“We like our rhythms complicated and our messages loud”. This statement can be found on the site of This Or The Apocalypse from Pennsylvania,USA, who after a two year gap are releasing their third album. By the second track of “Dead Years”, I couldn’t see much beyond a piece of hardcore and wondered where it might go. Sure, it’s loud, aggressive and relentless. The opener “Hell Praiser” has a bright riff running through it, which gave a ray of hope. The aggression reminded me of Soilwork with the addition of punchy, in your face hardcore and that anarchic irregularity which goes with that genre. The angry gang was in full flow and a deep rhythm provided a supplement of extra crunch.
Then mid way through the third track “In Wolves”, there’s an unexpected clean and emotion-packed chorus line. Suddenly we’d got something on our hands here. Yes, definitely Soilwork meeting hardcore. Aggression meets sophistication, and it all gets mangled up in an impressive way. The echoing chorus hits home. Absolute authority ends this piece. The fast riff of “Hell Praiser” slows down, and the angry gang superimpose themselves, mingling their cries with a superb fruity riff. The album is now expanding and hey, here we go higher still with some post metal – stay with it, guys – but change is in the air. This aggressive melting pot is just going to get spicier with more ingredients being thrown in. Hardcore anger and anguish mix with patient drum-led post metal. It’s “Americans”. I’m intrigued.
“Dead Years” is modern metal of an extremely expansive order. But rawness is always there. I feel angry just like them. That must be good. Yet it’s surrounded by this all-enveloping progressive sound. I’m enjoying being screamed at. There is purpose. It’s chaotic and there’s oceans of melody. “Every second counts”, screams the gang. A carefully constructed opening follows the anthem. Another anger fest emerges. Mayhem, or should I say more mayhem than usual, breaks out. The gang give it their all. “A Damn Moment” hits the right note with a superlative riff. Punch mingles with raw anger and spine-chilling, bone-crunching instrumentals. What’s more, it’s deep and sophisticated.Sparksthen fly once more. ”Gaunt and Fierce” takes an unexpected twist with its harmonies, accompanied by lashings of thunderous heaviness of course. The layered effect and the style in general remind me a lot of the excellent British hardcore band Heights. Compared to what had gone before, “Kill ‘Em With Guidance” was slightly disappointing. Even with its technical groove, it erred more towards standard hardcore. I had become greedy. But the final track “Hard Branch to Snap” had all the elements which make this album so good. Catchiness and melody combine with the mayhem and chaos. The superbly rounded riff blends into a rich instrumental section. It’s fast, hard, passionate, perfectly timed and above all anthemic. This track left me wanting more. So I played the album again.
Energy meets sophistication. I felt myself inside this anger. You’ll know the styles but I haven’t heard them mixed in this way before. I can’t say I unreservedly liked every track but what I appreciated was the unremitting freshness and originality. “Dead Years” is powerful. It won’t stand still and neither will anyone who listens to it.
(8 / 10 Andrew Doherty)
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