Movie Review: We Are The Best!

Long time no see, dear reader. I'm going to skip my usual "hey guys I know I haven't posted in X weeks/ months/ years and I'm really sorry, I've just been really busy" spiel and jump right into this post. As always, obligatory SPOILER WARNING. I'll try my best to spoil as little as possible. It's not like there are any Usual Suspect caliber plot twists in this indie drama.

We Are The Best! is a Swedish-Danish film released in 2013 about three 13 year old girls who start a punk band in 1980s Sweden. It's based on director Lukas Moodysson's wife's semi-autobiographical graphic novel Never Goodnight. If that isn't enough to convince you to watch this movie, then I don't know if we can call ourselves friends anymore. On a more serious note, We Are The Best! follows two adolescent punks, Klara and Bobo as they stumble their way through school, home life, starting their first band, and generally being young, angst-ridden kids. Klara and Bobo start their band solely out of spite of a group of teenagers at their local youth center, and despite not knowing how to play any instruments, fall in love with the idea of playing in a band.

What this movie captured perfectly is the idea of being a young kid with something to say and finally finding a legitimate outlet for it. Klara and Bobo are written like true 13 year olds, where they know that they're young, angry, and want to take down The Man, but they're not quite sure what their fighting against, what the real facts are, or what causes they should really support. They don't know shit, but they don't care because they're too wrapped up in being passionate about something for the first time. Once they get hooked on making loud, incoherent noises and writing angsty, terrible punk lyrics they find a girl in the year above named Hedvig to round out their trio so they can start writing some real music. Hedvig is an outsider at school too, but she plays some mean classical guitar, so the girls befriend her to use her expertise to help them along musically. Also, something to note: I'm not sure if the actresses were 13 years old at the time of filming or older, but either way, they're young and they don't suck. They're actually pretty solid actresses. Hollywood, take notes. This is how you should cast children and adolescents in your movies.

Something you'll notice quickly in We Are The Best! is that the movie isn't really about punk music or punk culture. It's mostly about what it's like to be a young teenager and how they live their lives in a constant hyperbole. Finding an outlet for your feelings in the form of a band is the greatest thing in the world, this cute guy you just met is making you go head over heels in love, and getting into a mundane argument can be the absolute irreconcilable end between you and your best friend. And in typical teenage fashion, these major life-or-death crises blow over in a matter of hours or days. It's these dynamics between the three girls that makes this movie fun to watch, because deep down, you knew you were that bad when you were younger. Sure, if you're into punk or hardcore, it may feel nostalgic to see a couple of kids learn to play their instruments and fall in love with music, and stick their middle fingers up to the world just like you did, but even if you never went through a phase like that (like your's truly), there's still plenty to love here. A small detail that I loved was that almost all of the music played by Klara, Bobo, and Hedvig looked and sounded like it was recorded live on location. You can hear all the little nuances of recording on location, where everything you see matches up perfectly with what you hear. Nobody is randomly mashing their fingers on a guitar with a totally different track being played over top. It's nothing too big but in most movies, including movies about music, they just throw in some studio recordings so they don't need to teach the actors how to actually play the instrument being played on screen.

So there you go. We Are The Best! is definitely one of the best movies I've seen in months, with the only other being December's The Imitation Game. This movie is legitimately fun to watch, no matter who you are. It's adorable, genuine, and to top it off has one of the most punk as fuck endings I've seen in a movie. You can find it on Netflix (the Canadian version at least), which is where I found it, and I'm sure your local movie store carries it too if you feel like spending some cash.

That's all for now, folks! Go out and start a punk band with your friends.

-DG

Gupta's Top 10 Albums of 2013

List time, list time, list time. It's list time for all the bloggers and actual music critics of the world. And while I don't particularly like lists for their ability to only capture a snapshot of my tastes and opinions, I think they serve a great purpose of bringing great artists and albums into the spotlight, letting people check them out if they normally wouldn't have. This year's music was super exciting for me. A bunch of my favorite bands released albums this year, I discovered a bunch of new artists, and even grew to like a few new genres of music.

For the first time, I'll include a short list of of my honorable mentions for the top 10 list. These albums were freaking sweet, but didn't end up cutting it when it came to fitting into those ten coveted spots. Here are the honorable mentions, in no particular order:

• Yattai - Fast Music Means Love (Grindcore)
• Ghostface Killah - 12 Reasons to Die (Hip-Hop)
• Clutch - Earth Rocker (Rock)
• Hatebreed - The Divinity of Purpose (Hardcore)
• The Ocean - Pelagial (Sludge/ Progressive Metal)
• Gorguts - Coloured Sands (Technical Death Metal)

Enough lollygagging now, here's my top 10 releases from this year!

                                                        #10: Rotten Sound - Species at War

Who doesn't love these Finn grinders? Stepping up the intensity and heaviness from their last release, Cursed (as if we thought that was even possible), Rotten Sound blow minds and speakers with this non-stop grind assault. This release is an EP, not a studio album, but I don't give a shit, it's amazing, so it's going on the list. There isn't much to say about this one. If you dig grindcore, pick this bad boy up.

Listen: Peace

#9: David Maxim Micic - Bilo 3.0

I'm going to copy and paste part of my review here because I'm a lazy asshole.

Bilo 3.0 is the most adventurous of his releases so far. There's still djenty goodness hidden deep in this album, but it's covered in layers and layers of orchestration, choirs, jazz fusion, and a gajillion guest vocalists. David Maxim Micic flexes his song-writing muscles here, and while he's a phenomenal guitarist, I really think his composition skills are streets ahead of his djenty peers.

Listen: The entire thing

#8: Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

This album rounded out my Top 10 Albums of 2013 (So Far) list, and have moved up a few positions for the year end one. Fat beats, dancey grooves, and non-stop 70s worship makeup the meat of this album, and I love it. From club singles to love songs, to instrumental moog synth jams, this album covers a wide breadth of emotions and styles, while still being a consistently fun listen all the way through, every time.

Listen: Lose Yourself to Dance

#7: Weekend Nachos - Still

I'm going to go back to a familiar old equation.

New Weekend Nachos = You're Moshing

Listen: Satan Sucker

#6: Carcass - Surgical Steel

It's been over 15 years since grindcore/ melodic death metal titans and pioneers Carcass have released an album. When I first got wind of Surgical Steel coming out this year, I was really, really skeptical. I thought it was nothing more than a quick cash grab by a bunch of old over-the-hill Brits, but man, was I wrong. Surgical Steel is like Heartwork 2.0 for me. It's uncompromising melodic death metal, and it's 100% authentic Carcass.

Listen: Captive Bolt Pistol

#5: Corsair - Corsair

When I reviewed this album way back in January, I thought it was going to be my album of the year. Midway through the year, Dillinger Escape Plan's One of Us is the Killer bumped this album down to second place. Now poor Corsair has been bumped down to 5th place. Don't get me wrong, I still love this album, but I've noticed I haven't been playing it as much as I used to. It might have moved to my backburner, but it's still a sweet slab of prog rock/ metal. Maybe I'll end up rekindling my love of this album in the coming months.

Listen: Gryphon Wing

#4: Nails - Abandon All Life

This album is an absolute leviathan of an album packed into less than 18 minutes worth of music. You might not think an album that's shorter than an episode of South Park could offer that much, but I'm here to tell you that Abandon All Life offers the one and only thing you need from a Nails record: pure violence. This album is the musical equivalent to beating an entire pub's worth of people to death with your fists.

Listen: The entire thing

#3: Protest the Hero - Volition

This album really blindsided me, because I've never really been a fan of Protest the Hero. I thought their music was just unsolicited wankery, but despite being incredibly technical, Volition plays like a pop album. It's catchy, it's upbeat, and it's tons of fun to toss on and jam out to. I might be a little biased against them, but I think this album is definitely their best work yet.

Listen: Clarity

#2: The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us is the Killer

This was my number one pick halfway through the year. Dillinger have quickly become one of my favorite bands, and One of Us is the Killer one of my favorite albums of all time.

The album is a perfect blend of their earlier spastic music with their more modern, easy-to-digest stylings. It really comes out in songs as crazy as "When I lost My Bet" and in songs as catchy as the title track, and how they sound totally different, but flow consistently in the album.

Listen: Prancer



#1: Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels

I really dig a fair share of hip-hop, but I never thought an album in that genre would top any of my year end lists. I'm surprised I haven't actually written a review for this album, but it makes no difference. This album rules. Hard. El-P blends old school boom-bap and modern sci-fi/ electronic styles to make some unforgettable tracks on Run the Jewels. The killer production is matched perfectly with El and Killer Mike bouncing off each other from verse to verse all the way through the album. Lyrically, the album spends most of it's time shouting out brags or listing of a plethora of ways El-P and Killer Mike can beat the shit out of you. There are some socially conscious lyrics sprinkled here and there throughout the album, but they take a back seat to their more violent siblings. This can be a deterrent for people who care a lot about lyrics, but fortunately, I am not one of them.

This list throws away all the scores I've given albums during the year, and doesn't take into account how boundary breaking certain albums are, or how far they push the musical envelope. The slots in this list get filled based on one criteria, and that's how much enjoyment I got out of the album. I can't deny the fact that I've been listening to this album at least one a day since I first heard it. So despite how much people might bitch about not including album X or artist Y on my list, I really fucking loved Run the Jewels, and I wholeheartedly think it deserves the number one spot on my list. Fight me.

Listen: 36" Chain

That's my list for 2013! As per usual, once this list is published, I'll find another album that I feel can boot off some of these from my list. What have been your favorite albums of 2013? Let me know, either down in the comments or on Facebook!

That's all for now, folks! Merry Winter Christmukkahmadanstivus!

-DG

Blastbeat Reviews: David Maxim Micic, Red Fang, MEASURE X UP

More quick reviews before the year is over!

DAVID MAXIM MICIC - BILO 3.0

David Maxim Micic captured my attention a couple years ago when he dropped his instrumental djent/ progressive metal project Bilo for free to the masses. Fast forward two years and two more albums, we have Bilo 3.0, the most adventurous of his releases so far. There's still djenty goodness hidden deep in this album, but it's covered in layers and layers of orchestration, choirs, jazz fusion, and a gajillion guest vocalists. David Maxim Micic flexes his song-writing muscles here, and while he's a phenomenal guitarist, I really think his composition skills are streets ahead of his djenty peers. Overall Score: 4.5/5

RED FANG - Whales and Leeches

I love Red Fang. They're the prefect blend of doomy, fuzzed out stoner rock and high energy, straight-forward, crush-beers-and-bang-your-head metal. Whales and Leeches is a touch darker and heavier than their previous effort, Murder the Mountains, but everything essential to the Red Fang sound is there. Kick-ass dual vocals, monster riffs, and bluesy leads are found all over this album. I'd definitely recommend checking this album out if you're a fan of any sort of stoner, doom, or sludge metal. Personally, I like it but I prefer their previous two albums for their more fun and laid back attitudes. Overall Score: 3/5

MEASURE X UP - DEMO 2013

More from the Halifax hardcore scene! These Maritimers keep sending me promos, I keep loving 'em, and MEASURE X UP's 2013 demo is no different. This is more straight-forward 80's and 90's straightedge hardcore, reminiscent of bands like Minor Threat and Youth of Today. The vocals are absolutely vicious on this demo, and the music matches the singing's intensity to a T (or in their case, an X). Whether you're edge or not, MEASURE X UP's demo is some killer hardcore, and you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not checking it out. Word on the street is they're working on another demo to be dropped soon, and I'm super stoked to hear that once it's out as well. Overall Score: 4/5

In other news, my yearly Top 10 list is going to be posted soon! Until then, satiate yourself on my unsolicited opinions from last year. Also, there's a big announcement coming up which may or may not involve Needs More Noise Gate picking up another writer! Excitement.

That's all for now, folks!

-DG

Blastbeat Reviews: Protest the Hero, Exivious, Snakes Get Bad Press

Time to rapid fire off some quick reviews. My to-listen list for this year's records is on the order of dozens, so there might be a fair few of these quick reviews before the year is up. Up on the chopping block today are prog-metalcore dudes Protest the Hero, Exivious, a jazz-fusion metal(?) supergroup featuring members and ex-members of Cynic, Textures, Dodecahedron, and Pestilence, and Aussie underground spastic hardcore group Snakes Get Bad Press. Let's get the ball rolling!

PROTEST THE HERO - VOLITION

I've never being a huge Protest the Hero fan (even feeling lukewarm about one of their most highly praised albums, Fortress), but everyone and their mothers has been telling me to get my ass in gear and check out Volition, their newest album. I put it off long enough, but when I finally got around to listening to it, man, I wish I had checked it out sooner.

Volition is an absolute banger of an album, dishing out massive songs in the usual spastic and super-technical vein we're used to, but focusing more on making the songs catchy as hell than just wowing people with how well they can sweep pick in 27/16 time. The songs are all real fast, and super high energy, making this album feel more like a super proggy pop album than a metal record. After a year of pissed off grindcore and doomy sludgy metal, it's nice to have a record that's so much fun to listen to. Score: 4.5/5

EXIVIOUS - LIMINAL

I love Cynic, and in 2009 when I discovered ex-guitarist and ex-bassist Tymon and Robin's jazz-metal-fusion project called Exivious, I was pumped. Their self-titled debut was absolutely awesome, and I'm super happy to see they were able to crowdfund their second album to completion.

Liminal is like Exivious 2.0. The album is even more diverse, flows more beautifully, and sounds crystal clear. The boys build amazing soundscapes and textures (get it?) with their music as usual, with some great solos from all instruments, written or improvised. There are some bits on this record that are total surprises, keeping Liminal from being too much like Exivious, but honestly, I listen to so little of this jazz fusiony stuff that even more of the same is fine by me. This is an album made by musicians for musicians, but I wouldn't be surprised if just about anybody picked this up and enjoyed it. Score: 4/5

SNAKES GET BAD PRESS - RESIDUES

I've barely been exposed to the Australian hardcore scene. Other than bands like Fat Guy Wears Mystic Wolf Shirt, Jackals, and these dudes, there isn't much else I've heard hailing from down under. Snakes Get Bad Press follow their Aussie brethren by taking things in the spastic/ mathcore direction, working dissonance, shifting time signatures, and odd song structures into their music like nobody's business.

Obvious comparisons that come to mind are bands like Dillinger Escape Plan and The Chariot, but I hear a bit of Converge in the music, and just a touch of Pig Destroyer in the vocals.

Residues came out on Art As Catharsis Records on September 20th, and can be streamed over on the label's Bandcamp page. Check Snakes out on Facebook, too! Score: 4/5

That's all for now, folks!

-DG

EP Review: bluebird - "bluebird"

We're diving back into old territory with this review: underground Halifax hardcore bands. I've already written about post-hardcore bros The Wides, crust punkers Napalm Raid, and Converge worshippers Barlow, so I've already got a pretty optimistic outlook on the area's hardcore and punk scene. Newest to the list of Eastern Canadian bands I've dealt with is bluebird, another band of The Wides' bassist Keegan Goodspeed.

To me, these dudes sound heavy in a different way. There's no crushing guitars, no blastbeats. It's not what they're playing that makes them so heavy, it's how they're playing it. bluebird is one of those bands that bring on a sort of catharsis through their music. They beat the shit out of their instruments, scream their hearts out, and you can feel it. bluebird is an emotional EP, raw and loose in its execution, showcasing some really rough around the edges production, and showcasing some solid songwriting and riff-making to boot. It gives off a bleak and melancholic vibe without sounding like a bunch of kids whining and complaining about things. It strikes a nice balance between strength and fragility that way.

The music is pretty consistent across the 6 tracks, trudging along with midpaced songs full of melodic guitars and grooving basslines and drums. The album picks up for a less-than-a-minute long track titled "made up ends" and the noisier and proggier "please leave" before slowing back down partway through the closer ""on eulogies you'll have to write"". There are some interesting parts among the songs, most notably for me are the very first echoing notes of "outlook" (the record's opener) which sets the melancholic tone of the rest of the album, and the closing song, which shows off some really nice riffs and some pretty moving chord progressions, reminding me of sludge legends Baroness for some reason. I'm not sure why, but anything that reminds me of Baroness is always a good thing in my books.

On a Playlist With:

Overall Score: 3.5/5

bluebird is a really solid hardcore/ post-hardcore EP. It's raw; it's emotional. You can tell it was made with passion. bluebird dish out equal parts chaos and melody with their debut release, and honestly, I enjoy it more and more each listen.

This EP came out on October 31st, 2013. bluebird have a Bandcamp page, where this EP is available digitally at a pay-what-you-can price. If you're interested in more Halifax hardcore, check out Keegan's other, other band, Botfly.

That's all for now, folks!

-DG

Album Review: Weekend Nachos - "Still"

I'm generally a pretty happy, laid-back dude.  I don't punch walls or get in peoples' faces when I get frustrated and I don't throw my phone across the room when it doesn't work. I can't remember the last time I raised my voice at someone out of anger or frustration. I just don't get angry. Well that's not true. There's a handful of things in this world that make me angry.

Weekend Nachos is one of them.

The Nachos are a Chicago based hardcore/ powerviolence band who specialize in being the aural equivalent of beating someone to death with your fists. No, not the usual description of this band is so heavy it feels like you're being punched in the face. Weekend Nachos are hate incarnate. I don't care if you're the god damn Dalai Lama, Still will turn you into the fucking Incredible Hulk. Once the opening D-beats start pounding and the first chord rings, everything you see turns red, and you lose control of your limbs, sending them wildly off in every direction, creating a zone of destruction around you. In short, everything can be summed up by this simple equation:

New Weekend Nachos = You're Moshing

Still is by far my favorite Weekend Nachos release that I've heard so far. I've only heard three of their studio albums so far (the other two being Unforgivable, and Worthless), but this album is definitely a reason for me to actively start digging through their back catalogue of EPs and compilation tracks. I really dug their 2011 effort Worthless, but I found something lacking from it. This record is what Worthless should have been. It's just as punishing, but the boys cut the fat here, making sure every track is somewhat unique and keeping things rolling at a breakneck speed.

There's a fair amount of breakdowns and mosh sections on Still, but it's nowhere near as many as Worthless had. Just about every song in Worthless had a breakdown in the same spot which did nothing but gum up the works, and then there was that two minutes of solid piercing feedback right in the middle of the album. I had no idea what that was for (experimentation? I'll have none of that in my ignorant moshcore, thank you very much), but I'm glad Weekend Nachos have moved back to the tried and true method of beating the ever loving fuck out of their instruments and recording the noises that come out. The songs seem to flow organically on Still, getting grindy as hell when you want to circle pit at mach speeds, and getting balls-crushingly heavy and slow right when you feel like stomping on the ground throwing your arms around pretending you're a dinosaur.

On a Playlist With: Nails, Magrudergrind, (old) Doomriders

Overall Score: 4.5/5

Still is angry. Still is mean. Still makes you want to kick old grannies in the face and burn down playgrounds. Weekend Nachos hit it out of the park with this thing. If you're into hardcore or powerviolence, you've got to listen to this album.

Eat Taco Bell, hail Weekend Nachos.

Still came out on November 8th, 2013 on Relapse Records. Decibel is streaming the entire god damn thing, so you have no excuse not to listen to this right now.

That's all for now, folks!

-DG

Album Review: Grind-O-Matic - "Flower Power"

Everyone shut up. I know I've been gone for a while. School is happening (that reminds me, I have robotics and signal processing labs to do, fuck), I've started recording a project with a friend, and I'm now writing for the online zine Cinema Terrible. I only have so many hours in a day, so I'm trying my best to balance not failing my courses, keeping creative content rolling on weekdays, and feeding my borderline alcoholism on weekends.

As many of you regular readers know, the French grind scene is fucking nuts right now. Tons of wicked bands are surfacing and pumping out rad EPs and albums like no tomorrow. If you want a taste of the French scene, check out the compilation In Grindo Veritas released by Kaotoxin Records, and Grindhouse: Vol. 1 put out by your's truly. I recently got a CD in the mail all the way from France of Grind-O-Matic's newest album, Flower Power.

GOM have been around for ten years now, and have been steadily releasing music for nine of them. They hail from Paris, France and have shredded onstage with bands like Cloud Rat, Chiens, and Yattai over the years. I really don't have much of a bio for them, so I'm going to jump right into the album.

First thing's first. This album is fast and loud. The album might churn through 20 tracks in just under 40 minutes (mid paced for grindcore standards, for those of you who don't know),  but this band can play blisteringly fast. I usually tap along to the drumming of my music with pens and pencils in hand, but sometimes here I can barely keep up. Don't get hung up on speed here, though. Unlike mechanical speed demons Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Grind-O-Matic blends a nice amount of mid-paced and slower chaotic dissonance into the fray to break up all the grind. Majority of this album sounds like a cross between Nasum, Gridlink, and early Dillinger Escape Plan to me. Sometimes, all three influences come together into a giant clusterfuck of sound that makes me stop whatever I'm doing and audibly say "holy fuck". Paired with the band's great choice of samples before and after songs, the band sets the bleak and twisted tone of the album.

Speaking of tone, I really have to commend these guys for the themes presented here. Flower Power is a testament to how much we've fucked up the Earth in all our years of greed as a society. It's nothing that hasn't been done before, especially by grindcore bands, but the atmosphere crafted by the music, samples, lyrics, and artwork is definitely more striking than a majority of other socially conscious bands out there.

On A Playlist With: Nasum, Discordance Axis, (early) Pig Destroyer

Overall Score: 4/5

Flower Power is a grindcore album with some real substance behind it. All the power and perversion of the French grind you love, mixed with some awesome chaotic guitar and drum playing and top notch sampling makes Grind-O-Matic a winner in my books.

Flower Power came out on Grind-O-Records on September 13th, 2013. You can listen to it here, and you can check the band out on Facebook and Reverb Nation.

That's all for now, folks!

-DG

Summer Slaughter 2013 or, Why I had to Explain to my Co-Workers why I Limped into Work Today

Last night I went to catch this year's iteration of the Summer Slaughter Tour, a yearly North American touring metal/ hardcore festival filled with mediocre deathcore bands and a handful of decent death metal groups. This was my first time hitting up Summer Slaughter because this year they actually had bands worth seeing on the bill, and tickets were mad cheap. I mean, 35 bucks for 10 bands? Even for a mediocre bill, that's worth the price of admission, but 35 bucks for 10 bands, including Revocation, The Ocean, Cattle Decapitation, and Dillinger Escape Plan? Holy monkey balls, I don't think it's even possible to get a better deal for a festival.

Because I'm a big kid now and work 8 hours a day, Monday to Friday, I missed the first few bands. Door opened at 3 or 3:30, and I ended up missing Thy Art Is Murder, Rings of Saturn, and Aeon, which really, I'm not heartbroken over because I'm not a fan of deathcore or tech-death, and I feel like I would have done nothing but hang around the merch booths until they all finished up. I did however, arrive just in time to catch Revocation, who put on a high energy set filled mostly with older material and crowd favorites ("Dismantle the Dictator" and "No Funeral" garnered some of the biggest circle pits of the night), but they jammed two new tracks off their new self-titled album too, which nobody seemed to mind.

The next two bands were The Ocean, and Cattle Decap, and I remember reading a review of a different tour date where the main complain the the sudden drop of energy in between Revocation and Cattle Decap because of The Ocean's slower and sludgier sound, but either that was an off day for the German metallers, or Toronto got a wicked treat last night. Loïc Rossetti, their vocalist was going absolutely nuts on stage, jumping off of it and nearly into the pit no less than 5 time during their half hour set. The rest of the band kept up as well, brandishing some entry-level Dillinger Escape Plan stage moves like jumping on monitors and flailing guitars around to keep the momentum going. I don't know what happened at that other concert, but The Ocean  dominated the stage at the Sound Academy last night. Definitely my second favourite performance of the night.

Cattle Decapitation rounded out the section of the show where I cared about the bands, but for a majority of their set, I was off getting pizza with a buddy of mine. I was really impressed with Travis Ryan, who stalked the stage like a madman, hitting every single crazed wail, scream, and growl he's ever put to record. The rest of the band was tight, especially their bassist, who we found out mid-set was actually Oli Pinard of the legendary Cryptopsy!

Next up were Norma Jean, Periphery, and Animals As Leaders. I wasn't particularly excited to see any of them (I hadn't even heard of Norma Jean before seeing their name on the bill for this show), but I was happily surprised by the latter two. Norma Jean started off with what I can only assume to be the most misleading intro track of all time, laying down some Southern sludge riffs with the bass cranked all the way up. I thought I was in for some Weedeater or Electric Wizard type shit, but my dreams were crushed faster than when they were in W-Men Origins: Wolverine when shitty metalcore filled the hall and the pit turned into a dojo. Snapbacked scene kids in skinny jeans started beating up the air and doing spin kicks to prove how HxC they were filled the centre of the floor, and honestly, my friends and I took a solid 30 seconds to laugh at all those goofballs. Once Norma Jean finished their way-too-long of a set, Periphery and AAL brought everything back with some high energy metal tunes and solid stage presence. I had already seen Periphery before,and they didn't really do much for me, but that was at a huge outdoor festival. Inside a smaller venue is where they really shine. AAL took me by complete surprise, not because I doubted Tosin Abasi and co.'s ability to play their music, but because I expected AAL to be a snorefest between Periphery's great set and Dillinger. They really got people moshing, jumping, and headbanging along, even though it was just three dudes chugging bass strings and sweep picking for 45 minutes.

Finally, after many long hours, it was time for Dillinger Escape Plan to hit the stage. Holy fuck. I was right up front and centre, and this was without a doubt, the most intense show I've ever been to. I've seen Slayer, I've seen Amon Amarth, and I've seen Rotten Sound, but nothing, nothing would have prepared me for this. Dillinger was off the fucking walls. Literally. There were bodies and limbs flying everywhere, I think I was covered with at least three dozen's peoples' sweat, beer, and once I got home, I noticed I actually had someone else's blood on me. I know whatever I write won't do it justice, so I'll post some videos of other gigs of theirs so you know what you're in for when you go see them.

Yeah. Fucking amazing.

My entire body still hurts, and I wasn't able to take any pictures or videos of bands, but I did run into a somewhat familiar face at the merch booth:

There are way too many Davids in this picture.

That's David Davidson (yeah, seriously, that's his name) of Revocation. He was a cool enough dude to actually hang out and chat with people at the merch table, but I didn't really get a chance to talk to him much.

My final verdict on Summer Slaughter 2013 is: totally go see it if it comes to town. It was hands down one of the best shows I've ever been to, and every band (shitty metalcore excluded) played to the nth degree and beyond. And for 35 bucks a ticket, how could you not go?

That's all for now, folks! I'm going to go sleep for a weekend to recover.

-DG

Gupta's Top 10 Albums of 2013 (So Far)

Well, it's that time of year again. Well, not that time of year, but, y'know... that time of year. Not like that time of year, but like that...

It's halfway through the year, is what I'm saying. Christ, do I have to spoon-feed you everything?

#10: Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

The french duo dropped an album this year that serves as both a doozy and a complete curveball to their listeners. Random Access Memories is less of a bumpin' and bangin' house record, and more of a 70s funk rock  danceapollooza. It's got booty-shaking grooves, arm swaying synth, and tons of hooks that just seep into your brain and don't leave until your body is involuntarily shutting down from dancing so much.

#9: Hatebreed - The Divinity of Purpose

Gang vocals. Caveman riffs. Jamey Jasta yelling so hard about believing in yourself that you can feel his wiggerish arm movements guiding your bench presses, curls, and power squats through your earbuds at the gym. In short, it's a Hatebreed record, and I love it.

#8: Yattai - Fast Music Means Love

This is the band that kicked off my connections in the French grind and hardcore scene. These dudes have hooked me up with tons of sick bands and some great opportunities for the blog. But this isn't LinkedIn. This is a music blog. Yattai grind hard, and grind fast. Hard as nails riffs, gut churning vocals, and blistering drums make these 16 tracks hit you like a fully loaded semi. A must listen for grindheads.

#7: Clutch - Earth Rocker

Y'all know how much I love Clutch. This band can make anyone shake their booty with their huge grooves and pounding rhythms. Earth Rocker continues Clutch's straightforward American blues rock approach, and is definitely one of the most energetic and fastest paced albums they've put out. It'll have you boogying and singing into the night.

#6: Ghostface Killah & Adrian Younge - 12 Reasons to Die

Awwww, yisss. Ghostface is back. Pairing up with multi-instrumentalist Adrian Younge, 12 Reasons to Die showcases an awesome supernatural mobster/ revenge story over top of some simplistic but effective production. Blending together some new and old styles of hip-hop make this album fresh to listen to over and over again.

#5: Rotten Sound - Species at War EP

Yeah, I know. It ain't a full length album. Whatever, call the police, I don't give a fuck. Species at War is the next logical step for Rotten Sound take after 2011's Cursed. What I mean by that is, they just re-released a shorted version of Cursed.

Oh, yeah. Also, it's about 10 times heavier. Aural decimation at it's finest.

#4: Nails - Abandon All Life

Nails' debut album, Unsilent Death. It was a quick, devastating blow to your ears of top-notch grind/ powerviolence/ hardcore. Abandon All Life shows Nails expanding on that sound with some longer, bonecrushing tracks alongside the usual blisteringly fast songs. Nails coupled up with Converge's Kurt Ballou, and holy shit, has Kurt turned this album into a fucking beast. Definitely one of the heaviest things I've heard in a long time.
I freakin' loved

#3: El-P & Killer Mike - Run the Jewels

Dang. Last year, both El-P and Killer Mike dropped freaking sweet albums, and while they've been working together for a while (El produced Mike's R.A.P. Music), it's been a while since they released an album together properly. Jewels showcases El's subwoofer-bumping beats and both dudes' impeccable flow and unfuckwithable lyricism, all wrapped up into one quick banger of an album.

#2: Corsair - Corsair

When I reviewed this album, I gave it a score of 5 out of 5. I said it was going to be album of the year. I was almost right. While Corsair is a freaking amazing slab of 70s-prog-meets-80s-NWoBHM, it did get out-shadowed. I'll talk about that in a second, though. To really understand how much I loved this album, I think you should just read my review. There isn't anything more to say than that, really.

#1: The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us is the Killer

If this isn't your #1 album of 2013, I'm not sure if we can be friends anymore. One of Us is the Killer proves that Dillinger cannot make bad music. It's just not possible. Ben Weinman could have just whipped his dick out and slapped it against his guitar for 45 minutes while Greg Puciato rolled around on top of a bed of microphones, but it would still come out as some of the best music around. This album is completely mindblowing, and while the music and production are stellar as always, the thing I like more on Killer than any other Dillinger album is, is the pacing. Soft songs and melodic sections fly by and interrupt the usual cacophonous and face melting  Dillinger sound, making for a album that I could listen to front to back nonstop for days.

Looks like 2013 is shaping up to be a pretty awesome year! What are your favorite albums of the year so far? Let me know in the comments or on Facebook!

That's all for now, folks! Only 34 more days until I get to see Dillinger wreck shit live. Hnnnnnggggggghhh.

-DG

Update: Officially Announcing Grindhouse Vol. 1!

Hey peeps, so you might be wondering what the junk this compilation album that I've been mentioning recently is all about. Well, this post will hopefully clear up any questions you have about it. If you have no idea what I'm talking about in the slightest, just keep reading and you'll figure it out. You're a smart kid.

So what is this Thing?

Grindhouse Vol. 1 is going to be an online compilation album of the very best hardcore, grindcore, crust punk, powerviolence and loud, obnoxious music I've come across with this blog. Not every band on the compilation has had a review on here, but a large majority of them have at one point or another. A couple have even had multiple reviews done here. Keep in mind that since this is mostly a hardcore/ grind comp, all the awesome bands that I've come to know that don't fit into those genres won't be on it. I'd love to have a band like Warseid or Unbowed, or even the awesome Jason James on a comp, but they just don't fit with all these hardcore bands. It isn't that I don't want to help these guys out, it just turned out that a huge amount of the music I get sent is hardcore, so I had many more bands readily available to work with in that genre compared to others.

There's going to be 20 tracks and 20 bands (that's one track per band for everyone keeping track at home), making this a pretty short comp. I'll make it available on Bandcamp once everything is all pieced together. You will be able to stream it there and download it for free so you can jam it on your iPods 'n' shit whenever you want. Cool, right?

What Bands are Going to be on this Comp?

They're all pretty much chosen and sorted out. They are:

• Water Torture
• Yattai
• Crypt Keeper
• Youth Violence
• The Fevered
• Vengeance
• Hiroshima Vacation
• Termination Force
• Haut&Court
• Fat Guy Wears Mystic Wolf Shirt
• Cloud Rat
• Gruesome Stuff Relish
• Clarity
• Homolka
• Degraded
• Tyrants
• Abjured
• Faxe
• Barlow
• Nolentia

I'm only waiting on one more track from Hiroshima Vacation. If you're in a band or know someone who is in a band that fits this grind/ hardcore style, don't be afraid to contact me! I wanted 20 songs as a minimum, so any more just makes this comp even better!

When is it Coming Out?

I dunno. I told you already that I need one more track, then I need to deal with some volume issues between tracks, and then I need some artwork. So truthfully, I have no idea, but I'd love to get it out by the time summer rolls around.

Who is doing the Artwork? And Grindhouse is a Stupid Name.

The artwork for Grindhouse Vol. 1 is being done by a good friend of mine, the ever capable and super sexy Taimoor Khan. Also, Grindhouse is a fucking awesome name, and yes I did steal it from the Tarantino/ Rodriguez double feature.

I swear I'm actually cool.

Once everything is done I'll be sure to announce/ annoy you all again. If anybody has any further questions about this shizz, just shoot me an email/ Facebook message/ tweet/ smoke signal/ carrier pigeon.

That's all for now, folks!

-Grave Dave

Gupta's 2013 Update!

Well howdy everybody! Happy new year! It's been forever, and finally, we're back from our winter hiatus. I hope you're all full of holiday food and drink and have had a rip-roaring good time these past few weeks. Now it's time for a little look into the next year for Needs More Noise Gate, and we've got some sweet shizz planned for you guys over the next twelve months. Take a look:

More Music Reviews: Duh.

More Non-Music Reviews: Maybe movies, books, comics, or games? You let us know what you're interested in, and we'll see what we can do!

Videos: We've got a YouTube account! Depending on how much time we've got to produce content for and maintain our YouTube account, you can expect video reviews, vlogs, and both music and non-music related discussions. Hopefully. Subscribe and find out what'll happen!

Tweets: I've made myself a Twitter account. Yeah. I know. I need to go wash off the shame. I'll mostly be tweeting about blog related stuff; anything that's too small or insignificant to make a post about. Follow and get the most amount of useless information and procrastination that you can out of this blog!

Guest Columns/ Posts: Over the past year, I've been able to make contact with some awesome people in various music scenes. Awesome people who have some awesome (and perhaps not-so-awesome) experiences and stories that they could share. Maybe this will flop, maybe it won't. I won't know until I try.

Interviews: So you read one of our reviews and find a cool band or artist that you dig, but you want to find out more about them. Maybe we'll be able to provide you with that info.

So, as you can see, we've got a whole smack of stuff planned for 2013, and it'll be tough to balance everything else (stupid life, getting in the way of me rambling about music on the internet) and keep things moving forward on the blog front. Fear not readers, for we will prevail!

Lastly, I would just like to thank everyone who has ever read a post, written a post, submitted music to us, recommended music to us, commented, liked us on Facebook, written us an email, threatened to sue us, murder us, or paid us off for good reviews made absolutely 100% excellent music. You guys are seriously all awesome. None of this blog's success (as small as it is) could have happened without you.

I love you guys. Call me sometime.

That's all for now, folks! Let's make 2013 the most based year ever.

-DG