May's Top 10 Albums

Now at the midway point of the year, it's time for May's top 10 albums. Staying abreast on the month's highlights might help casual readers see what they missed, and give this the option to check these artists out. I am not doing little blurbs on them, just linking the reviews. This will help me organize my lists for the end of the year, by listing the genre of music the album falls under. This does not mean that these albums have been released this month, but it is a list of new or upcoming albums I have enjoyed the most, I have albums in my in-box that are not coming out til August, so I am normally way ahead of the curve in this regard. They are ranked in order of what I have listened to the most. This month there is a wide variety from goth to pop to hard-core, so you may find your new favorite among them. Here are the Top 10 albums for May 2024.

10 Omsorg- "Echoes" 

Hard-core 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/omsorg-echoes.html

9-Gatecreeper - "The Dark Superstition" 

Death Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/gatecreeper-dark-superstition.html

8-Knocked Loose  -   "You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To" 

Metal-core

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/knocked-loose-you-wont-go-before-youre.html

  

7- St Vincent - "All Born Screaming" 

Pop

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/st-vincent-all-born-screaming.html

6-Sect- "Plagues Upon Plagues" 

Sludge

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/sect-plagues-upon-plagues.html

5- Take Offense- "T.O. tality" 

Hard - Core

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/take-offense-totality.html

4-DEHD - "Poetry" 

Indie-rock

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/dehd-poetry.html

3-Astari Nite -"Resolution of Happiness' 

Goth rock

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/astari-nite-resolution-of-happiness.html

2-REZN -"Burden" 

Psychedelic Rock 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/rezn-burden.html

1-Candy- "It's Inside You" 

hard-core 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2024/05/candy-its-inside-you.html

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Evergrey : "Theories of Emptiness"

When I picked up a promo copy of the band's 2004 album "The Inner Circle" I opened it up to see a hilarious picture of the band in frilly elf-looking shirts that I showed to my friends and told him 'These guys look like they are about to declare .. Tonight We ride to Isengard". Inside they sounded like a power metal band who took notes from Deep Purple. Now twenty years later and two new members later the Swedes have stepped up their game and changed with the times.  They do not sound as firmly rooted in 80s metal on the opening. Sure the hints are there when it gets to the anthemic chorus. The second song is perhaps too anthemic for my tastes.  Some of their grittier moments like those heard on "To Become Someone Else", remind me of Symphony X. This is still an improvement over the early elf years. 

"Say' is another one that is anthemic though in more of a Kamelot fashion. These guys are now shoulder-to-shoulder with their peers. The chorus is catchy enough and the keyboards are not overbearing. It feels more like modern rock music to me than metal. The vocals are not rooted in big hair yodeling which is a plus so shedding some of the metal tropes is not a bad thing. The dramatic power ballad formula is another one that I wish they left behind but with "Ghost of My Hero' here we are. The vocal performance is soulful enough and works.  It feels like you can hear who these guys truly are as a band on the song "We Are the North". Not that this is the best song, but it is the clearest indication of what the sum of their parts actually is. The only element that does not feel as prominent is the synths that fall behind the other instruments to paint the background ambiance. 

They rock out harder on "One Heart". The big chorus falls along the lines of traditional metal. If I heard this and you told me it was Saxon, I might believe it.  I am not sure what they are going for with "The Night Within" It might make more sense for radio pandering if this was the late 80s. "Cold Dreams' is well written and the vocal melody is highly effective, though not sure where this falls in the bigger picture of the album. It does get pretty heavy for what these guys are doing.  "Our Way Through Silence" is driven by a more hopeful mood than what I normally like, it almost reminds me of Christian rock.  I will give this album a 9, though it is not something I am likely to get much replay value from, however, I am not going to deny how well-crafted this album is and it is one of the better albums I have heard doing this sort of thing in some time. It drops June 7th on Napalm Records. 

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AKHLYS : "House of the Black Geminus"

 The last album I reviewed for this project was the 2015 album "The Dreaming". I was not too impressed by that one it got a 6.5. Things have changed in the past 9 years. They are darker and more intricate in the layering of sounds, at least on the opening track of their new album. Debemur Morti Productions has been pretty reliable when it comes to black metal so let's see if this album holds up. When things kick in, it is clear this project is very angry, the vocals are about as pissed as black metal gets. There is some ebb and flow so it is not all blasting, so we are off to a good start here. Darkness and dynamics are the two key ingredients I require in black metal and these guys go their shit together on it. You would never guess these guys are from Colorado. I am not sure if this song needs to be almost twelve minutes long as I think I got what they are cooking about eight minutes in. 

By the second song, they are hitting you with a dense blasting that is layered with other sounds so you are distracted by what you are being hit with. It's a big sound that carries some nice dissonance, though not the most dynamic thing I have heard today as it largely locks on with its teeth and drones from there. They are a little more deliberate on "Through the Abyssal Door". It works with an almost singular pulse that attacks from different angles. The title track is just a long ambient interlude. After this, they roar back with a more syncopation outburst of anger. It only takes a minute for its momentum to begin to run away with it. The vocals are accented in a manner that gives it a bigger marching feel. But the question becomes can they keep this up for ten minutes? Do they need to ? 

There is a more grandiose atmosphere to the last song though the bubbling undercurrent of blast beats feels like the song is wrestling against itself. Should it conform to the expectations of black metal or will it be allowed to grow into its own beast? Conformity is what it leans closer to. I appreciate the creepy melody that crawls over it. I will give this album an 8.5, which is a long way from their last album. This album drops on July 5th. 

House of the Black Geminus by Akhlys/>

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SELBST : " Despondency Chord Progressions"

 This Chilean Black Metal band's 2020 album scored a respectable 8.5, which did not place it in the upper tier of black metal released that year, so fell short of our Top 10 Black Metal albums of 2020, which found  Chrome Waves taking the top spot. Chrome Waves was not the heaviest or angriest band on the list, they just wrote better songs, This is also the barometer we are measuring this album by after all you can play the fastest blast beats but that is not enough to make someone want to listen to that album years later.. How music stands the test of time is how it is weighed here. This band starts off the album with blast beats set against eerie guitar cascading rather than just holding the buzz of tremolo fury giving them a slight sonic edge over the status quo.

This album also has an edge over the average black metal band, as the production is on point. It is almost mixed like a Deathspell Omega album. There is enough tangled chaos to sit back in the shadows of the reverb, but the bulk of the instrumentation is front and center so the sound is not obscured. Some great guitar playing opens up "When True Loneliness is Experienced".  This is cool as black metal albums are not normally known for ripping solos. This is coming from a guy who gets bored easily with shredding for the sake of it, so it is tasteful almost blues-based playing. It crashes into a darker cascade of dissonance smoothed out with melody. I was not expecting the clean singing, so that means it is effective. 

"Third World Wretchedness" is more of a straightforward black metal affair, while the emphasis is placed on driving forward with a flurry of double bass under it there is still plenty of nuance. "Chant of Self Confrontation" is more nuanced in its construction even though it hits hard and then expands the sounds they are building this from. A more King Diamond-like crooner emerges at one point in the song. Things get dramatically more melodic going into the more contemplative "The One Who Blackens Everything" . The vocals have more of a throat bellow, and guitar heroics eventually emerge. 

More stellar guitar playing unfolds on "Between Seclusion and Obsession". There is a slight Latin underpinning to the almost flamenco guitar. The sung vocals sound great though this song feels like it wants to be an instrumental. The vocals make it feel like it wants to be Ihsahn. Things blast off a little more here which given the breadth of what this album does feels like it's an obligatory gesture to check off all the black metal boxes. I will give this album a 9, it's pretty impressive and an improvement over what I last heard from this project, Out on Debemur Morti Productions. 

[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=145758216 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small] pst250

DØDSFERD : "Wrath"

Feels like I have not covered as much black metal outside of the dedicated month in February this year. A few reasons for this include an unwillingness to sit through an album of blasting that does nothing to distinguish itself, and perhaps not many high-profile black metal albums coming out as current social trends are more likely to label the genre as problematic and want it run through the American hipster filter for bands like the subpar Agriculture, who rode the hype train. This Greek project holds a middle finger up to such notions and plays a fairly straightforward version of black metal which is deliberate enough to care about songwriting. Their 2015 album "Wastes of Life' made it to the number two slot of the Top 10 Black Metal albums for that year. So they are capable of delivering the goods.

This is the 12th album they have released, and Wrath handles all the guitar and vocal duties. The second song is as fast as the opening track so here is hoping they at least modulate around these thrashing speeds to create the illusion of dynamics. The guitar is to offer some melodic nuance, but not a huge shift. It feels less like depressive black metal and is marginally more moody than your average blast fest. Another issue is that to be offering up seven-minute songs there is not a great deal of variance within them. There is a little more for "Ragining Lust of Creation" but is it 10 minutes worth? The dry midrange raps of the vocals could also use some dynamics. We are midway into the song and they are still hitting you with the same buzz of tremolo-picked guitars. When the riff is accented in more of a gallop than a blast they are still not really breaking any new ground. 

They are committed to bath you in their need for speed going into "Spiritual Lethargy". The first minute of the song feels tedious, making the four that follow something to be endured. We are no longer in the late 90s, nor is this even 2010 when this sort of thing began its crawl into the mainstream consciousness of metal fans. It is a blur of stagnant that does not bite as hard as it thinks it does. It becomes white noise that fades into the background. "Heaven Drops with Human Filth" is a variation of what they hit you with on the previous song, perhaps a little nastier in its intentions. It is a clear example of when playing fast loses its effectiveness as it numbs the listener. There will not be anyone wearing a bullet belt who is not going to say this is cvlt enough for them. But what about songwriting? What makes this an album worth owning? 

From a production standpoint, the album sounds pretty good. All the elements in this storm sit where they should, though the vocal are more prominent than expected when you listen to this through headphones. The drumming is impressive enough, and more than gets the job done, but if it were allowed to groove a little the songs might have benefited. No such luck, just straight-up blasting. For what this is I will give the album a 7 as they play their instruments well, and capture all the sound they wanted, but the songwriting feels dialed in. 

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Dopethrone : "Broke Sabbath"

 The Canadian Stoner Sludgesters are back at it and crank things up with a rumble that will run you over. The snarl of the vocals is meaner than I remember. This album might be called "Broke Sabbath", but they owe just as much to Motorhead here as Sabbath. Things are fuzzed out in a much denser fashion. The vocals run through a distorted filter to add extra malice to their delivery. I am reluctant to think of these guys as a stoner band regardless of their name, as there is not much of a THC-laced mellowness to what they are doing and they are more malevolent in their attack. 

'ABAC" stomps heavily upon the ears, the fuzzed-out buzz of the guitars is more of a frequency than a riff crafted to express something sonically greater. Better than filler, but not on the level of the first two songs. The following song is unfurled similarly, with the vocals holding a little more purpose, at times reminding me of the band  Today is the Today. Dynamically things have begun to only throb off the rumble. Some of the rumbling tones wallo in misery more than others. None are hopeful, which works for me. At other points, it sounds like the song is deconstructing itself before building more momentum. 

"Rock Block" sounds like blackened Motorhead, down to the punk rock drum beat. It does slow back into their sludged-out rumble which I expect must be insanely loud live. It would be a crime for it not to be. There are more rock n roll tropes littered in the song. "Unworse" has a sample with a great message that opens it. The song then crashes to life. It punches the riffs in place with authority. This is a more pleasing sound to me ears due to the syncopation. The last song closes things with a convincing crunch, as they move back to the monolithic lumber. I will give this album an 8.5, as they have summoned a very solid sound that works for what they do, I prefer things more dynamic, but for what they are they are killing it with more malice than most. 

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DIIV : "Frog in Boiling Water"

 

Weirdly, we have not reviewed this Brooklyn-based band before despite the fact they are solidly in the more indie rock-leaning wheelhouse of what we cover. I also do not remember them being this shoe-gaze either, which is my first impression of the opening track.  Another odd thing about this album is how it was created during a time of inner turmoil for the band. It was birthed from interpersonal tension, and outside issues threatening to break them up, but it sounds like the most serene dreamy floating bliss put to sound. In fact by the second song at this languid tempo, it threatens to be too sleepy for its own good. They did however capture some stunning guitar sounds.

The first hint of something darker under the surface is not really heard until " Raining On Your Pillow". The sedate hushed murmur of vocals at times makes me think of Elliot Smith. These guys bring a thicker atmosphere to the table. The Elliot Smith-like melancholy lingers on in the title track even as the tempo picks up into a steadier forward flow. The lyrics proclaiming you can see the world with a big gun in your hand, are obviously more rooted in the current state of geo-politics. But this is the way to bring up the subject as it is so subtle. 

When things break down into the strum of the guitar and the coo of the more fragile vocal emoting, the Elliot Smith comparisons also spring to life again, making me listen for the moment when this does sound like shoe-gaze Elliot Smith. The indie folk elements are well done, even though they do not play to their strength as a band  Even when things pick up into more of a 90s indie rock shimmer on a song like "Reflected" there is a very restrained feel to it. When the vibe picks up on "Somber The Drums" it finds them haunting a similar sonic space that Nothing occupies when flirting with grunge, though the bass tone here is less beefed up. 

Other moments are so sedate they breeze by rather than demand your attention, though there is not a moment on this album that is not well done, it just depends on the mood you are in. For if you really need to be rocked this is not going to be the album for you. However, if you are stoned and depressed more often than not they have a soundtrack for you. They make ears perk up with the ringing drone to the melody of "Soul-net". It is a simple song but it works for what they are doing here. When they step on the distortion it reminds me a little of the Cure. The album closes with a song that drifts past you in a hypnotizing manner that requires a second listen to digest what happened. I will give this album a 9, as they have some memorable songs that might otherwise just float away if left in less capable hands. 

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Alarm ! : "s/t"

 This Swedish punk band features former members of Victims. They are in your face playing a rather straightforward version of the hyper-aggressive genre that hits you with their manic energy from the start. A little goes a long way when it comes to this brand of no-frills thrashing. The prominent rumble of bass creates a somewhat Motorhead-like sound, but these guys are happy to just rage head first at you. The vocals are screamed in a manner that begins to feel like a one-trick pony three songs in. This can be typical of punk music, but I expect a little more from seasoned musicians. 

"Scare Game" brings a little more nuance to the table, thanks to the stellar bass playing. But the overall feel is very much the same temper tantrum we have heard in the first three songs as well. This song does work its way into a more sonic breakdown where the tempo changes but can only hope to hear this expanded upon as the album unfolds. "For Lost Times" is not really breaking new ground here. There are marginally more sonic touches in the blitz of guitars. I  like that bass is featured so prominently in these songs creating a heavier feel. 'Ancient Cycles' is the first song where they go into a darker crustier place and it makes me wish they had been on this path since the beginning. The deliberate lumbering also makes this the longest song at under four minutes. 

There is more tension and dynamics to "Me and Failure" though the vocals have begun to get tedious at this point in the album. However, I appreciate the overall sound in its more apocalyptic stomp.     Their bassist leads the way into "the Loop" which pounds with more brooding anger. This is the sonic path I enjoy. The vocals shift into a more sneering singing style with color to it. The last song is a minute of punk anger, there is a time and a place for this but it is more of a sound than a song.  I will give this album an 8.5, the strength of this band is when they lean into their crustier side, this is offset but the punk recklessness,  it balances out though I am unsure if it will lure me personally in for more listens but appreciate what they have done here. If you are a fan of the more feral strains of punk you might enjoy this even more.It drops on June 14th  

 

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Bring Me the Horizon : "Post Human -NeX GEn"

 

These guys are in head lining spots at many of the big rock festivals playing alongside metal bands, but from the first song of their new album, it's clear they are not metal, nor are they even rock music. They are pop music which is fine with me in and of itself, in fact, it reminds me a lot of Pierce the Veil's last album which was also pop. Just because a few phrases are screamed here and there does not make it any heavier it just makes it emotive pop music made by kids who grew up in the Myspace era.  They get about as aggressive as Linkin Park in the second song. This does not mean they are nu-metal since Linkin Park was just a boy band with instruments. I prefer the poppier side they opened the album with as this feels like they are trying too hard. 

"Top 10 Statues That Cried Blood" is a hilarious song title, but the song itself is pretty much Myspace-era pop-punk produced in a manner that might be easily marketed to the TikTok generation. It is too happy for my tastes, but little kids might like it. These guys are not as consistent in their songwriting as Pierce the Veil,, but "Limousine" is pretty effective.  AURORA from Norway sings on this song as well. "Darkside" lyrically winks at Poppa Roach. So this band aspires to be the next wave of nu-metal, which given that is coming from millennials it only makes sense that it would have less balls than the first wave of nu-metal. 

By the time we get to "Bullet w my name on" the songwriting has spiraled in the most middle-of-the-road formula you can imagine. I understand that Underoath also helps out with this song, but there are too many cooks in the kitchen making a mess of things. "N/A" could almost be a Bruno Mars song. if he decided to try his hand at emo-tinged pop-punk.  The self-deprecating lyrics might be the best thing about the song. "Lost" is another pop-punk anthem straight from 1999. The real hero of this album is producer Zakk Cervini who has also worked with bands like Blink 182, Simple Plan, Halsey, and Poppy, which given his works, explains much about this album. 

More pop comes pumping out with "Rip" which works well enough for me, I can easily hear this being a Poppy song. "amEN" is a little bit of a disappointment considering Glassjaw are involved, and I have much greater expectations from them. Lil Uzi Vert is also on this track, but his contributions are pretty negligible. The song is chaotic with little hook or purpose to it. There are interludes labeled as ost on this album that I am not even bringing up as they are sounds not songs. 'Die4u" might as be a Post Malone song. The album is quickly becoming something I am committed to enduring rather than something I look forward to listening to. They close the album with what amounts to a melodramatic power ballad. I do enjoy the more melancholy elements and think they would be better if they leaned into the more depressive side rather than selling out with radio anthems. I can even live with the auto-tuned vocals in this context. I will give this album an 8, I appreciate some of the glitched-out experimental moments and think they are capable songwriters though their intentions are misplaced and if they took an honest look at themselves and admitted they are really just a pop band, it would carry a more honest sound rather than having to dial it in during post-production. 

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LOVATARAXX : "SOPHOMORE"

Was sorting through the newly announced lineup for the 2024 Absolution Fest line-up and this is the first project that released music this year that caught my ear. This French project makes music that is a very lo-fi and cinematic take on dark wave-leaning future pop. The synths and drum programming have a very purposefully 80s feel to them. The vocals are interesting as they are phrased in an upbeat punk manner. The first track caught my attention so let's see if they can hold my interest from here. The male and female vocals get equal spotlight. The second song sounds like it should be playing in the background at an arcade in 1985. She sings in her native tongue, which is accented in a very stark fashion. It is however more upbeat than the first song. 

"Harmony Boast" is upbeat, but not in a dancey way despite its intentions. Instead, it rides a stiff post-punk tension, from the back of a coke-fueled disco. It feels almost like Nina Hagen. 'Earl Condition" finds them conforming more closely to what has already been established as the DJ-approved sounds for the genre. The make vocals are lower and more detached. "Tilda Vaast' is a darker step in a similar direction that comes across as carrying more tension. The female vocals work really well over the groove this song establishes. Later in the album they shift into a more Cure-like take on post-punk, which works well. 

Fans of projects like Boy Harsher and TR/ST should find plenty of common ground with what goes down here. This project might even wink more heavily in the direction of the 80s. The dark grooves are not the typically worn-out beats that you have been dancing to at goth nite for the past two decades. When the tempo picks up it feels like you are being frantically chased through a neon maze. "Marybone" drones with her chant, despite having a more upbeat feel. The underlying intensity of "Bruxism" is more impressive though it finds them back in a more Nina Hagen-like new wave.  They close the album with a more brooding atmosphere lurking under the disco sonics. I like his approach to the vocals here, as they have more emotion behind them. I will give this album a 9, it surprised me, and while I am not sure how many repeat listens I will return to it for, I enjoy the time I spent with it and think that fans of more electronic-based dark music will find plenty to celebrate with it. 

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Anciients : "Beyond the Reach of the Sun"

 

This is the 3rd album from this Canadian band. Their last album found them worshipping Mastodon a little too much for my tastes, they have shed that fixation. This album is more metal in a traditional sense, without their prog-rock aspirations getting the best of the songwriting. There is some great guitar playing going on right from the first song. If I were to mention one band I feel these guys owe the most thanks to this time, it would be Opeth. This is fine for what it is since Opeth no longer makes this kind of music so if the sense of nostalgia was getting the best of me and I did not want to play "Deliverance " this would work. 

Though they have not shed all of their former obsessions with Mastodon, the Brent Hinds-influenced style of picking can be heard at the start of the second song. They do shift things into their more melodic take on death metal. Skilled at what they do, but still sorting through their influences to find who they are, though it shines through more on this album than the last one. They have improved when it comes to the more melodic moments. Though in many respects songs like "Is it Your God" feel like I have already heard them before. When it comes to heavy music these guys are middle of the road when weighed against actual heavy death metal bands like Cannibal Corpse or Frozen Soul. But fans of this band are listening to Opeth and not Cannibal Corpse, as they want more of the jamming. 

What can be appreciated about this album is that it is a guitar album. That is the reason you are going to want to listen to it. It does this in an even more admirable manner, by not putting its foot on the monitor and trying to wow you with guitar solos, but great tones and melodic playing. There are solos but they serve the song and add melody. "Melt the Crown" winds me over in this regard. They are firing off their songwriting skills at a higher level for "Cloak of the Vast and Black". The title sounds like a Dungeons and Dragons magic item, so the music is sonically close to this theme as well, though, some impressive tension is established as the song winds around your head like a labyrinth. They allow for time to breathe with more spacious interludes of melody. 

"Celestial Tyrant" plays it much safer, the call and response between the sung vocals and the growled vocals is much more predictable. They begin gliding down the more Mastodon-like proggy middle road. The one consistent element is great guitar playing. On "Beyond Our Minds" the drumming comes in at a close second. "the Torch"' charges in with straight-up death metal, though if you think of death metal in the more melodic European sense with plenty of guitar harmonies. Not really bringing anything new to the table with their version of it. The guitar solos cross over into having a little too much razzle-dazzle. After this the album shifts back to its more prog-minded direction. "Candescence" has more groove and darker shadows lingering around it. 

They display their peak guitar prowess at the beginning of the last song. It is almost a blues jam of sorts and leads into the more prog-rock tension as the song unfolds. This has some of the best vocal lines of the album. The vocals are a restrained croon here. I will give this album an 8.5,  this is their best work yet, not the most original thing I have heard this year, but they execute it in a manner that allows you to hear who they are, and really care about the songwriting this time around. Dropping on Season of Mist in August.  

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Candy : "It's Inside You"

 

This band's 2022 album "Heaven is Here"  took the number two spot on our Top 10 Extreme Metal Albums list of the year, and tenth on the best overall Metal list of the year. I have been looking forward to this one and expectations are high.  Aaron Melnick of Integrity lends his guitar to what I assume to be the solo on "Short Circut" and it only makes sense as the hard-core grind of the song, carries the same raw sludge-like tone Integrity uses, making their influence on this band more apparent. That is not to say this is almost trying to capture the hardcore sounds of the 90s, the band continues to be very forward-thinking, but those influences abound from different angles.

Justice Tripp of Trapped Under Ice lends his voice to "You Will Never Get Me", a song that is almost one crushing breakdown laced with industrial hints in an almost nu-metal fashion. The post-millennial hard-core continues with David Gagliardi of Trash Talk yelling along with them on the title track that hits a very Ministry-influenced syncopation. They marry these sounds in a manner that carries perhaps even more metallic fury than when Code Orange dabbled in similar sonics. 'Love Like Snow" goes in a more electronic direction without compromising the album's narrative. 

"Dehumanize Me" kicks you in the face with equal lyrical and metallic fury.  "Faith 91" is brutal but also has a catchy groove, other metal-core bands need to take notes with this album. They do abandon restraint at times and blast off into hyper-fast punk explosions where they sound more like every other hard-core band, but they do redeem themselves with mean riffs that turn the dynamics back around. "Silent  Collapse' is the only song where it feels they are overindulgent in their punk rock side. I prefer it when they temper the punk energy with electronic experimentation as displayed in "Dancing to the Infinite Beat".  They take this to a further extreme on "Hypercore".  I will give this album a 9.5, a see how it grows on me, it has raised the bar for hardcore this year. I think this is closer to what I expected from the new Knocked Loose, so I hope the hype for that release doesn't overshadow what these guys are doing better. Drops June 7th on Relapse Records.  

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REZN : "Burden"

The new album from Chicago's Sonic Sorcerors finds them expanding their minds and sound though buckling in giving the opening track a dark grooving drive that might not be metal, but it is aggressive enough to get the point across. They continue exploring new ambiance realms as the bass line guides you into "Instinct". The plea of the vocals echoes out into the expansive place they have created here. It feels darker than the previous album, but darker in a more hazy moonlit manner. The tenor vocals cry out with more support from the diaphragm this time around, though not quite belted. The mood is more eerie than ghostly or spooky. I would not be surprised if the band was major heshers either. 

The guitar melody of "Bleak Patterns" is catchy and different for the band, but the song feels like it washed up in the wake of "Instinct". The bass line is not as meaty until a minute and a half into the song. The songs soar in from a cloud front that has a high-pressure front behind it, though never condenses into a storm. In some ways, this album is not unlike the new Pallbearer. The two bands hold much more common ground now. This song gets heavier as it drifts upshore. It might even be more sonically dense than the new Pallbearer. "Collapse" might be the album's best song, as it has an exotic guitar melody that floats through the song as a counterpoint to the vocals. 

The album begins to darken as it progresses like the dusk falls over it going into "Collapse" and the sun finally sets upon "Soft Prey". The vocals float around the songs with more assurance this time around. This first sounds to make me think of psychedelics creeping in two minutes into this song. The saxophone lends further merit to this as it creates an almost Pink Floyd-like dynamic. "Chasm" closes the album with the first metallic chugs that remind you these guys used to be a doom band. It is what the kids today call a banger for sure. I will give this album a 10, these guys will be hard to beat when it comes to making melancholy stoner rock that is heavy on the atmosphere. It drops June 14th on Sargent House. 

 

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DEHD : "Poetry"

Over the years this band continues to grow on me, as each album finds them evolving in a manner that continues to fine-tune their garage pop. This time around the stage is set on the opening track which feels like poppy and carries more of an indie rock jangle. There is less of a garage rock feel, and it feels like a lost classic from the early days of  California punk. Despite this band not being from California. "Hard to Love" finds an androgynous quality blanketing the way Balla and Kempf's voices are intertwined  Overdriven bass gives "Mood Ring" a bit of backbone before they off into a weird John Water's flavored take on 1950s pop. The jangle of guitars returns in a big way on "Necklace" which feels more like the Velvet Underground to me.

 'Alien" is a breezy pop contemplation on what makes Emily an outsider and feel more like an alien. This is also a point in the album where the vocal production really pops off. 'Light On" is the first song that does not connect with me, it does not feel as vocally focused as what they deliver on "Pure Gold" that follows. Lyrically this album seems to be lighter in tone, and there is a summer vibe to the overall mood of the album. "Dist B" is more atmospheric, but flows with the same easy quality, as Kempf's vocals work well over the surreal dance beneath her. "So Good" is hopefully moody in its contemplation.  

"Don't Look Down" is another Balla song that might be tighter in its intentions than "Light On", but there is something about it that does not measure up to the other songs. Perhaps it just needs to grow on me, though I typically prefer it when Kempf is on the mic. "Knife" serves as an example of why I might have this preference. Though Emily's vocals on this album are sung in an alto that is more androgynous. This creates an almost post-punk feel to "Shake". "Magician' finds them locked into what is their most effective use of their voices and instruments.  The Beach Boys meets Velvet Underground sound is in full effect on "Forget".  Then finds them at their most dense guitar shimmer. I will give this album a 9.5, and see how it grows on, me so far it might be the band's best.Out on Fat Possum.  

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End of Dayz : "Searching For a Way Out'

II am surprised these guys are from Seattle they sound like they are from the Bronx. If you wanted to know what New York hard-core sounds like, these guys have figured it out  The album opens with a crunchy intro that reminds me of 90s hardcore. The throaty bark on the first song also furthers these comparisons. I mean I will take this any day over Myspace era hard-core. Biohazard is the first band that comes to mind when it comes to their metallic attack, though there is less of a bouncing grooving feel. At times the vocals come closer to singing than others., The more nu-metal-like syncopation becomes more commonplace as the song progresses. 

They pick things up to a more punk-paced tempo on "Salvation'. Sometimes this has more of a thrashy cross-over feel than other times. I do not think this is as effective as when they are grooving more than they did in the first song. It is also at this point in the album, that the familiarity of the sounds they have collected begins to sound a little too similar to bands I already heard do this back in the day. I have already heard albums by newer bands who are taking this sort of thing and doing it in a manner that is catchier. I would be more prone to listen to those albums.  This is not to say that these guys are not skilled at what they are doing here as they are pulling it off well. 

"War (Riot) Spirit" is punchy and aggressive enough. Lyrically much like the bulk of this album is vague, I do not need bands to be political, but I just want to know what these guys are about aside from hard-core, maybe that is all the depth they have?  They sound great and pull everything off they are just very derivative of a time and place in music, that you may or may not be nostalgic for. I will give this album an 8.5, as it might not be the most original, but it kicks you in all the right places all the right ways. 

  

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Sect : "Plagues Upon Plagues"

 This band is comprised of who's who of post-millennial  Hard-core. At the mic former Cursed vocalist Chris Colohan, who is giving an impassioned performance, with a husky croon that winks in the direction of Neurosis. His approach gives the dark tension of the music, more depth and makes more of an impact when it does get time to scream and kick the riffs in.  Those riffs are driven by former Earth Crisis guitarist Scott Crouse. Andy Hurley from Fall Out Boy / Racetraitor beating the drums. Hurley shows restraint and keeps things at a more sludged-out pace rather than pouring on the punk mania.  The heft of the guitars is bolstered by Jimmy Change from Undying and bassist Steve Hart. The first song that finds things aggressively accelerated is 'Drowning in Sorrows" which is three songs into things. 

Their chemistry as a unit grants them the ability to shift from heavy grooves to more patrol rock wanderings with some great interplay of guitars along the way. "#foreverhome" is a scathing commentary on today's society, and I am surprised more bands are not fed up with the world around them like these guys are. While their press release seems to angle them in a more left-leaning direction, which is not surprising for punk rock, when you give the songs an actual listen things are not that black and white, as the bleak nature of things touching all in the western world seems to be what they are raging against here. As someone who is "apolitical", I can appreciate this as it never seems I am being preached the gospel of either side. 

"The Lovers of Life" works off the same stormy tension that has been driving this album. "Inventory" goes straight for the throat. They rein the song in to give the mood room to breathe. The last song is a more sludge-influenced take on a hard-core dirge. I like that it is as sonically heavy as it is metal-heavy. You can call this a metallic hardcore album if that definition includes something as dark and dense as this album. I will give this album a 9.5, as it's the kind of brooding shadowy hardcore I prefer. This comes out June 7th on Southern Lord, which makes sense for both the band and the label that they should be paired. 

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LIVERNOIS : ":ablation:"

There is a great deal to like when it comes to this  project from New Orleans. It also raises the question of why more goth and industrial bands are not coming out of that city? They are very dark and gritty and do not give a fuck about the dance floor which I appreciate. If we think about some of the best industrial that came out of the 90s it also did not care about the dance floor. There is noise, and plenty of rough edges to the opening track that slithers through the gutters. It carries more groove than the more obtuse second song. Interestingly, the second part of 'Tear Catcher" precedes the first part of this album. The vocals are a drugged-out sneer, desperate and mocking in equal measure with disdain conveyed in both deliveries. 

"Tit for Tat" is more atmosphere in it's brooding speculations. The vocals are more of a hushed accusation, not until Reznor's approach on "the Downward Spiral".The guitars do kick into a more defined rock riff, but the beats do not carry the added weight to make this dynamic heavy. Still, I like the 90s feel of what is happening here. 'Tearcathcer pt1" is more experimental with layers of noise opening the song. It takes about two minutes for things to converge into a song, once it gains momentum, things are heavy on the industrial side with crunching machine-like pounding being dished out. Perhaps it's not as catchy as the first wave of Marilyn Manson impersonators who hit the scene in the 90s, but it still works well enough. 

The last song finds the vocals getting more aggressive and screaming in a manner, not unlike the harsher delivery of Psyclon 9. The drum programming does not pack as much of a punch as what those guys do, however, these guys are proving to be heavier than I expected, since I first heard of them when I saw them listed as the openers for the current leg of Vision Video's summer tour. This is only a five-song EP, but I am impressed with the direction they are going in, would like to hear what they sound like with more production value, for what this is in the current presentation, they are dark and have enough grit in their attitude for me to give them a 9, which makes them one of the better industrial releases this year. 

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Combichrist : "CMBCRST"

Andy is back for the project's 10th album. He has kept this industrial entity going for the past 21 years, so we know he at least has that experience under his belt. We have reviewed the band here several times, with the highest the band as ever scored being an 8, and more commonly closer to a 7. Meaning they are listenable and professional, their fan base has solid reasons to latch onto them, but there is a quality that keeps them from fully connecting with me. Typically it's vocals, which I feel are best served with as many effects on them as possible as he is better at yelling than screaming. He plays to his strengths more effectively on this album.

The first song is more electronic in nature, but I like "D For Demonic" which is darker and more metallic, almost more of a Ministry vein is tapped into.  "Heads Off' carries a more deliberate pounding that is also anthemic. Then balance out their more nuanced melodic writing with the big stadium industrial throb for "Only Death is Immortal". The writing is more focused, and hooky. Though lyrically it is a little all over the place. "Compliance" is easy to sing about, but knowing how the Atlanta Goth Industrial scene was, when Covid went down, I wonder what kind of a stand he took, and when it comes to not shaking the social boat, I guess not much of one. But the show sounds good enough for those into it to believe it. 

"Northern Path" is more of a ballad, but more spoken than sung. Many older European industrial ats have tried a similar approach, despite their vocal shortcomings. Being a heavier touring band, they have been exposed to all times of modern metal, so the more metalcore leanings heard at times on this album should be no surprise. But with the lines now being blurred with bands coming up with both nu-metal and metalcore influences, this kind of clamor is more commonplace. Speaking of nu-metal, "Wolves Eating Wolves" leans a little in that direction.  There are some cool production choices on "Not My Enemy" though it does not anything else new to the table sonically. 

"Modern Demons" is a little more dance floor driven though not a huge departure from the rest of the album, which can also be said about "Planet Doom" but it is more driving. There is also more of that nu-metal bounce I heard earlier in the album. "Sonic Witch" is a little more rock n roll in the verses. "Violence Solves Everything' is in two parts, both are cool for what they are with the first being a punk song, and the second being a darker more industrial banger. I will give this a 9, which is the highest they have scored so far, which is thanks to the more focused and melodic nature of the songwriting this time around. 

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Astari Nite : "Resolution of Happiness"

 

These guys were bound to evolve. I am glad they are. They have expanded their sonic palette, now drawing from dark emotive genres aside from death rock. The album opens with an almost Gary Numan-like take on New Wave. The post-punk jangle of the angular groove that possesses"Necessity Meal" is even more compelling. Lyrically great imagery is thrown at you in a collage of sentiments. There is little of the Christian Death worship that marked their earlier work. More synths drape the songs, it will be interesting to see how this is pulled off live. There is a more organic post-peek approach for "Tongue Tied Galore' that requires less imagination to envision its performance. 

"Bowie in Daydreams" was already released as a single, so it is not a surprise that it was included on this album, as it bridges where the band was with where the band is now. "the Inevitable Crocodile" is more decorated with more synths and carries a hazy swirl, even with it's more 80s leaning groove. The chorus has a hook that gives all the weirdness around it purpose. What I admire about this song is how original it is while borrowing from the era the whole post-punk revival pays homage to. 'Ashtray Ballet" is haunted by a dense, hazy atmosphere, yet sonically heavy in its mood. Another example of how the band is carving its own niche. 

Things move in a more disco direction on "Cut Here For Dialogue". It is hard not to bob your head to it but is such an odd shift from what has been going on up til this point. The ambiance gets more reverb-drenched as they dance into "What a Rainbow Feels Like". For there they waltz with a little more whimsy into 'All Else is a Curse". Thankfully things in on a darker note with "We Are Still Siamese", which is closer to what is expected from what we call goth music. I am glad they show a wider range of what they can do on this album, as it shows them growing into their own here. I will give this album a 9.5, for now, I wait to see how some of the more unexpected moments grow on me. If this is your introduction to the band it serves as a fine welcome into their majestic melancholy that is given more freedom here.

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Gatecreeper : "Dark Superstition"

 Right out the gate, they are creeping with harder-hitting riffs, that carry a more hardcore influence punch to them. This is the band's third album and it sounds like not only are they coming into their own, but stepping into the spotlight to earn a larger metal audience. There is more of an Entombed like grit to "Oblivion".  This works but it's not as finely tuned as the opening track. It certainly earns headbanging. "the Black Curtain" does not compromise the death metal nature of the band, but is hookier. The vocals feel like they have more purpose than what I can recall from their previous albums. 

They continue to dig into meatier grooves with "Masterpiece of  Chaos". It's not chaotic, but the verses to find them pouring on more speed than the opening riff. Matt's drumming really steps it up on this album to help push the band over into greatness. With this comes a sense of groove that something leans more in a rock direction on the title track. There are hints of a more hardcore stomp, but it all works together pretty seamlessly. " A Chilling Aura" feels like a little more restraint could be used, there are some cool riffs at the beginning that are not really fleshed out as they step on the gas. Not a bad song, but I think they could have employed elements more effectively. Blasting just was not the answer. 

The more thrash accents to the powerful chug of "Caught in the Treads" however works really well and shows they do know what their most effective path is. It's big in an Amon Amarth manner but without the silly Viking appropriation. The bass line that kicks off "Flesh Habit" works really well, and sets up the song for some excellent grooving. There is a slight "Wolverine Blues' era Entombed sense of boogie to it.  Can also hear traces of late '90s death metal as well. "Mistaken for Dead" hammers away in more of an Entombed-like direction. The last song opens with a more death-doom feel and keeps things in a very purposeful pace that works well. I will give this album a 9.5, it is the band's most impressive display of songwriting yet. 

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OMSORG : "Echoes"

 

There are hundreds of promos sitting in my inbox, so rather than waste my time clicking around the inner web, better use of my time might be checking some of these out and reviewing the best of them. Northern European hardcore is always something worth checking out.. Denmark is a country that has brought me a great deal of cool hardcore so this band is worth a listen. They are angry, but not venting this in the kind of burly metallic manner most hardcore bands  Some of this is in their more organic guitar tone. They can pound the point home without having to chug it like Slayer;. While I like metallic hardcore if you are not a band like Terminal Nation, then I would rather you try a different approach as it gets too close to the kind of metalcore I don't like. 

Most hardcore wants to look back at this place in the mid-90s when hardcore gained a more emotional and reflective tone which is something I can appreciate if it is done well and it is really excelled at on "Modern Misery". Sung vocals are included as well as sparse gang vocals for those who feel that sort of thing is a must in hardcore music. Much like blast beats in black metal a little goes a long way and thankfully these guys know that. Everything here is done in a very well-balanced manner. They might not be the most intense or tough-sounding hardcore band you are going to hear, but they are great songwriters;

We get more from the conventions of hardcore in the last song. It is angular in a unique way that does not pack the punches where you would expect them to. It is still more straightforward in many respects particularly when they really gain momentum, though this is balanced out by some melodic sonic touches of guitar. I have not paid any attention to the bass playing on this album, which is odd as the album is otherwise well produced, though midway into the last song my ears find the rumble of bass. This is not screamo, but they do share some of the sonic touchstones screamo makes use of.  The vocals are more purposeful and serve the songs rather than just being an expulsion of anger. I will give this album a 9.5, I really enjoyed it a great deal and you will as well if you want some melodic hardcore not unlike what came out in the late 90s 

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Kerry King : "From Hell I Rise"

 If you were wondering how much of Slayer was Kerry King, the question is about to be answered. The band had been plugging along without Jeff. Jeff played a role in their writing process, so it depends on what side of the band you hope to hear. Mark from Death Angel is handling the vocals, 'Diablo" is more of an intro, making "Where I Reign" the opening track. It sounds like the song could have been off "God Hates Us All". It is fast and has the kind of aggression that Slayer were perfectors of. King's solos are more melodic and less chaotic in the first song.   "Residue" is more deliberate. I am not sure what side of the story the narrative of the lyrics sits on. Mark gives his most gutsy performance yet. It also reminds me a little of "Diabolis in Musica". Once again 90s Slayer is being mentioned and not their classic 80s sound. 

"Idle Hands" carries a pretty powerful chug. Once again "God Hates Us All" comes to mind. Paul Bostaph certainly helps things sound like Slayer. The sense of groove on "Trophies of the Tyrant" is the song's strength. There is melodic nuance they flesh it out in the best way possible. When they pour on the speed for 'Crucifixation" the results are not as impressive. There is a cool riff that comes in midway into the song, but the rule here is "cool riffs alone do not a good song make".  The throb the builds on "Tension" lives up to the song's name. "Everything I Hate About You" runs more of a full-throttle hard-core thrashing. In contrast, the riff that drives "Toxic" sounds like a classic Slayer riff.  "Two Fists' has a more undisputed attitude to it. I always thought King was more the Judas Priest guy and Jeff was the punk side, but I guess we are hearing otherwise.

"Rage" leans into a more speed-laced fury. It's hyper-thrashing, which lends itself more to songwriting rather than if these were just blast beats. The more deliberate palm-muted chug of "Shrapnel" feels like things are at their most effective. Bostaph helps sell the last song. It finds them returning to that more "God Hates Us All" "-like place. Thow his album shows how large of a role King played in Slayer it might not have had any of the serial killer love songs, which were my favorite moments from the band but it does carry a great deal about what made the band great so I will give this album a 9, and see how it grows on me.

 

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Oh Hiroshima : "All Things Shining"

 

Was a big fan of the Swedish band's 2022 album "Myriad". The band continues to perfect their brand of post-rock-influenced grooves.  The album opens with even hookier vocals this time around.  The drumming is highly dynamic, guiding the ebb and flow of the song, to create a backdrop for the sing-song vocals to reach out from. They lean into a more shoe-gazing take on indie rock for the second song. The build is more gradual and droning. I can appreciate the meandering jam even if it does not work off the momentum established by the first song. 

They ramble on with a more casual strum into dreamy waters for "Swans in a Field ". There is something effective in the layering of guitars that creates more sonic breadth. There is more movement to "Secret Youth" The brooding bassline makes it a little darker than the previous songs. I would not say they are heavy but capable of diving into more intense soaring. This creates a more cinematic peak.  "Rite of  Passage" starts off more introspective with a wandering post-rock feel. The vocals belt it out a little more to steer the dynamic build of the song which is pretty effective. 

"Deluge" sounds like it could have been from Opeth's "Damnation album, which works for me. The sense of seething shadows possesses it. "Leave Us Behind' feels like they finally commit to journeying into prog rock. It has been an undercurrent this album has hinted at but this song and the previous one are more deliberate steps into it. The last song wanders out into a more introspective place even with the bass line's burly tone trying to anchor it. It touches on the wanderlust of shoe-gaze with a thick shimmer. This album sounds great and finds the band experimenting more with songwriting. I will give this album a 9.5, and see how it grows on me if you like prog rock or shoegaze they have something for you here. Drops June 28th on Pelagic Records. 

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Kittie : "Fire"

 Kittie is back, which should be no surprise given how nu-metal is making a comeback. The album opens with less of the staccato grooves that lumped the band in with the likes of Coal Chamber back in the day and this is a more straight-up metal affair. The sweet and spicy dynamic of the harsher vocals being answered by the sung vocals is still intact.  Morgan's snarl is more venomous with age. "I Still Wear This Crown" finds them in more of a Slipknot-like mood. I think "Falter" is a more well-written song, with a groove that flows better to my ears. 

This album is really well produced, considering how long they have been around as a band, we should not expect less. They were after all one of the first female bands rocking out this hard which made them more of a novelty at the time., They have a formula in place on this album as four songs in there is a uniformity to the head banging, with a few variations of this in place. Most of the songs hang in the balance around where her vocal hooks will fall. There are other strong moments like the taunt syncopation of "We Are Shadows' though her sung vocal, pretty much sounds like every other female metal singer out doing this sort of thing, even if Morgan originally broke ground doing it first. 

This album is less nu-metal than you might expect, though what nu-metal turned into could be argued,as Disturbed often bordered classic metal and thrash, so when "Wound" reminds me of a Disturbed riff, then maybe this is just the next logical place for nu-metal to go. Some of it just sounds like generic mainstream metal. Judging from that sludge band Morgan was in a few years back she has better taste than this, but perhaps this is the expectation of what a Kittie album sounds like in 2024. "One Foot in the Grave' conforms to what all other female-fronted metal bands do today. 

Perhaps nu-metal is not such a bad thing, as it was typically dark and angsty, which can be said for "Are You Entertained, " one of the album's better songs. As one of the lead singles from this album I am surprised how heavily "Eyes Wide Open" leans into the screamed vocals, Lander has spoken about the influence Pantera has had on her and you can hear it on this song. I will give this album an 8.5, it has some strong moments but the more generic mainstream metal moments, might target their audience, but do not do anything for me, but the songs that hit it hard balance this out to some extent.This album drops June 21st on Sumerian Records.  

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Ten Ton Slug : "Colossal Oppressor"

 

This band from Ireland grind out a very deliberate brand of death metal that carries a crushing chug. There are some sludge tendencies in how they turn the riffs around, but aggression is the theme for the day here. The first song makes it hard to deny that this is really well done, and the guitars sound great. The chugged-out riffs do what Death Metal should do perfectly. For this to be their debut album they are really killing it. The riffs are not only heavy and demand your head banging, but they are pretty catchy for what they are doing. The vocals trade off between a commanding roar, to a higher snarl.. The fact they are not giving into the need for speed most death metal bands serve is one of their assets. 

The bass steps up and gives "Ancient Ways" more of a backbone. This is the first song where I begin to hear a little of the sludge influence. It reminds me of early Mastodon in a few places, but back then they were pretty close to death metal as well. Karl from Bolt Thrower joins them on "Brutus" while he lends his growl to the song, it is not really noticeable enough as it is still in the band's wheelhouse. "Mindless and Blind" rolls off of a tense palm-muted groove. The growl of the vocals works well enough but is pretty much what we have heard from them. The vocals are articulated enough to make out more lyrics than you might typically discern from death metal. They thrash things out a little more on what might be the chorus. 

The 90s sludge groove that grew out of when metal bands intersected with grunge, really possesses the last song. It even leads to actual singing. It might be the album's most accessible song. I think mainstream metal audiences that are only able to digest the more mainstream strains of death metal will find lots to love with these guys, and they are still legit enough for death metal hipsters. I will give this album a 9, very solid death metal. 

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STATIQBLOOM : "Kain"

Fade Kainer has been making dark music for some time. He did a wonderful stint in Tombs that brought that band to darker places. He has a good ear and knows what quality music is, so this album is not going to suck. The question will be is it going to stand up to his previous work, The opening track is driving electronica, which is dark enough, and sounds great in terms of quality for this kind of thing. As an instrumental it sounds more like a great deal of other music that circles this same smoke-filled dance floor. Aggro-tech feels like a more appropriate label to give the listener proper expectations. There are vocals to this one, they are distorted with effects and sit deep in the mix. 

I appreciate the harsher edge to the thump of "Obsidian Obscura", but it's a beat-driving sound and not a song. Much like the rule about cool riffs here, a similar sentiment could be expressed regarding this sort of thing, it would go more like "Cool beats alone does not a good song make".  As a beat is a beat,  there are hundreds of faceless entities making them. These beats are not uniform, though the production of them can be. "Hidden From Form' works better as a song as the vocals give it a little more purpose. The beat is more droning but is still effective. 

"Cold Steel Howl" is propelled by a beat that carries a great deal of apocalyptic enthusiasm, but not much more than pounding one a single-minded groove. The rest of the album tends to pulse off this more tribal pounding. I'll give this album an 8, I like the songs with vocals, they help separate it out from all the other music like this. Not his best work, but he does better than most who do this sort of thing. 

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Arab Strap : " I'm totally fine with it 👍 don't give a fuck anymore 👍"

  Experimental post-punkers Arab Strap are back with a more biting commentary on the world around them. It might be marginally more brooding, and the tension within the grooves is sometimes driven by a more electronic pulse that can be heard on "Bliss". When the album starts off there is a fresh feel to their more original take on a style of music not far removed from what Depeche Mode did.  The difference is that they lack a crooner like Dave Gahan who can breathe new emotion into each song with his voice. Instead what they have is a more spoken narrative. This can cast a more uniform feel to the songs. 

The drum pattern to "Sociometer Blues" creates a unique rhythmic backdrop for them to experiment. Even though the drum programming slows things down for "Hide Your Fires", the spoken vocals get a little tiresome. They are not sonically removed from the National in some ways, but Matt Berninger is a better singer. "Summer Season" is mellower in its reflection, but the vocals have now crossed over into tedium despite his efforts to sing more. Lyrically I can appreciate what they going for, but I need more dynamics vocally. 

"Molehills" works better for his voice. Musically it's darker and more introspective which is what his style of singing needs. There is a droney simmer that is more sonically effective. The comparison to the National might be perhaps the most warranted on "Strawberry Moon". The song's best thing is offering some dynamic contrast between the verses and the chorus. "You're Not There" tries to work more of a mood, that leans into more of a sound than making something that feels more like a song that goes somewhere meaningful. "Haven't You Hear" is also another song that borders being another the National tribute, but is less hooky and focused. 

"Safe and Well" is more of a folk ballad. It focuses on his hushed vocal approach but highlights his weaknesses as a singer. Halfway into the song, it is still meandering around pondering its existence. "Drag Queen" makes a little more of an effort in terms of dynamics, but the spoken word verses feel like they have already gone to that well too many times. The closing ballad works better than most of the songs on this album as it climaxes into a more post-rock crescendo which this album needs more of. I will give this album an 8, I like the mood they are going for the vocals are often not my thing. 

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