Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

Here's my review summary:

Since 2017's Mesmer, Northlane has travelled through the alt-metal realm with gradually withering emphasis on their metalcore roots and taking on cyber/industrial metal territory in albums Alien and Obsidian. At the point of this EP, Mirror's Edge, Northlane can be considered more of an alt-metal band with some of their mid-2010s djent, and that's an accurate description for the EP, and then some... The band went to Victoria’s Yarra Valley to find some creative inspiration and overcome their struggles. It is quite a journey to add more to their stylistic journey! The EP has new elements to go with what they've done earlier, to please fans with their Obsidian-like blend of electronics and metal, sometimes having a more rock-ish vibe while still unleashing the usual heavy attack. All in all, Mirror's Edge has some amazing fun that can give new fans a nice treat and longtime fans what they want to hear. This is high-quality usage of electronics and metal together. The guest vocalists are quite helpful with the EP's variety. This might be the beginning of the band's next generation!

4.5/5

Recommended tracks: "Afterimage", "Miasma", "Let Me Disappear"

For fans of: 2000s Karnivool, later Parkway Drive, Structures (quite obvious from the guest appearances, but the EP reminds me greatly of those 3 bands)

Here's my submission for the March Guardians playlist:

Sabaton - "Unbreakable" (from The Art of War, 2008)

Update for March:

THE FALLEN: SONNY

THE GATEWAY: SAXY, Andi

THE GUARDIANS: XEPHYR, Karl

THE HORDE: SONNY, Karl, Vinny

THE INFINITE: ANDI, Xephyr, Saxy

THE NORTH: XEPHYR, Sonny, Karl

THE PIT: VINNY, Sonny

THE REVOLUTION: ANDI

THE SPHERE: ANDI

Nice review, Rex, though I consider The Land of Rape and Honey an industrial metal album, therefore a Sphere album, with the same level of industrial metal as in Killing Joke's Extremities, Dirt and Various Repressed Emotions.

I look forward to getting that brand-new All That Remains album. In all 4 of its pre-release singles, I can hear the band getting back on their feet after the loss of founding guitarist Oli Herbert, with new guy Jason Richardson pulling off impressive guitarwork while respectfully maintaining Oli's legacy. I can't wait to hear how the rest of it goes...

I love both of those tracks, and I was actually thinking of adding in that Make Them Suffer track before you suggested it, so I accept them both, Saxy.

Vocalist David Holch also has a creditable crack at reproducing Burton C. Bell's growling bark as the main vocal, but where he comes unstuck is with the complementary clean vocals which, in all honesty, sound terrible, as if he can't carry a tune at all. They are so bad that I can't believe no one advised the band to re-record them or get a guest in to help out.

The Tyrannical Resurrection EP recorded two years later has half the amount of songs in the debut re-recorded, but as much as I enjoy The Assembly of Tyrants, I agree that the band should re-record the album entirely (except for the "Clash" remix) with their later vocalist Mel Rose singing the cleans. That can be like a special 20th anniversary thing later this year, which I guess depends on if they get at least a smidge more success out of their new album Bellum Interruptum to be released two months from now.

Cool list, Rex! Though if I make my own list in this thread, it would all just be metal, and I wouldn't have to write my top 20 when it's already in the "top 20 releases" feature.

The crushing closing track of the new Shokran album takes the ultra-heavy throne:

This highlight stands out with its catchy chorus and more of those Egyptian vibes, along with the vocals reaching great heights in the climax:

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

This progressive highlight has the most development, lasting 4 minutes in length, a minute longer than most of each of the other tracks in the album:

The title track of Shokran's debut hypnotizes me with the riffs and growls sounding like Whitechapel while mixed with stunning melodies:

A djenty metalcore track featuring Monuments' last vocalist Andy Cizek:

An epic diverse opening track to this Arch Enemy album, with Alissa White-Gluz's vocals shining the best as her clean singing is on full display:

The worst saved for last, this is really more of a happy-sappy Disney/Enya track than anything and it made me almost fall asleep:

Although the title track of Within Temptation's Mother Earth is still some of my favorite Within Temptation songs today, this track is a diverse folk-ish highlight in the instrumentation and vocals:

But the only track that can surpass it all in this album and possibly the band is this dark B-side that would end up as a bonus track on their next album The Silent Force:

1. Black Sabbath "The Illusion of Power"

2. Anthrax "Toast to the Extras"

3. Megadeth "Wanderlust"

4. Helloween "Heavy Metal Hamsters"

5. Scorpions "Still Loving You"

6. Judas Priest "Parental Guidance"

7. Slayer "Threshold"

8. Iron Maiden "Nodding Donkey Blues"

I actually like that Annihilator track, it's quite fun for a chess-themed speedy heavy metal song. Now the track I've replaced it with might come out as a surprise to you all. I'm sorry, world, but it's the Scorpions ballad many people know, right at the tail end of their metal era. I find it so unnecessary and unfitting, and it's the unfortunate sign of their softer era to come. Sonata Arctica performed that song much better when they covered it as an upbeat power metal tune.

Fantastic choice, Daniel! The power metal-ish melodeath of Skyfire is a grand treat for any fan of Children of Bodom, Norther, and early Eternal Tears of Sorrow.

Great choice, Kosie! That's one of my personal highlights of that Corrections House album with its dark heavy sound and lyrics of poetic rage.

This song from Phineas and Ferb is relatable for when I want to prove that I can do things on my own and be myself without relying on who or what others falsely think I am. The song itself reminds me of Halestorm and The Pretty Reckless with its upbeat hard rock sound and the tough-gal vocals of Vanessa Doofenshmirtz (Olivia Olson):

I've just listened to that Deathless track on my phone while taking a small walk across town (in a soft decent volume so I wouldn't disturb the peace). Pretty cool experimental sludgy industrial metal vibes there, ala Godflesh/Skrew. Good one, Daniel!

https://metal.academy/forum/25/thread/1689

Killswitch Engage is another great melodic metalcore band for me, so somewhere around the melodic metalcore section (tracks 1-5) would be good.

Nice one, Zach, another solid track that I enjoy and accept! The tough lyrics and hip-hop beat sound quite odd in the band's attempt to discard their death metal roots, yet it brings me great delight. Guilty pleasure for me much!?

You're doing it right, Zach. I love that In This Moment song, another great track to please the alt-metal crowd.

Sorry Zach, but I wouldn't count on a glam metal clan here. It's more of a hard rock genre despite having "metal" in its name.

I approve of that early hardcore/metalcore track, Daniel! Though it would've been better without that one-minute intro ("CAN YOU HEAR ME!?!").

Nice choice with that Taramis track, Daniel. Cool 80s progressive power metal right there!

Good choice, Daniel! That Spiderbait track sounds like a solid early alt-metal banger, though it makes a detour to jazzy funk in the verses.

1. Exumer "Possessed by Fire"

2. Anthrax "Caught in a Mosh"

3. Metallica "Whiplash"

4. Tyrus - "Bubonic Plague"

5. Megadeth "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due"

6. Exodus "Deathamphetamine"

7. Slayer "Raining Blood"

8. Destruction "Curse the Gods"

I love me some Voivod, but that track is just speedy heavy metal at best, and its original album is from the band's dive into classic heavy metal in the 2000s. I replaced it with this Destruction track that I listened to a couple years ago and still think it's a classic from a well-known thrash band. The aggressive riffing and drumming can easily cause listeners to headbang and air-guitar to this tune. The riffing will stay in your head due to all of its catchy fun. If you ever wanna play some of those impressive mind-blowing riffs on guitar for your friends to hear...why not? "Curse...the GODS!!!!"

I don't have anything for this thread, but NWOBHM is today's Wikipedia featured article. And on my birthday today! The timing couldn't have been better than this, although I don't listen to a lot of NWOBHM.

I know I said I didn't know if any of the novels I read capture the metal spirit, but they do now! I was reading this graphic novel adaptation of Star Wars - Revenge of the Sith:

While listening to all the industrial/cyber metal tracks I've shared in this page of the Sphere Track of the Day thread: https://metal.academy/forum/15/thread/193?page=9

Star Wars can really capture my cyber metal spirit. I guess the most suitable metal genre for Star Wars would be Mechina-style epic symphonic progressive cyber metal.

The worst offender of this f***ing migraine-inducing mess of an album:

One of only two tracks I like from the poor St. Anger album, this monstrous 8-minute epic should be re-recorded with the improved production the band would have later, guitar soloing, audible bass, and none of the G****MN SNARE:

1. Cannibal Corpse "A Skull Full of Maggots"

2. Neuropath "Incantations of Decrepit Nihilism"

3. Morbid Angel "Where the Slime Live"

4. Mortification "Terminate Damnation"

5. Cryptopsy "Phobophile"

6. Atrocity "Hold Out (to the End)"

7. Death "The Philosopher"

8. Carcass "Heartwork"

Don't get me wrong, I love that Atheist track. It's just that there a lot of Slayer-like thrash tendencies in that track that's still early tech-death but might seem odd in this list that's just pure 90s conventional/technical death metal. I replaced it with this Atrocity track that I've listened to a few years ago and still think it's one of the strongest highlights in old-school tech-death. The lyrics would absolutely make you growl along, "HOLD OUT...TO THE END! RESIST...AND LIVE!!!"

Ben, please add the Any Given Sin EP Forbidden. It's available on Apple Music and Spotify.

Pre-Popular Monster Falling in Reverse isn't really metal nor something I really like, but this kick-A first track of their debut is as metalcore as they could get back then, mixing it with their usual pop punk similarly to early A Day to Remember:

Ben, please add the new Cypecore album Make Me Real.

Speedy verses, melodic chorus, and heartful soloing cover this industrial-ish deathly groove highlight:

The awesome songwriting of heavy verses and melodic chorus is borrowed from Dark Tranquillity and other melodeath bands without ripping them off:

A couple cyber metal tracks I've stumbled upon include this grand 12-minute epic by Mechina that introduces female vocalist Mel Rose:

And Black Light Discipline's nice take on an Alan Walker hit:

I don't know if any of the novels I read capture the metal spirit, but some of my favorite books from children's chapter novel series are the ones that involve the main character and their friends in a rock/metal band. Those include Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Diper Overlode, Big Nate in the Zone, and Middle School: Born to Rock. Those books also help me out for when I'm currently writing a spin-off to my own book series, starring a metalhead and his little sister from the future who both end up in the 1980s (the golden age of classic heavy metal genres) and form their own metal band.

I agree about the unusual spacey psychedelics this album has and will vote YES for this Hall entry, Daniel. But I also hear a lot of progressiveness in the complexity and structure enough to make it qualify as progressive metal. So I'd like to submit an additional entry to have Anomalous Abstractigate Infinitessimus added to The Infinite as progressive metal while staying in The Horde and dissonant death metal.

A violent highlight of reckless percussion and sci-fi horror lyrics:

A progressive dissonant highlight of "madness, disorientation and confusion", as stated in the first line:

Apocalyptica's Aquarela EP is probably the most metal Nat Geo-ish documentary soundtrack I've heard, like half the amount of songs in the EP qualify as symphonic metal, including this 7 and a half minute highlight that borders into extreme progressive metal enough to also qualify for The Infinite as a sole track:

A couple bands that can really push the limits of mathcore:

My renewed interest in melodic/symphonic/progressive death metal really shows as I discover more bands of that sound such as this Swedish melodeath band formed by ex-In Flames members including Dark Tranquillity vocalist Mikael Stanne:

This Roman Legion-themed Canadian symphonic death metal band that is a side project of Kataklysm:

And this progressive/technical death metal band from San Francisco: