While She Sleeps - You Are We
PledgeMusic | Release Date: 21st April 2017 Northlane - Mesmer
UNFD | Release Date: 24th March 2017
When you look back at the last ten years of metal, no
one stands out more than While She Sleeps. From
their huge riffs to their gang vocals, even through to
the message they carry and the people they are, they
are a unique band with a loyal following; ‘You Are We’
is the perfect celebration of who While She Sleeps are
and it slays. Australian metal core favourites Northlane released their 4th
studio album ‘Mesmer’ completely unannounced in March
this year, and fans were certainly taken by surprise by this
in a very good way! Northlane have established themselves
as one of the giants in the hardcore arena alongside bands
such as The Amity Affliction and Hands Like Houses, but
the band have started to tail away from their roots, and are
now experimenting with their sound as they hinted in their
previous release ‘Node’.
Brave, bold and ballsy is the best place to start when
talking about this record. Being independently crafted,
it is the blood, sweat and tears of each member of this
band, their DNA runs through it and you can feel that
in every track. The gang vocals on tracks such as ‘Settle
Down Society’ and ‘You Are We’ quite literally scream
a message of “this is who we are, this is what we care
about and fuck anyone who gets in our way.” Not only
that but there are riffs all over this album. No seriously.
It’s ridiculous in the most incredible way. If you want
your face melted and your internal organs rattled with
rage, turn ‘Revolt’ or ‘Civil Isolation’ up to 100 and lose
your mind.
What really makes ‘You Are We’ stand out is the
progression from While She Sleeps’ earlier releases.
This album feels matured and thought out. There is
a lot more clean vocals, but they’ve managed to add
those without losing the gnarly growls they’re known
for. There is equal, if not more aggression than ever
before and it’s memorable. This album is who While
She Sleeps want to be and they are more than welcome
to be that, because put quite simply, it’s fucking rad.
Words by Alice Hoddinott
From the opening track ‘Citizen’, it is apparent that grungy
guitar riffs are going to be a noticeable aspect of most of the
tracks of this album, as well as boundless space-like interludes.
There is also a very nice blend of melodic vocal power and
scream sections from vocalist Marcus Bridge which collide
beautifully with the superb riffs and rhythm sections. Track
4 ‘Solar’ however, outlines how Northlane are taking a more
innovative approach with their new material, and provides
a very different musical atmosphere from the opening 3
tracks on the album. The second half of Mesmer carries on
where it left off, and the band just keep on delivering a musical
intensity and passion that is very refreshing to hear. Tracks
such as ‘Intuition’, ‘Fade’ and ‘Veridian’ certainly stand out in
their own right, but this is one hell of a collection of tracks
that any Music can enjoy and appreciate for many different
reasons. The last track ‘Paragon’ also holds major significance
on this album as it was specially written and dedicated to the
late Tom Searle (Architects). If you are looking to add to your
Metal collection, or simply want to check out something new,
then Mesmer by Northlane will not disappoint you!
Words by Kristofer Billingham
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