March 28, 2024

New Fury Media

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Music Premiere Friday: The Word Alive, Light Up The Sky, Boris w/Merzbow

The-Word-Alive

It’s Friday, which means it’s time for a handful of albums being released. This week, it’s pretty barren overall, but there’s a few albums definitely worth hearing – new material from The Word Alive, Boris w/Merzbow, and newcomers Light Up The Sky, to name a few. Check out a new track from each band below.

Boris w/Merzbow (Gensho)

Gensho is an appropriate title for the collaboration between titans of noise, Boris w/Merzbow. It’s the Japanese word for “phenomenon”, and it fits the bill quite well. The collaboration is surely one of 2016’s noisiest, sludgiest, heaviest noise albums – essentially arriving somewhere between Earth and Sunn O))), or even early Black Sabbath (with less vocals).

Light Up The Sky (Nightlife)

Reminiscent of theatrical, bombastic rock/post-hardcore bands like Set It Off/Crown The Empire, Light Up The Sky’s debut album is mostly an exercise in familiarity. But in a crowded scene of these types of bands, solid singing and solid musicianship overall will help Light Up The Sky do pretty well – especially if they keep writing catchy choruses.

The Word Alive (Dark Matter)

Metalcore veterans (!!!) The Word Alive have been in the game for almost a decade, with their full-length Deceiver turning 6 this year. Their new album, Dark Matter, is both similar to previous albums…and yet different, as well. The big change is vocalist Tyler “Telle” Smith singing much more, and a noticeable lack of screaming as well. This isn’t a bad thing – he’s always had a good singing voice, being one of the few vocalists to do both effectively. Tracks like album highlight “Suffocating” (a track that wouldn’t sound out of place on The Receiving End Of Sirens first record) and the House Vs. Hurricane-esque opener “Dreamer” are buoyed by both electronics and effective singing, but the heaviness is still there in the form of “Trapped”, and the heavily Underoath-influenced “Sellout”.

What’s really great about this album is that occasional metallic fury combines so well with the band’s newfound sense of melody and harmony. I really believe it’s the album the band has been working towards for years – tasteful electronics and ambient sections merge together with their trademark guitar riffing to create something that’s more than just above average. The Word Alive has capitalized on their obvious musical talent, creating a product that other bands will inevitably attempt to latch onto.

If you need just one track to listen to here, listen to “Suffocating”. It’s the most melodic and urgent song of their career. And Dark Matter may just be their best album yet.

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