Escape The Fate
There's No Sympathy For The Dead

THE REVIEW

How long will the most "trendy" musical genre of all time last? I am obviously talking about emo/metalcore, the genre richest in clichés and commonplaces that recent musical history remembers. It's been several years now that the emocore scene is producing only works that have been heard, re-heard, and heard once more, CDs that scrape the bottom of a barrel that has already been scraped too much in the past. Yet, the trend does not seem to show signs of stopping.

And among the myriad of new super-stylish bands with their polished looks, emerge Escape The Fate, with this 5-track EP recently released by Epitaph Records. Let's skip over the highly-refined look of the members and rather analyze what counts: 'the music. Escape The Fate introduces nothing new to the genre (of course!), but what they do, they do very well indeed.

It's a metalcore album, so you know what to expect: the guitars alternate open chords in a "punk" style with impeccably executed solos with a metal flavor; the drummer often proposes an impeccable double bass drum carpet without making excessive use of it; the "clean singing" parts alternate and mix perfectly with those of scream, and there's even the appearance of a guttural growl almost death-metal; the pop-flavored choruses immediately stick in your head.

The whole, as already mentioned, is as heard-before as you can imagine, but the musicians' technique is impeccable (at least for a metalcore record) and all 5 songs get stuck in your head from the first listen, encouraging you to hit the "repeat" button. Moreover, there's even a glimmer of "experimentation"(!!!), such as the use of electronic parts in "The Ransom" (very UnderOATH style) or the appearance of violins in the "epic" finale of the title track.

In short, for those who appreciate the genre, a masterpiece not to be missed, and perhaps the best metalcore album of the year. Obviously, others should keep away from it as much as possible.