Many deathcore artists, the world over, have spent their careers making extreme music for the masses, with each new offering lower and slower and heavier than the last. Nowadays though, danger seems to be somewhat of a lost art. Yet with this album, Pittsburgh genre-benders Signs of the Swarm demonstrate a thorough understanding of how to make dangerous sounding music.
Tech metal, deathcore, death metal, prog death metal – you name it, the band have mastered it. Drummer and main songwriter Bobby Crow and the guys have been pushing the envelope for years now, and never has that talent and understanding been so apparent as with Amongst the Low & Empty. Glitched electronics, sudden swells and a menacing backdrop of ambience that could double as a horror movie soundtrack: Signs of the Swarm take you through a horrifying journey through a nightmarish soundscape – one that many deathcore fans craving a beating will really enjoy.
“Tech metal, deathcore, death metal, prog death metal - you name it, the band have mastered it.”
The album feels like a cage that’s slightly too small for the snarling beasts within, with the 11 songs giving the impression that they’re desperately trying to escape. Songs like ‘Fire Stone’ are more the music equivalent of being attacked by a swarm of wasps than just simply listening to a heavy song with some breakdown sections.
Listening on, the band’s ambition for this album becomes more transparent, and so does their range of influences. ‘Pray for Death’ showcase excellent Fear Factory style industrial elements, with synced drums and chugs creating a ferocious industrial sound. The band throws several subgenres into the blender as well as industrial metal however, with callouts to hardcore, death metal and black metal.
The production on the album is flawlessly disgusting, with every riff, drum whack and scream managing to jump out at you, courtesy of producer Josh Schroeder (Lorna Shore, Varials, King 810). Amongst the Low & Empty was the first time the band worked with an external producer, and it seems to have injected even more creativity into the band.
“The album feels like a cage that's slightly too small for the snarling beasts within - and the songs feel like they're trying to escape it”
‘Tower of Torsos’ charges forward like a rabid animal, with pounding drums doubling as thundering hooves and vocalist David Simonich’s screeches bordering on terrifying. The song speeds and slows wildly, with crashing cymbals and huge riffs leading the way to an absolutely earth-shattering breakdown.
Although the released singles gave a delicious insight into the approaching madness, Amongst the Low & Empty really shows its true colours in deeper cuts like ‘The Witch Beckons’ (featuring Trivium’s Matt Heafy), ‘Faces Without Names’ and ‘Dreamkiller’, which features beautiful backing guitar parts reminiscent of bands like Fallujah. The vocal feature in the former lands really well, with Heafy’s tortured yells cutting through the ambience before the band slams back into gear.
Electronic sections, noises and additional sounds are properly incorporated into the songs, functioning as their own monsters, instead of being added as an afterthought. The cinematic ending of ‘Faces Without Names’ is a prime example of this immersive sound design. This approach, seen in other albums embracing experimental industrial sounds, like Code Orange’s Underneath and Black Tongue’s Nadir, means the album feels tightly woven together, even in its most unhinged – yet another demonstration of how much the band has accomplished with this record.
Many bands promise violence and bloodshed; Signs of the Swarm ensure you hear the sickening crack of cranium on concrete as they drag you down the stairs to hell.