Fledgling metalcore outfit Allt is wrapping up its current tour alongside Imminence. The tour – a support run for Imminence – is in support of the band’s debut album, From The New World, which was released Oct. 4 through Century Media Records. The 10-song record is and entertaining but imperfect presentation that provides at least some hope for the band’s future. To the positive is the musical content exhibited throughout the course of the 34-minute record. It will be discussed shortly. While the album’s 10 total arrangements make for plenty for audiences to appreciate, sadly the production of those songs actually proves somewhat problematic. This will be addressed a little later. The album’s lyrical material pairs with its musical arrangements to make for even more interest and when the two are paired, the whole makes From The New World worth hearing at least once.
From The New World, the debut album from Allt, is an entertaining but imperfect first outing for the young metalcore outfit that is worth hearing at least once. The record’s interest comes in part through its featured musical arrangements. The arrangements, in large part, because they are not just metalcore. The subtle use of the keyboards and the richness of the bass and drums pairs with the intense vocals to make each arrangement its own heavy, rich, and dark composition all its own. Yes, there are elements of metalcore. But the noted vocals pair with the instrumentation at points to make for a sound and style that is also somewhat comparable to works from the likes of Whitechapel. One could even argue the arrangements even have something of a deathcore sound and style, such as ‘Memory of Light’ and ‘The orphan Breed.’ This even as the arrangements maintain their own distinct identities. The intensity in each arrangement, the heaviness, and depth makes each composition so powerful in its presentation and in turn worth hearing among so many metal fans.
While the arrangements featured throughout Allt’s new album are incredibly intense (in the best possible way), there is a bit of a problem with the arrangements. The problem in question is the production thereof. Maybe it is just this critic’s audio equipment (it has been tried at home and in the car) and it sounds like in many cases, the vocals are washed out. They are on the same level as the instrumentation so in the majority of cases, they blend right in wish the instrumentations. To that end, it does make it somewhat difficult to hear the vocals by themselves. Whether that was intentional is anyone’s guess, but it is somewhat problematic as it does detract from the overall listening experience to a point.
Luckily while the issues with the production are problematic, they are not enough to completely doom the record. Keeping that in mind, there is at least one more positive to note, that being the album’s lyrical content. The lyrical messages presented throughout the album will certainly leave audiences thinking in a good way. Case in point is the message presented in ‘Echoes.’ This song is lyrically heavy as it presents someone almost begging for the help of another who is going through some very difficult emotional and mental struggles. This is inferred as front man Robin Malmgren screams, “Nascent/I feel cold yet complacent/A lost soul seeking self-medication/retracing every crack in the pavement/Will I ever find my way home/So I’m back here again/The air tastes so bitter without you, my friend/Let’s go/To a world of pretend/My reverie goes on/But if I falter/What if I flee/Will you still be there/Waiting for me/I know I promised to hang on/And to make it as far as I can/But if I’m not gonna make it/Please tell me you will be there.” This is a desperate plea for that help from someone who is at the lowest of points, emotionally and mentally. It is not the easiest message to take in for many, but for just as many, it will resonate. The discussion continues with Malmgren noting, “It echoes in my mind/What’s done is done/Your story engulfed by the tide/Paint solipsistic lies/To hide the truth/I can’t let your memory die/Drifting in a boat made of sand/Try to cross to the other side/For there’s a tale about a garden there/Where the flowers never die/But then the currents swept me away/It’s like I’m changing day by day/Now I’m sinking even further/Into the gray/Will you still be there waiting for me?” Again, here is someone who is not in a positive place, emotionally or mentally. The mention of that garden is a way of talking about wanting to get to a better place mentally and emotionally but not being able to do so. To that end, this is a very heavy topic but the way in which it has been approached here is powerful and certainly engaging even being so heavy.
Another example of the power and depth of the album’s lyrical content comes earlier in the form of ‘Aquila.’ In the case of this song, the message appears to be a way of addressing the all too familiar topic of individuality versus being part of the masses. This is only this critic’s interpretation. The inference comes as Malmgren states, “Deed/Stand in your line/Stick to the script/ You’ll be fine/Heed/Wait for the sign/Connection success: This is hive mind/Integrated/We are the greater beyond/Elevated/Sedated/We are the outcome/So how far are you willing to go/To restore your dying pulse/We are one/We are the terminus/We are the outcome/Reset/Renew/Rebuild/Reinstall/God.” Herein is the interpretation of that seeming message of the collective trying to eliminate a person’s individuality. If in fact that is the message being delivered here, then it is truly a unique way in which it happens. Malmgren continues, “Into the great beyond/Reborn/Where you can breathe again/Why don’t you take the fall for me/Forevermore in unity/We are divine/Trade your flesh for unity/Fill their lungs with gasoline.” Now that final line referencing filling people’s lungs with gasoline leaves plenty of room for interpretation, but that mention of taking the fall for one being is another seeming reference of a collective doing all for one, that hive mind mentality. If this interpretation about this song being lyrically about the dangers of a collective mindset is right, then it is a very unique way, once again, about the song taking on a familiar topic. Keeping that in mind, it becomes another key way in which the album’s lyrical content proves so important.
One more example of that importance comes in the album’s opener, ‘Remnant.’ This song comes across as being rather nihilistic, to say the very least, but still powerful. The seeming message here apparently delivers a thought of how far the world has fallen. This as Malmgren notes, “Once they called this Eden/But I’m sure that must have passed/But I will keep imagining/For that is all we have left/Since the day when the sky was opened/We were blinded by the lights from above/We wait in silence awaiting the final cull/We are the afterglow of an antidote/The ones who won’t let go/We are but ghosts.” This almost comes across as a statement encouraging people not to give up despite how bad things have become. This seeming message even continues in the song’s second verse, which states, “Hide!/Do you hear that?/That is the sound of life/Don’t let it fool you/That’s how they lure you to die/Run!/Do you feel that?/They are getting closer now/But don’t turn around/No/This one depends on our lives.” This certainly seems like a message of not giving in or giving up. If in fact that is the case then the way in which it is delivered is new, and in turn all the more interesting. The overall presentation here (and through the whole of the album’s lyrical content) is intriguing regardless. It is sure to generate plenty of discussion. To that end, the overall lyrical content spread across Allt’s new album proves just as important as the album’s musical arrangements. When the two elements are considered together, they make the album worth hearing at least once. This even despite the production concerns that raise throughout the album.
From The New World, the debut album from upstart metal act Allt, is an interesting presentation from the band. The album is entertaining but not perfect. Its success comes in part through its arrangements, which blend elements of metalcore and deathcore for a unique whole that holds its own against works from so many other bands, new and otherwise. The lyrical themes that accompany the album are also of note because of the discussion that they are sure to generate. The only downside to this record is its production. That is because it sounds far too often like the vocals get washed out against the instrumentation in each song’s arrangement. The result is that it detracts from the overall engagement to a point. Luckily this not enough to doom the album, considering the impact of the album’s collective content. To that end, From The New World proves worth hearing at least once.
From The New World is available now through Century Media Records. More information on the album is available along with all of Allt’s latest news at:
Website: https://alltband.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alltofficial
