Termina – featuring guitarist Nik Nocturnal, vocalist Andy Cizek (Monuments), and drummer Chris Turner (Oceans Ate Alaska) – kicks off the new year with a modern metal banger: “Parasocial!” This standalone single boasts special guest appearances from Phil Bozeman (Whitechapel) and Joshua Travis (Emmure), plus a mix/master by Zakk Cervini (Bring Me The Horizon, Motionless In White, Coheed And Cambria, etc). Stream “Parasocial” now on Spotify, and watch the video!
Turns out those dudes in Whitechapel are going to be alright. About a decade removed from the great Deathcore rush, this Knoxville unit is still putting up strong numbers and successfully exploring beyond the confines of the genre. And if you enjoyed the genre line blurring on 2019s The Valley, well it turns out Kin (Metal Blade) is willing to venture further out into the woods.
Within the Deathcore genre Whitechapel are one of the true originators of the sound and in 2016 they released an album called Mark Of The Blade (Metal Blade). To say it was a divisive album would be an understatement, in a story which has been told many times before the band chose to broaden their creative horizons with a cleaner production and clean vocals. In some corners new album The Valley (also Metal Blade) is being touted as a turning point.Continue reading
Whitechapel are a perfect modern example of the varying levels of success that one can achieve on different sides of the Atlantic. Debuting at the time when deathcore was either the next big thing or a blight, depending on who you asked, This Is Exile (Metal Blade) garnered some success in the UK and Europe, before their upward curve seemed to plateau. In the USA, however, they have a higher profile, raising themselves above cult status, with a fanatic fan base they affectionately call their “brotherhood”, from which The Brotherhood Of The Blade (Metal Blade) adopts its name.
The live performance of this package (a documentary is also available) comes from their Knoxville, Tennessee performance on the Our Endless War (Metal Blade) tour and sees them on very sold and fine fettle. Greeted with “Whitechapel” chants at the start, which shows the swell of anticipation, before the latest albums introducing brace of ‘Rise’ into ‘Our Endless War; erupts. All throughout, the performance is near studio perfect – and the band do not miss a beat or note despite technical flurries and breakdowns, whilst frontman Phil Bozeman sounds as furious as on record, showing a varied, if all too familiar range, of growls and barks.
While this live recording shows Whitechapel as a precise, strong and reliable live band, it also lacks any real magic, falling short of the truly great live albums we all know and love, and with the performance being studio quality, it’s hard to see how anyone beyond hardcore fans will find much of value that they won’t get from the studio albums.
What is abundantly clear, however, is how underrated this band is on the British side of the pond. With songs like ‘Possession’ and ‘Mono’ proving huge, ferocious but still accessible and memorable, it is clear that fans of the likes of Heart Of A Coward and even Parkway Drive would find much to love here. As Brotherhood… shows, Whitechapel are a vastly underrated and very reliable act with plenty in their arsenal to back them up. As a package however this will only prove truly valuable to those already in said cult of the blade.
6.0/10
CHRIS TIPPELL
Whitechapel is kicking off their Brotherhood Of the Blade Tour, with dates posted below. The tour includes an appearance at the Self Help Fest in San Bernandino, CA on March 7, 2015 alongside The Devil Wears Prada, Pierce The Veil, Stick to Your Guns, The Ghost Inside, and more.
Stream the music video for “Let Me Burn” here, off their album Our Endless War, out now via Metal Blade Records.
Whitechapel vocalist Phil Bozeman explains:
“The basis of the video is about a man, his wife and daughter. The story depicts the degradation of the man and him going insane. He kills his wife and eventually douses himself in gasoline and begs his daughter to strike the match. But the whole point of the story is that the man has everything he wants and needs, but has no control over his mind and suffers with clinical insanity/schizophrenia and regrets everything he has done.”
Guitarist Alex Wade adds:
“It’s our first time trying a story based video versus a performance video with us playing and we’re really happy with how it came out. Phil’s idea for the concept of the video mixed with Mitch Massie‘s directing developed a very dark and sinister feel that represents the song well.”
Feb 28: Hi Tone Café – Memphis, TN
Mar 01: Firebird – St. Louis, MO
Mar 02: Aftershock – Merriam, KS
Mar 03: Sokol Underground – Omaha, NE
Mar 05: Murray Theater – Murray, UT
Mar 07: NOS Events Center (Self Help Fest) – San Bernardino, CA
Mar 08: Nile Theatre – Mesa, AZ
Mar 09: The Rock – Tucson, AZ
Mar 10: Jakes Sports Cafe – Lubbock, TX
Mar 11: The Conservatory – Oklahoma City, OK
Mar 12: Juanita’s – Little Rock, AR
Apr 11: Empire Garage (Texas Independence Fest) – Austin, TX