Morale is high for Bleed From Within.
To celebrate their 20th anniversary, the English Metalcore band featuring Scott Kennedy (vocals), Craig Gowans (guitar), Ali Richardson (drums, Sylosis), Davie Provan (bass) and Steven Jones (guitar/vocals) unveil their seventh album, Zenith, on Nuclear Blast.
Violent Nature kicks things off in an oppressive fashion, quickly living up to its name after a rather complex initial approach, with the characteristically jerky riffs beneath Scott‘s vociferations. The groovy riffs will undoubtedly work on their fans, as will the more dissonant touches of In Place of your Halo which help to temporize the rage, as well as the majestic passages and its final… bagpipe? We move on to the eponymous Zenith, which draws on Old School Metalcore influences to deliver a catchy sound, but returns to the duo of clean/saturated vocals and orchestrations for the choruses, before giving way to God Complex and its relatively upbeat tones. The contrast with the track’s energy is well managed, and I have no doubts about its ability to unite live, while the band adopts a soothing, soaring Post-Hardcore vibe on A Hope in Hell, but vindictiveness is never far away and soon comes to the fore with chaotic riffs. The introduction to Dying Sun is another moment of floating, leading to majestic riffs in which saturated vocals are in the majority, but there are a few hints of clear vocals on the choruses, making them more accessible. The track’s finale is truly imposing, but gives way to Immortal Desire where the musicians welcome Brann Dailor (Mastodon) to create an interesting vocal diversity between screams, vocals and chorus under effective riffs. Back to raw fury for Chained to Hate, where we sense a few Melodic Death Metal influences resurfacing before a suffocating final break followed by the modern Known by no Name and its cosmic samples that complement the very low tuning and passages bordering on symphonic. Josh Middleton (Sylosis, ex-Architects) joins the band to reinforce the contrast with the vociferations on Hands of Sin to make it a perfectly singable track, then Edge of Infinity offers us a moment of release with its gentleness, followed by a palpable intensity in the violence, allowing the musicians to offer us a very different final touch.
With Zenith, Bleed From Within prove that their creativity is still firmly in place, daring to stay in their comfort zone or explore old influences to create powerful tracks. The album is a very easy listen, and promises to be a sore one.
85/100