New Music Report – April 22, 2022
Wow, what a week, not only do we get a new Northlane and BMD album, but new singles from both The Wonder Years AND Alexisonfire is incredibly special, and honestly not something I ever thought I’d see ever again. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of good music out this week, but in my mind, those bands are nearly impossible to top. This is exactly why I always make sure I include singles as well; those are not worth missing.
Black Matter Device – The mathcore scene is so fucking exciting right now. Honestly, I never thought we’d be able to live up to the days of Dillinger Escape Plan and The Chariot, and hey, maybe we won’t, at least not from a popularity standpoint, but the underground bands pushing the scene relentlessly forward are so special. And Black Matter Device has earned themselves a spot right at the top of that conversation alongside bands like Callous Daoboys. This band is just pure chaos (this 14 track album only has one song over 3 minutes long), but they handle it with an unparalleled mastery of the sound. It’s not going to be for everyone, of course, but for any mathcore fans, this is an essential release.
Northlane – Alien was absolutely one of my favorite albums of 2019, it was a departure from the old progressive metalcore sound to a more nu-metalcore type sound, but they pulled it off brilliantly, and as much as I was unsure of the album at first, I couldn’t get it out of my head, it was brilliantly done. This new album leans into that sound even more, but to be honest, I’m not sure it stands out quite as much, it seems a little more monotonous, missing out of some of the major moments that you got with Alien. It’s still a good album, but I should have known Alien would have been incredibly difficult to top.
Singles/Albums – Bodysnatcher (LP, Deathcore), The Wonder Years (Emo/Pop Punk), Alexisonfire (Post-Hardcore), Tallah (Nu-Metalcore), Architects (Dadcore), Ocean Grove (LP, Pop Punk), DRUGS (Post-Hardcore), Static Dress (Screamo), Long Distance Calling (Post Metal)
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New Music Report – April 15, 2022
When you’re tracking as many releases as I do every year, it’s almost hard to get excited about too many of them. But there are always going to be those bands that I’m waiting years to hear more from, and those new releases are always very special to me, and this week I get one of those albums with Greyhaven, so please check that one out at the very least, and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.
Greyhaven – Empty Black was one of my absolute favorite albums of 2018 and their follow up has been one of my most anticipated albums for years. Granted, when I heard the first singles, I have to say I wasn’t completely sold, but man, does the full album live up to all my expectations. It’s absolutely incredible, completely captures the vibe of Empty Black, and goes one step closer to filling the ETID shaped void in my heart.
Monuments – This is one of those albums that took me a few listens to really understand. It’s mostly just because there’s a lot going on here, this happens with a lot of djent albums, it’s more of a slow burn as you begin to find more and more details on what they actually did to make it so special but now that I’ve got it figured out, I can say with full confidence this album is phenomenal; incredibly technical, a perfect mix of catchy hooks and breakdowns, well placed guest appearances, and a tasteful amount of clean vocals. Very well done.
Singles/Albums – A Wilhelm Scream (LP, Punk), Undeath (LP, Death Metal), Greyscale Season (LP, Metalcore), Cancer Bats (LP, Punk), In Dying Arms (Metalcore), Machine Head (Metal), Within Destruction (Deathcore), Motionless in White (Dadcore)
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New Music Report – April 8, 2022
2022 has already been a big nostalgia grab for all us aging emo kids, but in the weirdest news for the year, Ville Valo of H.I.M. just put out new music and will be touring, so there’s that. Otherwise, bunches of great new metalcore out this week so that’s cool.
Health – Not gonna lie, I don’t listen to a ton of Health. I’ve seen them live and it was really cool, but I don’t really listen to them a lot. But this album, or the concept at least, is very cool, featuring a ton of collaborations ranging from Lamb of God to Poppy and yeah, it’s just as weird as it sounds. It sounds like, on the one hand, it could be a lot more creative, but on the other hand, it feels a little too chaotic to succeed. It’s a weird one for sure, but a cool listen.
Singles/Albums – Imminence (Metalcore), Upon a Burning Body (Metalcore), Stick to Your Guns (Metalcore), Viscera (EP, Metalcore), Father John Misty (LP, Pretentious Indie), Silverstein (Post-Hardcore), Thornhill (Muse Cover), Seek Harbour (EP, Post-Hardcore), Void of Vision (Nu-Metalcore), Dayshell (Metalcore), VV (Bam Margera-core), Eyes Set to Kill (Metalcore)
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New Music Report – April 1, 2022
I know I should be more excited about the Meshuggah album than I am, but it really does feel like they’re getting a bit tired. The good news, is that because of bands like Meshuggah, we get some of the bands that put out crazy singles this week like The Callous Daoboys and Mothman, so I guess things will carry on.
Meshuggah – These guys basically invented the sound that like 70% of the bands that I listen to these days stick so closely to. Every progressive metalcore band, mathcore band, hardcore, everything, was basically borne out of the intro to “Bleed”. This new album has been interesting though, it seems a bit more streamlined and easier to digest while still being incredibly complicated. They’re displaying their maturity in an excellent way with another killer album.
Kublai Khan EP – On the other side of the musical spectrum, we have the cave man chugging breakdowns from Kublai Khan. There’s a lot to be said for technically proficient, progressive music, but sometimes you just want straight up ignorant beat down hardcore and dumbass breakdowns, and this is exactly that. Not to badmouth Kublai Khan, those are all good things, but man, what a gnarly record.
Singles/Albums – Callous Daoboys (Mathcore), Mothman (Mathcore), Dead Rabbits (LP, Metalcore), Memphis May Fire (Metalcore), Ice Nine Kills (Metalcore), Nekrogoblikon (LP, Weird Metal), Novelists (Progressive Metalcore)
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New Music Report – March 25, 2022
Two surprise albums two weeks in a row. I don’t know how I didn’t hear about Absent in Body until today, but man, I sure am glad that I caught it, what a cool supergroup. Not to mention, Animals as Leaders, which is just huge. Honestly, they’re a little too cold and proggy for me, but I realize how big the release is.
Absent in Body – Honestly, all I need to say about this band is where its members come from. Absent in Body is a four-piece featuring Scott Kelly from Neurosis, Colin Van Eeckhout and Mathieu Vandekerckhove from Amenra, and Igor Cavalera from Sepultura. Anybody that is even remotely into post or sludge metal already knows how significant this album is, but the result doesn’t feel super-groupy, it feels like an individual piece, and it’s absolutely colossal, I love it.
Animals as Leaders – Have you ever seen a really difficult math problem and your brain just starts tripping over itself trying to figure things out? Like there are too many numbers and variables floating around in your head that your mind short circuits and you’re further away from the answer than you were when you started? This is what the music version of that is.
Singles/Albums – Northlane (Nu-Metalcore), Bodysnatcher (Deathcore), Bury Tomorrow (Metalcore), Dayseeker (Metalcore), ten56 (Nu-Metalcore), Ibakari (Progressive Metal/Black Metal), Windwaker (Metalcore)
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New Music Report – March 18, 2022
This week marks my first big surprise album of the year. They’re usually from bands that I don’t know about though, not bands that have been around for 30 years now, but I guess the surprise is part of the fun.
Converge EP – This isn’t technically new music, this a remaster of super old school, pre-Jane Doe Converge, and honestly it sounds fantastic. I’m always weary about bands remixing old albums with really rough production because it sometimes ruins the magic of the album and makes it feel foreign but not really in a good way. But this one was actually very well done, It’s still a big departure from today’s Converge but very good.
Hot Water Music – This album really took me by surprise. I know Hot Water Music is a staple of the scene for literally decades, but let’s be real, it’s been a while. I wasn’t expecting this album to be as good as it was. For a band that’s been at it and been so consistent for so long, it’s hard to put out such an endlessly listenable album, but Hot Water Music nailed it. And I guess that’s exactly how you can get away with being a band for nearly 30 years.
Singles/Albums – Movements (feat Mick Gordon) (Post-Hardcore), Scary Kids Scaring Kids (feat. Spencer Charnas) (Post-Hardcore), Crosses (Chino Moreno side project), Dragged Under (Hardcore), Holy Fawn (Post-Rock)
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