

SENTRIES - Gem of the West
With this record, SENTRIES steps out of the bedroom and onto the stage—but it doesn’t feel like a departure. Instead, it feels like a natural expansion: same ghost, louder haunt.

Backxwash - Only Dust Remains
The question was left hanging at the end of the former trilogy: what would a new Backxwash release look like after that set of releases? The answer that the album offers is a reconstruction of Backxwash sound prior to God Has Nothing To Do With This informed by the accomplishments of the last decade of her musical career.

Mares of Thrace - The Loss
The Loss is an exercise in catharsis, but its fury is tempered at all times by grief, by uncertainty.

Preoccupations - Ill at ease
III at ease features much of what there is to love about this band, and it might be an excellent jumping off point for new listeners who might eventually work their way back through their releases to grasp the breadth of what Preoccupations can do.

DVTR - Live aux Foufounes
Live aux Foufounes is not derivative or tired or formulaic. It’s fresh and alive and pulsating. The music still contains some of the straight-time fury of punk, with bombastic, short songs played fast and loud. But they are also played really, really well.