Clay Birds - Bled Out and Painted Blue
#5 | A+ Tier
Perhaps rating their debut EP a C+ last year was a bit too harsh, but Bled Out and Painted Blue is a marked improvement for the band in terms of songwriting and production. Despite the varied song structures and styles, Clay Birds still maintains their signature chaotic and dark atmosphere. The volume dynamics on this album are very natural as the band finds the perfect juxtaposition of solemn and lonesome clean sections with menacing and raw Screamo. With their first LP, Clay Birds have canonized themselves in the grand tapestry of Socal Skramz.
Scumma Do Mar - Gamba Tesa
#6 | A+ Tier
Gamba Tesa is an energetic jaunt through twenty minutes of Mathy Emo filled with twinkly riffs, odd time signatures and passionate vocals. Though this description could fit hundreds of records in this genre, native Neapolitans Scumma do Mar inject their music with that little something that keeps you engaged and makes you put this album on repeat. This LP will keep you on your toes, even if it isn’t treading original ground.
drive your plow over the bones of the dead - tragedy as catharsis
#7 | A+ Tier
One of the noisiest and most unrelenting Emoviolence albums of all time, tragedy as catharsis is a Hell of a debut LP from native Canucks drive your plow. The arrangements are tumultuous and suffocating, aided by the ultra-distorted guitars and boisterous drumming. However, this wall of sound that’s created as a result belies the supreme technicality under the hood; blistering chord progressions, time signature shenanigans and subtle intensity dynamics showcase a band handily biting off in less than 20 minutes one of the most ambitious Emoviolence records ever. Although the deafening dissonance and cacophony are one of the album's strongest points, slightly clearer production could have improved this.
