Saving Grace

The Urgency

Written by: MBC on 31/01/2014 23:57:51

Saving Grace is a metal/hardcore band from New Zealand currently signed to Facedown Records. Since the band’s inception in 2005, they have released four albums including their breakthrough album “Unbreakable” in 2010. Like most bands on Facedown, Saving Grace is a Christian band and pretty serious about it too, after all their last album was entitled “The King Is Coming” (2011). This perspective has not changed on “The Urgency”, the latest album from the band which was released this month. However, this time around the preaching is actually kept to a minimum, and the lyrics for the most part deal with battling inner demons, struggles with faith, apathy and perseverance. Thus non-believers need not shun this album, and they should not in any case, since it is a great one. Facedown had a great 2013 with some really strong album releases, a few of those reviewed favourably here on Rockfreaks.net, and it looks as if 2014 might be just as good, if “The Urgency” is any indicator of the quality to come.

The style of Saving Grace combines elements from acts such as Pantera, Slayer and Hatebreed with the best of modern metalcore into a strong mix of hardcore and metal with heavy riffs, fast solos and big breakdowns. It seems as if the band has had the intent of outdoing themselves on this new album, which is their best release thus far. Front man Nicholas Tautuhi is an extremely talented vocalist who delivers a ferocious performance on the album with an array of vocal styles. Whether it is a guttural roar, a mid-range hardcore staccato delivery or a long high pitched scream, his performance is flawless. With his impeccable technique delivered in a raspy and desperate tone, his performance is nothing short of incredible.

The album starts off with a bang with the brutal opening of “+0” with immense shredding, kick-ass double-bass and multilayered screams. “Horse Apples” is a short, but sweet aggressive attack on stupid selfie-culture: “This is the age of vanity, a self-obsessed generation publicly masturbating, readily yielding privacy and vomiting their ignorance into an ocean of foolishness”. “The Anthem of the Underground” is a straight up hardcore mosh-anthem with lyrics such as: “Fight until our dying breath, we are the broken, we are the lost, we are the ones who’ll take this back at all costs, this generation is alive.”. “Ablaze” has an As I Lay Dying vibe with melodic riffing and soloing. These are some of the highlights, but there are many more on “The Urgency”.

“The Urgency” is not groundbreaking or extremely original, it is just simply a really great metal/hardcore record.

8

Download: +0, The Anthem of the Underground, Ablaze
For The Fans Of: Full Blown Chaos, Hatebreed, As I Lay Dying
Listen: Facebook

Release Date 21.01.2014
Facedown

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