The Urgency

Though they lead the metalcore pack in their native New Zealand, Saving Grace have yet to score a breakthrough in the States. The Urgency may finally give them the major exposure they deserve thanks to its unrelenting sonic attack and palpably fervent lyrics. Pantera and Slayer are obvious influences, as well as ‘80s-style thrash and hardcore. The band’s Christian faith is at the heart of every note played here—each track has a life-and-death desperation that confronts listeners head-on. “We are the broken, we are the lost,” frontman Nicholas Tautuhi roars in “The Anthem of the Underground,” a soul-deep cry for salvation repeated across the album overall. The songs' redemptive content is driven home by the twin guitar attack of Vasaely Sapunov and George White, filling the tracks with savagely dueling fretwork. Songs like “+0,” “Like a Trainwreck," and “Temple of the Snake” bristle with grinding riffs, startling tempo shifts, and searing vocals. Images of corruption, despair, and loss rise out of the musical violence, culminating in the apocalyptic title track.