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Cavalcades- Nothing Worse Than Empty EP

Wow, three posts in three days. I'm on a roll. Anyway here's another band from the Far Away Friends split (surprise surprise). This time it's Cavalcades; a screamo/ hardcore band from Aberdeen, Scotland. I hadn't heard this band until about a week ago when I bought the Far Away Friends split from Manbearpig. After one listen of this EP and the FAF tracks I was instantly hooked. The EP is a seamless blend of hardcore and screamo, while the split takes a more emotional approach to screamo. They do both perfectly, so you really can't lose with either of these releases. These are some of the best songs I've heard in a while and they've been on repeat for me for the past few days. Do yourself a favor and download both releases, and donate a few bucks when you do, if you can.

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Manbearpig- Ruined Emo EP

Alright. I've been meaning to post this album since I started this blog, and with the release of the tracks from their recent 4 way split with Cavalcades, Nai Harvest, and FTWIHATHHTTS, I figure what better time than now. For those unaware, Manbearpig are an emo band from Norwich, UK. You may be wondering about the name, and

you wouldn't be the only one. This band catches a lot of crap from reviewers for it, but honestly, it's probably the only reason I heard this band in the first place. When you're scrolling through band after band on the internet, the more "interesting" band names seem to stand out most. This was the case for me with MBP. And boy am I ever glad I checked them out. The chorus' of these songs are drenched with emotion and catchy as hell; something I find doesn't happen often enough in music these days. I won't say this is the most unique band out there, but hot damn they're good. Check them out, and download this EP and the songs of the split from their Bandcamp (donate a few bucks or get them for free).

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Nai Harvest- Ceiling Summer EP

Nai Harvest are a mathy emo band from Sheffield, UK. I just recently found out about this band by way of a four way split they did with Manbearpig, Cavalcades, and FTWIHATHHTTS, and was instantly impressed by the intricate instrumentals of  these songs. The guitars have a similar feel to This Town Needs Guns at times, and the math rock blend is very evident throughout these three songs. The vocals on the other hand, may take some getting used to. On the first few listens I wasn't a huge fan of the way the vocals sounded, but upon further listening I began to enjoy them (with the exception of the beginning of "I Find It Uplifting..", which still sounds pretty bad to me). But for the most part, this is a really solid album and one I would definitely recommend checking out. The download link will take you to their Bandcamp page, where I suggest checking out the songs for their split with Papayer, which are even better than the songs on this EP (but aren't up for download).

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Paris On A Good Day- To Doubt Is To Be Human

I'm dusting off an Edmonton classic for this post. Paris On A Good Day were an amazing jazzy math metal band. When I think Edmonton music, this is one of the first bands that comes to mind. Although they've been broken  up for a few years now and I've listened to these same songs the whole time, the tracks still get constant play on my iPod. Passing this one up would be a huge mistake. Just download this, then weep because you will likely never see this band live or hear anything else from them (barring one other song on their myspace). This band is one of the biggest reasons I got into local music, and I still love them today. That is all.

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Jamie Bell- Girl of My Dreams EP

I always feel kind of weird reviewing music that people I know wrote, but it seems that the people I know make the best music, so it's unavoidable. On that note, when Jamie Bell isn't making beautiful music with his bandmates in Cera , he's making catchy acoustic tunes. While there are only three songs on this EP, rest assured that it is well worth the download. And hey, if you really like it, the album is available as a by donation download, so drop a few bucks on it (or download it for free if you want). The money made from this will go towards funding a new album, so there's that. Enjoy.

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Ground Unicorn Horn- Damn I Wish I Was Fat 7"

Justin Pearson might just be my favorite musician of all time. From his early work in Swing Kids to being in The Locust, and every side project in between, Pearson and his bandmates have been tearing down the barriers of "normal" music. This album is no exception. Ground Unicorn Horn is, in my opinion, the best thing I've heard from Three One G since The Locust. Unfortunately, this 2 song 7" is the only release from this band, and a follow up seems unlikely. So download this, and if you like other 31G bands, I guarantee you'll be jamming this one for a long time.

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Starscream- Future, Towards the Edge of Forever

I had been meaning to listen to this album forever. I've been aware of Starscream for a few months now, learning of them through Anamanaguchi's twitter account, but it took until today for me to finally listen to them. I was blown away. This is the way chiptune should sound. The theme of all of their material is space, and they do an awesome job of expressing that theme through these 8 songs. To make things better, these songs have a post-rock feel to them, while still maintaining that chiptune style that fans love. This album is perfect and it would be ridiculous not to give it a listen. So download this, then go to their Bandcamp and get the rest of their stuff. They're on tour I believe so support them by buying their music.

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ghosting.- Unreleased

A few days ago, while browsing the internet, I had the urge to check out ghosting's Bandcamp page. There I found these unreleased gems. I hadn't really expected to hear new material from these guys, so when I found out about these three tracks I was excited to say the least. While the recording quality is reduced a bit from their previous EP, these songs are just as good, if not better than previous material. The acoustic version of Song 7 is perfect; a beautiful blend of acoustic and skram, which at times reminds me of La Dispute. These songs were intended for splits with Pj Bond and Great Friend of Mine, and while there are two more tracks to be recorded, it doesn't seem like they will ever see the light of day. So download these songs and enjoy what could be the last thing this band releases. For more info on this band check out my post on their Hearts EP.

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brain fever- brain fever LP

I'm going to be totally honest. I slept on this band for a long time. I had seen them a few times but I never really got into them until I saw them play at Ghost Throats this year. They played a great set, I bought this LP right after, and played it on repeat as soon as I got home. It's fast, it's noisy, and it's short. 13 songs of mathy hardcore insanity clocking in under 20 minutes. This is one of my favorites of the year, and its free to download from the band's Bandcamp page, so what are you waiting for?

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Cera- Swans EP

This is a long overdue post. It took me forever to get this album because of money issues and distance problems, but this week I finally got it and I can't say enough good things about it. I've listened to these songs hundreds of times between the band's Myspace and Bandcamp pages, and the songs are just as good as the first time I heard them. A perfect mix of pop-punk and 90s emo that steers clear of the stereotypical definition of both. If you haven't heard this band yet, get on it. Here's the link to their Bandcamp, where you can download this for $5 and their debut EP for a measly $3. The band is working on a new album, so buy the album and support great independent music!

Shotgun Rules- Fugitives and Refugees

OK. Just to start off, this is not the kind of thing I would normally post, but I am going to this time because this is one of my favorite albums of all time. Shotgun Rules was a band from London, Ontario that broke up in 2009 after 5 years and 3 albums. Much to my disdain, I found out about this band months before they broke up and was only able to catch them live once, but this album has received constant play on my iPod since first hearing it. The lyrics are fantastic, and the guitars are nothing short of amazing. While one guitarist plays chords for most of the album, the other is almost always tapping, which just sounds awesome. I could go on forever about how much I love this album and how important it's been to me over the years, but I fear I'll begin to ramble, so I'll cut it short. 

For fans of Brand New, The Red Threat, and The Fully Down.

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Celeste- Nihiliste(s)

I think by now it's pretty apparent that I'm not the most consistent person ever. I intend to update this far more frequently now though, so we'll see how that goes. Now onto the review. Celeste is a metal band from Lyon, France, formed from the ashes of Mihai Edrisch. These guys are without a doubt my favorite band, and I'm not sure why it took me this long to post this album. With instrumentals comparable to "Within Dividia" era The End, and the raspy emotion drenched vocals that any fan of Mihai already know and loves, Nihiliste(s) excels on all levels. This band hasn't put out a bad album so get them all. 

 

For fans of Mihai Edrisch and early The End.

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Daïtro / Sed Non Satiata Split

For those of you that don't know, Daitro and Sed Non Satiata are two incredible emo bands from France, who collaborated to make the best split I've heard in a long time. The Sed Non Satiata side contains what I would say is their best material, and having purchased this record because of my love for them, is the side I played the most. It clocks at over 22 minutes, with three 7+ minute songs and one 0:43 interlude. Often long songs tend to drag on and get a bit boring to me, but the constant rise and fall of this record will keep you entertained the whole way through. In fact, I was so enamored with the SNS side that I overlooked the Daitro side until very recently. Seeing as I work at a rather boring office job, I have alot of time to listen to albums and bands I may have neglected. This is how I found out about how much I was missing out on by not giving Daitro a legitimate chance. Their side is brilliant. I'm not going to say too much about it, because I'll ramble, and i feel the music speaks for itself, but immediately after hearing it I went online and ordered their discography tape.  Seriously, if you don't have this, GET IT. It's sold out through the bands and most distros, but if you really look you'll find it. I stumbled across it for $10 under the used:rare section of Vinyl Junkie Distro. What I didn't realize at the time was that that would be the best $10 I have ever spent. I don't think Sed Non Satiata is still active, but Daitro has their stuff up for order on their website here.
Download Sed Non Satiata side
Download Daitro side

ghosting.- hearts. EP

ghosting. are a fantastic screamo band from Vermont. While I don't know a whole lot about this band, I do know that hearts is one of my favorite albums of 2010. I picked this up at a show in Edmonton from A Mountain Far Distro, along with some other rad albums. I hadn't heard anything about this band, but I was itching to buy some vinyl around this time, and once I heard the word "skram" I instantly forked over the money. I can honestly say this was the best decision I made that year. Upon arriving back home, I put this album on my turntable and listened, as it exceeded anything I could have hoped for. The vocal "battles" between members are the best things I've heard in a long time, and when put on top of nothing but drums, are the stuff of dreams. I could go on forever talking about how much I love this album, but I won't because listening to it will tell you all you need to know. Great band, great album. For fans of Reversal of Man, Celeste.

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GOBBLE GOBBLE- Neon Graveyard

 

One thing you will notice about this blog over time is that I post a wide variety of music. Therefore I suggest skimming these rants I write so you know what you're getting into. Anywho GOBBLE GOBBLE are from Edmonton and lately have been blowing up blogs everywhere, with song/album of the year awards, loving reviews, and singles on countless mixtapes. This here is the first record put out by this project, and it's a gooder. 11 tracks of pure electronic, 8 bit, distorted, pop-e greatness, referred to as "Flu Pop". A perfect name, as I couldn't label this with a genre if I wanted to. This is great music made by a great guy, and the live show is unlike anything I've seen. If you want to get a hold of this or any other GOBBLE albums they are up for FREE download at http://gobblegbl.tumblr.com/ but you can also get hard copies, which I strongly suggest you do. These guys are touring soon too, so if they're coming to your city, don't miss it. I'm out

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Gift Eaters- Bird Omen

So here it is, my first post. And what would be a better first post than the band that got me into skram. In 2008 I was but a naive teen who thought that deathcore was a legitimate style of music. I was at A Textbook Tragedy's show with Fear Before in Edmonton and this band was opening. I was already aware of the band, most of the members having been in other local bands I loved. I wasn't sure what to expect, as I was new to the genre, and screamo/emo to me meant Underoath or From First to Last (Neither of which I liked). When they started playing I realized my preconceived notions were very wrong, and I was instantly hooked. The soft melodic sections, the loud frantic parts, and vocals

drenched with emotion which I had never heard in music before that day left me wondering where this music had been all my life. Still my favorite emo/skram album of all time. This band is dead, but the members now play in, GOBBLE GOBBLE, Book of Caverns, and Crippled Children, who you should listen to and support if you like this band. OK I'm done. Sorry for the rant.

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