4 Forgotten Metalcore Bands from the 2010s Artwork

Metalcore & Muscle

Metalcore music meets fitness in this podcast, where our host Evan provides health and wellness information while discussing his passion for metalcore music. If you are a fan of fitness and listen to the metalcore genre, you've come to the right place.

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Metalcore & Muscle

4 Forgotten Metalcore Bands from the 2010s

July 25, 2023 • Season 3 • Episode 10

0:00 | 30:14

The early 2010s were a golden era for metalcore music. With many bands throwing their hat into the metalcore ring at that time, there were bound to be bands that got lost in the shuffle. In today's episode we will be highlighting four forgotten bands from the 2010s that produced amazing music you won't want to miss. We discuss the bands' background, our favorite songs, lyrics, instrumentals, vocals, breakdowns, and much more. Our fitness segment includes tips on how to improve VO2 max or also known as aerobic capacity, finally concluding with our selection for song of the week. We hope you enjoy this episode!

Resources:

Song of the Week: Letting Go by Hollow Front

Hello everyone and welcome back to Metalcore and Muscle where metalcore music meets fitness! My name is Evan and I will be your host for today’s episode! We are nearly through the month of July, where is the summer going! For all you fitness enthusiasts out there, how is your training going, what are your goals this summer? Today’s episode will be a music focused episode, primarily discussing some of my favorite forgotten bands from the 2010s which I consider to be the golden era of metalcore music. I have four bands that I will be highlighting where I will discuss some of their background, some of my favorite songs, lyrics, instrumentals, breakdowns and which ones can be best utilized for working out. Speaking of working out, todays episode will also include a fitness tip surrounding cardiovascular training, VO2 max, and fitness trackers. Lastly today’s episode will conclude with our selection for song of the week! Wherever you are and however you are listening, we hope you enjoy this episode!

Alright let’s get into discussing these bands! The first band we will be discussing is a band that I didn’t find out about until this year! One of their songs happened to be included on one of my Spotify daily mixes and this band is “The Air I Breathe”. This next section comes from phenixx gaming written by Mike Reitemeier.

“In the early 2010s, bands in the post-hardcore/metalcore genre typically tended to be a flash in the pan, as the oversaturation of the style made it a challenge for them to breakthrough. When a band doesn’t breakthrough, they cost more than they make, and it makes sense for them to disband. Regardless of the financial situation of a band, it’s unfortunate to see them go when there was so much more quality art that they could have produced.

One such band that I hold near and dear to my heart is The Air I Breathe. This metalcore act from New Jersey saw a surge in success when they signed with Rise Records’ side label Velocity Records (who also had Woe, Is Me, Abandon All Ships, and MSWHITE). This was prefaced with the strong Anathema EP, and followed by their timeless Great Faith in Fools released on the label. Taking some of the best aspects of similar bands, like Miss May I and The Word Alive, this album features some of the most vicious lyrics and brutal breakdowns in the genre.

What made The Air I Breathe special was how they exemplified the quintessential metalcore sound, while sprinkling in influences from hardcore (with two-step sections) and post-hardcore (clean vocals in the choruses). Blistering guitar riffs run through the verses, and if it isn’t a riff playing, it’s a catchy breakdown. Tony’s scathing unclean vocals enhance the bleak tone of his lyrics, bringing depth to phrases like “Live each day with these thoughts in your head. You can’t escape the past behind you. The choice you made will haunt you forever.”

After the release and subsequent touring for Great Faith in Fools, the band released another single, “Vale Dicere”, in 2012. Dissension in 2012 led the band to do a farewell tour and dissolve that year. Afterward, some of the new members, along with Tony, went on to release more music as BURN IT TO THE GROUND, with a few singles dropping over the 2010s but no concrete releases before that act also failed to gather any steam.

I hate the fact that we never got any more Air I Breathe music, as Great Faith in Fools shaped a lot of my interests in metalcore composition, but it wasn’t meant to be. At the very least, we can celebrate the brief success the band brought at the start of the previous century.”

So that provides some nice background on the group and I am excited to say that they did come back together and released a track in 2021 called, Nothing Feels Sound. Their album Great Faith in Fools is chalk full of bangers with one of my favorites being “For what its worth”. Within the first 15 seconds of this song, you will have a breakdown that sets the tone for the remainder of the song. The lyrics during the breakdown are “I can’t believe I turned my back and you were right there to leech.” There is a nice mix of technical lead guitar and open 0s for guitar work. The clean vocals were on par with what was out at the time and I would say their sound is most similar to Miss May I or even Phineas. We get another breakdown at the 1:15 mark that says “we will be everything we’ve ever dreamed” which is a sick motivating lyric. There is also a killer guitar solo around the 215 mark that leads right into a smacking final breakdown that says “We always knew that it would come to this your fucking ego never made things easy so take a breath and let this all sink in, you selfish fuck I hope you burn in hell”. The song is unpredictable with lots of tempo changes and I feel that is what makes it a great workout song. I won’t go that in depth into any other tracks but some of my other favorites include “Take this to heart” and Deliverance. If you want to be transported back to 2011 just throw this album on from start to finish, it is an absolute banger!

Alright, the next forgotten band from the 2010s is the band “Us, From Outside”. This information comes from the webpage last.fm “Us, From Outside were a post-hardcore band formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. They later changed their name to Chasing Safety. The band signed to Tragic Hero Records in 2009 and released their debut album Inspired by the Threat of Failure on April 27, 2010. A music video was recorded for "I Thought I'd Be Dead by Now" which can be viewed on the Tragic Hero video channel. They announced the recording of a new EP that may be released in November, which was updated to in fact be a full-length release. Soon afterward, it was announced that clean vocalist Michael Crimlis would be leaving the band. Kenny Davis, the bassist, then performed clean vocals. Their second full-length album, Revived, was released December 20, 2011. Chasing Safety released the EP This Machine in 2014, Season Of The Dead in 2014 and the album Nomad in 2017.” Inspired by the Threat of Failure came out in 2010 and my favorite track off this album is “I will smash your face in” and what I love the most about this band is the clean vocals. This song starts off with a Justin Bieber-type clean vocal that instantly gets you hooked. The mixing/sound isn’t perfect but it has that angsty sound that you love from back then. We get a little breakdown at the 1:37 mark with some harsh vocals but not super heavy. At the 219 mark they do a nice scream/clean combo section/breakdown. You can tell their sound matured a bit between this album and their second album Revived which came out a year later. One of my favorites off Revived is the song Patient Sixty-Seven. The harsh vocals improved while maintaining their unique cleans. Right after the first chorus going into the next verse there is a slightly heavier section that could be used for working out. Putting a Face to Fear is my favorite off this album though. It is heavier and very complete when compared to other songs at the time. Small breakdown around the 1:04 mark. We get a heavier breakdown at the 2 min mark. The cleans are reminiscent of Woe is Me. Overall production is great on this album compared to their debut.

Moving into our third band, we have one of my personal favorites from the time and that is the band Horizons. And if it weren’t for my friend Chris I would have never have heard of these guys back in 2011. This next section comes from Last.fm “1. In late 2009, within the city of Mississauga, Ontario, three close friends found themselves envisioning a dream. It was the realization of an inherent passion for writing and playing music, but ultimately, the formation of Horizons. As the core of the band was already set into place, guitarists Doug Meadows, Ben Zamora, & drummer Cameron Ridgeway began the search for the missing pieces. Within mere days, vocalist Chris Cosentino & bassist Borys Petriczko found their place among like-minded musicians with similar tastes & aspirations.Having only spent a few short practices together as a band, Horizons entered the studio with locally acclaimed producer Jordan Valeriote to record their first song “Royalties”. The band has since returned to Sundown Studio to record a five-song EP. Infectiously contagious riffs & heart-stopping breakdowns are complemented with soaring and powerful choruses to provide a sound that delivers on all fronts. Horizons will continue to win the hearts of their audiences & push the limits of hardcore music.” The first song I heard from these guys was “Washed Away” and I can still see the music video to this day all the guys standing out in the snowy woods head banging. The cleans are so iconic for this band and instantly take me back to highschool. Washed Away is a great workout song that provides a blend of harsh and clean vocals with massive uplifting chorus that includes lyrics “When will you stop to realize that this world is limitless? Cause you’re far too strong and this love won’t stop.” Sick breakdown right after the chorus that says Breath for me one last time!” One of my other favorites of theirs for working out is Pursue and Aspire which comes from their EP It’s all worth reaching for.” In case you missed these guys, please go give them a listen, they will always be one of my favorites.

The fourth and final forgotten band I will be At the Skylines. Biography from last.fm: “At The Skylines was a post-hardcore band formed in 2008 from the Redlands and Huntington Beach area in Los Angeles/Orange County, California, United States. They produced a self-titled EP in 2009 with producer Kris Comeaux. After a lot of shows and touring they got signed to Roadrunner Records and their debut album is named "The Secrets To Life" and was released May 8th, 2012. At The Skylines announced that they would be splitting up after performing at Confide's 'All Is Calm' release show, in September 2013.

In April 2014, At The Skylines announced that they are back together and working on new album. In early 2016 they released a single called Wake exclusively on iTunes, they also released a music video for the song in July of 2016. Since then it's been quiet from the band, but in early 2019 they did a full packed concert at Chain Reaction in Los Angeles, California.Their live show boasts two incredibly talented front men that completely cover the brutality of metal while still bringing forth the catchiness of near pop status choruses in a way that can still be presented tastefully and admirably. Energetic would be a lackluster way of describing their live performance, which is driven by non-stop interaction between band and crowd. No one on stage is standing still, and neither is the crowd. The music captures great melody, yet is technically sound enough to achieve respect and loyalty from fans across multiple genres.”

“The Secrets to Life” album was my favorite release of theirs and included bangers like It’s Cherried and The Amazing Atom. At the time I first heard these guys, I thought their harsh vocals were some of the heaviest I had heard at the time with some almost being straight shrikes. Some of their guitar work is huge chuggy bendy riffs paired with some more complex picky lead riffs. They also had some really groovy choruses with vocals that sound/remind me of I the Mighty. I found it really cool they released acoustic versions of Turbulence, 143 Princess, Don’t Go, and The Amazing Atom and with these acoustic versions you could really listen and understand the lyrics for the screaming sections and hear the vocal talent of their clean vocalist. It’s Cherried is my favorite track and it has some interesting lyrics to start which include “I see the Judas inside the betraying eyes of you, the divine gift of your inception, plagues carried with the one single brick that seems to hold our base, in this fragile state”. At the time, I listened to these guys working out but now I would listen to them more in the car driving around due to their groovy choruses that you can sing to.

So that does it for the four forgotten bands from the 2010s, I hope you learned about some new music that you can get into and jam, taking you back to the golden age of metalcore! Let’s now get into our fitness tip!

For the fitness tip of this episode we are going to discuss VO2 max. From the university of Virginia webpage “VO2 max, or maximal oxygen consumption, refers to the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual can utilize during intense or maximal exercise. This measurement is generally considered the best indicator of cardiovascular fitness and aerobic endurance. The more oxygen a person can use during high level exercise, the more energy a person can produce. This test is the gold standard for determining cardio-respiratory fitness because the muscles need oxygen for prolonged aerobic exercise, and the heart must pump adequate amounts of blood through the circulation to meet the demands of aerobic exercise.” If you have an Apple watch and track runs and cycling and other cardio workouts, your watch should provide this metric of cardiovascular health for you. I wanted to find some research on ways to improve VO2 max and I found an article titled “VO2 max trainability and high intensity interval training in humans: A meta-analyiss”. I’ll link it in the show notes but this research was done by Bacon and collegues. Within the discussion section, they state that their main finding was that interval training produces improvements in VO2 max slightly greater than those typically reported with what might be described as adult fitness based continuous training. For high intensity interval training, one of my favorite forms was running hills but intervals can be done even with walking at different intensities, includes, speeds, etc. for a short period and then pull back to baseline for example walk at 4mph for 2 minutes then pull back to 3mph for 1 min then back up and so on. For my patients who are interested in running again after some time, I will generally recommend beginning with walk/run intervals to get their bodies used to the impact without having to sustain a long bout of running. I hope this information is helpful if you are interested in improving your VO2max or aerobic capacity. Let me know if you’d like a cardio specific episode to dive deeper.

Alright let's dive into our song of the week selection: Our song of the week comes from one of my favorite bands and that is Hollow Front. These guys released their new song Letting Go this past week and it includes their form clean vocalist Dakota Alvarez. I didn’t even know that he wasn’t in the group until they posted about this song but man oh man this song is awesome. The cleans that Dakota provides are so moving and emotion provoking. Right at the 50 second mark we get some harsh vocals that blend so nicely with the screams it gave me goosebumps the first time I listened. Tyler’s screams are always next level.

That is going to do it for today’s episode gang! Thank you so much for taking the time to listen and if you would be so kind to leave me a positive review on Spotify or Apple or wherever you listen to podcasts that would be so greatly appreciated. I hope you all enjoyed the episode and that you are having an amazing summer! I will catch you in the next one, take care!