There’s a lot to unfold about Fright and their new record. First off, let’s get the ex-member thing out of the way.
The four members of New Jersey/Philly’s Fright once played in Monster X, Devoid of Faith, The Oath, Automaton, Citizen’s Arrest, Grey C.E.L.L., Ramoms, Down In Flames, Pregnant, Soft Dov, and more, whew!
Now to the record itself, right out of the gate the guitars hit you hard with that Bonded By Blood, single note picking style that really shines through on this whole EP. Nate Wilson played all the guitars on this and his playing is just off the charts here.
You can hear hints of his old band, Devoid of Faith, in the guitar style, but this material is pushing new heights blending thrash metal, Japanese hardcore, and D-beat.
The rest of the band are no slouches either, bassist Shae McDonaugh and drummer Derik Moore hold down the frantic rhythms here with ease. They really complement the guitar work and vocals well, which help make this a super solid recording.
On vocals you have Ian Thompsen, who also wrote all of the lyrics. He has that D-beat snarl that fits this band perfectly. The vocals have a good clear quality to them where you can make out the lyrics. This is a plus because the lyrics here are great, albeit bleak.
Songs like "Hands Clawed Open Eyes" and "Erupting Dawn Thunder" give you the sense of doomsday that is the perfect fit for this kind of hardcore.
As for the recording, it was handled by Anthony “Tone” Corallo and mixed/mastered at Dead Air. You cannot go wrong with the combination as this is an expertly produced record. The record itself has stellar artwork by Japanese artist Sugi along with a beautiful layout by Mark McCoy. This looks like the kind of record I would buy on sight without hearing it first.
Overall, this record is for fans of dark, metallic hardcore like Tragedy and it has that epic beginning/end vibe they do so well. Even though it’s a six song EP, it feels like an LP to me and that’s a testamnet to good sequencing of the songs.
Lastly, it’s great to see this come out on Gloom Records, the long running DIY label of Nate Wilson. It is a Herculean effort to put out vinyl these days so support the band by getting one on red vinyl before they are gone…
Get It
- Bandcamp (Vinyl, digital)
Tagged: citizens arrest, fright, grey cell
