The Fall Of Boss Koala

The Fall Of Boss Koala were a five-piece screamo band from Dundee, Scotland that were around from 2002 to 2006. They took slight influence from post-rock in their sound, with the drawn out song lengths, shifting dynamics, and tremolo picked guitars. This draws the obvious Envy comparison, but I think fans of bands like Saetia, You And I, and even Alexisonfire would dig this too. They only put out two EP's, with Reference Points being the definite standout. Side note, I have no idea if the artwork for both EP's here is official or not, but it's all I could find so we're going with it. Enjoy.

Thank God For Left Have Drive (2003)

1. Patrick Viera

2. Donkey Vs Missle

3. The Dede Song (10 Years In Jail)

4. Saigon Is City

5. Malchek

Reference Points (2005)

1. No, Everything's Not Alright

2. I Love My Dead Gay Son (Part 1)

3. I Love My Dead Gay Son (Part 2)

4. End Of The World

Mesa Verde

Mesa Verde were a five-piece screamo band from Glasgow, Scotland that began in 2004 and ended in 2009. They put out one LP, an EP, a demo, and one compilation track in their few years together. This was all compiled into a single discography release back in 2016. That discography release is a must-grab, but I included the individual releases (minus the compilation track) if you're interested. Sonically, they are comparable to other post-rock/screamo blended bands, such as Envy, City of Caterpillar, and Sed Non Satiata. Their dual vocal delivery is also a distinct characteristic, with the vocals alternating between layered and call-and-response screams. Without a doubt they aree on of the most essential screamo acts of their decade, so I highly recommended checking this out ASAP if it sounds up your alley. Members of Mesa Verde now play in Old Guard. Enjoy.

In This Silence We Will Slow Dance (2005)

1. Any Excuse For A Waste

2. Church Gambler

3. Aim.Method

4. Twice As Fucked In Half The Time

Amor Fati (2006)

1. Clarity With Distance

2. Substance Abuse

3. MRB

4. Dance Dance Dance

The Old Road (2008)

1. A Deep Sleep Without Dreams

2. For The Tree That Fell

3. When The Canary Dies, Run Like Fuck

4. Return To Victories

5. No More Bad Future

6. Post-Youth

Discography; 2004-2009 (2016)

1. A Deep Sleep Without Dreams

2. For The Tree That Fell

3. When The Canary Dies, Run Like Fuck

4. Return To Victories

5. No More Bad Future

6. Post-Youth

7. In '64

8. Clarity With Distance

9. Substance Abuse

10. Untitled

11. MRB

12. Dance Dance Dance

13. Any Excuse For A Waste

14. Church Gambler

15. Aim.Method

16. Twice As Fucked (In Half The Time)

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Carson Wells

Carson Wells are a three-piece post-hardcore band from Aberdeen, Scotland that began in 2009. Sonically, they're fairly remnisicent of classics like Unwound and Q And Not U, particularly in their idiosyncratic rhythms and dynamic song structures. They also incorporate some aspects of screamier bands like Sinaloa and Raein, through the impassioned vocal deliveries and washy chords. They've grown quite a bit in the near-decade they've been together, which their two latest albums Tread A Northern Path and this year's No Relic being particular standouts. Enjoy.

Carson Wells (2010)

1. Picasso on Contradiction

2. I've Got A Friend Who Likes Pirates

3. Feed 'Em To The Pigs 'Arold

4. Cohaagen

Wonderkid (2012)

1. Soul And Sword

2. Slim Charles

3. A Great Weight

4. Ten

5. Killing Me Won't Bring Back Your Goddamn Honey

6. Three Months in Canada

7. Don't Forget The Super 8

8. 2007

9. Home

Human Hands/Carson Wells (2014)

1. Human Hands - Exterior

2. Carson Wells - Cloud In The Shape Of A Shark

3. Carson Wells - Namib

Tread A Northern Path (2015)

1. Palmistry

2. Silent Breed

3. Northern Path, Southern Lens

4. Mosaic Of Sleepers

5. Final Throne

6. A Life Lapse In Passing

7. Mid Distance

8. Sobotka

9. Will I'm Nae

10. June

Live at Stuck on a Name, Notthingham 28/11/14 (2016)

1. Sobotka (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

2. Northern Path, Southern Lens (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

3. Mosaic of Sleepers (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

4. Palmistry (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

5. Will.I'm.Nae (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

6. June (live from SOAN, Nottingham)

No Relic (2018)

1. Art In Inconsequence

2. Native State

3. Pilot Light

4. Righteous Mess

5. Prez

6. Early Decay

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Departures

Departures are a five-piece melodic hardcore band from Glasgow, Scotland that formed in 2007. They emerged branding a similar sound to other notable UK hardcore bands such as Dead Swans and More Than Life, tearing from the inside-out. Their first full-length, When Losing Everything Is Everything You Wanted came out in 2011, and gave them a solid foot in the door for what would come next. In 2012, they signed to No Sleep Records and released another album, Teenage Haze. The melodic hardcore base that Departures had established grew to incorporate very melodic guitars, that would often intermingle between cutting leads and distortion-laden backing chords. Sonically, they have more in common with emerging American post-hardcore bands such as Pianos Become The Teeth, Touché Amoré, and Balance And Composure. Perhaps one of the most notable things about this band is the vocals. Their singer shreds his voice to the point of being hoarse to get his point across, which makes the emotionally-charged and personal lyrics much more powerful.

Overall, their sophomore album is incredibly solid, and really holds up well over time. Despite their stylistic similarities to a lot of other bands, Departures manage to hold their own without ever sounding too derivative, which is a trap that a lot of bands in this genre have fallen into in the past few years. Unfortunately there's been a bit of a gap since their last release, which was a split with Moose Blood in 2013 (also recommended). Hopefully a new album is on the way, but until then, here's what they've done so far. Enjoy.

Demo (2007)

1. Left To Drown, But Smiling

2. Out Of Season

3. First Light

4. The Sign Off

5. The Dawn Chorus

Escaping (2010)

1. To Those Concerned

2. Weak Before Winter

3. Disappointment

4. The View From Below

When Losing Everything Is Everything You Wanted (2011)

1. Fear Of Falling

2. Swallowed Up

3. Sunday

4. Disappointment

5. A Life In Pieces

6. Remembrance

7. The View From Below

8. The Last Drive

9. Midnight Lights

10. Over The Edge 

Green Turns To Red, Then Turns To Gold (2012)

1. Those Miles Meant Everything

2. Fuck Living With Sadness

Teenage Haze (2012)

1. Drained Out

2. Making Maps

3. 21

4. The Home Stretch

5. Teenage Haze

6. Those Miles Meant Everything

7. Where The Time Will Go

8. Planting Weeds

9. Small Steps

Departures/Moose Blood (2013)

1. Departures - A Song For The Sunset

2. Departures - Closing Doors

3. Moose Blood - Stay Here

4. Moose Blood - Girl

Death Touches Us, From The Moment We Begin To Love (2016)

1. Sleepless

2. The Last Dance

3. In Colour

4. Waiting

5. Broken

6. Set Adrift

7. Death of Youth

8. Lost

9. 1994

10. Memorial

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Cavalcades

Cavalcades are a four-piece emo/screamo band from Aberdeen, Scotland that formed in 2010. To anyone even remotely into modern screamo/hardcore, you must give this band a try. They've progressed a lot in their half-decade as a band. The melodic hardcore influence is incredibly prominent early on, with intensive songs that throttle through an emotional catharsis that could be compared to bands as diverse as More Than Life or Envy. Their vocals are scathing and highly passionate, and are backed by some very melodic guitar parts that add slivers of beauty in their chaos. Their more recent work shows more progression and evolution, with the vocals being more sung than purely screamed, and the songs are even more melodic, eschewing the blasts of hardcore for a more refined indie/emo sound. The guitars craft riffs and progressions that are more reminiscent of Tiny Moving Parts and My Heart To Joy than their prior work. Though this change isn't radical, their sound is definitely something that is constantly being worked on. This exemplifies their forward thinking, which is the sign of any great band. I cannot recommend this band enough, they have put out some amazing material in the past, and just dropped a new album that you can definitely be sure to see on my best of list at the end of the year. Try your best to support them how you can, and enjoy.

FFO: Old Gray, Tiny Moving Parts, My Heart To Joy, Envy, More Than Life

Nothing Worse Than Empty (2011)

1. April 4th, 1968

2. Quiet Voices, Loud Places

3. (a dramatic procession of people or things)

4. Half A Year

Far Away Friends (2012)

1. Manbearpig - Ray Brower

2. Manbearpig - Tongues

3. Cavalcades - Coastal Route

4. Cavalcades - It Took Stitches

5. Nai Harvest - Red Letter Day, On Play

6. Nai Havest - Crossing Days Off My Calender

7. For This World Is Hollow And These Hands Have Touched The Sky - Old Religion

8. For This World Is Hollow And These Hands Have Touched The Sky - Untitled #4

Dog Knights Production Compilation #2 (2012)

12. It Doesn't Matter What Your Name Is

Cavalcades/Roots (2012)

1. Cavalcades - Sea Milne

2. Roots - Wraith

Coping (2012)

1. Frayed

2. Blackboards

3. Sleep Debt

4. Counting Breaths

5. Swallow Water

Cavalcades/Coma Regalia/Heart On My Sleeve (2013)

1. Cavalcades - Distort

2. Cavalcades - Morning Eyes

3. Coma Regalia - What It Costs

4. Coma Regalia - What It's Worth

5. Heart On My Sleeve - A Fabrication Of Life

6. Heart On My Sleeve - Petticoat In Ashes

Lights Begin To Dance (2015)

1. First Ice on Pavement

2. Burning Matchsticks

3. Even in Dreams

4. Orchard Street

5. Artificial Warmth

6. Projectionist

7. A Loss Of All Control

8. Headshakes

9. Reverie

10. What Once Was Poorly Lit

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