My Totally Biased Top Ten Albums +1 Of 2013

By Thomas Pizzola It was quite a year for heavy music, as many bands released many great albums — so many in fact, that it was impossible to cut this list just down to ten.  This list reflects nothing but my own personal tastes and what I kept going back for multiple listens throughout the… Continue reading My Totally Biased Top Ten Albums +1 Of 2013

Baldwin’s Top Choices of 2013 Part 2 – The Everything Else Releases

  Steven Wilson – The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories) This is a modern progressive rock masterwork. I’m hard-pressed to find a single flaw in anything that Steven Wilson has done here. These six songs arch, ache, and soar with such melancholic, cinematic power that it almost brought me to tears a… Continue reading Baldwin’s Top Choices of 2013 Part 2 – The Everything Else Releases

Epoch Era: Iron Maiden, Stale Cheetos, and “The Vest”

When I received an email from Epoch Era asking Alternative Control to review their EP, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  They billed themselves as “a group of teenagers from North Haven” who were “spawned from the semen and eggs of (their) parents and […] here to invade your ear holes.”  And when you tell… Continue reading Epoch Era: Iron Maiden, Stale Cheetos, and “The Vest”

Baldwin’s Top Choices of 2013 Part 1: The Metal Releases

  Well, another year is behind us. It’s been another awesome year for music. The metal genre seemed particularly fruitful, with many bands releasing seminal albums. Therefore, I feel that a separate write-up was needed this year for metal. And I mean, this IS a heavy metal focused blog! Keep in mind, this is a… Continue reading Baldwin’s Top Choices of 2013 Part 1: The Metal Releases

Jessie and Vanessa’s Best Local Metal of 2013: Bassists and Things That Happen in Stamford

By Jessica May and The Headbanging Hostess, because why write a whole column by yourself?  Some things are better with friends….  Jessie’s List Best Headbanging Hair: Bassist Gary Goudreau from End-Time Illusion. Best Bassist-Turned-Psychic: Keith Zalinger, formerly of Nethereal and Khasm and currently moonlighting as a psychic-at-large – trust us, that shit’s not made up!… Continue reading Jessie and Vanessa’s Best Local Metal of 2013: Bassists and Things That Happen in Stamford

Album Review: Cyperna’s The Darker Side of Matter

Relentless and purposefully jarring, Cyperna’s upcoming full-length album The Darker Side of Matter is a brutal addition to Connecticut’s local metal catalog. Dissonant harmonies, stilted rhythms, and shifting time signatures make for an aggressive sound that challenges the ear but still keeps the head banging. Opening track “Death Rides a Horse” exemplifies these qualities. The… Continue reading Album Review: Cyperna’s The Darker Side of Matter

Album Review: Exhumed/Iron Reagan Split 12”

Peanut butter and chocolate.  Sir Mix-a-Lot and pro-grade posteriors.  Some things are made to go together.  On the upcoming split EP from Exhumed and Iron Reagan we discover gore-tinged death metal and thrash-infused hardcore are a pretty tasty match.  At first glance it is a bit of a puzzling situation with Exhumed’s splatter-and-pony show swapping… Continue reading Album Review: Exhumed/Iron Reagan Split 12”