With origins in the blend of American hardcore and British metal, metalcore has evolved over the decades to be propelled by clean melodies and production innovation. Nowadays, the metalcore scene is worldwide.
The nominations for Metalcore Album of the Year range from Asia and Eastern Europe to South America.
Leading the charge of Brazilian metalcore, AXTY is emotional, intense, and silly on The Pain Made Me Who I Am. Coldrain and Sable Hills are growing the Japanese metalcore scene, with Optimize = Optdemise showing off radio-friendly catchiness and Homura injecting folk fusion from each band respectively. Over in Ukraine, Space of Variations sounds as modern as ever with arena-sized electronic atmospheres for their Poisoned Art record, while Xmoraz from Taiwan brought a more throwback post-hardcore sound on After the Ashes. Vote for your favorite below (and be sure to stay tuned for our other best of the year categories to vote on).