1. Arriver - Azimuth (Chicago, Illinois)
Genre: Post-Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1VfgtJVfriV70dJuR67ZLs?si=Pq60oBFfQkaQXd5opo4PPw
ARRIVER was founded in Chicago in 2006 to create a metal epic from a found paragraph of nonsense. Their evolution has produced a body of work of great sonic diversity, linked by the narrative thread and the mightiness of the Riff. Explosive manifestations of heavy prog and post-doom are waiting to be discovered in ARRVIER's new album Azimuth. Following the release of their 2020 single "Holy Glow", Azimuth sees the Chicago based ARRIVER doubles down on an expansive, experimental approach. The music on this album and its story were largely created under pandemic conditions in states of chaos and dislocation. Azimuth reflects these circumstances. Opening with "Reenactor", the protagonist comes to terms with their actions and faces the corruption of their legacy. Immersive textures with a touch of dissonance bring to life the complex and contradictory moods that run through the track. Dominant bass, demonic harsh vocals and soaring melody deliver a dynamic soundscape. Wrestling with complex emotions, ARRIVER portrays the darker side to the human experience without the neat and tidy resolution. "None More Unknown" reveals that while in many respects the protagonist emerges victorious, their demons cannot be evaded, and the personal sacrifices are not worth the obtained gains. The vastness of sound and balance of light and dark results in a profound conclusion. ARRIVER fuse heavy tones with progressive composition and differing instrumental textures to produce a captivating experience. The quartet artfully depict their haunting tale with such deep feeling; in Azimuth they unveil the shadowy gloom. ARRIVER is:
Joe Kaplan - drums, percussion, Dan MacAdam - electric guitar, 12 string electric guitar, backing vocals, Dan Sullivan - vocals, electric guitar, baritone and acoustic guitars, Rob Sullivan - vocals, bass guitar, synthesizer.
2. Wholly Oracle - The Wretched Unification (Florida & Colorado)
Genre: Deathcore Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/11widcmzFOI3pNMHbFICJA?si=MRilzzNvTSeSy2E6Nlr5qQ 
3. Handsome Ghost - To the Place Where We Met Last (Boston, Massachusetts)
Genre: Indie / Alternative Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3IaqL9bsZtYJkqNLiovVho?si=V7023ZG-QUeyK46dTltMPg
When the noise of the world subsides and everything else goes quiet, emotions grow louder. With nothing to compete for attention and no distractions, the quietude enables honesty. Upheld by acoustic guitar, transmissions of ethereal production, and vocals that often barely register above a whisper, Handsome Ghost hover around this stillness. The Massachusetts duo—Tim Noyes and Eddie Byun —thread together songs steeped in longing and nostalgia, loss and love, and darkness and light, all at once.
4. Weight Of Emptiness - Withered Paradogma (Santiago, Chile)
Genre: Progressive Metal / Death Metal / Doom Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7n8FVerG2QVstroA507x0M?si=a37lB6N3R7e6CDz2GRk9nA
Metal band based in Buin, Chile, formed in 2015 that mixes styles such as death, doom, black metal with progressive elements. In 2021 they receive the Escuchar Award as the Best Extreme Metal Artist in Chile. His sound has been prominent within the Latin American metal scene.
5. Periphery - Periphery V: Djent is Not a Genre (Washington, D.C, )
Genre: Djent (lol) Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6d24kC5fxHFOSEAmjQPPhc?si=uMQZfpasT66xQhmPlCv-qw
With a sound that pushes at the boundaries of progressive metal, Periphery are at the forefront of the "djent" movement, utilizing detuned, extended-range instruments to create a sound that's as technically dizzying as it is heavy, joining in with the growing ranks of artists who are taking the framework laid down by bands like Meshuggah and running wild with it.
6. Suicide Silence - Remember... You Must Die (Riverside, California)
Genre: Deathcore Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6HZr7Fs2VfV1PYHIwo8Ylc?si=JAFUce1kQPSZjXajG2nxkA
An American deathcore group that draws on elements of black metal, grindcore, mathcore and groove metal, Suicide Silence emerged in 2007 with the punishing full-length debut, The Cleansing.
R.I.P. Mitch Lucker
7. Flogging Molly - ‘Til The Anarchy’s Restored (Los Angeles, California)
Genre: Celtic Punk-Rock Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5kQGFREO5FzMBMsAO3cEtj?si=e0d1bgGERR2tFpbjic9vHA
Flogging Molly are less of a band than they are a Transatlantic, Celtic-punk institution. Over the course of 25 years and thousands of shows around the world, Flogging Molly have transcended genres to become one of a very few bands that can literally share the stage with The Chieftains one day and Motörhead the next (this actually happened, by the way). For Flogging Molly’s seventh full-length 'Anthem', the band, which features married couple Dave King (vocals, guitar, bodhrán) and Bridget Regan (violin/fiddle, tin whistle, backing vocals), decided to get back to their roots and record 14 songs in 14 days with Steve Albini (Nirvana, Pixies) at Electrical Audio Studio in Chicago. Atom Greenspan (Idles, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds) mixed the tracks, and was also instrumental in both the sound and sequencing of Anthem. Ultimately, there really aren’t any other bands like Flogging Molly who can transverse scenes from punk to folk so easily and the fact that there are now multiple generations of fans at the band’s shows is a testament to their continued relevance. All of which brings us full circle back to Anthem. The band—and the world—have been through a lot over the past few years and Anthem is much about the collective spirit we all possess that allows us to push forward toward the future.
8. Meet Me @ The Altar - Past // Present // Future (Tampa, Florida)
Genre: Pop-punk Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4bzfsZhaLW6VWHLh1sqcrK?si=js5uGo8FQ5-9yCM0hC0-bw
Meet Me @ The Altar is here to dismantle rock music’s stereotypes riff by riff. The band–comprised of guitarist-bassist Téa Campbell, drummer Ada Juarez and lead vocalist Edith Victoria–has reignited the genre with their refreshing mix of earworm pop melodies, blazing guitar riffs, and punk attitude. Now, the band is ready to stake their claim in rock history with their debut album, Past // Present // Future, arriving via Fueled By Ramen. The record finds the bandmates experimenting more than ever as they solidify a signature sound while also ripping apart the “nostalgia act” box they didn’t ask to be placed in. Each word in the album title holds a significant meaning: “Past” pays respect to the iconic bands who’ve influenced them (including Paramore, Twenty One Pilots, P!NK, Demi Lovato, and Avril Lavigne). “Present” finds the band redefining what a modern-day rock band looks and sounds like, while “Future” looks ahead at how the band will impact the genre and where they might go from here.
9. Story Of The Year - Tear Me To Pieces (St. Louis, Missouri)
Genre: Emo / Pop-Punk / Post Hardcore Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0KDuKk6YdEu3hR56HtXmxt?si=uvAvbYvySdi4LA4mJT1cSQ
What’s the sound of Story Of The Year? Loud guitars, massive singalong choruses, and uplifting perseverance. Few records helped build the post-hardcore scene as swiftly as the band’s debut, Page Avenue, one of the first of its kind to sell a million copies. “Until the Day I Die” endures as both an anthem and mission statement. Tours with Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, Deftones, and The Used cemented Story Of The Year’s reputation as a stunning and engaging live act. The connection between the band and audience transformed Story Of The Year from teenagers working in a St. Louis pizza chain franchise into hard rock headliners. Fans grew together with Dan Marsala, Ryan Philips, Josh Wills, and Adam Russell, from Page Avenue (2003), In the Wake of Determination (2005), The Black Swan (2008), The Constant (2010), Wolves (2017), to Tear Me to Pieces (2022). They specialize in intense, passionate, confessional compositions that inspire and empower. Songs like “The Antidote,” “Real Life,” “Miracle,” “The Ghost of You and I,” “Anthem of Our Dying Day,” and “Take Me Back” resonate with anyone determined to triumph over adversity. Until the day I die, indeed.
10. Judiciary - Flesh + Blood (Lubbock, Texas)
Genre: Thrash Metal / Hardcore / Crossover Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1llYaLn43cLcbWg9M4t0Y3?si=8kqobhtMQz-Qnuad3m_c3Q
West Texas Hardcore
11. Dirge - S/T (Mumbai, India)
Genre: Doom Metal / Sludge Metal / Post Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/14kv0d8vEoJu2uiqjJBBDl?si=9bSchCMrR-md8mNYw7M3Sw
Formed in 2014, DIRGE started out as a band in Pune, a city then brimming with several acts in the local metal scene. They were unique from their peers, marked by a sheer dark, moving intensity & gritty heaviness in their music. The band soon found itself a full lineup & trudged forward ever since. Using their time post-pandemic to write and record a follow-up to 2018’s Ah Puch, the band’s forthcoming self-titled album finds the quintet taking a sonic journey of discovery. The album is a compilation of crises, in different forms. It is an attempt to evoke emotions which lie at the core of discomfort. The four songs are representative of the causes of pain. The soundscapes have been designed to suit the ethos of each song & the lyrics are inspired from real life experiences of anger, guilt, sorrow, and fear. Taking the listener on a journey of self-actualisation through this album, it creates a sense of catharsis through the experience of the four songs. The album artwork – “The rings of crises” is a metaphor for this very listening experience.
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1. Webbed Wing - Right After I Smoke This… (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Genre: Rock/Alternative Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5WtT8OzAjn0fJ6tondvHrI?si=Rx7Y3fiYTE-9CXDs_ET4aQ
Following a decorated career with Philly rock group Superheaven, singer and guitarist Taylor Madison meanders into newly-refined songwriter territory with the inception of Webbed Wing in 2018. Joined by Jake Clarke (drums) and Mike Paulshock (bass), the band fully realizes their innate genre-blending musicality. Webbed Wing’s somewhat simplistic approach to songwriting explores what it means to birth a sad song without fully killing a mood, paired with a soundscape laden with nostalgia and a tasteful pop-rock resurgence. Taking notes from the likes of The Lemonheads and Teenage Fanclub, Webbed Wing encapsulates everything lyrically gripping about indie and everything vibrant about modern pop. While also expertly intertwining the heaviness of metal and the earnesty of country, the band blends all these different aspects of their craft into something highly palatable and new. Between early Webbed Wing releases, like 2019’s Bike Ride Across the Moon (Disposition Collective) and forthcoming recordings on 2021’s What’s So Fucking Funny? with Grammy-nominated producer Will Yip (Code Orange, The Menzingers, Mannequin Pussy, Circa Survive) via Memory Music Label (Bartees Strange, Anthony Green), there’s an obvious level up in production, honing in on Webbed Wing’s natural maturity as both an artist and a creative.
2. Aortes - Devouring Gloom (Lithuania)
Genre: Doom/Ambient/Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1zxU64Z5fKgqGrsTdMwz0M?si=k0J43hRnQD6vRvMBrDLfmw
AORTES (previously, AUTISM) started out in 2012 as an instrumental solo project of guitarist Tomhetas. The Crawling Chaos (2013) proved to be the start of a string of releases that showed a heavier sound, a consistent concern for storylines, and an ambitious conceptual vision. In 2016 they became a full line-up live band and recorded Film Noir (2017), a dark and invasive opus dealing with alcoholism, drugs, and physical and psychological abuse. In Have you found peace? (2019), a conceptual album, the band teamed up with Krzysztof from the post-metal act ROSK who became the first vocal performer in the history of the band. In 2021 Andrius has joined the band to take full-time vocal duties after appearing on the band’s single Immersion (2021). Now available is Their latest release: Devouring Gloom.
3. Principius - Peace Through Afflication (Montreal, Canada)
Genre: Melodic Death Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4ySnQCqyIPtuKDaHd1Gy1c?si=1iTOg0IJTf2Xoxm7ivv4fw
Principius is a female fronted melodic death metal band from Montreal Canada. It was formed in 2019 and now consists of Axelle Doyon (vocals and lyrics), Hugues Berger-Pelletier (guitar, music and lyrics), Jeremie Henneuse (bass) and Michel Gagne-Bouchard (Drum). Their music showcases strong guitar harmonies, fast drums and complex vocal performances. Higher pitch screams, to deeper growls, to sometimes classical clean vocals and belting, it is overwhelming to think this is coming from the same person. Hugues founded the band that originally started as a basement hobby. Attending different metal shows in the Montreal area provided the motivation to make the band an official project. Recruitment began and Axelle was eventually the first of the new members.
4. Can't Swim - Thanks but No Thanks (Keansburg, New Jersey)
Genre: Rock/Alternative Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/62elZbH5Iop8UPcChp7OrU?si=IxPJD8JKSCCrZTSHyUxfAA
One of New Jersey’s prodigal sons once mused “who says you can’t go home?” – but CAN’T SWIM have never really left their Garden State surroundings. Sure, they’ve certainly logged tens of thousands of miles over the past seven years, bringing their cathartic blend of rock, punk, and emo to audiences around the world on bills with A Day To Remember and Senses Fail and at festivals like 2000trees. But at their core, Can’t Swim are innately Jersey through and through: from the ghosts of Tri-State hardcore giants that oscillate through their high-octane sound to the very garages and studios where those songs take shape. Now, the band plant their Garden State flag even deeper on their fourth LP, Thanks But No Thanks, an album that quite literally finds them going back to their roots. After wrapping another slate of hard touring for 2021’s Change Of Plans, the group – vocalist Chris LoPorto, bassist Greg McDevitt, guitarist Danny Rico and drummer (and honorary Jersian) Blake Gamel – decamped to the Shore, insulating themselves in the comforts of home while working to hone in on the most elemental components of the Can’t Swim sound. “This was honestly the most fun we’ve ever had making an album,” LoPorto muses. “We’ve reached a point as a band where we’re able to stop overthinking and instead just do what feels right. I think it’s brought a lot of joy back into our music.” Joy has rarely been a word associated with Can’t Swim – awash in tempestuous lyricism and muscular energy since breaking into the underground with 2016’s Death Deserves A Name EP – but there’s a self-referential wryness to LoPorto’s lyrics on Thanks But No Thanks that winks its way through the album’s 10 songs, along with a finely tuned melodic edge that balances out the band’s more brooding nature. With guitarist Rico overseeing production, mixing, and mastering (a position he held on 2017’s debut LP Fail You Again and 2018’s This Too Won’t Pass), first single “me vs. me vs. all y’all” is Can’t Swim’s most fully realized pop song to date, name-checking The Cure, The Lemonheads and Eddie Vedder, while the album-opening “Nowhere, Ohio” offers a playful tribute to the Alkaline Trio classic “Radio” in between stabs of downtuned guitars. “It’s much easier to write songs from a mental standpoint these days,” LoPorto says. “It was a warzone in my mind there for a while, but present-day Chris is at peace and having fun.” But don’t conflate fun with frivolity. The same emotional heft that’s made Can’t Swim a cult favorite in the scene – and earned them musical co-signs from the likes of Taking Back Sunday’s Adam Lazzara and Beartooth’s Caleb Shomo – is front and center on Thanks But No Thanks, from the sorrowful summer 2022 single “I heard they found you face down inside your living room,” mourning the death a close friend, to the classic punk rallying cry “ELIMINATE,” which tackles the gun violence epidemic with a strength-in-numbers call to arms. In this way, the evolution of Can’t Swim as a band is really evident: What once were presented as insurmountable obstacles on previous albums are now framed as hard-but-necessary lessons that need confronting in to move forward and grow, calling upon new levels of resolve and strength to dull down life’s demons. Through it all, the band have been able to truly block out the noise and let their conscience resonate loudest of all. “We’ve had so much advice from people throughout the years,” LoPorto says, referencing the album’s title. “There’s been a lot of people in this revolving door now, and a lot of advice that knocked us off the track a little bit. Ultimately, we realized no one knows us better than us, so let’s just trust ourselves to do our thing.” Four records in, it feels like Can’t Swim are just now hitting their stride. They’ve stretched their wings over nearly a decade, dabbling in everything from frantic hardcore (2019’s Foreign Language EP) to ethereal indie (2020’s Someone Who Isn’t Me EP), yet have once again found their way back to their musical home. “As a writer, we’ve always wanted to experience different sounds and explore different vibes, but I think that sort of exploration is pretty much done,” LoPorto says. “I feel perfectly confident in being ourselves at this point.” The next few years will take them far away from their own beds as these songs reach audiences around the world – but that’s a sacrifice the band is willing to make because of how much these connections truly mean. “My dad once told me, ‘Even if I won the lottery, nothing I could ever buy would mean as much as what you have with this band,” LoPorto says. “To look out in the crowd and see people with Can’t Swim tattoos blows my mind; that’s why I never understand when bands get so wrapped up in numbers and how they can get bigger. I was a garbage man in Jersey City when I was 23, and now I’m supposed to be bummed we only hit 200,000 monthly listeners? Come on. To have anyone care is enough.” - Via Purenoise
5. Acres - Burning Throne (Portsmouth, United Kingdom)
Genre: Melodic Post-Hardcore Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3y43zXffnLmhyQD1K4QCmD?si=HhMJmPFdTrqudoOcpsdicA
Following the incredible success and adoration received from 2019’s stunning debut ‘Lonely World’, a record that harnessed melody and melancholy to devastatingly gorgeous effect, Acres found themselves playing the biggest shows of their career so far and achieving things they had only previously dreamt about. But when the world around them suddenly felt so uncertain, they had a choice to make of what they should do next. Instead of rushing out with something that they didn’t fully believe, they locked themselves away and painstakingly created something that not only represented where they had been but also where they wanted to end up. Acres return with crushing, cathartic and perfectly crafted accounts of what it means to stare into your own oblivion and learn about who you really are from it. First single 'Burning Throne' showcases the band’s heaviest material to date whereas the second, 'Hold On' sees them at their most melodic, poignant and honest. Acres have injected every ounce of their soul into their next chapter, something that they are immensely proud to have as a vital part of their story.
6. Necropanther - Betrayal (Denver, Colorado)
Genre: Thrash Metal / Death Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2Fe3uMYgjeDjg9JIIV3yxa?si=loqJ6FKaTZiujkfqLol9iA
We are NECROPANTHER. Short, thrashy death metal songs from a dystopian future. Denver, Colorado. Paul Anop: Guitar, Vocals. Marcus Corich: Bass, Vocals. Joe Johnson: Guitar. Haakon Sjogren: Drums
7. Ocean Of Grief - Pale Existence (Athens, Greece)
Genre: Melodic Doom Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0FyJgGUsFZlg1M2WS1ckwr?si=vf0AzQR8Ra-zB9aDy2M7lw
Ocean of Grief's melodic doom/death dates back in 2016 in Athens, Greece, with their first musical endeavor, the "Fortress Of My Dark Self" EP, released by GS Productions, deeply influenced by the sound of Slumber, Enshine, Draconian and Saturnus. The gloomy but melancholic feeling of the EP, was followed by the self-released single "After a Long Time" and eventually the band's first full length album "Nightfall's Lament", released by Rain Without End records, diving even deeper into darkness and despair. The band is now releasing their sophomore album, Pale Existence, with an even darker and more melodic tone, allowing the listener to get lost in somber but immersive soundscapes.
8. I Call Fives - Not For Everyone (Washington Township, New Jersey)
Genre: Pop-Punk Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3vsi8vM5Xs8p1NEQuZWP70?si=b9uczxFlRlW5FteE8hZGrw 
9. Full of Hell & Primitive Man - Suffocating Hallucination (Ocean city, Maryland, Denver, Colorado)
Genre: Grindcore / Doom Metal Music: https://open.spotify.com/album/7uAidSfsq30KuUAu2UeQO6?si=5u_67bE2R-SMCng54-JHUw 
10. Rath & The Wise Guys - Paradise (Tampa, Florida)
Genre: Beach Punk / Skate Rock Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0dY4LJN4YX1UFlWgluk30Q?si=f2Ir3RD2S4StVbc41OnoqQ
We're a beach punk skate rock band from Tampa Bay, FL ready to party with you!
Want to be featured on a blog post?
As part of our mission to inspire the local art community, we created the Artist Endorsement Project. With this project, we work closely with artists of all types to create a customized endorsement package that meets the needs of our most valued clients.
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