Wrath and Rapture - Wrath and Rapture
Rating
RIYL
Between the Buried and MePainted in Exile
At the Gates
Release Date
02/16/2010
Label
Tragic Hero RecordsTracklist
1. The Black Gate Open2. The Dirge of Fallen Warriors
3. Disembodiment
4. Interlude I
5. The Temple at Dusk
6. Interlude II
7. A Breathtaking Tragedy
8. Cosmic Wasteland
9. Out of Darkness
10. Cold (At the Gates cover)
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When North Carolina's metalcore favorites My Hero is Me ended their five year career in 2009, they not only left a void for up-and-coming bands to fill, but allowed for two of their former members to showcase talents that their often-limited genre had held back. When rhythm guitarist Kenan Livermont and drummer Scott Shelton took the stage in front of me in January of 2010, I was aware that Wrath and Rapture were of a different breed, especially for North Carolina's suffering music scene and for Tragic Hero Records' sometimes close-minded artists. The band's music is a mix of power metal, death metal, jazz, metalcore, and basically all things that can be termed “progressive”. While the band's music doesn't sound much like that of fellow North Carolinians Between the Buried and Me, Wrath and Rapture's structure takes a few noticeable cues from them. Oh, and by the way - their own Dan Briggs handles bass duties on this album. If you can stomach the quick genre changes and the constant segues from epic build-up to crushing breakdown of the latter, then you should be able to handle Wrath and Rapture.
“The Black Gate Open” starts the album off, handling the power metal and metalcore titles in the first 30 seconds. An epic synth guides the track into a pitch-shifted sample that sounds like something straight out of 300. Key the second track, “The Dirge of Fallen Warriors,” which brings more of the same. Vocalist Sheldon Smith makes his introduction, but soon after, a synth lead that would sound right at home on a Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack kicks in. A few noodling minor third riffs soon give way to a crushing breakdown and one of my favorite leads so far this year when lead guitarist Nick Staley takes over at the helm. In the background, Dan Briggs tears it up with his all too familiar weaving, yet incredibly fundamental, bass performance. The track recalls the Pirates-esque theme and then ends. “Disembodiment” begins with some solid riffage, and eventually gives way to a jam with Briggs taking a solo. This leads into a breakdown with some signature Jamie King production, and then... a jazz section? Yes, and no, this isn't just a clean section with some chromatic runs like most metalcore bands seem to think is jazz. Staley and Jay Thullbery dance around together, intertwining both synth and guitar leads, which is damn cool.
The next three tracks are all interludes, which honestly could have been combined. The one that is sure to grab the attention of listeners is “The Temple at Dusk,” which showcases the immense talent of guitarist Nick Staley. There's a video of him tracking the solo on YouTube which shows just how easy it is for him to shred, and I find myself watching it quite a bit. “A Breathtaking Tragedy” is basically another show-off track with some actual substance. Combining some nice BTBAM-esque riffs and a Faceless-sounding lead, along with a massive breakdown, the band comes into their own. This is the song that will get people to take a second listen, a third, a fourth, and so on. The album winds down with more signature WAR sound and segues out on a dreamy keyboard sequence at the end of “Out of Darkness”. Following this is an At the Gates cover (which gets the bros moving live, surprisingly) dedicated to their heroes, and the true end of the album.
I would estimate that about half of the people who take a listen to Wrath and Rapture will immediately dismiss them for being jumpy and having breakdowns. These people are known as metal purists. Since this isn't a Defeated Sanity album, you can go ahead and dismiss this sort of opinion. As most of you know, I'm a fervent BTBAM fan, and therefore, I'm partial to dice-rolling in the genre-decision field. I was pretty desensitized to the sound when I first heard this album, and I implore you to try and get past it yourself. What we have here is a batch of young musicians who are expanding themselves beyond a scene dominated by new era hats (though Sheldon Smith rocks one on occasion) and tunings past the level of human hearing, and I applaud them for doing something new. This self-titled release leaves me wanting more almost immediately. I, for one, will be looking forward to their next effort.
--Cody Rogers
Comments
Fishers, Indiana
I wish I liked this more. It may just be me, but I think the keys/synth make the music sound really cheesy.
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Minnesota
I wish there were more... seems like there was too much filler on this album. The actual content that was there is pretty good, though.
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Wilmington DE
You write some quality reviews where I really can picture what this band sounds like before I've heard them especially being only 17. I also like when you mention when metal bands throw in chromatic runs here and there and they think its jazz.
Listening to:
Tides of Man
Oceansize
The Contortionist
We are the City
Periphery
Minneapolis, MN
They remind me of Epicurian with less clean vocals.
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Raleigh, NC
Thanks man, I really appreciate it! I pride myself in knowing what I'm talking about, especially when it comes to music, so I try to stay on top of my game, haha.
They aren't my favorite band, but when I saw them live, I was pretty damn impressed. Both guitarists can shred their asses off, and their live tone is impeccable.