Pennsylvania based metalcore band August Burns Red makes a return to the basics with their newest release Death Below. It’s raw, it’s hard, it’s everything you expect from a metalcore band. In an interview posted on the “fruity themed” music streaming site, guitarist JB Brubaker says “We just wrote what feels good to us.” Therein lies the success with this album. They aren’t writing to appeal to a certain audience. The album is a look into the heart of the band.
Now, in all honesty, I personally am not big into metalcore, but am always up for new listens. My introduction to this band, came years ago in a search for Christmas music of all things! (working in retail for years tends to make you want something than the usual Christmas music!) That particular album came out in 2012. Death Below shows how the band has fine tuned their sound, maturing into the raw melodies heard now.
“Premonition” opens the album with a guitar melody, almost like a lullaby. It rises into the opening verses masterfully. “I had a dream the other night, a dream I can’t forget…”. It continues in the second verse; “I dreamt the other night that famine spread across the land. The clouds, they held no water and the oceans turned to sand.” The melody and the lyrics mimic each other in the rise from an inviting guitar melody, to harsh angry music that mirrors the vision the lyrics portray. “Reckoning” features Spencer Chamberlain, from Underoath. It wraps a tone of despair with lyrics that evoke a feeling of loss. “Who am I? Flying blind. Scorching heat, black skies. Dark shadows asking “Who am I? Left behind, pushed aside…” The tone of the voices singing on this track, so mournful, longing. Yet, at the end, there is a bit of hope. “The reckoning won’t bring you hope. Death below on a tightrope. Take your hands off your life. It won’t consume you. The altar will give you life and not kill you. I set my sights on the impossible. Endless grace unstoppable.”
August Burns Red has been crafting and perfecting their sound for 20 years. With this, their tenth album, the hard work has paid off. Make sure to catch them live, on their current tour!
I’m Music Magazine Photographer/Writer Michele Hancock
Connect with August Burns Red Online:
