Three LPs into their career, Brooklyn's Meek is Murder is kind of like a "silent killer" in the whole mathy-metallic hardcore scene spearheaded by Converge. They've independently released all of their albums, and in standard fashion for this particular scene of heavy music, have enlisted the master himself, Converge's Kurt Ballou, to produce each of their albums. Though they might not get as much recognition or exposure as their contemporaries, make no mistake: Meek is Murder is a downright lethal trio of fantastic musicians, and their latest opus Was makes a strong case for their name to be uttered among some of the greats in this scene, and yes, that even includes Converge.
As was the case with their past two albums, Meek is Murder cram as much fury and spastic musicianship as humanly possible into the 12 cuts that make up Was. Right out of the gate, "Black Lung" unleashes a flurry of double kick runs and crunchy, mathy riffs that appropriately set the stage for the rest of the album. That Meek is Murder is a capable of such potent sonic destruction as a trio is a testament to their abilities as musicians, not to mention their collective mastery of fusing metal and hardcore elements into a cacophony of raw audial assaults. Vocalist/guitarist Mike Keller sounds as tormented as he does pissed, and Metal Injection's very own Frank Godla proves he's as formidable and unpredictable as ever behind the kit; the guy sounds like a unhinged battering ram the whole way through.
Though much of what Meek is Murder accomplishes on Was is largely par for the course when it comes to this style of music, they manage to stand out some by injecting some experimentation into the mix, as well as borrowing a few tricks from bands across the spectrum. "The Same Mistakes" kicks off with a very '90s grunge influenced riff that's been tossed into a hardcore blender, while "Full Hearts, Empty Rooms" locks into an almost Gojira-esque groove as viewed through an undeniably hardcore lens. These moments and more give Was a slightly different approach to a subgenre of heavy music that is quickly becoming oversaturated with a lot of wannabes, and it's an approach that is most certainly welcome. Not everything needs to reinvent the wheel or be totally groundbreaking in order to be good, and Was is proof of this. Overall, a solid effort from a band that knows what the hell they're doing.
Score: 7.5/10
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