listen closer

our old singer is a sex criminal.

the blood brothers "every breath is a bomb"
"and she's shaking like a... REVOLUTION!" this whole song could just be that line and i'd love it. the blood brothers stepped it up with burn piano island, burn. they went from being a better-than-average hardcore/screamo band into ripping the genre's arms off and beating it to death with them. this album vomits all over the floor and then rolls around in it. and if you're thinking 'but i don't like hardcore. there's not enough going on musically!' then the blood brothers have you covered too! they will shriek and froth and just when you think they're about to break, or run out of ideas, they pull something else out. i really can't express how blown away i was/am by this album. completely unexpected. whatever you think this is going to be like, if you haven't heard it, i promise it's not that. i'm not sure if it's ross robinson, best known for producing mainstream metal acts like korn, that pulled this masterpiece out of their veins, or if they just decided to step it up. but if you're smart you'll run your little legs down to the store or click on this little link and buy burn piano island, burn asap. it's an album of dark postmodern poetry set to genre-ignoring music on fast forward. my only worry is that they might revert back to their old ways, and leave us only with this glorious glimpse of what hardcore could, or maybe should, be.
--from burn piano island, burn [2003]

mclusky "she will only bring you happiness"
i first heard mclusky's "to hell with good intentions" on one tree hill, a wb teen drama show, that site is the imaginery blog of one of the characters, and though the prose is pretty sickening, whoever's picking the music for her site is doing pretty well (modest mouse, smog, neutral milk hotel, etc etc). and though it might not be very hip to discovering music via the wb, it happens more often than you'd think. anyways, mclusky's first two albums i enjoy, but their newest, the difference between me and you is that i'm not on fire, not only has a great title, but is their best yet. this song reminds a bit like the strokes on some serious uppers or maybe pavement, anytime. great stuff.
--from the difference between me and you is that i'm not on fire [2004]

elsewhere largehearted boy links to an excellent excellent solo track from rob crow of pinback. give "helicopter" a listen!