Embitter- 1134

Embitter is a Hardcore, Metalcore band from Warsaw, Poland. This album was released by The Coming Strife Records in 2020. This is a new band that has been advertising their new record 1134 quite often on Facebook lately. They have some limited vinyl that has copied some old Morning Again releases and they have some limited shirts that has copied some old Morning Again designs. This is quite amazing and very unique marketing to me. Embitter is influenced by Belgian hardcore from the 1990's and by hardcore from the 1990's in general. They don't sound like a band who is copying a certain style but rather a band who is just influenced by Hardcore and Metalcore bands. Poland is a place for a huge amount of death metal bands and black metal bands but definitely not a place known for a huge amount of Hardcore bands and Metalcore bands. The fact that Embitter is coming straight out of Warsaw, Poland makes them a huge rarity in the scene and I believe it will make some people shake their heads in disbelief. If you have heard their Season of Solitude Demo they have made a massive improvement in sound and confidence. The 1134 record sounds earth shattering and the confidence level is up 1000 percent. The Demo is worth the purchase but honestly the 1134 record is just simply brilliant. This record is so brutal and I love his screaming vocals so much. His vocals sound like they have completely scorched the earth and now a demon is running for president and his minions follow him. The brutality of this album is like being beaten by a boxer beyond recognition and now you will never be able to get up again. This is such an epic record like I always here from those classic 90's metalcore records but it can't be a classic yet because it was released in 2020. I bet it will be a future metalcore classic though based on how good a record this actually is. This is a magical album that has a soul to it that can't be contained. The burning embers start a flame and watch it ignite into an all out house fire. Watch past masters take home all the glory but wait this is the dawning of a new era where new masters get the glory. All Hail Embitter! And the Rise of Polish Metalcore! Embitter is an amazing band and 1134 is an amazing album. I highly recommend this to fans looking for something new and something similar. I must implore you to buy this record. Thanks for reading.
Kevin

156/Silence- Irrational Pull

This band is a Hardcore, Metalcore, Nu Metal band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This album was self released in 2020. 156/Silence is a new band and this is their brand new record. They are usually referred to as a metalcore band but they could just as easily be called a nu metalcore band. Is that even a genre of music LOL? I am using it to describe what they sound like and they seem to fit that descriptor. This a new scene to me which includes hardcore bands being influenced by nu metal and I believe this scene really just started a few years ago. I have heard several of these bands and I really like the results. It can be confusing because many of these bands just get called metalcore bands. I love metalcore so I don't have any problem with that genre but I just want to know what I am listening to. The last band I reviewed on my webzine was Orthodox and they are part of this new scene. They are also a wonderful new band for you to check out. Back to 156/Silence because this band is simply brutal and imposing. The vocals are sickening beyond belief and the low end sounds like a car crash waiting to happen right in front of us all. Those hardcore breakdowns will have the kids dancing for days. Some of this music is truly frightening and sounds like sirens blaring in the distance. The guitars create these epic swells of music that sound like eruptions of noise. Now I am hearing more and more nu metal parts to the music some of them barrages of sound and some of them very melodic passages. They can get downright technical and then downright strange at the drop of a hat but it all sounds nice to me. This song sounds like a death metal version of System Of A Down. What an amazing song that really shows off their nu metal influences. I love how the songs build and build until they just break and those distorted vocals are just the icing on the cake. The down tuned guitars and abrasive playing technique are hallmarks of this band. 156/Silence is amazing and the sounds they create are downright impressive. You need to listen to this band because they are doing something different here and with an impressive level of quality. This is not a classic record yet because it just came out in 2020 but I am sure it will be one of the best albums of the year. Please read my review of the Orthodox record as well. I implore you to check out the 156/Silence album. Thanks for reading my review. 
Kevin

Orthodox- Let It Take Its Course

Orthodox is a Hardcore, Nu Metal, Metalcore band from Nashville. Unbeaten Records released this album in 2020. I always review old bands and old albums. But I have wanted to review new bands and new albums for a while. I came across an article online that was about new bands that are changing the face of hardcore and Orthodox was covered in this article. They have two albums on Unbeaten Records and I also read some reviews of their records online. This is the latest Orthodox record and it has more nu metal influence then the first Orthodox record. Some people could see this is a bad thing if they were influenced by some second tier nu metal but they're clearly crazy about the best bands nu metal had to offer. If you remember the best bands in nu metal were really awesome groups and are still completely relevant to this day and I will find myself listening to them quite often. I also thought it was really great that they are a straight edge band. Orthodox are quite brutal sounding and they are very dynamic songwriters. The vocalist is like a machine because he goes through so many different styles of singing and screaming. These grooves are so tight that you would need a chisel to get through them. The chord progressions are insane and the mood is rather dark and bleak. It's hard to pick apart certain genres of extreme metal because the music is such an amalgam of everything heavy. We have some beautiful mellow parts to the music and to the vocals as well. I can for sure hear elements of hardcore, nu metal, metalcore in the music of Orthodox. The vocals and the lyrics are both really intense and violent sounding. I thought that Orthodox would be one of the only bands in the scene in Nashville. But I was quite wrong as I found out that the Nashville scene has many great bands. This band write brilliant riffs and the singer can be downright scary sounding. We have a song here that sounds similar to Type O Negative that I really like. This band brings so much to the table that makes them so likable. I really love this band and I do believe that they could change the face of hardcore.  I know that they grew up on nu metal and came from the metalcore scene and that they are straight edge. I also know that they have more eclectic taste in bands from the extreme metal genre. This album only came out this year so I can't call this a classic yet but this is a damn good record. Orthodox is an amazing band and this is an amazing album. Thanks for reading my review.
Kevin

Undying- The Whispered Lies Of Angels

Undying is a metalcore and death metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. This album was released by Good Life Recordings in the year 2000. James Chang and Jonathan Raine from Undying used to be members of the amazing North Carolina hardcore punk band Catharsis. This record has a great cover of "The Cry Of Mankind" by My Dying Bride. Undying is one of my favorite metalcore bands of all time. The musicianship is top notch and they have an unmatched sense of melody. The vocals are scathing and seem to erupt fire when they're at the most intense times. The vocal dynamics are something special when mellow spoken vocals and brutal screams happen at the same exact time. I love the eerie keyboard passages where you can hear elements of black metal. This album has a black metal influence running through it that makes it rather unique. The drumming is very impressive and moves the songs along rather nicely. I absolutely adore the guitars and I believe that the guitar melody is a highlight of this record. The hardcore breakdowns are simply awesome and I could see hardcore kids going off to this for sure. This is a total death metal album and brings to mind many of the greats of the genre. Undying is from the hardcore scene and you can hear that in some passages on this recording. The real truth about Undying is that they're an incredible metalcore band. The howling vocals make me think of werewolves on the moors in England. Why is Undying such a great band? It's because they mix the heavy and the melodic so well. This is their greatest strength and this is what makes them so unique. I also think that their singer is a major asset to the band. They had a different vocalist later on and were never as good with the new singer. We have a somber mood to the music that makes me think of black metal again. This recording sounds professional but also raw enough to give it that classic hardcore sound. If you like this review of Undying you must check out my review of Prayer For Cleansing because both bands have a similar style. This Undying album is not only one of my favorite metalcore records but it's also one of the best extreme metal releases as well. This recording is a total classic and you will not find another album like this ever. I implore you to check out The Whispered Lies Of Angels. If you are looking for some amazing metalcore Undying is waiting anxiously for you. This was fun for me to write. Thanks again for reading this review. 
​Kevin