As labels like Burning Heart and Birdnest have proved, Sweden has been a hotbed of punk for years. Rather importantly, it has its own sound. Bands like No Fun At All and Millencolin share a common musical root with lots of the pop- and skatepunk bands from the US, but there’s something unique in the way the Swedes approach their art…and it goes deeper than a mere accent on a vocal.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
PRAYING MANTIS – Gravity
In 2015, Praying Mantis broke a six year silence with their tenth album ‘Legacy’. A welcome surprise, the album was not only their first with new vocalist John ‘JayCee’ Cuijpers, a man with a big presence and someone who appeared to be a perfect fit for the band, but also the strongest Mantis offering for a very long time. For the most part, the album featured memorable rockers that allowed the band’s trademark twin lead guitars to shine and also presented some very melodic hooks showing the band could still truly hit the mark. 2018’s ‘Gravity’ – obviously – follows a very similar path lyrically, musically and stylistically. After all, it’s not so much that you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, but with an album as good as ‘Legacy’, Praying Mantis would have been foolish to mess too much with a winning formula. However, although this second album with JayCee offers a few tracks that are a little less inspiring, on the whole, it’s a great return.
They Might Be Giants confirm massive run of live shows
They Might Be Giants are heading out on the road again shortly. The seemingly unstoppable duo are not doing things half heartedly either, with a run of thirty two shows comprising two full sets each.
JIZZY PEARL – All You Need Is Soul
Upon release in 2014, Jizzy Pearl’s EP ‘Crucified’ was incredibly well received by the online rock press, with many thinking it was the former Love/Hate frontman’s best work for a many a year. Although only a six tracker, it did indeed manage to capture a lot of the energies of his younger self, something probably amplified by a short playing time. With no room for filler, he really made an impression, so you’d think Pearl would’ve been keen to keep up the momentum and really capitalise on its success, but it took him almost four years to craft a follow up. Prior to release, he claimed that follow up, 2018’s ‘All You Need Is Soul’ had all the excitement of his former band’s ‘Blackout In The Red Room’ debut. Big talk indeed, but it seems that no matter how much time passes, that album is still very much the benchmark for everything that’s followed.
SUN VOYAGER – Seismic Vibes
For those who’ve not been paying attention, fuzz rock troupe Sun Voyager have been lurking on the Brooklyn underground scene since 2012. After a few enjoyable EPs, ‘Seismic Vibes’ – their first full length LP – really capitalises on their previous musical ideas, presenting a world of haze and stoner based riffs with not only more confidence but also a better production value than they’ve ever had. Those who think “better production” could also mean more commercial should fear not, though, since everything that was great about these mighty Sun lords before remains just as great; it’s just that this time around, the material has more warmth and depth. It’s interesting they’ve not taken advantage of the longer playing time and experimented with longer songs, but just one or two listens to this album should be enough to explain why: there’s definitely something about this material that is more effective in short bursts.