Videoclip of the Month!!!

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Thames Burial - From The Depths

Thames Burial - From The Depths


From The Depths is Thames Burial’s debut demo and it was unsigned release from mid 2011. These guys are a metalcore band from the UK and they are out to storm the metalcore scene, not only in their own backyard, but the world. When people think of metalcore (especially black metal and death metal fans) they think of slow, boring, emotional metal and that is absolutely not true and Thames Burial is living proof of this. With many, many bands going belly up in 2011, fans such as me were looking for the next big thing to come out. And I believe, that Thames Burial is a great contender with the release of this EP.

To many, metalcore is a boring sub genre of metal, and some people don’t even consider it a metal genre because it has roots from hardcore. Well, people who say that have obviously never heard these guys because they are more “metal” then most bands are out there. These guys have obviously gained influence from somewhere else that is not just pure metalcore or hardcore. So where could this style come from? Deathcore, obviously! But please don’t mistake these guys for another deathcore/metalcore hybrid because that’s the last thing that these guys are.

Ok so their main influence in their music other than straight up metalcore is deathcore. This album definitely has the speed, pace and rhythm of a metalcore band but the sheer attitude of a deathcore band. Now the first piece of evidence for this is the fact that they have implemented blast beats into their sound. And no, they aren’t your typical blasts, they are overwhelmingly powerful. Although, it might over power some of the other elements of their music it still feels like the other band members still have talent. I think that this demo would not even be close to how good it is. The blast beating has enhanced ever single musical aspect of this band. Another thing that blast beats are responsible for is the induction of energy into the music. How many energetic songs have you heard that don’t have blast beats or guitar solos. There may be a few out there, but I imagine that list would be very long. Also, I’m not exactly sure where to place the style of blast beating they have used here. Because first of all, deathcore blasts are typically disorganised and inconsistent. I think that blast beats here resemble black metal or death metal blasts more than anything else.

Ok, I think that we all know what the next thing I’m going to be talking about, the breakdowns! Lately, people have been going on about how bad the breakdowns have been in the past 3 years or so because lately there haven’t been any breakdowns lately that have been notable. But, this demo features some pretty insane breakdowns. They aren’t the slowest, or the heaviest or even the most brutal but somehow, they get your head banging. Their breakdowns are excellently structured and it’s this that makes them so affective. Also, I think that the transitions between them are relatively smooth and they don’t affect the song’s atmosphere or momentum.  They aren’t chuggy either, so I would have to say that they are metalcore style breakdowns.

Ok, I think that key aspect of this band would have to be their song writing. For many melodic band, song writing is of upmost importance. And these guys have displayed this skill very well throughout this EP. It feels like each instrument has it’s place in Thames Burial and they are all playing their part in keeping the music alive and together. Also, the equalisation of the music was impressive as well. It seems like these guys already know what they want to sound like before they have even started writing the music. The drumming and guitars take centre stage and the vocals come second. The vocals aren’t drowned out, it’s just that the music itself seems much more important than the vocals. I think this was an excellent move because the vocals seemed a little bit too repetitive and generic, but somehow suited the style of music very well. For some reason, these guys give a metalcore vibe in their music, and not just metalcore from any scene, from the Australian scene, and anyone with the slightest knowledge of metalcore knows that Australia has an impressive hardcore/metalcore scene. I think that the song structure resembles something from early Parkway Drive or something like that. Either way, it should be taken as a huge complement because not many bands from around the world can being in that same style and do it just as well as any Aussie band can.

Overall, this is an impressive debut demo, everything about it is seemingly perfect; the song structure, the song writing and the production of the music. These are a few memorable breakdown moments in this album, but the best one would definitely have to be half way through the second track Usurper (J.I.A.C). The breakdown there, is quick, effective and seemed like it was meant to be there. Not many bands nowadays can pull something like this off, especially from a debut demo. I have a feeling that these guys are the type of band where the song writing comes naturally to them and they just play. When It comes to recommending any tracks from this release I recommend the track Usurper (J.I.A.C) because it will give you a definite idea of what this band is all about. I recommend this band to anyone who is into any of the “core” genres, from post-hardcore fans to deathcore fans because this is a real treat for any listener. I cannot imagine any “core” fan not liking this because this is an excellent album. Although there might be a few slips and slides throughout the album, such as the sound of static at the very end of the track Necromantic this is still a great demo and a great start to a young music career. I’m looking forward to what these guys bring out in the future. So Thames Burial’s From The Depths gets an 18/20 from me. 


Find more artists like Thames Burial at Myspace Music

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