This is intended to give everyone the opportunity to listen/preview new music and in return support these musicians.
If you enjoy what you hear, please support these bands. Buy a record, a shirt, or go to a show. Without these bands,
we wouldn't have a music community that's worth appreciating.
If you would like to submit your/your band's music, send us a current Mediafire link and website. If you have concerns or would like us to remove your music,
please contact us and it will be done immediately. Leave any requests, or suggestions in the chatbox. All music is hosted by Mediafire, Megaupload, etc. so you can't arrest us.
September 22nd is a band from an old friend of mine who, thanks to social networking websites, I have recently reconnected with. They were based out of the Memphis area (Jackson to be exact) and, in my opinion, were years ahead of their time.
They combined metal and sludge in a way that doesn't stray to far from Old Man Gloom or a slower Converge along with long, ambient ISIS-like parts. In the early to mid 2000's the southeast was plagued with a lot of mediocre and all together shitty "metal" or heavy bands, but 9/22 always stood out to me, even when I moved away from them. This is a truly a classic album, and to those select few nerds who actually know what the name September 22nd means, you're awesome.
Two things are for sure, I hate Philadelphia sports teams and I love music from Philadelphia, and Ladder Devils are no exception to said rule. Ladder Devils have crafted one of the most under rated and unknown masterpieces of 2010. This grand opus is entitled "Forget English."
Ladder Devils' sound is somewhere in between Torch Runner or Low Sky and Young Widows or GRIDS. It's slow and sludgy, but not too slow and sludgy. While it sounds like some of the mentioned bands it has it's own uniqueness. It has a more "epic" production; almost as if Young Widows and Pelican collided in a dirty, nasty head on collision on a dreary night.
A lot of records like this you listen to once or twice and just write it off as it sounding like everything else, but this one is special. This one I will be spinning for a long time. Donate whatever you can to this band so they can keep creating wonderful tunes.
New Miseries is a hardcore band from PA trying to get their name and music out. This one is for fans of Dead Hearts and early Comeback Kid. Thanks to the band for sending it in.
Girlfriends is a one man band fronted by Jerry Joiner from Pullman, WA. Nothing that I know of sounds like this, but it's a great combination. The majority of songs consist of 3 or more overlapping looped guitars, drums, and occasional synth. It's more electronic than not, but combined with elements of math rock, indie, and post hardcore, it's solid. Even in a few songs (The Apocalypse Made Me Brave) you can pick up some 90s emo. It would be great if you donated some cash when you download!
A few videos can be found on youtube of live performances, but watching some select people in the audience was irritating. Here's something of less quality but it still gives you the idea of how he tracks each song. I normally have a strong distaste for "dance bands", I didn't even know Algernon Cadwallader was one until I saw them in October, but I would have no problem getting down to this.
Logs are a 3-piece band currently based out of Olympia, Washington, featuring members of Kidcrash. They have a new album entitled Hogz, and frankly, it sounds like Kidcrash at times, which is not a bad thing by any stretch of the imagination. Apparently it was recorded back in 2008 but never released. You know the deal: mathy guitar, thick grooves, shouted vocals.
This is Freddie Gibbs, and he is on the verge of blowing up. Gibbs resides from the rough Chicago suburb of Gary, Indiana and from that rough blue collar town he delivers a very unique style of rough, raw yet honest hip-hop.
He combines the sounds of modern "radio" hip hop with the sounds of modern "underground" hip hop, but not stopping there, two of Gibbs' biggest influences are Tupac Shakur and Bone Thugs. Now think about it; modern hip hop combined with underground hip hop combined with 90's hip hop. This is some incredibly real hip hop that is balancing that tight rope between staying unknown and getting huge, and will get huge if the radio/MTV community could just get used to a hip hop scene like there was in the 90's
Be sure to listen to the tracks "The Ghetto" and "National Anthem (Fuck the World)." Both are truly great hip hop tracks.
The American Dollar are a 2-piece ambient/post-rock band from Queens, New York. Back in 2008 they released one of my favorite instrumental albums ever, A Memory Stream. This is an album I hold very dear. I've spent dozens of late night drives blaring this at an absurdly loud volume. The album has a very cinematic scope, equal parts introspective and personal, like it could be the soundtrack to your life. It's full of absolutely gorgeous electronic flourishes and twinkly guitars drenched in reverb and delay. It would be a crime not to listen to A Memory Stream start to finish, as each track synthesizes with what came before, creating a dreamy, layered, and textural experience.
Another great thing is it's accessibility. Contrary to typical post-rock fare, there are no intimidating 9-minute crescendos and shattering, coma-inducing cathartic releases. With their own natural ebb and flow, tracks average a modest 4 minutes, like tiny self-contained mini-epics.
Check out this awesome video for their song "Anything You Synthesize." The piano lead at 3:10 gets me every time.
Tall Ships are a 3-piece indie/math-rock band from the United Kingdom. They just put out a new EP entitled There Is Nothing But Chemistry Here which is another solid release from one of my favorite labels, Big Scary Monsters. Tall Ships just recently finished a couple overseas dates with Minus The Bear, and as you can imagine, borrow a bit from that group's established sound. Fans of Maps & Atlases and the aforementioned Minus The Bear will find this EP traverses familiar territory, though not necessarily derivative, as songs like "Plate Tectonics" and "Chemistry" stand strong and proud among their noodley brethren. Not to be missed.
posted on Thursday, November 25, 2010 @ 11:56 PM | back to the top.
Repost- Basement Life
I'm reposting from the Topshelf board about this awesome documentary. -Em so i started this about a year ago, when i was still living and running its a kling thing! house. its nearing completion and i wanted to post something about it here. we had a kickstarter page (love it or hate it, its good for certain things) but it didnt reach the goal and it never was funded; since then ive been taking donations via paypal to help with the packaging of the DVD (which will be in a chipboard case with screened, hand numbered covers). the people who donated to kickstarter and transfered those donations to the paypal are still getting the rewards they picked, but those of you who donate from now on will only have the option of getting a DVD / download.
bands include native, into it over it, empire empire, pswingset, papermoons, mountains for clouds, the reptilian, worn in red, sakes alive, the kids united, annabel, former thieves, snowing, and more!
-if you want a dvd, donate $10+ (and make sure to include your address, name, and that youre donating for a DVD in the note section) -if you just want to help out, donate anything else!
Colony is a New York based down tempo hardcore band, heavy stuff. They recently released a 7" so check it out. They play at Unit Six in Jacksonville in January with Cason's band Legacies.
This is another record label worth telling everyone about. Alex runs Raise Your Fist Records and this awesome blog Every Birthday Card I Threw Away. He has been releasing his own music as well as friend's music since he was 15; very commendable. I've learned that being young and listening to great music is a huge privilege and one up on you old dudes.
He sent over this free download section so please donate even 3 bucks. Also check out this 4 way split, expect more splits in this season themed series. Everyone of you should love and support these hardworking labels.
So this is unusual of us, more so new, but we're really trying to expand things here at Heavy Boots. This great label from Denmark called Red Tape sent us their bands pages, unfortunately without download links! All post previous to this are linked to some form of download/preview but these bands were very on point. Check them out anyways, and hopefully I will be emailed back with some download links.
We posted Low Place's album Violent Hunger a few months back and they're releasing this new stuff. LA based power violence/ thrash, thanks to the band for sending it over. FFO Cursed, Tragedy, and His Hero is Gone.
Monument released a 3 song 7" (get it here) a while ago in 2008 that was all the rage for all the right reasons. The new record is brilliant, this band should be hyped up a lot more. They are heavily influenced by 90s indie/emo that everyone can easily compare to Cap'n Jazz and American Football.
If you enjoy catchy up beat songs, 90s emo, sunny melodies, math rock, sing a longs, and the current wave of bands like My Heart to Joy, Algernon, Snowing, and Hightide Hotel, you MUST MUST MUST get this.
-Em, Yes I have nothing better to do onThanksgiving.
Kerouac are a 4-piece hardcore band from the United Kingdom. They just put out their debut EP Cold And Distant, Not Loving. 7 tracks of very heavy, often technical hardcore, like a Converge/Cursed hybrid. Solid all around.
This is the new EP from Kent, Ohio's Annabel. To be honest, I just found this and decided to throw it up and haven't listened to it yet, but last years release by them was one of my favorite records of 2009, therefore I have no doubt that this will be just as good if not better.
If you have never listened to Annabel, you are in for a treat. Their sound is the perfect mixture of Death Cab For Cutie and Q and Not U; quiet and intimate while remaining passionate and intricate. Please enjoy.
Midi & The Modern Dance are a very cool band from Connecticut. I think they have 8 members currently. They just put out a new full length entitled Make It Easy On Yourself which is fantastic. You can call them an indie rock band but that really means nothing. Often times they can be delicate and poised ("Lucky") and other times they get loud and cause quite a fuss ["Everything I Touch (Just Falls Apart)"]. They rule either way. They do not discriminate when it comes to ruling, and which way to go about it.
Talented brother and sister duo from Sydney who are extremely popular in Australia and Europe as of late. Both had solo projects until the collaboration and lead vocals alternate song to song. I'm leaving this one up to you all, personally I am quite picky when it comes to female vocals, but these I love. The basic idea; folky, polished, less "in your face" Joanna Newsom (she's only irritating sometimes) with male vocals. I recommend listening to Draw Your Swords first, it's a beautiful soothing song (for Angus) and Hold On or And the Boys (for Julia).
It's not a secret. Mark Kozelek is my favorite singer/songwriter of all time. His solo work along with his work in Red House Painters and Sun Kil Moon is some of my all time favorite of not just current singer/songwriters, but of all time. If you aren't familiar with his work, Kozelek crafts some of the most quiet, melancholy mostly autobiographical Americana tunes this side of Idaho, Ida, Great Lake Swimmers, Seam and Slowdive. Kozelek is known to be one of the main figureheads of the "slowcore" movement of the 90's.
The Nights LP is a live LP that is now out of print and was only paired exclusively with Kozelek's first book "Nights of Past Over" and is, in my opinion, some of Kozelek's best work. It is a smorgasbord of songs from his solo career, Red House Painters career, current Sun Kil Moon career and his famous various cover songs. I feel this particular LP stands out so much because of the variations of his older songs. This version of Drop is utterly and completely heartbreaking and the "jam" version of Carry Me Ohio is great. His music is perfect for the oncoming onslaught of short grey days. Please enjoy.
After The National's High Violet, this is my absolute favorite record of the year.
Ef are a 5-piece post-rock band from Sweden. Back in April they released their 3rd full-length Mourning Golden Morning. Very rarely do albums root themselves in my head like this one. Whether dark and brooding ("K-141 KYPCK"), or bright and buoyant ("Sons of Ghosts"), Mourning runs the gamut of dynamic, emotional post-rock. As visceral as Russian Circles or as delicate as Explosions InThe Sky, Ef is able to meld lush instrumentation, gorgeous string arrangements, massive swells of noise, and dueling male / female vocals into one of the finest examples of the genre in recent memory. This album is fantastic through and through, and should not be missed. "Longing for Colors" could very well be the most beautiful song I've heard all year.
The Weakerthans are great and far from under appreciated, that goes without saying, but I feel that Weakerthans frontman John K. Samson's solo work is very, very under appreciated. In these stripped down, slower and more melancholy solo 7 inches Samson really flourishes. He has always had a way to make very self emotional inducing melodies in The Weakerthans layered with his witty, educated and pitch perfect lyrics but on these 7 inches these qualities really shine.
If you are a fan of The Weakerthans or just solid, quality song writing then pick these up today. In my opinion, "City Route 85" is much better, but you decide.
Noumenon are a 3-piece mathy behemoth of a band from Chicago, IL. Their latest release is an incredible 5 song EP entitled Party Mathematics. You can download it for free from their Bandcamp page. They are very fun and often times very heavy but always squirming. These guys noodle like their life depended on it, and it's awesome. One listen to "Algoresrhythm" and you will be converted. I hope this band takes over the world.
Hey all, my name is Mike and I was asked by Kyle and Emily to post on Heavy Boots. I love the blog so that was absolutely a no-brainer. I live on the other side of the country in Las Vegas and I look forward to contributing to an already outstanding blog.
Early and Often are a 4-piece emo/post rock band from Northern California. Their latest release is a 3-song EP entitled Phenomenally Yours. Fans of Mineral and Appleseed Cast will love this. The last track of the EP is a sweet Radiohead cover. They offer their entire discography for free download on their website, which is awesome. The song "Blood On The Verve" they have posted on their Myspace is a great introduction to the band. Enjoy.
Don't you hate it when you get into a band and realize you had a chance to see them just two weeks before, but didn't realize it? I know I do. North Carolina's Grids played The Fest a few weeks back and I hadn't heard about them so I just decided to skip over them. I saw several people carrying this LP around with them and I made a mental note to check them out when I got home, and now I'm beyond bummed I slept on this band.
I hate straight up comparing bands to other bands, but I'm going to. Grids are like one of my other favorite bands, Young Widows. It's grungy, sludgy, noisy heavy punk rock/rock that is soaked in reverb and static. This band belongs in Louisville and on Jade Tree or Hydra Head Records or something.
Don't be a chump like me and sleep on this band. The band is giving out the download link to this new record but still support them in anyway possible.
If you're a fan of heavy music Omega Massif is what you're looking for. This is their first full length. Released on Denovali Records. Heavy instrumental down-tempo post metal from Germany. I can't help but bang my head every time I listen to this record. It's on point. Be on the lookout for something new dropping this year from these guys.
Fuck, I'm a Ghost from FutureRecordings is an extremely underplayed indie/experimental rock band from California (250 listeners according to Last.fm). I immediately ordered this album, not to mention it has a neat silkscreened hand sewn cover. Songs on this self titled album reach across a spectrum of influences, in which I find perfect. A good amount of songs can be broadly explained as Modest Mouse with comparable vocals of Interpol. "Short Straw" and "Drop of a Hat" definitely remind me of Brand New, specifically The Devil and God (me; not much of a Daisy fan).
Aside from comparing this band to to others, they have a mixture of their own. "Train Robber" brings the all popular catchy/pop lo-fi surf guitars. "Vessel" has a 3 minute instrumental/ambient ending and the progression of songs is on key. Plenty of instrumental duels and explosive build ups to satisfy anyone. If you enjoy this album go over to FutureRecording's store and order the record. Thanks to Michael from Caravels for the suggestion. Be sure to check their post on here as well.
There are a lot of of epic, sludgy, orchestrated, instrumental and beautiful bands out there right now. Russian Circles, If Trees Could Talk, Gift of Enola; the list goes on and on. In a category with titans as these it would really take a very talented and artistic band to top all of them, and North Carolina's Braveyoung aims to do just that.
The band formerly known as Giant changed their named to Braveyoung, released this EP (although only two songs, both clock in slightly under 20 minutes) and knocked the music scenes legs out from under them. Playing a heavy style of music that doesn't stray too far from If Trees Could Talk and mixing it with long, ambient and atmospheric God Speed You! Black Emperor-esque parts make for one powerful and moving listening experience.
This bands upcoming full length has been on my radar for some time and seeing as some of these members are now in Low Sky (which is also posted on this blog), I have become weary of said full length, but nevertheless I will still patiently wait for it.
Dakota/Dakota's "Shoot in the Dark," is one more the more underrated and overlooked records of it's genre, and it's a real shame. Featuring Mike Sullivan and Colin DeKuiper, who went on to be 2/3 of Chicago instrumental giants Russian Circles, one would be hard pressed to find a lot of similarities between Dakota/Dakota and Russian Circles on a first listen.
Although both bands are instrumental, they are polar opposites. As you know, Russian Circles features long, sludgy and "stoner" metal ballads, whereas Dakota/Dakota holds tightly to it's Chicago/Midwest noodley math rock roots, not straying to far from bands such as Pele, Ghosts of Vodka and even at quieter at times bands like Very Secretary and American Football. There are similarities to Russian Circles in there, but you will need a few listens to hear them. If you have overlooked this record in the past now is the perfect time to break that habit.
This is the second 7 inch that Kid Sister sent us and I'm stoked about this one. Mountain Asleep hails from one of my favorite music scenes, Louisville Kentucky and are part of a new young movement in hardcore. Although Mountain Asleep is calling it quits the end of the year, everyone should check out this and all their releases. They play their own, unique brand of pop punk and hardcore. Not straying to far from bands like Big Kids. Think a slowed down Latterman, slightly heavier and nosier. Not to be missed. Thanks again to Harrison from Kid Sister for these two releases.
Harrison from Kid Sister Everything sent us a couple of awesome 7 inches to post on here. The first being from Antilles. I'm pretty sure anyone who would be reading this has heard of this band, but if not, they are chaotic, noisy and technical math rock/screamo from Ohio. Shrieking vocals, chaotic drumming and jaunty, off timed guitars make up this unique, yet solid Ohio outfit. Please check them out, but more importantly support Harrison over at Kid Sister.
I'm breaking the mold on this one. Thelonious Monk is, in my opinion, the best jazz pianist to ever live. He makes the piano comes alive, makes it sound so easy, and where a lot of jazz pianist make the piano sound so harsh and abrasive he makes me silky smooth while still technical.
I won't spend a long time talking about him (hence why I added his wikipedia link above), and I know I'm doing wrong by posting this record and not one of his greater ones, but it's just so good. This is Monk playing the tunes of the great Duke Ellington. This is one of my favorite records. I thank my friend Justin for showing me Monk when I lived in Alabama and my friend Mike for reminding me of him. If you are a fan of good, talented musicians, get this now and the rest of his catalog.
posted on Saturday, November 6, 2010 @ 2:36 PM | back to the top.
Grown Ups need everyone's help!
One of my very favorite bands (also top candidate for best new band) had their van broken into the their gear stolen last night. Donations are much appreciated and can be sent directly to the band via Paypal to ihategrownups@gmail.com. Reposting this other places can help greatly as well.
I expect some of you have downloaded their album for free from our blog or from other sources, and they deserve a lot more. I know it's rough for everyone and we're all broke, but this is one of those times where $5 can help. This is one of those times where a band asks for something in return, so please help out the most you can. Thanks for taking the time, :)
posted on Thursday, November 4, 2010 @ 9:24 PM | back to the top.
FEST 9
Hello everyone,
We're finally rested and back on normal schedules after having a great Halloween weekend at The Fest. Kyle and I drove down to Gainesville on Saturday morning and stayed though Sunday night on about 4 hours of sleep. We spent some of our Saturday with voiceless Cason who played on Friday in Legacies, and unfortunately Jeff got unlucky and had mono.
Since the Fest board is doing a pros/cons & summaries thread, we figured we'd do one here also. On top of that, we had stickers made that were a huge disappointment. They're cheaply made, 24 hour pressed with small text. In a few days we will have a picture of them and we'll figure a way to get them to anyone who wants them (we have 500). We might just have some other pictures to share. Thanks for listening to us rant and rave.
-Em
Em's Fest
My first Fest, pretty awesome for being so young.
+ Seeing a ton of great bands (esp. Grown Ups and Pianos)
+ Going to the 2am warehouse show
+ Reggae Shack vegan steak
+ The No Idea record/ garage sale
+ Meeting Kevin from Topshelf
+ Lots of people watching
- Getting someone's ID taken away, not getting into The Venue or 8 Seconds
- Dick doormen, 18+ venues
- Cops shutting warehouse show down
- The HUGE line at the Atlantic
- The crusty who rubbed his HIV shirt on my feet
- Creeps
- Killer feet, bad bones, and not enough nice people
Kyle's Fest
This was my first Fest as well, and was overwhelmed, but all in all very happy.
+ Getting to see Grown Ups, Pianos Become the Teeth, Former Thieves and Paint it Black
+ The warehouse show
+ Getting away out of town.
+ The sense of community
+ Reggae Shack's jerk Chicken and the burning, pink lips that ensued.
+ Meeting Kevin from Top Shelf and all the bands on that label.
+ Seeing old Alabama friends
- Cops
- Heat
- Lack of sleep
- Shoe blisters
- Creeps
- Meeting new incredible people living far away
- The fact it had to end
Cason's Fest
So, this was I believe my 4th or 5th Fest experience. I wish I could say it was as good as the rest. And I'll leave it at that.
+Playing a show at Mars
+Seeing High On Fire
+Seeing friends
+Getting drunk at Stubbies with Tash and some dude from England
+A special cookie
- WAY too many people
- Not getting to see the bands I wanted to see
- Not getting to see certain friends
- Cops
- Shitty people
- Not having a voice and having to tell secrets
- The smells
In reality we could just say "We love Topshelf Records" and be done with this, but we won't be so quick. Caravels is a great post/melodic hardcore band from Las Vegas. I personally favor emotionally-tuned post hardcore and this fits; teeming with build ups and abrupt ambient breaks. It makes an incredible playlist combined with Pianos Become the Teeth, good fall/winter tunes.
Baltimore, MD's Pianos Become the Teeth are something very, very special. I was extremely into this band before I ventured an hour southwest The Fest, and they were one of the bands I was looking most forward to seeing. I had read reviews that their live sets were an experience, little did I know I would get to see them three times. Once in a bar, once in a parking lot and once in a warehouse here in Jacksonville.
Nothing could prepare me for what I witnessed. I observed something I hadn't seen in a long, long time in this dying music scene. What I saw was a band so sincere, so creative, so innocent and so heartfelt. I didn't know the backstory about what this record was mainly about, but after I read the interview I included in the links above I was brought to tears.
I don't know the last time I watched a band for the first time and was this blown away. Not only was each member extremely dialed into their instruments (one of the best drumming performances I have ever seen), but you could tell this band was feeding off one another, almost in that "band of brothers" type way. They weren't moving and playing as 5 individuals, but as one unit. As one beautiful machine.
I realize I haven't talked about what the record sounds like at all, but to sum it up let me quote an acquaintance, "finally an American band that can be compared to Envy." I understand most of you already have this record, but if you don't please BUY it immediately. Not only is this band incredible, but Top Shelf is the best, most honest and hard working label out there currently. Also, please read in the interview posted above with vocalist Kyle Durfey. It will really put this record into perspective. This is the record of the year and without a doubt one of the top bands of the decade.
Lo-fi garage rock from Purchase, New York. They've played with Titus Andronicus, Julian Lynch and others. If you like their sound watch out for a 7 inch in late December. Thanks to the band for sending it over.
