Review Summary: Goodbye Desolated, hello Climate of Fear.
Climate of Fear are a band you've probably not heard of in the UKHC scene, with
Holy Terror being their first release bar the single 'Twisted Reality' they put out in mid December 2017. Anyone paying much attention to British Hardcore/Beatdown, or hardcore in general will be acquainted with the unique raspy vocals of the ex-Desolated frontman, Paul Williams, and Climate of Fear are his new outing following the breakup of his former project. What's a pleasant surprise, then, is that Climate of Fear are not constrained by their iconic vocalist's musical past; blending a range of elements from Beatdown, Metalcore, and harder-edged genres such as Melodic Death Metal, Climate of Fear join the rising cohort of British Hardcore/Metalcore bands led by former Desolated label-mates, Malevolence.
The opening introductory track, quite simply named 'Intro' leads with a mournful and atmospheric acoustic guitar part, before taken over by a ponderous dual lead guitar solo. This segues into the first real track, 'Twisted Reality', kicking off with a diminished lead guitar motif that leads into a breakdown-heavy riff-fest that would not feel out of place on the latest Malevolence or Guilt Trip record. 'Twisted Reality' represents probably the weakest offering on the EP, the lead guitar feeling somewhat cliched, and relying too heavily on breakdowns. The riffing feels slightly stagnant, as the frankly overdone 'chug chug chug'-ing of late 2000s/early 2010s Metalcore plays a prominent role in the composition, a sound so well trodden that it prevents the song from truly sounding unique. The mixing is also slightly odd, with the more interesting elements of the track, namely the Melo-Death influenced shredding in the latter half, being drowned out by the drums which feel far too prominent in the mix. However, where 'Twisted Reality' drops the ball, 'Scorched Earth' smashes it out of the park. Featuring an intro not dissimilar to something Knocked Loose might have penned for
Laugh Tracks, 'Scorched Earth' takes the tempo down a notch, settling into a thuggish stomp of an opening riff, before plunging the listener into a breakdown that'll surely prove popular with the crowdkillers. Compositionally, 'Scorched Earth' is somewhat more nuanced; sustained notes being held to create space, before throwing the song into cascading joint drum and guitar flourishes, avoiding the often overwhelming trappings of the previous track. However, mixing prevents it from being a truly excellent track; once again overcrowded drum mixing drowning out the final guitar solo, taking the shine off what had been, up to that point, a stellar piece of Metalcore.
'Interlude' provides a breather in the track-listing, the mournful clean-guitar sound from the introductory track returning, before giving way to a crushing, palm-muted breakdown. Whilst the instrumentation here is much of a muchness, being a fairly run of the mill chugging riff, the relative simplicity of this interlude highlights just how bass-y, crisp and dense the guitar tone on this EP is, the guitar and bass tone succeeding where the drum mixing might occasionally fall short. 'Entombed' and 'Holy Terror' close out the EP, both being strong additions to the track listing. The former treads the line between 'Scorched Earth' and 'Twisted Reality', fit with the combination of frantic riffing and breakdowns as well as satisfying moments of space and more dynamic, melodic approaches to traditional Metalcore/Hardcore riffing. The latter leans more heavily on the melo-death aspects of the band's sound, relying on quick, crisp guitar riffing for the most part, avoiding the chuggy trappings of earlier tracks. Closing out with a dueling guitar solo followed by a bass solo and arguably the hardest breakdown penned on the whole EP, 'Holy Terror' showcases the band at its strongest, and most memorable.
Little really needs to be said about Williams' vocal performance; love it or hate it, he's one of the most unique sounding frontmen in the genre, and there's not much to fault with his trademark dry bark, seeming just as incensed and vicious as he has on records with his previous outfit. Lyrically,
Holy Terror is unsurprisingly critical of religion and the general state of the world, 'Scorched Earth' unapologetically declaring that 'we will never submit to the soldiers of God'. 'Entombed' seems more introspective, harking back to the stellar lyrical journey on Desolated's mental health-focused
The End. Whilst perhaps not the most fresh or groundbreaking lyrical topics, Williams' executes his lyricism well, and whilst arguably not much better than average, lyrical themes are carried off competently enough to not detract from the rest of the musical elements at play.
Holy Terror probably isn't the most unique, or necessarily well executed piece of Hardcore/Metalcore that'll be released this year. But with tight, catchy guitar performances, strong composition, and a mostly excellent use of the much-derided breakdown, Climate of Fear have made a statement with this EP; that they're not messing around, and by the time they get to releasing a full-length album, they'll be more than prepared to fill the boots left by Desolated's departure.
