Normally August Burns Red EPs are, believe it or not, a bunch of Xmas songs given a metal makeover. However, this time to bridge the gap between recent album, The Phantom Anthem, and the next record, they have decided to release The Phantom Sessions (both Fearless Records) which features an eclectic mix of new songs, covers and rearrangements of songs from the 2017 album.Continue reading
I’ve written a few times in reviews about the current resurgence of the Nu-Metal sound that was so popular and prevalent in the mid 90’s to early 2000’s. Ultimately the genre became so over saturated and watered down it imploded with only a handful bands surviving and progressing beyond it. Looking to pick up the nu-metal ball again are Arizona’s Dropout Kings who are about to release their debut album Audiodope (Napalm Records).
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Ok, ok, complete transparency here from me to begin with. I happen to be a massive fan of Parkway Drive. From the very first time I heard the now classic record Horizons (Epitaph) the band have had my undying attention and indeed love. They became the absolute pinnacle and standout Metalcore act of the mid to late 00’s with heaviness and hooks in all the right places. Then came 2015’s Ire (Epitaph) and what greeted fans was one of the most divisive records of that year as PD chose to veer in many different stylistic directions but still managed to retains their innate knack for combining the catchy and the crushing. Continue reading
Off the back of the critically acclaimed sophomore record Blush, Canterbury quintet Moose Blood are back with a new record I Don’t Think I Can Do This Anymore (Hopeless). Kicking off with ‘Have I Told You Enough’, I was immediately taken with the musical approach by the band as the lead guitar motifs perfectly complemented the vocals, and the whole thing gave off a very warm summery tone. ‘Talk In Your Sleep’ picks up the pace a bit more and features the outstanding chorus of the entire record – an arena-ready anthem for sure. The breakdown towards the end was also a good addition to the feel of the song.Continue reading
Mammoth Grinder is a supergroup of sorts, featuring current and ex-members of bands such as Power Trip, Darkest Hour and Iron Reagan. Let’s just cut to the chase this new record Cosmic Crypt (Relapse), the bands fourth release, is a fast, brutal, no-fucking-nonsense, crusty-edged grind, Death Metal Hardcore Punk rager.Continue reading
Nu-Metal doesn’t half get some stick, to the point where it has become the laughing stock sub-genre within the metal scene. Riding the crest of a new (nu? – Ed) wave of this beaten, bloody pulp style of metal is Cane Hill, whose 2016 debut record Smile (Rise) proved to be very divisive – not dissimilar to the way Korn and Limp Bizkit were treated back in the early Nineties, and look how that turned out in the end.Continue reading
Where do I fucking start with Psychosis (Napalm) the new album from Cavalera Conspiracy and hands down, cards on table and ear holes suitably blasted away possibly the best thing either brother has done since Roots (Roadrunner)? Not to demean the album in any way, but it feels like the band has reached back into their collective back catalogues and meshed all of their sounds and ideas together to create a “Greatest Moments Of…..” and package them inside brand new songs.Continue reading
Codex Omega (Season of Mist) is the tenth album from symphonic Death Metallers SepticFlesh and it is sure to go down as landmark release for the band and perhaps a new creative zenith for a group which has always sought to push themselves and the limits of the genre.Continue reading
Self-proclaimed Electro-Metalcore futurists Ember Falls call Finland home, but their début Welcome to Ember Falls (Spinefarm) may well have been delivered from some distant, imaginary multiverse where people carry huge Final Fantasy-type swords Continue reading
While it is unrealistic to expect the son of a world-renowned musician to naturally sound like (or even want to sound like) his father, the fact is, when your last name is Dickinson, people are going to judge you based on preconceived notions. Author Joe Hill knows all about it; his father is master horror storyteller Stephen King, and when Hill started out, he intentionally took on his mother’s maiden name (bad pun, sorry, couldn’t resist) to avoid the inevitable comparisons to his old man.Continue reading