Lorna Shore - ...And I Return To Nothingness

 

Key Facts

Country: 🇺🇸

Genre: Blackened Deathcore

Release Date: 13th August 2021

Record Label(s): Century Media Records

Band Members

Adam De Micco – Lead guitar, Bass 

Austin Archey – Drums

Andrew O’Connor – Rhythm Guitar, Bass 

Will Ramos – Vocals 

Lorna Shore - To The Hellfire

Review

Rating (out of 5🤘): 🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘

Favourite Track(s): To The Hellfire, ...And I Return To Nothingness, Of The Abyss

Despite a turbulent 2019 and a disrupted 2020, 2021 sees Lorna Shore come back with a mind benignly, merciless, vengeance! A new vocalist and three new tracks that will set the world alight. The band's unique brand of blackened deathcore has always made them stand out amongst their peers, but ...And I Return To Nothingness ups the ante and obliterates what has come before, this is certainly a new dawn for the band. Packing a veritable feast of deathcore riffs and cinematic, symphonic passages ...And I Return To Nothingness is a grotesque masterpiece of relentless brutality. Shattering all possible measures of heaviness with plenty of "how the fuck?" moments, this EP is not to be taken lightly and if you have a feint heart, buckle up and grace yourself. 

Opening up with possibly the most hyped deathcore song of the year, To The Hellfire demonstrates the band's intent and they are not here to mess around! Of course this song marks the crushing introduction of the band's new vocalist Will Ramos (although he was a touring member previously) and it is safe to say that the vocal ability that Will has is nothing short of phenomenal. Demonstrating his vocal versatility with an expansive range and a whole manner of ungodly, inhuman sounds you are constantly perched on the edge of your seat eager to find out what monstrous noise comes out of his mouth next. Musically, the band have developed their melodic approach to songwriting, moving away from the more frantic deathcore sweeping as found on 2017's Flesh Coffin and instead adopting nuanced atmospherics that gradually build throughout the song and EP as a whole. Whilst the brute force chugged rhythms remain, there is a significant amount of dynamic and tempo shifting which shreds your nerves with the unpredictability. Even so, the song writing is precise, technical and efficient, articulating the band's vision with devastating effect. The sheer weight of destructive, apocalyptic might contained in just three songs is simply phenomenal. The heavyweight riffs bare down on you like the red wraith, scythe armed creature adorning the EP's cover. Of The Abyss takes you down to the dark depths of shadowy blackness, where demonic entities plague the very consciousness of humanity with menacingly euphoric discordance and chaos. However, once out of this black and burning hell-scape the EP takes a surprisingly triumphant tone. Title track ...And I Return To Nothingness launches with almost Skyrim-esque orchestral passages before plunging us back into the thick and unyielding chaos of their signature deathcore riffs. This strangely upbeat song, will have you riding the wings of a fell beast, beholding the destruction of the world like a proud member of the four horsemen. This fresh take on their sound feels inspired and created with fully focused conviction, which is refreshing to see in a genre that has stagnated and is now seeing a successful revival on the back of this EP and albums from their contemporaries Slaughter To Prevail and Brand Of Sacrifice. Overall, the EP is a resounding success for the band, reasserting their dominance on the deathcore scene and firmly hammering home the power that they yield in their riffs. 

The simplest way to describe the production of this EP is simply this; divine. The sonic weight physically pushes you around, shattering skull and crouching bones with the sheer weight of the bass frequencies. Trying to find any fault in this is is simply impossible. Every part serves it's purpose with passion and the mix only intensifies this. The drums sound world enduringly heavy, with a kick that could shatter the earth's core. The snare echoes the sonic properties of a gatling gun being fired at twice the speed whilst the  cymbals crash and smash over the top. The guitars are loaded in the mid and bass range but with crystal clear leads that help show the technicality of the sweeping melodic runs. The bass however, anchors all this chaos with a sonic barrage of sub-bass beauty. Which means when it get's to breakdown time you better have your seatbelt fastened or your chair firmly rooted otherwise you're going through to next door. Alongside the epic layers of orchestral elements the band have created an all encompassing, foreboding sound that menacingly bares down on you ready to rip you apart. Accompanied by the snarling vocals which have been layered to perfection, this EP knows what it's here for and the sonic barrage will overpower you in the best way possible. 

Lorna Shore are now firmly placed at the forefront of the deathcore revival, ...And I Return To Nothingness will no doubt enthral many for years to come and will be talked about for a long time. It is awesome to see a band come out fighting despite the adversity they faced, so if you need a punishing but triumphant EP to sink your teeth into, this is the one for you. 

Lorna Shore - ...And I Return To Nothingness