ALBUM REVIEW: Svalbard – The Weight Of The Mask


 

I’ve been looking forward to wrapping my ears around Svalbard’s new material after catching snippets of what was to come when I caught them live supporting Russian Circles and Cult Of Luna over in Berlin earlier in 2023. And landing that European tour signified a fine start to a year which has also seen the Bristol based band sign for Nuclear Blast Records, with The Weight Of The Mask their first album for the prestigious new label and their first collection of new songs since the excellent When I Die, Will I Get Better? which was released on Church Road Records back in 2020.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Conquer Divide – Slow Burn


 

Hailing from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada, Metalcore quintet Conquer Divide has come back together in Atlanta to record their long-awaited second full-length album, Slow Burn (Mascot Records). Slow Burn presents a balanced, cohesive collection of songs while also throwing the frequent curveball – ones that don’t throw the direction off track, but rather launch it forward into expanded territories.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Sylosis – A Sign Of Things To Come


 

It doesn’t feel as if it’s been three years since Sylosis returned to our ears with Cycle Of Suffering, an incredible feat of metal prowess where Sylosis showed they weren’t going anywhere. Now, with frontman, Josh Middleton stepping down from big-hitters Architects earlier in the year, all of his attention was able to be focused on creating the follow-up to their last bout of heaviness.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Polaris – Fatalism


 

One of the fastest-rising bands in modern metalcore, Australian group Polaris shows their musical ancestors how it’s done with their third album, Fatalism (SharpTone Records). As they break through the scene, the quartet continuously grows with their refinement of the genre, pulling off a sense of timelessness for a style that some of their peers have fallen under the radar trying to keep alive.

 

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ALBUM REVIEW: Holding Absence – The Noble Art Of Self-Destruction


 

If you had to book a show for an audience of half-Pop fans and half-Metalheads with the promise that no one would walk out, it would seem like an impossible task. But book Welsh band Holding Absence for a show like this, and everyone’s jaws will be on the floor before the first song finishes.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Movements – RUCKUS


 

Ever since their debut album, Feel Something, blew up in 2017, the massive surge of dedicated fans have held Southern California post-hardcore and emo band Movements to a high standard when it comes to follow-up material. As the group grows older, their music continues to grow with them, as made evident with their 2020 release No Good Left To Give, and now their third full-length album, RUCKUS! (Fearless Records). While the band is no longer the same sad boys they started out as, there are still pieces of their old selves mixed into their new, matured evolution, with RUCKUS! about to elicit a peculiar balance of dancing, moshing, and crying.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Hail The Sun – Divine Inner Tension


 

The Metal, and by extension Rock community has been one more open with mental health struggles over recent years. Often the roots of the music come from trauma, grief, or pain. Hail The Sun have been such a band who up to this point have gained the most of their insight into making their music from these more dark places.

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ALBUM REVIEW: To Kill Achilles – Recovery


 

Recovery of any kind – both physically and mentally – is a massive process that should be seen for the courageous and brave act that it is. Whether from addiction or injury, the road to that recovery has to start with the person who has to undergo said recovery. And that’s no small feat. More importantly, recovery looks different for every single person, even with the same affliction. Most important of all, however, is that recovery isn’t always the destination, but rather the journey to something at least better.

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Capra Share Single and Video for “Tied Up” – Announce Sophomore Album


 

Metallic hardcore outfit Capra recently shared their single, “Tied Up”, along with its new video. Directed by Jai Benoit, and filmed by Dante Torrieri (editor’s note – Dante is a Ghost Cult-ist), it’s the first look at their upcoming album, Errors, due out on Metal Blade Records / Blacklight Media Records October 06th. Read below for the video and more about the new album.

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