Review of Dry Kill Logic - Of Vengeance And Violence

Cynics rejoice; another tremendous helping of irony has been bequeathed upon us by the fates, this time in the form of Dry Kill Logic’s latest album. Some time during the early part of the ‘aughties, DKL frontman Cliff Rigano promised that his band would never hop aboard the then-accelerating metalcore bandwagon. Though the band’s Dead and Dreaming album already began to put the lie to Rigano’s statement, Of Vengeance And Violence really seals the deal. This is an almost purebred American metalcore album, with only scraps of the band’s original nu-metal tone scattered throughout the choppy, thrashy, chorus-y, melodic-y proceedings…in other words, it’s an album that sounds designed to grate on the ears of extremity-favoring metalheads. It’s conceivable that the band’s fans will see this as a genius progression on Dry Kill Logic’s part, but most of us have heard all of this way too often already.

These guys have switched from one overcrowded paradigm to another with almost comical smoothness. Everything about Of Vengeance And Violence screams familiarity. Opening number “My Dying Heart” (I mean, for chrissakes, guys, give it a rest) kicks out thrashy triplet stuttering, semi-shouted semi-screamed choruses, a stompy half-time breakdown, and a general predictability index that shoots off the top end of the charts. “4039” features more breakdowns and even some distinctively ‘core gang shouts before breaking out the genre’s distinctively flashy 80’s-referential soloing. “Boneyard” even features some haggard, malnourished deathcore chugs that prove that Dry Kill Logic have at least heard of Glass Casket.

It’s the nu dressings that really make this album seem so feeble, though. Though he’s developed a reasonably potent screaming technique over the years, Cliff Regano’s sung vocals carry all kinds of wimpy Aaron Lewis pathos, even when he puts some grit into his tone. Wildly overcooked radio biscuits like “Kingdom of the Blind” don’t help a whit, especially considering that such tracks were outdated five years ago and don’t have a prayer of commercial success now. Dry Kill Logic deliver their own coup de grace with flaccid closer “In Memoria Di,” an acoustic ballad that (besides lifting the chord progression from Alice in Chains’ classic “Nutshell”) doesn’t feature a scrap of memorable vocal melody or believable emotional distress.

Amusing self-reversal aside, Of Vengeance And Violence is an embarrassing album. Dry Kill Logic were a second or third-tier act even in their heyday, and switching games now has done nothing to improve them as a band. I can’t imagine they have as many dedicated fans as even Ill Niño, who did something similar on their most recent album, but I’d even advise said fans to stay away here. Weak, weak, weak release.

Release Details

Dry Kill Logic

Of Vengeance And Violence

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