These guys have been around since the days of Myspace, and perhaps that is where you know them from. To their credit, they have kept their ears to pulse of where music was going and stuck to their guns to not lose a great deal of who they are in the process. Granted who they are is a Hot Topic marketing scheme to some extent. They carry a heavier thump to their sound for the three-song EP which opens with the punchy title track that is equal parts, Marilyn Manson, Bad Omens, and their long-running dose of angst for teens who ear too much makeup
Their image is typically darker than their music but this time they have balanced it out. The second song "Into the Void" is not a cover of the Black Sabbath, but touches more on their older sound, though heavily tempered with a Rob Zombie-like drive, which if you are celebrating Gothtober with us is something to be happy about. I have never been impressed with these guys, but I have to admit this is the best I have heard them sound, so it's hard to complain about something that is working.
"Self Inflicted' rounds this out and has a strong electronic groove, with the vocals taking on more emotive nuance, as he coos his way into the verses rather than the more aggressive roar that dominated the first two songs. This is not the most original thing I have heard all month, but goth does thrive on adhering to a certain sound, the trick is not being a tribute act and making it your own, which they have done, while it winks in the direction of what Marilyn Manson has done, there have not been a great flux of people paying tribute to him since before the days of Myspace, so these guys are making it work. I will give this one a 9.5, which is way better than I expected from these guys but you gotta give credit where it's due.
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