dark tranquility we are the void tour edition

Succumb‘s sophomore entry, XXI, is finally here and highlights one of the best up-and-coming metal bands around. Where previous efforts explored the darker aspects of human emotion, this latest chapter in the band’s storied history acknowledges their past and offers a way forward with them through inner power and an unbridled encouragement of self-worth.” “ Conquering presents a powerful statement from a band continuing to fire on all cylinders after the best part of a decade, without losing sight of their humble beginnings, and the hard work it’s taken to attain the reverence they hold both within and beyond genre confines. The most enduring qualities of Employed To Serve’s established identity remain intact, as Conquering harnesses the band’s signature technical prowess alongside their growing knack for stadium-built battle-cries for a new generation of metal and hardcore fans. “Frontwoman Justine Jones and Sammy Urwin (guitar/vocals) trade vocal duties throughout, confidently flitting between whiplash-inducing screams and swaggering melodicism, as the rhythm section of recent additions Nathan Pryor (bass) and Casey McHale (drums) provide towering sonic weight to proceedings in the vein of Sepultura at their most defiant. “Album highlights, ‘Exist’, ‘Mark of the Grave’, and ‘Twist the Blade’ best encapsulate Employed To Serve’s rebirth, with an emphasis on groove and a penchant for colossal hooks that wouldn’t be out of place on Lamb of God or Machine Head’s respective catalogues,” they add. “Drawing influence from the music of their youth and a new perspective on how to nurture the positive aspects of humanity and individual growth, Conquering is a celebration and acknowledgment of triumph in the face of a world that can be relentlessly adversarial.

“Employed To Serve’s latest release is a fully realized metamorphosis into the band they’ve always wanted to be,” writes the press release. It’s been a great year for new music and the past two weeks have been nothing short of fruitful, with the highlight being last week’s release of Employed To Serve‘s critically celebrated fourth LP, Conquering, from Spinefarm Records.

Dark tranquility we are the void tour edition