Review Summary: We carry on
At this point in time, every metalcore fan and hater alike knows the name Killswitch Engage. By very definition, they have all of the nooks and crannies that make the genre what it is; catchy melodic guitars, screamed verses, sung choruses, and the typical verse-chorus-verse-chorus structure. We’ve seen it all before time and time again. However, for over sixteen years, Adam D and company have been constantly successful from 2004’s
The End of Heartache to the smash single ‘My Curse’ off of
As Daylight Dies. Yet, the band’s previous effort,
Disarm the Descent saw the return of original vocalist Jesse Leach and gave way to a somewhat different kind of Killswitch, one that sounded rejuvenated and refreshing. Now three years later, Killswitch Engage still manages to deliver that same amount of energy with their seventh studio album.
Admittedly enough, it’s difficult to defend
Incarnate at first glance. It’s easy enough to dismiss it as “just another Killswitch Engage/metalcore album”, as there’s very little in terms of improvement on certain aspects. Adam’s production does seem to show its age as the album’s all too familiar sound is once again used, the instrumentation at times doesn’t feel as inspired, and most of the songs do end up having the same structure. But a few tracks in, preferably in the album’s second half,
Incarnate proves to be a different beast altogether. Song’s like ‘Embrace the Journey…Upraised” and “The Great Deceit” give way to Killswitch’s fiercer side, provided by the thrash-like guitar work and melodic death metal-like rhythms, while others like ‘We Carry On’ give out more of an emotional side that we never really heard from them. Melodies are much more infectious as well thanks to some excellent songwriting from both Jesse and Adam that’s shown throughout, a good example being the record’s opener ‘Alone I Stand’. Acoustic guitars also play an role on the album, something that hasn’t been heard much of since 2002’s
Alive or Just Breathing. ‘Quiet Distress’ and ‘Just Let Go’ both manage to harbor back into the nostalgic days of ‘My Last Serenade’ and ‘The Element of One’ and will certainly be favorites of older fans.
However, the heart of the album is Jesse Leach himself. He manages to shine in literally every single song throughout the entire album, bonus tracks included. In every chorus and in most verses, Leach sings and screams his heart out, putting in a substantial amount emotion into the lyrics. Songs like lead singles ‘Strength of the Mind’ and ‘Hate By Design’ have Leach pouring his voice into the choruses while ‘We Carry On’ and ‘It Falls On Me’ show Leach’s best moments on the album as he carries the melodies from beginning to end. I can’t picture any other vocalist in the last ten or so years that is able to do this so well. Perhaps the reason for this is that he seems to find his own sound in the album, where as in
Disarm the Descent, as enjoyable as it was, he seemed to borrow heavily on the melodies and hooks that previous vocalist Howard Jones used.
Incarnate shows Leach relying on his own tones and energy, as well as his own songwriting, and the result is arguably one of his best performances in years, if not his best performance throughout his entire career.
That’s not to say that Leach overshadows the rest of the band. Even if the guitar work does often feel a little too familiar, both Adam D and Joel Stroetzel do a great job at keeping the energy alive alongside drummer Justin Foley while bassist Mike D’Antonio helps provide the raw, visceral sound, especially in the heavier tracks. ‘The Great Deceit’ is one of the best examples of all of the band members at their peak performance. The entire group manages to work so well together that track ends up being one of the best on the album. Adam’s backing screams on the other hand do provide some backup substance to the vocals, but Leach does tend to steal the spotlight from him more often than not. Thankfully he does have his own moment in the form of b-side ‘Triumph Through Tragedy’ where he manages to show off his deeper growls.
Incarnate may feel like another typical Killswitch Engage record at first, but in the end it manages to be their best record since
As Daylight Dies. Jesse’s fantastic performance and the excellent songwriting help give this record weight. Even after seventeen years, Killswitch Engage still manages to prove why they are one of the better metalcore acts out there. Even though the members themselves are aging, their music still manages to sound refreshing, and
Incarnate still manages to continue that trend. With their feet planted on solid ground, it’s now a matter of what exactly will they do for their next album. But until then, we will be more than happy to listen to this for the days to come.
