It wasn’t too long ago that labels like Ferret and Trustkill Records helped to provide a springboard to burgeoning post-hardcore and metalcore bands. The genre wasn’t quite in the mainstream yet, but it was close. Bullet For My Valentine and Killswitch Engage, just to name a few, helped make this happen – but there were plenty of underappreciated (to an extent) bands in the genre that deserved more love. It Dies Today’s The Caitiff Choir is certainly worthy of that status,
This was certainly one of the better metalcore records to drop, right before the genre got very oversaturated. The whole band’s musical chops are evident, but in particular vocalist Nick Brooks and drummer Nick Marusso. Seriously, this is a record full of melodic guitar leads, well-placed breakdowns, and generally well-crafted songs.
Take the first single off the record, “A Threnody For Modern Romance”, for instance. It contains a blisteringly fun guitar solo and a melodic chorus that’s guaranteed to get stuck in your head, and it’s a great choice for a standout track. Some of the album’s best drumming, too!
Meanwhile, for fans of breakdowns, “The Depravity Waltz” has you covered with a great one on a song that never seems to let up. It’s one of the album’s heavier tracks as a whole, and really showcases the band’s musical chops as well. So too does “Severed Ties Yield Severed Heads”, which contains one of the catchiest metalcore choruses you’re likely to hear in the genre.
Overall, The Caitiff Choir really is a solid example of 2000’s #metalcore that verges on melodic death metal at times. While similar bands like Haste The Day and Atreyu tend to get most of the love, It Dies Today were just as important on this record. Still essential today.
