ – where I go through a band or artist’s studio recordings and find their strengths and weaknesses. Today we’ll be looking at the eccentric El Sobrante trio, Primus, delving into their weird and wonderful world filled with renditions of old children’s stories, big brown beavers, race car drivers, and fishermen. So grab a cold one and prepare to sail the sea of cheese.
Band/Artist: Primus
Origins: El Sobrante, California, U.S.
Founded: 1984
Current Members:
Les Claypool (vocals, bass)
Larry “Ler” LaLonde (guitars)
Tim “Herb” Alexander (drums)
Previous members:
Todd Huth (guitars)
Vince “Perm” Parker (drums)
Peter Libby (drums)
Robbie Bean (drums)
Tim “Curveball” Wright (drums)
Jay Lane (drums)
Brain (drums)
Buckethead (guitars)
Danny Carey (drums)
DJ Disk (turntables)
Studio albums: 9
Active: Yes
Frizzle Fry (1990)
The Doctor’s rating: 5/5
Analysis: Primus are one of those rare cases where an act will walk right out of the gates with their sound, ready and willing to discharge it onto the placid masses. Unlike Paradise Lost who spent decades honing their craft, Primus busted out Frizzle Fry and unleashed a sound so idiosyncratic, it’s eccentricities would blindside an entire…
Here’s a list of major new releases for the week of July 7th, 2023. Please feel free to request reviews for any of the following albums from staff and/or contributors.
– List of Releases: August 18th, 2023 –
After Earth: The Rarity of Reason
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Label: Independent
Ally Evenson: Big Lie
Genre: Indie Pop
Label: Independent
Amaka: Oasis
Genre: R&B / Soul
Label: Venice Music
Atreyu: The Moment You Find Your Flame
Genre: Metal
Label: Spinefarm Music Group
Birdy: Portraits
Genre: Indie Pop / Pop
Label: Warner Music UK
Ciara: CiCi
Genre: R&B / Pop / Hip Hop
Label: Beauty Marks Entertainment
The Circle: Of Awakening
Genre: Post Black Metal / Melodic Death Metal
Label: AOP Records
Caroline Cotter: Gently as I Go
Genre: Indie Folk
Label: Independent
Cyhra: The Vertigo Trigger
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Label: Nuclear Blast
Dizzy: Dizzy
Genre: Indie Pop
Label: Royal Mountain Records
Genesis Owusu: Struggler
Genre: Hip hop / R&B
Label: AWAL Records
Gregory Alan Isakov: Appaloosa Bones
Genre: Indie Folk
Label: MNRK Records
Gretta Ray: Positive Spin
Genre: Folk / Pop
Label: Ballarat Pty
Horrendous: Ontological Mysterium
Genre: Melodic
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