San Diego Christian metalcore troupe As I Lay Dying have set the measuring stick by which all other metalcore acts will be judged from here on in with their fourth album, the devastating AN OCEAN BETWEEN US. Armed with a vicious twin guitar attack which seemingly has all but abandoned their Iron Maiden fetish for a new level of viciousness, just check the furious flurry brought forth by "Within Destruction", the Randy Rhodes-esque solo on "The Sound of Truth", or the thrash-happy "Comfort Betrays" as indicators of the quintet's vigorous volatility coming to a head. Packed with jaw-dropping percussion that jumps out the speakers at every twist and turn and rich dual vocal harmonies that propel songs such as "I Never Wanted" and "Forsaken" into the upper echelon of modern classic metal a la Metallica, Megadeth, and the ilk, this 12-track offering cleverly demonstrates the band's ability to progress without compromising their hostility, instead opting to sharpen AILD's trademark aggressiveness into dynamic bits of metallic majesty that help to all but shed the maligned metalcore moniker.
as i lay dying
