Beneath The Sky
What Demons Do To Saints
Victory


One of the latest additions to the ever expanding Victory Records roster, this six-piece from Ohio plays what can only be described as their version of death metalcore. It all sounds very intense and to be honest it is, and usually not my cup of tea, but somehow they have me to some extent intrigued and even captivated.

Whether it's the very subtle melodic parts with clean singing, the keyboard / synthesizer parts, the brutal breakdowns or just the extent of what the vocalist Joey Nelson can do with his voice, something really has caught my attention with this debut album.

There are flaws amongst the extremity of this genre of music and Beneath The Sky's interpretation. The vocals, although impressive with the variety of pitches which are produced, do become a little haunting, especially the highly toned screams. The only thing I can liken it to is a dying cane toad; however the lower "growled" singing parts are more than tolerable and even at times almost remarkable.

The music is pretty much what you would expect from a death metalcore band, but the keyboard parts definitely add yet another element to the whole formula and cause this sextet to maybe stand out a little more. Tracks like For Each Remembered Name and the first single 7861 show how good Beneath the Sky can be, and the bells on the track How The Times Have Changed really add to the nightmare-ish effect that they are going for. It's different, but most certainly entrancing all the same.

If the idea of The Black Dahlia Murder and Darkest Hour getting married to As I Lay Dying or All That Remains were possible, then their first child would be Beneath The Sky. If that sounds appealing, 'What Demons Do To Saints' is you.

Will Oakeshott