Album Review – Page 196

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From Monday 21 January 2013

The Bronx – ‘The Bronx’ (IV)

It’s a bit of an understatement to say that a new record from The Bronx is well overdue. The two Mariachi El Bronx records were different and interesting, but with ‘The Bronx IV’ the “proper” band are finally back with new material. The band have been a constantly excellent live

Wednesday 16 January 2013

Snuff – ‘5-4-3-2-1…Perhaps’

Regrettably these days, it has to be said that punk music is not everybody’s bag. Obviously we love it, but it’s mass popularity has been on the wane since the 1970s. Luckily that hasn’t stopped punk rockers Snuff who have been making a terrific racket (on and off) since

Monday 14 January 2013

Heavy Hearted – ‘When You Were Home’

Considering that pop punkers Heavy Hearted have been a band for less than a year, it’s a credit to them as musicians that they have recorded their debut album to such a high standard. ‘When You Were Home’, released recently by the Californian five piece, wears its influences on its

Wednesday 09 January 2013

Army of Freshmen – ‘Happy To Be Alive’

How do you compensate for an oversaturated pop-punk market? If you are Army of Freshmen, the answer is to amplify structures not normally associated with the genre. ‘Happy To Be Alive’ earns itself a punk moniker in basic song structure alone, the majority of the tracks relying upon melodic

Circle Takes The Square – ‘Decompositions: Volume One’

Guns ‘N Roses. My Bloody Valentine. Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Glassjaw. What do they all have in common? Answer: They all released landmark, genre-defining records before subsequently taking aeons to release another album. 8 years since the release of ‘As The Roots Undo’ – widely considered a magnum opus

Dropkick Murphys – ‘Signed And Sealed In Blood’

Whatever your opinion on the bagpiped and “totally not actually from Ireland, so they don’t count as celtic punk, GOD” Dropkick Murphys, there’s little doubt that the band have had a fantastic run of it. The energy and sound that the band crafted for themselves is something rather different

Tuesday 08 January 2013

Bad Religion – ‘True North’

What better way to kick off a new year than with a brand new Bad Religion album? ‘True North’ follows on from a solid effort in ‘The Dissent Of Man’, and though you still pretty much know what you’re getting when you press play on a Bad Religion record,

Sunday 06 January 2013

John K Samson – ‘Provincial’

Everyone loves The Weakerthans, don’t they? How could you not? Those irresistible pop melodies, wistful lyrics, songs written from the perspective of a cat – what’s not to love?! The band to melt the heart of even the most hardened punk. Well John K Samson’s solo album is even

Saturday 29 December 2012

Japandroids – ‘Celebration Rock’

Surprised to see a Japandroids review on Punktastic? Don’t be, they’re more punk than most, I assure you. This is Party Punk, Disco Punk even – if that’s not a certified genre yet then Japandroids need to stamp copyright on it pronto – but it’s punk all the same.

Friday 28 December 2012

Doe Kill Hooves – ‘Doe Kill Hooves’

When you start to think of genre-clashing bands, you normally come up with something like the trancecore of Enter Shikari, or the ragga metal of Skindred. However, post-hardcore and sludge metal? That’s certainly a new one. This is a musical headfuck that, on paper, should never work but somehow