Unholy Anger

No one gets off easy on Those Who Fear’s debut album, least of all the band members themselves. The Pittsburgh-bred hardcore quintet wrestles with ferocious inner demons from start to finish, giving its music an inescapable mood of desperation. TWF takes the molten intensity found in combos like King Conquer, Emmure, and The Acacia Strain and refines it to its purist essentials, dispensing with synth embellishments and blast-beat excess in favor of snarling vocals, brutal guitars, and high-tonnage breakdowns. Unholy Anger’s lyrics capture an Old Testament sense of sin and punishment, with glimmers of redemption evident around the edges. Tracks like “Daggermouth,” “Sowers of Discord," and “(Un)Holy Anger” slam hard and stab deep, mauling the listener as the band confronts the powers of darkness. The jackhammer riffage and pummeling drum work of “Burn,” “My Domain,” “Convictions," and similar tunes are unrelenting, relieved slightly by the slowly seething (but no less heavy) “Day of Judgement” and “Colossus.” If Christian hardcore served up straight is to your taste, Unholy Anger will more than satisfy.