80%
Ingraves—Human Abyss EP (2023)
Details
Released on Friday 10 March 2023.
For fans of Whitechapel, Periphery, Bleed from Within, Kollapse.
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Band
- William—Vocals
- Bryan—Guitars
- Matt—Guitars
- Jamie—Bass
- Adam—Drums
- Riki Hobkirk—Drums programming
Tracks
- False gods
- Stress depress repeat
- Wake up
- Self medicated
- Isoalted
Review
Scrolling through my inbox of album review submissions, I paused. “Punishing Scottish metalcore”—that’s a muckle aye frae me. Sure! I’ll definitely support my fellow Scots on their quest for Caledonian metal domination!
Formed in the summer of 2018 and hitting the stage in the autumn of 2019, Ingraves were beginning to go places before, like every other band, the Covid-19 pandemic derailed their progress. The band dug deeper into their graves and unearthed the most breathtakingly intense songs of their fledgling career. Those songs are captured in this EP, Human Abyss (2023).
This music is not for the faint of heart. From the bone-chilling screams and thunderous riffs in “False gods” (track 1) to the jagged, uncomfortable soundscape of “Isolated” (track 5) this is not easy listening.
“Stress depress repeat” (track 2) relentlessly delivers punch after punishing punch before finally collapsing into the lunging, rolling, cascading riffs of “Wake up” (track 3).
In “Self medicated” (track 4) the powerful guitars sway between hope and despair in a melancholic dance.
Conclusion
The press release describes this EP as “bleakly intense metalcore that shows all its scars and demands that you do the same; there is no place for hiding your wounds here, no acceptance of false smiles or swimming in shallow waters. Yet there is strength to be found in the depths of this broken mirror if you’re brave enough to look, a companionship in the darkness that never seems to end.”
I can’t disagree. I have looked into these dark waters and I’m going in. Join me!
Review score: 80%
Disclosure
Imperative PR contacted me inviting me to preview Ingraves’ latest album, thank you. I have no connections to either Imperative PR or Ingraves. I’m not being paid to review this. But I did get a free digital copy of the album to review which is pretty cool. Many thanks to Imperative PR, and to Ingraves for continuing to create fresh, exciting new metalcore.