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If you look in my Spotify playlists, you’ll find one titled “Workouts”. Fittingly I use this for my kettlebell and free weight exercise sessions, and I would say approx. 80% of the content is deathcore or metalcore. This is something of a revelation for someone who up until around three years ago had heard virtually zero of such music, in fact I had intentionally looked to avoid it for most of the two sub-genre’s existence. Whilst this by no means makes me an expert on such styles of metal, I figure that I am at a reasonable enough level of maturity with this music to pass the occasional comment on The Revolution clan feature release.

As Blood Runs Back have a sound that I instantly find jarring as they deploy that djenty style of riffing that reverberates throughout the track and then there’s the big bloopy and mathy leads that run riot over proceedings. ‘Hesper Prynne’ has the makings of great Meshuggah worship but blows it by just piling more things on top of one another. This track is then followed by instrumental track ‘Pouring Reign’ which just feels like pointless musings really. By this point I am missing some of the big, rhythmic riffs that I use to fuel my workouts. What constitutes as breakdowns here (and I genuinely like a good breakdown) feels just more like a fake slowing of the pace where something else happens. There are moments like on ‘The Brighter Side of Suffering’ when the album sounds a little more on point than on other occasions, but this is still a bit too tame for me.

For me, As Blood Runs Black lack cohesion, bobbing around a little too much on the waves of their own farts in the bath water. I am aware as I type this that I am commenting on a scene that I do not entirely understand and so I am trying not to sound disingenuous to what I am listening to. To put it in grown up terms, the record is too melodic and lacks consistent punch. Tracks such as ‘Beneath the Surface’ start off with such promise but soon end up sounding more or less like every other track on the record and after a while (a short while), this just grates on me.

I've mentioned on a handful of occasions that I struggled with Sumerian Records back in the day. Djentcore was in its early stages of development and this record label was destined to pump out as many metalcore and djent bands as they possibly could through the early 2010s. Born of Osiris were just another one of the fairly unoriginal bands of the time, but as the years pass they modulate closer to the Veil of Maya sound. I've personally never cared for them, but as an inoffensive modern metalcore/deathcore/djent band, I cannot admit to ever switching the channel when they come on. A large reason for that was the songwriting, which was short and direct to the listener.

Short projects like The New Reign and The Simulation play into the groups strengths as being fat-free, straight-to-the-point metalcore/deathcore. Albums like Angel or Alien and more recently, Through Shadows on the other hand, are too long and drawn out for the band. Promotional singles like "Elevate" and "In Desolation" have decent ideas, but both feel cut short; "Elevate" and the opener "Seppuku" in particular feel like their final chorus is missing.

If this was a normal, formative Born of Osiris album, I probably would not mind as much. But in 2025, Through Shadows is a hair under fifty minutes in length. Combining that with shorter than average songs makes for a major issue in the structure of this release. When the band experiments with longer song structures like "A Mind Short Circuiting" and "Transcendence" it feels like two separate song ideas stitched together. The record is just not that well meshed and a large portion of that might come from the bands continued pivot towards electronica.

At the least the sound is nice. Since Born of Osiris are from that formative djent era, Through Shadows is super groovy. The percussion is precise and compliments the vocals very well as well as the occasional guitar lead. I did not find the guitar/bass work to be very impressive; this definitely still has that Sumerian blockiness to it. And vocals are mostly okay; Ronnie continues to move away from harsh screaming as frequently and they can be hit-or-miss, but I do appreciate how not every track on this record has a sung chorus.

Overall I found Through Shadows to be a fairly inoffensive album, just like the rest of Born of Osiris' discography. They are certainly talented when it comes to writing killer grooves and the occasional catchy hook, but given the albums length and continued push towards the progressive leaves this band in an odd predicament. Singles bands can be fine in small doses, but as far as I can tell, Born of Osiris are still chasing the shadows of Veil of Maya.

Best Songs: Inverno, Activated, Blackwater

Unforgivable vocals ruin this. Look, I love extreme vocals. I love death growls, I like Black Metal shrieks, I love Thrash yells, all that good jaunt. And even classically “bad” vocals don’t bother me much. I’ve got a pretty high tolerance for that stuff as someone who listens to more than a handful of Metal bands where one of the musicians basically bit the bullet and did the vocals despite not being able to sing at all. I mean hell, I even enjoy J-Pop/Denpa/Idol music where the singers can’t actually sing at all and rely on autotune and their cute aesthetic to get by. Really, it usually doesn’t bother me.

The abrasiveness of these vocals goes beyond offensively bad, into essentially unlistenable, to the point the music around it suffers immensely. There’s some sort of distortion/static effect on most of them which makes them even worse. The crazy thing? The vocalist employs more than one technique, and they suck at ALL of them. The shrill screams are terrible, the punky yelling is terrible, the sassy vocals are terrible, the “singing” if you can call it that is poor, the only thing passable the vocalist does is the monotonous droning style used on “Phoenix in Flight.” Which still isn’t good, but it’s inoffensive.

I originally wanted to read the lyrics along while listening to see what it was about. Gave up halfway into the first song as the vocalist does not even make the most basic attempt to enunciate a single word. Right from the first line, you are immediately lost, as the noises the vocalist screams don’t sound like even one word in the verse. I will never know whether they are good or not because the vocalist put zero effort into delivering them.

Oh, the music? Maybe I’d have more to say about it if I wasn’t distracted by how awful the vocals are the whole time. It’s competently played and written, even above average for the genres employed most of the time. There are some genuinely great moments scattered about, usually when the band leans more into crafting riffs and chord progressions as opposed to being as mathy and chaotic as possible. “Heaven in Her Arms” has some awesome riffs and chords that walk the fine line between melodic and dissonant, aforementioned “Phoenix in Flight” has nice doomy atmosphere, and the Post-Metal style buildup of the closer is pretty great. The drumming is consistently excellent, and probably the one aspect of it I have nothing but praise for. Not only technically impressive and complex, but also packed with variety, and simpler sections that serve the music rather than being too preoccupied with chaos and showing off.

I’m not going to lie though – even with the perfect vocalist, this album would only be “good” to me. Most of it is too chaotic and angular for my taste. A shame though, I think I would have enjoyed the lyrics and concept. At the end of the day it’s just not for me.

Well, after a marathon of reviewing Guardians classics, it's time to balance out my palate with something a lot darker and heavier. I encountered this Killwhitneydead album in a video the other day and decided to give it a shot. And compared to the other release I've reviewed, the debut Inhaling the Breath of a Bullet... WHAT THE F*** HAPPENED?!?

Killwhitneydead really went downhill in their second release Never Good Enough for You. The album cover of blood and nudity is bad enough, but for the music itself... There are still many samples used just like Inhaling the Breath of a Bullet. What made that EP acceptable was that release's length, which made the amount of samples still the same yet acceptable. When this music/sample alternation goes on for a half-hour, it gets boring and makes you wonder why the band has never been sued for the samples. The growls and riffing don't sound all that great, particularly when there could've been blasts where there are barely any. A few breakdowns are quite good though...

"You Will Get Exactly What You Deserve (and Not One Bullet Less)" gives me something special, a brutal breakdown similar to early Job for a Cowboy. "She Didn't Look Like She Had a Disease" is only one more track I like, and what a surprise! Several other tracks have melodeath leads, but here they go full-on power metal/grind/deathcore, with some clean falsetto singing! Who knew that was even a thing?! As for the rest, it sounds too flat. This sh*t is never good enough for me or anyone....

Favorites (only tracks I even slightly like): "You Will Get Exactly What You Deserve (and Not One Bullet Less)", "She Didn't Look Like She Had a Disease"

Not really a deathcore guy, not really a nu metal guy, so this "nu metalcore" that Wikipedia apparently has an article for doesn't really appeal to me beyond the fact that it's metal.  I checked out Slaughter to Prevail for a coworker and I politely told him that it was better than most of the deathcore I've heard, which isn't really untrue.  But it's only OK.  I didn't really expect much of a change when I heard about the new album.  But to be fair, each song had little tricks here and there that I appreciated.  Good portions of each song were built on these little tricks basically being major focal points.  Unfortunately, none of these aspects were really strong enough to differentiate this album from the vast majority of deathcore in the longrun.  Basically, this album manages to be catchy and edgy enough to get by on its own, with little amounts of creativity making it better than all the other generic nu metal and deathcore albums, but not a groundbreaker by any definition.

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Today I decided to check out more release by Spitfire. The Slideshow Whiplash is an EP the band made two years after their debut album Dead Next Door and just one year before their first hiatus. I wasn't expecting a short EP to be slightly better than that debut, but that's certainly the case here! Most of the tracks in this album are in the same quality as the better half of the debut...

Well, there are only 4 tracks, and one of them is an instrumental. Still this is for any metalcore/mathcore listener and you may enjoy it once you try it. And if you haven't heard that debut yet, this EP shall make you up for that.

"This Ain't Vegas and You Ain't Elvis" (sounds like what a casino owner outside of Vegas would say to an Elvis impersonator) has awesome strength in the lyrics. "Bulletproof and Tall as Jesus" is the best highlight of this release, and it's too perfect for me to put into words. It segues to the title interlude with is an odd mix of techno and jazz. Then the EP ends with the brutal "Heroin". Vocalist Jon Spencer sounds a little drunk in his attempt at cleans, but the rest of the track is nice and heavy.

I love most of what this band has in this EP. Nothing disappoints me, and this has better pointage than their debut Dead Next Door. The only things I would remove or improve are the title interlude and the weird clean section in the last track. If this was their way of saying farewell before their first hiatus, they've done it well....

Favorites: "This Ain't Vegas and You Ain't Elvis", "Bulletproof and Tall as Jesus"

Exploring different releases in your favorite metal genres is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get. Some might be bad, some might be OK, some might be so awesome that you're kicking yourself for not discovering them sooner. That 3rd outcome is certainly the case for me with this early metalcore/hardcore gem!

In the 90s, hardcore and early metalcore weren't always "that emo-fueled genre with breakdowns". Snapcase was formed in 1989 and released their debut Lookinglasself (what's that, an elf character in one of those Alice stories?) in 1993. Their hardcore sound would eventually make its true form in one of the best albums of the genre, Progression Through Unlearning. Straight-on hardcore/metalcore before their switch to post-hardcore/alt-metal in subsequent albums.

"Caboose" is the perfect anthem to start the album. Vocalist Darryl Taberski unleashes his screaming power with full intensity. I appreciate the work the band has put in their songs. The lyrics are clear and empowering, without any incohesive rambling. That's what makes this album the energetic masterpiece it is! That along with the furious "Guilt By Ignorance". It is followed by another great track, "Harrison Bergeron". Then we have another priceless classic in "Priceless". That's what metalcore sounds like before the dance-trancecore of Enter Shikari, the pop-ish melody of A Day to Remember, the heaviness of Fit for a King, and the djent of Periphery.

"Zombie Prescription" is amazing in the vocals, guitars, and drums, along with a well-placed uncommon breakdown. "Killing Yourself To Live" really kicks a**! It greatly exemplifies this early metalcore era. "She Suffocates" punches through frantic riffing and time signature changes, accomplishing a lot in under 3 minutes.

"Weak Tyrant" isn't the strongest track of the album but it still rules and maintains the perfect 5-star rating. The more hardcore listeners would know "Vent" quite well, which can easily get the live crowd rolling. "Breaking and Reaching" is a grand 4-minute standout, with some of the most superb music and lyrics in the album. The "Outro" seems like a nice way out. Apparently, the audio sample is from Pee-Wee Herman. RIP Paul Reubens...

I would probably ask for a little more diversity, but there's practically nothing to change about Progression Through Unlearning. Hardcore's energetic spirit is something that has rarely been replicated in today's scene. Snapcase would drop their earlier roots for subsequent albums. Still if you want true energy entering your mind, listen and learn!

Favorites: "Caboose", "Priceless", "Killing Yourself To Live", "She Suffocates", "Breaking and Reaching"

Madness is what you can expect in any noise-ridden math/metalcore release. Songs can range from short to radio-sized and have at least one long-ish epic. Spitfire's debut Dead Next Door may be at the same quality level as Nora's Loser's Intuition, but the mathcore part of the sound is slightly more...

It's not just pure math/metalcore that I often hear in this album. Occasionally, there's a slight touch of alt-rock/grunge. One might call this band a more hardcore Nirvana. But why should that be what we would know them as? Clearly, noise-fueled metalcore is their goal. Oh, and I just realized that this band isn't related to one of the earliest (and worst) mathcore bands out there, Nineironspitfire. Spitfire's debut is by far better than Nineironspitfire's sole release, so let's check it out.

"Please Don't Go Out Tonight", especially not in my country when it will soon be Hungry Ghost Month as of this review! But seriously, that song is a great start that shouldn't be overlooked. Not as great as the interesting highlight "The Two Forty Eight Lie" with its different tempo changes from fast hardcore to slow sludge. There's plenty of chaos in "Render Quench Create". Unfortunately, it doesn't have much focus and tears apart the album's greatness. "Marasmus" is around to make up for that with some of the more hardcore riffing to occur in this album.

"A Glance at Quintenessence" I consider one of the most quintessential songs in early math/metalcore, with Rosetta-esque sludgy tempo. "Good Cop, Bad Cop" is another one of my favorites, long with fast riffs especially at the end. "All Indentured Lovables" is a beautiful interlude while keeping listeners on their seats with heaviness at the end.

"The Burgundy Room" ends up marking the album's descent back into the sh*tty quality of the 3rd track. The bass and drums ruin the band's intention of bringing together hardcore and metal. "What Ever Happened to the Indie Queen" has some nice mathcore, but that kind of sound is better executed by Ion Dissonance. "DJ Jazzy Steve" is a strange closing track, even for me. Jazzy Steve, whoever you are, cut that sh*t out please.

Dead Next Door isn't your typical hardcore album. It has the noise and chaos of any math-metalcore album. I would enjoy and appreciate this more if not for a couple poor tracks including that d*mn remix-ish track at the end. As much as I like all this beauty and brutality, it would take a little more improvement to make this grab my attention....

Favorites: "The Two Forty Eight Lie", "Marasmus", "A Glance at Quintenessence", "Good Cop, Bad Cop", "All Indentured Lovables"

F***ing h*ll, how did this masterpiece hide under my metalcore radar!? The Opposite of December is the debut album by Poison the Well and has greatly defined the genre! It's a heavy emotional offering of glory that fans of hardcore and metal shouldn't miss out in their lives.

Not often can you find something that can sound so fresh even after over 25 years following its release. As awesome as many other metalcore releases, they would be bowing down to the true groundbreaking developing albums of the genre. The title and release date fit well together, considering it was released in December 1999, one month before the new millennium (unless you wanna be technical). Already there was hope for a promising future for metal and hardcore in this millennium.

Already hitting things hard is the opening track "12-23-93" (I wonder what that date means). After the beginning drum roll by Chris Hornbrook, there's a lot of fury from the guitar and vocals. Jeffrey Moreira has wonderful vocals as he screams well-written lyrics at the top of his lungs. Not a lot of metalcore vocalists have the same rage as Jeffrey, and that's probably good health-wise. That, along with active smoking and when he used his screaming offstage after finding out the band's equipment was stolen, would lead to him suffering a collapsed lung, but he recovered. Anyway, he also does some clean singing that helps the band standout among other early metalcore bands. His vocals also shine greatly in "A Wish for Wings That Work", with a spoken bridge. Closing the next track "Artist's Rendering of Me" is some emotional guitar and bass.

Then the bass becomes audible in the bridge of "Slice Paper Wrists", a melodic standout for many metalcore listeners, and I truly agree. "Nerdy" has more special relatable lyrics about wanting to take a friendship to the next level. Jeffrey's lyrics are truly beyond the kind of scenario I would ever write. "To Mandate Heaven" takes on a more experimental side of things that would increase in later albums. The metallic riffing is covered in raw filth compared to other tracks. The experimentation pays off and naturally, they've made another powerful anthem.

"Not Within Arms Length" marks another dynamic highlight. The bass and drums are more relentless and take the spotlight above the riffing. It sounds quite fresh and never loses any steam. "Mid Air Love Message" plays around with rock riffing for a lighter vibe. The heaviness is still there as a counterweight for the slower emotion. After a hidden section between tracks, "My Mirror No Longer Reflects" closes the album with some of the most emotional guitarwork in late 90s metalcore.

All in all, The Opposite of December is just what every metalcore fan really needs. Something so beautiful and brutal was made by this young talented group that would stand the test of time. This impactful gem is essential for all metal/hardcore fans, one that you can't go your entire life without!

Favorites: "12/23/93", "Slice Paper Wrists", "To Mandate Heaven", "Not Within Arms Length", "My Mirror No Longer Reflects"

Nora, named after Samantha Mathis' character in Pump Up the Volume, was formed in 1996 and released a few EPs including a split EP with The Dillinger Escape Plan. I checked out one of those EPs Theneverendingyouline a couple years ago in which the strained vocals by Carl Severson made it unbearable. On the debut full-length album Loser's Intuition, while the style hasn't changed too much, the members' talent and writing has improved, and luckily that includes Severson. No more of that strained sh*t...

This album can still be considered math-metalcore, but the mathcore side has been toned down some in favor of the metallic hardcore of Hatebreed and Earth Crisis. It's all about performing loud and heavy, nothing dramatic. The powerful groove of metal/hardcore is unleashed!

The album starts off greatly with "Wave Goodbye". The band fires away with riffs and breakdowns without ever sounding as repetitive as that EP. "My Bloody Clownsuit" follows as another killer track. "Warthog" has heavy rhythms to please my ears, especially at the end. Then we have another highlight in "Bring It". The band continue to bring their math-metalcore sound with a dash of melody from Undying.

"Nobody Takes Pictures of the Drummer" is another pummeling track, starting off with mid-paced dissonance before some vicious hardcore speed. You gotta appreciate the drumwork Chris Ross, despite nobody taking pictures of him. Then we have "For the Travelers" which is one of the heaviest anthems I've heard from this band. The riffs and tempo practically shapeshift into different forms, even slowing down for the dark effects of Godflesh. Indeed for the metalcore travelers! Now "what about standing up" for "Leadpipe Moment" with its really powerful bellows from Severson!

The title track is where the band starts to lose some steam, but it proves that good metalcore doesn't have to be from later modern bands like Northlane and Like Moths to Flames. "Mudmonster" is another d*mn killer highlight, as drilling as that cover art by Derek Hess. "Kill You for a Dollar" I'm guessing is a re-recording from one of their EPs. The more mathy side there might've been the spark for Iwrestledabearonce later on. However, I feel like it could've been better if it was longer than just under two minutes.

Loser's Intuition is a lot more worth your money than Theneverendingyouline, with better improved talent from the band members. With that said, I should warn newcomers about the chaos that would occur. This offering is good for the experienced....

Favorites: "Wave Goodbye", "Bring It", "Nobody Takes Pictures of the Drummer", "For the Travelers", "Mudmonster"

Metalcore fans who listen to bands like Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall probably don't know about the bands those members were originally in before those fans (including myself) were born. The members of Overcast include Killswitch Engage bassist Mike D'Antonio and Shadows Fall vocalist "male metalcore Rapunzel" Brian Fair. After an 8-year breakup due to lack of the success their peers had, they've reformed and started recording a new album...

Reborn to Kill Again is actually mostly a re-recording album of many of the songs in their first two albums Expectational Dilusion and Fight Ambition to Kill. And of those 13 tracks (14 if including the European bonus track), only one song is brand-new, and one other song is from a different band. A look back into the past, I'd say!

The first track is a two-parter, "Diluting Inertia / Grifter". Now that's how you time-travel into 90s hardcore/metalcore! Thundering riffs and rhythms continue in "Root Bound Apollo". And yes, it's that song that was meant to be for Overcast's then-shelved 3rd album and ended up in Shadows Fall's album Of One Blood. It still remains one of my favorite early-ish metalcore songs with a fast searing Metallica-like solo, alongside the thrashy riffing and vocals. Things slow down in "Seven Ft. Grin" (that's a h*ll of a long grin), as the vocals sound tough and the guitars have heavier layers added. "Filter of Syntax" is kind of a filler track, but it might remind some of Snapcase. The brand-new title track is a strange one, sounding more alternative. If they had a chance to make a 4th album, I hope they go their earlier direction, not like that new track.

Another two-part track, "As a Whole / Two Degrees Below", is a 7 and a half minute epic with a long intro, just like Aftershock's "Prelude to Forever". As a whole, that Overcast epic makes another solid highlight, but it doesn't have the glory of the Aftershock one. "Spun" spins into gang vocals, guitar soloing, and Pantera-esque breakdowns. The destructive "Your (Destructive) Self" has some vocals to remind some of Merauder, and they help with hardcore's lyrical commentary. "For Indifference" is another one of my favorites here. I can't believe how indifferent some people are nostalgia-inducing tracks like that!

We then get an instrumental, "Styrofoam Kill Machine". It probably would've been better with vocals, but it's still quite killer. It's followed by another favorite of mine, "Fates Design". Then "Apocalypse Upon Us" goes dark and lurking without ever reaching the deathcore depths of Winds of Plague. Finally, "Bleed Into One" is one of the earliest songs by the band, the title track of their first demo released in 1992. The gang vocals alongside Fair's yells have a similar vibe the Rollins Band album The End of Silence.

Reborn to Kill Again is for both new fans of metalcore (including myself) looking for older treasures and earlier fans wanting to relive their hardcore memories. If you're wondering where the bridge is between Integrity and Shadows Fall, here it is. A great break from today's heavily modernized metalcore market....

Favorites: "Diluting Inertia / Grifter", "Root Bound Apollo", "As a Whole / Two Degrees Below", "Your (Destructive) Self", "For Indifference", "Fates Design", "Bleed Into One"

So as we all know, Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall are the two Massachusetts leading conquerors of the melodic metalcore scene. However, there were two other bands formed earlier by those two bands' members; Aftershock and Overcast. I don't wanna waste time listing every single associated member, but I will list the ones in this album as the review goes on. Boston, the city the Dropkick Murphys are shipping up to, was already shaping up its hardcore scene at this point before receiving a metal injection right before the new millennium dropped. The band that included future Killswitch Engage guitarists Adam Dutkiewicz and Joel Stroetzel recorded and released their second album Through the Looking Glass in 1999, around the same time as another one of the best releases in early melodic metalcore, Prayer for Cleansing's Rain in Endless Fall. While this Aftershock album isn't perfect, it's amazing and essential for metalcore fans to listen to and dropkick some a**!

Through the Looking Glass is a solid offering with all you really need in metalcore within the riffs, leads, drums, breakdowns, and vocals. Everything's so dissonant and diverse, and while there isn't the technical heaviness later metalcore bands would have, it's a strong album to remember. The lyrics and titles seem to center around the adventures of a young girl in Wonderland named Alice (if you know, you know), setting aside the wonderful fantasy for the dark reality hidden beneath.

It's not often a metalcore album starts with a 7 and a half minute epic, but here we are in "Prelude to Forever". Ambient feedback rises before a couple minutes of heavy sludgy riffing and drumming. So basically, the first third of the song is an instrumental. As the vocals come in, the tempo in the riffing slowly increases from mid-tempo to finally reaching a punky thrash pace. Incredible! This is early groove-ish metalcore at its finest, sounding quite heavy without ever having to resort low djent tunings. Fast riffing, catchy hooks, and deathly breakdowns, all in the moderately heavy drop C tuning. What more can you ask for in metalcore? The ambient title interlude is simple yet dark, with some angelic choir. There's more of that atmosphere to end "Jabberwocky" after the song itself progresses through heaviness.

"Traversing the Gap" takes on some deathly tremolos. As with many metalcore/melodic metalcore bands in the late 90s and 2000s, Aftershock leans into melodeath territory and takes the genre's powerful riffing without making it super melodic. "Living Backwards" is more phenomenal, as the bass and drums have a stomping groove aligned with grim leads and chords. Notice I said this album isn't totally perfect in the first paragraph because of the slightly flawed "Impenetrability". It's a mid-paced heavy track, but the drumming sounds oddly timed and the leads sound too screechy. I prefer hearing those kinds of leads from Meshuggah. There's also some clean singing which isn't too bad.

We also have some thunderous riff rampage in "My Own Invention". Some of the more deathly drum blasts occur though a little heavy on the cymbals. Kicking off "Infinite Conclusion" is some start-stop riffing that is a little choppy, but the enjoyable chords made me forget about that. However, that doesn't stop the vocals falling behind the music. I understand if some steam is lost. The outro "Awaking the Dream" is a nice light way to end.

Aftershock was an early developing band of metalcore with not as much recognition as their still enjoyable peers in Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall. Nonetheless, I can enjoy this band's focus on pummeling heaviness as much as those other two bands' catchy melody. Aftershock and Overcast both provided the spark needed for one of metal's most popular genres in the modern era. Remember, Aftershock was Adam Dutkiewicz and Joel Stroetzel's band that would lead them to their more famous one, and you already know what it is. Small reduction of technical heaviness aside, Through the Looking Glass is a truly cohesive experience. One that metalcore fans should own!

Favorites: "Prelude to Forever", "Jabberwocky", "Traversing the Gap", "Living Backwards", "My Own Invention"

I just can't stop thinking about the epic excellence of Hope for the Dying. I've mentioned that their album Legacy is their own Becoming the Archetype Terminate Damnation. This album, Aletheia, the one before that one, is actually what I would consider the symphonic missing link between that BTA album and the one from their early incarnation, The Remnant, even hinting at that band's early 2010s deathly era. Hope for the Dying can break the norms to make something wonderful. Similarly to Mechina's Siege, half the amount of songs each go over 8 minutes, and the last track is a 12-minute epic. And just because that's unusual doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it. Now let's pick up where Dissimulation left off and where Legacy would unfold...

With this album, Hope for the Dying has added more orchestral grandeur, enough for me to question why this isn't in The Guardians like Dissimulation. The lengthiness in many tracks comes from the different sections being quite long. It allows the instrumentation to really shine and help the band stand out in the metal and hardcore realms. Their move from the Strike First to Facedown was the right one, not just because it caused a boost in popularity but also Strike First's shutdown a year after this album's release. This diverse cauldron of influences has come from sounds heard in America and Europe, all in different eras. The epic orchestra might be a little too pompous in a few moments, but when they get it right, they get it WAY right! Also the stylistic associations with Becoming the Archetype are so clear that I'm surprised both of those bands have never shared members with each other. Although the name of this album is similar to former BTA guitarist Alex Kenis' main band Aletheian.

The opening track is the epic "Acceptance". You think starting an album with a nearly 10-minute epic is a rarity? Imagine also closing the album with two longer epics! But we'll get to those later on. Adding to this rarity is the high amount of instrumentation compared to the vocals, and this often-unsuccessful move actually ends up paying off, keeping me hooked through and through. A fantastic start to this journey! "Reformation" starts off heavy with the usual growls and screams letting out lyrics about uniting for war, "marching as one, the reformation has begun". The track overall sounds like War of Ages gone orchestral, especially when it's short and straight. "Iniquitous" kicks off with some European neoclassical shredding. Then the lyrics battle against false beliefs, "you almost believe the lies yourself". Lots of epic power despite being a short song!

"In Isolation" begins with what sounds like an Irish Jig, then the rest is their usual metal. The song was released as a single and has its own lyric video. Those lyrics and the music continue the spirit of Becoming the Archetype, leading up to a powerful climax towards the end, "I no longer wish to walk alone". Seriously, you should check that song out! Another example of depth comes in "Through a Nightmare Darkly", the title playing on the idea of seeing the face of God, yet twisting the image into a world of darkness and pain. Quite a poetic message to convey for a 5-minute instrumental track! It fits well conceptually when seguing to the next track "The Lost". The lyrics that maintain the message of the instrumental give passion and motivation to a lost generation, "this is a chance to rise". The great vocals of Josh Ditto ranging from screams to cleans gives him the vibe of Becoming the Archetype's two vocalists, Jason Wisdom and Seth Hecox.

We're heading to the final leg as we check out those longer epics, starting with "Visions". There's nothing new about this track, but it stays strong in the instrumentation and vocals that keep up the European-infused darkness. The cleans also sound similar to European metal vocalists to add diversity to the vocals covering American metalcore screams. A wonderful track for the patient and experienced! It segues to "Serenity", a serene interlude with lovely acoustic guitar. And finally, "Open Up the Sky", the closing epic 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!

All in all, Aletheia is only for listeners who can handle metal, hardcore, epicness, and progressiveness all at once. And I am one of those listeners! If the orchestration wasn't too pompous though, I would've added that extra half-star needed for this album to be as perfect Dissimulation and Legacy. Still it is the kind of album you wouldn't typically expect in the modern era. If you can sit through an hour-long album with a few 10+ minute tracks with lots of heaviness and diversity, from beginning to end, you would certainly be one with the symphonic progressive metalcore world. And specifically, the world of Aletheia!

Favorites: "Acceptance", "Iniquitous", "In Isolation", "Visions", "Open Up the Sky"

As much as I enjoy symphonic deathcore, we really need more symphonic METALcore. Metalcore or melodic metalcore would really go well together with the epic orchestra of symphonic metal, and yet that almost never happens. It's always symphonic deathcore! DEATHcore!! DEATHCORE!!! Except for one of the most epic bands around...

Hope for the Dying's official full-length debut masterpiece Dissimulation is an album in which the "epic" label fits in quite appropriately. Before recording this album, the band made a self-titled release that was released as an EP then repackaged as a studio album released via Strike First Records. The band would then be signed to the label's more well-known older sibling Facedown Records. Just imagine Unearth and All That Remains with more progressive structures and Two Steps From Hell-esque orchestra.

The adventure begins with the intro "Exordium" which is the most Batman-sounding intro in a Revolution album besides Make Them Suffer's debut Neverbloom. Then to start the last third of the track, the metal guitars take the stage, rising from riffing to shredding. It makes the perfect transition to "Vacillation" with all its extreme technical speed. The screams and cleans are all in brilliant balance, already giving you all of this album's greatness to come. Then it all fades to orchestra and piano to get you ready for a heavy transition into the next track. "Orison" is another perfect flowing track. Note that all the tracks segue into one another similarly to BTBAM's Colors.

"Transcend" has that TSFH-sounding orchestra alongside some of the progressiveness of Queensryche gone heavier. The orchestra makes its bombastic flow through the heavy guitars, drums, and vocals. 4 and a half minutes in, a shredtastic solo is unleashed by slowing down in glistening melancholy. The sorrow bleeds into "Imminent War" starting with an acoustic intro before blasting into metal once again. "Perpetual Ruin" again has that "epic trailer music gone metalcore" motive.

And then we come to the glorious 15-minute 3-track suite, "The Awakening". Each one has different focus on an aspect, with the title track of the suite emphasizing the piano and strings, the title track of the album adding in some more shredding plus some female singing, and the third part "The Veil Lifted" closing the suite in both melancholy and progressiveness. The most vicious song of the album, "Vile Reflections" blasts away through metal yet again. Then it all ends with "Desirion", starting soft in the piano before the last bit of blasting metal gone orchestral and then wrapping things on a light symphonic note.

Dissimulation may not surpass Trivium's In Waves for the eternal reign of my personal best albums of 2011, but it's still one of the best that I wished I had discovered sooner. The older fans would get a kick of nostalgia while still sounding fresh the newer fans including myself. Orchestral metalcore is a sound that should've caught on a lot more. A must-have for anyone up for something both epic and extreme!

Favorites: "Vacillation", "Orison", "Transcend", "The Awakening" (full suite), "Vile Reflections"

Hope for the Dying has already made history with their self-titled debut EP/album being the first release for Facedown Records' imprint label Strike First since its relaunch. I enjoy this thrash-ish metalcore similar to Shogun-era Trivium and Facedown labelmates War of Ages, though not as much as their more symphonic subsequent albums...

I can understand the confusion of whether this would be considered an EP or a studio album, since it's just a 7-track 36-minute release. While the rhythms and vocals aren't as dynamic or aggressive as their later albums, there are killer shredtastic leads that would carry on into those albums. The riffing from the guitar duo James Houseman and Jack Daniels is also not totally emphasized which explains the reduction of heaviness in this particular release.

It starts with a killer standout in the 7-minute "City of Corpses". Then "A Beautiful Day for Vengeance" begins with one of the heaviest riffs in the release before more of that tasty shredding. It seems like the more slightly forgettable parts of this offering are the clean-sung sections like that of "Into Darkness We Ride".

Some of the best moments of "Our Fallen Comrades" occur in the second quarter of the track. You gotta hear it to believe it! "Where We Are Going We Don't Need Roads" (clearly a reference to the final line of the first Back to the Future movie) has some melodic instrumentation to remind me of We Came as Romans at that time. "Would the Angels Say" fiddles a little too much with the shredding. Then both the riffs and leads really shine as "In Loving Memory" opens.

Hope for the Dying's first release was a promising start to their career. However, the killer shredding would impress me more if the quality wasn't so on and off, though it's mostly on. At least it would pave the way to something more epic....

Favorites: "City of Corpses", "A Beautiful Day for Vengeance", "Our Fallen Comrades", "In Loving Memory"

It's quite a mystery how so many bands can pull off a genre well despite it losing the spark of interest it once had. Vildhjarta is one of the few ongoing bands that can still be considered a true pioneer of a genre nowadays. They started out in the djent scene of the early 2010s alongside Tesseract and Periphery, but stand out amongst them with their own djent subgenre thall. Their perfect legacy has spanned between their first two albums, staying loyal to their fans. And just under 4 years after their second album, their 3rd one Dar Skogen Sjunger Under Evighetens Granar (Swedish for "Where the Forest Sings Under the Eternal Spruce Trees") continues the gigantic brutal drama!

A few pre-release singles came out in the couple years before the album's release, and they continue to show their progressive stamina. Despite the remaining original member guitarist Daniel Bergstrom having left the band between songrwriting and recording, nothing has changed. In fact, this album has some of their heaviest work to date. Serene ambience gets crushed by a hailstorm of devastation.

"Byta Ut Alla Stjarnor Pa Himlen Mot Plustecken" (Replace All the Stars in the Sky with Plus Signs) plays around with some riffing in the intro, as the sun is darkened by an eclipse of downtuned guitar and bass, with the smog of brutality completely blocking out all light, similar to the Minecraft Betweenlands mod. The riffs and rhythms are both atmospheric and punishing. Melody only comes from the ambience. Everything else is an avalanche of heavy technical riffing. And there's more of that in "Tva Vackra Svanar" (Two Beautiful Swans), along with a brief moment of soft beauty in the middle. The end result is an experimental sludgy track like a more downtuned Will Haven. Then we get to a couple singles, starting with "Sargasso". The other single "Ylva" (Eleven) has some melodic ambience while focusing mainly on relentless guitars and drums.

"Dar Mossan Moter Havet" (Where the Moss Meets the Sea) has some progressiveness from Mechina and Protest the Hero without ever going as melodic as those bands. "Roda Lappar, Sota Applen" (Red Lips, Sweet Apples) barely has any sweetness, preferring to go all-out brutal similar to some of the more sludgy tracks by Every Time I Die and The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza. "Kristallfagel" (Crystalbird) masters the brilliant dreamy djent, while Vilhelm Bladin's vocals stay intense. "? Regnet, the ?" (The Rain, the) has some of the metalcore from God Forbid and Knocked Loose made even heavier and more sludgy.

"Hosten Som Togs Ifran Mig" (The Autumn That Was Taken From Me) has some slight vibes from Bleed from Within. "Viktlos & Evig" builds up the mathy thall further, swinging through progressive intricacy and occasional cleans. "Stjarnblodning" has some Varials vibes bleeding out. The final track "Den Spanska Kanslan" has the last unforgiving riffing throughout this glorious 7-minute epic before letting light shine again, albeit not as bright as it once was.

This skull-crushing offering Dar Skogen Sjunger Under Evighetens Granar is another irresistible album to look out for. It probably would've been perfect if the song titles weren't all in Swedish and having plus signs surrounding each one. Still this is true thall hellfire!

Favorites: "Tva Vackra Svanar", "Ylva", "Dar Mossan Moter Havet", "Kristallfagel", "Viktlos & Evig", "Den Spanska Kanslan"

As I believe I've explained before, symphonic blackened deathcore began in the late 2000s with early Abigail Williams and Winds of Plague and would eventually reach its height of popularity with bands like Lorna Shore and Worm Shepherd. Now can we replace the symphonics with Meshuggah-ish djent and elements of atmospheric doom? Humanity’s Last Breath has answered that question with a big fat YES. The band has continued their exploration into deeper darker caverns that has started with their debut!

The 3rd album Valde (Swedish for "Empire") is another towering part of the band's discography. It's as towering as the spirit-filled tower in the cover artwork and as bleak yet stunning as the artwork itself, as are many other works by that cover artist, the late Mariusz Lewandowski. RIP...

"Dodsdans" (Dance of Death) is the intro that hints at different D-words this album can be described as; dark, deathly, depressive, dissonant, downtuned, dynamic... Then it's the atmospheric yet punishing "Glutton". That song and "Earthless" shall make the most emotionless listener become emotional from this brutality. Next track "Descent" is more percussive alongside technical shredding. The occasional orchestra and choir makes things even more apocalyptic, especially in the black-doom-esque sections.

At the end of "Spectre" is a bit of melody that makes it sound like a Gojira track. Adding to that melody is the sparsely used clean singing, balancing that part with the rest of the song's intensity. Still firing away hard is "Dehumanize". Then "Hadean" continues the band's top-notch talent. The monstrous vocals by Filip Danielsson are incredible as always, flowing with the rhythm. At the same time, riffs are fired through by the guitar duo Buster Odeholm and Calle Thomer. From djenty deathcore breakdowns to drummer Klas Blomgren's blast beats, the violent quest for heaviness rolls on! "Tide" continues the riff-wrath while having the band's own epic post-sludge moment at the end.

The instrumental title track, actually spelled "Valdet" with a T at the end, expands on the atmosphere that then rises to another doom march. Bring things up on front, "Sirens" has more of that heavy stank with uncommon melody here and there. The guitar duo can nicely surprise us with their variety. "Futility" has more of the band's blackened djenty deathcore sound. "Vittring" (Weathering) is an absolutely heavy ending track. You just gotta praise those hammering drums, dissonant guitars, and furious vocals.

Valde proves that Humanity's Last Breath can put all their crushing talents into one plate. Massive brutality all around with some touches of melody. This isn't just thall, this is atmospheric black-doom-infused djenty deathcore thall. Not even the most metal of metalheads would know what the heaviest of all is until they try this one for size!

Favorites: "Earthless", "Spectre", "Hadean", "Tide", "Sirens", "Vittring"

In extreme metal's ongoing reign, many fans are at war for the throne. Their goal is to make the heaviest music known to man, tearing down the walls of conventionality for their original attempts at giving heaviness a new meaning. Humanity's Last Breath might the closest band to the finish line, stunning fans with some of the heaviest and most pulverizing breakdowns and riffs possible. Having already released 3 EPs and one album before this one, the talent and fury the band has is impenetrable and would have all those other extreme metal bands bowing down before them. That's how abyssal this album Abyssal is!

The band's ultra-heavy thall (more brutalized djent/deathcore) sound is so unique. It also leans into downtempo deathcore, the subgenre that might as well be considered death-doomcore and was developed by The Last Ten Seconds of Life and Black Tongue. Whichever genre Humanity's Last Breath are referred to, they increase the limits and impress even the most serious metalheads with their chaotic attack.

"Bursting Bowel of Tellus" literally bursts in with the opening riff, showing that the brutality hasn't withered away since their 2013 debut. There's no doubt those blasts and riff technicality will leave you stunned all the way up to the end. Next track "Bone Dust" has more of the intense violence from vocalist Filip Danielsson's whispers and growls. Everything's so strong and ominous at the same time! "Fragda" slices through neck-twisting riffs and drums. "Abyssal Mouth" is another track released as a single but since revamped. The heaviness really bursts out alongside those haunting vocals by Filip. And we have more of those machine-gun blast beats.

Exploding into your ears like a xenomorph exploding from a person's chest is "Pulsating Black", heavy right from the opening bass pulse. "For Sorg" is an instrumental for who wanting a break from the vocals while staying heavy. "Like Flies" is filled with fast riff darkness and some more sinister vocals by Filip. "Sterile" is good but nothing special.

Another interlude "Being" is interesting, starting off with a demonically distorted audio sample from Jordan Peterson. The expansive "Vanda" displays more of the band's quest for the ultimate heaviness. Each moment is more brutal than the last, with some fast energy added in. The chains of heaviness tighten again in "Rampant" with more technicality in the riffing. The closing outro "Dodgud" wraps it up in total extremeness after a soft ambient start.

The Swedish brutal descendant of djent, thall is held in place by Vildhjarta and Humanity's Last Breath. The latter band's second album Abyssal has given them the right to own the throne of heaviness. They've earned it!

Favorites: "Bursting Bowel of Tellus", "Bone Dust", "Abyssal Mouth", "Like Flies", "Vanda", "Rampant"

Thall is one of the most destructive genres in metal and music in general. This djent subgenre with elements of deathcore/metalcore and even smaller fractions of doom, death, and black metal, is a clear definition of modern extreme metal, and the people in Metal Archives who decide which bands to add must've overlooked this subgenre simply because they hate djent. The founding trio of the subgenre includes Vildhjarta, Reflections, and of course, HUMANITY'S LAST BREATH.

Just the name of this band can induce fear of a catastrophic apocalypse tearing the world apart from the inside, and it fits greatly with the material too. Crushing destruction that you can never escape from, just like a black hole. Darkness and fear are common themes for many metal bands past and present, but they're tame compared to what Humanity's Last Breath can do. The darkness is a lot more massive. Supermassive! The powerful devastation is much more than any other band's attempt at that. It will erase you from existence and bring you back, making an unforgettable experience like none other.

The atmospheric darkness first appears in the "Intro", lasting for a minute. You might think it's boring, but it's just the start of the massive sound it would lead to. The two-track suite "Bellua" is better suited as a full 8-minute epic rather than two parts. Altogether they display the heaviness of the album to come. With "Human Swarm", you can't go wrong with brutality in deathcore and djent. They know how to bust sh*t hard. After a spoken line of "We stop the wind from blowing", then comes a f***ing massive breakdown near the 3-minute mark. A nice surprise for the more extreme 'core listeners. Practically heavier than all that's heavy! Quite hard and evil for the moshpit. Then comes the beastly "Animal", another one of the heaviest tracks here. It's a re-recorded version of an earlier single, and the monstrous fury is so unreal.

"Shoals" speeds things up, sounding closer to standard death metal, maybe even melodeath. Nothing but skull-smashing velocity! Then we lose some brutality in the riffing in "Tellus Aflame". It's not really the best track of the album, but it still rules, and the perfect score isn't affected. "Vultus" is another hard-hitting track. The mix of heavy brutality and subtle melody makes it similar to a less symphonic The Breathing Process. Then there's the short atmospheric interlude "Drone". It's almost like a continuation of the intro that then leads to perhaps the most doom-laden part of the album.

The next track "Void" was released as a single for the album, the first single to not be a re-recording. Although it's quite killer and still maintaining the 5-star album rating, it doesn't represent the slamming might the rest of the album has and make me question its usage as a single. The heaviness returns to full gear in "Anti". Then "Make Me Blind" unleashes the brutal fury one last time. The "Outro" ends it all like it's literally the end of the world. By the time the destructive drama fades out, nothing would remain.

Humanity’s Last Breath has followed in the footsteps of Vildhjarta and made things more moshable and destructive. Their debut marks a strong memorable start to their journey of creativity and apocalyptic heaviness. By the power of THALL!

Favorites: "Bellua" (both parts), "Human Swarm", "Shoals", "Vultus", "Anti", "Make Me Blind"

You ever wonder what System of a Down would sound like with Poppy doing all the vocals, plus some South American aspects thrown into the mix? Now you know. Calva Louise is one of the more stylistically diverse bands of this year, crossing over into elements of different genres.

The thing about diverse bands is, you don't know what would work until you try it. And it's quite exciting to give an album like this a spin. Will they add in classical piano? (YES) Will they add in a dash of brutal tech-death? (NO) The point is, Edge of the Abyss is all about unpredictability, the kind that would make you sit down and listen all the way through. It's also a concept album, so the different elements depends on the mood of the story. So let's smash that play button and unleash this fusion of fusions...

"Tunnel Vision" starts with a sweet pop intro, then the rest is an alt-metalcore blast often turning into pop and dubstep. Awesome start! "W.T.F." has frantic progressiveness with a punky pace. "Aimless" is another highlight, really proving the band's unpredictable talent, alternating between Latin flamenco, classical piano, and metal riffing. Seriously, this band needs to be discovered more. My brother and I can't be the only ones enjoying these fun experimental works! "Lo Que Vale" is my favorite track in the more alternative side, shining with Jess Allanic's vocals as she sings in her native language (she's from Venezuela).

"Impeccable" is a great song with more of Jess Allanic's impressive vocals. I gotta thank my brother for recommending this track to me along with "Feast is Over". Then "Barely a Response" continues the earlier progressive punky sound, taking some cues from Coheed and Cambria and later Katatonia. The semi-title track "The Abyss" can pack a punch despite its lack of metallic energy. More of the groove, folk, and vocal harmonies occur in "El Umbral" with some spoken vocals appearing here and there.

"La Corriente" comes out kinda awkward, attempting to add some electronics to stay in your mind but ending up somewhat obscure. "Hate in Me" brings back some of that Katatonia vibe from earlier while being more fun and energetic. "Under the Skin" seems to struggle with its groove, but it's not a total fail.

Nothing's totally bad at all in Edge of the Abyss! However, the first half has more impact than the second half which is still OK. But the album as a whole gives the band the potential of going big, experimenting with different genres to the point where the band is practically their own genre. Many unique bangers here! While not entirely perfect, listeners should give it a shot for some all-out fun....

Favorites: "Tunnel Vision", "Aimless", "Lo Que Vale", "Impeccable", "Hate in Me"

One of the best things about metal is its diversity and the ability to combine different genres both metal and non-metal. Born of Osiris are the masters of combining metalcore with elements of djent and deathcore, and in their new album Through Shadows, they've added an alt-metal cherry on top! And writing for the album started around the same time as their previous album Angel or Alien that was rewritten after failing to be a companion for their incomplete album The Simulation.

As with many of their albums, Through Shadows is an excellent one with many twists and turns. The djent-ish alt-metalcore sound is so diverse and interesting. All you can expect here is the unexpected.

A robotic female voice that starts "Seppuku" leads to an explosion of sharp riffing and digital electronics. Everything's so simple yet futuristic. "Elevate" has an accessible rave-ish groove, and the chorus mixes together electronics and riffs quite well. The 5-minute title track is another journey for Born of Osiris. Impressive vocals here, both the screams and cleans! "The War That You Are" has both heaviness and melody cranked up. And holy sh*t, the riffing and vocals are as deathcore as their earlier material.

We also have some Middle Eastern vibes in "Inverno" along with some pleasant melody. On the flip side, "A Mind Short Circuiting" is a dissonant riff frenzy only for those experienced with the band and sci-fi action video games. "Burning Light" is a melancholic synth interlude to act as the album's intermission. It segues to "In Desolation" which has a similar vibe to some melodic metalcore bands, and that I really enjoy. "Torchbearer" is the first single for the album, released nearly two years before the rest of the album. They never cease to amaze me, and I might try exercising with this song on play.

Then we have the perfect "Activated", in which everything experienced so far is put together in a trancey metalcore fiesta. I love the guest vocals by Underoath's Spencer Chamberlain and the saxophone solo that can surpass "Careless Whisper". Then "Dark Fable" has more of the electronic synths and metal beats, and the clean vocals in the chorus sound so tranquil. "Transcendence" borrows some electronic experimentation for early 2010s Linkin Park. "Blackwater" ends the album with epic crushing sorrow.

I'm glad that the new Born of Osiris album has come out and I got listen to it and review it once it got added to this site. Through Shadows is another amazing work of art from this unique band to appreciate. It's something diverse music listeners need in their lives, and let's hope they have another album in the writing works as we speak!

Favorites: "Seppuku", "Through Shadows", "The War That You Are", "In Desolation", "Torchbearer", "Activated", "Blackwater"

I'm quite used to this epic blackened deathcore sound now and can enjoy bands like The Breathing Process. The band made a new EP in 2023, their first since the demos, entitled Todeskrone (Death's Crown). Here the sometimes-fast sometimes-slow extreme sound of Labyrinthian continues and shows that the band are back in their earlier quick pace of making new material. OK, it's not a lot since their previous release two years prior, with this one being just a 4-track EP. Still it's another straight-on example of their symphonic blackened deathcore sound that would later be credited to the new more popular bands of that style. And it's also where it's just that, symphonic blackened deathcore! Barely any of their earlier melodeath has remained in this release.

The 4 tracks in this EP are all nicely-refined bangers that again continue what they had in Labyrinthian. However, it has more of the deathly direction they're usually known for with barely any of the melody in the more experimental tracks. That's where the lack of melodeath can be heard compared to earlier albums. I love this because it gives them more in common with the more popular bands of the epic blackened deathcore scene such as Lorna Shore, Mental Cruelty, Worm Shepherd, and later Carnifex. On the other hand, the reduction of experimentation makes the release have slightly less of the perfect glory of those previous 3 albums.

Striking with vicious vocal layers is the first song "Empty, Not Alone". Their current vocalist Chris Rabideau sounds so monstrous, and I mean that in a good way. "Hell is Almost Heaven" really lets it rip with vocals and instrumentation of total hellfire. "Clawed" is filled with noise and chaos, and includes guest vocals by the talented Devin Duarte of Worm Shepherd. The closing title track is an epic throwback to the blackened side of their past and it's packed with sounds of deathly destruction.

Though not as perfect as most of the band's discography, Todeskrone displays a promising direction of where The Breathing Process will go next. I hope to hear more of their strength and talent in their upcoming album later this year or the next!

Favorites: "Empty, Not Alone", "Todeskrone"

You know how much I love epic blackened deathcore, from the likes of Lorna Shore, Mental Cruelty, Worm Shepherd, etc., with songs containing a cauldron of epic melodies, downtuned riffs, and brutal breakdowns. Two genres that I once thought were too much for my taste have come together for something so intriguing. But does anyone know the band that really started it all?

The Breathing Process is the unsung pioneer of this style of deathcore, back in 2008 with their debut In Waking Divinity, alongside Winds of Plague. It was a somewhat rough start, though Odyssey (Un)Dead and Samsara are glorious examples of the sound. And maintaining that perfect streak is one of the best albums of 2021, Labyrinthian!

After the eerie first half-minute of the opening "Terminal", blast beats soar through the darkened skies. The speed has gotten me hooked, and it's not until the breakdown when everything slows down for an intense increase in tension. "Shadow Self" greatly blends the symphonic melodeath of Skyfire and early Starkill with the deathly metalcore of Bleeding Through. Another standout is "Wilt" with its heavy blackened riffing and guest vocals by David Simonich of Signs of the Swarm.

"A Savage Plea" has a beautiful intro and then rises into one of the more savage tracks here. The synth-filled blackened title track would certainly work well for a video game boss battle, and that boss is guest vocalist Jamie Graham (Viscera, ex-Sylosis). Even more blackened is "I Sleep, I Wake", their longest track at over 7 minutes, with the final two being one of the most blackened moments in the entire album. "Heir to None" is more atmospheric, but what's with the samples in the intro? They sound oddly placed and knock a few percentage points off what would've been a 100% rating. Still this song shows the band in divine form.

"Shroud" shrouds the blackened deathcore sound with some melodies borrowed from Still Remains. "Atlas" is also more melodic, almost in Parkway Drive territory, while staying in their usual sound. "We the Drowned" marks yet another epic deathcore album ending with the best climax. The melancholic finale where all the symphonics and heavy chords and melodies rise up once more before collapsing into just sorrowful piano is just beautiful.

All in all, Labyrinthian continues to seal The Breathing Process as the ultimate founder of the melodic symphonic blackened deathcore scene. Everything is mindful and perfect (except for the intro of "Heir to None"). Anyone still listening to those more popular bands of this style, take a break from them and check this band out. For real!

Favorites: "Shadow Self", "Wilt", "Labyrinthian", "I Sleep, I Wake", "We the Drowned"

Being the contrarian that I am, I must admit that Ascendancy was never my favourite Trivium record of the 2000s. It has always been a top 5 release, but could never overtake the likes of The Crusade and Shogun. Those records always had slightly more edge than their most successful and breakout album from 2005. That is not meant to serve as an insult to Ascendancy because while the album does sound patchy at points and also takes forever to end, this is the kind of melodic metalcore that does more than your standard hardcore album of the era.

When I think of this time frame of melodic metalcore, names like Killswitch Engage, Bullet for my Valentine and Parkway Drive inevitably come up. Trivium fall into the category with bands like Shadows Fall; following the trends of mainstream success, but with a nostalgic flare. My major criticism of this new wave of hardcore music is that songs are not constructed well, as they alternate back and forth between a quasi heavy metal section and a slow, brooding chugging breakdown. It transforms the album from Iron Maiden worship into an almost fully realized modernization. Trivium will exploit that detail here on Ascendancy almost to the point of being insufferable. Songs like "Pull Harder on the String of Your Martyr" and "Ascendancy" have some excellent grooves for about two-thirds of their length. Then during the bridge, the tempo and style drastically change so that the guitar players can wail for a while, before concluding with a return to the original form. Ironically, these deviations don't bother me as much as they would if they were on a modern metalcore record. "A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation" starts off nostalgia farming with two riffs back-to-back that are just "One" and "Fear of the Dark" before becoming something else entirely about halfway through. The initial whiplash is perplexing, but Trivium allows that groove to simmer and burn instead of hanging it out to dry when the guitar solos conclude.

I must say that this riffing is fantastic. During a time when melodic metalcore was at a peak in the collective mainstream, there were few acts that could devise riffs like Trivium. Not only could they crank up the intensity on a whim, but they also knew that slowing down giving a reprieve would allow those solos to bit even more impactful. In a genre where tempo has gotten progressively slower over time, Ascendancy is a nostalgic trip back to the genre's thrash roots. Bands like Killswitch Engage and All That Remains could write better hooks, but Trivium are no slouch in this department either. I mean, one listen to "Dying in Your Arms" affirms that. And the album doesn't overindulge in its production. All of the records key aspects are pristine and precise; you won't find any symphonic or synthetic elements to bog down the mixing and overwhelm the listener during its thrashier segments.

This is just a really good album. Ascendancy represents a side of melocore during the mid 2000s that wanted to crossover, instead of being relegated to the kiddie pool. Many metalcore bands of the time were completely fine with playing Warped Tour, while Trivium were playing on MTV2 with Chimaira, Arch Enemy, In Flames and Lamb of God. Trivium got their recognition and ballooned into more progressive sounds later on Shogun and beyond. As its name suggests, Trivium really ascended to the top of the metal world around this time, and for good reason.

Best Songs: A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation, Drowned and Torn Asunder, The Deceived, Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr

Well, guess I listen to deathcore now.

This is not surprising given the sudden rise in popularity of genre over the past four years. When the legacy media showered Lorna Shore with praise in 2022 and named Pain Remains their album of the year, it brought in a bunch of new ears into a genre that had been stuck in 2012 for too long. And a budding scene spearheaded it back into the forefront as bands like Signs of the Swarm, Mental Cruelty and AngelMaker enter the publics field of vision, while other, older bands like Fit for an Autopsy and Whitechapel's Hymns in Dissonance revive their older sounds.

Since Lorna Shore are releasing their new album later this year, and I will undoubtedly be asked to talk about that, we’ll save the more in-depth discussions for another day. But Shadow of Intent were a band that I always liked from a distance. Chris Wiseman has proven to be a solid composer of melodic deathcore in the past. The question now becomes “how long can they keep this up without changing their personality?”

Well with the way things are going in the new deathcore scene, it’s hard to imagine SoI (Shadow of Intent) needing to change their sound. While all these new bands are trying to chase the Lorna Shore plateau, SoI are essentially making melodic death metal with a punk twist. The first track, “Prepare to Die” begins the record with some very strong foundations before the vocals enter and bring all the pieces together. On the flipside, “Feeding the Meatgrinder” sounds like SoI trying to make an old school death metal classic. “Flying the Black Flag” shows those deathcore roots a little too plainly; whether it be the rapid-fire vocal delivery from Ben Duerr, or the out-of-place breakdown that closes the song.

Imperium Delirium does have its fair share of obtuse moments, but most of the time those shifts in pace are very well executed. The percussion lays a lot of groundwork here, where a guitar can play the same riff over two very different percussion grooves and can produce two very different reactions from the listener. “Infinity of Horrors” and “They Murdered Sleep” are both early album standouts for that reason. As the album progresses, “Beholding the Sickness of Civilization” continues this trend in the best way on the album. I’ve always enjoyed when the band tries to be a bit more progressive; whether on “The Dreaded Mystic Abyss” or here on “Imperium Delirium”. Meanwhile, the instrumental track “Apocalypse Canvas” doesn’t really do much for me; its inclusion on the record may bring fond memories of “The Dreaded Mystic Abyss”, but it’s played over a very pedestrian melodic deathcore groove and feels like a wasted opportunity.

One thing that I can give Imperium Delirium a ton of credit for is how it does not follow the status quo; either within the modern deathcore trends, or Shadow of Intent’s typical texture. Melodic deathcore might seem like a counterintuitive concept, and even then, SoI are not satisfied. This album has more variety than previous releases and somehow more technical. The Dream Theater progressive techniques have been put on the backburner and replaced with more variety in songwriting, and they are also unashamed to have a little fun, paying homage to their influences.

In the end, I really enjoyed Imperium Delirium. As a melodic death metal album, it is heavy as hell but never feeling like its simply going through the motions of that genre, as it draws inspiration from the old school. As a deathcore album, Imperium Delirium’s breakdowns are filthy without feeling like whiplash. For a genre that I once admitted to “not getting” and treating with bad faith, Shadow of Intent are (for now) the lone deathcore band that I really enjoy and keep coming back to. When it is pedestrian, it’s still pretty good, if a little derivative. But when SoI tries something new, they hit the mark with flying colours.

Best Songs: They Murdered Sleep, Prepare to Die, Beholding the Sickness of Civilization, Imperium Delirium, Feeding the Meatgrinder

If you've read Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Diper Overlode, you would know that (SPOILER ALERT) a heavy metal band named Metallichihuahua started out popular in the 90s before splitting up, and then reunited 25 years later for a special surprise show. In the timeline that we're in, Deadguy had a similar history at around the same time. They formed in 1994 in New Jersey and released several EPs and an album. Their noise-fueled metallic hardcore sound was praised by many fans and would then spawn a different genre, mathcore. However, their time was short-lived, disbanding in 1997. Members of that band and Rorschach would form another short-lived band, Kiss It Goodbye.

In 2021, an authorized documentary of the band was released, titled Deadguy: Killing Music. They were then invited to reform and perform a special show at Underground Arts, a day after the documentary was released. And then more live shows occured, all the way up to 2023. Finally, a couple years after that, their first album in 30 years has arrived! Near-Death Travel Services picks up where Fixation on a Co-Worker with its killer heavy songs that show the band still standing in the present as much as in the past.

Right when opener "Kill Fee" blasts off, you know the band is back to make some f***ing noise. It's an explosion of metal/mathcore fury and rage to give their fans a lot of joy. "Barn Burner" continues that fire. "New Best Friend" is another single that can provide you a what to expect in the album. "Cheap Trick" is another intense blast from the past.

Then comes another standout, "The Forever People". Anyone who thought it would be a My Dying Bride cover has been proven wrong. If it was though, that would've been the most direct connection between that band and metalcore/mathcore since that fiddling riff in Converge's "Conduit" similar to that in "Vast Choirs". Next, "War With Strangers" has a slower pace that then speeds up in the usual riffing/shouting fury. That reminds me, vocalist Tim Singer still has his p*ssed vocal rage after all those years away from the band, and he's around my dad's age (his early 50s). You can hear more of all that in "Knife Sharpener".

"The Alarmist" keeps up the chaos to bring us joy. "The Long Search for Perfect Timing" is aptly titled, ending the earlier fans' 30-year search for the perfect song to surpass the debut. I'm also guessing the band was listening to 7 Angels 7 Plagues in the first few years of inactivity. "All Stick & No Carrot" packs some punches with the usual Deadguy energy. The members work together in great synergy. "Wax Princess" wraps it all up, having some more of the similar aspects to 7 Angels 7 Plagues.

Not often does a 30-year comeback turn out so well, but Deadguy is far from dead, and their new album Near-Death Travel Services proves it. They might just start a new path, and chances are, we won't have to wait until 2055 for their 3rd album. This is the chaos we need, to make up for the actual chaos in this world!

Favorites: "Kill Fee", "Cheap Trick", "The Forever People", "War With Strangers", "The Long Search for Perfect Timing", "All Stick & No Carrot"

Do I even have to write a review of this?  Now this album is listed as a metalcore and sludge release on various websites, and I'm a bit into both, not enough to join the clans, though.  I really liked the idea of sludge metalcore, and even use the tag "sludgecore" in my charts to describe the combo.  You'd think Xibalba would be a shoe-in for a favorite band, but I wouldn't know it from this debut.  The same overused guitar tone, the same decent level of heaviness, the same shouty vocals and the same type of songwriting take up the majority of this fairly boring self-released debut.  I found myself wondering why any of these songs even bothered to go into the five minute range.  I'm really not sure how this band got such good reviews with this debut, but I really believe that so much more could've been done with this album.  I would even go as far as to say I prefer the End So Far by Slipknot.

For nearly a year, I've been a big fan of Shadow of Intent. I first heard of this band working on the Revolution playlists and coming across some of their tracks. Then I listened to their album Elegy, and while I didn't enjoy it back then as I do now, I still approve of their blend of epic deathcore and lyrics of historical wars (not the same approach as Sabaton). And once I made my way through their other albums, I was all in. Melancholy remains one of my favorite epic deathcore albums. And what can surpass that?

That's right, their new album Imperium Delirium! The music and lyrics cut sharper than a knife. The conceptual themes range from personal to somewhat political. The riffing and structures are in clear production, making this hour-long offering a dark exhilarating experience.

The lyrical poetry of lead vocalist Ben Duerr reaches its very height right at the beginning of the album with "Prepare to Die". He can be heard growling and screaming about the fate of humanity, and no matter how fast he spits out those lyrics, they're so clear and you can hear them directly. The next track, early single "Flying the Black Flag" is so f***ing bada**, and it was co-produced by Blake Mullens from fellow symphonic deathcore band Disembodied Tyrant. "Infinity of Horrors" follows it up with some of the most melodic guitarwork in the album. That and guitarist Chris Wiseman's soaring clean vocals give the chorus a near-power metal vibe. He has certainly improved vocally since his misstep in their debut Primordial. Ben still has his monstrous growls. "Mechanical Chaos" continues the brutal chaos while having a bit of progressiveness from Voivod.

Taking on a few twists to keep the album interesting and fresh, the great "They Murdered Sleep", has more of a slow groove at times which, when blended with the string orchestration, comes out so monstrous and destructive. In "The Facets of Propaganda", the keys and background female chanting balance out with the heaviness and blackened screams/growls. Another single, "Feeding the Meatgrinder" is so f***ing brutal and doubling the brutality is the one and only Corpsegrinder from Cannibal Corpse. The vengeful "Vehement Draconian Vengeance" is like the melodeath of Dethklok and Neaera blended with the metalcore of later Living Sacrifice.

"Beholding the Sickness of Civilization" has more vocal distortion, making Ben sound more sinister. "Apocalypse Canvas" continues the aspect of having a long instrumental track. It's literally Dream Theater gone deathcore, filled with technical rhythms and shredding. "No Matter the Cost" has the deathcore of As Blood Runs Black and early Job for a Cowboy gone as progressive as Watchtower. The closing title track is another one of the darkest deathcore epics, all the way up to the "YOU ARE NOW F***ED" ending.

It's crazy how long Shadow of Intent can maintain their perfect streak. They haven't lost much steam in their heaviness, blasting away any sign of lameness. Imperium Delirium is fun intriguing symphonic deathcore recommended for any fan of the genre. Can't wait for more of this band, along with Lorna Shore's new album later this year!

Favorites: "Prepare to Die", "Flying the Black Flag", "They Murdered Sleep", "Feeding the Meatgrinder", "Apocalypse Canvas", "Imperium Delirium"

This ongoing symphonic deathcore journey of mine has led me to many epic has led me to several masterpieces of epicness and brutality. The more I discover, the more I understand the style's greatness. The Breathing Process has a couple awesome releases that I wish I had discovered earlier instead of recently. They've gone through many changes in lineup and location since forming in the early 2000s. At the time of Samsara's release, they had 7 members including 3 guitarists. As with their previous album Odyssey (un)Dead, Samsara has their usual blend of symphonic deathcore and blackened melodeath. Two glorious releases separated long apart, like Romeo and Juliet!

After being signed by some record labels for their first couple albums, Samsara was released independently in 2018, on my country's independence day, August 31. Lots of independence! The album includes a limited edition digipak for digital purchase. For this album, the band didn't just record themselves performing, they've also done all the mixing and engineering. The end result is an epic organic experience.

Just like how their first two albums opened, "Et Hoc Est Infernum" is an ambient intro with sorrowful orchestration and piano. The actual opening song "The Traveler" is a long heavy start to this dark adventure. Blackened tremolos, deathly riffs, and rapid blasts assimilate into an extreme combo. You can also hear some smooth guitar melodies and keyboard atmosphere. More of those symphonics appear in "Into the Night", one of my favorite tracks here. The guitar melodies and breakdown brutality are so delightful. "Supervoid" is more brutal than anything they've done before, delivering the breakdowns and growls of deathcore faster than light or a black hole.

In contrast, another highlight "The Conscious Observer" starts off melodic. However, the guitars and growls are still around, perfectly balanced with the melody. I also love the midsection guitar soloing that's a nice pleasant break from the blackened chaos. "Servile" opens up a heavier dimension of deathcore, more in the brutal side as opposed to the symphonic blackened side. The latter sound continues to strike in "Dethroned".

"The Nothing" has more of the band's earlier symphonic black metal insanity, keeping you engaged all the way up to its outro. Next is the more mellow "Sungrazer", and even then, it still has merciless heaviness and speed. The blackened blasts sounds so kick-A, and if anyone has barely heard that in earlier albums beforehand, they would think the drummer is more machine than man. The bass grooves flow well with the riffing by the talented guitar trio. The astonishing heaviness and synergy is what any metalhead can wish for. "Absolute Truth" has more memorable progressive structure. If Make Them Suffer continued their earlier epic blackened deathcore phase, this is that!

With all this epic brutal fury at hand, Samsara is a 10-track beast that I'm glad to discover and add to my symphonic deathcore recommendations list. There are many melodic moments, as much as the brutal ones, creating something crushing and emotional. The Breathing Process have proven themselves to be a brilliant band that should be for anyone into both symphonic deathcore and melodeath. Don't sleep on it, spread the word!

Favorites: "The Traveler", "Into the Night", "The Conscious Observer", "Sungrazer", "Absolute Truth"

With their second album Odyssey (un)Dead, The Breathing Process add more complex talent to their anthems, with different tempo variations. And HOLY F***, what a memorable leap compared to their debut! There's more emotion without losing any brutality, the thing I once feared but enjoy a lot now.

No matter how beautiful Odyssey (un)Dead can be sometimes, The Breathing Process seems lost and almost unheard of in the metal world. It's sad because their technical madness is quite underrated. No metalhead should miss out on this symphonic deathcore/melodeath chaos of machine gun blast beats, ravaging rhythms, and even background symphonic keys to give the intensity some atmosphere. This album has all that and then some!

"Hours" is a prophetic intro, and I say that because of the spoken sample, "Me, I service the machinery of death so that people can eat. If that makes me evil, then so be it." Then the instrumentation rises into dark pounding fire. The band's original sound already reaches its height in the speedy "Grimoire". They unleash their complex skills in not just the guitars and vocals, but also the keys, bass, and drums, in a prime example of their sound. And there's more of this wild ride in the next track... "Leveler" has some of the best keys here, sounding epic and spacey. That kind of makes the monkey jungle outro a bit unfitting, though I digress. "Vultures" introduces a new aspect to their sound, female singing. Beauty within the heavy beast! Still there are different twists and turns as the song goes on, until the sweet chords and grooves fade into melancholic piano and bass. Epicness supreme! The intergalactic blaze of "Pantheon Unraveling" really burns up. Smooth bass grooves hit alongside raging blasts, guitars, and synths. This shows that something graceful can come out deadly as well.

One interlude to tone down the intense chaos is "Starless Eternal". This short track can have a bit of progressiveness and allow you to imagine a starless darkness conjured by the keys and drums, building things up before the next song... The title track has some d*mn brutal talent. The progressiveness shines within the blend of heaviness and emotion. Already sounding original in the brief mechanical intro, "Metamorphosis" is also filled with absolule g****mn fire. Anthemic rage pours from the chords, vocals, and icy keys, making perhaps the most powerful highlight of the album! "Hordes" has more complex brutality, especially in the chaotic final third.

"The Living Forest (Part I)" has searing blasts and haunting keys, closer to the earlier symphonic black metal darkness, though there's also a technical breakdown. "Wind Ritual" is the intermission before the second part, basically female clean-led blackened death-doom. "The Opaque Forest (Part II)" rips things apart while whispers, growls, and singing fills the vocal air. "Decaying (Form)" caps it all by summarizing everything in its first half, alternating between soft and blasting sections. And what a tearful outro!

The 6 members of The Breathing Process came together to work on this epic underrated creation. Odyssey (un)Dead might just be my favorite album for these earliest days of symphonic deathcore, and I would certainly be up for more of this band. If you wanna hear epic deathcore's true beginning besides Winds of Plague, let's f***ing go!

Favorites: "Grimoire", "Vultures", "Odyssey (un)Dead", "Metamorphosis", "The Living Forest (Part I)", "The Opaque Forest (Part II)", "Decaying (Form)"

I am not super familiar with a lot of metalcore, outside of a few big names like Converge and Trivium and I have only very recently tried to explore it further. I find a lot of it to be very samey, with little to differentiate a lot of the bands, but Earth Crisis certainly are not one of them. Destroy the Machines sounds very much to me like a straight edge band that has discovered Sepultura's Chaos AD and thought "We'll have some of that". I like quite a few straight edge bands, even though they can be annoyingly preachy, and Chaos AD is a great record, so that combination works really well for me.

Vocals can often be a personal bugbear with metalcore acts, but Karl Buechner has a raggedness to his voice that makes it sound less shouty and forced than most and that is definitely a plus. A lot of more modern metalcore feels like it has moved away from the punk side of the equation, but Earth Crisis are most definitely authentic when it comes to their punk credentials, which gives the album a looseness that allows it to breathe rather than the constipated tightness of more recent metalcore orthodoxy. The riffs are great, even pretty groovy at times, yet still contain a lethal agressiveness that lets everyone know exactly just how pissed off these guys are. If more metalcore sounded like this then I would most definitely be a bigger fan.

HOW?!? How did I not discover this awesome modern metal band earlier?! Remember what I thought of Becoming the Archetype's debut Terminate Damnation? Hope for the Dying's most recent album Legacy basically continues the progressive melodeath/metalcore sound of that album but with more symphonic/neo-classical elements. Many people who enjoy this band have started off with Dissimulation or Aletheia, but my first encounter with Legacy makes me wants to check them out for the first time soon.

While there are some similarities to Terminate Damnation in terms of the sound, flow, and track lengths, there's only one interlude that is the intro. That's OK, because the rest of the album stands out as is. Before we get to that, I'd just like to point out the album cover. It may not be by Dan Seagrave, but it still has that epic Game of Thrones vibe.

So "Aurora" is a nice orchestral intro that lasts for a minute. "Setting Sun" fits greatly with its title, setting the album's tone in stone. The haunting keys shine greatly alongside the heavy guitars. The best place for progressive diversity is "Flame Forged", one of my favorite tracks here. Then we have the relentless "Narcissus" that continues its blend of heaviness and melody from beginning to end.

However, its abrupt transition into "Nemesis" is a bit jarring. My perfect 5-star rating still stands as that next track brushes aside that misstep 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. "Trenches" is another fantastic dish of heaviness and symphonics that stays speedy until its slower ending section. "Wretched Curse" lets you rest in a slower tempo for the first couple minutes then speeds back up again.

After the previous track's brief soft moment, "Wander No More" has searing guitars to rip you apart. My ultimate favorite track of the album is the 9-minute title epic that really packs some punches. A smooth two-minute bridge comes in midway through before some blazing soloing out of nowhere. Then it ends with soft strings. The last bit of triumph comes in "Adamantine" which is an excellent summary of this glorious literal hour. And finally some soft piano to end it all.

As brilliant as Terminate Damnation is, Legacy is another huge deal of modern epicness. Every layer is absorbed through your ears into the brain, and you'll be able to experience this unique creativity in no time. You can expect headbanging metal sections, soft orchestral bridges, and different time signature changes. Just like Terminate Damnation, this offering is a standout in the Christian metal scene that can please both Christians and non-Christians. If I thought Mechina's Progenitor was the best album of 2016, that award might just be passed over to this album. There's still hope for Hope for the Dying to come back with something fresh to maintain their legacy!

Favorites: "Flame Forged", "Nemesis", "Trenches", "Legacy", "Adamantine"

As my symphonic deathcore expedition continues, I've just encountered this band from metal's motherland Finland, Assemble the Chariots. With their storytelling symphonic melodic death metal/core sound, they're like a more conceptual Shadow of Intent and Lorna Shore. I think of all the releases of this genre I've explored so far, this might truly be the most saga-filled one yet!

Although their full-length debut Unyielding Night was released a year before this review, 2024, they've actually released a series of EPs dating back 15 years prior. With their sign-in to Seek & Strike records, it was time to unleash their epic storytelling deathcore to the world.

"Aquilegia in Peril" begins it all with that cinematic blend of symphonics and narration. Then "Departure" launches into metallic blasts that blend with the epic orchestration. The riffing and harsh vocals add to this intriguing mix. "Admorean Monolith" has some powerful bass groove alongside highly diverse metal aggression. "As Was Seen by Augurers" fires away with drumming impact. The screams and growls alternate with great unpredictability. "Shimmering, Pulsing Glow" is another string/narration interlude.

The ominous melancholy is decimated by the furious "Evermark". Absolutely brutal growls and intense riffing there! Introducing "Reavers March" is the usual savage battle between metal and orchestra. I love the impressive shredding! "Ephemeral Stream" is a different story, with soft piano and cleans by Milma Laitinen for something calm while still dark. "Emancipation" blasts forward again like a machine gun (no Kelly). As we have more of the demonic harsh vocals, we also have some operatic cleans by Nitte Valo (Dreamtale, ex-Battle Beast). "Keepers of the Stars" is a catchy headbanging highlight with kick-A drums and leads. "Empress" has more screaming chaos.

"Last Line of Defence" is one more interlude, to get you geared up for the final battle of this story. Warhorns begin the war in "Galactic Order", getting you excited with the theatrical orchestration, crushing metal, and charging vocals. "Equinox" is the grand ending epic where the ultimate climax occurs. The final bit of energy is used wisely, all the way up to the glorious end. That's the kind of closing epic that I enjoy!

Unyielding Night is probably the most ambitious and conceptual album in all of symphonic deathcore. Many different layers can be found in the deathly fury, the symphonic orchestra, and a voyage of a concept. You gotta appreciate the time it took for this to be made. The long wait was worth it. Here's to the next part of the Ephemeral Trilogy!

Favorites: "Departure", "Admorean Monolith", "Evermark", "Reavers March", "Emancipation", "Keepers of the Stars", "Equinox"

I was first introduced to the band God Forbid at Mayhem Festival 2009 when myself and some of my more metal friends took the trip across the border from Ontario to Michigan. We had been to Mayhem Festival the previous year when they visited closer to home, but this time we had to do some cross border shenanigans. They played the same stage as Trivium and All That Remains; both bands I was quite familiar with ahead of time. I thought "oh cool a new American metalcore band to dive into. Then I listened to the music and was immediately turned off.

Don't get me wrong, I do think that GF (God Forbid) had talent, but one listen to Gone Forever and you could tell that this band wasn't performing at full capacity. They could write solid hooks and the overall compositions were thoroughly constructed, but to expand these concepts beyond the initial honeymoon phase, God Forbid transforms into a painfully generic melocore band. Like those bands who played Mayhem Festival with GF in 2009, they would use decent song structures, breakdowns did not serve as interjections, and they could write an above average chorus. Unlike Trivium and All That Remains, this consistency does not pan out for an entire album. "Antihero" and "Force-Fed" start the album quite strong, but by the time we get to "Soul Engraved", "Judge the Blood" or even earlier songs like "Precious Life" you can see that the well runs dry fast.

And it isn't helped at all by the clean vocals. If they had ditched the clean vocals entirely, Gone Forever could have been an above average 2000s melocore record. But GF's clean vocals are so sheepish and non-committal. It's the kind of raspy singing you expect to hear out of Rob Flynn. Similar metalcore bands would have clean singing also, but those vocals were a clear counterpoint to the harsh screams; whether it be dual vocal acts like The Devil Wears Prada or Alexisonfire, or the rare vocalist that could do both by themselves (i.e. Howard Jones, Matt Heafy). On Gone Forever, GF are trying to cash in on a trend to get popular, but can't even do it correctly.

If Gone Forever sounded closer to an Unearth album like The Oncoming Storm or III: In The Eyes of Fire without any clean vocals, we might be telling a different tale. That still wouldn't change how this album loses momentum halfway through, but at least it would be slightly more tolerable to listen to. God Forbid fall into the singles band territory, where their best songs are the ones promoted by the record label and radio. After those however, you won't miss much.

Best Songs: Antihero, Washed Out World, Living Nightmare

From Seattle, Botch was known for contributing to their development of the noise-powered mathcore genre in the late 90s. The band would release two albums before splitting up in 2002, though they would reform two decades later for a new single and reunion tour. Botch shared their hybrid sound with fellow mathcore pioneers Converge and The Dillinger Escape Plan, and would plant the seed for later bands like Norma Jean and Every Time I Die. During Botch's 20-year split, the members would go on in different bands like Minus the Bear, These Arms are Snakes, Roy, Russian Circles, and Sumac.

This unique ambitious sound can take on a variety of different influences such as Helmet and Black Sabbath, putting them together into their own. You can hear it clearly in The Unifying Themes of Sex, Death and Religion, a compilation of demo EPs released before their two albums. It spawned an extended re-release in 2002, entitled Unifying Themes Redux, with more previously unreleased tracks. Whichever release you get, expect some complex high-energy hardcore chaos...

The frantic "God vs. Science" showcases the metallic chords of guitarist Dave Knudson. "Third Part in a Tragedy" has some of those hardcore jumps that Norma Jean would later have. Then slowly they turn, step by step, "Inch by Inch"... Some slight industrial from Nine Inch Nails is added to the metallic hardcore that can be heard in Eighteen Visions. They've actually covered "O Fortuna" by Carl Orff, turning an opera song into a mathcore track. A little too much of a joke, but I can accept it. Then we slam into "Closure", which is from a various artists compilation. A true trail of noise and destruction!

"Contraction" adds a little more melody to the hardcore, though not as much as The Plot in You would in the 2010s. Then on "Ebb", Knudson paints his guitar notes on the bass grooves of Brian Cook and the screamed vocals of Dave Verellen. "Stupid Me" is kinda stupid in the cliche chanting. The drama is lost by sounding laughable. "In Spite of This" is the 5-minute epic with killer riffing. They never need to go Meshuggah levels of djenty to sound this heavy.

I suppose I can one day check out the extended Unifying Themes Redux, but as much fun as I had with the original, hearing a lot of this for 70 minutes might be wearying. Still you can witness how well Botch can do their music, giving you a great complex time....

Favorites: "God vs. Science", "Third Part in a Tragedy", "Closure", "Ebb", "In Spite of This"

Another 2010s metalcore band that I have no remembrance of during my metal purge of the decade, and another who started out as deathcore before transitioning to a lighter shade of hardcore. Bands like Wage War and Make Them Suffer are near the bottom of the barrel in this regard and left me with a poor first impression entering Shrine. But what I was given was actually a really solid piece of 2nd wave melocore. This album is groovy; it has some really good riffs, the percussion is decent and not overwhelming in the overall mix, and while the vocals can be hit-or-miss, I really enjoyed the harsh vocal delivery of Scott Kennedy. Songwriting is closer to groove metal/melodic death metal most of the time, but Shrine employs breakdowns in a classic 1st wave melocore fashion; where the breakdown is a key component to the song and in most cases, is the foundation behind either the main chorus or a bridge. Texture wise, as mentioned before, the groove/melodic death metal palette means that Bleed From Within sound closer to a band like Orbit Culture as opposed to The Devil Wears Prada. But without the inclusion of those migraine inducing Inception sound effects as Orbit Culture did on Descent, that makes Shrine the superior album by a long shot!

After a while, the album does get rather tedious and starts to become more bland as Bleed From Within start to run out of unique ideas for this particular brand of melocore. But I do really enjoy the intensity of the album; a decent balance of aggression and melodic presence, which is seldom seen in mainstream metalcore these days...even more so if the band is one of those "deathcore turned metalcore" bands like Bleed From Within have become. So I do like this. It won't be a mainstay in my listening rotation, but I'll keep it around as a heavier change of pace, while also being a solid melodically driven record.

Best Songs: Sovereign, Flesh and Stone, Stand Down, I Am Damnation

I think now's a good time for me to fill you in on a brief history of Fear of Domination. The Finnish "shock" industrial melodeath band was formed in 2006 by vocalist Saku Solin, bassist Lauri Ojanen, and guitarist Jan-Erik Kari. These 3 original members would carry on with the band while the other two, guitarist/keyboardist Marko Salmikangas and drummer Jaakko Arteli would leave early on. It was Lauri who came up with the band name, stemming from one of the first (and best) songs they've written, similarly to how the more popular Finnish metal band Nightwish got their name. Since then, many lineup changes would occur, most notably the addition of female vocalist Sara Strömmer, originally a live member but has since joined the band full-time, performing co-lead vocals alongside Saku.

VI: Revelation is the second album with Sara and would end up being their last with her. On the same month as its release, December 2021, she started taking time off for maternity leave and ultimately left the band to focus on family life. That's too bad because I consider her one of the most energetic female vocalist modern rock/metal besides Linkin Park's new lead vocalist Emily Armstrong. At least we can still hear her cleans and screams for one more album. As for the music, while it still has that heavy energy they always have, their sound is no longer industrial melodeath. It's more like trance-metalcore in a similar vein to Amaranthe...

"Exitus" is where the band makes their entrance by tearing things apart with the usual electro-trance beats and heavy/melodic blend with a massive chorus. Now that's the starting track I wish the previous two albums had! "Dive Into I" has energetic groove. And don't forget the catchy melodic chorus! "Inner Lies" starts with the sample that begins Strapping Young Lad's "Home Nucleonics" ("The beat starts here"). The song is a shredtastic highlight with more of those heavy verses and melodic chorus.

"Formless Ones" has soft melancholy without sacrificing the heaviness. "Rust" has heavier strength in the riffs and vocals, along with more of those dance-y beats. The chorus would certainly be suitable for a dance party, while the music continues to have that wall-smashing power. "Manifest" punches through in the music and vocals.

"Amongst Gods" has more straight rhythms. Massive chords enhance the melodic chorus, alongside the synths and vocals. "Home" is still heavy in the guitars and vocals but they experiment with unusual aspects like film-score orchestra and rapping. "The Greatest Harmony" has good heavy groove. The sing-along chorus adds to the variation. "They All Want Me to Die" is so heavy and trance-y in the instrumentation, fitting well with the vocals including a bit of choir singing at the end. The perfect ending storm!

I'm aware that experimental industrial-ish trance-metalcore isn't for everyone. So it's best to take small steps with other bands before getting here. And in the end, you'll have a f***ing whale of a time. Rock on and party on....

Favorites: "Exitus", "Inner Lies", "Rust", "Amongst Gods", "They All Want Me to Die"

There are so many questions I ended up needing to ask just before writing this review. Did vocalist Devin Duarte really get outed as abusive, as a reason for leaving the band? How the f*** did I not notice this earlier? And how can the best bands of epic deathcore end up with a sh*tty member, usually a vocalist? This is ridiculous as h*ll. And since death metal/core is often about violent lyrics, it's not long until people start taking those lyrics more seriously and make the genre much less popular because of that. I mean, I try to distance myself from high-level violence and gore, but that doesn't mean the whole world should just because some innocent bands condone it when they don't. Also this album Hunger, the last one with Devin Duarte, was released on the same day as albums by bands whose lead vocalist's career is marred by controversy; As I Lay Dying and Linkin Park. However, I still enjoy those albums. And I find some greatness in this Worm Shepherd album too. I can still separate art from artist in most cases.

So this album Hunger continues Worm Shepherd's epic deathcore sound with more deathly elements than in previous releases. It has some aspects from Lorna Shore's albums such as the emotion of Pain Remains, the darkness of And I Return to Nothingness, and the drama of Immortal, both in the music and kinda in the behind-the-scenes. Abuse allegations aside, Duarte still sounds as strong as ever with his vocal variety.

"The Anguished Throne" can be considered a symphony of destruction, and I don't mean that Megadeth song. Strings and piano float around alongside Duarte's wonderous cleans. The heavy instrumentation then goes absolutely insane with the return of his brutal vocal filth. Hope you're all hungry for some more symphonic blackened deathcore on the house! The shorter title track launches into djenty rhythms in the riffing and drumming, as well as vicious vocals. The crazy brief soloing also makes this song f***ing perfect. Next track "He Who Breathes Fire" has Duarte breathing out brutal fire. Orchestra and metal continues their powerful blend, and the feral screaming just annihilates.

"The Whistles in the Cold" starts with chilling orchestra that leads to more of the impressive fast instrumentation and vocals. The track is as cold as the title suggests, especially in the furious riffing. "Of Ruin and Banishment" has the most of the heavier side of deathcore, with nothing but pure loud chaos. There's also some spacey riffing and blazing drumming, performed by session members Harry Tadayon and Nahuel Lozano, respectively. And HOLY F***ING SH*T, the vocals are absolutely wild, practically rivaling with Lorna Shore's Will Ramos. "Six" is a soft orchestral interlude, a nice break from the chaos. Then "Illuminate Oblivion" has dark instrumentation and emotional cleans singing lyrical poetry. It's not long until the metal returns with the usual crushing chords, drums, and screams, all the way up to the brutal haunting end.

"A Harrowing Dawn" has that "harrowing" vibe in the piano and orchestra, like the aftermath of war, but that doesn't last a full minute before more of the heavy firepower from the riffs, drums, and vocals. Chaos continues to rise from the abyss until an interesting acoustic outro. "The Waters of Lethe" has more deathly vengeance to balance out with the Two Steps From Hell-like choir and symphonics. The screamed vocals stand on the line between the orchestral waters and metal flames. "And at the End of Fear, Silentium" is one of the best track titles I've seen in all of metal. The track itself is one of the most glorious tracks I've heard in symphonic blackened deathcore. Chaos and triumph reign all over. The soloing is some of the best I've heard from last year, probably greater than even DragonForce's solos! Evilness and grief continues to last until the end, with a final epic orchestral melodeath march rising into some blackened blasts and screams once more, and finally resting in mournful piano. Man, what an ending!

All in all, Hunger is the symphonic blackened deathcore album fans of the genre need when they're tired of Lorna Shore. Worm Shepherd has once again done an amazing job blending orchestra and metal together. And again, despite all this drama surrounding Devin Duarte and his subsequent departure, his vocals still impress me. This is for anyone up for epic loud bangers. And by the end of listening, you'll be hungry for more forevermore!

Favorites: "Hunger", "The Whistles in the Cold", "Of Ruin and Banishment", "Illuminate Oblivion", "And at the End of Fear, Silentium"

Worm Shepherd had their way of triumph with their second album Ritual Hymns, but this epic deathcore band from Massachusetts would end up losing half its lineup. Only two founding members remain, Devin Duarte on vocals and Tre Purdue on guitars, both determined to continue their blend of orchestral beauty and metallic brutality.

This epic blackened deathcore style has been popularized in this decade by Lorna Shore. It's a brilliant mix because I can get the symphonic black metal elements of Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir without going heavily satanic and it shows that deathcore doesn't have to be entirely brutal. And here we are at Worm Shepherd's EP The Sleeping Sun! The guitars and orchestration appearing together are so mesmerizing, and while Leo McClain is out, temporary replacement Alex Nourse nails the drumming precision.

The opening epic "The Frozen Lake, Pt. II (The Ruined)" is the sequel to the debut's "The Frozen Lake". It starts off with slow doomy deathcore then speeds up gradually, save for a couple breakdowns and soft breaks. And there's more of their slam side in "The Broken Earth" while having some symphonic magic. "The Tortured Path" is just straight-up downtempo deathcore demolition. The best place for atmosphere and melody is the highlight "The Dying Heavens", all the while having blackened brutality. Purdue's guitar talents reach high levels of strength there. "The Parting Sea" throws in some melodeath from Be'lakor and Disarmonia Mundi albeit in a slower crushing pace.

Worm Shepherd continues their symphonic blackened deathcore in their very own And I Return to Nothingness, although it can't beat the glory of that Lorna Shore EP and Ritual Hymns. Worm Shepherd would continue with a different lineup for live shows and next album Hunger. Still, two heads are better than one as the two main members can easily pull off both the blackened and downtempo sides of deathcore well. So get ready for a half-hour haunting rage under the sleeping sun and the blood moon!

Favorites: "The Frozen Lake, Pt. II (The Ruined)", "The Broken Earth", "The Dying Heavens"

Let's be honest, Worm Shepherd was formed with the intention of following Lorna Shore's stylistic footsteps. I know I said that about a lot of epic blackened deathcore bands, but this band might be the real deal. There's just so much you can find that isn't already heard before in a Lorna Shore album, and they formed on January 31, 2020, the exact day Lorna Shore's Immortal was released. It's clear how much of an impact Worm Shepherd has gotten from Lorna Shore, though they still hold their own ground...

Worm Shepherd was formed in Massachusetts and released their debut In the Wake ov Sol independently just less than a year after forming. Then they were signed to Unique Leader Records who re-released their 9-track album with a newly recorded 10th track.

"Accursed" kicks things off in clean acoustic ambience which makes a majestic transition into the band's symphonic blackened deathcore sound with tremolo riffing, blasts, and beastly vocals. Drummer Leo McClain was only 17 at the time and he's quite a professional behind the kit. And I also enjoy the guest vocals by Alex Koehler (ex-Chelsea Grin). A true epic blackened deathcore standout! The title track is darker in the music and more varied in the vocals. Neo-classical chords drift through the brutal filth. The breakdown brings the chaos to full circle. "Ragnarok" is the 7 and a half minute epic that is oddly placed early in the album instead of the end. A symphonic intro leads into more technical chaos. The breakdown is absolutely destructive with no melody in sight.

"Wretchedness Upon the Gates" starts off with loud face-blasting deathcore. Midway through, background xylophone leads to another brutal breakdown. Also there are some guest vocals by David Simonich of Signs of the Swarm. "The Emptiness Between Stars" starts off smooth and ambient then unleashes the slower downtempo deathcore before ending with the same ambience as before. Darkness rises from the void! "The Frozen Lake" also starts soft, with some piano and spoken vocals. Then the screams and growls appear alongside the precise guitars and drums that reach its darkest point at the midsection.

"Aether" is the first of two short 3-minute tracks filled with nothing but rage and hate. Some harmony appears from the guitars that are mostly dissonant. "Loathe" is the other short 3-minute track that continues to rage with heavy drumming and relentless vocals. Thick guitar speed leads to a slow powerful breakdown. Closing the original album is "The Crimson Moon Unwithered" in which choral vocals are annihilated by the usual wicked growls as the usual blackened deathcore sound strikes. The guest vocals by A Wake in Providence's Adam Mercer are really cool. As of this review, he just left that band, and Worm Shepherd vocalist Devin Duarte also quit. It would be awesome if they switch bands. Anyway, as much as that track has a lot to end upon, it's nothing compared to the haunting bonus track. "Chasm Dweller" is an epic blend of crushing riffing and melodic melancholy, even lightening up a bit for some cleans. An epic blackened deathcore highlight of chaos and sorrow. Really should've been in the original album!

It's great hearing how well symphonics can go with blackened deathcore. And I'm still impressed by their young drummer Leo McClaim and his masterful skills. In the Wake ov Sol is a really solid start to their sound perfected in subsequent releases. If you're not into this sound, this well-constructed offering should convince you to give it a try....

Favorites: "Accursed", "Ragnarok", "The Emptiness Between Stars", "Loathe", "Chasm Dweller"

I first gave this Drown in Sulphur album some listening and a review shortly after its release over a year ago but drifted out of it shortly after because I wasn't ready for a lot of the new wave of epic deathcore, apart from Lorna Shore. Upon revisiting this Italian deathcore band, like d*mn, I was mind-blown by the high-quality production that my ears somehow missed some of in the first listen. This can convince any metalhead dismissive of deathcore to give it a try!

Dark Secrets of the Soul is where the band is finally joining the symphonic black deathcore league of Mental Cruelty and Lorna Shore. You can find all the melodies, blasts, and breakdowns you can ask for, even some throwbacks to their 2010s downtempo deathcore era, all in well-crafted epicness and brutality.

For the intro "Adveniat Regnum Tuum"... I don't know what the f*** that was, but I won't let that affect the rest of the album's perfection. I still love the first actual song, "Eclipse of the Sun of Eden". A crushing modern blackened riff commences in this track with spectacular growling vocals. "Buried by Snow and Hail" levels up the orchestral elements in the usual brutal speed of deathcore.

As always, "Unholy Light" has pulverzing modern deathcore breakdowns. "Lotus" is the closest thing we have to an actual deathcore ballad, plus the inclusion of cleans and melodic guitar soloing. The acoustics are a bit like mid-90s In Flames. Beautiful! The emotional title track rages on with orchestral ambience alongside killer riffs and growls.

"Say My Name" is not a Destiny's Child cover, thank greatness. It satisfies me as another perfect heavy banger. "Vampire Communion" is the atmospheric interlude to get you ready for the finale. See, that's the interlude we need instead of whatever the f*** that earlier intro is. Final track "Shadow of the Dark Throne" sums up everything this album has in the usual symphonic blackened deathcore triumph and drama. A true spine-chilling ending for only the bravest and/or darkest souls.

Drown in Sulphur's second album is a true masterpiece of darkness and beauty. I recommend taking a break from the likes of Mental Cruelty and Lorna Shore for a while and checking out this underrated band and album. The reign of epic deathcore continues!

Favorites: "Eclipse of the Sun of Eden", "Buried by Snow and Hail", "Lotus", "Say My Name", "Shadow of the Dark Throne"

My ongoing quest for epic deathcore has led me to different bands of that style. Drown in Sulphur is another one of those bands, and one of the more blackened. It's strange how despite those extreme metal elements, the Metal Archives still consider it "too deathcore" for inclusion.

Formed in Milan, Italy, the band released a couple EPs before drummer Domenico Tamilia fired all his bandmates and they went on to form Defamed. Domenico continued his band with a different lineup and started taking on a more mature and varied sound, beginning with their debut full-length album Sulphur Cvlt! Their earlier downtempo deathcore is now fragments of a new blackened deathcore sound, adding in some progressive sludge almost reminiscent of early Mastodon into their compositions.

There's no need for me to describe the first 5 tracks when they all follow that killer formula; "Essence", "Descendent Sunrise", "Blessed End", "Vivant Tenebrae", and "The Crawling Chaos". All of these rule, but the best tracks are when the deathcore and black metal influences truly collide, such as "As Above So Below". As well as "The Sleeping Abomination" which is the best song here. The lyrics strike with their dark universal concept. The title track has more of the blackened deathcore blasts, riffs, and screams, hinting at the symphonic direction of Lorna Shore. "Everything Has Been Read" travels back and forth from Egyptian melodies to a bit of the Finnish melodeath of Norther.

An album of 9 songs with each one have an averge 4-minute length may be a mundane aspect, but that's brushed aside when they all have lots of variety. While the idea of breakdowns in deathcore is getting old, this band can make sure those breakdowns are as impactful as they were in the genre's peak era. Blackened deathcore is a hybrid of genres which, despite not intriguing me 10 years before this review, intrigues me now. Consider me a member of the epic deathcore cvlt!

Favorites: "Essence", "Vivant Tenebrae", "As Above So Below", "The Sleeping Abomination", "Sulphur Cvlt"

Clearly the symphonic blackened deathcore well has not yet run dry. Just a year after Drown in Sulphur released their second album Dark Secrets of the Soul, they follow it up with a masterpiece of Vengeance! In between the releases of the two albums, the band left Scarlet Records, hence the independent release of Vengeance. Some of the most creative bands are the unsigned ones like Mechina and Shadow of Intent, so I sense great development for Drown in Sulphur in their new offering.

I checked out Dark Secrets of the Soul when it was first released, but I wasn't heavily into epic deathcore at the time apart from Lorna Shore. Drown in Sulphur really lives up to their new album's name. No emotional ballads, just ultra-heavy deathcore bangers with melody from the riffing and background orchestral synths.

"Underworld" is an ominous intro with narration. Then we have the memorable "Faithless", one of my favorite tracks in the entire album. It strikes from practically everywhere, and you'll want more of that epic deathcore action. The title track is quite vengeful, proving that The Revolution clan has more than just the melody of For the Fallen Dreams and Trivium. You can hear some soloing in "Seed of Hate" to please any metalhead, even the purists.

Next song "Silence" is another well-developed standout, striking with more of those epic melodies and a perfectly brutal breakdown. Crossing over into melodic metalcore territory is "Scarlet Rain", having more of that soloing and even some glistening clean singing. I enjoy when bands break through the deathcore boundaries to show that the genre isn't just brutal all the time. Yet another favorite! Then "Veil of Deception" starts off with some acoustic-ish guitar that's almost like Amorphis' "My Kantele" then blasts off into more of Lorna Shore's brand of epic deathcore with some slight technicality from Coroner.

Speeding things up is the incredible "Absentia", only slowing down at the end for one of the darkest breakdowns of the year. Perhaps my favorite here! Next up, "Morningstar" combines deathcore brutality with some dark melody from Insomnium and even Powerwolf. "Inferno" has another one of the most intense breakdowns to end this haunting highlight and, of course, this album.

Vengeance is one of the heaviest, most vengeful albums I've heard so far this year. I don't know if it will be surpassed by Lorna Shore upcoming album, but we'll see. Greatly recommended to all fans of deathcore, specifically fans of the epic kind!

Favorites: "Faithless", "Silence", "Scarlet Rain", "Absentia", "Inferno"

If I can give I Hope We Make it Out of This Alive any bit of credit, it would be that the gothic texture of the album is given ample amounts of time to breathe. That is to say, while this album is primarily deathcore in nature, the album also has plenty of slower moments that allow the symphonic textures to actually have a dynamic impact in the compositions. So many symphonic deathcore artists in the modern day just don't understand that the strings and metal foundations do not work well together, since the guitar, vocals and drums are so overpowering. So the sections are all important in some way.

What does that mean though? It means disjointed songwriting, unbalanced mixing and a penchant for atomic drops. Since this is deathcore, I'm neither surprised or overly critical; this is just normality in the genre. That still does not make it very good! Individual songs are indifferent to connectivity and being memorable and instead focus on texture to lure the listener in. This makes its appearance through the atomic drops, unnatural transitions out from doom-y breakdowns to tech-death bridges, and melt your face off breakdowns. Some of these sound good individually, but as part of a full song, so much of this album just fells empty. It has the progressive problem of being too overly indulgent. I wish that more deathcore bands would make symphonic deathcore like this....y'know without the death metal part.

Best Songs: Summit of Dragons, Things Betwixt, For Whom the Banshee Cries

I've made this discovery and review shortly after doing the same with Cryptopsy's The Unspoken King. Humanity's Last Breath are professionals at brutal tech-deathcore and can execute it better than Cryptopsy could in their flopped-down 2008 album. Humanity's Last Breath's Ashen is one of the darkest heaviest albums of modern metal!

The amount of downtuned riffing and time-signature unorthodoxy can bring Meshuggah and Ion Dissonance to the minds of many listeners. This complex chaos also has the doomy atmosphere of downtempo deathcore and some melody dragged out into haunting levels. If this is what this whole "thall" thing is about, consider me hooked! Lots of violent experimentation make this a true apocalyptic gem.

From the intro, "Blood Spilled" would have you think the band has joined the epic deathcore league led by Lorna Shore and Shadow of Intent. But instead of symphonics, we have the out-of-this-world trench-deep-tuned guitar riffing of Buster Odeholm and Calle Thomér with its ambient crawl. The chorus of "Linger" stomps through, memorable with its blend of brutality and accessibility. Melody and dissonance stab through each other as if they're fencing without those protective suits alongside the rhythms and beats. Complexity makes its leap in "Lifeless, Deathless". While the vocals are always welcome, it can pulverize as an instrumental just as well. The drumming by Klas Blomgren never overtakes the guitarwork. "Withering" also has great flow in the drums and guitars, all leading to a breakdown so simple and ravaging at the same time.

"Instill" has some background choir in great harmony with the tremolos and blasts borrowed from black metal. So much beauty and brutality without having to rely so much on polyrhythms. Then there's more of the intense soundscape of "Labyrinthian" with its grim yet crushing attack. The Meshuggah influences are plain to hear within the destruction of djent and its Stewie Griffin-like brother thall. Chugging like a thall train is "Catastrophize", having some catastrophically memorable downtempo deathcore, from the beat to the breakdown. "Death Spiral" kicks through noise and melody, even inching towards Gojira-like territory of heavy prog-death that isn't highly melodic.

The band continues their breakneck cutthroat action in "Shell". The riffing explodes into hellfire, as different sounds cover sludgy mosh-worthy breakdowns. All in fascinating rhythms! Next track "Passage" has more devastating leads and riffs, leading into another doomy bridge. I have no problem with the synth interlude "Burden", the calm before the final storm... "Bearer" is truly one of the heaviest most apocalyptic tracks of djenty deathcore. A massive f***ing sh*tload of brutality that will take a long time to get over.

Ashen can certainly get Humanity's Last Breath recognized as a band that can make anything dark and brutal. From the cover art to the music including the riffing. It is a soundtrack to the destruction of the universe, all in djenty downtempo deathcore chaos and grace!

Favorites: "Linger", "Lifeless, Deathless", "Instill", "Catastrophize", "Shell", "Bearer"

Having mentioned Cryptopsy in a thread a day before this review, I decided to check out one of that band's albums. And in one of the oddest moves I've made in this site, the deathcore devil made me choose their own "St. Anger" album. If I was into brutal tech-death, I would've picked one of their first two albums (Blasphemy Made Flesh or None So Vile), but alas, I wimped out. But despite how sh*tty The Unspoken King is, my rating is only a half-star less than Morbid Angel's Illud Divinum Insanus...

Besides infecting their brutal tech-death with proto-symphonic deathcore (the latter I still enjoy), there are a couple things that have set fans off. First, the widely praised Lord Worm was replaced by Matt McGachy. I'm sorry but his vocals are f***ing horrid. As much as I like the high screaming that can also be heard in deathcore bands that I enjoy, his sounds strained are on the verge of collapsing. He also sings clean vocals which are fine but I can understand why longtime fans hate it. Though they're not as out of place as that other thing, the use of keyboards that I'm OK with anywhere but here. Winds of Plague had done it better with their debut album that year.

The short opening blitz "Worship Your Demons" has some nice riffing not too far off from Job for a Cowboy. However, their attempt at mixing brutality and dissonance ends up falling flat on its face. "The Headsmen" is pretty solid, one of only a couple songs I like here. "Silence the Tyrants" finally adds in some melody and keys which Winds of Plague and Fleshgod Apocalypse would build upon with their albums next year. However, those are better off in those bands, NOT HERE. "Bemoan the Martyr" has more brutal-sounding melody, though it's all ruined by the d*mn cleans and keys. "Leach" continues that sh*tshow despite starting off thrashy. The worst of it all has to be "The Plagued" which sounds like a badly-designed attempt at a tech-death Korn, probably worse.

Then we have a greater trio, starting with the not-so-far-out "Resurgence of an Empire". Next track "Anoint the Dead" is a far better blend of brutality and dissonance, tearing down the walls the way technical deathcore is meant to. "Contemplate Regicide" is less reliant on electronics. The less said about the final two tracks though, the better.

See, I would've loved The Unspoken King a whole lot more if it was made by a band who's professional at playing deathcore, rather than a longtime brutal tech-death band. Alongside that, there really could've been a better vocalist or the idea of using keyboards more subtly. You can't change anyone's minds about this being Cryptopsy's worst album. If the band was thinking "Everybody else is doing it, so why can't we?" (just like the title of The Cranberries' debut), this bullsh*t is why....

Favorites (only two I even slightly like): "The Headsmen", "Anoint the Dead"

Graphic Nature was formed in 2018 to add another aggressive modern dimension to the ever-expanding UK metal scene. They began releasing singles in 2019, and the singles they've made when compiled in two short EPs. It wasn't until 2022 when they started performing shows with other well-known bands (the wait partly due to the pandemic) and recording a full-length album, A Mind Waiting to Die.

The album's release date was pushed from late 2022 to early 2023 to avoid competition with Slipknot's album The End So Far. Still there were several singles from Graphic Nature's album released in advance. And once the full album dropped, it was time for listeners to enjoy the full experience...

The intro "404" welcomes you to this brave new world. "Sour" punches through with heavy drumming, riffing, and Harvey Freeman's frantic vocals, pounding you down like a thousand baseball bats. The F-bomb is dropped as the breakdown explodes from drum 'n' bass to brutal djentcore fury. Next up is one of the singles, "Into the Dark", which is a bit disjointed but has an ultraviolent breakdown. Strange didgeridoo aside, "Killing Floor" is a total ravager, with not much techno from the rest of the album.

Listeners won't object to "Sleepless" with its heavy music and lyrics of anguish, "I'm dying to leave this Hell". It's not meant for easy listening, instead for tearing things apart. Furthermore, "White Noise" has relentless guitars that fit well with the lyrical narrative, "Just give me some space to hide, somewhere else that isn’t my mind". Then we have a breakdown full of hardcore hellfire than can get the live crowd moshing. Another interlude "90" is short but might not age well for my metal mind. Second single "Bad Blood" fires away in hyper rage. The heavy guitars and slight turntables are not for the faint of heart. After that, things get a bit draggy in "Twisted Fear".

"Headstone" also seems to lose some steam. Next track "Deathwish" is another solid aggressive piece, though a bit of the high quality has fallen. Next up, "A Twin" is an emotional electronic interlude-ish track with spoken vocals and atmospheric keyboards. It reminds of how Linkin Park's first two albums each have a penultimate track like that. Closing track "The Downpour" strikes with brutality and emotion, "I lost it because I trusted you". The best saved for last that shall leave listeners wanting more!

A Mind Waiting to Die is a relentless start to Graphic Nature's nu metalcore adventure. Everything's so heartful and intense at the same time. The heavy aggression is only for those who are prepared and experienced, both of which I already am....

Favorites: "Sour", "Killing Floor", "Sleepless", "White Noise", "Bad Blood", "The Downpour"

Adding symphonic black metal elements to deathcore is something that has been done for over a decade, but this kind of sound has been popularized by Lorna Shore and several other bands have been following their lead. I'm sure Worm Shepherd have been following that band's footsteps since before the "To the Hellfire" boom, having formed on the day Lorna Shore's Immortal came out, and releasing their own album In The Wake Ov Sol later that year. And now comes their second album, Ritual Hymns!

Worm Shepherd has a little more maturity than other bands in the epic deathcore league. The writing is tighter and darker. The guitars and keyboard orchestrations are in an awesome balance, the latter they know how to use wisely in their brutal sound for a perfect experience of death and glory.

The opening title track is a solid grand example of that band. The atmospheric keyboards are quite effective while letting the heaviness shine. It's like a bridge between the Lorna Shore tracks "Immortal" and "Welcome Back, O' Sleeping Dreamer"! Then we have "Ov Sword and Nail", another crushing highlight. The breakdown and vocals are balanced out with occasional small experimentations like the bass intro. When each member has their own moment, it shows that the vocalist isn't always the leader, unlike other deathcore bands. "The Raven's Keep" would've been as much of a highlight as the first two tracks, but its early fadeout is kind of a small issue. Small enough to still maintain the album's perfect score. The song itself is one of the more blackened tracks here with its rapid pace.

More ideas roll in through "Chalice ov Rebirth" including another b*lls-out breakdown. As great as that is, I feel like there could've been slightly more momentum in the track. I feel like the inclusion of guest vocals by Lucca Schmerler in "Blood Kingdom" is a bit odd, though it doesn't affect much. Abuse allegations aside, his vocals rule in the band he was once in, Mental Cruelty. The symphonics shine the best in "Wilted Moon". That epic highlight is almost a redux to the Lorna Shore track "And I Return to Nothingness".

We have more monstrous vocals in "A Bird in the Dusk", from vocalist Devin Duarte and guest vocalist Scott Ian Lewis (Carnifex). Despite being hard to tell apart, it adds quite a difference to the usual delivery. "The River Ov Knives" has some cool occasional cleans. If anyone thinks clean singing only belongs in melodic metalcore/emo bands like Black Veil Brides, they're dead wrong. "Winter Sun" can almost be a deathcore tribute to the band Wintersun with its blackened symphonic power metal-ish guitarwork. It might just be the strongest epic deathcore album ending track!

Ritual Hymns is another true definition of symphonic blackened deathcore. You really gotta enjoy the tight serious writing. While Lorna Shore hasn't done anything new since their album Pain Remains released later this year, Worm Shepherd is still active, and I look forward to exploring more of this band's material and the epic deathcore realms!

Favorites: "Ritual Hymns", "Ov Sword and Nail", "Wilted Moon", "A Bird in the Dusk", "Winter Sun"

I gave the new Mental Cruelty album some listening and a review shortly after it first came out. I enjoyed the Lorna Shore-esque brand of epic deathcore, but I thought the symphonic black metal side was a little too much. Fast forward a couple years and my tolerance has grown immensely. I now find Zwielicht an awesome offering that's like Lorna Shore but more depressive, melodic, and blackened. The lyrics have a lot depth and death in them, and that's something modern extreme metal fans shall love!

Stepping in on vocals is Lukas Nicolai, replacing Lucca Schmerler after Lucca's firing due to sexual abuse allegations. As brutally good as Lucca is (despite the allegations), Lukas is a total powerhouse when it comes to growls and screams. He has even added an uncommon aspect in deathcore, clean singing.

"Midtvinter" is a dark ominous intro to get you ready for an epic journey. "Obsessis a Daemonio" is a total blaster which you might think it's Dimmu Borgir on steroids. At over the 3 and a half minute mark, Lukas attempts some clean power metal-like singing like some of the male guest vocalists of Avantasia. The earlier neoclassical soloing has its comeback in "Forgotten Kings" in clear prominence.

One of the most Lorna Shore-like songs here is "Pest" which is a brilliant highlight. Lukas is quite talented, though he can't surpass Will Ramos. No one can beat the epic deathcore vocal king! Then we have the slow-ish "Nordlys" which is kind of a brutal deathcore take on the more dramatic Scandinavian melodeath bands out there. "Mortal Shells" combines many elements of the band's previous albums to make one of the most diverse highlights in the album. Sinister guitar and vocals drifting through along with the crushing drumming for a powerful experience.

The title interlude is a German-sung Nordic folk piece than can easily fit well in an Elder Scrolls game. "Symphony of a Dying Star" has riffing and soloing sounding much closer to the epic melodeath of Insomnium and Wintersun. Greatly exemplifying the black/death metal drumming and guitarwork is "The Arrogance of Agony". The epic finale "A Tale of Salt and Light" has the symphonic death metal/core of Ex Deo and early Betraying the Martyrs to make one of the most glorious deathcore tracks ever!

How would I consider Zwielicht? F***ing awesome, that's what! This is symphonic melodic blackened deathcore with sharp riffing and mystical atmosphere freezing away the earlier brutal hellfire. Not to mention those fast blasting drums and Lukas' wide-ranged vocals. Their best work besides Purgatorium, maybe slightly more!

Favorites: "Obsessis a Daemonio", "Pest", "Mortal Shells", "Symphony of a Dying Star", "A Tale of Salt and Light"

Ever heard the idiom "When Hell freezes over"? It is based on the eternal fires of Hell, and normally it's used to describe something that can never happen. The idiom fits well here in so many levels, yet the event really does happen. People who thought the deathcore hellfire wouldn't mix with the freezing cold of symphonic black metal were proven wrong by a new legion of bands. While Lorna Shore would take the throne of popularity, Mental Cruelty would bring the blend further.

Formed in Germany in the mid-2010s, Mental Cruelty really pushed extreme to the extreme with their string of releases from 2016 to 2019. Their sound had the technicality of Rings of Saturn and the brutality of Signs of the Swarm. From A Hill to Die Upon onwards, this style filled with breakdowns and blasts have taken a more epic blackened turn.

The chilling intro "Avgang" already hints at the new direction with an acoustic folk melody and background electric strums. Then the first actual song "Ultima Hypocrita" fires away with a fantastic metal blend of epic beauty and extreme brutality. This is the true start to their new symphonic blackened deathcore era, and I especially love the blazing soloing. "Abadon" still has some heavy slam while not losing any of the orchestral epicness. This epic brutal mix just works so well!

The meat ends up barbequed in "King Ov Fire". And again in "Eternal Eclipse", going savage with their symphonic deathcore. "Death Worship" has nothing worth complaining about at all, having destructive growls drilling into your ears like a surgeon.

"Fossenbrate" is a mellow interlude with sounds of nature. Then the forest is burnt down into the RuneScape wilderness in the title track, filled with blasting fury. Next track "Extermination Campaign" continues the destruction of everything. The melodic/symphonic grandeur as bleakness to the apocalypse. The 7 and a half minute final epic "The Left Hand Path" has the last of this epic blackened deathcore fire, packing it all up with the gigantically packed track.

Extreme metal can sometimes have some grandeur, which is what makes Mental Cruelty so unique and special. Even though abuse allegations towards Lucca Schmerler would cause him to be out of the band the following year, the music of the band he was in shouldn't be forgotten. Savor it all!

Favorites: "Ultima Hypocrita", "Abadon", "Eternal Eclipse", "Extermination Campaign", "The Left Hand Path"