REVIEW: Memphis May Fire – “The Hollow”

Memphis May Fire / The Hollow / Rise Records

The name Memphis May Fire has floated around the interweb for a few years now and with no real intent on laying down roots. Now, there’s a new label (Rise Records) and a promise to issue “heavier and darker” material. Whereas Sleepwalking leaked a frantic, punk rhythm section, the second studio cut picks up the progression card, shifting between anarchic fingerpicking, impetuous guitars and percussion fills hell bent on denting eardrums. Saying The Hollow is more riotous than its predecessor however, is a bit excessive. Close to half of the recordings flare with a bit of Pierce The Veil rage (“The Commanded”, “The Redeemed”) trading metalcore-laced pop hooks with the ferocious attitude the Dallas outfit are marked with.

Wave away the gray outlook and there’s a lot to stomach; “The Deceived” rolls out programming fuzz before flickering with desperation and raw vocal chords, a common trait igniting mid-point tracks circling a pivot: Matty Mullins. While the vocalist manipulates his voice box, he does it in a fitting way, adding a somber tip to dismal paces before changing pitch. The transitions eject honesty, then malice, all the while tracing connections to Mike Hranica and Oliver Skyes until youth overtakes and Mullins is left wailing out clean vocals. Tie it with the group’s depth and the merge almost seems arrogant, specifically with the incisive riff inhabiting the minute-and-a-half mark of the album’s opener.

Download: “The Victim”, “The Sinner”

 

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