Hardcore

KEN mode – VOID Review

KEN mode – VOID Review

By Dolphin Whisperer on September 22, 2023 in Reviews, Hardcore, Noise Rock, Post-Hardcore, Post-Metal, 38 comments

“Here we are again strung upon KEN mode’s newest, fresh-faced outing, VOID—well, as fresh a face as these Canucks can muster. NULL’s intense and twisted Red Demon has fractured into a split visage of terrified sadness and caved-in confidence. Though KEN mode has little to fret over in the performance realm, the returning four-piece lineup boasting some of the most diverse and rich talents of the band’s career, a troubled mind, this demon state, does not find solace through notes of proficiency and creativity.” Face of things to come.

AMG Goes Ranking – Dying Fetus

AMG Goes Ranking – Dying Fetus

By Saunders on September 5, 2023 in AMG Rankings, Death Metal, Hardcore, Slam, 27 comments

“The life of the unpaid, overworked metal reviewer is not an easy one. The reviewing collective at AMG lurches from one new release to the next, errors and n00bs strewn in our wake. But what if, once in a while, the collective paused to take stock and consider the discography of those bands that shaped many a taste? What if multiple aspects of the AMG collective personality shared with the slavering masses their personal rankings of that discography.” UnDying Fetus!

Somnuri – Desiderium Review

Somnuri – Desiderium Review

By Cherd on July 21, 2023 in Reviews, Hardcore, Sludge, 44 comments

“Those familiar with Somnuri’s previous work can expect a similar Cobb salad of influences from early Mastodon to Helmet to savage NYHC. Somnuri and Nefarious Wave occasionally added passages of straight sludge doom in the vein of YOB, and the removal of these marks the largest shift in sound evident in Desiderium.” Sludge as a lifestyle choice?

Systemik Viølence – Negative Mangel Attitude Review

Systemik Viølence – Negative Mangel Attitude Review

By Dolphin Whisperer on June 30, 2023 in Reviews, Crust Punk, Hardcore, Thrash Metal, 19 comments

“Punk and metal have a complicated relationship, or at least we treat them like they do. As fans, we like to be something—a metalhead, a punk, a dissobro. As music seekers, we like to have genre guides—punk-born tags like crust, mathcore, grindcore, metal-born tags like doom, death, black, kissing cousins like sludge, thrash, deathcore. And the bands we value tend to play to or play with these expectations. Others eschew the norms of where they’re placed or even fight the idea of being the guitar music we’ve all come to love—but not Systemik Viølence. These Portuguese knuckleheads just wanna play screeching chords, overdriven bass, and venomous vocal lashings loud, fast, and loud.” Feel the wiølence.