(Review) The Battle Within - The Midst of Perdition (2012)

The Battle Within

The Midst of Perdition EP

Genre: Melodic Deathcore / Progressive / Technical

Release Date: March 2012

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Review

So aside from the new albums coming from Thy Art is Murder, Resist the Thought, and (maybe) Whitechapel, The Battle Within's "The Midst of Perdition" was one of my most anticipated releases of 2012. They put up 3 songs from the EP on their Facebook ages ago, and at last, the day has come to wield the entire beast.

I fell absolutely in love with the tracks they released. The sick melodies, insane breakdowns, and crazy vocals were just flawless in the deathcore world. But that's 3 songs of 7. Could the rest of TBW's new EP live up to the teaser they delighted us with? That's gonna be hard, because the play count of those few songs are ridiculously high on my iTunes. I feel they mastered deathcore, but let's see if the rest of the album is more than 3 good songs.

So, I could go on about the fucking sick album cover, but Track 1, the introduction, is simply a noise track building a mysteriously eerie ambience for the EP, but as you should know, I don't count intro tracks as songs unless it's meant to be. So moving on, we are introduced with "The Procedure of Man" which shows us the first track they havn't released yet. One thing we notice instantly, TBW doesn't fuck around. They make their music intense. This song just constantly hits hard and shows that "creepy" ambience that they like to delight us with in a few of these tracks. Landon Brown absolutely nails it on vocals with outstanding range, which we hear throughout the EP. So yeah, I'd check this song off...not a disappointment. But didn't necessarily tickle my insides like some of the other tracks. And then "Night Dweller" plays...and shit...what a surprise.

The track begins with that creepy tone crushing on your ears, and then....a beautifully done melodic riff kicks in, just making it impossible to walk away. The song begins to progress off this tasty...sort of happy sounding riff. Then of course, they show their brutalities, give a few chugs, and wham...back to melody. Done oh so well. The ending breakdown was cool, but didn't show their insane potential for breakdowns...which we will see soon in the EP. And whatta ya know? "Constrained to My Captivity" starts up. This track was one of the original tracks they released, and it's fucking heavy. Love it. The song constantly moves from brutality to melodies, and then inserts a memorably powerful breakdown mid-song. This one is a track you'll come back to, no doubt. We also see the insane work of their drummer (sorry, forgot the name) and he is a fucking monster. So 3/7 tracks so far with no disappointments. "Clockwork" followed suit....glad to say. "Clockwork" differs a little from the other tracks, implementing different techniques and signatures that are incredible. Bone crushing breakdowns, crazy riffs, and beautiful guitar licks. As the song fades with a graceful guitar-leading breakdown, the happy thoughts disperse. "Anatomizer" crushes it, and may be one of the sickest songs we have here. The track also implements that eerie side to TBW, but sounds rediculously perfect in creepy melodies and powerful breaks. This tracks shows what TBW is all about, and will indeed drop jaws.

The next track is a personal favorite of mine. May be one of the best songs I've heard in such a long time. Keep in mind, I do think the older production of those 3 songs sounded much heavier (Structures In Body Bags, Constrained to My Captivity, Anatomizer) but it's not that big of a difference and they're still sick. But this particular track, "Structures in Body Bags," whether it's the old version or the new, will be played by me for years. This track never leaves my mind. The song introduces us with such a addictive riff, that is just so catchy and melodic, and I can never forget it. The song moves along into an insane cookie cutting breakdown, something Thy Art is Murder would pull...and that's saying something, a little into the song and it's just so powerful. The song transitions through melodies, breakdowns, and even softness, into the brutal ending. The song's just perfect. And at last, one more track to go. 

The album ends with "Anathema". Well, if you like technical, brutal, melodic, progressive, and crazy...you've found a track to listen to for a while. "Anathema" packs such a punch from crazy blast beats to insane rhythms and breakdowns. Technical, and fast, the song is a beast. As the final seconds of the song, we are thrown into a repetitive kick technical breakdown, and as the song ends, chills hit my spine...and the only thing I wanted at that moment....was more.

 

The Battle Within really did it here. They took every single generic aspect of deathcore and improved upon them with every section of every song. This EP will send your heart racing and your head banging constantly. This shows true talent, from the incredible guitar writers who are sick as hell, and the insane drummer who is just a master of the sets, to the awesome range of vocals. If you're a deathcore fan, this EP has everything, and I mean everything you could want in an album....and more. 

THE VERDICT

The Midst of Perdition EP is one of the most incredible deathcore albums ever. It displays everything from amazing writing to exceptional talent. The Battle Within succeeds by making us want nothing but more from them to hear.

5 out of 5

I also want to thank band member Paul Duran for sending the EP to me to make this review. Wish the best of luck to ya fellas. You can count on me dropping money on tons of TBW shit as well as the EP itself.

-Vince

(Review) Eyes of the Defiled - Derived From Misery (2012)

Eyes of the Defiled

Derived From Misery EP

Genre: Deathcore

Release Date: March 2012

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Review

I love Christian metal bands. Not just because I'm Christian. Because Christian metal bands are brave. They have the balls to stand up to the metal community and say "Screw all you, Jesus Christ is my savioir" and take all the hate and unbiased crap from the idiots who think God's fake (and yes, you're an idiot if you don't believe....it's as simple as that...but I'm not gonna get into it). So here we have a brave band hailing from Crisfield, showing us brutal music and words of the Lord. Two words....fuck yes.

This EP is the band's debut, first ever release. And a powerful one at that. But let's remember, this is deathcore...and that means there's very little room for originality and a ton of room for generic pieces of crap. So lets dive into EOTD's first impression.

Right off the bat, the EP's intro track dives into brutal vocals, diminished chugs, and strange noises. Nice, but have we heard this before? Yes...a thousand times. I thought it sounded rather sick however, but my hopes were sort of low for the rest of the EP after hearing an opening as generic as this. And then the next track started. "Buried As Saints"...and oh boy. Did this song prove me wrong. The track starts with a rather unsual sort of riff in deathcore, its not heavy, but the blasts make you interested. And then a creepy synthed breakdown comes in, now making you understand the heavy side of these kids. The song progresses...and done oh so well, throwing you from riff to breakdown, riff to breakdown, blasts, and repeat. May sound generic, but the band has a sort of unique sound and some great time signatures...also hitting us with technical taps and licks. Love it. The song's breakdown, for me, at 1:40-2:30ish made a huge impact on me. I absolutely loved how they threw it in the listeners face. Sick breakdown...and just the type I've been looking for.

As we continue to listen to the EP, we find the next 2 only actual tracks of the album aside from the intro/outro. "Final Judgement" packs a punch, but is sort of boring as compared to the previous track. But the band shows their heavier side here. Pounding some fast repetitive double bass and diminished breakdowns. It's just...with this song, we've heard most of this all before. Some of the song, EOTD shows their unique writing, but did not impress me like "Buried As Saints" did. The next track, still not as good as track 2 (I'm sorry...but that song is so good) is an improvement however. Not as heavy, but it's a track that progresses and builds until the intense ending breakdown. At last the outro carries in, and actually gives a sick ending breakdown as the album fades to silence.

Well, while EOTD may not be the most original, they know how to make deathcore that packs a punch, and know what they're doing. The EP is not perfect, but this is just their debut. They have pleeennntttyy of time to progress, and God, they may just become one of the sickest bands ever, because this EP shows so much potential. I may not say this is the greatest album, but I can at least garuntee "Buried As Saints" will have a bigass play count on my iTunes.

THE VERDICT

Derived From Misery EP, isn't revolutionary, but it's sick nonetheless, and shows a noob band's exceptional potential. Add this to your list bitches.

4 out of 5

(Review) Slice the Cake - The Man With No Face (2012)

 

Slice the Cake

The Man With No Face

Genre: Progressive Deathcore, Symphonic, Jazz, EVERYTHING

Release Date: March 1, 2012

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So, I went for a run today. Why? Besides getting in shape, I ran because the final song from this album is 21 minutes long, and what better way to express metal through exercise. But this album, this album....it's something you've never heard before. Is this good or bad? Well, nigguhs, let me explain what Slice the Cake is all about.

First off, I want to add that SLC's first EP, Cleansed, released back in 2010, was a masterpiece. Brilliant deathcore with amazing melodies, brutal breakdowns, and awesome breaks into flowing instrumentals. An amazing EP. So when I first got a listen of this album back in February, it sounded awesome, but could it follow up to the beast that was Cleansed?

The Man With No Face is not just an album. It's a journey, a story. Lets open to chapter 1 and begin.

The album begins with an intro track of just noises. Mysterious ones, but lets move on......We are pounded into a progressive track called "Rational Thinking" which attacks you out of nowhere and demonstrates the bands heavy side. The shortest song on the album, filled with intense blasts and breaks, and it's sick, but nothing too special. So again we move on. "City of Ghosts".....holy shit. This song is absolutely incredible. A progressive masterpiece fuzing jazzy bass interludes and insane groovy riffs to make you wobble. It's amazing. They throw in occasional beautifully melodic riffs and sounds that make you feel right at home, and pound you with their insane Slice the Cake sound. "Time Unwinding" follows bringing even more awesomeness to the table. An insane deathcore track that now introduces us to the amazing clean guitar abilities of these guys, a tool we will see ALOT in this album. Then "Of Gallows" follows perfectly, with a beautiful piano introduction with synths, which drags us into a melodic death metal masterpiece. The breakdowns in this song are sick, and the emotional feeling of the song is one to give you chills. The track introduces multiple symphonic devices....pianos, violins, drumrolls, stuff you'd hear in a movie trailer. We also hear the clean vocals of this band, but what I like about these cleans are that they DO NOT sound like a fucking 5 year old girl. He sounds masculine....just as it should, and it fits beatifully. We move on to "As Written in Pnakotus", which to me, isn't necessarily the best track. Definitely displays talented ability from this band, but puts too many noises and screams that are just....undecipherable. Brought my boner down for a minute or two, and then "Equillibrium" kicked in. Wow. Such beautiful clean guitars and brilliantly original writing....like a chorus of angels this group makes this song. Now, the 6 minute song only has about 2-3 minutes of actual metal, but when you hear this song you will be satisfied, because when the metal kicks in, its so fast, so brutal, and so technical....you just cannot ask for more. Now the next track "The Chasm" introduces insane grooves and djenty aspects, which are so damn sick in this track. It's brilliant. So brilliant. One thing I did forget to mention is the vocals. This guys vocals are so awesome. His growls have a distinct beast to it and fit the style so perfectly. Now for the last track....21 minutes..."The Man with No Face". I'm just gonna sum it up. The song is sick, just like the rest, but its just plain too long. There are plenty of badass STC moments, but 21 minutes get monotonous. 

Now, Slice the Cake did something here that no band has done in quite some time. They not only have originality...but every minute of every single track is original. Every one. This album is absolutely genius, and blends so many different elements of metal, jazz, and synth. If you're looking for generic breakdowns, go away. If you're looking for pussy 17 year olds, go away. If you're looking for the usual, go away. And If you're looking for anything short of perfection, get the hell out. This album takes more effort than anything I've heard, and if I could describe this album in one word. It'd be:

Beautiful.

THE VERDICT

The Man With No Face is the only album you'll hear that brings everything new to the table, and yes, in a very fucking good way.

4.5 out of 5

(Review) The Last Ten Seconds of Life - Warpath EP (2012)

The Last Ten Seconds of Life

Warpath EP

Genre: Deathcore, Hardcore

Release Date: March 2012

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Review

TLTSOL is a band that never really struck my attention. Their first EP, Justice, was introduced just last year, and while I enjoyed the vocalists insane brutal vocals, the intense chugs, and the crazy sound, this band was simply just generic, somewhat boring, and never appealed after a few listens. Wasnt a disaster, just didn't bring anything new to the table. 

They released another full length short after. Slightly progressing, but still nothing too impresive. And shortly after that, early 2012, we have "Warpath EP". This short EP can be described in one word with an adjective:

Fucking brutal.

But is brutality enough for a solid album?

Warpath EP starts off with an extremely pointless intro song of about 20 seconds, with just noise. I was expecting a breakdown or something, but na. Oh well, 3 songs to go. Then, we are introduced to "Punishment". Right off the bat, you can tell that TLTSOL moved more towards hardcore than deathcore. But Jesus, "Punishment" smacked me in the face. The breakdown was heavy enough to break my neck and his vocals were some of the sickest gutturals I've heard since Big Chocolate. So this song caught my attention, but only ran at about 2 minutes. The ending breakdown, awfully generic, but so powerful, makes us want more. And then, we play "Warpath".

 The song "Warpath" starts off very progressive and beats your ass. It's a constant battle of brutality, chugs, and gutturals. It's awesome, but kind of boring and generic. Some parts here and there make you wanna hit something, but for the most part, all you're listening to is diminished breakdowns and blast beats. That's it. Cool, but way overdone. The last track "Break Stuff" is a cover of the old Limp Bizkit song. In my opinion, this is only enjoyable to fans of the LB song. I thought it was rather pointless.

Aside from the constant bashing I've just done, Warpath EP packs a punch and hits you in the face harder than alot of things you hear nowadays. The only problems, is that it's rather generic and the production is somewhat poor. Not horrid, but their previous work had way better production. 

THE VERDICT

Warpath EP is sick, but brings nothing new to the table.

3 of out 5

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