A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Burn All The Ships LP by Headstones. Since returning in 2013 with Love + Fury, the Headstones have illustrated that they can orchestrate a comeback with greater competence than most other bands. Over the last twelve years, the band has come back in a manner similar to how Hard Core Logo did in Bruce MacDonald’s mock/rockumentary before stripping their sound to bare bones, picking up acoustic instruments and revisiting their early...

WHO: The Darkness WHAT: Dreams on Toast WHY: It doesn’t have the kind of bangers you get from their first two albums, but Dreams On Toast grows on you the more you listen to it. Full of clever lyrics and outstandingly catchy choruses, this album pivots slightly to country but is still strongest when it sticks to what the Darkness does best: rock ‘n’ roll. Skip the “members” version which adds several skippable tracks and opt for the standard version...

Jurassic World: Rebirth Life is full of surprises, and you gotta be open to letting them happen. That breakfast sandwich you never cared for can somehow suddenly hit the spot. That album you never understood can suddenly resonate. My Hollywood surprise of the year is Jurassic World: Rebirth. The Jurassic Park IP has been squalid for decades. The best it could do was that Chris Pratt meme where he holds his hands open towards the raptors. What was he...

Photos by Allison...

WHO: Viagra Boys WHAT: Viagr aBoys WHY: I never thought I’d give this band a shot, but all the right people were fans: people with good taste on social media, music publications with good taste (like CREEM), and bands with actual integrity. Who was I to argue? Of course, I’m late to the game (they were on the Daily Show!?), but better late than never. Viagra Boys is rocking’, nihilistic, vulgar and honest – with itself and with itself. It’s...

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Lilith’s Army Doll LP (Criminal Records) A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Doll LP by Lilith’s Army. While the claim that, as a musical form, Riot Grrl has evolved over time is an easy one to make (Sleater-Kinney has taken their sound and inspiration in several directions, and L7 has mutated a couple of times too), Lilith’s Army joyfully proves that remaining exactly where the music was thirty-five years ago – deep within a rough and ready...

Photos by Zack...

“SOLE! SOLE! SOLE!” “HAT! HAT! HAT!” “PUP! PUP! PUP!” I can’t believe I get to go to the punk guitarist who went on the Doughboys Podcast’s band’s show! Just kidding. I’ve been listening to PUP for years now, and have been finding that, as I age, I appreciate their music more. Their new album Who Will Look After the Dogs will probably break our Top 10 of the year. Jeff Rosenstock is a no brainer. He was once the best...

Hey, I was a little worried about Superchunk for a while. They put out a great album Wild Loneliness, but it didn’t gain the attention I thought it would. It was excellent but “failed to hit” with some people. Then, when I saw them live at the Paradise, their show was lightly attended. Maybe the students were gone, or people were watching the big game (NBA finals!), or it was a work night, but I had expected to see more...