Liam Cormierā€™s rabid vocals have increased in ferocity and throatiness this time out, escaping previous comparisons to Every Time I Dieā€™s Keith Buckley and creating a new benchmark. His performance challenges guest vocalists Ben Kowalewicz (from Billy Talent), Alexisonfireā€™s Wade MacNeil, and Tim McIlrath (Rise Against) to equal levels of intensity, and is one of the signature features of this release.

Guitarist Scott Middleton (who additionally recorded the bass parts on this album following the departure of Andrew McCracken) also hits harder than ever before, delivering plenty of incisive riffs (see the title track) and aggressive chugging grooves (Deathsmarch), as well as slightly more accessible hooks on occasion (Harem Of Scorpions).

The heaviness of this album is especially notable on the more deliberately paced likes of Bastardā€™s Waltz or scorching Luciferā€™s Rocking Chair. Make no mistake, these decelerations donā€™t reduce the impact or power of the band, but rather give Middleton the chance for precision riffing thatā€™s just as brutal as the frenzied battering of Sorceress, the hardcore shoutalong Let It Pour or the out-of-control insanity of Pray For Darkness.

With Hail Destroyer, Cancer Bats prove that sometimes you have to destroy to create.

Owen Heitmann

The atypically subdued opener City Of Gainesville had me wary, but my fears were unfounded, as it plays directly into the comfortingly breakneck blast The State Of Florida: the bandā€™s vintage sound is back.

The geographic theme doesnā€™t stop with those two song titles ā€“ the quintetā€™s hometown of Gainesville, Florida is a major recurring character in the lyrics throughout the album (hence its name). The record is also a tribute to their musical as well as physical roots: while their last three albums have featured the occasional ska song thrown out like a bone to appease older fans, this album is drenched in upstrokes and summery rhythms married with punk energy.

Co-lead vocalists Roger and Chris are full of passion on tracks like Handshake Meet Pokerface (a tribute to a motherā€™s sacrifices for her sons) and Abandon Ship (hopelessness has never sounded so upbeat), and Scott Klopfenstein from Reel Big Fish adds trumpet to the existing horn section of Buddy and JR throughout, drenching numbers such as the frenetic Summon Monsters in brass. The opening gambit of using a quiet song to to lead into a louder one is repeated with the seamless transition from The Life Of The Party Has Left The Building to Devil In My DNA, but apart from those exceptions the album is raucous and fast all the way through. Golden Age Of My Negative Ways is short but razor sharp and catchy as hell; however, my pick of the litter is the euphoric Conviction Notice with its irrepressible ā€?na na na naā€¯ chorus.

My first reaction was that this was a return to form. After repeated listens, Iā€™ll go further: Iā€™d recommend this to an LTJ newcomer as much as their previous career best, 1998ā€™s classic Hello Rockview.

Owen Heitmann

Itā€™s almost symbolic of the whole album. Much of the record is familiar: Trust In You is vintage Offspring (so much so that it sounds a little too close to the title track from their highwater mark, 1994ā€™s Smash), and Takes Me Nowhere and Rise And Fall also showcase their typical chugging guitar riffs and catchy melodies. However, there are a few twists: Youā€™re Gonna Go Far, Kid incorporates dance-rock influences into their trademark sound, and Letā€™s Hear It For Rock Bottomā€™s verses recall The Police. Slower-paced stadium rocker A Lot Like Me may be in a very similar vein to Ixnay On The Hombreā€™s Gone Away, but the band take a step further into true ballad territory with piano-embellished Fix You and the well-intentioned but saccharine Kristy, Are You Doing Okay?

While recognisable as the same band many of their fans have grown up with, Rise And Fall, Rage And Grace finds The Offspring growing up a bit themselves, as evidenced by the lack of novelty tracks (although it might be kinder to call Stuff Is Messed Up a joke than take it seriously, given its glib response to social and environmental problems, ā€?Shit is fucked upā€¯). Theyā€™re still having fun though, as Letā€™s Hear It For Rock Bottomā€™s exuberant chorus testifies.

While flawed, and (naturally) no match for Smash, this is still the strongest Offspring album since 1998ā€™s Americana.

Owen Heitmann.

The album kicks off strongly with 1995. This song has it all: aggressively catchy guitars, racing drums and addictive gang vocals backing up just about every second line that comes from Toby Morseā€™s mouth. The rest of the album follows suit, amping up on some tracks and mellowing just a touch on Sunday. However, despite the strength of the songs, the album missteps with the overuse of spoken soundbites between almost every track. These interludes quickly wear thin and sap the repeat listening quality of an otherwise fine album.

Maintaining the bandā€™s posi-core attitude, the uplifting lyrics generally look on the bright side ā€“ on Fairweather Friend, Morse focuses more on love for his true friends than hate for a fake, while Sunday balances the loss of Morseā€™s father with the gift of his son. Most of the lyrics are equally personal, from the straight edge affirmations of Still Here to the powerful love song Unconditional. Tough guys have feelings too, as Heart On My Sleeve makes clear, pleading for people to look past the singerā€™s tattoos before passing judgement.

After such a long absence from the studio, the record is understandably a celebration, and a whole bunch of hardcore legends join the party to provide guest vocals, including Roger Miret on Nothing To Prove, Freddy Cricien on A Thin Line, Civ on Still Here, and Kevin Seconds on Fairweather Friend. In this company, Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio could seem an unexpected choice to grace anthemic final track What Happened? (which also features Lou Koller of Sick Of It All) but it may nonetheless be the best song (itā€™s hard to choose) from a strong return.

Owen Heitmann

The albumā€™s not an instant winner ā€“ opener A Blessing And A Curse frankly doesnā€™t promise much, consisting mainly of a heavily echoed vocal chant, and the following Fire And Brimstone, while more fully developed, might still have seen me go either way. But with track three, When Itā€™s Blackout, the various elements of the groupā€™s sound coalesced to produce a stirring folk-rock anthem and from that point on I was sold.

Although the album takes those first couple of songs to find its footing, once it establishes its niche it doesnā€™t slip up. While leaning at times towards punk and hard rock, the folk-rock core of guitar riffs and piano melodies holds strong, completed by strong lyrics and raw, honest vocals. Hold Fast (Sink Or Swim) incorporates an expansive, affirmative chorus alongside jittery verses, These Moments Define Us is rollicking, and the contrast between the buzzing guitar and crystal-clear piano is at its peak on So It Goes, a yearning and heartfelt standout.

I donā€™t know if Black Lungs has the marketability of City And Colourā€™s sensitive heartthrob image, but on the strength of songs alone, MacNeil will be able to hold his head high when he regroups with Alexisonfire for their next album.

Owen Heitmann

With this seventh studio album, Millencolin continue the slow but steady evolution of their sound ā€“ their ska-tinged skate-punk roots have given way over time to a musclier, more mature approach. This maturity is reflected in the presence of two atmospheric instrumentals (Centerpiece and End Piece) which divide and conclude the album, while Done Is Done features a string section, which enhances the songā€™s melancholy mood. In fact, a similar desolation marks much of the album, including the gloomy Ducks & Drakes.

Itā€™s not all downbeat, though ā€“ first single Detox is a chirpy, bouncy number, Come On is bright and poppy, and Danger For Stranger is way more cheerful than a song with a chorus featuring the line, ā€?where there is hate there is youā€¯ should be. Meanwhile, Turnkey Paradise and Broken World are simply catchy melodic punk such as fans have come to expect.

While maybe not quite up to the standard of career highpoint Pennybridge Pioneers, Machine 15 offers plenty of reasons to hope Millencolin endures for another 15 years.

Owen Heitmann

After three solid originals, the band pay tribute to some of the melodic hardcore bands that have influenced them, completing the EP with three great cover songs ā€“ Gorilla Biscuitsā€™ No Reason Why, Shelterā€™s Here We Go and Lifetimeā€™s Cut The Tension. These versions are all faithful to the original recordings, and actually improve Here We Go in my book; Jordan Pundikā€™s trademark vocals sound more passionate than Ray Cappo did on the original.

But thatā€™s not all: the package also includes a second, 12-track disc by NFGā€™s alter egos, International Superheroes Of Hardcore, called Takinā€™ It Ova. ISOH contains the same members as NFG but features Pundik on guitar and guitarist Chad Gilbert on lead vocals. This incarnation of the band plays straight-up melodic hardcore with a ridiculous sense of humour. The music is circle-pit-worthy, but the lyrics tackle subjects like clean substitutes for profanity and the importance of wearing seat belts. While light-hearted, itā€™s hard to tell if Madballā€™s Got Our Back is actually a joke ā€“ after all, Gilbert did produce the new H20 comeback record.

Itā€™s a short affair ā€“ the two discs combined barely come to half an hour ā€“ but itā€™s up there with Catalyst as one of the best things theyā€™ve ever done.

Owen Heitmann

With Hello Destiny, however, Goldfinger have promised a revival of their heyday, complete with the return of early guitarist Charlie Paulson and cover art that mimics that of their debut ā€“ the album even ends with a quote from Mable, a song off the self-titled.

With this in mind, things begin promisingly with the pop-punk of One More Time (even if frontman John Feldmann doesnā€™t realise that the uber-polished style heā€™s used as a producer with acts such Hilary Duff doesnā€™t actually suit his own band all that well) and Get Up, a horn-infused ska ditty that makes you wonder why they ever abandoned the genre. Goodbye is punchy, and the classic Goldfinger reggae-ska of If Iā€™m Not Right finds Feldmann appropriately singing, ā€?Iā€™m the guy from way back whenā€¯.

With the flavourless War, however, proceedings start to go downhill. Bury Me is forgettable, the best thing that can be said about the Paulson-sung hardcore thrasher Not Amused is that itā€™s short, and by Handjobs For Jesus (a screamo-influenced track featuring Bert McCracken which bizarrely switches to country gospel) it seems like ā€?going back to their rootsā€¯ was just a marketing claim to erase memories of 2005ā€™s poorly performing Disconnection Notice. In fact, winsome How Do You Do It is the only cut that makes it worth listening to the second half of the album.

The lacklustre results shouldnā€™t be a surprise: Goldfinger have been on a downward spiral for years. Itā€™s just the signs that this could have been a return to form that make it hurt. If this is Destiny, letā€™s hear it for free will.

Owen Heitmann

Thereā€™s no consistent approach to the source material: some bands rework their chosen target in their own style (The Maine and All Time Low remake Akonā€™s I Wanna Love You and Rihannaā€™s Umbrella, respectively, as sugary slices of pop-punk, while The Devil Wears Prada do Big Tymersā€™ Still Fly as metalcore), some take it as a challenge to see how closely they can replicate the original (mainly Emanuelā€™s take on Purple Ribbon All-Starsā€™ Kryptonite), some opt for the middle ground (the guitars-and-beats approach of Forever The Sickest Kids on Men In Black, My American Heartā€™s California Love), others take a comedic approach (Lil Jonā€™s Put Yo Hood Up ā€“ incidentally the only track to originally really qualify as ā€?crunkā€¯ ā€“ is performed by Set Your Goals as if Yoda was rapping, Say Anythingā€™s reading of Olā€™ Dirty Bastardā€™s Got Your Money has an affected, near-spoken vocal delivery), and then thereā€™s a few completely out-of-the-blue left turns (Hot Rod Circuitā€™s bluesy version of Snoop Doggā€™s Gin And Juice, The Secret Handshake deciding Skee-Loā€™s mid ā€™90s hip hop single I Wish should be done as vocodered electropop).

Fans of the cover bands involved are likely to take to this more kindly than fans of the original tracks, but even so thereā€™s a fair few duds ā€“ while thereā€™s plenty of gimmicky fun, the only bands that offer repeated listening pleasure are The Maine, The Devil Wears Prada, Person Lā€™s respectful version of The Roots & Cody Chesnuttā€™s The Seed (2.0), and New Found Glory, who close the compilation with a mellow, guitar-based version of Arrested Developmentā€™s Tennessee.

Owen Heitmann

No one expects live songs to sound exactly like their studio counterparts (itā€™s both pointless and often impossible), but vocals aside, this whole recording sounds horrible. The playing is sloppy, and the mix is murky and bass-heavy, particularly on recent tracks such as Thriller. Older songs, like Tell That Mick He Just Made My List of Things To Do Today, translate best to this recording, possibly because they were written when Fall Out Boy used to be a real band and not overproduced studio puppets.

**** Live In Phoenix is also available on DVD, which pretty much makes this CD superfluous ā€“ not only are many of the bandā€™s fans most interested in watching bassist Pete Wentz, but the CD version excises five songs from the gig (three FOB originals and partial covers of Akonā€™s Donā€™t Matter and Timbalandā€™s One And Only). To add insult to injury, the CD sleeve still includes credits for these songs, as if rubbing in the fact that theyā€™re not present.

Disappointing even to fans, this is utterly inessential for anything except proving that Wentz needs to be kept away from the microphone at all costs (witness his screams on set closer Saturday).

Owen Heitmann