Emmure

The nu-metal phase of the early '00s left a bad taste in most people's mouths. There are a number of reasons most refer to that period and genre ― if it can even really be considered a sub-genre ― disparagingly, but the most well-known is likely the combination of rap and metal. For a few years, acts like Limp Bizkit pretty much blew it for anyone who wanted to play heavy riffs and throw in some rhymes. Emmure manage to turn the rap-metal stigma on its head, making trauma-grade deathcore metal while also occasionally rapping. To be completely honest, even if you were deathly allergic to any type of rhyming in your metal, you'd still most likely come away liking Emmure. Slave to the Game is Emmure's fifth album since 2007, making them remarkable both for their rapping and impressive output. Like many bands with a "core" attached to their sub-genre, Emmure are adept at making every song into an almost continuous, ferocious breakdown and it's a formula that keeps the album's momentum at its peak at all times. You know that part of a heavy song that's your favourite because it just completely crushes? All the parts are like that on Slave to the Game.