10 Awesome Rock + Metal Songs You May Have Missed in 2013

Lesser Key's inaugural track 'Intercession' is a hypnotic cut that would have probably gotten more attention if the band had released their debut EP this year. As of this posting, the only place to hear 'Intercession' is YouTube, so after experiencing the song, don't be surprised if you find yourself visiting the Sumerian Records channel habitually. If you hear a bit of a Tool influence in Lesser Key, good call. The new project includes former Tool bassist Paul D'Amour, who was an integral part of the group's sound during the 'Opiate' and Undertow' years.

ASG have been pumping out southern stoner metal since 2001, but they arguably hit their stride in 2013 with their fifth album, 'Blood Drive.' We actually had the pleasure of hosting the exclusive premiere of 'Castlestorm,' which showcases ASG's dynamic and riff-heavy style perfectly. 'Castlestorm' transitions between clean and harsh vocals tactfully while constantly shifting instrumental gears. Fans of Mastodon and Baroness, meet your new favorite Southern gentlemen.

Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats offer a refreshing twist on dirty 1960s rock and heavy metal. While establishing a foundation based on pioneers such as the Stooges, the Beatles and Alice Cooper, Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats also time travel through the 70s to include psychedelic and early doom nuances into the mix. 'Mind Crawler' is a key aspect of the band's 'Mind Control' album, which tells the story of a cult leader who brainwashes disciples through drugs, love, violence and intimidation.

You may have missed Pig Destroyer's 'The Octagonal Stairway' if you're not a big Cartoon Network viewer. Exclusively released as a part of the 2013 Adult Swim Singles Series, Pig Destroyer's twisted grind piece doesn't disappoint. In fact, it sounds like it could have fit snugly into the band's 2012 album, 'Book Burner.'

"Youth is not wasted on the young." The Bronx just barely missed our 10 Best Rock Albums and 10 Best Rock Songs of 2013 lists, so we'd be doing them a disservice by not including them here. From their first punk rock release in five years, 'Youth Wasted' is an anthemic, up-beat piece that inspires the youths in the pit to start dancing. The Los Angeles punk titans are back, and 'Youth Wasted' is just one of 12 fresh tracks from 'The Bronx (IV).'

It's unusual for such a new band to create such an impact just two years into their career, but British hard rock / heavy metal act Purson are on the verge of exploding. The band's debut album, 'The Circle and the Blue Door,' was released this year, creating some serious underground buzz. 'Leaning on a Bear' is a solid piece of Purson, who offer an interesting revival of psychedelic rock as a sinister version of Jefferson Airplane or the Doors.

Greek extreme black metal band Rotting Christ brought us a re-imagining of 'Cine lubeste Si Lasa' in the act's 11th studio album, 'Κατά τον δαίμονα εαυτού.' Based on Maria Tanase's 1936 Romanian curse chant of the same name, the undertaking begins with a theatrical piano intro, followed by the wails of stunning female opera singer Souzana Vougioukli. Of course, Rotting Christ add their signature metal touch to the song, creating one of metal's most unique 2013 tracks.

In Solitude have been around for over a decade, but the Swedish act is beginning to gain a new type of momentum thanks to 'Sister.' The band's third album churns an evil blend of heavy metal, horror rock and black metal, using well-established characteristics of the past to progress metal music into the future. The album's title track is very addictive, which is strangely fitting as In Solitude explore occult and magical themes.

Super-aggressive Canadian hardcore / sludge merchants KEN Mode released a barrage of iron-fisted tracks this year within their fifth studio album, 'Entrench.' The record opens with 'Counter Culture Complex,' and fitting the progression of a spinning spool of yarn, the track quickly turns from a tight, full-speed-ahead banger into a depressurized, open ended revelry. KEN Mode repeat that process constantly as Jesse Matthewson's unhinged vocals round off the unpredictable noise.

Gorguts' 'Colored Sands' came in at No. 1 on our 10 Best Metal Albums of 2013 list, so if you're a fan of the record, you need to check out Ulcerate. Hailing from New Zealand, Ulcerate have serve up extreme dissonance and atonal death metal with 'Vermis,' the title track from the band's fourth full-length album. The guttural vocal style of frontman Paul Kelland gives Ulcerate's music a purely demonic feel, as if Satan himself had possessed Kelland's vocal chords. Fans of extreme music, listen to 'Vermis' immediately.