Hopscotch has came and went leaving in it’s wake a mass face-melted people struggling to readjust to the wares of every day life. With three days of non-stop partying and an unending stream of music, it’s easy for some bands to fall through the cracks. One of my goals this year was to find some new metal bands to keep an eye on this year, and boy howdy did I find some. Here are a few that I think deserve some attention.
SubRosa
SubRosa is a sludge/doom band out of SLC. If I had to describe this band in a single word, it would be haunting. Their slow, drudging sound reverberates with the two violins in the band that create what could be the soundtrack of an actual ghost house. Rebecca Vernon’s vocals have a tension and ferocity to them all while sounding somewhat dissonant against the sludging assault behind her. This band was the biggest surprise for me of all of Hopscotch, I highly back them.
Listen: “The Usher” from “More Constant Than the Gods”
FFO: Electric Wizard, Thou, Sunn 0)))
Artificial Brain
Artificial Brain are a technical death metal band from Long Island. Artificial Brain are a mega-aggressive, super technical, time signature changing buncha dudes. Along with the typical tech death flair, Will’s deep, guttural vocals really impressed me. The tech death sound can be difficult to pull off accurately live, but these guys did a solid job.
Listen: “Absorbing Black Ignition” from “Labyrinth Constellation”
FFO: Gorguts, The Faceless, Decapitated
Witch Mountain
Witch Mountain is a doom metal band from Portland. Now most people hip to the doom metal scene are aware of this band, but I want to keep an eye on them for a different reason. Uta, the lead vocalist, recently announced that she will be leaving the band, meaning that Hopscotch was one of her last shows, making it quite a special show. I’ve always thought that this band sounded like driving down a back road in a wooded, mountainous area at 2 in the morning with the windows down, just thinking about where everything in your life has led you to. Granted, that isn’t the main theme of their music, but that’s how it has always resonated with me.
Listen: “Can’t Settle” from “Mobile of Angels”
FFO: Dark Castle, Sleep, Cough
~Slaughterhome