Has anyone else noticed the large amount of deathcore bands rising from the bloody carcass of the earth these days? I sure as hell have. Whitechapel's Metal Blade debut: This Is Exile shows us a great example of the deathcore genre and how it's practically taking over with brute force. A solid release on a pretty big metal label, without sounding like every other up-and-coming band. Whitechapel mix just the right amount of gut-wrenching violence with the pummeling blast-beats that death metal drummers are so good for. The whole vibe of the album gives you a feeling like you've been cast into the deepest and darkest pits of despair and turmoil without an escape of any kind. The album cover alone makes me feel like that anyway. It's not even a gorey portrayal of destruction either, it's a person covered in razor wire with a bag over their head, talk about creepy...This Is Exile is jam-packed with pig squeals from hell, guttural growling like that of Job For A Cowboy and Winds of Plague, a fair amount of guitar proficiency (there are 3 guitarists), although there is still a lot of very fast yet very heavy chugging, and bone-shattering double-bass brutality. This Is Exile is just one of those album that never lets up, just keeps dragging you through the broken glass and torn bodies of the fallen without a second glance. "This Is Exile," "To All That Are Dead," "Daemon (The Procreated)" and "Exalt" are fantastically arranged songs that bludgeon you to a bloody pulp and then feed on your entrails, while "Of Legions" and "Messiahbolical" just give you that eerie feeling of being trapped in a pitch black torture chamber with only the sound of your own breathing to keep you company. The only downside of this album is the constant use of the word "fuck" throughout almost every song, which makes it difficult to play on the radio. Apart from that though, Whitechapel make a definitive impact on the deathcore genre with their primal rage and infernal wrath.
Focus Tracks:
The whole album is a journey, just listen to it all the way through.
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