Confront Hate is a Portuguese metalcore band with an American sound. Diabolical Disguise of Madness is their new debut album which conveys a heavy and energetic sound, although less commercial than bands like Killswitch Engage. There are noticeable influences from KsE, and other similar metalcore bands such as As I Lay Dying. The song "Corrupted Desire" is a particularly enjoyable song that opens with a lowpass filter that fades into the full frequency of the song. This change between being muffled and completely open sounds huge comparatively. There's a lot of low palm-muted powerchords amongst harmonized lead guitar parts, and an epic chord progression underneath the solo that evokes an adventurous feel. "New Divine Shadow" seems to be influenced by Lamb of God as there are some similar riffs and vocal expressions used.
The title track "Diabolical Disguise of Madness" begins in a much more cinematic manner, and prior to "Feeling the Silence", is the longest track. Most of them range between 3 to 4 minutes. The short length allows a more concise sound which is abandoned for the last couple songs. Naturally, this extension of length makes the final two closing songs seem a lot more progressive. Strangely, the final two songs add up to almost half of the total length of 'Diabolical Disguise of Madness', which calls into question whether you could consider Confront Hate a metalcore band, or go as far as to call them progressive metal. It's an interesting concept, and the final two songs are impressively constructed and deserving of the progressive adjective. If Confront Hate had used a similar writing style for the majority of the album, however, it probably would have been a lot more consistent and enjoyable as a whole. The two "halves" are enjoyable, certainly, but they're two opposite sides of a coin. Also, half of "Feeling the Silence" is... silence. Not particularly exciting silence, and perhaps only slightly progressive. Ultimately, it seems like a gratuitous attempt to get the length up to 13:37. Very funny. Confront Hate taps into some interesting territory and put their personality into the songwriting while paying homage to some other bands in the metalcore genre. Diabolical Disguise of Madness is a wild ride with a few gems and good production that you won't regret checking out if you're into metalcore.
Track Listing
1. Sokenra
2. Hate Will Never Die
3. Corrupted Desire
4. Conception
5. New Divine Shadow
6. Love Grows Cold
7. Diabolical Disguise of Madness
8. Feeling the Silence
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