Another few amazing EPs for us to check out this week, let’s dive straight in!
Confyde: A Coward’s Stitches
I’ve loved this quirky metal band for a while now, and that love absolutely carries on through to this EP! The obvious System of a Down influence is there, especially with Martin singing in a tribute to them for a while, but there’s also plenty of Mr Bungle elements to it with just how experimental it all is. The opener/title track alone jumps about all over the place, but in the best possible way! I would say it’s a big highlight of the release, but honestly the other two tracks are just as excellent as this one! There’s just a hint of his old band, Emperor Chung, running through it all which I absolutely love too, as I miss that band a lot! The lyrics throughout are great as well, with the almost ballad-like ‘Once Broken’ being a particular highlight in that regard. Then you have the Ren-esque, proggy and emotional ‘Hxppy Nxw Yxxr’ to cap things off perfectly.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not going to be for everyone. However, I loved it, and if you’re into the more experimental side of modern metal, I can guarantee you will too! I’ll certainly be listening to this again a fair bit over the next few weeks, and it gets a solid 8.5/10 from me!
Sidewinder: March of the Eternal Heretic
This was described to me as “bruising thrash/hardcore”, which sounds like exactly what I need in 2025. After listening to it, that was confirmed to be correct; I loved this! It’s a 15-minute full-frontal assault of fast, heavy metal, and it was excellently written, performed and mixed. For the second time on this list, it’s impossible to pick out highlights, it’s all as good as each other. It honestly feels like the natural evolution of thrash in general, and I’m all for bands sounding like this in the genre moving forward! I was so close to pitting in my own kitchen. It again won’t be for everyone, but if you’re to the quick, heavy, angry stuff, I cannot recommend this enough. I am desperate to see this live, and given that they’re near Leeds hopefully I can soon! This gets an easy 9/10!