The Revolution - 2023 Roundup

As 2023 comes to an end, it's time to look back at the releases from those 12 months and see which ones are well-deserved highlights. For one of my clans, The Revolution has spawned awesome releases, many of which reach a perfect 5 stars. Here's my top 10 of 2023:

1. Crown the Empire - Dogma

2. August Burns Red - Death Below

3. Attack Attack! - Dark Waves

4. Bury Tomorrow - The Seventh Sun

5. Impending Doom - Last Days

6. War of Ages - Dominion

7. Will Haven - VII

8. Polaris - Fatalism

9. Silent Planet - Superbloom

10. For the Fallen Dreams - For the Fallen Dreams

Any releases this year from this clan that you enjoy, enough for a top 5 or top 10 or more? Discuss!

1. The Acacia Strain - Step Into the Light
2. END - The Sin of Human Frailty
3. Invent, Animate - Heavener
4. August Burns Red - Death Below
5. Graphic Nature - A Mind Waiting to Die
6. Fromjoy - Fromjoy
7. Currents - The Death We Seek
8. Soulkeeper - Holy Design
9. Jesus Piece - ...So Unknown
10. Drain - Living Proof
11. Mental Cruelty - Zwielicht
12. OLTH - Every Day Is Someone's Special Day
13. Pupil Slicer - Blossom
14. Unearth - The Wretched; The Ruinous
15. Storm{O} - Endocannibalismo
16. Dragoncorpse - The Drakketh Saga

The Revolution was the clan that received the most increased attention from me in 2023 thanks in large part to its mainstream tilt. Unfortunately, many of this years most mainstream records were not great. Whether they were new bands trying to experiment (Dragoncorpse, Humanity's Last Breath) or old guard releasing the S.o.S. (Suicide Silence, Thy Art is Murder). I'd probably go with a list like this:

1. Dying Wish - Symptoms of Survival

2. Veil of Maya - [M[other

3. Drain - Living Proof

4. Callous Daoboys - God Smiles Upon the Callous Daoboys

5. August Burns Red - Death Below

6. The Hirsch Effekt - Urian

7. Unearth - The Wretched; The Ruinous

8. Will Haven - VII

I checked out last year's "Automatic Death Protocol" E.P. from Florida deathcore outfit PSYCHO-FRAME yesterday, a release that's been receiving a fair bit of attention from fans of the genre in recent times. It's certainly very brutal with a strong brutal death metal influence & is no doubt executed in clinical fashion but it's also pretty generic. I like it but can't say that I can see why it's treated any differently to any other deathcore release to be honest.

3.5/5

Yuyoyuppe - "SICK" E.P. (2023)

I've been really surprised to find this E.P. being so highly rated on competitor's websites to be honest as it sits so clearly in a stylistic space that's generally frowned on by the metal community. To describe it in short, "SICK" is a 16-minute, five song effort that married BABYMETAL's J-pop driven Kawaii metal sound with crushingly heavy djenty deathcore instrumentation. The only other Kawaii metal releases I've heard previously were BABYMETAL's self-titled debut & Candye♡Syrup's "iDOL Can Dye Sick Rock!!", neither of which I found any joy in &, even though I'd suggest that "SICK" is a marginally better release than those two with some particularly decent metal backing & face-melting screamy vocals, I still can't seem to shape my aversion to the child-like pop hooks. "Kyakka" is the only track that manages to overcome those limitations but only because of its spectacularly brutal deathcore component. I guess this sort of stuff was always gonna fight an uphill battle with me but I'm still very surprised to discover that Yuyoyuppe has been around since 1989 because they sound so current in their approach. I'm staggered that this E.P. has done such big ratings on RYM too because I would generally expect Kawaii metal to be down-rated by the kvlt elitists out there. Based on this experience, I'm wondering whether perhaps I'm closer to that mold than I'd like to think too.

2.5/5

Circuit Circuit = "Body Songs" E.P. (2023)

This five-song E.P. from Tennessee-based hardcore outfit Circuit Circuit is very solid indeed & is now my new frontrunner for The Revolution Release of the Year. I have no idea what Sasscore is but this certainly doesn't sound like the description of that subgenre. It's definitely a lot more post-hardcore than it is mathcore but there's a strong consistency to the tracklisting & an electric energy in the performances that ensures that the listener is perennially captivated. An excellent production job ensures that I feel like I'm listening to an important record due to the vibrancy of the sounds blasting from the speakers. Circuit Circuit kinda sound like System of a Down meets The Dillinger Escape Plan & I can see Xephyr, Andi & perhaps even Saxy all being interested in this one.

4/5

Cheers for the rec, Daniel! Here's my review summary:

Circuit Circuit perform a promising sound of experimental mathcore. After their self-titled EP, they made another one, Body Songs. And here we have some great powerful mathcore that leans into nu metal, basically mashing together the early 2000s eras of Converge and Linkin Park. Guitar grooves and shouted vocals have surely united two separate realms in the present. The circuits these guys have will keep you wired....

4/5

Balmora - " With Thorns of Glass & Petals of Grief" E.P. (2023)

I struggled with last year's five-track debut E.P. from Connecticut-based outfit Balmora who combine melodic metalcore with 1990's melodic death metal. I suppose that's hardly a surprise I given that I'm not a huge fan of either subgenre but I still feel that the combination could have been done much better than it is here. Balmora's sound is probably a little stronger on the melodeath side of things but the core-ish vocal delivery & consistent use of breakdowns are hard to ignore. This one wasn't completely awful but simply wasn't for me.

3/5

Cheers for the rec, Daniel! Here's my review summary:

Circuit Circuit perform a promising sound of experimental mathcore. After their self-titled EP, they made another one, Body Songs. And here we have some great powerful mathcore that leans into nu metal, basically mashing together the early 2000s eras of Converge and Linkin Park. Guitar grooves and shouted vocals have surely united two separate realms in the present. The circuits these guys have will keep you wired....

4/5

I'm not sure I pick up on the nu metal/Linkin Park thing to be honest. I actually think I may not be able to tag "Body Songs" as being metal at all if I gave it a little more time & scrutiny. The opening track is probably the only inclusion that I'd suggest possesses a clearly metallic sound. The mathcore tag isn't exactly accurate even during the more metallic moments either as "Body Songs" isn't always particularly chaotic & complex though it is often dissonant. I guess that ambiguity contributes to its intrigue though, doesn't it?

The frontrunners for The Revolution Release of 2023 Award are August Burns Red's "Death Below", Will Haven's "VII" & Unearth's "The Wretched; The Ruinous" at the moment with less than a week to go so get those ratings in.