Let’s be honest here, for a metalcore album to really stand out these days it’s going to have to do something really fucking special and, while there are still lots of bands producing solid pieces of work, there are very few that are doing anything that could be considered amazing. Sadly, Vultures Above, Lions Below, the fifth offering from Sydney shredders Buried In Verona, falls into that overcrowded category labelled “solid but uninspiring.”
The problem is that the majority of Vultures Above, Lions Below is just really generic. Making use of that familiar mix of crunchy metalcore guitars and stabbing electronics, Buried In Verona have pretty much nailed every metalcore/post-hardcore trait over the course of this album. From the angsty “You fucking make me sick…” at the start of “Separation” to the repetitive bounce of “Dig Me Out”, it’s all very predictable stuff that you’ll have heard a million times over. On the plus side now, Buried In Verona’s frontman, Brett Anderson, switches effortlessly between screams and cleans to complement the polished metalcore sound, however, on the downside, the use of gang-vocals doesn’t really add anything to the mix.
Now there are some decent moments on Vultures Above, Lions Below like the dramatic “Reflection,” but those moments are few and far between on an album that may tick all the boxes for an angsty teenager, but for those of you who’ve been around the metalcore block, figuratively speaking, don’t expect Vultures Above, Lions Below to make the earth move.
Track Listing:
01. Vultures Above
02. Extraction
03. Dig Me Out
04. Hurricane
05. Separation
06. Can’t Be Unsaid
07. Reflection
08. Done for Good
09. Pathways
10. Unbroken
11. Bring Me Home
12. Lions Below
Run Time: 47:01
Release Date: August 7, 2015
Check out the song” Extraction” here.
