Whitechapel’s ninth album is finally upon us, and it is a barrage of crunchy guitars, pummeling drums, and feral screams that melt your face over the course of 43 minutes. Hymns in Dissonance sees the band return to their roots after growing as songwriters, trying their hand at some melody with their last two albums (both critically and commercially successful), and looking to silence any overly critical fans that felt the band was “going soft” or selling out. I wasn’t necessarily one of those fans who felt negative during that time (I adore The Valley), but I did feel like the band took the wrong lessons from The Valley and applied them to Kin. When it comes to melody in a band like Whitechapel, less is more, which was not the case with Kin. On Hymns in Dissonance though, the songs are brutal to the point they rattle your skull. Phil refrains from singing here and instead the band delivers an album that reminds me of the “old days” of This is Exile and The Somatic Defilement. This album feels like the band returning to reclaim the Deathcore throne after venturing into different Metal genre blends, reminding us all that Whitechapel is still one of the best Deathcore bands to ever do it.

Six long years have passed since Killswitch Engage released their 8th album: Atonement. I spent that time craving new music from the band, hoping we’d see a return to the incredible songwriting that not only put the band on the map but also placed them on the Mount Rushmore of Metalcore. As the singles were released, my interest waned. What I was hearing sounded bland, flavorless, and like more of the same Metalcore music we’ve been hearing for years now. After sitting down with the full album, I can see that the band certainly held back on the greatest treasures This Consequence had to offer. The record's first half is not memorable and is a bit of a drag, while the second half feels like an entirely different album, filled with the aggression and heaviness the band has become known for. The songwriting is much more brutal and tighter with killer riffs that don’t put you to sleep like the first half.

Being a fan of All That Remains is like being in an abusive relationship; They have moments where they impress you, then disappoint you, then you swear they can change, only for them to fail you again. It’s a vicious cycle that I’m too familiar with when it comes to this band. All That Remains over the years has become one of the most inconsistent bands in Metalcore, releasing what I consider a masterpiece one second (The Fall of Ideals), incredible records like Overcome and For We Are Many, and then mediocre albums like The Order of Things, Madness, and now AntiFragile. I expected to be disappointed based on the band’s history and the singles they put out, but I at least hoped the record would be better than the one we got. At least the album is heavy though, right?

The 20th-anniversary release of Thrill Seeker is much more than a simple reissue. The band took their time, painstakingly re-recording their first record, finding a way to not mess with the classic recipe of the original while still elevating the songs. The sound is punchier and tighter here, allowing you to hear the progress the band has made as musicians. There is also a warmer low-end sound to it that fleshes it out more than the original, which is to be expected 20 years later. One of the most distinctive differences between the two releases is the vocals. The original recording, released in November of 2005, saw Josh McManness at the helm (the band’s second vocalist). Shortly after the band’s first tour, Josh departed and was replaced by Jake Luhrs, who has been the band’s vocalist since. Jake’s vocal style has evolved with each release, and he brings an extra depth to the sound that was missing from the original recording. That’s not a sleight against Josh, it’s just that Jake has now been doing this for 20+ years and has a lot more to offer now.

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).