Critical Zero

10/09/2024

We had a BLAST on Sunday at the with our friends .ricky and new friends from Germany !

03/09/2024

So-cal fans here it is! An incredible new album coming straight from California recorded at Jazz Cats Studio and was produced, mixed, and mastered by Jonny Bell, who worked with bands like The Buttertones and Tijuana Panthers to give you an idea of the quality.

Star Power is the title of Makeout Reef’s latest album, and the song we’re spotlighting is “Tied.” This track has an incredible beach sound, featuring dreamy vocals, driving drums and bass, and powerful guitars. The production is flawless, with everything mixed perfectly, ensuring no instrument overpowers the others.

The verses showcase twangy guitars with a signature California sound, while the choruses introduce a new dynamic, making the song explode with energy. At times, the bass feels like the lead instrument, acting as the glue that ties the song together. The bridge pulls you deeply into its elevating melodies that hits deepest in your heart.

Other shining gems on this album include the title track Star Power, Drive, Don’t Talk and well the whole album is fantastic! We highly suggest you check out this band who’s played with some of our favorite like; Beach Goons, The High Curbs.
reef

13/08/2024

The Toronto-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Cam Kahin has released his new single titled “whatever you want,” which is released on Dine Alone Records.

The song features haunting guitar melodies, expertly produced vocal harmonies, and much more. The track has an overall eerie and dark sound with stunning dynamics. The mix and production are of the highest quality, while still maintaining a raw edge, particularly during Cam’s vocal delivery, where you can truly feel the emotion. We always appreciate a good dynamic shift, and this song executes it flawlessly.

The chorus melody is catchy and explosive. Cam is one of our favorite emerging artists from Canada and has already performed on big stages, at festivals, and on tours, most recently with our friends . Catch him on tour to hear his single live!

08/08/2024

Smoking In Bed has released their debut single titled “Words for a Friend.” This song includes everything we love in a song—guitar solos, gang vocals, catchy melodies, and a poppy yet grungy sound tied together with a great performance. The sound is straight out of an early 90’s mixtape, to be treasured and held close to your heart.

The layering of the instruments in the mix is extremely well done—everything is in its own place, and nothing is overpowering. The drums and bass drive the song, while the lead guitar follows the vocal melody, adding some really nice dynamics to the choruses and verses. This is one of my favorite choruses I’ve heard in a long time, and the melody was stuck in our heads from the first time we heard the song.

We discovered and fell in love with this band the first time we saw them playing at the Dakota Tavern in Toronto. A mix of SoCal 90’s pop rock is something we missed and needed in our lives, enough that we booked them for our last show. Since then, we’ve been fans of this song, eagerly awaiting its release. We were very excited to see it become the debut single of Smoking In Bed.

We most recently saw them play at NXNE at Bovine S*x Club, and they absolutely blew us away. Make sure you catch them performing; this song is incredible to hear in a live setting. Their next show is at the Rivoli.

03/08/2024

Still buzzing from this show! Check out the full review + more photos of the night at the link in our profile.

Thank you to and the team for letting us photograph and review this amazing night !

30/07/2024

Our recap of the Interstellar Punk Bazaar is now live! Check out the full review + photos on our website. An amazing event!
punk.bazaar .heart

27/07/2024

SPOTLIGHT
HARKNESS
VIEW FROM THE MOON

One of our favourite Toronto artists, Harkness, just released their latest single titled “View From The Moon.” This single has that special quality that makes a song extremely pleasing to listen to. The melody, production, and performance are of the highest quality. Everything from the subtle orchestral instruments to the backing vocals makes this song one of our favourite releases of 2024. The chorus will be stuck in your head for the entire day after hearing this song—it certainly was for us. It reminded us of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” but with a modern twist. It’s very hard to write such a rewarding and pleasing melody, and Harkness, as always, nails it. Do yourself a favour and add this song to your playlist, and for all the music directors out there, use this song for your next film!

21/07/2024

Last Thursday we went to see from perform an acoustic set at ! Also featuring and .o from . Check out the full photos and review on our website!

20/06/2024

SPOTLIGHT
BURNER
OUTTATHECOUNT

The latest release by zBTFD Records artist Burner is out now, titled “Outtathecount”! Fuzzy vocals, explosive guitars, and a super catchy chorus are just some of the things that make this single great. The mix and production have everything we look for in a song, with a DIY, not overly polished, raw sound. You can really feel the emotion in this song, with every instrument sounding like it’s about to blow up - they are riding that line and it sounds amazing.

Burner is from Toronto and signed to Brantford label zBTFD Records. They’re scheduled to perform at R4A Fest in Brampton on July 12-13 at Spot 1 Grill & Music Hall with a stacked lineup of incredible artists.

.to

19/06/2024

Critical Zero had some wonderful words to say about our set at NXNE!

Read at https://critical-zero.com/2024-06-12-16-nxne 👁️

📸: Critical Zero

19/06/2024

NXNE REVIEW + RECAP IS NOW LIVE! Check out our website for the full post with all the photos and more!

Thank you to for another amazing fest this year!

In this post: .core

17/06/2024

Massive event to check out!

WHAT A LINEUP! SEE YOU IN JULY, BRAMPTON ❤️‍🔥

27/02/2024

CANADIAN SPOTLIGHT
DAMMIT GOLDIE
HOUSE OF STONE

Dammit Goldie is a Hamilton based punk/post-grunge band. They’re back with their latest release titled “House of Stone”. This single features heavy guitars, punchy drums and bass, and melodic and strong vocals. The mixing and production of this song is excellent, with every instrument placed correctly in their own frequency range. The overall sound of this track gives a nostalgic yet modern sound with grunge, metal, and emo influences. We can’t wait to hear this one live, make sure you check out Dammit Goldie’s other tracks as well as catch a show!

11/02/2024

We had a killer time at . Here are some photos of some@our favorite moments. A full house on Thursday. Much love to bands he absolutely slayed it. .milk.music

Thanks you!!! 💞💞💞

06/02/2024

SPOTLIGHT
CIRCLES

Circles is the latest release of the FLorida artist Whytide. The single opens up with a beautiful lo-fi lead synths and quickly builds to an explosion of crunchy and compressed drums, bass, and guitar. This song is layered perfectly with each instrument in its own frequency range. Every instrument is powerful, but doesn’t overpower each other. Circles has a wide dynamic that brings the listener down, and right back up - a sign of a very good song when done right, this does it. 

Guitar solos, spacey vocals with great reverb, and a constant drive are another highlight. The drums and synths are the lead instruments of this song, as they always feel like they’re on the verge of exploding and guide you throughout the four minutes and forty-nine seconds. The production, mixing, performance, and writing are top-notch and you should definitely check out Whytide.

16/12/2023

Critical Zero is partnering up with Black Budget to present their single release party for WHISTLEBLOWER!

Lineup: BLACK BUDGET / LIME RICKY / NO SUNSHINE COLLECTIVE / UNTIMELY DOSAGE

$10 // January 13, 2024 // Bovine S*x Club // 19+

A night of punk rock, psychedelic, and desert punk! At one of our favourite Toronto venues, the Bovine S*x Club!

.ricky .run

23/11/2023

Our recap of the sold-out album release party is LIVE! We had so much fun at this event.

For all the PHOTOS + review check out the link in our bio or critical-zero.com!

tavern

.sweater

03/11/2023

Halloween was off the hook in Toronto! Read our new review of a band we love live at !

Thanks to the, staff and fans for such a fun night!

26/10/2023

BOVINE TONITE! DOORS @ 9:00PM! LETS PARTY



📸: .run

26/10/2023

13/10/2023

Our first time at History, watching one of our favourite bands ! We had the honour of being able to photograph and review this legendary New York band.

-- Review on critical-zero.com --

Thank you to and The Walkmen for having us!

02/10/2023

Congrats to Black Budget on signing with King Pizza Records!

Nommmmmmm

Home page of Black Budget, a punk group from Toronto. Black Budget is a desert punk band featuring roaring guitars, aggressive drums, rib-crushing bass, and ferocious vocals. We promise this isn’t an extreme sports ad... once you listen to Black Budget it

28/09/2023

We had a blast at Static Safari’s EP Release show at Two Doors Down. We met so many great people and cant wait to be back! Full review and photos on CRITICAL-ZERO.COM

.doors.down.brantford

27/09/2023

Tomorrow the review from the release show. Find out too why is one of our favorite upcoming bands from canada.

10/09/2023

Favorite photos of the night capturing the energy of last Friday at .to. An amazing night of good vibes and sick music! Vendors killed it!

Big thanks to bands .toronto

Our vendors



Also for gathering some footage for us soon to be released!!

Thank you also to for the excellent flyer!

Big thanks to venue for giving us a home to party! 💕

08/09/2023

TOMORROW!! 3126 Dundas St. W. Doors at 8:30 ! All ages!

Us with .toronto & !!

Tickets at .zero !!

SEE YOU THERE!!

10/07/2023

DREAMS COME TRUE AT HORSESHOE

A NIGHT OF SKATE PUNK WITH HALF PIPE HEROES

Months ago we had our ticket bought ready to go see Teenage Bottlerocket and The Qu**rs! We early anticipated the night! All Ready to go! To our surprise last minute addition to the line up was Black Budget opening! WHAT?? An incredible lineup and unforgettable night at
The Horseshoe Tavern.

09/07/2023

was off the hook! Always love them!! More photos coming soon!

07/07/2023

Getting ready for the weekend!