Uncured
Uncured is a hard rock 4-piece from New Jersey founded by brothers Rex Cox (21) and Zak Cox (23), who both play guitar and sing. Micah Smith plays bass and JP Vega plays drums.
Uncured started touring in 2017 and in 3 years performed over 225 shows in 14 countries with top acts such as Lacuna Coil, ?Jinjer, All That Remains, Cradle of Filth, Soulfly, Children of Bodom, Devildriver, Whitechapel, Katatonia, and Jasta (Hatebreed). Uncured opened for Judas Priest and Sabaton at the Warlando 2021 music festival in Florida. ?
?Uncured has released six new singles throughout 2021 and will release a new album in early 2022.
?Uncured released its first full-length record Medusa on March 10, 2017. The record was named one of the "10 Best Metal Albums of 2017" by AXS.com. MetalSucks wrote that Medusa is "a synthesis of all manner of melodic, progressive, technical metal — Dream Theater, Opeth, et al. — mixed with a groovy, almost tribal approach trafficked by ’90s stalwarts like Sepultura and Fear Factory. Have those two genres ever been mixed together before? Probably, somewhere. Have they ever been mixed together before with such finesse and originality? Certainly not."
?Uncured released its second full-length album Epidemic on April 19, 2019. Epidemic was also met with massive critical success. MetalSucks described the album’s first single “Choke” as “an assemblage of chunky caveman breakdowns that dance around the band’s signature groovy riffs and hook-fueled solos, offering excitement and a never-ending propulsion of madness.” Uncured created a play-through of its single “Conquistador” exclusively for Guitar World, who referred to the song as a “technically dazzling track.” Finally, MetalSucks called the single “Death Valley” an “absolute slayer of a tune, an amalgamation of prog, power, groove, and death metal.”
Uncured's 2019 cover of Slayer's 2001 classic "Disciple" was named 2019's Cover of the Year by Sirius XM Liquid Metal. Uncured released its EP Uncovered in early 2020, including covers of songs byThe Beastie Boys, America, Pantera, and Sepultura,
Uncured has gained a reputation among fans and critics for its energetic live performances and virtuoso playing. Metal Injection reported that "Uncured sounds a bit like old school Dream Theater with some modern tricks thrown in, such as full-on breakdowns and smoking guitar acrobatics. This band is comprised of extremely talented and promising young musicians.”
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?Metal Assault Magazine reported that "the talent in musical composition and song arrangement was vastly evident right from the outset, and it never ceased to engage and compel. Uncured’s roots are firmly planted in prog, but also in Scandinavian death metal, and the manner in which they moved from crushing heavy grooves to break into smooth, sexy interludes was beyond exemplary.” Shutter 16 Magazine simply stated: "just wow, the raw talent of such a young fronted band is outstanding. Formed, written, and lead by two teenagers, is truly insane." The magazine continued that Uncured has "the sound of old school metal with an influx of modern solos and rhythms, while vocally pulling from a death metal side of things. The solos were the contrast to their music, very progressive sounding and very technical, whereas their song structure was brutal and heavy."
Critics have commented on the diversity of Uncured's sound. CrypticRock reports that Uncured "matches speedy, technical guitar riffs with blistering drumming--but the true highlight of Uncured's live set is the ability to slow it down at the drop of a dime, mixing in darker, compelling storylines amidst all the chaos." Metal Nexus says, "It has been a long time since I have been this utterly impressed by a new band. And how often do you see two vocalists unleashing harsh vocals with intense yet melodic riffs? The young lads with their youthful energy, technical prowess, and blistering speed set the stage on fire."