Album Review: Woe, Is Me - Number(s)

When you mention metalcore no one really bats an eyelid anymore, and it’s not surprising considering that most new bands sound the same as the last and the genre as a whole lacks progression. You’ve got your screamed & clean vocals and countless breakdowns in abundance with Woe, Is Me’s debut album ‘Number(s)’. But add to this typical concoction a heavy dose of electronica and almost at times dub beats and you’ve got yourself the latest sub genre to hit metal and screamo.

The album starts with ‘On Veiled Men’ and ‘(&) Delinquents’ which slowly builds from faint crackly beats to brutal screams and introduces the clean vocals in familiar fashion. You’ve got your trademark breakdown backed by some synths and even a violin. The production from the off is crisp, but like many bands doing this it feels over worked and I wouldn’t put my money on this band pulling all this off live.

‘Mannequin Religion’ doesn’t hold any surprises and runs neatly into ‘Keep Your Enemies Close’ joined at the hip by those trusty electronics. They can’t be faulted on the quality of musicianship, the riffs are pulled off well and the seven members create some epic moment that you can’t help but nod to, there’s no doubt kids will go mad for this.

‘Hell, Or High Water’, ‘For The Likes Of You’ and ‘I’ tend to mould into one huge brutal onslaught before Rise Records label mate Jonny Craig of Emarosa and Dance Gavin Dance fame joins the band for ‘Our Number(s)’ but if you don’t keep a keen ear our you’ll no doubt miss him. After ‘If Not, Then Ourselves’ Jonny joins the band again with some backing vocals for last track ‘Desolate (The Conductor)’ which is more RnB than metal, and is awkwardly disjointed from the rest of the album until the last 30 seconds of screams and growls which bring the album to a confusing end.

To sum it up this band are clearly doing nothing new, and I’m still far from convinced with any of the bands adding electronics of late. In the case of Woe, Is Me it feels gimmicky and cheapens the sound which as a whole is over produced leaving everything with a slight auto tuned tinge. Its enormous heavy beat driven breakdowns will easily please but in the end you’re left with the same old metalcore formula that you’ll soon get confused with countless other albums flowing out of the USA’s Myspace contingent.

2.5/5

'Number(s)' by Woe, Is Me is available now on Rise Records/Velocity Records.

Woe, Is Me on MySpace

Connor O’Brien