The Meltdown 2.64

New music fro P.O.D., Brooke Fraser, Grits, Copeland, Tourniquet, and much more!

Review Wrap Up Part 4

With each record they released, I like Gideon more and more. Calloused might not feel like the natural progression from Milestone. Calloused is harder hitting and brings back some of the aggressions from Costs (but does it better). But there are songs like The Limit (going into The Pulse) that are through and through the natal melodic hardcore progression, where the beauty and heaviness coexist in a way that's just perfect! The album's opener (and title track) is a perfect hardcore song with a great hook before busting into Gideon's more melodic side, briefly. Beartooth's Caleb Shomo's vocals on Survive bring a nice addition of intensity and melody on the hook. Straight up hardcore songs like Savage, Exposed, and The Drifter are true to the genre of hardcore without feeling dated. World of Hurt is one of those songs that showcase all the elements that make Gideon such a great band! Calloused is great and I think it cements Gideon as one of Facedown's top dogs. 5 out of 5 Stars!

in 2011 Lights released Siberia. A beautiful gem of an electro-pop record that made onto my best of the year list (number 7). That album's follow-up, Little Machines, is even better! At times Little Machines is subtle, and at others it's more in your face. It's warmer and more inviting. Where Siberia might not have been everyone's cup of tea, Little Machines is a pop music dream. Sure, that cold aggressive synth sound that accompanied great pop songs on Siberia was a huge part of the charm, but Little Machines is the natural progression. Lights is one of those artists that you're waiting for the mainstream to discover and become huge, but dreading the day when it happens. Until then the rest of us can enjoy this pop gem guilt free. 5 out of 5 Stars.

Colossus made an impression on me with their debut, Time & Eternal. Neither a good or bad impression, but an impression. If Colossus could collect their thoughts, listen back to their debut, see what was successful and grow from there, they'd release one killer album. Insert Badlands. Badlands is more cohesive. The songs are tighter and more focused, not running around in different directions. The growth that needed to happen, happened. Badlands is heavy! The melodic and "numetalish" riffs from Time & Eternal have almost all been left behind. It's not death core, but it's trending in more of their vein. As a fan of heavy music, Badlands is enjoyable and it has it's moments of pure enjoyability. But there's something about it that keeps it from being great. But much improved and focused from their debut. 4 out of 5 Stars.

Loose Canon Volume 2 is a hype album! Which doesn't make it shallow. But there aren't these introspective songs that are all over any hip-hop record you've heard this year (Although Common Sense is pretty slow jam/introspective). Canon instead delivers an upbeat party record. You'll bob your head and dance. The songs are fun but the lyrics still pack a punch. Motivation is instantly a song you're drawn to. The hook is catchy and the beat is all hype. Dreams is the best hook on the record! The bonus track Reach Into the Night is off the charts and it's reason alone to get the bonus tracks! Loose Canon Volume 2 is fun! 4 out of 5 Stars.

I didn't really think that New Found Glory as a four piece would vary much from the five piece version. The pop punk kings do what they do well! Resurrection might not have the obvious radio single that jumps out of the speakers as the new catchiest song you've ever heard, but it's got an "old school" vibe. Resurrection feels more like NFG's self-titled debut and Nothing Gold Can Stay. Just the maturer, more polished version. New Found Glory are what we thought they were. A really good pop punk band and it's not like the band is doing anything new on Resurrection. But... We wouldn't want them to do something different! 4 out of 5 Stars.

Phanatik is name familiar to long time christian hip-hop fans. The long-time Cross Movement member has dropped his new album on bandcamp. There's something very interesting about The Art of Rap Battle. There's an old school vibe about the album that I like. And the more spins through The Art of Battle Rap, the more I enjoy the songs and find myself connecting with the songs. Where the record falls short is when you look around at the hip-hop scene and what else has come out this year. What gives the record an old school vibe, also makes it feel outdated by comparison. While the old school vibe is cool, the record just doesn't stand out because it doesn't sound like Phanatik's intent was for the record to sound "old school". Even though I enjoy The Art of Battle Rap, it just doesn't stack up. 3.5 out of 5 Stars.

It's no secret that I love Blood and Ink Records and everything they release. So it should be no surprise that I love Household's debut With Or Without. Household is more than a hardcore band. In a lot of ways With Or Without reminds me of Hopesfalls debut, The Frailty of Words. It's got an emo vibe. Not the 2000's MTV/Warped Tour emo or even the mid-late 90's midwest emo sound, but the classic early 90's post-hardcore. It's raw and emotive, never overly intricate but never boring. The music moves in waves, each new wave hitting you fresh but giving you just enough of a respite in-between to catch your breathe and get ready to embrace the next one. The bass riffs walk through the crunchy driving guitars, while the drums never stay stagnant, always finding a new fill or change of beat to keep the songs ever moving in directions you don't expect. It's what hardcore is supposed to be! 5 out of 5 Stars!

I didn't love Fit For A King's debut, Creation Destruction. The best thing I could say about it was that I like heavy music and I Fit For A King was another band that was heavy and good enough to have a home in my collection. But I haven't listened to Creation Destruction since I reviewed it. Slave To Nothing is both better and less memorable. The moments that are good, are stellar. The album's opener Kill The Pain, had me stop and curse out loud at how good the drop was. Young and Deserving is one heck of a metalcore song! The opening riff on Hooked is stellar, even if the songs teeters on the edge of numetal. The Final Thoughts Of A Dying Man is a great closer. It gets weird in the middle, but overall, a killer track. My issues are when Fit For A King veers into For Today/standard super heavy metalcore territory. It's been done time and time again that it's almost tiresome. A lot like their debut, it's not offensive and as a fan of the genre, there's something enjoyable about Slave to Nothing. But it's not groundbreaking. 3.5 out of 5 Stars.

The Meltdown 2.63

New music from Silent Planet, Jackie Hill Perry, Trip Lee, Project 86, The Classic Crime and more.

Doug Jutras to release acoustic “Miss That Walk” EP on Thumper Punk Records

Orange County punker Doug Jutras has unplugged and unwound, and sat down with his acoustic guitar to craft three new songs that form his upcoming “Miss That Walk” EP.   Doug blends rock and blues over a musical foundation rooted in a lifetime of punk rock.   Three honest, working class songs that reflect Doug’s own person journey from chaos to clarity through his belief in Jesus Christ.

“Miss That Walk” will be available for digital download through Thumper Punk Records and all major digital retailers on December 9, 2014.  Doug’s previous solo release “God Bless the World, Not Just America” by the band FEAR GOD is also available through the TPR webstore (www.thumperpunkrecords.com).

The Meltdown 2.62

New music from Gideon, Jackie Hill Perry, Dominic Balli, Trip Lee, Flyleaf, and more.

Review Wrap Up Part 3

SPZRKT did vocals on Tedashii's track Fire Away (one of my favorites from Below Paradise). When I saw SPZRKT was about to release Bonfire, I was interested. SPZRKY offers a brand of pop/r&b that reminds me a lot of Kenna (which is great because I LOVE Kenna). Bonfire is both musically pleasing, super catchy, and emotionally compelling. It's a perfect record! 5 out of 5 Stars!

It's tough when you have such high hopes for a record and it just doesn't work for you. Everything Sleeping Giant has done has been great and I expected Finished People to be no different. And it isn't.  Finished People is heavier than anything the band has done previously. And I think that's where Sleeping Giant loses me on Finished People. The album is a brutally heavy assault. It's a hardcore fans dream. But Sleeping Giant has always been a band that has embraced a melodic side and there's no catchy melodies on Finished People. It's a good record... I was just hoping for great. 4 out of 5 Stars.

How do you celebrate 20 years as a band? If you're Jars of Clay you kickstart an acoustic double record and let fans pick their favorite songs. It's a great collection of tracks from the band's career that spans every album. Some new arrangements of old favorites and some just stripped down versions of newer songs. My favorite moments are the old songs. Worlds Apart, Tea & Sympathy, and Love Song, all slowed down and stripped down even more, with the cello, are all just beautiful moments on a record full of great songs. It's a record for fans, so if you're not already a fan, this might not be your cup of tea. But I love Jars of Clay! 5 out of 5 Stars!

House of Heroes is another band where my expectations are super high! And it took me a couple listens through Smoke before I started to click with the band's new ep. I was pretty disappointed my first listen through. But over time Smoke really grew on me. The songs don't have that overt, catchy pop rock feel that I've come accustom to hearing from House of Heroes, but it's a raw, gritty rock and roll record. A Fire Only We Know is a truly beautiful moment in the middle of the record! 4.5 out of 5 Stars.

What to expect from the members of As I Lay Dying's new "atheist?" project? Ok... According to Nick Hipa maybe all the band members losing their faith in God was a bit over blown from Tim... But still, the band stepping out with a new vocalist and trying to establish a new identity in the face of the adversity from Tim's fall and the AILD fallout. So is Wovenwar any good? In a word, yes. But it's complicated. It actually took me lots and lots of listens to really find myself enjoying the band's self-titled debut. Yes, musically, the guys in Wovenwar know their way around their instruments and it's an epic musical journey. On top of the being musically pleasing, the songs are super catchy and will get stuck in your head. The lyrics are complex and can be taken to mean a couple things... Which is kind of nice to listen to an album and draw your on conclusions or be speculative about what the songs and album means. There's a lot to love about Wovenwar's debut! And I'm not sure why it took me so long to be sold on how good a record it was. Just missing AILD I guess... 5 out of 5 Stars!

Veritas Vinyl released Moral Monsters' Postmodern Failurism ep at a name your own price option and I picked it up. I'm always looking for fun punk rock. And that's what Moral Monsters is. Good old fashioned fun punk. Not one of my favorite records of the year, but a lot of fun. 3.5 out of 5 Stars.

The Whosoevers turned me on to Islander. And I'm glad they did! Violence and Destruction is a straight up nu metal throwback record. The old school Deftones influence is heavy on this record. And I love every minute of it! Violence and Destruction is fun. There are some terrific hooks mixed with great poignant moments and introspective lyrics. Violence and Destruction has been a gem of a find for me. 5 out of 5 Stars!

Sometimes it's great to find that record you've been looking for. Not that I'm a huge fan of V Rose or that Forever After is one of my favorite records of the year. But Forever After is an album the "christian" industry needs. For far too long fans of pop music haven't had a christian artist that resembled or rivaled their radio favorites. And parents/youth pastors/etc... haven't had an alternative to say, "hey if you like blank check blank out. V Rose is that artist. Not that we need to make second rate cheap Christian versions of the mainstream, but quality artists that wouldn't feel out of place of awkward along side the likes of Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, or any of the other top 40 artists. Forever After is the record that could find a home admits those artist and standout on it's own. It's the pop record I've been waiting for! 4 out of 5 Stars.

After a couple of pop/country eps, Lexi Elisha returns with a maturer sound and outlook on the world. While I enjoy her Swift-esque previous endeavors, there's something really beautiful and intriguing about Rope that Elisha's previous records didn't have. A beautiful ep! 4.5 out of 5 Stars.

When I heard Silhouettes for the first time, I was hooked. I instantly downloaded When I Was Younger, Colony House's debut. Finding out that two of the band's three member's are Stephen Curtis Chapman's sons was shocking. What's undeniable about When I Was Younger is the indie pop sugary goodness! The first half of Colony House's debut is amazing! Sadly, the second half of the album just doesn't have the same luster and catchiness that makes the first half so compelling. Sure, songs like Moving Forward and Lose Control are fantastic ballads but there are just some underwhelming moments that keep When I Was Younger from being a great album. 4 out of 5 Stars.

Between the Stars opening track, and album's first single, Set Me On Fire, is an excellent kickoff to the new era of Flyleaf. Magnetic packs less punch but the hook is so catchy that by the second time the chorus comes around, you're hooked! There are some moments on Between the Stars that hit you instantly and then there are those that have to grow on you. But there's something very warm and inviting about the record. Like a rock lullaby. It's easily my favorite Flyleaf record since the band's debut! I love Kristen May's vocals! 4.5 out of 5 Stars.

2014 might be christian hip-hop's coming out party! In a year of quality hip-hop album's, Swoope's Sinema is just the latest. Sinema is full of explosively great tracks (SinemaBest of Me, LSD, Sin In Me), some tracks that take time to grow on you (On My Mind, Bow Down, Beauty and The Beast, #SameTeam) and tracks that I like but are hard to jam to (Right Side, Before Goodnight), which can make listening to Sinema a little tedious at times. You find a song that blows you away and then the next song just isn't your jam. Still, the great moments and the moments that grow on you far outweigh those that might make you scratch your head. Best of Me is one of my favorite hip-hop tracks of the year! 4 out of 5 Stars.

I enjoyed Disciple's last effort, O God Save Us All, more than I expected, so I was actually looking forward to giving Attack a spin. Attack features some of Disciples best work to date! The first four tracks on Attack are incredible! Say what you want about big anthemic radio rock,  Disciple can write one hell of rock song! But (like Skillet's last record), it's the ballads that get me. There aren't that many on Attack but they are the few moments where I'm not in love with the record. The punk influenced The Named, the walking, sexy groove of the bass line on Lion, the raw rock and blistering guitar solo on Kamikaze are all great moments on the second half of Attack! Attack is easily my favorite Disciple record. 4 out of 5 Stars.