Alternative Metal

Madder Mortem – Old Eyes, New Heart Review

By GardensTale on January 25, 2024 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Gothic Metal, Progressive Metal, 82 comments

“Angry Metal Guy might be the only place on the internet where Madder Mortem won’t need an introduction for a significant amount of its readers. The Norwegian band first made waves here with Red in Tooth and Claw, and those waves got much bigger with Marrow earning a well-deserved 4.5 and topping several lists. It’s also the only band with a movie review on the site. When there is no news on the band I still can’t stop name-dropping them, even when it’s not relevant to the music I’m reviewing. So when I contacted the band to send them the movie review and they told me they were in the middle of recording a new album, my inner hype machine went into overdrive.” Heart of a fanboy.

Antirope – Amnesia Review

By GardensTale on July 7, 2023 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Doom Metal, 28 comments

“Alternative metal has a colorful history, running parallel with some of metal’s greatest upheavals and residing at the crib of nu-metal’s short but terrible reign. Nowadays the term is practically a relic, but every now and then a band comes along that hearkens back to that no man’s land between ‘true’ metal and radio rock. Antirope is such a band.” Alternative to what?

The Offering – Seeing the Elephant Review

By Holdeneye on November 3, 2022 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Death Metal, Deathcore, Groove Metal, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Metalcore, Nu Metal, Progressive Metal, 225 comments

“Three years ago, I covered Home, the debut full-length from Boston-based multi-genre masters The Offering. I loved Home at the time, but the intervening period has seen the record’s shadow grow even larger over me; it’s simply one of the most unique and mind-blowing albums I’ve ever heard. The album made my Top 5 of 2019 (and probably would move up at least one spot were I making that list today), so its follow-up comes with the highest of expectations.” You can’t go Home again.

Thoughtcrimes – Altered Pasts Review

By Dear Hollow on August 27, 2022 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Mathcore, Metalcore, 7 comments

“Thoughtcrimes is just cool. The product of an act assembled by former The Dillinger Escape Plan drummer Billy Rymer, Altered Pasts isn’t your typical Converge-core “three minutes of incomprehensible shrieking and feedback” aesthetic. While it has its fair share of blasting rhythms and jagged tempo shifts reminiscent of mathcore’s toddler approach to keeping time, the band has infused it with dynamics. In recognizing that extreme music is just an endless din if it’s not given the room to breathe in crescendos and diminuendos of solid songwriting, Thoughtcrimes have constructed their sophomore effort carefully.” Altered math.

GGGOLDDD – This Shame Should Not Be Mine Review

By GardensTale on April 4, 2022 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, 132 comments

“GGGOLDDD is a band with a message. That sentence alone is enough to put Many People on edge. Because Many People are of the opinion that your sole duty as a band is to play music, not to confront us with stuff like political statements or uncomfortable truths. Many People say that music is supposed to be an escape and the only emotions an artist is allowed to make you feel are happy ones. Many People speak utter horseshit. Many People speak this horseshit because listening to a band with a message makes them uncomfortable, even when the message is as plain as “don’t fucking rape people.”” Words to live by.

Howl of the Underdogs Movie Review

By GardensTale on July 9, 2021 in Blog Posts, Movie Review, Alternative Metal, Gothic Metal, Progressive Metal, 16 comments

“Usually, band documentaries are reserved for two types of Acts. Either, those who made it big and want to have their legacy cemented, which will often be titled something like “The Rise Of Band.” Or, those who made it big and crashed so spectacularly it makes for a good story: “The Rise And Fall Of Band.” What usually doesn’t happen is “The Lack Of Rise Of A Great Band That Somehow Never Made It Big.” But Madder Mortem isn’t really a usual band, with their decades of experience pumping out fantastic albums with stunning emotional depth and a completely unique sound which I’ve not heard replicated or imitated anywhere.” Underdogs have their day.

Moanhand – Present Serpent Review

By Grymm on June 14, 2021 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Black Metal, Doom Metal, 18 comments

“Try as I might, it’s hard to break out of patterns that take months, if not years, to craft and make a template out of. I still put actual milk in my coffee and not that oily Coffeemate bullshit. My breakfast omelets will always have cheddar cheese, bacon, and enough garlic to anger vampires. Above all, I like my doom metal to be… doom metal. Heavy. Oppressive. Mournful. That said, sometimes a little deviation can work wonders, and Roman Filatov, chief songwriter and solo proprietor of Moanhand, is seeking to woo the masses over with his creative take on a classic sound using a wide swath of influences.” Snake’s take.

Sectlinefor – Kissing Strangers During an Outbreak

By Felagund on May 30, 2021 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Electronica, 106 comments

“I’ve always appreciated metal bands willing to include a hefty dose of comedy in their work. In a genre known for taking itself too seriously at times, wedding irreverence with heaviness can be an artistic gamble, and I appreciate that commitment. Melted Bodies’ Enjoy Yourself was a favorite of 2020, Slugdge’s amazingly ridiculous Slug God mythos has had me sold ever since The Cosmic Cornucopia, and who can forget modern thrash’s obsession with hard-partying zombies? The fact that such bands employ comedic imagery, satirical lyrics or non-traditional instrumentation while addressing real issues (whether personal or public) make their output all the more impressive. It’s why I was quick to jump at the chance to review Kissing Strangers During an Outbreak, the latest from Sectlinefor, a deranged duo who perform, in their own words, “freshly squeezed cinematic rock music you didn’t order, sir.”” Plague tongue.

Los Disidentes Del Sucio Motel – Polaris Review

By Steel Druhm on April 2, 2021 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, Post-Metal, Progressive Metal, Progressive Rock, Stoner Rock, 21 comments

“Oddball French heavy rock outfit Los Disidentes Del Sucio Motel (LDDSM) is difficult to assign to a specific genre or style. Over their career they’ve been described as stoner, psychedelic and prog rock, and none of that is completely wrong. Nor does it give you the full story. Now they’re back after 4 years in limbo with fourth album Polaris, and they’re every bit as tough to pigeonhole as always. If I were to make a Hail Mary effort to describe their style, it would be alt-rock mixed with prog, post-rock, and post-metal, with grunge/stoner/desert elements lurking at the edges.” A multiverse of influences.

Tomahawk – Tonic Immobility Review

By Dr. Wvrm on March 26, 2021 in Reviews, Alternative Metal, 61 comments

“Supergroups have always stuck me as a weird concept in metal, and a dated one in rock. That sort of fits Tomahawk, the famous(ish) oddball alt-metal/heavy rock outfit founded by Mike Patton (Mr. Bungle, Faith No More) and Duane Denison (The Jesus Lizard). Over the last 20 years, the gritty quartet haven’t aged a day, forever rocking like it’s 1998 and they just walked out of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas for the tenth time.” Toxic creativity.