Krossbreed
3 Cheers For the Misery ()
Wydane przez Self-financedRok wydania Kraj BelgiumNapisał Wouter7
Krossbreed is perhaps one of the better known Belgian underground acts because one of its members partook in a reality television show called “The Block”. Promotional peculiarities aside Krossbreed has managed to built up a modest following in their home country. The basis of “3 Cheers For the Misery” is modern thrash with influences from metalcore, groove - and heavy metal. The usual associations with Machine Head, Pantera and latter-day Slayer are expected and almost inevitable. Groove and thrash are the prevalent styles and while musically Krossbreed is all over the map, it is surprising in its consistency. “3 Cheers For the Misery” is an angry, melodic, thrashy and above all enthusiastic record that combines the strong points of all the subgenres it touches upon. The punk/hardcore vocals are more down to the line of American metalcore acts like Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, etc in that they mix harsh vocals with softer sections. The solo’ing is fiery, frantic and spirited, definitely leagues above their contemporaries. Since its original release, this record has been picked up by UK label Casket Music and has been remastered and undergone some superficial tweaking. This newly issued version is now available as the “upgrade 6.66 edition”. A promo video was also shot for the track ‘Ashes Of Tomorrow’ for those interested in the visual counterpart to this record. While I’m no fan of the music styles Krossbreed combines, it’s hard to deny the strength of this collective. In a genre that increasingly reliant on copycatting and creative stagnation it is good hearing a band like this again. Krossbreed is a worthy successor to Belgian alternative/thrash metal combo Channel Zero.
