Boris The Blade
Warpath
(Siege Music)
Australia has always seemed to have one of the better deathcore scenes, in large part because they actually know how to write songs, and many of the bands from The Land Where Everything Will Kill You (e.g. Aversions Crown; Make Them Suffer; I, Valiance) have found a near-perfect balance between tech-death speed and a pre-djent emphasis on groove. Sure, it’s often ludicrous-speed blast beats and hyper riffing, but it’s a formula that definitely works. Boris The Blade definitely take influence from their brethren, as their sound falls somewhere in between Thy Art Is Murder’s aggression and Signal The Firing Squad’s blazing speed and technicality. Their debut, The Human Hive certainly embodied this, with an underlying groove working in solid tandem with inhuman work behind the drum kit. It was all a bit much to take in full, watering down an otherwise impressive (if not totally original) take on deathcore with a further sense that too much of a great thing isn’t quite great.
Thankfully, Warpath offers up some choice deviations from the speed-all-the-bloody-time formula, making individual moments and songs pop a bit more. The title track leads things off with a nice emphasis on a nice, almost Gojira-like grooved-out riff; it’s melodic underpinning combines with the riffing to make a really heavy and catchy deathcore tune. Later on, “Devastator” plays the same trick with a harmonized riff, just laying waste to everything in its wake. The increased electronic touches are actually a nice touch, even if they are a slight bit silly. That said, the song as a whole carries some nice tempo variation and repeats the central riff enough that you’re left, well, devastated and satisfied. The name of the game is still speed and groove, and it’s not like Boris The Blade is trying to trail blaze in the slightest here, but the desire to double down on their love of all things heavy results in a highly enjoyable deathcore release.
Of course, not everything quite works. Daniel Sharp’s nu-metal-esque vocals on “Backstabber” sliced out a bit of the momentum they carve out after the ludicrously fun title track. His dual with CJ McMahon on “Misery” reveals that Sharp’s vocals are certainly diverse and powerful, but they definitely lack in comparison (which isn’t something you want in a feature). There are a few other issues that stick out. Hell, this is a deathcore release in 2016, so some breakdowns and “eerie” melodies are going to sound unnecessary or poorly done. However, the vast majority of Warpath does just what it sets out to do: offer up some tasty, crushing Aussie deathcore. Boris The Blade aren’t quite the best at this sort of thing, but by experimenting with their formula, they’ve crafted a highly enjoyable set of heavy tunes, and that’s more than enough for me.
