This is a week for those looking for new and interesting shit with some crazy thrash, hardcore beatings, straight-up orchestral music, and more! To the metals…
Alaric – End Of Mirrors 
Genre: Death rock
Origin: Oakland, California
Label: Neurot
Buy now on Amazon.com
Alaric are a band that gives the "don't judge a book but its cover" adage validity. That album cover LOOKS like a melodic death metal record. Turns out behind that booklet is a moody, lurching record that sounds like a post-metal album if they didn't rely on the distortion pedals very much. Makes for interesting dynamics.
Sample of Soundcloud
Broken Teeth – At Peace Amongst Chaos 
Genre: Hardcore/Thrash
Origin: Manchester, England
Label: Nuclear Blast
Buy now on Amazon.com
This just exists to be a sonic assault. Great opening riffs throughout, before falling into no frills hardcore. "Broken Teeth" is a fitting name for a band like this.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4JfFUx1LZI[/youtube]
Grave Miasma – Endless Pilgrimage 
Genre: Death/black metal
Origin: London, England
Label: Sepulchral Voice
Buy now on Amazon.com
For everyone out there that whines about me not covering underground or "real" metal releases. This one is for you. Endless Pilgrimage is lo-fi, evil, blackened death metal. Fans of late-80's or early-90's death metal will probably enjoy this.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U2L31yRn_M[/youtube]
Polar – No Cure, No Saviour 
Genre: Hardcore/Metal
Origin: Guildford, England
Label: Prosthetic
Buy now on Amazon.com
Polar, at least on this album, are part Hatebreed and part As I Lay Dying. It's hard to just call this a "metalcore" album, but all the pieces are there. Big melodic choruses following grounded hardcore verses. Not bad actually, I can see you elitist pricks hating it.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_rop95wWfo[/youtube]
So Hideous – Laurestine (Orchestral Version) 
Genre: Post-black metal
Origin: New York, New York
Label: Prosthetic
Buy now on iTunes
Last year, So Hideous dropped one of my favorite records of the year in Laurestine. The album is equal parts atmospheric black metal onslaught and sweeping orchestral music. As the name a few lines up alludes to, this release is entirely the latter. The guitars, drums, vocals and bass have all been stripped away leaving a rather interesting companion piece to the album. Seems like something that would be a bonus disc rather than its own release, but it's hard to not enjoy it as a fan of the proper album.
Vektor – Terminal Redux 
Genre: Progressive thrash
Origin: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Label: Earache
Buy now on Amazon.com
Holy shit. How have I missed this band for so long? This, their third album, is a whirlwind of thrash with rapid shifts and twists that will snap your neck mid-headbang. Some moments feel like Death, while others feel like Annihilator with ADHD. Great album. Will surely look into past material.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNmHtWERWyw[/youtube]
Also dropping today…
Ashcloud – Children Of The Chainsaw (Xtreem) – Death metal
Cadaveric Fumes – Dimensions Obscure EP (Blood Harvest) – Death metal
Cardiac – Sangrar Hasta Logrario (Tenacity) – Stoner/hardcore
The Closed Circle – Love, Shine & Die (Inverse) – Rock
Coffin Dust – Gore Ensemble (Unholy Anarchy) – Death metal/thrash
Dead Register – Fiber (AVR) – post metal
Degtras – Hominidae Resonance (Wood and Stone) – Dark ambient
Enoid – Exile Aux Confins Des Tourments (Black Plague) – Black metal
Fear Of Domination – Atlas (Inverse) – Industrial/melodic death metal
Glorior Belli – Sundown (The Flock That Welcomes) (Agonia) – Stoner/black metal
Hatespirit – Blood & Poetry (Altare) – Black metal
The Hypothesis – Origin (Inverse) – Melodic death metal
Inferior – The Red Beast (Big Balls) – Thrash
Khanus – Rites Of Fire (I, Voidhanger) – Death metal
Killing For Company – House Of Hades (Via Nocturna) – Death metal
Kratos – Arlechino (Inverse) – Gothic metal
The Levitation Hex – Cohesion (High Roller) – Progressive death metal
Lucifericon – Brimstone Altar EP (Blood Harvest) – Death metal
Marauder – Bullethead (Pitch Black) – Epic heavy metal
Messa – Belfry (Aural) – Doom
Michael Schenker's Temple Of Rock – On A Mission: Live In Madrid DVD/CD (MVD) – Heavy metal
Musket Hawk – Desolate (Unholy Anarchy) – Grindcore
Mystic Prophecy – War Brigade (Massacre) – Power metal
Near – Own Sun (De Tenebrarum Principio) – Black metal
Nocturnal Hollow – Deathless and Fleshless (Underground Movement) – Death metal
Prisoner Of War – Rot EP (Iron Bonehead) – Death metal
Qrixkuor – Three Devils Dance (Invictus) – Death metal
Rebaelliun – The Hell's Decrees (Hammerheart) – Death metal
Rhin – Passenger (Grimoire) – Desert rock
Scream Blue Murder – Hollow Stories (Stay Sick) – Metal
Shotgun – Live Down Decadencia Drive (Cargo) – Rock
Sinnery – A Feast Of Fools (Pitch Black) – Thrash
Slaughter To Prevail – Chapters Of Misery EP (Sumerian) – Deathcore
Sxuperion – Cosmic Void (Bloody Mountain) – Black metal
Tendagruta – Ensalmo Do Sargaco (Dissociated) – Post-industrial
Vandallus – On The High Side (High Roller) – Hard rock
Vesuvius – My Place Of Solace And Rest (Tragic Hero) – Metalcore
Victor Love – Technomancy (Metropolis) – "Neo Cyberpunk"
Wicked Maraya – Lifetime In Hell (Massacre) – Groove metal
