- KYS: 76
- User: 80
- 78
Bleeding Through - The Great Fire
'The Great Fire' is consistent but not brilliant. That says it all in its own neat and fashionable way. Unfortunately, at times, it play too close to the former two albums that preceded it. Isolating 'The Great Fire', it's solid but still sounds almost identical to studio albums five and six. For that, we can laud Bleeding Through for their brilliant musical proficiency but we can't award them acclaim for anything overly innovative here.
- KYS: 85
- User: 10
- 48
Pulled Apart By Horses - Tough Love
Pulled Apart By Horses claim they are a better band than before and ‘Tough Love’ proves it. From song-writing style and diversity to the sound in general, this record bumps the band up a level and is definitely something worth checking out.
- KYS: 65
- User: 10
- 38
Matt Pryor - May Day
Ignoring the irony of a singer complaining about his negative feelings towards the music industry and his career on an album that was funded by his fan base, ‘May Day’ is another example of Matt Pryor’s solid song writing abilities and something that fans of any other Pryor project should enjoy.
- KYS: 74
- User: 10
- 42
Aborted - Global Flatline
Aborted usher 2012 in with a typically trademark and consistent offering. 'Global Flatline' is a release one would expect nothing less from Aborted. It's intense, dark and overt. There will be metal albums that supersede this one throughout the course of the year, but in isolation, studio album seven is decent and doesn't feel tedious or forced in approach.
- KYS: 79
- User: 10
- 44
Lamb of God - Resolution
It would leave a bad taste in the collective mouths of listeners if 'Resolution' failed to set the early tone in 2012. Thankfully, the aforementioned release presents everything one would expect. 'Resolution' digs itself in and revels in a dense sound that will put a smile on fans faces as they surely headbang along.
- KYS: 80
- User: 10
- 45
Troubled Coast - I've Been Thinking About Leaving You EP
A lot of reviews talk about how there is no unheard style of genre left these days for bands to be truly original, so the good bands can merely make something new out of things that already exist. If that is true then Troubled Coast do that extremely well, the underlying question that creates is, at what point does that statement become an excuse for blatant style and sound stealing? Without answering the question, the sounds in these four tracks have been heard before, but not together in this way, so if that is how you be “a good band” these days, Troubled Coast are a good band, and this is a strong, enjoyable EP.
- KYS: 90
- User: 50
- 70
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Original Soundtrack
Reznor is a natural when it comes to creating soundtracks. You need look no further than records like Nine Inch Nails' brilliant 'The Fragile' to see that the ability to create powerful landscapes and extreme dynamics have been present in his music for a long time. Couple that with the equally talented and minded Ross, and the people at the Oscars can start engraving the trophy name plates the minute that these guys fire up the computers in their studio. 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' may or may not be a front runner for film of the year already, but as far as movie scores go, we already have the winner.
- KYS: 80
- User: 50
- 65
Daylight - The Difference In Good And Bad Dreams
On their third EP release in as many years, Daylight have refined the sound pioneered on ‘Sinking’ and ‘Dispirit’, purveying a style of melodic hardcore-punk cut deep with influences from the emo bands of the early 90s. Their Run For Cover Records debuts polishes down much of the rough-handed grit that characterised the production of their earlier material, resulting in an easily accessible release that drips with gripping, bitter poignancy.
- KYS: 85
- User: 80
- 82
Jack's Mannequin - People And Things
'People And Things' is a logical step for Jack's Mannequin as it combines the bright, pop tones of the band's debut 'Everything In Transit,' with the darker more serious side of 'The Glass Passenger' to create the group's most mature works to date.
- KYS: 80
- User: 10
- 45
Bottomfeeder - Bottomfeeder EP
It is clear from hearing these four tracks that Bottomfeeder are one of those rare little hardcore punk bands that have been created to deliver a powerful message but above all keep things simple and fun. If they manage to stick to this structure, we can look forward to some more great releases in the future.