North Carolina's Wretched plays an epic style of death metal that is epic in its own right, while being more accessible than some of the more brutal corners of the genre. More melodic and less thrashy than Lamb of God, they are from the post-2000s school of metal, without being classified as metalcore or djent. The only black metal influence is in the higher raps that the vocals touch upon. I like the effects used on his voice. There is a more hateful mood thanks to the scowling, vocal shrieking over the second song, but it does not feel as catchy as the first song.
"The Royal Body' has more p[purposeful vocal line and deliberate riffing to work with them. The anthemic nature of what they do here is the first thing that brings metalcore to mind, in the syncopated stomp, but it's balanced out by almost power metal-like guitar melodies./ They are not far from bands like Darkest Hour in this regard. "Crimson Sky" moves at an even more deliberate stomp. Melodic nuance in the guitar playing keeps this one from just being another angry roar. "Radiance" starts off with in-your-face blasting, before finding its groove. The cadance of the vocals seems to imply a more purposeful sound, even if you lose a sense of what the chorus should be,
The song "Clairvoyance' things takes a wild turn away from metal into a more haunting Americana that feels like a smoky bar room where both Tom Waits or Nick Cave might be found lamenting their sorrows. It might be the kind of dynamic shift this album needed, by not one you could predict occurring at this magnitude. The most metal thing about this song is the highly melodic solos being ripped in it. This is followed by an ambient synth interlude entitled ' The Mortal Line."
Then the 16-minute "Behind the Glass" unfolds. There is a long proggy ambiance that opens this one that might have been trimmed in order to get to the point. It is allowed to wander on for almost three minutes before the more metallic guitars and drumming kick in. They jam this off into a more wandering Western sound. It makes you picture ghosts of cowboys haunting a lonesome highway. So much so that I had to check and see if I was listening to the right album. Then, at the ten-minute mark they kick into something that could be a Metallica song. I am not sure a 16-minute instrumental is what the album needed, but it is what it gets.
"Lights' finds harsh snarling setting against more melodic guitar harmonies. In this way, I can understand the comparisons of the Black Dahlia Murder, but I like these guys better as they take more chances. I prefer the groove of "The Golden Tide" as even the harshly screamed vocals have purpose and work to make the song click. 'Blackout' feels likea metal core waltz, with its temper tantrum balanced out with flowing guitar melodies/. "The Golden Skyway" closes things with a triumphant gallop that feels like an old-school metal take on metalcore. While this frequency of harmonies can come across as too happy for me, I at least appreciate their dedication to songwriting. I will give this one a 9; they created something unexpected but familiar enough to have a built-in audience.
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