Review: Crown The Empire - Limitless

Artist: Crown The Empire
Album: Limitless EP
Facebook:
Rating: 5/5

Tracklist:

1. Walls (The Glass Elevator)

2. Breaking Point

3. Wake Me Up

4. Voices

5. Johnny Ringo

6. Limitless (ft. Denis Shaforostov of Make Me Famous)

7. Lead Me Out of the Dark

First of all, let me take the time to apologize for the long period of time I've been inactive on this site. I have been very busy and have had VERY little time to do anything else. But let me assure you that I am still reviewing and I still intend to do reviews, just not as often. Without further ado, here's my first for 2012. Hope you guys enjoy it! Really stoked on this one!

First of all, let me congratulate these guys on their recent signing to Rise Records! They are truly deserving of it! Crown The Empire from Dallas, TX have been making a name for themselves slowly but surely ever since they released their first demo "Breaking Point". In a world where artists have very little control and labels are like tyrants, they broke free and were quite successful with the release of their first EP. This band has unique vocals, powerful screams, moving melodies, and catchy dance-along choruses, what more could you want from an electronic/post-hardcore album right? If that's not enough, they added a little acoustic track at the end just to bring it all to an amazing close. I've been talking to these guys since I started reviewing and let me tell you, they are some of the nicest guys I've ever talked to. They were SO pumped to release "Limitless" and I am equally pumped to review this monumental EP. So sit back, relax, and read on.

Key Tracks:

Johnny Ringo: This track has quite possibly the weirdest intro I've heard in awhile but as the song progresses, it's actually quite powerful. It sealed itself in as my favorite track on the EP as soon as I first heard it! The intro sounds like something you might hear at the circus, but the song itself is amazing. The lyrics are about taking control of your life, claiming what is rightfully yours, and basically giving the finger to anyone who doesn't like it. (But I'm sure there are other interpretations, that's what it means to me.)

Limitless: When I heard the guest vocalist on this track was going to be Denis, I freaked. Denis is quite the vocalist, a little too cocky but he doesn't seem like a bad guy. Putting Crown The Empire and Denis together though? Pure fucking magic! This song is about never settling for anything less than what you deserve. The title says it all. We are limitless! Nothing can hold us back if we truly want something.

Lead Me Out of the Dark: The dark acoustic closing to the album. What can I say about this track except that it's beautiful, heartfelt, amazing, and eerie all in one! Andrew's voice is INCREDIBLE. I don't think this album would be the same without this track.

Final Thoughts:

Well, it's WAAAAY overdue, but I finally got it done. This is quite possibly the best EP to hit my ears in awhile! These guys are gonna go really far! Look for them in a town near you when they start their tour in a few weeks! I'm sure we can expect a full-length from them by the end of the year, too! Don't take my word for how amazing this album is. Go pick it up for yourself! Either on iTunes, on their BigCartel or even better, meet the guys yourself and pick up a copy directly from them at a show!

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REVIEW: Doomsday Mourning - Culture Of Corruption

Band: Doomsday Mourning
Album: Culture of Corruption
Buy: Itunes
Rating: 4/5















Tracklist

1. Zero Minutes (feat. Kevin from Line of Scrimmage)
2. Player Haters Ball (feat. Rick from This or the Apocalypse)
3. Culture of Corruption (feat. TJ from Knuckle Up!)
4. Legends Are Made Not Broken
5. Oneone3sevenoh (feat. Eric from The Confrontation)


Fans of their old EP ''The Science of Exploitation'' can stop reading here and buy this album right now!
For the people that never heard of Doomsday Mourning, they are a five man band coming from New York with a simple yet unique sound, with just one thought in mind: making angry fucking music!
And they succeeded with that for the second time with this new EP, much like the first release the whole album has a constant heavy flow with a grimey meshuggah/beatdown influenced sound combined with some of the most hatefull lyrics ever heard.
And when i say hatefull i do mean hatefull.
The reason for this is the lyrical content, its not about aliens, universes, spaceships, dimensions or all that crap you might be used to, its not about the wrath of god or an impending apocalypse either, the lyrics are about real life situations that everyone can relate to, and thats exacly the reason why i feel the need to strangle someone to death everytime i hear this music.

The EP starts strong with the track ''zero minutes'' which uses the word ''fuck'' more than the pope molests little children, which is a good thing because by now you know your in for a wild ride (and you might end up with some bruises).
This agression is kept throughout the whole EP.

Another interesting concept they brought back in this second release are the many guest vocalists, which is something i personally didnt think they could manage to bring back, but im glad they did! we're talking almost every track here! its not something you see alot with other bands in this genre, atleast not this many on one album (it reminds me more of rap albums).
I can only hope they will keep doing it for future releases because it makes for an interesting music style.

In short: Doomsday Mourning is a band who knows what their fans want: no-bullshit music, no over complicated technical metal, no expensive overproduced albums, just grimey in your face angry music that will get you fucking pumped.
Dont dismiss this as another mediocre album, give it an honest chance and go listen to this shit!

Also make sure to keep an eye out for their full length album ''Predisposed'' coming later this year.

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END YEAR REVIEW: Personal Best Albums Of 2011

Here are my best albums of 2011, with all the great releases it was hard to narrow it down to just 10 albums so i picked the ones that i remembered the most.


10. Bury Your Dead - Mosh N Roll

It's safe to say this band totally redeemed itself with the return of vocalist Mat Bruso and a return to their old style, which is what most fans really wanted i think.
In my personal opinion that nu metal shit from ''It's Nothing Personal'' ruined this band, like so many other bands got ruined because of member changes or ''evolving'' their music style, Im just happy BYD isnt one of those bands anymore.
It's not perfect, but this album is still worth checking out, it has a good hardcore sound and plenty of ''FUCKS'' in the lyrics to satisfy your angry music needs.


9. Confession - The Long Way Home

An album that turned out to be a suprisingly good release.
While i do consider their previous album ''cancer'' a VERY enjoyable album i didnt think they could pull it off a second time,
specialy after hearing the ''Break Stuff'' cover which was just painfully bad and boring, but thankfully they went with their own unique style again on this release.
Even though it has weird pop punk cleans which are kinda terrible and a bit to frequent in most of the songs, i can somewhat tolerate it because the previous album had the same singing.
But along with some other experimental shit, the lovely hardcore vocals and bouncy riffs still dominate and makes the album catchy as fuck, it provides a overall nice flow that keeps me coming back.


8. Suffokate - Return to Despair

This probably wouldve been higher on the list if they kept their style from ''No Mercy No Forgiveness''
Which is one of my all-time favorite albums because of the agressive hardcore / groovy sound i immediately fell in love with.
This new release however, needed some time to grow on me. While it still has those groovy parts in SOME songs,
the majority of the music is more melodic / death metal oriented now, and that doesnt really make the songs stand out from one another.
with that being said its not a bad or terrible album by any means, but i guess my expectations were just a little different.
But to name some more positive things of this release: it doesnt have cleans (LOL), i like the production alot and the highs really improved aswell.
Also im impressed they released this album fairly quick compared to the HUGE gap between the last two albums (FU mediaskare XD).
If you didnt check this album out yet, give it an honest chance, its a good album deserving attention, just dont expect anything mindblowing.


7. My Autumn - Oblivion Era

This album made me wish i could understand russian, being one of the more known russian deathcore bands, they have yet to dissapoint me.
Like Confession they dont really bring anything new to the table with this new release but i just cant say no to music with a good flow in it, and that makes for good replay value!
The only thing i dont get about this album is the cleans, its only a MINOR annoyance since they can only be briefly heard in two of the songs (which makes you wonder why they were put in there at all, kinda pointless really)
Dont let that stop you from enjoying it tho, if your like me and want some good no-nonsense deathcore this album will be one of your favs of 2011 for sure!


6. Catalepsy - Bleed

This album is all about production and agressiveness, some say the production quality of this album is not that good,
but while it was intentional or not, that is exacly the reason it sets itself apart from the other dime a dozen hardcore / metal (or ''emmure'') bands.
I admit the album needed to grow on me because i was expecting something a little more deathcore styled, like their last album 'iniquity'.
But that doesnt mean its any less agressive (far from it) , though sadly you wont hear as much anti christian lyrics ,
the songs are still about fucking shit up and it helps set the mood to punch babies in the face nicely.


5. Depths - Resurgence

Out of the two (or three w/e) metal bands called Depths, this death metal one is by far the best!
With its crushing vocals, atmosphere and the occasional epic guitar sweep, this is the best thing to come out of New Zealand since...FOREVER!
A great thing about this little gem are the lyrics, they are more than just your average angry death metal lyrics you might expect at first,if you look closer youll see it goes a bit deeper than that.
With topics like a man struggling to keep his sanity, to the end of humanity itself, the lyrics set a great undertone to this bone splitting production that turned out better than i ever expected.


4. Apparitions - The Human Collapse

With all the wonderfull deathcore that has been given us this year, this is one of the better (and unexpected late year) releases.
There are two mistakes you can make with this album, the first one being you ignored it because its ''just another generic deathcore band'' and the second is never hearing of it!
With a solid metalcore/deathcore sound with some occasional technical influences, its a well crafted masterpiece from start to finish (which ends with a VERY nice Deftones cover btw)
Fans of Boris The Blade (they released a solid EP aswell go listen to it!) should definitely check this one out, since their sound seems to be a great influence.
Theres not much more i can say about this, just go listen to it and enjoy the cum flowing from your ears!


3. Breakdown Of Sanity - Mirrors

After hearing their last album 'The Last Sunset' i figured this band would never improve much.
Well it seems they did improve, ALOT on their new album 'Mirrors'.
In fact they improved EVERYTHING from the last release.
Not much more things can be said, the whole album is just a masterpiece from beginning to end.
Though it has some clean singing and melodic riffs (elements that are spammed alot with new bands and releases lately),
its never to the point where it gets boring or feels overused.The song structure is just right and sounds amazing!
So if you didnt hear this underated piece of sexyness yet and your into metal at all i highly recommend it!


2. Fit For An Autopsy - The process of Human Extermination

In a year where clean vocals and cheap melodic riffs seem to be the main selling point of many bands (*cough* FTFD *cough*),
This band stays down to earth and delivers one of the most crushing deathcore albums of the year!
The whole album from beginning to end is a relentless rollercoaster ride that stays fresh and intense with every song,
dont listen to it with pants on because you WILL soil them, some critics nag about it being 'dated' and filled with 'lame' breakdowns.
I say FUCK THEM! This is a perfect example of what metal is all about, agressive and soul sucking vocals, orgasmic lyrics , harsh breakdowns and brutal riffs, and thats all i expect from a metal band, simple as that.
If you havent heard this album, go check it out now by any means necessary!
You will not be dissapointed!


1.(AOTY!) Molotov Solution - Insurrection

To keep it short: this is a MINDBLOWING FUCKFEST OF AWESOMENESS TIMES INFINITY!
In my opinion THIS is how deathcore in 2011 should sound!
I havent jammed a cd in the car so many times since This Is Exile got released, and thats really saying something!
It has everything: agressive vocals, good lyrical content, epic breakdowns, sick riffage and most importantly diversity!
Even after hearing it so many times already, i still find myself mindlessly headbanging to all the songs, you cant hear all of the greatness in just one go.
I have nothing but praise for this band, having made two previous albums which i both consider masterpieces they've really outdone themselves this time around.
You can really tell alot of devotion and hard work went into this, and imo it paid off!
This album is living proof that deathcore is indeed still sexy and far from dead! \m/ >_< \m/


If you somehow found the time to read all of this and dont agree, here is some music more suitable to your tastes :)

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REVIEW: Keeping Secrets - The Last Transmission

Band: Keeping Secrets

Album: The Last Transmission

Rating:

Buy: iTunes
BigCartel

Tracklisting:

1. Mayday! Mayday!

2. Chris West

3. Hollywood

4. The Last Transmission

5. Crisis of Faith

6. Number 6

If you haven't heard of Keeping Secrets and you are a fan of the electronic/post-hardcore genres, you're really missing out! From first listen this band has captivated audiences like no band in the Seattle area in quite awhile (myself included). When my friend, Willie, showed me their music over 2 years ago, I was immediately captured and drawn in. Their debut album The Rescue which was released on August 4th, 2009 on Victory Records was a breath of fresh air to a scene that seemed to be dying. These guys put everything they have into their music and so much more. They love what they do and they do a wonderful job of keeping their fans happy! Their new EP The Last Transmission, released on November 26th, 2011, is no exception to this. With a new sound, new image, and having more accomplished this time around, they come out swinging and leave no stone unturned and seem to be gaining an even LARGER fan base! Without further ado, here is my review of The Last Transmission, hope you guys enjoy!

Key Tracks:

Chris West: This song was written as a memorial to a dear fallen friend. You can feel the emotion in every word and lick of this track. This track captured my attention after hearing the chorus "You are the warm sun on our shoulders. You've touched our lives, you'll live forever" I didn't know him but you can tell he meant alot to the band. Listen carefully when taking in this track.

The Last Transmission: This was the first single chosen for the EP and rightly so. From the beginning, you're pulled in and taken over by the catchy nature of the track. Not the best track on the EP but definitely far from the worst. Don't get me wrong, there's not a track on this EP that is bad. This just happens to be one of the ones that was a little less hard-hitting than the others.

Final Thoughts:

For an EP, which I normally don't take a chance to listen to, let alone download or buy, it really blew me away. These guys have never disappointed. From the first listen of The Rescue, to the maiden voyage that was the first listen of The Last Transmission, these guys are nothing short of spectacular. Don't just take my word for it though, as always, GO SUPPORT THE ARTIST! Pick up your copy of The Last Transmission on iTunes or go to BigCartel for a hard copy!

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REVIEW: Like Moths to Flames - When We Don't Exist

Band: Like Moths To Flames

Album: When We Don't Exist

Buy: Amazon

iTunes

Rating: 4/5

Tracklisting:

1. The Worst In Me

2. GNF

3. No Hope

4. You Won't Be Missed

5. Faithless Living

6. Your Existence

7. Trophy Child

8. My Own Grave

9. Something To Live For

10. Real Talk

11. Praise Feeder

Like Moths to Flames, from Columbus, OH is one of those metal bands that was out there making a name for themselves long before they were discovered. When I first heard them back in 09 on a couple demos...I was blown away! But the progression from their debut EP Sweet Talker to the release of their debut full-length, When We Don't Exist is just incredible. The EP took me to a whole different level on current metalcore but hearing the album blew all pre-conceived notions of this band completely out of the water. Like Moths to Flames has found, in my opinion of course, a suitable home on Rise Records. I'm proud to bring you my review of this truly phenomenal album, so sit back and enjoy!

Key Tracks:

You Won't Be Missed: The first single released on the album, starting with a simple riff and exploding into Chris's memorable vocals. This song's meaning is pretty clear by the title but it's about a relationship that went sour and the narrator is just moving on by telling the girl not to come crawling back to him when things get tough. I'm sure we've all had that "I don't give a fuck" attitude after a break-up...especially a bad one, quite obviously the reason here was cheating. This song is a big "FUCK YOU" to the people in your life who have made you feel this way.

Trophy Child: This song seems to me to be about people who don't take good advice. The narrator seems to be telling the person, who is in a bad way due to not taking his advice, that he doesn't feel sorry for the person. Have you ever had that feeling you had really good advice for someone and you KNEW they wouldn't listen but you told them anyway? Think about how many times this has happened to you and how many times you saw things play out EXACTLY the way you figured they would when they didn't. This song is about YOUR perspective of that situation. Bottom line is an old saying: "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink" You can try to help a person but in the end, the only person who can help them is themself.

Final Thoughts:

The bottom line about this album is: If you thought you liked the band or even KNEW you liked the band when you first heard them, you will LOVE them now. The high-energy, aggressive in your face band they were in the beginning is completely revamped and recharged on this album. It explodes with fury and yet is melodic enough to tempt a good bit of previously unlikely listeners. Definitely give this album a listen! Check out When We Don't Exist out now on Rise Records and prepare your ears for one hell of a treat!

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INTERVIEW: Andrew Wilson of Dancing With Paris

So we were approached with the opportunity to interview the band Dancing With Paris from Toronto. Here's that interview with guitarist Andrew Wilson:

First of all, I want to thank you guys for taking the time out of your busy schedules to do this interview for us.

No problem guys, we always will find the time to answer any questions that people have about the band or for advice of sorts.

You're getting ready to go on tour with Famous Last Words on December. How did this tour come together and what's your favorite part about touring?

I guess you could say that we are getting ready for the tour. We have been doing weekend stints since the end of October in support of our new album 'The Drought'. So when we hit the road with the Famous Last Guys people will be in for quite the treat when they come out to the show. As for how the tour came together CB Booking approached out manager about teaming up with FLW for the tour and after a couple emails back and forth things were already on the roll.

You recently released a new album "The Drought" why was that title chosen and how was the writing process for the record?

There are a couple meanings/reasons why we went with the album name 'The Drought'. If you look up the definition of Drought you will see a couple meanings, a period of dry weather, an extreme shortage, or a thirst. When we read definitions we all felt that in one way or another they also defined how we feel about the state of the music scene today, and our 'thirst' to make a solid impact on the scene today. It also tired very nice together with the title of our first EP, There's Something In The Water.

We started writing this album last winter while still playing off dates. There was a lot of thought put into it. For the month of January we started really going over part ideas and getting song skeletons laid out in James' basement. February and the first couple weeks in March we left the basement and rented a jam hall to start to fully get the feel of what we had been writing. At the jam space or the Litter Box which we called it, because of the everlasting damp carpet smell. We were writing/tweeking 10 of the songs that are on the album, the other two 'Speculation and Lights To Lights were written in the studio. We were spending roughly 40 hours a week jamming, demoing out songs for our producer Shawn Lefebvre (Cancer Bats, Billy Tallent, Muse, LA Guns), really making sure that everyone was happy with what we were going into the studio with. We tracked drums the last weekend in March and Shawn headed back to Ottawa for a week to edit and semi mix the drums for us to start to track the remainder of the album. Just over a week later we headed back the Pocket for another 10 days to finish the guitar, bass, vocals and group vocals. After tracking on average 12 hour day to finish everything we had planned, Shawn headed back in Ottawa to mix the album which took about 2 weeks. The album was then emailed over to Noah Mintz at Lacqure Channel in Toronto. This pretty much sums up the writing and recording of the album in a nut shell.

How do you feel about self-releasing things versus being on a label? What are the pros and cons to both?

There are advantages and disadvantages with having a label behind you. The advantage is they will help or fund the full cost for you to record and marketing of the new album, and any tour band knows it's hard to come up with X amount of dollars to record that next album let alone write the new album on the road. With a label fronting all this money for the project most bands are forever in debut to the label and end up never owning their masters which means they have very little say what happens with the tracks or seeing profits from the album. When releasing everything on your own you have 100% creative control and final say on everything. With the digital age we live in today any band is available to get their tunes on iTunes, Bandcamp Facebook, it really is endless.

We chose to released and record 'The Drought' on our own, there were some offers on the table but no one was offering us anything that we weren't already able to do on our own. We are a very DIY band and have been from day one and recommend that every band do it DIY as long as you can. You are going to learn a lot more and have an upper hand when labels, management, PR companies come knocking at your door.

If you could change anything about the recording process for your next record, what would it be and why?

I wouldn't necessarily change anything about the process. There are things that you learn as you go and things that you remember to do differently the next time around. For me its about the learning experience and all about the trial and error. Personally, I would like to take more time in the studio to make sure everything is perfect and have time to sit on it and listen for a couple months because changes will always come up.

What's the cruelest thing a band or band member has done to you guys on tour, whether out of fun or just to be cruel?

No one has ever done anything cruel to us on tour, the 'cruelest' thing that we have done would be playing this game Wet Sack that we came up with on our last tour. It's sort of like tag but with water. The way the game works is the person that was 'it' needs to strategically find a way to toss water on their victims crouch, making it look like they have peed their pants to some degree. Also there are no tag back, and if the 'it' person misses their victim or the victim, doges the water they are still it but don't have to deal with the Wet Sack for a couple of hours. We also had it that the 'it' person was not allowed to be 'it' for more then 12 hours, keeping everyone on their toes for the full tour. It's a great way to pass time and to get to really know the other bans(s) you are on the road with.

We also hear alot about bands pulling pranks on their management. What is the funniest thing you guys have pulled on your manager and how did he react to it?

We never have pulled any pranks on our management or manager sorry we don't have any funny stories there. If anything we pull pranks on each other or just make fun of each like every other band does. With us John gets the worst of it, if you ever get the chance ask him what the meaning to the song title Lights To Lights that is on the new album.

Well, it's been a pleasure sitting down and doing this interview with you guys. Anything else you'd like our readers to know before we wrap it up?

No worries guys thanks for talking with us about the new album and the upcoming tour! If you are into see some cool and unique art head over to Wilson Art (https://www.facebook.com/wilsonmedia). This is what Wilson gets up to on his down time from the band. If you ever are looking for a custom tattoo, painting, sketch, drop us or him a line!

Go pick up their new album "The Drought" now on iTunes and give them a "like" on facebook at Dancing With Paris!

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REVIEW: Struc/Tures - Divided By

Band: Structures

Album: Divided By

Rating: 4/5

Buy: Amazon
iTunes

Tracklist:

1. At Las[t]

2. Hydroplaning

3. Encounter...

4. Paralyzed____

5. In Pursuit Of

6. Clockwork (feat. Alex Erian of Despised Icon and Kevin McCaughhey of Ion Dissonance)

7. Relapse;Signs (feat. Frankie Palmeri of Emmure)

8. Tunnel Vision

9. I.N.T.E.N.T.

10. /

Canadian 5-piece progressive metal outfit Structures is a band that was out there making a name for itself long before they inked to Sumerian Records in early 2011. They recorded and self-released a 5-song EP titled All of the Above, which was released shortly before their signing and were touring and destroying cities all over Canada. Now they've toured the US and pretty much the whole world, making them a force to be reckoned with. I'm not a stranger to heavy, in your face angry metal, but I have to say this one threw me for a loop when I heard the clean vocals. Honestly, I'd have left them out if I were them but they still fit pretty well on the album. Divided By sees guest vocalists Alex Erian of Despised Icon, Kevin McCaughhey of Ion Dissonance, and who else? Frankie Palmeri of Emmure...the king of getting guest vocal spots lately. Overall, this album has a very angry feel to it which I love to see on a metal album, but it also hits home with some killer lyrics (too many to cite so I'll post a link to them at the end of the review).

Key Tracks:

Encounter...: One of the original 5, re-recorded for use on the album, this happens to be my 2nd favorite song on the album. "Make it a mission to be the change you want to see. Lay down the foundation and where you wish to be." Seems to be a message to all those bitching about their lives all the times and just sit back on their asses letting the world collapse around them. It's a message to take life by the balls and do something about your life instead of just sitting back and watching everything crumble around you.

Relapse;Signs: This is my favorite track on the album, not only because it features Frankie, but because it's the hardest hitting of the 10 songs, in my opinion. Seems to me, the narrator is waking up and realizing what a hell this world has become. He's remembering his dream world and what it was like before all of the wars over nothing. It brings to mind the same question we all are asking ourselves and the government; If we got rid of the person causing the main problems, what are we still fighting for? I'm a big advocate of defeating terrorism, but I, like so many other Americans, think that enough is enough. We've got to make our voices heard. We've got to give the world the wake up call that it so desperately needs before it's too late.

Final Thoughts:

This album is heavy, in your face, features amazing guest vocalists, and the band is on a great label. Need I say more? The lyrics are meaningful, the instrumentals are perfect, the breakdowns are all in the right spot and not in great numbers, the only reason I decided to give this album 1 less star than what it truly deserves is because of the clean vocals. They are in the right spot, but they don't fit in with the overall theme of the album, in my opinion. In any case, you don't have to take my word for it, go pick up your copy of Divided By out on Sumerian Records now!

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