Music

In 2005, Dylan Carlson returned to the helm of Earth to release Hex: Or Printing In the Infernal Method, an album that subverted everything fans had come to expect of the intense drone group. Swapping ear-drum-thrashing feedback for cleaner pitches and vaguely country overtones, Carlson’s leviathan repetitions took on an emotion-stirring dimension that could be difficult to extrude from earlier, less focused albums.

Coming as the second in a three-release series from The Book of Knots, a conglomeration of seasoned avant-garde veterans Matthias Bossi (Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Skeleton Key), Joel Hamilton (Battle of Mice), Tony Maimone (Pere Ubu, They Might Be Giants), and Carla Kihlstedt (Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Tin Hat Trio), Traineater acts as a tribute to the American rust belt and the mining and steel cities laid within that have been neglected since the Industrial Revolution.

The Swedish band In Flames had been touring for nine months when I spoke with Anders Fridén (vocals) pre-show in Chicago. His words were calm and sincere, a diluted version of his lyrics, and after watching their vigorous set, I’m glad he saved his energy.

Sick Of It All is one of the seminal bands of the New York Hardcore scene of the 1980s and 1990s. In a career that has lasted over twenty years, the five-piece has created a library of work, from 1989’s Blood, Sweat and No Tears, to their 2006 album, Death To Tyrants.

These days, it’s commonplace for bands to gain fans through the networking orgy that is MySpace. Los Angeles-based duo Guns’n’Bombs, however, owes the site a bit more than the normal gratitude.

Coupling guitars and drums with soundscapes of static, feedback, and noise, Kylesa create a compelling brand of metal. Corey Barhorst (bass, vocals), Phillip Cope (guitar, vocals), Laura Pleasants (guitar, vocals), Jeff Porter (drums), and Carl McGinley (drums, noise) formed the band in Savannah, Georgia in 2001.

Psychedelic rock revivals have been done before, but The Ponys are the real thing. They refuse to let their brand of rock ‘n’ roll fall into any distinctive genre. After releasing two acclaimed albums on the Los Angeles label In the Red (2004’s Laced With Romance and 2005’s Celebration Castle) the Chicago four-piece has yet another offering.

Don’t call Matt and Kim cute. Sure, their blend of fuzzy Casio keyboards, upbeat drums, and Matt’s yelping vocals is undeniably catchy and they do tend to incorporate handclaps and energetic “Yeah!”s into their songs. And the fact that they’re a couple aside from being a band may make your heart may flutter a little. But they won’t have it. They won’t even go out in public wearing similar looking jackets.”

Buried within the countrified jangle of The Willowz’s Chautauqua (Dim Mak) is a sense of raw energy that has rarely been heard in the garage rock scene since the White Stripes. This back-home sensibility has earned them the attention of critics as well as high-brow names like Michel Gondry, the renowned director who featured two of the band’s songs on the soundtrack to his film “Eternal Sunshine” and directed their music video “I Wonder.”

Western Xterminator (Drag City) made me clean my entire apartment in a sudden burst of energy. Jennifer Herrema from Royal Trux leads this hard-punching sextet with growling, gruff, and undeniably sexy vocals that flow over crunchy guitar riffs and thunderous drum kicks.

Boston’s Lost in the Trees cleverly constructs an array of lively combinations of strings, samples, and hand percussion. Short but sweet, the chamber pop on Time Taunts Me (Trekky Records) is playful and pensive, engaging the listener with its careful orchestrations and minimalist acoustic guitar.