EP REVIEW: Fuck Everything – Death Blooms
It doesn’t take long at all to get to grips with DEATH BLOOMS’ Fuck Everything. The third EP from the Liverpool-based nu-metalcore four-piece is inescapably instantaneous. So much so that listeners will surely be shouting along to its angst-laden hooks after just one listen – if that. As well as these, it features tonnes of massive, bouncy riffs which feel ready-made for a live environment. All this combines for 15 minutes of high-energy, ferocious nu-metalcore from a band who are still just getting started.
Formed in 2016, DEATH BLOOMS have already garnered a fair bit of hype with their first two EPs. Leaning heavily into the nu-metal aesthetic much like their fellow rising stars in TALLAH, the band’s raging brand of nu-metalcore has already seen them land support slots for huge names like SKINDRED and KORN’s Jonathan Davis. Clearly something’s working for them, so it’s no great surprise that Fuck Everything carries on in much the same vein. Like the two EPs before it, it’s big on riffs and even bigger on anger. It’s definitely sure to please fans of the already-mentioned TALLAH, as well as the likes of ALPHA WOLF or even LOTUS EATER.
Every song on Fuck Everything makes for a hard-hitting rager, but the EP’s second track Gore stands out in particular. It’s a gleefully violent offering, perhaps best summarised by its chorus of “Gore, gore! Gimme more, Gimme more! Blood, guts! Spilling out on the floor. Gore, gore! Dripping out of every pore! Blood, guts, give it to me!” Granted, it’s hardly Nick Cave or Maynard James Keenan, but there’s no denying it’s a ridiculous amount of fun to shout along to. Good luck getting it out of your head afterwards either.
The record’s closing title track stands out too. This is another bouncy, riff-heavy piece that doesn’t throw up too many surprises. It features another stupidly memorable and unsurprisingly angsty chorus, this time with vocalist Paul Barrow screaming “I don’t understand it, I just feel abandoned. Fuck what you think, fuck everything.” Again, no great prizes for nuance, but there’s still something deeply cathartic about such primal expressions of rage.
Gore and the title track may be the obvious highlights, but Fuck Everything is never less than solid. Those songs aren’t the only ones with memorable hooks by any stretch, and all of them share the same raw and visceral energy. Third track Anger also definitely deserves a shout-out. Its riffs are some of the best on the whole record, and its expansive, clean vocal chorus even evokes the likes of LOATHE, which can only be a good thing for a band like this.
Some are sure to sneer at Fuck Everything. After all, this is a record which combines two historically maligned genres in nu-metal and metalcore. Then again, from KORN to BRING ME THE HORIZON, there’s always been something attractive about bands who turn their pain and anger into something fierce and cathartic. DEATH BLOOMS definitely fit into that mould, and in doing so they’re sure to provide an outlet for many who feel similarly angry or despondent. Whether this same formula would work over a ten-track full-length, for example, remains to be seen. Realistically, the band would probably need to mix things up a bit to avoid losing interest over a longer runtime. What is clear however is that for 15 minutes, Fuck Everything is an enjoyably violent and rage-filled place to be.
Rating: 8/10
Fuck Everything is set for release on March 17th via Adventure Cat Records.
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