Dead to Fall's latest CD Are You Serious? sees the band inject some trippy psychedelic sounds into their intense & technical brand of deathcore. Let's face it, these guys have been on a roll the last few years, with albums like Villainy And Virtue and The Phoenix Throne getting a lot of press and popular acclaim, but with Are You Serious? the band seems to be ready to take that next step and expand their sound. "The Future" is a perfect example of this new direction, a crushing extreme metal piece that is also littered with some spooky synth flutterings, while "Major Rager" tries to approach the rhythmic instensity of Meshuggah with its stop/start machine gun riffs and intricate drum patterns. The oozing proggy/industrial sounds of "Loch Ness", and the mysterious complexity of "Brainmelter" shows a band that seems to want to leave their 'core' beginnings behind them, but fear not, there's still plenty of furious & technical metalcore to be heard here, such as "Stupid?", "Sleeping Bag", "Cropgrower", and "Robo-Destro", each one filled with more than enough growling vocals, intricate drum work, and progressive metal styled guitar riffs. In fact, you can really hear the increased musical dexterity of the band throughout Are You Serious?, as if the band has been working hard on their chops in an effort not to be outdone by bands like Mastodon, Between the Buried and Me, and The Red Chord. Add that extra amount of complexity with the newfound experimental side, and you have the makings of something new and refreshing for Dead to Fall, heard to full effect on the album closer "Astral Projection / Dream J(ourney) ", where the band almost comes close to a Rush/Dream Theater meets death metal type sound. Well done guys-I think it's time that everyone really starts to take you 'seriously' after all.
Track Listing
1. IQ Test
2. Stupid?
3. The Future
4. Sleeping Bag
5. Major Rager
6. Loch Ness
7. Brainmelter
8. Cropgrower
9. Robo-Destro
10. Doombox
11. Astral Projection / Dream J(ourney)
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