Following on from two initial releases (including the particularly realised for the time Hikari), Oceans Ate Alaska in 2017 were a young band who had quickly shown huge levels of promise for bigger things to come. So, the fact the band had not followed up quickly (global pandemic of course not helping matters) feels somewhat surprising considering the momentum that was behind them. Continue reading
I Prevail, when they revealed themselves to the world with their breakout Taylor Swift cover, could only be described as bursting onto the scene. Since then the post-hardcore group has become one of the most exciting bands out today. Smashing out more hits in two albums than some bands accomplish in their whole career. In their last release Trauma, the band delved into different external influences bringing rapping into their songwriting, will True Power carry on this trend?
If you know your old sayings, it is considered something akin to poor taste to judge a book by its cover. Yet, if you apply twisted logic and judge the new Norma Jean album by its song titles… well, you might just be onto something and assume the Atlantan metalcore mainstays took the Timewave Zero route Blood Incantation trekked through, while remaining heavy and fierce. Continue reading
In lieu of releasing a full-length album in one fell swoop, Oceans instead decided to divide their eight tracks into a pair of EPs – one released in early 2022 and the other six months later. That second mini-record – Hell Is Where The Heart Is: Longing (Nuclear Blast) – features four straightforward post-metal compositions, and follows the trail blazed by, Hell Is Where The Heart Is: Love. Continue reading
I like a good challenge. Every so often, I fire up my ol’ NES and give Battletoads another go. I don’t think I will ever complete the hoverbike level but I still manage to have a good time. So when my editor suggested I review the new album by Dance Gavin Dance, a band that is far outside my usual fare of extreme metal, I happily accepted the challenge.
I must be a sadist.Continue reading
It doesn’t seem like it’s been long since Palisades joined the post-hardcore scene. On the contrary, though, it’s now been almost ten years since their debut, Outcasts, dropped, and Reaching Hypercritical (Rise Records) their latest release, is the fifth album to come from the band. While the previous works have been on the lighter end of the subgenre, the singles released have featured some heavier moments in line with the heavier subject matters in the album dealing with mental health.
Are Palisades branching out of their bubble for their fifth release?
Music is routinely used as an avenue to either express one’s feelings or to make sense of them. Oftentimes used as a crutch in our darkest of hours, it’s safe to say music has helped countless people crawl out of their lowest of lows, both through listening and writingContinue reading
With four years since the last album, metalcore lovers from the 2010s Warped Tour days have been eager to hear more from one of the community’s most prominent bands Memphis May Fire. After taking a more hard rock-leaning detour with their last record, Broken in 2018, the Texan four-piece are back to their post-hardcore roots with seventh album Remade In Misery (Rise Records). Giving a new taste of the sound that earned them most of their fans in their early years, Memphis puts in the same amount of heart we heard from them in the days of The Hollow and Challenger, but now with a newfound self-assurance and poise. Continue reading
The very title of Malevolence’s new record should tell you all you need to know about what to expect.
Malicious Intent (Nuclear Blast) is the third full-length release from the groove-meets-metalcore five-piece outfit hailing from the UK and follows up 2017’s Self Supremacy. Boasting all original members, Malevolence has returned with a vengeance, though one that is tempered.Continue reading
After twenty-two years of being one of the most renowned and influential bands in post-hardcore and emo, it would be respectable to take a hiatus and bask in the legacy for a good while. However, Silverstein continues to knock out new material consistently, never wringing dry of inspiration and reinforcing their veteran status. With new album Misery Made Me (UNFD), the hardcore maestros let their creativity flow freely without forcing anything to appease anyone’s expectations – including their own.