Hole - Nobody's Daughter (2010)

★ ★

I liked the first track. Moody old school Alt-Rock. Cool. Next is the single "Skinny Little Bitch" - a fairly generic grunge-punk rocker. From then on its Marianne Faithful croaking over a backing track of R.E.M. b-sides - with over-compressed 'modern' production in place. There's more fun to be had with Courtney's semi-shitty 2004 solo record (because this is a Hole record you see...no honestly it is.)

Stone Temple Pilots - Stone Temple Pilots (2010)

★ ★ ★

The grunge reformations continue. STP ditched the Pearl Jam In Chains vibe long ago and these days trade in muscular alt-rawk along the lines of Jane's Addiction. The single Between The Lines and the New Order-esque Cinnamon are instantly infectious, while the rest is a solid mixture of Zeppelin riffs and 60's psychedelic pop.

Billy Corgan - The Future Embrace (2005)

★ ★

Molten metal guitars are out: the guitars here are drowning in reverb and they whine and buzz like an army of emo-bees. The rhythm section is one lonely drum machine. There is a definite My Bloody Valentine influence here, but whereas "Loveless" soars, "The Future Embrace" just irritates. Sadly Corgan ran out of songs 3 or 4 Pumpkins albums back, and this collection lacks variety and fire.