Architect is a largely under-rated often ignored hardcore/metalcore group out of Syracuse, New York. I have been a fan of this band for a while and I have been disappointed to not see these guys pick up the kind of momentum that a lot of bands of much less talent and dedication have. I don't think they have been effectively marketed to a really hardcore audience, instead more swept up with a bunch of deathcore acts that came up in the same time as them, and because of that, it's hard to get new kids to look at them. It's really unfortunate.Pelican and These Arms Are Snakes are too bands that do not need much introduction. They are two pretty well established groups that have been around for some time. Pelican, an instrumental post-metal band from Chicago, has been putting out tunes for 7 years; These Arms Are Snakes, a post-hardcore experimental group composed of alumni from various bands including the legendary Botch. This split came about after TAAS joined Pelican onstage for an encore during their European tour earlier this year, they liked the results so much that they decided to put it into recording.The Faceless is a band whose rise to notoriety came from the recent deathcore explosion, though you'd have a hard time classifying them as such. They are and have pretty much been a technical death metal band since the beginning, but they gained their current rise in popularity through touring and word of mouth through the deathcore scene. Since that time they have spent a long time touring with some of the biggest names in death/technical metal and have really established themselves as something different.
d a little later than typically expected, but I still managed to show up late and miss a good portion of the first band, Head of Skulls', set. From what I can gather from the few songs that I heard of theirs, they are a trio from the Chicago area that play a blend of punk and rock. From what I saw, I liked. The band had a really good attitude and played their music reasonably well. While it might not be a brand of music I will find myself going back to, I would go ahead and say that they are worth checking out. They've self-released their latest EP and that is always worthy of respect to me.
Easy to place in the 'under appreciated' category of 2008, 'Ley Lines' is the second full-length by one of the forerunners of the 'Deathcore' genre, Embrace The End. Based out of Sacremento, California, Embrace The End first made their mark on the metalcore scene in 2005 with their first full-length 'Counting Hallways to the Left', and again in 2006 in a split release with The End Of 6000 Years.
Decades is a young hardcore band from the Dallas, Texas area on State of Mind Recordings, a label with a reputation for helping bands reach that next level of success (This Is Hell, Dead Hearts). They have recently released this EP, 'Numbered' and I have had the chance to listen to it quite thoroughly, and I really like it.
Sooner than I anticipated, I have my hands on Iron Thrones debut album 'Visions Of Light'. If you remember back to my writings a few day ago, Iron Thrones is a group of musicians from Minneapolis who used to perform as Everest. As Everest, the band released an EP in 2006 called "Where Earth Meets The Sky" on Mascaret Records, but since has been silent. 'Visions Of Light' is the band's debut full-length record, and it is quite a listen.
Several weeks ago, Poison The Well (metalcore juggernaut of the early 2000's turned post-hardcore icon) announced a series of 7" releases that would consist of B-sides from the recording sessions of their last full-length 'Versions' from 2007, leading to the release of their next, early in 2009. 'I / III' is the first of the three planned releases.
Braindead is band that I've been sleeping on for awhile. I've heard a lot of praise for the band, but up until now I have neglected to really take the time to listen to their music fully. Braindead is from the Philadelphia region. They released a 7" demo in 2006, a split 7" with Blackbirds in 2007 and earlier this year, they self-released their first full-length album 'No Consequences', with BurnBridges Records.
arth Meets The Sky', which was very well accepted amongst fans of their progressive blend of metal and hardcore. Since that time the band has been pretty quiet, touring and shows in general have been very sparse, and lineup changes have left a somewhat understandable anxiety about the band's future. However, the dedication of the band, clearly, has not been shaken.
Trap Them have been making a lot of waves amongst underground heavy music fans since about the time they signed to Deathwish Inc. in early 2007, hot on the tail of their first full-length 'Sleepwell Deconstructer' on the Trash Art! label. Shortly after their joining with Deathwish, the band put out an EP 'Seance Prime' and a split 7" with Extreme Noise Terror. With each release, more and more people have been taking notice, and now the highly anticipated 2nd full-length, 'Seizures In Barren Praise' is here.
Earlier this year a band by the name of Killing The Dream released their second full-length album 'Fractures' on Deathwish Inc. 'Fractures' was the highly anticipated follow up to their critically acclaimed full-length debut, 'In Place Apart' also on Deathwish Inc which was released 3 years previously in 2005. That is quite a break between albums, especially for a hardcore band, but Killing The Dream yet again put out a highly polished, punishingly beautiful hardcore record that fans of the band certaintly expected.
Trapped Under Ice, the new beast of the hardcore world (see post below this one) and Dirty Money from the UK teamed up earlier this year to release a split EP on Dead and Gone Records. I am a big fan of Trapped Under Ice and was generally ignorant of Dirty Money until this release, Trapped Under Ice reinforces why I love them, and Dirty Money has piqued my interest in the rest of what they do.
Trapped Under Ice was a band that launched itself into the spotlight this year, quite suddenly. Relatively unknown before this EP was released earlier this year, Trapped Under Ice is now a well known name in most hardcore circles.
See You Next Tuesday is a product of the deathcore explosion of the last few years, wielding a form of psuedo-grindcore that while not being groundbreaking, was at least different from every other band they were touring with. SYNT's first full-length, 'Parasite' was a kind of quirky, humorous attack that lasted about 18 minutes with 14 tracks. I never saw them as a band to take seriously, and I don't think a lot of people did, but I think they want to be, if their newest album is any sign.
