Review / 200 Words Or Less
The Arson Choir
Invisible Monsters

War Against Records (2020) Robert Miklos (Piro)

The Arson Choir – Invisible Monsters cover artwork
The Arson Choir – Invisible Monsters — War Against Records, 2020

The Arson Choir are another fine representative of the new wave of American mathcore. They’re a pretty young band, but they have a lot of power in them and they sure know how to lay it down. Their balls to the wall delivery paired with chunky and groovy riffs, as well as the classic dissonant screeches is very appropriate and well executed.

Invisible Monsters is their second release, a four track EP, which gives us the goods just as we like them – fucking heavy and relentless. I couldn’t put my finger on any particular aspect that makes their blend of mathcore unique. I can definitely say that they’re recognizable as soon as the music starts playing. I may be tempted to compare them to something else or straight up confuse them, but ultimately it doesn’t happen.

I’m pretty certain that we can expect great things from this band, as it’s brimming with potential all around. Be sure to slap them on your radar if you’re even remotely into mathcore and/or heavy and chaotic stuff.

The Arson Choir – Invisible Monsters cover artwork
The Arson Choir – Invisible Monsters — War Against Records, 2020

Recently-posted album reviews

Sahan Jayasuriya

Don’t Say Please: The Oral History of Die Kreuzen
Feral House (2026)

For those of us who spent the mid-to-late 1980s navigating basement community halls, churches, and loveable, armpit-smelling dive bars, the name Die Kreuzen was a permanent fixture on the punk rock radar. They were the sound of the Midwest underground --too fast for the goths to do their spooky Bela Lugosi "shoo the bats away" interpretive dance, too technical for … Read more

Sewer Urchin

Global Urination
Independent (2025)

There’s a fine line between crossover thrash that feels dangerous and crossover thrash that just feels like a party. Global Urination doesn’t bother choosing because it does both loudly and without apology. St. Louis’ Sewer Urchin have been grinding since 2019, and on their latest full length they double down on everything that makes the genre work. They give us … Read more

Ingested

Denigration
Metal Blade (2026)

For a band that built its name on sheer brutality, Ingested have spent the last several years refining what that brutality actually means. With their newest release, Denigration, the band finds that continuing evolution. They’re still punishing, still precise, but noticeably more controlled and deliberate in how it all lands. From the outset, the record makes its intentions clear. “Dragged … Read more