Review Summary: A curious hybrid of genres which won't leave you filled with Rage afterwards.
Less than a month after infamous “party grind” band Dr. Acula release
The Social Event of the Century, Georgian party-deathcore (if I can even use that as a passable genre) outfit Attila put out their third studio album,
Rage. The real question remains: is there anything here to separate Attila, and Rage for that matter from Dr. Acula, or the entire “party-core” scene.
The answer, as always with bands like this is both yes and no. Right off the bat, the instrumentation on
Rage is already leaps and bounds beyond that of anything else Attila have released. Everything from vocals to guitar to even audible bass has taken a turn for the better, and Attila aren’t afraid to wear it on their collective sleeve. Tracks like “Rage,” “Jumanji,” and “Temper” feature bouncy, fun guitar lines which showcase the band’s affinity for more than the ever-repetitive “jun-jun-jun” chugging which was, sadly, their most appealing aspect on past releases. Don’t get me wrong though—Attila have not left behind their penchant for the breakdown behind, and for every one that succeeds in bringing heaviness in an oddly-timed and riff-laden package, just as frequently does another crash and burn on its way to deliver the “brutality.” Tracks like the aforementioned “Rage” feature a perfect example of this. While the first (notable) breakdown, although catchy, feels forced and contrived amongst the party-strong gang-chanting, the closing breakdown achieves its purpose in combining all the strongest elements of the track and ending the song on a stronger note.
While Attila’s vocalist has no doubt earned his fair share of flaming over his appearance on an episode of MTV’s
Made, his vocal diversity and ability on this album is respectable at the least. Varying from the high, raspy (albeit slightly annoying) scream down to a deeper near-growl at the drop of a dime, he makes up with his vocal ability for what he lacks in lyrical ability—and oh boy, does he lack lyrical ability. While his lyrics NOT involving partying and weed are average and capable of pulling out a good one-liner when the occasion calls for it, his “party time” lyrics are contrived at their best. I get it, it’s party-core, and it’s not supposed to be 100% serious 100% of the time, but are lines like “grab a Cigarillo and a 40 and a Bic light, lemme get a Newport, now it’s on” really necessary? I didn’t think so either—and those are some of the better lyrics.
The only other enormous wall that
Rage crashes into is its utter lack of depth. Once again, not much more would be expected from a band of the genre, but given its above-average instrumentation and scattered hints of originality, I expected a multitude of solid listens. However, after three or four listens, my rating of the album went from an overzealous 4.5 to its current rating. While that rating certainly isn’t bad, it’s quite a fall from the “grace” where it had once stood. For the most part, many tracks save the few exceptional ones end up getting boring and incredibly skippable in order to reach the real “meat” of the album, heavily concentrated throughout less than half the overall content.
So maybe Attila have their faults—in a genre littered with both trash and mediocrity, poor lyric writing and two-dimensionality are easily overlookable in order to obtain the greater goal:
Rage, a “party-deathcore” album which is actually worth checking out.
