Hello! Late of edition of Editors' Picks here as:
- We ran the Top Music in 2024 So Far post and that was a big one to write and edit and
- I just came back from the wonderful Post Fest and I'm also sort of sick
But! We couldn't let all of the excellent releases from July go unreviewed so we scraped this post together against all odds (cue violins) and present it to you now. Summer is drawing to a close. Fall looms and, behind it, as always, patient, Winter. Count ye roses while ye may and, while you're doing so, listen to some killer music.
Malignancy - Discontinued (brutal technical death metal)
I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn when I say that next to dissodeath, brutal tech death is one of the most promising evolutionary branches death metal has had to offer over the last decade-or more. Bands like Defeated Sanity and Wormed highlight the cutting edge of the genre, with recent acolytes like Anal Stabwound, Nithing, and Dead and Dripping (for starters) making waves in recent years in the style. Death metal has had a tendency of moving fast in recent years. The genre has always carried a slight air of upmanship, with young bands eager to toe the line of good taste and push the envelope of extremity further.
New York’s Malignancy are one legacy act that doesn’t get enough attention compared to their fellow 90’s contemporaries, partly due to their level of activity. Despite their formation in 1992, you’d be forgiven for not knowing Malignancy; while they did re-record their debut album Intrauterine Cannibalism in 2019 to what might amount to some collective shrugs, their last full-length original album Eugenics was way back in 2012. We don’t hear from Malignancy very much, so the fact that we got a new record this year is a treat. It just so happens that Discontinued is perhaps their very best work, and easily one of the best death metal albums of the year so far.
Are Malignancy as avant garde or absurdly technical as some of the aforementioned acts in the genre? Not a chance. The band are steeped in the 90’s New York death metal style that almost borders on proto-deathcore, with chunky breakdowns breaking up the zig-zagging guitars. The New York scene created some of the most brutal and ignorant death metal of all time, and the name of the game is groove. Discontinued perfectly bridges frenetic technical prowess and insanely catchy rhythmic work from the get-go, with slippery leads fighting off some half-slams on opening track “Existential Dread,” for instance. It’s everything a discerning death metal fan can ask for, and above all, it’s a fun listen.
-Jimmy Rowe
Ulcerate - Cutting the Throat of God (dissonant/technical death metal)
I’ve said it before and I will gladly say it again: Ulcerate is one of the most consistently great currently active death metal bands. There isn’t a clunker of a record in their entire discography, and with each new release their notoriety as nearly peerless progenitors of all things dissonant and death has only grown. They’re pretty close to a household name at this juncture for death metal aficionados, and Cutting the Throat of God should do nothing to dissuade those already indoctrinated by their swirling, progressive, and brutal mid-tempo punch of the
notion that Ulcerate are operating in a space of rare genre supremacy. Like them or not, it’s difficult to deny their impact on death metal over the past two decades, with their latest album being yet another notch in their title belt. It’s not just good, it’s one of their best.
One of the most common criticisms levied against Stare Into Death and Be Still was the lack of sequences that listeners could latch onto. As their career has progressed, Ulcerate have become slipperier in their songwriting techniques, building their compositions on an almost constantly changing sea of riff and tempo shifts. While this is an aspect of the band’s sound that many find to be a positive, as their songwriting remains unpredictable with each new release, it’s hard to deny that Ulcerate can be a difficult band to get a handle on as of late. More than any of their most recent release, Cutting the Throat of God presents listeners with riffs that are far easier to latch onto than in their most recent releases. Opener “To Flow Through Ashen Hearts” is a prime example of this, generating an immediate earworm in its opening minutes. It’s a refreshing moment that finds itself repeated throughout the record, creating what might be Ulcerate’s “catchiest” release yet.
More than anything, Cutting the Throat of God feels incredibly balanced, blending the band’s insane stretches of mind-melting technicality and dissonance with melodic, borderline beautiful passages that showcase the band at the peak of their creative range. While the record always feels like Ulcerate, it’s nice to see the band incorporate a stronger sense of melodicism into their work. It works beautifully, with tracks like “The Dawn Is Hollow” and the title track creating some of the most harrowing and intricate soundscapes of the band’s career. In total, it’s both the most expansive and intimate release Ulcerate has given us.
Cutting the Throat of God is everything I hoped it would be and more. As a long-time fan of the band’s work I’m thrilled by their continued mastery of their established sound. But as a fan who loves seeing a band grow, it’s equally exciting to watch them broaden the scope of their palate to include rich, emotionally resonant melodies and hooks that stick to the brain like glue. It’s one of the most impressive records of their career and I’m thrilled it exists.
-Jonathan Adams
Orgone - Pleroma (avant-garde/progressive death metal, chamber folk)
Orgone returned last month after a 10-year hiatus with their third full-length Pleroma. This album is an elevation of their sound in every way, bringing a more avant-garde and chamber folk approach to their progressive tech death sound, resulting in one of the most creative and artistic metal releases of the year. It was surprising to learn they were from Pennsylvania of all places, as in addition to the French song-titles and French and Slovak passages, there’s a level of European sophistication if you will, that perhaps reflects back to the classical influence throughout. Listening to Pleroma feels like taking a stroll through an art gallery, with different artistic elements, approaches, moods hitting you around every corner. Yet, it’s carefully curated to retain a seamless flow throughout that builds on itself with so many little intricacies and thoughtful nuance. And while like observing an art gallery, some attention, patience, and open-mindedness is required to properly digest everything, the reward is something quite masterful and moving.
Beyond the awesomely complex tech death segments that bring a high level of creativity on their own, the defining and most unique quality Orgone have cultivated is the avant-garde and progressive approach to song-writing, album structuring, and the influences they bring from outside of metal. The use of classical elements, predominantly by way of a cello, comes across more as tastefully orchestral akin to artists like Ne Obliviscaris or Ashenspire, rather than the bombastic symphonic approach some bands can fall into. The writing at times also leans into some post-rock influenced chamber folk, a sound that was more prominent on their previous release The Joyless Parson. This sound contrasted with powerful (non-brutal) death metal vocals, similar to those found in plenty of melodic and tech death, makes for a truly compelling and dynamic listening experience.
To older fans of the band, some of the changes and progression in sound may be a bit jarring at first, but I assure you as your half-way into the 17-minute epic “Trawling the Depths” you’ll find yourself feeling it was every bit worth the wait. The production is dialed in to let everything from the heaviness of their skronky tech riffs, to the elegance of their soaring string melodies and baroque jazz shine through. Pleroma is simply an impressive artistic feat of an album that should reward repeated listens for years.
-Trent Bos
Pijn - From Low Beams of Hope
I am currently on an overdose of post-rock and metal, seeing as I just got back from the wonderful Post Fest. However, I always have a warm place in my heart, and on my rotation, for the music of Pijn. Over the last few years of following them, I have seen them go from strength to strength, growing to fill the space of many of the more melancholic post-rock bands we have seen fall along the way (Rumour Cubes please...just one more album). Pijn have spent the years honing their craft, working further and further on their compositions to turn them into something special, moving away from the oft-trod paths of crescendo core and into post-rock that is always aware of its own momentum and direction. From Low Beams of Hope is a fantastic example of this, perhaps the best one that the band have put forth, ever.
“Carved Expanse”, the second track of the album, is maybe my favorite track from it and does a fantastic job of showcasing it. It has an inherently dark and somber riff at its center which is then embellished with brass instruments, excellent drumming, and that dedication to structure and drive that I mentioned earlier. That’s no mean feat, as the track clocks in at just over twelve minutes. But every second of that runtime is used to explore its ideas further, like when the strings explore and draw out musical ideas from its first passages, drawing them across the ambient expanse of the track’s first bridge. This means that when the crescendos do hit, they hit strong not just because of the tired structure of build up and release but because of the culmination of the musical ideas on the track.
From Low Beams of Hope is not one of those albums you’re going to be spinning all of the time; it requires a certain subset of moods, introspective and morose, that will cause you to gravitate towards it. But when you’re looking for that strength of inner perspective, for a work of art that breathes alongside you and grows deeper with each listen, this is the album for you. It continues the band’s tradition for evocative, even haunting, post-rock and further pushes the boundaries of what the genre can achieve.
-EK
200 Stab Wounds - Manual Manic Procedures
Ohio’s 200 Stab Wounds have always been good, but Manual Manic Procedures proved they can be great. Since releasing their debut EP in 2020, the death metal trio have lived up to their gory name with chunky slabs of OSDM that worshiped in the church built by Cannibal Corpse, Jungle Rot, and Dying Fetus and earned them a dedicated following alongside contemporaries like Sanguisugabogg, Fulci, and Snuffed on Sight. Their hardcore-tinged strain of death metal was aggressive and won fans around the world. In short, 200 Stab Wounds didn’t need to change, which makes Manual Manic Procedures all the better.
After an EP and full-length of classic OSDM, 200 Stab Wounds eviscerated their sound from the inside out, tearing away excess fat and adding surprising new twists. The result is (slightly) cleaner, more aggressive, and even creepier with synthy flourishes and ambient experiments. Shifting away from the raw production and harder-faster-louder maximalism that tends to define death metal, Manual Manic Procedures feels massive, with each aspect of the music given the space to shine. Eerie synths give way to evil riffs, slowly building tension with pummeling drums until vocalist Steve Buhl breaks in with staccato growls. In the space of a breath, 200 Stab Wounds shifts from almost-ambient instrumentals to neck-breaking riffs, showcasing the confidence of a band ready to experiment with their sound and the skill to do so incredibly well. Manual Manic Procedures proves that OSDM can be equal parts weird and meaty without losing any of its signature aggression.
-Bridget Hughes
FURTHER LISTENING
Alcest - Les Chant de l’Aurore (post-metal, shoegaze)
There are legacy acts within the scope of modern metal so consistently good that when they drop an album, it’s an event whether new ground is broken or not. Alcest, with little exception, is one such act. The French two-piece ushered in a wave of post-black metal in the late 2000’s and early 2010’s and they remain at the top of the genre. Their seventh LP Les Chant de l’Aurore is every bit as whimsical and dreamy as you would hope, and while less riffy than its predecessor Spiritual Instinct, it retains a metallic edge that we like to see (that is to say, this is more Kodama than Shelter). If you’ve ever loved Alcest, here’s another reason to stay on board.
-JR
We Broke the Weather - Restart Game
Ever heard of the “sophomore slump”? We Broke the Weather certainly haven’t. Their follow-up to their incredible self-titled debut is nothing short of a step up in every possible regard, culminating in one of the best post-everything records of 2024. There’s improvement to be found here in every area of the band’s eclectic approach. The performances are less predictable yet somehow more focused than those found in their debut. The songwriting is also bolder and more adventurous (which is saying something), creating soundscapes that never cease to find the most interesting place to stick around or propel us through. The production is also pitch perfect, giving every member of the band room to be heard and given shine. There’s a lot going on here but none of it ever feels superfluous or distracting. It’s a superb entry in a brief but already stellar catalog.
-JA
Foreign Hands’ What’s Left Unsaid is a pleasant reminder of how much fun modern metalcore can still be. Sharing members with other hot newer acts like Excide and Simulakra, the group is strongly influenced from the throwback sounds of Poison the Well, while not being afraid to dig into the gritty heaviness of Converge, and the ethereal melancholy of Hopesfall. It’s also no surprise they’ve been opening up for Misery Signals on tour the past month. The riffs are bouncy and engaging, and the clean vocal melodies are catchy and heartfelt. There’s nothing groundbreaking here, it’s just some extremely well executed 00s metalcore from start to finish that doesn’t compromise or let up. A few newer bands have been bringing back that sound of late, but you’ll have a hard time finding a better take at it this year than right here.
-TB
Julie Christmas - Ridiculous And Full Of Blood
I haven’t seen nearly enough praises sung for Julie Christmas’s new album. Considering it has been eight years since her lauded collaboration with Cult of Luna and fourteen years (!!!) since the foundational release of The Bad Wife, it’s a true pleasure we are getting this album. Especially since it’s so good! It puts Christmas’ excellent timbre and control of her voice front and center, weaving an array of post-metal, angsty rock, and punk to accompany her, creating an energetic and fully fleshed out release that’s a joy to listen to.
-EK
REZN - Burden
REZN continue their absolute dedication to fuzzy, psychedelic, stoner-doom and do it with style. Burden is everything Solace was and then some - heavier, catchier, more industrial, and even more engaging to listen to. REZN are quickly become one of the names to watch in doom and one of the standards according to which newer bands in the genre should be measured against.
-EK
Deprived Existence - Diabolical Dissonance (powerful black metal)
Blackened deathgrinders Deprived Existence have fully embraced the “blackened” side of their description on Diabolical Dissonance, creating a maelstrom of a record that delivers a torrent of beautiful rage. The result is a cascading onslaught of melody punctuated by death metal growls and heightened by pummeling drums. Whether it’s deathgrind obscured by a shroud of black metal, or black metal hardened by the hammer of death metal is up to you. Either way, Diabolical Dissonance will leave you frozen.
-BH