Review Summary: A breath of fresh air for the stale metalcore genre.
Usually if I see a bands name and it sounds like a 14 year old metalcore kid has come up with it, then I’d tend to never give them a listen. Fortunately, with Bloodbather, I heard their music first before seeing their name and for that I’m grateful.
Florida based band, Bloodbather seem to predominantly be called a metalcore band however after listening through their record Pressure, calling them nu-metalcore with a tweak of hardcore would be a more accurate description. Pressure is a quick 14-minute-long ep but gives a nice taste of what this young outfit is all about through spine crunching riffs and lead singers Jeffrey Georges overwhelming harsh screaming vocals being pushed to the limit.
Throughout the seven track ep, a feeling of intensity surrounds every song. Straight from the off with The Final Request, Georges yells out, “I am coming for your head, I have always prayed for this.” The song stands as a good intro for what’s to come with Georges blood curdling screaming being a key highlight. The song Pressure feeds into Bloodbathers relentless intensive feel for every song, starting off slowly the pressure soon begins to build as Georges continuously roars, “I dream of a genocide” which is backed up well with fast paced chopping guitar riffs.
A short interlude through the song Sacrifice begins to make you hear a slight Code Orange influence, which isn’t a bad thing at all. The shortest song on the record Consequence comes after and whilst being the shortest it’s easily the most forgettable with the song not offering much. The band hit back though with the last two songs, The Hunt and End with Georges typical ruthless screaming carrying it along.
There’s something refreshing about the Florida based band. The current state of metalcore is a sad one, with the sub genre being grossly overloaded with bands stuck in a hole full of cringe worthy and depressing lyrics, and the blandest song writing. While Bloodbather still carry some of these traits through their own name and a few weak lyrics here and there – their sound is a breath of fresh air for the metalcore genre. With constant harsh vocals and creative guitar riffs this band is certainly one to watch out for after their inspiring latest ep.
