Metalcore. It's a genre that many love to hate, and sometimes very deservedly so (bands with limited creavity and whiny lyrics like Atreyu, As I Lay Dying, and Avenged Sevenfold come to my mind- I'm sure you can think of others). But there are definately a few of these metalcore bands that actually has talent and uses it well. A Dozen Furies is one of those bands and their 5-song EP Rip the Stars Down is reflective of that.
Unfortunately, A Dozen Furies, famous for winning 2004's Battle For Ozzfest, is deceased and has no intention of returning anytime soon. But you should still check out this EP because of the quality of the songs.
The strong point of this EP is definately the catchiness of the songs. You will easily find yourself singing along to some of choruses and verses ("Wind Me Up" especailly has an infectious chorus). The singer, Bucky Garrett, is probably the highlight of the band. His scream is very unique, and he can sing clean vox very well too, sometimes harmonizing with one of the guitar players for the vocals, which is always a nice touch.
While not particuliary technical (the lack of soloing is definately a problem), the guitars do some cool things every so often, mostly harmonization. When compared to their full-length album, however, the guitars are definately not as much at the forefront of the band and the vocals are. There are some cool standard metalcore-harmonized riffs from time to time that stand out, notably in "Lost in a Fantasy", but they do have some variety with some speed riffs in "Push Away" and some punkish riffs in "Falling."
The rhythm section is a mixed bag. The drummer, Mike Miller, is exellent and has some original beats for the band. However, the bass is rarely heard in this album, as is with most metalcore.
In sum, this was a great start for the band to showcase what they were all about and they showed tons of promise. Its sad that they weren't able to develop further. For fans of GOOD metalcore, definately check this out. For fans of metal in general, this may not be your thing, but it much better than most of the popluar metalcore out there today.
