Atreyu – “In Our Wake” (Spinefarm)
While it might be a little shortsighted to say that
Atreyu has outgrown metalcore, they certainly have left the genre in their wake
(see what I did there?) long ago, thanks, in large part, to their ability and
willingness to change and adapt with the times, something their former genre
brethren cannot say for themselves. The band’s latest entry into their
ever-evolving canon, In Our Wake, is
yet another example that Atreyu is reluctant to stand pat, and deathly averse
to being pigeonholed into just one sound.
Opener “In Our Wake” harkens back to the brilliant
accessibility of Lead Sails Paper Anchor,
while drummer/clean vocalist extraordinaire Brandon Saller puts a charge into “House
Of Gold,” the heaviest song Hell Or
Highwater never wrote. “The Time Is Now” is a radio-ready rallying
cry, which might end up as one of the best singles this band has ever penned.
Guitar duo Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel put on a show on the snarling beast
"Nothing Will Ever Change," a welcomed slice of classic Atreyu. From
there, there's an odd, almost hip-hop bounce to "Blind, Deaf &
Dumb," and "Terrified" sounds plucked from the cutting room
floor of Hell Or Highwater's debut Begin
Again. The riff barrage returns on melodic masterpiece “Safety Pin,” “Into
The Open” devolves into one hell of a bombardment of noise and "Paper
Castle" is a stomping affair that registers as one of the album's best
tracks. “Anger Left Behind” is classic Atreyu in all their Alex Varkatzas-gravel
throated led excess and the picture perfect “Super Hero” takes the prototypical
grandiose Atreyu closer to an entirely new level thanks to memorable guest
appearances from M. Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold and Aaron Gillespie of
Underoath.
Saller has said that In
Our Wake is an album that examines Atreyu’s legacy, and it should go a long
way in cementing theirs.
Go Download: “Anger Left Behind”
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