Review Summary: A fresh breath of air in Metalcore done with impeccable style.
Instrumental Metalcore? Until hearing YGATM I never considered such a thing, but no, do not turn away, friends. For
YGATM EP is something to be cherished. YGATM or You Guys Are The Man, are a progressive instrumental metalcore group. Yes that is a mouthful. YGATM is:
Tim Balch -
Drums
Aaron Throop -
Bass
Jeff Cassel -
Guitar
Through the immense amount of monotony in metalcore as of recent years, YGATM has sparkled interest in the genre for me. Taking nearly an entirely different approach to the genre as a whole they have created something practically unheard of in the genre. Instead of vocal chord blistering screams and chugging guitars YGATM has opted for a very melodic sound, also, in which they trade vocals for an extreme amount of talent. Not only is Aaron Throop a talented bassist, he is actually audible! Yes audible bass on a metal album, hallelujah! This EP throws so many different dynamics and colors out that it really does begin to paint a picture in my head as I listen. The intro track "The Beach" starts out with a funny sample clip that says : “Listen I’m gonna give a clue hear now, I don’t want any more bull***. From anyone, that includes me. It’s gonna be very hot, very uncomfortable for anyone. I don’t want anyone yelling, if we get any more yelling around here today then *** is gonna hit the fan”. Ahh the lolz. One can only guess this sample is taken from some old black and white movie. And the song promptly ends with “It ain’t worth it, not this ***, it ain’t ***in’ worth it”.
Amongst the plenty of beautiful melodic guitar lines, lies interesting clean parts. These parts add a lot to each song because they give the listen to sit back, relax and take everything. Jeff Cassel is an exceptional guitarist and is amongst the most tasteful and creative I have heard. Standout track "The Forest" starts with one of the aforementioned clean guitar parts before bursting into distortion. Then what sounds to be tapping parts stop at start for a moment while everything hangs in balance. Many of guitar parts on this album are harmonized which really makes things sound nice, layered and unique. But one cannot ignore the groove parts of these songs. Yes there are groove sections, and they are quite good indeed.
Now, about the production of this EP is superb. Everything sounds nice, even and most of all crisp. The bass is audible as I said before. Nothing is too loud or too soft. This really makes you wonder because most bands don’t have the means to have great production quality on their first release. The production and mixing was done by Carson Slovak, who has done a superior job here. Nonetheless this EP is breaking boundaries in the metalcore genre. With tons of talent and great song-writing ability YGATM will prove to be great in no time.
YGATM EP is a release to be pondered on, studied, and dissected but you can’t be too serious about it because it’s just fun. It’s an EP that just creates fun and puts me into a good mood whenever I spin it. So anyone looking for something more interesting in metalcore, or even music as a whole should look into this.
