Listening to BLEEDING THROUGH is like watching a SLAYER themed performance of The Phantom Of The Opera; there’s something ludicrously enjoyable and fun about the band, but only for short periods of time. Their punishing, stand alone brand of hardcore has always been on the very limit of what is acceptable to class as “true hardcore”, but with latest release ‘The Great Fire’ they’ve definitely tipped over once and for all into a sort of Lloyd-Webber-core.
Bastardised with keyboards and electronic samples, the relentless riffs and intense percussion leaves ‘The Great Fire’ far more black metal than previous releases. Opening track ‘The March’ doesn’t beat around the bush, settling straight in for the graveyard-at-midnight vibe before the band erupt into ‘Faith In Fire’, a full on thrash metal assault that any of the Big Four would be proud of, while ‘Goodbye To Death’ has an intense thrash movement amidst the cathedral-organ chaos that immediately brings a smile to the face.
BLEEDING THROUGH are a waking nightmare of a band that are at their best when they’re playing hard and fast. On ‘Starving Vultures’, the synths and keys are almost obnoxiously loud in the mix, and the song is crying out to be taken seriously behind the pantomime grandiosity that often detracts from some truly excellent heavy rock.
On ‘Trail Of Seclusion’ balance is achieved with an atmospheric organ intro building into an example of just why this band have had such an illustrious career, but on the whole there’s a bit too much pomp and not enough stomp.
JAMIE OTSA