Review Summary: An album that breathes originality and demonstrates a band that, through experimentation, have produced an album full of fresh, inspired metalcore.
Metalcore, as a genre, is often seen as a bit of an oddity in music. Much debated and much discussed, the genre is usually misinterpreted and bands can be lumped into the genre where they sometimes have little or no relevance to "actual" metalcore. In my opinion, there are a few varieties of metalcore. There are the more technically proficient metalcore bands, which may be referred to as mathcore from time to time, such as Converge, Botch and Coalesce. Then there are the more "breakdown" orientated bands, often considered slightly different and possibly not as musically complex as the aforementioned bands. Poison the Well are most certainly one of these bands, as their full length debut The Opposite of December pioneered the typical metalcore approach, with heavy usage of breakdowns interspersed with bouts of melody. In the eyes of many metalcore fans, the album proved to be a classic, being highly influential within the scene at the time of its release, inspiring many similar acts. However, Poison the Well, as a group, were yet to fully develop their sound into what is found on You Come Before You, an album considered by many fans as their magnum opus. The album showcases a band at the height of their creativity, as well as one willing to experiment with their sound to create a record that breathes originality. The production values were also greatly improved, systematically producing a more organic, wholesome sound.
Album opener Ghostchant is a rather heavy affair, featuring soaring vocals in the chorus. One thing that can be said of Jeffrey's vocals is that they are much improved, with his roars pertaining a strong, deep and powerful tone. His cleans are also better than on the previous two albums, with more diverse range and a more accomplished delivery. From a musical perspective, the band are on fine form - the guitars are heavy where they need to be and angelic and delicate elsewhere when not distorted. A perfect example of this is the opening of Apathy Is a Cold Body, which proves to be a massive highlight on the album. The melodies used can be haunting at times, yet they are beautiful and fit the songs perfectly. Chris Hornbrook remains a formidable drummer with his plethora of interesting and sporadic beats. Whilst he isn't the most technical drummer in the field, everything he plays sounds fresh and inspired. The opening to perhaps the heaviest track present on the album in the form of Crystal Lake is a good example of how Chris mixes things up to keep things different.
Other album highlights include the wonderful The Realist, which features the best vocals on the album. Jeffrey's singing was always a little questionable on The Opposite of December (maybe because he was so young) but here he delivers a splendid vocal performance throughout. His delivery is always emotional, whether clean or harsh and his lyrics are quite introspective and well crafted. In terms of the rest of the band, the only real weak link here is the bass. Not because of the playing - undoubtedly, it is due to the fact that it isn't particularly audible. The guitars tend to overpower things throughout. Indeed, it isn't necessarily something which ruins the listening experience but it would have been nice if the bass could be heard a bit more, just to add to the overall sound and add another dimension to the listening experience.
Overall, even though I've rated The Opposite of December higher than You Come Before You, I would consider this to be one of Poison the Well's best albums. Reasons being is that this is a lot more original than The Opposite of December and there is a lot more diversity and musical integrity amongst the band members. The Opposite of December was of course an important release in metalcore (which is more the reason why I have rated it a 5) but when compared to You Come Before You, it is easy to see just how far Poison the Well had come along both musically and stylistically. In conclusion, this album proves to be one of the best that the genre has to offer. It has everything - heavy moments balanced with gorgeous soundscapes, excellent vocal delivery and superb musicianship. As I mentioned previously, the only real downside to the album is the lack of audible bass. Other than that, if you like metalcore, you'll love this album.
Recommended Tracks
Ghostchant
The Realist
Apathy Is a Cold Body
Crystal Lake
