Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Make A Joyful Noise

Merry Fuckin' Christmas.

Assholes.

Pinebender - The High Price Of Living Too Long With A Single Dream

Ahhh Sunday morning. The aroma of coffee. The crispness of cool morning air. The slightness of a hangover and the aversion to anything overly extreme or unmelodic. That's not to say this Chicago three piece can't crank it out. Oh they do. Plenty of amp worship going on here. Plenty of dynamics too which is what makes this a perfect Sunday choice. All the melody and melodrama with none of the guilt of feeling like a complete pansy.

Starting in 1997, these guys definitely pick up the torch dropped by their fellow home staters HUM. A good marriage of emotional indie (soo nerdy...they use words like hypoxia and photosynthetic), 90's alternative (though this album didn't come out til 2003) and crushing guitars amidst lumbering, almost lazy rhythms. Vocals at times remind me of later day Small Brown Bike. The song "For The Love Of Everything" reminds me of Dinosaur Jr. and some of the more somber moments bring to mind Chokebore and slowcore legends Codeine. If none of those name drops grab ya...well, I just don't know about ya then.

You can buy this album for $3 from Lovitt Records here as well as their most recent full length "Working Nine To Wolf" which I believe I originally found out about here.

Enjoy!