Check out my New Noise interview with Sal Ellington, vocalist/guitarist for Boston punks Rebuilder, about how his diligence and dedication to the band helped it reach 10 years. Buy the print issue that features the story here.
Sal Ellington of Rebuilder Talks ‘Local Support’
Posted in Interviews with tags Rebuilder on 10/25/2023 by Kurt OrzeckThe Breeders’ ‘Last Splash’ (30th Anniversary Edition): Two Cent Review
Posted in Interviews with tags Breeders, Dave Grohl, Frank Black, Kim Deal, Pixies on 09/25/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Read my FLOOD review of the latest reissue of the Breeders’ Last Splash, in which the flood of anniversary reissue albums is also discussed.
Trauma Kit: Flipside Fest Pick of the Day
Posted in Interviews on 09/23/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
The second annual Flipside Fest, staged just outside Boise, began in magnificent form on Friday, with an afternoon wave of cool air giving way to an evening filled with clear skies and music courtesy of Australian rockers Babe Rainbow and Virginia-based electronic musician George Clanton. Saturday’s forecast — a welcome relief from the muddy start to Treefort Music Fest in late March — calls for even more beautiful weather … with a touch of gnarly experimental-hardcore-rock courtesy of Boise’s own Trauma Kit.
One of the city’s strongest young bands regardless of genre, Trauma Kit are slated for a plum time slot at 8 p.m. at Push & Pour, after which Flipside Fest 2023 headliners the Walkmen will grace the main stage. Trauma Kit’s latest close-up comes mere weeks after they opened for red-hot metal band Portrayal of Guilt and then Seattle punks So Pitted.
“We were like kinds in a candy store,” Trauma Kit bassist Shadrach Tuck recently told The Bad Penny about the shows.
Continue readingExplosions in the Sky’s ‘End’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Explosions in the Sky on 09/15/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Explosions in the Sky’s lackluster, unimaginative new record finds them re-treading their veritable sound — but eschewing the chance to venture into any new sounds, studio trickery or lyrical territory. Read my review of the Austin-bred post-rock group’s new record, End, on FLOOD.
Baroness Break Down Their Sludgy New LP ‘Stone’ Track by Track
Posted in Interviews with tags Baroness on 09/15/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Now two decades deep into their career, Baroness have the shrapnel to show for it. Anyone with fleeting familiarity of the stoner-metal band knows of the horrific 2012 bus crash that injured four of its members and almost tolled the death knell for the band. But more than 10 years later, the incident appears to be—if not a distant memory—a road bump in the timeline of a band that’s never released a poorly received album. The frequent comparisons to fellow Georgians Mastodon that Baroness drew early in their career fell by the wayside, especially after the crash. The band led by John Baizley cemented its own status as a hard-hitting but redemptive and invigorating group that brought broad strokes of color and flair to a sludgy subgenre.
For my latest FLOOD feature, Baroness members Nick Jost and Sebastian Thomson walk us through the Savannah, Georgia–based metal group’s sixth full-length.
Converge’s ‘Dusk in Us’ (Deluxe Edition): Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Converge, Kurt Ballou on 09/06/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Read my FLOOD review of the just-released deluxe edition of Converge’s The Dusk in Us, and find out why picking it up will save completists some change.
Hella’s ‘Hold Your Horse Is’ (Deluxe Reissue): Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Hella, Zach Hill on 09/01/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Is Zach Hill the best rock drummer of all time? See if the case can be made in my FLOOD review of the reissue of Hella’s first record, dropping today.
Sprain’s ‘The Lamb as Effigy’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews on 08/31/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
If Not Us Then Who: Power Trip Vocalist Riley Gale’s Righteous Legacy
Posted in Interviews on 08/29/2023 by Kurt Orzeck
Check out my recent FLOOD feature on dearly departed vocalist Riley Gale of Power Trip and what friends, family and fans learned about him after Gale tragically died three years ago. Riley’s father Brandon and board members of Dallas Hope Charities reflect on the late musician’s deep humanity and prolific social justice efforts.
The Bad Penny (beta) 