Review Summary: Fantastically furious, blood-stirring hardcore from one of the finest on the UK scene.
The UK has seen something of a resurgence in its hardcore scene recently. The past few years have seen a wave of new bands, spearheaded by the likes of Gallows, emerging and putting forward their own take on the genre in emphatically aggressive style. With their major label debut Ignorance Never Dies, Your Demise do just this, and do so in quite brilliant fashion.
The tone for the album is set perfectly by the introductory title track. At the start of the album, a sinister riff creeps in, gradually ascending in volume, before giving way to a crushing stop-start riff and dark palm-mutes. As George Noble’s ferocious screams kick in, the song builds in spine-tingling fashion, gradually increasing in intensity and fury, before a rallying call leads into the anthemic Burnt Tongues. Alongside a trademark chant-along refrain, the song features a stomping main breakdown riff and a truly incredible intense crescendo with an extended snare roll, dissonant guitars and George’s furious screams. In this moment, the very essence of the album and the band is captured perfectly – they excel in delivering all-out crushingly heavy, aggressive and fantastically passionate hardcore.
Arguably the most impressive feature of the album is the way in which it delivers such fantastically blood-stirring hardcore material so consistently. In the early tracks, fast-paced sections driven by frantic punk-style drumming are combined with crushing beatdowns and furious screams as George spits out his utterly spiteful words with unabashed venom. The frontman’s impassioned delivery makes for some incredible moments on the album such as the spine-tingling roar of “when’s the time to step up and use my f**king voice?” over dissonant riffing and the cry of “I need someone to come back to; most of all that person needs to be you” leading to what can only be described as one of the most blood-stirring breakdowns ever written. Throughout the album, the unrelenting fury and aggression of the songs is done justice by a crisp production significantly improved on that of earlier releases; in particular, the bass guitar, so often neglected in the final mix, remains clearly audible throughout, and it is this prominent crunchy detuned low-end that gives the stomping riffs and beatdowns that vital extra edge.
To the band’s credit, they also experiment with their sound to an extent. The album is divided up by instrumental interludes composed of dubstep and drum and bass beats and scratches. While seemingly random and out of place on first listen, these tracks have the effect of breaking up the record nicely, allowing the listener to catch their breath between bouts of the otherwise unrelenting full-blown hardcore onslaught. This works particularly well towards the end of the album, when an extended drum and bass track eventually gives way to a crushing wall of sound that introduces a final two-pronged hardcore assault. It is to the band’s credit that, far from losing their way towards the end of the album, these final songs are arguably amongst the strongest – and certainly two of the heaviest. The album’s end is marked by more anthemic gang-vocals leading to one final crushing breakdown with the most spine-tingling pinch harmonics. By this point, the listener is left exhausted and exhilarated by an astonishing, crushingly heavy and, above all, hugely enjoyable listening experience.
Overall, a fantastic album from Your Demise that would act as a springboard for the band to establish themselves as one of the frontrunners of the UK hardcore scene.
