Review Summary: We hail in a decrepit forest below the fog covered mountains.
4 of 5 thought this review was well writtenIn a dimly lit room, surrounded by salivating packs of blurred heathens, shadows are flung in every direction cascaded by flickering candles that line the crates. The echoes of anguish burst forth like a legion of tortured souls come to reclaim vengeance. The pressure of feedback rises to the highest peak transcending repulsion and swallowing spectators whole in an uneasy embrace of cathartic passages. In this domain no man is safe and that's a plight constructed in the confines of Charlotte, North Carolina by blackened crust anti-heroes Young And In The Way.
The word of mouth has swept like a wildfire about this assemblage since ruling the NC scene with an iron fist. The attention has only amplified with the onslaught of earth shattering material and the signing to iconic A389 Records. The evolution within this band has manifested at such a tremendous velocity that it's no secret why they're soon becoming a known brute force to be reckoned with among their counterparts. What once started as a typical thrashing hardcore outfit has slowly taken the sinister form of the darkest aspects of black metal woven into the grimiest sections of crust punk.
It's on the third EP entitled
V. Eternal Depression that Young And In The Way mark another division in the full embrace of the sound that was destined to define them. The opening track, "Descending the White Mountain," hauntingly commences with the dong of a paced out bell that thrusts into a gut wrenching slow upheaval of dreary ambiance as vocalist Kable Lyall balefully shrieks under the noise. The apocalyptic tone is silenced with an eerie entry of keys that deceive the listener into believing all is secure until the chaotic,"Times Are Cold," hits like a bat out of hell.
The spews of speeding punk laced bass and guitar by Chris Nolen and Rick Contes are encompassed by a traditional resonance of black metal drum fills that flail between rapid tings of cymbals from Randy Baucom. The music comes to an abrupt hault as Lyall groans, "I grip the surface," swaying into "The Great Blue Norther." It follows the same unrelenting formula of the previous offering with punishing tremolo picking that emerges through a bi-polar rise and fall of climaxes. The next track to embark, "Oceans of Eternal Depression," pummels onward with an intensified portion of battering black metal that carries in and out of pulverizing crust.
The anarchy comes to a close in the middle as the haunting keys return to lash through the lengthy last track, "The Gathering," that instrumentally begins after a sample of a man walking through leaves as crickets can be heard in the distance. This is by far the most atmospheric point with a brooding orchestra that shows Young And In The Way have mastered the art of creating a cinematic experience that could easily be applied behind any epic battle in
The Lord of The Rings Trilogy. The vocals soon break into the latter half of the track muffled under the droning music with an agonizing pain that beckons one to falter to their knees.
From the highest branch/You have been detached/A gathering of the weak wilted and grey/To crumble and
decay/Herd of the unwashed/The trampled/Confined and Broken/On this cold earth/Only the darkest linger
Young And The Way as a whole are an impressive collection of individuals who have obtained a very distinct aura that hovers above any album, stage, or merch they dawn. It's evident on
V. Eternal Depression that they've finally found their niche. It's impossible to ignore what you're feeling as the album takes you on its twisted path. The musicianship is crushing, vocals demonically possessed, and lyrics poetically vivid. It commands a presence that strikes unrest in hearts much like their live encounters that keep participants crawling back with every chance. A word to the wise, do not sleep on this unconventional crossbreed.
