This is How Silence Dies
Released October 31st, 2024
IE Crab core band, Ashes at Last's debut album 'This is How Silence Dies' is here! Join us for a review!
Once upon a time... about five months ago... I committed a cardinal sin... I did the unthinkable, and wrote- word-for-word- "I recommend first listening to their newest song release, 'Blind'." If you know nothing about the band, then you might look at this, and see nothing wrong with it. Except, for the fact that 'Blind' was actually their oldest release, and I made one of the biggest mistakes in Strange Encounters history. My point- I won't make the same mistake again. That's why today, we're reviewing Ashes at Last's newest release... Blind This is How Silence Dies.
Ashes at Last are a five-piece Crab-core band from the IE, consisting of the members Niko Guevara, Jude Robledo, Calvin, Cesar, and Guxxi de Vos. Their current discography, as of November 11th, consist of one album, one EP, and one single~ all on Spotify. 'This is How Silence Dies' is their debut album, and it serves as a perfect statement for what make's Ashes at Last so unique.
Ashes at Last is the embodiment of Crab Core, and while some see that name just as a meme, Ashes represent how it's a genre that can stand on it's own.
A Moment to Breath is the first song off of This is How Silence Dies, and set's a good precedent for who Ashes at Last are... the digital synths, the escalating guitar, the roaring drums, and of course the Screamo vocals... come together to create a great intro track.
But that's not even the best part... no, the best part is the break in the middle of the song where the calmer vocal's and synths truly shine, until it is eventually plunged back into the madness of before, and makes- what I think is one of the best aspects carried on throughout the album of this album- a seamless transition into the next song. While I don't think A Moment to Break is close to being the best song off of this album, it definitely stand's on it's own, and is a great starting point for new Ashes at Last fan's.
The Invigorating Tale of Robert Francis Allen the Third has to be one of the best titles to come out of this album, competing with If Only Helen Keller Could Hear This, but I digress. This song highlight's another thing that Ashes' does amazingly, and that's balancing two singers/vocals; in this case, the rougher more screamo vocals, and the more melodic smoother vocals. I love when song's set up a back and forth like this, and I think that this is another case of that being flawlessly pulled off.
TIToRFAtT (...crazy long anagram) is the first single from this album, and is one of those song's that's done even better live... but in the case of the album, it was a great choice as a single, and still hold's up on it's final release.
After about three and half minutes of pure angry emotion, the song moves into a quiet outro led by piano.
...Which then leads into Everything In Exchange for Nothing- the next song to truly shine off of this album, with a chorus that set's it apart from the other song's. Of course, we're greeted with the quintessential screamo verse's, which Ashes at Last are accustom to, but the melodic chorus is what pull's it all together.
The trance induced Error404 carries us into the next single off of the album, Mustache Cashstache. Honestly, I don't think that this is the among the best from this album, but it's still a really solid track which is to be expected from Ashes. The breakdown in this song is pretty f*ckin sick, I swear I'm thrown out of my body whenever it get's to that part of the song.
We're Going For a Ride/We're Not Coming Back combines the digital and screamo sound that Ashes are known for, with a siren like synth that carries on throughout the song. The break in the middle of the song is my favorite part, creating a mysterious atmosphere penetrated by the faint but rageful vocals.
If Only Helen Keller Could Hear This is the final new song off of This is How Silence Dies, and sure as hell make's me dance with my hip's (30H!3 reference). I think like a lot of Ashes song's, the digital break in the middle that leads into the outro is the best part of the track- it's what they do best, and execute almost perfectly every time. Assuming Spirits in the Wall's is meant as a bonus track, then this is a great outro for This is How Silence Dies, and another great statement for who Ashes at Last are.
The bonus track, Spirits in the Walls (Acoustic), is a great outro, and is one of my favorites off of the album. Spirits in the Walls was originally on You Can't Stop the Sunset, Ashes at Last previous release but this acoustic take on the song is honestly amazing. Not only is this song one of the most lyrically skilled song's in Ashes discography, but it's also beautiful on acoustic when paired up with Niko's vocals.
Favorite Song: Spirit's in the Wall's (Acoustic)
Least Favorite: Mustache Cashstache
Score: 8 Roswell's out of 10 Roswell's.
We're excited to see more from Ashes at Last, and hope this is one of many amazing records to come from them! Thank you so much for reading, we'll see you in the next review!
No comments:
Post a Comment