YOU Choose the Best Unsigned Band in the U.S: Round 2 pt. 2
The second round continues with even more sexy state action. Today: New Jersey vs. Vermont! Missouri vs. Florida! Texas vs. Rhode Island! Oregon vs. Utah! Pennsylvania vs. Nevada!
Some people say that art isn’t a competition. Those people are losers. EVERYTHING is a competition. Here at the Toilet ov Hell, we’ve gone and declared the best unsigned band in each state of the union. Now we’re pitting these warriors against each other for the right to claim the ultimate prize: The title of Best of the Best. Which band will champion their state to glory? That’s up for you to decide.
HOW IT WORKS:
Each state was seeded by population size. The 14 most-populous states received a first round bye. Voting for this round closes Sunday, September 6th. Today, 12 bands are battling it out for supremacy. Black Table (NJ), Vaporizer (VT), Existem (MO), Capracide (FL), Peasant (TX), Eternal Khan(RI), Drouth (OR), Disphoria (UT), Burden (PA), and Elephant Rifle (NV).
Black Table (New Jersey) VS. Vaporizer (Vermont)
Black Table – “The musicianship, while admirable, never overshadows the ebb and flow of the music itself; moments of intensity give way to passages of beauty, only to once again thrust the listener into the maelstrom of sonic chaos. This chaos, however, never leaves the listener feeling jarred or disgruntled. It retains a soulful melody, often flirting with major keys and softer tonality unusual in such music; a testament to the maturity of the band as a songwriting unit.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Vaporizer – “Hailing from Burlington, VT, Vaporizer is a metal band comprised of several of my children. Don’t believe me? It says so on their DNA test Facebook page. When I say “metal”, I do it mostly out of my inability to categorize them any further. While the core element of Vaporizer’s sound bears a much welcome resemblance to the progressive sludge bands from Savannah, Georgia, there is enough seasoning here to turn their self-titled release into an unique platter.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Existem (MO) VS. Capracide (FL)
Existem – “In my opinion the best so-called prog bands are ones that don’t go fully prog. Think Opeth in their heyday, Burst, Cult of Luna, Extol, and so forth. Existem are very much in the vein of these bands. They create prog metal that isn’t afraid to veer off the beaten path but exists within the confine of a song. The material here is not an overblown jam session like so many bands are guilty of recording.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Capracide – “Capracide is a 4 piece death metal band hailing and killing from Jacksonville, and upon first listen, their influences are obvious to anyone who understands the importance of Florida in the Death Metal scene. Take a little Obituary and jam it in a blender with Morbid Angel and Deicide and you have a rough idea of the metallic sex Capracide is lobbing at your earholes. I mean, just listen to this!”
(Read the full writeup)(Facebook)
Peasant (Texas) VS. Eternal Khan (Rhode Island)
Peasant – “From the second you click play on “Do You Believe in War?” the opening song on Go to Hell, the latest full-length from this Houston trio, it’s obvious that the New Wave of British Heavy Metal swam it’s way to the third coast. Along the way it picked up some disgusting oily blackness and additional detritus from thrash and OSDM before crashing on the City of Syrup’s shore.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Eternal Khan – “This trio brings the consuming inevitably of doom and mix it with a heaping dose of ethereal black metal. T. Phrathep’s guitar rings with the type of tremolo soaked misery that conjures the heralding of legions of plague stricken malcontents shambling towards an unsuspecting village to ravage it to nothing. Bassist Nate Woods reigns as one of my favorite current vocalists in metal with a distinctive, articulate but still savage bark.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Drouth (Oregon) VS. Disforia (Utah)
Drouth – “I would have never thought Drouth was an unsigned band had I listened to them by chance. These guys write music like they’ve been together for decades, with undeniable chemistry and character. It seems like they take the best elements of my favorite metal bands and combine them into their own blend of groovy, melodic black metal that includes searing guitar leads and absolutely horrendous shrieked vocals. Oh, the drumming is also out of this world.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Disforia – “Power metal is always cheesy, but this is no Kraft Single slice of cheese. This is a fine Gruyere, with fragrant aromas and depth of character. Shit’s nice.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Burden (Pennsylvania) VS. Elephant Rifle (Nevada)
Burden – “Burden play an acoustic-laced brand of slow-cooked black/death metal that is reminiscent of a much doomier and more dissonant My Arms-era Opeth, albeit with a bit more variety. The vocals play a major role in this, sometimes changing between more high-pitched screams, borderline quasi-Devin Townsend-esque hardcore shouts and deep, bellowing growls.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
Elephant Rifle – “It’s noise rock, but it’s noise rock that sleeps on top of a debris heap consisting of god-knows-what in the back of a shitty van, showers in shitty beer, dries off with the one shitty shirt it owns/never puts on, then blowdries its gross hair in front of the exhaust pipe. It’s hardcore, but it’s hardcore that eats roadkill for breakfast. You dig? I dig.”
(Read the full writeup) (Facebook)
