KILLSWITCH ENGAGE — The End of Heartache (review)

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE — The End of Heartache album cover Album · 2004 · Melodic Metalcore Buy this album from MMA partners
4.5/5 ·
Time Signature
Declaration...

Genre: so-called metalcore / modern metal

Ooooh, it's metalcore and we all hate it because it's not true metal. Well, boo-f*cking-hoo, there is no such thing a true metal. Ever since the day of Black Sabbath, heavy metal has been a bastard genre, an algamation of influences from within and beyond rock music, and whenever the genre develops the catalyst is usually an injection of inspiration from beyond its boundaries. Metal is a dynamic, ever changing genre, and the likes of Killswitch Engage and other so-called metalcore, just carry on this tradition by importing elements from hardcore punk (something which is not a new tendency, the cross-over bands already did that in the late 80s, and Brats combined punk and metal already in 1980), and "End of Heartache" certainly deserves the "metal" tag.

I don't care what people might think. I think it's a great album, full of amazing metal songs that draw on the vast corpus of metal music that came before it including thrash metal riffage, 80s metal guitar harmonies, melodeath screaming, alternative metal grooving and so on, death metal blastbeats, pop metal ballading, progressive metal quirks and so on. The metalcore conventions are there, such as the breakdowns (but Killswitch don't overdo them) and the oscillation between screamed, growled and clean vocals - but that does not matter, because Howard Jones is an incredibly gifted vocalist, and especially his clean voice is breathtakingly haunting.

Stand-out tracks are the groovy, brutal and melodic "A Bid Farewell", the melodeath-like "Take This Oath", the mega hit "Rose of Sharyn", the trashy "Beathe Life", and "Hope Is..."

Recommended to any open-minded fan of metal, who is not afraid of the "metalcore" tag.
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