Yes, ABR has released some dates when they will visit Europe. Here are the dates.
I will be on one of these for sure, will you?
This 6 piece post-hardcore band comes from Troy, Michigan. “To Plant A Seed” is their debut album. Some say they are shit, some say that they are really awesome, but what do I think?
This band has 2 vocalists, which is nothing new. Some people actually has something against having 2 singers, personally I don’t get it. If you could choose one mediocre singer or two singer where one is good at screaming and the other one at singing, what would you do? The last of the two is the best in my book. When it comes to We Came As Romans David Stephens is the one screaming his guts out. He does it good. Forcefully he commands your attention and he doesn’t let go. This guy fits this bands music perfectly. He’s not the best screamer you will ever hear, but a damn good one. Above average I would say actually. On “Broken Statues” he does this kind of battle cry and it’s awesome.
Kyle Pavoce is the guy taking care of the clean vocals. In my mind, there is a little too much production to it all. It just sounds to polished for my taste. I got to give them cred tough, it’s interesting to see Kyle and David work together. It flows between clean and screaming vocals in a really good way. They jump between each other in such a good manner, remember this is their debut album. Their talent in the vocal area when it comes to switching between each other, where what type of vocal fits is spot on. If they only could let the clean vocals be a little more “human” I would think it would be even better. Kyle does not only handle the clean vocals, he also takes care of the keyboard, synthesizer etc. We Came As Romans have a lot of this stuff in their music. I quite like it actually. Sometimes it becomes a bit much, but overall it’s nice. It creates this “wall of sound”, it just feels like they have filled out the tracks sound completely.
We Came As Romans guitarists will not blow your mind. They are not doing anything super special. Sure, they got a few good moments, but overall nothing makes them really stand out from the crowd. Although they might not do anything special, it’s good for what it is. Andrew Glass is there, but as usual when it comes to bassists, he doesn’t get a lot of space to show of skills. He knows his space so to speak. When it comes to drums Eric Choi does it pretty good. Nothing that makes you have an eargasm, but not bad either. He complements the music, but isn’t that experimental. “Stick to what you know” is something boring, or rather “stick to what you KNOW the fans will like”. Make it a little more interesting.
Since this is a post-hardcore band, they have breakdowns. Are they good? Sometimes. I never really got a feeling during the record for the breakdowns. Often you can hear when they will come. We Came As Romans sometimes just seem to put them in on random places where they take you with surprise. As I mentioned earlier We Came As Romans is like this “wall of sound”, if you don’t like that type of thing, stay away. If you don’t like “electronic” elements in your music, check out some other band. These guys are trying to sound “epic” or something close to that. Orchestral synth stuff, does that sound bad? Well, get used to it if your going to listen to this band. When push comes to shove, this band stands out from the other post-hardcore bands. There is something here. This is their debut album and although I have some complaints, it can be fixed. I’m looking forward to their next release. Not so produced vocals, maybe a little more “outside the box” thinking when it comes to guitars/drums and I think we could have smash hit. I seriously believe that these guys can make it far. They are young, they will evolve, I hope for the better. If you look at their lyrics, there is meaning behind them, something I like really much. All in all, I would call this a good debut album.
Rating: 3,5/5
This 5 piece band formed in 2009 have been receiving some buzz around them of late. Is it well deserved or are they just another generic metalcore band?
First I thought Shawn Spann on vocals was pretty generic. Nothing made him stand out from the masses of vocalists. He wasn’t bad, but he was not that good either. He’s aggressive, harsh and has this “balls to the walls” kind of feel. He actually reminds me a bit of Andreas Dörner from Caliban. It’s good for what it is, but it could be much better. A little more variation would lift him up beyond an average singer in my mind. There is no clean vocals whatsoever which is cool, I don’t think it would fit this band anyway. And I’m getting sick and tired of all those autotune bitches. If you can’t sing clean, don’t do it. Spann seems to be clear at what he wants to do and ain’t trying to fake something just to fit in, creds for that. Although Spann as a singer is generic, borderline boring at times, he makes up for it by his emotion and lyrics. This band is a Christian one but I believe that many of the lyrics can be applied to everyone. It’s about life in general most of the time. Trying to figure out who you are, where you’re place in this world is, what we are doing here etc. You don’t have to be Christian to ask those questions.
Most of the time Armand Vincent with his bass is not audible. Like many other metalcore bands, it seems like the bassist is just there for no apparent reason. To think that something like an audible bass would set you apart from the rest of the pack is pretty crazy. Morgan Wright behind his kit brings nothing new to the table. He keeps it technical enough (barely). To be fair, he has some nice fills at times. When it comes to guitars Jered Youngbar and Justin Huffman does it ok. Sometimes really good actually(e.g. “Empathy”). They use a bit to much chugga chugga and their melodic element could be better overall. I’m a bit disappointed these guys are signed to Sumerian Records, with label mates as The Faceless and Veil Of Maya I expected a bit more technical guitar work.
This record is a bit to generic all in all for me. I don’t really see anything special in them compared to all the other bands out there. Some people have said that they sound like a young ABR, I can see in a way where they are coming from. But still they are very different bands. I THE BREATHER is a young band, they can evolve much beyond this point. “Empathy” shows their true musical talent, why they didn’t make more use of it during the rest of the record I don’t know. They remind me a bit of Cynic (a really good compliment in my mind). Please take away all those breakdowns, it became to much, take away all that chugga chugga got damn shit and make THIS kind of music. I actually said “wow, wtf!?” when “Empathy” started playing. I got sad when it was done, because then it was back to normal. It’s like two different bands. Okay, “Empathy” is a instrumental track but it’s a HUGE difference between that track and the rest of the record.
To me, all the tracks blend together, not many stand out. Most of them are generic and it’s a shame. It’s only like 2-3 tracks that stand out from the rest. I will say that it’s an average album, if not worse. They like to stay within the lines of metalcore. Not explore, just play it safe. Guys, you have talent, you showed that foremost in “Empathy” and “Illuminate”. Why the hell rely on chugga chugga riff shit and breakdowns when you can play you did on “Empathy”? This record where on my rating scale, at first like a 1. But after hearing “Empathy” and “Illuminate” (the end part of it) it became another other ball game. From being “only” emotional (which I like) and not having that many great melodies to those tracks? These 2 are the highlights of the album, no doubt about that. Your passion for your music and that you guys put in some work in this cd is clear. This album is generic, it’s awful, it’s simply put, bad. All the negatives out weighs the positives on this album. It’s almost impossible to tell which song you’re listing to and I’m not kidding. They are that alike. Personally I think fans of this bands are fans because of the message which is ok. ITB shows that they certainly got some musical talent, it’s a shame they don’t use it.
Rating: 2/5
Between The Buried And Me is one of my favorite bands. I don’t think I need to tell you who they are do I? Anyway, they are planning on releasing an EP early this year. ZOMG! That’s just awesome! Can’t wait for that “shit” to drop!
Yes, a 13 old girl has said that she herself prays and wants you to pray for some of the death metal bands out there. She feels that these bands must have gone through something horrible in their life to be this satanic etc. As we all know most of this is image. Because people believe they look bad ass, but hey, its great entertiment for the rest of us? As the little girl can see below, metalheads are either slightly homo or extremely retarded, not satanic.
We went from this…(slighty homo I know)
To this (super funny picture with “badasses”)
Misery Signals is one of those bands that aren’t yet huge but their fans are passionate about their music. This review will be about their record Controller that was released in 2008. It’s their latest record to date, but is it their best work?
Many people have called metalcore a dying genre, which in a sense I can understand. It’s oversaturated with bands and new bands just keep on coming. Metalcore have become a genre where this type of aggressive music can get more mainstream. Labels, bands etc obviously use this to their advantage. Now a days it seems that you really don’t have to posses any talent to get signed. Labels push out new bands daily it seems. Not only that but with sites as Myspace, Facebook and the like, it’s easier then ever to get people talking about your band. Finding the good bands can at times seem to be impossible, it’s like finding a needle in a haystack.
Misery Signals is a metalcore band to it’s very core. But do they deserve the attention they have been getting? Yes. This actually is one of those bands that deserves a lot of praise. They are not trying to hide the fact that they are a metalcore band. Breakdowns, chugga chugga riffs etc it’s all there. But it’s how they use them that makes them stand out. They can smash your head in with a bat then to make up for it, give you a nice home cooked meal before they hit you with the frying pan. It’s this back and forth between different styles within their own music that makes them stand out. One second they have this “chugga chugga, here comes the train that will run you over” sound and the next second this delightful soft part in the song where you like “Ah what a nice warm bath”. Suddenly you notice Snooki in the corner of your bathroom and you almost die of terror, it’s this kind of back and forth movements in their music that makes them special. Sure other bands do this too, but not as good as Misery Signals do it.
This is the second record vocalist Karl Schubach and he sounds a lot better on “Controller” than he did on the previous album “Mirrors”. I mean, it sounds like a fucking beast is coming out of your speakers. He sounds so angry, like if he had to listen to those got damn Jonas Brothers over and over again. In some ways Karls lyrics can be somewhat cryptic, in other ways it’s as clear as glass. He possess a vocabulary(!). Something that many vocalists don’t have or don’t want to show(?). This does not apply to Karl. These lyrics have flow, they are good. Word by word it all comes together, every things just fits perfectly. Karl sounds intelligent, something that can’t be said about many vocalists in the metalcore/hardcore world. Trying to match up words so they rhyme is not Karl’s game. He speaks his mind and doesn’t try to get fancy with it.
Ryan Morgan and Stu Ross(left 2010), what can be said besides, oh my god! I love these guys. They really know how to use their guitars to make amazing songs. Seriously, listen to “Homecoming”, tell me that isn’t an awesome song? I will fucking slap you if you say otherwise. Every thing they do on this album is pure gold. Everything fits together amazingly well. They know exactly what riff should be where in a song, if it should be clean/distorted etc. Sometimes when you hear a track you will think “well the riff is ok, but they could have done better”, that isn’t the case with “Controller”. Each and every riff, lick, chugga chugga moment is amazing. There is no “meh” moment on this record.
Branden Morgan is amazing behind the drums. He is a really good drummer, easily one of the best within metalcore. I don’t know much about drums, but that I know. Just listen to Misery Signals, it’s all there. He makes fills, make use of polyrhythms and just makes every song complete with his drumming. One pretty amazing thing about Misery Signals is that you can actually hear bassist Kyle Johnson (left 2010) which in it self should give major credit to the band. Not many bands within the metalcore community would dare to do that, it’s “blasphemy”.
Controller is one of the best metalcore albums in recent years. It’s 3 years old and still cuts it between the best metalcore records ever made? Really amazing. It’s technical, it’s intense, it’s emotional, it’s Misery Signals. As I said in the start of this review, this band is pure gold. Controller is their best album to date, it’s the among the best within it’s genre. Doesn’t that speak loads of how good this album actually is? This is progressive, it’s different from what everyone else is doing, it wants to grab your attention. This is a benchmark for all metalcore bands and will probably be just that for along time to come. Check these guys out, you won’t regret it.
Rating: 5/5
In metalcore Killswitch Engage has been one of the biggest bands around for years. In 2002 when Alive Or Just Breathing was released the band got more exposure than ever before. It came as a shock for most fans when Jesse Leech the lead singer left the band after their recent success. A couple of years has went by since Jesse left the band, now he and Adam Dutkiewicz (KSE lead guitarist) has joined forces to start a new band together named Times Of Grace. I think most people who have heard AOJB are excited for this new release, I know I am. Jesse has vocals to die for, there is something really special about him. I think almost everyone who have heard AJOB will agree with me. Hymn of a Broken Man will be out the 18th of January this year, be sure to check it out.
This 5 piece band hails from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. When Will We surrender is their first full length album, is it any good? Well let’s see.
Their lyrics revolves around a “never giving up” attitude and to accompany that a very melodic sound. Like many other metalcore/melodic hardcore bands they have the “famous” breakdowns. A must in this genre of music. But the difference between Hundredth and a lot of other bands seems to be that the former uses less breakdowns. Yes, the breakdowns are there but there is not a overuse (or underuse either for that matter). It’s nearly perfect in my mind.
One thing that annoys me about this band is that bassist Michael Raymo is not present. Well ok, he’s there, but you can’t hear it. This is true for a lot of bands in this genre. Although I love this kind of music, I have never really understood why they need a bassist in the first place if he never gets to shine, even if just a little bit. Now that is a minor complaint that can be applied to 99% of all band in this genre. But nevertheless it’s a valid complaint. Drummer Matt Koontz is for the most part just an average drummer that shines from time to time. I would like him to take a little more space in their music, there are some drum fills where he shows what he can do, more of that please.
Alex Blackwell and Andrew Minervini plays guitar in Hundredth. On this record they have the usual chugging and riff combination as most bands in metalcore/melodic hardcore does. No solos are present which can be a bit disappointing for some people, but I feel that the guitars are good enough as they are. They contribute much to Hundredth melodic sound. A good solo would certainly make this band stand out even more but isn’t a necessity to make you remember or like this band.
When it comes to the vocals they are really good. The first time I listen to this band I understood almost every word, which isn’t always the case with such aggressive vocals. But you come to a certain point where singer Chadwick Johnson vocals becomes a bit repetitive, a bit boring actually. Next time around I hope that he has worked a bit on this so that he has a bigger spectrum to play around with. If you listen to this record you might pick up on that the vocals changes in some songs. Well you might actually be right, there are 3 guest vocalists that makes appearances on this record. The first track of the record, “Catalysts” features Matthew Hasting of MyChildren MyBride. Then we have Jonathan Vigil of The Ghost Inside doing his thing on the track “Desolate”. Last but not least we have Ian Fike of It Prevails on the track “Willows”.
“Catalysts” features Matthew Hasting of MyChildren MyBride who I’m personally not that familiar with. I would say that he makes a decent performance on this song. It’s ok, not more than that.
On “Desolate” Jonathan Vigil makes an appearance. Although I love The Ghost Inside as a band and love Vigils vocals, it’s a bit hard to work out who’s who in this track. Still a great track though.
I love how they make use of Ian Fikes vocals on “Willows”. This song suits him perfectly. I love the lyrics too.
“My Whole Life…I’ve been compared to those around me. Expectations on my shoulder and people to please.
I will no longer sway with the willows. I will stand strong on my own. When everyone lets me down, I will stand strong alone.”
There are tons of melodic hardcore bands out there, but I think what makes Hundredth stand out from the masses are their undeniable passion for their music. This band does not reinvent the wheel by any means, but it’s nonetheless really good music. Remember that this is their first full length album, hopefully they have a lot of time to improve. I think that with a little work these guys can get huge. I’m not kidding, there is something about this record that takes a hold of you and just won’t let go. Although this record can get a bit repetitive or even a little bit cliché for this genre, it’s full of emotion and that is what saves it. I can’t wait for their next release, keep an eye on these guys, they are on to something great.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Welcome to Aggressive Music! You all can call me “E” because I’m fun like Ecstasy. Nah, I’m just joking. I’m a music lover that loves to write, so the goal with this blog is to fuse those two things together. There will be news, reviews, maybe some interviews later on. Most of it will revolve around metalcore/hardcore/metal music. Sometimes I will feature other styles of music too, as I actually do like many more genres besides metal and it’s sub-genres.
Aggressive music 