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Mouth Of The South

Struggle Well

Written by: MBC on 27/09/2014 13:53:53

Texas-based Christian hardcore band Mouth Of The South released their sophomore full length album last month on Facedown Records. Once again the label proves to be one of the strongest in modern metal/hardcore with its immaculate eye for talent and "Struggle Well" is another incredible record in Facedown's impressive line of releases.

The album consists of ten songs of consistent high quality without filler material. It is a heavy album with lots of slow chug-riffs and a few breakdowns as well. But Mouth Of The South manage to keep this formula relevant by adding haunting melodies, more chaotic riffage and melodic guitar harmonies to the mix as well as switching to a more straight forward mid-tempo approach. Thus the band's song writing really cannot be pigeonholed into just one particular genre and the term 'hardcore' alone seems not enough to describe them. They transcend the genre by mixing brutality with melody and chaos with beauty. Examples hereof include the heavy nastiness of "Running Scared", the post-hardcore approach on "Good Intentions" and "Porcelain Faith" and the melancholic and soothing atmosphere on "Simply Grace".

"Struggle Well" is a dark record dealing with themes of struggles with faith and battling inner demons delivered ferociously through the tortured screams of vocalist Josiah Lyle. On several occasions, he goes into what seems to be very personal lyrical territory. Check out for instance these strong lyrics from "Running Scared":

"I’ve watched my mother and my brother fight their demons on their own, and though there’s pain I found strength in this broken home. I will never turn my back on you, so I hope you’ll fight this with me. Fists clenched and now we’re swinging. Fight off your demons with everything you’ve got ‘till your knuckles are bleeding, this is life or death so just keep swinging."

On the tracks "Dry Bones" and "Simply Grace" Lyle is assisted by fellow Texan artist Brother Friend who contributes with emotional and beautifully poetic spoken word performances that are incredibly well written and delivered with a very impressive vocal flow. Here is an excerpt of just that from "Dry Bones":

"Your fear of man is a cop-out, it has nothing do with what you perceive others to see. Your tongue is a rudder, but you lack passion for the sea. So what comes out is drought soaking moisture from the desert air, hanging dry your bones and the tome of life from which you refuse to speak becomes your condemning tomb. So I ask, in whom do you believe? Speak up, speak out, come forth."

Overall "Struggle Well" is a very strong release from Mouth Of The South. The band plays passionate music that is as aggressive and powerful as it is melodic and emotional, which should appeal to fans of various forms of hardcore.

Download: Running Scared, Dry Bones, Simply Grace, Hollow Veins, Porcelain Faith
For the fans of: Oh Sleeper, Colossus, Northlane, Those Who Fear, Being As An Ocean
Listen: Facebook

Release date 05.08.2014
Facedown