Nadja

Like most people, I frequently experience the nagging sensation that I am forgetting something important. And, like most people, this is because I am confused and neurotic.

Usually.

For the last three years, however, this nagging sensation may have been because I genuinely had forgotten something important. I had forgotten to buy everything ever released by Nadja ever.

I remember hearing the track Sandskin; and then I went to see them play at The Croft in November of '08; and then I swore that I would buy everything ever released by Nadja ever; and then I forgot all about it, until my iPod shuffled Sandskin back up to the top a week or so ago.

Having failed to buy, or indeed listen, to anything other than that one track up until this point in my life so far, I can't really claim to be any sort of authority on what this mostly Canadian duo really sound like; but from what I recall/have been able to plagiarise from other reviews, words like doom,ambient, experimental, drone, and bowel-shattering soundquake should probably feature quite prominently.

Website: http://64.92.105.10/~coldsnap/aidan/nadja.htm

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/nadjaluv

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadja_(band)

Hey Colossus

I went to see these guys last week. I had tried to see them almost two years previously, playing alongside Part Chimp and local chaps Tractor. A number of unfortunate scheduling issues meant that I only got to see the last thirty seconds of their set; it sounded like this.

DUUURRRRR we're hey colossusRRRRRRRR thanks chimp RRRRR thanks tractor RRRRRRRRRNK -CLUNK- --sqeak--

Which was a bit disappointing, really; and didn't give much of an idea as to what they really sound like beyond an ominous droning dirge. Their recorded output at the time included a really quite splendid ominous droning dirge stoner-doom effort, and one record of ominous droning dirge so badly produced that it bordered on unlistenable.

Well as it turns out, Hey Colossus seem to rock a kind of sprawling wall-of-noise tinnitus-inducing ominous droning dirge.

Excellent.

Website: http://noisestar.co.uk/colossus/

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/heycolossus

Wikipedia: nope

Pet Genius

Me: I bought a Pet Genius record today.

The Pixie: Who?

Me: Pet Genius. It's some sort of hokey side-project with one of the guys from Cave In. It all sounds like breezy summery twee indie folk pop, but with this really thundering fuzzy bass. It's cool.

The Pixie: Breezy summery twee indie folk pop?

Me: Yup.

The Pixie: The same kind of breezy summery twee indie folk pop that you hate?

Me: Exactly.

Website: nope

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/petgenius

Wikipedia: nope

Norma Jean

It's taken me quite a while to get around to giving this lot a proper listen. I've had a few tracks lurking about in the murky depths of my iPod for some time now, but only recently picked up the snappily titled Birds and Microscopes and Bottles of Elixirs and Raw Steak and a Bunch of Songs, a compilation of their first three records.

Which is pretty fucking super, as it happens.

All the usual hardcore elements are present and correct; the chugging guitars, pummelling drums, harsh vocals and more than a few punishing beatdowns. But that's about as close as Norma Jean get to the tedious hardcore-by-numbers pedalled by so many other chest-beating drop-D thug charlatans with wicked sick myspace pages. They're unafraid of straying from traditional templates and formulae, allowing songs to unfurl and grow in an almost organic fashion. A few tracks even exceed the ten minute mark.

Okay, so they're still not what you'd call prog-hardcore titans (possibly because you wouldn't be so pretentious as to even think of calling anyone prog-hardcore titans), and Every Time I Die are still the undisputed kings of hardcore; but it's nice to hear someone doing something a bit different for a change.

Website: http://normajeannoise.com/

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/normajean

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norma_Jean_(band)