All girl folk-punk trio, Lesbian Blowjobs, is rumored to be in the studio working on a new album. [HB writer Andy Laudano is all in a twitter in anticipation. - Ed] …. Welsh six-piece, Los Campesinos!, is in Connecticut working on a new release… If you pine for the sounds of the 90s, grab a copy of Filter’s greatest hits. They have some supporting shows in the works, too.
Have you been waiting for Green Day’s new album, 21st Century Breakdown? Well, good news - it’s scheduled for a May 15 release.… The Vans Warped Tour has announced its line up for this summer. It’s the 15-year anniversary, which is only a few years older than many of their attendees. Always fantastic, NOFX is on the list. Other noteworthy acts include The A.K.A’s, Saosin, Streetlight Manifesto, Bad Religion and Thrice.
Rumor has it that Tool plans on touring this summer. Stay tuned to Harder Beat for the latest on them and all your favorite shows.
The Parlor Mob - And You Were a Crow, Roadrunner Records
These cats damn sure aren’t re-inventing the wheel. In fact, you may be inclined to dismiss New Jersey’s The Parlor Mob as just another retro act that look like Dazed and Confused extras. The truth is, these guys sound like the real deal. And You Were a Crow begs to be heard on vinyl through your big muff headphones while toking some reefer, man. This band obviously owes a lot to Led Zeppelin - with tons of Jimmy Page worship and Robert Plant-like vocals. Listen a little deeper and you hear some Mountain, Montrose and Nazareth. The real winner is “Tide of Tears.” a slow soft/loud blues jam that’s guaranteed to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Closer, “Can’t Keep No Good Boy Down,” even has a country (by-way-of Neil Young) charm to it. See them at Lola’s May 2.
 (D.J. Ivie)
Valina - A Tempo! A Tempo!, Joyful Noise Recordings
This band, oddly enough, bridges the gap between …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead and At the Drive-in. Throw in some Mark Hoppus (Blink 182) vocal inflection, and you have Austria’s Valina. At first glance, Anatol Bogendorfer’s start/stop chord-based guitar work seems to work against the rhythm section - it sounds like they just want to rock out. Checking futher,, the slightly overdriven major key riffs coalesce with the rest of the band. This creates a sound that’s sure to catch the ear of the horn-rimmed glasses set as well as more forward-thinking pop-punkers. A Tempo! A Tempo! has an organic live feel due to the analog production and bass/drum interplay. Closing track “Libido’s Regime” embodies this spirit with a Franz Ferdinand stomp accented by mariachi horns. Catch them live with The Paper Chase in May.
(D.J. Ivie)
Battlefields - Reno’s, 3/18/09
Sweeping through Reno’s, Battlefields left little standing in their wake. They took the audience through eerily slow, somber tones only to drag them into unexpected insane, aural annihilations that made a quicksand blend of brutally beautiful music. Shedding light on an old grave, their guise could be described as IsIs influenced but with a new technically lighter hardcore way. They’ve truly mastered the fire of down-tempo doom and the creative ash and brimstone of the core field. “Quake and Flood” served as a gritty opener that allowed Matt Ricigliano (guitar) and Andrew Wallin (guitar) to shine. I only wish they’d played longer. If you didn’t catch the show you really missed out. Battlefields, Zoroaster, Irepress (and locals Vaste Burai and Four Days to Burn) each played the most deafening sets of the year. (Misty Johnson)
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