Though Ville Valo has often been seen as the sole proprietor of love metal as a genre, primarily because very few can match his vampiric romanticism and poetry, Atlas arises as a formidable and remarkable successor. Infusing love metal with arcane echoes and bestial screams, they delivers a sensually brutal epic in their new record, Sunder (Odyssey Music). Continue reading
Our Mirage is reviving the roots of Metalcore, reanimating a nostalgic 2000s sound with a 2020s polish. On their fourth album, Fractured Minds (Arising Empire Records), one would hope a band would have grown past the overly generic, survivalist mantra and woe-is-me relationship songs. Continue reading
Talent-wise, the sisters of ALT BLK ERA are well beyond their years even if lyrically, it’s just about as cringe-worthy as anyone’s high school diary. Hearing the “nobody understands me” cliche from actual teenagers instead of balding middle-aged men trying for a new demo is a very refreshing change, though!