Top Picks
Asunojokei – Think of You (progressive post-black metal/gaze)
What's going on here? First you got me promoting post-metal, now I'm out here bigging-up blackgaze! Although, having said that, a lot of Asunojokei's appeal is that they aren't particularly gazey, or even all that blackened. Instead, the Japanese act lean much more towards a more progressive and infectiously upbeat sound, inflected with visual-kei and j-rock elements, that makes for a much more engaging and varied listening experience. As with The Depth Beneath Us, Asunojokei also benefit from shorter tracks than their genre compatriots are usually known for. The quick sell is that Asunojokei are Japanese Deafheaven, which isn't inaccurate, but they're also way more interesting than that.
Various Artists – The Dogs Of Hope (hardcore, metalcore)
A cool compilation for a cool cause, featuring largely unreleased tracks and some cool covers from cool bands like Killswitch Engage, Snapcase, Quicksand’s Walter Schreifels, Testament’s Alex Skolnick, Deadguy, Enforced, Roman Candle, Orange 9mm, Death Ray Vision, Jeromes Dream, Lybica, Drought and Taken, created to raise critical funds for the privately run, no-kill Randolph County Animal Shelter in Alabama. Very cool.
Release Roundup
Al-Kamar – To Kind Silence (nursery-gaze)
Anamanaguchi – Anyway (alt/indie rock)
Anarchÿ – Re-Anarchatör (deathy thrash)
Anima – Entity (melodoom)
The Apotheosis – Hidden Inventory (post hardcore, emo)
As December Falls – Everything's on fire but I'm Fine (pop punk/rock)
Attack Attack! – Attack Attack! II (y tho?)
Aversions Crown – A Voice From The Outer Dark (brutal deathcore)
Babymetal – Metal Forth (how is this still a thing?)
Baelfyr – Empowered By Hatred (black metal)
Beyond Deviation – Kanashami (blackened/sludgy deathcore)
The Black Keys – No rain, No Flowers (blegh)
Blackbraid – Blackbraid III (folky meloblack)
Borracho – Ouroboros (stoner rock/metal)
Brcds– Slither (metalcore)
Burnt Tapes – New Lungs (alt/pop punk, emo)
Crailbone – Euphoria (melodic hardcore, alt metal)
Cemetery – Thoughts On Life… And Death (death metal, black thrash)
Circling Over – Amends (post doom)
Crypt Sermon – Saturnian Appendices (heavy/doom metal)
Cytolysis – Surge Of Cruelty (brutal death metal)
Donefor – Donefor (alt metal/core, emo)
Dreamwake – The Lost Years (pop metalcore) Review
Dropout Kings – Yokai (nu/trap metal)
Dusk Cult – Folklore Discipline (folky black metal)
Ethel Cain – Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You (sad folk)
Fall & Resist – Dissolved In Mystery (melodeath)
Firstborne – Lucky (bad hair metal) Review
Good Charlotte – Motel Du Cap (Well, I guess this is growing up...)
Halestorm – Everest (hard rock)
Heat Check – LP1 (nu/rap metal)
Iced Wrist – Neanderthal (beatdown hard/metalcore)
I.F.A. – Tiimalasi (goth metal)
Liv Sin – Close Your Eyes (folk metal, melodeath)
Lord Of The Lost – Opvs Noir Vol. 1 (please stop)
Machine Gun Kelly – Ost Americana (who even listens to this?)
Malthusian – The Summoning Bell (death doom)
Melpomene – A Body Is a Suggestion (instrumental post-prog) Premiere
Meteora – In This Silence (symphonic folk metal)
The Missing Peace – The Void (alt gaze)
Nihil – Flesh Decomposed (instrumental black/death-thrash)
The Nude – Stand And Be Recognized (heavy metal)
Malthusian – The Summoning Bell (death metal/doom)
Mourn – No One Returns the Same (post-mumblecore)
Ortum – Ouroboric (melo/deathcore)
Ovacörd – DSC0 (electro/synth, metal?)
Paralysis – Spiral Of Suffering (thrash)
Phantom Fire – Phantom Fire (black metal)
Professor Flitch – Uneven (instrumental prog)
Protect This City – Heavenly Realm (Chapter I) (progressive metalcore)
Pustulant Flesh – Gurgling Pustulence (death metal)
Scorched Mind – Embracing the Dying Sun (crusty core)
Sinsaenum – In Devastation (blackish groove-death) Review
Sterilizing the Deceased – Nothing (blackened deathcore)
Talaqat – Talaqat (jazz prog, math rock)
Temtris – Queen Of Crows (power metal)
Thorn – Nebulous Womb Of Eternity (brutal death)
Thousand Below – Buried In Jade (melodic metalcore)
Titvn – The Death Experience (metal/deathcore)
Trainer – Oh Mandy! (alt/noise rock)
Uponbrokenapologies – Silence and Sorrow (metalcore)
Variant – My Body, You'll Alter (emo, baddiecore)
Varkan – Cradle to Grave (heavy metal)
Virtues – Ode (deathcore)
Völur & Cares – Breathless Spirit (blackened/progressive doom)
We Came From Wolves – In Another Life (alt rock, emo)
Wintereve – Birth of Tragedy (blackened doom)
Zlobnik – Pjev prokletnika (deathened black metal)