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Reviews

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January 30, 2008

Torn from Red - The Heart Beat EP

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Artist: Torn from Red Album: The Heart Beat EP Label: None (released independently) Release Date: June 23, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. We All Die Young 2. Not Tonight 3. Heart Beat 4. Forever 5. This Love With heavily charged guitars and loud and fast drumming, this four piece from York, PA, showcase a sound that lies somewhere between MxPx, Story of the Year, and The Early November. And be warned, it’s a grower, for sure. My first few spins found nothing spectacular, just another energetic punk-infused rock group with moderately loud vocals but a reasonably accessible sound.… Continued →

January 27, 2008

Number One Gun- "The North Pole Project"

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Artist: Number One Gun Album: The North Pole Project Street Date: 1/15/08 1. The Massacre 2. Million 3. The Best of You and Me 4. Wake Me Up 5. Bad Habits 6. I’ll Find You 7. Thank You Ending 8. Find Your Escape 9. The Different Ones 10. This Holiday Rating: 6/10 Summary: Let’s be honest here. We all thought Number One Gun was dead and gone for a while. And for those fans who fear such, redemption was brought with the announcement of the old band coming back.… Continued →

January 23, 2008

The Shackeltons - The Shackeltons

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Artist: The Shackeltons Album: The Shackeltons Label: Loveless Records Release Date: January 29, 2008 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Your Movement 2. Tremble 3. The Blood 4. Yellow Cadillac 5. The Ship 6. The Breaks 7. Emergency 8. Soft Heart 9. Madeline 10. Bloke 11. Get Out Hailing from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, the five men forming The Shackeltons play a hip and unadulterated form of rock and roll that can only be described as what bands like The Killers would sound like if they actually had the indie roots people say they did.… Continued →

January 14, 2008

Rodinia - Year of the Liar EP

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Artist: Rodinia Album: Year of the Liar EP Label: None (released independently) Release Date: September 10, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Bad Habits Don’t Die Easy 2. Sound the Alarms 3. Honestly I’m Lying 4. Year of the Liar 5. [Untitled Instrumental] At ages 18 and 17, this Virginia Beach five piece would normally be written off by most concert-goers before they even began to play. But this is the fault of the audience, because they would soon be won back when Rodinia ripped into their sonic display of sound and energy called music.… Continued →

January 12, 2008

Sonset Down - You Lose

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Artist: Sonset Down Album: You Lose Label: Wounded Records Buy It: Interpunk 1. Medicine and Gold 2. And the Headline Reads…”Terror! Terror!” 3. Running From Serpents 4. Sleeping With Wolves 5. Bullets and Battle Scars 6. The Art of Combat 7. Casualties 8. You Lose 9. Providence 10. The Outlaw: The Messenger 11. Blister (The Black Riders) Dear Josh, I apologize for the lateness of this review. Paraphrasing a line from A Few Good Men: “Since I don’t have a good excuse, I won’t bother coming up with a bad one.”… Continued →

Remove The Veil "Another Way Home"

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Band: Remove The Veil Title: Another Way Home Label: Facedown Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. The Crux 02. A Rage Scene Retold 03. Vampire 04. How To Jump A Ravine 05. Burn It Told 06. Watauga 07. Devil Child 08. Wait To Wake 09. The Revision 10. Another Way Home 11. The Secret Syndrome Members/Duties: Mark Hendrix: Vocals/Guitar Cliff McCall: Bass Pat Hood: Guitar Mark Coxwell: Drums Remove The Veil formed just 2 years ago, released an EP and then signed to Facedown. The band plays a punk-metal hybrid with a lot of Southern flare.… Continued →

A Plea For Purging "A Critique Of Mind And Thought"

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Band: A Plea For Purging Title: A Critique Of Mind And Thought Label: Facedown Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Sons Of Vipers, How Will You Escape The Judgment Of Hell 02. While The Sparrow Sleeps 03. The Slaying Of The Serpentine Dragon 04. The Betrayers 05. Perseverance 06. Resurrection Of The Beast 07. A Hymn Of Praise 08. Death Has Been Swallowed Up In Victory 09. Everything And Nothing 10. Turn It Down Members/Duties: Andy: Vocals John: Bass Blake: Guitar Lyle: Guitar Aaron: Drums Let there be shred!… Continued →

Impending Doom "Nailed. Dead. Risen"

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Band: Impending Doom Title: Nailed. Dead. Risen. Label: Facedown Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Left Behind 02. My Nemesis 03. In Reverence Of 04. Feeding The Decomposing 05. Nailed. Dead. Risen. 06. For All Have Sinned 07. At The Churches’ End 08. The Mark Of The Faithful 09. Condemned 10. Silence The Oppressors 11. He’s Coming Back Members/Duties: Brook Reeves: Vocals Manny Contreras: Guitar Greg Pewthers: Guitar David Sittig: Bass Andy Hegg: Drums Finally one of the popular Christian related labels have ventured into more brutal forms of metal!… Continued →

Immortal Souls "Wintereich"

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Band: Immortal Souls Title: Wintereich Label: Facedown Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: Chapter I – The Awakening 01. Nightfrost 02. Feareaper 03. Frozen Inside Chapter II – Relections Of Doom 04. Icon Of Ice 05. Color Of My Sky 06. Constant Chapter III – The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death 07. Idlestate 08. Heart Of Cold Chapter IV – The Passage 09. Winter Of My Discontent 10. Black Water 11. Wintereich Members/Duties: A. Sarkioja: Vocals/Bass E. Sarkioja: Lead Guitar Pete: Rhythm Guitar Kronqvist: Drums Facedown have once again teamed up with these Finnish metalheads.… Continued →

Inked In Blood "Sometimes We Are Beautiful"

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Band: Inked In Blood Title: Sometimes We Are Beautiful Label: Facedown Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Call To Arms 02. Angel Of Lost Hopes 03. Altars 04. To Be Your One And Only 05. Instrumental 06. This Moment 07. Somewhere Familiar 08. With Devils 09. In The Wake Of The Loss 10. Paradise Regained Members/Duties: Joey Trump: Vocals Matt McDonnell: Guitar Steven Gosvener: Bass Kelly Mullinix: Guitar/Vocals Stephen Poole: Drums Inked In Blood are yet another upstream from Strike First Records. After releasing a 5 song EP, they were brought up to Facedown and released 2005’s ‘Lay Waste The Poets’.… Continued →

War Of Ages "Fire From The Tomb"

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Band: War Of Ages Title: Fire From The Tomb Label: Facedown Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Intro 02. Stand Your Ground 03. Brothers In Arms 04. The Awakening 05. False Prophet 06. Only The Strong Survive 07. My Solitude 08. Battle On 09. One Day 10. Scars Of Tomorrow 11. Broken Before You 12. Second Chance Members/Duties: Leroy Hamp: Vocals Steve Brown: Guitar Johnathan Lynch: Guitar TJ Alford: Bass Alex Hamp: Drums War Of Ages is a pretty household name now in the hardcore scene.… Continued →

Sleeping Giant "Dread Champions Of The Last Days"

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Band: Sleeping Giant Title: Dread Champions Of Last Days Label: Facedown Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. The Army Of One 02. This Calls For Patient Endurance On The Part Of The Saints 03. Narrow Road 04. Whoremonger 05. Behold The Pale Horse 06. Dynasty 07. Covenant 08. Blame It On The Holy Rollers 09. The Power Of Prayer 10. Sleeping Giant 11. No Sleep From My Eyes 12. King Of Kings 13. Oh Praise Him 14. This Is The Word Members/Duties: Thom Green: Vocals Travis Boyd: Drums Geoff Brouillette: Guitar J.R.… Continued →

January 11, 2008

More Yom - Ripe

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Artist: More Yom Album: Ripe Label: None (released independently) Release Date: 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Beautiful 2. Demon Donkey 3. Set Sail 4. Peace of Mind 5. The Laugher 6. So Bold 7. Our Savior’s Eyes 8. Elements 9. Show Me the Door Bonus Tracks: 10. Tonic 11. Demon Donkey (the original 1:00 am version) It’s weird. I thought that all the reggae rock bands that were playing today had started their careers sometime before 1999. Red Hot Chili Peppers, 311, and Sublime all played a style similar to More Yom over five (nearly ten) years ago, and there have been no newcomers to the fad since then.… Continued →

January 9, 2008

Oh, Sleeper - When I Am God

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Artist: Oh, Sleeper Album: When I Am God Label: Solid State Records Release Date: October 23, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Vices like Vipers 2. I Will Welcome the Reaping 3. We Are the Archers 4. Charlatan’s Host 5. The Siren’s Song 6. The Color Theft 7. To Flagship 8. His Name Was Bishop 9. Building the Nations 10. Revelations in the Calm 11. The End of a Dark Campaign Finally. A word that can be used in many ways to describe the release of this album.… Continued →

January 7, 2008

Olivia the Band "Where We Come From It Never Snows"

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Artist: Olivia the Band Album: Where Come From It Never Snows Label: Up At Nite/Syntax Records Crap, am I impressed or what? I know that’s a real zinger of a line to throw out in the first sentence but wow, oh wow, is this good! Every song is a radio single and eager for your listen. Every beat is addictive and every strum of the guitar is like heaven. This album transcends all genres and rises above the melodic punk rock background they rise from. This album beats back all preconceived notions you may have and tosses them out the window.… Continued →

January 3, 2008

Demon Hunter - Storm the Gates of Hell

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Artist: Demon Hunter Album: Storm the Gates of Hell Label: Solid State Records Release Date: November 6, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Storm the Gates of Hell 2. Lead Us Home 3. Sixteen 4. Fading Away 5. Carry Me Down 6. A Thread of Light 7. I Am You 8. Incision 9. Thorns 10. Follow the Wolves 11. Fiction Kingdom 12. The Wrath of God Exploding onto the Christian metal scene in 2002 with dark imagery and a shroud of mystery was a band by the name of Demon Hunter.… Continued →

December 31, 2007

Our City Sleeps- Wake Up!

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Band: Our City Sleeps Album: “Wake Up!” Label: Unsigned Released: Fall/Winter 2007 Reviewed by: Cory Myspace   Our City Sleeps combines pop with indie rock to make a brand of catchy rock ’n’ roll all their own. Their sound is somewhere in between the artsy styling of Cool Hand Luke and the pop/rock hooks of Forever Changed.  The recording is pretty decent on this album, but I feel like it fails to capture the energy these guys have when they play live. And to be fair capturing that energy is a hard thing to accomplish.… Continued →

December 20, 2007

Tree by Leaf - There Is a Vine

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Artist: Tree by Leaf Album: There Is a Vine Label: Long Ago Light Release Date: 2006 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Over and Under 2. Chicago at Night 3. His Banner over Us Is Love 4. Fraud 5. Come on, Babe 6. Little Lost and Lonely 7. I Know Naught of Thee 8. Prince or Pauper 9. Believe It 10. You Have Always Met Me 11. God Is Good 12. Doxology Once in a while (or extremely often, depending where you get your music), one will find a band that scores very low on the originality scale.… Continued →

December 11, 2007

Far-Less - A Toast to Bad Taste

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Artist: Far-Less Album: A Toast to Bad Taste Label: Tooth & Nail Records Release Date: October 23, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Intro 2. Toast to Bad Taste 3. I Hope that We Swim (Oceans) 4. Thin Line 5. Segue to Devil without a Clue 6. Devil without a Clue 7. It’s Not Me, It’s You 8. Segue to Gentlemen (Go to Sleep) 9. Gentlemen (Got to Sleep) 10. Keep Keep 11. Segue to So Glad 12. So Glad 13. Surprise Funeral (For the Charmed) 14.… Continued →

December 7, 2007

David Crowder Band - Remedy

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Artist: David Crowder Band Album: Remedy Label: Sparrow Records Release Date: September 25, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. The Glory of It All 2. Can You Feel It? 3. Everything Glorious 4. …neverending… 5. Never Let Go 6. O, For a Thousand Tongues to Sing 7. Rain Down 8. We Won’t Be Quiet 9. Remedy 10. Surely We Can Change David Crowder has always stood out in the Christian market. If you hate worship music, you have probably made the exception for David Crowder, despite the fact that most of the worship music world loves him too.… Continued →

November 30, 2007

Half Life 2 The Orange Box

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Game: The Orange Box Developer: Valve Publisher: Electronic Arts Genre: First Person Shooter Rating: “M” for Mature- Blood and Gore, Violence, and Some Language Website This is our first video game review here at IVM and what better way to kick it off than to review the best video game deal in history. The Orange Box is actually five complete games put into one compilation. It contains Half Life 2 and its sequels Episode One and Episode Two; it also contains a first person puzzle game called Portal which ties into the Half Life universe; and finally the multiplayer slug-fest Team Fortress 2.… Continued →

November 29, 2007

Gorilla Warfare - The Battlefields

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Artist: Gorilla Warfare Album: The Battlefields Label: Wounded Records Buy: Gorilla Warfare’s Myspace 1. Awaken 2. Another Day 3. Crusade 4. The Great Depression 5. Working Class 6. Pack of Wolves 7. No Way Out 8. Our War 9. The Truth 10. Two Faces 11. Line of Respect 12. When The Good Times Are Over (Bonus Track) While perusing Gorilla Warfare’s MySpace, pursuant to the writing of this review, I saw that they tend to post reviews in their blog. I rather hope they don’t post this one there.… Continued →

November 24, 2007

The Myriad - Prelude to Arrows

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Band: The Myriad Title: Prelude to Arrows Label: Kock Records Review By: Julio D. Anta Tracklisting: 01. Forget What You Came For 02. A Thousand Winters Melting 03. The Holiest Of Thieves 04. “Don’t Let Them See You!” 05. We Will Be Disappointed Together (arrow version) 06. BONUS: Sneak Peak at With Arrows, With Poise Members/Duties: Jeremy Edwardson: Vocals, Guitar, Programming John Schofield: Bass Steven Tracy: Guitar, Keys, Programming Jonathan Young: Guitar, Cello Bow Randy Miller: Drums Currently being spun on MTV2 via “Dew Circuit Breakout” promos every other commercial break (or at least every time I give that piece of crap channel a chance at pleasing my eyes), Seattle natives The Myriad are on the verge of releasing their highly anticipated sophomore effort With Arrows, With Poise.… Continued →

November 18, 2007

The Devil Wears Prada "Plagues"

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Band: The Devil Wears Prada Title: Plagues Label: Rise Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Goats On A Boat 02. Number Three, Never Forget 03. HTML Rulez Dood 04. Hey John, What’s Your Name Again? 05. Don’t Oink And Dance 06. You Can’t Spell Crap Without “C” 07. This Song Is Called 08. Reptar, King Of The Ozone 09. The Scorpion Deathlock 10. Nickels Is Money Too Members/Duties: Mike Hranica: Vocals Chris Rubey: Guitar Jeremy DePoyster: Guitar/Vocals James Baney: Keys Daniel Williams: Drums Andy Trick: Bass The Devil Wears Prada showed up on the metalcore scene with their debut “Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord” in 2006.… Continued →

Facedown Records - Something Worth Fighting For

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Band: Various Title: Something Worth Fighting For (CD/DVD) Label: Facedown Records Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: CD: 01. Means “These Are The Words” 02. War Of Ages “Absence Of Fear” 03. xDeathstarx “Burn Everything” 04. Bloodlined Calligraphy “Frienemies” 05. Comeback Kid “Step Ahead” 06. Seventh Star “Now At Hand” 07. Inked In Blood “Lest I Sleep The Sleep Of Death” 08. Sleeping Giant “The Power Of Prayer” 09. No Innocent Victim “Set Apart” 10. xLooking Forwardx “All Aces” 11. Nodes Of Ranvier “Dolores” 12. Symphony In Peril “Stiletto” 13.… Continued →

Nodes Of Ranvier "Defined By Struggle"

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Band: Nodes Of Ranvier Title: Defined By Struggle Label: Victory Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Sermon 02. Valjean 03. Endless Faith 04. Purpose In Pain 05. Wrathbearer 06. Defined By Struggle 07. Archegos 08. Sergeant Sorrow 09. Nagheenanajar 10. Confront 11. Infidelity Members/Duties: Kyle Benecke: Vocals Jake Stefek: Guitar Josh Ferrie: Drums Jon Parker: Guitar Brady Murphy: Bass I shouldn’t have been surprised when I heard the first single off of “Defined By Struggle”. The band has pretty much changed on every album since their debut, so I should be used to it by now right?… Continued →

November 16, 2007

Canterbury Effect - We Are All Dogs

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Artist: Canterbury Effect Album: We Are All Dogs Label: Crossroads of America Records Release Date: September 25, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Sasquatch Wristwatch 2. The Water’s Warm and It’s Getting Warmer 3. Everybody Says They’re a Little Bit Irish 4. They Don’t Run These Things on Hopes and Dreams 5. They’re My Friends and I Like Them 6. Gin Breath 7. Little Brown Bottles 8. Best Man 9. Crown Vic 10. Oh My God, I Totally Hate This Place 11. Southern Indiana Yacht Club 12.… Continued →

November 12, 2007

Surrogate - Love Is for the Rich

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Artist: Surrogate Album: Love Is for the Rich Label: Tooth & Nail Records Release Date: August 28, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Shift the Blame 2. 15 3. Talk of the Weather 4. Photographic Memory 5. Death Penalty 6. Problem Solving 7. Easy 8. Papertrail 9. Fix Another 10. Stay out of the Sun 11. Upside Down Pictures 12. The Fence “Indie.” A term used to describe musical styles as diverse as the full spectrum of the animal kingdom. From the amoeba to the deer to the pterodactyl (RIP), “indie” is a great blanket genre to cover them all.… Continued →

November 9, 2007

Thousand Foot Krutch - The Flame in All of Us

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Artist: Thousand Foot Krutch Album: The Flame in All of Us Label: Tooth & Nail Records Release Date: September 18, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. The Flame in All of Us 2. Falls Apart 3. New Drug 4. What Do We Know? 5. Favorite Disease 6. My Home 7. My Own Enemy 8. Learn to Breathe 9. Inhuman 10. Broken Wings 11. The Safest Place 12. Wish You Well Having followed TFK since Set It Off, their 2001 debut on DJ Dove Entertainment, their musical change across this career has been on one hand expected, and on the other, ridiculous.… Continued →

November 5, 2007

Mainstay - Become Who You Are

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Artist: Mainstay Album: Become Who You Are Label: BEC Recordings Release Date: September 25, 2007 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Become Who You Are 2. Stars Are Singing 3. Away from You 4. Where Your Heart Belongs 5. Am I Keeping You? 6. Believe 7. Only One 8. Island 9. When You Come Down 10. Roads 11. Story 12. Don’t I Look the Same 13. Hang On BEC Recordings has come a long way since The Adventures of the O.C. Supertones. Over the years, the label has switched its focus from being the home of the best-selling T&N bands to home of the more openly Christian artists that sign to the Nail’s empire.… Continued →