Well, what do you know? Divebomb Records, my favorite active record label, is finally warming up to the mp3 era with a few digital-only releases, among the first of which is the "Not on My Watch" EP from New Jersey's For the Love Of... This material was originally self-released by the band in 2009 and contains seven tracks of scorching "metalcore" (the good kind) in a little over 20 minutes. Despite my obsession with a million other bands from New Jersey, I've never really followed For the Love Of... very closely (I have no clue why), but apparently that was a critical mistake on my part, 'cause I'm absolutely blown away by how awesome this shit is. Almost every song runs less than three minutes and keeps the energy running high with a great balance of chunky, metal-based riffing; acerbic textures and faintly chaotic arrangements; surprisingly technical outbursts; and some excellent little melodic/post-hardcore flourishes. You could loosely compare different elements of their approach herein to a number of varying bands/styles from the 90's era, but they're able to bring those influences into the present as well, so everything still sounds fairly "current" (for lack of a better word). Great production, too. It's got just the right amount of pulsing low-end, a really crisp guitar tone, the mix is nicely balanced... I have no complaints. I had no expectations one way or the other for this EP, but I was sold before the first song had ended, and every single track's a keeper. I don't know if these guys are still semi-active or not, but I hope so, 'cause this is an incredible set of tunes that certainly deserves more attention, and I'd love to hear more along these lines. Fuckin' highly recommended...
For the Love Of... "Not on My Watch"
Comments
Great band! “Feasting on the will of humanity” is one of my favourite 90’s metalcore albums. Great Conan samples! Their next e.p. “In consequence” didn’t do it for me though… I’ve been meaning to check out this e.p. for quite some time but never really got to it. Thanks for the reminder!
11.17.2011 | By Willöm de Pillöm
Very fucking nice. I heard the name thrown around in the past, but always thought they were generic melodic metalcore that was the shit back then (the name still rubs me the wrong way a bit). Still, this is some excellent shit, reminds me of Burnt by the Sun a lot.
Thanks!
11.24.2011 | By Chris