The Names Of Our Friends - Should We Know Better Than to Wonder
B- Tier
Boisterous and intimidating Screamo from the PNW, Should We Know Better is the band’s debut record and what a freakin’ way to enter the scene! Excellent production allows the guitars to overwhelm you with a wall of noise while the drummer keeps up the cacophony. The screams are impassioned, over-the-top and brimming with pure rage. If you want some new Screamo that borders on Emoviolence, this one’s worth a listen.
Sacrofuoco - Anni Luce
B- Tier
Sacrofuoco, formerly a straightforward Screamo band named One Dying Wish, invoked the increasingly-popular Post-Metal influence going around modern-day Screamo, reformed under their current name and unleashed their debut LP onto the world. Brutal, sharp guitars drive the bleak and foreboding atmosphere forward. While the vocals are screamed, they are distorted and only add to the thick ambiance of this record rather than enhance the brutality. Although hopping on an emerging trend, Sacrofuoco nonetheless delivers some hearty Screamo here.
xheartworksx - Demo
B- Tier
Potential - what a loaded term; on the one hand, it means the possibility of achievement, and who doesn’t think that sounds good? Unfortunately, it’s almost always accompanied by a pejorative descriptor, such as “unrealized” potential. I’m here to tell you that on xheartworksx Demo release, it’s both. This fresh material is the band’s first work and there’s a lot to like about it. There’s an old school Screamo mindset in the songwriting, putting particular emphasis on the quiet-loud dynamics and the musical catharsis that such writing can provide. However, the production values and recording quality are, frankly, horrible, and that’s saying something for this genre. Regardless, the compositions are top notch and I cannot wait to hear what the future holds for them.
Macseal - Permanent Repeat
B- Tier
Macseal's metamorphosis from Midwest Emo band with strong melodies to Power Pop band with strong Emo ties is complete on their sophomore LP. Regardless, the acoustic guitar-laden tracks have a bright quality to them and feature subtle intricacies for curious ears. This album is perhaps the catchiest one of the year on average, each track possessing some earworm melody or other. However, with the shedding of their old musical personality, the songs tend to have shallow emotional resonance, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't give this one a shot.
chase usa (fka Chase Plato) - Honey Baby: I Love It When You Call Me That !
B- Tier
An ambitious experiment, this debut LP from Chase Plato combines raw and gritty Midwest Emo with the spiritedness of Pop-Punk and blends it together with unorthodox Hip Hop elements. The vocals are usually rapped or sung through a filter of some sort, but I have to emphasize that this isn’t Emo-Rap proper, which has its own genre conventions more closely related to Hip Hop. This seems to be grounded in Punk, even with the fun production flourishes. The only negative is that this release is a bit disjointed, a consequence of their visionary trajectory.
