The Empire Shall Fall – Awaken
Angel Side Side 2009
Make no mistake, there is intent behind the name The Empire Shall Fall have chosen for themselves. Fronted by former Killswitch Engage/Seemless frontman Jesse Leach, little tackled on this debut offering is not socio-politically inclined. But while topics like corruption, apathy and all the other ails of modern government/society have proven easy fodder for hardcore lyricists in the past, The Empire Shall Fall take it to a much more epic scale.
To this end the band utilize a vast arsenal of aural weaponry, whether it be the unorthodox technical riffing of Meshuggah, the burly in your face aggression of groups like Unearth or the domesticated equivalent of At The Gates ala Killswitch Engage and Darkest Hour; The Empire Shall Fall deliver a competent and surprisingly diverse package on “Awaken“.
Indeed their influences may be a bit transparent, but the groups penchant for complicated songwriting clearly makes up for it. Whether it be an uncharacteristically jazzy spoken word bridge or a husky soulful chorus reminiscent of Seemless; there are risks taken here that present immediate rewards to the albums longevity. That said, there is no denying that The Empire Shall Fall can be a bit brash when it comes to their ideals.
Much like Rage Against The Machine the message is as important as the music and the goal is to rally and motivate, rather than to merely entertain. This could be a dividing line to those not interested in such affairs and while the music certainly eases the lyrical battering, the album is admittedly not an exceptionally unique affair. What it is though is an interesting combination of styles that is performed with enough heart and fervor to pardon its shortcomings.
Sure there are a few parts that probably should have been left out and some song ideas being recycled in varying configurations. But there’s also a sense of passion and intelligence present on “Awaken” that seems to be increasingly more rare these days. Enough so to hopefully inspire other bands to also rise up and be counted as well.
- USER RATING
- ( 25 votes, 3.92 stars )
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COMMENTS
jesse pwns PERIOD
I played a show w these guys in nov in herkimer, great live show, but ended abruptly when jesse reprimanded the crowd for being too “violent”, during breakdowns…. Very homosexual. BUt definatley enjoyed said band otherwise
great to have jesse back in a more agressive band! want mooooree…
Great review…the lyrical content is a bit too political, but great music and great songs. Way stoked on hearing the return of Jesse Leach. Not nearly enough good singers like him in the metal world.
God damn right this album is AMAZING. It is overly political but hey, a theme is better than a bunch of contentless lyrics. I enjoy it the more and more i listen. NOW DO A TOUR AND COME TO MN!
KsE DISBAND, JESSE IS BACK
I’m not into mixing politics with my metal. That’s punk to me. However, it’s a pretty good album, and I really liked the first track as soon as it started. I’m just glad it’s a solid release, I don’t think I can take much more metalcore or wannabe death metal garbage, I need more albums like this because the last 3 or 4 years have been shit. It was refreshing actually.
Well put Mr. Buttcrack. Metal is going through that stagnant period again like back in ’02/’03 right before “metalcore” became big where everything sounded the fucking same. So many damn copycats. This has really been the first album (minus Mastodon’s Crack the Skye) in years that has been original and was such a refreshing listen.
Can’t wait for the next Deftones to drop this year. Hopefully they will come back with something good!
36ChimairaFists January 22, 2010 @ 10:10 AM
Well put Mr. Buttcrack. Metal is going through that stagnant period again like back in ‘02/’03 right before “metalcore” became big where everything sounded the fucking same. So many damn copycats. This has really been the first album (minus Mastodon’s Crack the Skye) in years that has been original and was such a refreshing listen.
Can’t wait for the next Deftones to drop this year. Hopefully they will come back with something good
((obviously you have never heard of HORSE the band, give it a listen
A solid effort, and for the record i would rather listen to lyrics with a political bent, knowing how these issues are cyclical and will be relevant in the next 5 years and more, than listening to music with lyrics extracted from the packaging of a Dunkin’ Donuts container
I’ve only heard the title track so far on XM, and I instantly enjoyed it. Based on the commendations around here, I’ll have to check it out.
This was by far the worst “metal” album I’ve heard all year. The vocals were terrible, the production was just crap, and the guitars sounded like shit.
I know everyone here is sucking Jesse Leech’s cock, but personally I cannot believe wook gave this a a 4/5. I’d say I trust wook’s opinion like 98% of the time, and this album totally falls into that 2%.
I could go out of my way to take this album apart track by track, but it really wouldn’t convince any of you die hard fans.
Personally I give this album a 1 out 5. Sorry.
There was a Fugazi album eons ago that had a quote in the jacket. I don’t remember who it was by (probably Ghandi). I was a teenager, and my reading comprehension was lack luster at best. It said something to the effect that the way to revolt against the establishment is not to destroy what already exsists, but to build a better alternative along side it. The lyrics may get at this to some level, but like most politically motivated music, it tends to drift of into generalizations like “unite and stand for what you believe in” or “don’t let the man get you down”. It would be truely refreshing to hear real ideas rather than anti-establishment ho-hum rhetoric. I would give the writer a pat on the back for real effort, but ask him to do more to help out the individual that will hang on every word that is written, become half-assed politically motivated, and attempt to yell at his parents over dinner about the injustices of system while being poorly armed. If you are going to take yourself seriously, and I’ve yet to meet a singer who didn’t, then try not to pee on the ones that look up to you. Wook seems to gloss over this and focuses his review on the music. In the past I have put much stock into the ratings he has given to bands, and I have made many purchases based on his reviews. I find myself wanting my money back on this one. The music isn’t awful. Its well played. However, the album is full of cliches by musicians that should know better. I’d give the album a 3/5, an “E” for effort, and Wook’s review a 2/5.
Not a fan. I gave many of their songs many listens, and can not get into it in any way. 1 star
I agree that the music is well played. It’s all just very mediocre and recycled. I find no compelling reason to continue listening to it. I usually agree with Wook on most reviews so such a high score was quite a surprise.
The lyrics are a little too political for me but other than that this is some really solid melodic death/metalcore (whats the difference these days?) Jesse really does sound like Tomas from At The Gates at some points. This is easily better than the last 2 Killswitch Engage and All That Remains albums.
I really like this album. The guitars really standout from most metal bands these days. I wish the last few KSE cd’s had gone a similar route.
Can’t understand the criticism the album is getting here.
Great album. TOTALLY look forward to the follow up.
Too bad Seemless couldn’t make a 3rd and final album. As well as Killswitch having one more go round with Jesse.
Really solid.
Few tracks are pretty sweet. BUTTTT: Seems like confused buried treasure lyrics.. Where’s THE SOLUTION.. and the STEPS.. and REALISTIC GOALS
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