September 2026 "Metalcore Revolution" Playlist - Metal Academy Radio

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1yFgscg5HWKGoIy2s0xRfG

Tracklisting:

1. Underoath - "In Regards to Myself" from Define the Great Line (2006)

2. Greeley Estates - "The Last Dance" from The Death of Greeley Estates (2011)

3. Cave In - "Terminal Deity" from Until Your Heart Stops (1998) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

4. LEVELS - "OPIUM OF MAN" from PULSE (2024)

5. Dal Av, Jackson Rose, Darknet - "GHOST_TOWN" from GHOST_TOWN (2024)

6. GRAYSTONE - "Musician Mansion" from Musician Mansion (2023)

7. Unearth - "Black Hearts Now Reign" from The Oncoming Storm (2004)

8. Hope for the Dying - "Nemesis" from Legacy (2016)

9. Shadows Fall - "The Art of Balance" from The Art of Balance (2002) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

10. Sonic Syndicate - "Crowned in Despair" from Eden Fire (2005)

11. The Amity Affliction - "Pittsburgh - Redux" from Let the Ocean Take Me (Redux) (2024)

12. Ice Nine Kills - "Meat & Greet" from Meat & Greet (2023)

13. 36 Crazyfists - "Elysium" from Rest Inside the Flames (2006) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

14. God Forbid - "Into the Wasteland" from IV: Constitution of Treason (2005) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

15. The Acacia Strain - "Sin" from It Comes in Waves (2019) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

16. Rings of Saturn - "Objective to Harvest" from Dingir (2013)

17. Bring Me the Horizon - "Dehumanized" from Count Your Blessings Repented (2026)

18. Lorna Shore - "War Machine" from I Feel the Everblack Festering Within Me (2025)

19. Mental Cruelty - "Mundus Vult Decipi" from Inferis (2019) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

20. Deadguy - "Riot Stairs" from Fixation on a Co-Worker (1995)

21. HANABIE. - "O・TA・KUラブリー伝説" from ぶっちぎり東京 (2024)

22. Hatebreed - "Destroy Everything" from Supremacy (2006)

23. Left to Suffer - "Gun in the Duffle Bag" from Gun in the Duffle Bag (2026)

24. Brand of Sacrifice - "Seeing Red" from This Place Wasn't Meant for Us (2026)

25. War of Ages - "Stone by Stone" from Pride of the Wicked (2006) [Suggested by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

26. Concealer. - "...And the Sunlight Spoke" from This Room Could Be Heaven (2026)

27. Chimaira - "Without Moral Restraint" from Pass Out of Existence (2001)

28. Knut - "March" from Challenger (2002)

Here are my thoughts on all selected tracks:

Underoath - "In Regards to Myself" from Define the Great Line (2006)

4.5/5. "WAKE UP! WAKE UP! MY GOD! THIS IS NOT A TEST!!!" The powerful lyrics are screamed in this strong piece of Christian metalcore to start this playlist. Although I distanced myself from this band a bit, I actually like this song more than I had previously.

Greeley Estates - "The Last Dance" from The Death of Greeley Estates (2011)

5/5. This highlight delights me even more. The chorus is so beautiful, especially when the clean singing leads you in. Of course, the track strikes hard with the furious verses and gives you an emotional breakdown. Absolutely precious!

Cave In - "Terminal Deity" from Until Your Heart Stops (1998)

4.5/5. Back when Cave In still had their metalcore. Rock on!

LEVELS - "OPIUM OF MAN" from PULSE (2024)

4/5. So many grooves all over the place. Great vocals too! Throughout the last minute is where things are at the most brutal. The lyrics could've been better though.

Dal Av, Jackson Rose, Darknet - "GHOST_TOWN" from GHOST_TOWN (2024)

3.5/5. Another f***ing heavy banger, especially when it gets more brutal in the second half. Again, the lyrics bring it down a bit.

GRAYSTONE - "Musician Mansion" from Musician Mansion (2023)

4/5. "WE ARE GRAYSTONE, WHAT THE F*** IS UP, MUSICIAN MANSION?!?" Musician Mansion is an MTV-style competition on YouTube hosted by Jared Dines where 3 groups of YouTube metal musicians each form their own band and write their own song. Graystone blew the roof off and won the contest with their deathcore song. Who knew a brutal breakdown like the one at the one-minute mark would help them win?! Not to mention the epic soloing by Paula Carregosa‬! All in all, a solid crushing banger.

Unearth - "Black Hearts Now Reign" from The Oncoming Storm (2004)

4.5/5. This one also has great melodies, plus riffs and breakdowns all over!

Hope for the Dying - "Nemesis" from Legacy (2016)

5/5. Seguing out of the previous track's acoustic interlude, making a less jarring transition than in Legacy, this standout is filled with heavy dissonance. Lyrics like "I was a slave to my own demons" and deathly growls by Becoming the Archetype frontman Jason Wisdom makes that track another standout. I also love the guest gutarwork by Elisha Mullins (The Burial, Miss May I, War of Ages) including the Van Halen-esque divebomb at the end.

Shadows Fall - "The Art of Balance" from The Art of Balance (2002)

4.5/5. A ballad-like but still thrashy song. The song gets soft at first with emotional clean vocals, then the heavier riffs come out with Fair's brutal vocals. Then a clean part comes in along with a great solo.

Sonic Syndicate - "Crowned in Despair" from Eden Fire (2005)

5/5. F***ing epic keys and guitarwork! Sonic Syndicate needs to return.

The Amity Affliction - "Pittsburgh - Redux" from Let the Ocean Take Me (Redux) (2024)

4.5/5. I still don't know why the intro to this track has been excluded in both versions on Spotify, it fits like a glove! This song is still kick-A, whether or not it's downtuned.

Ice Nine Kills - "Meat & Greet" from Meat & Greet (2023)

4/5. "Hello Clarice..." The lyrics for this song are based on The Silence of the Lambs. Although they have their usual horror-themed metalcore, the cleaner parts like the chorus have more in common with bands like Coldrain. Still it's quite kick-A, especially in the vocal alternation at the two-minute mark, leading to a ravaging breakdown.

36 Crazyfists - "Elysium" from Rest Inside the Flames (2006)

4.5/5. Howard Jones from Killswitch Engage guest appears in the most aggressive song of this 36 Crazyfists album. It has some of the more familiar elements of the band, but with heavier guitar riffs.

God Forbid - "Into the Wasteland" from IV: Constitution of Treason (2005)

5/5. A crushing heavy highlight with a ripping solo by Jason Suecof, producer of this God Forbid album and some Trivium albums.

The Acacia Strain - "Sin" from It Comes in Waves (2019)

4.5/5. The Acacia Strain seem to have taken a more blackened direction in this album that's also one of their more doomy ones, to remind some of Black Tongue. Different influences give it a different yet familiar sound. The band has really made darkness darker since their "Observer" epic. That outro sample is apparently from Star Trek.

Rings of Saturn - "Objective to Harvest" from Dingir (2013)

5/5. The wild talents of Rings of Saturn needs to be recognized more. The vocals are so brutal, especially throughout the last minute.

Bring Me the Horizon - "Dehumanized" from Count Your Blessings Repented (2026)

4.5/5. Those who think BMTH would never return to their deathcore roots have been proven wrong. They've re-recorded their debut Count Your Blessings and included an all-new f***ing brutal track. They've even add more breakdowns in this song alone than almost every other deathcore band! You can practically headbang to this until your neck is deattached. Fans of the band's softer material would not take this heat. One of the breakdowns, appearing midway through, is pure fire and fury.

Lorna Shore - "War Machine" from I Feel the Everblack Festering Within Me (2025)

5/5. Another standout and a different one at that. The tempo is slowed slightly for just full-on deathly groove-thrash that can fit well in a video game like DOOM Eternal and Metal Hellsinger, especially with its "f*** enemies up" attitude. So different yet so wild!

Mental Cruelty - "Mundus Vult Decipi" from Inferis (2019)

4.5/5. This one has Jack Simmons' guest guitarwork. The riffing and overall instrumentation are absolutely insane. The sludgy breakdown and the long audio sample that comes before it practically brings the track up to highlight status.

Deadguy - "Riot Stairs" from Fixation on a Co-Worker (1995)

4.5/5. This one starts clean and gloomy. Then the drums speed up to fast hardcore with thundering growls ("therapy and love").

HANABIE. - "O・TA・KUラブリー伝説" from ぶっちぎり東京 (2024)

5/5. Big thanks to my metalhead friend for recommending this track to me. This band is like a metalcore Babymetal, and I love it!

Hatebreed - "Destroy Everything" from Supremacy (2006)

4.5/5. A last-minute addition to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this Hatebreed album. Somehow this song fits well for Thanos, destroying everything for a new life to begin.

Left to Suffer - "Gun in the Duffle Bag" from Gun in the Duffle Bag (2026)

5/5. Left to Suffer made an official AMV using this song and scenes from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The breakdown midway through is filled with violent rage. That and everything else gives it similar vibes to early Emmure. Absolute kick-A heaviness!

Brand of Sacrifice - "Seeing Red" from This Place Wasn't Meant for Us (2026)

4.5/5. Brand of Sacrifice are back and continue unleashing insanity from the depths. They still have their Berserk-inspired lyrics.

War of Ages - "Stone by Stone" from Pride of the Wicked (2006)

5/5. War of Ages have made battle-ready Christian metalcore relatable to anyone regardless of religion. I love the small background soloing at around the one-minute mark. More metalcore bands need to do that! The melody makes another glorious composition. The lyrics sound so spiritual. War of Ages and August Burns Red are definitely my go-to bands for this kind of style. They can be enjoyed without listeners having to battle for religious superiority, which sadly was common in the past.

Concealer. - "...And the Sunlight Spoke" from This Room Could Be Heaven (2026)

4.5/5. One of the best tracks of this emo/metalcore revival. I can listen to that highlight as many times as I want and not get bored.

Chimaira - "Without Moral Restraint" from Pass Out of Existence (2001)

4.5/5. Chimaira started off as a blend of metalcore and the nu metal of Sepultura at that time. Cool track with amazing lyrics!

Knut - "March" from Challenger (2002)

5/5. I'm glad the majority of Knut's material is finally available on Spotify. That has given me the opportunity to close this playlist with a nearly 20-minute math-metalcore epic (almost as long as the entire Coalesce's Functioning on Impatience), filled with tempo changes, complex drums, and elevating intensity. Incredible!

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? I recommend this to any metalcore fan and anyone who isn't into metalcore but is up to getting into a great start for the genre. Thanks to anyone who have contributed with their own submissions, and I hope the rest of you enjoy it like I've had!