If you’ve spent any significant time in the deep end of the deathcore scene, you know that The Last Ten Seconds Of Life don’t really do "lightweight." They’ve spent over a decade perfecting a sound that feels like a slow-motion car crash, rhythmic, terrifying, and impossible to look away from.
The album ignites with the title track, The Dead Ones, and it’s a proper jolt of reality. The first thing that hits you isn't just the volume, but the specific "thud" of the production. It’s a level of distortion that feels like it’s physically occupying the room with you.
What makes this record a bit of a milestone for the long-term fans, though, is the guest list. Getting Nate Johnson (ex-Fit For An Autopsy) on Rat Trap is a stroke of genius; he brings a veteran snarl that anchors the track’s frantic, heart-attack pulse.
The middle stretch of the record, Freak Reflection, 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE?, and Stiletto, moves with a predatory intent. 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE? might win the award for the most confrontational title of the year, and the music backs it up with a rhythmic instability that reminds me of early 80s industrial-punk friction. It’s unpolished, honest, and possesses a level of “crustiness” that is sorely missing from the high-gloss metalcore circuit.
The production avoids the sterile traps of modern tech-death. You can hear the snare crack and the strings groaning under the weight of tracks like Dollar To A Dime (featuring Distant). It’s a sound that sounds like it was recorded in a space where the air is too thin to breathe; properly suffocating.
By the time the finale eventually snaps, you’re left with a ringing in your ears that feels like a well-earned bruise. The Dead Ones isn't an album that asks for your time; it’s one that demands your total submission. It’s a pained, sophisticated bit of survivalism that suggests that even after all these years, the Pennsylvania lot still knows exactly how to weaponize the void. 8/10
I Am The Avalanche– The Horror Show (Rude Records) [Spike]
Six years is a long time to keep a motor idling, but for Brooklyn’s I Am The Avalanche, the silence since 2020 hasn't resulted in any rust. If anything, The Horror Show feels like a band that has spent that half-decade sharpening their teeth in the dark.
The needle drops on God's Travel Plans, and you're immediately hit by that unmistakable Vinnie Caruana rasp, a voice that sounds like it’s been conditioned on urban exhaust and hard-won resilience. There’s a specific, bruised-rib honesty to the delivery here that sets the tone for the entire record.
What really stands out on this release is the pacing. You’ve got these brief, high-velocity jolts like Osprey and True Legends Never Die that act as palate cleansers, maintaining a heart-attack pulse that keeps the record from ever settling into a mid-tempo slump. I Miss California And Every Dog I've Ever Met is arguably the heart of the album.
The production throughout, hitting its peak on tracks like Alive On 14th Street and Rogue Knife, avoids the high-fidelity traps that rob so much modern punk of its soul. It’s dirty, honest, and properly loud. You can hear the floorboards groaning under the weight of the rhythm section on the closer, Trébuchet, a track that finally allows the band to stretch into a more expansive, cinematic finish without losing the snot-and-tears intensity that got them here.
By the time the final vibration of Trébuchet grinds to a halt, you aren't just left with another set of punk songs; you're left with the realization that this band is a necessity. I Am The Avalanche have managed to bottle that un-killable Brooklyn frequency, the one that turns a decade of urban decay into a three-minute anthem. It’s a messy, glorious bit of reality that proves veterans don't have to play it safe to stay relevant.
Modern alt rock bow from Stud Farm Mafia who tell tales of the absurdity of modern life with some arena ready hooks and a massive addition of British sarcasm. Compared to band such as Royal Blood, Skindred and Queens Of The Stone Age, Stud Farm Mafia do have a lot of those influences on their music.
It's modern rocking made for big stages, huge choruses that will get you singing along and clever lyricism that lifts them higher than many bands of a similar ilk. There's thought on these five tracks, you'll find yourself tapping your foot or banging your head but also maybe a smile or a smirk when they use that inherent British humour to offer you a situation you may be intimately familiar with.
Be it the constant 9-5 existence, pretending you're fine, or the thousands of blokes who do nothing but look at themselves in the gym mirror, there's an honesty and heart to these songs, taken from real life but featuring the bands ideologies through them as their S.O.S was written for the charity ActionAid and shows a band who wear their hearts on their sleeve taking aim at many of the issuses that people will definitely understand and relate to.
The grooves, breakdowns and choruses here will sound massive on any stage as they're big enough on the EP. Stud Farm Mafia are aiming for big things with Did You Have A Good Weekend? a collection of tracks showing that time is the only real currency worth anything so we should have a damn good time while we're here. 8/10
DA - DA (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
Almost overlooked this one but glad I didn't as London band DA have produced a debut album that draws from a lot of what I like in a metal band and brings it all together.
In terms of those influences the biggest are Judas Priest, Dio and Sabbath (Ozzy and Ronnie), stuck right on that cusp of late 70's early 80's heavy metal where you could still be atmospheric and theatrical before the punk elemts made everything faster and harder. I'd also say they have a link to Blue Oyster Cult in their sound too especially in the hard rock tracks here.
A lot of where they come from musically is in the history of guitarist Robin Brancher who was formerly in NWOBHM act Desolation Angels and vocalist Matt Oakman who is a former vocalist of power thrashers Stormborn, their combined influences are all over this record, from heavy metal, to thrash, classic rock to even moments of power metal, there's a veteran appeal with a modern edge.
Joined by Neil Craddock on bass and Dan Smith on drums, their debut album is a classic metal feast full of air guitar toting riffs and massive choruses from Oakman's wide Halford-esque vocal style on tracks such as Higher, while elsewhere Rock It features a strutting riff and plenty of organs, The Devil's On My Side is pure anthemic Priest, while the final track You Gotta Believe It is almost a two part affair with a pulsing rocker striding into a Zep like epic.
DA are a new force with veteran instincts, fans of old school heavy rock will love this self titled record! 8/10
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