What Are You Listening To Now - The Revolution Edition
Converge - Jane Doe (2001)
No, believe it or not, I hadn't listened to this before today, even though I am well aware how critically-acclaimed it is. Despite metalcore not being one of my "core" genres, I have found Converge to be one of the more palatable bands in the genre, so I can't really say why it has taken me so long to get round to their highest-rated album, sheer bloody mindedness I suppose! Well, I can certainly hear why it is so highly acclaimed as I found it to be quite a striking listen. There is a nice blend of short, aggressive tracks and more expansive, sludge-influenced workouts. The greater depth to the guitar tone and the slower tempo of a couple of tracks, most notably Hell To Pay and Phoenix in Flight, unsurprisingly appeal to my Fallen-obsessed sensibilities more than most metalcore albums do. Then, the absolute nirvana of what is already a singularly great Revolution release, the epic closing title track and it's dabbling with atmospheric sludge renders this so far above the metalcore crowd that it inhabits a different plane of existence. Shit, at this rate I'm going to be swapping one of my clans for The Revolution. (Not really, Andi, before you say anything!) Anyway, credit where credit is due, this is a fantastic metal release with the ability to invigorate even an old curmudgeon like me.
4.5/5
Again I don't do reviews for re-recording albums for just an entire album since it's just the same tracklisting re-recorded. With that said, I feel like sharing my thoughts about the 10th anniversary re-recording of Imminence's debut I, The Reclamation of I. And wow, what a massive improvement, a full star better than the original! The production quality is right at the perfect glory of Heaven in Hiding and The Black, allowing their earlier violin-infused atmospheric metalcore to really shine. Now I wonder what they will do with their second album This is Goodbye in 2027....
5/5
Sorcerer - “Devotion” (2024)
Having been a one time elitist, “all core is shit” type (until a few years of MA was under my belt at least), the metalcore world still occupies a very rare level of content in my listening habits. On paper at least, metalcore should not be that alien a concept to me. That combination of hardcore punk and the extreme elements of metal is a sum that I should have no problem with the outcome of. I don’t mind hardcore punk and I obviously love me some extreme metal. However, I think that true combination is not there in most of what I hear from the sub-genre, all too often getting infused with other elements that aren’t necessarily as advertised. Enter Sorcerer’s 2024 album, Devotion. This absolutely fits the above described blueprint perfectly.
Sorcerer are angry. Not “my Mom took my Game Boy off me because I called her fat” angry though. More of a gnarly level of pissed off that wouldn’t sound out of place on an Agnostic Front record. Devotion is a real middle finger to the world type of album that certainly gets things off its chest whilst still deploying a strong ear for melody and pacing as it goes along. Simply put, I could put Devotion on all day (in the right mood) and not need to change the record. It possesses a level of angst that somehow is not intrusive, a sort of “getting on with it in the background whilst I do my ironing” kind of vibe. Occasionally I am more engaged with it more than I am others because I too hate relationships/people in general (for example). As it stands Devotion has been on everyday for about three weeks. In the car, on the beanie earphones whilst in bed, in the office whilst I continue to battle the corporate monstrosity that I work for and even whilst gaming of late (this would make a healthy addition to the radio in GTA in particular I think).
My (largely untrained) ear picks up elements of Converge (whose You Fail Me album got a revisit off the back of listening to this Sorcerer record) and I am also reminded a lot of the gnarlier aspects of some crossover thrash that I have heard over the years also. The energy levels are high for pretty much all of the record yet as I mentioned above, there is some care, some level of thought and attention to Devotion also. Closing track Someone Else’s Skin, for example, starts off with a scathing almost bm tremolo sounding riff before veering into more familiar punk territory, settling into those crossover moments nicely again for me. However, by the end of the track we have gone through some almost tender moments of reflection and contemplation, giving the track a real wholesome feel. The photograph on the cover of the album is probably one of the best representations of what actually lies beneath. Battle-hardened, wounded and ugly as fuck music with the tenderness of those tears on the soldiers face suggesting the depth I have been able to describe.
4/5
Today I've just listened to two great albums of Egyptian-style djenty progressive metalcore by Russian band Shokran, their new album being a contender for the Revolution Gallery Awards for 2024:
Rating for both albums: 4/5
By the way, the release year for Shokran's Supreme Truth is actually 2014, though its release page in the site says it's 2004. Could you please fix that, Ben? Thanks. https://metal.academy/releases/26479