With hardcore and metal finally becoming productive bedfellows once again in recent years after 21st-century metalcore burnt itself out in a frenzy of beige also-rans, it’s nice to see the UK currently leading the pack, be it with the heart-on-sleeve approach of anthem-shitting risers like Bury Tomorrow or game-changing future stars like While She Sleeps.
Demoraliser might just be worthy of such illustrious company on the evidence of this smashing debut, and while A Living Nightmare shows that the Grimsby bruisers have their feet rooted more brazenly in hardcore than their contemporaries, there are enough metallic nuances and melodic passages to give songs like Pretender and Checkmate the same kind of scintillating balance that allowed Unearth to stand out as countless peers around them drove themselves into the generic wilderness.
The soaring, twin-guitar anthemia of The House Always Wins will delight fans of Ascendancy-era Trivium, while the monstrous breakdowns and huge grooves pulsing through Eye To Eye stand toe to toe with any heavyweight crossover act of the modern era. It’s early days yet, but Demoraliser are doing it right.
