As far as obscure and extreme music goes, there's been some significant breakthroughs at the hardcore front that shouldn't be flying under our radar. One notorious example is (was!) french act Cathedraal, whose only full release Voix Blanches (that I know of, mind you) presents us with a very interesting blend of the self-deprecating vocal distress, the emotional guitar melodies and chaotic song structure that characterize the so-called "screamo" genre, with a challenging degree of experimentation both in the contrasts between the different tones of the song (the curve of calmness and agressiveness) and in the overall album structure/composition.
I say was, because I right this from reading news that their career has been short-lived: I right this six hours into the band's announcement of its own end on facebook. Bloody shame, if you ask me. Still, their album is still stored on bandcamp, fully streamable and downloadable at the very convenient "name your price" cost. Most definitely worth checking out.
