BENEATH MY FEET - In Parts, Together

BENEATH MY FEET

Album: In Parts, Together

Genre: Modern Metal / Hardcore

Release Date: March 3rd, 2023

Country: Sweden

Label: Noble Demon Records

Band Links: BANDCAMP / FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM

Swedish modern metal act BENEATH MY FEET released their second record on March 3rd, 2023 via Noble Demon Records. “In Parts, Together” deals with topics such as abuse, trauma, anxiety and grief. The band states: "Having lived through the events chronicled on the album takes a toll on any person, but through sharing experiences with others and uniting in struggle, we can rise stronger again."

This being said, they open with "Caught in a Hurricane", that gives already a good impression of the direction they're gonna take us musically by brewing the storm with some gloomy tunes, before they fully unleash it. There's a strong basis thanks to the pushing rhythm section, as the bass plays along hard-hitting yet melodious, and the drums fast yet groovy. The guitar work is in the same vein, with a good heaviness, but also offering calmer parts. By adding a good pinch of electronic beats and sounds without letting them become too dominant, their music is high-energetic and modern.

Having two vocalists similar in style might be a bit unusual, but they both absolutely deliver in an expressive, powerful way by alternating between screamed verses and clean choruses, and remind me of SOILWORK every now and then (like in "When Both Our Worlds Collide").

Most of the songs are straight-forward with a full-sounding, modern production and powerful breakdowns, but also thoughtful parts. There are two more balladic tracks on the album: while "Far From Home" offers accessible melody lines, "Departure" doesn't really convince me because of the screams not transporting the emotions here, but I enjoy the instrumental second part, as it brings in a different mood.

All together, BENEATH MY FEET released a strong, second album, on which they skillfully melt elements of modern progmetal, melodeath and metalcore. Song-writing and instrumental performance are on a consistent high level, with the vocals adding the needed expression for the hard topics. Even though things get a bit too repetitive for me towards the end, they manage to keep their high energy over the 13 songs thanks to the hard-hitting rhythmic and the mighty sound. If they can deliver this power into their live shows, the mosh pit is guaranteed - Crank it up!

Written by Katha