With Resistance/Twenty Inch Burial
(Split Disc)
5
I hate metalcore EPs. I hate split EPs. Not because of the genre or even the music contained, but the general downsizing of the material that the label does by shortchanging the listener. I mean c’mon, three songs per band, 17 minutes? Who is truly going to fork out their cash for this?
Anyway, I digress. First up is New Jersey’s With Resistance who purvey a pretty standard emo/metalcore crossover that covers all the bases but little else. With a mix of dissonance, melody, bleating, and screaming histrionics, With Resistance might have some appeal to fans of He Is Legend, The Setup, or The Fiction, but won’t really have any lasting impact. Their squealing high end approach both musically and vocally grates after awhile and lessens the depth of the melody lines in an otherwise ‘Shai Hulud with ADD throwing a temper tantrum’ sound of tracks like “I Like The Updated Version Better”; the only vaguely memorable track of the three on offer. The choppy and short “Yo, Larry’s Wearing a Throwback” and “No Gets It” are otherwise forgetful expulsions of slightly more chaotic and convoluted screamo that don’t really offer anything intriguing or worth your time and do little to separate themselves from the seething horde of like minded angst filled, quirky song titled bands.
Portugal’s Twenty Inch Burial offer a more robust sound that shows the band's early thrash roots but adds a commercial screamo gleen that’s slightly easier to digest and has a little more lasting impact than With Resistance, though still a band I doubt I will further explore, even if their upcoming third full length album is produced by Tue Madsen. Rather than choppy spurts, TIB are more streamlined and structured with a friendlier verse/chorus/verse approach and some mild catchy song writing that fits in line with Victory Record's recent releases such as Hawthorne Heights and The Black Maria, but with a tad more girth. The three offerings here (“All Hell is Breaking Loose”, “I Know I’m Gonna Regret This for the Rest of my Life”, and “Material Expensive God”) have some merit within the genre, even more so when considering the country of origin, as they have captured the decidedly angst fueled American sound perfectly with ample heartfelt screaming and singing, and given it a slight thrash sound.
It’s hard to gauge either band based on three short songs each, but if pushed I’d have to say Twenty Inch Burial have the edge for success (why do splits always come across as a band a versus band B face off?), but then again, I would not be surprised to never hear either band ever again.
