Review Summary: The rare triple encore, each one as satisfying as the last.
If there was a Mount Rushmore for bands that hold the most personal importance to me, Haste the Day would undoubtedly be one of the first to come to mind. “Haste the Day? Really?”, you may find yourself wondering. What’s so special about them? To many they were a solid mid-tier metalcore band in the booming Christian scene that was littered with talent, one that may have slipped your mind over the years. To me, they mean so much more. I got into metal in a pretty typical fashion for a teenager in the late 00’s–early 10’s. Metallica, then Slipknot and a healthy dose of what was known as the “New Wave of American Heavy Metal”, a hackneyed catch-all label that lumped together a variety of bands that really had nothing in common. The genre that grabbed me most, though, was metalcore.
As a teenager, can you really blame me? Heavy riffs. Massive, singalong choruses. Breakdowns. What more could you ask for? It’s accessible, catchy, and still heavy with the spooky, screamed vocals that push away so many newcomers. It’s the ultimate gateway into metal, and one that eventually had me seeking out heavier and heavier music. I remember Killswitch Engage being my first metalcore band. I was instantly hooked by Adam D’s riffs, beautiful melodies and Howard Jones’ operatic powerhouse of a voice. This became my new fix, and I needed to find more. I can’t exactly tell you what happened next, but I have vague memories of first finding another Christian band, August Burns Red. I loved them, and of course, I needed more. That eventually led me to digging through their label, Solid State Records, looking for anything similar. That’s most likely where I found Haste the Day. “Blue 42”, “Stitches”, “Mad Man”, I was all in.
If any band had the right blend of heaviness and infectious hooks, it was Haste the Day. There were the first two albums with harsh vocalist Jimmy Ryan. The pounding riffage and his raw, throaty screams were unlike anything I had ever heard, and honestly, they were kind of intimidating. But I grew to love them, and I credit his unique, throat-shredding style with inoculating me against even harsher, more abrasive vocals I would come to appreciate later on. Ryan was an incredibly talented vocalist, but stepped away after two albums. Luckily, waiting in the wings was someone just as capable: Stephen Keech. I love
Burning Bridges especially, but my heart truly lies with Stephen. He is more of a traditional metalcore screamer, but has so much power and bite in his voice, while also making every word crystal clear, a difficult feat to pull off. Keech also added some tasteful higher-pitched cleans of his own to the mix, adding another layer of dynamics. And then there’s Brennan Chaulk, whose clean vocals took a noticeable leap forward on
Pressure the Hinges, really helping to solidify the Haste the Day formula. “Stitches,” to me, is still the quintessential Haste the Day song. The vocal interplay between Keech and Chaulk has incredible chemistry, moving between quiet-loud dynamics and landing on one of the most contagious hooks you’ll ever hear. As a 15-year-old, it didn’t get better than that, and honestly, it still doesn’t.
Dreamer carried on the momentum of
Pressure the Hinges and featured some of their most delicious hooks. Following the album, Chaulk, a crucial member, would depart the band. I assumed this was it. How do you replace something so integral to the band’s sound? Luckily, Keech stepped up again and took the main clean singing role himself without missing a beat. At the same time, the band received a jolt of energy with the addition of guitarist Scott Whelen from Phinehas, who provided some of the most electric and pure ear candy leads you will ever hear on a metalcore album.
Attack of the Wolf King was a complete reinvigoration out of nowhere and is probably their best album. As a teenager, this was one of the first albums I pre-ordered and I even bought a shirt. There was nothing cooler than being part of a release cycle for my favorite band, my hype was sky high and they didn’t let me down. Then a few months later, the band announced it was over, just after releasing what felt like a creative peak. They say all good things come to an end, but at least they went out swinging. The band reunited Chaulk and Jimmy Ryan with Keech for one final sendoff captured on the live album
Haste the Day vs. Haste the Day. It was everything longtime fans could’ve wanted, ending with a powerful rendition of “When Everything Falls” playing them out one last time. Unless?
Yeah, Jimmy and Stephen together was just too good of an idea to leave there. Even though it felt like an eternity to my younger self, just four years later the idea to record an album featuring every member of Haste the Day came about. And I mean every single member who ever played in the band. Even original drummer Devin Chaulk and guitarist Jason Barnes both feature on a single song. How cool is that? There was a Kickstarter campaign to fund the album, titled
Coward, and I was more than happy to donate. After all, Ryan and Keech on the same album is literally something I dreamt up in my head knowing it would never happen on a full album, alas my dreams somehow came true. My shirt I received featuring a Haste the Day logo made up of every donor’s name is one of my most treasured possessions.
Coward lived up to every expectation I had. It was the perfect blend of the old and new eras clashing together for something special. Some of their most crushing riffs, Ryan’s filthy screams, Chaulk’s soulful cleans, flashes of
Attack of the Wolf King-style melody and Keech tying it together. It was yet again another stellar curtain call for Haste the Day, they once again exited stage left to thunderous applause.
I was fully content and satisfied with
Coward as a true sendoff. I never imagined a comeback after it, hell I never even imagined it existing in the first place. In 2023, I saw Haste the Day were reuniting for Furnace Fest. It wasn’t shocking; they often bring in non-active bands for one-off appearances. It must’ve been incredible to see live, but I didn’t think too much of it at the time. This changed quickly because the next year Haste the Day was back, again! This time with the
Attack of the Wolf King lineup plus Brennan Chaulk for a three-guitar lineup. It left my mind racing as to what a new Haste the Day album would sound like. Coward was a once-in-a-lifetime “Avengers Assemble” experiment, and even that album was over a decade ago now, time flies. The last traditionally recorded Haste the Day album was released 16 years ago! That’s an eternity in metalcore years.
Dissenter attempts to answer the question of what a truly evolved version of Haste the Day would sound like, and I was counting down the days from the moment lead single “Burn” dropped in 2024.
“Burn” was the obvious choice for lead single. The track feels very much like a continuation of the melodically driven sound they explored on
Attack of the Wolf King. It features flashy, fun leads and a jumbo-sized chorus, this time led by a harmony between Brennan Chaulk and bassist Michael Murphy. Add in a well-timed breakdown at the end, and you’ve got a classic Haste the Day track. Maybe it didn’t exactly enthrall me at first, but it was the ultimate “welcome back” track, familiar, comfortable, and effective. It definitely left me craving more. Then came what felt like an endless wait for news about the forthcoming album. It ended up being about a year and a half before we finally got confirmation: the album, now titled
Dissenter, would release on May 1, 2026, alongside a new single, “Shallows.” This was the one that answered the questions I was seeking. “Shallows” still feels adjacent to
Attack of the Wolf King, but with a much darker and ominous energy permeating throughout. The hook really caught me off guard, with Chaulk delivering a downbeat, haunting, almost whispered tone instead of the more anthemic, soaring choruses that made them so famous. That restraint clashes beautifully with the eerie, atmospheric leads that drive the song. It also features what may be one of their best breakdowns, capped off by an elongated, primal scream from Keech. This is what I was waiting for.
There is just something about seeing a band you grew up with mature in subtle ways.
Dissenter is certainly still Haste the Day, all the elements that made them what they were are still present in spades. But it just sounds a bit different. This isn’t a band “going mature” and losing what made them special. It feels like a natural evolution of where they were 16 years ago. The melodic leads are still present, but they’re less flashy and showy. Instead, they serve the atmosphere, complementing the album’s more somber tone as it unfolds. Likewise, the bombastic hooks are mostly dialed back in favor of more restrained, soulful singing from a now weathered Brennan Chaulk, alongside Michael Murphy, whose deeper register provides a strong contrast with Stephen Keech, especially on tracks like “Grave,” where they trade lines. These distinct pitches create such a rich texture and provide a different, but at the same time still rewarding experience.
There is notably less dynamic vocal interplay, but it’s offset by what may be Keech’s most complete and powerful performance entirely drenched in emotion. His screams are just as vicious as they were, perhaps even more so, just listen to his Furnace Fest performance in 2024 for proof. His tortured, strained vocals somewhere in between singing and screaming stick with you. That’s never more apparent than on “Adrift,” which is without a doubt one of their best and perhaps a spiritual successor to the excellent “White As Snow.” Keech takes center stage with a twisting, dynamic vocal performance as the song surges in and out of explosive passages, reaching unreal highs in the chorus. The Deftones-esque, reverb-soaked guitar work is stunningly gorgeous. It’s patient and atmospheric, building toward fiery crescendos while Keech drives everything forward. The finale, with its swirling guitars and impassioned delivery, is a true jaw-dropper. Again, this is what I was waiting for.
Dissenter is tonally consistent throughout, leaning into a more gloomy, melancholic atmosphere, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still bring the heaviness. “Gnasher” and “Heretic” are two quick, more aggressive cuts that would’ve fit nicely on
Coward. The former leans on a shouted, infectious refrain before collapsing into a nasty breakdown, while the latter is a two-minute jolt of adrenaline, built around a bouncy groove and a lightning-fast chorus. The tracklist is thoughtfully paced. These heavier moments, placed back-to-back, inject a burst of energy before the final stretch of softer, more melodically driven tracks, which come together to form a powerful closing run. They even save one of their best for last. “Oblivion,” an almost six-minute epic, calls back to the grandeur of “Chorus of Angels.” It showcases the band firing on all cylinders, from its heavenly intro, to the simple but killer chugging riffs, to a massive, longing refrain from Stephen Keech that anchors the track. The conclusion is wonderfully fitting and achingly beautiful, with a violin slowly fading the album to black.
Haste the Day has meant a great deal to me for a long time. They were a major part of the soundtrack to my formative years, and they remain a band I return to again and again. I know each album like the back of my hand. What’s always stood out is their consistency. No matter the lineup, they’ve continued to deliver. Their last three albums have a bit for everyone, each having a distinct sound.
Attack of the Wolf King is one of the most fun, stylish and catchy melodic metalcore albums out there.
Coward is a fan’s dream come true, bringing together their two eras into a complete and unlikely vision.
Dissenter feels like their natural maturation, more reflective and emotionally resonant. In a lot of ways, I’ve grown alongside this band, and that’s something that hits me in the core of my being. Either of their last two releases could have served as a perfect sendoff. Most bands would have left it there. But Haste the Day clearly had more to say on the matter, and again they delivered. We are left with once again, what could be the final Haste the Day album. If it’s the end, it’s a fitting conclusion, one final encore for the fans. If not, I’ll still be here waiting.
