"Killscreen - Non-Fiction - EP" Review by Dom

Formed in 2008 Killscreen is a pop-punk band from Beacon "Tree City", New York, the same area that fellow pop-punk band With the Punches comes from. Non-Fiction is the band's second EP following 2012's All in Your Head - EP, which was a solid EP that lacked the proper production to really make it a force to be reckoned with. That's not to say it isn't without good songs, fan favorite "Fireworks" seems to come to mind as does "E.W.I." and "See You Next Tuesday". This new EP comes out less than a year after the first, which some may call rushed but 20 year old guys are ambitious. The band is comprised of Juan Espinosa (Vocals), Kyle Cullen (Guitar/Vocals), Dan "D-Wright" Wright (Guitar/Vocals), Tyler Derken (Bass) and Alam Virk (Drums).

1. Loopers - Right off the bat the first thing you notice is the production, it's much better on this EP, with a clean, composed and focused sound the track quickly sticks in your head and forces you to sing along even after just the first listen. What else jumps out at you is the progression that Juan has made as a vocalist, his vocals sound stellar on this track.

2. Scranton - Starting with some harsher vocals courtesy of Kyle the song moves into a more fun, uplifting song about your love being too far away from you. The sincerity of Kyle's lyrics in the track is enough to pull emotion out of the most stubborn of people.

3. Falconer St. - An ode to hometowns and that one street we all grew up on. You could almost rename the track "Your Hometown Address" as the track brings up your memories of home, old friends and most importantly happier, better times.

4. Letters - A sweet love song with a nice featured verse from Tessarose Talaber that is heartfelt and sincere, not much more could ask for.

5. Non-Fiction - The aptly placed title track is a track that pretty much says: "I'm here, I mess up daily, but I'm not going anywhere." The track is a great closing song that leaves you in a good mood that leaves you determined and productive, and a song that makes you want to keep trucking through life when it gets hard as clearly evident by the end of the chorus: "The sun pulls me up in the morning, reminds me that a new day was made for me."

Vocals: Juan's vocals took a huge step in the right direction, with an accessible sound with conviction coming out on the right words there's nothing to complain about. Kyle's harsher, sometimes screamed vocals give the tracks that need it a certain grit that really helps songs along that need more aggression.

Music: The music for the most part is your standard pop-punk feel, light, uplifting feeling, yet fast enough to get your blood flowing and your limbs moving.

Pros: Good ol' fashioned pop-punk fun, great vocals, great lyrics, and great catchy songs.

Cons: I'm hoping for an acoustic version of "Letters" which would take the song to the next level for me, also with Tessarose on the acoustic as well. Also I think there's room for a more screamed aggressive song where Kyle takes the wheel and also a surprise breakdown thrown in, which in retrospect isn't a con for the album, more like a hope for the next release.

Overall: This band has the potential to be the pride of the Hudson Valley musically and the potential to be the next Wonder Years if they play their cards right. When looked back on I think this EP will be where future fans see that the band really formed their sound and their style.

Rating: 4.5/5

Notes: If you're in the Hudson Valley the band plays shows regularly. Follow them on Twitter(@killscreenNY) and Facebook(KillScreen). Also head over to BandCamp to download this EP for free/name your price(link below) and over to iTunes to download the All in Your Head - EP for just $4.95!

BandCamp: http://killscreenmusic.bandcamp.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/all-in-your-head-ep/id536236940

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Review by Dom

The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This review is coming from someone who saw the film but did not read the book, so my only impressions of the story as a whole come from the movie. I had high hopes for this knowing that it was getting a lot of praise and also finding out that the author of the book wrote the screenplay and directed the film.

The story revolves around Charlie, played by Logan Lerman in his first major lead role and he does a great job. You latch onto his character and you really connect and feel for him throughout it. Charlie is an outcast who befriends his English teacher(Paul Rudd) and a senior named Patrick(Ezra Miller). Patrick is the standout character, he's likable, he's funny, he's an ass but in the best way possible. Emma Watson plays a senior girl who becomes Charlie's love interest, Sam. Like Charlie, Patrick and Sam have their fair sure of rather dark secrets. The movie chronicles Charlie's freshman year and his friends' senior year. Through Patrick and Sam he meets a few other friends and one who he dates and breaks up with in one of the funniest moments of the movie.

Seeing Emma Watson outside of the Hermione Granger character was rather refreshing as she played a high school senior all too well. Ezra Miller did a great job with the character of Patrick who needed a strong actor to play him and he knocked out of the park. Paul Rudd took a backseat role in this film as he helped Charlie and gave him books outside of class to read and was Charlie's first friend. Rudd also delivers one of the most well-known lines from the book that was definitely made for teenage girls' Facebook statuses. Rudd does a great job shifting from his normal every day funny guy to being a mentor of a character. The supporting cast does a great job too, whether they're bullying, or getting Charlie high when he doesn't know it they become a lovable group of characters.

The ending is a little odd, it seems to wrap up too fast and really makes you want more, even just an epilogue, maybe 15 more minutes of movie which would set the movie at a solid 2 hours, which isn't long, especially when you're immersed in the story. The great thing about this movie is that it makes you think of your high school days and think: "Did I have a mentor-like teacher?", or that one person that you fell in love with the moment you saw them, or that one friend that may have saved your life, and hopefully these are all good memories.


This was a very enjoyable movie, it went in directions that I didn't expect and had much darker tones than I had expected. While it was good there are definitely some flaws. The thing that irked me throughout the entire movie was Emma Watson, she's a good actress don't get me wrong, but her American accent was just not good, I could hear British accents coming out. What's worse is that there was a clear way to let her use her accent, there's a point where they're talking and one of the characters talks about her moving, all they had to say was "She moved here from England" and she can use her natural accent. Secondly the movie (Mild Spoiler Alert) has a relatively happy ending yet it leaves a sad feeling with you and for me at least, this feeling did not go away for a while. Thirdly, the high school bullies are so incredibly cookie-cutter and unreal. This is one of those films where you look back at your high school years and think "Yeah, that never happened, ever." but they usual staples are there, you know the tripping in the cafeteria, things like that. Besides those 3 things, the movie is pretty solid.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by Perks, it has depth, a lovable core group of characters, good actors to portray them and an intriguing story. While there are some flaws within the film it doesn't detract too much from the film or the story.

Rating: 8/10

"Metallica - Career Discography" Review by Dom

This is something I've wanted to do for some time now, pick an artist do a short review of their albums and give the artist a rating. I though why not start off with my favorite band, which makes me biased but still, so here it is, the career of Metallica.

Kill 'Em All(1983) - A straight up no BS thrashterpiece that paved the way for 80's thrash bands. 9/10

2. Ride the Lightning(1984) - In my, oh so humble opinion, this is truly Metallica's magnum opus. It exceeds all levels of thrash, metal and velocity. Every track is pure fire. 10/10

3. Master of Puppets(1986) - Many consider this to be one of if not the best metal album of all time, I agree with it being one of the best. It's phenomenal and an ear opening experience to listen to, only reason it's not the best is because Ride came first. 9.5/10

4. ...And Justice for All(1988) - The loss of Cliff Burton changed the dynamic of Metallica, Jason Newstead was by all means a suitable replacement but he wasn't Cliff. This album is very good, and gave the band its real first mainstream success with the track "One". This album is a transition from the straightforward thrashing into what the band would become. 9/10

5. Metallica(AKA The Black Album)(1991) - This album, if you haven't heard it, you haven't lived. This is one of the quintessential metal albums of all time. It's heavy yet commercial enough that it reached a worldwide audience and spawned a 4 year world tour. 9/10

6. Load(1996) - Ah, the album where most fans jumped ship, I think had I been alive and into the band to see this transition I would've probably jumped ship as well. I wasn't a big fan at first, it leans more toward hard rock but there are some very good songs on here but for me, this is the first album that's not fantastic. 8/10

7. ReLoad(1997) - The continuation of the previous album and this album continues the downward slide. This album gets a ton of hate from fans and critics alike but there are some diamonds in the rough. The first half of the album is a solid set, the second half, not so much. 7/10

8. Garage Inc.(1998) - A double disc album of covers of the bands influences. Sounds boring but there's a bit of a range in the track selection and it's a good enjoyable listen and provides some old songs with a good ol' Metallica twist. 8/10

9. St. Anger(2003) - 5 years fans waited for new Metallica music, 6 years for original music and this is what they got. Looking back I see why it was hated, but after listening to it multiple times it's grown a lot on me. It's a raw sound, full with some heavy good music that was better than what came out 6 years prior. 7.5/10

10. Death Magnetic(2008) - Another long wait for the fans, this one proved to be more worth it. This saw the return of thrash into the band, it's a modern take on the genre full of full throttle thrash with a couple songs to pump the brakes a little and this was a great return. 9/10

11. Lulu(2011) - A collaborative album between the band and Lou Reed of Velvet Underground fame and this was just awful, truly unlistenable, and this one goes on Lou Reed, it was his vocals that trashed this project and a waste of Metallica music. 2/10

12. Beyond Magnetic - EP(2011) - This EP came out mere months after Lulu and this proved that Metallica was not at complete fault for that train wreck of an album. Only fault on this is that it sounds like tracks that just didn't make it onto Death Magnetic, at the same time, they're still good tracks. 8/10

Overall: The band has released monumental albums, with a couple that weren't amazing and one that wasn't to blame on them they've had a respectable career. Supposedly they're writing for their next album due out in 2014, we'll see where that takes the band.

Final Rating: 8.5/10

"Bullet for My Valentine - Temper Temper" Review by Dom

Bullet for My Valentine have been one of my favorite bands of the past decade. Their debut album The Poison is still one of my favorite debut albums and the follow up Scream Aim Fire is just as good. They released their third album Fever in 2010, which in my opinion was a disappointment but still had some quality tracks on it. 3 years later they release Temper Temper their fourth full length album, one that I wasn't expecting much but I was hoping for the best.

Let me start off by saying that there's not many positive things to say about this album. When they released the title track as the first single, I didn't like it, but as always, I never judge an album based off of the single. They then released "Riot" which I liked a little more but it lacked the screams that made BFMV who they are. The album starts off on a high note with the track "Breaking Point", it's a fast punch in the gut with a solid chorus, the only negative is that the bridge sets up for a fantastic breakdown but then goes back into the chorus. Most of the tracks on this album fit the same model, riff-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus, which works for a pop album but for a metal album it really lacks creativity. For me, the albums low-point is the 'sequel' to their spectacular "Tears Don't Fall" with the "Tears Don't Fall (Part 2)" it's just plain bad. You can't make a part 2 to a song unless it's 100% intentional, it just doesn't work (exception: Metallica with the Unforgiven trilogy that has spanned 3 albums and 17 years).

The problem with this album isn't that the individual tracks are bad, just none of them are good, they're all really in the middle. Not good enough to praise, not bad enough to trash. In the metal genre mediocrity is not how you stay relevant. The band doesn't sound bad, they just sound like they're running through the motions without any real sense of creativity. Also why is Matt Tuck not screaming anymore? It's like when M. Shadows from Avenged Sevenfold stopped screaming except they continued to release exceptional albums.

Standouts: Breaking Point, P.O.W., Dead to the World and Not Invincible(On the deluxe edition)

Worst Track(s): Tears Don't Fall (Part 2) and Dirty Little Secrets

Rating: 3/10

"A$AP Rocky - LongLiveA$AP" Review by Dom

A$AP Rocky has blown up and become a pretty big figure in hip-hop. Since his acclaimed 2011 mixtape LiveLoveA$AP he has become a force to be reckoned with, with a huge buzz and numerous featured verses, even appearing on a Rihanna remix and on T.I.'s newest album. I'm not crazy about that mixape, there are some songs I flat out love, "Peso" and "Demons" mostly but overall I thought it was just okay. But that tape along with Joey Bada$$'s 1999 mixtape, New York is becoming a hip-hop scene again.

Let me start with the production. First he barely worked with the producer from the mixtape, which for me is a good thing. But A$AP has a fantastic ear for beats, he flows over the beats so well and it bangs in headphones and speakers equally well.

A$AP sounds so good on this album, before he had that lazy, don't care flow but on this he switches up producers and his flows and it works to his benefit.

The features on this are weak at points yet strong at others. Drake and 2 Chainz fit perfectly on "Fuckin' Problems" while Kendrick Lamar seemed a little out of place. Santigold makes "Hell" a huge standout on the album. I can't talk about features and not bring up "1 Train". Kendrick Lamar, Big K.R.I.T., Joey Bada$$, Action Bronson, Yelawolf and Danny Brown all one track and what's most impressive is that A$AP actually holds his own up with these heavyweights.

This album only has a few tracks that have features, this really is an A$AP driven project. The biggest standouts for me are "Wild for the Night" which features Skrillex on the production, and also "Phoenix" which delves into darkness and suicide.

I'm not a fan of "Ghetto Symphony", "PMW" or "Suddenly" they're just not that great. Other than those few tracks this album was a pretty big surprise for me. I enjoyed this pretty thoroughly and return to it pretty often. Definitely give this album a listen, even if you didn't like his mixtape, if anything purely for the "1 Train" track, it's truly a great track.

Support him and the New York scene and go buy this album, like with real money.

8.5/10

Top 10(11) Movies of 2012 by Dom

While I know this isn't what this blog is usually about I thought I'd give my 2 cents about my favorite films of 2012. Now, I'm a pretty big movie buff but I haven't seen every movie from 2012 nor have I seen most of them, I hear Silver Linings Playbook and Perks of Being a Wallflower are great movies but I didn't get around to seeing them. All in all I count 39 that I've seen, while that seems low take into account the fact that I only really see movies that I want to see, being as movies are pretty expensive to go to now, especially as a college kid. So here are my top 10. Actually, this is going to be my top 11 because I really can't get it to 10, I'm stuck at 11.

11. Rise of the Guardians - I was between this and Wreck-It Ralph for the best animated film this year and I picked this because it truly pleasantly surprised me. I went into it not expecting much and I left loving the characters and for once, hoping there would be at least one sequel for it.

10. Sinister - I was hesitant to put this on the list being that it's a horror film but this one was a really something else, sure it had the usual pop out scares but it was genuinely creepy and burnt images in your head that stayed with you for a few days. Most importantly it had a pretty great story as well.

9. 21 Jump Street - If you know me, you know I love comedies and this one outshined them all in 2012, it's only real competition came from Ted which was funny but somehow this movie had more heart and more genuine laughs. It's a great movie to watch with a group of friends that's not too serious but no so stupid as well

8. Flight - Put Denzel in a movie, I'll see it, put Denzel in a movie and have it be gripping, well acted and hauntingly real and it'll be on my top 10. I thought I'd hear more of this movie during awards season but besides a few I haven't heard much. Despite that it's a very good movie that isn't exactly what you'd expect, the trailer depicts the aftermath of a plane crash while the overall theme of the movie dives into serious alcoholism. It's a riveting film.

7. The Avengers - It's probably the most fun you'll have at the movies in 2012, it's a superhero movie that's been built up for years now and it doesn't disappoint one bit. It's entertaining and it's just an all around good movie.

6. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - What a return to Middle Earth this turned out to be, Peter Jackson had the difficult task of making a trilogy out of one book, which in my mind is difficult in trying to make each film seem satisfying in it's ending even though it's not the true ending. I'm looking so forward to the sequel and I hope it's just as good as the first. While it's true it was more light-hearted than the Lord of the Rings trilogy it doesn't mean it's not worthy of existing.

5. Les Miserables - This was the surprise of the year for me, I enjoy a musical but this film takes it a step further with around 97% of the dialogue coming through song. At first I wasn't crazy about the movie but after I let it sit and digested it I really loved it, so much so that I bought the soundtrack to it. It's definitely not for everybody but it's something everyone should at least see.

4. Django Unchained - This movie may be my favorite Tarantino movie, behind Pulp Fiction of course. It was seriously perfect, Foxx, DiCaprio, Waltz, Jackson, were all perfect in their roles. It was a damn good time.

3. Argo - This movie was phenomenal, it was intense, suspenseful and well directed. After he directed The Town I had a new found respect for him and he knocks this one out of the park. I can't wait to watch this again and I will buy it on DVD.

2. Lincoln - Talk about well directed movies, my god. If Daniel Day-Lewis doesn't win an Oscar for this performance then I'll be very upset. This movie should've been rather boring, an 2 hour and 40 minute movie about trying to pass an amendment doesn't sound excited but Spielberg kills it and makes a movie that will last for a long time and will definitely be a part of my DVD collection.

1. The Dark Knight Rises - Like you expected anything else. Need I say anything about it? Amazing director, all star cast, a script to die for and the best ending to a trilogy since Return of the Jedi, wait actually since Toy Story 3. Bane was a hell of a follow up to The Joker and Tom Hardy stole the spotlight away from Bale in scenes, which isn't an easy task. An excellent villain, a hero for the ages and a supporting crew makes this movie the best of 2012 and quite possibly the decade, though we have 7 full years of cinema to go through.

Here's to 2013!

My Top 10 Hip-Hop/R&B Albums of 2012 by Dom

2012 is coming to a close and it's that joyful time of year: LIST SEASON. As the title states these are my top 10 favorite hip-hop and r&b albums of the year. This list is open to official albums, EP's and mixtapes alike.

NOTE: At the time of posting I have not listened to Game's Jesus Piece or T.I.'s Trouble Man: Heavy is the Hand, not that I think either would make this list but you never know.

10.) Big K.R.I.T. - 4eveNaDay: I was between this and his debut album that dropped this year and I think I enjoy this tape a little more, KRIT is putting the south back on the map for real. (check out "Boobie Miles")

9.) Chiddy Bang - Breakfast: I just love this album, it's fun, uptempo, with surprisingly conscious lyrics, just a great album. (check out "Baby Roulette")

8.) Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music: You could say i slept on this, I heard from the guys at DeadEndHipHop that it was a crazy album and they were right, this album is real, Mike's lyrics and flow mixed with El-P's production go together perfectly. (check out "Reagan")

7.) Joe & Box - We Just Fucked Your Beat Vol. 2: Who woulda thought a mixtape from 2 white boys could be this good? It just is, the burn every beat they spit over and the replay value is just insane. Look em up on Datpiff.com and get all 3 of their tapes for free. (check out "House Party")

6.) MGK - Lace Up: Machine Gun Kelly's long awaited debut album isn't perfect but it's a damn good start, his wild and crazy songs are there but the album is surprisingly heartfelt and I love it. (check out "End of the Road")

5.) Lupe Fiasco - Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album: As a supporter of Lasers I was hoping this album would be a mix of Lupe's older stuff mixed with the Lasers sound and for the most part that's what we get. There are a couple insufferable hooks but overall it's a great album. (check out "Lamborghini Angels")

4.) Frank Ocean - channel ORANGE: I'm not a big r&b fan, I'm a fan of The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, John Legend, Anthony Hamilton and that's about it. But I have to admit, Frank Ocean delivered a damn near perfect album, his voice, his lyrics, the few features on it make it an amazing listen.

3.) Nas - Life is Good: If you know me, or have been following me, you know that Nas is one of my favorite rappers of all time, so you know I was looking forward to this album, and it did not disappoint. His hooks aren't usually that great but he stepped it up on this, and I don't need to mention his amazing lyrics. Nas continues one of the most impressive discographies is hip hop. (check out "Daughters")

Now these next two are both my number ones, only because I enjoy them differently, one I can casually listen to and love and the other I listen to all the way through and view it as a movie almost, so without further ado:

1 .) Macklemore x Ryan Lewis - The Heist: After becoming my favorite rapper of the year and releasing songs that I listen to on a daily basis I decided to buy this album and it is as perfect as an album gets. I listen to literally every song, there's even an instrumental track that I love ("BomBom"). Between the silly songs to the emotionally driven personal tracks Macklemore shines. For the first time ever I fell in love with a producer, and Ryan Lewis is that producer, it's so clean yet so dirty at the same time, this album is the reason that rappers work with only one producer for a project. (check out any song, seriously.)

1.) Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city: Coming off of Section .80 Kendrick had a lot to live up to, but if there's one guy that can live up to it and even surpass it it's Kendrick Lamar. This entire album is flawless, the seamless transitions into separate tracks and how the skits tie the story together is amazing. Kendrick is a narrator in the story but he's also the protagonist and at times he's even the antagonist. If you like hip hop you have to love this album, it's that good. (just like The Heist, check out any song, seriously.)

Well, there it is, the top 10 hip-hop/r&b albums of 2012. It was a pretty great year, there was a ton of crap released(see 2Chainz, Meek Mill, Tyga) but if you look just a little harder you can find greatness. Here's to 2013!