I will put out there that the members of serration are good friends of mine, but that won't become a bias within this review.
This 4 song release, coming in at a quick 7 minutes and 12 seconds brings everything I enjoy about this band into a strong culmination. Serration bring a slightly more compelling sound to the metalcore genre in my eyes. In the midst of their aggressive songs, I find there are only tasteful hits of those sharp dissonance accents that seem to be a favourite for most bands recently. While I listen to songs like downpour I am fully encapsulated by the opening riff, that transitions into multiple tempo changes that upon first listen left me surprised. Colter does a great job of providing strong transitions on drums, while leaving Jose and Jake on guitar to keep the aggressive deep guitar running wild.
Cody brings his strong lyrical content to downpour. The most notable in my mind "How just a trace of hope has lead me to a lifetime of lie. You promised me a life of brightness, but your darkness fills the sky". I think this is a great opening track for this release, as it combines everything I think Serration is accomplishing. Strong guitar riffs, great lyrical content with a strong vocalist, as well as hard hitting drums.
The Event Horizon comes in at track 2. Beginning the track with a faster tempo than downpour, but following this with a tasteful hit of dissonance accompanied by Cody's strong vocals and we have a recipe for a notable track. This track also features guest vocals from John Pettibone of Himsa/Heriess. Something that I learned while writing this review up. Matt's bass lines in this song stand out for me. Following the intricate riffs that Jake and Jose pull off, and supporting the dissonant notes when required. Matt has added to the tracks tastefully, adding bass runs when necessary and allowing them to be picked up by the listener with admiration.
My favourite lyrics off this song are "I felt the rising tide at my tired feet. I feel the earth is drowning, and I can barely breathe".
Lying figure comes in at track 3, and I think this song gets one of the strongest reactions live. It is a mix of violently heavy, groovy as all hell and brings inspiration to metalcore from the 90's with Cody's vocal delivery. Some may say that 1:36 is too short of a conclusion to this song, and I would partially agree. It is concise and to the point, and is an unrelenting 1:36 song. Once again Colter can change the overall mood of the song instantaneously, at one point making you want to bang your head and enjoy the culmination of all 5 members' intensity, followed by the need to set it off by either dancing, grooving on the side of the floor, or whatever your heart desires. Furthermore, the addition of the quick blast beat prior to the groovy tempo change is a great addition. Lying figure also has the most notable breakdown off the release, and when witnessed live in tends to sound heavier than the record.
Favourite lyrics off this track delivered in the turmoil-esque " All this without you, time set aside while we wait to watch you fall. The price that you paid is now sweat off my back. Just taking advantage of the trust I had".
The title track Ease yourself back into consciousness wraps up the four song release, coming in just over 1 minute long. It is heavy. There are strong drum transitions that really bring out the guitar. The bell hits during the end of the breakdown appear to drastically change the sound, accomplishing a lot, with a minor change. I'm keeping this one short, since this track is short and to the point. It hits hard and is a great conclusion.
I'm looking forward to what Serration will put out next. This release built on the success of their split with Dying Wish, and Shrine of eternal Life. The band keeps improving and I'm confident the next release will continue in this direction.
You can check our Serration on bandcamp where you can purchase all three of their releases for about ten dollars currently. (https://serrationab.bandcamp.com/). As well as spotify if you are streaming.
