New Music Report – Mar 20, 2020
With pretty much everybody under some degree of isolation at this point, and naturally the best way to keep from going completely insane is with some new music. There are really only a couple albums of note this week, but they’re both big ones, even though one is less than 9 minutes long. They’re both on very different ends of the metal spectrum but I’d highly recommend checking both of them out.
The Acacia Strain – I feel like I’m repeating myself cause this is the third time I’m saying this about The Acacia Strain since December but HOLY SHIT this incredible. This week we get another surprise EP from The Acacia Strain, E, which is presumably another installment in their series of releases that spell out DEATH and combine to make their new full length. This keeps up the brutality from D, with a deep, grinding groove that carries throughout the two song release. It also features a perfectly placed guest spot from Jess Nyx of Mortality Rate, adding even more dynamics to the tension and dissonance felt throughout not only this release, but D as well. Definitely give this a listen, the final product of these releases is going to be something spectacular.
Heaven Shall Burn – These guys have really been sticking to the formula for ages; they’re still putting out fresh sounding albums that are following the tried and true early-00s melodeath-inspired metalcore formula that was absolutely huge nearly 20 years ago. And it’s really cool to see someone carrying that style into the modern day, but honestly I wasn’t sure if I could sit through a 100+ minute double album of that stuff without getting bored. But man, somehow, they pulled it off. You’re not going to get anything revolutionary with this release, just some very well done old school metalcore/melodeath by tenured experts of the subject. I definitely enjoyed this one.
Alkaline Trio – I honestly love modern era Alkaline Trio. Obviously, I love the classics, but I feel like their last few have objectively been some of their best. It’s a more mature rendering of their sound that everyone has fallen in love with for more than 2 decades now, with a really polished execution of songwriting ability and their signature “sounds happy with really dark lyrics” style. And while this is a short release, it’s always a treat to get new Alkaline Trio. If you like My Shame is True-type Alk3, you’ll love this one.
*Just a note about the Acacia Strain EP, I know these are surprise EPs and neither the band nor any music blogs have been talking about these before their release, I don’t know if there’s some sort of media embargo or anything, but I figured since I’m making this post for like MAYBE 10 people it didn’t matter. If someone happens to know the band and think they would feel otherwise, let me know and I’ll stop talking about them.