Sometimes Metalheads need to take a breather from all the headbanging, moshing, screaming, and black clothes. One of my favorite ways to take that breather is diving headfirst into different genres that I love or have a general interest in and I recently decided to turn my eyes toward Pop! I spent so many years of my childhood raging against Pop music and how formulaic the machine is, spitting out dribble crafted by a team of songwriters and hitmakers. Sometime in my early adulthood though, something clicked, and I grew to appreciate Pop music and fall victim to the catchy choruses. In 2024, it was nearly impossible for me to escape the sounds of Sabrina Carpenter in my house, as her new record Short n’ Sweet had a stranglehold on my wife and her friends. I listened from afar, bobbing my head to a few tracks, but never sat down and gave it the proper attention until now. My only exposure to Sabrina before this record was the show Girl Meets World, the movie Tall Girl, and the song “Feather” from 2023, but my interest in her grew after hearing bits of Short n’ Sweet and learning that she grew up less than 40 minutes from where I grew up! I’m always interested in supporting a Pennsylvania native (shoutout to Breaking Benjamin, Motionless in White, Bradley Cooper, Michael Keaton, etc).

I received an email the morning of January 6th that shook me out of my typical morning grogginess, acting like a cup of cold brew. In my inbox sat an email from a reader asking if I could not only review their upcoming EP but also be one of the first to get my hands on it (metaphorically speaking of course. We’re in the digital age now!). Happy to have something positive on January 6th that could alter my viewpoint of that date (considering the last momentous January 6th involved an insurrection in America…), I immediately began replying. The email was from CJ Jarvis of the band Soul Syphon from Lewistown, PA, and he outlined what he was looking for, when the EP is set to release, the concepts of the EP, and a handy download link! I asked CJ if the band was a group effort or a solo endeavor (amongst many other questions) and was pleasantly surprised to learn that Soul Syphon is a solo act! CJ began work in 2020, using this passion project to express his experiences with internal conflicts, loss, and resilience - themes that are ever-present throughout the EP. It’s rare in the Metal scene that you come across a Dave Grohl, writing and recording a solo record before having a band to assist. Thankfully, this fact does not serve as a detriment to the EP I listened to.

Slipknot helped propel Nu-Metal into the stratosphere with their own blend of Heavy Metal, Thrash, and Speed Metal baked into their foundation. This was uncommon for the genre at the time, but it allowed Slipknot to carve out a niche in the genre that Mudvayne would later join them in (to no surprise since Shawn of Slipknot executive produced, as well as Steve Richards, Slipknot’s manager at the time). This record (and band in general) would influence some of the biggest names in modern Metal; Knocked Loose, Upon a Burning Body, Suicide Silence, Of Mice & Men, Trivium, Whitechapel, and many more. Hell, Slipknot was a major inspiration for me when I used to write Metal music with buddies back in high school!

The Beautiful Dark of Life sees Atreyu return to their classic sound in many ways, while also modernizing it and moving in a new, mature direction (which I expect from a band that has been at it for almost 30 years - a statement that makes me feel ancient to say). The songs are catchy, heavy, intimate, and at times soft. The album easily contains the best vocals and guitar writing I have heard from the band, with much of the credit going to Brandon Saller.

It’s always difficult to separate the art from the artist, especially when the artist is certifiably deranged. It’s important to remember though that in this situation, an entire team of good people worked to create this record, and their contributions should not go unlistened and uncelebrated because of the actions of one sociopathic, narcissistic lead vocalist. Through Storms Ahead is a Metalcore force to be reckoned with, only weighed down by the delusions of Tim and his lyrics. Despite that, there’s a twisted enjoyment in being able to point and laugh at Tim lyrically making a fool of himself. His inability to recognize that he’s the problem is disheartening but it does not make me empathetic toward him.