Song: Alpha Wolf - Akudama [A Quiet Place to Die, 2020]

Yall ever hear of pissedcore?

Akudama was such an eye-opening song in heaviness for me, just a few days before I went even further down the rabbit hole thanks to bloodstainedeyes. The sub-genre of modern metalcore that is quite pissed off for some reason, Akudama definitely caters to the rage within us all.

I don't know what Akudama actually means, and the song doesn't really explain much either, but it's a cool word and a cool callout for the breakdown, so I'm not going to question. Akudama is full of dissonance, angry lyrics and noises, everything that pissedcore is about. Alpha Wolf definitely knows what they're doing and they do it really well.

It is quite a short song, so it definitely packs a punch by nature. The verses are definitely intense and full of rage, but I think the highlight of the song is without a doubt the breakdown. The callout is perfect, and the riff is obscene, making use of the pitch shifter pedal to get some wicked sounds. The buildup to the breakdown has some great atmosphere as well, I love the lead line in the back and the drumming going into it.

I don't have too much to say too be honest, I just wanted to feature it because it's one of the easiest rage songs to listen to. It packs a solid punch, will make you headbang no matter what, and will never go wrong in the pit. Akudama.

Rating: 3/5

Lyric Of The Week 52: Sacrifice

"I let it in as if I had a choice."

The Devil Wears Prada - Sacrifice, from the album Color Decay

Album: Wolf Alice - Blue Weekend [2021]

I don't really remember how exactly I discovered this album, but I want to credit ARTV for it. I always think of ARTV's top 20 albums of 2021 when I think about where I got the recommendation from, but I listened to the single The Last Man on Earth first and I definitely didn't get that from him, so I don't really know how I found this album.

Beginnings aside, my thoughts on Blue Weekend have been everchanging ever since I first listened to it. Their indie rock sound is elegant and energetic, fun at times and emotional in others. They definitely score well for uniqueness, but I'll admit it took a long while for me to get into the album as a whole.

When it comes to The Last Man on Earth, it was love at first listen. There's just something about the softness and slow rise in intensity, the thematic sentiment, the way they bring in the band halfway through, the emotions portrayed in both the whisper vocals and the full blown singing later on, and just the introspectiveness of it all, that somehow speaks to me. It has the essence of a dreamy night-time lullaby juxtaposed with one of a powerful rock anthem, drizzled in sombre thoughtfulness.

I didn't know what to expect for the rest of the album, because on one hand, I wanted to find more songs that could speak to me the way The Last Man on Earth did, but on the other hand, that would make for a very bland and un-diverse record. I didn't know anything else about the band's sound, so I basically dove in blind.

I don't remember exactly why, but it didn't strike a lasting impression the first time around. My guess is that, like many other non-metal records, I listened to it when my ears were still too used to modern metal, so I couldn't adjust my tastes and judge it properly for what it's worth. That is no longer the case though, more than a year after I first listened to it. (Although some days I wonder if it's just a familiarity bias in the end.)

Wolf Alice has a very diverse set of sounds presented in this eleven song record, from the soft sisters The Beach and The Beach II and slow rockers How Can I Make It OK? and Feeling Myself to the powerful riff rager Smile and the childishly energetic Play The Greatest Hits. There's quite a lot to love within these forty minutes, between the great writing and the perfectly surreal atmosphere.

I took a long, long while to make up my mind on this record, but now I'm at a point where I can safely say I like this record a lot, although I'm unsure about saying that I love it. I cherry-pick from this record quite a bit, although there are a lot of good cherries that I pick, so I'd say it's pretty awesome overall.

Rating: 8/10

Tracklist:

1. The Beach

2. Delicious Things

3. Lipstick On The Glass

4. Smile

5. Safe From Heartbreak (if you never fall in love)

6. How Can I Make It OK?

7. Play The Greatest Hits

8. Feeling Myself

9. The Last Man on Earth

10. No Hard Feelings

11. The Beach II

Song: Falling In Reverse - Drugs (feat. Corey Taylor) [2019]

Falling In Reverse is one of those bands that manage to push the limits of modern metal while remaining surprisingly accessible and fun to listen to. This song came out before Popular Monster but I only heard it after, and at times I think I like this one more of the two.

Ever since the reinvention of their sound post-2018, they've been rocking a solid electronically infused metalcore act, arguably breaking through with Drugs. Fusing elements of modern metalcore, synth pop, EDM, trap music and rap together, Drugs is a powerful blend of genres that is surprisingly seamless. Backed by a strong instrumentation and vibrant soundscape work, the vocal powerhouse Ronnie Radke makes the rest of the song work. Whether it's the fast rap flows in the verses, the anthemic chorus with gritty sing-screams, or the downright brutal breakdown with surprise feature Corey Taylor's gutturals, every part of the song feels top-notch.

The electronic infusion definitely adds a lot of colours to the song, whether it's the unmovable main melody or all of the numerous background synths and sound effect layers that add flavour to the soundscape itself. Rock and metal purists probably have a grudge against the use of electronics over the instruments, but I think the band balanced and blended the two sounds very well. With a more diverse sound palette at their disposal, I think it gives them an edge in portraying a larger variety of intensities and emotions, and really doesn't take that much away from the supposedly all-important live show experience.

I love the breakdown, I think a lot of people do, but I didn't know who Corey Taylor or Slipknot was at the time actually. I just found the breakdown to be super brutal, especially with all the added distortion reminiscent of Swallowing The Rabbit Whole, giving a super raw and gritty feel overall with the low-tuned guitars at the back. I adore the soft, dreamy clean vocal part right after, that gives the contrast needed to let the last chorus hit that much harder. I love it when bands spice up the last chorus, and Ronnie threw in some full on screams going into the last chorus, which is always awesome.

I don't think there's any reason to doubt the band's musical writing ability. Just about every chorus they've ever written is contagiously catchy, and this is no exception. Drugs is a banger that caught my eye because of how great of a hook the chorus was, and made me put it on repeat so that the rest of the song could sink their teeth in. We all know how outstanding Falling In Reverse is, and ever since this song, they've never had a miss.

Rating: 3.5/5

Lyric Of The Week 51: Mistakes Like Fractures

"God fell silent when I cried out."

Knocked Loose - Mistakes Like Fractures, from the album A Different Shade of Blue

Album: Pierce The Veil - The Jaws Of Life [2023]

Seeing a Pierce The Veil album release right in front of my eyes is quite surreal. In fact, 2022 and 2023 has been quite surreal in that sense, seeing a lot of inactive famous bands come back to life right in front of my eyes. It's just the fact that I'm around to see them release music when I've only ever known them as a thing of the past that's really weird to wrap my head around. My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Paramore, those few legendary bands popping their heads out in the midst of the modern post-punk revival, and Pierce The Veil's latest album The Jaws Of Life being a great addition to their discography.

There's definitely going to be long-time fans of their sound that hate the new album. I don't think it should be surprising, but their sound has changed. They've matured as a band, and with a seven-year gap from their last album, there's a lot of time for their stylistic choices to evolve. I think The Jaws Of Life is a high-quality, diverse album with a lot of commendable explorations in sound. And even with all of that said, it is undeniably Pierce The Veil, and there is no doubt that remnants of their older sound still poke through certain parts of the new record.

Their fifth record sees them trading in most of their post-hardcore sound in exchange for a blend of classic rock and grunge influences, all wrapped up nicely with a modern touch. Taking a step back to view their discography as a whole, it is not an unnatural evolution of their sound past Collide With The Sky and Misadventures. In fact, I think it makes a lot of sense for them, especially considering the modern music scene that they're making their comeback in. The influences are definitely there, subtly hiding in the stylistic and lyrical choices.

Despite loving their new sound, I have to admit I do miss the screaming. I think that it was one of the stronger facets of their sound, when they brought out the unapologetic punk rage that more or less defined Selfish Machines and Collide With The Sky. Even without the intense drumming and riffage, there is such a unique and tasteful vocal texture within Vic's screams that evokes a feeling nothing else can come close to, and to see it so sparsely used in this record is a tad bit sad. At least we get a few good ones to savour, like the chorus of Pass The Nirvana, the background screams of the title track and right before the solo of So Far So Fake.

The Jaws Of Life does offer a lot of new flavours though. The grunge-y Nirvana influence on Pass The Nirvana is easy to point out, but it is not the only one. The softer sounds of Even When I'm Not With You and Emergency Contact are pretty cool, the 90s rock sound of Flawless Execution and Resilience is solid, the electronic sound on Shared Trauma is interesting, and the guest feature of chloe moriondo on 12 Fractures is definitely unexpected. It's definitely the furthest out from their established sound, but set aside the expectations of their name and it can absolutely pass for a quality pop duet ballad.

I stand by my opinion when I say that I really do enjoy this new record. It's not the kind of record that is full of intensity and bold, emotional declarations, but instead wields a more matured and peaceful sound that is sure to please more ears without losing any of their identity and personality. As a big fan of the ongoing modern post-punk revival, I can attest to the fact that there is a lot to love in this record, and calling it bad just because you refuse to let go of the 2000s' emo sound is just a bit sad.

The Jaws Of Life makes its mark as a very refreshing record amidst the angrier parts of their discography. It is surprisingly apt to call a lot of the modern post-punk revival era music "emo grown up", because there is this tone of maturity with a hint of their youthful angst that is prevalent in the evolution of their sound. I adore this new sound as much as I adore the emo scene's sound, and I think it's great that they went in this direction instead of trying to make a Selfish Machines 2 or a Collide With The Sky 2. And of course, being around for a Pierce The Veil release is more than enough already for me, so I have absolutely no complaints.

Rating: 7/10

Tracklist:

1. Death Of An Executioner

2. Pass The Nirvana

3. Even When I'm Not With You

4. Emergency Contact

5. Flawless Execution

6. The Jaws Of Life

7. Damn The Man, Save The Empire

8. Resilience

9. Irrational Fears - Interlude

10. Shared Trauma

11. So Far So Fake

12. 12 Fractures (feat. chloe moriondo)

AuditoryAppreciation: The One Year Anniversary Post

It's a bit surreal to think that it's been a year since I started this music blog. I know I talked quite a bit about it already in my 2022 end-of-year reflection/review, but I'm really surprised this is still going after a year. I tend to start a lot of projects and leave most of them in the dust very quickly, but this is still around after a full year, and hopefully I can keep it going for years to come.

61 record reviews, 61 song reviews and 50 lyrics of the week in a year is what I've managed to put out at the pace I set when I started this. Sure, I'm kind of missing 2 LOTWs because that idea only came to me 2 weeks after I started the blog, but it's still cool to see that the blog has become a year old, not only that but with actual consistent posts throughout the whole year. I'm having a lot of fun writing about music, as you can tell by the observable increase in word count per post throughout the year, but also because I'm learning more about music as I go and can appreciate the intricacies even better.

I didn't have anything planned for the one-year anniversary because I didn't think about it at all and didn't realise it was coming up until a week ago, but if this blog manages to hit its next anniversary I'll think of a way to celebrate it. But for now, this milestone is worth celebrating simply by just acknowledging that, somehow, I loved talking about music so much that it has become the longest-running ongoing project of mine, and haven't put aside like the many other project ideas that I have.

But also since I thought it might be cool to see, I calculated the total word count and word count of every post and LOOK AT THIS GRAPH wow.

Total Word Count: 60504
Average Word Count Per Post: 488.06557

Song: SeeYouSpaceCowboy... & If I Die First - bloodstainedeyes [A Sure Disaster, 2021]

I remember stumbling across the music video for this on my YouTube feed, and the song title was just so edgy I wanted to see whether the song was actually good or not. Keep in mind, I was just starting to dip my toes into extreme music, and the heaviest song I knew was Pray For Plagues. I never really thought about it, but this song probably opened the doors to heavier territory for me.

The collision of two seemingly small but speedily growing bands full of potential, both remarkable names in their own genres of modern screamo and modern hardcore, is a collaboration I never knew I needed. I didn't know either band before this, but this song alone made me want to dive into both bands, one of which I love a lot now.

This five minute song is full of surprises. It hits you right away with an overlapping barrage of vocals: first with LiL Lotus and Connie Sgarbossa's dual screams both of which are brutal and really solid, and soon after Lil Zubin's cleans come in as well to provide that clean emo flavour to the mix. The generous use of dissonance is definitely home to both genres, but I enjoy the occasional blend of melodic and softer elements. I love the vocal layering, using each other's voices as very unique textural additions, especially with how visceral Connie's screams are compared to LiL Lotus'.

Despite feeling all over the place, the song doesn't feel that weird. The post-hardcore/screamo chorus sits surprisingly well in the song, right after a breakdown no less. The clean part near the end actually sounds beautiful and it doesn't take away from the heaviness of the song, in fact I feel it makes the final heavy part hit harder.

This is definitely the first song I got into that was so nonchalantly heavy and senseless. It's a well-written song, definitely, but I had never heard a song with so much feedback, dissonance and raw screaming, alongside such an unrepetitive song structure, mood changes and tempo changes. I think the most captivating thing about this song was how easy it was to listen to despite its sonic nature, and I enjoyed it a lot (or maybe I was simply starting to love heavy music).

bloodstainedeyes introduced me to If I Die First, a band that I now love. SeeYouSpaceCowboy... is still on my radar for now, but I have no doubt that both bands are forces to be reckoned with, and at the forefront of each of their modern sounds. It's such a rare occurrence to see two full bands collaborating, much less on a single song with equal contribution. I just love how cool this song is.

Rating: 4.5/5

Lyric Of The Week 50: Pain Remains III: In a Sea of Fire

"Take this broken melody straight to the grave."

Lorna Shore - Pain Remains III: In a Sea of Fire, from the album Pain Remains

Album: Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! - Gone Are The Good Days [2021]

You know how sometimes I decide to listen to a band because they have an interesting name? It's been working out for me very well so far. Do I have to elaborate on this?

Ok I probably should. I caught wind of the name Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! from a Nik Nocturnal video and thought it was simultaneously the funniest and coolest name in a while, so I listened to their album. Turns out, the album is a banger, but I'm not sure how much of the quality is owed to the name, my guess is 50%.

Jokes aside, it turns out this band is quite a name in the pseudo-genre known affectionately as easycore. A pop-punk and metalcore fusion style also carried by bands like A Day To Remember and New Found Glory, Chunk!'s new record is nothing less than that. Gone Are The Good Days is their first record in 6 years, and sees the band getting sentimental about life, especially with the aftermath of the pandemic.

Despite being in the same subgenre as A Day To Remember, they have quite a different and unique sound to themselves. Gone Are The Good Days features a very pop-infused yet unapologetic heaviness that oscillates between every emotion you can associate with growing up. The whole record boasts a strong and undeniable youthful energy, with roots in emo and punk rock.

Their sound is very strongly led by Bertrand's vocals, one of the most distinct voices in metalcore for me. There's something about his voice that I can't pinpoint, but hovers between being incredibly robust and emotionably capable. Throughout this record, the band never fails to bring about a sense of nostalgia with the combined effort of spectacular instrumentation, strong vocals and powerful lyrics.

Did I mention nostalgia? I did happen to find this album near my high school graduation, and it did plenty to make me sentimental. The title track was the first to make me feel things for obvious reasons, but beyond Made For More's hesitant cynicism and Painkiller's stern advice, I found a deep emotional connection to Fin., the final track. I think it just happened to encapsulate the ending of a valuable but tough journey, both lyrically and emotionally, in a way that allows gratefulness and sadness to co-exist. It gets even more personal for me as someone who spent most of my life as a performer, when the whole song is themed around it. I talked about it a lot more in its own post, but in short, it's sentiment.

Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! has a sound that I still love to this day, despite only having heard their newest record and nothing else. I've yet to dive into any of their older stuff, and the only other time I've heard Bertrand is his guest feature on LANDMVRKS' Suffocate, which is a banger by the way. I'm not sure how much to expect from them going forward, but I have plenty of their older discography to dig through, so I am far from complaining.

Rating: 9/10

Tracklist:

1. Bitter

2. Drift Away

3. Gone Are The Good Days

4. Marigold

5. Made For More

6. True Colors

7. Good Luck

8. Complete You (feat. AJ Perdomo of The Dangerous Summer)

9. Blame It On This Song

10. Painkillers

11. Tongue Tied (feat. Yvette Young of Covet)

12. Fin.

Song: Loathe - Dimorphous Display [2022]

Nearing the end of 2021, I was knee deep in my discovery and newfound obsession of Loathe, an outstanding band in modern metal who had an unshakable lead in metalcore innovation with their modern take on shoegaze influences. So when 2022 came around and they dropped a single, I obviously fell in love with it.

Here's the funny thing though: I didn't. When I first heard it, it didn't click for me, and it didn't click for a long while. Maybe three or four months later, on a random re-listen, it suddenly sounded like the coolest thing ever, and ever since then it has been one of my top songs of 2022.

Dimorphous Display is both familiar and new to the established Loathe sound at the same time, which is weird to explain but it's true. There are elements we are used to, like the impressive ambient work, the blend of beautiful clean sections and brutal scream sections, the groovy riffage and the chaotic soundscapes. At the same time, there's moments in this song that feel new, sort of experimental, sort of evolutionary. The creepy sounds before the song starts, the overlapping echoes after the first chorus, the electronic synths going crazy in the outro, they feel like small steps in a new direction for the band's growing sound.

The song covers a lot of territory in five minutes, but if I had to summarise it, I'd say it is a hauntingly beautiful song. They know how to design their soundscape at a very intricate level, especially with how they layer everything and the effects they choose to use. I've always been a huge sucker for songs that have many many things going on at the same time (provided that it's well-made), and Loathe has been one of the best to do it in recent times. I'm unbelievably excited for what might come next from Loathe, and to see how they will evolve their sound after I Let It In And It Took Everything.

Rating: 4.5/5

Album: Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare [2007]

Arctic Monkeys is a notable band when it comes to rock in pop culture, no doubt with the recent tiktok boom as well, but they are and have been a household name for a while. Their top hits are massively played and well known, and I definitely knew some of them, but I always wanted to dive deeper like I usually do with great artists.

After Arctic Monkeys reappeared in my view with the release of their most recent album, I eventually found the time to spin Favourite Worst Nightmare. When it came to songs I already knew, it was home to only 505, but I figured Favourite Worst Nightmare would be a better first taste than AM because AM was more popular, and thus more pop-friendly and less rock-like. I have yet to listen to AM and find out, but Favourite Worst Nightmare is definitely pureblooded rock.

Before diving in, I already knew 505 pretty well. It's a piece of art, perfect in every way, but I always had a feeling it was a one-of-a-kind song, and the rest of the songs on the record wouldn't sound much like it, and I wasn't wrong. For the most part, Favourite Worst Nightmare features fast and groovy drumming, funky and fun riffs, and an engaging vocal performance throughout. It's a very bold and strong showcase of their unique flavour of indie rock, full of identity and style.

I wasn't expecting to love the record so much, if I'm being honest. My track record with liking older rock and metal bands has been very sparse, considering how a majority of my favourite artists are quite young, and in general I consider myself a hyper-modern listener (that said, I'm happy to avoid most of modern tiktok-era pop). Favourite Worst Nightmare surprised me, combining great rock writing with smart pop sensibilities to produce a variety of catchy, energetic and genuinely enjoyable tracks. The drumming in Brianstorm, the solo on Teddy Picker, the vocal delivery on Fluorescent Adolescent, the softness of Only Ones Who Know, the ending of Do Me A Favour, the funk in Old Yellow Bricks, and the entirety of 505, just many of the great things in this record.

I'm always happy to find a big artist in pop culture that has more to offer in quality than just their biggest hits. This record as a whole is solid, with plenty of great tracks and zero rubbish. I'm excited to dive into more of Arctic Monkeys, although I have a feeling I'll only like the older stuff. The Car didn't leave a lasting impression on me, if I'm being honest. Regardless, I see now how they got so big so quickly as a name in indie rock.

Rating: 9/10

Tracklist:

1. Brianstorm

2. Teddy Picker

3. D is for Dangerous

4. Balaclava

5. Fluorescent Adolescent

6. Only Ones Who Know

7. Do Me a Favour

8. This House is a Circus

9. If You Were There, Beware

10. The Bad Thing

11. Old Yellow Bricks

12. 505

Lyric Of The Week 49: A Colossal Wreck

"Death's perfect shine is in my eyes."

Every Time I Die - A Colossal Wreck, from the album Radical

Song: Falling In Reverse - Watch The World Burn [2023]

Falling In Reverse has been a very exciting band in the past few years, both for their amazing genre-bending modern metal style and the undeniable hype surrounding the band. I've been hooked on their new sound ever since Drugs, and despite not knowing most of their older material, I consider myself quite a big fan of what they're doing. Watch The World Burn is their latest offering in their recent string of banger single-song releases, stepping up their game in a new way.

Watching The World Burn sees Falling In Reverse switching up their formula, with a unique song structure and a culmination of their most recent sounds. Dropping the pop-like chorus in favour of a rap-heavy first half of the song, with sonic choices reminiscent of Eminem and NF, we get to hear Ronnie reach new speeds of verbal delivery and a flavourful platter of lyrical flows.

As the song goes on, more of the band gets introduced alongside more of their familiar electronic work. The drums and guitars coming in only in the back half is an interesting choice, definitely one that will rile up the metal purists, but does make it feel even more impactful. One thing I really enjoy is how dramatic it all feels, making use of orchestral elements and choral effects, it also reminds me a little tiny bit of Ice Nine Kills' theatrics.

The metalcore part of the song, which is arguably mostly just about the breakdown, is fun. I can't disagree that it feels a little bit out of nowhere, but this is Falling In Reverse we are talking about, it's fun and enjoyable and they know how to make it sound good. I love the dark arpeggio leads building up to the breakdown, and the vocal harmony right before the drop is tasteful. The breakdown riff is simple, I'll admit, but the bends are fun, what is there to complain about?

The way they ended the song is cool as well, they continued to sustain the intensity of the breakdown but with an even more epic feel, while Ronnie goes full on evil with crazy lows. From start to finish, the song never loses energy, and it makes for an exhilarating musical experience. Not to mention the genre-fusion, subverting expectations left and right and constantly throwing curveballs.

Seeing Falling In Reverse back in action in 2023 makes me happy. I was a bit disappointed when they announced a supposed Neon Zombie EP for last year but still have yet to release it, considering how cool ZOMBIFIED and Voices In My Head were, but maybe this release will renew my hope for an upcoming Falling In Reverse record. Despite the new singles-only meta, one can hope.

Rating: 3.5/5