This edition includes epic-ness in a few forms, lots of grooves, and more! To the metals…
Caliban – Elements 
Genre: Metalcore
Origin: Essen, Germany
Label: Century Media
Elements marks this band's eleventh album in their prolific metalcore careers. Choruses are massive, melodies are at the forefront, and the juxtaposition of these things against its heaviness fuels this record as one might expect. Not reinventing the metalcore wheel or anything, but if you're a fan of the band or genre, it's hard to be upset about this record.
Hypno5e – Alba: Les Ombres Errantes 
Genre: "Cinematographic Metal"
Origin: Montpellier, France
Label: Pelagic
Hypno5e are truly a peerless band. Their career of unique atmospheric, experimental, and grandiose music is just about perfect. Alba is a journey of a record that touches on metal moments but may not get heavy enough for some folks.
Kalmah – Palo 
Genre: Melodic death metal/power metal
Origin: Oulu, Finland
Label: Spinefarm
If you dig Kalmah, you'll dig this record. It has everything one would want from their albums. Grooves, subtle (and not so subtle) epic-ness, melodic guitar shredding, and keyboards.
Kamelot – The Shadow Theory 
Genre: Progressive power metal
Origin: Tampa, Florida
Label: Napalm
If Kalmah wasn't quite epic enough for you (or too heavy or whatever), here's some new Kamelot! On this, their twelfth album, they've got a few guests with them in Lauren Hart (Once Human) and Jennifer Haben (Beyond The Black). Their appearances add a nice bit of diversity to the songs they're on, while the rest of the album is pure Kamelot. Sidebar: do any of you enjoy power metal? I write about it occasionally, but no one ever seems stoked for it.
Underoath – Erase Me
Genre: Metalcore
Origin: Tampa, Florida
Label: Fearless
So it turns out that this is a reunion album for Underoath? I honestly had no idea that they split in the first place, but some googling taught me they broke up for two years. That doesn't fucking count. Anyway, melodies, metal, etc. It has been eight years since their last album, so at least that drought is over.
Winterfylleth – The Hallowing Of Heirdom 
Genre: Folk
Origin: Manchester, England
Label: Candlelight/Spinefarm
This record showcases a band dabbling in traditional folk music more that metal. Actually, no metal at all. Barely percussion, in fact. Anyway, this is a gorgeous album with the mood and atmosphere of a grim album, but none of the actual grim-ness. It's a logical progression from The Dark Hereafter though, so if you enjoyed that, you might enjoy this.
Sample on Bandcamp
Also dropping today…
The Amorettes – Born To Break (SPV/Steamhammer) – Hard rock
Black Salvation – Uncertainty Is Bliss (Relapse) – Psychedelic/doom
Bleed From Within – Era (Century Media) – Metalcire
Crisix – Against The Odds (Listenable) – Thrash
The Dead Daisies – Burn It Down (Spitfire) – Hard rock
Encircling Sea – Hearken (EVP Recordings) – Sludge/post-metal
The Fallen Prodigy – Relive//Regret//Repeat (Self) – Metalcore
The Grotesquery – The Lupine Anathema (Xtreem) – Death metal
Kolossor – Crown of Horns (Sludgelord Records) – Sludge
Messa – Feast For Water (Aural) – Doom/drone
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow – Memories In Rock II DVD/CD (Minstrel Hall) – Heavy metal
Spiders – Killer Machine (Spinefarm) – Stoner rock
Traced By Enemies –Where The Sun Turns Gray (Dedication Records) – Hardcore
Valhalla – Lights My Gracious Highway (Self) – Hard rock
Whyzdom – As Time Turns To Dust (Scarlet) – Symphonic metal
