It’s been a great year for new music and the past two weeks have been nothing short of fruitful, with the highlight being last week’s release of Employed To Serve‘s critically celebrated fourth LP, Conquering, from Spinefarm Records.
“Employed To Serve’s latest release is a fully realized metamorphosis into the band they’ve always wanted to be,” writes the press release. “Drawing influence from the music of their youth and a new perspective on how to nurture the positive aspects of humanity and individual growth, Conquering is a celebration and acknowledgment of triumph in the face of a world that can be relentlessly adversarial.
“Album highlights, ‘Exist’, ‘Mark of the Grave’, and ‘Twist the Blade’ best encapsulate Employed To Serve’s rebirth, with an emphasis on groove and a penchant for colossal hooks that wouldn’t be out of place on Lamb of God or Machine Head’s respective catalogues,” they add. “Frontwoman Justine Jones and Sammy Urwin (guitar/vocals) trade vocal duties throughout, confidently flitting between whiplash-inducing screams and swaggering melodicism, as the rhythm section of recent additions Nathan Pryor (bass) and Casey McHale (drums) provide towering sonic weight to proceedings in the vein of Sepultura at their most defiant. The most enduring qualities of Employed To Serve’s established identity remain intact, as Conquering harnesses the band’s signature technical prowess alongside their growing knack for stadium-built battle-cries for a new generation of metal and hardcore fans.
“Conquering presents a powerful statement from a band continuing to fire on all cylinders after the best part of a decade, without losing sight of their humble beginnings, and the hard work it’s taken to attain the reverence they hold both within and beyond genre confines. Where previous efforts explored the darker aspects of human emotion, this latest chapter in the band’s storied history acknowledges their past and offers a way forward with them through inner power and an unbridled encouragement of self-worth.”
Succumb‘s sophomore entry, XXI, is finally here and highlights one of the best up-and-coming metal bands around.
“Plumbing the depths of modern death metal with primitive elegance, Succumb have returned with their sophomore release XXI. What sets Succumb apart from their peers is vocalist Cheri Musrasrik; the juxtaposition of death metal riffing and propulsive drums with Musrasrik’s cavernous howl and sophisticated lyrics make a unique listening experience in today’s crowded landscape,” hypes the press release.
“Musrasrik cites authors and poets like Yeats, Genet and Zola as her primary lyrical influences. XXI sees an allegorical look at the elements and their related mythologies. Talks about Lilith, the Orphic poems, ocean and nature deities, Dionysus, Arthurian literature, fly agaric as soma, the cosmic egg, and the Boxer Rebellion.
“On XXI, Succumb set out to make an album that feels more immediate & unpredictable, with a more aggressive production and the vocals much more front & center.”
Last but not least, Poppy continues to pump out new tunes, deviating from the thrashing rage of her NXT EP, EAT, and this playing around in the 1990s. Emulating everyone from Rob Zombie to Hole, Flux successfully recreates one of the best musical eras of our time.
From the release: “The album is another ambitious leap for the ever-evolving musician, putting a renewed focus on a stream-lined songwriting approach that puts her indelible vocal melodies at the foreground of a kaleidoscopic mosaic of overdriven guitars.”
source https://bloody-disgusting.com/music/3684305/listen-new-albums-succumb-employed-serve-poppy/
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