Barrow - Demo

If you like: Envy, Suffocate For Fuck Sake, The Carrier

This band is pretty awesome. As mentioned below (even though no one will read it because there's no pictures or "If you like"s), I saw this band play with Pianos Become The Teeth. It was similar to seeing I Am Alaska open for a bunch of metal and pop punk bands - don't ask. They came on after a thrashy metal break-everything-in-sight and your archetypal screamo band. Introspective, melodic songs with lots of pedals for a small band from Greensboro, NC. Really the best comparison is to Envy, but with less hardcore influence. Anyway, these guys are cool. Gave people this demo for free after the set and it sounds pretty good, although doesn't really do justice to their live sound. Song names might be on their myspace, if you remember that site. .../barrowband if I remember correctly - I just have these labelled "Demo 1" and "Demo 2". I believe they are going to try to tour next summer. If you have the slightest interest in this genre and don't ever find yourself whining, "Y iz ther not constant br34kdown!?!!eleven" (rough quote from band), go see them. They're good, and I know they'll appreciate it. Hell, even say you heard of them from a blog post from a kid at their Raleigh show, they might start thinking all this music stuff is worth it!

Album recorded: 7/10

Live performance (including these): 9/10

Long-overdue update.

Hello good people of the internet,

It has come to my attention that apparently people follow this, and a few of my friends actually check it occasionally. Therefore, I will resurrect it from the hiatus that happened due to moving, not having internet, and general negligence. I don't have anything ready right now, but hopefully tomorrow and this weekend will see a good bit of posting.

Anyway, I move to North Carolina to work 40 hours a week (although it ends up being closer to 50) in order to make money to buy vinyls and have something decently respectable on my resume. When I remember, I spend some money on food too (meaning when I only have Fruit Rings, expired milk, and a few pepperonis in the fridge). But I am proud of the 200 or so I have now, and even have some speakers to take back to school and show off. June was great for music: Cat's Cradle, Local 506, Lunchbox Records, etc. Even Raleigh had a Silversun Pickups show, which was fucking incredible. They played Creation Lake! July has been dry as shit though, with the only good show being Pianos Become The Teeth in a basement. Epic show, real chill dudes.

Which brings me to a point I'm making! A band "Barrows" opened for them. It was an odd assembly of acts.. Some kids I met did a crazy thrashy metal wreck everything 20-second long song series, and a good textbook screamo band. Also another thrashy metal group that sounded a bit like Heavy Heavy Low Low at times, but was far from scene-y. The other band was Barrows -- introspective, melodic screamo, like a less-hardcore Envy. I talked to the vocalist after the show and he gave me a demo, and I told him I would post it here. So it will go up tomorrow! It's good, but can't do justice to their live performance.

Expect great things soon (Arcade Fire, Menomena!, and more). Now I have to go home from this Panera knock-off that leaves wifi on all night to decide whether I want to spin Circa Survive's Blue Sky Noise or the Envy/This Machine Kills 7" while smoking from a $2 pack of Special Blends. Gotta love South Carolina defecit hawks. That is all for now. I love you for reading this, and if I know you somehow, I miss you but will be back soonish!

Sea Wolf - Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low

Tracklist:
01. You're A Wolf
02. The Garden That You Planted
03. I Made A Resolution
04. Ses Monument
05. I Don't Know If I'll Be Back This Time

If You Like: All Smiles, Bright Eyes, Death Cab For Cutie

Sea Wolf is one of those indie bands that you wouldn't really expect to stand out from the crowd, but they manage to pull it off. Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low is their debut release, featuring five relaxing indie gems. I've heard 'You're A Wolf' on the radio before, which isn't surprising since it is the most pop-sounding track on the album. The Garden That You Planted is very calm and relaxing with nice lyrics. I Made A Resolution opens horribly lyrically in my opinion; Alex Church says he'll never sing a sad song again but he clearly breaks this resolution. The rest of the song is nice though, kind of a mix between You're A Wolf and The Garden..., picking up towards the middle. Ses Monument is my least favorite song on the album, but it's still good. It's very upbeat, but I find I get bored of the song quickly. I love I Don't Know...; it's short and to the point with good lyrics. It's probably too far on the sad side for many people but it reminds me of Bright Eyes a little, so I like it. 8/10

Margot & The Nuclear So And So's - Not Animal!

Tracklist:
01. A Children's Crusade on Acid
02. German Motor Car
03. Broadripple Is Burning
04. Holy Cow!
05. Cold, Kind, and Lemon Eyes
06. Hello Vagina
07. As Tall As Cliffs
08. Real Naked Girls
09. Pages Written On A Wall
10. Shivers (I've Got 'Em)
11. The Ocean (Is Bleeding Salt)
12. Hip Hip Hooray

This album doesn't have much new material on it; half of the new songs are also on Animal!, and most of the others are remakes of their earlier Demos. The only two songs that I think bring attention to Not Animal! are Pages Written on a Wall and Shivers. The first was amazing live and tends to get stuck in my head. I just wish Margot would sometimes try making songs longer than 5 minutes, because the instrument part alone could easily last for 6 minutes without getting old. Mariel's Brazen Overture and At the Carnival are the longest of their tracks, both lasting 6:01. Maybe their next album will have more variety? Based on their progression so far, I hope so. 7/10

Margot & The Nuclear So And So's - Animal!

Tracklist:
01. At The Carnival
02. O' What A Nightmare!
03. Hello Vagina
04. I Am A Lightning Rod
05. Love Song For A Schubas Bartender
06. Mariel's Brazen Overture
07. There's Talk Of Mine Shafts
08. A Children's Crusade On Acid
09. German Motor Car
10. Cold, Kind, and Lemon Eyes
11. My Baby (Shoots Her Mouth Off)
12. As Tall As Cliffs

If You Like: Balance Problems, Band of Horses, Cursive

I saw these guys play near my house last year after releasing this album. They opened with At The Carnival, which did sound better live. Just hearing A Children's Crusade on Acid was enough to make me immediately love this band though. That song is definitely my favorite on the album, followed by Cold Kind and Lemon Eyes and Hello Vagina. German Motor Car, Love Song..., and Mariel's... are also great songs. Mariel's Brazen Overture is the most distinct song on the album since it features a lot of Emily Watkins' vocals in addition to Edwards'. 8/10

Margot & The Nuclear So And So's - The Dust of Retreat

Tracklist:
01. A Sea Chanty of Sorts
02. Skeleton Key
03. Vampires in Blue Dresses
04. Quiet As A Mouse
05. Jen Is Bringin' The Drugs
06. Dress Me Like A Clown
07. On A Freezing Chicago Street
08. Paper Kitten Nightmare
09. Barfight Revolution, Power Violence
10. A Light On A Hil
11. Talking In Code
12. Bookworm

This album is the main reason I love Margot. It is a perfect transition between their older demos and the Animal! albums since it has more complex music then the acoustic demos but is not as spacey as the new stuff. It also has all new songs; a fault I find in the Animal!s. Jen Is Bringin' The Drugs and A Light On A Hill keep the old sound while Skeleton Key and Quiet As A Mouse foreshadow Animal!. It has the sadness of Broadripple is Burning (from Demos) in A Sea... and A Light... but also fun sing-a-longs like On A Freezing Chicago Street and Skeleton Key. Every song has it's own reason for amazingness, even Paper Kitten Nightmare -- the lyrics annoy me to death, but the title is clever (who can have a nightmare about kittens??) 9/10

Margot & The Nuclear So And So's - Demos

Tracklist:
01. As Tall As Cliffs
02. Holy Cow
03. Broadripple Is Burning
04. Hip Hip Hooray
05. The Ocean
06. Open Your Eyes
07. Things You Shouldn't Do
08. Real Naked Girls

If You Like: Bright Eyes, The Early November, Nada Surf

This is the first album from Margot, who sounds completely different now. These demos are a bunch of acoustic, bare songs by Richard Edwards. Most were re-recorded on Animal! and Not Animal! to fit with their new style. Though the new ones are good, I much prefer these demos. Broadripple is Burning has more emotion and better lyrics as the demo, since some of the words were tweaked on Not Animal! I also like The Ocean, As Tall As Cliffs, and Real Naked Girls better as demos. If you don't like the acoustic sound, Open Your Eyes and Things You Shouldn't Do are not on any later releases, so this album is worthwhile for those two if nothing else. Enjoyable songs -- 7/10

Algernon Cadwallader - Some Kind Of Cadwallader

Tracklist:
01. Casual Discussion In A Dome Between Two Temples
02. Some Kind of Cadwallader
03. The Stars
04. Horror
05. Motivational Song
06. Yo Soy Milk
07. I've Got Piano
08. Katie's Conscious
09. Serial Killer Status
10. In Response To Irresponsibility

If You Like: American Football, Cap'n Jazz, I Would Set Myself On Fire For You

This is one of the most unique bands I have ever heard, and I've heard a lot. The instruments are very high-energy, as Algernon lets you know right from the beginning. The singing is very raw and a little annoying -- kind of singing, a little whiny, and the rest some kind of yelling. I wouldn't think all of it goes together, since it really doesn't, but Algernon finds a way to throw it together and make an incredible feel-good album (like a distorted The Format) with a side effect of confusion. I find that ignoring the confusion about what's going on is the best way to listen to the music. If you can stand the strange vocals, this album is for you. 7/10

Webcomics

Mediafire did some maintenance this afternoon, and I still can't access my files. Here's some awesome webcomics though. If you ever find yourself with a few hours/days to kill, check these out.

Pearls Before Swine
Cyanide and Happiness
xkcd
Abstruse Goose
Cowbirds In Love
Core Dump
Dinosaur Comics
909sickle (Popsicle?)

The first is one that's in my Sunday newspaper, the second is very sarcastic and offensive, the third (favorite) and fourth are nerdy at times and at others about relationships/life, the fifth & sixth are kind of weird, with a lot of puns and obscure references, and the last two are similar to xkcd and Abstruse Goose but not really. Dinosaur Comics tries to be more insightful, but it's hard to really take seriously because it's dinosaurs and every update uses the same pictures... all of them are really good.

Funeral Diner - The Wicked

Tracklist:
01. ...and the Beast Shall Be Made Legion
02. The Wicked
03. End On 6
04. It Burns

This EP is similar to the last two I posted: the Beast... is a very dark instrumental, with some uncharacteristic synth-sounding noises, which always sort of reminds me of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. End On 6 is my favorite on the EP. It has a lot of energy, good progression, and ends with Seth screaming "...until your heart stops beating." I like the beginning of It Burns, but I don't think that is a very outstanding song. This probably isn't the best album for sampling Funeral Diner. 6/10

Funeral Diner - The Underdark

Tracklist:
01. Decline
02. Collapsing
03. We Become Buried
04. It Is Good That We Never Met
05. Two Houses
06. What Was Said
07. Regardless We Fall
08. We All Have Blood On Our Hands

The Underdark is another one of Funeral Diner's more popular albums. Like The Swept Under, it's on Amazon, Pandora, and even Lala. Decline is an intro, but it's a real song unlike some intro tracks. It has the dark, slow, melodic touch that makes Funeral Diner great. Collapsing is similar, but with lyrics. We Become Buried is even better, with high-paced energy that they keep up for the first third of the song and then some varying tempos, finishing the song with some pure epicness. It Is Good... is 9-minutes, and is similar to Funeral Diner's other long songs in terms of development and mood. I like the intro to Two Houses as well as the interlude What Was Said. Regardless We Fall begins sub-par in my opinion, but I really like the buildup with the guitar, drums, and eventually vocals towards the middle. We All... is an intense end to the album with vague yelling and guitar work. This album is pretty consistent, but does not have many parts that wow'd me. 7/10

Funeral Diner - The Swept Under

Tracklist:
01. Borne Upon My Shield
02. Under
03. Never To Be
04. For The Beasts
05. City of Webs (Title Mix)
06. Shifting (Battery Cage Remix)
07. This Truly Is God's Country (See Colin Slash Remix)
08. Shifting (Midnight Laserbeam Remix)
09. Shifting (Black Van Remix)

Happy New Years! I hope everyone got nice and smashed. My resolution is to post here nearly every day, since I haven't in forever and it seems a few people are actually looking at it, going by the download counts on mediafire. Back to Funeral Diner - this is one of their more known albums, since it's on Amazon and iTunes. Borne Upon My Shield is unusually high energy with an awesome intro and little interlude. Under has good instrumentation and intensity typical of Funeral Diner, but I can't find anything extraordinary about it. Never To Be, however, bursts out strong, dies, builds up, and then ends all of a sudden -- which I love. Not to mention I can actually understand all the lyrics without looking them up. For The Beasts is one of their 8-minute songs like Fire...Deth or A True Triumph of Man vs. Machine, all of which are awesome. Matt Bajda sounds great on the drums, which is the main reason this song is incredible. The vocals and guitar are better than usual too. The remix's aren't really what I like; I think the album would have made a good EP without them. Shifting and This Truly Is God's Country are incredible songs, but See Colin Slash is the only one on here that I think does a good cover.
First 4 tracks - 8/10. Last 5 - not as good, but try anyway.

Daïtro, Lhasa, Raein - The Harsh Words As The Sun

Tracklist:
01. Daïtro - Une Fois Encore Aka Redrum JR
02. Daïtro - Un Bateau Ivre
03. Daïtro - Le Bout de Mes Levres
04. Lhasa - Mother Earth Father Sky
05. Lhasa - Fallen Grace
06. Lhasa - Blogged Horizon
07. Raein - Part One
08. Raein - Part Two

If You Like: Loma Prieta, Lion of the North, Envy

Why is Lhasa on here? This is a strange album. The Daïtro and Raein parts are pretty good, but not anything extra special. I love long songs, and neither Daïtro nor Raein offer any. They're still good songs, but nothing too incredible. What's strange about Lhasa is that I like the music, but the vocals sound like death. They are the ones bringing the 10+ minute songs to the album, but it's incredibly weird. I think I'd like it more if the vocals were a little faster; it might sound like Heavy Heavy Low Low. Good tracks for Daïtro and Raein fans, and I guess if you're into Lhasa's music that's also a plus. 6/10

Daïtro & Sed Non Satiata Split

Tracklist:
Daïtro
01. De L'eau Coule Sous Les Ponts
02. Place Tolozan
03. Nous Ne Participons Pas Tous à La Même Utopie
04. Un Fléau Pour Un Autre
Sed Non Satiata
05. Les Hommes Sans Visage
06. Mask
07. Interlude
08. Des Ruines

If You Like: A Fine Boat, That Coffin! Funeral Diner, Portraits of Past

This split begins with Daïtro's De L'eau Coule Sous Les Ponts, which is mostly instrumental. Place Tolozan comes on next, which continues the instrumentation but in a more relaxed way. Daïtro has always known how to mix screamo with post-rock. The third track is the first real burst of energy since the very beginning of the album, and is a welcome reminder of Daïtro's thrash-y talent after Place Tolozan. Daïtro leaves their part of the split with an epic song clocking in just under 8 minutes. Sed Non Satiata comes on with a slightly more post-hardcore feeling to their music. This does transform into a melodic screamo similar to Daïtro a little bit into Les Hommes Sans Visage. Mask has a similar structure, but they through in some metal-sounding riffs towards the end, which sounds pretty good. After the short interlude, Des Ruines ends the song with energy at the beginning and some interesting harmonies and melodies in the middle. Definitely worth checking out. 8/10

Daïtro - Laisser Vivre Les Squelettes

Tracklist:
01. Laisser Vivre Les Squelettes
02. Chaque Seconde
03. Les Orbites En Eveil
04. Nous Sommes D'ici
05. Comme Du Papier
06. Pouroudi Les Inconnus Restent-Ils Inconnus?
07. Trois Nurs Pour La Salle De Torture
08. Se Noyer, S'dublier, Regarder Partir

If You Like: Danse Macabre, ...who calls so loud, The Birds Are Spies, They Report To Trees

This is Daïtro's second full-length album, and it's even better than the first. The songs are a longer and have a little more substance. Each song explodes with emotion and epic music. I love when melodic screamo bands have songs over 6 or 7 minutes, and Daïtro gives me 3. This album is right up there with Funeral Diner's Difference of Potential, which is one of my all-time favorites. If you like melodic hardcore/screamo and don't mind having no clue what they're singing about, download this. 9/10

Daïtro - Des Cendres, Je Me Consumme

Tracklist:
01. Mons Corp
02. Mes Chiffres
03. Mon Insomnie
04. Les Slogans Uniformes
05. Des Cendres
06. Je Me Consumme
07. Hop

If You Like: Raein, Sed Non Satiata, Yaphet Kotto

It's been a long time since I've put anything up. I've been listening to a lot of Raein and Daïtro lately, so I thought it was time to put something up. This is a great screamo album. Daïtro incorporates melody into their songs better than most any other band I know. The songs flow great: Mon Corps into Mes Chiffres, Je Me Consumme into Hop... great stuff. Mon Insomnie, Des Cendres, and Hop are great examples of the melodic aspect of screamo music. Mes Chiffres and Je Me Consumme have the speed and energetic tempo you expect and love from these bands. An overall great album and well-put together. I just wish I could understand French, although I think the album title means "Ashes, You Consume Me" or something to that effect. 8/10

Funeral Diner - Doors Open

Tracklist:
01. This Wrath
02. Carved From Stone
03. Neither Option
04. Head of Vecha
05. This Optimism

If You Like: Joshua Fit For Battle, At The Drive-In, Loma Prieta

I don't think this album gets the credit it deserves. It's not their best release, but it's a solid album. Matt Badja's drum work gives the album unity, along with the melodic investigations carried on by the guitars. Seth's voice is more towards the indie spectrum of the band, as opposed to the hardcore vocals of certain earlier songs. This is worth getting if you like Funeral Diner or the genre, but it's nothing mind-blowing. 8/10

Funeral Diner - Difference of Potential

Tracklist:
01. Syncope
02. Direct Hit
03. Lackluster
04. There Are No Today's Today, So There Will Be No Yesterday's Tomorrow
05. I Wish I Could Do The Backstroke
06. Chalk Angels
07. Paper
08. Fire... Deth

If You Like: ...who calls so loud, Raein, Suis La Lune

This is my favorite full-length from Funeral Diner. Almost every song is incredible, and the rest are beyond that. From the indistinct yells of 'Syncope' to the emotional guitars on 'Fire... Deth' Funeral Diner keeps up the intensity and dark beauty that they have mastered. Definitely get this. 9/10

Funeral Diner - Bag of Holding Tour Support 3"

Tracklist:
01. Addendum
02. I Was The Sword
03. Two More

If You Like: Pianos Become The Teeth, Daïtro, The Saddest Landscape

Funeral Diner best exeplifies the melodic hardcore/screamo genre. It blends the energy of hardcore with the emotion of screamo and an emphasis on decipherable melodies. They carried this style to their successor, ...who calls so loud, but the perfection lies with Funeral Diner. Their songs range from short emo bursts like 'Addendum' (my ringtone) to causing ambivalence through beautiful guitar and drum work and screams. They control this using restraint in some places and harmony in others. They plan it, and it pays off. Their myspace states that Funeral Diner "knows what we're doing." The music tends to be mostly dark, although this album isn't quite as somber as others. Forget A Skylit Drive, this is real screamo. Now click on the picture and give them a chance to be your favorite band. 10/10

Silversun Pickups - Carnavas

Tracklist:
01. Melatonin
02. Well Thought Out Twinkles
03. Checkered Floor
04. Little Lover's So Polite
05. Future Foe Scenarios
06. Waste It On
07. Lazy Eye
08. Rusted Wheel
09. Dream At Tempo 119
10. Three Seed
11. Common Reactor

If You Like: Radiohead, Spoon, Death Cab For Cutie

This is Silversun Pickup's follow-up to Pikul, and it's a vast improvement. The songs are more developed and have more internal changes, but most of the songs develop the same way leading to repetition and unimpressiveness (if that's a word). Each song by itself I love, but while listening to the entire album I find myself skipping from 'Well Thought Out Twinkles' to 'Waste It On' and 'Lazy Eye' and finishing with 'Common Reactor'. Those are all incredible songs and I recommend the album just for those four. You'll probably even like the rest. 9/10