EP & Unsigned Demo Reviews: Whisper In The Riot, EP

by Leon

Disclaimer: This review is purely an expression of personal opinion, and any criticism given is intended constructively. If you disagree with any part of the review, it's fine and valid – I do not believe my views to be God's Holy Word! It is merely an expression of personal opinion, and in the big picture of life, the universe and everything means absolutely nothing. With that in mind, let's start the review!

When Whisper In The Riot's EP arrived in a very professional-looking CD case (a surprising rarity amongst the endless seas of CDs wrapped in nothing more than A4 paper we receive here at Gig Reviewer), I dearly hoped the music within would match its glossy coating.

And did it? In a word, yes. Hell yes!

Opening track 'Just A Lie' fades in with a very sweet combination of melodic guitars and atmospheric effects, before we're hit in the face with the first of many tight-as-an-ass (not to mention catchy and headbangable) riffs. Passionate hardcore vocal stylings follow, though I felt they were too low in the mix, missing an opportunity to raise the intensity that much further. This is a minor criticism though, as it doesn't detract significantly from the overall experience. The guitar solo could also have done with a boost – however the rhythm section of this band creates such a massive wall of sound and makes such great use of rhythmic devices I would be happy to listen to it even without the solo! Overall a very satisfying track that demands repeated listens.

Track 2, 'The Spoiler', provides more excellent riffage, hitting like a punch to the face while remaining tight and demonstrating the band's great technical abilities. The vocals are again too low in the mix, but with a riff like the one at 3:28, who cares! There is also a nice tapping melody at the end (very well placed in the mix - just loud enough to notice without overpowering the rhythmic core of the band), as well as a beautifully dissonant riff and great tight finish.

'Wolface' (track 3) has a very nice intro, with another good atmospheric buildup into more brutality. Very nice use of the 12/8 time signature, creating galloping rhythms with more than enough variations to keep the listener's interest (very important given that time signature's extensive use in hardcore and metal genres).

'Culling The Herd', the closing track, is a much faster, thrashier effort giving way to more beatdownalicious hardcore pummeling, with interesting melodic motifs on top. The band remains tight throughout intricate and technically demanding riffing. Vocals are much more passionate on this track! The bridge section uses much lower dynamics, finally giving us a break from the pummeling guitars. This is followed by a very nice solo section incorporating soaring melodies and even fantastic shredding, and yet more beatdowny goodness to bring us to the end. This track was far and away my favourite, thanks to the tasteful use of dynamics giving the sections that followed that much more intensity.

Overall: Very accomplished metal players, great production, passionate vocals, excellent use of dynamics and melody particularly in first and last tracks. The additional enhanced CD content is a very nice touch too, with promising additional tracks ('Cardia Dynamis' recalls 'Death Of A Dead Day' – era Sikth, while acoustic track 'Follow Me And Fall' demonstrates great depth and musicianship), a full technical breakdown on the making of the album, and so much more. More bands should send us stuff like this – you get a hell of a lot of value for money with these guys! With a fantastic focus on the tiniest of details Whisper In The Riot are sure to see their star ascend within the hardcore music scene and beyond. Good luck to them!

Check out the band's progress at www.myspace.com/whisperintheriot