2011 was the year that saw Michigan native Colin Stetson rise from the on- call bass saxophonist for artists such as Tom Waits, Arcade Fire and Bon Iver to join their ranks as his own artist.  New History Warfare, Volume 2: Judges rose from being lauded only by rare aesthetes to near universal praise from indie rockers and major magazines alike.  One listen to his powerful tone and the percussive sounds that follow (or lead in some cases) and the listener may wonder about the number of tracks Stetson is using.  However, all of those notes, squeals and pops erupt from just one circular breathing man.

Maybe it’s something in the water.   Kylesa, Baroness and Mastodon all hail from the great state of Georgia, and all three bands started out as brutal, crusty metal bands. Now all three are dropping jaws as they continue to evolve in decidedly more ROCK directions and hone pop-sharp songwriting skills.

With new track “Unspoken” from the forthcoming album Ultraviolet (due out 5/28), Kylesa saddles a goth-rock guitar hook to a ten-ton main riff as co-vocalists Laura Pleasants and Philip Cope trade off with nary a growl or scream to be heard. The success of predecessor Spiral Shadows created high expectations for a follow-up from critics and fans alike, but Kylesa has presented the perfect teaser tune — a song that hints at unexplored territory while standing firmly in their wheelhouse and, of course, leaving the listener hungry for more.

When Rage Against The Machine famously intoned “Anger is a gift”, they had no idea of the scorched earth that would follow in their wake.  That whisper has led to a decades-long scream from any number of punks and metal heads who have seen their music toughen into striated muscles only to shred and then split into a hundred tendrils that function as subgenres.  Iceland’s Iceage is out to obliterate any subgenre classification and all challengers.