As a devout follower of the school of melidocore, Southern California’s THE BRACES have earned a welcome spot on my playlists between their prior full-length, I’m Telling Everyone, and their new EP First World Problems. The group meshes classic NOFX style forbidden-beat punk rock with snotty, melodic vocals that bear a keen resemblance to ANTI-FLAG’s Justin Sane, or BLINK 182′s Tom DeLonge. The new EP is now streaming on Bandcamp and also available for download (for free or with a contribution). Highly recommended.

CANVAS are a new indie-rock/post-hardcore band from Connecticut featuring James Ward, formerly of THE DISTANCE. The band recently recorded with Jay Maas at his Getaway Group studios. A couple of those songs, along with a Springsteen cover are now posted on the band’s Bandcamp page.

THE DAMNED THINGS – Ironiclast (Mercury): I don’t think they’ll ever be a time where I write “featuring members of ANTHRAX and FALL OUT BOY” without cracking a smirk. Contextual circumstances aside, this is one very enjoyable “supergroup” of sorts, and it’s EVERY TIME I DIE’s Keith Buckley that truly holds the whole thing together. This must have been a dream opportunity for Buckley – an outlet to sing in a blues influenced metal band without the trappings of EVERY TIME I DIE’s longtime footing in hardcore. The album has some filler, but the memorable songs hold sway and the guitar playing is thrilling throughout.

DONNYBROOK – The Beast Inside (Eulogy): DONNYBROOK mostly vanished after the release of their stellar 2005 full-length Lions in the Game. More than five years later, the group returns with more battering-ram metallic hardcore, this time upping the metal quotient and street-wise character. A persistent hip-hop undercurrent runs throughout The Beast Inside, amplified both in Dre Stewart’s cutting voice and in the crushing guitar/bass crunch. Lions was more cohesive as a full-length, but Beast is hard times city.

SUMMER HOURS – Alone Together (Deep Elm): Cutesy three-piece indie rock with a charming female singer. Instantly reminded me of RAINER MARIA (in a flowery sun dress). Compared to some of the other bands Deep Elm has been signing lately, SUMMER HOURS feels a little simpler in structure and the songs do not seem as polished, which could go either way as a matter of preference. What I really do like though is that the ten song album is only 26 minutes long – no padded shoegazing or faux-artsy interludes. I expect this one to grow on me.

HEKS ORKEST – Endless Scroll 7″ (Youth Conspiracy): I mean this in the most complimentary way — HEKS ORKEST sound like a classic Lovitt Records band. The ex-member list for this Richmond, Virginia group is bananas, including ex-ENGINE DOWN, DENALI, SPARTA, AVAIL, and ACTION PATROL. There’s only two songs on this 7″ (with download code) but both have a killer FRODUS/SPARTA/HARAM kind of vibe… that noisy, but well-controlled take on loud indie/post-hardcore with an unshakable dancey beat. Would love to hear more ASAP.

Mother of Mercy – Symptoms of Existence by lambgoat

- The song is the title track of the band’s upcoming full-length for Bridge 9, due in stores on January 25th. Super solid mix of vicious hardcore with coating of mid-paced metallic crunch.

From the inbox:

World-class British doom metal band ELECTRIC WIZARD will release its long-awaited new album Black Masses in North America on January 18 via Rise Above Records. The legendary group’s seventh studio album, Black Masses was recorded with Grammy Award-winning British recording engineer Liam Watson (The White Stripes) in London’s Toe Rag Studios. Today, Stereogum premieres the wicked new ELECTRIC WIZARD song “Turn off Your Mind”, calling the track “multi-layered stoner swirl”. Check out “Turn off Your Mind” now at this location.

Long hailed as the true heirs to Black Sabbath, ELECTRIC WIZARD have achieved near iconic status in the metal underground. Now, in league with Satan himself, ELECTRIC WIZARD prepares to annihilate the planet with Black Masses, its “dark prayer to Luciferian heavy metal” via crackling, vintage valve amplifiers set to full overdrive. Pre-release excitement for the record is boosted by the band’s appearance on the cover of the February issue of Decibel magazine, which hits newsstands today.

- “Multi-layered stoner swirl” sounds like an ice cream flavor I’d find at Trader Joe’s.

BrooklynVegan Presents: Trap Them – The Facts by brooklynvegan

- Surprisingly umm… head-bobbing-oriented. The song is from their upcoming third full-length, Darker Handcraft, which will be in mid-March on Prosthetic Records.

- A new 12″/digital download from France’s Throatruiner Records. The label accurately describes it as a mangled cross between MODERN LIFE IS WAR, old KYLESA, and CURSED.

On January 11th, Florida straight-edge hardcore band CASEY JONES will finally release I Hope We’re Not The Last, the band’s final full-length that has spent the last three years in purgatory. After reclaiming the effort from Eulogy Recordings, the band is putting it out on their own through singer Josh Jones’ own management company, The First Division (Jones also plays guitar for EVERGREEN TERRACE). You can listen to a new song from the full-length titled “Butt Hash” and read an interview with Jones via Blowthescene.com.

- The song is about a supposed street drug also known as “Jenkem”. The Wikipedia entry on it is here and is a funny/sad read on the obvious likelihood that it’s a hoax (old news too as this went down in 2007). But old not, perhaps the band has a point in wondering how far we’ll go as people in surrendering to our addictions or weaknesses.