{"id":88167,"date":"2019-08-15T16:00:11","date_gmt":"2019-08-15T15:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=88167"},"modified":"2023-04-07T14:25:47","modified_gmt":"2023-04-07T13:25:47","slug":"review-killswitch-engage-atonement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-killswitch-engage-atonement\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Killswitch Engage \u2013 Atonement"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-88168\" src=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-100x100.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-465x465.jpg 465w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-500x500.jpg 500w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Killswitch-Engage-Atonement-Artwork-compressor.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Nothing about <strong>Killswitch Engage<\/strong>&#8216;s eighth album has been easy. Recorded in testing circumstances, it was almost derailed completely. Frontman Jesse Leach suffered damaged vocal cords, forcing him to have surgery. Thankfully, the procedure was successful. The experience has shaped \u2018<em>Atonement<\/em>\u2019 turning it into a scream of defiance.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Unleashed<\/em>\u2019 wastes no time in proving Leach is back on form. His voice sounds massive, dredging up the most powerful work of his career. Within moments the guitars start chugging, the hooks start flying and the band has settled into their familiar groove.<\/p>\n<p>Hitting as hard as any of their recent work, it\u2019s a breakneck ride and their energy certainly hasn\u2019t dimmed. Songs like \u2018<em>Know Your Enemy<\/em>\u2019 are as strong as anything in their discography. Likewise, when the band show a flash of something new on \u2018<em>Ravenous,<\/em>\u2019 it sounds absolutely evil. Even the comfortable swagger of \u2018<em>Take Control\u2019<\/em> comes across like a chainsaw.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Killswitch Engage - Unleashed [Official Visualizer]\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Lm-sI1EB8BA?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In addition, a few great ideas really stand out. Notably, a guest vocal from Chuck Billy takes <em>\u2018The Crownless King<\/em>\u2019 into dirtier territory, which benefits the album as a whole. It\u2019s also huge fun to hear Leach trade screams with former vocalist Howard Jones on \u2018<em>The Signal Fire<\/em>\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>However, there&#8217;s a conundrum. You know exactly what you\u2019re getting with a <strong>Killswitch Engage<\/strong> record. Especially as guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz handles production, again. It doesn&#8217;t help. Yet, it does sound excellent, especially on the muscular \u2018<em>As Sure As The Sun Will Rise<\/em>\u2019. Equally, when choruses dish out heavy doses of melody it really works and yet, feels well-worn. Similarly, when the lyrics broach new topics, notably on \u2018<em>I Am Broken Too<\/em>\u2019, it\u2019s gritty, it\u2019s catchy but you\u2019ve heard the sentiment before.<\/p>\n<p>You knew <strong>Killswitch Engage<\/strong> were going to make a huge solid-sounding record and they deliver. <em>\u2018Atonement\u2019<\/em> has an extremely hard edge and its heartfelt moments sparkle without dragging down the pace. Eight albums in they can still excite, but their unwillingness to explore means it\u2019s an overly familiar journey.<\/p>\n<p>3.5\/5<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Atonement<\/em>\u2019 by <strong>Killswitch Engage<\/strong> is released on 16th August on <strong>Music For Nations<\/strong> \/ <strong>Metal Blade Records<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Killswitch Engage<\/strong> links: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.killswitchengage.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Website<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/killswitchengage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/kseofficial\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/killswitchengage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Instagram<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Words by Ian Kenworthy (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WhisperingSand\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@WhisperingSand<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;A scream of defiance&#8230; \u2018Atonement\u2019 has an extremely hard edge and its heartfelt moments sparkle without dragging down the pace&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":88168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[5879,17445,15621,2435,70,837],"class_list":["post-88167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-album-reviews","tag-album-reviews","tag-atonement","tag-ian-kenworthy","tag-killswitch-engage","tag-metal-blade-records","tag-music-for-nations"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - 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