Author: Graham Wall

Since it’s snowing today, I feel like this Monday deserves an emo song (it’s not even Halloween yet!). “Not All Bad” is one of the more hopeful Terminal tracks, with its bright guitar strums and lyrics that fight against self-deprecation and apathy. Maybe if the snow doesn’t let up, I’ll blare this song outside and try to melt it with some musical positivity?… Continued →

Cephas follows up “KNGDM State of Mind Pt. 1” with a music video for pt. 2. If you missed out on pt. 1, you can check out that post right here.… Continued →

Rarely do I hear music and feel as though I was meant to hear it. However common it is to hear good songs, bad songs, and even very impressive ones, a lot of music doesn’t strike me as having significance beyond random chance. Earlier this month though, there was a day when I was listening to “Rain Song” by Ana Sapphira over and over. I decided to visit their Facebook page shortly after, and sadly, it looks like the band broke up last year. I first heard “Rain Song” in a HeartSupport video featuring lead singer Jonathan Lamper, which I will also include below.… Continued →

Last week, Joshua S. Porter of Showbread was interviewed on the Labeled Podcast. Here is a classic song from the band, before they were even signed to Tooth & Nail, selected from Life, Kisses, and Other Wasted Efforts.… Continued →

Two thousand and nineteen has proven to be quite the year. One day, a bunch of rowdy hooligans on Facebook are planning how best to invade Area 51, and the next, there’s a War of Ages occurring on planet Djent. Void places an emphasis on groove, which is kicked into full gear by track three, “Blood of the Earth.” That being said, the more conservative fans need not fret; War of Ages are still our metalcore heroes from Mars. “Sulphur and Salt” – a Star Wars metal opera – capitalizes on what is perhaps the band’s greatest virtue: epic choruses.… Continued →

“Ain’t been to church in about a year / All my old friends are outta here” I finally got around to listening through The Fall of the Light Bearer (2015) this year, and it’s turned out to be one of the best albums I’ve heard as of late. Serious lyricism and experimental production abound. The melancholic “Unforgivable” is accompanied by fine cinematography and gives an accurate impression of what the album is like as a whole.… Continued →

Eclectic hip-hop duo, Royal Ruckus, recently released a lyric video for “I’m Yours Forever (Come On).” The song features Knowdaverbs along with KJ-52 and is taken from Unexpected Joy, their latest EP. Unexpected Joy is available now on Bandcamp and other digital music outlets.… Continued →

Social Club Misfits have announced that their DOOM EP will be available September 20. It is the follow-up to MOOD, which was released in April of this year. Their latest single, “Believe,” can be streamed below.… Continued →

Two thousand and five was a very strong year for Tooth & Nail Records, as they released classic albums from Anberlin, Mae, Terminal, and Emery. Another impressive album, though overlooked, was Composure by Waking Ashland. The San Diego four-piece created some seriously catchy indie/piano rock tunes, and “Edinger” proves this point 14 years later.… Continued →

Here’s a new music video from hip-hop artist Cephas. As a producer, he’s worked with the likes of Datin, Beleaf, and K-Drama; he’s also been a DJ alongside NF, Andy Mineo, and Tedashii. “KNGDM State of Mind Pt. 1” demonstrates his skills on the mic, featuring a jazzy underground beat from Mood.… Continued →

Take me past familiar waters to a place so deep / it reserves itself for the eyes of those who dream. “Dream” by GS Megaphone communicates the essence of God-as-artist, the One in whom “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Taken from their album Beautiful World (2003), it is a reminder that God is the source of all creativity. So often our imaginations are caught in a torrent of meaningless distractions, and still, the opportunity for metanoia (Greek term for changing one’s mind) awaits us in and through Christ’s grace.… Continued →

A-Duff just released a music video for “God is Real,” taken from his new album One Life. The music is set to visuals from the short film The Robotanist, directed by Matt Whittington. In case you missed it, you can also read my review of One Life here.… Continued →

The Devil Wears Prada will be releasing The Act on October 11 through Solid State Records. The band’s last album, Transit Blues, was released in 2016. You can find out more details and pre-order by clicking here.… Continued →

A couple weeks back, Brandon published an article about some of the issues American society faces today: partisanship, gun violence, and mental illness. One of the quotations that resonated with me was that “Libertarians are struggling to have their voice heard.” It got me thinking about one of my favourite hip-hop albums, Full Disclosure (2012) by JustMe, whose sharp lyrics express a distrust towards the U.S. government. One of the standout tracks is “Yougenics” which takes a well-informed look at Social Darwinism and its relation to abortion.… Continued →

The North Pole Project (2008) wasn’t supposed to be a Number One Gun album. Rather, this was once the name of vocalist/guitarist Jeff Schneeweis’ solo project in the aftermath of Number One Gun’s breakup. In any case, The North Pole Project is a beautiful indie rock anthem. Not only did Schneeweis play every instrument on the album, but he also produced and mixed it. In these songs, he goes beyond some of the margins of the band’s past work, and this is best exemplified by closing song “This Holiday.”… Continued →

A couple days ago, I made a post about the upcoming StefanOtto album, including the music video for “Body Bag” in the footer of the post. As it turns out, the production duo for that song, SoundNami, have just joined the Die Daily Team. SoundNami consists of Shamir and Great Scott, and they have produced for artists like Ruslan, Bizzle, Canon, and many others. The video below showcases various samples of their work.… Continued →

On August 23, StefanOtto will be releasing his new album Til Heaven Comes via Menace Movement. The record includes guests such as DJ Morph, Datin, and Selah the Corner; production credits include Tee-Wyla, Theory Hazit, and Tone Jonez among others. Check out the video for the single “Body Bag” below.… Continued →

“Talk to Me,” the latest song from Thi’sl, is accompanied by a music video. This YouTube and SoundCloud exclusive is a follow up to “Let’s Get to It,” which released in June. Produced by Jabez On The Beat, the new single contains the St. Louis artist’s signature trap sound.… Continued →

Remember “Cooler Than Me” by Mike Posner? That song used to be really cool in 2010 and was popular enough to be played at shopping malls. But maybe, perhaps, you thought yourself cooler than Mike Posner, despite his single having a lot of pizzazz and swagger. Fair enough. Well, I hate to break it to you, but Starflyer 59 is actually cooler than both of you. “We’re the Ordinary,” taken from The Fashion Focus (1998), is cool enough to freeze a hipster shopping mall on a blazing summer’s day.… Continued →

I became a fan of The Devil Wears Prada in 2011. There were many reasons for this: peer pressure via a friend, the positive review in HM Magazine, and Dan Seagrave’s dark and mysterious artwork. Dead Throne made me realize what I’d been missing out on. It’s near impossible to choose a favourite song from a near perfect album, but in my iTunes library, “My Questions” has the most plays. To my knowledge, the band has never played this song live, but the mesmerizing guitar work and depressing bridge echo in my head often.… Continued →

NF released his fourth studio album, The Search, this past Friday. Track two, “Leave Me Alone,” now has a music video which you can view below. The song focuses on the artist’s personal psychology; particularly, how it relates to his career in the music industry.… Continued →

Demon Hunter has released a music video for “The Negative,” one of their singles from War. Directed by Oleg Masnyy, the artistic and constantly-shifting visuals accentuate the introspective lyrics very well. War is available now on Solid State Records.… Continued →

A-Duff is no Calvin Harris; and coming from me, that’s quite a compliment. Well, at least my perception of Calvin Harris – I’ve never really given him a fair listen. In any case, there’s enough cheese-ball EDM in the world to go around. Some of A-Duff’s material could be on the radio (e.g. “God is Real”), but he clearly values creativity. Opening track “Don’t Stop Believing” kicks things off with an optimistic mood and some groovy brass, while “Block Rocking Flammable” reminds me of playing SSX 3 on PS2.… Continued →

Remember Syntax Records, the label that put out awesome underground hip-hop like RedCloud, the Night Owls compilations, and Sackcloth Fashion? Well, sometimes the label released music from other genres, too. This included rock bands like Green Olive Tree and Olivia the Band, and on other occasions, electronic music. Today I’d like to share a song from Formless (2007) by Shane Newville, titled “Roll Out.” It is seven minutes of D&B bliss and perfect for an epic high speed car chase, should you find yourself in such a predicament.… Continued →

Good afternoon, metalheads. Norma Jean have released their first single from All Hail, titled “[Mind Over Mind].” You can hear the song on YouTube below. As well, here’s a link for other streaming options. All Hail is available October 25 on Solid State Records.… Continued →

Norma Jean has a new record coming out, entitled All Hail, on October 25. It is the band’s eighth studio album and will be released on Solid State Records. Pre-orders are available here and you can check out the teaser video below.… Continued →

Here’s a song from Canada’s own, Lucerin Blue, who released Tales of the Knife in 2003 on Tooth & Nail Records. While the album is stacked with great alternative rock songs, “Chorus of the Birds” resonates. One of these reasons, I think, is that it was also featured on The Nail, Vol. 1, a classic T&N compilation. As a bonus, a video of Lucerin Blue performing live at Cornerstone 2003 has been added to the bottom of the post.… Continued →

Kareem Martin has some new tech house for us to hear. With five minutes of grooves and philosophical excerpts sprinkled overtop, “REALITY” opens up the listener to the topic of epistemology. Silverfilter provides an excellent remix that leans toward the chill side, as well. “REALITY” is available July 30, 2019 on digital retailers. … Continued →

For whatever reason, The Moon is Down (2001) is rather inaccessible these days. It’s not on Spotify, or iTunes (R.I.P.), or Apple Music (edit: I’m from Canada). Yet, the quality of the album remains intact after 18 years. It took me all too long to hear “Monachetti,” given I own their compilation Hope This Finds You Well which excludes the track. The song shows an angsty side of Further Seems Forever that I hadn’t heard before, and I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.… Continued →

Sometimes the songs that sound least like a band as a whole are their best songs. Mortal’s Nu-En-Jin (2002) is not a particularly calming album. They like to use a lot of distortion, and with the postmodern lyrics and spooky samples, this can make for a claustrophobic listen. However, “Mujo (Uncertainty Mix)” is about as chill as electronica can get, and reminds me of the perfect autumn day. Take a listen and see if the leaves don’t start changing colors.… Continued →