In an interview with Metal Shock Finland, Italian metalcore crew Despite Exile described their songwriting process as “every song must be like a train that hits you in the face”. The band’s new EP, “Re-Evolve”, holds true to this promise and the disc’s three tracks (12 minutes) is a solid slab of prog-influenced Djent/Metalcore that can hold its own against established bands like Whitechapel and Meshuggah (both of whom the band cites as influences).
Despite Exile has been together for four years and the band released their self-produced debut EP “Scarlet Reverie” last year. “Re-Evolve”, the band’s sophomore disc, continues in the same view as its predecessor. This time out, the band has added Djent into their sound along with tighter production, which brings out the balance between the band’s brutal riffs and blast beats, their melodies and vocalist Jei Durisotti’s rabid death metal growls.
The disc starts with “Oscillate” (which is streaming at www.bravewords.com) and this track sets the tone for the disc with melodic guitar leads layered on top of driving groove-based riffs and a rumbling bass. “Perfection Neutralized” continues in this vein but the guitar work is a bit more slashing and aggressive than its predecessor and this song also adds gang vocals on the almost-melodic chorus. The band changes paces and slows down a bit on the final track, “Mechanical”, which contains some soaring epic guitar leads and a mid-song breakdown that is sure to get the pit going.
This new EP is evidently a ‘teaser’ for the band’s first full-length which is in-progress and the band expects to be in pre-production soon.
Portland metalcore band It Prevails just released their third full-length, Stroma (Mediaskare Records), which is their strongest to-date. Continuing with the ‘tradition’ of having lineup shakeups with each new release, this disc marks the return of original drummer Aaron Marsh and early-on rhythm guitarist Nic Toten. The band is currently off on “The Beautiful & Spineless Tour” coast-to-coast tour. which stops at Party Expo in Brooklyn on August 18th. The lineup for the tour includes No Bragging Rights (tour headliners), We Are Defiance, Onward To Olympas and Boys No Good (8/8 – 8/14) & Burning Twilight (9/3 – 9/6).
This new disc, Stroma, is the followup to 2009’s Capture & Embrace and, musically, it continues in the same melodic hardcore vein. The disc starts out with the barreling, high-energy track “Holes” and doesn’t let off the throttle until the disc’s twelve tracks (40 minutes) have run their course. While the band retains the melodic hooks of past releases, this time around, the guitar leads have been de-emphasized in favor of more percussion-heavy, melodic “full band” sound.
Lyrically, the band continues to write about the “struggles, life lessons, negative situations, and mistakes” and principal songwriter / vocalist Ian Fike delivers these predominately uplifting lyrics seamlessly switching between his clean and heavy vocals (the later delivered in a higher pitch than on previous releases). The track “Break Away” showcases the depth and versatility of Fike’s vocals and the track includes guest vocals from Brendan Foley of Betrayal. Adam Jackson from Twelve Tribes also makes a guest appearance on this disc and joins Ficke on the track “Artisan”.
It Prevails obviously sees this disc as a turning point for the band as, in a recent interview with Rock Edition, Ian Fike talked about the album’s title and how Stroma means “the framework, the building base of something. When me and Aaron were putting the skeletons of the songs together — Aaron kept saying this is the framework of our new ideas, this is what we’ve grown into….writing ‘Stroma,’ it was so much fun. We had all these riffs, and it was very natural how it all came together.”
“The Beautiful & Spineless" Tour Dates 08/05 Lewisville, TX – Dad’s Venue 08/06 San Antonio, TX – The White Rabbit 08/07 Austin, TX – TBA 08/08 Baton Rouge, LA – Here Today Gone Tomorrow 08/09 Mobile, AL – American Legion Post 88 08/10 Daytona Beach, FL – Stingrays 08/11 Tampa, FL – Transitions Art Gallery 08/12 Jacksonville, FL – The Pit 08/13 Douglasville, GA – The 7 Venue 08/14 Raleigh, NC – The Brewery 08/15 Fredericksburg, VA – The Refuge 08/16 Linthicum, MD – LHUMC 08/17 Lemoyne, PA – The Champ 08/18 Brooklyn, NY – Party Expo 08/19 Albany, NY – Bogie’s 08/20 Manchester, NH – Rocko’s 08/21 Buffalo, NY – Broadway Joe’s 08/22 Pittsburgh, PA – 42nd Street Rock House 08/23 Columbus, OH – TBA 08/24 Mt. Clemens, MI – The Hayloft 08/25 Toledo, OH – Frankies 08/26 Steger, IL – Another Hall In The Wall 08/27 St. Louis, MO – Fubar 08/28 Omaha, NE – The Commons 08/29 Wichita, KS – The Eagles Lodge 08/30 Tulsa, OK – Reverb 08/31 Denver, CO – TBA 09/01 Ogden, UT – Mojo’s 09/02 Boise, ID – The Grange Hall 09/03 Spokane, WA – The A Club 09/04 Pullman, WA – The Bell Tower 09/05 Portland, OR – TBA 09/06 Klamath Falls, OR – Yesterday’s Plaza 09/07 Rocklin, CA – Studio 21 09/08 Stockton, CA – Plea For Peace 09/09 Bakersfield, CA – The Dome 09/10 Anaheim, CA – Chain Reaction 09/11 Tempe, AZ – The Fixx
Scound is a self-described metalcore band from the Czech Republic who released their second CD, "At The Point of Death", on Crystal Productions last year. Scound has been around since 2003 and this new six-track EP follows the band's 2006 full-length No Second Chances.
It took a few listens before I got into this disc and I think the reason was that I was expecting to hear the big choruses and clean vocals of a typical metalcore disc. Scound's music uses some of the melodic double guitar sound of the metalcore genre but the overall sound seems more in line with the death metal genre. Vocalist MicL sings in a standard death-metal growl while the guitar sounds burst in staccato, chugging riffs over the double bass drum. Regardless of whether the death metal or metalcore label sticks, the challenge with "At The Point of Death" is that most of the songs don't go far enough down either path to be memorable. I'm not sure what the purpose is of the disc's final track "Outro" as it doesn't fit (at all) with the other songs but the melodic, acoustic guitar and strings-driven piece is one of the more memorable songs on the disc.
I don't mean to slag the band as they are obviously talented (the melodic guitar leads are killer) but hopefully next time out, they push the envelope a bit as the band's early live videos show that they can work up a good head of death-metal steam. Check out the video trailer for the band's latest disc along with an early live video and see what you think.
Southampton’s Bury Tomorrow hit the national press with their 2007 EP “The Sleep of the Innocents” and a tour with Bring Me the Horizon. The band recently signed to Artery Recordings and their full-length debut, Portraits, was released in the US last month.
Portraits is a “buy-the-books” metalcore album that follows in the vein of US bands like Haste the Day and Killswitch Engage. The band combines rhythm guitarist Jason Cameron’s clean vocals with vocalist Dani Winter-Bates’ hoarse growls over a melodic verse / chorus / breakdown song structure. While this release doesn’t break any new ground, it is surprisingly catchy.
Bury Tomorrow’s strength is the individual vocal strength and interplay between the band’s two vocalists. Jason Cameron has a strong emotive voice that is able to rise above the emo-stylings of other clean vocalists in the genre and Dani Winter-Bates also has more power and range than the stereotypical growler. Two of the disc’s standout tracks (the first single “You and I” and the holdover from the first EP “The Woods Aren’t Safe For Us”) should give you an indication as to what the rest of the disc sounds like. The only exception from the band's core sound is the one ballad on the disc, "Relief". While I'm not much on ballads (including this one), Jason's vocal range and strength is enough to keep me from hitting the "skip" button.
Here are Bury Tomorrow's upcoming tour dates:
Apr. 13, 2010 -- Cockpit w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Leeds Apr. 14, 2010 -- The Rescue Rooms w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Nottingham Apr. 16, 2010 -- O2 Academy Islington w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, London Apr. 17, 2010 -- Birmingham O2 Academy w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Birmingham Apr. 18, 2010 -- Academy 2 w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Manchester Apr. 19, 2010 -- King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Glasgow Apr. 20, 2010 -- The Masque w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Liverpool Apr. 21, 2010 -- Arts Centre w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Colchester Apr. 22, 2010 -- Melkweg w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Amsterdam Apr. 24, 2010 -- Conne Island w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Leipzig Apr. 25, 2010 -- Matix w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Bochum Apr. 27, 2010 -- Abart w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Zurich Apr. 29, 2010 -- Razzmatazz 2 w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Barcelona Apr. 30, 2010 -- Sala La Riviera Madrid w/ Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Emarosa, Madrid
Last Saturday night, Black Dahlia Murder played a headlining set at Santos Party House. I was looking forward to seeing some of the opening acts (Obscura, Augury and Hatesphere) but I obviously haven't been paying attention to changes in clubland. To wander off-track for a moment..."Back in the day", a weekend headlining act at CBGB, Coney Island High, etc. never went on before midnight (if you were lucky). I got to Santos around 9:30PM and Black Dahlia Murder was onstage checking the sound before starting their set and the room was filled to capacity.
Black Dahlia Murder played about an hour set and the pit started immediately. What I could appreciate is that, with the room so full, this was an old-school CBGB/L'Amour style mosh pit with none of that kung-fu karate chopping nonsense. Even those outside the pit (like myself) had fists in the air and were singing along to songs like "What a Terrible Night to Have a Curse" and "Miasma".
It was too crazy a night to keep a setlist (I felt lucky to get the photos I did with the room being a giant most pit) but here is a setlist that I found on the Internet that looks about right.
01. Unhallowed 02. Funeral Thirst 03. Necropolis 04. A Vulgar Picture 05. Everything Went Black 06. Black Valor 07. Christ Deformed 08. Elder Misanthropy 09. Closed Casket Requiem 10. I'm Charming 11. What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse 12. Statutory Ape 13. Denounced, Disgraced 14. Deathmask Divine 15. Miasma 16. I Will Return
Below is a video of the first two songs from the set that shows how crazy the night got. Once the temperature started rising and the shirts started coming off (Trevor was encouraging everyone to get naked but I didn't see anyone strip totally down from where I was standing), it just got crazier.
Chelsea Grin is a pummeling six-piece deathcore band out of Utah who just released their first full-length CD on Artery Recordings (a Razor & Tie imprint). Desolation of Eden follows the band's 2008 debut 5-song EP (Statik Factory) and contains re-recordings of the EP's "Recreant" and "Cheyne Stokes" (live video below).
Describing this disc as "brutal" is about the equivalent of describing a typhoon as "windy". A 'chelsea grin' in soccer hooligan terminology is the act of cutting a rival's mouth with either a credit card or blade and then kicking them in the crotch; the band delivers the musical equivalent of this beatdown. Chelsea Grin features three guitarists who play downtuned start/stop speed-burst riffs and chugging breakdowns while Alex Koehlr delivers vocals that range from a Cookie Monster bass growl to a high-pitched banshee shriek. The bass and double bass drumming are beyond technically precise as they stay in pounding lock-step.
I'm not a huge fan of many deathcore bands as it seems, across the genre, that power and brutality are valued significantly more than melody but there are a couple of songs on Desolation of Eden which caught my ear. "The Human Condition" has a killer melodic guitar line which sets the stage for the instrumental track "Elysium" that follows. There is also the disc's finale, "Wasteland", where Alex Koehlr's murmured vocals are buried beneath chugging riffs. For fans of the genre, there should be more than enough here to sink your teeth into.
The band has built a solid fan base by constant touring over the last two years and they are currently out on the Burgers & Bowling tour with The Red Chord, MyChild MyBride and Those Who Lie Beneath. The tour is skipping NYC (why is it no longer a surprise that a lot of metal show skip the City?) and the closest date is March 12th at School of Rock in Hackensack, NJ.
Burgers & Bowling Tour Featuring: The Red Chord (Metal Blade), My Child My Bride, Chelsea Grin and Those Who Lie Beneath Mar 01, 2010 8:00PM, Flagstaff, Arizona Mar 02, 2010 8:00PM, Albuquerque, New Mexico Mar 03, 2010 8:00PM, Amarillo, Texas Mar 04, 2010 8:00PM, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Mar 05, 2010 8:00PM, Memphis, Tennessee Mar 06, 2010 8:00PM, Louisville, Kentucky Mar 07, 2010 8:00PM, Nashville, Tennessee Mar 08, 2010 8:00PM, New Brookland Tavern, Columbia, South Carolina Mar 09, 2010 8:00PM, Raleigh, North Carolina Mar 11, 2010 8:00PM, Lancaster, Pennsylvania Mar 12, 2010 8:00PM, South Hackensack, New Jersey Mar 13, 2010 8:00PM, Webster Underground, Hartford, Connecticut Mar 14, 2010 8:00PM, Water Front Tavern, Holyoke, Massachusetts
Chelsea Grin Headlining Tour Mar 15, 2010 8:00PM, The Vibe Lounge, Rockville Centre, New York Mar 16, 2010 8:00PM, Masquerade Club @ Crocodile, Allentown, Pennsylvania Mar 17, 2010 8:00PM, The Modern Exchange, Southgate, Michigan Mar 19, 2010 8:00PM, Bobby Mcgees, Chicago Ridge, Illinois Mar 20, 2010 8:00PM, The El Torreon, Kansas City, Missouri Mar 21, 2010 8:00PM, Marquis Theater, Denver, Colorado
Bring Me the Horizon made their US debut in August playing a show at BB King’s in Times Square with Kittie. The band has a major following in the UK (where they are signed to Visible Noise) and Earche has picked up US distribution rights. Earache recently reissued the band’s debut 4-track EP, This is What The Edge of Your Seat Was Made For, from 2005 along with the band’s full-length followup CD (2006) Count Your Blessings.
The band has created quite a buzz with their live shows. Gigwise.com described a 2006 show at Hammersmith Apollo as “Mix into the equation a few stage dives, somersaults and a well-orchestrated wall of death ([Sykes]parts the crowd and gets them to run at each other ‘Braveheart’-style)." Over the past two years, Bring Me The Horizon have played major festivals like Download and have toured with a number of high profile bands that have included Lostprophets and Killswitch Engage.
The music on This Is What The Edge of Your Seat Was Made For doesn’t break any new ground but this isn't a bad thing as the band is a solid metal/screamo act. The four songs on this EP are aggressive metalcore. The four musicians (two guitars, bass and drum) are very technically proficient but flash doesn’t get in the way of substance. Most of the songs are powered by melodic guitar work and Oli Skykes’ voice.
Lyrically, the four tracks on the EP have emo themes that range from having lousy friends who treat you badly, living life to the fullest in the present, and trying to convince yourself that it is ok to cheat on a girlfriend. Here is the video for the last track on the EP, "Traitors Never Play Hang Man":
The song is pretty wild and representative of the other tracks on this EP. You can see the wild mosh pit, the breakdowns and the song grinds to a slow halt with Oli’s gurgling scream “I fucking love you”. He seems to be trying to convince himself of his love for his girlfriend.
Here is the track listing for the EP: 1) re: They Have No Reflections 2) Who Wants Flowers When You're Dead? Nobody 3) Rawwwrr! 4) Traitors Never Play Hang Man
There are a number of Bring Me The Horizon videos on YouTube - one of the more recent is the live video for "They Have No Reflections" (below).
Bring Me The Horizon has a lot of potential so I'll be looking forward to their next release. This Is What The Edge of Your Seat Was Made For is only $5.00 if you purchase it directly from Earache.
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