Our Endless War

Looking to shake listeners out of the safety and comfort of complacency, Whitechapel declare war on what they see as a doomed civilization on their fifth album, Our Endless War. Armed with an arsenal of punishing riffs and guttural screams, the bandmembers lash out against modern society with a visceral tirade of seething, unfiltered hate, and no one is safe from their terrible anger. On the forward-looking "Worship the Digital Age," the band go on the warpath against the media and their constant intrusion into our lives. Their criticism quickly turns to religion on "How Times Have Changed," a song that takes society to task for living by "ancient folklore." While Whitechapel's capacity for hatred and discontent is nothing new (especially in the world of death metal/deathcore), the relentlessness of the album's execution is impressive. From Our Endless War's opening moments, Whitechapel don't give the listener a moment of respite as they launch one sonic assault after another until they've made their point perfectly clear. While this kind of non-stop aural violence might be fatiguing for some, Whitechapel's sound feels so visceral and vital that it's hard to ignore, and that's kind of the point. Although Our Endless War may be about society, Whitechapel make it abundantly clear that the time for discussion has long since passed. This gives listeners the crucial task of deciding whether they want to ride the wave of catharsis with the band, or simply be crushed by its enormity. The CD release has two more tracks than the LP, "Process So Familiar" and "Fall of the Hypocrites."