EP Review: BEAR – Anhedonia (Pelagic Records)

Belgian mathcore heavyweights BEAR will release their new EP ‘Anhedonia’ on May 22nd, 2026, via Pelagic Records.

Not normally a band I expect to be listening to on Pelagic Records, but they are a label I trust so if they think BEAR are worth shouting about, they must be.

Good news! They really bloody are, delivering a bullish and brutish display of hostile modern metal mixed with experimental aspects and undeniable technical precision. It is mathcore, but it is mathcore that has evolved elements.

Exciting, right? Wrap your ears around the ferocious mania that is Empty Markers and tell me how you feel. My heart is pounding hard in my chest, my palms are sweaty, I can barely keep still, and I’m 99% sure there’s going to be a test after this.

Subsequent listens to the EP make it less daunting, but that doesn’t change the fact that something like Lacerate is baffling in all its addictiveness. That something like The Smile can slam so hard and be so weird. Something like the title track can make you feel like notes are a necessity, even if they’re covered in sweat, blood, and vomit. Then there is Metastatic, and the less said the better, just rest assured it’s as unique as everything else, as fascinating, and as vicious.

I must have listened to this EP five times before I even wrote a single word about it, such is the depth and detail to it. There’s a lot to take in, and while it does have immediacy, most of its impact comes over time.

BEAR – Anhedonia Track Listing:

1. Empty Markers
2. Lacerate
3. The Smile
4. Anhedonia
5. Metastatic

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