This Age
Armageddon

The crossover is a genre that, since its inception thanks mainly to Faith No More and Fishbone (yes, it's true that the Red Hot Chili Peppers helped bring it to the mainstream, but in my opinion, Faith No More is THE crossover band), has managed to attract a large following of fans. The genre has then inspired the rise of the much-hated Nu Metal, which includes under its wing both bands worth listening to (Deftones, early Korn, Mudvayne, my beloved Incubus) and others that are pretty much useless (Limp Bizkit, Soulfly, P.O.D., Papa Roach, and the list could go on...).

This genre enjoyed a flourishing period between the late nineties and early two-thousands, when having a Nu Metal band and selling less than a million records meant you'd be better off taking up bowls. The popularity of the genre then collapsed in the second half of the 2000s, when only the sacred monsters of the genre (Korn, Limp Bizkit) managed to keep selling, and those bands that were able to modernize in one way or another (the sappy ballads of the new Slipknot, the infiltration of Shoegaze and New Age in Deftones, the commercial turn of Incubus). However, there are still bands that, although aware that they won't make loads of money, continue to remain faithful to the always too underrated Nu Metal.

Among these bands are This Age, a Sardinian band comprised of young people from Olbia, who in November 2013 released a small masterpiece, "Armageddon." The album is entirely self-produced and, nevertheless, boasts an enviable quality. I swear that when I turned on the stereo, the intro of "Abisso" took me back ten years. Not to mention "Bad Dreams" (which also has a wonderful video) that almost has the structure of a "Zombie Eaters" and the very successful cover "Feel Good Inc." by Gorillaz. This Age has brought something to the crossover realm. Something that has been missing for years. Something like spontaneity. While waiting for a full-length that, as read on the band's Facebook page, should arrive soon, spend three euros on iTunes or Amazon and listen to the EP of a band that truly has a lot to say.