Bradley Zorgdrager

Contributions

Bad Omens on transcending heavy music with Finding God Before God Finds Me

Bad Omens discuss their genre-bending album Finding God Before God Finds Me, themes of religion and mental health, as well as stripping down their songs acoustically.

Bad Omens made their album to help others “feel in control and powerful”

Much has been written about Bad Omens’ comparisons to scene giants such as Bring Me The Horizon, Beartooth, Underoath or Slipknot—quite a diverse pool from which to draw. Sure, those bands have all flirted with metalcore, but the ultimate unifier is their ability to transcend heavy music in general, be that in style, appeal or […]

21 underrated deathcore albums that deserve more credit than they got

Deathcore is one of metal’s most maligned and misunderstood subgenres. That makes it sound a hell of a lot like a teenager, but it’s actually approaching adulthood if it’s not already there. (That all depends on when you think it started.) In honor of its growth into an exciting boundary breaker, here are 21 albums […]

20 post-hardcore bands who took concept albums to the next level

Post-hardcore is especially rich in concept albums. Perhaps that’s because the immense vocal palette—from tender crooning to raw screaming—lends itself to expressing emotions. The music similarly matches. Sure, metalcore can deliver crushing breakdowns, but it rarely gets as intimate as this companion genre. There’s also the fact that the high-pitched singing elicits desperation so often […]

24 metal and metalcore bands who changed vocalists and then switched back

Being in a band ain’t easy. You’ve got many creative personalities in a massive tug of war. Oh yeah, then you have to live with each other and those decisions on the road for months on end. Lineup changes aren’t uncommon, though a vocalist switch-up has the possibility to be the most debilitating. Some bands […]

August Burns Red all have a superhero they identify with most– here's why

The second single from August Burns Red’s Guardians features a guitar lead that resembles the theme from Spider-Man: The Animated Series. However, the parallel was a mere coincidence according to the man who wrote the music for “Bones,” guitarist JB Brubaker, while lyric writer Brent Rambler hears A Perfect Circle in the instruments’ effects. The […]

No one was more surprised by the reaction to ‘Doom’ than Job For A Cowboy

Fifteen years ago, Job For A Cowboy marked their arrival on the extreme-metal scene not with a bang but with a squeal. The Doom EP was a breakdown-laden statement, and extreme music would never be the same—for better or worse.  And you better believe that everyone had their opinion on that, something that was easily […]