Mathcast: Episode 5 2/2/17

This is the 5th episode of "Mathcast," in which we discuss Czar, Retail Monkey, SCIO, Vortex of Influence, Keratoconus, Youdash, Complexity Fest 2017, and tease the possibility of Mathcore Index Fest 2018.

Also available on iTunes.

Best of 2016

Mathcore Index's Best of 2016

Christian:

I hate ranking things I love (especially when it comes to music), and because this year was so exceptionally challenging, I decided to organize my lists based upon pure volume of listens. I also took the time to make a list for unsigned/underground acts, another for signed/major acts (bands that are well known within our scene), and finally 2 smaller lists for EPs and honorable mentions, respectively. Lastly, most of these bands appear on our compilations, so hopefully that doesn't come as a surprise. Allons-i.

Unsigned/underground:

10) Cyprus - "The Librettist"

Australia continues to illustrate they are better at music than you.

9) Jitters - "You're In Therapy"

Instrumental math-rock wizardry.

8) Église - "Église"

The perfect blend of Botch and Converge.

7) Unyielding Love - "The Sweat of Augury"

Feedback, blast beats, and tortured screams, these are a few of my favorite things.

6) Spurn - "Comfort In Nothing"

Sonic filth.

5) Noise Trail Immersion - "Womb"

Heavy, dissonant mathcore. Sleeper hit of the year.

4) The Central - "Discovery of A Rat"

Outstanding musicianship, new favorite two piece.

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3) Forests - "Sun Eat Moon Grave Party"

Prepare for all the feels, because this Singaporean band does American-style emo / math-rock better than America.

2) Mothman - "Answers to No One"

Spiritual successor to bands like His Hero Is Gone and Ed Gein, meanest record with serious replay value.

1) Arms - "Blackout"

Paul Hundeby (also of City of Ifa and City Pro Recordings), the mastermind behind this once one-man project, wrote and recorded all instruments as well handling all engineering and production duties on this powerhouse of a record. I love this record because each song holds truly memorable passages, and I find myself absentmindedly humming the riffs a lot. Arms shared the stage with many notable national touring acts in 2016, and this year they are making their first European appearance along with our friends in Frontierer at Complexity Fest 2017, which is sponsored by Mathcore Index.

Signed/major acts:

10) Every Time I Die - "Low Teens"

I've said this many times, but it bears repeating: this band cannot make a bad record.

9) Nails - "You Will Never Be One of Us"

Say what you will, but it's mean and it makes me wanna mosh.

8) Plebeian Grandstand - "False Highs, True Lows"

Another near perfect effort.

7) Wormrot - "Voices"

Grindcore AOTY, Singapore is strong on our charts this year.

6) Coma Cluster Void - "Mind Cemeteries"

One of the most underrated and interesting bands in modern death metal.

5) Vermin Womb - "Decline"

This is what perfect deathgrind sounds like.

4) American Football - "American Football LP2"

All the Kinsella charm is still there.

3) Ion Dissonance - "To Cast the First Stone"

"To Cast the First Stone" recalls the chaos of "Solace" while still retaining the heaviness of "Minus the Herd," and, simply put, is a banger. Many thanks to Good Fight Music for allowing them to appear on our second compilation, Mathcore Index: Volume 2.

2) The Dillinger Escape Plan - "Dissociation"

The perfect band, and a perfect end (allegedly) to their career. I would say music is better now, them having existed, and there is no band more influential in our scene. 

1) Car Bomb - "Meta"

Here I have included my Bandcamp review for "Meta," as it still seems the most effective description:

"Absolutely outstanding and incredibly innovative, Car Bomb are one of the most compelling bands in extreme music, and they have truly outdone themselves (again) with "Meta." I could continue heaping praise or add comparisons to other bands, but the fact is: there is no comparison to Car Bomb."



Top 5 EPs:

Wolf King - "Into the Infinite"
Sundrainer - "I Hope This Breaks Your Spirit"
Infernal Coil - "Infinite Prayer of Burning Hatred"
Worry - "Burden EP"
Gif From God - "2016 Winter Tour Tape"

Honorable Mentions*:

Telos - "Telos"
Cognizant - "Cognizant"
Brazen Bull - "Soiree"
Munt - "The Mind Is a Cage"
undō - "Deep Down"
Prissy Whip - "RIP AF"
Panthallasa - "Temper"
Cronauta - "The Bullring"
Jesus Horse - "Arguably More Productive Than Being Dead"
SeeYouSpaceCowboy - demo
Autocatalytica - "Vicissitudes"
Minerva Superduty - "Ground Zero"
Drivetime Commute - "Bag of Snakes"
The Guts - "Birth"
The Divorcée - "All My Heroes Are Dead and They Are Never Coming Back"
Car Made Of Glass - demo
Steaksauce Mustache - "Eat What We Kill For You"

*yes, a few of these were totally added last minute. -Christian

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Simon:

In no particular order...

Plebeian Grandstand - "False Highs, True Lows"

Coma Cluster Void - "Mind Cemeteries"

Deathspell Omega - "The Synarchy of Molten Bones"

Ulcerate - "Shrines of Paralysis"

Teramobil - "Magnitude of Thoughts"

Gendo Ikari - "Unit 1" (ep)

Meshuggah - "The Violent Sleep of Reason"

The Apex - "Underbelly" (ep)

Behold... the Arctopus - "Cognitive Emancipation"

Car Bomb - "Meta"

Submission Sunday - 10/30/16

Submission Sundays started as just a chain of posts on the last Sunday of every month, rounding up our favorite user-submitted releases or releases we unearthed ourselves over the course of that month. However, I felt it would be more effective to simply group all these bands into one article for your convenience and listening pleasure. This time I've narrowed it down to 10 highlights, all of them released within the last few months

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First up, Sundrainer, from Richmond, Virginia. 

FFO: As the Sun Sets, mathcore / techgrind

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Our next submission is a nasty one, Joy, from North Carolina. Thanks to Nick Schultz for recommending this one.

FFO: Nails, Full of Hell, Lamplighter, Grim State

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An incredible submission from Mothman, "Answers to No One," which a pummeling 20 track assault of techgrind/mathcore, and by far one of the most exciting releases this year.



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Screeching, grinding madness from Munt, from Melbourne. Sick highs and insane blast beats with the occasional hardcore breakdown or 2-step, because why the fuck not?



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Super sick stuff from undō, noise / grind from Oakland. Big ups to my good friend Quade Ross for recommending this one.

FFO: Daughters, techgrind, screamo



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Our next band is Puncture, from LA, a promising new band who were recently brought to my attention by my friends in Wolf King. 

FFO: Gaza / Cult Leader, Spurn, Full of Hell



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Really sick stuff from Dig Out, mathcore from Atlanta. 

FFO: Heavy Heavy Low Low, Botch, Gaza



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Next we have Minerva Superduty, mathcore from Athens.

FFO: Botch, Curl Up and Die, Panthallasa 



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Ilenkus, mathcore from Ireland, who's latest album was recorded by Aiden Cunningham of Murdock and mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege. Solid release.



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Our last submission is yet another sick band from the UK, Salò, from Glasgow. Thanks to homie Tarquin Jones of I Echoed So Loud for the recommendation. Too bad this band recently called it quits.

FFO: Arab On Radar / Doomsday Student, Daughters, Hit School, AIDS Wolf, Gila Monster, Prissy Whip, noise

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Check back on the last Sunday of every month for more new and exciting underground bands.

Mathcore Index: "Volume 2" artwork

We are extremely excited to reveal the artwork for our second compilation, Mathcore Index: Volume 2, featuring over 20 unique underground artists from around the globe. Artwork by the supremely talented Karl Frandsen, layout by Tamas Bako, and original logo by Keith Carlson of The Appartus message boards and Headband 'n Buttonmash. Track list and release date soon.

Mathcast: Episode 1 10/1/16

This is the pilot episode of our new podcast, "Mathcast," in which we talk about Forests, Spurn, Unyielding Love, The Central, .gif from God, and listen to the sound of our own voices.
Also available on iTunes.

Mathcore Index: Volume 1

We are extremely excited to present to you our first solo compilation, Mathcore Index: Volume 1, featuring over 20 unique underground artists from around the globe. Artwork by the supremely talented Karl Frandsen, layout by Tamás Bakó​, and original logo by Keith Carlson.

Format: Digital (free download)  Release date: 7/21/16   Track listing:    Arms - "Deer Slayer" Blast Unicorn - "Nonnenfinsternis" Coma Cluster Void - "Mind Cemeteries" The Crinn - "Against the Flow" Dead Church - "Bleak" Delta Sleep - "Lake Sprinkle Sprankle" Dendritic Arbor - "Snake Oil" Église - "The Mountains" Employed To Serve - "No One's Perfect, This Includes You" Frontierer - "Lightshow" The Heads are Zeros - "The Harvest" Helpless - "False Hope" Instrumental, adj. - "The Nightmare of Adulthood"

meek is murder - "A Prison, a Life Raft"

Morgue - "Polar Aftermath"

Sectioned - "Toothgrinder" Seizures - "Channeler" Serious Beak - "Red (Laniocera hypopyrra)" Shoto - "Whips Blow Back" Stick Men - "Embracing the Sun (Geiger Mix)" Tebotjf - "only one nothing else matters sample" Things Fall Apart​ - "3239 Smiley Rd." T H R O E S - "The Word" Wolf King - "Vermin" Worry - "A Legacy of Regret: Zillah​​ - "Not All of Me Shall Die"