For a while I wondered whether I had put play on the right band, is this really Whitechapel? Yes, and indeed the deathcore band has turned into a mainstream generic pop band, with all it takes: cheesy melancholic melodies, whining lyrics, and all it takes to make a perfect radio album.
Whitechapel’s latest release “Kin” takes the band miles away from the crushing deathcore band which won many metalheads’ black hearts and broke many necks, including mine, on stage. Far away from the haunting growls of a bestial Phil Bozeman, to these whines and cries of a broken-hearted teenager, because that’s what this album sounds like, front to end.
Is it a change of mindset from the band or just a way to make the money? It would be shameful to call that album metal either way, although, at times, you can feel the smell of a metal past, once vile and evil band.
The production is accessible and generic as if no effort was made on that aspect.
What makes that release even more pathetic is the complete abandonment of Whitechapel to their identity.
Another metal band sells out. Sad.
Whitechapel: Facebook
Release Year: 2021
Label: Metal Blade Records
Category: Album
Country: USA
Reviewed by Oussama EL OUADIE
