The first album from the metalcore/hardcore punk quintet feels like it’s been a damn long time coming! Another band I was big into in my youth and teen years, the band have been relatively sporadic with their work in recent years, so when this was announced I was immediately excited. And I am sure I am not the only one to be this excited too, so let’s jump right into a deep dive of this thing!
A MASSIVE drum into kicks off the album, leading to a crushing, awesome hardcore riff. The pace quickens even more into a blistering verse, just begging for a circle pit in my own living room. Candace’s vocals sound just as powerful and aggressive as ever, fitting perfectly over the similar-feeling instrumentation. The track is rather balls-to-the-wall throughout, too. The chorus opens up a little into a slightly more groove metal vibe, but it is still anything but light or slow. It’s exactly what I want from Walls of Jericho and it’s AWESOME. It’s a fantastic way to open the album, setting the tone perfectly, and is an easy early highlight! Hell, that closing breakdown is perfection!
‘Beginning’ continues the same heavy, aggressive energy from the opener. A crushing opening riff gives way to a boot-stompin’ verse and builds perfectly into another massive, surprisingly catchy chorus. The gang vocals and call-and-response style is a great hook, and will make for a fantastic moment live! The melodic riff in the middle is awesome, especially the dynamics surrounding it with the drop out and build back up! And once again, that brutal half-time breakdown towards the end is INCREDIBLE. Going on three decades in the band are still at the very top of their game, and it’s so awesome to hear!
Recent single ‘The Flame’ is another crushingly heavy, melodic hardcore song. Bobby and Kyle don’t get nearly the love they deserve, as they show here and throughout the album how phenomenal they are at guitaring, be it riff writing, playing or lead stuff. However, both Dustin and Aaron also kill it here, holding down the chaotic rhythm section perfectly. It’s another very typical WoJ track, but is impossible not to love. And hell, we even get an awesome, technical guitar solo tucked away in the middle here, giving off big Slayer vibes with its duelling nature and whammy/dives. It was a great choice for a single as it showcases everything the band do so well, everyone getting their own time to shine! It’s another track that easily makes our playlist!
I have to say, it was at this point that I did start to feel the weight of the album a little. I know it’s early so I’m not sure if it’s because I knew it was 15 tracks and 46-minutes, but I certainly felt like it did get just a touch samey. ‘The Ascent’ is a great track and a good single, as is ‘Agency’ later on. However, nothing do anything we haven’t heard already by this point, and I’d maybe even say the other two singles are a touch more on the solid side. However, they fit on this album perfectly, and after a decade of no new music, it’s hard to hate on as much amazing new Walls of Jericho as I can get!
Having said that, we do get a good bit of variety later in the album, as we get not one but three tracks with guest features. Lamb of God’s own Randall Blythe makes ‘Broken Mouths Can’t Speak’ somehow even more awesome. It helps that the track has an air of malaise and evil that isn’t particularly present in much of the rest of the release too, Randy fitting right in and it setting it apart perfectly. And, of course, Blythe kills it in his part! Then you have ‘Humanity’ and ‘A Brighter Fire’, featuring Guy Kozowyk and Patsy Puopolo/Matthew Ruby respectively. Guy brings his extreme metal vocals from The Red Chord, somehow making it even more hardcore, and his voice compliments Candace’s perfectly. Then the latter is actually the slower track on the album, being something completely different and exactly what I needed! A clean guitar tone and some clean vocals, it actually feels more like a doom than anything else, especially with the proggy length, and I loved it. All three add so much variety and fun to the album, and are all highlights in their own right. I’d love to see all of them live, and feel like all could easily be singles in the near future!
The other half of the album is more awesome, balls to the wall heaviness. ‘Untouchable’ is another firm favourite, reminding me of early Trivium in the best possible way. ‘The End Before’ and ‘Borrowed Ground’ both have a fun punky edge and attitude to them which is great. And the closer perfectly heavies everything back up after the slower song before it, having some crushing riffs and some great melodic moments. There isn’t a bad song across all of them, but they are a touch easy to combine together as one or two can blur into one slightly. However, as I mentioned before, it’s hard to hate it when it’s all of such high quality! Any one of these songs is worth giving a spin, as is the album as while!
Overall: I enjoyed this! It’s a return that has been far too long coming, and honestly somehow lives up to the hype surrounding it! There isn’t a bad song throughout and, while there are a couple as I said that are a touch samey or even “album track”-esque, the album is still very much worth a full listen, especially if you are a fan of the band. If you like the heavier, more hardcore side of metal, this is absolutely a release for you. While maybe not quite as fantastic as their contemporaries in Hatebreed just a couple of weeks ago, it’s honestly incredible that all these bands are still producing such amazing music, and that the style seems to be making a comeback. I’ll be spinning this plenty moving forward!
The Score: 8/10