With this latest (featuring the return of New Found Glory’s Chad Gilbert on vocals), they prove it all still works in a big way, a sign that they’ve been doing it right all along.

While spirited in their performance, this brutal quartet lack the dynamism and versatility of label-mates Dying Fetus.

[The album] is their best in years, hitting upon just the right combination of melody, thrash, and hooks.

They sound utterly repellant, and it suits them perfectly.

Warbeast impresses with their modern thrash aesthetics, but Anselmo's contribution is the selling point to War of the Gargantuas.

This is music at a slow simmer, not a fast boil, and as such, takes time and patience to absorb. But the passion and intensity is undeniable.

It's a surprising, thoroughly consistent return-to-form, and it makes Oddfellows the first contender for hard-rock album of the year.

Tightly coiled shredfests like "Cognitive Suicide" and "Devil's Creek" demonstrate how much they've grown up (without mellowing out) since their early-'90s skate-rat days.

The result: a crushing musical experience easily among the year's best extreme-metal records.

While the record packs the occasional wallop, it loses steam in quieter moments ("Saving Grace") that sacrifice depth and density for pop hooks, due in part to predictable song structures.

The best odds and sods collected here are those on which they stray from relentless shouting.

Although none of its 13 tracks hit as hard as the early '80s, "mash"-pit ragers that made them famous, they still sound vital on the Rasta-praising punk pummeler "Popcorn" and the 88-second frenzy "Yes I."

Aficionados will love picking out the differences between these early takes and the final album mixes.

Too bad that, even at its best, this Atlas maps well-trodden ground.

What drives the music is the tightly synched interplay between drums and guitars, and that, particularly as sharpened by Wes Hauch's surgically precise lead work.

Frontman Scott Lucas tackles the polarized political scene in crunchy riff-rock jams full of Windy City references; in "Blue Line," a ride on public transit inspires thoughts on how "it's getting hard to realize a sense of self in other eyes." Heaviness (in both senses) abounds.

British Lion might surprise longtime Ed Heads in that it's more redolent of the sort of '80s hard-rock bands who dominated the radio waves when Maiden couldn't, like Dokken and even Whitesnake.

Unfortunately, every song ends up sounding too similar, even as the band breaks, as always, from black metal's norms.

A 72-minute concept album that includes some of its freshest material yet, but also some of its dullest.

Nu-metal survivors Papa Roach's sixth full-length is an exhilarating return to form.

The Wilson sisters comes out swinging old-school style with a full-throttle title track that sets the tone for the bulk of their 14th studio album.

AFI fans will no doubt miss the guitar muscle, but adventurous listeners will appreciate the retro-synth theatrics.

The band's fourth album sees them further stepping away from their Warped Tour roots to craft a disc that's teeming with emotion without falling on emo clichés.

Meandering and dirge-like, the eight songs here live up to the band's moniker, weaving slow and snaky through the album's 42 minutes and what we can only presume is a veritable wall of amplification. Tune in and nod out.

Sometimes, Blood's industrial metal is the kind that got overdone a decade ago. Still, it's a mostly good set-and a cool comeback for Seinfeld.

Dark Roots offers shred-heavy political statements ("True American Hate"), hook-laden power-jags ("Native Blood"), and straight-up rippers ("Man Kills Mankind"), slipping only on slower material like the title track and quasi-ballad "Cold Embrace."

Murdered Love is best when all the anthemic stuff comes equipped with the sort of infectious grooves that the band's SoCal stomping ground is known for.

Guitarists Zack Hansen and Tony Pizzuti not only provide massive crunch and harmonized leads but further fatten the sound with backing vocals and programming, an arsenal that can swell the sonics to near-symphonic grandeur.

Royal Thunder display a soulful sonic acumen that's as dynamic as it is compelling.

They might be one drummer short of a full Melvins deck, but the resulting hand is almost entirely aces.

Fire From the Sky is suitably heavy, grim but not ridiculous, and its best songs will remind listeners of Metallica.

Apocalyptic Love is at heart a collection of lean, high-octane rock-and-roll tunes built to be blasted out of open-top sports cars or, more suitably, open-air stadiums.

Vocalist Travis Ryan fully comes out of his shell with his, ahem, "melodic" "singing" and the Jeff Walker–esque tone sounds great (see "Lifestalker"). Elsewhere, the band shred harder than ever but with lots of cool twists.

While this will probably please Bleeding Through's fans, sticking with the path most traveled doesn't result in a particularly memorable record.

est in its execution and ambitious in its scope, The Thousandfold Epicentre is an otherworldly journey to spaces both familiar and alien.

The year has only just begun, but if there is one metal album to purchase in 2011 so far, this is it.

At once dense and cacophonous, bleak and thunderous, Rwake's latest aspires toward the sonic-cosmic apex personified by Neurosis--and comes mighty close.

The new songs sound similar to those on the the band's last full length release, The Powerless Rise.... The remixes, meanwhile, aren't exactly noteworthy.

While not terribly mindblowing, this EP is a quick and entertaining listen.

Packed with epic melodies, searing solos, and medieval horror imagery, Forever Abomination totally rocks, aided by (finally for these guys!) a perfect production sound.

Unto the Locust isn't just a great album, it's an important statement that metal doesn't have to fall into trite categories or draw from pre-existing formulas to be accessible.

On this solid, moving album, Wolves Like Us keep that tradition alive.

Think of Five Serpent's Teeth as a taste of the past recaptured.

Crude, rude, filthy, and more infectious than a bad case of herpes--that sums up Balls Out, the new record from Hollywood's Steel Panther.

It swings and swaggers like no Megadeth album in recent memory. [Nov/Dec 2011, p.87]

Too many songs build and build and never explode, and though Keenan has never sounded growlier, Parole never really breaks loose.

The result certainly stays true to Hank3's legacy of audacity, especially in "Mad Cow," which drones on for 10 minutes. But actually listening to the thing? Pretty torturous.

Rather than play into expectations and write 12 15-minute songs about H.P. Lovecraft or the Dead Sea Scrolls, Atlanta's finest created a more-than-decent metal record.

Frontman Mikael Akerfeldt's material is sunnier than usual, but still has room for synapse-stimulating musicianship.

A welcome surprise.

The songs here have every frequency not only covered but cranked to 11. That's a plus when the writing is equally heroic, as with "My Questions," "Born to Lose," or the stunning "Holdfast," but when the songs don't measure up melodically or thematically, as with the overly ornate "R.I.T.," the sonic heft only underscores the failings

At times, the album can be a little much; after the 17th grinding breakdown decked in plucking harp strings, things can blur together--but the things that make Takasago Army stand out are worth any flaws it possesses as an album (the weird jungle insert of "Root Regeneration" makes you feel like you're at a spa with the devil).

The result ain't fresh, but it's definitely fun.

These ominous minor-key workouts routinely change direction on a dime, not unlike a tornado or a hurricane.

An inconsistent record with flashes of brilliance, In Waves should keep diehard Trivium fans happy.

Drive A does quite a lot, thanks to guitar and bass lines are as tuneful as they are propulsive.

Where the first half of Jasta is, well, Jasta, the album's latter tunes find the vocalist bringing in guests--with somewhat mixed results. [Jul/Aug 2011, p.87]

Chalk up a new classic on Abruscato's resume.

This restless Texas prog-metal outfit, best known as the former protégés of Serj Tankian (and the best Tool-aping act since Chevelle), have yet to make an epic game-changer of an album, but Arrows & Anchors, their fourth, comes close.

Pressure & Time can bog down in its own retro pretensions, but singer Jay Buchanan is an undeniable vocal force.

Sounds of a Playground Fading hews closely to the melodic-death-metal-meets-alt-rock style these guys have spearheaded since 2002's Reroute to Remain, with crunchy riffs regularly giving way to soaring choruses that could seduce a Muse fan.

Folks like to hate on the BDM, labeling them part of the problem because they use neon colors on their T-shirts, but death-metal fans who want something different and exciting need look no further.

While the album will please the band's fans, it doesn't stand out from similar releases in the subgenre today. [Jul/Aug 2011, p.92]

August Burns Red have set their own bar even higher on Leveler, and have done so for all of their scene in the process. The album is certainly among the most memorable releases so far this year.

Undulating under shimmering waves of feedback is either a gorgeously fragile heavy metal record or the ballsiest Smashing Pumpkins ballads ever.

Anyone worried that the last decade had dulled TBS' edge, a listen to the post-hardcore rager "El Paso" confirms that it's never been sharper.

While the group's increasingly mid-paced heaviness reduces the number of showy frills and demonstrates a matured sense of melodic chops, it does make songs sound slightly repetitive by the album's end. Nevertheless, Khaos Legions will please longtime fans and probably find a few new ones for Arch Enemy

Frontman King Buzzo's guitar is searingly loud and untethered to studio tricks, more weapon than instrument, making 13 deadly songs even more venomous.

Fans already won over by Egypt Central's previous record will recognize the band's original sound here, and new listeners will be taken a wild ride to a strange, dark wonderland and back. Follow the White Rabbit.

Inscrutable concept aside, the new Heavy Rocks doesn't so much redefine heavy music as reconsolidate all the things fans already love about Boris.

By turns melodic and thunderous, White Silence churns with 8-minute power dirges and soars with Beatles-esque hooks, making for an exhilarating musical rollercoaster that demands repeat spins.

For all its polish and sonic approachability, this is no sell-out record. Rescue may go down easy, but at the album's core, it's still an appealingly bitter pill.

Bolstered further by very solid production, clever use of effects, and strong clean vocals, The Hollow is quite simply one of the best metalcore albums in a long time.

The tracks complement each other and build a cohesive piece of art. Between the Buried and Me are on a level of songwriting skill that few bands can hope to reach, and their new EP epitomizes the band's talent.

The album tells a loose story about a man breaking up with his girlfriend but the songs are written in a way that work outside of the narrative, too.

There's a real sense of hip-hop culture in the lyrics, and there's a sophistication in the way that the rap is made rock here-in other words, this isn't just whiney frat-boy rhymes slapped on top of generic, down-tuned riffs.

Post-hardcore group Thursday's latest, No Devolución, is a grand experience, full of depth and atmospheric subtleties that show off a new side to the group.

American Tragedy is wildly fun, a head-thumping, booze-chugging, 14 track-long hedonistic binge.

In all, Wasting Light is almost a summation of where the band has been, as well as a convincing statement of why, nearly 20 years since they came together, Grohl & Co. are yet a force to be reckoned with, still influential and still relevant.

The heshers who crave this Viking death-march death-metal will have it, and those who aren't inspired by what they stream on the internet won't. Even with a lesser work, Amon Amarth have done their job.

While her vocals alone are unlikely to gain Within Temptation too many new listeners, fans who have stuck with the band throughout their career will likely forgive The Unforgiving's occasional missteps.

The bottom line: Emery may have done what they wanted, but that doesn't mean that listeners will want the result-at least, not all of it.

Rather than pat themselves on the back for still being alive, the guys in Soundgarden went on a nostalgia trip, and honestly, it's for the best.

In all, Live at the Aragon has plenty for both old and new Mastodon fans to enjoy.

For all of its ferocity and force, though, Scurrilous is a surprisingly pleasant listen, in part due to frontman Rody Walker's high-pitched melodic vocals which belie the aggressiveness of the blistering guitars. Recommended, definitely. Diverse and innovative, definitely not.

Even at its worst, Darker Handcraft rips harder than almost anything else that has come out this year so far. And for that, it deserves any metal, hardcore, or punk fans' attention.

While the sound may flirt with alt-rock and electronica, the underlying sensibility is prog like BTBAM, in its melodic complexity and lyrical depth. Mar/Apr 2011, p.92]

From start to finish, Beast is a return to form for DevilDriver, delivering their patented mix of pummeling and soaring melodic death metal soaked in a healthy vat of groove.

Although it's been a full decade since their last release, United by Fate, Rival Schools don't miss a beat on this reunion disc. [Mar/Apr 2011, p. 88]

Nestled among these dozen tracks, though, is also some of the band's handsomest, most expansive music yet. [Mar/Apr 2011, p.88]

Kylesa nods toward their feral past as choruses make muscular concessions to hardcore floor-punches. But other tracks are their artiest and dreamiest yet. [Nov/Dec 2010, p.96]

The Fire showcases an immense growth in both the band's songwriting and arrangements, proving that these scenes stalwarts are not about to rest on their laurels. [Nov/Dec 2010, p.98]

Instead of Meanderthal's rich sonics and expansive melodies, Torche about-faces into bracing, aggressive cuts like "Cast into Unknown" and "U.F.O." and even though "Out Again" delves into sludgy pop, it's done in such a lackadaisical fashion that's it;s clear that Brooks' heart is more in the faster, louder numbers. [Sep/Oct 2010, p.90]

For all of Recitiation's slow burners, ferocious cuts like "Pieces Of The Moon..." and Worm Heels..." go hard from start to finish, revisiting the band's hardcore roots. [Nov/Dec 2010, p.98]

By-the-numbers breakdowns, tired metalcore riffing, and cliched lyrics are still very much part of the group's formula. It's too bad since the band has plenty of energy and ambition. [Nov/Dec 2010, p.94]

Removed from the usual metal trappings to ride Imperfect Harmonies' lofty, trippy soundscapes, Tankian's lyrics carry surprising poetic weight. [Sep/Oct 2010, p.87]

Interesting, but hardly the band that made Meantime. [Sep/Oct 2010, p.90]

Warp Riders staunchly maintains the stoner doom, chugging trash, and ruminating psychedelia that marked the four-piece's 2006 debut, Age Of Winters. Yet the boogie-rock feel of "Tres Brujas" and "Lawless Lands" diversifies their songs, recalling pre-Eliminator ZZ Top. [Jul/Aug 2010, p.88]