AS I LAY DYING ‘Awakened’ Music Reviews by Rob W - October 29, 2012May 10, 20130 Few would have predicted that bands like As I Lay Dying would still be around in 2012. The Metalcore wave that this band and others like Killswitch Engage were swept away on looked to have limited shelf life, much like the Nu Metal wave that quickly dissipated into nothing not long before. Metalcore has never been quite the chart botherer that nu Metal became for a short while, and although interest in the genre certainly dropped for a period, it’s back now. Young bands like the UK’s While She Sleeps are delivering great albums with obvious inspiration from the metalcore heavyweights of the last decade. As I Lay Dying are well into their second decade as a band and ‘Awakened’ is album number six for the Californians. Band leader Tim Lambesis insists that his band is simply a metal band these days. However much he may want to distance himself from his metalcore roots, it has to be said that As I Lay Dying’s evolution is steady to say the least. ‘Awakened’ is crammed with chunky blast-beats, juddering breakdowns and machine gun riffs. Lambesis puts in a fine performance on vocals, sounding just as angry as you’d expect but perhaps more convincing than on the last few records. There is plenty of room left over for some melody too. Sing along choruses compliment the cookie monster roars, just as the crunching riffs are balanced out with some sublime guitar passages. ‘Whispering Silence’ displays both the heavy and melodic sides of the band in one song but it’s the album opener that really sets the bar higher. ‘Cauterize’ is a big angry number which has go down as one of the band’s best songs ever. It’s not perfect, there are parts of the album that could be labelled filler but it is a mighty return to form for As I Lay Dying. It’s their most powerful and well-rounded release yet and maybe for a while… 8/10 ‘Awakened’ is out on now! Rob W