There is so much heavy, extreme, and beautiful metal music being conjured all around the world that it can be overwhelming. Fortunately, Metal Has No Borders has curated the best metalcore released this past year, from Poland and Russia to Saudi Arabia.
Be sure to vote in our ‘Best Metal Release of 2023‘ poll and enjoy our hand-picked favorite metalcore albums for 2023 below.
Metalcore Album of the Year (Gold Tier)
The Materia
Darklander
Self-Released
Poland
To quote the cheeky wisdom of Devin Townsend, “while we all have lots of bands who influence, still… we all rip off Meshuggah;” such nearly rings true with Polish contemporary progcore darlings The Materia. On their latest, tectonic riffs harken to the aforementioned Swedish influential act’s Koloss, yet with greater purpose than just influence. Darklander presents a remarkable diversity and dynamic range, where maternal melodies embrace the earthy metallic soundscapes, overcoming djent tropes. Alike The Materia‘s masterful former record The Rising, which balanced negativity and optimism, this new record proudly displays a powerful duality, both thematically and musically, quite an appropriate contrast in modern times.
Darklander by The Materia is awarded Best Metalcore Album of the Year (Gold Tier) for 2023
Favorite Songs: “Fire,” “Grain of Sand,” “This World is Sold”
FFO: Textures, VOLA, After the Burial
Metalcore Album of the Year (Silver Tier)
Ape on the Rocket
Faith, Hope, Love, Death
Released via Dark Side Records
Russia
Last year, we interviewed the Kaliningrad-based metalcore / deathcore act Ape on the Rocket where they revealed their plans for an upcoming record. Fast-forward to now, witnessing the final product is beyond fulfilling. As the album title suggests, the release spans across the spectrum of sentiments, with fists clenched around pessimistic angst the entire ride. Most metalcore and deathcore bands stay in their lane, yet the material here bridges the divide and equally explores both subgenres. Vocals drip in ferocity as the instrumentation pounds cement with inhuman strength, creating cracks and exposing a nuanced underearth of undeniable potential.
Faith, Hope, Love, Death by Ape on the Rocket is awarded Best Metalcore Album of the Year (Silver Tier) for 2023
Favorite Songs: “Death,” “Faith,” “Love“
FFO: Emmure, Darko, Suicide Silence
Metalcore Album of the Year (Bronze Tier)
Dusk
Spectrums
Self-Released
Saudi Arabia
The expanding reaches of progressive metalcore can be heard throughout North America, West Europe, and even Japan nowadays, but I had not foreseen a contender with such vision emerge from Saudi Arabia. Meshari Sangora drives the one-man project Dusk with an abundance of ambition. Spectrums may appear to be a meditation on the djent spectrum, however there’s further merit under the skin. The record gathers a multitude of contributors: Abzy (Wazin), Khalid C (Entropia), Alex Hamilton, Adnan Mryhi (Unmuted), Aaron Harris (Solemn Vision, Teloch Vovin), Moe Steiger, Jon Thomas, Jaani Peuhu (Swallow the Sun, IANAI, Mercury Circle), Iman Ahmed, and Abdulrahman Elghazali (Dune, Veridical). There is an impressive feat in not only banding together artists with vastly different styles, but also of different language (English, German, Finnish, Arabic). Additionally, we discover EDM, jazz, pop, industrial, and ambient fusion finessed within the overall extravagant gallery of modern progcore.
Spectrums by Dusk is awarded Best Metalcore Album of the Month (Bronze Tier) for 2023
Favorite Songs: “Lethal Perspectives,” “Breath In, Breath Out,” “Burning in My Mind”
FFO: Born of Osiris, Polaris, Termina