Artist : Unchained Breathing
Album : Anthem (Single)
Genre : Atmospheric Deathcore/Metalcore
Year : 2012
Country : Netherlands
Tracks :
1. Anthem
Size : 10.5mb
(also download it from their bandcamp)
18/20
Showing posts with label Metalcore. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Metalcore. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Endless - Rebuild
Album : Rebuild
Genre : Hardcore / Metalcore
Year : 2011
Country : USA
Website : facebook
Tracks :
1. On Your Own
2. Destroyer
3. Rebuild
4. Marino Crane
5. Deceive Me
Size : 46mb
15/20
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Waking the Monolith - Self Titled EP
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Two Shells Left - Self Titled EP
Artist : Two Shells Left
Album : Two Shells Left (EP)
Genre : Metalcore
Year : 2012
Country : USA
Website : facebook
Tracks :
1. Deuces
2. Don't Hate on Beauty
3. DSWMD
4. Minimalist
5. Tch Tch!
6. Vindicate
Size : 24mb
(each track can be downloaded individually, please request if you want me to upload a folder)
16/20
16/20
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
As Humanity Devastates - Depict The Signs
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Plagues - Beginnings
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Between Our Hearts - A Reason To Believe
Artist : Between Our Hearts
Album : A Reason To Believe
Genre : Christian Metalcore
Year : 2011
Country : USA
Website : facebook , last.fm , bandcamp , myspace , youtube
Tracks :
1. In The Beginning
2. Diamonds In The Rough
3. Time
4. The Fifth Chapter
5. With Many Crowns
6. From Devastation
7. A Reason To Believe
Size : 42mb
14/20
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Sirens Fall Silent - In Our Darkest Dreams
Sirens Fall Silent - In Our Darkest Dreams
Sirens Fall Silent is a metalcore band from the United States of America. There is a new breed of metalcore on the horizon, its called mathcore and for those who don’t know that that is its just pretty much technical metalcore, and also djent which is progressive style of metalcore. Although these two styles of playing metalcore have been around for quite a while now, only recently have there been a spike in the number of bands which have swarmed the underground scene, desperate for attention. Sirens Fall Silent has stated that originality is really hard to come by these days so I’m guessing that originality is the mindset of the band and if I was in a band, that would be a good place to start. I don’t know really know why, but so many bands out there today are all most hell-bent on trying to be the new B4MV or the new BMTH in hope that they will be riding the coat tails of those bands sooner or later. The reality is that 99.999% of bands don’t ever achieve this or even come close. This brings me back to Sirens fall Silent, although I cannot say that these guys are 100% original (otherwise I’d be lying) this is definitely something that is new, fresh and I like it.
The first thing that I’d like to point out that Sirens Fall Silent isn’t like your average progressive metalcore band (or djent). Typically, djent take pride on how atmospheric they can be or how emotional. A lot of people hate it, a lot of people love it but that’s not what Sirens fall Silent is all about. I think the reason why many people dislike djent is people if feels somewhat shallow which is odd because the whole point of some of these bands is to be deep. Sirens Fall Silent have taken the progressive sound and combined it with metalcore to create something that is stands out from the rest of the bands out there. This is why I’m lead to believe that these guys are more than just another progressive metalcore band or why I don’t label them as djent at all.
Another thing that makes Sirens Fall Silent stand out from the rest even more is how complex the musical structure. The complexity of this album far exceeds anything that should be classified as djent. I wouldn’t go as far as saying its mathcore though, that term isn’t something to be used for this band ever. Why? Because these guys actually have a sense of structure in their music. The aim of the game for Sirens Fall Silent from what I’ve heard isn’t to be the most technical, most complex metalcore band ever, I can assure you that. But yeah, The musical structure is more complex than your average metalcore band such as Bullet for My Valentine or Demon Hunter. I’d say that they’d be at the same level as something like Devil Wears Prada.
I don’t know why, but I love metalcore or hardcore bands that have that juvenile vibe to their music. It makes them sound fresh, and ripe for the hearing. Although there is pride of sounding like a mature band, there is no shame in sounding juvenile either. Sirens Fall Silent have this juvenile sound to them, which is another thing that makes their music sound awesome than what it already is. There is just something about the guitar riffs, the vocal style and musical structure which give off this vibe of juvenility. But I think it’s the clean vocals that really indicates how young this band sounds like it is. I can’t really describe it for two reasons; one, because its really hard and its something that should be heard not told and secondly, because I want you to experience them for yourself. All I can tell you is that it doesn’t sound like some kind of washed up hardcore vocalist from the 90s.
There is a certain attitude that this Sirens Fall Silent has, and they have expressed them in all components of their music. They have done it in the guitar work, the vocal style but most of all in the breakdowns. I don’t know about you, but the breakdowns really give Sirens Fall Silent a sense of maturity as well as juvenility. The breakdowns that they used here are typical metalcore breakdowns that bands such as Texas in July love using. They aren’t chuggy or overly slow or sluggish. They are nice, fast but very effective at keeping the atmosphere feelings behind the music going.
Overall, I think that Sirens Fall Silent are one of the bands out there that people need to keep an eye out for. Because, each day there are more and more bands that form out there in the big wide world, which means that there is more and more poorer quality bands. This makes good bands (such as Sirens Fall Silent) harder to find so if I were you I’d go out and grab them while I can. Sirens Fall Silent have looked at the problem of originality in music going down the drain and have expressed their solution through their music. I can tell you that if you are expecting anything along the lines of avant garde or experimental metalcore, don’t. If you are one of those people who say “I’ve heard it all, and djent and mathcore are nothing new to me”, don’t. Although they aren’t 100% original, they still bring something interesting to the table of metalcore which in my opinion is more important. In Our Darkest Dreams have given us an insight to what Sirens Fall Silent is all about, and I can tell you, it’s looking good. I recommend the In Our Darkest Dreams ep to anyone who is into bands such as The Devil Wears Prada because this should be right up your alley. I give Sirens Fall Silent’s In Our Darkest Dreams a 17/20.
Above the Broken - Sins
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Amidst The Kings - Virtures
Artist : Amidst The Kings
Album : Virtues
Genre : Metalcore
Year : 2011
Country : USA
Website : facebook
Tracks :
1. Checkmate
2. Driving Blind
3. At Least I Can Sleep At Night
4. Like a Champion
5. Jezebel
6. NBFD
Size : 36.5mb
Album : Virtues
Genre : Metalcore
Year : 2011
Country : USA
Website : facebook
Tracks :
1. Checkmate
2. Driving Blind
3. At Least I Can Sleep At Night
4. Like a Champion
5. Jezebel
6. NBFD
Size : 36.5mb
15/20
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Trivium - In Waves
Trivium - In Waves
In Waves is Trivium’s fifth studio album which was released in 2011. Trivium is one of those bands that come once in a life time, there aren’t many bands out there who reached the same popularity as what these guys have done and there is a reason for this. First of all, not many bands out there are willing to combine thrash metal and metalcore together in a single sound and there are even less bands that do this well. Secondly they are only of the few bands that provoke emotion without having to resort to progressiveness or depression, somehow it comes naturally to them. And finally its one of the very few bands that’s accessible to almost any metal, hardcore or alternative rock fan anywhere on the globe. The chances are that people who listen to hardcore or metalcore primarily must have gone through Trivium at some point. It’s usually a gateway between metal/hardcore and rock. The thing that makes In Waves so great is that I think that out of all the albums Trivium has put out, In Waves would be the most accessible of them all.
My first impression of this album is that Trivium is getting closer and closer to metalcore rather than hardcore or thrash metal due to the breakdown in the track In Waves. Trivium aren’t well known for their break downs but to be honest, this breakdown isn’t the heaviest, fastest or even well structured but somehow it gets the head bobbing. Also I am obliged to point out that this album is not hugely packed up to the roof with breakdown. That could be any hardcore Trivium fan’s worst nightmare, so basically the opening breakdown in In Waves does not signify Trivium’s intentions to load the album with breakdowns. That being said, there are more breakdowns here than in any other Trivium albums (maybe because the previous have albums have little to none). They are all moderately heavy.
Many fans out there are probably thinking “Breakdown?!?!? really Trivium? really…?” well fans, don’t worry because I also think that their thrash influences are just as great as their previous albums. The guitar riffs are still exactly the same as what we saw in Shogun and in that sense, yeah there might just be a tad of difference here and there but you can still hear that trademarked Trivium guitar tone in here. I think the breakdowns sound weird with this type of guitar tone, it’s not bad it’s just that it’s hard to get used to because we barely hear them in previous albums. Now I’m not sure what the “hardcore” fans will say about this though because it’s not really part of Trivium’s sound, they might use the argument that Trivium is drifing closer and closer to mediocre metalcore and that they will not return to their previous greatness. But then again, you have to expect breakdowns within any metalcore or metalcore influenced album. The bottom line is that there are breakdowns in this album and if you are an anti-breakdown elitist, don’t pick up this album and if you don’t care either way, you will enjoy In Waves.
Trivium has not always been known for their hardcore sound but in particular tracks in In Waves, but the hardcore influence is highlighted more than ever. The vocals and the chords which are played this time round have a certain attitude that is normally associated with NYC hardcore band. It has the rawness to it as well giving it more of New York feel to their music. I’m not sure if this was present in their previous album (if it was I didn’t pick up on it) but I think I just adds an extra spin to their music. But the only problem is that I don’t think Trivum really needed this extra hardcore spin to their music, mainly because its not really what all of Trivium’s fans came to love. That being said, Trivium is one of the only bands that show progression throughout their albums and if breakdowns can be accepted in their new sound, I think hardcore can as well.
But like many albums that have come out in 2011, there is a downside to In Waves. Now I’m not trying to take away from their musician ship of each member of the band because I know for a fact that they are all excellent musicians who are renowned all over the world. But as many of you already know they have had a recent line up change and have a different drummer. I’m not sure about this new drummer though because Matt Heafy specifically said that he was going to take Trivium’s drumming to the next level. I don’t even think that the new drummer even compares with the old one. I remember the style of drumming that was featured in songs like Ascendancy and I was wondering if I were to hear them again in In Waves. I don’t really think he lives up to the hype when it comes to taking something to the next level, he doesn’t really keep up with the pace. On the plus side though, I did feel that he made better transitions in the songs. The sadest thing is that I know that he can drum faster, it just seems like he doesn’t feel like it at times, or maybe it’s just that Trivium might just be looking for their new sound. Either way, drumming has changed the way that Trivum has approached writing their music.
In comparison with Triviums previous albums, In Waves is neither a great success nor a blunder. I think that every Trivium fan all over the world would agree that Ascendancy was their crowning achievement. It was fast, technical and overall it was beautiful. In Waves doesn’t exactly live up to the fast and technical of the previous Ascendancy but it is quite beautiful, dare I say it was even more beautiful than Ascendancy. There is just something about the riffs that work in the opening track In Waves that give the music a certain euphoric feeling (even though this occurs throughout the album, In Waves is the most powerful) and when it combines with some clean vocals, it can be pretty relaxing to listen to. So In Waves isn’t really the worst Trivium has put out, In fact it reminds me a lot of their last album Shogun. The only difference really, is the drumming but other than that, the attitude and tone of the music is practically the same. So to order Trivium’s albums in preference with the first one being the worst: The Crusade (one of the worst albums ever written, although the cover looks cool), From Ember to Inferno, Shogun, In Waves and Ascendancy.
Not only is In Waves probably the most beautiful album out of everything Trivium have produced, but its so easy to see (hear) that they have put in an effort to make this album as interesting as possible without over cluttering the music. The edition of thorough breakdowns and a new drumming style is only the tip of the ice berg. Like many other bands who want to make interesting music they have throw in many other things to make the music interesting such as improved guitar solos, raspier vocals and more attitude. They have even gone to the trouble of even adding an acoustic passage in this album. This is also one of the largest albums that they have ever created (18 tracks including the bonus tracks) which gives them room for many different sounds to include in their music. Some of the notable ones are very strong punk and grudge elements. There are times where I keep thinking that I’m listening to an awkward version of Nickelback sometimes. I think this just increases the replay value of this album a lot more.
There is much more beauty in this album than their previous recordings and with beauty comes emotion. Emotion has become a prime ingredient in In Waves and there is so much here. This album might not be Trivium’s technical masterpiece but it is one beautiful piece of work. Its just something about the guitar work that makes In Waves so emotional. Even though the guitar work and vocals make up the bulk of the emotion featured in this album, I think that the punk rock and alternative rock elements extend this feeling. I don’t normally associate metal/hardcore bands from anything from the rock area, but I think the punk styles here are closely related to the likes of Yellowcard and Jimmy Eats World. Not only is this a nice addition to their music but I think that this would be something I’d follow if I was in a band making new music.
Overall this is one of the best albums that Trivium has put out and I guess it’s a little hard to compare In Waves with their crowning album Ascendancy because despite their similarities, they both have their pros and cons, it’s impossible to weight it up. But I can say that Trivium’s new direction looks (sounds) very promising and the best part is that you can still clearly hear the old roots of their music. This is essentially what makes this album so good Trivium one of the best bands to ever hit the scene and its that they keep moving forward. Each album since Ember to Inferno has been showing signs of progression and trial and error. Yeah, sure, The Crusade might have been one of the worst albums ever made but they tried, failed, and moved onto something else and isn’t that what good band is supposed to do? I recommend this to any Trivium or metalcore and thrash metal fans out there. I recommend the tracks In Waves (for metalcore fans), Forsake Not The Dream (for punk and rock fans), A Skyline's Severance (for people who want something harder and faster) and Caustic Are The Ties That Bind (for people who are seeking emotion). In Waves is a great album which definitely shows that hardcore juggernaut Trivium is still one of the best bands out there and they don’t show any signs of slowing down. I give In Waves a 17/20.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Breathing While Buried - Voices
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Seeking First Light - Demo
Friday, August 12, 2011
Sevenskies - Nobodies
Sevenskies - Nobodies
Sevenskies is a metalcore band from Cairns Australia and Nobodies is their debut ep. Although these guys may have come from Cairns, they have now relocated to Brisbane. “Yesss!” people scream as miniradman comes back with some Australian metalcore. When people read or hear the words “metalcore” and “Australia” in the same sentence people immediately show the whites of their eyes as they realise that they will be hearing some good stuff. They think of the giants such as Parkway Drive and I Killed The Prom Queen, what many foreigners might not know is that this is only the tip of the iceberg and there is way more where that came from. It’s bands like Sevenskies that make this happen and is one of the many Australian bands that we should thank for carrying on this wonderful tradition.
Australian metalcore has the tendency to sound more mature and grownup than it’s American or European counterparts. They are more serious, and this is something that Sevenskies has seemed to have taken on board. They don’t try to sound overly fast or overly br00tal with their solos or anything. They just try to play it nice and safe, and besides, there aren’t many Australian bands out there who go all out so these guys fit in so well. To be completely honest, Sevenskies reminds me of a young Parkway Drive as far as musical techniques and vocals are concerned. This doesn’t mean that these guys are a huge rip off of Parkway Drive because that couldn’t be further from the truth. They have thrown in their own sounds to mix things up and anyone who knows, being compared to Parkway Drive should be taken as a massive complement.
Although these guys might have a metalcore style song structure, there is something about their music that sounds like hardcore. Hardcore is probably their biggest influence in their music and this is definitely evident in their vocals work. They don’t have many highs or lows, it just sounds like your ordinary, typical hardcore vocal work which is how hardcore vocals are meant to be done, none of this post-hardcore stuff that people think are real hardcore vocals, because it’s not. Also these guys don’t seem to appeal to emotion as much as many other bands out there. Metalcore is usually stereotyped as being an “emo” genre. Although this is wrong in most cases, this is another thing that leads me to believe that these guys are more hardcore than metalcore. It just shouts of hardcore, the vocals, the guitar tuning and they certainly have that “in your face bitch” hardcore style of attitude.
But I do ask a question. What is something that metalcore and hardcore have in common? Breakdowns! Of course, this band hasn’t made the stupid mistake of boring breakdowns or leaving them out all together. They use two styles of breakdowns in this ep which is quite a lot considering that this is only a 13 minute ep. I know songs that go for longer than this! The first style they have used is you typical hardcore style breakdown. Mid paced, notes are sustained for quite a long time and there is a relative heaviness in there somewhere. The other style that they have used is metalcore ones. Now these are quicker, more abrasive and the notes aren’t sustained for as long. The combination of these two contrasts really well but there is something missing. Usually, in every good ep/album, there is a single breakdown that just seals the album. It can literally make your day!
I think the real highlight of this ep is definitely their song writing and it’s this that makes Australian metalcore so enjoyable to listen to because not many bands around the world that can do it like Aussies do. Like I’ve mentioned before, these guys don’t go for all out brutality like many other bands from around the world. And this is probably another thing that makes their song easier to write and when something is easier to do, you tend to enjoy it more than something you don’t like, and things that are enjoyable to do are usually done better. I think that this is quite an important factor in Sevenskies case because they have excellent song writing. This is essentially what makes these guys just that little bit better than your average, everyday metalcore band. Everything in this ep is where it’s supposed to be, and it all fits together like a perfect little puzzle.
I don’t usually think that production of and an album is something to jump up and down about but as soon as I heard the tuning and distortion of the guitars on this ep, it made me smile. There is something about them that just sounds so filling. It’s they guitars themselves that make up the entire atmosphere and if you think they sound good then, wait until the breakdowns, they are amazing. It’s just another thing that makes this ep so enjoyable to listen to.
Overall, this is a pretty good ep which is always something to be proud of if you consider that this is a debut release. What makes it better is that this is from Australia which automatically gives this the stamp of approval for many metalcore fans. It’s bands like this that carry on the Australian tradition and it’s bands like this who we turn to when something like I Killed The Prom Queen go belly up. I’m sure that this will appeal to many metalcore, deathcore and hardcore fans out there purely because of their hardcore style attitude which is the “fuck you, in your face bitch” kind of atmosphere. In this entire ep I believe that the track “what the thunder said” is easily the best and it represents this band very well. I think it mainly displays their song writing capabilities really well. So I’d recommend that song for anyone who is looking for a taste of Sevenskies sound. Sevenskies is definitely one of those bands that you would want to keep an eye on in the future because who knows, they could be the next biggest thing to come out of Australia! I give Nobodies a 15/20. Hardcore or metalcore, who cares, they are both moshable!
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