Authors: Megan Kennedy
Review: Empire Before All – Destruction
Their style harkens back to the golden days of metalcore, albeit a little more on the thick end, grabbing influence from the generation bands like Emmure and The Dead Lay Waiting. The melody, the rage, the swampy breakdown, and the smart licks all add up to an addictive listen. … read more
Review: East of the Wall – Redaction Artifacts
This album is one big derivative showcase: I hear a shit-ton of Opeth, Tommy Giles, Mastodon and The Ocean among others, so there’s an element of comfortable familiarity when I listen, but that familiarity is at the expense of any originality the band might be capable of. … read more
Review: Dethklok – Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem
Listen up for cameos by Jack Black, Malcom McDowell, George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher, and Mark Hamill. This isn’t a death metal album, but if you have enough humor to enjoy the show, the album is worth it. It’s extremely well written, and epic as all hell. … read more
Review: Contortion – Live Grenade
Hailing from Southern Cali, this still-independent band has an impressive history under their belt, opening for some heavy hitters of metal and placing in competitions at both Coachella and Ozzfest, and now they’ve released this 5-song EP for their hungry fans. … read more
Review: Corpsessed – Abysmal Thresholds
This album, the first full-length from this Finnish death metal band, is just unrelentingly brutal. Songs travel the gradient between suffocating sludge and insane tempo, with some sporadic keyboard elements that soften certain moments without sacrificing the horrific atmosphere. … read more
Review: Chimaira – Crown Of Phantoms
I just can’t get behind this album as much as I’d like to. I’ve been a fan of these dudes for years, and it’s not that the album is poorly played or written—it’s just not as dynamic as I’ve heard them prove to be in years past. … read more
Review: Beaten to Death – Dødsfest!
There is something significantly and singularly charming about the low-fi melodies Beaten To Death employs alongside genre staples like pig squeals, demon growls and face-blasting double bass. … read more
Review: American Heritage – Prolapse
American Heritage = Mastodon + Knut … read more
Review: Amon Amarth – Deceiver of the Gods
As one of my friends so cleanly sums it up: “It’s an Amon Amarth record.” … read more
Review: Agrimonia – Rites of Separation
Part neo-crust, part post-hardcore, with a healthy heaping of sludge and doom, is the recipe for Rites of Separation by veritable super-group Agrimonia. … read more