Hello! We are back. It’s been months already since the last album of the month post, which isn’t good. Truth be told, I have been slacking. While we certainly did have staff issues I’ll get into later, and July was quite dry (hence this edition is also for August), this still should have come out much sooner than it did, so I apologize for that and try to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Anyway, a bunch of things have happened in the Subway driving room. Tim, Callum, and Matt have all left the blog for the foreseeable future. They were all great writers, and at this point, good friends, so it sucks to lose them. If any of you are reading this, I wish you well. But on a more positive note, we also got some new writers. You may have seen our application post a few weeks back, and it’s yielded some whippersnappers. So say welcome to Mathis, Zach, Will, and Monché (also known as the artist ArmpitMaiden)! You’ll be seeing their first reviews appear on the website in the coming weeks, and the Meet the Team page will be updated to include them as well. We hope that our inconsistent output will get fixed this way.
In other news, I have no news. What would newsless news be? Old news? New news? Is it news at all? I think not, because if it would, then it would be news, which contradicts our assumption of it not being news. I hope you aren’t new to this type of nonsense, because then it’ll be news to you, and we can’t have that. July! August! Music! Albums! Good albums! Read! Listen! Bacon sandwich! What? I CAN’T HEAR YOU GET OFF THE TOILET. But if I leave the toilet then where will my verbal diarrhea go? Wait does that mean this blog is the toilet? Were we actually in the toilet all along? How could we toiLET this happen… OK I’ll shut up now. Happy reading!
Ophidian I – Desolate (Iceland)
Style: technical death metal (harsh vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Pick by: Dan
What you’ll find on Desolate is an absolutely jaw-dropping shredfest of insane lead playing, creative songwriting, and songs that just revel in the joy of their virtuosity. All members of the band are firing on all cylinders, these performances are just insane. The songwriting is quite good, with memorable riffs, plenty of variation, some chugs that hit hard, and lots of breathing room in the vocals. The whole thing goes by in an awe-inspiring blur, without growing stale or fatiguing. It’s one of the most impressive albums I’ve heard this year.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Diamonds, Storm Aglow, Sequential Descent, Jupiter, Wither on the Vine
Recommended for fans of: Equipoise, Gorod, Obscura, Augury, Ominous Ruin, Decrepit Birth, Spawn of Possession
Overtoun – This Darkness Feels Alive (Chile)
Style: progressive old school death/thrash metal (mixed vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Instagram | Twitter | Metal-Archives page
Pick by: Sebastian
Overtoun is a young and up-in-coming progressive OSDM band that delivered a stellar album from top to bottom. The band succeeds in an area where hundreds of bands have failed, by writing an album that is simultaneously tight and compact, with no time wasted, but also has a ton of stylistic variety to break up their technical abrasiveness. This is jam-packed with a collection of heavy, yet melodic riffs, elaborate instrumental solos, progressive interludes, and a whole lot of raw power and energy. But don’t let the band’s immediate brutality fool you, this is a very well-written and incredibly intricate album. There are many songwriting subtleties and melodic reprisals in This Darkness Feels Alive that take a few listens to pick up on. If you are someone interested in the style that the first wave of prog-death established, I can’t think of a better revival.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Underneath, Toxin, Pitch-Black
Recommended for fans of: Death, Atheist, Revocation, Obituary, Pestilence, Siderean
Prognostication – Collapse (US-MO)
Style: technical death metal / progressive death(Mixed vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page
Pick by: Chris
Collapse is the rare melodically sensed technical death release, with contrasting sections that could belong on your mainstay tech albums smashed against jazzier cleans a la Native Construct. This is one of the fresher tech releases I’ve reviewed in my time here (and boy have I reviewed a bunch). If you want to get your technical filth, shifting guitar lines, and your sort of core-esque breakdowns, come here, but stay for the jazzy interludes and great clean sections. Also, this is tech death with mixed vocals, what else do i need to say?
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Contort, Eclipse, Voyage
Recommended for fans of: Native Construct, Obscura, Between the Buried and Me
The Cyberiam – Connected (US-IL)
Style: progressive rock/metal (clean vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Pick by: Sebastian
The Cyberiam can be looked at as a modern incarnation of the Rush/Enchant progressive rock phenomenon, but with more of a metal tinge. This album is a fair balance between groovy bass, odd time signature riffs, impressive drum fills, and emotive Geddy-Lee-esque vocals. This album is full of complicated instrumental jam sessions with lots of interplay between solos. This creates a satisfying duality between the album’s softer and more melodic moments with Keith Semple as the lead vocalist. It is also worth mentioning that each of the band members have incredibly impressive resumes, from working closely with Jorden Rudess to starring on American Idol. If you are into 90s progressive rock, this album might just be what you are looking for.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Interrogation Room B, The Moral Landscape, Be Connected, In SaN1tY
Recommended for fans of: Rush, Enchant, Porcupine Tree, Spock’s Beard, Dream Theater
Grace Hayhurst – Existence Is Temporary (United Kingdom)
Style: progressive/atmospheric sludge (instrumental)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Twitter | last.fm
Pick by: Dylan
Existence is Temporary is a solo release by UK musician Grace Hayhurst, which attempts to create a landscape of sounds that combine once thought impossible atmospheres. It is dreamy and heavy, uplifting and crushing, in a way that embraces its most beautiful and brutal aspects. One moment, you’re getting your head crushed by intense riffage that pounds along and mere seconds later, a keyboard driven interlude will come in to save you from a seemingly inescapable atmosphere of dread. This pull and release mechanism is essentially what drives the EP along in an excellent way, thanks to its masterfully balanced flow and superb composition techniques that make each section of the EP’s runtime worth your while. Whilst its short length is a pity, I can’t not recommend the 20 or so minutes of music in here. It is expertly crafted in a way that you can’t help but hope Hayhurst continues their musical career to other extremes.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Negative Incline, The Search for Purpose
Recommended for fans of: Steven Wilson, Mastodon, Toska
Speech Act – Letters on Extinction’s Piece (US-NC)
Style: prog rock/post metal (mixed vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram
Pick by: Dan
This stunning debut EP is perfection without pretention,scratching my O’Brother itch but so so much more. Huge dynamics and post-hardcore emotions collide with impeccable songwriting sensibilities in a compelling reflection on the destruction humanity has wrought on nature. Never needlessly showy, but flawlessly effective, with a massive vocal performance and restrained yet powerful riffs – this is a surprisingly mature product from such a young band, and I can’t wait to see where these guys go!
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Two Brothers, The Trees Are A Nervous System, Bloody Sundays
Recommended for fans of: O’Brother, Coheed & Cambria, Brand New
Diskord – Degenerations (Norway)
Style: tech death (harsh vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Pick by: Evan
Despite being weird dissonant death metal that changes styles and tempos faster than you can blink, Degenerations is also impressively cohesive. Somehow, each unexpected twist and turn only adds to its encompassing track. Combine the bizarre but effective (and tight) songwriting and experimentation with meaty old school riffs and you got one hell of a modern technical death metal release.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Abnegations, Dirgiste Radio Hit, Gnashing
Recommended for fans of: Gorguts, Demilich, Pyrrhon
Ænigmatum – Deconsecrate (US-OR)
Style: tech death (harsh vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Pick by: Dan
Honestly, this is a nearly perfect modern blackened death metal album for me, and my current AOTY pick. It’s got a pragmatic American melodicism – reminiscent of Cormorant’s later work – yet is completely unrelenting in its intensity. The band is super precise, with a lively and engaging performance and gorgeous production job. The songs are well-written and well-structured, full of classic energy but dissodeath-inspired chops. The bass frequently meanders into melodiousness beneath churning guitars and frenetic, razor-sharp drums. The riffs are tight and fresh, and the vocals complement everything effortlessly without being overwhelmingly wordy or inscrutable. This is the good stuff.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Forged From Bedlam; Disenthralled; Larker, Sanguine Phantom
Recommended for fans of: VoidCeremony, Ceremony of Silence, Atvm, Bedsore, Faceless Burial, The Chasm
The Neal Morse Band – Innocence & Danger
Style: prog rock (clean vocals)
Related links: Spotify | Facebook
Pick by: Nick
Over the past couple of years I have grown increasingly wary of anything Neal Morse is attached to. I guess it serves me right for being so judgemental because The Neal Morse Band dropped yet another solid entry into the prog rock canon with Innocence and Danger. Yet again digging deep into their inspirations, the group has further shown that they are among the best that the neo-prog scene has to offer. Dividing the album between 8 short songs and 2 mammoth epics was a ballsy choice that deeply paid off. All in all if you’re a fan of Genesis and Dream Theater this is a must listen. It’s also on streaming services unlike many of their other albums so there’s that too!
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Another Story To Tell, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Beyond The Years (if you have 30 minutes to spare)
Recommended for fans of: Genesis, Dream Theater, Spock’s Beard, Marillion, Big Big Train
The Mask of the Phantasm – New Age Axial (US-TX)
Style: progressive indie/art rock (clean, female vocals)
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Instagram | RYM page
Pick by: Sam
Some say Bent Knee exists, some say the same for The Mars Volta, but all I care about is The Mask of the Phantasm. This band right here is a lovely group from Texas making a vocally driven style of prog rock with some phenomenal drumming supporting it. Tight, big grooves, immense vocals, and some great atmosphere. And it has two members of The Mars Volta in it (drums and horns). Just listen to this pal.
You can read the original review here.
Recommended tracks: Red/Blue/Black/White, Last Call, for Anxiety; Dreams Dying on a Dance Floor
Recommended for fans of: Bent Knee, The Mars Volta, Leprous, The Dear Hunter
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