Tag Archives: Djent

Review: PERIPHERY – ‘IV: Hail Stan’ [Official Video]

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Words By: Masen Smith

For nearly a decade, DC prog metallers and forerunners of Djent; Periphery have been churning out album after album of tasty riffs and inventive songwriting. Few bands in the genre have been able to continuously and fluidly evolve for this long, constantly leaving fans guessing on which direction they’ll take next. No sentiment could be truer regarding their latest record, ‘IV: Hail Stan.’ After shockingly departing from Sumerian Records and subsequently launching their own label 3Dot Recordings, their creativity as a band was allowed to take centre stage. On their revamped writing process, guitarist Jake Bowen explained that this record was unique in that it took an entire year to write- something that the rushed schedule of major labels simply didn’t allow. The result is a polished, purposeful, textured and masterfully crafted album, one that was certainly worth the wait. Continue reading →

State Of The Art: Hawaii’s NESTA [Track Stream]

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*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state. This month’s state is Hawaii.*

In the land of tropical paradise with its picturesque beaches, near perfect weather, and aloha vibes, it may be hard to imagine heavy music coming from the Hawaiian Islands. It was certainly no easy task finding metal amidst the vast sea of island reggae and ukuleles for this month’s SOTA, but this pick from the Honolulu underground is one I’m sure metal fans will enjoy. Hailing from Waianae, Hawaii, Nesta proves that their volcanic brand of metal can not only compete with its mainland contemporaries, but also push the envelope in some unexpected and highly innovative ways. Continue reading →

It’s 2019 and It’s Time To Djent with ROGUE [Video Streaming]

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Louisiana band, R O G U E  are brand new and not something to overlook. They are a four-piece consisting of Jansen Nunez on vocals, Jeffrey Fisher of The Arbitrary on guitars, bass is Taylor Law and Nick Guidry on drums. This month the band will be releasing their debut EP, “Anomaly.” Continue reading →

Review: JINJER – ‘Micro’ [Video Stream]

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Ukrainian prog/metalcore act Jinjer return with ‘Micro,’ the band’s newest offering that essentially packs an entire album’s worth of punch into five devastating tracks. The EP, scheduled to be released on January 11th, 2019 via Napalm Records, combines many of the familiar elements that fans have come to know and love while, at times, diving a bit deeper into the prog realm, primarily in the form of more technical experimentation. ‘Micro’ is a clear indicator of Jinjer’s maturation as musicians and a solid milestone for what appears to be a band entering their sonic prime. Continue reading →

Progressive Metalcore Group ROGUE Is Redefining The Genre! [Official & Lyric Video]

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Metalcore is a genre that continues to reinvent itself. Though it may seem like another lifetime since the mid-2000’s, new ideas infiltrate, artists reinvent and arguably somehow create these intricate subgenres of subgenres. Sub-subgenres? Progressive metalcore has been on the up and up since. Exquisite musicianship and sophisticated songwriting allow these tremendous new acts to standout in a crowd where everything is tucked under one umbrella. Continue reading →

State of the Art: West Virginia’s ASTRAEUS

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Smart, yet intoxicating riffs travel through the speakers as an easy brush of arpeggios lift one into another world where all things are neatly and perfectly packaged into sonic bites of progressive wonder. Charleston, West Virginia is the homeland of Astraeus. If you can’t already tell, they are excellent. Continue reading →

Watch AWAKE THE DREAMER’s Groovy New Video, “Believe”

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Well this is a first for me. I mean I knew the Swedes have an incredible death metal scene out there, so amazing that they have carved their own genre, Swedish death metal. But today, I am not bringing to you something we know and hear very often from the Scandinavian nation. It did surprise me when I found out about this band called AWAKE THE DREAMER from Sweden, maybe cause I am not a big metalcore fan? But well, yes, the Swedes do have some really good diversity. From the buzzsaw death metal trademark sound to the modern day djent and metalcore, Sweden does house some incredible bands. And today, I bring to thee metalcore/post hardcore quintet from Stockholm, AWAKE THE DREAMER and their all new crushing single, “Believe“. Pictured in a vintage like video, the band can be seen dishing out their blend of progressive and melodic metalcore, which absolutely is crushing!

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State Of The Art: Louisiana’s THE ARBITRARY [Track Stream]

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*This is a part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state.*

This month’s state is Louisiana!

Any fans of progressive instrumental are severely missing out if The Arbitrary is not a part of their lives. The New Orleans two-piece has been self-releasing since 2015. Together, Jeffrey Fisher (guitar) and Adam Sauter (drums) have continued to boggle the brains of prog fans, yet quench the thirst for musical excellence with their 2017 EP ‘Identity.’ It may only be four songs, but those four songs are all the listener needs. A touch a djent, a brush of tech; it’s about time for a Ph.D. in music theory. Continue reading →

SIKTH And EXIST IMMORTAL At ‘NME Best Small Venue’ The Forum, UK [Review + Photo Gallery]

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Just before embarking on their mini EU tour including debut shows across Germany and the Netherlands Complexity Festival alongside Carnifex, The Faceless and others, djent pioneers SikTh treated UK fans to two intimate performances with Londons Exist Immortal. Firstly at Sub 89 in Reading, and secondly to my local venue and ‘NME Best Small Venue 2012’ The Forum in Tunbridge Wells. This gig marks one of many celebrating to small 250 capacity venues’ 25th anniversary celebrations, which has a reputation of giving a stage to bands before they made it big. SikTh are locally held in very high regard where they are practically legends and it was a pleasure to have them back here once again. UK alternative hardcore act Cove were announced as openers but unfortunately had to reschedule to the following Sunday – a shame for those attending as Cove perform with such an explosive veracity that they would have put on one hell of an opening performance! Despite this slight alteration to the evening, together SikTh and Exist Immortal both delivered equally passionate and energetic performances, where their two distinctive styles accentuated one another with their mix of djent and melodic verses. Continue reading →

LETTERS FROM THE COLONY Launch Video For New Single “Galax” And It’s Prog!

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LETTERS FROM THE COLONY are your newest prog kids on the block. Hailing from the small town of Borlänge, central Sweden the quintet is an amalgamation of young, artistic and exceptional musicians who are determined to channel their thoughts in a creative and at the same time, an extreme way. LETTERS FROM THE COLONY spawned back in 2010, and since the very first day of their existence they have been determined on bringing something new and virgin to the metal scene. Just adding the right amount of progressiveness, melded with extreme technical aspects the band now is ready to unleash their all new debut studio album, which is releasing tomorrow, out via Nuclear Blast. It’s a progressive extreme metal album, entitled, ‘Vignette‘.

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