Labelled “extremely brutal” by Eyehategod guitarist/Down drummer Jimmy Bower, Ravine pull no punches when it comes to delivering a heavy riff. The Oregon band’s brand of sludge/doom and hardcore mightn’t reach the insane levels of heaviness set by Byzanthian Neckbeard or Dopethrone, but the best moments on their 2025 release ‘Chaos and Catastrophes’ are on a par with many a great and muddy sounding, riff wielding act.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
HAPPY LITTLE CLOUDS – Embers
Unless you happen to be Guided By Voices, it’s rare that albums come together quickly, but some take a fair bit longer than others. It’s fair to say that this album from Happy Little Clouds had a gestation period that was a little longer than most. Its lead single appeared on Bandcamp almost a year and a half ahead of the full length release, and other tracks have been slowly drip fed to an audience over time. In terms of promotion and with everyone streaming, this actually turned out to be a good move: at the point where people might’ve started to forget about this Boston based trio, they’d pop up with another tune, and receive another round of positive online press.
Befitting of something born from a slow creative process, ‘Embers’ is bigger than a mere collection of tracks. There are lyrical themes of questioning, of introspection, and an underlying aspect of emotional growth and change. This makes the material more sophisticated than some of its very 90s, often feel good arrangements might suggest on a surface level.
DOTSUN MOON – Tiger
By releasing just three albums over a fourteen year span, you could definitely say that Dotsun Moon’s work is an exercise in quality over quantity. The one man band’s third long player,‘Tiger’, comes almost a decade after ‘A Swan’s Song’, but it’s a release that was definitely worth waiting for.
THE BABLERS – Like The First Time
Back in 1980, at a time when the power pop world was dominated by bands in skinny ties and with names like The Pop and The Look, The Bablers released their debut LP ‘What’s It All About’. The record’s stand out track ‘Imaginary Land’, with its stabbed piano motifs and infectious wordless hook, they sounded like a cross between XTC and Nick Lowe with a Scandinavian accent. ‘What Can I Do’ showed a knack for harmony vocals on something that could’ve been a Hollies deep cut from ’75, and seemingly not caring for fashion, ‘McKinley’s Birthday Party’ applied a McCartney-esque rumpty-tumpty rhythm to a pop tune that sounded at least five years out of date at the time of release. You couldn’t ever call it a perfect album, but at its best, it showed a band with spirit, and one capable of sometimes delivering a great tune, even if the vocals weren’t as sharp as the material deserved.
ADAM SHERMAN – Nowhere But Here EP
Adam Sherman is a veteran of the Boston music scene. In the early 80s, he was the voice of power pop band Private Lightning, an act that’s been somewhat overlooked in subsequent years – you’ll never find anything from their 1980 LP included on even the most niche of compilations. In more recent times, he’s recorded with The Souls, and also The Nervous Eaters, a band whose 2024 LP captures the spirit of older power pop bands like 20/20 perfectly. He’s even recorded a couple of solo discs that, despite critical praise, didn’t reach beyond a cult following. It could definitely be said that, even though he mightn’t be a household name, he’s kept himself busy over the years.