This edition includes epicness, sludginess, Dee Sniderness, and moreness! To the metals…ness
Frontierer – Unloved
Genre: Hardcore/Noise
Origin: Scotland and Missouri
Label: Self-released
Buy now and sample on Bandcamp.com
At times this reminds me of The Dillinger Escape Plan, sometimes The Ocean, and other times it reminds me of a fax machine. This album is nothing but breakdowns and chaos. It features some of the most fascinating and abrasive sounds I've heard on a record in a long, long time. The sounds on this hurt by brain almost as much as the band's name hurts my mouth to say.
Halestorm – Vicious 
Genre: Rock
Origin: Red Lion, Pennsylvania
Label: Atlantic
I wrote off Halestorm for a long time as a band that wasn't worth the hype, until I saw them live. I've since revisited them and I get it. The songs aren't the heaviest or the most complicated, but they are overall successful rock songs. Vicious is a good collection of these sort of songs, but if nothing else, it's Lzzy Hale's best vocal performance yet. Chad has a full review here.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwHXqeYhtZI][/youtube]
Otep – Kult 45 
Genre: Alternative metal
Origin: Los Angeles, California
Label: Napalm
This album is quite the conversation starter for you loyal readers. The Facebook link for the full review was quite the firestorm of dumb comments that had nothing to do with the album. It's truly fascinating. Anyway, this is Otep latest offering of political nu-metal that's doesn't really work in 2018. Amber has a review right here.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuWFWNxZ1JA][/youtube]
Plini – Sunhead 
Genre: Progressive
Origin: Sydney, Australia
Label: Self-released
Buy now on Bandcamp.com
If you're looking for some hyper-technical melodic shredding (or maybe hyper-melodic technical shredding?) look no further than the new Plini. This outfit led by the titular Plini, has already released some game changing instru-metal, and Sunhead keeps up that winning-streak.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jflXCGRFWkM][/youtube]
Rise Against – The Ghost Note Symphonies, Vol. 1 
Genre: Punk?
Origin: Chicago, Illinois
Label: Virgin
I was under the impression that Rise Against was a punk band. This isn't a slam on the band, it's an honest moment of confusion since all the songs I've heard from this record are slow sad ballads. Perhaps this is just the tone of this record and they're straying from their usual deal?
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfeHzVBnEyI][/youtube]
Dee Snider – For The Love Of Metal 
Genre: Heavy metal
Origin: New York City, New York
Label: Napalm
On For The Love Of Metal, The legendary frontman of Twister Sister hooked up with Hatebreed vocalist turned producer Jamey Jasta, and is dropping the most metal record with "Metal" in the title of the year. It features appearances from Howard Jones (Light The Torch/ex-Killswitch Engage), Alissa White-Gluz (Arch Enemy/ex-The Agonist), Mark Morton (Lamb of God), and more. To be honest, it all seems very weird on paper, but parts of it are pretty cool. It doesn't sound like Twisted Sister, so if you're worried about that, it might be worth checking out.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCKFs0hjT_M][/youtube]
Tarja – Act II 
Genre: Symphonic metal
Origin: Kitee, Finland
Label: earMusic
Fans of the ex-Nightwish singer will want to get on this. Act II, like Act I, covers a lot of Tarja's solo career over a couple live sets. The sets also dip into her Nightwish catalog a bit. There's some acoustic versions of some stuff as well. It's unsurprisingly epic throughout, and quite varied.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv4XWkTWQ0M][/youtube]
Thou – Rhea Sylvia EP 
Genre: Sludge/drone
Origin: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Label: Deathwish
I'm going to end this week's edition with some dark, feedback-laden sludge. Thou are dense band of lurching heaviness, and this is them doing what they do well. The six tracks should hold you over until their full-length that's dropping next month. God these guys are prolific,
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecIawGSaVBA][/youtube]
Also dropping today…
Axis of Despair – Contempt For Man (Southern Lord) – Grind
Chris Caffery – The Jester's Court (Metalville) – Progressive/power metal
Cliterati/Violation Wound – Split (Tankcrimes) – D-beat/Crust/Punk
Death and the Penguin – Anomie (Self released) – Avant-Garde Alt Rock
Decline of the I – Escape (Agonia Records) – Post-black metal
Degrave – Degrave (Self Released) – Thrash
Drawn and Quartered – The One Who Lurks (Krucyator Productions) – Death metal
Hangman's Chair – Banlieue Triste (Spinefarm) – Stoner/doom
Inexorum – Lore Of The Lakes (Gilead Media) – Melodic black metal
Redemption – Long Night's Journey Into Day (Metal Blade) – Progressive/power metal
Ritual Aesthetic – Wound Garden (Cleopatra) – Industrial
Michael Romeo – War Of The Words Pt. 1 (Music Theories) – Progressive
Statiqbloom – Infinite Spectre (Translation Loss Records) – Post-industrial
Talons – We All Know (Holy Roat) -Post Rock
Ultra-Violence – Operation Misdirection (Candlelight) – Thrash
