Alcest
Sounds Like: If the Cocteau Twins discovered a long-lost triplet who had slugged it out in space-pop groups and post-rock bands.
For Fans Of: Slowdive, Mogwai, the adjective “ethereal”
Why You Should Pay Attention: Literally “post-metal,” this Parisian duo traded in the leather gauntlets and “corpse paint” they wore in their halcyon days as teenaged black-metal hellions for a dream-pop second act with sweaters and clear complexions. The eight flickering, shimmery tracks on the group’s fourth and latest, Shelter, have more in common genetically with Sigur Rós than Satyricon. Moody and serene, the album plays like metal in photo negative: The guitar lines jangle and reverberate, the drums wash in and out, and frontman Neige sings in a way that seems absolument devoid of machismo. Their transformation was convincing enough they were able to get Sigur Rós buddy Birgir Jón Birgisson to produce and dream-pop O.G. Neil Halstead of Slowdive to sing on the appropriately Slowdive-y “Away.”
They Say: “I felt a bit bored about all this metal stuff from some years ago,” says Neige. “A lot of old fans are completely lost. They don’t understand why a band that could be metal before would change to something else. People think they know better than me what Alcest is. It’s crazy.
“In Australia, we had a mosh in the audience, which was quite funny. This music is very, very calm and very serene and there was almost a fight in the audience. It’s so funny when you play this very dreamy and ethereal music and you see guys moshing. It’s completely weird.”
Hear for Yourself: The intoxicating, splendiferous, Homeric 10-minute album closer “Délivrance”.
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A Day to Remember
Sounds Like: Hyperactive power-punk-pop with the occasional blood-curdling hardcore scream as a release valve.
For Fans Of: The hooks of New Found Glory, the chugging riffs and caterwauls of Killswitch Engage, the sweat of a day under the Warped Tour sun.
Why You Should Pay Attention: After a decade-plus working their way up the Warped roster, honing a unique, unlikely blend of metalcore and sugary pop (and battling Victory Records in court), these Floridians self-released their fifth album, Common Courtesy, last fall. The gambit paid off, as first single “Right Back At It Again” climbed to No. 33 on Billboard’s Alternative chart. The band’s do-it-yourself spirit isn’t just limited to records: In March, they’re throwing the Self-Help Fest – the bill includes what vocalist Jeremy McKinnon calls “a lot of bad-ass bands,” including Of Mice And Men, Bring Me The Horizon, and the Story So Far – in San Bernardino, California.
They Say: “We were truly a garage band,” says McKinnon. “We started off in a really small town in our parents’ garage and we would have the cops called on us all the time just for playing our music – neighbors would get pissed off about it. We went to work and paid for everything we did, and it just snowballed from there. There was never a point where it just shot through the roof – it was this gradual growth. That’s why we’ve been able to sustain things; nothing ever came too fast or too quick. Growing slowly over the course of 10 years gave us the time to grow up.”
Hear for Yourself: The band chronicles their trip from the garage to headlining their own festival on the peppy, bouncy “Right Back At It Again”:
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