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This Is Hell

Misfortunes

Written by: PP on 22/03/2008 03:11:26

Long Island hardcore heroes This Is Hell have long been hailed to be the next big thing in the scene. The hype for their sophomore record \"Misfortunes\" has been massive, and it has been labeled as \"essential hardcore release of 2008\" in pretty much all reviews across the net. Truth be told, This Is Hell is quite an acquired taste unless you\'re knee deep in the hardcore scenes already, and this is because the band has one of the fiercest sounds you\'ll come across. Pissed off as hell, their in-your-face hardcore is delivered by the book, only a lot more brutal, and less melodic than their contemporaries. Think bands like American Nightmare and Bane, and imagine This Is Hell extracting that sound through a high speed meatgrinder or something.

Most of that effect can be credited to vocalist Travis Reilly, whose raw yell is enough to have most parents ask \"how can you listen to that?\" from their young ones. His yell is scratched, intense, and full of unadulterated anger, adding to the already tight instrumentals. Production is left at 50/50 produced/unproduced, allowing for the guitars to vibrate and cause destruction to your poor eardrums. As you probably guessed already, they are unmelodic and grinding, assaulting you at high-speed velocity track after track. No breathing space allowed for the duration of the record.

This works both for and against the record. The raw, hypersonic guitars live and breathe the hardcore scene\'s roots and definitions, which will be a God\'s gift at their live shows, which are sure to be ferocious as hell. However, somewhere along the line one begins to notice how almost all songs on \"Misfortunes\" sound alike. There aren\'t many memorable elements, and though this is how all raw hardcore records are like, I find myself missing for that hook or that melody that\'ll have me saying \"oh that song \'Remnants\' is my favorite on the record because that hook just gives me chills every time\". Comeback Kid recently discovered this on their latest album \"Broadcasting...\" which was subsequently their best effort to date. One of the only points where This Is Hell shows any kind of regard to melody is on \"Disciples\", where the band sounds a bit like Rise Against in places. Reilly\'s scream-yell is still savage, but this time he brings in more versatility and variates on pitch for the first (and only) time on the record. The chorus leans on melodic hardcore and is pure godhood, and though the 50-50 production mix leaves the rhythm guitar\'s melody a bit faint, it\'s still possible to deduct one of the best melodic hardcore melodies from it since Capital\'s \"Crossroads\" last year. The gang shouts are perfectly situated, adding to the welcomed melody of the song, and make \"Disciples\" the best song on the album without contest.

\"End Of An Era\" is the second track where This Is Hell explores the optimistic melodic hardcore territory of Capital, and they do it so well that it leaves the listener wondering why the band doesn\'t focus on adding melody like this to all tracks? The short and sweet songs are fierce and give you a rough wake up to the realities of tough life. While there\'s no dispute about them being some of the best brutal hardcore songs written in a while, it\'s undeniable that \"Disciples\" and \"End Of An Era\" leave you drooling for more melody meets relentless hardcore. Lets hope This Is Hell realizes that for their next release, because then, my dear readers, we\'ll have a contender for the album of the year.

Download: Disciples, End Of An Era, Infected
For the fans of: Bane, Comeback Kid, American Nightmare, Capital
Listen: Myspace
Buy: iTunes

Release date 18.02.2008
Trustkill
Provided by Target ApS