The Votes Are In: The 5 Best Metalcore Albums of 2023 So Far

The best metalcore albums of 2023 so far based on ~1,500 poll votes + Spotify album listenership stats

2023 has been good to the metalcore scene so far. As we approach the middle of the year (already!), now is a great time to look back at the new music that has taken the scene by storm since January.

But instead of coming up with our own subjective list, we wanted to hear from listeners and fans!

So, Mosh ‘N Metal Muse set out to get the metalcore community’s take on the the best metalcore albums of 2023 so far.

Mosh ‘N Metal Muse’s list of the 5 best metalcore albums of 2023 so far

5. The Amity Affliction – ‘Not Without My Ghosts’

Poll Vote: 9%, Album Listenership Score: .102

Total Score = .09 + .102 = .192

After their two previous albums saw Amity incorporate more electronic and experimental elements and song structures, Amity fans who had been expressing their desire for the band to double click into the heaviness displayed in tracks like “Coffins”, and “Soak Me in Bleach”, got their wish with ‘Not Without My Ghosts’.

‘Not Without My Ghosts’ is The Amity Affliction’s 8th album. It fits in the band’s discography sonically nearest to ‘Chasing Ghosts’ and ‘Let The Ocean Take Me’ , rooting itself in Amity’s signature blend of aggression, orchestral elements, and poppy choruses. But ‘Not Without My Ghosts’ distinguishes itself from previous albums as being heavier, with intense runs of blast beats, tunnel fry vocals from Ahren to complement Joel’s screaming, plus numerous guest vocals which serve the album well.

I’m a pretty big Amity fan, to the point that I’ve seen them in concert 7 times. While ‘Not Without My Ghosts’ is a great album, for me personally, it sits somewhere in the middle of their discography behind ‘Chasing Ghosts’ and ‘Let The Ocean Take Me’. TAA definitely delivered on their promise of bringing their heaviest album to date, and I enjoy listening to most of the album straight through. But at the same time, I probably wouldn’t pick any of the album’s songs to be placed in my personal top 10 favorite tracks from the band.

‘Not Without My Ghosts’ received a marginally higher percent of poll votes than the third and fourth albums on this list, but had a significantly lower Album Listenership Score. As a result, the album lands at the #5 spot on our list of the best metalcore albums of 2023 so far.

4. Periphery – ‘Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre’

Poll Vote: 5% , Album Listenership Score: .167

Total Score = .05 + .167 = .217

Periphery continues to demolish the status quo with ‘Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre’. Featuring only 9 songs but boasting a 70 minute run time, ‘Periphery V’ is an epic saga.

The album is heavily influenced by music from the band’s favorite video games. The project’s cinematic arrangements and production, the narrative quality of its song lyrics, and Spencer Sotelo’s spectacular vocal delivery come together to immerse listeners in an enthralling sonic adventure. At times the album feels like a metalcore soundtrack to a live action or animated musical- in all the right ways. (Periphery, if you ever read this, please do us all a favor and make a feature-length animated metalcore musical. Or take metalcore to Broadway).

‘Periphery V’ is woven together by signature djenty, polyrhythmic chugs, contrasting technical soaring leads, orchestral layers, and Sotelo’s utterly fantastic vocals.

The album wastes no time getting down to business as its opening track, “Wildfire”, fires a pummeling assault on all fronts before an unexpected jazzy interlude resets the song for a climatic outro. Cinematic track “Wax Wings” is a melodic staple on the album, while “Silhouette” takes the album on an unexpected turn into 80’s synth wave. “Dying Star” stands out lyrically with its positive messages around mindfulness and not letting the past control you with lines like, “So take space cause you’re not alone” and “Breathe out the past and presently your heart is open”.

A personal favorite on the album is “Dracul Gras”, a twelve minute track that tells the story of an ancient vampire and pays homage to Dracula.

‘Periphery V’ sees Periphery continue to push their own boundaries in a way that pays big dividends and comes in at number 4 on our list of the best metalcore albums of 2023 so far.

3. Veil of Maya – ‘[m]other’

Poll Vote= 7%, Album Listenership Score: .189

Total Score = .07 + .180 = .259

‘[m]other’, Veil of Maya’s 7th full length album, sees the band continue to push its sonic territory while keeping its renowned technicality at the forefront.

‘[m]other’ is sheer ferocious chaos, jumping back and forth between technical death metal rooted tracks like “Godhead”, “Lost Creator”, and “Death Runner”, songs with clean chorus hooks like “Red Fur” and “Artificial Dose”, and electronic forward tracks like “Disco Kill Party”. The band turns the up the notch on its dissonant polyrhythmic riffs to a jarring level on “Synthwave Vegan” and “Tokyo Chainsaw”.

‘[m]other’ encapsulates the various directions and turning points Veil of Maya took throughout their first 6 albums, and the variation makes for an engaging listen.

On the whole, ‘[m]other’ sees Veil of Maya continue to branch out their sound electronically while keeping their identity rooted in the brutal technicality the band is known for. ‘[m]other’ takes the number 3 spot on our list of best metalcore albums of 2023 so far.

The Top 2 metalcore albums of 2023 so far were in close contention

The Album Listenership Scores for the top 2 albums on our list came within a fraction of each other, but were significantly higher than their peers. They also dominated the competition in poll votes received.

These 2 albums were vehemently acclaimed by listeners in our poll comments. The two bands who put out these albums have an overlapping fanbase and recently came off of tour dates together with Like Moths to Flames (the lineup was personally my favorite tour of the year so far). Most of the comments on our polls about these albums were variations of “How am I supposed to choose between these two albums?”

If you haven’t already guessed, we are talking about Currents and Invent Animate.

Currents and Invent Animate have a lot in common

Both bands formed in 2011. Both had significant lineup changes during their first several years, including their vocalists. Brian Wille stepped into the role of Currents’ vocalist following the band’s first full-length debut album in 2015. Marcus Vik became Invent Animate’s vocalist in 2019 following Ben English’s departure after their 2017 sophomore album.

In the Spring of 2020, Invent Animate released their third album, ‘Greyview’ and Currents released their third album, ‘The Way It Ends’. While Currents and Invent Animate each have their own distinctive sound, these 2020 albums demonstrated both bands’ unrivaled prowess for creating masterful, swallowing soundscapes that are simultaneously emotive, ambient, ethereal, technical, and heavy.

Both bands took things to the next level in 2023 with even further refined sounds, and new albums which perfectly complement their predecessors.

2. Invent Animate – ‘Heavener’

Poll Vote: 26%, Album Listenership Score: .224

Total score = .26 + .224 = .484

‘Heavener’ is a near perfect sonic and poetic embodiment of introspection that takes place while experiencing different stages of grief from loss. The theme of loss comes in different forms on the album including death like in “Purity Weeps”, a lost relationship in “Shade Astray”, or losing oneself in “Labyrinthine”.

‘Heavener’ emerges listeners into a stormy soundscape where technical riffs lash out in thunderous rage in tracks like “False Meridian” and “Elysium” and ambient synths build rain clouds of despair and sadness in songs like “Reverie” before providing an brief glimmer of sunshine as acceptance surfaces in “Emberglow”.

The contrast of low chugs, bright synths, and somber clean leads layered with Vik’s versatile vocals build constant tension and release, amplifying the entire emotional journey. ‘

Heavener’ is heartbreakingly beautiful, compositionally complex, and an instant classic for modern metalcore.

‘Heavener’ takes the number 2 spot on our list of the best metalcore albums of 2023 so far, but objectively is equally worthy of the number 1 spot.

1.Currents – ‘The Death We Seek’

Poll Vote: 37%, Album Listenership Score: .221

Total score = .37 + .221 = .591

Currents takes the top spot on our list of best metalcore albums of 2023 so far with ‘The Death We Seek‘.

‘The Death We Seek‘ conceptually continues the world building of its predecessor, ‘The Way It Ends’. ‘The Way It Ends’ thematically is a warning of impending self-destruction of both the individual and society if humanity continues its current course. The album creates a foreboding sense of doom that is left unresolved.

In the opening title track of ‘The Death We Seek’, listeners are propelled straight into an ethereal world of apocalyptic fury. It is clear that doom has become the new reality after the albums’ protagonists have failed in their mission to save society from itself.

The production on ‘The Death We Seek’ is far denser than ‘The Way It Ends‘. Complemented by lyrical echoes of our time in Covid-19 lockdown that surface throughout the album, the dark, sludgy soundscape brilliantly brings the new apocalyptic world to life.

Synths create layers of hazy fog as thick as the smoke in NYC from the Canada wildfires earlier this month. Gritty low chugs reinforce the feeling of destruction, while soaring choruses and guitar solos convey a mounting sense of desire to fight back. Wille’s vocals are flawless on all fronts, from guttural lows, to tunnel high frys, and raw cleans.

‘The Death We Seek’ is relentless and engrossing from start to finish. In its midpoint, the protagonists reach a point of despair and lose their will to continue pushing forward in “So Alone” and “Over and Over”. But the back half of the album sees a resurgence of hope in “Beyond This Road”, “Vengeance”. The closing track, “Guide Us Home”, sees a renewed sense of determination as the lyrics “We will run till the sun won’t guide us home” ring out. The stage would be set for an epic battle to unfold in the next album if Currents chooses to continue to carry the concept forward.

Regardless of what Currents does in the future, in the present they have continued to raise the bar for contemporary metalcore and deservedly earned the number 1 spot on our list of best metalcore albums of 2023 so far.

Honorable mentions:

^{August Burns Red- ‘Death Below’}

^{Bury Tomorrow – ‘The Seventh Sun’}

^{Unearth- ‘The Wretched; The Ruinous’}

So there we have it, the 5 best metalcore albums of 2023 so far, based on votes from the metalcore community and Spotify listener stats.

Be sure to check out our 2023 New Metalcore/Deathcore/Post-Hardcore & More Playlist on Spotify and Apple Music!