It’s crazy to think that Darkest Hour have been around for almost 30 years at this point. It’s a pretty safe bet that it’s seemed so much less than that because of the trajectory the band have taken over their career. Specifically, the fact that they were largely anonymous for the first few records they released. Unlike many of their contemporaries, who blasted onto the scene amid people sitting up and taking immediate notice, Darkest Hour existed in the metalcore/new wave of American metal foothills for the best part of a decade before garnering greater mainstream appeal by, and I can hardly believe this, leaning further into melodic death metal than metalcore. Imagine!? Since then, Darkest Hour have bounced around labels a little bit (this is their MNRK Heavy debut), members have occasionally come and gone, but by hook or by crook, found themselves enjoying their most successful years through their most recent releases. As I say, a relatively unusual career arc so far. The beauty in this however, is that there is very little in the way of expected route for Darkest Hour to follow. They can just be Darkest Hour.

At a time when metalcore remains something of a dirty word, especially in its most insipid, modern incarnation, I for one am very happy that Darkest Hour are just doing Darkest Hour. Because it’s by no means first wave metalcore, but it is a really satisfying version of it that puts me in mind of Killswitch, Trivium, etc from the early 00’s. They’ve not jettisoned the grit or the weight that comes from their death metal leanings, but neither have they lost the commitment to big choruses or genuinely affecting solos. Also, whereas the ‘modern metalcore’ that irks me so much has a huge issue with cookie cutter, methodical approaches to songwriting, Darkest Hour have no such problem. The record is a touch over 40 minutes, 11 tracks, and has very little structural consistency; and I mean that entirely as a positive thing I should make clear. There are fascinating, 6-minute epic tales, 2-minute virtuoso instrumentals, 3-minute ragers and plenty that defy such simplistic labelling. Thrash riffs, beatdowns, four-four stomping, acoustic passages, varied vocal styles and occasional bursts of unbridled hardcore aggression. Collectively, it’s a pretty wild ride.

The other thing that really helps this record is the production. The band have worked with some pretty heavyweight dudes in this area over the years (including Devin Townsend and Kurt Ballou) but this time around they chose to work, independently (funded through immense fan support via Patreon), with Taylor Larson who was also responsible for production on 2014’s self-titled record. That seems both quite apt given how much of a distillation of Darkest Hour this record seems and also how utterly organic it seems to have come into being. Whatever the origin of this arrangement, the record succeeds in being gloriously lush when the solos or picked acoustics call for it, thick and weighty when the riffs need to be, but still gritty and violent when the band put their foot down. And all this often within a single song. It’s a pretty neat trick and is doubtless down to Darkest Hour being so completely comfortable with the sound they’re looking to create, and having elected a producer who innately knows as well.

It really is incredibly rare to find a band growing into their own creative skins and hitting a purple patch simultaneously. And infinitely rarer again for it to happen 25 years into being a band. But as a follow-up to their most critically-acclaimed record to date, I think this is a superb album. If you like Gothenburg stuff, you’ll dig it. If you like the Killswitch, Lamb of God, etc scene then you’ll dig it. F*ck it, if you like, well-written, impeccably-performed heavy metal: you’ll dig it. If you’re not sure if you like any of those things, go and listen to the record. I feel utterly justified in offering such a lazy piece of advice, because there is so much to enjoy here, for pretty much anyone who enjoys heavy or alternative music, that it’s a good use of your time. If I’m wrong, feel free to tell me why you don’t dig it. Not because I’m a masochist, but because I’d be genuinely interested. And confused.