December 20, 2023

As blasphemous and corrosive as it is, Karkosa‘s new album Esoterrorcult reaches a level of catchiness that blackened death metal rarely nails, but honestly could stand to reach more often. There’s no tradeoffs happening here, as Esoterrorcult is big on impact and vile, crawling riffs–but the Indiana group’s core offering comes with engaging trappings that...

… Hi, it’s me again, with the best metalcore albums of the year for the third year in a row. It’s a really exciting time for metalcore and its various related sub-subgenres, and as you’ll see below, I took a somewhat liberal approach to the definition of “metalcore.” With albums that swing from “metallic hardcore”...

This was the year for long-awaited returns. Many bands released their first albums since the Before Time, and a lot of them fucking nailed it. A handful of those albums made my top 20 (see below). Several, sadly, just missed my top 20, including Horrendous’ Ontological Mysterium, Jesus Piece’s …So Unknown, Cryptopsy’s As Gomorrah Burns,...

Every year I find myself simultaneously looking forward to and dreading the idea of this introduction. Drafts which are too personal, ideas which are too abstract. In the end, all I really want to do is express just how lucky I feel to live in the current era of music. There are people who say...