1. Kid Kilowatt – The Bicycle Song – Guitar Method (2004)
Kid Kilowatt were a short-lived band that existed between 1996 and 1998. Comprised of members of Cave In, Converge and Piebald, they are now considered a supergroup of sorts even though they existed as a side project early on in each of their respective main bands careers. Though Kid Kilowatt more or less stopped playing together in 1997, they actually recorded Guitar Method in 1998 to document the material they had written together. The album then sat in limbo for a few years while their full time bands went on to become major players in the Boston music scene. The really interesting thing about the record is how different it sounds from everything else they were involved in. Guitar Method substitutes the metalcore of Cave In and Converge, as well as the pop punk of Piebald, for a more post-hardcore ala-Dischord Records sound. It cycles between its louder moments and its mellower indie rock moments, both on display in “The Bicycle Song.”
2. Forensics – Did You See What God Just Did To Us, Man? – Things To Do When You Should Be Dead Anyway (2004)
Forensics were a band based out of Virginia that sort of defied any genre tags. From the hyper rock driven hardcore of their On A Bridge Atop The Heap Of Friends Who Jumped EP to the experimental post-rock of The Hogback Mountain Sessions vol. 1, the group was always up to something a little bit different on every outing. Things To Do… found them tinkering in a bit more of a stoner rock style. “Did You See What God Just Did To Us, Man” wins points for a Hunter Thompson reference in its title, but what’s even cooler is the Black Sabbath nod in the music. The main riff is obviously a play off “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,” but Forensics take it in a different direction. They double down on the sludge and throw some blistering guitar leads in. They are, interestingly, a band that isn’t afraid to explore another artist’s ideas, which is a pretty cool trait. Later on the album they flesh out some takes from the Old Man Gloom epic “Zozobra.”
3. John Zorn – Mow Mow – The Dreamers (2008)
John Zorn is renown for his avant-garde, experimental compositions in Jazz, Metal and pretty much anything else. Although his work is typically angular, dissonant and extremely challenging, The Dreamers is quite the opposite. Featuring his Electric Masada group, which includes Trevor Dunn of Mr. Bungle and Fantomas fame, The Dreamers is a collection of approachable, dreamy meditations. “Mow Mow” is half Hawaiian luau, half surf rock song, conjuring images of a sunny afternoon on the beach. If listening to this track doesn’t relax you, then probably nothing will.
4. Handsome Boy Modeling School – The Truth – So…How’s Your Girl? (1999)
Handsome Boy Modeling School is a duo of hip-hop producers consisting of Prince Paul and Dan The Automater. With a long list of credits attributed to both of them, it’s no surprise that the album had a ton of guests, everyone from Mike D to Del Tha Funkee Homosapien and Sean Lennon. Musically, it plays out like a DJ Shadow record – calm, cool, collected and funky as hell. Loaded with samples galore, the album is based around an episode of an obscure 90s sitcom starring Chris Elliot called Get A Life. I like “The Truth” because it’s a super laid back track; the kids today might call it “chill.” It features great vocals from Roisin and a rapped verse from J-Live, neither of which I know anything about except that they kill it in this song.
5. When Dreams Die – The Confidence Man – Protests And Testaments (2004)
A common theme in these playlists is bands that came from the hardcore scene and went on to do something different. When Dreams Die are one of those. The Poughkeepsie, NY based group started playing chaotic hardcore more along the lines of early Every Time I Die, but Protests And Testaments was a major turning point. Though still firmly rooted in hardcore, the band shifted more towards a hard rock sound, also dropping most of the screamed vocals. Their earlier material had clean singing worked in so it wasn’t a huge surprise, but in this more melodic setting the vocals tended to resemble a less erratic version of Daryl Palumbo of Glassjaw. Throw some blues licks and Soundgarden riffs in and you get something along the lines of “The Confidence Man.” This was the last release under the When Dream Die name. After Protests And Testaments they scaled down to a four piece and changed their name to Robots And Empire, moving in a more alternative/stoner rock direction. Check out their album Omnivore also.
6. Crooked Hook – The Captain Will Be Your Guide – The Captain Will Be Your Guide (2007)
Speaking of stoner rock, New Haven’s Crooked Hook were the epitome of it. Crunchy distortion, fuzzed out riffs and lazy, lethargic vocals. “The Captain Will Be Your Guide,” much like the Forensics song from earlier, is a clear play on another bands riff. This time it’s Dead Meadow, who I’m pretty sure I saw Crooked Hook open for once. But again, it doesn’t matter that it sounds similar – it basically all just sounds like Blue Cheer anyway. Which is a good thing.
7. Dark Time Sunshine – Can’t Wait – Anx (2012)
Dark Time Sunshine is a hip-hop duo consisting of emcee Onry Ozzborn and producer Zavala. Anx is a pretty interesting record; it has all kinds of different sounds added in to its indie hip-hop grooves. Zavala does a great job mixing in bits of trip hop, electronica and really whatever else on top of his innovative and really complex drum beats. To show how deep they get, the track “Valiant” features a sample from a super weirdo obscure German prog-rock band called Grobschnitt. They know their stuff. The album features guests like Busdriver and Aesop Rock, but “Can’t Wait” is all Ozzborn on the mic. His mellow style matches well with the synth driven melodies that at times border on being club music. It sounds better than my description makes it out.
8. Khoma – One Of Us Must Hang – The Second Wave (2006)
Khoma features members of Swedish post-metal giants Cult Of Luna. While the doom and gloom of their main band is certainly present, Khoma moves in a more alternative rock direction. Vocalist Jan Jämte has a super powerful voice and wields it to carve out strong melodic patterns. The music is somewhere between Cult Of Luna and Deftones, toning down the brutality for a bit more simplicity and approachability. “One Of Us Must Hang” closes out on a spacey, delay drenched guitar line, perhaps not unlike a post-rock band like Mono or Explosions In The Sky. It’s heavy, but it’s catchy and melodic.
9. Ikebe Shakedown – Rio Grande – Stone By Stone (2014)
Brooklyn based Ikebe Shakedown blend afro-beat, jazz, soul and funk into an infectious groove. They exist at the crossroads of Fela Kuti, Isaac Hayes and Kruanghbin. “Rio Grande” sounds like it should be the theme to some 1970s television show or cop movie. The snappy guitar lines, sleek horn harmonies and polyrhythmic percussion fuel the instrumental track. I saw this band a few years ago at The Acoustic in Bridgeport, CT, who unfortunately just closed down due to the COVID crisis, so I wanted to include this song out of respect for them. And it’s a great song.
10. Hog Molly – Paycheck – Kung Fu Cocktail Grip (2000)
Tad were an influetnial Pacific Northwest rock band that never got their proper due. They came up in the late 80s with bands like Soundgarden and Melvins, playing a heavier version of what would go on to become the worldwide phenomenon of grunge music. And just like Melvins, Nirvana founder Kurt Cobain looked up to the band and their frontman Tad Doyle. Due to a number of circumstances and bad luck, though, they just never broke through to the mainstream. Doyle’s band after Tad was Hog Molly, which found him playing an even heavier version of the gritty rock style, more akin to the AmRep noise rock bands of the 90s. Tad Doyle is awesome and even now he has burrowed himself further into the strange underground of volume and riffs playing in doomier bands like Lumbar (with Mike Scheidt of Yob) and Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth – all worth checking out.
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