Carnifex - World War X

Key Facts 

Country: 🇺🇸

Genre: Blackened Deathcore

Release Date: 2nd August 2019

Record Label(s): Nuclear Blast

Band Members;

Scott Lewis – lead vocals

Shawn Cameron – drums, keyboards

Cory Arford – rhythm guitar, backing vocals

Fred Calderon – bass

Jordan Lockrey – lead guitar

Carnifex - World War X

Review

Rating (out of 5🤘): 🤘🤘🤘🤘

Favourite Track(s): Visions Of The End, This Infernal Darkness, No Light Shall Save Us, Brushed By The Wings Of Demons

From the depths of despair and pain, blackened deathcore heavyweights Carnifex rise again and they're bringing their world war with them. A savagely brutal and epically symphonic album comprising of aggressive, gut punching riffs and breakdowns heavier than the weight of the existential crisis that is on my shoulders. After releasing 2018's successful Bury Me In Blasphemy EP,  we have all eagerly awaited the band's seventh studio album with great anticipation. Unlike some of the bands that I have reviewed on this blog, Carnifex have no shame in wearing the deathcore label with pride, Scott Lewis stated "We're not one of those bands trying to escape the banner of deathcore. I know a lot of bands try and act like they have a big problem with that, but if you listen to their music, they are very 'deathcore.'" (Debenedictis, 2010), because of that this album isn't trying to be anything it isn't, which means it has this sense of pride emanating throughout. 

Musically, this is a big, black, boiling over cauldron of black and death metal finished off with a sprinkling of symphonic elements. The symphonic elements is something we've come to know and love from Carnifex since 2014's Until I Feel Nothing, where the band took a more blackened approach to deathcore and if this album didn't have any of that, at first glance it wouldn't be a Carnifex record and would just sound like another deathcore record. However, after No Light Shall Save Us featuring Arch Enemy's Alissa White-Gluz, I knew I'd be in for another one way ticket to Dante's hell which visited all seven stages of hell. There is nothing but aggression and hate in this album, so with the added symphonic and more melodic elements in some of the songs it puts that aggression and hate on a grander scale. Carrying on in the same vein as 2016's Slow Death, World War X somehow seems heavier, the riffs are faster, more chaotic and devastating. Carnifex have really built on the foundations of Slow Death, there are small fragments of what made that album good that have been reinforced and built upon, making this album feel like a step of progression for Carnifex. Lyrically, there is a very clear theme of destruction, desolation and hatred that runs through the album, which is obviously to be expected from Carnifex. By using some more enhanced melodic symphony elements it really expands the bands sound even more, I love the use of Alissa's clean vocals over the top of the chaos below it, adding this contrast is what had made this album a really enjoyable listen for me. Overall, this album is well written and packed to the absolute brim with riffs and blast beats, unleashing a hellish beast into your ears and it stays there for the rest of the day or eternity (depends on how doomed you are). Something in there that every metal fan will enjoy.

The production of the album is also worth taking in. In comparison to Slow Death, World War X sounds a lot more polished as a whole. The mix does still contain that raw energy and savagery of the Carnifex sound but with much cleaner production. As a result there is no muddiness in the low end, every bass not and bass drum pounding can be heard not just as clear as day but with a significant definition. I love the guitar tones, they have the right amount of crunch and distortion in the rhythm section and the use of reverb, especially in Brushed By The Wings Of Demons, expands the melodic and lead guitar playing and adds some depth to the album. There also feels like there is a lot of space on this album too, a very wide stereo field has made sure that the producer has got the absolute best out of the music and I really like that. With the multiple layers also expanding the sound. Overall, a very well produced album.

This is another step forward for Carnifex I feel, definitely a solid and robust album that will hold its own against all the other deathcore releases this year. Go check out World War X now!

Carnifex - World War X

References 

Debenedictis, M., (16th March 2010), CARNIFEX VOCALIST DOESN’T FEAR THE DEATHCORE TAG, Noisecreep, https://noisecreep.com/carnifex-deathcore-tag/