Unsigned and Unholy: Eschar, Thera, Ages

Contrary to what we often preach here at MetalSucks, bands don’t necessarily need to be wholly original-sounding to be good. Bands that push boundaries are the most exciting, sure, but such bands are few and far between and there are only a small handful of them every generation. Sometimes it’s enough to simply be able to write a good song, which is the theme of today’s Unsigned and Unholy.

Sure, the 2015 metal scene is entirely saturday with spacey, post-rocky instrumental bands. But sometimes one comes along that does something just different enough that makes me take notice. To that end Eschar certainly aren’t reinventing the wheel, but their combination of deep, Pelican-esque grooves and tripped out, delay-soaked Adam Jonesian guitars hits me in that spot, and most importantly the song has hooks (in guitar form). Nova comes out on April 3rd, and here’s the title track:

Much like Eschar above, Thera aren’t doing anything terribly original or inventive, but there’s something I just like about their music. Call it the power of a good song, or maybe it’s the quality of Stephanie Plate’s voice. This band reminds me of the great post-hardcore wave that swept the nation in 2002-2003. Maybe this is a sign that sound is coming back around again?

Plenty of bands peddle the brand of atmospheric black metal Ages are going for here — noticing the theme yet? — but “The Malefic Miasma” does a fantastic job of both creating mood and getting its frosty guitar riffs lodged in your brain without sacrificing the integrity of either, a balance that’s hard to strike. The production is on-point, too — it’s clear and big without losing its nasty edge. I really dig this song.