Given Andy James’ status as a prolific and renowned guitar teacher, it should come as no surprise that this all-instrumental LP represents a balls-to-the-wall metal masterclass.
Exodus is precision-targeted at the Internet’s shredheads. We’re talking ten tracks that span an impressive range of Read more…
Between The Buried And Me are one of the best progressive bands in the world today. That is a fact challenged by few. Since 2007’s Colors, BTBAM’s impact has only increased with each new release.
Dropping two years ago, Coma Ecliptic saw Between The Buried And Me unleash an immensely ambitious body of work. A conceptual prog opera drawing heavily on Dream Theater’s undeniable influence, Coma Ecliptic narrowly missed the Billboard Top 10 while dividing BTBAM fans due to Read more…
As a long-time Plini and Steve Vai fan, this interview threw up an extremely exciting idea. Backstage at legendary London rock venue The Borderline, we got chatting about broken ukeleles, clean section circle pits, and that incredible plan…
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A lot of people think prog is cold and soulless – but Plini’s show on Sunday night was one of the most heartwarming shows I’ve seen in a long time. Some parts of the world are dark and hateful places – but The Borderline was not one of them.
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With a sold-out queue stretching around the corner and down the street, it goes without saying that Sunday night’s lineup was pretty special. Although I had heard of David Maxim Micic and Disperse before, I deliberately didn’t do any research on them before the show, because I wanted to be surprised by what they had to offer. Instead of being surprised Read more…
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Belgian math-metallers BEAR have made a name for themselves as Europe’s answer to The Dillinger Escape Plan.
With Dillinger set to split before the end of the year, the race is on to crown the new kings of mathcore. BEAR have already proven themselves as worthy contenders, and /// carves that fact in stone.
BEAR’s list of influences runs longer than just one band Read more…
Back in 2011, French progressive metallers Uneven Structure released Februus – a landmark album for the much-maligned genre, djent. Combining a wide range of influences from TesseracT to Karnivool and, of course, Meshuggah, Februus still stands the test of time six years later. Now Uneven Structure are back with La Partition, which marks another career milestone and is, frankly, fucking epic.
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La Partition is a real step up from Februus. Read more…
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Metal is all about questioning, challenging, and ultimately overcoming limits. Listeners tend to find themselves drawn into heavier and less orthodox territory as they become acclimatised to the styles they already know. Meanwhile, metal musicians today are forced to expand their horizons or risk stagnating, boring themselves and ultimately succumbing to some formulaic approach that might please traditionalists, but few others.
The title of Once Human’s sophomore album – Evolution – is well-chosen. It sums up Read more…
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Last year, Haken’s latest LP Affinity blew my mind, effortlessly earning a place on my list of the best albums of 2016. Never ones to rest on their laurels, Haken are now set to celebrate their first decade in action with remastered re-releases of earliest efforts Aquarius and Visions – not to mention a headlining European tour in a couple of months’ time. I got talking to Haken founder and guitarist/keyboardist Richard Henshall about his band’s past, present, and future – and Kurt Russell… Read more…
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Progressive metal bands are frequently accused of being emotionally void, occupying a stone-faced genre rammed with mindlessly twiddling automatons.
Pain Of Salvation do not fit that stereotype.
In the six years since this set of Swedish legends last unleashed a proper studio album (in the form of 2011’s Road Salt Two), frontman Daniel Gildenlöw has overcome a close brush with death and emerged from a period of intense illness laser focused on Read more…
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As the music industry slows down, its alternative end hibernating while the pop-enamoured mainstream hungrily ogles Christmas shoppers, the time has come to look back on a seriously strong year for organised soundwaves. For me, it’s been heavy, intense, and a hell of a lot of fun thanks to the releases listed below.
With so many exceptional contenders in the running for the top spot, the thought of ranking them in order of quality is plainly ridiculous. So instead, I’ve picked out three releases that had memorable impacts on me when I first heard them, and assembled the others in alphabetical order.
The Pretty Reckless’s Who You Selling For – along with previous effort Going To Hell – is conclusive proof (if it were honestly needed in 2016) that women belong in rock music, and are fully capable of kicking ass. The sexists of the music world are like Wile E. Coyote; they’ve run off the edge of the cliff, nothing surrounds them but empty air, they’ve looked down, and they’re panicking. Sonic Boom Six’s The F-Bomb picks up where that image leaves off – it’s cheeky, chirpy, happy and hard-hitting (sometimes simultaneously), addressing a wealth of gender-related issues and providing a great ska-fuelled party soundtrack as only Sonic Boom Six can.
Musically, Dissociation is The F-Bomb’s polar opposite. The Dillinger Escape Plan’s swan song is crammed with brutal and ultra-experimental mathcore – but it’s also Dillinger’s most delicate and diverse album. The Dillinger Escape Plan are living proof that you can achieve great things without compromise, by sticking to your guns and just going for it.
Beyond that point, you’re free to dive into an epic range of albums including solidly grooving rock sets, monolithic slabs of military-grade metal, and progressive masterpieces. Since I’ve not reviewed many EPs this year, I’ve also included a pair of extended-playing mind-blowers in the form of Dorje’s Centred And One and Toska’s Ode To The Author. Dorje specialise in utterly idiosyncratic rock tunes with added progressive spice, while to me, Toska (made up of Dorje’s backline, namely guitarist Rabea Massaad, drummer Ben Minal, and bassist Dave Hollingworth) represent the future of instrumental metal.
Both Dorje and Toska are bands on the rise – and they fully deserve to hit the same peaks enjoyed by the biggest names on this list.
There’s little more to say; for me, this list represents the top albums of 2016. Enjoy the full reviews linked below, follow TMMP on Twitter, subscribe to my brand new YouTube channel, and stay tuned for more world-class music next year!
1) The Pretty Reckless – Who You Selling For
1) Sonic Boom Six – The F-Bomb
1) The Dillinger Escape Plan – Dissociation
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2) Read more…