Emptiness : "Nowhere Speaks"

If there is one thing I like in my music, it is darkness, and this band from Belgium continues to scratch that itch. Over the years, they have done it in different ways on 2014's "Nothing but the Whore" that took a more blackened approach, then went goth in 2017 with "Not For Music," and now here we are, splitting the difference between the two with something that carries a hazy throb..The heavily affected vocals sound like the devil commonly does in horror movies. The icy guitar buzzing in the title track finds them in a more black metal space. It can capture melody or jsut hold the creepy tension; either works well. 

They are discordant and angular but still flow like syrupy shadows. Heavily atmospheric, they take a more unsettling approach to being heavy. More of 207's goth grooves bubble up in places. The vocals are more whispers than screams or growled/. There are a few ambient interludes which might have worked better just as intros to songs. Granted "Words to Wind" is already almsot eight and a half minutes long, so maybe that is where they were trying to trim the fat.

 For a metal drummer, there is a great deal of restraint in place, as it patters around more like jazz than looking for something to blast into. It moves through the murk with jazzy grace. Then midway itno the songs, thigns threaten to come to a boil but instead just fade into heavy breathing. It feels like this is where the song would have ended, but no there are still three minutes for them to fade in and slowly build things up. 

If you ever wonderer what it would be like if Tom Waits made a goth album well, "When the Whole Arrives' is a pretty good guess. Double bass drums to come in and try to anchor the song, but it's abstact arragnement has already soared off. The guitar is more defined on "The Clash of Forces"". It carries more drive and conforms more to metal expectations. Then it ebbs down to less tangible concepts for 'the Next in Line." It takes over half the song to build it up into something with movement.. It's almost shoegaze, but with much darker shoes being gazed upon.

There is a more bubbling chaos for "All For Nthing". Some of the issue is the mix as the guitar are getting a little song, unless they are given the space to ring out.. By the three minute makr it builds to blast beat pattering under it all. Reveb heavy sung vocals also join in to flaot off with them into the storm clouds. I will give this album an 8, it captures a nice mood, but could be more song-focused

Out July 17th on Season of Mist. 

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Anatomy of Habit : "Paired Sentinels"

 

This is the third album I've reviewed by this band, and with each one, they seem to be getting it a little more dialed in. The album has four songs, two of which are over thirteen minutes. The second and last song, respectively.The seven and a half minutes. opening track to this one finds them taking the post-industrial throb and jamming it out with a hypnotic drone that adds layers of sound to build it dynamically. Not complex arrangements, really just taking the theme and running with it. The baritone vocals calling out amid it all. It works in this context, but not sure I would want an entire album of this. 

The second song, "Conditions of Freedom," finds the bass line opening things up, and strummed guitars adding texture. The vocals are less ominous and sound like Interpol trying to pay tribute to Swans, as they are more of a chant than a verse-chorus arrangement. The Swans' influence is much more present here than on the first song, but not as obvious to the common ear as on their last album. Midway into the second song, they ease the build down and add more dynamics. It also gets moodier. before bringing it back in with a pound that recalls Swan's earlier angrier days. 

"The Importance of Risk" is more rooted in their own identity. The bass line grooves more. The vocals shift away from the Michael Gira influence and toward more of a stoned speculation. There is a bit of a hypnotic drone even here, which is just this band's thing. The vocals are a narrative, but not adding a great dealaside a human element. There is a little brighter, more hopeful mood to the title track that closes the album. The guitar melody that comes in brings a more melancholic edge. This might be the album's melodic moment that also brings a tinge of Pink Floyd to things for this reason.They also get closest to their momst metal moment on this album with the riff it all builds up into .  I will give this album a 9, as I think they continue to grow as a band. 

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Lockstep : "I Know What I Saw"

 

This Nashville-based band nails the shoegaze sound, which is apparent from all the key elements being in place. The reverb warble of guitars and the breathy coo of the vocals, but just dialing in a sound is no feat, so how are their songs? This is the question that really matters. The first two songs show they are not afraid of their distortion pedals, but it's the indie rock groover mixed with a narcotic pulse on "Tilt of the World" that sells me on what they are doing. This album does sound great through headphones, so they have taken great care in capturing these songs in the studio. 

They back off into a dreamier haze with "Soft Gauze of Time," and they bring in a dynamic shift and very deliberately chug up some power chords to contrast how the song opened. The guitar players have a decent sense of melody and carry the weight when the vocals get lost in the mix. I think the whispery vocals will get old for me before the guitar tones. They are smart to keep the songs all under the four and a half minute mark, rather than sprawling everything out into a drone. 

"Dog in the House of Plenty' is nap-inducing even with the sonic heft of the bass and the guitars' more feed back biting tones. For fans of shoegaze, we have to not just settle for what we have heard done before, as this is what separates quality from quantity. Thankfully, they give things more space with the bass line to "Half Measures". It is a little darker and does not rely on drifting in the same clouds. There is a slight angular swagger in the verse riff. 

They are going in a heavier direction with "Solvent Sound", it is a subtle shift, but it works, as the drums give more of a punch in their accents. The syncopation the bass line creates works well and gives the guitar more room.. They jam out the fade-out ending of this one. The last song, "Return" is the first one that actually legit rocks out. By rock out, it's in a doomy way. I will give this album a 9, as they carve their own place out in this genre that is becoming overcrowded in 2026, but they earn a spot. Dropping July 24th on Profound Lore. 

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Snag : " All The Cages Holding Us Will One Day Turn To Dust"

It's been made clear over the years that one of my favorite bands from the late 90s is Planesmistakenforstars, and this trio follows a similar emotional path that might be a little more married to punk than the misery Planes brough later in their careers. Depending on what moment you are at on any given song, the notable influences might also include Hot Water Music and the Get Up Kids. They don't get into anything explosive enough to be hardcore adjacent until "Foam Cup pt3". They also touch on this kind of energy with 'Sunburn".  Even in the compact arrangement written they cram a great deal of dynamics into it. 

The beginning experimenting in a manner more Cursive on "Paris , WI" which is all emotion with the piano and trumpet replacing the instrumentation of punk. It almsot feels more like an interlude, but reminds you of a time when bands experimented more. "Unarrest Me" has a more Fugazi-like bass line. When everything kicks in, it's more frantic and chaotic but highly effective.  The vocals are howled with more tension as it's about having a run-in with the cops. "Debilitated" works off a burly bass line but is the least hooky and most confrontational song thus far. 

They return to their more adventurous melodic side with "Juneberry." which brings Bright Eyes to mind, as it crosses over into indie rock. The guitar takes on a country twang at the outskirts of the song. They toss aside all restraint fwhen they lunge into "Cages," though they shift the dynamics after the initial temper tantrum. You can hear how a band like Converge would have come from this scne.  Despite the last song 'Pray for Peace' unleashed a more feral vocal performance and a great deal of drive, it is very deliberate and never finds its feet, flying out from under it. Even the blast beats work in the dynamic spectrum of where they have taken you. . I will give this a 9.5, as it's almost perfect in how it takes you back to the late 90s but retains it's identity through experimentationDrops on Death Wish Inc. 

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The Menzingers :'everything I Ever Saw"

 

The band's 2019 album "Hello Exile" became the high-water mark against which the album that followed would be weighed, as it balanced country-drenched Americana with the band's punk roots in a way that was honest and carved out its own niche. They seemed to be trying to find their way back in that direction on this album. The opening track "Chance Encounters" gives more drive by finding its strum for Greg Barnett's voice to bleat out his emotional croon. This is accented by Tom May's grittier approach.

"Better Angels" might take some time to grow on me, as it does not connect with me in the same manner as the opening track or "Romanticism". There is something about 'Other People's Money" that makes me think this is what it might sound like if the Dropkick Murphys wrote songs for the radio/ "Gasoline and Matches" puts indie rock in the back of it's beat up pick up tuckand takes a drive out into wide-open farmlands, which is the best plae for these guys. The vocals are pretty heartfelt here. "the Fool" just kinda of breezes along with a more casual strum, that crooses over into a late 90s puink feel. I had to listen to it twice before it clicked with me. 

"Nobody's Heroes' taps into their more reliable songwriting magic."Breath With Me" follows this path as well, though is marginally more anthemic as the tempo finds a little more vigor. The synths that ring out going into "When She Enters My Dreams" give things more of an 80s feel. There is a great vocal performance on this one. "Parade Day' might stand out more if they had not already loaded this album down with some high-powered emotional punches that a re more memorable. They turn up the dials a little for the title track and hold some of the punk influence that steers them toward Social Distortion. I will give this album a 9.t as it finds the band recapturing the balance of sounds that works best for them and polishing them more with the production value being even bigger using Turnstile's producer.Out July 7th on Epitaph 

 

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Dry Wedding : "Thw Back of Beyond"

Portland goth punks make a Samhain-like clanging that is cloaked in shadows. They get more aggressive on the second song, but the moodier vibes of the opening track worked better for me. They feel like they were an obscure band from the 90s that resurfaced, which works in their favor. The ghostly baritone croon of the vocals sits back in the mix until his voice rises to a roar. There are some weird discordant moments from the guitars as well. There are moments where it feels like Danzig is fronting Die Kruzen. They bring more swagger and atmosphere with "Sure as a Gun". There is also a fair amount of influence being drawn from the Birthday Party,

Things drift into darker waters for "Blood Red Vengeance". It is only a two-minute song, so not given enough time to truly build it's dynamis to where you might hope it will go. The bit of bluster that begins to come from the song's crack is in the last twenty seconds. There is more of a punk rumbling in the bass line that drives "One Last Strand". The vocals are muttered in a lower tone here. It runs off energy and attitude more than atmosphere and nuance, which are two factors that are their secret weapons.. The rambling western feel comes through louder on this one. The vocals do not have as much rhyme or reason on this one. 

"Moths" finds the slinky bass line helping to keep the balance between darkness and the rowdy tension lurking under what they do. The vocals kind of wander on this one, leaving the bass line to hold down the weight of the song even as they jam out a bit."Shifting Wilderness closes the album. 

It works off a darker, more hypnotic drone. About a minute and a half, it feels like the song gains its footing. While vocals can be a little hit or miss, I do appreciate what they are doing here enough to give this album a 9. Fans of dark western-tinged pink will dig this one.

6.6

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No Cure : "It is Going to Get Dark"

 

This band plays an in-your-face version of metallic hardcore. You could call it metal core, but I think it's truer to hardcore and feels pretty fucking legit. Jayway from Bayway appears on "Brain Matter" and drops a rap that works well in a less-than-nu-metal manner. I had to go back and give 'Slowly Turning Blue" another listen as they were pretty blistering going into it, and the album starts to collide with your ears as it's a relentless pounding after another. "Ironclad" has a pretty heavy groove. The guitar sound of this album si dense and heavy as fuck.

 There is perhaps an even more confrontational edge to "Starved in Sanctuary"; there are more gang vocals than breakdowns, so that leans them into the hardcore side of the fence. The meanest riff so far gives Slayer vibes on "My World in Flames.". They keep dialing up the heavy as fuck factor with "Convulsing in the dark". "Sharpen the Blade" doubles down on both groove and brutality in equal measure. "Purity Spiral" brings back the more punk elements and gang vocals. But also works in some metal riffs that are pretty crushing.

"I am Still Fucking Straight Edge" is the first song that really clues me in on their stance with this, and I did not know they were a straight edge band going into this album. They close the album on a darker note with "Everything I Love is Dead or Dying". I will have to spend more time with this album; it's as heavy as you can get with this sort of thing, and they still are mindful of the songwriting, so I will give it a 9.5. If you want straightedge hardcore that is heavier than the 90s, then here you go. GIVE IT A 9.5

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