None Shall Fall are a hardcore band from the Netherlands, this is their debut EP.
This is a short release – 3 tracks in under 10 minutes – acting as a showcase for the band.
This is heavy hardcore with a few pinches of metalcore here and there. The tracks stay Continue reading “None Shall Fall – This Is Why We Do It (Review)”
This is the second album from Aktaion, a Swedish Metal band.
I thought that Aktaion’s debut album Throne was a great combination of aggressive melodic death metal and sing-along catchiness. It showed a band that was not willing to compromise on either, striking the right balance of both.
So how have they done on this latest release? Well, essentially they have Continue reading “Aktaion – The Parade of Nature (Review)”
Monument of a Memory are from the US and play modern metal. This is their second EP.
This is modern metalcore with plenty of aggression and heaviness. The foundation of NWOAHM is intact and added to by some heavier and faster parts, which is always nice to hear.
With a strong sound the band rip through Continue reading “Monument of a Memory – Catharsis (Review)”
The debut album from Hollow Bones is a furiously energetic beast of modern heaviness and bright melodies. Blending honest aggression and dark emotion, Lionheart is an untamed beast that revels in its freedom to roam where it wants. Singer Patrick Anthony spoke eloquently about his band, his album, and about the ubiquity of loss…
Hi! Hollow Bones is Patrick (me), Sharon, Andrew, Connor, and Kyle. I do vocals, Sharon plays guitar and does vocals, Kyle plays bass and does vocals, Andrew plays guitar, and Connor plays drums!
This is the début album from this US hardcore/metal band.
Hollow Bones play modern metalcore, but with a little bit of a twist. Essentially the band take the tried-and-true NWOAHM metalcore template and put their spin on it through force of passion, a heightened emotive melodicism, and captivating female vocals.
The songs are enjoyably heavy slabs of metal with lots of tasty riffs. The guitars have Continue reading “Hollow Bones – Lionheart (Review)”
This is the début album from this US metallic hardcore band, Poison Headache.
Featuring an album cover that immediately grabs the attention, this is a band that fuses hardcore and metal into an ugly ball of condensed violence.
Hearing this description, and knowing that there is an ex-member of As I Lay Dying Continue reading “Poison Headache – Poison Headache (Review)”
The Verdict by I Am Noah; here is a heavy-as-Hell metalcore album that has melodic, almost post-metal flourishes to it, making for a very satisfying listen. It’s definitely one of the best recent releases of this sometimes-maligned sub-genre and is good enough to easily remind anyone of just how effective metalcore can be when played with passion, conviction and substance. I took the time to catch up with the band just as The Verdict is being unleashed on the world…
I Am Noah is our way to address things and share our emotions. “Noah” is a fictional character who questions and condemns the boundaries of our intellect and behaviour which are omnipresent. On our record we intended “Noah” to be thought-provoking. He should speak for us as a band and reflects all our feelings, opinions, positions. Continue reading “Interview with I Am Noah”
I Am Noah are a metalcore band from Germany. This is their début release.
Metalcore is somewhat of a much-maligned genre, rightfully so in many ways. Regardless of what its detractors say though, there have been, (and are), some great bands playing the style that have left an impression on me at one time or another.
I Am Noah walk the same path as those who actually know what they’re doing with this kind of music. The familiar elements are all here, (backed up by a slight djent feel in places), but the band bend, burn and crush them into their own image. Continue reading “I Am Noah – The Verdict (Review)”
Systemhouse33 are a Metal band from India. This is their latest album.
Their previous release Depths of Despair was an enjoyable, albeit brief, romp through all things heavy and modern, and Regression continues the theme but ups the stakes.
At a slightly longer 30 minutes in length, the band have further refined their blend of modern Metal and Metalcore/Hardcore/Death Metal influences into a potent blend of muscular aggression.
The singer has a harsh snarl that fits well with the music and doesn’t allow for any compromise. He plainly means business and I like what he’s selling.
The songs chug, rumble and bludgeon their way through the playing time and there’s a decent amount of catchy riffs and heavy melodies involved.
Although I liked Depths of Despair this is an all-round more cohesive, focused and superior release; perfect for when you want some heavy, crushing, upbeat, groove-based music. Without too much extremity, but also without going the other way into commercial, sanitised waters, Systemhouse33 have hit the right spot and Regression is actually a positive move forward.
For fans of Lamb of God, Meshuggah, Whitechapel, Skinlab, Machine Head, Testament, Merauder, etc.
This is the début album from Canadian Metal band Gottweist.
Gottweist’s music is somewhere between the classic Iron Maiden-influenced Metal style and a more modern one, as played by bands like Killswitch Engage, Bullet for My Valentine, As I Lay Dying, Atreyu and the like. The balance is weighted towards the latter, but the former has enough of a presence to give Future Is in Our Hands more impact than is normal for a band like this.
The album features a bright sparkly sound that might not be quite as polished as those aforementioned groups, but still works in concert with the songs themselves to present a band who clearly have a passion and energy for what they do.
The singer’s voice is melodic and smooth, backed by the odd shout or harsher vocal. The Heavy Metal influence counteracts the more modern Metalcore one in various ways, one of the more notable being the fact that the harsh vocals are very much in the minority here, whereas normally it’s the other way around, with cleans usually being restricted to radio-friendly choruses. Gottweist go the other, less-usual route; the majority of the vocals on this release are sung, and when harsher ones do appear they typically back up the cleans on the choruses.
Leads and solos are used well, adding much to the hearty songs and catchy melodies. Indeed, there’s so much enthusiasm here that it’s hard to feel jaded and dislike what the band are doing, (unless you’re just not into this kind of thing, of course).
All of the above results in an enjoyable and slightly different take on the more commercial side of melodic Metal/Metalcore. I have enjoyed their slightly-atypical spin on the modern Metalcore sound; with the traditional Heavy Metal aspects of their delivery lending a bit more depth and longevity to the music than is typical for a band of this ilk.
Given the right backing and exposure, as well as a bigger production and a slightly more adventurous songwriting outlook, Future Is in Our Hands might actually be potentially quite prophetic for their next album.
Check this out.
