Review Summary: a nostalgic homage to 2000s metalcore with relentless breakdowns, intense drumming, and raw aggression, offering a refreshing break from the overly technical trends in the metal scene
Memory Of An Empire is a relatively fresh name in the metal scene, yet it managed to make some noise with a couple of releases. Today we are going to look at The Wonderer, the most recent installment up to date, where the band showcases their signature brand of “oldschool metalcore/deathcore”.
The song is an homage to the classic 2000s metalcore pioneers, built around the backbone of constant breakdowns veiled with minimalistic guitar hooks.
As the first riff fades out the breakdown immediately starts accompanied by an unrelenting vocal attack. This is the most nostalgic part of The Wonderer – high-pitched fried screaming and lower growling sounds exactly like your old MySpace page would.
As the riffing develops mandatory dissonant guitars add up, growing into a somewhat melodic guitar work. The most technical part here would be the drums, which are fast – like “I mean it” fast.
Breakdown breakdowns into another breakdown with some truly machinegun drumming and intense spastic vocals (soon to become borderline mathcore insane).
The song burns out as quickly as it appeared – in the tradition of the new wave of American metalcore. The track is heavy, ruthless, and sluggish. And that’s exactly what we miss in the oversaturated landscape of similar technical-obsessed acts, some good old honest to god primal aggression. And there is a lot of it in this gritty duo, totally worth your time.
