ALBUM REVIEW: Remember… You Must Die – Suicide Silence
It is well known that SUICIDE SILENCE have had a tumultuous time as a band. Formed in 2002, their 2007 debut full-length The Cleansing is a deathcore staple, and is still beloved to this day. No Time To Bleed followed to further acclaim in 2009, as did The Black Crown, released in 2011. But then in November 2012 tragedy struck as vocalist Mitch Lucker died following a severe motorbike accident. Over the past decade, the band have persevered with new vocalist Hernan ‘Eddie’ Hermida, releasing three further full-lengths and expanding their sound significantly and to somewhat polarising effect.
However, with their seventh full-length Remember… You Must Die, the band go back to basics. The opening track Remember… provides an eerie synthesiser intro that ends with a distorted audio clip reminding us that we must die before smoothly transitioning into the explosive You Must Die. Unclean vocals in deathcore have a reputation for largely taking the form of unintelligible pig squeals and generally a whole lot of deeply unpleasant noise, but some might be quite surprised with the unclean vocals on Remember… You Must Die. They are easy to hear and understand, and there are even some clean vocals thrown in throughout the album, most notably on Capable of Violence (N.F.W.).
If you do adore the old-school deathcore vocal sound however, you’re in luck as Fucked For Life showcases the best in Hermida‘s uncleans. That’s not to say that his performance across the rest of record is stale by any means; if anything, it is actually unfair to compare his performances across songs as they are all brilliant. Drummer and new recruit Ernie Iniguez also shines throughout; an absolute mastermind behind the kit, he simply adds that little touch of extra brilliance to songs such as Kill Forever and God Be Damned. The latter also has a fantastic guitar solo from Chris Garza and Mark Heylmun, allowing them to take centre stage.
It is refreshing as well that the production on the album means that all the instruments can be heard. On some deathcore albums, it can be easy to miss the nuances on the songs, but on Remember… You Must Die, all the band get an equal footing. Even with the band going back to basics, that doesn’t mean that they don’t also try new things. From the aforementioned different take on unclean vocals, to the audio clips scattered here and there throughout the album, SUICIDE SILENCE manage to cover both old and new ground here.
There are also some songs that would translate extremely well live. Take The Third Death, for instance. The fast-paced drumming, the opening breakdown-esque introduction, and the chants of “We come from nothing!” are just begging for crowd participation. The final song Full Void, meanwhile, lures the audience in with some gentle guitar playing before spitting in your face with the most brutal unclean vocals on the entire record. The mixture of both unclean and clean vocals are some of the best on the album. Whilst the rest of it is brilliant in its own right, it is as if SUICIDE SILENCE have pulled out all the stops for a brilliant closing song, complete with extended guitar solos and the same distorted audio clip that opened the album to bring the record full circle.
Overall, SUICIDE SILENCE have showcased why they are still one of the greatest deathcore bands of all time. By going back to basics, they have shown that they are not afraid of their past. There is also some new experimentation thrown in, but it is not jarring enough to distract from the older sound. This album is a great starting point for newer fans, and one that older fans will be able to appreciate as well. Whilst some might consider the title to be extremely morbid, Remember… You Must Die reminds us to grab life by the horns, let loose, and have fun. Simply put, this is SUICIDE SILENCE once again at their very best.
Rating: 9/10
Remember… You Must Die is set for release on March 10th via Century Media Records.
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