So, my friends, excuse me while I catch up on some reviews I started last year but couldn’t finish because of that horrendous flu bug going round. I’ve got for you the new LP from The Devil Wears Prada, and we kick things off with ‘Exhibition’ a static sound trying to connect from a parallel world, and then at 0.45 we have that exquisite change from harsh to soft – seamless, flawless and leaving you quite breathless. I knew these guys were good, I trust them; I trust their talent, their attitude and their approach, settle down my friends for some quality Metalcore, suitably enriched with an emo sway and executed in the no nonsense the screamo way.
Mike Hranica -vocals, Jeremy DePoyster – guitar/vocals, Kyle Sipress – guitar, Jonathan Gering – keyboards, Giuseppe Capolupo – drums and Mason Nagy on bass are the faces behind the name, a band of cosmic shredders that get their hooks in you with their irresistible fretwork, intricacies that delve into the psyche, into the metaphysical, into the darkest recesses, and demand you take notice. Moving swiftly all along the ‘Watchtower’ – see what I did there – sizzles and spits, advancing forwards with seismic riffage, swinging into a heavenly chorus, all the elements in perfect harmony. Tales of ‘Broken’ relationships, heartfelt and full of sorrow, a warning maybe, but also forging an alliance with the lost and alone. We remember the ‘Trapped’ locked in an unenviable battle, but never fear because ‘I’m here with you’ the essence of gallantry and selflessness.
TDWP don’t miss a trick, so you don’t ‘miss the sign’ they gallop along merrily, over the roughest terrain imaginable and emerge in glory, on the other side.
‘Sacrifice’ is an ideal example of the emphatic breakdowns here, robust and rudder-like, steering the course of the song, and delivering an acute sense of awakening, completion and restitution.
They finish with ‘Cancer’ and you know what I’ll let the words speak for themselves here,
‘I hope that it’s cancer, and not something else, ‘cause I don’t need any more things I don’t wanna talk about’.
As you sit back and light a cigarette, at that moment when numb meets pain, it’s time to show me your colours.
Azra Pathan
The Devil Wears Prada – Color Decay out now.