Mathcore

The Motion Mosaic – Avant-Garbage Review

The Motion Mosaic – Avant-Garbage Review

“The joke has been made. Or rather, as I am forever chastised by the Wordpress interface for the passive voice’s use, The Motion Mosaic made the joke. So did Huck when he checked in to make sure I was covering this. Never one to stop the momentum of a joke at my expense, I let him know I was way ahead of him. To know thyself truly is as hard as Steel or, in this case, hardcore, and it is the goal of The Motion Mosaic’s eclectic sophomore record.” Mathcore is hard.

Car Bomb – Mordial [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

Car Bomb – Mordial [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

“New York’s Car Bomb have oddly escaped my radar, so I was stoked to finally become acquainted with the band on their blockbuster fourth LP, Mordial. Admittedly I’m less adventurous towards experimental, technical extreme metal than I used to be, but bands like the mighty The Dillinger Escape Plan, along with Burnt by the Sun, Uphill Battle and large portions of the early Willowtip roster are dear to my heart. Car Bomb’s complex, abrasive blend of mathcore and choppy, groove-centric extreme metal is full of color as surprisingly penetrating hooks lend a vaguely accessible streak to otherwise challenging and uncompromising music.” Don’t cut the red wire.

Senza – Even a Worm Will Turn [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

Senza – Even a Worm Will Turn [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

“The bird snared in a net. The snake with a wound in its side. The fawn with a broken leg. Glassy-eyed and propelled only by adrenaline, they will lash out; they will peck, claw, kick, and bite, not for malice, but as a reflex. The body, independent of thought, will jerk and writhe and mangle itself further. We all have a desperate subconscious violence we hope will never surface, a basic, universal response no different than the flailing of an impaled insect.” Survive or die.

Meth. – Mother of Red Light Review

Meth. – Mother of Red Light Review

“Do you enjoy life? Do you feel like we are living in a world that is beautiful and rich in spite of the flaws of us humans? Do you look forward to each new day, full of light and possibilities? Well, fuck you, you worthless pile of nothing. We’re all but stains of blood encrusting the crime scene that is society, the festering remnants of everything good a long forgotten memory that is buried deep beneath the tar pits of our dying planet. That is the sentiment Meth. express with Mother of Red Light.” Beaten back to zero.

Freighter – The Den Review

Freighter – The Den Review

“At some stage of sleeplessness, the pace of thought continues at speed while the fragmented hard drive of the mind reads straight across without regard for pointers or references. Ideas, memories, images, and anxieties flow without order or continuity through consciousness. It’s a state best approximated by mathcore, and mathcore is what Freighter approximate it with; The Den trades in the genre’s usual angst for a paranoid psychedelia to express this unique deprivation.” Not your dad’s metal.

Rolo Tomassi – Time Will Die and Love Will Bury It [Things You Might Have Missed 2018]

Rolo Tomassi – Time Will Die and Love Will Bury It [Things You Might Have Missed 2018]

Rolo Tomassi is an enigma. It’s a band that feels like it shouldn’t be metal, yet it undeniably is. Frontwoman Eva Spence, with her petite stature, sharp fashion sense and pixie haircut, seems more at home in an eco-friendly coffee bar than a metal venue. They seem to hang more around the indie scene than denim-filled dive bars. Hell, they’ve been favorably reviewed by NME, and if that’s not a condemnation of metal cred I don’t know what is.” Cred is for posers.

Noise Trail Immersion – Symbology of Shelter Review

Noise Trail Immersion – Symbology of Shelter Review

“In the past couple of decades, metal has generated extremity along both rhythmic and harmonic paths, but the two have been largely insulated from another. Meshuggah and The Dillinger Escape Plan meticulously machined immensely complex rhythms, while Deathspell Omega and Ulcerate twisted strings to wring out sickening chords and chilling melodies. And while accusing Meshuggah or Dillinger of harmonic simplicity would be as absurd as dismissing Ulcerate or Deathspell’s considerable rhythmic weight, the approaches of the two schools are rarely invoked at once. That’s where Noise Trail Immersion come in.” New maths.

The Dali Thundering Concept – Savages Review

The Dali Thundering Concept – Savages Review

“First of all, that’s a pretty cool name. The Dali Thundering Concept. Cool enough that it made me spend a couple of hours on the InterGoogle in an effort to discern its origins, but to no avail. Oh well. Here’s what I like about this French band: their music is a mish-mash of styles, including prog, deathcore, djent, and jazz. Aside from the –coreness, I’m up for it.” Loud Dali or no Dali at all!

The Hirsch Effekt – Eskapist Review

The Hirsch Effekt – Eskapist Review

“Drawing from a variety of influences such as math-metal, metalcore, industrial, prog and even pop, The Hirsch Effekt aren’t afraid to challenge convention, but in doing so, they run the risk of being swallowed by their own ambition. The inclusion of a bold language like German could prove to be a volatile addition to an already fractious mix or it could be the epoxy that holds everything together. A salivating proposition.” Die Bart die.