giantreptile

This album is a perfect ten. Easily a top five for 2024 across all genres. This band has really developed their sound over the course of a few LPs. They really know how to craft a pop song. It’s the sound of the mid 90s without all the trappings.... See full review

This might be one of the strongest Zorn-affiliated releases in, dare I say, ever. Excellent jazz album, experiments and gets free, but never without virtuosity. This was a real surprise.

A real gem, this one. Covers a lot of ground, and every dark corner in between. One of the best releases from this label in a while, and easily a list topper for 2023.

Agree, pressing ain’t great. Mine is plagued with surface noise. A CD probably the way to go with Deathprod anyway.

“Emo” had become a dirty word by the mid nineties, having morphed into boring Midwest rock, and worse later, poser goth arena punk. But “emo” to me will always be this band. Current and their contemporaries were informed by the revolution summer of... See full review

In what has quickly become a very crowded market, i.e. the new, new wave of post-punk, goth, etc-- this is a standout. It's as if they resurrected Martin to produce this record! This release should bubble to the top of all the other projects... See full review

Surprised this release isn’t more scarce, as it’s top rate instrumental dub. Infuses noise elements and other ambient undercurrents ala Burial. Production is solid.

This is a standout in the very crowded ‘wave revival. Moody and catchy, which is often missing from a lot of the bands mining this sound. Great presentation from the label as well.

Their best output in quite some time. Moody and driving, with psych tendencies. Noisy but not noise.

One of the best hardcore releases of the 2010’s, and seemingly overlooked. Fits well with the Iron Lung label aesthetic, and probably one of their best releases. Members also in Iron Age, another oddly overlooked band that was ahead of their time.

An essential compilation of late 20th Century waver sounds. If you're a fan of LSD comp's, and output from labels Dais, Dark Entries etc, this is your calling. Surprisingly, there is a pop sensibility to the tracks, not too esoteric or experimental,... See full review

I predict a lot of people will sleep on this. Neo-industrial has sort of reached saturation, but give this one a try. RIYL output from Hospital Productions, L.I.E.S. or even a recent LSD comp.

Liars peaked with this album. Some incredibly well written songs on here, including Houseclouds, which I challenge anyone to hear without moving. Essential.

Projects that draw heavily from a previous era or style can sound inauthentic. Not the case here! Beautifully crafted early 80’s era instrumental, for lack of a better word: kraut. Easy listening for mandatory house arrests during pandemics.

Good weird, in that way The labels WRWTFWW and Music from Memory have been doing. New Age-y without going off the deep end. Worldly without the eye rolling. Great record for cheering you up for current or future coronavirus house arrests.

Great entry point into the world of instrumental dub. “Gateway dub” if you will. This has got that 70’s vibe, but with 80’s production (read: higher fidelity and better mixing).

Back to back releases from Pinkman, this and and the Retrograde Youth EP, absolutely essential. Ian Martin really takes the industrial techno/electro approach into a dare-say groovy direction. Cinematic without being the overdone carpenter-esque sound.

Drawn in by the EMS Synthi inventor hook, this did not sound as I had planned. That’s not a bad thing. These sorts of projects can feel masturbatory, or more often the recording fails to capture what it would be to experience live. Due respect to... See full review

Probably the stand out death metal album of 2019. Dynamic and experimental. Vocals shift in interesting ways, moving beyond Cookie Monster. Not a single wasted track. Excellent production.

scalping notice: As of Feb 7, this record is still available direct from Newbury Comics website for $27.

Power electronics without being utter pummeling destruction. Great use of low end.

If the darker LSD comps and the ambient experiments of Coil are your vibe, you’ll love this.

Keresone 454 is right up with with Fugazi, Hoover and Regulator Watts for the DC post-hardcore sound at its peak. Situation at Hand is their best work, a solid 10/10 album.

As a dub fan, and of the opinion that Mezzanine is a 10/10, I came into this with great expectations. I tend to shy away from remix projects, and dub for me can be a very fine line, i.e. 70's era focused. So with all of that, I'm here to say that... See full review

This doesn't sound like an Umberto record. Admirable effort for branching out beyond the giallo/carpenter/synthwave etc genre, but it's a bit of a misfire.