August Burns Red Is Back With A Renewed Sense of Purpose
Posted June 26, 2013
By username2,
August Burns Red is making a statement with this album. They don't want to fall into the trappings of what passes for metal nowadays. They want to stand out and bring a unique sound that will, in turn, shake up the genre. Rescue & Restore does that job much more so than the band's previous album, Leveler, did. While I enjoyed Leveler for what it was, it did feel a bit like the band was holding back a bit in terms of experimentation. There was some in Leveler, certainly enough to identify it as an ABR album, but it didn't pack the punch as Messengers did.
Now with Rescue & Restore, ABR is finally going full out with experimentation and the result is amazing. Strings, cello, a weird instrument that's credited as a Guzheng in the liner notes, all of that plus the band's signature sudden time changes result in an album that is packed with uniqueness and diversity. There's even some spoken word thrown in during a couple of songs. The lyrics continue to inspire and comfort as well as be brutally honest and Jake Luhrs vocals continue to be standout.
Rescue & Restore manages to give August Burns Red a renewed sense of purpose that was lacking in Leveler. It has enough diversity and uniqueness to stand out in the stagnant metal genre. It also happens to be one of the best albums of the year.
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