Scott Morrow 
Godspeed You! Black Emperor: Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! (Constellation)
It’s been more than a decade since Godspeed You! Black Emperor has released an album. But now, with Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!, the masters of celestial crescendo have returned to the fold as though they never missed a beat.
Pinback: Information Retrieved (Temporary Residence, 10/16/12)
“His Phase”
Rob Crow is one of those prolific (albeit underrated) songwriters who can dabble in any genre at any given time. Keeping busy with his many projects (including his solo singer/songwriter material as well as his heavy-metal outfit Goblin Cock), Crow is perhaps best known for his work with indie outfit Pinback.
Dethklok: Dethalbum III (Williams Street, 10/16/12)
“I Ejaculate Fire”
It shreds? Check. It pummels? Check. It has a song called “I Ejaculate Fire”? Checkity check check.
Brooklyn metal quartet Family is dropping a debut of Unsane-style beastliness mixed with classic-, straight-ahead, southern-, and post-rock elements. “Daddy Wronglegs” is propelled by a groove and a lurch — not to mention some nifty fret work.
With its new EP, Wax Fang offers four pop-rock tunes that draw from decade-spanning influences. Today’s premiere has a bit of a retro flavor mixed with post-punk simplicity — capped by a one-word vocal hook and a rock-‘n’-roll solo.
Cultura Tres: El Mal del Bien (Devouter, 3/5/11)
Bearing at least a passing resemblance to the crushing sludge of Sepultura and its brethren, Venezuela’s Cultura Tres works from the root of a proven musical commodity. But with harmonized high-string riffs, a few wailing psych-rock leads, and an ability to go quiet and eerie or soft and atmospheric, the “doom suramericano” quartet is very much its own band.
Massive Attack producer and co-writer Neil Davidge has debuted a single from the upcoming Halo 4 soundtrack, which accompanies one of the season’s most anticipated video games.
Comprised of Trent Reznor, wife Mariqueen Maandig, and collaborators Atticus Ross and Rob Sheridan, How to Destroy Angels has released the dark electronic number “Keep it Together” from its forthcoming An Omen EP.
Killer Mike: RAP Music (Williams Street, 5/15/12)
In May, Atlanta MC Killer Mike released one of the year’s best hip-hop albums — “rebellious African people’s music” — in collaboration with producer/rapper extraordinaire El-P.
“Reagan” is one of the album’s most fiery tracks, addressing the former president’s “war on drugs” and how it disproportionately targeted African Americans while actually making black neighborhoods more drug-infested. Mike ultimately proclaims, “I’m glad [that] Reagan[‘s] dead,” but he lumps all recent presidents together as serving the same unseen forces, launching overt and covert wars to make the rich richer.