★★☆☆ When this shoegazery doomsludge album works, it works very well. But there are two major problems with it, which drag the whole effort down. First: the songs are just a bit go-nowheresy, even by doom standards. That’s a minor quibble, compared to the second problem: the clean vocals are bad. See the rest here
★★☆☆ A zippy, oddly produced collection of songs that lift heavily from Arch Enemy, Megadeth, and a touch of DragonForce. But it’s got energy, and it’s fun, so I’m not gonna kick it out of bed. See the rest here
★★★★ This is the most emotionally complete prog metal album of the year. As was the case with the band’s debut album, Soen continue to wear their Tool and APC influences on their sleeves with this followup. But the overall sound is more nuanced now, more fleshed out and dynamic. (You’d be forgiven for thinking that this was a lost Opeth album, in fact.) See the rest here
★★☆☆ Put Leprous, Yes, Dream Theater, and Porcupine Tree in a blender, and you’ll get this EP. Solidly entertaining, but a bit derivative (which is surprising, considering how different this band and their sources are from the mainstays). See the rest here
★★★☆ In ways subtle and otherwise, this album feels like more of the spiritual successor to Decapitated’s “Carnival Is Forever” than that band’s followup album from this year. Beneath have produced a blistering barrage of technical death, tirelessly ferocious but with moments of almost progressive ambition. While there are perhaps not enough changes in dynamics and timbre to make this a masterpiece, it’s still sure to be a crowdpleaser: dark, surefooted, and a bona fide bile-raiser. See the rest here
★★★☆ I have been steadfast in my dismissal of all things Cavalera over the years, ever since “Roots.” But this album finally feels like it gets more things right than not. The detuning (both on the guitars and the vocals) combine with an unorthodoxically muddy mix to fit Max’s nihilistic ambitions while simultaneously putting him in his place: present, but not front and center. See the rest here
★★☆☆ This is an unstoppable juggernaut that nevertheless manages to chew up its own gears. The power, speed, and energy are undeniable. The problem is that there’s just too much material being thrown around here to have it stick with any semblance of flow or continuity. With some self-editing, The Kennedy Veil would be a serious force to be reckoned with. See the rest here
★★☆☆ This should be a slam dunk for lovers of technodeath. And yet, while it hits all the right marks (speed, technicality, darkness, guitar solos, blast beats), there’s something about the whole thing that sounds too familiar, especially if you’ve spent any time at all listening to any other technodeath band of the last three years. See the rest here
★★★☆ This is so gloriously sludgey that you’re going to get a contact high just listening to it. It’s like The Sword crossed paths with The Jesus Lizard, and they all ate some brownies together and listened to The Doors. Man, I am trippin’ balls right now. See the rest here
★★★★ Is this another shameless reunion grab? Perhaps. But this latest helping of that sweet, sweet Gothenburg melodeath is certainly satisfying and it goes down so smooth. At times, it’s reminiscent of Opeth, of The Haunted, of a few bands that have come and gone since the last time At The Gates put out an album. See the rest here
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