Maroon "Endorsed By Hate" CD
[Abacus]
I haven't heard anything by this German vegan straightedge act in a long time, despite the fact that they've remained pretty active over the years, but as expected, their latest full-length delivers just over 40 minutes of vicious metalcore in the classic European style (with a few modern twists of their own). Chugging breakdowns and ferocious midpaced chunkiness? Check. Death metal styled tremolo picking and thrashy Slayer-esque runs? Check. A few hints at the melodic Swedish sound handled as effectively as possible? Yep, those too. I actually really like the vocals as well. They're just your usual strained screams, but there's a really unique sort of throaty texture and hoarseness that gives them a different sound from the norm. The songwriting is pretty motherfucking vicious on this thing, too. I love the breakdowns because they're not generic or forced, they're really powerful, and the way the material's put together it really flows well. Whereas some bands of this nature kind of throw in every riff that they write, you can tell that these guys kind of build around similar sounding riffs and put some effort into making sure the songs have a strong feel that carries on throughout. Portions of the title track could've been at home on either of the first two Machine Head records; "Watch It All Come Down" totally opens like something off of "South of Heaven" with its slow tempo and eerily pronounced dual guitar harmonies (think "Mandatory Suicide", big time); and "Without a Face" even layers in some atmospheric keyboards very subtly in the distance behind a mix of mosh and contemporary Swedish riffing - which, while not really necessary, does actually work. Elsewhere, "At the Gates of Demise" rips through a killer tapping passage that's over in a flash, "Chosen Fate" has a lengthy instrumental intro with a few more synths and some effective samples, and closer "Goetterdaemmerung" hits six minutes with tons of midpaced lead lines and relentless crunchy rhythms. Plus, the incredible "The Omega Suite" opens with slick acoustic guitars and quickly brings in dark and dissonant power chords for a truly outstanding composition that's probably the most memorable of the tracks - even as an instrumental! The recording's pretty good, too. With a little adjusting it could be even better, but the guitar tone is fucking awesome: Super crisp and controlled, which is great for the palm-muting rhythms and straight power chords. The vocals also sound damn nice, so all I'd like to hear would be more bass in the center of the mix (or at least more definition to the basslines) and for the drums to have a more natural tone. As far as snappy and crisp percussion is concerned they do fall on the stronger side of the fence with this one, but the faster beats can definitely cut through the mix and sound a little machinated on occasion (namely the kick drums, of course). The layout looks nice and consistent with lots of scratchy textures and patterns using largely shades of white and red. The lyrics are somewhat abstract but hint at messages that vary from the personal to commentary on larger issues such as animal rights, the destruction of the environment, greed and selfishness, and a couple of tracks that put a subtly hopeful twist to the bleakness and deal more with living life for yourself and persevering through hardships and whatnot. The CD-Rom portion of the disc contains two live videos of older songs "Shadow of the Vengeance" and "Still Believe in What Has Fallen Apart". The audio quality is rough, but the visuals are solid. Sadly, though, the show looks to be at some sort of larger venue, complete with a barrier and bouncers, so it's pretty boring and there's not the kind of energy or interaction that there would've been in a smaller club, so... fuck it. This is a good record, and definitely among the more promising in its particular niche of the current European metalcore scene. Hopefully this will get the band some well deserved attention in the US. Keep an eye out... (7/10)
Running time - 43:23, Tracks: 11
[Notable tracks: The World's Havoc, Without a Face, Chosen Fate, The Omega Suite]
Abacus Recordings - http://www.abacusrecordings.com

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