On Oct. 4, Issues, a metalcore band from Georgia, released their third studio album entitled Beautiful Oblivion. The album includes thirteen songs with a runtime of 46 minutes. Issues consists of four members: Tyler Carter, Josh Manuel, Skyler Acord and AJ Rebollo. 

Musically, this album is very exciting and diverse. Issues has always pulled from other genres such as R & B and pop in order to create a metal hybrid. This album is no different, and arguably pushes the limits more than any of their other albums. The vocals also complement the music wonderfully, creating cohesive works within each song. I very much enjoyed listening.

As far as the lyrics go, they feel very genuine and are unique enough to not sound repetitive. They are written in a way that very well compliments the music and Tyler’s vocal capacity, all of which work together to create a pleasing sound and album.

As a whole, the album did not follow a particular theme or story. The sound, however, of each song is close enough to the others to be recognizable as an album, but also different and unique enough that they could stand alone. 

My favorite songs are “Without You” and “Flexin.” “Without You” features a lot of bass guitar, which I am a sucker for, and “Flexin” is far from what I expected from a metal band, but at the same time retains some aspects of rock.

I believe that this is one of the best albums to come out so far this year, and definitely deserves a listen, even if you are unsure about metal. 

Album rating: 9/10