Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

A savage battle between metal and orchestra with impressive shredding:

Grindcore has some of the most terrible band names in my opinion, ranging from ridiculous to just offensive for the sake of offensiveness. Another good reason why grindcore is not worth my time. While a couple of the most notorious examples include A.C. and Pig Destroyer, two more come from bands whose albums I've reviewed are, to my ears, the sh*ttiest releases I've heard in all of metal, and the only ones I've rated 0.5 stars. You can find what they are here: https://metal.academy/users/profile/97/ratings?rating=0.5

Thanks, Sonny.

I haven't commented on my personal life in a while, so I think now's a good time for me to share a couple things.

Good news: I have mentioned in my rant against As I Lay Dying vocalist Tim Lambesis' animal abuse that I have a pet cat whom my family and I treat with love and respect. Last month, we have just gotten a second cat! However, he's not used to having other pet cats around him since his previous owners didn't have any other cats besides him, so we have to keep him away from my first pet cat for now. Hopefully things are settled later this month.

Bad news: I have COVID for the second time since the pandemic started. Passed down from my grandfather, then father, then me. Please wish me the best of luck that I survive and recover within the next few days. And maybe then I'll be better enough to continue writing reviews and other stuff here.

Oh I should mention that we also have the ability to rate album covers. Just go to the "rate release cover" thing in a release page, select the number of stars, and click "save cover rating". Please feel free to give that a try, David. Though considering the nearly thousand releases you've rated, you don't have to do them all. I don't wanna be responsible for any time wastage.

Welcome to Metal Academy, David!

A 6-minute closing epic revisiting music and lyrics revisiting many of the earlier tracks in the album:

Interestingly, one of my favorite tracks in Poppy's I Disagree is a t.A.T.u. cover appearing as a midway bonus track in some releases, fitting in the "metalizing covers" category and The Sphere by adding in dark alt-/industrial metal drama while staying true to the original:

Some of my favorite releases with 20+ ratings:

Neurosis - Through Silver in Blood (#13)

Atheist - Unquestionable Presence (#30)

Godflesh - Streetcleaner (#46)

Atheist - Piece of Time (#58)

Despite all the drama surrounding Devin Duarte and his subsequent departure from Worm Shepherd, his swansong is one of the most glorious tracks I've heard in symphonic blackened deathcore:

The best place for atmosphere and melody while having the usual blackened brutality:

Worm Shepherd's debut has some highlights including this true epic blackened deathcore standout:

But they're nothing compared to this epic highlight of chaos and sorrow, a bonus track that really should've been in the original album:

Looks like my clans are at the bottom of your list, Zach. It's fine, we can't all like the same stuff. Still this is a fun idea, coming up with our own clan rankings. Here's my order, with pros and cons:

1. The Revolution: Pros - the breakdown-filled madness of standard metalcore, the catchiness of melodic metalcore, the blend of epic and extreme in symphonic blackened deathcore (Lorna Shore, Mental Cruelty, Drown in Sulphur, Worm Shepherd, etc.), and the chaos of mathcore. Cons - I'm not up for most of the more brutal deathcore bands like Suicide Silence and Thy Art is Murder.

2. The Sphere: Pros - I enjoy the more noise-experimental and EDM-based kinds of industrial metal as well as cyber metal. Cons - the bands that heavily depend on industrial (sorry, that includes Ministry and Front Line Assembly) and Neue Deutsche Harte are not what I want on a regular basis.

3. The Infinite: Pros - the complex talent of progressive metal, the downtuned riff-fest of djent, the experimentation of avant-garde metal, and the lengthy ambience of post-metal and post-sludge. Cons - some avant-garde metal bands are just too strange for me, and I've lost interest in some bands over the years, even the most popular ones.

4. The Gateway: Pros - I was first exposed to alt rock/metal when I was 13 (half of my current age), long before developing my own "true" metal taste, thanks to my older brother who still enjoys those genres today. When my interest in alt-metal was slowly rising up enough for to have potential to join Gateway, I became interested in modern alt-/nu metal and was revisiting those bands I remember from the past. Cons - not much of a fan of old-school pre-Linkin Park alt-/nu metal, nor rap/funk metal.

5. The Guardians: Pros - the clan with the first ever metal genres I enjoyed, power/symphonic metal, the former thanks to DragonForce and their hit song "Through the Fire and Flames". I also enjoy a few of the lesser-known classic heavy metal bands and a bit of neoclassical metal. Cons - due to my focus on heavier more modern genres, my interest in The Guardians has been on and off and just not the same as it was when I was a young teen 10 years ago.

6. The Horde: Pros - I love the more melodic side of the genre including (of course) melodeath, symphonic death metal, and the more progressive side of tech-death. Cons - Never really a fan of a lot of old-school/brutal death metal, and definitely not a fan of grindcore and its R/X-rated subgenres.

7. The Fallen: Pros - Some doom/gothic/sludge metal darkness is good for me once in a while. Cons - I'm not huge on drone, stoner (except High on Fire), or funeral doom, and I'm often tempted to play the ultra-slow songs at 2x speed.

8. The Pit: Pros - I'm up for the lesser-known bands of thrash (especially tech-thrash), speed, and groove metal. Cons: I don't get much appeal from the most well-known bands like the Big 4 and other similar bands, and stenchcore is hard for me to explore.

9. The North: Pros: I used to like some folk metal bands like Alestorm and Eluveitie. Black metal is OK for me in small doses and if a band that has one or a few albums of the genre moves on to a different one. Cons: I'm also not big on Satanism or Anti-Christianity, but for me, that includes Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir. DSBM is just way too depressing. Too much linkage to arson and murder, particularly in the 90s Scandinavian black metal scene. And I definitely avoid the dreaded NSBM at all costs.

Spine-chilling symphonic blackened deathcore for only the bravest and/or darkest souls:

The lyrics strike with their dark universal concept in the best song of Drown in Sulphur's debut full-length album:

Dragon Tales, Dragon Tales

It's almost time for Dragon Tales

Come along and take my hand

Let's all go to

Sorry, needed to let out that earworm. Anyway, since last year, I've watched a lot of shows and movies on Disney+ (Disney animated films, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Doctor Who, etc.). Not much metal-related unfortunately. I'm also currently binging the brand-new season of Phineas and Ferb, which so far might have the potential of being their best season yet, doing great justice to the original series, unlike those disgraceful reboots for other shows out there.

Submission accepted! Thanks, Sonny.

A shredtastic highlight with more of those heavy verses and melodic chorus:

Although Fear of Domination has gone past their early industrial phase at this point, this ultimate ending highlight still fits well in The Sphere as one of the most experimental tracks by the band:

A true highlight that greatly pushes the music and vocals forward, with both vocalists having their time to shine:

Metallic riffing and galactic keys shine brighter than the sun in perhaps one of the most memorable anthemic tracks they've ever done:

My favorite track of Neurotech's best album in 10 years is one of the most beautiful album endings I've heard, practically "Ultra Us 2.0":

And now for one of the more popular bands in the British metalcore scene:

Architects - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3FtIkUc39AkCf6T5QLonHk

1. You Don't Walk Away From Dismemberment

2. In the Desert

3. Buried at Sea

4. Heartless

5. One of These Days

6. Stay Young Forever

7. Alpha Omega

8. Even If You Win, You're Still a Rat

9. Naysayer

10. Dead Man Talking

11. Castles in the Air

12. The Empty Hourglass

13. Memento Mori

14. Death is Not Defeat

15. Doomsday

16. Black Lungs

17. Impermanence

18. Born Again Pessimist

19. Judgement Day

20. Seeing Red

And now for one of the more popular bands in the British metalcore scene:

Architects

1. Lost Forever // Lost Together

2. All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us

3. Daybreaker

4. Holy Hell

5. Nightmares

6. The Sky, the Earth & All Between

7. Ruin

8. For Those That Wish to Exist

9. Hollow Crown

10. The Classic Symptoms of a Broken Spirit

11. The Here and Now

The first single of the new Architects album proves that the band hasn't lost any of their earlier heaviness in this awesome highlight:

Amira Elfeky's vocals work out nicely behind Sam Carter for a perfect chorus in this industrial-ish alt-metal standout:

The lack of strength makes this sh*t perhaps their weakest track since The Here and Now:

An ode to the band's classic sound in another killer banger:

Fantastic opening track with the band's typical riff-wrath in a slower industrial march:

Why does the "again and again and again" part of this Architects song sounds so much like part of the chorus of this Chainsmokers song?! Surely that has to be a coincidence, right? RIGHT???

A catchy highlight I would recommend to anyone wanting to get into alt-metalcore:

Some of the most intense lyrics and music I've heard in this amazing masterpiece of a song that is a sequel to the epic "Memento Mori":

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

Architects has fully redeemed themselves after the poor Hollow Crown (still enjoyable by others) and the unloved Here and Now. The excellent Daybreaker and the incredible Lost Forever Lost Together are just what we need in the metalcore realms! And with All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us, the distant past remains the past. Most of the songs have a perfect blend of brutality and melody within the Meshuggah-infused technical djent-core that spreads through a lot of the album. You can expect anthemic choruses, complex riffing rhythms, and a dark galactic atmosphere. And it all ends with Architect's longest song and one of the most heartful tear-shedding tracks in all of metalcore, "Memento Mori". This astonishing epic, along with the rest of this album, was written, recorded, and released in the last months of the life of Tom Searle, and the lyrics include a couple recorded quotes from Alan Watts that perfectly do justice to the inevitable transcendence into infinite darkness that awaited him. Absolutely amazing, emotional, and deserving to be heard beyond the universe. RIP this amazing legend... As awesome as many metalcore bands are to me, Architects stands out with all of its heartful emotion in All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us. Clearly, they deserve to be on top with Meshuggah, Converge, and TDEP. And all their mistakes from the past are left in the forgotten void.

4.5/5

Recommended tracks: "Nihilist", "Deathwish", "Downfall", "The Empty Hourglass", "Gravity", "Memento Mori"

For fans of: August Burns Red, ERRA, Silent Planet

3 minutes of metalcore chaos, just the way I love it, featuring Bring Me the Horizon vocalist Oli Sykes:

This sh*t sounds too much like a clean My Chemical Romance ballad. Why the f*** choose this as a closing title track?

So diversely packed with a lot to expect from bands like All Shall Perish, Black Veil Brides, Every Time I Die, and Trivium:

For the band's first time dropping into a much lower tuning, this track just falls f***ing flat and ruins an otherwise entirely listenable album:

A total crusher that is a solid heavy start to Architects' second album and first one with current vocalist Sam Carter:

Awesome guitar melodies make this track not just the best highlight of the album, but one of the best ever by this band:

The best track of this Cynic album in my opinion, and perhaps one of the best of progressive metal:

I also regard it as a progressive/tech-death classic, though upon revisiting, I find that it's not as 100% perfect as I thought it was 5 years before this comment. Here's my review summary:

As I revisit Cynic's 1993 debut, I can still hear its amazing uniqueness! Many of the members have started out in death metal bands, appearing in at least one album by Death, Master, and Monstrosity. Cynic had the idea of blending death metal with jazzy prog, which has also been done by Atheist back then. The best moments of Focus come in their more spacey moments as opposed to when they just go all-out tech-death. A lot of the power comes from the rhythm section, with the mystical bass of Sean Malone and the dexterous drumming of Sean Reinert (RIP the two Seans). It's also interesting hearing Paul Masvidal's vocoded cleans in contrast with the death growls of Tony Teegarden, along with the guitarwork of Jason Gobel. Two of the tracks would end up serving as the basis for later bands' names, "Veil of Maya" and "Textures". Those tracks and a couple others in the first half have lots of Watchtower-infused jazzy brilliance. However, their attempts at sounding metal in a couple tracks are a bit iffy and that's why a half-star is knocked from my original 5-star rating. Still it's quite a classic, with most of the first half still as perfect as ever. Just turn it on and.... FOCUS!

4.5/5

Ben, please add Botch's 1997 compilation album The Unifying Themes of Sex, Death, and Religion.

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

The Amenta - "Vermin" (4:03) from n0n (2008)

Deathstars - "No Light" (3:24) from Synthetic Generation (2002)

Gothminister - "Darkside" (3:56) from Happiness in Darkness (2008)

Mechina - "Unearthing the Daedalian Ancient" (7:11) from As Embers Turn to Dust (2017)

Neurotech - "Uplift" (6:06) from Evasive (2015)

Pain - "I Am" (3:58) from I Am (2024)

Total length: 28:38

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

The Amity Affliction - "All That I Remember" (3:50) from All That I Remember (2025)

The Autumn Offering - "Your Time Is Mine" (3:15) from Fear Will Cast No Shadow (2007)

Botch - "Closure" (3:10) from The Unifying Themes of Sex, Death and Religion (1997) (based on Unifying Themes Redux reissue, 2002)

Bury Tomorrow - "What If I Burn" (3:52) from Will You Haunt Me, with That Same Patience (2025)

Drown in Sulphur - "Absentia" (4:04) from Vengeance (2025)

Polaris - "Fault Line" (5:05) from Fatalism (2023)

Wolves at the Gate - "Unrest" (4:53) from Wasteland (2025)

Total length: 28:09

Here are my submissions for the July Infinite playlist, having just two long epics in mind:

Opeth - "The Baying of the Hounds" (10:41) from Ghost Reveries (2005)

The Third and the Mortal - "Oceana" (18:46) from Tears Laid in Earth (1994)

Total length: 29:27

Here are my submissions for the July Gateway playlist:

Apocalyptica - "Rage of Poseidon" (8:49) from 7th Symphony (2010)

Chaoseum - "Unreal" (5:09) from The Third Eye (2022)

Demon Hunter - "I'm Done" (4:48) from I'm Done (2025)

Five Finger Death Punch - "Wrong Side of Heaven" (4:31) from The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1 (2013)

Limp Bizkit - "Re-Arranged" (5:56) from Significant Other (1999)

Total length: 29:13

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

Fear of Domination - "Fear of Domination" from Call of Schizophrenia (2009)

5/5. It starts off clean but heavy in what can be the band's own theme song. You can hear some background cleans by keyboardist Niina Telen. Awesome start!

White Zombie - "Super Charger Heaven" from Astro-Creep: 2000 - Songs of Love, Destruction and Other Synthetic Delusions of the Electric Head (1995)

4.5/5. This one's a great thrash-rock highlight. The drums have wicked kicks! The only downside is Zombie's vocals not sounding as aggressive or deep as they should. Still it's one of the best songs here!

Skrew - "Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame" from Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame (1992)

4/5. Skrew's 1991 debut's title track unleashes as much industrial destruction as Ministry's The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste.

Pitchshifter - "Gravid Rage" from Industrial (1991)

4.5/5. This one is another highlight of industrial metal machinery with convincing growls by Mark Clayden. Oh yeah, Mark is the bassist of the band, but he also performed vocals in this album. His brother J.S. would take over on vocals from their Submit EP onwards, though he's done additional vocals in their debut.

A Dark Halo - "Vector Unknown" from Omnibus One (2023)

5/5. Now this is darker and heavier, featuring Anna Hel. The softer cleans and heavier screams alternating between each other sound so haunting. It's like a lurking menace in the space of tranquility, turning it intense and bleak. The cleans still shine, along with the creativity in the music. The band is never afraid to explore the unknown, and as a result, we have another wonderful standout!

Illidiance - "Defying Gravity" from The Iconoclast (2019)

4.5/5. Obviously it's not a Wicked cover (thank goodness!), though it's quite diverse with everything from progressive/djenty bands like Periphery and Chaos Divine, to modern/melodic bands like Mnemic and Of Mice & Men. Now that's wicked!

KONG - "P.R.O.K.O.V." from Mute Poet Vocalizer (1990)

4/5. This one has cool riffing by guitar duo Aldo Sprenger and Dirk de Vries. While some might consider the circus audio sample odd, it helps make that track one of my favorites in its original album.

Sonic Violence - "Symptom" from Jagd (1990)

4.5/5. This is shorter and less varied, but it doesn't need to have a lot to sound amazing, especially in the final climax.

Meathook Seed - "A Furred Grave" from Embedded (1993)

4/5. The best of Peres' vocal alternation occurs in this one.

Ministry - "Jesus Built My Hotrod" from Psalm 69 (1992)

4.5/5. I'm already familiar with this crazy highlight via the Lamb of God/Burn the Priest cover. The song has an interesting narrative and fun lyrics, sung by the Butthole Surfers' Gibby Haynes.

Psyclon Nine - "I Choose Violence" from And Then Oblivion (2025)

5/5. In real life, I wouldn't choose violence as the answer, but I would choose dark violent trap-ish industrial metal to listen to.

Rammstein - "Ich Tu Dir Weh" from Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da (2009)

4.5/5. And then the violence turns sexual. The BDSM-themed lyrics were too extreme for the German public market and its original album had to be reissued with the track omitted. Still I enjoy the anthemic-sounding chorus here.

Circle of Dust - "Dust to Dust" from Dust to Dust (2017)

5/5. A powerful masterpiece track that is apparently meant to be an early hint for an upcoming Circle of Dust release. I have an awesome feeling about that album...

Celldweller - "Blackstar" from Wish Upon a Blackstar (2012)

4.5/5. One of the best songs in this album by Klayton's other project, Celldweller!

Sybreed - "Doomsday Party" from The Pulse of Awakening (2009)

5/5. This highlight is quite fun. Not as fun as that DragonForce track from 15 years later, but here, Sybreed have their own way of channeling 80s pop with its catchy chorus while staying metal. This more lively sound was first hinted in Antares, and it sounds like the coldness of Slave Design has been left behind.

Subway to Sally - "Post Mortem" from Post Mortem (2024)

4.5/5. An amazing blend of Neue Deutsche Härte and medieval folk, and you definitely wanna stay from beginning to end.

Filter - "For the Beaten" from For the Beaten (2023)

4/5. For an uplifting song with soaring vocals, it sure has some of the heaviest fire in industrial metal riffing.

Stahlhammer - "Can't Touch This" from Wiener Blut (1997)

3.5/5. One of only two songs I like in that sh*tty Stahlhammer album, fitting in the "metalizing covers" category.

Tyrant of Death - "Fluorescent" from Singles & Extras (2018)

3/5. Not the best I've heard from this project, but I'm glad to have a djenty industrial metal instrumental here.

Mick Gordon - "Rip & Tear" from Doom (Original Game Soundtrack) (2016)

3.5/5. And another one of that style! Demons better look out, as the DoomSlayer plans to RIP AND TEAR.

Conflict - "Mechanism of Life" from Transform into a Human (2014)

4/5. Now this is a true winning highlight. It sounds nicely like a sequel to the title track of Mechina's "The Assembly of Tyrants", along with having a Xerath-esque blend of symphonics and groove elements. I also love the anthemic chorus.

Death SS - "Panic" from Panic (2000)

3.5/5. Steve Sylvester can make some dark haunting songs with his band Death SS, which is basically Ghost before Ghost. I love the chorus here! And the keyboards after that sound so eerie. This is basically gothic/heavy metal gone electro-industrial. You can get the darkness of Behemoth and Vader without ever going as deathly as those bands. Still I prefer to get my dark beauty elsewhere.

Fange - "Grand-Guignol" from Purulences (2025)

4/5. And by elsewhere, I mean in the form of sludgy industrial metal.

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

4.5/5. And more of that but with more electronics and less sludge. But we'll get something more epic in the next track...

Mechina - "Anagenesis" from Progenitor (2016)

5/5. One h*ll of a cyber metal epic. The intro reminds me of Apocalyptica with its melancholic violins and cello, then the usual symphonic cyber metal goes on like a more orchestral blend of Alchemist and Northlane. Absolute futuristic glory!

Death Therapy, Brook Reeves - "Reject" from Reject (2020)

4.5/5. I stumbled upon this cover of a song I included in last month's Revolution playlist, by Death Therapy (a side-project by Becoming the Archetype's Jason Wisdom) featuring Brook Reeves (Impending Doom). Quite a sick unique combo! Now we need Fit for a King covering one of Living Sacrifice's later metalcore songs. I also hear some Argyle Park vibes in this Death Therapy cover. Maybe there should've been some soloing to make up for the hip-hop-ish beat. But never mind, I won't mess with it.

Lord of the Lost - "Ordinary World" from Weapons of Mass Seduction (2023)

4/5. And finally we end with a beautiful cover of a Duran Duran ballad. Although they've really done that song justice, even with Chris Harms' bass-baritone vocal range (similar to my own), I still prefer Mechina's cover, which sadly isn't on Spotify.

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? I recommend this to any industrial metal fan and anyone who isn't into industrial metal but is up to getting into a great start for the genre. Thanks to anyone who have contributed with their own submissions, and I hope the rest of you enjoy it like I've had!

Fantastic milestone, Ben! And wow, the lucky 60,000th happens to be one of my personal favorite and most anticipated albums of this year! Thanks for all your work, good sir.

Here are my thoughts on all the selected tracks:

ERRA - "Cure" from CURE (2024)

5/5. A f***ing killer start to its original album and the playlist to listen to!

Architects - "Elegy" from The Sky, the Earth & All Between (2025)

5/5. It's then followed by another epic track to kick things off further!

Like Moths to Flames - "Real Talk" from Sweet Talker (2010)

4.5/5. Real talk, though: Screamed vocals are what keep many metalcore bands going, and I enjoy Chris Roetter's screams along with his cleans.

Undying - "Echoes" from The Whispered Lies of Angels (2000)

4/5. The guitar, vocals, and drums roll through in melodic passion is another great start.

God Forbid - "Nothing" from Determination (2001)

4.5/5. This one gives you a p*ssed flying kick in the face! Byron Davis' furious vocals alongside the pummeling music really shows you what a solid album its original album Determination is gonna be.

The Autumn Offering - "Embrace the Gutter" from Embrace the Gutter (2006)

5/5. Some of you might be familiar with this track from Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam. I enjoy the vocals by Dennis Miller and the guitar solo by producer Jason Suecof.

Shadows Fall - "Souls Devoured" from Souls Devoured (2025)

4.5/5. Shadows Fall, the guys behind The Art of Balance, continue their comeback! And their "male metalcore Rapunzel" lead vocalist Brain Fair still has his hair and strength like Samson.

Trivium - "Throes of Perdition" from Shogun (2008)

5/5. This longtime highlight has a nice heavy main riff that is once again as progressive as Dream Theater with a catchy chorus. This would work well as a radio single, if it wasn't too intense at some parts.

Bleeding Through - "Dead But So Alive" from Nine (2025)

4.5/5. This one erupts into thrashy chaos, evolving into blazing soloing and the vocals of Brandan Schieppati and keyboardist Marta Demmel together in the chorus that makes an epic standout imprinted in your mind.

Shadow of Intent - "Feeding the Meatgrinder" from Feeding the Meatgrinder (2025)

5/5. This single from Shadow of Intent's upcoming album Imperium Delirium is so f***ing brutal and doubling the brutality is the guest vocals by none other than Corpsegrinder from Cannibal Corpse.

Parkway Drive - "Sacred" from Sacred (2025)

4.5/5. A vicious new banger that shall never disappoint fans!

Carnifex - "Dead but Dreaming" from Until I Feel Nothing (2011)

5/5. Lots of aggressive anger in this track from the album that marks a transition from their earlier brutal deathcore to blackened deathcore.

Imminence - "Death Shall Have No Dominion" from The Return of the Black (2025)

4.5/5. Even Imminence is getting in on the epic blackened deathcore alongside their usual intense violin-infused metalcore. F*** YEAH!!!!

7 Angels 7 Plagues - "Silent Deaths, Crowded Lives" from Jhazmyne's Lullaby (2001)

5/5. 7 Angels 7 Plagues was another short-lived metalcore band from the early 2000s. It's highlights like this one that make me wish they were still active.

LEVELS - "BREED" from PULSE (2024)

4.5/5. Even with the chorus sounding like early Linkin Park, this is still an intense banger. Not only that, the music video can also be artistic.

Invent Animate - "Forest Haven" from Everchanger (2014)

5/5. Over 10 years and Invent Animate can still shape up the djent-core sound alongside ERRA. This band can make such riff-tastic songs. The more I listen to them, the more potential I find in them. While both the intro and chorus has that blend of While She Sleeps and Northlane, the brief midsection bridge is just BRUTAL.

Spiritbox - "No Loss, No Love" from Tsunami Sea (2025)

4.5/5. I love how heavy this track is, really throwing back to Courtney LaPlante's previous band Iwrestledabearonce.

I Prevail - "Violent Nature" from Violent Nature (2025)

4/5. New I Prevail single, and it's violently heavy and killer as f***, nothing but pure destruction.

Born of Osiris - "Through Shadows" from Through Shadows (2025)

4.5/5. Another journey awaits Born of Osiris. Impressive vocals here, both the screams and cleans!

Out of Vision - "Dissolve" from Deceiving Lights (2024)

4/5. The intro grabs you and drags you through the rest of this song that shows the band's talent. Once again, I enjoy the melodic singing and brutal growls. It's part of their album Deceiving Lights released last year. It might remind some of Our Mirage. As d*mn great as this is, the generic chorus is the only thing setting it back.

Daughters - "Nurse, Would You Please Prep the Patient for Sexual Doctor?" from Canada Songs (2003)

4.5/5. This song I'm already prepped for, thanks to my 4 years of listening to mathcore (that started with The Dillinger Escape Plan).

Converge - "This is Mine" from The Poacher Diaries (1999)

4/5. The lyrics are quite sick here, as is the rest of the song.

The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza - "The Lost & Damned" from Danza III: The Series of Unfortunate Events (2010)

4.5/5. Same with this cool unique song. Enough said about that!

The Chariot - "Forgive Me Nashville" from The Fiancee (2007)

4.5/5. Most people in my generation would've discovered bands like this in their high-school, but I've only just heard of this band for a couple years now. This is one of my favorite tracks by The Chariot. I especially love the midsection breakdown that gets broken down further into sludgy levels.

Rolo Tomassi - "Party Wounds" from Cosmology (2010)

4/5. Another great hard-hitter, from this female-fronted British mathcore band.

Car Bomb - "M6" from Centralia (2007)

3.5/5. I think there's good chaos as the tempo ranges all over the place, from slow sludge to sonic blasting.

The Ghost Inside - "Shiner" from Fury and the Fallen Ones (2008)

3/5. This one breaks through the hardcore fire of Comeback Kid with a more metallic spin.

Allt - "The Orphan Breed" from From the New World (2024)

3.5/5. Heavy insanity in the music and vocals, especially the back-breaking breakdown at over the one-minute mark. D*mn, what a banger! But there are better ones around.

Aerial - "Foresight" from Foresight (2016)

4/5. Yet another great track from a band in the ERRA/Invent Animate-inspired league. The instrumentation and vocals are what more of this world needs to hear. Those guys are so talented as f***!

Graphic Nature - "The Downpour" from A Mind Waiting to Die (2023)

4.5/5. This one strikes with brutality and emotion, "I lost it because I trusted you". One of the best saved for one of the last that shall leave listeners wanting more!

Worm Shepherd - "Winter Sun" from Ritual Hymns (2022)

5/5. This epic 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! But we still have one more track in this playlist...

The Amity Affliction - "Stairway to Hell" from Severed Ties (2008)

4.5/5. Although early The Amity Affliction has more of a post-hardcore sound than metalcore, the final track of their debut has similar vibes to Memphis May Fire and Imminence, the former in the intense first minute, and the latter in the epic two-minute outro. Perhaps my favorite song in the Troy Brady era!

Pretty good playlist I've made, huh? I recommend this to any metalcore fan and anyone who isn't into metalcore but is up to getting into a great start for the genre. Thanks to anyone who have contributed with their own submissions, and I hope the rest of you enjoy it like I've had!

Ben, please add the new Neurotech album Exo Escapism.