BACKENGRILLEN – Backengrillen
Members of Refused team up with free jazz musician Mats Gustafsson for an impressively noisy debut album where troglodyte doom riffs meet sax skronk, like a dingier Stooges on amphetamines. (8)
THE DAMNED – Not Like Everybody Else
A cool covers album with a strong 60’s emphasis (Pink Floyd, Animals, Lovin’ Spoonful, Yardbirds, Stones, Stooges, Kinks…), basically a send-off to Brian James since these were his favorite bands growing up. Amusing to note that Dave Vanian, who always had a bit of Jim Morrison in his delivery, now in his old age sounds more like Roger Daltrey. (8)
EARTH // BLACK NOI$E – Geometry Of Murder: Extra Capsular Extraction Inversions
Earth’s earliest ultra-doom recordings from 1991 (featuring Kurt Cobain’s vocals on one track) remixed by and fucked around with by hip-hop producer – he messes with the tempos, adds drums etc. (8)
PELICAN – Ascending
4-track EP featuring instrumental tracks previously released as B-sides, plus a version of a track from their last album but here with vocals. RIYL the Hydrahead back catalogue. (7)
VARIOUS ARTISTS – You’re No Big Deal: Grunge, the U.S. Underground and Beyond 1984-1994
4-CD box set: CD 1 focuses on the precursors (Green River, Meat Puppets, Husker Du, Malfunkshun, Pixies, Replacements…), CD 2 on (mainly) Seattle 1988-89 (Mudhoney, Bundle Of Hiss, Babes In Toyland, Scream, Tad, Skinyard, Mother Love Bone…), Disc 3 focuses on the 1990-91 explosion (Sonic Youth, L7, Breeders, Dinosaur Jr., Pavement, Hole, Screaming Trees…), Disc 4 on the aftermath of the major label raid (Temple Of The Dog, Stone Temple Pilots, Superchunk, Melvins, Veruca Salt…). There’s nothing by Nirvana, Pearl Jam, or Alice In Chains, but the inclusion of two early Soundgarden songs plus semi-forgotten personal favorites like Celibate Rifles, Seaweed, Poison Idea, NoMeansNo, Cop Shoot Cop, Wool etc. make this a highly enjoyable nostalgic listen. (11)
THE OTHER STUFF
ANNABELLE CHAIRLEGS – Here’s Waking Up
Produced by Ty Segall, and you can tell by the fuzz-drenched guitar on the Austin-based act’s garage-y third album. (8)
IMARHAN – Essam
Algerian Desert blues heroes add subtle electronica elements to the guitar-based sound with glorious results. (8)
CHRIS LYONS – Painters Street
A record released in December 2025 that sounds like it came out in March 1973, a throwback to the FM soft rock of that era, all folky shuffles and Rhodes pianos. (7)
LUCINDA WILLIAMS – World’s Gone Wrong
An excellent album by Williams, one of her best and most political – rootsy rock ‘n’ roll in the vein of Tom Petty, her unique voice up front and center and backed by an extraordinary band now also featuring guitarist Marc Ford (Black Crowes, Burning Tree). (8)
VARIOUS ARTISTS – Keep Me in Your Heart: The Songs of Warren Zevon
I’m a fan of tribute albums but Zevon was such a unique songwriter that it’s almost impossible to come up with a new angle that’s not just respectful, but as interesting as the original. Some of the participants, a lot of which you won’t have heard of, do a better job than others. (7)
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