Shaped by Fate - The Unbeliever
Find out more about Shaped by Fate here
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I'm a believer ... Mon Aug 6 10:10:18 2007
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| by Kate Sharp | ||
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| reviews by this writer. | ||
UK metalcore has had a bad name of late, probably as it all sounds the same with very few bands making an effort and creating a new exciting breed of music. We've had the tight jean and haircuts brigade sashaying around but their efforts have very much been over-styling over substance. With US bands such as Isis and The Black Dahlia Murder seemingly having a monopoly on creative metalcore, it's time that the UK rise up with fists in the air and show the world just what they can do.
Cardiff based, Shaped by Fate could be a sign of the tide turning. Intensely driven and truly brutal in its delivery, The Unbeliever is a positive testament to the creativity of UK bands against a torrent of mediocre and lets face it, derivative bands. Signed to In At The Deep End Records, a label which has brought us Send More Paramedics, Gallows and Sylosis, the label has an amazing and enviable ear for great bands. With the kudos gained from being on such a prestigious label, it only seems to be a matter of time before more people hop on the Shaped by Fate bandwagon and rightly so.
Throat ripping vocals and intricate yet vicious guitar work are part and parcel of The Unbeliever. 'Launch The Immortal Fleet' literally launches you headfirst into the album with gusto, immediately throwing you about in the maelstrom of brooding guitars and crashing drums and without delay making a segue way into the album's title track. The palpable rage in singer Paul Fortescue's voice unwavering as he sings "These are the pale deaths which men miscall their lives/Bodies jerk like puppets corpses and hell walks laughing". This is fantastically brutal fare.
'From Perfection To Poison' continues the vein of brutal sounds. On full on attack, attack, attack mode it never wavers and at over six minutes it is like some kind of metalcore odyssey and that isn't a bad thing. When Fortescue rages "Take the strain, and battle 'til end" you believe every word. This is clever thoughtful metal which is not a thrown together effort; there is a great deal of depth here.
This is what the UK hardcore scene needs; searing, intense sounding music with real passion at its bloody heart. This is music to stand next to the Everytime I Die's and Throwdown's of this world; this is a band to be proud of, not just for Cardiff, but the whole of the UK.
Track Listing
01 - Launch The Immortal Fleet
02 - The Unbeliever
03 - They Told Me You Were Dead
04 - That Thing Upstairs Is Not My Daughter
05 - Deeper The Knife Slides
06 - My Sun Sets To Rise Again
07 - From Perfection To Poison
08 - Swarm Of Wolves
09 - Of This One Apocalyptic Night
10 - Destroyed But Not Destroyed