Aptly named ‘All Is Not Well’ the album was born in the wake of the pandemic and subsequent political unrest that plagued the US. Observing everything going on around them and writing about it, the metal trio (originally from Queens, NY) have finally graced the world with their second full length.
Lyrically, it’s full of ACAB and ‘fuck the system’ vibes littering the record from start to finish. The opening track is literally called ‘PIG’. On the nose but still a banger, it was the first single and kicks off the album perfectly with a blend of traditional classic hardcore mixed with more extreme metal, gruelling growls and plenty of groove.
The pace stays high, brutal and relentless for the first three tracks, only giving the listener a break when it comes to track four ‘Hourglass’. Here, the pace dips significantly and opens up some aural space with a heartfelt and impassioned rock ballad. It’s a little Evanescence-esque which is no bad thing, and showcases the band’s ability to switch things up and experiment. Musically, there are a few moments like this on what is essentially quite a short album. It gets in hard and gets out fast, coming in at only 34 minutes and 9 tracks.
Things like ‘Mother Earth’ have some elements of electronic industrial metal, where in other places its more traditional hardcore with elements of extreme metal or deathcore. ‘Death’s Embrace’ has even got a bit of black metal going on in parts. Vocalist Amanda Gjelaj is strong throughout, able to switch with ease from shouting to screaming to clean. There’s plenty of more melodic moments too such as the aforementioned ‘Hourglass’ and again on sections of ‘Lysergic Lullaby’.
The band seem to be exploring different elements within the metal genre which makes this collection feel a bit of a mixed bag at times as if the elusive sound hasn’t quite been stamped on yet but this is clearly a band with some interesting potential for the future.