Editors' Picks: Defiance, Ohio / Malajube / Raised Fist / This Is Hell

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Justin: Just because someone else got to the review before I did doesn't mean I still can't ramble on about a band I like. One of the perks, eh? On The Great Depression
Defiance, Ohio have moved forward in a way that finally brings their recorded output up to par with their live performances. While Share What Ya' Got and their splits were great this is the first time, at least for me, that they managed to capture the spirit of sitting in Portrero del Sol park watching them play a round robin show with This Bike is a Pipe Bomb, the Bananas and the Onion Flavored Rings: it's all over the place, it's fun and there's a sense of feeling "at home." There are moments of intensity resembling early hardcore, banjos ringing out bluegrass, acoustic guitars bringing up Bob Dylan and anthems that call to mind the Bouncing Souls; simply put, it's a document of music any band would be proud to have released.
The last track "Condition 11:11" hits me right in the gut for some reason. The opening guitar line reeks of the music of childhood in West Virginia and the lyrics cut through the stacks of emotions I've went through the last 365 days. The line "I remember in the kitchen, when you told me your Grandma died… that's when I realized it gets worse. I want to think things last forever, won't you thicken my soft skin?" cuts straight to the heart of any melancholy I've experienced; in eight days, it will be one year since I was in the kitchen and my brother told me that our Grandma had died and just now am I really understanding what that means. A personal connection to music is the reason why I spend at least 20 hours a week on this website and why bands that can make that connection mean so much to me especially now, when it seems like any disgruntled boy can write down his eighth grade misogynistic poetry and get rich from it. A band like this is actually special in a way that people may not realize until it's too late and they've imploded or left us all here for greener pastures.
So go listen.

Defiance, Ohio - "Condition 11:11"

Adam: A friend in Montreal recommended Malajube to me the other day, and I just can't get enough of their new record Trompe-L'Oeil. The quartet hails from Montreal as well and is signed to Dare To Care (who you'll recognise from a few Fifth Hour Hero and Sainte Catherines releases). Now the band sings entirely in French, but it really doesn't matter. The band plays this completely wild, poppy, stylistically all over the place music, somewhere between the Pixies and the New Pornographers with the energy of "Make Up The Breakdown" era Hot Hot Heat and some assorted post-hardcore dancy influences. This band is one English song away from blowing up, but considering that they're from Hitsville, QC it may just happen anyways.

Malajube - "Montreal -40°C"

Aubin: On May 23rd, Sweden's Raised Fist will be releasing their first new album since 2002's devastating
Dedication
. On the surface, the new album may surprise a few people; there is a undercurrent of atmospherics, even the occaisonal clean vocal line, but dig deeper and you'll still hear one of the most vitriolic, vicious hardcore punk bands around. Europeans were treated to the album last month, but North Americans will see Sound of the Republic street on May 23rd.

Aubin: Speaking of great hardcore releases, Tuesday will see the release of This Is Hell's Trustkill Records debut, Sundowning. With the record, the band delivers the follow up to their promising
This Is Hell
EP, and ups the ante even further. Immediate comparisons could be drawn to American Nightmare/Give Up the Ghost and the Hope Conspiracy, but also leading the pack of like-minded and promising new acts like Ruiner and Guns Up!