If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Keaton Beach For their latest single, Chicago industrial rappers Angry Blackmen have brought in Fatboi Sharif. "Dead Men Tell No Lies" might fit the term "industrial" the most of any of their previous singles. The song starts off with the noisy and sparse sound we've come to expect from the duo, but then the song takes off with a wall of noise that would make anything off The Downward Spiral happy. "Dead Men Tell No Lies" is an intense song that warps into different sounds as it goes on, which just ramps up the intensity. As with anything from Angry Blackmen, this isn't an easy listen, and it's certainly not meant to be background music. Turn this one up and let the song wash over you for the full experience. You can listen to "Dead Men Tell No Lies" below. The Legend of ABM is due out January 26 on Deathbomb Arc, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Angry Blackmen, check out the artist on Instagram and Facebook...

Photo by Joseph Torres Quentin Branch and Brian Warren, aka Chicago's Angry Blackmen, have released a new experimental hip hop song off their upcoming album. "Sabotage" continues with their previous single, "Stanley Kubrick," as one of the most exciting hip hop songs out there in a while. While Angry Blackmen don't sound anything like Public Enemy, they're the closest I can compare them to. Both bands weren't always the most pleasant listen. Both had devised their music to be uncomfortable at times, and are both more punk than most punk of their day. Also, both are thrilling artists to discover and immediately seem vital. Angry Blackmen's Quentin Branch says of the new single: “'Sabotage' is a critique on our love / hate relationship with capitalism and perspectives on mental health. It’s a track that sounds upbeat and vibrant on the surface but when you dig deeper into the lyrics the song has a bit more nuance. Brian’s verse is more focu...

Photo by Joseph Torres For their upcoming album, Angry Blackmen (the Chicago based duo of Quentin Branch and Brian Warren) created a "... coming of age narrative centered around Black men navigating this wilderness known as North America," and received inspiration from Richard Matheson's post-apocalyptic novel I Am Legend. The first single off the album is "Stanley Kubrick." It's a progressive hip hop track that is uncomfortably sparse. At first it's vocals over a bare minimum of music, if any at all. It takes a while for beats to truly kick in, and even then the music is used sparingly, although it's a noisy burst of sound. "Stanley Kubrick" reminds me of early Public Enemy, where the music was crafted to purposely make you uncomfortable. Angry Blackmen are a thrilling group, even if it ends up not being your thing. You can watch the video for "Stanley Kubrick" below. The Legend of ABM is due out January 26 on Deathbomb Arc. For ...

It was only last week that we brought you a new song from Pumpkin Witch, but they're already back with another new song! "Wandering on the Moonlit Manor" sounds like a horror movie soundtrack in the best possible way. It sounds like the best John Carpenter scores but amped up a bit and meant to be listened to in the foreground. This is just eerie, disturbing music that is perfect for lovers of Halloween and everything spooky. If there was a Nightmare on Elm Street movie that had one of the teenagers fall asleep in the chill out room of a rave, this is what it would sound like once they started dreaming. You can listen to "Wandering on the Moonlit Manor" below. The Return of the Pumpkin Witch is due out October 13 on Deathbomb ARC, and can be pre-ordered via Bandcamp . The Return of the Pumpkin Witch by Pumpkin Witch

If you love Halloween like I do, just seeing that there is an artist named Pumpkin Witch that has released a song called "The Return of the Pumpkin Witch" is going to thrill you. It also helps that the song is pretty great. It's a four minute instrumental track that sounds wonderfully eerie and combines electronic music with the noise of indie rock. To me it sounds like the chill out room at a rave around Halloween and also if the chill out room is meant to be anxiety inducing... but in a fun way. If you have a fondness for laid back electronic music, abrasive indie rock, and Halloween, you might end up loving Pumpkin Witch. You can listen to "The Return of the Pumpkin Witch" below. The Return of the Pumpkin Witch is due out October 13 on Death Bomb Arc, and can be pre-ordered via Bandcamp . The Return of the Pumpkin Witch by Pumpkin Witch

Despite not being a fan of modern R&B, I've been an Ed Balloon fan for a few years now. That's because Balloon brings such a unique and interesting style to a genre that's typically anything but. He recently released a new EP, I Hate It Here. As with any of Balloon's releases, there is one standout, mind blowing track. This time around it's "Bad Gyall." This song is like a noise rock version of R&B. It's still R&B, but it's aggressive, and loud, and in your face, basically everything R&B isn't. If R&B went punk, it would be "Bad Gyall." While that might be my personal favorite song on I Hate It Here , there is plenty to love on the EP. "I Need This Cash" is more traditional sounding, if an industrial band like Ministry went back to their New Wave roots and tweaked their sound to include both. "Lonely A$$" is a bizarro jam that (as the kids say) slaps. You can listen to "Bad Gyall" belo...

Photo via Facebook There's been a resurgence of hip hop that eschews the standard trope of an obvious sample and an R&B chorus, and we're all for that. Our latest discovery is Angry Blackmen's new single "PROTOCOL!" At just over two minutes, the song has more in common with punk than mainstream hip hop. The music isn't exactly as rough as early hip hop, but it's not quite smooth either. It's a harsh yet mellow electronic burst with industrial sounding beats. This blends with the two members of Angry Blackmen's flow: They're laid back but intense. You can watch the video for "PROTOCOL!" below. HEADSHOTS! , the new album from Angry Blackmen, is available now via Deathbomb Arc. You can get a copy at the label's Bandcamp . For more on Angry Blackmen, check out the artist's Facebook and Twitter .

Just about any time I write about hip hop here, I mention that my teenage years were filled with listening to hip hop but I don't find much to listen to these days. For the most part, hip hop hasn't really progressed since Puff Daddy mastered the huge 80's hit sample/R&B chorus formula that still pervades most hip hop. SHADI destroys that formula completely. As a young Arab man living in Conservative Florida, he has a lot to rage against. And on "Lord Mohamed," rage he does. The press release for SHADI describes his music as "noise rap," and I can't argue that at all. "Lord Mohamed" barely follows normal song structures let alone normal hip hop formulas. It's almost a freestyle stream of consciousness throughout the entire nearly six minute run of the song with SHADI barely pausing to take a breath. And musically? I don't even know what to say. It's a mash of guitars, flutes, human voices, drums, and more just sporadic...

Photo via Facebook R&B is a genre that I can't seem to get into these days, but I've been fairly obsessed with Boston's Ed Balloon since stumbling onto his music last year. He has a new song out, "Rainbows." I've noticed that I enjoy his more up tempo songs than his slower ones, and "Rainbows" is definitely on the slower side. But it's a great song. Balloon's style isn't a throwback at all. It's completely modern and electronic sounding, but he just presents his songs in a way that I haven't heard coming from anyone else. He's a completely unique talent, which is rare these days. You can listen to "Rainbows" below. The Dubs, the upcoming album from Ed Balloon, will be out July 19 on Deathbomb Arc. You can pre-order a copy via Bandcamp . For more on Ed Balloon, check out his website . The Dubs by Ed Balloon

Photo by Paul Granger Dad rock gets a lot written about it, but what about mom rock? More specifically, what about goth mom rock? That's how The Holy Circle are described, and I can't really argue. "Free and Young" has a throwback feel to it, almost like Belinda Carlisle or The Bangles, but the dark goth side of that. It's incredibly minimal but with plenty of shoegaze or dream pop fuzz. It feels like more mainstream and beloved music from the late 80's and early 90's, but a bizarre twisted version of that. At least, that's how it starts. By the end the song devolves into a mess of plodding feedback and noise. So the song is basically perfection You can listen to "Sick With Love" below. Sick With Love , the new EP from The Holy Circle, will be out July 19 on Deathbomb Arc. You can pre-order a copy here . Fore more on The Holy Circle, check out their Facebook . Sick With Love by The Holy Circle