Motionless in White : " Decades"

 

If these guys did not do Rhea Ripley's entrance music, I would probably not review this album, as I have been less than impressed with their arena-ready nu-metal dressed up as goth. So here ya go, Rhea, I'm doing this for you. The title track is what I expect from them, but it does have a groove and the massive sound that finds them headlining at festivals. The sung vocal hook is predictable but works for what they do. It has the big breakdown that is heavier than you might guess these guys get, unless you are a fan, then you know what to expect here. The second song has more electronic elements in play, but when the verse really kicks in, it's along the lines of Linkin Park, but with a more emotive vocal that goth kids might like. However, the anthemic chorus jsut sucks. It's kind of a crucial thing to go too commercial with, as it shits on the other cool stuff going on. 

Eminem's frequent collaborator Skylar Gray shows up on "R.I.P". She does what she does for Slim Shady, so that is not a surprise. Chris Motionless' voice sounds better than what I have heard from him in the past. "Fight Like Hell" sounds like all the rock festival metalcore bands. To their credit, he sings more often than not, though the chorBut it cerus is kinda dumb; the rapped second verse is better than what I assumed him to be capable of. Though it paints them into the nu-metal corner. Cory Taylor shows up for "Playing God," so there is another nu-metal point on the board. His vocals are pretty dominant, and Chris does a good job of blending with him. They do have a predictable songwriting formula in place. But the masses are stupid and won't notice. Hey, I never said Rhea had the best taste in music.

"All That I've Ever Known" has more of that Linkin Park feel I picked up on earlier.. It also has another big dumb chorus. The singer of Dark Divine shows up on "Blood Rave". This is a more modern take on nu-metal run through a synth wave filter. The hooks are poppy but work for what they are doing. Some elements seem to draw inspiration from the Faint that is very subtle. "Love at First Bite" tries to play into the vampire imagery, but is not far from what a synth wave band like "Gunship" does. Singing by vampires does not mean this is not pop, but lucky for them, I like pop music. "Count Back From Zero" sounds like they are drawing inspiration from Strvngers who were doing this sort of thing almsot a decade ago, ironic that is what this album is called. But Strvngers have not done anything new in a while. 

"Blood Pact" is on the more predictable side of metalcore when it's in its heaviest moments, as it sounds like they are more inspired by synth pop. At times, this finds them sounding more like Korn. "Afraid of the Dark" blends the synth wave sounds with the more metal core past of the band. When they try to play heavy, it feels like they are trying too hard and just touching on the most expected tropes/ As expected, they pull off a convincing cover of Cory Hart's "Sunglasses at Night". Motionless does not have the greatest falsetto, but the song works. This album is better than expected. I will give it a 9, feels like Spirit Halloween." If you are a teenager, I can see how this might get you pumped for Halloween, but it's not a goth album. 

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Motionless In White : "Disguise"

A couple years ago I went to a "State of the Goth Scene" panel at Dragon -Con, and it was brought up rather than being pretentious and elitist gate keepers of the goth we need to accept the kids and their new music as being the future of goth and if nothing elese educate them on good music. This band was a name that came up as what kids listen to these days.So I am reviewing this album for the sake of being opened. But if we are going to put the future of goth in a band's hand I think the bare minimum that needs to be asked of them is ...are you dark? . The first song is more nu-metal. It is aggressive and the chorus sounds like it could have been lifted from a Chevelle song. I think the second song is darker. It owes the most to Korn. I can live with this. Is is the darkest music? No , but dark enough to work. "Code" is more mainstream rock feel, with a very formulaic chorus. "Thoughts and Prayers" reminds me of Mudvayne.

"Legacy" is more melodic. It is also not far removed from your average radio rock,.There is big arena rock production to this album. It is moody, but not as dark as say AFI, who did this better on "Sing the Sorrow". "Undead Ahead 2" opens with gothic trapping of their sound effects and strings.Then it collapses into glue sniffing metal along the lines of Slipknot with emo clean vocals trading off. The Slipknot comparisons could continue on "Holding On to Smoke" . Some keyboards and more dominant melodic vocals that return more to the Chevelle style of singing are what separates it from Slipknot, the problem is while moody I would say it is all that dark, though better than some of the previous songs.I am beginning to get bored with this album and it is taking everything in me to keep listening.

They return to the moody Chevelle emo power ballad style for "Another Life' . This would have been next level shit in 1999. There is some nostalgia to it that I like.  It is derivative but also the best song so far.  There are more electronic elements to "Broadcasting From Beyond the Grave" it falls some where between Rob Zombie and Combichrist. so this is another glimpse into what they could be rather than what they are.  "Brand New Numb" steps in more of a Marilyn Manson direction if we are talking about his more upbeat rock n roll side.This is an improvement for these guys. To be called "Catharsis" it's just middle of the road radio rock. I will round this down to a 7.5, as it gets betters toward the end , but is pretty generic. It sounds like these guys are just taking stabs in the dark at what disgruntled teenagers might be into, and that is the darkest thing about it so far from the future of goth... I hope.