Bloodties "Into the Dark Decade" CD
[Counterintelligence]
Shit yeah! Their second full-length and it blows the first one out of the water. Better recording, better songwriting, superior artwork... the works. 11 tracks of blistering metallic hardcore with more metal than hardcore in 23 compact minutes. The compositions are a little longer this time around, still an absolutely crushing blend of US/European styled metalcore (think Hatebreed meets Liar and then some) with a little more extra metal, both in playing style and as far as the sound is concerned, because this shit is heavy. The guitar tone is thick as fuck, the bass is even thicker (and you can hear it most of the time), the vocals are burly lower-midrange shouts, and the drums are really crisp and tight but still pack enough punch to get by. If I could change anything it would be to give the drums more of a natural snap, because they sound triggered and that separates them from the massiveness of the core instruments, but the guitar tone is perfect for the mosh parts. I love it. At times they even hit on brief moments of Crowbar-esque sludginess, which rules. "Watch Us Burn" drops a "Firestorm" styled breakdown with a slick lead melody behind it, "Ash and Sand" picks up the pace and throws around some hammer-on/pull-off riffs and quick tremolo picking runs (not to mention a fiery fuckin' solo), "From Your Grave" is a quick rager with a straight up hardcore song structure that throws in a few atypical chord formations to spice things up, "Eradicate the Fake" busts out some speedy thrash metal influences and unloads one of the most exceedingly brutal breakdowns in this band's history (plus another fiery solo), and "Afterworld" is a beautiful little acoustic instrumental with amazing sound quality that leads into closer "The Grip". Visually this fucker looks absolutely incredible, using lots of bleak imagery layering dirty, corroded textures over dark landscapes (trees, cityscapes, etc.) with a fiery sort of post-apocalyptic aesthetic. Also nice is the use of subtle gloss overlay printing for some text and visuals throughout the booklet. Everything really does look absolutely amazing. The lyrics are as bitter as ever too, dealing with hatred, pain, suffering, rage... all that good stuff. "I won't bow down. I won't give in. I spit in this world's face. This life is shit. But I'll live it. This world is shit. So deal with it." Short but sweet. These guys are definitely getting better. If they can brighten up the recording ever so slightly the next time around they'll be ready to devour mankind. Did I mention that this thing looks fucking great? Hot damn. Check these guys out, I can't believe I hadn't heard of them until about a month ago. What the hell is wrong with the world that legions of shitty bands sell tens of thousands of records while most people have never even heard of Bloodties? (8/10)
Running time - 22:48, Tracks: 11
[Notable tracks: Ash and Sand, From Your Grave, Eradicate the Fake, Afterworld, The Grip]
Bloodties - http://www.bloodtieshq.com

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