andconham's Diary

More good stuff from Deftones here. A bit more of a mixed bag here but the continue honing their signature shoegaze/metal sound. But my god, pink cellphone really is as bad as they say! Favourite Tracks: - Hole In The Earth - Rapture - Cherry Waves - Xerces - Riviére

Worth a 10/10 for the Booker T sample alone. Conway maintains his streak of solid albums, with another swagger filled collection of raps over cold beats. Some welcome features on this track list as well. Favourite Tracks: - Slapbox - Piper - Land O' Lakes - Sigel In State Prop

A very frontloaded album here, with all the 'singles' coming one after the other to start. The back half of this album is forgettable and not really worth revisiting. The hits do hit hard though and are worth replaying over and over. Favourite Tracks: - Given Up - Leave Out All The Rest - Bleed It…

Better than expected. New vocalist is pretty damn good, and I can image her covering the classics quite well. There's a few bangers throughout this brief runtime as well. It's hard to escape the shadow ast over this band, but on its own merits it's not half bad. Favourite Tracks: - Heavy Is The Cr…

Great album here. Smooth instrumentals, with a subdued Akerfeldt on vocals this time around. Album breezes by, with a shorter run time than usual. The songs are still long but nothing outstays it's welcome, only wish the album ended a bit stronger. Favourite Tracks: - Windowpane - In My Time Of Nee…

Slaves 'comeback' album after rebranding themselves as Soft Play. Whatever you think about the name change, you can't deny this album holds up well within their catalogue. Yes some of the lyrics are a bit corny but the track list here plays out largely tongue-in-cheek and full of character as you ex…

Solid Hardcore album. Turnstile again keeps it brief with some rapid-fire tunes, churning out some groovy riffs and energetic vocals. Not as experimental as later releases of theirs, with this one keeping it relatively simple and rockin'. Favourite Tracks: - Gravity - Fazed Out - Bad Wave - Out Of…

Short and sweet. Turnstile keeps it brief with this album, with most songs clocking under 2 and a half minutes. They pack in some good tunes with the classic fun riffs you expect from turnstile. They would go on to do better, but this is still a fun album with some bangers littered throughout. Favo…

Feels a little directionless and toothless when compared to their previous efforts. But even a lesser Deftones album is still a great album, just not one I will return to as often as White Pony, Diamond Eyes or Around The Fur. Favourite Tracks: - Hexagram - Needles and Pins - Minerva - When Girls T…

A slight step down from their previous album, with a few songs sounding a bit samey. The riffs still crush, with good solos, sick drum work and some catchy vocals as well. Solid stuff. Favourite Tracks: - Walk With Me In Hell - Again We Rise - Redneck - Pathetic - Blacken the Cursed Sun - Forgotten…

A solid debut, and a good hint of things to come. Deftones come out the gate here with a raw, low fi, aggressive alternative/nu metal album that hits more than it misses. Obviously not their best work, but very good for a debut from a band still finding their sound. Favourite Tracks: - Bored - Min…

Not my favourite VB album, but even at their 'worst' the boys show more creativity and character than most others in the rock world at the moment. Electronic/disco infused post-punk with great rolling grooves and the usual brand of slurring, crooning vocals. Favourite Tracks: - Ain't Nice - Creatur…

Good enough album here, but is noticeably front loaded. The first half goes pretty hard, but then is brought down by a bit of filler towards the end. The hits here are pop punk classics though, and even average TBS songs are better than most in the genre. Favorite Tracks: - Set Phasers to Stun - Bo…

A pop punk classic, but looking back this album is very front-loaded. The hits are great as are some of the b-sides, but there is some forgettable moments on the back half of this. Still, a fun listen and likely Green Days peak. Favourite Tracks: - American Idiot - Jesus of Suburbia - Holiday / Bou…

Never been the biggest Jay-Z fan, but this one was pretty good. Sill some corny and awkward lines scattered throughout ("what's better than one billionaire? Two" 🤮), but there's also some great introspective songs on here that makes it worth a listen. Favourite Tracks: - Kill Jay Z - The Story of…