Metalcore bruisers from Orange County, California are back with their fourth album. The first in 2 years since the band’s highest charting album Restoring Force. I’ve never managed to catch these guys live and I will explain further the preconceptions surrounding them that I had concocted in my mind which kept me away from the for so long, despite my peers being avid followers. Without further ado let’s begin!
I was not expecting that I would find this album enjoyable, due to my own preconceptions of who these guys are and what they were about. Don’t ask me why but I had these guys pegged as the next Suicide Silence before I heard this album where I could find tinges of Linkin Park, various rap metal and metalcore combinations swirling around. “Real” is by far my favourite song it perfectly captures a melodic song with musical changes that twist and turns dropping heavy beats and slick riffs, “Contagious” is another fantastic piece of writing that grips you from the get go and just has such a bouncy vibe, “The Lie” is heavy as hell. Other great tracks are “Relentless”, “Down The Road”, “Away” and “Like a Ghost”.
I have to add in here that lead vocalist Austin is in hospital suffering from an illness that affects his respiratory system and I wish him the best of luck in his recovery, more so that I can get around to seeing these guys live but also because illness sucks! Fantastic album here and I can say for certain they’ve won themselves a fan here. Further proof that assumptions and delusions are the worst traits when approaching new music.
4.5/5
Review by James Webb
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