March 28, 2024

New Fury Media

Music. Gaming. Nostalgia. Culture.

Review: Enabler – “La Fin Absolue Du Monde”


enablerBAND: ENABLER

ALBUM: LA FIN ABSOLUE DU MONDE

GENRE: HARDCORE PUNK

RATING: 9/10

 

Enabler are a hardcore punk band from Ohio, and they incorporate many elements of melodic metal in their music. This provides an interesting blend, as exhibited by their sophomore record, La Fin Absolue Du Monde (French for The Absolute End of the World).

It’s not uncommon for one to think of the possibility of the world coming to an end. It’s not a new discussion, nor is it a brand new idea, as it has been talked about frequently over the course of mankind’s existence. Yet despite all of the talk, the world, ostensibly, has not come to an end yet. With that in mind, we can only continue thinking about what it would be like, and the closest thing that we have thus far is its portrayal in audio format, brought to you by Enabler. La Fin Absolue Du Monde is an apocalyptic musical feat, and it truly gives you some insight concerning the absolute end of this planet as we know it.

La Fin Absolue Du Monde is as abrasive, angry, and gritty as it gets. With its blend of in-your-face hardcore punk and pulverizing melodies, there is no hope or joy within the confines of this record. ‘The Exiles’ and ‘Prey’ both exemplify this attitude by being fast-paced slabs of straight hardcore, with neither of which stretching beyond a minute and a half each. These tracks are full of pounding drums that display an ample amount of furious fills and some ferocious riffs that could split a human skull in half if placed next to the amplifier. Tracks ‘New Life’ and ‘Linear Existence’ also showcase this aggression whilst exhibiting some of Enabler’s more melodic tendencies. ‘New Life’s middle section displays a maelstrom of leads, agitated bass, and an onslaught of angst-fueled drumwork. Moments such as these are suffocating as they become so noisy and deafeningly loud, all while retaining that melodic and apathetic atmosphere.

Despite these shorter bursts of aggression displaying La Fin’s central focus, the longer tracks do not hold back either. ‘Felony’ and ‘Consequence’ are the only two tracks on the record that even break the three minute mark, although both manage to bring something new to the table. ‘Felony’ opens up with what sounds like feedback with reverb added to it, instantly creating a very moody atmosphere that eventually picks up and and kicks into full throttle, demonstrating some of the most fierce drum-work in this entire record with some light melodies hanging over in a very hazy and noisy manner. Album closer ‘Consequence’ sums this entire album up perfectly as it shifts its mood as easily and mysteriously as a chameleon, ranging from full-throttle riff-fest to this slow-burning, dreamy section which could be the musical representation of a large, crumbling, dilapidated structure, yet still builds on this intense momentum that plows into La Fin’s closing riff. The only questionable thing about this track is that during the last section, the volume fades out for a couple of seconds, and then fades back in as if nothing had changed. It didn’t lead into a different riff, or a different section, nor did it end the song at the time that it faded out.

The production on La Fin is another highlight. All of the instruments sound very sharp, with lots of noisy distortion applied to the guitar and the bass (which is fortunately quite audible) and the drums have a very nice, desperate air to them which really heightens some of the more ominous moments of the record. The mix is always solid, without any fighting between the instruments. However, there is still very little breathing room as the instruments are still very loud, noisy, and more often than not, gargantuan in their sound. The solid instrumentation, coupled with the production, provides a lot of depth to this record, and makes it as punishing as possible.

La Fin Absolue Du Monde is very, very well done effort by Enabler and with its gritty and challenging attitude, it displays some very genuine angst and distaste. Pounding drums, punishing bass riffs and some intense melodies make this a very interesting hardcore release, and it definitely shows with how well this album stands out and how it manages to be immensely entertaining throughout its thirty-six minute runtime.

New Fury Media

FREE
VIEW