Review Summary: Whitechapel's follow-up to "This is Exile" proves to be an excellent follow up, proving that the band is evolving to be simultaneously more emotional and brutal. I highly recommend the record.
American deathcore band
Whitechapel has released some killer tracks in their six-year musical career. The band has mostly focused on thematic records, their first album, "The Somatic Defilement", being a narrative of Jack the Ripper (hence the name, "Whitechapel") and his murders, and their second album "This is Exile" forming the basis of what's widely interpreted to be the band's take on religion and most governments. "A New Era of Corruption" is the first record that doesn't focus on a single theme, but rather gives listeners another look at a much more broader topic: human corruption.
With album opener "Devolver", Whitechapel describes the devolution of human society (and humans in general) as a morbid crime. There are heavy religion-related themes within the album - after all, quite a bit of human corruption stems from religion - as well as some serious emotion displayed between the gut-wrenching vocals of Phil Bozeman and the assorted guitarists' head-thrashing riffs. There's not only hate and violence in this record - sadness and despair is displayed prominently, as well as a haughty self-confidence that can be seen in album single "The Darkest Day of Man", as Phil takes over the world and runs it into the ground. "Reprogrammed to Hate", wherein
Deftones frontman Chino Moreno is featured, prophesies the end of man, and "End of Flesh" tells a tale of solemnity and exile, which can have quite the emotional impact if you understand the lyrics well enough. Skip ahead to standard-issue album closer "Single File to Dehumanization" and you hear a legend of warnings ignored and the ultimate doom that humanity has to face.
Bonus track "Animus" is where heavy emotion is placed. This song invokes the solemn hatred and despair over frontman Phil Bozeman losing his mother ("How can this be? Mother I have forsaken you... Please forgive me, please forgive me!"). It really sets Whitechapel apart from the other deathcore bands (and death metal bands in general) in that they pour quite a bit of feeling into their songs.
While the sound of Bozeman's vocals is the main "oomph" of Whitechapel's sound (along with their heavy bass drums), the guitarwork off of A New Era is incredible. It builds off of the already impressive riffs you hear in "This is Exile" and "The Somatic Defilement" while still retaining that signature Whitechapel sound they established in "Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation" off of their first record. If you listen closely, you may even hear a solo! My only complaint here is that several tracks just seem like filler (Unnerving, A Future Corrupt), much like Whitechapel's other albums.
All in all, this record is an excellent follow-up to "This is Exile", evolving both sound and lyrical composition. It's a welcome addition to any metalhead's composium (of metal). I recommend it to anybody who enjoys deathcore, doom metal, or even death metal in general, even if it leans towards the more brutal side of the genre.
