The Battle Within
Arkansas based The Battle Within got in touch this week about their music and suggested we take a gander to see what they’ve come up with. Stating they offer a devastating blend of melodic death metal and ear splitting breakdowns, this promises to be something pretty damned awesome!
Opening with Constrained In My Captivity you’re immediately struck by insanely distorted guitars and vocals strong enough to shake you to your inner core. Screaming, roaring and pulsating onwards with bassy undertones and rolling drums, this isn’t for the feint hearted let me tell you. Somehow managing to create a melodic track whilst still being heavier than death itself, these guys power onwards smashing the skulls of anyone in their path. Check out the double bass part way through and if you’re anything like me, you too will question how the hell anyone can play that fast. Devastatingly heavy breakdowns add a whole new dimension to this track and put it right up there with the heaviest of death metal, yet again though, still melodic.
Structures and Body Bags follows on, opening just as fast as the last track ended. Again there are the contrasting screamed and roared vocals accompanying that insane double bass pedal and rolling guitar line. What is really noticeable within this track is how the chord progression takes on an almost stadium rock approach, it sounds catchy in its own way yet retains that heaviness which was so prominent in the first track. Guttural roars solidify the insane breakdowns on this track creating a sound which is slow yet heavy, it’s really something to hear. As the track comes to a close and Anatomizer kicks in the guitars take the lead transforming into a lead line backing up some insane riffs, all underpinned once again by those drums. Taking on an almost eerie tone before kicking into a dark and distorted section, this is take no prisoners stuff. Throughout all of this so far I’ve been struck by just how melodic the music is, adding in the screaming and roaring to further develop the intensity of the tracks adds even more to things. Again, on this track, seriously, how can someone drum that fast?!
Resting In The Morgue opens in a far more stereotypically dark manner, bringing in some eerie sound effects before kicking into those ripping guitar lines once again. Sounding almost funky this time around, the sludgy guitar lick underpins pacey vocals and powers the track onwards. Alternating speeds throughout the track, this is quite possibly my personal favourite from the tracks these guys have got, there’s something very old skool about it yet it sounds fresh and new, I love it! Tower Of Graves continues this theme by taking over from the previous track and adding even more malice and venom to proceedings. Almost spitting the vocals over rolling drums and riffing guitars, this track will please the heaviest fan of metal whilst still pushing new boundaries. The broken down sections are backed by soloing guitars here adding further to that melodic approach that they showed in some of the other tracks, the result being one hell of a track.
There’s no let up from these guys and soon In Flames kicks in, sounding almost like the band they’ve taken the name from in the way the music begins but soon kicking in with far more power than they ever achieved. Down-tuned guitars and rolling drums back the guttural vocals once again creating a sound which contrasts itself throughout, heavy vs melodic. The Mouth Of Hell soon takes next place and kicks in slower than the last track. Twiddly lead lines over dub the riffing guitars, rolling drums and roaring vocals creating a sound which is sludgy yet refined throughout. Sounding almost heavier on this track, the band show off their ability to alternate their pace to match their sound, creating slow but insanely heavy sections before launching full tilt into faster sections, always keeping that heavy yet melodic edge.
Final track, Eternal Bloodthirst, finishes the selection off perfectly, opening insanely heavy yet slowed right down. The bass is prominent here adding a new depth to the track and making it sound even more full on that the tracks before. Crunchy guitars roll onwards on a simple but effective riff whilst that insane drumming continues to pound away in the back ground.
I never know what to expect really when a band says they play melodic death metal as all too often, the two don’t seem to work together. The blend created here though of melodic guitar lines, rolling drums and roaring vocals creates a sound which is both in your face and raw and almost soothingly melodic at times. I would imagine that on the live scene these guys destroy venues, something I will try to get to see sometime. In the meantime, get out there and listen to this because I don’t think you’re going to be disappointed!
To find out more about The Battle Within, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Opening with Constrained In My Captivity you’re immediately struck by insanely distorted guitars and vocals strong enough to shake you to your inner core. Screaming, roaring and pulsating onwards with bassy undertones and rolling drums, this isn’t for the feint hearted let me tell you. Somehow managing to create a melodic track whilst still being heavier than death itself, these guys power onwards smashing the skulls of anyone in their path. Check out the double bass part way through and if you’re anything like me, you too will question how the hell anyone can play that fast. Devastatingly heavy breakdowns add a whole new dimension to this track and put it right up there with the heaviest of death metal, yet again though, still melodic.
Structures and Body Bags follows on, opening just as fast as the last track ended. Again there are the contrasting screamed and roared vocals accompanying that insane double bass pedal and rolling guitar line. What is really noticeable within this track is how the chord progression takes on an almost stadium rock approach, it sounds catchy in its own way yet retains that heaviness which was so prominent in the first track. Guttural roars solidify the insane breakdowns on this track creating a sound which is slow yet heavy, it’s really something to hear. As the track comes to a close and Anatomizer kicks in the guitars take the lead transforming into a lead line backing up some insane riffs, all underpinned once again by those drums. Taking on an almost eerie tone before kicking into a dark and distorted section, this is take no prisoners stuff. Throughout all of this so far I’ve been struck by just how melodic the music is, adding in the screaming and roaring to further develop the intensity of the tracks adds even more to things. Again, on this track, seriously, how can someone drum that fast?!
Resting In The Morgue opens in a far more stereotypically dark manner, bringing in some eerie sound effects before kicking into those ripping guitar lines once again. Sounding almost funky this time around, the sludgy guitar lick underpins pacey vocals and powers the track onwards. Alternating speeds throughout the track, this is quite possibly my personal favourite from the tracks these guys have got, there’s something very old skool about it yet it sounds fresh and new, I love it! Tower Of Graves continues this theme by taking over from the previous track and adding even more malice and venom to proceedings. Almost spitting the vocals over rolling drums and riffing guitars, this track will please the heaviest fan of metal whilst still pushing new boundaries. The broken down sections are backed by soloing guitars here adding further to that melodic approach that they showed in some of the other tracks, the result being one hell of a track.
There’s no let up from these guys and soon In Flames kicks in, sounding almost like the band they’ve taken the name from in the way the music begins but soon kicking in with far more power than they ever achieved. Down-tuned guitars and rolling drums back the guttural vocals once again creating a sound which contrasts itself throughout, heavy vs melodic. The Mouth Of Hell soon takes next place and kicks in slower than the last track. Twiddly lead lines over dub the riffing guitars, rolling drums and roaring vocals creating a sound which is sludgy yet refined throughout. Sounding almost heavier on this track, the band show off their ability to alternate their pace to match their sound, creating slow but insanely heavy sections before launching full tilt into faster sections, always keeping that heavy yet melodic edge.
Final track, Eternal Bloodthirst, finishes the selection off perfectly, opening insanely heavy yet slowed right down. The bass is prominent here adding a new depth to the track and making it sound even more full on that the tracks before. Crunchy guitars roll onwards on a simple but effective riff whilst that insane drumming continues to pound away in the back ground.
I never know what to expect really when a band says they play melodic death metal as all too often, the two don’t seem to work together. The blend created here though of melodic guitar lines, rolling drums and roaring vocals creates a sound which is both in your face and raw and almost soothingly melodic at times. I would imagine that on the live scene these guys destroy venues, something I will try to get to see sometime. In the meantime, get out there and listen to this because I don’t think you’re going to be disappointed!
To find out more about The Battle Within, check out their Facebook page HERE.