From: Belgium
Year: 2011
Genre: Hardcore, Metal
Oathbreaker are a metallic hardcore band from Belgium, heavily influenced by Converge and Rise & Fall. They have also recorded a killer debut album that breaks away from their influences to an extent and shows a lot of promise. Right out of the gate this album goes for the jugular, with whirlwind guitars and a low end like an out of control cement mixer barreling down on you, immediately you know that this band means business. This is not your typical chug chug on the e-chord hardcore, there is a slight tinge of black metal to the guitars at times, as well as some dissonance. Even the slow parts are far from your normal hardcore breakdowns, they’re closer to doom metal but much more immediate and stomping. They have a female vocalist that can scream her ass off, but she can also sing. On the last track, which is a beautifully dark acoustic piece, she transforms from a wailing banshee into a fragile cherub. I’m not sure how I feel about them closing the album with it, even though they do it cleverly by putting a slower doomy song in front of it, which she does some spoken word on, to bring the mood down. It would’ve been awesome if they had incorporated elements of it into other songs, like they do for a hot second on Sink Into Sin – 1. Regardless this is a great hardcore album and it’s aptly named. A chaotic maelstrom of swirling guitars, rumbling bass, jackhammer drums and agonizing screams. Get a copy from Deathwish Inc.
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