ALMOST KINGS

ATLANTA,GA

Having lived in Hotlanta for several years, and living in close proximity otherwise, I can claim Atlanta as a second home. Atlanta is one of those places in America that is special for reasons that are too numerous to list in the space of this post. Suffice it to say, if you have never been GO!

This post got its start from a Twitter follow and my wife's Facebook account. What do the two have in common? Well, I got "Followed" ( @justmnjoe ) by @AlmostKings and my wife follows them on Facebook. She is not really in on Twitter, yet. Anyway I started researching these "Kings" and here is what I found.

I liked this group of guys from Atlanta almost immediately, why? Lots of reasons so I will narrow it down. I am a fan of music and musicians; the genre is not as important as the music I like stuff all over the map and I dislike stuff all over that same map. What I was initially struck by when I watched the first video was they sound like a hip hop act, but that couldn't be the case, there were actual instruments and musicians playing those instruments on the stage. It wasn't three or four guys rapping over top of each other around a drum machine and turntable, it was guitars, a drum kit, a bass, it was a band!

As I dug deeper into band I found that they were unsigned and were out there working to promote themselves and make their name not the name the record company wanted them to make. I am not saying that being signed to a label would be a bad thing; What I am saying is that in spite of not having a label contract these guys are out there touring and playing as though they do, and in time they will i that is their choice. 

As for the music, if you are like me and were around to see the birth of the fusion of hip hop and rock you will like what the Almost Kings have to offer. For me this brought back memories of that first Anthrax record I bought. After Anthrax it was okay to be a metal kid and listen to hip hop and now the rest is history because that fusion has come full circle and a new genre has matured.

Listening to the Almost Kings I hear Beastie Boys influences along with the distinct Atlanta / Dirty South hip hop flavor. These guys meld seamlessly from rap/rock to rock and vice versus. Their passion for their craft can be seen in the fun they appear to be having on stage. Do yourself a favor and download anything you can from the Almost Kings.

http://www.almostkings.com/

BAND: We Are the Blog
EP: Decadence


This band is one of the reasons that I am huge fan of Twitter. I hear people, a lot, saying I'm not on Twitter I don't get Twitter. Blah, Blah, Blah. Well I get Twitter I get connected with bands that other people have never heard of, yet.

Flipping through my Twitter I got a new Follower that I didn't recognize. It was Collin Toner one of the vocalists of We Are The Blog. Intrigued I went out and did a little Internet searching and came upon "Decadence", the latest 5 song EP from this Minneapolis metal-core sextet. I was blown away from the first notes. Corruptcake intros with an echoy, wispy, haunting build into growling vocals that punch you in the ears.

As the drums, guitars and bass hit their first notes they drive you into wanting to ball up your fist and start pounding it on something. Every song on this EP brings an unbelievable balance of the screaming and growling, that is a mark of metal-core, and crystal clear vocals. This band utilizes the growling to punctuate the emotion of each song and drive the listener forward.

 For me I listened to this several times over, during a grueling workout, and was able to draw motivation from the ebb and flow of each song. As Velocirapture faded out on the last time through I walked out of the gym feeling energized and with a big smile on my face. This EP left me wanting for a live We Are the Blog show.