Well, that was quick! On this 4/4 day, let me share with you my latest discoveries!

After their 2012 album Demur, Visions return with Shake the Earth, and they’re not kidding. This is most probably their best work to date: melodic, progressive, hardcore, full of energy, good vibes, and great production! The album comes out on May 30th. I really like where they are taking their sound.

Oh, The Mercury Tree… I’ve known then since their previous album, Countenance, but Permutations is nothing you should overlook. Through the years, they’ve developed their personal brand of progressive, avant-garde, art rock that is still unique and true to them. Their compositions are detailed and carefully crafted while keeping a good amount of musicianship on display, emotional delivery, and – at times – memorable melodies!

The Grim Muse is a black metal album from In Twilight’s Embrace that came out last year in September, but that will see a vinyl re-release soon this year. I’m glad to have been hinted at this album because it’s a very powerful one, with a blackened death edge to it.

From Norway, Avast‘s self-titled debut EP is a mere two songs long. However, they are both solid pieces of blackgaze-ish music. Choosing quality over quantity is a good way of making a name for yourself. Even though the genre seems to overdo emotion in its music, Avast doesn’t suffer from it, but rather use that aspect to their advantage.

Show Me a Dinosaur is another blackgaze artist, from Russia this time. They have a wide range of compositions, from the relentless opening track to the next, which has a good deal of post-rock vibes. The high-pitched screams are of note as well.

There is no preview yet available for Ethan McKenna‘s Rain EP, so here’s one of his previous album, In Transition. Rain is, I believe, his best work yet. With only three songs, it seems like he took extra care of them and it feels more focused too, as an experience. Even though the styles change quite a lot – from the all-acoustic Lilongwe, to the bass-heavy Blantyre, and closing with a very lush and surprising Dzaleka -, everything feels like it’s at the perfect place. It’s a very well-made EP, set to release on the 19th!

Despite the most basic rules of expectation, Erudite Stoner don’t play stoner rock or metal. They are rather a post-rock band, with a good sense of songcrafting. They’re also a bit atypical in that they’ll include acoustic metal sections in their songs, with tremolo-picked riffs and all! Another very worthy album.

And finally, the new Schammasch album: Triangle. I’ve said yesterday that Slice the Cake’s Odyssey to the West was one of the most ambitious releases of the year… well, this one is at least as ambitious. The album consists of three parts of more than 33:30 minutes, divided into 16 songs for a total of 100 minutes of music. I still have to fully digest the whole thing, but my first impression is that it’s an incredible avant-garde black metal experiment. I might have to write a full review in order to express all my thoughts on this one.