Tagged: aggressiverock

Note: Them Crooked Vultures is Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss) on vocals/guitar, John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) on bass and Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) on drums. Sound: Riff-heavy, rhythm-driven, hard-hitting rock with progressive, psychedelic and stoner tendencies and falsetto, hooky melodies. At times, their mix of psychedelic blues and falsetto vocals are reminiscent of Cream...

Sound: Over the last few years, Thrice – and their frontman Dustin Kensrue as a solo artist – have been fearlessly expanding their capabilities. Progressive, melodic aggression, reflective, atmospheric rock and folky, country-flavored folk have been major components of their releases this decade and demonstrated possibilities far beyond their punk/hardcore roots. On Beggars they effectively shift back and forth between all of these recent developments in their sound...

Sound: There are at least three types of songs on here – the light, wistful acoustic reflection, the pulsing, pleasing mid-tempo indie pop tune and the hard-stomping, rocker. Most songs incorporate some soft, subtle organ and strings that create a sweet, yearning atmosphere that's frequently peppered by Amy Cole's innocent and airy harmonies. But these gentler sounds are often balanced by Paul Banwatt's feverish percussion...

Note: The Dead Weather is a new band/project that consists of Jack White (The White Stripes, The Raconteurs) on drums and some lead and background vocals, Alison Mosshart (The Kills) on most lead vocals, Jack Lawrence (The Raconteurs) on bass and Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age) on guitar. Sound: A grimy, sweaty, raw and dangerous mix of sludgy blues and experimental indie rock that features lots of sexually charged vocals and distorted guitars and synthesizers...

Note: Spinnerette is led by Brody Dalle – former frontwoman of The Distillers and current wife of Queens of the Stone Age mastermind Josh Homme – and includes Alain Johannes (Eleven, Queens of the Stone Age), Tony Bevilacqua (The Distillers) and Jack Irons (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, Eleven). Sound: Surprisingly refined for a Brody Dalle project. Her vocals still have a raspy bite, but they're more melodic and restrained than ever before...

Note: This is the band's first major-label studio album, and it was produced by the legendary Rick Rubin (the guru responsible for overseeing landmark albums by a wide range of artists from Run DMC and Red Hot Chili Peppers to Johnny Cash and Dixie Chicks to Slayer). Sound: Poppier, more electronic and more dancefloor-friendly than anything the punk-rooted threesome has done before...

Sound: A significantly mellower and simplified version of The Mars Volta. Last year's The Bedlam in Goliath found the aggressive prog rock experimentalists evolve by creating compositions that resembled long songs, instead of free-form multi-sectioned jams and sound manipulations. But Octahedron is even more streamlined—only 50 minutes of music, considerably fewer errant musical interludes, and fewer layers of instrumentation...

Sound: The Atlanta five-piece incorporates elements of several of the most respected rockers—both mainstream and indie—of the last 20 years. At times, their radio-ready and '90s-minded with crunchy riffs and piercing vocals (think Smashing Pumpkins) or grungy guitar and aggressive yelps (think Nirvana). Other times, their rootsy and more reserved...

Sound: Slicker, fuller and more accessible than anything the scrappy, power punk three-piece has done before. In fact, the snappy riffs, sing-along choruses and earnest vocals on Now We Can See could have comfortably shared mainstream rock radio space alongside Everclear and Weezer in the '90s...

Sound: As usual, frontman Finn Andrews' vocals display a dynamic range—sometimes suave, other times aching, and occasionally building into a possessed frenzy. The music covers even more territory. From classic Brit pop to atmospheric, guitar/piano rock; from explosive aggression to delicate introspection...

Note: The Hazards of Love is a concept album—a 17-track song cycle with recurring musical and lyrical themes and a narrative thread from start to finish. Using ancient language it tells the mythical tale of a woman violated by a shape-shifting animal, her lover, a murderer and a fearsome queen. Sound: Vintage British folk, chamber-like indie pop, hard-chugging rock and sludgy heavy metal collide as one style gracefully segues into the next and recurs throughout...

Sound: Cursive frontman Tim Kasher's pretty disgusted with and disillusioned by the world we live in. Mama, I'm Swollen is full of brooding, questioning and accusatory angst. Sometimes, his despondence is packaged in mellow, foreboding reflections that can get a little too heavy to allow for more much enjoyment. But more often his rants and musings are wrapped in pleasing, though challenging, packages...

Sound: Most often this trio sounds like a beefed-up, arena rock version of Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Frontwoman Aja Volkman can wail, soar and yelp with raucous ferocity, while the drums pound and the riffs menace, creep or spike. They also branch out from time to time and work in a power ballad, dark reflection, folky jam and a vintage coal miner's song...

Sound: A challengingly eclectic hip hop album that incorporates several aggressive rock elements (pummeling drum beats, metal guitar riffs, screamy vocals and a lyrical reference and sample of Fugazi's song "5 Corporations") and a lone, skittering jungle beat with more traditional hip hop elements (turntable scratches and break beats, vocal samples...

Note: Jaguar Love is a trio consisting of vocalist/pianist Johnny Whitney and guitarist/bassist Cody Votolato (both formerly of screamy hardcore band The Blood Brothers) and keyboardist/bassist/drummer Jay Clark (formerly of atmospheric indie rockers Pretty Girls Make Graves). Sound: The most prominent instrument is Johnny Whitney's helium-injected, razor-sharp wail. It's polarizing for sure, but it's far more melodic and far less bloodcurdlingly shrieky than it was in his previous band...

Note: This is the debut album from the band fronted by Daron Malakian (System of A Down guitarist/vocalist/songwriter) . SOAD drummer John Dolmayan joins him on drums. Sound: They bounce between slick, arena-ready metal; stomping, more aggressive punk; reserved, mid-tempo rock; and power ballads. The bizarre, theatrical, progressive tendencies and political/social/environmental commentaries of System of a Down are still present, but Scars on Broadway is more melodic and less frenetic...

Note: This the debut EP from the duo that consists of Rage Against the Machine frontman Zack de la Rocha (vocals, keyboards) and former The Mars Volta drummer Jon Theodore (drums). Sound: Armed with only Jon Theodore's drum kit, Zak de la Rocha's grinding, assaultive keyboards and his ferocious vocals...

Note: After five indie label albums, Alkaline Trio makes their major label debut with Agony & Irony . Sound: Don't expect a dramatic change due to the move to the big leagues. Their punk-rooted, death-obsessed, melodic rock has had a poppy polish for a couple of albums now anyway. The difference here, though, is that Alkaline Trio has lost a bit of their dangerous edge...