Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

Ben, please add Ithilien.

A fantastic start to the action that's epic, heavy, melodic, and accessible, all at once:

Yeah, that's what I mean, wait for his approval.

Well done, Rex! The gates to The North shall open for you when you earn that clan.

No worries, Daniel.

Glad to hear your wife's feeling better, Daniel. And happy birthday last week!

Thanks Daniel.

Thanks Daniel.

I'm referring to their album Fury, which is exclusively under metalcore. https://metal.academy/releases/36784

Anybody know some real genre-benders in melo-black? 

I have a few I would recommend to you, Rex, though a couple of them are mixed with other genres:

Underoath - Cries of the Past (2000)

Stormlord - At the Gates of Utopia (2001)

Shade Empire - Omega Arcane (2013)

Shylmagoghnar - Emergence (2014)

Waidelotte - Celestial Shrine (2024)

And how about the worst albums of this year? For my list, I've limited to the releases that I've given 2.5 or 3 stars, and that's given me enough for at least a top 5:

1. Brainstorm - Plague of Rats

2. Sabaton - Legends

3. A Day to Remember - Big Ole Album Vol. 1

4. Blessthefall - Gallows

5. Tremonti - The End Will Show Us How

My own Spotify playlist based on my list, from 10 to 1: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4uZGrg1oM7C6xf3Zkhis40

An early melodic progressive metal epic that I wish could describe more, but I have....

Excellent decision, Rex! Now which North clan challenge would you like to do to earn that clan?

And how about just EPs? Here's my top 5 of this year:

1. Trivium - Struck Dead

2. The Halo Effect - We Are Shadows

3. Rolo Tomassi - In the Echoes of All Dreams

4. Ex Deo - Year of the Four Emperors

5. Car Bomb - Tiles Whisper Dreams

Honorable mentions: Impending Doom - Towards the Light, Invent Animate/Silent Planet - Bloom in Heaven

Yeah, I enjoy this band's earlier metalcore material as much as, and possibly better than, their later rap-fueled material, so the haters out there can sit down.

Of all the more melodic genres that I've listened to 10 years ago, the one that I've departed from the most was epic folk metal. And now I'm really back there! Would've been better if I checked out these bands when I had the chance back then:

Sludgy progressive metal similar to Mastodon:

I'm glad to finally be fully interested in these bands that I've somehow missed out on when my power/symphonic metal taste was in an all-time high around a decade ago. I can especially say that about these German power metal pioneers:

Along with these two stunning female-led symphonic metal bands:

Ben, please add the new Volumes album Mirror Touch.

Ben, please add the new Upon a Burning Body album Blood of the Bull.

Oh these cover art coincidences just never end! The cover arts for that The Devil Wears Prada demo and that The Arbitrary Method EP both have a close-up of a woman's face behind an abstract pattern. Though the latter is definitely more futuristic, just like the EP itself.

If it looks good, I treat it like any other art. If it's clearly sloppy, I would dock points for it. Sadly, much of the world is so fixated on what's real or not, continuing their "zero tolerance" against AI. That I can understand, but if they see anything that looks even slightly AI, or if something real looks so good it's likely to be AI, those people can be so quick as to sh*t on it and anyone associated with it. That's why websites like YouTube and DeviantArt give you the option to clarify that something isn't AI.

I wanted to include the song "Defy" here, but that one doesn't have a standalone YouTube video. So I went with this one that's also a grand standout, even having Bjorn Strid from Soilwork behind the mic:

I love the guitar leads and vocals have a similar vibe to Trivium but more futuristic:

No it isn't. Glad you agree with me here, Rex.

Another magnificent 9-minute epic with the heavy/power metal sound similar to Crimson Glory and Helloween:

Fear of Domination have their brand-new album Katharsis coming out next month! This epic single from the album seems to emphasize their earlier industrial/trance metal roots more with some slight glimpses of their melodeath side:

Sorry to hear, Daniel. Hope your wife can recover soon.

Oh yeah, I enjoy Voivod. Seeing your rating for their album Dimension Hatross, I would also recommend the albums surrounding it; Killing Technology and Nothingface.

A magnificent 9-minute epic with the power metal-ish heavy metal sound similar to other bands from my early days of metal, especially in the chanting chorus:

Welcome, silentsteps! I'm generally more of a metalcore/industrial/power/progressive metal kind of a guy, but I sometimes explore other metal genres, with some results good, bad, or mixed. And just because something isn't up my alley doesn't always mean it's bad for anyone else. This brings me to my atmospheric recommendation to you, covering all 3 of your clans: Woods of Belial - Deimos XIII. Hope this album's dark industrial melodic black-doom sound can do well for you better than it has for me. Enjoy! https://metal.academy/releases/34464

2025 will soon reach its end, so I think now's a good time for a top 10 of this year:

1. Lorna Shore - I Feel the Everblack Festering Within Me

2. An Abstract Illusion - The Sleeping City

3. Dayseeker - Creature in the Black Night

4. Orbit Culture - Death Above Life

5. Jinjer - Duel

6. Shadow of Intent - Imperium Delirium

7. All That Remains - Antifragile

8. Warbringer - Wrath and Ruin

9. The Halo Effect - March of the Unheard

10. Warmen - Band of Brothers

Honorable mentions: Drown in Sulphur - Vengeance, Dawn of Solace - Affliction Vortex, The Haunted - Songs of Last Resort, Onslaught - Origins of Aggression, Eighteen Visions - Until the Ink Runs Out (re-recorded version)

An 11-minute epic of absolute complex rage and somber melody:

A fantastic eruption of progressive death metal:

Some of the best progressive death metal I've heard in my life is in this 14 and a half minute epic:

Just like in the debut album, the first full cut is the deepest and heaviest:

Probably the best epic of the entire album, possibly by the band, although the lyrics are in Swedish:

The deathliness of bands like Dethklok, Ex Deo, Kalmah, and Omnium Gatherum and mixed together in a progressive cauldron that you would really want a taste of:

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

Nearly a decade after forming, and two years after their EP, An Abstract Illusion have released their full-length debut Illuminate the Path. Perhaps my newfound favorite album of 2016! The band's style is basically progressive melodeath with elements of atmospheric black metal. I guess a more accurate description of that style would be more complex. The structures and atmosphere all come together in a beautiful offering. There are fantastic progressive influences from different bands, while forming an original cauldron that you would really want a taste of. The epics are all magnificent journeys within a journey, just like the other full songs. And I just wanna say impressive the band members are, 3 musicians with two different roles; guitarist/bassist Karl Westerlund, keyboardist/clean vocalist Robert Stenvall, and drummer/harsh vocalist Christian Berglonn. They've all done a spectacular job with their top-notch skills. Of course, Bergloon would pass drumming duties to Isak Nilsson for live shows. Let the debut's complexity and emotion light the way!

5/5

Recommended tracks: "Abode of a God", "Drop This Planet of Dust", "Vakuum", "Skeletons of Light"

For fans of: In Mourning, Omnium Gatherum, Opeth

Welcome, luajaz!

Faster deathly dynamics are found in this haunting heavy conclusion to this glorious debut EP:

The journey has just begun for this Swedish atmospheric progressive melodeath band with this 16 and a half minute emotional epic:

Ben, please add The Arbitrary Method.

Here are my sneak peek submissions for the January Sphere playlist:

The Amenta - "Flesh is Heir" (5:08) from Flesh is Heir (2013)

Circle of Dust - "Deviate (1992)" (3:59) from Brainchild (1994)

Fear Factory - "Recode" (5:47) from Aggression Continuum (2021)

Godflesh - "Streetcleaner" (6:42) from Streetcleaner (1989)

Mechina - "The Collapse Promised to All" (3:17) from Bellum Interruptum (2025)

Pain - "The Last Drops of My Life" (4:02) from Pain (1997)

Total length: 28:55

Here are my sneak peek submissions for the January Revolution playlist:

As Blood Runs Black - "Ground Zero" (3:43) from Ground Zero (2014)

Asking Alexandria - "To the Stage" (3:30) from Reckless & Relentless (2011)

Enter Shikari - "Enter Shikari (demo)" (2:57) from The Zone (2007)

Lorna Shore - "Soulless Existence" (7:12) from Pain Remains (2022)

Shadow of Intent - "The Cosmic Inquisitor" (6:33) from Primordial (2016)

Skycamefalling - "Porcelain Heart Promises" (3:59) from 10.21 (2000)

Zao - "Conflict" (2:02) from Preface: Early Recordings 1995-1996 (2020)

Total length: 29:56

Here are my submissions for the January Infinite playlist:

Jinjer - "Fast Draw" (3:14) from Duel (2025)

Meshuggah - "Bleed" (7:22) from obZen (2008)

Vildhjarta - "Paaradiso" (10:03) from Måsstaden under vatten (2021)

VOLA - "These Black Claws" (5:52) from Witness (2021)

Total length: 26:31

Here are my sneak peek submissions for the January Guardians playlist:

Almah - "Living and Drifting" (3:59) from Motion (2011)

Galneryus - "There's No Escape" (5:19) from Vetelgyus (2014)

Iron Savior - "After the War" (6:18) from Dark Assault (2001)

Powerwolf - "Out in the Fields" (4:16) from Metallum Nostrum (2019)

Visions of Atlantis - "Pirates Will Return" (6:07) from Pirates (2022)

Total length: 25:59

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

Ghostemane - "Crash 'n Learn" from Fear Network II (2021)

3.5/5. Beginning this playlist a little strangely, Ghostemane combines dark trap/hip-hop with extreme metal, to remind some of a DJ remixing Deftones and Mayhem at the same time. The rapping is pretty good, as much as the instrumentation.

D'espairsray - "Marry of the Blood" from Born (2004)

4/5. Great song by D'espairsray, and it would've been perfect without that long Japanese spoken passage through the last third.

Flesh Field - "Uprising" from Strain (2004)

4.5/5. Apparently, this was in the movie The Mill. Also apparently, my country is one of only a few to have this song on Spotify.

Godflesh - "Obeyed" from A World Lit Only by Fire (2014)

5/5. Obey the demanding power of this crushing highlight!

Lord of the Lost - "Raveyard (feat. Kaarija)" from Raveyard (2025)

4.5/5. Rise from the rave! I especially enjoy the rapping by Kaarija.

Marilyn Manson - "The Beautiful People" from Antichrist Superstar (1996)

4.5/5. A highlight that you can truly appreciate, and one of his all-time most popular songs.

The Interbeing - "Synthetic Bloodline" from Icon of the Hopeless (2022)

5/5. An industrial melodeath standout filled with vicious perfection.

Neurotech - "Repent in Need" from Ave Neptune (2023)

4.5/5. Even though I've lost my appeal for the cyber metal of Neurotech, I still enjoy this heavy song filled with blast beats. All that's missing is harsh vocals, like in earlier Neurotech albums such as Antagonist.

Sybreed - "Take the Red Pill" from Slave Design (2004)

5/5. This highlight has some more of that cyber metal action. The title even references the movie The Matrix. The heavy instrumentation and screamed vocals shall keep you awake from beginning to end.

Deadheaven - "Тлеет Горизонт" from Антиреальность (2014)

4.5/5. And how about some Russian cyber metal? Not to be confused with blackgaze band Deafheaven.

Rob Zombie - "Heathen Days" from Heathen Days (2025)

4/5. Rob Zombie still has his usual industrial metal chaos, here sounding a bit closer to Ministry.

Monster Voodoo Machine - "Temple - Jerico Meltdown Mix" from State Voodoo / State Control (1994)

3.5/5. Pretty good remix, but a little too electronic for me. I guess some comparisons can be made with 16volt.

Dome Runner - "Fuji Cracks" from Conflict State Design (2021)

3/5. Also pretty decent, but not enough for me to love. Next!

Rabbit Junk - "U-Lock Justice!" from Project Nonagon (2010)

3.5/5. The music and lyrics are better here, and even the rapping from the guest vocalist is pretty good.

Khost - "Death Threat" from Many Things Afflict Us Few Things Console Us (2024)

3/5. Now we're heading to a more doomy industrial metal style, which still doesn't stand out well.

Jesus Loves Junkies - "Para-Side" from The Great Escape from Paradise (1998)

3.5/5. There would be more peace to the world if everyone can enjoy music like this. Though it would be more like bleak peace.

The Kovenant - "Prophecies of Fire" from Animatronic (1999)

4/5. Great aggression for one of the earliest cyber metal bands!

Blue Stahli - "Endure" from Obsidian (2021)

4.5/5. "HOPE IN. SPITE OF. ABJECT. MISERY!!!" Well this track can catch a lot of people off-guard. It's basically a 20-second cybergrind track followed by over two minutes of peaceful ambience. With that said, I approve! Though I still think there should actually be full heavy tracks like those first 20 seconds.

Circle of Dust - "Yurasuka (Blue Stahli Remix)" from Disengage (1998, 2016 remaster)

5/5. Blue Stahli would also make a remix for a few Circle of Dust songs including this one. Bret Audrey can once again add his electro-industrial sound to a Circle of Dust track and make it beautiful, really doing it justice!

Ap2 - "A New World" from Suspension of Disbelief (2000)

4.5/5. I enjoy this song having a similar sound to Fear Factory in both the heavier songs, softer ballads, and Remanufacture remixes.

Fear of Domination - "The Bad Touch" from The Bad Touch (2017)

5/5. This fun industrial trance metal cover of the Bloodhound Gang hit is a cool throwback to Fear of Domination's earlier material as well as Turmion Katilot. Saku Solin has a similar vocal grit to Children of Bodom's Alexi Laiho (RIP). They know how to make a catchy song more catchy, especially in the main melody shining the most at the end.

N.K.V.D. - "Hakmarrja" from Hakmarrja (2014)

4.5/5. Dance time is over, now we're getting a little darker and blackened.

Raubtier - "Hjarteblod" from Det Finns Bara Krig (2009)

4/5. Beauty and tragedy are in full grace in the music and lyrics, especially in the chorus.

Rammstein - "Ohne Dich" from Reise, Reise (2004)

3.5/5. Same with this emotional song for loved ones. If I knew the German language, I would've understood and enjoyed it more and maybe sing along. It's quite calm compared to the heavy energy of their other songs. I almost feel like crying even though I don't cry. So beautiful from beginning to end.

Zaraza - "Every Day is a Funeral" from Slavic Blapshemy (1997)

3/5. One of only a couple tracks in this album I find likeable and not disturbing.

T3CHN0PH0B1A - "Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me" from Grave New World (2008)

3.5/5. A good way out for this playlist, a cyber metal cover of a U2 song. The screamed vocals kind of ruin it, sounding too much like the Tasmanian Devil.

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? I recommend this to any industrial metal fan and anyone who isn't into industrial metal 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!

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

Adept - "Blood Covenant" from Blood Covenant (2025)

4/5. Adept are back with their first album in nearly a decade. Let their sound rain and pour over us!

Dead by April - "Bulletproof" from Bulletproof (2020)

4.5/5. Dead by April's new screaming vocalist Christopher Kristensen is also from dEMOTIONAL. For this song, I enjoy the kick-A electronic melodies and guitar soloing. It's one of the best non-album singles by the band, having their earlier electronic metalcore roots.

Cave In - "Vicious Circles" from White Silence (2011)

4/5. This grind-ish metal/hardcore blitzkrieg has some of the band's most vicious aggression since their debut. Horns up, y'all!

The Narrator - "Aurora" from Aurora (2025)

4.5/5. Honestly I don't think modern metal is f***ing up the genre, just as long as we still have amazing talent from bands like The Narrator. The last minute of this track starts with a heavy breakdown including an Architects-esque "BLEGH". I enjoy the screams and cleans from the two vocalists. They are right there with Annisokay as a leading band in the new wave of German metalcore.

Allt - "Aquila" from From the New World (2024)

4/5. Well-written lyrics of absolute fire. Enough said!

Nik Nocturnal - "Collapse" from Collapse (2025)

4.5/5. Nik Nocturnal has returned from his break to do some FUN. METAL. THINGS!!!! Kick-A modern metalcore/deathcore/electronic things, to be exact. And he's practically gone super saiyan in both his looks and vocals.

Shadows Fall - "Root Bound Apollo" from Of One Blood (1999)

5/5. Another of my favorite songs in this Shadows Fall album with a fast searing Metallica-like solo. This was actually originally a song by Fair's former band Overcast, but it ended up in this album. It would later be re-recorded on the Overcast album Reborn to Kill Again.

AVRALIZE - "Fading Faster" from Liminal (2025)

4.5/5. This one probably has the catchiest alt-metalcore chorus of the year! It should make Avralize big enough to reach stadiums.

Carnifex - "Dark Days" from Die Without Hope (2014)

4.5/5. And now the bright days turn dark in this f***ing brutal song with amazing soloing. This is around the time when they started adding elements of Dimmu Borgir-ish symphonic black metal to their deathcore.

Reflections - "From Nothing" from Willow (2020)

5/5. Holy sh*tballs, this entire gem is like a ultra-heavy downtuned breakdown from beginning to end. I'm glad I'm not listening to this while having my breakfast cereal, otherwise there would be a huge mess of things. These thall legends are like the son of Emmure and The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravanganza.

Humanity's Last Breath - "Anthracite" from Anthracite (2025)

4.5/5. More thall? You got it! This song and the Grimace Shake would make a lethal combo. Glad that this band and fellow thall masters Vildhjarta are still around this year.

The Breathing Process - "The Conscious Observer" from Samsara (2018)

5/5. Starting off melodic, the guitars and growls continue to strike forward, perfectly balanced with the melody. I also love the midsection guitar soloing that's a nice pleasant break from the blackened chaos.

The Devil Wears Prada - "Supernova" from Space (2015)

4.5/5. I especially love the chorus in this track. RIP Daniel Williams...

It Dies Today - "Life of Uncertainty" from Lividity (2009)

5/5. I really love this song, being another prime example of 2000s metalcore. Jason Wood is quite great at his vocals, though he can't beat Nicholas Brooks.

156/Silence - "Better Written Villain" from People Watching (2024)

4.5/5. I decided to listen to this on YouTube, and I stumbled upon the version with the intro "Sleep Spikes". And d*mn, they fit together like a glove!

Lamb of God - "Again We Rise" from Sacrament (2006)

4/5. Look, as much as I know Lamb of God is more of a groove metal band, there are a few songs that have a more metalcore vibe, in a similar vein to Cave In and the NWOAHM movement. Everything's intense from the intro ("RISE!!!!") to the bridge ("You'll never be one of our kind! This ain't yours, f*** you, don't try!") and so on.

Dragoncorpse - "Born Again" from Born Again (2025)

4.5/5. Dragoncorpse are born again, and they continue their blend of the power metal of DragonForce and the epic deathcore of Lorna Shore. They even throw in some of the epic folk metal of Ensiferum and Equilibrium, which reminds me, I need to start listening to those bands for real.

Structures - "Gone / Dead" from None of the Above (2021)

4/5. Structures' temporary split showed that the band was gone but not dead. Despite the obvious Limp Bizkit/nu metal vibes in the instrumentation and vocals, the riffing is quite sick. Plus there is a bit of a Silent Planet-ish sound here and there, so some great points for that. I just wish they had more of the intricacy of their earlier albums. I could practically use this for a party to have all the guests headbanging. Probably would've been better if it was two or three times longer though.

We Came as Romans - "If There's Nothing to See" from Cold Like War (2017)

4.5/5. One of the best songs of this album, throwing back to their earlier roots and featuring one of the I Prevail vocalists. RIP Kyle Pavone...

Girlsbeinggirls - "Girls Cutting Girls" from Girlsbeinggirls (2025)

4/5. Girls be girls. Mathcore be mathcore, no matter how chaotic and disturbing it can get.

Daughters - "Jones from Indiana" from Canada Songs (2003)

3.5/5. I think I know where Girlsbeinggirls got some of their speed and chaos from.

The Chariot - "They Drew Their Swords" from The Fiancee (2007)

4/5. Christian math/metalcore can be quite kick-A, as well as spawning some strange unique music videos.

Psyopus - "X and Y" from Odd Senses (2009)

3.5/5. D*mn, it's sad that bands like The Chariot and Psyopus are gone. Let's enjoy this while we can.

The Number Twelve Looks Like You - "An Aptly Fictional Description" from Nuclear Sad Nuclear (2005)

4/5. After a jazzy 30-second intro, we end up getting the band's usual progressive deathly mathcore. Some cool guitar arpeggios appear in the midsection along with the last bit of screaming to end the first half. Then the entire second half is just a baroque waltz. Only the strictly heavy mathcore fans would stay for just that first half.

Wolves at the Gate - "The King" from The King (2012)

4.5/5. Since this is the December Revolution playlist, I knew I couldn't miss out on including at least one Christmas metal song. Well this is actually from their earlier post-hardcore era, though metal enough to be included here. It would also be re-recorded for their Christmas-themed EP Lowborn. And even non-Christians would praise it!

Trivium - "Six Walls" from Struck Dead (2025)

5/5. The new Trivium EP's 7-minute epic, it may just be the "And I Return to Nothingness title track" of this EP, longer and more epic than the heavy rest of the offering. After a haunting one-minute intro, the remaining 6 minutes has the band's thrashy melodic metalcore reminiscent of Ascendancy, with a more cinematic progressive structure. It's the perfect emotional storm! Oh, and I would like to note that based on the different keys that are out of the E-flat/drop D-flat/7-string B-flat/drop A-flat tuning range, this may be the first ever Trivium track in D tuning (not drop D, standard D) (in my theory). So many surprises in that towering track that are easy to remember!

Hope for the Dying - "Open Up the Sky" from Aletheia (2013)

5/5. But then we have the closing epic of this Hope for the Dying album that is the band's longest song at 12 and a half minutes. It's truly one of the most epic and innovative metal tracks I've heard in my life. Everything's so progressive with occasional hardcore bursts. You have to be really experienced musically and lyrics to understand it all. Then everything ends with distant piano. So legendary!

Atreyu - "Lip Gloss and Black" from Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses (2002)

4.5/5. OK, let's really end this playlist with a melodic metalcore classic. And just like the previous track, it has a beautiful piano ending.

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!