Bleak as all hell, then, yet somehow this uncompromising music seems so in tune with the times that Chat Pile could genuinely be on the cusp of a major breakthrough. Don’t miss out.

Opeth have broken new ground, entered fresh realms both oppressive and melodic – but their rapier-like determination to be different may be too much for some.

Into Oblivion is probably the best thing the Virginia metallers have done in 10 years. It’s not a reinvention, but neither is it Lamb Of God making their album again. The whole thing boils with caustic energy, red in tooth and claw.

Biffy Clyro have delivered an album of restless invention, substance and style that arrives like a spray of water on the arid expanse of this saddest of summers.

Floral Green's pleasant, pastoral title belies its 11 jagged cuts. [22 Sep 2012, p.51]

It's a record that feels truly alive, filled with sorrow, guilt, selflessness and love. [17 Sep 2016, p.52]

These eight tracks bind the smart emo of Brand New to the rootsy alt.country of a Bright Eyes or Ryan Adams, stroking nostalgia and tugging the heartstrings throughout. [2 Jul 2016, p.52]

This music made the film, basically. Of course, what matters for this physical release is that, like all the best soundtracks, these songs works as an album, independently of Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike's martial kerfuffle. [22 Nov 2014, p.52]

There's a middle-fingered severity that runs right through Sulphur English, knitting these different components into a coherent identity which can't be captured by portmanteau tags like blackened sludge or post-doom. [Apr 13, p.55]

It's a hell of a return, better than you might have expected. [17 Oct 2015, p.52]

It's so genuinely anti-social, abrasive and purposeful in its mission to turn you off that it's actually impressive. [25 May 2019, p.55]

What is surprising, however, is how deep into gloom Dark Superstition dives, and the subtlety with which its cocktail of abyssal heaviness and velvety melody works its way under the skin.

Remaining as distinctive, unique and bloody brilliant as ever. [30 Mar 2019, p.55]

When Agalloch's majesty comes, the slow unfolding is more than worth the wait. [17 May 2014, p.53]

This 11th full-length finds the Massachusetts maulers’ mastery of heavy music not just undimmed but enhanced.

Scale The Summit are forging their own path, hitting a creative peak which perfectly echoes their name. [15 Jun 2013, p.54]

The rattling, almost post-rock cacophony that swirls around her, weaving in and out of chilling, eerily measured moments, makes for a spectacular, engulfing experience, too. [4 Apr 2019, p.71]

Eternal Blue is dizzying, cleansing and frightening. You need to delve deep to find your place within it, but that journey is the very thing that makes this album so interesting. It’s an entrance that brings darkness and beauty in shades of heavy that you haven’t quite encountered before.

While Shapeshifter isn't a complete transformation, it is a confident and relatable expedition through adolescence. [14 Oct 2017, p.53]

This is an album that will still stand as a monument to just how scaldingly intense music can be.

Not every single one of these 16 tracks is totally essentially considering their already-enormous discography, but anyone who wants less Every Time I Die is quite simply a fool – especially when the band are on such blistering form as they are here.

That’s not say it’s unlistenable, far from it. In fact, it’s addictive to see where the record goes next. While most hardcore bands are adamant about getting heavier, The Armed are going poppier and, ultimately, weirder, often in the space of one verse. ... Sure, it’s not something you’re going to dip in and out of on a whim, but when you’re in, you won’t want to leave.

OOFP propels Robbins' melancholic take on post-hardcore to exciting new heights. [ 17 Dec 2011, p.52]

This is a rip-roaring, multi-faceted rock fest. [17 Dec 2011, p.52]

One Day is a fearless from a band who punched the clock out cold.

That Voivod have made a killer album is no surprise at all. The sounds they've pulled from the void, however as ever, are. [19 Jan 2013, p.54]

Kvelertak play rock'n'roll that's been distilled to its purest sense. [23 Mar 2013, p.53]

Despite Daylight's unapologetically retro vibe, this is one of 2013's standout debuts so far. [27 Apr 2013, p.53]