Review Summary: Although,
With Roots Above and Branches Below doesn't reinvent the wheel, it is still inventive and
playful enough to stand head and shoulders above the metalcore competition.
It has been four years since the world was introduced to Christian metalcore outfit The Devil Wears Prada. In 2006, the sextet recorded their debut Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord with the help of Joey Sturgis at the helm at the Foundation Recording Studios.
Dear Love was met with initial critical praise and soon, a year later, the group released their second album, Plagues, under the Rise Records moniker. Plagues proved to be an even more influential force within the metal community, and soon their stock rose as it peaked to number fifty-seven on the Billboard 200. However potent Plagues was, it was still not enough to break them through the mainstream. That record came in the year 2009, with a new label at the rear, The Devil Wears Prada dropped their third release With Roots Above and Branches Below at number eleven on the Billboard charts.
Although, the ensemble has not altered, but the sound is different in execution. Gone is the bluesy warmth of Dear Love, replaced with a mechanical resonance not unlike Fear Factory. The adventurous synthesizer convention and inventive sampling of Plagues has been muted as the record is nearly wholly guitar-driven this time around. Despite all of this, The Devil Wears Prada is still up there in the metalcore echelon a good head and shoulders above the competition.
Let us begin with our opening track, "Sassafras". Distortion greets us as the drummer, Daniel Williams, prepares us for departure with the beat of his drumsticks as they connect with each other. One, two, three, four, and we are off to the races. Lead vocalist, Mike Hranica, does not hesitate for a moment to introduce himself. There is an urgency to his delivery that does not seem to let up from start to finish as he transitions
effortlessly between shrieks and growls. "This is the faith," he belts unbridled intensity from on the onset of the onslaught, "This is the faith complex." Together everyone is in lockstep: the drums steadily pound out a solid rhythm section with the bass, as the guitars hammer the breakdown in reflection. The lyrics: even more cryptic than past endeavors, as evident by this stanza of the first track:
What should we ask for?/
Who should we look to if all we know is burning bridges?/
Don't speak to me like I'm a stranger/
Turn your thoughts to the roots/
As we've all been caught up in the branches/
With roots above and branches below/
All the while, keyboardist, James Baney, utilizes his synthesizer during "Sassafras" to smoothly intertwine an undercurrent of piano and electronica into the mesh as the ivories flutter around the persistent punishment of the guitar chords. Around the two-minute mark comes our first treat: clean vocals courtesy of rhythm guitarist, Jeremy DePoyster. Jeremy and his entry into the music will now allow the listener to breathe
before the relentless chaos continues shortly after he delivers the goods. It is a stark counterpoint to the guttural offensive of Mike Hranica, as DePoyster soars in an airy alto harmony that removes the listener completely from what once was standard just seconds sooner.
The song seamlessly segues into the second track, "I Hate Buffering". The trend continues as the guitars and drummer pummel in the same pace as "Sassafras". If one was not attentive, one would find it difficult to separate the two as they both initiate with the same formula, but on this song Mike Hranica sounds surprisingly tired. It is almost as if
his war cry has been robbed of any ferocity this time around. The track is also without an identity in its on right as Chris Baney and his synthetic atmosphere warble beneath the surface to provide only a mask of novelty. This is a song specifically meant for headphones. There is not much to be seen here, but it is far from bad. It is just not very memorable in its own right.
Thankfully the guitars meander into the next song, "Assistant to the Regional Manager" with a melodic interface. It is an expectancy of something memorable to come. "Assistant to the Regional Manager", being the first single off With Roots Above and Branches Below, speaks of a unified vision as an optimum choice for first single as each player receives ample time to showcase their talents. Later in the album, the listener is greeted with the monumental "Danger: Wildman", the second single off the record. It is an integral portion of the album as it serves as centerpiece for the entirety of the record.
It is an excellent example of what metalcore and Underoath-inclined electronica can accomplish with a full orchestra in the wings. This song represents The Devil Wears Prada in full force, in full glory. It a symphony of sound and precision as everything is in a collective drive to propel the listener chugging down the road to the end of the line.
Both "Assistant to the Regional Manager" and "Danger: Wildman" highlight every possible tangent of sagacious musicianship that the band is capable to exhibit. However, it is simply a shame that the rest of the album is not on par with these two songs.
The fourth track, "Dez Moines" and track seven "Ben Has a Kid" are more of a partnership between Hranica and DePoyster as they introduce a original concept to the formula: the chorus. Although the chorus has been a staple of pop music for decades, this band has been reluctant to follow the same footpath as other artists have before. It is an
entity driven entirely by vocal arrangements, as both dirty and clean vocals mingle with each other in tandem. Overall, they are both good. However, even though each track has momentum to spare, but there is nothing else here other than rhythmic chugging. A lot more could be said of an empty space. There are riffs, but they do not stand on their own two feet. It is a group effort, a retrospective in the vein of Dear Love. They have not forgotten their roots, but they have yet to stray far from them, as well.
One track does stand out from the rest and supplies a desired breath of fresh air to the rigid formula the band has set for themselves. This track is "Louder Than Thunder", and it is an entirely electronic track of music that gives DePoyster his own time in the limelight in this intimate moment of sincerity. It's ironic title gives it depth alone. Jeremy
asks the audience, "What would it take for things to be quiet?" as James Paney sets the mood with a melancholic passage on piano that is simply takes the breath away.
Unfortunately, James Paney has no real shining moment to speak of in terms like "Dogs Can Grow Beards All Over" or "HTML Rulez d00d", his overall presence on the album has be muted to the background where all his atmospheric intricacies can be heard only with the aid of headphones.
Despite all of this, not much has changed with The Devil Wears Prada. Every song title is still silly and irrelevant, and the lyrics are still as cryptic as always, but now everything is unified in a single vision. This is not merely a collection of songs, it is an album by itself altogether. There is focus where there was not at times past. Although, With Roots Above and Branches Below doesn't reinvent the wheel, it is still inventive and playful enough to stand head and shoulders above the metalcore competition.