New Music Report – May 29, 2020

Posted by admin on May 31, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

I actually had a pretty solid list of releases for this week but literally all of them got pushed back (New Found Glory, The Killers) or the releases ended up being something completely different than I was expecting and weren’t really worth commenting on (Behemoth EP), or whatever. So I briefly ended up with nothing. That said, the FFAF/WCAR release I’m going to talk about was really neat and pretty unexpected, so this week isn’t a total wash. Next week is HUGE though, so stay tuned.

Fit For a King/We Came As Romans – This was very interesting. Basically, FFAK and WCAR came together and reimagined a few of their existing tunes and recorded a new version after swapping vocalists. I thought redoing “Backbreaker” was an interesting choice, but to be honest, I had very little faith that Dave Stephens (WCAR) would be able to do justice to Ryan Kirby’s (FFAF) vocals. Especially that 30 second scream at the end of the song. But man, I was wrong, he did a great job. This definitely isn’t a full scale release, but just a neat little collaboration that’s very unique to the times we’re living in right now, so it’s worth checking out.

New Music Report – May 22, 2020

Posted by admin on May 22, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

Another somewhat light week for new music, though no less exciting. I’ve been looking forward to the second part of the Old Man Gloom double release for a while now. And of course, the new metalcore keeps pouring in this year, and I’m super happy about that.

Old Man Gloom – This is actually the second album they’ve put out in the past few months. When they recorded this last album, they recorded a whole second album that they kept secret. So, they released the “second” one first, shortly after the lockdown started, in anticipation of the release of this one. And they’re both spectacular. These albums are the band’s first in 6 years, and the first after the passing of their bassist, Caleb Scofield (also of Cave In). And honestly, after dealing with profound loss and the passing of time, it doesn’t feel like they’ve skipped a beat, in fact they’re hitting harder than ever. And whether that’s a reaction to the passing of Scofield, or the introduction of Newton’s songwriting, I’m not sure, but I’m here for it. It’s hard to pin down the sound of OMG, it’s sort of a sludge, doom, post-metal, space rock, noise amalgamation that makes a bit more sense when you consider the background of the members of this hugely under rated supergroup (Isis, Converge, Cave In, Sumac, Zozobra, etc). It really does sound like a very well calculated mishmash of all of those sounds. And if you check this out, do yourself a favor and listen to both albums.

Singles

Currents – Gah, this band is just so good. Literally the only thing good to come out of 2020 is metalcore, and with their new album coming out in two weeks, I think that’s about to be stepped up to a whole new level. All the singles that have come out for this album so far have pointed towards this being an instant classic.

Northlane – One more single that I want to talk about this week. It’s no secret that I was a big fan of Northlane’s somewhat experimental take on modern nu-metal with last year’s Alien, so it goes without saying that I really loved this single. I’m not sure who had to make the call to cut this off the album, but it must have been an incredible difficult call to make.

New Music Report – May 15, 2020

Posted by admin on May 15, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

This week is another short one, but we got a few really solid releases and actually a bunch of really excellent singles too.

The Acacia Strain – Hoooooo boy, these keep getting better and better with each release. I seriously can’t get over how good this release is, and how cool the release schedule is for the album. This new installment in the DECAY album series – A – is presumably the second to last release in the series, and they went HARD on this one. This is an unrelenting barrage from The Acacia Strain mixes their metalcore and deathcore influences with grinding, sludgey choruses and brutal, emotional vocals. The genre-blending that TAS does is incredible, and this is a great example of it. This installment feels very much like what you’d expect from TAS, but at the same time, features two of the best songs they’ve ever written.

Lights & Motion – Lights & Motion is one of my favorite little-known gems. This is a one man project by a Swedish artist. His first album came out in 2013 and it was quickly heralded as one of the most impressive post rock releases in some time. Since then, he’s continued to develop his style of vast, cinematic post-rock and ambient into something truly polished and consistently impressive. Since his debut, he’s ventured fairly heavily into film scoring, and you understand exactly why as soon as you hear his music. He has a brilliant ear for giving life to instrumental music in a way that makes you feel the full experience of a movie just by listening to the album. This album is a beautiful experience all the way through, and I highly recommend checking it out.

Singles – There have been a lot of great singles this week, and I’m not going to talk about each one, but there are more than a few that are worth checking out like The Ghost Inside, END, Misery Signals, Protest the Hero, Slaughter to Prevail, and Sharptooth. There’s also a new Behemoth single but it’s fucking awful, don’t bother.

New Music Report – May 8, 2020

Posted by admin on May 9, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

Well, it was bound to happen. Ever since the Coronavirus shut down the live music industry, people have been wondering whether the same would happen to the release schedule of new studio albums. And there have been a few here and there, but this week marks the first time it’s happened to a high profile album that I’ve been tracking, personally. I was very much looking forward to talking about the new Lamb of God album this week – every single was pointing towards this being a real invigoration of their sound, so I was really looking forward to it, but it looks like we’re waiting another couple months. That said, there are still some highlights this week, so please check them out.

Actor|Observer – I know I rarely mention singles, and if I do, I throw them in at the end, but these guys are homies of mine and this is my post, so I can do what I want. It also helps that this new single is INCREDIBLE. I’ve been following these guys for years, since back when I lived in Boston 10 years ago, but man, this is one of their best. As always, the vocals are profoundly emotional, powerful, and dynamic; traits that perfectly emulate the intricate and beautiful written post hardcore instrumentals that make up foundation of the track. There’s something deeply human and real about everything A|O releases, filled with a raw, soul baring honesty that’s carried them through their entire career, and indeed through this song, as well.

Petals for Armor – This one was actually really neat, this is Hayley Williams’ solo project, and it’s a kind of indie pop/electronic sound that you’d hear from bands like PVRIS and such, but with a bit more of a unique twist. This is very obviously a Hayley Williams’ project, you can hear her influence that you’ve come to expect from Paramore, but there’s something more playful and personal about this. Petals for Armor has given Williams’ the agency to play with new ideas – both musically and thematically – that she would not otherwise have had the opportunity to work into a Paramore song. The result is a really fun record, nothing game changing, but genuinely fun and well written, I’d definitely recommend checking it out.

New Music Report – May 1, 2020

Posted by admin on May 2, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

It’s officially been a week now, and I’ve had the new Dance Gavin Dance album on repeat nonstop, but thankfully, with every passing Friday, there is always a new reason to switch things up and try something new. Which is exactly why I make these posts in the first place really. And while we move away from the chaotic, silly post hardcore of Dance Gavin Dance, we get a diverse helping of dark, heavy, emotional music this week, but they all approach it in a very unique way, so there’s a little something for everyone here.

Umbra Vitae – This is the debut release from the death metal supergroup featuring Jake Bannon of Converge and members from The Red Chord, Job for a Cowboy, and Hatebreed. And it is JUST as brutal as it sounds. It harkens back to more old school Converge with much more apparently death metal tendencies; riddled with absolute chaos at all times and packing a nonstop emotive punch that is basically guaranteed by such a star studded lineup. There are so many occasions of supergroups falling short of expectations where the pieces are truly greater than the whole, but this is simply spectacular. This album is heavy, mean, and extremely satisfying death metal. It’s not going to redefine the genre, but this is definitely what you get when some of the best and brightest names in metal music get together to make something very, very heavy.

An Autumn for Crippled Children – It’s hard to pin these guys down, a lot of people call them post-black metal which I suppose is a suitable catch all for this type of sound, but they combine elements of shoegaze, darkwave, dreampop, laid over a foundation of black metal-esq structure and tones. And this album truly is a bit of an amalgamation of everything, and the result is pretty cool; the atmosphere is dark, brilliant, and dreamy – draped over the typical blast beats and coarse, shrieking vocals with an aggressive helping of reverb you’d expect with black metal. It’s an interesting journey, one that I really happened to like, I’ve always enjoyed this band. However, I feel like those that check it out because of the “black metal” label will be disappointed. But black metal purists are the worst anyway, so just enjoy yourself, and enjoy this really remarkable, diverse album.

Boston Manor – Honestly, at this point in Boston Manor’s career, I was expecting a shift away from their traditional sound to a more subdued “alt rock” sound like Neck Deep did (sorry Neck Deep fans), but this album was a really nice surprise. This may just be because it’s still shiny and new, but I’m already enjoying this more than their last album, which if I’m completely honest, didn’t really resonate with me all the well. This is another band that’s kinda hard to tie down with a genre, featuring some pounding rhythms and clear punk influences and now pushing some electronic experimentation. This feels like a real exploration of what the band is capable of, and personally, I really enjoyed the trip.

Killswitch Engage – Unfortunately, the average music listener doesn’t really have a very long attention span these days, but that is also precisely the reason why we have a surprise EP from Killswitch Engage. This EP is made up of B-sides leftover from the recording of Atonement. And for those that have listened to that album, they know exactly the caliber of music that made the cut. But whatever the reason may be that these were left on the chopping block, these are still spectacular songs in their own right. This EP is a charity release, with a name-your-price option with all proceeds being donated to the COVID-19 Disaster Relief Fund, so if you’re able to, definitely check this out and support a good cause.

New Music Report – Apr 24, 2020

Posted by admin on Apr 23, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

This is another VERY big week for music. I mean, it’s big for Dance Gavin Dance alone, but there are several other very high profile releases this week that are worth your attention, so take a look.

Dance Gavin Dance – Whenever DGD puts out a new album, it pretty much puts an end to the debate for Album of the Year for a lot of people. And honestly, because of that, I’ve been wanting to find reasons to dislike DGD lately; they’ve basically put out the same album five times now, but somehow it still feels fresh and interesting. This definitely isn’t a revolution of the “swancore” sound, but instead it’s another step forward in the progression of the band that has come to redefine post hardcore over the past decade, raising the bar yet again. As much as I wanted to find fault by a band that’s put themselves up to such a high standard, I really just can’t; what a remarkable album. 10/10, go listen to this now.

The Used – Whenever someone mentions The Used, everyone is always going to think about their self-titled album and In Love & Death. But those albums are at least 15 years old now. They helped define the angsty sound of the mid-00s, but you always want to see a band push themselves forward. Most everything else they’ve done since those early efforts have been good, but always lived in the shadow of the good old days. And really, I can’t say this one is any different, BUT this is also one of the best albums they’ve put out since those two. This is a stellar effort from a band that has certainly been through some rough patches, and it’s nice to see them come back to form.

Ulcerate – What a huge record this is. These guys are some of the absolute kings of the atmospheric metal genre, which I understand has sort of gotten a bad rap lately thanks to all the half-baked bedroom projects, but this is some top tier, incredibly powerful, emotional, and rich music. Each track feels gargantuan standing on its own, and the whole album almost insurmountable but incredibly captivating at the same time. The album is a journey, and a lovely one filled with a wide expanse of soundscapes and dense atmosphere. This sound may not be for everyone, but if you want to give it a shot, this is one of the best examples of it around.

Trivium – Trivium were huge back in the early-00s; back when the new wave of American metal was hitting full swing, and more mainstream bands were really running with the melodeath sound and transitioning to full on metalcore. And Trivium were one of the best ones to ever do it. And as the sound continued to evolve, Trivium kept plugging away, putting out hits that continue to push the boundaries of the sound that they helped shape. Admittedly, I stopped paying attention for a while, but this new album has brought my right back in. it feels familiar, but still fresh; not just a rehash of a nearly 20 year old sound. I really enjoyed this one, and it’s inspired me to a trip back to look at some of the other Trivium albums I’ve overlooked over the years.

Danzig Sings Elvis – Honestly, I’m not gonna listen to this, but I’m happy I live in a world where this exists, and I want you all to know about it too.

New Music Report – Apr 17, 2020

Posted by admin on Apr 19, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

Ok so I was late this week, sorry about that guys, but there are a few SUPER heavy and very impressive releases this week, so better late than never. Once again, The Acacia Strain is the coolest band of 2020. But there’s more to check out, for sure.

The Acacia Strain – We’re now on the third installment of surprise EPs from The Acacia Strain, and they’re starting to make a little more sense. We have D, E, and now, C, and when you piece the album art together you can see a progressive decay of the landscape, supported by a music decay in both theme and tone. So, I reckon we’re going to get A in three weeks’ time. Figuring out the process behind this is honestly just as interesting as the music itself, I’m loving this. I’ve said this with every single one of these reviews, but The Acacia Strain are absolutely killing it this year, I can’t think of another band out there that’s keeping things this interesting. It’s cool piecing an album together like this, it really lets you devote a lot of time to processing each song, and these two are both big ones. Which of course is funny since one song only clocks in at about a minute long, but man, does it hit hard in that minute. It is hands down one of the heaviest tracks TAS has ever written. The second track “I breathed in the smoke deeply it tasted like death and I smiled” is a dragging, sludgy, epic tune, reminiscent of their EP from December, It Comes in Waves, which is a personal favorite of mine. I really loved this installment of the series; so diverse, heavy, and captivating, and managing that breadth of sonic delivery in just two songs. I can’t wait for the next one.

Enter Shikari – This one was… Interesting. Enter Shikari have always had some weird elements to their albums and a lot of interlude-y tracks and electronic-driven hooks and breakdowns, and this is kind of the same, but it all feels less organized. Conceptually, it’s kind of all over the place, and a lot of the tracks didn’t flow very well. There’s also a stark contrast between the first and second half of the album, which was intentional, but the second half is WAY better, which probably wasn’t. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are SEVERAL singles that are huge standouts, and the album is diverse enough that those standout songs are going to be different for everybody, so this is definitely worth checking out to find those songs for yourself. But as a cohesive album, I think it feels scattered and disjointed.

The Black Dahlia Murder – Holy shit. Honestly, there haven’t been too many TBDM albums that have really been able to hold my attention. They’re an incredible band, but the only album of theirs that I ever find myself revisiting is Nocturnal. The rest kinda have that death metal drone where all the double kick and guitar shredding starts to sound monotonous. But again, holy shit. This is some of their best work to date. It’s incredibly heavy, incredibly technical, and thankfully, incredibly interesting.

Silent Planet – This only sorta counts, they released an instrumental only version of The Night God Slept this week. So it’s not anything new, exactly, but it’s still very good. And as I’ve said before, this band will ALWAYS deserve support.

New Music Report – Apr 10, 2020

Posted by admin on Apr 10, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

There are a few notable releases this week that are either very, very cool, very impressive, or some combination of the two. Nothing quite as remarkable as last week, but still some albums that are absolutely worth paying attention to.

Azusa – This is a cool one. This is a “supergroup” of sorts, featuring the bassist from The Dillinger Escape Plan, former members of Extol, and the singer of a German indie pop duo called Sea + Air. Turns out she also used to play in a punk band and has a pretty gnarly scream. While it may seem like an odd grouping, bands like Dillinger and Extol have never really let themselves be restrained by any boundaries, so it really just makes sense. But how could an indie pop singer hang with members of two of the most aggressive bands of all time? Well, turns out she can hang just fine. Her juxtaposition of energetic clean vocals and absolutely brutal, grating, tension-filled screams is incredible. The whole band just exudes this massive energy that’s really fascinating to listen to.

Sparta – Yes, THE Sparta. The Jim Ward Sparta. The other piece that fractured off of At The Drive-In after their split that lead to The Mars Volta. It’s been 14 years since their last album, and at the time – while they were never quite as ground-breaking as The Mars Volta – they left an indelible mark on the post-hardcore scene with an incredibly clean, artistic sound. Now, as I said, it’s been 14 years; musicians grow, sounds change, etc. so this isn’t quite the same thing as Wiretap Scars, but it’s still a wonderful nostalgic trip with one of the most underrated post hardcore bands of all time.

Dream On Dreamer – This is kind of a tough one. These guys have always been a pretty good band, but unfortunately, they had a very clear high point, and haven’t quite been able to live up to that since. A couple months ago, they announced that this would be their farewell album, and with that you always hope they are able to end of a high point, leaving you wanting more, like The Dillinger Escape Plan or The Chariot, but instead we get a decent album that feels a bit rushed, and definitely feels like the end of a band with not much else to say.

Rotting Out – This album goes hard. The first release from Rotting Out in 7 years proves they’ve still got plenty of energy and aggression left, and honestly, that’s really all want from a good, old SoCal hardcore band. The music itself hits super hard and the lyrics are generally thoughtful and always catchy, with its fair share of gang vocals cause every good hardcore album needs gang vocals. This is a fun, hard-hitting, rowdy ass album that’s a really exciting addition to this week’s releases.

New Music Report – Apr 3, 2020

Posted by admin on Apr 3, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

This week is HUGE. I’ve been looking forward to this one for quite a while now. These past few weeks have been full of good music, but they really all felt like opening acts for this week. It’s absolutely stacked with big releases, all of which are really very diverse, as well, which keeps things interesting. If you’ve been bored during this quarantine, this should keep you occupied for a little while.

August Burns Red – Full disclosure, this is like 80% of the reason why I’m so excited for this week’s releases. Don’t get me wrong, everything else is awesome, but when the undisputed kings of metalcore put out a new album, you should pay attention. I’m actually not actually sure these guys are capable of writing bad music, but I can already this is gonna be a classic. First off, it’s got the hardest hitting opener of any ABR album; this is undoubtedly the heaviest album this band has written. But it also has this wonderful balance of the rawest vocals we’ve ever heard from Jake Luhrs paired with some of their most refined hooks. Not to mention riffs for DAYS. It lacks some of the progressive elements of Rescue & Restore in favor of strong, classic metalcore that I just love. I can go on for days, but this album just made me feel really, really good. This is a fucking gem.

Cabal – Cabal haven’t quite made a mainstream impact stateside just yet, but they definitely have a loyal following willing to sing their praises whenever possible. I’m one of those people. This band is incredible and are only now starting to get the attention they deserve. They’re a really unique style of incredibly heavy, sludgy deathcore. And I know “sludge” and “deathcore” fundamentally don’t really belong together, but when you hear it, it just makes sense. It really doesn’t get much heavier than this. This album is also chock full of incredible guest features, like Matt Heafy from Trivium and Jamie Hails of Polaris. I highly recommend this one, this band deserves all the attention they can get.

Purity Ring – Man, I love The Purity Ring so much. They’ve always been my favorite of all the chillwave/electropop bands. Probably cause they were generally darker, more hypnotic, and more melancholy than most of their contemporaries. And this album actually compounds on that. There are fewer pop hooks, and more ambient, deep, minimalistic soundscapes, giving it an even more bleak and eerie backdrop to the shimmery vocals. It may not be a jump to the mainstream, but I’m loving this direction.

Emancipator – Whenever people ask me who my favorite DJs are, I always tell him, “I don’t really listen to electronic music, except Emancipator.” He has been my caveat for years now. That said, I’ve kind of fallen off recently, the newer releases just didn’t have the same feel that I loved from Soon it Will be Cold Enough or Safe in the Steep Hills. But this new album is really incredible. It’s got the same beautiful, almost tangible soundscapes; it almost feels like you’re living each of these songs, like if you close your eyes you’re there; in it, experiencing it. And it’s the most peaceful, relaxing feeling in the world. And that’s what I’ve always loved about Emancipator.

Singles

Umbra Vitae – This band is just a fucking powerhouse. It’s the death metal project fronted by Jake Bannon from Converge, featuring members of Job For a Cowboy, The Red Chord, and Hatebreed. This really expands on the elements of metal that we have always heard in Converge, given the proper stage to breathe. You can always tell that, while Converge isn’t technically a metal band, it’s always been a big part of their influence, and now we get to hear Bannon’s personal interpretation of that in full. It’s rad. This full length is going to be great.

*Note* Bury Tomorrow – I was really looking forward to their new album, which was supposed to come out today, but it has since been pushed back to July 3^rd. So expect coverage of that at a later date.

New Music Report – Mar 27, 2020

Posted by admin on Mar 31, 2020 in Featured | 0 comments

I missed my new music post on Thursday cause I was doing that DJ stream, sorry about that. But here you go! We’ve got a few really impressive releases this week, especially the singles. Next week is going to be a very big one though, so stay tuned.

Wake – This was another surprise find, I came across this album earlier this week and was immediately blown away by the pure talent and songwriting ability of this band. They were originally kind of cornered as a crust/grind band, but they’ve managed to shed the constraints of that, or really any genre, as it turns out. And the result is an absolute showcase of what metal as a whole is capable of. It’s an incredibly refreshing album with an unpredictable yet cohesive build throughout. Incorporating atmospheric and doomy elements into their furious, grind-driven roots to create a deep, diverse soundscape that is captivating from start to finish. This album is brilliant and incredibly underrated. Definitely check it out.