AchillesShit was I ecstatic when I received this in the mail the other week, after being floored by these Rochester, NY natives from their previous release, "The Dark Horse" as well as their split with labelmates Engineer I was salivating as I popped this in.
What an interesting name for an album: Hospice>noun>1. a home providing care for the sick or terminally ill. 2 archaic a lodging for travelers, especially one run by a religious order.
While not a complete departure from their debut full length, it seems these guys have taken a nod from Engineer's "Reproach" and focused on writing a cohesive, organic album that uses each song to build off of the other. This 12 track album is like one big jig-saw puzzle and they put it together flawlessly. It's insane how these guys are math-hardcore yet pack so much melody and emotion into their music. These guys always know how to incorporate the perfect mix of metallic undercurrents with driving melody and well calculated breakdowns.
I've enjoyed the lyrics for each album by these guys, so why would this be any different? I've always marveled at how the vocalist can get across what he says within such few words. The lyrics have a revolving theme of birth, life, and death that ties wonderfully into the title of the album. Check out the lyrics to the opening song "Curtains":
"My own pathetic devices entangle my hopes/Turn my dreams around inside my head/Swirling lights and sounds/Can I grab some of my life, I've become so tired is what I'm left with?/Will this sustain me?"
You just can't go wrong with recording at Skylight Studios with Vince Ratti manning the board. I haven't heard a single bad album (at least production wise HA!) come out of there. I liked the production they had last time but this shit sounds so rich and warm. The bass tone is killer and really fills out the mix and has an absolute lush tone. The guitar tone is awesome. The drums are a pleasure to listen to. Great vocal placement with minimal but effective effects, and the same can be said for the rest of the instruments. And yet another album mastered by the busy hands of Alan Douches over at West West Side Mastering.
Rob Antonucci (band) did the layout and design of the album with the help of some really cool photos courtesy of Shawn Carney. Definitely liking this one a lot, the booklet is nice and thick, 8 pages, with each page displaying a photo, that in essence captures the mood of the song In the middle of the booklet is the lyrics which are displayed over what looks like a distorted blue sky. After that the photos finish off the book.
Rating: 5/5
Songs Worthy of Replay: Sea Level (that breakdown at the end still gets me every time I listen to it, the bass just pummels) and Curtains
Synopsis: This album has extremely high replay value and will be one of my favorite releases of the year for sure. These guys are atop the pack of math influenced hardcore and I'm wondering when the hell people will take notice. There isn't a thing about this album I'd change, the songs are organic and pummeling, the lyrics do it for me, the production is top notch and it's all wrapped up in a stunning visual.