Suicide Silence “The Black Crown” review
Suicide Silence
Suicide Silence
Mitch Lucker – Vocals
Daniel Kenny – Bass
Mark Heylmun – Guitar
Christopher Garza – Guitar
Alex Lopez – Drums
*review by Daryl BK
The brutal boys from Riverside California are in with their latest offering “The Black Crown” which was released by none other than Century Media. With Suicide Silence’s tour schedule it is a wonder that they even had time to write and put out another full length of this caliber.
Suicide Silence has been around since 2002. Think about that previous statement. How many bands in this over saturated genre can do what they have and remain relevant without burning out? I dare you to name them. As soon as I got this album I immediately got sad thinking about all the good times I had at the Showcase in Corona. Not because of all the Suicide Silence shows I saw, but because all of the other shows I’d been to. But no matter who I was there to see, I could always count on seeing SS’s front man Mitch Lucker hanging out. I think that is a major contributor that has led to the longevity of this band. They have always been connected to the DIY aspect of being in a band as well as having the mentality that those paying to watch you and buy your records are the only ones who keep you relevant. Well relevant they are, and I believe if the Showcase was still around, you would be able to find Mitch talking to the kids outside and enjoying whoever was playing inside. (so long as they weren’t on tour)
Out Now!
Tracklist:
- Slaves to Substance 3:28
- O.C.D. 3:20
- Human Violence 3:48
- You Only Live Once 3:13
- Fuck Everything 4:34
- March to the Black Crown 1:31
- Witness the Addiction 5:32
- Cross-Eyed Catastrophe 3:25
- Smashed 3:07
- The Only Thing That Sets Us Apart 4:11
- Cancerous Skies 3:15
Though I have not been the biggest supporter or even fan of Suicide Silence I have always liked the dudes in the band. Upon popping in “The Black Crown” the first word that came into my head was “Yes!” “Slaves to Substance” punches you right square in the jaw. Very good technical metal is displayed and the hook does its job to keep you engaged from opening note to the close of this brutality. I think the genre “deathcore” lends a bad name for this band because the name itself sounds so goofy that Suicide Silence’s message is kind of dragged out of the limelight and lost.
The music is good, scratch that, these musicians are great and together they make what some would call noise. However when actually listening to what is going on in the song behind the heavily tattooed guy screaming at you, you can hear very tight riffs coupled with ultra technical sweeps. The drumming is perfect, timing is everything and Alex Lopez deserves a ton of credit for holding this album together.
The best song by far is “You Only Live Once” and everybody knows it, which is why it was the first single to get a music video off of this album. The track is followed by probably the second strongest song “Fuck Everything” outside of its gratuitous title the song is excellent and actually has that message that every adolescent wants to hear.
The Black Crown is a very good album for this genre however, for the band I think it falls short of what they are capable of. After all they have garnered enough respect that even the front man of Korn (sorry, I couldn’t get my computer to mirror the R) Jonathan Davis lent his vocal help to “Witness the Addiction” even though he didn’t need to. I find his part does its best to take away from the song. At any rate it will leave me waiting for the next album with high expectation to be better than this latest offering, which for most bands out there would be impossible. So please fellas, don’t go the way of the Showcase, stick around for awhile, we are all anxious to see you reach your full potential.
Suicide Silence @ Mayehm Fest 2011 (San Bernardino, CA) [photo by Denise B.
Be sure to catch them out on the Mayhem Festival! The dates are listed below.
Jul 19 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Maryland Heights, MO
Jul 20 Riverbend Music Center Cincinnati, OH
Jul 22 Comcast Center Mansfield, MA
Jul 23 Par Jean-Drapeau Montreal, QC
Jul 24 Comcast Theater Hartford, CT
Jul 25 The Lost Horizon Syracuse, NY
Jul 26 Club Texas Auburn, ME
Jul 27 PNC Bank Arts Center Holmdel, NJ
Jul 28 Xtreme Wheels Buffalo, NY
Jul 30 Jiffy Lube Live Bristow, VA
Jul 31 Susquehanna Bank Center Camden, NJ
Aug 2 Virginia Beach Amphitheatre Virginia Beach, VA
Aug 3 Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion Raleigh, NC
To learn more about Suicide Silence, check out:
http://www.facebook.com/suicidesilence
www.myspace.com/suicidesilence
Don’t miss their brand new video for “You Only Live Once”
About the Author
Denise Borders 39, Los Angeles. Denise founded PWV in 2008 and remains the primary manager and photographer/videographer. She is not secretly obsessed with Joey Cape.
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