Less massive releases this week, but plenty of great new music to sink our teeth into. Let’s dive straight in!

Devin Townsend: Lightwork

Joe: I have tried for years to get into Devin. Whether it’s his solo stuff or Strapping Young Lad, none of it seems to hook me. It’s weird too, as on paper I should love it all, but something about it doesn’t appeal to my ears.

Lightwork is no different. Don’t get me wrong, it’s certainly better than that electro-concept drivel he put out last year, but I still didn’t enjoy it too much. This is the guy who headlined Bloodstock last year, yet here he is doing synth-pop-rock, for lack of a better term. It’s like he’s trying to sound like Album of the Year or even parts of Angel Dust by Faith No More, but generally less interesting. I know I’mma catch a lot of flack for all of this as Devin has a pretty huge, devoted cult following, but I just don’t get it. Honestly, I couldn’t wait for this album to be over. I feel like maybe the tracks may translate better to me in a live setting, but I couldn’t pick out a highlight from the album. I’m sure there will be some journalists who give this top (or nearly top) marks, but I’m sadly going to have to give it a 3.5/10

Dayseeker: Dark Sun

Max: This is a review that I find quite hard to write, not because the album is bad, it is far from it, but because I absolutely adore Dayseeker. Due to this it is quite hard to not have a bias, but no one can convince me that this album isn’t phenomenal. The sheer emotion through really hits hard but it is the icing on top as it is such a raw and passionate album. The fact that they dedicated the album to the singer’s dad just makes this point even more apparent. Going from songs like ‘Neon Grave’ and ‘Dreamstate’ with the perfectly ugly breakdowns that you can’t help but pull a face to and then changing to ‘Paper Heart’ and ‘Crying While You’re Dancing’ which are so pretty and full of feeling whilst also making me want to lie down and transcend. Overall, I really think that everyone should listen to this album and just enjoy how well this band has evolved. A fantastic 9/10, quite possibly even another 10/10

96 Bitter Beings: Synergy Restored

Joe: Anyone who’s familiar with the frontman of this band will know exactly what to expect from this album. The founder of Jackass’ favourite band, CKY, formed this project in 2016, a few years after leaving his old band. As the band name implies, the band picks up right where Deron Miller left off with CKY.

‘Vaudeville’s Revenge’ is a great album starter and ‘Wish Me Dead’ is a definite highlight of the collection. The album soon runs into the same issue I have with CKY, though. I LOVE the riffs and his guitar tone is still phenomenal and surprisingly unique. But that’s where it about ends for me. The drums are pretty basic and the bass generally just follows the guitars. And there isn’t especially much in the way of memorable vocal performances throughout. Don’t get me wrong, not every band needs albums full of stadium-filling choruses, but a catchy hook to sing along with every so often would be nice. The closest I found was ‘Throw Yourself Inside’, which was another highlight. Still though, as a musician I massively appreciate and adore the guitaring, and can’t give it any less than a 7/10

Black Anvil: Regensis

Joe: Ahh, another black metal band that has such an everything-in-your-face-all-at-once production that it’s hard to distinguish anything specific, including the vocals. It’s feels like I’ve been a while since I’ve done one of these. However, I’ve clearly grown, as I was quite enjoying this! I think it helped that there were some fun vocal dynamics, with some clean backing vocals being present too. It made it all feel more epic.

Everyone played their parts well, there being some awesome riffs and some (characteristic to the genre) amazing drumming. ‘8-Bit Terror’ was my album highlight, in terms of sound ans subject matter. However, I enjoyed just about every track. Don’t get me wrong, this still isn’t my sort of music, but I wouldn’t turn it off if it came on and may probably find myself listening to this album again at some point in the future. Maybe this will be the album to win me round into the genre! 6.5/10

Black Mirrors: Tomorrow Will be Without Us

We’ve already covered this excellent album in detail. Find the full review and the score here.

Joji: SMITHEREENS

Max: So, this is an interesting album to say the least. The most important thing to note is that this album will probably make you cry just like the Dayseeker one. It tugged at my heart strings through out with lines like “I hear that you’re happy without me, and I hope it’s true” from ‘Die For You’ and basically the entirety of ‘Glimpses of Us’ where I just want to curl up and cry. This album won’t be for everyone and it isn’t perfect, but I loved it. The raw emotion in so much of Joji’s music makes it feel so personal and relatable. Never in this album did it feel to me like, like so much other similar music can, he was singing words to try and get a response from everyone or that someone in a studio had just written them for him. Instead, it felt like someone talking to someone that they can’t say is there’s anymore but still truly loves. Or maybe that’s just me hoping that’s what it is all about. Anyways it is a solid 8/10 for me.

Madeline Edwards: Crashlanded

Joe: Finally, a short, mainstream country album. At 12 tracks and just over 35 minutes long, this is like a dream come true after so many hour-long slogs! On top of that too, it’s a pretty great album!

It’s got that sort of Dorothy, folk-pop-rock style on top of the already country/americana roots. Honestly, there isn’t a bad track on the album. If you’re into country or americana or even slight rock, you’ll find a lot to love here. Having said that, it’s hard not to find the singles as the highlights of the album. ‘Hold my Horses’ is a particularly fantastic track. 7.5/10, a good, fun album!

Disillusion: Ayam

Right so a shorter album here and I can’t say that my review will be much longer. The biggest downside of this album was me not realising that there are two 11 minute songs which I thought were all multiple tracks. There are some really fun parts and I loved the changing of paces and the building up. The solo’s and the riffs were great fun. The only thing that I think might catch people off guard on their first time listening is the fact that they have songs which will end slowly or start slowly but it is worth sitting through and getting to the rest as it really doesn’t disappoint. A very respectable 7/10

Magnolia Park: Baku’s Revenge

Okay I won’t lie, not for me in the slightest. It has the same-style big catchy chorus that seems to repeat a dozen times. In fairness those choruses are fun, and the occasional scream is nice and reminds me of a more pop-centric version of A Day To Remember’s Homesick record. I think it would be pretty fun to see this band live as I can envision the amount of energy that they have on stage. For me though I don’t think it’s a genre I fit in to in the slightest 5.5/10

Ingested: Ashes Lie Still

This is more like it. This album is super heavy and intense. It was a lot to try and digest on the first time around, but it really was good fun. I love seeing bands collaborate with others and the ones in this album were fantastic. It must be said that this still has the issue that most bands within this genre have where they aren’t super accessible, but they really really are worth the effort. I hope this band tours this album near me because I would love to see it live as there is so much energy and I reckon crowds would absolutely love it. 8/10

Sarcator: Alkahest

This album grew on me more and more throughout. When the opener was a balls to the wall thrash/death metal track, I almost sighed. Not because I dislike either genre, quite the contrary actually, but because I’m pretty death-ed out in 2022.

However, by just the second track, ‘Perdition’s Hand’, my opinion had changed. the track is still heavy, but it’s a tad slower and groovier, the riffing being fantastic. By the time the album had ripped into the slow-build opener of ‘Grave Maggot Future’ and the truly epic ‘Dreameater’, I was hooked and very impressed. The sludgy, groove metal of ‘The Long Lost’ was also fantastic, especially with that acoustic intro. Heck, the same could be said about the equally proggy and epic ‘He Who Comes from the Dark’ and ‘Alkahest’. It means that when the band do go back to the all-out thrash sound on ‘Devil Sun’ it feels funner.

I know this album won’t be for everyone. It’s a heavy, dark, prog death metal album. However, if you think you’re up for the challenge I’d urge you to check out the tracks I have named above. I honestly don’t throw the word around too often, but if the opening track was just a little stronger this very well could have been a masterpiece of heavy music for me. Heck, even just a revised track order may have helped. But even so, I can’t give this any less than I 9/10

Tough on Fridays: The Encore you Didn’t Ask For

I struggled to put a genre to this, and that’s definitely a good thing. Lurking on the murky boarder of pop punk and indie, this album also feels darker, broodier and more mature than most of its genre-mates on either side. I almost called it goth pop punk but a) that seems oxymoronic or b) there already is goth pop punk, and this isn’t exactly Good Charlotte.

Oh, and did I also mention it’s an amazing album? Because it most certainly is. Its rare to find a band that would easily fit on any lineup or festival bill, and even rarer to find one that is this high a quality. Tracks like the opener, ‘Sink or Swim’ and ‘The Awakening’ all feel completely different while all being huge highlights of the album. I honestly am struggling to say much more about this album, it truly needs to be heard to be appreciated. Stop what you’re doing, especially since this is conveniently last on the list, and listen to this album right now! 9/10

So, a pretty stellar week in the end! Did you enjoy the article? As usual find more of them from our Instagram here.