Hello dear readers, is it just me or does this lockdown seem to be never ending?
Music is the best medicine for distraction and I am very grateful to be able to take you away from our “groundhog” reality for a moment.
Korn guitarist Brian “Head” Welch decided to form American metal band LOVE AND DEATH and the group was officially announced in February 2012.
Tooth And Nail Records signed a deal with the band in September 2012 for their debut album ‘Between Here And Lost’ released eventually in January 2013. The album itself was a positive result, Brian’s vocals were a vast improvement compared to their ‘E.P’ Chemicals, released 2012.
The band then signed with Earache Records in 2020 with the new line-up. The release of PERFECTLY PRESERVED is actually perfectly timed, especially during the current situations we all are facing.
I have been needing something new to listen to on my walks to work every day and this album is a suitable fit to prepare me for my day ahead, I have not stopped playing it. Korn are one of my all time favourite bands, they were one of the reasons my love for metal grew, I especially love their old stuff.
Upon doing some research on the band, it became apparent that there was some negative criticism, comments suggesting that Love And Death are a complete rip off! My reply:
“Do you even know nu-metal bro?!”
You cannot deny that Love And Death are everything Korn, but there ARE elements that slightly separates it from being Korn.
As mentioned previously, Brian’s vocals, his ranges have grown with time and it’s evident he is not a one style sort of guy, he’s pretty dynamic.
There are definitely more melodic sections in each track too, thus the riffs are fired at maximum impact.
The album really opens up by the time the second track “Tragedy” plays and it’s absolutely banging! The tone of the riffs coming from the guitars are obviously familiar.
“Let Me Love You” is a cover and features Justin Bieber’s vocals, does it work? Yeah it does, times are pressing and perspective is something we all need. Is it cheesy? Yes it is a massive ball of cheese and again, who cares? The lyrics are inspiring wherever they originated from and life’s way too short to be too judgmental, have some fun innit!
“Death Of Us” plays after “Let Me Love You” and pulls you back into the room, it’s one of my favourites alongside “Affliction”, unbelievably raw and there’s a chunkier pace, full on metal face commencing in 5,..4..,3…
The first single was released in August 2019, ‘Lo Lamento’ and it is equipped with so much weight and the placement of the track is ideal, it evens the album out nicely towards the end.
“White Flag” was the second single released from the album and it draws the album to a close, easing you in gently to start with of course.
I feel they have the right amount of tracks on this album, it may only be just shy of 35 minutes long, but I feel that’s enough. Any more tracks on this then I feel they could potentially risk sounding a bit samey and boring, I recommend that you check out Perfectly Preserved and judge it for yourself.
Review by Tammy Lomax for MPM
