Lantern For A Gale

Lands More Hostile EP

Written by: PP on 22/10/2012 23:49:53

I'm in EP reviewing mode today so here's another one, this time by an Ireland based melodic hardcore band called Lantern For A Gale, who present us a sound we've not really heard for a little while now. Their five-track EP "Lands More Hostile" namely sources its main inspiration from the rumbling misanthropy of Shai Hulud's pioneering metalcore efforts "Hearts Once Nourished With Hope And Compassion" and "That Within Blood Ill-Tempered" from 1997 and 2003, respectively, while at the same time delivering a little less intensified and a more lofty hardcore approach to the ugly/beautiful contrast of melody that they have going on here.

In practice, it means they have a harshly roaring, slightly monotonous vocalist on top of an otherwise exceptionally melodic take on the genre, which creates an interesting contrast between the two. On one hand, the screaming may not add much to the sound on its own, but when placed in such a direct and purposeful contrast with intricate, lingering melodies and well-developed, all-encompassing atmospheres, it works almost as well as when Shai Hulud did the same thing all those years ago. Keyword here is almost, by the way, because adding some vocal variety and a little clearer screaming style could push them from merely being decent into being something really great instead. And that's because the sound is so original and refreshing to hear in 2012, precisely because every other melodic hardcore band today is focused on writing The Ghost Inside/Comeback Kid-esque material, and few are going back to the original melodic metalcore roots, at least not in as convincing fashion as here.

So it sounds different from their contemporary peers, and has some killer guitar leads that definitely fall underneath the innovative/creative categorization within hardcore/metalcore in 2012. That's more than enough to convince me. Check out the for the fans of section below, and if any of these bands hit your sweet spot, Lantern For A Gale will too. Excited to hear where they'll progress on an eventual debut full-length.

Download: As We Sleep, Interpreting Nothing
For the fans of: Shai Hulud, Misery Signals, Hollow Earth, Patriarchs,
Listen: Bandcamp

Release date 19.04.2012
Savour Your Scene Records

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