Celestine
I believe Detriment is the first proper output from Reykjavík, Iceland bruisers Celestine in well over a decade. The six-song EP consists of a dark, sludgy/doomy base that branches out into caustic metalcore with well-textured vocals that cover a good range of ground and become pretty viciously intense at times. One could argue that there's a hint of post-metal in there, but in more of a Mastodon-esque manner with subtly mathy twists to the rhythms and riffing, plus varying vocal approaches. It makes me think of stuff that would have fit in well on labels like Hydra Head or Radar Swarm around 20 years ago. Stellar production, too—dense yet clear. This one's highly recommended all around. Celestine has been rather underrated ever since their debut back in 2008, so... give 'em a shot!
Detriment is available on marbled orange vinyl, I think via Gaukurinn Records, but I haven't seen a copy, so I'm not entirely sure. They're surprisingly hard to come by online, with just a few copies available through Lucky Records. Get your digital over at Bandcamp, or stream via Spotify or Apple Music and all that.
Entropy
Dharmakāya, the sophomore full-length from Hamburg, Germany's Entropy, has been one of my utmost anticipated releases of 2024, having been thoroughly blown away by all of the group's prior output. This 11-song excursion continues to expand on their brand of post-hardcore-infused alternative rock that often brings Sugar to mind, and is a little more "mature" in the sense that it's at times a dash more pensive and laidback in character. Still, there are a number of standout tracks that pick up the pace and bear the infectious energy that made me fall in love with the band in the first place. Interestingly, I find that the second half of the album holds most of my favorites: "Olympian," "Pleroma," "Well/Sad," etc. It seems—or at least I'd like to believe—that Entropy is gaining a bit of traction lately, but I'd still have to classify them as one of the most criminally overlooked bands out there at the moment. I just can't recommend their work enough.
Dharmakāya is out now on CD or LP (150 on an orange/blue smash, 150 on black, 200 on transparent orange), once more through Crazysane Records (and on Bandcamp), or in the U.S. via A Thousand Arms (sadly, no CDs). Everyone else, fire up Spotify or Apple Music or something and hear what you've been missing...
Lasting Dose
I can't remember where I learned about Philadelphia's Lasting Dose, but I might've just seen the band name somewhere and looked 'em up based on the assumption that it was a reference to the Crowbar track. II cranks out relatively straightforward, beefy metallic hardcore with shorter than average run times (every song on this EP is less than three minutes, some under two) and a hint more ruggedness to the recording than is often retained by these acts, which works well to lend a different edge to their attack. The vocals have a certain harshness to 'em, too, that's not generic compared to so much of what's out there right now. Like I said, it's pissed off and to the point, so I'm curious to see where they'll land moving forward...
As far as I can tell, Lasting Dose's output to date is digital-only. I had to grab II through Amazon, 'cause only the demo's on Bandcamp. Of course you can stream using Spotify, Apple Music, etc.
Mast Year
The latest from Baltimore's Mast Year, the six-song Point of View EP, is another slab of uniquely skronked-out noise rock with at times unhinged vocals, not to mention loads of breathing room amidst its quirky/mathy meanderings. The guitars are either weird, semi-melodic accents or ultra-dense and nastily textured to blend into a churning wall of sound alongside the bass, while powerful drumming often picks up into unexpectedly blasting intensity. Great production, really warm and natural, yet just rugged enough to make sense. The material ranges from the slightly-over-minute-long experimental atmosphere of "Love Note" to the nearly-10-minute epic "Figure of Speech." Yet another project doing their own thing on their own terms that feels worthy of wider appreciation, as far as I'm concerned.
Point of View looks to be digital-only, and is available on Bandcamp. Otherwise, stream away using Spotify, Apple Music, and so on.
Puddled
Puddled is split between Philly and Baltimore, and their debut seven-song EP offers good, solid, fuzzed-out alt.-rock that's obviously influenced by the '90s, but doesn't feel reliant on nostalgia—nor does it sound like the majority of what's out there these days. Mostly mid-paced and adequately catchy with plenty of melodic lead lines, it kind of strikes a nice balance between that "bummery" type of vibe and a subtle sense of energy. They don't bring anyone in particular to mind either, which is cool, even if it's perhaps the result of my own ignorance, heh. In any case, the group definitely fits in with the general aesthetic that the Crafted Sounds label has been honing over the years, and I'm a fan. Quite nice.
This one's available on 50 cassettes and 100 CDs through Crafted Sounds, as well as Bandcamp. Those who stream almost always have Spotify, Apple Music, etc. available.
Read Only Memory
I believe I stumbled onto the debut five-song EP from Miami, FL's Read Only Memory through a tweet at some point, and took interest fairly quickly because their take on today's ever-popular 'gaze-influenced sound succeeds in two areas where many artists lose me. First, the music hits a little harder and has more of a heft of vitality to it; and further, the vocals—even when soft and restrained—still possess emphasis and melody, they're not mediocre whispered nor half-spoken attempts. The end result is a slightly grungy, little bit dreamy branch of this corner of alt.-rock, with solid songwriting that displays a good amount of variety and a number of standout moments. The mix could probably be slightly more balanced (to my ears, the percussion can distract just a touch), but everything sounds fairly strong overall. This is a promising EP, and should the band carry on, they're certainly worthy of—and likely to draw—more attention.
Read Only Memory appears to be digital-only; so you can purchase through Bandcamp or stream via Spotify, Apple Music, and other such sources.
