Hello, dear readers! I hope y’all are having a mighty fine first week of May, and are hopefully enjoying some fun in the sun one way or another! I’m quite sure you didn’t come here to read my ramblings about the weather though, but I would hope you’re really here to read about some certified bangers with the Andrew Malphurs seal of approval…if that actually holds any weight. So let’s not waste any time getting to the point, shall we? I have a handful of series I want to alternate in and out of within this blog (that way neither one of us get bored, right?), and I have one that I am specifically delegating to the first week of every month, that series being…*insert drum roll* Music Monthly! This series is where at the first week of each month, I will be looking back on the previous one and giving some shout-outs to what I personally feel like were the five most interesting releases of that month. So with that being said, I do feel the need to state that unlike the nature of this blog implies, the releases I discuss in this series will NOT ALWAYS BE METAL. Yes, metal will always be the primary focus here, but you know, branching and trying new things is a healthy practice, so if you came here expecting all metal all the time, the non-metal stuff might outta be what you pay the closest attention to. This could actually be an educational experience for you. 🙂 Also, before we dive in, just know that the five albums I pick each month will be discussed in order of release, not my personal ranking. Trust me, there will be enough of that happening elsewhere on this blog. Alright, I think I’ve definitely carried on for long enough, so without further ado, here are the most notable releases (in my humble opinion) of April 2022.
Meshuggah – Immutable
At this point in their career, I don’t think anyone expects Meshuggah undergo any kind of daring sonic shift in sound when it comes time for a new record…but does any one really care? “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” is an age old saying that fits this band like a glove. Frankly, Meshuggah have contributed so much to the current sound of metal throughout their 30+ year career that by now, they have absolutely earned the right to put out whatever makes them happy, but as long as its got polyrhythmic chugs for days, us fans are pretty happy too. Immutable is no exception to the rule here, so if you’re a Meshuggah fan, I promise you’re gonna get exactly what you want and expect out of this disc. Standout tracks include lead single, The Abysmal Eye, the epic instrumental They Move Below, and I Am That Thirst, which has easily one of the best riffs of Fredrik Thordendal’s career.
Kublai Khan TX – Lowest Form of Animal
Kublai Khan is a band that doesn’t like to mince words, and this EP is definitely a testament of that. Lowest Form of Animal sees these Texas boys put grim social issues and personal struggle over some good ol’ fashioned metallic hardcore, and the result is undeniable. Swan Song is the easy standout track here, opening this EP up with Scott Vogel from Terror screaming the beginning of a call to open our eyes to the women who sell their bodies on the streets just to survive. Resentment was the lead single for this project, and its broken relationship-fueled anger paired with a massive breakdown is sure to rile a pit to point where the lyric “Take a swing at me,” becomes a manifested outcome. Dynasty closes the EP out, and I gotta say, this track has easily one of the most fun grooves I’ve heard all year. I could go on and list the great qualities of every single track on this thing, but the bottom line is this thing is a mosh-ready good time, and it continues to push Kublai Khan TX further into the upper echelon of hardcore.
Monuments – In Stasis
Changing a frontman can either make or break a band’s career, and when your band had a frontman as beloved as Chris Barretto, it could be easy to assume the worst. Well, Monuments fans, rejoice, because the man, the myth, the legend, Andy Cizek will put all of your fears to rest on this new record, In Stasis. Besides enlisting Andy, the band also brought the mastermind behind the Doom soundtrack, Mick Gordon, to lend an assist as well, and the hard work of everyone involved is felt all over this thing. This album successfully conveys a wide range of styles and emotions while still managing to sound very much like a Monuments record through and through. Lavos and Cardinal Red are a pair of straight up bangers powered by Mick Gordon’s production magic, False Providence packs a seriously weighty emotional punch, and Makeshift Harmony lets Andy flex his chops big time with some impressive Dance Gavin Dance style vocal runs. I also can’t forget to mention Arch Essence, which boasts an expectedly excellent feature from the mighty Spencer Sotelo of Periphery fame. Change isn’t always bad, folks, and this record is living proof.
This Bright and Beautiful World – Greyhaven
Every Time I Die may have called it quits in 2022, but Greyhaven is here to pick up the reins right where the Buckleys’ and co left off. These guys had a very impressive outing back in 2018 with Empty Black, and This Bright and Beautiful World only continues to expand on their equal parts chaotic and moody soundscape that invokes names like the aforementioned Every Time I Die and later era The Dillinger Escape Plan. This albums kicks off with a ruckus on it’s off-the-wall opening track, In a Room Where Everything Dies, before immediately switching gears to a more laid back, fun, rock n’ roll approach on All Candy. This back-and-forth dichotomy continues throughout the entirety of this record’s run time all the way to the beautiful closing track Ornaments from the Well, which was easily the highlight for me. I can’t stress enough how highly I recommend y’all give this thing a spin, and if you do, I guarantee y’all will learn exactly why the boys in Greyhaven are some the fastest rising stars in post hardcore.
Northlane – Obsidian
We’ll close this Music Monthly out with an album that seems to have fans pretty much split down the middle. Northlane long stood as one of the most beloved bands in the djent scene all throughout the 2010’s, but 2019 saw them make a pretty bold shift in sound on their last album, Alien, where they began to lean more into the “nu-metalcore” style that has rapidly gained popularity in the last few years. I gotta admit, I wasn’t a fan of this at first. Now in present day, many fans are holding that album up as the band’s best work to date, and I will say, it’s definitely grown on me a lot over the past three years. Still, I was anxious to see how Northlane would follow up, and I got my answer last month with their new record, Obsidian. This album sees the band take the sound that they developed on Alien and fuse it with some older elements from the Node and Mesmer days, which was honestly the direction I was really hoping they would take going forward. On top of that, they brought in some totally new elements as well, specifically in the form of a lot of EDM and rave influence, which has rubbed some fans the wrong way, but I actually think it adds a really interesting and unique layer to the record. Cypher currently stands as my favorite track on the album, and it’s a perfect example of this new fusion of styles I’ve described here. A few other highlights include the lead single, Clockwork, which has been a huge grower for me, Plenty, a perfect example of those old Northlane vibes, and the track the boasts the best chorus on the album, Carbonized. So yeah, I might be in the minority here, but after a lot of repeated listens, I personally think Obsidian is a huge step up from Alien, and I would have no complaints if this is the sound they continue to toy with going forward.
And that’s all I’ve got from last month! If you’ve got an album from April that you thought was particularly noteworthy, be sure to leave a comment and let the people know! Thanks for reading, and be sure to show some love to all the bands and albums discussed in this post. Stay tuned for another batch of killer new music next month! Horns up \m/
