Shocking as it may be, I have not always been spending my days listening to black metal and complaining about it on the internet. There was that time period where I first listened to De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas and had to go through “black metal 101” so I could try to understand the genre. One thing led to another, and in the process of disappointing everyone around me, I became enamored with the genre more than I care to admit. (Sorry mom) Around this time of black metal integration, (Give or take back in 2009) Dark Funeral’s video for “My Funeral” found its way onto my computer. It was pure, in a way, with how straightforward it was, yet leagues ahead of those try-hards that were attempting the same exact... 

Thrash is a complicated genre, despite several aspects of it being relied on conventions established 30 years ago. The genre itself has grown in different ways, but for the most part it’s common for bands to follow the standards set before them. That’s not a bad thing, but for people trying to find new bands in the genre, it’s usually new, safe bands that gather attention. Occasionally bands do new things with the sound, but they’re few and far between. Xenophile are among the few to venture out and break some rules while honoring the genre triumphantly. Playing a hybrid of progressive metal and thrash metal, Xenophile echo that of Megadeth’s technicality but on a more extreme level. Taking that technicality... 

Spoken Arts label, Cadabra Records, is preparing to unleash the limited edition Inferno 7″ — an incredibly ominous limited vinyl release, featuring the convoluted horror poetry of celebrated American writer CLARK ASHTON SMITH -this week partnering with Rue-Morgue Magazine– to allow the entire EP to be streamed publicly.  

I See Stars, who will be previewing music from Treehouse (June 17, Sumerian Records) when they play the Warped Tour this summer, stream new song “Running With Scissors”  

By all that is unholy and brutal, we finally have the follow up to the 2015 slab Savage Land by the throwback titans, Gruesome! Keeping with the influence of the early Death sound aesthetic, Gruesome slays this album with riffs, sick leads, and a sonic hammer to the kneecaps as they sink their teeth into your yielding flesh!  

Since departing Slipknot, Joey Jordison has been thought to have been working on Scar the Martyr. While the album (And the band’s vocalist) have come and gone, as well as only a tour or two, the Scar the Martyr camp has gone silent since last year.  

Everyone keeps saying that djent bands are the ones taking direct influence from Meshuggah, and that the band in question was no doubt ahead of their time. The latter is true, without a doubt, but bands like Periphery, TesseracT, and Vildhjarta only show so much of an influence before venturing into more progressive directions, as opposed to the mathematics and brutality Meshuggah offers. It’s not an insult, but the truth, as every band ultimately has become something unique instead of cloning their idols.  

About six years ago, Richmond, Virginia doom-metallers Cough came into the spotlight of the underground metal scene. Ritual Abuse was a dark, twisted, and sickly forray into a drug-induced wasteland, and the reception for it only backed it up that this was a titanic album. Between the massive riffs and the haunting atmospheres, Cough became a behemoth among doom metal bands and not one to be taken lightly.  

Sweden’s traditional death metal is very much alive and well. With bands like Bloodbath, Entombed, and Entrails keeping the tradition of the “buzzsaw” guitar tone alive, it’s easy to forget Sweden made the antithesis of it with melodic death metal. Even though films like Metal: A Headbanber’s Journey lumps bands like Grave and Arch Enemy into one genre, simply dubbed “Swedish Death Metal,” it’s more evident that the bands that follow the likes of Entombed and the such are a different breed than even the traditional death metal bands from the rest of the world.  

I’m not a stranger to the “djent” scene, or progressive metalcore, as it may actually be deemed. Periphery and Vildhjarta were two of the bands that introduced me to this style, although both have since gone on to craft their own respective sounds, steering far from the core sound of the scene. This has not alienated me, however, and I’ve managed to find enjoyment in bands like Northlane and In Hearts Wake, as well as Veil of Maya’s, After the Burial, and even Volumes at times. Essentially, bands like the aforementioned have braced more of the “metalcore” aspect of the stylings, but don’t shy away from the progressive aspects,like virtuoso guitar work, time signature changes, and other varying trivialities... 

Not to be confused with the German black metal band Dark Fortress, New Jersey’s Death Fortress are something of a wonder in the 21st century. No Facebook page, no Twitter, but just a Bandcamp page with both their albums, and a tie to Fallen Empire Records adds an air of mystery to this band. You, quite honestly, can’t even find a picture of the band at all.  

     Contrary to popular belief, metalheads are capable of enjoying music outside of the genre. As such, it’s sometimes difficult to find bands to enjoy that don’t fit into our comfort zone. Non-Metal for Metalheads is an attempt to bridge the gaps between genres a bit and show different bands that might be of some appeal.