2019 has been a year for me to rediscover my love and adoration of all things punk, hardcore, and metal. Now, I wrote about more than just those types of bands this year, so thankfully, my list will be relatively diverse. However, It should be noted that it took at least three revisions until we got to this point, so bear with me. It should also be noted that none of these releases are in any particular order.  Albums and EPs Dirty Junk - On Yr Knees ( Don't Panic Records & Distro ) Dirty Junk is probably the band that first rekindled my love of punk and hardcore with their 2019 EP, On Yr Knees . Its unbridled energy and unchecked rage was the punch to the stomach needed to start the year off right. The band stretches new songwriting muscles with this EP. Unyielding blastbeats and tremolo-picked guitars give way to twinkling interludes and sludgy breakdowns. Renn Fontana and Ace Robbins use their proclivity toward dissonance and chaotic instrumentals to crea...

In just a few weeks, the emo-violence quartet Sleep Debt will be no more. Making them the most recent band that I've discovered just before (or slightly after) they break up. Thankfully, Sleep Debt decided that they wouldn't go quietly into the night and released one final agonizing momento with the single "The Stages of Grief." This track is both Sleep Debt's longest (nearly half of their debut EP could fit inside the song) and most experimental track. The opening chords ring like church organs while the words "What we once thought was safe / All the promises that were made" are chanted in the distance. The song is quickly taken over by black metal influenced blast beats, dissonant guitars, and shrieking vocals. Its instability and exposed underbelly lend itself to Sleep Debt's swan song. "The Stages of Grief" plays out like a eulogy to feeling safe and secure. The lyrics speak to a loss of emotional resolve and the erosion of the ca...