Browsing Tag

post hardcore

Owl Rose have unleashed their frenetically cathartic post-hardcore EP ‘PTERODACTYLS’

Posted on 17 March 2021
OWL ROSE

If any up and coming alt-rock act is going to make hardcore fans miss sticky floors and colliding with sweat-soaked strangers, it’s Owl Rose. The Norfolk, UK-based alt-rock powerhouse’s EP, ‘PTERODACTYLS’, shares the same genre-blending propensities as Enter Shikari, Bring Me the Horizon and Architects, but this frenetic 6-track release is anything but assimilative.

In the standout single, Sigourney, along with the aggression you’d expect to find in any thrashy post-hardcore release, you’ll also be confronted by abrasive punk attitude. But when the chorus hits, the soaring vocals hook you even deeper into the sonic catharsis offered by Owl Rose’s mindful approach to metal.

Short of sticking a fork in a plug socket, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more electrifying experience than hitting play on Sigourney.

The PTERODACTYLS EP was officially released on February 25th. You’ll be able to check it out via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Get acquainted with La Roma’s sonic sophomore single ‘Strangers’

Posted on 17 February 2021

After a successful debut with their single, ‘So Long, Adieu’, in 2020 Alt-Rock artist, La Roma, delivered their evocatively iron-wrought single ‘Strangers’ which captures the agony of social tethers tearing.

With sharp lyrics which reflect commonly thought but rarely spoken sentiments such as ‘what have I done to disturb you, it’s like I no longer fill the void in your day’, your soul’s capacity to feel will be well and truly be tested. If Strangers was released in 2019 it would be a raw hard-hitting release, but as it dropped in January 2021, while plenty of people were locked away in their rooms re-evaluating their relationships, it’s overwhelmingly resonant.

Any fans of Thrice, All Time Low, Taking Back Sunday and Jimmy Eat World will definitely want La Roma on their radar. Their nuanced take on Hard Rock comes complete with cuttingly angular guitars, intense percussion, viscerally restraint-less vocals and the sense that La Roma is going to take the scene by storm once COVID has finished destroying it.

Strangers is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

ourfathers. added nuanced maturity to the progressive post-rock genre with their colossally evocative single ‘an offering.’

Posted on 12 January 2021
Movements II by ourfathers.

It was only a matter of time until an alt-rock artist simultaneously exuding influence from Sigur Ros and At the Drive caught our distinction-seeking-attention. The latest progressive post-rock hit ‘an offering.’ from ourfarthers. has left us ensnared.

Admitting that tracks by emo artists appease your angsty soul may be met with all manner of snobby pretension from insufferable aficionados, but an offering. isn’t a track easily torn apart. Maturity can be hard to find in tracks which deliver burning unbridled emotion, but discernibly, an offering. is the needle in the evocative haystack.

With quiescently melodic increments sidled next to rip-roaring breakdowns when all restraint is thrown away with visceral abandon in sonically anthemic style, an offering. is enough to make your soul quiver.

an offering. is available to stream and download via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Absideon revives nu metal with their new wave sound in ‘Ephemeral’

Posted on 1 January 2021
https://absideon.bandcamp.com/track/ephemeral

Kicking off with a delicately picked, reverb-soaked clean guitar part before launching into the full-on aural assault of distorted guitars, heavy drums, and thundering bass alongside twin, intertwined vocals, ‘Ephemeral’ from Texarkana duo Brett and Casey – a.k.a. Absideon – is a riotous storm of melodic metal which screams from the speakers and launches itself, bodily, at your earlobes.

There’s obvious comparisons with Linkin Park, System Of A Down, or Seether, but the melodic rock and clever timing shifts set ‘Ephemeral’ apart from the welter of generic sound-alike Nu-Metal wannabes; there’s some serious musicianship on show here, for sure, but the duo also clearly have talent in abundance around both vocal and production duties. ‘Ephemeral’ is the opening track from Absideon’s new-this-week six track EP ‘Reflections’, and on the basis of this it promises to be an absolute firestorm of a record.

Check out Absideon on Spotify and Facebook now.

Review by Alex Holmes

Grindcore meets Sludge Metal in XMALCOLMX’s humanity damning single ‘MAN IS THE PREY’

Posted on 16 December 2020

Sludge Metal, Black Metal, Nu Metal and Grindcore all cataclysmically collide in the 2020 album from  XMALCOLMX, ‘MAN IS THE PREY’. Each track exhibits the Stockton, California-hailing artist’s experimental style which has set the benchmark for boundary-pushing within the DIY music scene of Northern California. If you want the best introduction to XMALCOLMX’s addictively visceral sound, hit play on the title single.

The progressive track kicks off with distorted trepidation and hostility before rhythm starts to break through the caustic sonic sludge and punky protestive vocals bounce along with the monumental progressions. With an aural curveball at every turn in the tight instrumentals and the vocals proving to be just as versatile, MAN IS THE PREY quickly entices you through the addictively rhythmic abrasive energy

You can check out MAN IS THE PREY along with the rest of XMALCOLMX’s sludgy masterpiece for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

jain – kneading: Eccentrically Volatile Alt Garage Rock

Posted on 20 August 2020
https://jaintn.bandcamp.com/track/kneading

Nashville, Tennessee artist jain released their noisy Garage Rock EP ‘the end of June’ at… the end of June. The track which caught our attention was the discord-spilling riotously angsty single ‘kneading’.

The short and distortedly sweet track incorporates elements of Punk, No Wave, Post Hardcore and Indie and throws in some sonically psychedelic lead guitar work to ensure that you’ve never heard anything quite like this eccentrically volatile release before.

In short, kneading is utter chaos and it can even make artists such as Pavement and Daughters seem middle-of-the-road.

You can check out kneading for yourselves by heading over to Bandcamp where you’ll be able to download and stream the rest of the EP.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

PLAGUES – Sentinel: It’s Time to Start Getting Excited About Metal Again.

Posted on 26 June 2020
PLAGUES

If any new release has made me miss live music, it’s PLAGUES’ latest single “Sentinel”. The throat-ripping roars and intricately melodic speed of light progressions are just two of the reasons why this genre-melting offering of Metal will leave you as in awe of PLAGUES’ provocative release as we were.

With nuances of Speed Metal, Thrash Metal, Post Hardcore and Death Metal all weaved into the atmospheric production, it’s safe to say that PLAGUES have stamped down their signature colossal sound with Sentinel.

You’ll be able to check out the official music video to PLAGUES’ single Sentinel for yourselves from June 26th via their official website.

Keep up to date with the artist’s latest releases via Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Homecoming has released their punchiest Indie Pop Punk single to date with the release of “Prime”

Posted on 21 May 2020

Pop Punk, Post Hardcore and Indie Rock all entwine in the explosively adrenalizing recently released single “Prime” from breaking San Antonio-based artist Homecoming.

They’ve gone right back to the roots of Emo and Pop-Punk with the bouncing anthemic choruses which stand as a testament to the production standard of Prime. Yet Homecoming played a bit of Machiavellian trick as they allowed the harmonically magnetic vocals to be interrupted by the raw screamo lyrics. The seismic shift in energy definitely wasn’t expected. Yet, it made the sticky-sweet choruses which followed even more absorbing.

No review of Prime would be complete without mentioning the guitar which borrows Indie Rock nuances to ensure that the track isn’t just a heavy-hitter. There’s also a smorgasbord of deftly intricate distinction within their playing style to gorge upon.

You can check out Homecoming’s single Prime for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Common Choir – Dive Bar Knight Life Pt 2: Colossally Caustic Metalcore

Posted on 17 March 2020

If you’re always on the lookout for the freshest Metalcore talent, you won’t have to look much further than Common Choir.

The standout single “Dive Bar Knight Life Pt 2” from their self-released EP is a cathartically volatile hit which is driven by pure unfaltering tensile momentum and soul slicing raw emotion.

You only need to listen to the tight synergy in to affirm that Common Choir is a powerhouse. From Dive Bar Knight Life Pt 2 you can expect consuming choruses and instrumental breakdowns which will leave any discerning metal fan with goosebumps. There’s no chance of missing the virtuosity of the bassist. The thunderous growls are enough to make you suspicious that he’s of relation to Thor.

And no review of Common Choir would be complete without mentioning the captivatingly dynamic vocals which consistently evolve in perfect synergy with the instrumentals. From throat-rippingly raw screams, to soaring vocal melodies, this monster of a track proves that the Minnesota band can offer it all.

You can check out the official video to Dive Bar Knight Life Pt 2 which was released on January 5th via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Solitary Set – Asking for a Friend: Melodically Visceral Post-Rock

Posted on 29 November 2019

“Asking for a Friend” is just one of the inventively evocative singles which you will find on the latest album “The Series Parallel” from up and coming Alt Rock artist Solitary Set.

The Baltimore-based artist weaved together a potent mix of Emo, Post-Rock, and Hardcore to create a cutting, visceral aural treat which will allow you to appreciate the melodicism which can be pulled out of harsher and more caustic genres.

Asking for a Friend is bordering on cinematic, and I’m sure that this won’t be the last we hear from Solitary Set. With the driving energy behind their sound, it’s impossible not to get caught up amongst the angsty momentum. Expect ample catharsis when you hit play on Asking for a Friend.

You can check out Asking for a Friend for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast