It Dies Today, the name just drips out with forced yelled vocals, repetitive breakdowns, and generic formulas. Upon a listen all of this is heard, at times. However, the double pedal is not overused in the least bit, the vocals are not a constant same pitch scream, and the songs can do a fairly decent job of separating themselves from each other. Vocally, this CD is fantastic for the metalcore genre, as Nick has a wonderful singing voice which is cleanly incorporated into the songs. While at times the screaming might sound a little forced, his transitions from screaming to singing always sound very smoothly worked out. Double bass is used a good deal in the heavier tracks on the record, but it not persistent throughout the album. Since two main problems in metalcore are not an issue here, it is no doubt that this record can be a good listen. On the downside, the breakdowns come hard and come often, plenty of times bringing down the entire song with them. In other cases the songs themselves just sound bland and boring, as this can be a very moody record, making it very inconsistent.
In terms of marketing, Trustkill Records and the band made an excellent choice with their first single
A Threnody for the Modern Romance . This song is quite possibly one of the best metalcore songs, as it contains just about everything one could ask for. A decent amount of double bass, especially for the album, is brought out in the intro as some fitting catchy guitar licks compliment it. The verse flows nicely with some screaming. Riffs persist over the vocals and are backed with a solid rhythm section courtesy of some octave chords and pounding drums. In the verse, the drums have a good amount of variation as they do not become boring or predictable. The chorus is superb with some very strong singing coming into play. A mix of chords and a sparing amount of riffs are played under the chorus, balancing it out perfectly. There is a tiny breakdown and bridge after the second chorus which leads into a solo. While another player recorded the guitar solo, the casual listener will not be able to tell. Regardless of that, the solo itself is quite a nice addition to the song. With so much to offer, the big single is a definite highlight of the record. Plain and simple, if this song does not do much for you, I would stay far away from the album.
Fans of the nicely executed scream and sing transitions found in the first single should be quite pleased with
Severed Ties Yield Severed Heads . Opening with a little drum fill, the guitars make up a great verse section with their riffs. The drums in the verse are nicely done, using just the right amount of double bass and not overpowering anything. A highlight of this song is easily the vocals during the chorus, as it is one of the strongest on the record. However, about halfway through the song an insanely cliché breakdown comes into play and almost shatters all the positive aspects the song had going for it. Thankfully it does not go on for too long, as the chorus repeats to end the song. The structure is extremely predictable here but nevertheless everything is pulled off strongly.
The Radiance is mainly dominated by singing, something plenty of bands in this genre will stray away from.
It Dies Today shows its variety well as they are more than capable of creating songs like this. Some screaming is sprinkled into the second verse, working remarkably well due its placement. The greatest amount of screaming comes out in the bridge, which later leads into a brief soft section with a clean guitar and vocals. More screaming comes out during the outro as the overdubbed vocals provide an interesting end to the song. Another song dominated by singing is
Marigold . Judging by the opening riffs, screaming is expected and the singing is a pleasant surprise. The song as a whole however follows a very generic formula, making it predictable and a tad boring before its end. One negative on the whole album is the overuse of the same formula.
Well if that is one major flaw to nitpick at, the album as a whole must be in decent shape. Decent indeed, but unfortunately not a lot more, as plenty of the songs come off as very weak. The opening track will definitely put a sour taste in the mouth of listeners, as
My Promise just reeks of cliché structure and sound. A prime example of somewhat forced screaming is found in the verse. The rhythm section behind it is just not very convincing and the vocals just sound extremely weak and dry atop of it. Guitar wise, the song is just a nightmare. It seems as though the band was trying to suck all of the breakdown lovers in with the song, as the guitarists recycle riffs like there is no tomorrow and drag on the breakdowns for way too long. It is just a shame that they choose such a boring and just plain bad song to start of the record because the band is capable of so much more. Unfortunately plenty might not ever give it a chance after such a dreadful opening.
The Depravity Waltz is another example of poor song writing. It is a fairly heavy track, but once again is undistinguishable as a unique track due its incredibly drawn out breakdowns. One will notice a popular trend for the band; as the heaviness increases, the quality decreases. They seem to focus way too much on breakdowns, as plenty of songs are dominated by them as a possible laziness is revealed in certain cases.
One of the better heavy songs on the CD is
Freak Gasoline Accident . While the opening scream is a bit dry, the double bass over the tremolo picked riff provides quite the brutal intro. Throughout the verse, the riffs sound nice. A sung chorus comes into play and a nicely done melodic guitar line follows it, continuing into the second verse. Way too soon the verse is cut into a breakdown. Fortunately, it does not last too long or deduct from the songs enjoyment. The breakdown at the end on the other hand is a different story. A weak outro is heard due to another breakdown. It seems that when the band uses a variation of screaming and singing, they usually pull off a more solid song until the breakdowns come into play. When their focus is on heaviness however, the songs tend to suffer as they are incredibly overpowered with the constant use of breakdowns.
The title track
The Caitiff Choir opens with an interesting fill. Some new rhythms and unique sounding riffs come into play, creating an enjoyable verse with a different feel than previously heard. Around the one minute mark the song just gets fairly bland. Than a breakdown comes in and almost ruins what the song had going. However, a weirdly cool riff is introduced during the last half of the bridge making it enjoyable. Some pinches are used quite effectively until another weak effort of an outro is provided. Another bad part on the album as a whole is revealed; often times the band has trouble ending their songs with something interesting, choosing to just throw in breakdowns as opposed to a unique section.
Quite the opposite of that, the band does not fail at delivering a satisfactory end to the album. The second to last song on the album
Naenia sounds remarkably different than the rest of the album. Right from the opening riffs a very diverse mood is set. The clean vocals do a fantastic job on this song, as their strength is shown yet again. On the choruses, a very epic mood is created and the stop start rhythms intertwine flawlessly into the song. One obvious plus to the song is that the bridge works supebly, as it is just not another breakdown. A very strong outro is created with the singing, something that is rare to find on the album. The longest song on the album
Defeatism is an alright choice to for a finale. While repeated structure and sound is shown, the song is still pulled off solidly. Once again the clean vocals sound very powerful when they are used. Similar to the previous song, there is no drawn out breakdown, as the band chooses to construct more of a grand ending on the bridge. The keyboard like effect (either a keyboard itself or a phaser or chorus effect) provides quite the amazing outro. It appears as though the band saved their better outros to end the record, as the last two songs end up great. Clean guitar and drums make up the last few minutes of the record as it slowly fades out ending on a good note.
The Caitiff Choir can be summed up with one word; inconsistent. It seems that so many times the tracks are either excellent or poor, and that there is no in between. When the vocals are in full groove, catchy guitar licks are present, and solid rhythms back it all, everything is held tightly together and the band sounds great. Other times, dry vocals, predictable structure, and a ridiculous quantity of breakdowns can make this a dreadful listen. As a whole, the album is not a very easy one to make it all the way through. Sure the highlights are enjoyable, but inconsistency really brings this record down, as it is difficult to find two great songs in a row. In many of cases, the band relies on what has already been done, following instead of leading. Other times the next part of a song is a most welcome surprise and stands out with its exclusive trait. As previously stated, inconsistency is the perfect word to sum up the album. Not a terrible effort as a whole, but there are without a doubt moments where it feels as though if more time and imagination were put into certain songs, the record as a whole would be infinitely more enjoyable. This band has the potential to write memorable songs and has demonstrated it in many of situations. Perhaps the future will lead to the full exercising and use of what
It Dies Today is capable of.
Final Rating: 3/5
