by: Sean Gresens
Holy damn… I seriously can't wrap my head around how The Chariot aren't getting the attention and praise they deserve, and this new record (their first with new label, Good Fight) further emphasizes that sentiment. Josh Scogin and the boys have somehow (yet again) dished out a massive slab of feverish vitriol and orchestrated cacophony, force-fed into your ear canals with a nail gun… And yet again, it's brilliant… Which is easily something you can always come to expect when dealing with Douglasville's finest.
As I write this, I realize anything I try to say about this new output will severely undercut how truly incredible it is… Straight out the gates you're hit with a wall of feedback that cuts straight to the bone, acting as quite the foreshadowing for the dizzying yet controlled chaos waiting on the following tracks. Like all their albums prior, there is no skimping on surprising twists and turns baked into their patented mix of pure, visceral, aural violence (case in point, the delightfully jarring cuts between an imploding chaotic-hardcore whirlwind ending and a cute '50s female-sung pop ditty about Atlanta). Hell, there's even a track later in the album where I can't help but strangely sense a bizarro/random Deftones/Rage Against The Machine influence, but it works… the fuck if I can explain how, but it mega-works.
I referenced earlier what one would come to expect from The Chariot, however I want to make damn sure that you understand that's not a negative statement. I, by no means, intend to give the impression of a humdrum "yep, it's another Chariot record". What I mean is, when delving into this album you will be greeted by the power, creativity, passion, explosiveness, and intensity The Chariot have built their foundation on. Nothing on this album seems phoned in whatsoever. The dynamics are so jacked up to 11 that even a drum hit feels like taking buckshot to the chest.
To put it simply, The Chariot have made a record that murders whatever you think is "heavy". There's more violence and manic passion in one of Josh Scogin's inhale/exhales between verses than on an entire album by your favorite bullfuck forgettable flavor of the week deathcore bands… So yes, long live The Chariot, indeed.
Pick it up November 22nd… You have been warned.
4.8 out of 5 splintered ear canals
Sponsored Links from Around the Internet
