I’ve done a few round-up reviews recently on music from different genres – I consider myself to have quite a wide music taste and I’m also rather into metal music, of most different sub-types. There are a whole host of bands/artists out there from the underground scene that are well worth getting into, some of which can be found in our playlist below.
Review by Jane Howkins
Picture by Flames Of Fire
Rick Drevet – Forever Home.
Rick Drevet is a Southern rock and blues musician with a slightly harder edge to his music than one might expect from those genres – it also contains some elements of metal too. His guitar riffs have that typical Southern blues vibe to them and his vocals suit the style of track well – Forever Home is more on the melodic side of things, so those into their softer metal and rock should enjoy this.
Thirsty Curses – Nothing Really Matters.
Nothing Really Matters is the latest release from Thirsty Curses, a band with quite a range of influences within their music. Whilst the track does have some metal moments to it (such as the guitar riffs), I also felt it had a big punk/hardcore punk sound to it, in part due to the frantic rhythm and the short length of the song. The vocals carry a great weight of emotion in them and sound very unique.
Caleb Caming – Trashy.
Caleb Caming is the frontman of New York band Caleb Caming & The Heat – whilst they’ve been described as being an indie rock band, there is a much heavier feel to their music than one might ordinarily expect – latest song Trashy has elements of punk, metal and old school garage rock in it. Whilst it sounds rather heavy at first, the chorus has a fantastic chord sequence, mixing things up a little. Check out the guitar solo on the bridge!
Flames of Fire – Gloria.
Gloria is possibly the first ‘proper’ metal song on this list, with the track having a classic heavy metal sound, as well as a hint of the new wave of British heavy metal sub-genre to it. Gloria kicks off almost instantly with a galloping rhythm that reminded me somewhat of Iron Maiden’s best work – the riffs sound menacing at times and the vocals are perfect for the genre of music. It’s still quite melodic though – make sure you check out Flames Of Fire in our playlist!
band w/o band – Paranoia.
Paranoia kicks off with an eerie guitar melody that gets even creepier sounding as the song goes on – the slow drums have a tribal feel to them and the slow chugging suits the rest of the music well. The vocals are fairly low and occasionally stop to whisper the words ‘Tick Tock’, really helping to evoke the subject of the song in your mind. band w/o band are doing something really unique – make sure you check out their website here and their socials below.
Michael Sopolidis – My Time Of Misery.
Michael Sopolidis is a musician and singer-songwriter based in Nuremberg with quite a varied taste in music. He creates tracks from different genres – My Time Of Misery is more of an alt rock/hard rock song but it does have some metal elements – I was particularly reminded of the softer style of nu-metal that emerged in the 90s and 2000s. The song is quite soft for most of it before the heavy bit kicks in towards the end – I loved this unexpected change in dynamics.
Fight The Enemy – No Escape.
Fight The Enemy are one of the heaviest bands on this list, making a nice change in pace from some of the more softer songs here. No Escape was released back in December 2021 and features huge, groovy riffs with a djent sound – the vocals are harsh and are screamed most of the time, making the music sound very brutal. This is the perfect song for those into their more extreme forms of metal music.
Riccardo Moccia – Constructive.
Constructive is an extremely intense and brutal sounding death metal song from Riccardo Moccia, an Italian experimental musician with an immense talent for music. The percussion and guitar riffs are very technically impressive and his death metal growl sounds extremely fierce – I was blown away by the heaviness of Constructive and I hope our readers will be too!
ALESTI – Disconnected.
Disconnected has more of a metalcore feel to it, sounding very modern indeed. ALESTI are an amazing band that manage to mix melody with a heavy sound – the verses sound quite melodic but the choruses have huge, chugging guitar riffs, which change the dynamics greatly. The vocals are performed by Telle Smith of The Word Alive and the production quality sounds crisp as hell.
Evereal – Fear.
Evereal are a prog metal band from Canada that also have a symphonic side to them, in part due to the luscious vocals. The musicianship on Fear is very technically proficient, showing just how skilled the band are at what they do. The vocals and guitar melodies on the verses help to ramp the tension up throughout the song, until the chorus kicks in in beautiful splendour.
Rough Grind – Dreamchaser.
Dreamchaser is a new release from Rough Grind, a Finnish metal band that also have hard rock elements in their music. The riffs on the verses have a really menacing quality to them, although the chorus and bridge also have an anthemic sound – I loved the mix of styles. The vocals have that classic rock vibe to them but it still sounds like a modern metal/hard rock song to me.
Medivh – Rebirth.
Rebirth is a little different to some of the songs on here, having an industrial metal quality to it. The bass melody that kicks the song off also provides the rhythm – the static sound it creates has a really crunchy feeling to it, which sounds very satisfying. The verses are a little mellower, but it really kicks in on the chorus, which also highlights Medivh’s vocal style well.
Roxana Line – Among The Dead.
Among The Dead is a huge and anthemic sounding hard rock song with metal influences from Roxana Line, who also incorporates elements of emo, musicals and rock music into her style. The song has that wall of sound quality to it at times, making it sound very heavy. Roxana’s vocals are beautiful and you can really hear the musical aspect in there, giving it a gothic vibe. This was one of my favourite songs on the list.
The Congregation – Soundtrack To the End Of The World.
Soundtrack To The End Of The World is a fantastic title for a song, especially one that sounds like this. The track was created by The Congregation, a rock and roll band with big, groovy metal-esque riffs contained within their music. It’s more of a hard rock song, but the guitar melodies have a fast, crunchy feel to them that also wouldn’t be out of place in a hardcore punk song, making for a nice mix of sounds.
Mike Masser – The Phoenix.
The Phoenix is a song from Arizonan musician Mike Masser – Mike has had quite a lengthy career in the music industry, being part of the band Hand Over Fist in the early 2000s. He’s back releasing his own music and it sounds fantastic – the riffs in The Phoenix are very dark and it mixes elements of hard rock and metal perfectly. It’s great to hear Mike performing music like this again!
Anji Kaizen – Monster.
Monster is another song that combines together hard rock and metal elements. The song also has a slightly gothic and symphonic feel to it, which works well with Anji Kaizen’s beautiful vocal style. There’s a lot of guitar chugging on the song but the solos that emerge occasionally sound amazing – I loved the mix of melody and heaviness present in her music. Check out Anji’s website and socials below.
First Frontier – Break Away.
Break Away is one of the poppier tracks on this list, with the song having elements of pop, punk, and rock present, as well as some metal moments. Those into their softer styles of rock/metal might prefer this to the more extreme songs here – it’s well worth checking out though, as First Frontier have a great sound to their music. The garage rock duo have a proper DIY sound and it’s great to have something a bit catchier to break up the riffage – make sure you listen to them too!
Karoshi – Become (feat. Dubrow).
Become is one of the most unique tracks on this list – as well as the metal parts, it also has elements of industrial and electronic music. It’s great to hear someone trying something a little different and the song has a really menacing feel to it, in part due to the screamed vocal style which is contributed by Chris Dubrow of iNsuRge. The percussion also has a drum & bass sound, so those into their electronic music will enjoy this too.
Head of Clay – Dirty Lies.
Head Of Clay are a Melbourne based band with a hard rock/Southern rock feel to their music. Dirty Lies has more of a rock sound than a metal one, but the guitars do have a heavy vibe at times and they sound very impressive to me. The riffs are extremely groovy and it’s quite a catchy song, although Dirty Lies also has a sense of rock and roll attitude to it as well. These guys are definitely ones to watch!
Knife Bride – Tits & Teeth
Tits & Teeth is a heavy track with industrial elements to it – it’s got quite an extreme sound to it, despite being rather catchy at times. The vocals mix discordantly with the heavy riffs, making for an immense sound that really works. Knife Bride have a really distinctive sound to their music so make sure you check them out below!