Written by Andrew Hart from Rawkfist Music

Let’s face it dudes and dudettes, there is a serious lack of great female-fronted rock these days. Even more so, so many of them are focused on something other than just out straight up party rock, the kind of crap that gets everyone at a party or concert on their feet. In an era filled with Buckcherrys, Hinders and Rev Theorys to bring the noise to the masses, isn’t it about time the females of the world got a band fronted by one of their own to do the same thing? Look no…

Written by Andrew Hart from Rawkfist Music

I’ll admit right now that I’ve never listened to Blue October, at least not beyond the band’s recent success in their single “Hate Me.” I couldn’t help but be intrigued however, by the roughly pieced ballad with growling vocals and when word traveled to me that a new Blue October album was springing it’s way towards me, I decided it was time to give this band a shot. The results are certainly fascinating, and definitely against what the album title will have you believe. As much as Blue October may want us to…

Written by Andrew Hart from Rawkfist Music

I was a bit of a latecomer to the fad of piano rock, not really learning of it’s potential greatness until introduced to Dropping Daylight’s unique brand in 2006 (look ‘em up, this review isn’t about them). Since then however, it’s been easy for me to develop an appreciation for the craft, which typically adds much-loved melodies to hard rock tunes. So when I stumbled across Reality Addiction and discovered their penchant for piano playing, I was immediately intrigued. Intriguing was most certainly what I ended up with too, once I gave their…

From my blog at Rawkfist Music

Written by Andrew Hart

There's catchy music, and then there's damn catchy music, and just one listen to the Christian rockers known as Skillet, and you'll have a pretty good idea which side of that line they fall on. Followers of the band since it's inception in 1996 will be the first to admit the band has come a long way too, evolving more than most bands do in their decade of activity leading up to their seventh studio album, Comatose. Perfecting the art of crafting truly compelling songs can't be easy, but all…

Written by Andrew Hart from Rawkfist Music

Alright mainstream music fans, time to test your chops. Remember Hoobastank and their 2004 breakout hit "The Reason"? Good for you! Now forget that song every existed and think about what else you know about this four piece California-based band. Nothing you say? I thought so. Now reward yourself with a snack while I break down exactly what these guys have been up to for the last five years, and where exactly this largely mediocre band stands with their newest release, the confusingly titled For(N)ever.

Where I nothing more than a casual radio…

Review From My Blog At Rawkfist Music

Written by Andrew Hart

It took me an unusually long time to crank out the review of Hurt's new album Goodbye To The Machine. The unique entity known as Hurt has put out three full albums prior to this, each one with enough diversity and difference from other modern rock to stand it's ground as a completely unique offering. Hurt's latest is no different in this sense. The music is deep and each song is it's own super-special rare gem of a track. However, it's because of this I had to make sure…

From my blog Rawkfist Music

Written by Andrew Hart

Many times experimentation in rock music is met with failure. Many fans of the band feel isolated by a major change, and oftentimes the music is criticized for being a major departure from the well known sound. Yet, time and time again rock musicians insist on this silly thing called "evolution" in an attempt to make themselves feel better about doing nothing but strumming on instruments all day long (I kid people, I'm sure there's some other reasons too). And so, despite the failures of many before them, hard rockers Strata…

From my blog at Rawkfist Music

Written by Andrew Hart

There are a lot of bands that have a bit of electronic fun with their music, and then there's BulletProof Messenger. Electronic vibes and beats are the calling card of this six man unsigned enigma, and if you don't believe me, one of those six is just there to play with the beeping noises. Unsigned is however, the last word you'd think to describe this band who's crisp production and masterful hooks would compete with some of the best in the business, and now BulletProof Messenger attempts to get signed…

From my blog at Rawkfist Music

As a man who doesn't often claim to be a big fan of the alternative pop punk stylings of bands such as The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, it should come as a surprise that their debut album rocked my world. Don't You Fake It was a wonderful blend of impassioned vocals, catchy riffs, and lyrics that went a little beyond "I love her so much, I want to marry her." A legit contender for album of the year 2006 was made from this very band, so logically I expected the same from their 2009 follow-up,…

Courtesy of Rawkfist Music

Red is quickly becoming a phenomenon, one in which I have had no problem being a part of. In a move reminiscent of Trent Reznor's mind-numbing prerelease games for Nine Inch Nails' Year Zero, the sophomore effort of Red was built up with a number of twisting and turning internet puzzles. For months, diehard fans of an increasingly popular band slaved over the tiniest numbers or messages, all just to find out a little bit more about Innocence and Instinct. Maybe they're all just crazy, but after Red's stellar 2006 debut End of Silence, can you…