Review Summary: "Weak people cannot be sincere."
"This is as bitter as it is beautiful. The conflict of truths within each vein, this is of my being- of my blood. This, that within blood ill-tempered."
This is the message that is inscripted onto the first page inside the lyric booklet of Shai Hulud's second full-length studio album,
That Within Blood Ill-Tempered originally released May 20, 2003 on Revelation Records. Now as vague as it may sound, I feel that this statement encapsulates pretty accurately what to expect as a listener when delving into this album. With every ounce of beauty this album portrays either in melody or in hopeful lyricism is evenly matched with harsh dissonant riffs, pummeling rhythms, and the bleak bitter reality that is also prevalent in the lyrics and themes.
The album opens up with rumbling that slowly and quietly escalates until the first words are triumphantly delivered by passionate front man Geert Van Der Velde, "Rest assured... This is sincere... This is true!" Letting the listener know that they are indeed the "real deal" so to say, right from the beginning. You know they mean what they say and say what they mean, right before catapulting the listener into the melodic riffing maelstrom of the first track "Scornful of the Motives and Virtue of Others." The first track does an excellent job of kick starting the album off on a good foot as well as setting the tone for the rest of the album to follow. This song is a rollercoaster ride of break-neck speeds and constantly changing rhythms and tempos that build and build before crescendoing at the climax of the song where Geert declares "Let this be my act of defiance, let this be my refusal to fit in" before returning to the opening riff and lyrics and closing out the song in an epic fashion. "Scornful" proves to be one of the strongest songs on this album. However, the rest of the album does not let up either.
The next song following suit with "Let Us At Last Praise The Colonizers Of Dreams" injecting even more melody and proves to be a much lighter song thematically and tonally compared to the chaotic and angry "Scornful." One of my personal favorite aspects of this record are it's lyrics, but it is also one of it's most polarizing. As you all may know all throughout
TWBIT we are met with mouthfuls of grandiose and often wordy lyrics that are crammed into the albums 38 minute run time. From the irritatingly long song titles to the at times almost "Shakespearean" style lyrics I can see how they can turn off many of the more casual listeners. As for myself the lyrics serve as a beautiful and poetic catharsis that many bands seem to lack. They aren't afraid to be wordsmiths and use the English language to its full potential to convey their messages of dispair and hope. Exploring loneliness and defeat as well as sheer strength of will and determination, the lyrics on
TWBIT run the whole gamut.
Musically this album doesn't shy away from most of the melodic hardcore and metalcore "tropes" that we have all heard before, but here they are executed flawlessly. Unlike many of the bands that have come and gone after Shai Hulud's peak in the early 2000's that have adopted a similar style, their brand of melody infused metallic hardcore feels as fresh as ever and never feels forced or out of place. Guitarist Matt Fox proves himself to be the backbone of this band and only remaining original member after all these years. Maybe Shai Hulud's achilles heel that has prevented them from truly achieving the recognition they deserve, lies in the fact that they just simply can't hold down a solid line-up. Many members have come and gone over the band's nearly 20 year long lifetime. One person who has stood the test of time is Matt Fox, arguably one of the biggest musical and somtimes lyrical contributers to the band. The riffs on
TWBIT switch seemlessly from powerful chugging to clean picked melodic passages and lofty twisting passages. The songs on this album never feel repetitive nor run together and every note has its place and serves its purpose. The production values may not quite be up to today's standards but considering when this album came out and comparing it to their contemporaries it stands up well on its own. The album is neither overproduced nor underproduced and works well with the music.
Now without running the risk of going over every single song on this album and making this review longer than it already is, I would like to briefly touch on the final song on the album, "Ending the Perpetual Tragedy." This song is one of the more overlooked songs in this band's repertoire and to me is the crowning jewel on
TWBIT. After a brief audio sample, the vitriolic screams of singer Geert explode into the song with the line "Hear my words that I might teach you. Take my arms that I might reach you - that I might reach straight for your throat!" Much like the first line this song, it grabs the listener by the throat and does not let up as they tear through you with an increased sense of haste and urgency. After the song reaches it's first climax with tortured howls of Van Der Velde as he proclaims "This is a Tragedy!" The song then takes a hard and unexpected left turn as the song slows down to a calm pace and enters into a strange and quite haunting spoken word section, with layed voices all reciting the words in unison. The song builds before all instruments erupt again with greater intensity. "Her loved one is dead, His loved one is dead, My loved one is dead, Your loved one is dead. This is a tragedy!" The song comes to a close with a heavy chugging as the frontman repeats "If these hands would only kill" over and over, no doubt a reference to the band's most famous song "A Profound Hatred of Man." The song slowly begins to fade as a repetitious and melancholic sounding lead begins to play over the chugging, rounding out the nearly 8 minute epic.
That Within Blood Ill-Tempered is a remarkable example of the melodic hadcore/metalcore genre and has been the inspiration for numerous younger bands that have risen to popularity post 2004. I feel what flaws this album may have are vastly outweighed by the moments of brilliancy that are shown here. While Shai Hulud may never reach the recognition that they no doubtedly deserve, I know this album will remain as a classic for me and anyone else who has found solace in these songs.
