I think it's been two years since my last post, but I figured I'd poke my head back in and share some music. I used to these large posts with links and commentary, so I'll stick with that method. Hopefully someone finds somethey they like.
Today is all Japanese metal in some form. Melodeath, deathcore, metalcore, and even metal-tinged alternative idol music.
Alphoenix
Hell's Lord
Melodic Death Metal
Alphoenix's debut album was a really catchy and crushing mixture of modern Japanese metalcore mixed with classic melodic death metal. Their debut album is a strong follow-up, and the band continues to keep their dry and harsh tone despite mixing in more melodic and clean vocals here and there.
Thousand Eyes
Dead Blind Nightfall
Melodic Death Metal
Thousand Eyes pretty much spun off from a Touhou metal project called Thousand Leaves. The members of the band have been all over the Touhou metal scene, and they're pretty much laid the foundation for modern Japanese melodic death metal. The newest album is fantastic on every front and features some of the best guitarwork in the scene.
Nocturnal Bloodlust
THE ONE
Melodic Deathcore
Nocturmal Bloodlust is a band I truly love. Naturally, I was torn up when guitarists Cazqui and Daichi left over budget disputes. Following a tumultuous search for replacements and a temporary shift in subgenre towards a more djent sound, I was wondering if they'd ever go back to their roots. After finally landing on the perfect replacements, Nocturnal Bloodlust returned to their brutal and melodic deathcore roots. The newest album is some of their best work, even if it's lacking the pure guitar virtuoso madness of Cazqui.
Cazqui's Brutal Orchestra
The Button Eyes
Symphonic / Melodic Metalcore
Speaking of Cazqui and Daichi, they went here. This is one of their side projects, which also features the vocalist of Dexcore (the next listed band) and some other well known metal musicians. It's essentially a supergroup. Though they've only put a couple songs, I'm eagerly awaiting a full album. The symphonic elements mixed with the blazing guitars is something I'll never get tired of, and I'm really happy I can hear Cazqui just go nuts on a guitar once more.
DEXCORE
The Light
Melodic Deathcore / Metalcore
Dexcore was a band I didn't like when I first heard them. They had a weird look, really bizarre musical timing, and I wasn't a fan of the vocalists cleans. Yet before I knew it, they grew on me. After putting out like thirty new songs since I last heard them, I consider them one of my favorite bands. I really love how they continue to push the boundaries of metal subgenres while touching upon elements of visual kei and hardcore.
Hanabie.
Pardon Me, I Have To Go Now
Metalcore
Hanabie is weird. They're a super creative group of girls who mix metal, pop, and rap together. Their songs are often irreverent or just for fun, so it's amusing to hear the vocalist screaming about cake or how she plans to murder someone who cheated on her. With each new song, they improve more and more. They have a lot of energy and their music is engaging, fun, and oftentimes bordering on chaotic.
PassCode
Clouds Across The Moon
Pop / Electronic / Alt-Idol / Metal
I was super sad with Yuna, PassCode's harsh vocalist, left the band due to health issues. I'd always wondered if they'd replace her, or if they'd just move in a different direction without someone to belt out the harsh growls and screams. Thankfully, Yuna's replacement Arima Emily fills the role quite easily. Her voice is powerful and she has the perfect style and vibe to fit in with the rest of the eletronic rock/metal/alt-idol/pop group.
Broken By The Scream
感情クロスカウンター (Emotional Cross Counter)
Deathcore / Pop / Alt-Idol / general chaos
Half Jpop, half deathcore, all chaos. Broken By The Scream is a band that fuses two genres together to create something masterfully messy. Demonic screams, guttural growls, and angelic pop vocals mixed with groove-based deathcore makes for a truly unique listening experience. I've shared this band in the past, but I often prefer to showcase their liveshows just to highly that yes, those demon sounds are coming from them.
Paledusk
AREA PD
Metalcore
Basically the artcore of Japanese metal. Paledusk got really weird lately and I'm here for it. For the longest time, I often mixed their sound up with Sable Hills. Paledusk has since started to mix in some elements of nu metal, slam, deathcore, eletronica, and punk. The breakdown is super heavy and crazy good. Highly recommended for something high energy and a little strange.
Veiled in Scarlet
Cradle of Insanity
Symphonic Melodic Death Metal
IDK if anyone here ever listened to Serpent, but they were pretty much the pinnacle of 2000s era Japanese melodic death metal. The members eventually formed a few new bands before coming together as Veiled in Scarlet, only to remake their first two albums (sans a track or two). If you like Japanese melodeath, this album is definitely required listening.
Lovebites
Judgement Day
Symphonic Power Metal / Heavy Metal
All female Japanese power metal. Lovebites has been around for a long while, and fans of Destrose may recognize a member or two. They have a very fast and heavy sound and style that makes them stand out from their contemporaries. The vocals are powerful, the bass and drums and heavy, and the guitarists are some of the best in the Japanese power metal scene. If you're a fan of sweeping choruses with multi-minute long dueling guitar solos, check 'em out.
Hagane
Sword of Judgement
Power Metal
Hagane is kind of like a younger version of Lovebites who got really, really into Dragonforce. Some of the members are known for their guitar covers on youtube. The two guitarists may be young, but they can shred just as well as people who've been playing for longer than they've been alive. Their songs are melodic with an often fantastical vibe to them. Like Lovebites, they often go on shredding duels for minutes through the song, and it's always a great contrast to the soaring vocals. I have a feeling their vocalist may be one of the best in the scene within the next ten years.
Earthists.
SUNBLOOD.
Progressive Metalcore
Earthists. is weird and I love them. They bend a lot of the metalcore formulas and mix things up by using clean vocals for verses while almost every chorus is a melodic scream in a different tune. They manage to mix in a bit of chaos while keeping things catchy and heavy at the same time. The direction the band has taken since their debut has been unique and fascinating to watch. I expected them to lose their way and fall into soft rock, yet they keep the crushing riffs and harsh growls at the forefront. I'd highly recommend their newest album Have A Good Cult if you want something creative, fun, and engaging.