The Best Band in Alabama is Phylum
Last month we asked you to help us find the best unsigned bands in America. After listening to hundreds of submissions, we’ve finally narrowed down our quest for the first state alphabetically in this grand nation. Today, we proudly present our pick for the best unsigned band in Alabama: Phylum.
When most folks think of Alabama they think about the epicenter of our nation’s hard battle for Civil Rights, or possibly 70’s radio rock tunes covered by morons. Poorly. Twice. Phylum are doing their best to make ‘Bama known for an entirely new reason: brutal, raw grindcore.
Based out of Huntsville, Alabama, Phylum create the kind of crusty grind that sticks in your hair and leaves a weird stain on the couch. Their most recent output, the Divisions EP, was released in late 2012 but the band is reportedly hard at work on their debut full-length. In half the time it takes to listen to one lame-ass Dream Theater tune, you can jam their entire EP. I suggest you do so. The standout track for me is definitely closer “Assimilate”. The band takes the standard fast-and-angry-as-fuck grind template and throws in twisted guitar lines, heavy stomps, tape noise and distortion to create a complete bastard of a song. But don’t just take my word for it. Take a listen below:
Here’s what the judges had to say:
Leif Bearickson: “Phylum is a whirlwind of blast beats and punk rhythms with the occasional Pig Destroyer-esque groove thrown in to falsely assure passengers that this train isn’t about to go flying off the tracks. Its about as filthy, fast and heavy as you could ask for from metal’s favorite -core.”
MoshOff: “It’s raw but really tight and you can hear every element very well (bass included). They’ve got plenty of math-y riffs mixed up with some slow bits, the vocal patterns are interesting and the vocalist is solid. Technical Grindcore? The term popped into my head, especially during “Assimilate”. That song also has a lot of more “prog” stuff going on. Also: Diminished Scale >>>>>>>>>
Go like these dudes on Facebook and say hi. We’re stoked to hear new material from them.
HONORABLE MENTION:
Stoned Cobra (Birmingham, AL)
Sometimes a band name says at it all. If you like throwback metal and heady stoner jamz, Stoned Cobra have your back. Go check out their Bandcamp and just viiiibe out.
The Toilet ov Hell is on an absurd quest to find the best unsigned band in each state of this glorious union. The purpose? To shine some the spotlight on bands that deserve more exposure. Also, we’re going to determine once and for all the greatest state in the nation. Each state winner is decided by a collection of 25 judges. After we’ve announced the winner of each state, we’re gonna throw them all in a winner-take-all bracket and leave the votes up to you. Who will be the best unsigned band in the United States? Which state is superior? We can’t wait to find out.
