Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

1. Gateway playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 7)

2. Infinite playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 9)

3. Revolution playlist - 4/5 (number of songs commented: ALL 27)

4. Sphere playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: ALL 23)

For the clans I've made the monthly playlists for, I've listened to the entire playlists! I'm grateful to Saxy and Daniel for their playlist works. I really dig the tracks I've reviewed in the Gateway and Infinite playlists made by Saxy, and I'm glad the playlists I've made have paid off. I recommend them to any fan of the clans' respective genres and anyone who isn't into those genres but wants to get into a great start in enjoying them. Thanks, Daniel, for accepting these playlists, and good work all!

THE GATEWAY: Limp Bizkit - Significant Other (1999) 3.5/5

THE HORDE: Damaged - Do Not Spit (1993) 2.5/5

THE REVOLUTION: Eighteen Visions - 1996 (2021) 4.5/5

THE SPHERE: Samael - Rebellion (1995) 4/5

Although the Horde feature release is not really up my alley, the other feature releases I've checked out are pretty great and I would recommend them to fans of their respective genres. Keep up the good work on the feature releases, all! I look forward to more...

Cyber melodeath in vicious perfection:

Hardcore-ish melodeath/cyber metal, opening up more outer dimensions in the music-verse:

A pinnacle of modern industrial/cyber metal, despite the clean vocals sounding a bit inferior to the guttural ones:

Eighteen Visions' 1996 is one of the best cover albums I've heard in metalcore. Here's a highlight from the metalcore/hardcore covers side:

And here's a highlight from the hard rock/alt-metal covers side:

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

From June to July 2021, Eighteen Visions released 3 singles. The first one was an Alice in Chains cover, the second one was a Vision of Disorder, and the third was their own song. Then on the 4th week, all 7 other tracks came out together with those singles in a surprise-release looking back at different bands from the 90s, the cover album 1996! Personally, I think when they switch into Alice in Chains-style hard rock/alt-metal, it doesn't always work as much as their metalcore glory. Still they can blend beauty and chaos together well. With crushing drums, pummeling bass, searing guitars, and in-your-face vocals ranging from clean singing to bloodcurdling screams, there's barely any other cover album to hit you as hard as this. The album has two sides; the first one has their original title track for the album and 4 covers of songs by metalcore/hardcore bands, and the second has covers of songs from hard rock/alt-metal bands. Pretty much every song from both sides manages to outshine the original. With that, I can forgive 18V for their earlier attempts at grunge-metal. The only problematic cover is the one for that Damnation A.D. track, in which the original was dragged down by the painful vocals and lyrics. I dig 18V's cover a lot more than the sh*tty original, but the fact it's still that song prevents this from becoming a highlight. The album would've reached a perfect 5 stars if they had replaced that cover with a different one from a metalcore/hardcore band. Still I really dig the other 9 songs, and if there's anything to bring the band back to their early 2000s glory, this is that!

4.5/5

Recommended tracks: "1996", "D.T.O.", "Blanket", "Them Bones", "Terrible Lie"

For fans of: Atreyu, Knocked Loose, Vision of Disorder

The Marilyn Manson-infused music and lyrics make me cringe at this total fail:

The heavy verses and anthemic choruses continue to stir up highlights like this one in Eighteen Visions' raging comeback album:

I still look at them, Ben. It's a good way for me to keep track of bands added to the site, including the ones I've requested.

Andi, the "Dethroned Emperor" cover version wasn't a part of the album as far as I recall. I'd suggest that it's a bonus track that's been added in more modern times. I completely agree that there's no deathcore on offer here though.

You're right about that, Daniel. The "Dethroned Emperor" cover was added to the 2001 reissue that includes the Passive Backseat Demon Engines EP as bonus tracks. Though some earlier versions have "Dethroned Emperor" as an untitled hidden track, after "My Grain" and "Nails" which are indexed as one track.

Also thanks for adding the new In Hearts Wake album, but I've noticed you've added Green Is the New Black (Original Soundtrack) a second time in the process. If that's an error, could you please remove the duplicate? Thanks again, Ben.

Ben, please add the new Eighteen Visions re-recording albums Vanity (2022) and Obsession (2024).

I just don't get why this band had to put a f***ing cheesy love ballad in a metalcore album:

The best track of Vanity for me where the singing, soloing, riffing, and lyrics all reach their very peak:

Eighteen Visions' "Best of" offering made many songs from earlier releases better than the originals, and this is my favorite one of those re-recordings:

Until the Ink Runs Out shows Eighteen Visions at their absolute greatest and heaviest, with highlights such as this masterpiece of a metalcore song:

The one true highlight of Eighteen Visions' debut is quite awesome and underrated despite its two major problems; 1. It's untitled. 2. It's split into 8 tracks.

This would've been a highlight if not for the painful vocals and lyrics that drag it down into the sh*t abyss:

One of only a couple surviving highlights of this Damnation A.D. album, this is one of the darkest and heaviest songs I've heard in metalcore:

This Alice Cooper cover would've been great, but Vorph's attempt at singing it ruins it all:

Which version of "Into the Pentagram" do you prefer, the original or the remake? You know what I prefer based on which one I'm sharing:

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

Rebellion marks the end of the band's black metal era and the start of their ongoing industrial metal era. Here we have two new tracks, two re-recorded tracks (3 in the cassette edition), and two instrumentals, one of the instrumentals having its own German vocal edition as a hidden track. So how has the sound turned out? Pretty great! Lots of catchy and heavy riffs, and vicious vocals by Vorph. And the style really does live up to the fact that it's the bridge between Ceremony of Opposites and Passage. A few of these anthems I enjoyed a few years ago, and I still enjoy them today! Those being the awesome title track and re-recordings that I would recommend to any fan of Samael and blackened industrial metal. The average instrumentals are better experienced by fans of electro-industrial. And that Alice Cooper cover? NAH....

4/5

I would probably talk about the pointless 30-second sh*t that is "Ultra-Mild", but ultimately I chose a full song that is this cover of Celtic Frost's "Dethrone Emperor", in which despite staying true to its original sound, they really f***ed it up and it's perhaps the worst cover in that otherwise enjoyable category:

One of the only tracks I really like from this Damaged release, a slow song and a fast one for a great "yin-yang" deal:

I've given this album some listening and a review to explore more of this band after a couple of their later releases that I checked out a couple years ago, and...

Is their debut Do Not Spit a good album for me? I'm sorry but it ain't. The problems I had with their next couple releases are around in this one and at their worst, and it once again shows that deathgrind is out of my league. The instrumentation is often quite a buzzkill. I'm not really a fan of the vocals either that sound so constipated. The songs I like the best are the more hardcore-sounding ones with hints at a bit of their later proto-deathcore (deathgrind is still the main genre here, not deathcore, unlike what the 60% of deathcore voters in this release's RYM genre-voting page think). But for the rest of the album, the instrumentation and vocals are all just awkward and out of place. Not outright terrible but not really for me. They would gradually become better in the next couple releases, slowly building their way up to the earliest stage of deathcore....

2.5/5

A playlist I've made based on the above list: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/134fsyMvVO10wgiXgW0896

Here are my top 20 favorite tracks from epic deathcore band Lorna Shore:

1. ...And I Return to Nothingness - ...And I Return to Nothingness (2021)

2. Pain Remains III: In a Sea of Fire - Pain Remains (2022)

3. Immortal - Immortal (2020)

4. Pain Remains II: After All I've Done, I'll Disappear - Pain Remains (2022)

5. Pain Remains I: Dancing Like Flames - Pain Remains (2022)

6. Death Portrait - Immortal (2020)

7. White Noise - Psalms (2015)

8. Hollow Sentence - Immortal (2020)

9. Of the Abyss - ...And I Return to Nothingness (2021)

10. Fvneral Moon - Flesh Coffin (2017)

11. Cursed to Die - Pain Remains (2022)

12. To the Hellfire - ...And I Return to Nothingness (2021)

13. Godmaker - Maleficium (2013)

14. Darkest Spawn - Immortal (2020)

15. Welcome Back, O' Sleeping Dreamer - Pain Remains (2022)

16. Flesh Coffin - Flesh Coffin (2017)

17. Life of Fear - Bone Kingdom (2012)

18. Offering of Fire - Flesh Coffin (2017)

19. Grimoire - Psalms (2015)

20. Soulless Existence - Pain Remains (2022)

RIP ex-Textures vocalist Pieter Verpaalen. This epic shows the best of his vocal talent in his sole album with the band, Polars:

Ben, please add The Interbeing album Icon of the Hopeless.

The song Gojira performed in the 2024 Paris Olympics is perhaps the most brutal the band has performed in nearly two decades, probably heavier than "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe"! You don't have to watch the ceremony itself to witness all this kick-A beast has to offer:

A couple tracks are definitely deathly, but looking back at the other tracks, they don't quite reach that level. Sure they're dark and heavy but they've tamed down to more of a bleak atmospheric industrial metal direction. So this entry is getting a YES vote from me.

I remember listening to this In Mourning album long ago, and from what I can recall, the vocals aren't the only thing deathly there. With that and the melodeath riffing going on often, it reminded me a lot of Dark Tranquillity's Haven gone Opeth. So for this entry, I'll have to give it a NO vote, Daniel.

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

The Amenta - "Nihil" (5:20) from Occasus (2004)

Dodheimsgard - "Horrorizon" (4:01) from Supervillain Outcast (2007)

Fear Factory - "Resurrection" (6:35) from Obsolete (1998)

Northlane - "Paradigm" (3:23) from Alien (2019)

Pain - "Follow Me" (4:17) from Cynic Paradise (2008)

Strapping Young Lad - "All Hail the New Flesh" (5:24) from City (1997)

Total length: 29:00

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

As I Lay Dying - "Burden" (4:06) from Burden (2024)

Becoming the Archetype - "The Sun Eater" (3:16) from I Am (2012)

Demon Hunter - "On My Side" (4:04) from War (2019)

For the Fallen Dreams - "Stone" (4:17) from Six (2018)

Sikth - "How May I Help You" (3:39) from The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait for Something Wild (2003)

Trivium - "Kirisute Gomen" (6:27) from Shogun (2008)

Wage War - "Basic Hate" (3:40) from Blueprints (2015)

Total length: 29:29

Here are my submissions for the September Infinite playlist:

Gojira - "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe" (3:57) from From Mars to Sirius (2005)

MaYaN - "The Illusory Self" (9:13) from Dhyana (2018)

Meshuggah - "Future Breed Machine" (5:48) from Destroy Erase Improve (1995)

The Ocean - "Bathyalpelagic II: The Wish in Dreams" (3:18) from Pelagial (2013)

7 Horns 7 Eyes - "Regeneration" (6:42) from Throes of Absolution (2012)

Total length: 28:58

Here are my submissions for the September Gateway playlist:

Bad Omens - "Like a Villain" (3:30) from The Death of Peace of Mind (2022)

Bring Me the Horizon - "Parasite Eve" (4:51) from Post Human: Survival Horror (2020)

Jeris Johnson - "John" (3:56) from John (2024)

Linkin Park - "Nobody's Listening" (2:58) from Meteora (2003)

Living Colour - "Ausländer" (2:38) from Stain (1993)

Memphis May Fire - "Necessary Evil" (2:56) from Necessary Evil (2024)

Of Mice & Men - "Would You Still Be There" (3:12) from Restoring Force (2014)

Sick Puppies - "There Goes the Neighborhood" (2:50) from There Goes the Neighborhood (2024)

Total length: 26:51

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

Sybreed - "Bioactive" from Slave Design (2004)

4.5/5. Already blasting forward is the first and best song of its original album. Right there, you get to hear the members drive through sonic cyber/industrial metal without relying too much on electronics. Here we have the powerful drumming of Alex Anxionaz, showing a bit of Fear Factory influence, the gloomy vocals of Benjamin Nominet ranging from clean to harsh, the heavy guitar grooves of Drop, and the burning bass of Burn.

Pain - "Shut Your Mouth" from Nothing Remains the Same (2002)

5/5. A high-quality industrial dance-metal tune! I can play this song as many times I can and have spawn good memories. Peter Tägtgren is a true modern metal legend. And there are plenty more awesome anthems from this project where that came from.

Rammstein - "Sonne" from Mutter (2001)

4.5/5. The Mutter album's first single was written for boxer Vitali Klitschko, but he never used it. After doing a boxing match referee-like count to 9 then "out". The catchiest riffing can be found here, followed by a melodic chorus, "Here comes the sun." Probably the best song of the album and by the band!

Lindemann - "Golden Shower" from Skills in Pills (2015)

4/5. The lyrics are so ridiculous and potentially offensive, and yet I'm so intrigued, "Golden shower, let it fly, from your pretty c*nt!" Absolutely Rammstein!

Wolok - "Blotches" from The Bilious Hues of Gloom (2022)

3.5/5. Pretty good, but a little too much on the avant-garde black metal side.

Uniform, The Body - "Come And See" from Mental Wounds Not Healing (2018)

4/5. This one shows the vocal duo uniting greatly with the drumming of Lee Buford and the guitarwork of Ben Greenberg.

KMFDM - "Terror" from Nihil (1995)

3.5/5. This political-sound track thunders through with industrial metal guitar.

Static-X - "Take Control" from Project Regeneration, Vol. 2 (2024)

4/5. I can hear a lot of the Linkin Park nu metal era in this song. RIP Chester and Wayne

Deathstars - "Syndrome" from Synthetic Generation (2002)

4.5/5. Another blast from the cyber/industrial metal past! This can go well with the soundtrack for one of the Alien movies.

Celldweller - "Senorita Bonita" from Soundtrack for the Voices in My Head: Volume 02 (2012)

5/5. Man, this Latin-infused metalstep banger should've been twice as long! Celldweller and Blue Stahli are known as masters of electro-industrial rock/metal. This is truly a wonderful highlight of this playlist. It's practically a remix of Blue Stahli's "Shotgun Senorita" while being mostly different. There should be a mashup between those two.

Red Harvest - "Icons of Fear... The Curse of the Universe" from A Greater Darkness (2007) 

5/5. Another perfect standout, this one from the darker, more extreme side of industrial metal.

Killing Joke – "Millenium" from Pandemonium (1994)

3.5/5. This catchy track allowed Killing Joke a rare chance to hit the airwaves in the U.S.

Diabolicum - "The Wind Shall Slay" from The Grandeur of Hell (1999)

4/5. Dark music, dark lyrics... That's industrial black metal for ya!

Health, Lamb of God - "Cold Blood" from DISCO4::PARTII (2022)

4.5/5. The darkness comes further, in a blend of Health's electro-industrial and Lamb of God's groove/thrash metal.

Blue Stahli - "Catastrophe" from Obsidian (2021)

5/5. Honestly, I haven't heard as much Blue Stahli as Celldweller, and that shall change soon, considering how much further I'm allowing myself to go down the electro-industrial rock/metal rabbit hole. Menacing sludgy instrumentation are perfectly put together with soft fragile singing. This work of art and the album artwork are so METAL. Heaviness and melody are in perfect blend, just like many of my favorite metal songs out there. I need to rest of this album Obsidian and this project's discography. Nothing bad about some magical despair, huh? Especially from the skillful guitar and cool slow drums. Here's to a great industrial metal future!

Lord of the Lost - "The Look (feat. Blümchen)" from Blood & Glitter (2023)

4.5/5. This Roxette cover, featuring Jasmin Wagner, also known as German popstar Blümchen is arguably its original album's true standout! RIP Marie Fredriksson

Godflesh - "YOUR NATURE YOUR NURTURE" from NEW FLESH IN DUB VOL. 1 (2021)

5/5. Sometimes the more underground songs from Godflesh are the darkest and most haunting.

Corrections House - "White Man's Gonna Lose" from Know How to Carry a Whip (2015)

4.5/5. The dark effects bleed into this track with some perfect apocalyptic twists from the distorted sax. A true electro-industrial metal standout!

Greymachine - "Sweatshop" from Disconnected (2009)

5/5. Perhaps the album's best track for me. It's like Godflesh but slower and more mesmerizing! The rhythms and feedback never cease to amaze me.

Author & Punisher - "Beastland" from Beastland (2018)

4.5/5. It's almost surpassed by another 6-minute epic which ends its original album in beastly destruction.

The Amenta - "Rape" from n0n (2008)

5/5. Then we have the most twists in this oddly titled epic, which starts chaotic in the first 3 minutes, then quiets down before some doomy melancholy in the heavy riffs and melody. D*mn, what a soothing yet brutal way out!

Fear Factory - "Expiration Date" from Genexus (2015)

5/5. Perhaps the biggest stunner is this 9-minute epic, one of the most haunting and beautiful tracks by the band! Could this be "Resurrection 2.0"?!?

Neurotech - "The Messianic Symphony" from Symphonies II (2022)

4.5/5. Finally, the riffing tones and melodies in what can be considered "The Halcyon Symphony 2.0" is quite nice. Guitars are more prominent and play out better together with the electronic keyboards. Fantastic!

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? Despite some drops in quality in the first half. Anyway, I recommend this to any industrial metal fan and anyone who isn't into industrial metal but is up to getting into a great start for the genre. Thanks Daniel for accepting this and your help with your submission, and I hope the rest of you enjoy it like I've had!

OK, thanks Daniel.

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

Memphis May Fire - "Without Walls" from Challenger (2012)

4.5/5. Now this is how to start a playlist, with a heavy intro by one of the idols of metalcore before a greater idol band of mine...

Trivium - "In Waves" from In Waves (2011)

5/5 (maybe even 6/5). I know this is the 3rd time this glorious song is in a Revolution playlist, but let's face it, this will remain my ultimate favorite metalcore song today! It starts off with an Ascendancy-like metalcore breakdown with Matt Heafy repeatedly screaming the name of the song, then it leads to a melodic Crusade-like chorus. There's also a complicated solo in the middle, but other than that, the riffs are simple yet catchy. That's what I like!

Of Mice & Men - "Second & Sebring" from Of Mice & Men (2010)

4.5/5. Of Mice & Men's self-titled 2010 debut is nothing more than a post-hardcore album with barely any of the metalcore/alt-metal in subsequent albums. In saying that, there are a couple tracks in the album that I enjoy and they qualify as metalcore. This one, written in memory of unclean vocalist Austin Carlile's mother who passed from a aneurysm induced by Marfan Syndrome, takes on the melodic metalcore of his previous band Attack Attack!, specifically that band's debut Someday Came Suddenly, albeit without the autotune and trance-y dance-y synths.

The Ghost Inside - "Faith of Forgiveness" from Fury and the Fallen Ones (2008)

4/5. A memorable highlight, still performed live to this day, including their comeback show over a decade later.

Unearth - "Invictus" from The Wretched; the Ruinous (2023)

4.5/5. Then we have the thrashy blaster. The strong breakdown isn't highly hardcore, but it has the brutal-melodic blend of Shogun-era Trivium.

Betraying the Martyrs - "The Covenant" from The Hurt the Divine the Light (2009)

5/5. When I was in my teens, power/symphonic metal were the genres I enjoyed. Betraying the Martyrs is one of the first bands I've discovered since my move to modern metal genres to have symphonic elements. The lyrics of this concept EP are based on Genesis from the Bible. The death growls are so killer here.

Shadow of Intent - "The Migrant" from The Migrant (2023)

4.5/5. F*** YES, Shadow of Intent are really channeling their inner Lorna Shore in this new single.

Shai Hulud - "Two and Twenty Misfortunes" from That Within Blood Ill-Tempered (2003)

4/5. This song is obviously not the symphonic deathcore of the previous two tracks, but it certainly has the layers of a hardcore/metalcore symphony.

Veil of Maya - "Punisher" from Eclipse (2012)

4.5/5. "All they have is just, baowdit baodidawaow ranudiuh ranuhdiduh." A young man mocks Periphery in a hate video towards that band, and then Veil of Maya mocks that guy in return with one of the most kick-A riffs in djent, reminding me a lot of After the Burial.

Varials - "The Cycle of Violence: Chapter 1" from Scars for You to Remember (2022)

5/5. Mitchell Rogers is a total beast of a vocalist! At least compared to Travis Tabron from that other Varials song a couple playlists back.

Earth Crisis – "Stand By" (title swapped with "Ecocide" on Spotify) from All Out War E.P. (1992)

3/5. This track is not really as spectacular as the first two of this Earth Crisis EP, but it's part of a decent start of the band's journey vastly improved by their mid-90s material.

From Autumn to Ashes - "Every Reason To" from The Fiction We Live (2003)

3.5/5. Most people have discovered this band in the mid-2000s, but for me, it was only over a couple years ago. Are they good at what they do? You bet it shows! Those were the good times that I'm a couple decades late for.

Counterparts - "Compass" from The Difference Between Hell And Home (2013)

4/5. This one stands out well in the music and lyrics. "I am a compass, constantly spinning, constantly searching for the end." The drumming and riffing sound progressive, and the midsection breakdown touches down hard. The outro after a small break from heaviness has some absolutely chilling lyrics, ending with Murphy yelling the album title, "You're the difference between Hell and Home!"

God Forbid - "The Lonely Dead" from IV: Constitution of Treason (2005)

4.5/5. This one begins with headbanging riffs for a minute followed by a catchy lead. The lyrics serve good metaphors for after the virus, with people mourning all of the dead victims. Byron Davis continues his screaming while the Coyle brothers sing cleanly in the chorus while doing some great guitar work. Pretty cool post-solo riff! And that catchy lead riff returns again at the 4 and a half minute mark. Satisfying! The pretty piano outro was played by the Coyle brothers' dad Kevin Coyle. Those brothers really got their music talents from their Dad, did they?

Killswitch Engage - "My Last Serenade" from Alive or Just Breathing (2002)

5/5. I can't believe it took me so long to become interested in this band until finally last year. I think during the pandemic and its tail-end, I became more in the mood to find some bands to cure my part of that global depression. Thanks to that great boost, I'm able to appreciate masterpiece highlights like this one much more!

All That Remains - "Let You Go" from Let You Go (2024)

4.5/5. Another powerful comeback single from All That Remains! A little more over the place than "Divine", but still superb.

Frontierer - "Gower St." from Unloved (2018)

4/5. You don't have to go all-out death metal/core for brutality. Mathcore is its chaotic future! Though the drums are a bit compressed.

The Number Twelve Looks Like You - "If They Holler, Don't Let Go" from Worse Than Alone (2009)

4.5/5. #12 has made some of the most talented mathcore around, and this is one of my favorite tracks from their 2009 album. Glad they're active again after their temporary split between this album's release and their reformation 8 years ago. This song shall grab your attention from start to finish. Guitarist Jamie McIlroy left the band between the Here at the End of All Things concert and this album's recording, so the band became a 5-piece. The ridiculous diversity of their earlier material is front and center, almost competing with Between the Buried and Me. The only difference is, BTBAM dropped the metalcore part of their sound entirely after that, while #12 kept theirs while having some of that other band's progressiveness. Don't let go of this band!

Iwrestledabearonce - "Eli Cash vs. the Godless Savages" from It's All Happening (2009)

4/5. Iwrestledabearonce is another mathcore band gone too soon, this time with no chance of reforming. Later members vocalist Courtney LaPlante and guitarist Mike Stringer went on to form Spiritbox. Still there's a lot to love about the chaotic metalcore subgenre that is mathcore.

Osiah - "Seeds of Despair" from Chronos (2023)

3.5/5. If you thought Gojira could make "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe", this deathcore band can slam you to the ground like a gravitational sledgehammer. This track is one of the heaviest, most monstrous tracks I've heard in deathcore. In saying that, it can't beat the epic greatness of the earlier symphonic deathcore section. Still you don't wanna miss this d*mn heavy ending breakdown at the 4-minute mark that can shatter the world in half.

Signs of the Swarm - "Tower of Torsos" from Amongst the Low & Empty (2023)

3/5. Killer drumming in this decent deathcore track that I don't love too much but still can give it a thumbs-up.

Phinehas - "Communion for Ravens" from Dark Flag (2017)

3.5/5. We're back into the melodic side with a short soft intro leading into more headbanging heaviness. The lyrics are a bit confusing which brings the score down a bit.

Ankor - "Oblivion" from Oblivion (2023)

4/5. I'm so impressed by the vocal stylings of Jessie Williams, ranging between poppy singing, Beyond the Black-ish mezzo-soprano, and harsh growls. Even when it all sounds so serene, the guitars and drums can still be heavy. I need to thank my brother for discovering this band first.

Novelists - "Souvenirs" from Souvenirs (2015)

4.5/5. No journey is ever complete without... souvenirs! Novelists has a lot of them in metalcore, whether they're clean melody or djenty technicality. The latter is presented well in f***ing great riffing at the two-minute point. It's stories like this that can help inspire your own stories and universe, specifically your characters' deep heavy problems such as abuse or death. So insanely phenomenal! The vocals are so intense and have brilliant synergy with the lyrics. If I ever start my own band, I'll make sure to nail that heavy/melodic blend as much as I can. There's just a lot to enjoy and headbang to. And they say only Too Close to Touch has that kind of emotion...

Zao - "The Latter Rain" from Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest (1998)

5/5. This one's a greater step, another 6-and-a-half-minute epic! Though it's not the end yet...

The Devil Wears Prada - "Lord Xenu" from With Roots Above and Branches Below (2009)

5/5. This one would've closed the playlist in epic heaviness, but there's still one more epic left....

Norma Jean - "Sun Dies, Blood Moon" from Wrongdoers (2013)

4.5/5. That over 15-minute epic from Norma Jean's debut with The Chariot vocalist Josh Scogin may be their most ambitious achievement, but this one comes close. Beautiful music and poetic lyrics shape this track up to an almost perfect masterpiece. The most climatic part actually comes 6 minutes in that then pummels into a brutal collapse. And just when you think it's over, we have the final 6 minutes of sludgy doom. "Make my way through my designer home....."

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? Despite a couple drops in quality throughout. Anyway, I recommend this to any metalcore fan and anyone who isn't into metalcore but is up to getting into a great start for the genre. Thanks Daniel for accepting this and your help with your submission, and I hope the rest of you enjoy it like I've had!

Here are my thoughts on some tracks:

Anciients – In The Absence of Wisdom (2024) 

4/5. Another Infinite playlist ride begins, and this is when you're starting up the engine. It has some Opeth-like ambience that then climbs up into a banger. Actually it's more Opeth in Chains, considering the more grunge-infused direction.

Angra – Gods of the World (2023)

4.5/5. Angra have made a wonderful throwback to their more classic roots in the music and lyrics while keeping up their later progressiveness. So cool! The amazing vocals of Fabio Lione take on the highs of Dio. The soloing definitely has Rebirth all over it.

Gojira – Esoteric Surgery (2008) 

4/5. The drumming by Mario Duplantier is so fast and diverse, he's practically superhuman! This song certainly needs more attention.

Haken – Cockroach King (2013)

4.5/5. The Muppet-themed music video for this Haken song is good way to introduce your children to a more modern/metalized Gentle Giant/Pink Floyd. You can hear some dirty metal soloing and silly fun jazz in the bridge. And this is before the band's more pop-ish side took over in later albums...

In Mourning – Hierophant (2019)

4/5. It's astonishing how much this band can sound like Threshold while maintaining their deathly sound.

The Ocean – Hadopelagic II: Let Them Believe (2013) 

4.5/5. The Ocean have made beautiful epics like the 3 multi-track suites covering most of this album. At the 4-minute mark, there's a TOOL-like bass riff in a more mystical soundscape. And 3 minutes later, the soundscape turns destructive, leaving behind an underwater wreckage. This is practically Cult of Luna and Katatonia mixed together, and I mean that as a compliment.

OK Goodnight – The Falcon (2023) 

4/5. This one's more chill while having fresh creativity. Nice lyrics too, "Today we own the sky". The instrumentation, especially the guitars, can remind some of Shadow Gallery. This beautiful song can be the soundtrack to a Hearthstone forest adventure. The progressiveness reaches his high power close to 4 minutes in.

Opeth – Ghost of Perdition (2005)

4.5/5. We have experienced Gojira and The Ocean in this playlist, but not yet Opeth?! Well, thank greatness for my submission! This deathly prog-metal epic with acoustic guitars is still a complete one for me.

PainKiller – Morning of Baladchaturdasi (1994)

5/5. My favorite track of the final PainKiller album, and the only track from the band I would consider perfect, for when you wanna chill out in a world of noise (not something I thought anyone would say in a way that makes sense). It's a shame that track didn't get the same ambient treatment as the other two.

Here are my thoughts on some tracks:

D’espairsRay – “Forbidden” (2006)

4.5/5. This isn't the D'espairsRay song I requested, but it's still quite amazing. I can't believe I haven't discovered anything from this band until last year, though I knew I was destined to find their material at some point in my life. This shall fit well for exploring the lava-covered monster-ridden Nether in Minecraft. Prepare for some J-metal action!

Dog Fashion Disco – Pale Horse (2014)

4/5. Another great song to love, going back to forth from brutal to pop-ish at any time.

Evanescence – Whisper (2003)

3.5/5. This one adds creepy symphonics to the nu metal/post-grunge sound that made my brother like that song. The lyrics have some religious vibes warning you to resist evil and save yourself from danger.

Katatonia – The Parting (2012)

4/5. It's been far too long since I've parted ways from the music of this band, but I'm grateful songs like this can be dark while having melody instead of death.

MAZIAC – Splendour (2024)

4.5/5. More progressive splendor. Enough said!

Mushroomhead – Fall In Line (2024)

5/5. Mushroomhead is back with a brand new album Call the Devil, coming out next week as of this comment. The album and this kick-A single marks the debut of Scott "xtriker" Beck, replacing longtime vocalist Jason "J Mann" Popson. Lots of fresh yet usual music and lyrics here, "You’re killing me with all your sorrow". This is true heavy sh*t while often melodic! Sadly, all we have left from the original lineup is percussionist Steve "Skinny" Felton. Nonetheless, the band are staying true to their original name.

Sleep Token – Take Me Back To Eden (2023)

5/5. This 8-minute epic really nails the structure. In a garden of birds, Vessel sings in tranquility before lyrics of mental state are semi-rapped. The ending climax has Vessel screaming in pretty much the heaviest breakdown of its original album.

August 2024

1. Sybreed - "Bioactive" from Slave Design (2004)

2. Pain - "Shut Your Mouth" from Nothing Remains the Same (2002) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

3. Rammstein - "Sonne" from Mutter (2001)

4. Lindemann - "Golden Shower" from Skills in Pills (2015)

5. Wolok - "Blotches" from The Bilious Hues of Gloom (2022)

6. Uniform, The Body - "Come And See" from Mental Wounds Not Healing (2018)

7. KMFDM - "Terror" from Nihil (1995)

8. Static-X - "Take Control" from Project Regeneration, Vol. 2 (2024)

9. Deathstars - "Syndrome" from Synthetic Generation (2002) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

10. Celldweller - "Senorita Bonita" from Soundtrack for the Voices in My Head: Volume 02 (2012) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

11. Red Harvest - "Icons of Fear... The Curse of the Universe" from A Greater Darkness (2007) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

12. Killing Joke – "Millenium" from Pandemonium (1994) [submitted by Daniel]

13. Diabolicum - "The Wind Shall Slay" from The Grandeur of Hell (1999) [submitted by Karl]

14. Health, Lamb of God - "Cold Blood" from DISCO4::PARTII (2022) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

15. Blue Stahli - "Catastrophe" from Obsidian (2021)

16. Lord of the Lost - "The Look (feat. Blümchen)" from Blood & Glitter (2023)

17. Godflesh - "YOUR NATURE YOUR NURTURE" from NEW FLESH IN DUB VOL. 1 (2021)

18. Corrections House - "White Man's Gonna Lose" from Know How to Carry a Whip (2015)

19. Greymachine - "Sweatshop" from Disconnected (2009)

20. Author & Punisher - "Beastland" from Beastland (2018)

21. The Amenta - "Rape" from n0n (2008)

22. Fear Factory - "Expiration Date" from Genexus (2015) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

23. Neurotech - "The Messianic Symphony" from Symphonies II (2022)

August 2024

1. Memphis May Fire - "Without Walls" from Challenger (2012)

2. Trivium - "In Waves" from In Waves (2011)

3. Of Mice & Men - "Second & Sebring" from Of Mice & Men (2010)

4. The Ghost Inside - "Faith of Forgiveness" from Fury and the Fallen Ones (2008)

5. Unearth - "Invictus" from The Wretched; the Ruinous (2023) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

6. Betraying the Martyrs - "The Covenant" from The Hurt the Divine the Light (2009) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

7. Shadow of Intent - "The Migrant" from The Migrant (2023)

8. Shai Hulud - "Two and Twenty Misfortunes" from That Within Blood Ill-Tempered (2003) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

9. Veil of Maya - "Punisher" from Eclipse (2012)

10. Varials - "The Cycle of Violence: Chapter 1" from Scars for You to Remember (2022)

11. Earth Crisis – "Stand By" (title swapped with "Ecocide" on Spotify) from All Out War E.P. (1992) [submitted by Daniel]

12. From Autumn to Ashes - "Every Reason To" from The Fiction We Live (2003) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

13. Counterparts - "Compass" from The Difference Between Hell And Home (2013)

14. God Forbid - "The Lonely Dead" from IV: Constitution of Treason (2005) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

15. Killswitch Engage - "My Last Serenade" from Alive or Just Breathing (2002)

16. All That Remains - "Let You Go" from Let You Go (2024)

17. Frontierer - "Gower St." from Unloved (2018)

18. The Number Twelve Looks Like You - "If They Holler, Don't Let Go" from Worse Than Alone (2009)

19. Iwrestledabearonce - "Eli Cash vs. the Godless Savages" from It's All Happening (2009)

20. Osiah - "Seeds of Despair" from Chronos (2023)

21. Signs of the Swarm - "Tower of Torsos" from Amongst the Low & Empty (2023)

22. Phinehas - "Communion for Ravens" from Dark Flag (2017) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

23. Ankor - "Oblivion" from Oblivion (2023)

24. Novelists - "Souvenirs" from Souvenirs (2015)

25. Zao - "The Latter Rain" from Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest (1998)

26. The Devil Wears Prada - "Lord Xenu" from With Roots Above and Branches Below (2009) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

27. Norma Jean - "Sun Dies, Blood Moon" from Wrongdoers (2013)

Here's my review summary:

Limp Bizkit is a band that has gained quite some hate over the years. From their name, to their nu/rap metal/rock sound, to the scathing vocal anger of vocalist Fred Durst, to their live performances causing violence in crowds (one show causing the death of a teenage girl)... The band even covered a George Michael single as their entry into fame. Basically they're like an extra-cheese-coated biscuit, and I can bite down on that biscuit more than those who give up after a nibble. Some of the rap metal tracks in this album, Significant Other, are quite pleasant, with anthems done better than most other rap metal bands in my opinion. They are leveled up by the guitar attack of Wes Borland and the rapping of Fred Durst, alongside melodic groove and harmonic singing, along with a few guest vocalists from the rap, rock, and metal scenes. Even I hesitated to call this album good, but I have to tell my true opinion. And what can I say? I'm an open-minded person....

3.5/5

Recommended tracks: "Just Like This", "Break Stuff", "Rearranged", "Nobody Like You", "9 Teen 90 Nine", "N2gether Now", "A Lesson Learned"

For fans of: Korn, Linkin Park, Eminem (not that a lot of us here have listened to Eminem, but the album definitely has some Slim Shady vibes)

Here's my submission for the September Guardians playlist:

Trail of Tears - "No Colors Left" (from Winds of Disdain, 2024)

Seems like we will have to wait two days for that Metallica album to appear in the anniversaries page.

And in other thrash-related news, Coroner has 8 songs ready for their upcoming album! If they're going the No More Color/Mental Vortex route, then we might have a strong complete comeback release from the band. Tune in this Wednesday for the full interview with Agoraphobic News:

I just found this kick-A cyber metal take on a Linkin Park hit by Illidiance. RIP Chester Bennington

An instrumental standout featuring some soloing by Jeff Loomis (ex-Nevermore), reminding me of his later supergroup Conquering Dystopia:

A majestic opening standout of progressive tech-/melodeath fury: