Paradise Slaves
With Hell In His Eyes
Anyone else forget that 36 Crazyfists weren’t around anymore? Well, they still might be, but after some acrimonious words about Brock Lindow from Steve Holt (that have since been patched up, apparently), and the fact that nothing has come from new music teased in 2021, they’re about as good as done. So, in the grand tradition of a long-running metal frontman striking out on their own, Paradise Slaves tries its utmost to fill the pre-existing hole as best as it can. This is Lindow’s new band, filled out most notably with a couple of guys from Diecast and Killswitch Engage guitarist Joel Stroetzel’s brother. A lineup for the ages, we’re sure you’ll agree…
It could be worse, though. Bands like this have the horrible habit of settling for a cut-rate version of their most famous member’s past work, and Paradise Slaves do seem to aiming a bit higher than that. They’re not not cribbing from ‘Crazyfists, but it isn’t obvious to the point of bludgeoning you upside the head with the fact. This is a heavier metalcore affair overall, albeit one that’s not exactly hurried in getting itself out there. It’s the lack of frills on With Hell In Its Eyes contributes to that in a big way, as Paradise Slaves’ general mid-to-moderate pace as a defining characteristic hardly births the most exhilarating of metal experiences. Still, from that comes a competent stab at Mastodon worship on Glass Mountain, or on the other end, Swim North’s more ferocious metalcore roar. They’re fleeting moments, but something to stand out at all is often above the pay grade of these acts as it is.
As for what else With Hell In His Eyes brings to the table…eh, it’s alright. It’s meat-and-potatoes metal that doesn’t fill up too heavily on the stodge, something that would ultimately prove a death sentence when it’s already hanging low. At least Lindow is a noteworthy presence on here, even if it is thanks to a vocal performance that tends to slip and spasm when the time comes for a more melodic delivery (or on a slower number like Always Have, Always Will, wedge its untrained cracks open even further). But that proves to be generally ignorable. Or, at least, ‘ignorable’ in how With Hell In His Eyes congeals into its block of okay metal ‘stuff’. None of that sounds too positive, but Paradise Slaves are too competent to outright despise. The album is extremely well produced for what it wants to be, and that can count for enough.
Of course, when you average all of that out, in no way is this a standout release, by any metric. If existing known musicians weren’t a part of this, Paradise Slaves would fall so far under the radar, they’d end up driving themselves into the earth’s core. But for the exact niche that it’s trying to fill—a chance for Brock Lindow to keep up his musical endeavours with few amendments—it’s not objectionable. It does its job of filling the necessary hole, even if 36 Crazyfists are much too far ahead for a wholly fresh start catch up with. Can’t blame a guy for trying though, right?
For fans of: 36 Crazyfists, Killswitch Engage, later In Flames
‘With Hell In His Eyes’ by Paradise Slaves is released on 2nd May on Spinefarm Records.
Your Spirit Dies
My Gnawing Pains Will Never Rest
Small-town metalcore appears to be the crucial place to look if you want the genre to actually be furthered. No Cure did a great job at showing that off last on I Hope I Die Here, in equal parts a celebration and condemnation of where they’re from with no punches pulled. Its viciousness was ultimately twofold—in the outward presentation drawing from straight-edge hardcore and powerviolence, and in genuine rage at seeing their home pillaged through austerity and capitalistic violence. With angles like those, there’s potential for a real shot in the arm that metalcore still desperately needs. Or it could be as Your Spirit Dies are here and…kinda just do the usual.
Here’s a band from an even smaller small town, and yet, you’d struggle to really tell. In the same bracket of fire-and-razor-spitting discord, Your Spirit Dies lag miles behind. They aren’t exactly dragging their feet to a degree of decade-old Risecore redundancy, but a lack of clear personality in this genre doesn’t have to fall to those levels to be noteworthy. Here, in a blend of 2000s American metalcore with the melodeath those bands all loved and the smallest pinch of MySpace-core to taste (though nowhere near enough to matter), Your Spirit Dies struggle to get going. They certainly aren’t replete with features, even if a penchant for quicker tempos and the odd tremolo riff might just keep them safe from the jaws of the meat grinder for a bit longer. Otherwise, this feels like a long ol’ 12 tracks when there’s not much to speak of.
No one would blame you if you went into My Gnawing Pains Will Never Rest expecting the exact opposite, either. From the name, to the artwork, to the fact that guest slots are occupied by members of Zao, The Callous Daoboys and No Cure themselves, there aren’t no expectations there. But even if that weren’t the case, Your Spirit Dies aren’t all that gripping on their own. The highest rung they’ll reach is ‘solid’, performing well enough and getting a small bump towards catching air by the album’s sole clean hook on Unjust God (which is two songs from the end, BTW). Their lowest, meanwhile, isn’t too far below that. What My Gnawing Pains… lacks in outright disasters, it isn’t making up for with grand statements. Your Spirit Dies’ okayness is too overwhelming to give any quarter for that.
And…that’s basically it. Unless you’re getting literal palpitations from not spinning a new metalcore album in the last few minutes, My Gnawing Pains… doesn’t offer a lot to be satisfied by. In a space such as this where even a single gasp of oxygen is a precious commodity, Your Spirit Dies aren’t doing enough, plain and simple. When there are other bands who can be implanted into the exact same musical and biographical profile, and still come out with far more distinct and compelling work, surely some note has to be taken, right? If not, here’s another square of wallpaper; use it wisely. Or don’t; it doesn’t make a difference.
For fans of: Killswitch Engage, As I Lay Dying, Poison The Well
‘My Gnawing Pains Will Never Rest’ by Your Spirit Dies is released on 2nd May on MNRK Heavy.
PARCS
Sleepless
Apparently, PARCS came up with their name during a binge-watch of Parks & Recreation, which automatically puts them in the bracket of musical stimuli associated with that show. Not quite at the very top, mind; the wonders of Mouse Rat keep that certain, and a 5,000 Candles In The Wind to their name, PARCS do not yet have. If we’re talking real bands, though…well, coming to mind, they might be the only one, but they’re setting a solid bar nonetheless.
To get it out the way early, they aren’t some related-to-the-show gimmick band. They’re not even much of an ‘indie’ band, as proclaimed by a spurious indie-pop tag. Sleepless is essentially straight-up pop, maintaining a sliver of alt cred via buzzier, ‘harsher’ (for lack of a better word) synths in their nu-disco. It’s not quite as flashy, either, thanks to a more pastel colour palette and a de-emphasis on layers upon layers of gloss. The result is four tracks that are happy to parade their overall pleasantness. Pull/Push is basically the standard-setter, with its taut bass and rays of light that fit perfectly with Elly Sinnett’s more moderate vocals. And that’s more or less where PARCS remain for the entirety of the EP. There are small flecks of saxophone on Fever (because it’s an ‘80s synthpop throwback; why wouldn’t there be?), but even it’s acutely understated, a lot more so than usual.
On one hand, it’s good that PARCS seem to be settling on well-worn ground in their own way. Had this embarked on the usual practice of wrenching the boldness and saturation to the max, it’d be another tiresome piece of a tapestry that’s long since been completed, and is overextending for the hell of it. On the other, Sleepless can feel a little…small. At least that fits, with an insular vibe indebted to Sinnett’s exploration of her anxiety and depression. It’s an interesting contrast, too, taking what’s often the sound of flashy, shallow excess and turning it on its head. In a way—a good one, at that—it’s reminiscent of early-lockdown TikTok-pop, where the balance of freshness with homespun scale was at a premium.
That’s an era that’s far behind us now, meaning that PARCS aren’t subject to same boon that its one-hit wonders were. Nevertheless, Sleepless is a fun little package to drink in in its own right. Pop like this never seems to go out of fashion, and capitalising on that in a grounded way makes for a solid compromise to be tied to. Even if PARCS aren’t peddling this sound’s wild, new breed by any stretch of the imagination, it’d likely be an overreach to suggest they need to. Just like the show that initially greased their wheels, it’s comfort-listening to an absolute T.
For fans of: Fickle Friends, Benee, early Pale Waves
‘Sleepless’ by PARCS is released on 2nd May.
Words by Luke Nuttall
