Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

Everyone in the band's talent shines the best in this heavy/melodic blend that makes one of the best tracks in the album:

A groove metal epic that shows the band at their most atmospheric and progressive (this Audiosurf video would have to do):

This popular modern melodeath highlight should've been in the standard edition as a regular track:

One of the best tracks I've heard from this band and the groove/melodeath realms:

Some of the best vocals and lyrics ever shouted by the late Azge. RIP

A great highlight with lots of heavy riffing, maybe heavier than even Fear Factory:

Here's my submission for the June Pit playlist:

Warbringer - "The Sword and the Cross" (from Wrath and Ruin, 2025)

The grand end of Underoath's newest journey:

One of the band's most industrial highlights yet, including a dark heavy bridge featuring Troy Sanders of Mastodon:

Although the "Eternity Suite" deserves great mentioning, its 3rd and final movement summarizes it all very well:

A sludgy anthemic highlight with occasional clean singing by guitarist D'Andre Tyre as well as guest vocals by Mark Poida (ex-Aversions Crown):

Ben, please add the new Psyclon Nine album And Then Oblivion.

An absolutely insane 6-minute epic with great drumming flow from Anthony Dipietro, and vocal alternation between future Lorna Shore vocalist Will Ramos' growls and the screams of guest vocalist Dickie Allen (Infant Annihilator, later Nekrogoblikon):

Glad to hear you're ok, and sorry to hear about all that happened, Zach. I wish you and your family the best on the path of perseverance.

April 2025 (actual tracklisting)

1. Amen – Slave (1994)

2. Any Given Sin – Rest for the Wicked (2025)

3. Demon Hunter – Freedom is Dead (2022)

4. Design19 – FFWD (2002)

5. Emil Bulls – Lava (2003)

6. Falling in Reverse – Prequel (2024)

7. Five Finger Death Punch – A Little Bit Off (2020)

8. Fudge Tunnel – Hot Salad (1993)

9. Godsmack – Good Day To Die (2010)

10. Hamlet – Antes y Después (2001)

11. In This Moments – Adrenalize (2012)

12. Jynx – G.O.A.T. (2018)

13. Lacuna Coil – I Wish You Were Dead (2025)

14. Life of Agony – River Runs Red (1993)

15. Living Colour – Out of Mind (2009)

16. Petit Brabancon – Miserable (2023)

17. Pop Evil – Silence & Scars (2013)

18. Shootyz Groove – In The Ocean (1994)

19. Spiritbox – Perfect Soul (2025)

20. Swallow the Sun – What Have I Become (2024)

21. Vision of Disorder – Heart of Darkness (2015)

Epic blackened deathcore fire in this gigantically packed 7 and a half minute finale:

Absolutely insane instrumentation in this rifftastic highlight:

The more deathcore part of this title suite with enough technicality to make this like a more brutal Within the Ruins:

The more deathly part of this title suite with some neoclassical shredding:

Killer new single from these San Francisco-based progressive/tech-death metallers:

Brutal hellfire with incredible strength and speed:

The most f***ing brutal way to start for this band and their earlier era:

Perhaps the strongest epic deathcore album ending track:

Ben, please add the new Underoath album The Place After This One. It qualifies as Alternative Metal within the RYM 2:1 ratio: FOR - 7, AGAINST - 3.

A dark heavy groove track featuring guest narration and vocals by Lamb of God's Randy Blythe:

The vocal power of Lewis Raharuhi de Jong help make this track an epic highlight:

Nothing I can say can do this perfect song justice:

I wrote a similar comment on a Reddit post that has this song, and it automatically got turned into a haiku. Cool, right?

Here they are:

Two Guardians albums from when I was in the power/symphonic metal zone as a young teen nearly a decade ago. The Stratovarius album is a twilight zone kind of release in which it marks the entrance of their longest-standing current member Timo Kotipelto while also being the last album with drummer Tuomo Lassila, their remaining member from when the band formed in 1984 under the name Black Water. The Trans-Siberian Orchestra album is a classical-music-goes-metal concept album, and I'm sure the title gives away what the story is about.

A playlist I've made based on the above list: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2xLSlZirGiyc1Diexck5p1

Here are my top 20 favorite tracks from melodic metalcore band All That Remains:

1. My Curse - As Daylight Dies (2006)

2. My Last Serenade - Alive or Just Breathing (2002)

3. Breathe Life - The End of Heartache (2004)

4. In a Dead World - Killswitch Engage (2009)

5. Collusion - This Consequence (2025)

6. Eye of the Storm - As Daylight Dies (2006)

7. Temple from the Within - Killswitch Engage (2000)

8. Embrace the Journey... Upraised - Incarnate (2016)

9. The Crownless King - Atonement (2019)

10. In Due Time - Disarm the Descent (2013)

11. Irreversal - Killswitch Engage (2000)

12. My Life for Yours - The End of Heartache (2004)

13. Let the Bridges Burn - As Daylight Dies (2006)

14. Self Revolution - Alive or Just Breathing (2002)

15. Always - Disarm the Descent (2013)

16. The Signal Fire - Atonement (2019)

17. A Light in a Darkened World - Killswitch Engage (2009)

18. Hollow Convictions - Atonement II B​-​Sides for Charity (2020)

19. Loyalty - Incarnate (2016)

20. Blood Stains - Disarm the Descent (2013)

And now for another one of melodic metalcore's leading forces (including their live album to stand by my 10-album motive):

Killswitch Engage

1. Killswitch Engage (2000)

2. Alive or Just Breathing

3. Live at the Palladium

4. Atonement

5. Disarm the Descent

6. This Consequence

7. As Daylight Dies

8. The End of Heartache

9. Incarnate

10. Killswitch Engage (2009)

One of the band's most brutally awesome songs to date in their new album:

3 highlights from this special Killswitch Engage livestream show, one per album:

I've done my review, here's its summary:

It's not often a live album gets a perfect score, at least one from me. But the two-CD offering is so awesome, I don't need to get the Blu-ray version. It's basically two of the best Killswitch Engage albums and an encore in a high-quality livestream concert. The technical production here impresses me more than most other live albums. Apparently, there's something going on in the intermission, but I won't spoil the fun of just the CD edition by checking it out. Just listening to the songs make this a pure live experience in the comfort of my own home. With this awesome two-album setlist, it might just blow away their weakest but still amazing releases like The End of Heartache and KSE V. It once again proves that while Howard Jones is still one of the greatest vocalists around, Jesse Leach has the throne with his name engraved in stone!

5/5

Recommended tracks: "The Signal Fire", "The Crownless King", "As Sure as the Sun Will Rise", "Take Control", "I Can’t Be the Only One", "Temple from the Within", "Irreversal", "Rusted Embrace", "In the Unblind", "Just Barely Breathing"

For fans of: Light the Torch, Shadows Fall, Trivium

A powerful highlight despite fitting better outside of Atonement due to its sludgy pace:

A heavy majestic highlight featuring the vocal fury of Chuck Billy of Testament:

A strong progressive mini-journey in another melodic metalcore offering:

And this pummeling special edition bonus highlight with a heavy breakdown to rule them all:

Sure the leads are great, but the vocals just drag it down, not doing well for me in that particular track.

Awesome music of pure heavy melodic metalcore bliss:

Plus another special edition bonus highlight of beauty and brutality:

The only Killswitch Engage track weak enough to be a stinker, despite its strong guitar shredding intro:

This phenomenal highlight has some of Killswitch Engage's strongest guitars, drums, and vocals yet:

But it's this special edition bonus track that's one of my favorite tracks by the band in general. The melodies, riffs, screams, cleans, and drums, all in a brilliant balance:

I still love this awesome melodic metalcore classic that I had discovered over a decade prior, long before I started listening to this band full-time:

And the bonus tracks of this album continue to impress me as well, such as this melodic yet heavy ripper:

I love how the solo in this highlight can sound beautiful without fast technicality:

I also love a couple of the special edition bonus tracks in this album including this killer leftover track that should've been in the standard edition:

I'm glad to appreciate masterpiece highlights like one of Killswitch Engage's biggest hits:

Although Allegaeon's new album The Ossuary Suns continues their melodic/technical death metal, a couple tracks are progressive enough for The Infinite, specifically "Driftwood" and this 7-minute epic:

A thrashy melodeath opening anthem with all you know and need to know about Arch Enemy:

Ben, the Wampyric Rites EP Wandering the Dark Corridors of Oblivion has ended up in the releases page for A Wake in Providence. Could you please fix that? Thanks.

Some more Revolution bands I've been enjoying lately including the modern melodic metalcore of Bleed from Within:

And the symphonic blackened deathcore of Mental Cruelty:

Warbringer has done their part in reviving thrash metal in the new century, blending old-school American thrash with some bits of modern genres like European melodeath: