VII: Sturm und Drang

The American metal veterans return with a concussive new statement influenced in part by frontman Randy Blythe’s time in a Czech prison—for manslaughter charges that were eventually lifted. While Deftones’ Chino Moreno lends his distinct vocals to the hypnotic clatter of “Embers”, and Dillinger Escape Plan’s Greg Puciato adds his scream to the searing atmospherics of “Torches", it’s Blythe’s howl that propels every punishing cut. “This is a tarnished heirloom”, he bellows on “Still Echoes”, the opener he began writing while incarcerated. “Passed down through iron fists / A shameful house of doom.”