Review Summary: Killswitch Engage returns to the studio and puts out their best album in years.
'Incarnate' is the seventh studio album from Massachusetts metalcore titans Killswitch Engage, and it's everything you'd expect from them and much more; polished execution, high production value, and a melodic intonation that perfectly compliments their brand of in your face metalcore. But what makes this, in my opinion, their best outing since 2004's 'The End of Heartache' is the level of accessibility that is existent from start to finish.
'Alone I Stand' opens the album in a manner that builds in intensity as the Killswitch crew gradually grows towards an all out assault on the listener's ears. 'Hate By Design' is a solid way to showcase frontman Jesse Leach's clean vocals, and his uncleans are even more impressive. Throughout this record, Leach's performance is very strong, and he does an outstanding job of walking the line between clean and unclean vocals. Guitarists Adam Dutkiewicz and Joel Stroetzel come together for what is arguably the best instrumental performance of their KE careers, and Mike D'Antonio can say virtually the same for his performance on bass.
'Cut Me Loose' is a track that wastes no time in getting its point across. Leach approaches the verses with an almost fractious manner, but it works for his harsher style of screamed vocals, and his crooning cleans in the chorus are probably the highlight of the track. 'Strength of the Mind' also relies on Leach's cleans to carry the chorus, and Stroetzel's riffs are nothing short of incredible. Justin Foley's performance on drums can get lost in the shuffle at times, but his execution also carries a myriad of quality to boast of.
In summation, this is by far Killswitch's best full length outing in over a decade, and it couldn't have come at a better time for the metalcore veterans and the genre they continue to be at the forefront of. This record easily carves a niche for itself as one of the best albums this year so far. Killswitch pulls off the unique feat of maturing while using a formula as old as their discography that continues to pay dividends for them. The punishing metalcore they have conveyed in spades has shown no signs of slowing down.
