One of the best things about The Respect Issue is that it does not overstay it's welcome. Clocking in at a mere 29 minutes, Emmure does not waste any time getting right down to business of delivering skull crushing, hardcore style breakdowns while deathcore style vocals guide you through the brief run time.
The album gets things off to a heavy start with the introductory track "Young, Rich, and Out of Control." It has some growled vocals, heavy chugging guitars, and leads directly into the first actual song, "Sound Wave Superior." This is where it all begins to go downhill.
The Respect Issue slips into a rut as the entire album sounds like one long breakdown. I am sure this sort of thing plays well to a live crowd, as I can imagine getting into a pit surging and boiling over under the sheer kinetic energy that is generated. I am reminded of bands like Unearth, a band that may not quote have the in-your-face heaviness of Emmure, but has a stronger technical ability to combine the breakdowns with strong lead work, in turn giving their music some added depth, thus increasing their replay value.
Not to sound like I am unnecessarily ripping into them, Emmure has a strong base, and this is only their second album. They are young and have plenty of room to grow and develop their sound. I have heard many bands which don't have this much going for them. I am interested in seeing where they go from here.
The hardcore/deathcore crossover is an interesting combination and while I have heard this drumming before, I like what the guitarists, Ben Lionetti and Jesse Ketive, are doing here. Also, the multiple vocal styles of Frank Palmeri are pretty good, although I believe it be best he avoid the clean style.
I also have to give a special mention to one of the best song titles I have seen this year: "Show Me on the Doll Where He Touched Your MySpace." You cannot tell me that isn't a great title!
Bottomline. Emmure definitely brings the heavy, they are not lacking in that area and they do it well. What they need is to add a little more depth. They are definitely worth spending a little time with, just don't be surprised if you tire quickly and are looking for something else pretty quick.
Mildly Recommended.
1 comments:
The Complete Guide to Needlework is actually their first album, though I don't know if you count it as an EP with only 6 songs. I agree that from what I've heard off The Respect Issue there is a bit of repetition, but you've got it right on when you talk about the live aspect. People need riffs to sit back and chill and breakdowns to go wild. When you listen to their songs that's how most of them are set up: chug-chug-chug in a buildup to a truly masterful climax, then back to chug. People criticize Emmure for being too cliche, thing is they do the cliches hella better than anyone else so I don't complain. Compare a list of the top 50 breakdowns and you're going to find half of them on Emmure tunes, though the rest of those songs may be mostly filler.
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