Hard Rock – ojdo

The Smashing Pumpkins – [2000] MACHINA II / The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music

A true case of an underground release. Uncompromising hard rock, akin to Nine Inch Nails marrying AC/DC, straight from vinyl.

Yes, this is a release by the Smashing Pumpkins, released by the artists partly in protest against their record label. The original release consisted of only 25 hand-pressed LPs, which found their way to radio stations and devoted fans, with instructions to duplicate and spread the record. And so it did. This version was digitized by a radio station, so hopefully this is as close as possible to the band’s intentions, and those are: rock hard.

Still Pluto – [2014] Songs To Mend The Heart Once Been Torn Apart

Solid soft hard rock. Very well recorded and produced vocal rock music; hard to place on the spectrum between soft and hard rock.

Still Pluto do very conventional, very solid rock in North West Russia (Petrozavodsk, to be precise). From there, their music reached me through the catalogue indie rock netlabel Southern City Lab. So if you are tired of the umpteenth minimal techno release, give this source a try. But back to this week’s offer: Continue reading “Still Pluto – [2014] Songs To Mend The Heart Once Been Torn Apart”

Spit Rusty – [2011] Underwhelmed

Punchy hard rock from Denmark. Loud, very loud. And fast. And LOUD. Erm… what else? Oh yeah, they have cool guitar riffs, excellent drum patterns, transitions. Head-shake-inducing chorus lines. Cannot. Write. Long. Sentences. Must. Move… Read on for my two favourite tracks and the obligatory release link…
Continue reading “Spit Rusty – [2011] Underwhelmed”

Nine Inch Nails – [2008] The Slip

Nine Inch Nails is a industrial rock band with experimental touch. This is exactly what I wrote Last year in my review on Ghosts I – IV. While the latter contained 36 improvised tracks, The Slip consists of 10 composed, recorded, and produced tracks. They showcase Trent Reznor’s style that later got featured prominently in the soundtracks of The Social Network and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. This album ranges from ambient ballads with mellow piano to white-noise-laden rock furiosos. Take a nip, even if you think that’s not your cup of tea: Continue reading “Nine Inch Nails – [2008] The Slip”