And Then There Were None
Self Titled EP
6.7
I’ve got to hand it to unsigned bands like And Then There Were None, who despite the vast critical raping that metalcore attracts, still has the gall to go out and record a solid metalcore demo in hopes of landing a record deal. The end result is a 7 track effort that is surprisingly good if generic, and is better than some recent signed efforts I’ve heard (Neshamah, Look What I Did, Scars of Tomorrow, As I Lay Dying, A Dozen Furies) and on par with some of the better metalcore I’ve heard (Nodes of Ranvier, Inked in Blood, The Classic Struggle).
Now don’t get me wrong, And Then There Were None is not going to change the genre or impress the hardened metalcore critic, but as far as demos (and full releases) go, this effort is acceptable. Everything to make a metalcore hater roll his or her eyes is present in spades; thick, chunky breakdowns, galloping dual melodies and the odd discordant spurt of chaos all lined with semi death metal growls and the odd clean segue. This lot has Metal Blade or Facedown signee written all over it. For a demo, the production is solid also, needing little polishing up should they get signed.
Short but direct opener “Frozen Place of Hate” pretty much sets the tone for the release with the now expecting opening lurch while “Broken Voices” is heavy on the European melodies but highlights the bands slightly sloppy drummer. “Six Thousand Tries” sees the band's first forays into clean vocals amid the sort of Heaven Shall Burn meets Killswitch Engage sound, but the clean vocals are a little lacking and will need improving or dropping all together for the next effort. “Burn Your Weakness” returns to a more lumbering, formidable approach except for the clean wailing that rears its ugly head about halfway through. “Elision” is stout mix of burgeoning harmonies and chunky riffage that shows when the band frees itself from clean clichés they can rip it up pretty good. And that sense of restraint seems to permeate the whole effort as I feel that And Then There Were None are holding something back throughout this whole demo in order to squeeze themselves into metalcore’s pigeonhole. The somber instrumental title track closes things out with a decent sense of dramatics.
On the whole, a pretty promising, professional demo that amid the genres lowered standards certainly warrant the attention of a label or two provided they tighten up the ship and let loose.
