Tuesday, October 7, 2014

It's Good Metal, Eh?

Keep Your Eye On Them!

Band: Among The Betrayed
Formed: 2012
Origin: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genre(s): Thrash Metal, Alternative Metal, Metalcore
Sounds Like: Shadows Fall, Chimaira, Killswitch Engage
Releases: 1 EP

Why you should check them out: This is a band that has seen a lot of success in a very short period of time. For only having been in existence for two years, and with only five total songs in their catalog, they've built a respectable fan base that often takes twice as long for bands to build. Since the release of their free EP "The Need To Make A Change" in June 2014, produced by Chris "Hollywood" Holmes who has worked with hard rock pioneers Korn in the past, their fanbase has grown almost exponentially, and people are starting to notice this hard-hitting Canadian quartet. The EP has gotten very positive reviews from underground music websites, praising the band's diversity, and their ability to seamlessly blend the ultra-heavy and ultra-melodic. Unlike many contemporary metal bands, vocalist Nikki Omen favors a raspy-clean vocal approach over harsh screaming, although he does make use of the latter style, most prominently in the song "Eraser," where the verses are screamed while the choruses are sung. Unlike bands like Chimaira, AtB uses screams more for effect in certain passages of songs rather than as the dominant vocal style, except in the example previously mentioned. The instrumentation deserves a mention as well for their ability to go for a full-speed-ahead thrash attack while keeping a strong emphasis on melody like in "Cold and Jaded," and for their ability to play more complex patterns like in "Save Me" and "Eraser." In fact, the only negative thing I have to say about the band is that they don't have enough songs! But, give them time. They've shown this early in their careers that they are more than competent, and with virtually no ceiling, who knows how far they'll climb on the metal ladder.
Videos: 
"Leading On Me"

"Save Me"

"Eraser"

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