ALBUM REVIEW: When The End Began – Silent Planet

The most jam-packed metalcore record this year, SILENT PLANET show us When The End Began for the genre as we know it.

Three albums into their career, the heavies from Azusa, California demonstrate that metalcore has far from stagnated. The established order of unclean vocals lathered all too generously on top of over-produced atmospherics throughout an entire album has departed, in favour of an ethos bursting with authentic rage that even ventures toward a semi-rap. Of course, metalcore would be nothing if entirely devoid of towering atmospheric crescendoes and album opener Thus Spoke is no exception, paving the way for some crushing vocals and an album full of surprises.

While new to the UK, SILENT PLANET have graced the States since 2009 and almost a decade’s worth of experience has inspired and honed their innovative approach to metalcore vocals. Through the absolute juggernaut of Northern Fires (Guernica), frontman Garrett Russell bursts into a perfectly-timed semi-rap, almost a battle cry, which on paper sounds laboured and desperate but fits seamlessly in practice. This rapid fire returns triumphant later in The Anatomy Of Time (Babel) to add depth to an anthem for the lost and alone. Russell’s commanding guttural tones are the album’s flawless mainstay, making a contagious chorus out of The New Eternity in a stark contrast with the sassy, biting Vanity Of Sleep – his versatility is refreshing.

Thanks to the multiple talents of bassist, keyboardist and clean vocalist Thomas Freckleton, the likes of the bleak but beautiful Firstborn (Ya’aburnee) and the adventurous key changes of Afterdusk make sure the album never finds itself fully “spiralling out of control.” That said, the album’s only misfire comes under Lower Empire, with its tricksy retro guitars that feel a little too out of place and quirky robotic vocal distortions that don’t outstay their welcome but probably shouldn’t have turned up to the party in the first place.

“I saw your face inside the fire,” spits Visible Unseen, with its unstoppable energy that must be exhausting on stage for axeman Mitchell Stark. The chaotic instrumental rage of Share The Body presents a stark contrast to the lulling tempo of In Absence, yet both remain cleverly produced and harmonised, never once stepping into the realms of over-mastering.

In saving the best for last, album closer Depths III is well worth the 13-track wait, bringing its outspoken reality to the table in a devastating show of force that, quite frankly, is what BRING ME THE HORIZON’s Sempiternal follow-up should have sounded like. “Will you be the fire that burns in my lungs?” cries Russell. Well, if this is the future of metalcore, you’ve got yourself a deal.

Audibly inspired by the harsh realities of the world in 2018, When The End Began is a dominating and genuine interpretation of where metalcore should be now, on the SILENT PLANET.

Rating: 8/10

When The End Began is out now via UNFD.

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