Artist: Bleed From Within
Label: Rising Records
Release: 2009
Length: 35:27
Rating: 4/5
The streets of Glasgow have no shortage of rage, aggression, and good musicians. Formed in 2005, Bleed From Within are heirs to the modern legacy of bands like job For A Cowboy, Mandeed, The Red Chord, Black Dahlia Murder, and the like. Two years after losing their studio virginity with an EP, they’re back with a first full-length that, in a measly half hour, manages to lay out every argument for why all the attention to come is more than justified and only natural. This is metal-fueled metalcore that grew up in death metal’s backyard.
They’re masters of technicality, so in their radicalism they go for a full musical interplay between every last atom of this five-piece legion of mercilessness. After the intro, Humanity morphs into a wild beast that slices and stabs its way through your mind and ears, while the deathcore vocals feed a seed of frustration and mounting jitters that arrive in waves. Atmosphere, full-bodied guitars, and the delivery of a modern-day gospel of impending cataclysm are all part of the charm. The world we live in is deviant and doomed to fall apart from the very start. And the young Scots deliver part of that sermon too. After the intro report on natural disasters comes a pause, and then you’re right where the fun stops. The fast-fingered guitar duo of Dave Lennon and Craig Gowans hurl you into a sonic wall of airtight, hard-hitting guitar riffs. The sound, rounded out by the rhythmic baton of Ali Richardson’s mathematically precise drumming and bassist Davie Provan, is crowned by the screaming, raspy voice of vocalist Scott Kennedy. Harpies drink away your will to resist and escape. What’s left is hopelessness, pain, and the silent cries of pleading for a savior’s imminent arrival. Religion built on greed and the dumbing down of the masses are fitting material for yet another literary treatment, but instead of a novel, with Bleed you get a sketch, a condensed haiku with its own cataclysmic musical accompaniment. Still, this solid racket has one major flaw. It’s hard to shake the comparisons to Bring Me The Horizon, and that eternal comparison to something you’ve already heard spoils the enjoyment you were hoping for a bit. The breakdowns, the onslaught of hesitant attacks, and Oli Sykes-style cloned vocals thin out the pleasure between the occasional bursts of brutality. Every so often the Scottish gem is less polished, and that’s where the beauty hides. Growls are frequent, but I’d have liked a pinch (or two) more.
Talent and a clear drive for perfection stamp the record with a mark of quality, dosed out as a quick half-hour sprint that’s good but not exceptional. Despite all that, it’s a pretty promising start, and the band is fully justified in widening its circle of listeners here at home too. Back in May, they smashed stereotypes in the chapel of metal — Metelkova’s alternative epicenter and the navel of the scene: Channel Zero. The quintet does its job with dignity and professionalism, and not for a second is it a disgrace to the genre or the fans. Humanity is a pure, explosive blend of passion, the urge to prove themselves, and furious rage, which makes the record worth checking out again and again. I can wave the white flag to the band and voice a sincere wish for more! The follow-up, the album Empire, has in fact already been written.
Lineup
Dave Lennon – guitar
Davie Provan – bass
Craig Gowans – guitar
Scott Kennedy – vocals
Ali Richardson – drums
Production
Karl Broom
Tracklist
1. The Awakening
2. Damnation
3. Messiah
4. The Fall Of Man (Infection)
5. A Killer Born
6. Servants Of Divinity
7. Monster
8. Everlasting
9. Save Your Prayers
10. The Final Chapter
11. This Absence
