Dead To Fall - Are You Serious?

Band: Dead To Fall
Album: Are You Serious?
Genre: Metal
Label: Victory

Tracks:
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 aka Dream Journey

Say what you will about Victory Records and Tony Brummel, but when they sign a new band, you can be sure there's a good chance they are going to be great. First they brought us Blood for Blood, Thursday, Taking Back Sunday, and then the band in discussion today: Dead To Fall. D2F just released their brand new album, "Are You Serious?" on February 18th and this release marks not only their 4th album on Victory, but also the biggest progression the band has made in a long time.

With their previous releases, Dead to Fall established that they new how to make in your face, fists in the air, metal. The art always depicted some epic scene that almost summed up the entire album. "Are You Serious," is no different and, through Tron like art, prepares the listener for tales of the future as well as some perspective on, "the scene." The opening track, "IQ Test," is a simply minute long intro that is heavy on keys and synth [both quite new for Dead To Fall fans], but all that instrumentation is tossed aside for the real metal that is about to begin. "Stupid," the following track, is a hilarious rip on the current "scene" of hardcore music, with lyrics like, "Oh no it's the death metal riff/ i better sign about some face ripping/ cat raping," ...well.... you get the idea. The song shows a newer sound for the band, almost like Every Time I Die, but with more focus on the rock. From there, the next few tracks breeze by with roaring guitars and vocalist Jonathan Hunt ripping his vocal chords apart with tales of lazy people and a gloom future where the human race is being controlled by a mechanical colossus [yes, I am serious]. From there, we find the single, "Major Rager," which chronicles what sounds to be, the coolest party ever. Think of it as a metal take on the Beastie Boys, "Fight For Your Right [To Party]," but with huge breakdowns. The following tracks, "Loch Ness," "Brainmelter," "Cropgrower," and, "Robo-Destro," showcase the range that dead to Fall has developed. Unlike other bands who seem to follow a formula for song writing, Dead To Fall makes their way from fast past mosh-inducing jams, to deep flowing metal with low vocals and deep bass lines. It is really refreshing to see a band taking a genre overwhelmed with bands and trying to make it their own. The album finishes with, "Doombox," and the perfectly placed, "Astral Projection/Dream [Journey]. The last track starts fast and strong, but then begins low and builds into a ferocious beast of instrumentation until the album ends with about twelve seconds of feedback [aka - time to catch your breath].

Dead to Fall have crafted a near masterpiece with enough breakdowns for any hardcore fans and lyricism that takes the genre by the horns. It's not everyday you find an album that actually manage to use the line, "Here comes a star, it looks like a Werewolf [Brainmelter]," and still manages to seem cool. The production is top notch and the guys have never sounded better. If this is what the future holds for Dead To Fall, it's going to be an amazing journey.

GRADE: 9/10