(Pop Punk) Bayside - Killing Time - 2011, MP3, 320 kbps

With charged-up opener "Already Gone," Bayside immediately obliterate the rigid scolding of 2008's disappointing Shudder. Thank producer Gil Norton, who helped shape the sound of '80s alternative (Pixies, Throwing Muses) and '90s post-hardcore (Jimmy Eat World, Foo Fighters). Here, he surrounds Anthony Raneri's throaty but elastic vocals with harmonies and handclaps ("It's Not a Bad Little War"), while the airtight mix enhances Jack Shea's speed-metal guitar tricks. Killing Time is no breakthrough, but it does pack actual hard-rock crunch, not just sure-shot emo punch.
By Kenny Herzog