Iron Chic, Melvins

Justin: I am pretty stoked about this. Iron Chic features fellow ex-Lattermen Phil Douglas and Brian Crozier on guitar, Lubrano (Small Arms Dealer) singing, John Mee (Agent) on bass and Gordan Lafler drumming. Long Island's own punkrock supergroup! "In One Ear" starts out the demo in a way that is instantly reminiscent of Phil's guitar work in Latterman and "Steel Wall Method," the third track sounds a lot like it could be a forgotten Avoid One Thing track, down to a impressive imitation of Joe Gittleman's vocals. Overall it sounds like the guitarists have cut out the more wandering and noodling parts from Latterman's assault while keeping the anthemic feel that brought that band a fair amount of success. I'm not sure I'm 100% into the weird electronic intros to "In One Ear" and "Timecop" but the rest of those songs rip. I won't lie and say that it feels almost a little too familiar at times, but it's hard to complain about hearing more music in this vein. "Sensitive Dependence" is a slow-burner that features more Gittleman-esque vocals, crooning about loneliness and chasing happiness in life. Good times for one and all.

You can hear it all for yourself if you cruise over to their website and grab their demo or drop them an email: ironchicsemail[at]gmail.com.

Jesse: You can't talk about modern music without giving due respect to the Melvins. These dudes have deconstructed everything and Lord knows their 2006 release, (A) Senile Animal, really tickled my fancy (although I'd probably move it up to the number one slot these days). Imagine my bleary, teary eyes when I found that they have a video up featuring two new songs! "Suicide in Progress" and "Billy Fish" will be coming out on their new album Nude With Boots coming out July 8 via Ipecac.

Guiltmaker / Born Ruffians

Brian: Don't be fooled by Guiltmaker's home on Kiss of Death Records; if you're expecting filthy basement punk rock, you'll be sorely disappointed. That label released the band's 2006 EP, Driven by Arms, which was promising enough. However, Dilemmas seems like a huge growth for the band judging by the songs they've been posting on their MySpace page. Guiltmaker inject a bit of atmosphere and deep emotional textures into their new songs: picture a more energetic Elliott, or Circa Survive about two octaves lower. Be sure to give "Lost Ship," "Life Given Switch" and "Battle Mountain" a try if this sounds like quality.

Adam: I just can't get enough of the new Born Ruffians full length. The Toronto three piece plays jangly indie rock with enough sing–along freak–folk thrown in to sound great lined up to your Akron/Family records. Red Yellow and Blue came out just recently on England's Warp Records and it's definately worth a look. Just make sure you toss out Warp's reputation as an electronic music label, as this is nowhere close. You should go hit up "Hummingbird" and "Kurt Vonnegut" at MySpace. Or click below to check out the video for "Hummingbird."

Election Day

Brian: If Rochester ever decides to bottle and distribute their water, then Evian and Poland Spring have top serious competition on their hands. Here's yet another musically accomplished act that's risen from various upstate towns, that one included. According to a friend of mine, Election Day (also based out of Syracuse and Oswego) indeed took their name from the Polar Bear Club song of the same name (well, apparently not, but I'm not going to edit this and pretend I never said it). No matter –– the similarities between the two are scarce. Election Day instead play a style of introspective, driving and dynamic hardcore that, while occasionally bearing stark similarities to Sinking Ships both musically and lyrically, seems like a unique entity of its own. With a seriously perfect punch of gang vocal usage and a weird, slight Rites of Spring flair to it all, the band's 2007 demo is top notch. Download it for free here, but if you're impatient, you can stream it at their MySpace page.

Capillary Action

Jesse: It's been a few years since I've been blown away by an album's sheer ballsiness, but I can't stop spinning Capillary Action's new album, So Embarassing Hailing from Philadelphia, PA (and many other places), the group defies definition: metal riffs give way to traditionalist free jazz, soaring melodies topple down onto absurdist freak out moments layered on top of samba beats. Phil Spector–like arrangements contrast with sludge metal. And on record, they pooled in at least fifteen people to fill out their vision – strings and horns, extra guitars and keys, upright bass and auxiliary percussion. You can check out three songs on their MySpace page as well as a slew of tour dates.

Kate Nash / Social Circkle

Brian: The Editors' Picks are a rare feature these days, so I'm bending the rules a bit and recommending two very different acts for you this weekend.

The first is Kate Nash, a 20–year–old English songstress who released the rather excellent Made of Bricks through Fiction/Polydor last year. Meg piqued my interest about her this past week with a Lily Allen comparison, and it's totally grounded (just listen to "Pumpkin Soup"). There's definitely a bit of Regina Spektor on the album as well though, where Nash expresses often bitter narratives through a multitude of arrangements involving piano, acoustics, horns and more. One particular track, "Mariella," exudes a bit of a Dresden Dolls quality too. Anyway, check out her MySpace page for a few songs.

The second is Social Circkle, a band who writes lightning–fast, excellent early `80s–styled hardcore, much like their celebrated contemporaries Career Suicide. Just listen to "Canned Response" and tell me that's not the best thing you've heard in months. It's from their new 7", I've Got Afflictions, set to drop this coming Tuesday via No Way Records. (If you're aching for more, check out an MP3 from their 2007 7", Static Eyes, or download their 8–song demo for free.)

Sakes Alive!!, The Epidemic

Brian: Maybe Rochester is the new Long Island. In recent years it seems like the city is effortlessly churning out a diverse array of emotional, hard, and/or heavy musical acts that write great songs right out of the gate. Take Sakes Alive!! and their three–song demo, "Presents", for example. Considering these are the first songs they've ever laid to tape (I'm pretty sure)…damn. In fact, one guy, Chris Vandeviver, is responsible for every charred chord, slammed drumfill and whiskey–tinged vocal line on the demo. And even though he was apparently let down by Crime in Stereo's Is Dead, I guess we can let it slide. We actually just posted a review of "Presents", and it recommended them to fans of Challenger and Hüsker Dü; I'd say that's pretty accurate, but if you generally like gravelly–sung punk rock played with a ton of emotion and intensity, check it out. You can also message them for a free physical copy of "Presents" as well.

Aubin: I'll be honest, I've got quite a soft spot for the oft maligned but usually fun genre of "horror punk." Between the twisted Grease–inspired outfits, gory lyrics and classic rock and roll base, there isn't much to find fault with in The Epidemic. The band just released the very tight, very fast Quarantine Days on Robot Monster and fans of everyone from Chuck Berry to The Independents will find something great here. You can check out a bunch of songs from the album on their myspace page.

Rain

Brian: Not to be confused with a Japanese instrumental rock act of the same name, Rain was a short–lived follower of the Revolution Summer of hardcore in the late 1980s. After a mere two recording sessions, the band would eventually release the La Vache Qui Rit 12" EP via Guy Piciotto's Peterbilt label in 1990. But one listen to any of the band's affected, pitch–perfect, wandering narratives and it's clear that their inspiration doesn't need to be spelled out. Perhaps due to their late arrival on the scene, or bare discography, Rain has never quite gotten the accolades their pioneers (Rites of Spring, Embrace) or peers (Moss Icon, Gray Matter) have gotten, and that's a pity. Luckily, Dischord recently reissued the EP on compact disc format, with all the tracks remastered. The best one, "Rivers," can be found streaming at the release info page, but be assured, the whole, specially handmade disc is solid. Members of Rain went onto form a plethora of acts, by the by, the most notable being Girls Against Boys.

Hostage Calm

Brian: We posted this a while back, but I figured it's good enough to warrant another mention. Connecticut's Hostage Calm released a pretty great four–song demo a few months ago. The band feature just about all of the short–lived At All Costs –– the horn–laden late `80s youth crew–style band, not At All Cost, the weird Texas vocoder–laden metalcore band –– and change it up a bit from their former act, with a more melodic, Dag Nasty–minded approach and light but somewhat Quicksand–esque guitar crunch. You can stream the demo at their above–linked MySpace page, or download the entire thing in a higher quality for free via MediaFire.

Endgame

Brian: The upcoming EP from Bloomfield, New Jersey's Endgame is pretty, prettay, prettayyy good. Imagine the melodic, emotional drive of Garden State predecessors like Lifetime and late–era Turning Point spun with a modern pop–punk twist. Set to drop in February 2008, Distracted is a major improvement over the band's past releases, like last year's split EP with Movement. I'm particularly fond of "Peace of Mind," which pretty much got me through a monotonous Black Friday retail shift –– check it out on the band's MySpace page.

Dave House (The Steal) / Junius / Crosstown Rivals

Justin: Dave House of the promising young UK hardcore outfit the Steal has posted his two solo outings for streaming on his MySpace page. The albums are titled See That No One Else Escapes and Kingston's Current. The albums are available from Banquet Records and are self described as being in the vein of Billy Bragg, the Weakerthans and Death Cab for Cutie. It's hard to argue against that description. The title track from Kingston's Current features an instant sing–a–long while the track "In This Machine" bursts forth with an electronic backdrop straight from the Postal Service's cutting room floor. There's yet to be a US release, but with two solid albums under his belt I can't imagine it will be long.

Brian: To be quite honest, I wasn't huge on Junius's Blood Is Bright EP when first receiving it close to two years ago. However, with the band beginning to heavily eschew the new wave / post–punk textures that resulted in so many comparisons to the Cure and Joy Division, the band straight blew me away opening for frequent tourmates Circle Takes the Square this past week in Brooklyn. Think Jupiter–era Cave In, but more atmospheric and dissonant and with a lesser reliance upon guttural screams, tempered with the band's earlier influences. Check out some music from a compilation of their first two EPs as well as their recently released 7", the epic The Fires of Anteiluvia.

Ben: Crosstown Rivals have been a part of east coast Canada's punk scene for a number of years. Tonight the band will be playing their last show in Fredericton, New Brunswick. While they didn't ever break through into the national spotlight, they did offer themselves as a fairly consistent act in a town that hasn't always drawn touring acts. They played simple pop punk, and while that may no longer be where current tastes lie, it's always nice to fall back on. Check out 'Wellington St.' on the bands MySpace page.