by Fred Pessaro // BBG

This is Hardcore have announced their initial 2013 lineup which, for the most part, doesn't have many uber-shocking additions unless you count a headlining set by Gwar (?). It includes names like Kid Dynamite, Tragedy, 7 Seconds, Panic, Trapped Under Ice and more. Full lineup is below. Tickets for the festival pass and the weekend pass go on sale at noon.

The one interesting addition is the reemergence of Modern Life is War, who called it quits in 2008. Though some are viewing the band's reunion as part of an April Fool's joke, the reunion is in fact real according to a valued source. The band issued the following statement regarding their return:

"Modern Life Is War is an active band again. In September of last year, we wrote an album in John's basement in Marshalltown, which will be recorded at God City in May and released on Deathwish in September. The original lineup of Chris Honeck, Matt Hoffman, Jeffrey Eaton, Tyler Oleson and John Eich will be in place. For what it's worth, we are not approaching this as a 'reunion' but rather as a band with a new record that will be working to contribute something worthwhile. Extensive touring is not in the cards for us at this point. Our first show back will be at This Is Hardcore Fest in August, followed by a record release show in Iowa. We will announce an official release date as well as specific show dates and locations as soon as they are confirmed."

Keep your fingers crossed for more dates.

Continue reading "This is Hardcore announces partial lineup, Modern Life is War included! (tickets on sale)"

The 2012 edition of MusicFestNW takes place in September 5 - 9 at 18 venues in Portland, OR and will feature performances from over 150 bands, including Passion Pit, Hot Snakes, Girl Talk, Danny Brown, Beirut Silversun Pickups, Dinosaur Jr. and Sebadoh, many more.

In addition to those previously announced artists, MFNW has just added The Hives, Flying Lotus, Wild Nothing, DIIV, Quasi, Moon Duo, My Goodness, DZ Deathrays, and Strand Of Oaks to the already impressive line-up. Wristbands, available various levels and packages, and tickets to individual shows are on sale now. Check out the complete MFNW lineup below.

Continue reading "MusicFestNW 2012 lineup expands (The Hives, Flying Lotus, Quasi, DIIV, Passion Pit, Hot Snakes, Beirut, Swans & many more)"

photos by Rebecca Reed, words by BBG

Full of Hell at the remodeled Acheron

During the renovation at Acheron (iPhone pic courtesy of the venue)

One of the first shows in a newly-renovated Acheron went down on Wednesday, April 4th when Full of Hell teamed with Code Orange Kids, Birds in Row and Real Cops to play the space. Here are some pictures.

The show is part of a string of dates for Full of Hell/Code Orange Kids, who both played SXSW, and who share the stage with Birds in Row before the band heads out for dates with Converge (including Music Hall of Williamsburg next week) and with Touche Amore, Defeater, and Code Orange Kids (including the Loft in New Brunswick on 4/20).

All tour dates and more pictures from Acheron, below...

Continue reading "Acheron renovated; Full of Hell played w/ Code Orange Kids, Birds in Row & Real Cops (pics & more dates)"

by BBG

Preorders are up for the new Bastard Noise LP, Skulldozer, the Cripple Bastards Frammenti Di Vita LP/EP, as well as Reproach's The Bitter End LP at Deep Six Records.

The Endless Blockade offer their swansong on a split with Pig Heart Transplant (mem Iron Lung). The split 7"is available now via Iron Lung.

Reminder: Defeatist hit Acheron on Saturday (10/8) with Regents (mem Frodus), Psychic Limb, and The Year is One. $8 gets you in.

Check out a new Wold track "Free Goat of Leviticus" at Pitchfork, and while you are there check out a new Leviathan track "Blood Red & True" and the latest edition of Show No Mercy.

Stream a new Panopticon track from the forthcoming Social Disservices LP due on Flenser Records. Preorder it now.

Stream the new Alaric LP, featuring members of Noothgrush, Cross Stitched Eyes, Dead & Gone, and more below. It is out now on 20 Buck Spin.

Reminder: Black Twilight Circle at The Charleston tonight. Check out video from Monday night, along with new songs from Dysrhythmia and Hex Machine, and a big list of upcoming NYC shows, below...

Continue reading "Evillive (Bastard Noise, Defeater, Wold, Panopticon, Alaric, The Endless Blockade & more)"

by Andrew Sacher

La Dispute at The Acheron in 2010 (more by Andrew St. Clair)

Genre bending post-hardcore outfit La Dispute will release their sophomore LP Wildlife on October 4 via No Sleep Records. Though the album title isn't nearly as epic as their 2008 debut Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair, from the driving drum patterns of album opener, "A Departure," it's clear that Wildlife is no simpler affair. While their debut was very much an album about relationships, on Wildlife we hear frontman Jordan Dreyer frantically contemplating heavier topics such as life and death. The album's longest track, "King Park," ends with Jordan pleading, "Can I still get into heaven if I kill myself?" Musically, the album's got less riffing going on than their debut, but the band finds appeal in other forms. "Safer in the Forest/Love Song for Poor Michigan" opens with an arpeggio that recalls The Bends-era Radiohead, "A Broken Jar" is an acoustic track not unlike the material on the band's Here, Hear EPs, and "St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church Blues" takes on a quasi-funk punk vibe. The album is currently streaming on La Dispute's website and can be pre-ordered from the No Sleep Webstore. The album art, tracklist, and a stream of album single "Harder Harmonies," is all below.

Though La Dispute can get pretty progressive on their albums, they don't tone down the aggression at live shows. I caught them at The Studio in May with Defeater and they delivered the whole show in classic hardcore fashion with nonstop moshing and crowd shoutalongs. They're about to kick off a tour opening for Thrice in support of the new album, which unfortunately won't bring them to venues as small as The Studio. It will hit the NYC-area on two separate occasions though. First on October 14 at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ and then on October 16 at Irving Plaza. Tickets are available for the Starland show and the Irving Plaza show.

Speaking of Defeater, they're about to head out on a tour with Bane that kicks off in NYC on October 12 at Santos Party House and hits Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin. Dead End Path and Miles Away are also on the tour.

All dates, song stream, album art and tracklist below...

Continue reading "La Dispute releasing 'Wildlife', touring (dates and stream)"

Slayer at Izod Center (photos by Samantha Marble)

Slayer, Thee Oh Sees, Public Enemy, Girls, Danzig Legacy, (Danzig + Doyle von Frankenstein playing Misfits, Samhain & Danzig), Hot Snakes, Diplo, Major Lazer, Henry Rollins, Ted Leo & The Phramacists, Spank Rock, Murder City Devils, Hum, Lykke Li, Passion Pit, Four Tet, Rakim, The Damned, Austra, Purity Ring, and Flynt Flossy are just a few of the acts announced today as part of the Fun Fun Fun Fest 2011 lineup. Another amazing year! Check out the full lineup below and stay tuned for more announcements coming in August and September.

The new additions to the Austin, Texas festival, which takes place from 11/4 - 11/6, are in addition to the the previous "lineup leaks" that included Brian Posehn, Odd Future, Okkervil River, M83, X (performing "Los Angeles"), Reggie Watts, Flying Lotus, Tune-Yards, Ra Ra Riot, Kid Dynamite and others

2011 is the festival's sixth year, but first at its new home Auditorium Shores (no more Waterloo Park). Tickets are on sale now.

Slayer also has a NYC performance coming up with Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeth as part of the "Big Four" show at Yankee Stadium on 9/14. Tickets are still available.

Fun Fun Fun 2011 flyer and almost-full lineup is below.

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2011 lineup (Danzig Legazy, Passion Pit, Slayer, Lykke Li, The Damned, Henry Rollins & much more)"

La Dispute @ the Acheron in 2010 (more by Samantha Marble)

Sound and Fury Fest, notoriously shut down after a riot last year, returns this year and takes place in the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara, CA from July 22-24. The lineup consists of several hardcore and metal bands including Defeater, Burning Love, and Deafheaven, who all have upcoming NYC shows.

Tourmates Defeater and La Dispute play The Studio tonight (5/24), after having played Krazy Fest this past weekend. Tickets are still on sale if you need some last minute hadcore plans. You can read about the 5/20 show at Altar Bar at 'A Brief Intermission'...

"...One thing is for sure, La Dispute do not lack energy. Dreyer and company rarely stayed still, and that energy was reciprocated enthusiastically by the crowd. They played a set full of great songs from their incredible full length, Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair, including the crowd favorite "The Castle Builders," in which, to the fans delight, they considerably slowed down the ending sing-along. They also played both songs from their split with Touche Amore, which translated into incredible live songs and were certainly favorites of the crowd.

Meanwhile Touche Amore are touring ferociously in support of their upcoming sophomore album Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me which will be released June 7 via Deathwish. Their 3+ month tour includes the previously announced Santos Party House show on June 24 with Title Fight, The Menzingers, and Dead End Path (tickets). Touche also head out on a European leg with La Dispute. All dates are listed below.

Touche Amore's Deathwish labelmates Deafheaven play Cake Shop on June 17 with Gholas. As mentioned, KEN Mode unfortunately dropped off the show, though they will still appear on other dates of the tour. An updated list is below.

Burning Love open for Converge and Trap Them Wednesday (5/25) at the sold out Santos Party House, and at other dates which are listed below. La Dispute opened for Trap Them at the Acheron in 2010.

All tour dates below...

Continue reading "La Dispute, Defeater, Sound & Fury Fest, Deafheaven, KEN Mode, Touche Amore --- dates & stuff"

The Bouncing Souls @ ABC No Rio (more by Alyssa Tanchajja)

Tickets go on sale on Friday, April 29th at noon for the previously discussed four-night stand by The Bouncing Souls at Highline Ballroom. There the band will spend July 6th playing The Good, The Bad, and The Argyle and Maniacal Laughter, July 7th playing their self-titled LP and Hopeless Romantic, July 8th playing How I Spent My Summer Vacation and Anchors Aweigh, and the final night, July 9th playing The Gold Record and Ghosts on the Boardwalk. Other cities get the same deal, in the same order, but on different dates (obviously). They are all listed again below.

In not necessarily related news (though tickets to their June 4th Asbury Park show are on sale on the Souls' Chunksaah site), post-hardcore band Boysetsfire who reunited at the end of 2010, have announced a tour that includes a June 3rd show at The Studio at Webster Hall with May 4th Massacre and Defeater. All tour dates below...

Continue reading "Bouncing Souls tickets (not on sale yet), Boysetsfire reunited (dates announced, tix on sale)"

DOWNLOAD: Deer Tick - Beautiful Girls (Sean Kingston Cover) (MP3)

Murphy's Law @ Culture Shock '09 (Serenaz)

The lineup is out for Culture Shock 2010, which will take place April 16th and 17th at SUNY Purchase. Headliners for this year's fest are pop-punk band Bayside (avoid the "Beautiful Girls" cover on their MySpace) (and check out another version above) and indie-pop collective Los Campesinos (who'll play Irving Plaza April 22nd) Friday night, and rapper Jay Electronica and The Books on Saturday. The rest of the bill is a varied mix that includes Surfer Blood, Black Milk, Maps & Atlases, L Mag Band You Need To Hear Ava Luna, Maluca, Das Racist, The So So Glos and Turbo Fruits. The annual event isn't technically open to non-students. The full lineup is below.

Last year's lineup was headlined by Drake and The Cool Kids. In 2008, Fucked Up's headlining performance was cut short by the police.

The bands were announced earlier this month via film at an event at the school. That video, the lineup and more are below...

Continue reading "SUNY Culture Shock 2010 lineup"