Needle Drop Friday #40

Let’s get those turntables turned on and locked and loaded kids!

Yes, I did figure out how many of these I have done so I can start incorporating them into the titles. This one just happens to be the 40th of these Needle Drop Friday posts that I have done.

There wasn’t a whole lot in the way of new releases today but there are a few worth mentioning so let’s get to it!

First up I’ve got some post hardcore for you from the great state of Oregon. Portland, Oregon to be exact. This record, A Cheapened Crown, was released by HISS via Hex Records. HISS is a post hardcore/noise rock trio that is comprised of former members of Still/Form and Marriage + Cancer. There are bits of sludge embedded on this record and I hear some Bleach-era Nirvana-esque vibes on it too, especially on the song “Buried in Current.” There are some Fudge Tunnel sounding moments on here as well A Cheapened Crown is the band’s debut full length. Anthony Bartkewicz of Decibel magazine said in his review that the song “Followers, Following the Following” sounded like “…a robot’s butthole slamming shut.”

Next up is some more post hardcore. This time from Time Spent Driving. TSD is from Santa Cruz, California and they put out Lost Leaves with the help of Thirty Something Records. TPD got together in the late 90s but split up in 2005. They started a new journey in 2012, releasing Passed & Presence in 2015. They are post hardcore but there are emo elements on this record too. The album opens up with “Weak Arm,” a song about removing toxic influences in your life. That subject matter speaks volumes to me this year.

Snakeout is a hardcore band based out of a very familiar place to me, Muskegon, Michigan. When I was living up in Michigan in 2022, Muskegon was the town that I spent most of my time in. Anyway, these guys, with the help of Setterwind Records, released Honey Thief. This one is the debut full length from the band. There are some nice aggressive hardcore breakdowns in here along with a few melodic punk rock hooks along with a few hints of surf rock. If you like the band Angel Du$t, I think you’d like these guys.

Taking it down a notch, here’s a new one from California based singer-songwriter Chelsea Wolfe. She put out The Dark on Loma Vista Recordings. Her voice is really….I dunno….just pleasing to the ear. I like it. Kind of haunting but captivating. The music is kind of on the folk side. With an alternative twist. She has been doing the solo thing since 2006, releasing her debut album The Grime and the Glow in 2010. The Dark marks her 9th full length outing. Chelsea grew up with a country musician for a father. She has mentioned that she gets influences from folk music as well as black metal so that’s an interesting combination of musical influences. There is also a goth and darkwave aesthetic to these songs too.

The last album I am going to present to you today comes from one of my favorite band’s……Weezer. I’m ride or die! If you get that reference, we should be friends. Weezer is a band that, in my humble opinion, when they are on, they are fucking on and they are incredible. But when they are off, the can definitely release some turds. This latest one is another in a long line of colored self-titled albums. This one is called Gold and it was released by Reprise Records/Warner Brothers. This will be 7th colored self-titled album and the band’s 20th full length LP overall. It is their first full length album since 2021s Van Weezer. The album starts out pretty good with the song “Say Yes” and follows that one up with the lead off single “Shine Again” which was released back in April. So my verdict on this one (compared to the other colors) is that while it does not have the magic of the Blue and isn’t quite as good as Green or Red, it is certainly better (IMHO) than White, Black, and even the Teal (covers album).

If you are a fan of Weezer, you will most likely enjoy it. If you are not a fan of Weezer, or if you are one of “those” fans…..you will probably just bitch about this album.

And that is all I have for you today. I have probably missed quite a few releases but these are the ones that I knew were coming and caught my ear. If anything else new comes out that I didn’t catch and I wind up liking it, check my Threads because I will most likely mention it over there.

Until the next time….Be More Kind kids!