Read Poets Society

    A Deeper Understanding is a collection of shimmering, chrome plated dreams, and decidedly less dark than all previous material. 2014's Lost In The Dream was recorded solely by main man Adam Granduciel as he lay in a pit of anxiety post-breakup (or so I've read), and was a miserly exercise in self-pity and melancholy. On this new album Granduciel has invited his live band into the recording studio with him for a more collaborative process, making way for more hopeful, bright and glitzy tracks that meander along, hopping from detail to detail in hypnotically repetitive cycles. While this shift does detract from the aspect of The War On Drugs' music I gravitated to most strongly, A Deeper Understanding is still a competent - if slightly one-note - record.    Favourite Tracks: Pain, Nothing To Find and Thinking Of A Place     Least Favourite Tracks: Holding On and Clean Living     Rating: C  

   It's obviously taken me far to long to get into Queens of the Stone Age, because Villans , my first experience of the band, is a damn good rock album. After a subdued intro on opener "Feet Don't Fail Me" the first of many killer riffs lets rip, and it's glorious. Infused with some distinctly 80s-sounding synths, the build up is pitch perfect as the simple but effective groove takes hold, complete with a wah-pedal on the bass guitar adding a funk edge. The production sounds a lot like classic Stones or Zeppelin, giving it a homey, familiar sound beneath the toe-tapping and riffage. The band aren't afraid to branch out and experiment, either, with a number of songs breaking the six minute mark with winding, linear structures and proggy passages. One of the things I love about the band's sound is the variety in guitar tones without loss of cohesion - there are so many funky sounds and odd moments across the album, but they never feel out of place or jarrin

   Where do you go after penning an hour-long tale of a relationship doomed by terminal cancer and subsequent depression, substance abuse and suicide attempts? The fact that Gang of Youths frontman and songwriter David Le'aupepe had anything left to say - let alone an EP and then a double album epic - in the two years since 2015's beautifully tragic The Positions is quite frankly remarkable. For Go Farther In Lightness to be as compelling and emotionally draining as it is, then, is mind-blowing. The musical well was obviously still rich for Gang of Youths, and they have released a sprawling epic that stands up confidently next to The Positions . Symphonic interludes provide a grand backdrop for the decidedly larger sounding album that also manages to slip in some of the most intimate moments in their already sparkling catalogue. It's this feeling of comprehensiveness - that they have covered all bases - that makes Go Farther In Lightness such a rich and immersive experien

   Here we are at album number 3 in 2017 for King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard (with two more to come!), and as expected they haven't simply released Murder of the Universe or Flying Microtonal Banana  part 2. Sketches of Brunswick East (referencing Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain and Stu McKenzie's hometown in Melbourne) is a more jazz-leaning collaboration with Mild High Club from Los Angeles. There are references to earlier works littered throughout the album, like a very Flying Banana section in "D-Day" coloured by microtonal tuning, which is likely due to the different writing process undertaken while on tour with Mild High Club. Stu McKenzie has called it "sampling culture, in which old ideas are reshaped and suddenly things make sense. It was like we were continually jamming with ourselves." This actually drew a mixed response from me; whereas the continuous nature of albums like Nonagon Infinity and Murder of the Universe created an unstoppable

   Brand New's fifth and likely final album is a breathtaking final chapter for the genre-defining emo group. From front to back I was completely enamoured with Science Fiction , and repeat listens have only increased my love for it. It's dark, twisted, beautiful and apocalyptic, frequently treading into meta territory and demanding your full attention to fully comprehend what you're hearing. I can't front like I'm one of the die-hard Brand New fans that treat their music as something close to a religion (similar to Radiohead or Tool fans), but The Devil & God Are Raging Inside Me definitely   remains one of my favourite albums, and I have enjoyed their other material. Science Fiction immediately has the air of a classic, and I can truthfully say that it already pushes at TDAGARIM in terms of lyrics, music and overall structure. I hate to say things like this, but Science Fiction is possibly the best album I've heard so far this year, and it doesn't seem

   Thy Art's new album Dear Desolation tips the balance of their signature deathcore sound towards more traditional death metal, giving us a more melancholy, desperate kind of fury. Breakdowns and chuggy-chugs are still very much present, but the classic death metal sound was bliss to my ears, not having expected that kind of shift in sound. CJ's vocals are typically brutal and powerful - no surprises here - but the real heroes of this record are Andy Marsh and Sean Delander, whose songwriting and riffs are as sharp as they have ever been, pulling out the murkiest elements of death metal and incorporating them into their deathcore sound. There isn't much in the way of variety, but hey it's a death metal record, and one of the better one's to come out in the last few years.    Favourite Songs: Dear Desolation, Slaves Beyond Death, and The Skin of the Serpent     Least Favourite Song: Fire In The Sky    Rating: 8/10

   Welsh pop-punk group Neck Deep's third full-length album is another really strong offering of instantly singable tracks, and a reminder to me that pop-punk can be interesting when done right. Having said this, The Peace & The Panic is a slight step down from the excellent Life's Not Out To Get You overall, despite some of the band's best tracks being on this new album. "Happy Judgement Day", "In Bloom" and "Don't Wait" (which features a slightly less exciting than was hoped feature from Architects' Sam Carter) are all fantastic, and "Where Do We Go When We Go" finishes the record with probably my favourite of the eleven songs. There is a slight sonic change to be heard on this new album, with a change in guitarist. A lot has happened to the band in between album cycles, including singer Ben Barlow's father passing, so it is no surprise that this is not the same Neck Deep we heard on Life's Not Out To Get You . W

   I wasn't entirely sure what to be expecting on this album, but for the most part I was actually pleasantly surprised. Obviously the things Kesha has had to persevere through are horrendous, but she seems to tackle them with vitality and bombastic energy across some great pop tracks tinged with her signature country sound. There are a number of missteps, though, and while there is certainly a lot to be admired about the fact this album exists, let alone is this fully realised and strong, ultimately I'm not huge on her brand of dance music (year 5 nostalgia can only carry my enjoyment of this album so far). Solid, but not to my taste.    Favourite Songs: Let 'Em Talk and Praying     Least Favourite Song: Hunt You Down     Rating: 5/10

   If your idea of a good time is being beaten up and kicked repeatedly on the ground, the debut album from Justice For The Damned will be right up your alley. Jokes aside, though, it's a brutal, bruising listen, the only real reprieves from the sludgy grooves, blast beats and huge growls and pit calls coming with the first minute or so of "Beyond The Pale" and the interlude track "For Your Eyes Only". This isn't necessarily a bad thing - the band's biggest strength is their affinity for mammoth compositions of filthy riffs and crushing, bone-shuddering breakdowns (employed with impeccable taste). There is a tangible energy to these songs too, something I was fortunate enough to experience at their set supporting the excellent Ocean Grove the other week, that translates really well from a live setting to this album. There is no standout "bad song" here, simply a collection of some of the hardest, most brutal hardcore/metal jams you'll hear

   Cursed Earth's UNFD debut release Cycles of Grief Vol 1: Growth is just under 10 minutes of unbridled fury, hate and ire, painted with Nails-esque sludgy guitars and an impressive performance from vocalist Jazmine Luders (it's also refreshing to see a female fronting a band in such an overwhelmingly male dominated genre). The riffs are hard, fast and face-melting. The drums are well balanced and provide the punch they should in this type of music. The bass almost never emerges from the wall of sludge (it does rear its head at the back end of "War March"), but that is to be expected and isn't so much a let-down as a missed opportunity. There's no breathing space here; they're in and out before you have a chance to compose yourself, and this is this EP's greatest strength. Were this a full-length there would need to be a lot more variety and dynamic contrast to remain interesting and heavy, but for a little 10 minute taster it is white hot and brutal

   Hikari is one of a number of metalcore records this year that have intentionally attempted to break new ground in the genre, and for that it is definitely worth a listen. The mix of almost absurd vocals and mechanical riffs with the new found Japanese influence they're going for on this album don't always stick, though; the prime example of this being single "Hansha". The contradictions between the two worlds of extreme and pretty are incredibly jarring across the entire album, shifting from a relatively standard chorus (albeit with Japanese instrumentation underneath) to one of their ridiculous chug fests with almost no warning. I appreciate what they're trying to pull off, there are certainly moments of greatness sprinkled across it, and the introduction of more clean vocals this time around is a huge improvement on earlier albums. But Hikari simply falls into many of the same metalcore cliches once you crack open the veneer and is schizophrenic to the point