Between the Buried and Me

Remember that scene in Invasion of the Body Snatchers where the guy falls asleep in bed with his dog and they get their heads switched while being body-snatched? Bands such as Between the Buried and Me are kinda like that. It used to be that metal and hardcore were strange bedfellows, but these days the two styles regularly switch heads and expand into increasingly freakish offshoots. This North Carolina band is the bastard offspring of crossover pioneers like D.R.I. and Corrosion of Conformity, only way, way, way more harsh. BTBAM combines retro-progressive sensibilities with the frantic beats of death metal but somehow ends up with a hardcore feel. You can’t really explain how it happened; you either run in terror or get a closer look.