Hatebreed - The Rise of Brutality (2003)

Hatebreed, for those of you who haven't heard of them before, are a 5 piece Metalcore/Hardcore band from New Haven, Connecticut who formed in 1994. They consist of Jamey Jasta (Vocals), Wayne Lozinak (Guitar), Frank Novinec (Guitar), Chris Beattie (Bass), and Matt Byrne (Drums). They are currently signed to E1 Records.

The Rise of Brutality, is Hatebreed's 3rd full-length album, following 2 other full-length albums and 3 EP's. When it was released it reached #30 on the U.S. Billboard 200. The album consists of 12 tracks (the U.K. version has 13), which include "Tear it Down", "Straight to Your Face", "Facing What Consumes You", "Live for This", "Doomsayer", "Another Day, Another Vendetta", "A Lesson Lived is a Lesson Learned", "Beholder of Justice", "This is Now", "Voice of Contention", "Choose or Be Chosen", and "Confide in No One". The album as a whole was really kick ass. Each song makes you feel as though you just want to beat the shit out of somebody, while the lyrics are kind of upbeat (mostly positive outlooks throughout the lyrics). It's the guitar riffs that really drive this album, at points simplistic, but they work, the tracks mostly don't need solo's as it wouldn't really fit with the rest of it. If I had to reccommend some choice tracks out of the album, you should definitely listen to "Straight to Your Face", "Live for This", and "This is Now". The three of those tracks really drive the album, they hit you with a blast of sound which actually works, unlike some other bands (examples: iwrestledabearonce and Preschool Tea Party Massacre). If there is a downside to the album, it would be that most of the tracks sound just like breakdowns, which in turn, make the breakdowns sound even more breakdown-y, you'll know what I mean when you listen to it.

Overall, the album is perfect for moshing to. If you're into Throwdown, Walls of Jericho, DevilDriver, Madball, Agnostic Front (Madball is actually a side project of Agnostic Front), Icepick (Jamey Jasta's side project), Heaven Shall Burn, Bury Your Dead, Unearth, or Parkway Drive, then you should check out Hatebreed. The album was released on October 28, 2003 and is available on Amazon and iTunes.

Overall Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0

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Hatebreed's Website