Take a deep breath and enjoy a vicious and nostalgic feast of heavy sounds made in the United States, proving modern-day Metalcore can be just as pulverizing as old school extreme music.

Hailing from Charlotte, the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina, the incendiary Metalcore unity known as Violent Life Violent Death made their mark in late 2016 with the release of their first studio offering, V-EP, a five-track vicious, nostalgic effort blending the most visceral elements of Metalcore with hints of heavier-than-hell genres such as Thrash and Death Metal. Now in 2018 the band formed by vocalist Scott Cowan, guitarists Joseph Benham and Joey Park, bassist Justin Campbell and drummer David Holquin returns with a refreshed and even more ruthless contribution in the form of their second release, a brand new EP entitled Come, Heavy Breath, proving modern-day Metalcore can be just as pulverizing as old school extreme music.

“Our goal was to create a piece of music that had nostalgic qualities to it but with a new-school edge. Having spent some time in other bands has definitely helped create the sound we have adapted with this band, as we took a good look into what we feel has worked and not worked for us in the past and narrowed it down,” said Violent Life Violent Death, also explaining a little more the concept behind their new EP. “With Come, Heavy Breath, we really wanted to illustrate moments of fervor that draw a gasp, or, a heavy breath, as the title depicts. These are the moments of awe that we each experience in life, whether they be conjured through excitement, joy, sadness, loss, lust, love, wonder, etc., while bringing them each to life through our music in as straight forward of a manner possible, demanding the attention of the listener.”

The title-track Come, Heavy Breath, an austere and dynamic Metalcore tune tailored for disturbing the peace of your neighborhood, couldn’t have started in a more distorted and violent way, with Scott beginning his growling attack while Justin and David generate a brutal neck-breaking ambience with their metallic weapons, whereas in Backbiter the band puts pedal to the metal in a sonic onslaught of contemporary Metalcore infused with Melodic Death Metal and traditional Death Metal elements, with the guitar duo Joseph and Joey being on absolute fire with their crushing riffs while Scott screams almost like if he was not human. Put differently, this magnificent song lives up not only to the band’s own name, but also to the legacy of the most violent forms of Metalcore and Hardcore. And in Rot they keep the level of aggressiveness and destruction extremely high, with the razor-edged sound of the guitars inspiring us all to slam into the pit while David also adds his touch of adrenaline to the music through his fierce and straightforward beats.

Mourn is another tune perfect for cracking your spine in half headbanging and for jumping up and down with the band, with the vocals by Scott sounding even more deranged and furious, making it quite impossible to stand still to such demonic display of modern metal music, and there’s no sign of the band slowing down as we face the next song in the EP, entitled Lovers/Deceivers. Quite the contrary, Violent Life Violent Death blast sheer aggression from their instruments, with highlights to the amazing synchronicity between David’s beats and Joseph and Joey’s infernal riffs. And as the last act in Come, Heavy Breath it’s time to roar and gnarl together with Scott during the six minutes of classy Metalcore featured in the song Narcissist, bringing some welcome elements and nuances from Thrash Metal, which in the end translates into an accelerated pace, groovier bass lines, and obviously not a single second of peace, with Joseph and Joey sounding crisp, raw and very melodic at the same time until the music fades into a somber and menacing finale.

After all is said and done, the excellent Come, Heavy Breath, which is by the way available for a full listen on YouTube, will certainly help Violent Life Violent Death cement their name as one of the most promising (and one of the heaviest) Metalcore acts of the past few years, leaving us eager for more of their flammable music. And in order to show your support to those five metallers from Charlotte, you can go check what they’re up to on Facebook, subscribe to their YouTube channel, and purchase Come, Heavy Breath from their own BandCamp page or Big Cartel, as well as from iTunes or Amazon. And when you have the album on your hands, simply take a deep, heavy breath and enjoy Violent Life Violent Death’s chaotic onrush of sounds just the way the band itself expects you to do.

Best moments of the album: Backbiter and Mourn.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2018 Independent

Track listing 
1. Come, Heavy Breath 3:51
2. Backbiter 3:39
3. Rot 2:50
4. Mourn 3:41
5. Lovers/Deceivers 2:10
6. Narcissist 6:05

Band members
Scott Cowan – vocals
Joseph Benham – guitar
Joey Park – guitar
Justin Campbell – bass
David Holquin – drums