What’s with me and metalcore, everytime i check a couple of albums for review, one for sure is metalcore…well that or hardcore, yeah, well besides my nagging, All That Remains is a pretty by the numbers metalcore, fast and hard with the oh so predictable clean chorus, i believe this is their second album, but to be honest it’s the first time i had the pleasure. So let’s have a looksee on “The Fall of Ideals”.
Well well, isn’t this the most “radio friendly” metalcore track I’ve heard in some time, if “This Calling” is not their single, my name isn’t fiend (it isn’t, but that’s beside the point hehehe), pure straight blasting metalcore, to a simple and catchy (yeah it rhymes) clean chorus, with some blasting underneath, that …well at least it gives some edge, next comes “Not Alone” and I’m already on that “oh damn are this guy really talking about how they are so miserable, they lost their girlfriend or whatnot” shit me, that’s so 90’s, well beat me with a stick if it isn’t almost identical with the last track, hell they both clock at about 3:30, funny, well both aren’t bad, more like, someone has done this better somewhere for sure, kind of thing.
“It Dwells in Me” is kinda weak on it’s knees, yeah because in this kind of music it doesn’t matter what you do between the chorus, if the chorus is catchy the music is fine, even though this one has some interesting guitar work followed up by some hardcore punching, maybe it’s not that weak, “We Stand” is nothing great, “Whispers (I Hear your)” is the same formula different lyrics, “The Weak Willed” has a little more hardcore bite, with no clean chorus, but they sure sugar coat it on the end… yeah giving a bit of after taste, “Six” pops up with the predictable blasting to a more clean track, with some sissy voice off, then building up to a some rock like whatever, it’s not that good, “Become the Catalyst” has a more interesting guitar solo, chorus sucks, “The Air That I Breathe” just sucks, “Empty Inside” is a patch work and again follows their formula to the letter, “Indictment” is again one by the numbers, nothing to add.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that i don’t like more clean stuff, or melodic, hell no, if it’s good, then i like it, but as i said before regarding metalcore, that have always need to put whatever (in this case some clean/melodic chorus and guitar solos) tend to limit the potential of the music, and that rarely turns up in a good thing, structure is fine, but don’t let the structure dictate what you sound like, hell 90% of their songs are start with blasting>melodic chorus>metalcore>melodic chorus>guitar solo>finish with a melodic chorus or slower hardcore blast, so yeah if your into As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage or any other meloish metalcore band, you might want to give it a go, for me great metalcore comes from the likes of Unearth.
Official Site Allthatremainsonline
All That Remains - This Calling
All That Remains - The Air That I Breathe
